I think the problem with the Ayers thing is that the McCain campaign is trying to make too much out of the connection. There just isn't much there. The notion that Obama "pals around with terrorists" is such an exageration, that you either buy it 100%, like McCain supporters seem to do, or you completely dismiss it out of hand. The truth is there is a little something there, but not much.

No one can excuse what Ayers did 40 years ago, and it would have been better if the prosecution had not blown it's case back then so the trial got thrown out. He should have served time for what he did.

Now it's 40 years in the past. Ayers may not be universally respected, considering his past, but he is certainly given a great deal of credit for the good things he has done in the past 40 years. He has enough credibility that he was asked to serve on the board of the Annenberg Project, funded by a strongly Republican family. He served on the board along with various diverse experts in education, including many prominent Republicans and Barack Obama. So I suppose if you want to say that Obama pals around with Ayers because they both served on this board, you might also have to admit that Obama pals around with the Annenbergs and a large number of prominent Chicago Republicans. And I guess those prominent Chicago Republicans also pal around with terrorists. And it makes sense too to conclude that the Annenbergs actually FUND the activities of terrorists. Perhaps Homeland Security ought to investigate the Annenbergs for their funding of terrorists!

The whole idea is stupid.

Does anyone believe in redemption? The idea that maybe someone could do something very bad, and then redeem themselves with a lifetime of good work? Apparently the Annenberg family does. Very Christian of them, if you ask me.

The idea that Obama is somehow stained by serving on the same board as Ayers is not only stupid, it is totally ineffective as a campaign strategy. No one seems to care except for those who are completely wrapped up in this election. Ordinary voters do not care. During the two weeks McCain spent hammering the topic, his poll numbers continued to drop. And from what I saw on the debate coverage on various news channels, people who watched the debate and were interviewed later felt like the Ayers topic was a waste of time, irrelevant, and confusing. It's a losing topic. With the economy burning to the ground, people look at this kind of BS and they think it is small and petty and irrelevant.

Even if it were relevant as a campaign issue, it is irrelevant to voters.