Weblogic

With the core of the controversial Arizona immigration law currently blocked by a federal court, over-the-top entertainer, Elton John, made quite a statement at a recent concert in Tucson about where he stands regarding other entertainers and their decision to boycott the state because of the law.

According to the Arizona Daily Star, John told the crowd of 8,800: "We are all very pleased to be playing in Arizona. I have read that some of the artists won't come here. They are f**kwits! Let's face it: I still play in California, and as a gay man I have no legal rights whatsoever. So what the (expletive) is with these people?"

Since it is Friday, we are going to keep it short and sweet. We are going to quickly re-visit the Shirley Sherrod issue. As you know, Sherrod is the USDA official who was forced to resign for remarks she made that were taken out of context.

In the past two days, Sherrod has received an offer to come back to work for the department, and she also received a call from President Obama who apologized for the incident.

So here is our question...

Question: Who deserves the most criticism for their role in Shirley Sherrod's firing - the White House, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, the NAACP or the media?

"No one is disputing that America stands for – and should stand for – religious tolerance. It is a foundation of our republic," Palin writes in the re-posted version of her Facebook note. "This is not an issue of religious tolerance but of common moral sense. To build a mosque at Ground Zero is a stab in the heart of the families of the innocent victims of those horrific attacks." Palin added, "Many Americans, myself included, feel it would be an intolerable and tragic mistake to allow such a project sponsored by such an individual to go forward on such hallowed ground. This is nothing close to 'religious intolerance,' it's just common decency."

Question: Do you share Palin's concern about building a mosque near Ground Zero?

Shirley Sherrod, a black former Agriculture Department official who resigned under pressure after a video clip surfaced of her discussing a white farmer, said Wednesday the agency's decision to review her case is "bittersweet," but said she isn't sure she would accept her job back if it is offered. In the video, Sherrod, the former USDA director of rural development for Georgia, seems to tell an audience at an NAACP function in March that she did not do her utmost to help a white farmer avoid foreclosure. However, Sherrod later said the clip only shows part of her comments, and that she tells the story of her experience -- from nearly a quarter century ago when she was not a federal employee -- to illustrate the importance of moving beyond race.

In the video, Sherrod can be heard telling an audience at a March 27, 2010, appearance before a local chapter of the NAACP that she had not given a white farmer "the full force of what I could do" to help him save the family farm. But later in the tape, in the portion not originally aired by Fox News, Sherrod says, "working with (the farmer) made me see that it's really about those who have versus those who have not. They could be black. They could be white. They could be Hispanic."

The video initially brought condemnation from the NAACP, which later retracted its statement and apologized to Sherrod after the context of the clip became clear. Also, the farmer and his wife Sherrod was discussing, Roger and Eloise Spooner, came forward Tuesday, saying they credited Sherrod with helping them save their farm and that she did not discriminate against them.

Question: Should Shirley Sherrod be reinstated to her post at the USDA? If you were Sherrod, would you go back to the position?