The conspiracy theorists, the Truthers and Loosers are nuts as far as I am concerned.

H/T Hot Air and Screw Loose Change

To start I wish Elizabeth Edwards all the best in her fight.  I lost a step-mom to cancer, and presently my mother is fighting cancer as well, so I am full of compassion to someone fighting for their life.  Cancer sucks.  Period. 

And it is all the more painful when you were in remission and it reasserts.

Second, any hateful remarks against her over this I condemn in the strongest terms.  Period.   No buts about it.

But.

Any criticism of John Edwards about his motives and whether he will use this in his campaign?  Sorry, that is fair game.  That is a matter of evaluating his values and ethics, and for a person who wants to be my president, expect me to challenge your values.

Ken, you said:

His wife has incurable cancer.

He’s still going to run for president.

That was enough information to have some people jump in and condemn John Edwards.

One of my colleagues — I’ll not embarrass him by using his name — even went so far as to insist that Edwards was eager to exploit his wife’s illness as a way to give his presidential campaign a boost.

While I would balk at the word eager, I think if the means would present itself he would.  As a trial lawyer he made a living at exploiting other’s suffering, it is in his blood.

What I’ve been reading on news blogs has been even worse:

Comments about how Elizabeth Edwards is just getting what she deserves.

Comments about how her husband probably hopes she’ll stay alive long enough to turn sympathy into political support.

I would love to see you cite sources here.  As you told me on the air once, the proof is in the pudding.  Please show me references.  For what its worth I looked and did find some, on both sides of the aisle.  But they were extremely rare, and universally condemned in their communities.