in the Christmas spirit...

"Mom, you always give away things I like to poor people. I'm poor too, you know."

-Anne Chabel, moments before opening a bounty of Christmas gifts.

packing list

• 5 pair boxers
  
• 4 pair white socks
  
• 2 pair black socks
  
• Black shoes
  
• 3 long sleeve shirts
  
• Sweater
  
• 4 t-shirts
  
• khakis
  
• 2 pair jeans
  
• 1 pair black pants
  
• Digital camera
  
• iPod
  
• Free Culture
  

merry dickmas

As ridiculous Christian groups decry “christmas hating” as a sign of the decline of moral values in our country, it occurs to me that we should let them argue all they want about whether Macy's is run by sodomites because its signs read Happy Holidays.

There is an opportunity for the religious and secular left to coalesce around a set of moral values that places our families above what we can buy for them. Values not offended by the consideration of other cultures at this or any other time of year, but by the constant conditioning to shop ourselves happy.

i'm so going to hell

Always one to jump in on a cultural phenomenon, I came up with this clever card to celebrate our newest holiday, Chrismukkah.

bliss

Laboratorio Del Galileo - Thursday, December 9, 2004

Stone Crab with Caviar Sauce and Parsnip Puree

—{ O }—

Roasted Duck Liver with Fried Semolina, Cotognata, Duck Jus

—{ O }—

Jerusalem Artichoke Soup with Bagna Cauda Timbale Cotechino and Chives

—{ O }—

Tortelloni of Skate Wing with Rapini

—{ O }—

Papparedelle with Wild Game Ragu

—{ O }—

Risotto with White Truffle

—{ O }—

Sauteed Sea Scallops with Lentis, Baby Fennel and Fennel Sauce

—{ O }—

Roasted Squab Leg stuffed with Chanterelle and Porchini, served with Polenta and Stuffed Dried Tomato

—{ O }—

Cheese

—{ O }—

Pannetone with Caramelize Banana and Zabaglione Sauce

—{ O }—

Baby Pineapple Souffle

—{ O }—

Bomboloni

Farewell to a good man...

Tom Daschle gave the best speech I've ever heard on the Senate floor. His final words...

Mr. DASCHLE. It is with heartfelt gratitude to the people of South Dakota, with great respect and admiration for my colleagues, and with love for this institution and the power it has to make this Nation even greater that I say farewell and look to the future with great optimism, with hope and anticipation.

I yield the floor.

Read the whole thing.

the eagle soars no more

Proof that good things still happen to Democrats:
Attorney General John Ashcroft resigns.

where do we go from here?

The author of get your war on:

CHIN UP.
We're smarter than those motherfuckers.
We can learn more quickly than those motherfuckers.
We can be more ruthless than those motherfuckers.
We can be some six-million-dollar motherfuckers ourselves.

Chin up.
We're more American than those motherfuckers.
We're more responsible than those motherfuckers.
We're more compassionate than those motherfuckers.
Hell, our atheists are more Christian than their Bible-thumpin' motherfuckers.

There's an election in two years.
There's nothing we can't do.

Chin up.
Because it's on, motherfuckers.
It is on.

-David Reese

packing list

• two dress shirts
  
• six pair pants
  
• four long sleeve shirts
  
• six t-shirts
  
• two sweaters
  
• nine pair socks
  
• ten pair boxers
  
• black shoes
  
• ipod
  
• digital camera
  
• laptop
  
• razor
  
• toothbrush
  
• The Wire
  
• Cosmopolis
  
• Master of the Senate

three things

Get your war on once again gets it just right on Social Security Privatization:

Woman:The coolest thing about another four years of Bush would be the unveiling of the "Ownership society!" Doesn't that sound bad ass? You get to be in charge of your own Social Security.
Man:Are you kidding me? What the fuck would I want to be in charge of my Social Security for? That's not my job. I don't know how to do that shit! And in case Bush is wondering, I don't want to have to deliver my own mail, either.

Also, the Jon Stewart/Tucker "Dick" Carlson feud continued last night on both shows. Good for you to not back down against these worthless sycophants, Jon. Keep it up.

Finally, I belive, do you?

Who wears bow ties? Seriously.

For those who missed it, and those who want to see it again, here's a link to Jon Stewart on Friday's Crossfire.

let's get it on

Despite a number of polls that show Sen. Kerry w/ more electoral votes than the President, the pressure is on him to "change the race" tonight. I hope he does, but I still don't think it matters. He just needs to avoid catastrophe.

Am I wrong to be wondering if the timing of today's major offensive into Samarra is politically motivated?

we're gonna win

For those who think the President has locked up re-election, I encourage your viewership of American Research Group's new polling data. With polls from all 50 states conducted this month, the count stands at:

President Bush: 253 Electoral Votes

Senator Kerry: 270 Electoral Votes

Tied: 15 Electoral Votes (WI and WV)

It should be noted that both candidates are in close races (within the poll margin of error) for about 1/2 of their predicted EVs. Regardless, Kerry should have no problem getting to the 330 I've been predicting for months.

here comes the comeback

John Kerry was terrific on Letterman last night. He was relaxed, funny, and on message. And finally, he has a compelling message on Iraq. In a speech yesterday he provided the best articulation of the President’s poor leadership and poor choices.

The President claims it is the centerpiece of his war on terror. In fact, Iraq was a profound diversion from that war and the battle against our greatest enemy, Osama bin Laden and the terrorists. Invading Iraq has created a crisis of historic proportions and, if we do not change course, there is the prospect of a war with no end in sight….
In Iraq, this administration has consistently over-promised and under-performed. This policy has been plagued by a lack of planning, an absence of candor, arrogance and outright incompetence. And the President has held no one accountable, including himself.

Sen. Kerry’s criticism of the President is dead on, and it’s good to see him step it up. He faces the continuing challenge of trying to describe a plan for Iraq, though it is impossible to guess what the situation there will be by the time he is elected. He’ll face criticism for that, but a vague outline of coalition building is better than no clue at all.

His speech has played well in the press, and I think this could be the turning point, when we finally stop focusing on forged documents and lying veterans, and pay attention to the ever-growing quagmire in Iraq.

pretty technology

My iPod will be here tomorrow. Hooray for technology!

 

craving

I think I need an iPod. 20 or 40? Hmmm..

I de-mand sa-tis-faction!

Sen. Zell Miller is an idiot. If his hate-filled speech rife with deception wasn't enough evidence, check out his interview on Hardball following his speech. Here's a great exerpt:

Get out of my face. If you are going to ask me a question, step back and let me answer. I wish we lived in the day where you could challenge a person to a duel.

What a statesman. Here's the link to MSN Video.

turning a corner

In the past few weeks, the election seems to have turned from one where it was Kerry's to lose to one where the President's reelection appears more and more likely. Part of this can no doubt be attributed to the Swift Boat ads and the media's unwillingness to identify them as the lies they are. But there is a broader element at play, and I think the Republican National Convention is demonstrating it.

They have a vicious noise machine of political operatives throughout their organization (but never the President) who immediately react to any misstep by Kerry. The "rapid response team" the Republicans operated at the DNC is unmatched by Democrats this week. This constant spin wears down journalists who seem less and less willing to call them on their lies. On CNBC the Vice President recently denied saying that it was "pretty well confirmed" that Mohammed Atta met with Iraqis (this is the Iraq/Al Qaeda connection he had repeatedly cited even after evidence that Atta wasn't in Prague at the time of the meeting). He used those exact words on Meet the Press in December of 2001.

The reporter, flustered for a moment, tried to press him on it, but without having prepared the clip, simply allowed him to repeat his denial. Sure, this story hits the blogsphere, but it is besieged by stories about THK telling a reporter to "shove it" or Kerry's Vietnam service record. Whether a coordinated strategy or not, the Republicans seem to deluge the media with myriad claims about John Kerry and George Bush. Overwhelmed, the media can't provide an appropriate filter, and enough of the lies and misleading statements get through to have an effect. Are the Democrats unwilling to play this game, or are we just no good at it?

fun at work

my burrito and me

Since last Memorial Day when Scot, Trish and I went to Bozeman, I've been craving a blackened salmon burrito from La Parrilla. Spinach, rice, salmon, and a ricotta/sun dried tomato spread made even tastier when eaten in paradise. I've dreamt about it, thought about replicating it (but decided it just wouldn't be the same), and generally obsessed over this burrito. Finally, after over a year, while nursing a hangover, I got my burrito.

And it was good. I think I'll have another today.

Oh, the views are pretty good up here too.

In a completely unrelated note, as I was settling in to my hotel room in Bozeman on Friday, I flipped on the television. With the Olympic opening ceremonies about to run on NBC, Fox thought it would capitalize on Olympic fever as well. So, as I was putting away some of my clothing, I watched an orangutan beat a sumo wrestler in a tug-of-war and then a sprinter beat a giraffe in a 100-meter dash. Who needs water polo?

Julia Child 1912-2004

Julia Child is responsible for bringing food into popular culture and expanding the culinary horizons of Americans. She is also responsible for introducing me to he power and possibilities of food, and of the notion of food as passion. It's hard to be too sad at the death of a 91-year-old, especially one who lived as fully as she. But her passion is responsible as much as anyone for my love of food, and my unwavering belief that you can never add too much butter.

just trying to get back to [airquotes]

I'm in Montana and you're not. 6,000 feet above sea level, surrounded by trees and on the lookout for mountain lions. Tomorrow: Butte.

packing list 4

• Navy blazer
  
• 1 pair dress pants
  
• 3 pair jeans
  
• 3 pair khakis
  
• 5 short sleeve shirts
  
• 2 white dress shirts
  
• 4 long sleeve shirts
  
• 6 t-shirts
  
• fleece vest
  
• windbreaker
  
• 7 pair white socks
  
• 4 pair dark socks
  
• black shoes
  
• adidas
  
• climbing shoes
  
• chalk bag
  
• belay device
  
• 2 carabineers
  
• 2 pair shorts
  
• 8 pair boxers
  
• toothbrush
  
• razor
  
• toothpaste
  
• digital camera
  
• mp3 player
  
• two cellular telephones
  
• SLR camera
  
• film
  
• laptop
  
• keyboard
  
• mouse
  
• The Partly Cloudy Patriot
  
• Take the Cannoli
  
• Choke

more convention thoughts

I'm still working on a recap of the rest of the convention, but as time passes, here are a few basic points:

• I've been saying for months that Barack Obama is a star. He certainly demonstrated that with what I thought was the best speech of the convention.
  
• Teresa Heinz Kerry looked smug and arrogant as she belted out the Portuguese. Demonstrating a fluency in Spanish is an asset, but Brazillian immigrants just don't represent a very large voting block.
  
• I was dissapointed by Edwards. His rhetorical gifts were not on their finest display, perhaps in part because of time constraints. But the media continues their romance with him, and the speech played well.
  
• Kerry gave a terrific speech. Bounce or no bounce (a Washington Post poll indicates there was one), the convention overall, and Kerry's performance on Thursday should continue to build his support.
  

Though I am uneasy with his new role as Democratic spokesman, Ron Reagan has a pretty good piece in Esquire this month, The Case Against George W. Bush. He was very dry at the convention, but hits the President hard:

But George W. Bush and his administration have taken "normal" mendacity to a startling new level far beyond lies of convenience. On top of the usual massaging of public perception, they traffic in big lies, indulge in any number of symptomatic small lies, and, ultimately, have come to embody dishonesty itself. They are a lie.

Pretty strong stuff.

dems day 1

I was planning to wait until the end of the convention before blogging about it, but since I'm home sick today, and won't catch Kerry's speech live anyway, now seems as good a time as any to catch up on the rest of it.

Monday:

Can Bill Clinton be President again? Please?

Republicans believe in an America run by the right people, their people, in a world in which we act unilaterally when we can, and cooperate when we have to. They think the role of government is to concentrate wealth and power in the hands of those who embrace their political, economic, and social views, leaving ordinary citizens to fend for themselves on matters like health care and retirement security.

He twists the knife in the President even further when he discusses the tax cuts:

When I was in office, the Republicans were pretty mean to me. When I left and made money, I became part of the most important group in the world to them. At first I thought I should send them a thank you note—until I realized they were sending you the bill.

The other notable event on Monday was USA Today's spiking of Ann Coulter's column. I can't imagine why. Her lede:

Here at the Spawn of Satan convention in Boston, conservatives are deploying a series of covert signals to identify one another, much like gay men do. My allies are the ones wearing crosses or American flags. The people sporting shirts emblazened [sic] with the "F-word" are my opponents. Also, as always, the pretty girls and cops are on my side, most of them barely able to conceal their eye-rolling.

and later:

Support the troops, the signs say, bring them home. That's my new position on all government workers, except the 5% who aren't useless, which is to say cops, prosecutors, firemen and U.S. servicemen....I love public school teachers punishing any mention of God and banning Christmas songs so much -- I think they should go home.

She's gone from moronic and insulting to just plain incoherent. Nice.

i want one!

The Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) were given out recently. There are a lot of cool products, many not really in the mainstream, though Apple won again, both with its iPod Mini and its G5 system. I think the Circular Printer is supercool, though.

Also on the "this is really slick" radar is Mindball, a game played with your brain. Two players control a ball on a table, with the more relaxed player able to move the ball successfully across the table. And it only costs $19,000. This is ultimately where video games will be going. Playstation 8 anyone?

Two Johns for one America

He was my first choice, and I believe the only choice who gives the Dems a shot at the Senate. I think he's probably also the best running-mate to win the White House, and I figure Kerry will come out of July with an 8-10 point lead over the President. Whether that holds after the Republican convention remains to be seen. I'm also drooling over a Vice-Presidential debate.

For a more thourough analysis of the Edwards pick, read John Hood in the National Review:

To pick Edwards is essentially to pick a fight with the Republicans on their territory, and to up the political stakes down the ballot.

ahhh...seattle

Seattle was awesome last week . There's this great market down by the waterfront with abundances of fresh vegetables, fruits, and fish. There were also a bunch of other cool shops and booths, selling everything from blueberry vinegar to alpaca sweaters and toe rings.

All the food I had on the trip was all very good, especially the very fresh fish. The harbor is beautiful, and it was 75 and cool the entire time I was there. I want to go back.

packing list

• digital camera
  
• mp3 player and charger
  
• phone charger
  
• Americana
  
• Motherless Brooklyn
  
• four pair pants
  
• three pair boxer shorts
  
• one tie
  
• five pair socks
  
• three t-shirts
  
• three long sleeve shirts
  
• one short sleeve shirt
  
• one toothbrush
  
• one razor

great lead

The Economist has a nice story about the space launch. And it starts with one of the best leads I've read in a while:

They are calling it the "space Woodstock" — but unlike the legendary 1960s pop festival, only one man got high.

Clever.

i choose not to

I've become a regular reader of the White House press briefings. They aren't quite as much fun as they were with Ari Fleischer, they still have good tidbits almost every day. Yesterday, White House counsel Alberto Gonzales' briefing on the administration's torture policy was no exception:

JUDGE GONZALES: I'm not going to get into a discussion about the internal deliberations of the White House. I can say that during this period of time there was a great deal of debate, over a period of days, maybe a period of a couple weeks, when the presidential determination was made, all the agencies had actually weighed-in very strongly.

Q With the President, personally?

JUDGE GONZALES: I believe so. But the equities of all the agencies were presented to the President, and they were before the President as he made his decision.

Q: And who did that, you?

JUDGE GONZALES: Again, I'm not going to talk about --

Q: Well, wait, I'm not sure I understand, why is that a difficult thing to discuss?

JUDGE GONZALES: It's not a difficult thing to discuss, it's just one that I don't choose to discuss.

Q: Why?

JUDGE GONZALES: I just don't.

Q: Why wouldn't that be helpful?

JUDGE GONZALES: We normally don't talk about the internal deliberations within the White House. I don't think that's appropriate.

This administration is so helpful.

you had the right to remain silent

In addition to the landmark space flight yesterday, The Supreme Court issued its ruling in Hiibel v. Nevada. In this case, a man — Hiibel — was standing beside a truck, and was asked to identify himself by police investigating a domestic dispute. Hiibel (who appeared intoxicated) refused, and following repeated requests by the officer for his identity, was arrested for failing to identify himself.
Stevens in his dissent is right on:

Surely police questioning during a Terry stop qualifies as an interrogation, and it follows that responses to such questions are testimonial in nature...

Given a proper understanding of the category of "incriminating" communications that fall within the Fifth Amendment privilege, it is clear that the disclosure of petitioner's identity is protected. The Court reasons that we should not assume that the disclosure of petitioner's name would be used to incriminate him or that it would furnish a link in a chain of evidence needed to prosecute him. But why else would an officer ask for it? And why else would the Nevada Legislature require its disclosure only when circumstances "reasonably indicate that the person has committed, is committing or is about to commit a crime?" If the court is correct, then petitioner's refusal to cooperate did not impede the police investigation. Indeed, if we accept the predicate for the Court's holding, the statute requires nothing more than a useless invasion of privacy. I think that, on the contrary, the Nevada Legislature intended to provide its police officers with a useful law enforcement tool, and that the very existence of the statute demonstrates the value of the information it demands. [emphasis added]

Fundamentally, the right against self-incrimination should prevent the state from compelling identification. There is also an additional principle at play. The Nevada statute requires a reasonable suspicion that the person is involved in a crime. However, this judgment is left to the state, and compelling individuals to identify themselves in public clearly represents a shift in individual privacy rights. A troubling shift indeed...

wow

Privately funded plane enters space.

is it the pope?

First Ronald Reagan, now Ray Charles, dead at 73.

If these things come in three, who's next?

fun at work

The city is going a little crazy because of the Reagan funeral. Adding to the fun, today at work, we got evacuated.

Sweet.

olympics for the sky

I missed The Venusian transit of the sun. Celestial events like this, or Halley's Comet, which comes around every 76 years, are one of the few truly global events. All over the world, in countries of differing governments, ethnicities, and worldviews, people were watching Venus meander across the sun. It's like the olympics for the sky.

Except it only happens twice every 121.5 years, the last in 1882 (or so I'm told). Fortunately, I haven't necessarily missed my only shot, and will be watching the skies in 2012 to see a black dot on the sun. Or I'll forget about it while I'm getting dressed for work.

i'm so ashamed.

I got to operate the gun turret on a Hummer in Baghdad today and you didn't.

Well, I got to do this on a training simulator they brought to our offices.
Participating as the gunner on this daytime cruise through the Iraqi capital (complete with virtual "terrorists" firing RPGs), I first was afflicted with a moral conflict:

Is it more morally corrupt to:

• Operate the gun on the
  Hummer
• Drive a Hummer

By operating the gun, I had the opportunity to actually destroy other vehicles, thereby reducing the burden on global resources being caused by the driving of the vehicle. Of course, all of this took place on a very elaborate headset and was nothing more than a glorified video game.

I wonder about the efficacy of training on these ridiculously expensive simulators. While I believe it probably helps prepare our troops to patrol otherwise alien environments, is there an desensitization that takes place when war turns into a video game? If the guy in the Hummer behind me who kept shooting everything that moved — including me — is any indication, there just might be.

assorted assortment

A few notes from today:

• Jon Stewart delivered the commencement address at William and Mary College. I'll still take
  our graduation speaker but Stewart's speech is
  pretty quality.
  
• Thankfully, the California porn industry is shooting again. That's a terrible pun.
  
• Finally, The Wall Street Journal and Zogby have conducted the first battleground states poll. It shows Kerry leading the President in 12 of 16 battleground states, including five states Bush won (or "won") in 2000. If the poll results are accurate, and the election were held today, Kerry would trounce the President. It should be noted that this poll was conducted on the internet (but in a controlled setting), and that many of these leads are within the margin of error, particularly Florida (Kerry by 1.3%). Still, good news.

worst baseball game ever

The Yankees suck. Unfortunately, the Orioles suck more. A lot more. A super lot. 18-5. Ouch. But since the game was long, it was worth the 150 minute drive to the park. And Camden Yards remains a spectacular place to spend an evening.

Also, Eric Harris...er the Texas Rattlesnake (whatever) rules. Or something.

let's get "married"

Yesterday the Washington Post and the Washington Times had almost identical headlines. The Post headline:

Gay Couples Marry in Massachusetts

and the Washington Times:

Gay Couples 'Marry' in Massachusetts

It is clear in this Washington Times Editorial that in the Washington Times, "marry" is style if it involves same-sex couples. To me this is midly ironic given that the Washington Times' owner, Rev. Sun Myung Moon has conducted numerous mass weddings at which the couples had never seen one another before their "marriage."

It's also bad journalism.

yummy

Anne, describing my cooking to someone, said I made cream and butter soup. This got me to thinking about how to concoct such a soup.

It seems like it'll be really tasty. I may have to spend some time in the kitchen next week when I get back from California. But should the base be cream, or butter? And how can I get bacon involved?

lobsters stuffed with tacos

After a weekend of cavorting on the beach and throwing up in the ocean, I'm back in town. The beach is fucking fun, though. Except for the vomiting in the ocean.

And yes, the rumors are true, approximately one year after graduating, I am with job.

they don't make them like this anymore

From the Senate floor today, from Sen. Earnest "Fritz" Hollings (D-SC):

The point is that this decision [Brown v. Board of Education] itself more or less removed the lid off the punch bowl of segregation and allowed all Americans, regardless of race, creed, or color, to become for the first time full Americans, full citizens.

It's too bad he's retiring.

lousy comments

Restoring my haloscan comments is, for the moment, more trouble than it's worth. It can be done, but I really like the way the blogger comments look. I could have both, it looks really clunky. I'm a bit dismayed that blogger requires a registration to leave comments. That's really lame. Of course, this whole thing is free, so I suppose I can't complain too much given all the free improvements they've provided.

pretty pretty

New template. Hooray. Blogger upgraded their site, and offered a bunch of new templates with the upgrade. This one I feel is a vast improvement over its predecessor. Overall I'm beaming about the upgrades, I think I like this better than moveable type which ate my blog a while ago.

I'm quite enamored with the way this template displays blockquotes. Very slick. CSS rules.

I may bring over the old haloscan comments, but we'll try using blogger's new comments feature for now.

It also appears that as I finalize this effort, my site has gone down. This is irritating.

this is gross

A number of readers have requested details of my unfortunate brush with boiling water. Click on the picture on the left for greater detail. It's a little gross, though.

 

bastion of journalism

Thank goodness we have Dateline NBC to provide us with unbiased news about the Friends finale. A two hour special devoted to a program running on the same network the next night. What journalistic integrity. Especially in the face of a void of other newsworthy issues. I suppose I might be offended if a "news" program devoted two hours to a television show if we were at war or something.

I've been watching a lot of t.v. as I (slowly) recuperate from burning the hell out of myself this weekend. Mental note: Don't pour boiling water down my legs. Especially not three gallons. There is seriously nothing on television ever. Ever.

Oh, for everyone who has been wondering, Kassie's blog is back up. Now with .net flavor!

best analogy ever

At a press conference this morning, Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) compared lack of enforcement of trade agreements by the U.S. to "coming to a wife swapping party and being the only one who brought your wife."

On an unrelated note, Lifesaver Pastels Jellybeans are the most vile thing ever. Ever.

red and blue

The Washington Post is running a three part series on Red and Blue America. The first article lays out the basic argument that America is becoming increasingly politically segregated. The second is a slice of life in Red America in Sugar Land, Texas, Tom Delay's home district. It's about a man who drinks Bud Light at Hooters, grills cheeseburgers on his gas grill, and goes to church every Sunday. He be a nice guy, but my immediate reaction is that he's a moron who is out of touch with the realities of this country.

The increasing vitriol is evident in this article and my reaction to it, as well as the protest yesterday. Explanations for this growing scism vary, and will be the basis for a lot of political science classes in the next 50 years (provided that the republicans don't destroy higher ed).

One of the fundamental arguments is that we choose to live among the like minded, which has further entrenched our own beliefs, whatever they may be. The anger directed both generally at the President, and specifically at the anti-choice protestors (and at us by them), demonstrates a declining willingness to compromise and find those issues on which there is agreement.
Tomorrow's piece will be about Nancy Pelosi's home district in San Francisco. I’m sure I’ll be full of warm fuzzies and want to move there.

march for exhaustion

What a long weekend. Oy. The party rocked, the March was pimp-ass, and to top it off, i just got back from Reston, VA after seeing MJPR. I'll have pictures from the March at some point, and a longer comment too, but since I have to go to work tomorrow, I'm going to bed.

But before I do, I thought I'd quote the White House statement on the March:

The President believes we should work to build a culture of life in America and regardless of where one stands on the issue of abortion, we can all work together to reduce the number of abortions through promotion of abstinence-education programs, support for parental-notification laws and continued support for banning partial-birth abortion.

Fucker.

it's the heat AND the humidity

I had been planning to make chocolate for my super-awesome Party for Choice. But the heat and the humidity of recent days have made that plan untenable. She's a fickle mistress, chocolate. Oh well, the quesadillas and pizzas and gyoza should do the job. That and the beer.

If you are in Washington on Saturday night, you should come to this party. It's going to rock. And not just because of the aforementioned food and beer. The food and beer will be largely responsible for the rockingness, though.

Directions from the Metro are here.

too slow

Yesterday I was reviewing the newest Washington Post-ABC News Poll. There is lots of bad news for Kerry, though it remains far too soon to consider this data valuable. I wandered around the office noting my favorite piece of data from the poll, the response to this question:

"Overall do you think George W. Bush has done more to unite the country, or has done more to divide the country?"

50% say unite, 48% say divide. Good stuff. Unfortunately, Andrew Sullivan has beaten me to the blog. Bastard.

look! a blue car!

Listening to Morning Edition before work today, I heard a story on the growing popularity of prenatal ultrasound portraits. The FDA has issued a warning that the use of ultrasounds for non-medical use is both inappropriate and potentially harmful to fetal development.

Parents (and the one they had on the show sounded like the kind of idiots who would pay for this crap) are taking these "portraits" of their unborn children, I suppose for the scrapbook. One proprietor of such an establishment, when asked about the potential health risks to the fetus responded, "it's still safer than an abortion."

To translate, "I waste medical technology, and my behavior is indefensible, so I have to blather some right-wing crap on an unrelated topic."

Kind of like when the President brings up gay marriage when we're interested in the location of those WMD.

shake everywhere

So Jim Cantalupo, the CEO of McDonald's, died of a heart attack today. I don't mean to make light of this man's death, but this is kind of like rain on your wedding day, don’t you think?

In a related story, Mayor McCheese lowered all McDonald land flags to half-mast, and the Hamburglar agreed to take a hiatus from his thieving ways. When asked what Cantalupo meant to him, the Hamburglar, between sobs, replied simply "robble."

best fight ever

Last night, I was flipping around while watching the Timberwolves game, and came across an awesome show: Animal Face-Off. They make biomechanical versions of animals and have them fight. Last night was Walrus vs. Polar Bear.

I initially thought the walrus would have no shot. Sure, it has badass tusks, but they are a goofy looking animal. But the walrus is about twice as heavy as the polar bear. I missed the conclusion (because I was held rapt by a far more momentous battle: Nugget vs. Timberwolf), but will have to catch it in rerun.

Brilliant show concept. The season finale is a must-see: Collosal Squid (how cool does that sound?) vs. Sperm Whale. Make your own inappropriate jokes.

that sucked

Arriving home, I sought to partake in the great American tradition of a cold beer after work. I might have even tried to catch a baseball game. As I reached into the fridge and grabbed hold of some Belgian concoction, the bottle exploded in my hands.

Beer everywhere.

Making matters worse (than just not having any beer), the beer was was a 25.7 oz bottle, distributing its beer-y goodness all over the fridge. And it cut my hand to boot. Dammit.

leadership of smirks

I was reading a Salon(which has declined recently) article on John Kerry: The Video Game, when I came across a turn of phrase that brilliantly captures what I hope will be Bush's downfall in this election:

As Iraq teeters once more on the brink, his [Kerry's] opposite offers little more than the leadership of smirks.

I would have thought Maureen Dowd or perhaps E.J. Dionne would have come up with something this good, but I guess not.

Second, (as cited in Howard Kurtz's Media Notes), Michael Tomasky (The American Prospect's Executive Editor) writes in his weekly online column:

We saw the usual mental confusion and frighteningly long pauses as his mind scoured its grim landscape for an appropriate word.

In reading both of these pieces, specific images of the President stumbling for words, or smirking smugly immediately spring to mind. That's good writing.

Oh, and finally Sen. Kerry provides his vision for leadership in Iraq in a decent piece in today's Post.

Off to go watch Ashcroft testify. I hope it isn't too hot.

i'm baaaack

My server has been down most of last week, which prevented some postings. It's working (though who knows for how long) now, so I'll probably be backblogging later this week.

Oh, and kudos to the Gophers' Women's Basketball team. Their impressive run in the tournament (and Lindsay Whalen's career) came to an end, but it was a lot of fun to watch. Though I probably wouldn't have refered to the run as either a "karmic joyride" or "jubilant jaunt" as the Strib did in the first two paragraphs. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it greatly. And this from someone who has in the past referred to women's basketball as insipid.

cut cut cut

I spent much of this weekend in the kitchen. Because I'm on jury duty, I'll have more opportunties ot cook next week too, which is good since it's passover. On Saturday I spent about 5 hours making a vegetable stock from scratch. It takes quite a while, and I'm not convinced that the finished product is worth the effort, but there is something soothing about the processs. It is a bit challenging, in part because of the temporal investment. After spending three hours, I really didn't want to fuck it up.

I used the finished product to make a sauce for stuffed turkey cutlets. Served with mashed potatoes and green beans...tasty. Next week: lots of kosher meals. Matzo ball soup...yum.

jury duty rules

I've been thinking in the list form recently. The two lists I've come up with are:

Random observations from jury duty

• There have been several movies about juries, most recently, I think, Runaway Jury. After my first day of jury duty, however, I think any movie about jury duty (and, not starring Pauly Shore) would be the most boring film ever.
  
• I suppose it's a good thing that our legal system operates slowly. Haste would make for poor justice (I'm sure someone has said something similar and more eloquently), but it sure is boring for the participants.
  
• Old government buildings are ugly.
  
• There are some seriously crazy people living in Washington, and eligible to serve on a jury. I think I'll request a bench trial if ever indicted.

Reasons jury duty is better than work

• I can sleep later.
  
• I get paid.
  
• I get off earlier.
  
• No paper jams.
  
• When there's nothing to do, I can act like it.
  
• Did I mention I get paid?

three people will get this

While washing my face this morning, with Noxema's slogan, "your face belongs to Noxema" running through my head, I came up with what should be Noxema's new slogan:

All your face are belong to Noxema.

I am so funny.

(thanks to Josh for the correction)

damn you SUV drivers!

from "You Shall Know Our Velocity":

The silent though decisive discussions were a hobby of my mind, debating people I knew or passed on the road while driving:
—You, driving the Lexus.
—Me?
—Yes, you. You paid too much.
—What?
—You paid too much and your soul is soiled.
—You are right. I have failed but will repent.

Every time I see an SUV a similar conversation takes place, but with more swearing.

Kassie rules

A deal is a deal. Having sent Kassie a copy of The Grey Album, I received a plastic container (very cleverly wrapped, I might add) full of leftover wop. She was even nice enough to include a lighter which might have been mine in a previous life. Now what to do with it?

I'm considering saving it for the April 24 party at my house before the March for Choice. If I dumped it into a much larger wop, (sans lighter) nobody would notice. And anybody who died would probably not do so until after they left my house.

On a completely unrelated note, last night Anne (not my sister) and I went to Sushi Taro. Though there wasn’t any bluefin toro, I did have some uni. The egg (or roe) of sea urchins left me lacking words. And I’ve just stumbled across a website that ships the stuff. 80g for $14. ($78/lb.) Perhaps ordering it for $9.00 at a restaurant is easier (for now).

happy birthday

My blog turns one today. The day after the war turns one.

For those counting:

American deaths from war in Iraq: 576 (437 since end of major combat operations)
American deaths from my blog: 0

Cost of war in Iraq (to American taxpayers: $107 B (as of 3.20.04)
Cost of my blog (to American taxpayers): $0

Clearly my blog is better.

stupid democracy

After about a week of columnists and politicians excoriating the Spaniards for exercising their democratic rights in the aftermath of a national tragedy, Maureen Dowd gets it right.

Oh, and Kassie, it snowed here today. Definitely suck.

Sign this!

Fire Sec. Rod Paige. Off to work with me.

Work work work...

30 bucks?

I was really excited to do my taxes because I thought I'd be receiving the Earned Income Tax Credit. The EITC is a refundable credit, which supplements the income of low income families and individuals. Unfortunately, as I discovered, you have to be 25 to claim the EITC if you don't have kids. As I am not, my refund is a lousy $30. Dammit.

Happy March

It's not fatal, but the hospitalization of Attorney General John Ashcroft means he'll have to take a break from taking a dump on the Bill of Rights.

Poor Alan Greenspan

Sadly, Alan Greenspan (perhaps after watching what happened to former Secretary O'Neill [though he could not be fired by the President]) today in testimony before the House Budget Committee said that Social Security benefits must be trimmed to prevent a looming fiscal crisis. Despite this belief, he continues to urge the Congress to make permanent the President's tax cuts (costing approximately $1 trillion).

Perhaps since he knows Social Security benefits will not be trimmed (at least not for the boomers), he can be credited with offering a "solution" to the fiscal crisis while remaining the President's lackey on tax cuts. I just hope he doesn't tarnish his legacy by going to bad for this administration's clearly reckless tax policies.

Here is the text of his testimony.

album of the year

The music industry continues its absurd battle against copyright violations, even when they produce some quality works like DJ Danger Mouse's "The Grey Album" which is combines the Beatles The White Album with Jay-Z's The Black Album in a wicked awesome way. So awesome that it has become the most popular internet download of recent time (ok, I'm making that up, but it's really popular). But since some fascist (EMI) owns the rights to The White Album, the Grey Album will never be released.

The Grey Album has received a ton of press recently, including this NYT article. If you like rap, ask me, and maybe I'll mail you a copy. Because that's what 3l1t3 p1r4t35 (Andy will get it, almost nobody else will (maybe Graham Archer, if he reads this) do.

for shame

To recap the President's cabinet:

Secretary Paul O'Neill was fired, more or less for disagreeing with the President about tax cuts. He felt such cuts would be fiscally irresponsible, and could lead to record deficits. Which we now have.

Meanwhile, Secretary of Education Rod Paige today called the National Education Association (the teacher's union) a "terrorist organization". The President ignored Paige and instead said:

"I fully understand it's going to be the year of the sharp elbow and the quick tongue. But surely we can shuffle that aside sometimes and focus on our people."

Whatever that means.

In his "apology" Secretary Paige says:

"As one who grew up on the receiving end of insensitive remarks, I should have chosen my words better."

To translate: "Since I'm black, I know all about being insulted, and therefore am immune from criticism despite having made remarks for which I should be fired. If you suggest I should be fired, you're probably racist. Or a terrorist. Or (gasp) a racist terrorist."

There is almost nothing about this that does not anger me.

To run

Nader to run as independent candidate.

To run or not to run?

In an open letter to Ralph Nader, editors of The Nation urge the former Green Party candidate not to seek the Presidency as an independent candidate (Nader having already withdrawn his name from consideration as a Green Party candidate).

Nader responds, and in doing so, demonstrates the divisive effects his potential campaign would have on the left. Though I voted for him four years ago, and agree with most of his arguments about the problems of our current electoral system, in my mind, all he can do is hamper efforts to remove the President from office.

like the indoor tennis court

I'm about 50 pages from finishing Mao II and have found myself disinterested in the conclusion. Yet, because of the time I've already invested getting to this point, it seems foolish not to finish. Economists would chide me for this, and mutter something about sunk cost.

If my subway ride were a bit longer in the morning, this wouldn't be a problem, but as it is, I can't really get any reading done on the train. Still, it beats sitting in traffic.

Celebrate and Discover

From today's Washington Post:

WASA officials suggest that the best way to flush the lines for 10 minutes is to take a shower and flush the toilet before drinking or cooking. That process will drain several gallons of water from the main pipes serving the homes.

Washington, D.C. - A Capital City

dump

I have a few things I wanted to add, but I'm tired, so here they are in disorganized list form:

• Chandra would probably approve of this article which describes threats by Indians over the observation of Valentine's Day in their country.
  
• The Strib ran a series on obesity in Minnesota. Included in one of the articles is a link to Ample Answers a website with things for the...not-so-thin. Among them is this Telescoping Fork. The description is awesome.
  

Bedtime.

election web fun

Mike sent me this link to Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections to a site where you can generate your own Presidential election prediction map.

This is mine. Perhaps a bit optimistic, but I think we'll win. There's a lot of other cool stuff for political nerds, including county-by-county maps. Good stuff.

Clever writing

When she wants to, I think Maureen Dowd is the best opinion columnist in the country. Today she demonstrates this.

Also, an amusing Joebituary in Slate.

fun with ricin

No work again tomorrow, and perhaps for the remainder of the week. It did feel a bit weird when (explaining to Anne (my sister) why I wasn't at work) the words "my office is closed because of a terrorist attack against my building" came out of my mouth. Fortunately, I haven't manifested symptoms of ricin poisoning, and would have by now. So I guess I'm not going to die.

Rock.

no work for me (part II)

For the second time in as many weeks, work has been cancelled by a white, powdery substance. This time, it's a little less sweet:

Ricin closes Senate office buildings

or what normal people call "fifth place"

From Sen. Joe Lieberman's speech in New Hampshire Tuesday night:

Thank you. Let me ask you this: is New Hampshire a great state or what? You bet it is.

Based on the returns that we’ve seen tonight, thanks to the people of New Hampshire, we are in a three way split decision for third place.

Now you and I both know that the national pundits didn’t expect this, did they? As a matter of fact this morning, the national newspapers put four of the candidates on their front page -- but not me.

But today, the people of New Hampshire put me in the ring, and that’s where we’re going to stay.

Imagine what will happen if he finishes fourth next week.

ridiculous

The following people do not have to go to work today due to inclement weather:

• Me

the apocalypse is upon us!

Closings! Delays! Catastrophic road conditions! Horrendous commute times! Stay in your homes! Save yourself!

Four inches of snow, and nobody in the DC area has to go to school. Bastards. Well...off to work.

from the floor

I’m sitting on the Senate floor in the middle of a quorum call. Sens. Byrd (D-WV), Daschle (D-SD) and Kennedy (D-MA) all spoke on the Pension Bil, and we’re all awaiting Sen. Kyl’s (R-AZ) entrance to the floor.
Though the specifics of the Pension Bill are fairly uninteresting, the opportunity to sit ten feet from a man who has spent more than half a century in the Senate as he filled the room with words about the plight of the forgotten working man was at the very least, memorable. They may not be paying me, but the perks are sweet.

a bad start

To begin my day, I was greeted by a gaggle of fascist anti-abortion protesters on the Metro. In addition to generally being fascist sexist fucks, it appeared that most of these people are from out of town, and therefore, have absolutely no idea how to behave on public transportation. Why are so many of these woman-haters children? I guess because the movement knows there is no legitimacy to their ideas, the only way they can conjure support sufficient to mount a protest is to indoctrinate some children to beef up their numbers.

Can you tell I'm annoyed?

i got your weapons of mass destruction-related program activities right here

As the cacophony of pundit analyses of the SOTU and Iowa caucus grows louder, it is naturally time to add my thoughts to the list.

Dean's loss, while surprising, does not spell the end of his campaign. As the candidate with the most money and the best national organization, I still think he's in the best position to get the Democratic nomination. Kerry and (to a lesser extent) Edwards have demonstrated their abilities to put together a state campaign in a short period of time. However, whether they can put together similar organizations in other states will prove pivotal. Particularly as Clark (and, I suppose Lieberman) enter the race and the calendar accelerates.

The State of the Union had its usual gag moments, including

"You need to renew the Patriot Act"

and

"we will double federal funding for abstinecnce programs, so schools can teach this fact of life: Abstinence for young people is the only certain way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases."

I thought the domestic policy half of the speech was a bit weak. However the first half — citing foreign policy achievements — was very strong. I think the President has dramatically improved his speaking abilities (contrasted with his stilted, sometimes clumsy speeches a couple of years ago), and has demonstrated that as President, he will be a formidable candidate. Assuming, of course, the American public don’t care about the misleading economic data.

The best/worst line from the speech, however, has to be:

”…the Kay Report identified dozens of weapons of mass destruction related program activities…”

Uh oh. It’s a good thing we invaded, otherwise,

”...weapons of mass destruction programs would continue to this day…”

Well, now that we don’t have to worry about program activities attacking us, I feel much better. How big did you say the deficit was going to be?

sorry Vermin

My trip with Anne to the Holocaust Museum presented me with (though not explicitly) a pretty compelling argument for the war in Iraq. Though the idea of pre-emption still concerns me, I'm no longer certain that the war should not have happened. I still doubt the intentions of the White House, as recent revalations by Paul O'Neill support. Ironically, my increasing ambivalence over the war coincides with my decision to support (by which I mean vote for in an election carrying the same weight as that of my fourth class [mickey mouse edged Michael Dukakis]) Howard Dean. I may ellaborate on my rationale for my vote, but since I'm on government property, I won't do it now.

To be clear, I am not advocating the election of any candidate with this post.

or I could vote for Howard Dean

Democracy is a responsibility. It is incumbent on the voters, the people, to inform themselves about the merits of each candidate. In an effort to help busy folks make educated decisions, I've included this candidate statement from Vermin Supreme, as written in the District of Columbia Voters Guide:

Vermin Supreme, a friendly fascist, a tyrant you can trust. Let him run your life. He knows what’s best for you. Proper dental hygiene is essential to proper social order. “Effective use of tarter control will prevent the need for crowd control later.”

-Gingivitis has been eroding the gum line of this great nation of ours long enough and must be stopped!

For too long this great nation of ours has been suffering a great moral and oral decay in spirit and incisors. A country’s future depends on its ability to bite back. We can no longer be a nation indentured, our very salivation is at stake. Therefore we must brace ourselves, bite the bullet, and now more than ever, as we hurdle forward over the bridgework into the twentythird century, may we become together a nation of gleaming smiles from sea to shining sea. THROUGH WHATEVER MEANS NECESSARY. DO NOT BE FOOLED BY FALSE TEETH PROPHETS!

This law is not about:

Dental commando squads or warrantless random no knock dental inspections.
Government issued toothpaste containing addictive yet harmless substances.
Video surveillance through two way bathroom mirrors.
Electronic tracking, moisture and motion sensor devices in all toothbrushes.
Novelty floss dispensers.
Dental re-education center.
Gene splicing to create a race of winged monkeys to act as tooth fairies.
Computer chip dental implants with laser scanners at all toll booths and supermarkets.
The fluoridation of every beverage or even preventative dental maintenance detention facilities.

What this mandatory toothbrush law is really about is:

STRONG TEETH FOR A STRONG AMERICA.

Gingivitis has been eroding the gum line of this great nation of ours long enough and must be stopped!

All politicians are vermin. I am Vermin Supreme. I shall lie to you, because I can. I will Promise anything and deliver nothing. I am the peoples' candidate, you are the people.

TOGETHER, WE CAN TURN UP THE BRIGHTNESS KNOB, OF THE FUTURE, TOMORROW, TODAY.

off to work

A couple of quickies before I head to work:

Moveon.org sponsored a contest to create the best 30 second anti-Bush television ad. These are the finalists. There are two of which I am particularly fond, but many are worth checking out. The celebrity judge panel is pretty impressive.

I have been reading The Federalist Papers at work. These two passages from Federalist 35, seemed a bit ironic these days:

Where the qualifications of the electors are the same, whether they have to choose a small or a large number, their votes will fall upon those in whom they have most confidence; whether these happen to be men of large fortunes, or of moderate property, or of no property at all....

Will not the merchant understand and be disposed to cultivate, as far as may be proper, the interests of the mechanic and manufacturing arts, to which his commerce is so nearly allied? Will not the man of the learned profession, who will feel a neutrality to the rivalships between the different branches of industry, be likely to prove an impartial arbiter between them, ready to
promote either, so far as it shall appear to him conducive to the general interests of the society?

Must remember ID...

chop chop...dig dig

I've got a lot of stuff to blog on, but haven't had time recently, with Anne's visit and starting at work. A couple of quick notes (and the off to yet another intern orientation):

Though Metrocheck isn't in the budget, so my use of public transportation won't be subsidized, they might have a parking space for me. There is some level of absurdity in this, I'm sure.

And, I forgot my ID on the first day I had it. Nice.