A couple of quotes that should deter any sane person from becoming involved in politics. First, Rany Jazayerli defending his friend Mazen Asbahi, who recently stepped down as Islamic coordinator for the Obama campaign:

I suppose I should credit the Obama campaign for having the courage to appoint a Muslim coordinator in the first place. In which case I have to ask, how stupid were they to not expect this kind of attack in the first place? The first thing I said to Mazen after he was hired – after “congratulations” – was “you know they’re going to come after you now, right?” He nodded, and we both knew who “they” were.

Or how about this bit of political analysis. Hawaiian vacation? Too foreign.

RENEE MONTAGNE: Now Obama is spending the week on vacation in Hawaii, he’s taking a vacation, he says, because it’s good for his family, but is it a good point in the presidential campaign?

COKIE ROBERTS: It’s a little rough to be doing it at this point, although I think he’s feeling somewhat secure, but Hawaii is also a somewhat odd place to be doing it. I know that he is from Hawaii, he grew up there, his grandmother lives there, but he has made such a point about how he is from Kansas, you know, the boy from Kansas and Kenya, and it makes him seem a little bit more exotic than perhaps he would want to come across as at this stage in the presidential campaign.

As far as the Jazayerli piece goes, I think that when we’re confronted with outright character assassination, it’s important to disseminate the context and defense as widely as possible. Most Americans know nothing about Mazen Asbahi other than that he was recently accused of being a Muslim terrorist sympathizer. Having read the truth, I want to do my part to publicize it.