The last time I paid attention to this man was in 2008, when he was campaigning for Hillary Clinton's nomination by gleefully reminding voters every chance he got that Barack Obama's middle name was Hussein. And he was shocked -- shocked! -- at the suggestion he was playing on islamophobia to sway primary voters.

When Romney and Santorum get to the bottom they'll be surprised to see that Herman Cain already beat them there.

All of us were apprehensive at first. But all who took the time to study Obama as a candidate, as an advocate and as a person with a family and strong Christian conviction, the doubts were put to rest. Any one can see that he is an honest Christian man who has stood up for those who has the least representation, in our society even when doing so would cost him approval by the elite, whether Democrat or Republican. To most of us that shows he is more than qualified and his presidency as short as it is at this time has been the most enlightening. It has showed us that in the US racism is live and well and residing withing the GOP. The arrogance of the GOP leadership has made a lot of us recant past votes and has made us question the policy making process.

Wow that was odd and beautiful, check out the full length Youtube version of the song by some Australian I think he was.

afrommi - you are one crack pipe dream smoking idiot, and of course a fine example of our public education system. Smoke it if ya got it

"He sang "The Band played Waltzing Matilda," a 1971 tune about the glorification of war."

This is a song written by Eric Bogle, a Scot, in 1971. It was about the terrible slaughter of WW1 and it certainly is not about the glorification of war. The song describes war as futile and gruesome, while criticising those who seek to glorify it. (Wikipedia)

It's one of the most iconic Australian songs of the century.

Is the performance ironic?

I first heard Waltzing Matilda when the anti-nuclear movie On The Beach came out. THIS folk song is an amazing - perfectly composed song. If you understand that Kerrey lost a limb in Vietnam, then listening to this brave performance by a young Kerrey is an overwhelming experience. I wonder why I never saw this film before? Thank you Lawrence O'Donnell for giving us this experience. Kerrey is one of a kind--a kind of left version of Ron Paul--it would be great fun to have him back in the government. Truth Tellers are much needed.

Thanks Lawrence. I cried and cried. I got there along a lower cost route, having been classified as a conscientious objector. i cry when i get a close connection with the unfulfilled dreams that the dreamer in me used to dream. With Glenda Brownback (above), I wonder why I never saw this film before? Please excuse me so I can go cry some more. bob

The song he is singing about , "Waltzing Matilda", is the National Anthem of Australia. The last few words sang here is the chorus. How do I know this? We sang "Waltzing Matilda" in high school. This was a fun song and we learned what words like "billy-bong" meant. Thanks Mr. Yoakam. LaFayette Jackson High School, LaFayette, Ohio.

Bob Kerrey...Best wishes again in the terribly strange and sad land of "U.S. politics meets war and peace" in the new millennium. This humble Maryland Veteran For Peace believes you and other grunts past and present can help counter the many voices of The Hush Puppies On The Patio Warriors pressing our military and government forward on towards the next missions of folly with someone else's Life and limbs. Ask other veterans to help get out the message that war should be the ultimate last resort......not a means to anything else ever. Sincerely, John "Doc" Rafter , V.N. 1968.

I'm glad Bob Kerrey is coming back to National attention. and yes we need to remember that war has a terrible price for all! VN era and Desert Storm vet 1971

Religion: A Cancer In Public Education

By Louis Thomas

Before anyone becomes emotional or defensive about the title, let me explain what I am discussing. This is not a criticism of anyone’s belief in God or any power greater than ourselves. It is not an attack on Christianity or Mormonism or any specific religion. Nor is this a discussion as to whether there is or is not a God.

Let’s be very clear, what I call religion in this context are certain practices of churches and their attempts to control public education in violation of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Their aim is to control what children learn, what teachers teach and what the purposes of public education should be. They aim at total control of individual liberty.

What some churches do today is far removed from the teachings of great moral individuals like Abraham, Jesus, Mohammed, Gandhi, Switzer or King. Rather, they preach intolerance, scorn for those who believe differently than they do and rigid adherence to church power rather than to individual conscience. They preach hatred for their enemies, holiness of money and acceptance of racism. How often have you heard that Mormons are not Christians, that Jews are infidels, that Muslims are out to kill everyone or that the other religion is false and one’s God is better than the other person’s God.

Now let me discuss the central issue of this paper - religion as a cancer in pubic education. Religion, like cancer, attacks the various “organs” of public schools.

First is the attack on personal health. Religious extremists object to the teaching of sex education and any mention of contraceptive and the use of biological names of body parts. Knowledge of these topics, they claim, will lead to a greater number of young people to engage in sexual activity. The opposite is true. Knowledge prevents engagements in unhealthy sexual activities. It leads to a reduction of unwanted pregnancies. The healthy habits of young people improve greatly when they have knowledge of the dangers involved in pre-marital sex. The abstinence only sex education programs have been a miserable failure by any standard to measure their effectiveness. The health of our children is dependent on an understanding of how their bodies work - period.

Second there is the attack on science. Objections to the teaching of evolution, biology and anthropology are numerous and wide spread. The critics desire to submit creationism, intelligent design and original sin into the curriculum of the schools. All of these efforts are in contradiction to scientific knowledge and to the separation of church and state - as required by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Critics certainly have the right to believe items based on faith; but there is no justification for teaching faith-based beliefs in public education.

Third there is the attacks on history. Attempts to “prove” that this nation was founded on Christian principles is a strong desire of public education critics. They try to establish that our Founding Fathers were devoted Christians or holy men who lived pure lives. History, however, is clear. Most “Founders” rarely attended church, owned slaves, and wrote very little about religious topics. Jefferson denied the deity of Jesus, Washington rarely attended church and often criticized it. Of the “Founders” only John Adams was a practicing Christian who professed his strong religious beliefs. Most of these men who revolted against England were Deists who insisted on the separation of church and state.

We as a nation are blessed to have an Amendment in our Constitution that requires the separation of government activities from personal actions. As individuals we can express our religious beliefs at anytime in any place. But schools, as a government service, cannot , and shall not, be involved in religious actions or the promotion of religious beliefs. To do so is to feed the cancer that will destroy public education. That is something that a democratic nation cannot allow to occur. And we should all be diligent to prevent misguided individuals from infecting our public schools with religious causes.

Words fail me but tears don't. I surely hope Bob Kerrey becomes Senator of Nebraska again. We desperately need a voice like his in the Senate, a man who knows the reality of war and not just the macho game. Thanks to Lawrence O'Donnell for sharing this with us.

Words fail me but tears don't. I surely hope that Bob Kerrey becomes Senator of Nebraska again. We desperately need a voice like his in the Senate, a man who knows the reality of war and not just the macho game. Thanks to Lawrence O'Donnell for sharing this with us.

Thanks to Lawrence for playing this beautiful and emotional clip. Thanks to Bob Kerrey for his great service to our country. I just read he was actually a Navy Seal, and that's extremely impressive to me. Having lost my 23 year old son to Operation Iraqi Freedom, the sadness of war Bob conveyed in his singing really touched my heart.