This weekend when Sarah Palin threw her generous shout out to my radio partner Stevie B, many people commented on how unexpected it appeared to Alec when she landed the line on WHO was her favorite Baldwin brother...

It shouldn't have been. As I have said repeatedly on this space. Alec is a liberal whose ideas are vastly different than mine (and Stephen's as well for that matter). But at the end of the day there is a gentlemanly quality to Alec that has been overlooked in much coverage that he has been forced to endure over the last two years.

He proves it again in his mildly biting critique, but quite supportive blog post over at HuffPo on some of the heat he has had to take over appearing on SNL with the Vice-Presidential nominee.

Alec has been a sport and dialed the 'Xtreme' Radio show up several times since we've been on the air. (Most recently the weekend following his big emmy win.) On each occasion he has spouted his support for Obama, but his demeanor has been reasonable - something that can not be said for the majority of Obama supporters.

Alec also openly criticized the Democrats for their role in the recent financial crisis - most notably Barney Frank, Maxine Waters, and the Congressional Black Caucus for the causing the institutions of Fannie and Freddie to avoid important scrutiny when some needed oversight was being pushed repeatedly by the administration in 2001, 2003, and 2005, and when McCain authored a bill that would've authorized major oversight reformin 2006. And Alec did so on Bill Maher's show on HBO - not even close to being a harbinger of things right wing.

Alec and I disagree on many things... but we agree that civility needn't take a back seat just because differences exist, and I don't mind telling him I appreciate his getting it right from time to time...