Zane:Does Barack Obama have the experience, vision and leadership to be our next president?

Zane:Allow me to sing the praises of the late George Carlin, the shining knight of comedy who attacked the pillars of prudery, the redoubts of repression and the censor's castle.

Zane:A few tips for marital bliss. If your spouse's eyes have a feverish vacancy, if her skin is dewy -- but not in a good way -- and her frustration level is way past 11 when she declares, "It's hot as an oven in here," she's in no mood for blazing repartee.

Zane:It isn't easy being green. Just ask Al Gore. The Nobel Peace Prize-winning environmentalist was embarrassed last year when a conservative think tank reported that he used 20 times as much electricity as the average American.

Zane:Americans greet each new technological advance as if it had been delivered by the stork. We coo over each bundle of perfection, foreseeing only a brilliant future.

Zane:The roster of writers appearing at Triangle bookstores used to be a Who's Who of American letters.

J. Peder Zane:When I was The N&O's book review editor, I often heard bibliophiles mutter: So many books, so little time.