It's the Name Game, Hussein

There was much ado on the morning talk shows today about Bill Cunningham, who was warming up the crowd for a speech by John McCain. Seems he made a point of emphasizing Barack Obama's middle name....Hussein (rhymes with 'insane').

Obama's opponents are a bit disingenuous when they say "Hey, it's his middle name....we're not trying to imply anything" (wink, wink).

Obama's supporters are equally disingenuous when they say "Hey, his middle name doesn't really mean anything" (as far as you know).

But what if Hillary Clinton's real name were Lizzy Borden Clinton? What if John McCain (rhymes with 'hussein') were really named Benedict Arnold McCain?

Yes, names do mean something. They affect the way we think about someone, though perhaps in only a subconscious way. That's why children make fun of each other's names and why 'political correctness' stifles an adult's choice of words when speaking in public.

"A rose by any other name.....etc., etc."