Dear Republicans: You are not welcome here. Please leave. Thanks.

Awe Bren, now I'm a democrat too, but shouldn't we welcome our fellow Americans?

Dear Bren
Your comments are exactly what drives this country apart.

Brendan are the Republicans pure evil and Democrats the saviors in your mind?

Do chemtrails figure into this somehow? JK

Bren, you're hopeless. Joni's right, but I've already addressed that with you.

Good thing the republicans are doing it to themselves. Just take a look at the video. Would you buy a used car from that guy? Here's a guy whose job it is to encourage others, to motivate others to buy his political views. Just look at him.

Slouching in his chair, laid back and not looking or acting at all professional, he is their point man for this convention? Yeah, he's a motivator, an inspirer, someone to follow - yeah, when pigs fly.

Take the high road Bren. Everything else will take care of itself.

Hutch, I look at it this way: Rather than debating whether the Republicans are pure evil, let's look at the policies they're advocating. They're the ones trying to force women to give birth to babies they don't want. They're the ones throwing up roadblocks every time Obama tries to create jobs, lower taxes on the middle class, or provide us with health care. They're the ones trying to regulate who can and can not get married.

Did you know that all of the Republican frontrunners recently signed a pledge to fight pornography? That means that at this point in time, they have officially pledged to do more about controlling your fantasy life than ensuring that you have a job.

porn? those bastards!

I, for one, am exited to attend! I really appreciate how you all are keeping it classy on here. Thanks.

Dear George,
Yes, I would buy a car from "that guy", because I happen to know "that guy" and he's a hell of a guy. I would buy a car from you too George even though your rhetoric is obviously unpleasant and full of hate simply because you disagree with the Republican point of view. I'm saddened by folks like you who preach the liberal way of life and pretend to love everybody, but the moment you hear or see a Republican speak you want to kill us. The bottom line is this, your leader Barrack Obama has gotten us all into a morass of calamity and despair that it'll take a miracle to get us out of. Please stop the hateful speech and talk about real issues in an educated manner. Thank you

@hutch, tell me that was a "Sixth Sense" reference.

Oh man, Hutch, now it's only a matter of time before Patch turns into a dating site!

Ah, hah, hah, hah, hahhhhhhh!!!!!

Dear Noe, you sure make a lot of assumptions. I disagree with most of them, and that would bring us to attitude. Apparently you don't appreciate mine. Your prerogative. I don't think much of yours either.

That's nice that you know the guy in the vid. I'm sure he's a heck of a guy. That's great, but misses the point entirely. Karl Rove he ain't. Tony Roberts he ain't. To me, and for my tastes, he lacks enthusiasm, excitement, salesmanship and professionalism. As a senior member of a 'local' political party with a convention of your wannabes soon to arrive, one would think he could at least sit up while being interviewed. Great guy and how he represents his interests are two different things.

The rest of your dribble is nothing more than that. For example; show me, please, where you might find support for this comment, "I'm saddened by folks like you who preach the liberal way of life and pretend to love everybody, but the moment you hear or see a Republican speak you want to kill us" from my comments.

What a drama-mama.

From my perspective, since you seem to already have that dialed, I would tell you that if you took the best parts (if one can find enough to accumulate) from each repub wannabe and made one person from that - we would still be a far cry from a leader. I am not at all pleased with Obama, either.

The shame of it is that come the day after this November's election, we still won't have good leadership. There ain't a leader in the bunch.

My fat fingers weren't in sync with my thoughts with Tony Roberts. I meant to type Tony Robbins, the guy that did and maybe still does those motivation videos that we've all seen over the years. Sorry about that.

I'm not the pup I used to be. I have voted in every election available to me since I turned 18 - and that was a while ago. It has been my experience that more times than not, I a find myself voting for the lesser of evils (so to speak). This election will be one of those.

Frankly, based on the issues, the shape we're in and the real need for so much, I am scared. I have no respect for any of them. Obama needs to invest in stem cell research, with the hope that they can create a backbone for him to use & a dairy farm to provide the milk required to make that backbone strong. And don't even start with the contenders. I summed up my thoughts on them just above.

We are in it deep and I see no leadership. In fact, looking around the globe, it is my opinion that we're not alone; real leaders providing real leadership are harder to find than the elusive genie in a bottle or a leprechaun.

A huge part of the problem here is the system; it has failed us miserably and has become so entrenched in so many facets that it is almost overwhelming. Pick your party, if you like. To me, they're all the same. What we see are politicians asking us for money and votes, while promising us whatever it is that gets the win - whatever moves the poll needles in their favor, while on their knees performing for special interests. Once they're in, they contract amnesia on promises made and spend their time with the top goal of getting re-elected...while we just keep getting screwed.

If you were to speak to issues, I'd think a real good start would be topics like;
* campaign reform
* getting corporations, unions and other special interests out of the process
* a complete re-do of our tax codes
* accountability of our elected officials
* education reform
* preparing our country for the future, like our parents did, with a strong infrastructure
* our debt
* the interest on our debt
* the return of our middle class
* the return of industry
* an energy policy - and I mean a real energy policy...like the one Obama described in his State of the Union campaign speech.

Just look at all the government Agencies we fund. I would demonstrate CA's Agencies right here and now, but it is so extensive that I doubt anyone would want to post here again just due to the effort required to scroll down.

I want America back. I want a Can Do attitude. I want, I want, I want...

"Just look at all the government Agencies we fund."

Found it! Yeah, I knew I had posted it before; just a matter of finding it and applying a link for others to see for themselves.

For those interested, here's a link to another thread (not Patch) that shows only the CA Agencies and commissions that suck up our money: http://talkaboutwidget.hmbreview.com/topic.php?t=7513&c=4&d=m Please remember, these are only CA. Add the other 49, then the feds. Scroll to the last couple of comments if you just want a glimpse of where our money goes. It really is a must see.

Absolutely mind bending. No wonder we're in such dire straights.

As background for the link, it goes back to the last election when bond measures were on the ballot; this one was for Measure H. I voted No.

Bren, perhaps the disagreement isn't as much a disagreement as it is different perspectives; viewing the same things from two different views.

There is ample evidence to support some of your points. For example: Oil, which had for decades traded between $10-$40 p/bbl was at $18 p/bbl when Bush went into Afghanistan. It was $23 p/bbl when Bush invaded Iraq. It went from there to $148 p/bbl and will never, in my lifetime, see $40 p/bbl again. It closed today at roughly $110 p/bbl (hence $4+ gas). Bush gave Halliburton the first gov contract, $7 Billion, uncontested / not bid. Cheney, Bush' VP resigned from said Halliburton to become VP. The Bush family has always had a strong interest in oil. I wonder how all that stuff worked out for their net worth. I hope they're OK.

At the end of the Clinton era, our economy had a few air pockets under it. The system was flush with cash. Then we saw 9/11. We are so much worse off now than then, for so many reasons - some of which were avoidable.

Politics is a contact sport - even a blood sport. By the time a politician hits the big time, they've been bought and sold more times than Newt's current wife has visited a face lifter.

George, you've just listed more examples of Republican villainy. I don't see how those would contradict my point, or even differ in any way from the perspective I already hold.

Bren, my intent was to provide an example of something that supports your comment, and I stated so just prior to the example. I'm not contradicting your point at all.

It's time to wipe out the last few pockets of Republican resistance in California once & for all !!! "Richie Rich","Moral Orel","Yosemite Sam" & "Elmer Fudd" are as likely to garner votes here as Whitman & Fiorina ! We're not as easily duped as the backward bible thumping,inbred mouth breathers in rural America !!! They can't even field a viable candidate to run against Sen. Feinstein (I wonder what poor sap will grab the short straw ?) !!!

Thanks for the attempt at clearing the rhetoric, George. Folks like Bren and Humphill still do not get it. Just interested in "they're bad, we're good" because that is the depth of their intelligence. Keep at 'em.

It can be very easy to vilify a "party"; very very easy. It is an entity. But the "party" is made up of individuals, each with their own thoughts and ideas of what should be.
For example: I seriously doubt that folks in "rural America", perhaps towns like Modesto, Gilroy, or even here in HMB would agree with Hemphill's assessment of them. They might disagree enough to fire back with the same pre-juvenile rhetoric, and so it goes; although most folks I know in "rural America" hold better values than the ones Hemphill demonstrates.

This is not to say that we can't disagree on issues, even passionately disagree, but it's been my experience that although when stated comments like those might make a person feel better for a moment, they do nothing to bridge any gap; rather they widen the gap which of course only feeds more ignorance - which of course only exacerbates the divide: which is exactly what shrewd politicians want.

Then they have the "I'll save you" platform to spew their trash from. And so it continues.

Personally, I like diversity. I believe that is a key to what makes the Bay Area so sweet, so (oh I hate this word) unique, so special. I wonder what those that live in "rural America" think of the Bay Area folks; more specifically, folks that make comments like Hemphill's?

One does not become larger by belittling others. Inferiority and ignorance are lousy colognes.

You're a soldier, Summer? Because you post things on the Web? I agree with your politics and all, but unless you're getting shot at, you're not a soldier.

Summer- Are you the same Summer Hemphill from that porn site? I loved that video of you and the hockey team! I never dreamed it was possible to play goalie quite that way...

Just kidding, Dogbert. You go ahead and watch all the porn your little doggie heart desires.

OK Summer, but I still think calling oneself a soldier is, perhaps, too reminiscent of what we see from the far right. They're the ones who love to frame things in militaristic terms and make statements and hold up placards and picket signs that are imbued with violent imagery.

C'mon, level wih me Summer. Certainly you won't deny being the "three-time covergirl for Soldier of Fortune Magazine" Summer Hemphill, will you? I really loved your Miss August spread. The blood-stained Birkenstocks and the shrunken conservative heads on your grenade belt were over-the-top hot! Yes, I do admit to wearing a protection cone. But only after my owners caught me trying to go for my own jugular after viewing your SOF pictorial.

Why are you people so mean to innocent, little doggies?

OK, fess up: How many of you all are active in Yelp Talk?