Placing the blame

TO THE person who said to thank Jean Carnahan for $5-a-gallon gasoline: Alaskan oil would not be ready for close to 10 years. It would take a few years of exploration before anyone could even choose proper drilling sites. Republicans are holding out on funding for research on hybrid or fuel-cell vehicles. Whom do we blame? Carnahan, who realizes that the Alaskan oil is a short-term solution? Or the Republican oil politicians who oppose alternative fuels?

McCain, the Democrat

STRANGER THINGS have happened. Prepare for John McCain to run for president as a Democrat in 2004.