I'd like to announce that if I were to be asked, that I would also be open to the Vice Presidential nomination for the Democratic Party.

Congratulations are due, of course, to Barack Obama for defeating a formidable mass of political muscle in the Clinton campaign and becoming the first major Black presidential contender. Sixty years after the Dixiecrats walked out of the DNC in the wake of Hubert Humphrey's speech on civil rights. Forty-five years after Martin Luther King led the march on Washington DC. Progress is being made.

I've made my opinion of him clear in this space. For his positions on foreign policy, healthcare, open government, anti-corruption measures, and the economy, he's had my support since the early days of his campaign. But while his judgment as of this writing has been to my view impeccable, a recent interview calls attention to a potential weak spot on an issue that for me personally is of the utmost importance. And possibly a solid explanation as to why my home state voted for Hillary.

Today, in an interview with Candy Crowley, he gave his prediction for the NBA Finals: Lakers in 6.

I'll give him credit for being a KG fan. to take the floor against that man is to know what it means to fear. He's the only big man in the NBA that Bill Russell, who knows a thing or two about playing defense, said that he would have trouble guarding.

But a Lakers win in under 7 games simply isn't going to happen. The Celtics have the league's best defense, the best record against the West. Look for Kobe Bryant to be held under 20 points for multiple games. Look for Rajon Rondo to come up big on both sides of the ball. I don't need to emphasize this incarnation of the Big Three and their

And above all, look for banner number 17 hanging from the rafters at the New Garden.

UPDATE, 3rd Quarter-----

I fucking love Paul Peirce. An edit from Wikipedia about fifteen minutes ago:

In game one of the NBA Finals, Paul made a dramatic exit from the court. It was very similar to the way FDR was when he first succumbed to Polio. But FDR "manned up" from this and carried the nation. While Paul wasn't able to carry his team, and thus resulting in a loss of "street-cred"
(for the user that don't use ebonics, this equals respect or admiration for "respectable" actions).

And then Pierce walks back out of the tunnel and the Garden shook so fucking hard that Phil Jackson had to call a timeout. A couple of minutes later, he hits two three pointers in a row on transitions like he was ordering a friggin' pizza. Up yours, Californian wiki-vandal!

There was only ever one nickname that caught on for Pierce, and it actually involves the Lakers. After a hard-fought regular season game in 2001, Shaq motioned to a nearby Boston Globe reporter. "Take this down," said O'Neal. "My name is Shaquille O'Neal and Paul Pierce is the motherfucking truth. Quote me on that and don't take nothing out. I knew he could play, but I didn't know he could play like this. Paul Pierce is the truth."

Well, yes.