Over at Awful Forums, a regular poster code-named Martin Random -- who claims to have a job inside the White House -- has spilled many an alleged secret about the people running the country. Mostly he relays humiliating dirt concerning personal habits and eccentricities.

His initial posts offered some revelations that seemed, on first whiff, quite over-the-top and difficult to believe. I have no problem accepting the claim that the president is hooked on anti-depressants, and I see no reason to doubt that Dick Cheney is an annoyingly "close talker" (that is, he leans in very close to anyone he addresses, pinning his poor targets against the wall). I also do not doubt that Cheney farts a lot.

But the stuff about Donald Rumsfeld -- well, you have to read it to believe it. Tom Ridge comes off even worse.

Should we give any credit to these tales? At first, I dismissed them. But as I kept reading, a few bits began to ring true. Especially the stuff about semi-legal "insider" trading: Apparently, pols and their aides make their real money trading on stocks that they know will be affected by current legislation.

But then again...the Rumsfeld thing... Man. I just don't know. I thought that guys with poor circulation in their calves were more likely to have E.D. problems...

By the way, one of the contirbutors to that thread says that he got to know Barbara Bush, the daughter. When asked if she or anyone else in the family was particularly religious, she answered "Not really."

I find that believable.

Read. Do not necessarily believe. Try to spot "tells" indicating fakery. I guarantee one thing: You will not be bored. This is political porn of the highest order.

(Oh yeah: He says Condi Rice smells good. Real good. "Random" is obsessive on the subject. Maybe that's why Rumsfeld is the way he is...)