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The 2008 Elections
SNOPES.COM You’ve probably used SNOPES.COM many times to check the truth of e-mails. You might not be aware, however, that SNOPES has a hefty political section. It’s simple and easy to use: SNOPES lists the people or topics that are subject to rumor; when you click on one it lists the rumors. Each rumor has a red or green light, indicating whether it’s true or false. Occasionally you see a yellow light, which means that the rumor is part true AND part false. Click on the live links to get a full explanation of each rumor. http://snopes.com/politics/politics.asp FACTCHECK.ORG Awhile back, I recommended FACTCHECK.ORG, saying it debunked political “inaccuracies” of both Republicans and Democrats. It was also chosen twice as one of Time magazine’s “25 Sites We Can’t Live Without.” So, when I was about to recommend it again, I did my usual number on it, putting “about Factcheck.org” into the Google search box. And – guess what? – political bloggers hate it. Only different bloggers hate different things. And then, when I looked a few days ago, FACTCHECK seemed to be giving the Republicans a bad time. The next time I looked, they were giving the Democrats a bad time. I therefore assume that FACTCHECK.ORG is still impartially insulting both the Republicans and Democrats. It’s a gem. OPENSECRETS.ORG OPEN SECRETS tells you how to “follow the money.” Because U.S. law requires financial disclosure for candidates for office, it will give you head-to-head comparisons of the candidates in every U.S. House and Senate race, as well as presidential candidates. You can compare the candidates by the size and source of their contributions, the industries and interest groups that supported them, where the money came from geographically, and much more. Now you can even find out who paid for the trips they’ve taken, and, if you go to the “Get Local” section, you can put in your zip code and find out who in your area has contributed to a certain candidate and how much. GETTING DOWN AND DIRTY HOT RANTS is the place where you can enjoy playing in the mud. It advertises “Left Blogs, Right Blogs, Middle Blogs,” with snippets from many of what it calls the “200 top blogs.” http://hotrantsmedia.com/Home.aspx REPUBLICANS ARE HAPPIER THAN DEMOCRATS? This little gem doesn’t belong anywhere, but I can’t resist putting it in. I’m not taking political sides. Honest. I’ve been a political independent for the last 20 years and plan to stay that way. But scientific research apparently shows that Republicans are happier, and they will continue to be happier whether or not they win this next election or any other election. Of course you will want to read the article and see why. Please note that the first thing listed as apparently making Republicans happier is equally available to Democrats. No matter who wins the election. |
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