Lincoln and Kenndy Connections

Strange coincidences found on random sites:

• Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
• John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.
• Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
• John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.
• Both Kennedy and Lincoln were deeply involved in the civil rights issues of the era, in Lincoln's day, the issue was slavery, in Kennedy's, it was segregation.
• Both wives lost a child while living in the White House.
• Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
• Both Presidents were shot in the head.
• Both wives were present during the assassination.
• Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy who warned him not to go to the theater the night he was killed. Kennedy had a secretary named Lincoln who warned him not to go to Dallas where he was killed.
• Both were assassinated by Southerners.
• Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.
• Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln , was born in 1808.
• Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.
• John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839.
• Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939.
• Both assassins were known by their three names.
• Both presidents' names contain 7 letters, their successors' names contain 13 letters, their assassins contain 15 letters.
• Lincoln was shot at the theater named "Ford."
• Kennedy was shot in a "Lincoln" car made by "Ford."
• Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.
• A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe, Maryland.
• A week before Kennedy was shot, he was with (in) Marilyn Monroe.
• Booth shot Lincoln in a theater and ran into a warehouse; Oswald shot Kennedy from a warehouse and ran into a theater.

What's the Best Day to Send an Email?

From Fortune Magazine:

According to a new study, that day is Sunday. Why? Research shows it’s by far the slowest day for internet email traffic. In fact, only 3% of all emails are sent on Sundays. That’s a tiny amount compared to the 24% of emails sent on the busiest day of the week: Tuesdays. Of course, there’s a good reason why fewer emails get sent on Sunday. Because fewer people bother reading email that day. Think about it: Most people would rather spend their ‘day of rest’ at home or in church, cooking barbeque, solving crosswords or watching football. The last thing they think about is going online and checking email.

When people DO check their email on Sunday, studies show they’re more likely to read the entire message. They’re also more likely to devote their full attention to writing a meaningful response – rather than a quick one or two line reply. That’s why many small businesses are now using Sundays to fire off quick brainstorming emails or memos to their employees – because that’s when they get the best responses and freshest ideas! Now, nobody’s saying this is a good thing. In fact, psychotherapists recommend making your weekend a “no-work zone” – where you devote all your time to relaxing with friends and family. That gives your brain a chance to refocus before another grueling workweek. However, a recent Career Builder survey found that 20% of workers routinely stay in touch with the office while at home for the weekend – via cell phone, Blackberry, email or voice mail. Most say it’s a “necessary evil”. They believe that staying in touch helps them stay ahead of the competition, and gives them the tools they need to take their career to the next level.

So, if you must send emails on Sunday, treat it like any other day of the week. In other words: Set aside a specific time of the day to do it. Then focus the rest of your day on family activities, or spending time with your spouse. After all, if everyone started emailing on Sundays, you know what’ll happen: Fortune would do a new study – declaring the best day to do email work is Saturday!

Break Your Bad Habits

From Forbes Magazine:

You know that unhealthy habits can cost you – in time, energy and money. So here’s a step-by-step guide to the most effective ways to break your bad habits.

• Admit that you’ve got a bad habit! Researchers at the University of Alberta say that most people already know the dangers of vices like smoking, overeating, and not exercising. However, few stop to think about why they do any of those things. The fact is, most bad behaviors are adopted as an easy way to fit in with friends. So ask yourself: “What habits do I turn to in social situations that I’d never do alone?”
  
  
• Stop justifying your habits. Remember when you were a child, and Mom told you to stay away from the cookie jar? That only made you want a cookie even more, right? Well, that kind of childish thinking is what keeps most people shackled to their bad behaviors. Like when a doctor scolds you for smoking, and you say something like: “I know it’s bad, but if I stop smoking I’ll get fat.” The only way to change your bad habits is to stop justifying them.
  
  
• Be specific about what you want to change. Experts say you’re doomed to fail if you make resolutions like: “I want to eat better, exercise more, and lose weight.” Why? Because those goals aren’t specific enough! To truly succeed, you need to lay out precise, achievable goals. Like: “I’m going to eliminate fried food from my diet,” and “I’m going to start jogging to the corner store for coffee instead of driving.”
  
  
• Multi-task your goals. Researchers at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute found that a lot of bad habits are intertwined. So you can eliminate them faster if you tackle two at a time. For example: To quit smoking AND get more exercise, start jogging around the block each morning. When you run out of breath by the end of the block, you’ll find more motivation to stop lighting up, and get in better shape.
  
  
• Here’s one last trick for breaking a bad habit: Get help. Studies show that buddying up with a spouse, friend or co-worker can improve your odds of breaking bad behaviors – especially if that other person is ALSO trying to change. Each of you will become a cheerleader for the other and you’ll find yourself feeling accountable to that person every time you get the urge to sneak out for a quick puff or skip your next workout.

Burn After Reading - Review

Over the last decade and half, Joel and Ethan Coen have carved out their own niche in American cinema. Their films offer usually sparse landscapes, questionable characters, a good deal of idiocy and of course, some very very disturbing horror. They work to portray the every man faced with unordinary circumstances such as the Dude in "The Big Lebowski (1998)" or Llewelyn Moss in "No Country for Old Men (2007)." In this years "Burn After Reading," the brothers add another chapter to their American landscape. Unfortunately, all the characters are one dimensional, the timing is frought with numerous lulls in the plot, and America, which the Coen brothers have always depicted in a new and often surprising light, are now the target of much ridicule and cynicism for the team.

The story is an ensemble act loaded with talent that has questionable pay offs. Frances McDormand portrays a fitness center employee who is desperately seeking two things: human companionship and cosmetic surgery. When another employee discovers a disc containing what appear to be government secrets, she, accompanied with her idiotic friend Chad(Brad Pitt) sees this as her chance to finally be able to make the changes in her life that she desires. This disc belongs to Osbourne Cocks(the ever talented John Malkovich) as a bitter and recently fired CIA analyst. The story is is teeming with infidelity, alcoholism and sexual depravity, but perhaps this rounds out the black comedy well.

What I must commend for this piece is that it does offer some fresh perspectives for the stylization that comes with a Coen brothers film. With each movie they make they seem to tighten their lens on a distinctly different part of the U.S. With "Fargo" it was the culture and crime of the deep north. With "The Big Lebowski" it was the dirty, decreped parts of LA that took center stage, and with "No Country for Old Men" the arid South West and it's Spanish culture was splayed out. But here we are privy to the mansions of D.C., the refined suburbs of Maryland and the sleek offices of our government intelligence agencies.

Now, do not let it be mistaken that although this is in my opinion a weak Coen brothers film, this work ranks leaps and bounds above what is more than often playing at the multiplex. The film is satisfyingly funny and dark, it is always fun to see the U.S. government personified in varies shades of bumbling ignorance. And things like fitness centers, online dating, sex fetishes, morning talk shows and divorce are all things that are easily relatable, albeit easy targets. This film succeeds to paint a vision of extreme black comedy in a world of work-a-holics and complete morons, but if you are looking for fresh takes on old shlock espionage spoofs, you might come up empty handed.

Man on Wire - Review

In 1974 Philip Petit, a street performer from Paris tight-rope walked between the World Trade Center towers. It's common in history to find truly moving and completely honest tales of extraordinary acts, but few are told so effortlessly by the players themselves. Here is story of eccentricity and discipline like never before, and here's the best part: there is no why.

The story is constructed like a heist inter meshing actual footage and recreations, laying out the covert ascent the two teams took to the tops of the two towers. The building of models and the making of fake IDs. The story contains a surprising amount of humor, the gathering of information involved posing as a french news crew reporting on the constructing the two towers as a way to examine the roof tops and make their plans, also the surprising benefits to walking with crutches. It's impossible to not be drawn in by the intelligence and poinancy of the team that planned and executed this amazing feat of art.

The true magnetism of the film all lies in Petit himself whose personality jumps from the celluloid. His brilliance isn't so much in his feats, as in his life style, his courage and his candid attitude. For example, as a preparation for the twin towers heist, he tight rope walked across a bridge in Sydney, Austrailia. When he was arrested afterward, he stole and pocketed one of the officer's watches. He is fearless and animated to the end.

After the stunt, Petit learned of celebrity. He made headlines world wide and gave the World Trade Centers come much needed good press. When asked why he did this he said: il n'ya pas de pourquoi, there is no why.

Tricks for Feeling More Confident

From Shape Magazine:

Remember the last time you spoke your mind without thinking twice about how you look, or what people might think? For most people, those days stopped around the time they turned 10! Here’s your chance to reawaken your self-esteem, restore your confidence, and become that vibrant person you were back in the good ol’ days.

• Stop trying! That means eliminate statements like: “I’m trying to lose weight,” “I’m trying to get a raise” or “I’m trying to get a date.” Trying to do something means you’re accepting – and possibly expecting – failure. That’s just not okay! So instead of trying, set goals you can actually start doing!
  
• Stand up straight. One study found that 100% of people who completed a posture-improvement program felt more confident. Why? Dr. Shawn Talbott wrote the book The Cortisol Connection and he says poor posture locks negative emotions inside the body, which sets up a cycle of low self-esteem. Hunching also sends a message to others that you’re not confident!
  
• Get more sleep. Sleep-deprived people are cranky, and have trouble concentrating. Research also shows they're more likely to suffer from low self-esteem and blue moods. So try going to bed 15 minutes earlier each night until you're getting between 7 and 8 hours of sleep a night.
  
• Get more exercise, but don’t expect to run a marathon right from Day 1. The key to making exercise a daily habit is to take baby steps. So commit yourself to doing 10 minutes of walking first, then slowly do more as your energy and confidence increases.
  
• Find something you’re good at and stick with it. Remember Michael Phelps at the Olympics? He could have easily gotten down on himself after being diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder. Instead, he channeled his extra energy into something he was passionate about – swimming! You can do the same. Simply find a hobby you love, and pour yourself into it at least once a week. It’ll reduce your stress, and it’ll give you a sense of mastery that’ll spill over into everything else you pursue in life.

Sept. 10: In a Special Comment, Keith Olbermann

Election 2008 Article

Thanks for Scott for sending this from AlterNet.org:

In early December 2007, at a time when Hillary Clinton was tracking 20-plus points ahead of the Democratic field in national polls, I published an article contending that Hillary Clinton was an inherently weak candidate, a beatable candidate, and that Barack Obama would be a stronger match against Republicans.

I argued that she had the highest "unfavorable" rating of anyone who ever had run for the presidency; that she was the only Democratic candidate who could unite and energize the Republican base; that she was running 10 to 15 points behind in generic Democrat vs. Republican presidential polls; that her head-to-head matchups with the Republican candidates were poor; that in Iowa, where she was the only female candidate with seven men, she was polling only 26 percent; that several Democratic U.S. Senate candidates had told me she would pull the ticket down in their states; and that Bill was a potentially large, uncontrollable liability (even I did not know how true that prediction would become!). Hillary never was "inevitable." The evidence of her imminent demise was there for anyone who wanted to look.

OK, that was then, this is now.

The November presidential election is not going to be close. Barack Obama is going to beat John McCain by 8 to 10 points in the national popular vote and win 300 to 350 electoral votes. Obama is going to wipe out McCain mano a mano.

I am far more confident making this prediction than I was in predicting Hillary's demise. There are many reasons why.

The Political Environment

The Republican Party is led -- and branded -- by an extraordinarily unpopular president, whose policies McCain has staunchly defended and supported (95 percent voting congruence in 2007). In the recent CBS News/NYTimes poll, Bush is at 28 percent approval, 65 percent disapproval; in the Hart/Newhouse poll, he is at 27 percent approval, 66 percent disapproval. While some presidents have fallen to low levels in the past, what is truly remarkable about Bush is how long-term and persistent voter disapproval of him has been, and the depth of voter sentiment: A May 12 Washington Post/ABC poll showed only 15 percent of voters "strongly approve," while 52 percent "strongly disapprove."

Voters think, correctly, that the country is on the wrong track. In the Hart/Newhouse poll, 15 percent of voters said the country was headed in the "right direction," while an astounding 73 percent said "wrong direction." Remember, these polls include all voters, not just Democrats.

On issues, Republicans are on the short end of everything except the military and national security. Among voters, in the NYTimes/CBS poll, when asked which party is better, on health care 63 percent say Democrats while only 19 percent say Republicans; the economy, 56 percent say Democrats, 28 percent say Republicans; sharing your moral values, 50 percent say Democrats, 34 percent say Republicans; and, dealing with Iraq, 50 percent say Democrats, 34 percent say Republicans. The Democratic Party has a 52 percent favorable and 41 percent unfavorable rating; the Republican Party has a 33 percent favorable and 58 percent unfavorable rating. A whopping 63 percent say the United States needs to withdraw from Iraq within 12 months; McCain wants to stay roughly forever -- and attack Iran. The Washington Post/ABC poll asked, "Which party do you trust to do a better job coping with the main problems the nation faces over the next few years?" Democrats were chosen over Republicans, 53 percent to 32 percent.

The U.S. economy is sinking (while McCain has said he doesn't know much about the economy); gas prices are skyrocketing; the housing market has collapsed and people are losing their homes; and the Iraq Recession shows no signs of abating.

McCain has been able to stay close to parity in polls matching him with Obama, but that is the product of the bashing Obama has taken from the Clinton campaign. Once that internal scrap is behind him and he can go head to head against McCain, his polling is going to soar.

Even in fund-raising, a traditional Republican strength, the Republicans are at a disadvantage. At last reported count, Obama had $51 million in cash on hand; McCain had $11 million. In the combined cash of the national party committees, Republicans had $55.5 million; Democrats $87.1 million. The netroots has raised unprecedented amounts of money for Democrats, especially Obama; labor unions have gone deeper into their pockets and are raising more money for Democrats than in prior elections; and, even business PACs have given more money to Democrats! Business blows with the wind, and it knows which way the wind is blowing.

Simply put, this is the worst possible time for any Republican to be running for president. And this is not simply my opinion; it is an opinion that has many adherents in the Republican Party and among traditional Republican supporters. Representative Tom Davis, from Virginia, in an internal memo to Republicans, recently wrote, "The political atmosphere facing Republicans this November is the worst since Watergate and is far more toxic than the fall of 2006.The Republican brand is in the trash can. [I]f we were dog food, they would take us off the shelf."

The Candidates

While many ardent Democrats would disagree with this assessment, I personally consider McCain to be an honorable, decent man. I have enormous respect for -- and cannot forget -- the fact that he declined the opportunity to be released from a North Vietnamese prison because his father had been a Navy admiral and chose instead to stay with his comrades for 5½ years. Very few of us would have done that -- I know I would not have. There is a loyalty and integrity there that we need to remember and honor. And, despite efforts to disparage the "maverick" label, the reality is that, for a substantial part of his political career, he was a Republican maverick on a variety of issues, including the environment, immigration, campaign reform, taxes and the budget. These are not inconsequential disagreements with the Republican Party, and he has been almost singular in being willing to disagree with the Republican establishment. But that is the previous incarnation of McCain, not the version we've seen for the last four years or the version who has to run between now and November.

The problem with McCain is that his brain is no longer working. There is something wrong. Many doctor friends of mine hypothesize Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, which is consistent with his 5½ years of great stress in prison and which can explain his violent temper, his memory lapses and his frequent mental disconnects. It also is possible that he is suffering mini-strokes, which cause momentary double vision, partial blackouts and confusion, and which could explain why he can say incredibly stupid things, sometimes the same dumb thing several times in one day, without appearing to understand what he just said. Whatever the specific cause, he is not healthy, and mentally he is struggling to hold it together.

What we are going to see in the general election from McCain is a ton of mistakes. The very thing the press likes about him, his candor and shoot-from-the-hip style, is going to kill him when the full weight of media attention is trained on him. He never has been a good speaker with a prepared text (last night, his speech was characteristically wooden, with several word confusions). The media has always loved the quick, gritty, candid McCain, but that version is gone; he now is a damaged, slower-thinking McCain, but his habits will remain the same. He will still try to be the quick wit, the maverick; it just isn't going to work. And while McCain is still capable (with help) of firing off some zingers that hit, he will be unable to sustain a narrative -- or fool the American voters -- for the next five months. This is not just about being 71; it is about being a very old 71. It might be sad to watch, but I for one will have no sympathy. There is too much at stake.

Obama is the perfect candidate for Democrats, and a nightmare for McCain. Obama, who by every metric is a brilliant strategist, thinker and speaker, is going to run circles around McCain. McCain, who is not a very good speaker even on his best day, will appear slow, befuddled and confused; he will make gaffes. Obama will be charismatic, smart, thoughtful, high-minded, alert and substantive. It will be no contest. And adding to Obama's natural advantages, McCain has just enough integrity to try to match up with Obama on issues. In that debate on substance, Obama's overwhelming intellectual superiority and mental alertness will become obvious. There will be the believers, who have jumped aboard the Obama campaign and will continue to multiply, but there also is going to be another type of vote that is going to swing heavily to Obama: the default vote. Voters are going to default to Obama because it will become obvious that McCain simply is not up to the task of being president.

This is going to be the first not-close presidential election since 1988. You heard it here first.

Make Yourself Valuable in Your Workplace

From Bottom Line Personal:

Things are tough these days – every day in the newspaper you read about more downsizing, stores and entire businesses closing, and employee layoffs. To AVOID getting laid-off, you have to do a lot more than just fulfill your basic duties. So, here’s how to make yourself especially valuable to your company:

• Show a willingness to learn. Employees who show that they’re excited to learn new things tend to be valued beyond the contributions they’re already making. Dr. Peter Uher is a workplace consultant who specializes in leadership development. He says these employees are labeled “high potential” and often wind up on the promotion fast-track. Employers see their ability to absorb new skills as a sign that their job performance will continue to improve. So, volunteer for projects outside your department, or take a night class to learn a new skill.
  
  
• Job security tip #2: Speak up without hogging the spotlight. If you keep your head down and quietly do your job while your coworkers toot their own horns, you’re going to get overlooked. Overlooked employees wind up undervalued. So, inform your boss when you accomplish one of your goals, or when you reach a milestone in a long-term project. Also, speak up in meetings with concrete, new ideas – or solutions to potential problems. Simply agreeing with what others say isn’t enough. The trick is to speak up and get noticed without coming off as overbearing. So ask a trusted colleague to cut you off if you start talking too much.
  
  
• One last way to make sure you never get fired: Stay one step ahead of the company. Is your employer about to launch a new product line? As soon as you hear rumors about a major project or corporate decision – position yourself to be an asset in that area. If your company is opening an office in China, start learning the language. Research a new product by reading up on similar products. You’ll always be valued if you’re already where your company is headed.

Compare Barack Obama and John McCain on Major Issues

From Associated Press:

WASHINGTON -- A look at where Democrat Sen. Barack Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain stand on a selection of issues as they go head-to-head for the presidency:

Health care

McCain: $2,500 refundable tax credit for individuals, $5,000 for families, to make health insurance more affordable. No mandate for universal coverage. In gaining the tax credit, workers could not deduct the portion of their workplace health insurance paid by their employers.

Obama: Mandatory coverage for children, no mandate for adults. Aim for universal coverage by requiring employers to share costs of insuring workers and by offering coverage similar to that in plan for federal employees. Says package would cost up to $65 billion a year after unspecified savings from making system more efficient. Raise taxes on wealthier families to pay the cost.

Iraq

McCain: Opposes scheduling a troop withdrawal, saying latest strategy is succeeding. Supported decision to go to war, but was early critic of the manner in which administration prosecuted it. Key backer of the troop increase. Willing to have permanent U.S. peacekeeping forces in Iraq.

Obama: Spoke against war at start, opposed troop increase. Now says his plan would complete withdrawal of combat troops by end of 2009, four months sooner than his previous commitment. Before that, had said a timetable for completing withdrawal would be irresponsible without knowing what facts he'd face in office.

Housing

McCain: Open to helping homeowners facing foreclosure if they are "legitimate borrowers" and not speculators.

Obama: Tax credit covering 10 percent of annual mortgage interest payments for "struggling homeowners," scoring system for consumers to compare mortgages, a fund for mortgage fraud victims, new penalties for mortgage fraud, aid to state and local governments stung by housing crisis, in $20 billion plan geared to "responsible homeowners."

Taxes

McCain: "No new taxes" if elected. Twice opposed Bush's tax cuts, at first because he said they were tilted to the wealthiest and again because of the unknown costs of Iraq war. Now says those tax cuts, expiring in 2010, should be permanent. Proposes cutting corporate tax rate to 25 percent. Promises balanced budget in first term, says that is unlikely in his first year.

Obama: Raise income taxes on wealthiest and their capital gains and dividends taxes. Raise corporate taxes. $80 billion in tax breaks mainly for poor workers and elderly, including tripling Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credit for larger families. Eliminate tax-filing requirement for older workers making under $50,000. A mortgage-interest credit could be used by lower-income homeowners who do not take the mortgage interest deduction because they do not itemize their taxes.

Education

McCain: Favors parental choice of schools, including vouchers for private schools when approved by local officials, and right of parents to choose home schooling. More money for community college education.

Obama: Encourage but not require universal pre-kindergarten programs, expand teacher mentoring programs and reward teachers with higher pay not tied to standardized test scores, in $18 billion plan to be paid for in part by delaying elements of moon and Mars missions. Change No Child Left Behind law "so that we're not just teaching to a test and crowding out programs like art and music." Tax credit to pay up to $4,000 of college expenses for students who perform 100 hours of community service a year.

Immigration

McCain: Sponsored 2006 bill that would have allowed illegal immigrants to stay in the U.S., work and apply to become legal residents after learning English, paying fines and back taxes and clearing a background check. Now says he would secure the border first. Supports border fence.

Obama: Voted for 2006 bill offering legal status to illegal immigrants subject to conditions, including English proficiency and payment of back taxes and fines. Voted for border fence.

Abortion

McCain: Opposes abortion rights. Has voted for abortion restrictions permissible under Roe vs. Wade, and now says he would seek to overturn that guarantee of abortion rights. Would not seek constitutional amendment to ban abortion.

Obama: Favors abortion rights.

Global warming

McCain: Broke with President Bush on global warming. Led Senate effort to cap greenhouse gas emissions; favors tougher fuel efficiency. Favors plan that would see greenhouse gas emissions cut by 60 percent by 2050. Supports more nuclear power.

Obama: Ten-year, $150 billion program to produce "climate friendly" energy supplies that he'd pay for with a carbon auction requiring businesses to bid competitively for the right to pollute. Joined McCain in sponsoring earlier legislation that would set mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions. Supports tougher fuel efficiency standards.

Gay marriage

McCain: Opposes constitutional amendment to ban it. Says same-sex couples should be allowed to enter into legal agreements for insurance and similar benefits.

Obama: Opposes constitutional amendment to ban it. Supports civil unions, says states should decide about marriage.

Death penalty

McCain: Has supported expansion of the federal death penalty and limits on appeals.

Obama: Supports death penalty for crimes for which the "community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage." As Illinois lawmaker, wrote bill mandating videotaping of interrogations and confessions in capital cases and sought other changes in system that had produced wrongful convictions.

Gun control

McCain: Voted against ban on assault-type weapons but in favor of requiring background checks at gun shows. Voted to shield gun-makers and dealers from civil suits. "I believe the Second Amendment ought to be preserved -- which means no gun control."

Obama: Voted to leave gun-makers and dealers open to suit. Also, as Illinois state lawmaker, supported ban on all forms of semiautomatic weapons and tighter state restrictions generally on firearms.

Campaign finance

McCain: The co-author of McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, he plans to run his general campaign with public money and within its spending limits. He has urged Obama to do the same. He turned down federal matching funds for primaries so he could spend more than the limits. Federal Election Commission letter said he needs FEC approval before withdrawing from the primary public financing system, but FEC has not had quorum to act. McCain says he needs no such approval. McCain accepts campaign contributions from lobbyists.

Obama: The presidential campaign's fundraising champion has brought in nearly $265 million. Has signaled he will raise private money for his general election, despite his proposal last year to accept public financing and its spending limits if the Republican nominee does, too. Obama refuses to accept money from federal lobbyists and has instructed the Democratic National Committee to do the same for its joint victory fund, an account that would benefit the nominee. Obama does accept money from state lobbyists and from family members of federal lobbyists.

Iran

McCain: Favors tougher sanctions, opposes direct high-level talks with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Obama: Initially said he would meet Ahmadinejad without preconditions, now says he's not sure "Ahmadinejad is the right person to meet with right now." But says direct diplomacy with Iranian leaders would give U.S. more credibility to press for tougher international sanctions.

Social Security

McCain: Would consider "almost anything" as part of a compromise to save Social Security, yet rules out higher payroll taxes for now.

Obama: Proposes raising cap with an unspecified "small adjustment" that would subject a portion of higher incomes to Social Security taxes.

Stem cell research

McCain: Supports relaxing federal restrictions on financing of embryonic stem cell research.

Obama: Supports relaxing restrictions on federal financing of embryonic stem cell research.

Trade

McCain: Free trade advocate.

Obama: Seek to reopen North American Free Trade Agreement to strengthen enforcement of labor and environmental standards. In 2004 Senate campaign, called for "enforcing existing trade agreements," not amending them.

Cuba

McCain: Ease restrictions on Cuba once U.S. is "confident that the transition to a free and open democracy is being made."

Obama: Ease restrictions on family-related travel and on money Cuban-Americans want to send to their families in Cuba. Open to meeting new Cuban leader Raul Castro without preconditions. Ease trade embargo if Havana "begins opening Cuba to meaningful democratic change."