Oh, Dick.....Dick, Dick, Dick

There has been much chiding of myself in comments regarding the idea that I can't "move on" from the Bush Cheney years. It's a nice little fantasy that the right, in typical fashion, has manufactured against the left in the pitiful attempt to deflect attention away from their criminal activities and complete incompetence of the last eight years. "See? He can't let go!" is their cry and it has played out on this blog just as it has in all of the rest of the media.

My initial response was that it is quite foolish of anyone, regardless of their political stripes, to simply ignore the effects of any administration's policies (bad or good) and pretend they never happened. The effects of what Dick and George did to this country will be felt for decades if not longer. So, sorry, but I will be continuing to talk about them along with the all of the latest and greatest current events which, to anyone who actually takes the time to think, have a large degree of relevance to decisions President Bush made.....SIX MONTHS AGO!

Of course, the truly funny part about all of this (and helping me out immensely) is that they don't want to go away either. Cheney, Rice, McCain et al have been hitting all the major chat shows over the last month so to say that the left won't "let it go" is quite hilarious....and hypocritical which shouldn't surprise anyone. What is even more funny is that our former VP, in his latest round of media appearances, may have fucked himself......really fucked himself. And I am here to tell all of you that I love it.

From CSM.

Crusading Spanish human rights judge Baltasar Garzón is now considering criminal charges against top Bush administration officials for the torture of five Spanish citizens held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Judge Garzón's previous prosecution of Gen. Augusto Pinochet eventually resulted in the Chilean dictator's arrest in Britain.

OH NO HE DI-ENT!

So funny that I think I actually laughed off one of my testicles is the fact that none of the men named in Garzon's investigation may have to say a fucking thing about Cheney because Cheney himself WON'T FUCKING SHUT UP ABOUT IT!! In all of his interviews that he has given since his departure from DC, Dick has made it a point to essentially state that torture makes our country safer. In particular, President Obama's new policies (see: closing of Gitmo) have made our country prone to attack. "We must torture," he cries at the top of his lungs, "it worked for us!"

His family may want to to try to get him to check his ego in the lobby before he enters the theater and shut his fucking mouth because our ol' Buddy Richie might find hisself in the hoosegow. As of yet, Richard Bruce Cheney has not been named but Gonzalez and Yoo have been. How long do you suppose it will be before they start flapping their gums, as many top Bush administration officials already are about how frequently torture was used and, sadly, how none of it yielded any useful information? Could it be the we could see a time in the near future when former administration officials won't be able to travel due to fears of being arrested for war crimes? Hoo boy...I can't wait to see the right spin themselves out of this one which we all know they will:)

In sum, good readers, I wanted to go on record and make all of you a promise: as long as Dick's only conviction is his own vanity, I am going to talk about what he says on this blog. It might be a tough nut for some of you to swallow but, as our current president begins representing our country at this week's G-20 summit in London, the rest of you can probably see that we really have a lot of 'splainin' to do, Lucy!

Yep

I think cartoonist Victor Juhasz pretty much sums up our current state with this one. It goes along with the post below.

Here They Are

Chuck Woodsy, conservative poster on this blog, recently pointed me in the direction of the following this article and this list regarding how we got to this point in our economy. Chuck has now seen the light of day regarding what happens when the free market is allowed to butt fuck all of us sans lube.

The list of the Dirty Dozen intrigues me the most. Why? Because it neatly and clearly shows the actual people responsible for fucking over America as opposed to the "evil spirits" the right has manufactured out of their asses to jibe with their paranoid beliefs about "gubmint." Only two on the list are government officials (Rubin and Paulson) with two more being part of quasi government agencies (Greenspan and Cox). All four of these men were completely worthless and drank the free market Kool Aid.

A fifth is Phil Gramm, former Republican Senator from Texas who was the Senate Banking Chair from 1995-2000. Intelligent minds think alike as the list mentions Gramm-Leach-Bliley (as I have repeatedly) as being a major catalyst to our current situation. Strangely absent from the list is Barney Frank, the right wingers favorite whipping boy. Sorry righties. Frank may be a putz and a buffoon but he has nowhere near the power to do what has been done. Neither does our government for that matter.

But the rest of the list does. They are all CEOs of the biggest financial institutions in our government and I'd love to hear what all of you think after you read what they did. Take a look at people like Cassano, Weill, and Cayne. What is the difference between these fucks and Bernie Madoff? Zero. They were allowed by the dicks mentioned above as well as Presidents Clinton and Bush to rape and pillage as many villages as they could get their grubby mits on and destroy.

And righties? Please try to bring your "it's all the government's regulations" horse shit to the table now. It's always been weak to begin with and now all it does is further the point that you have absolutely nothing to offer anymore which essentially makes future Democratic victories in coming election years more likely.

Dead Cat Bounce?

A couple of weeks back at the gym, one of my conservative friends came running up to me.

"See, Mark? See? I told you Barack Obama would be a horrible president."
"How do you mean?" I asked.
"Look at the Dow. Wall Street doesn't like him."
"Yeah, but how much does the president really affect Wall Street?"
"Oh, they do."
"So when it dropped all that way under Bush...that was his fault too?"
"That was different. That was Barney Frank's fault."
"Ah, I see. But, ML (her initials) it just went up a little today. How do you explain that?"
"My husband-he's in banking and knows more than you-that's just the dead cat bounce. This market is dead. Obama is destroying the market and eventually he will destroy this economy with his socialist policies."

Yesterday, the Dow gained 500 points after two weeks of solid gains. As of this writing it is slightly up after starting low. As I often do in these situations, I defer to someone who knows more about the economy than I do (I am more of a foreign policy and political wonk)...Last In Line...who has told me quite often that the president doesn't really have that much to do with the state of Wall Street.

These days that might be a little less true but his main point is valid. I do wonder, though, if she will give our president at least some credit the next time I see her at the gym and ask her about that "dead cat bounce" thing...why it, like so many other things out of the mouths of the right, was a complete bag of shit.

Probably not.

Torture is Cool

Well, this is the one that really pissed me off. Is there ever going to be a time in this country when people DON'T believe dumb ass shit like this? Probably not

The fact of the matter is that torture does not work. The information you get from it is very unreliable and the only purpose it serves is to further the right wing's bizarre "violence makes my dick hard" fetish. I think they have a serious problem and should seek help.

While they are doing that, the rest of us can proceed in a fashion that actually elicits results. Take the example of my recently passed grandfather who told me that when he was involved with interrogations (Pacific Theater 1942-1945) they would simply dangle the carrot of a warm meal, water, sometimes a movie (!) and before you knew it, they'd get all kinds of information about Japanese troop positions. It nauseated him as a Christian to here what was going on down at Gitmo and in other prisons around the world. And he was a lifelong Republican!

Hell, these days, the dudes down at Gitmo are falling all over themselves to claim more credit for 9-11. We don't have to do shit.

No Need To Imagine

Before we move forward with more Dick (she said winking:)), a line from comments...

I can only imagine what the reaction would be had GWB made a quip like that about the special olympics. Baracks teleprompter has denied all responsibility.

First of all, let's put to rest the right wing bullshit myth that President Obama only speaks well with a teleprompter. Clearly, people that say that don't spend a lot of time watching him speak. So, I challenge those who believe this to watch 10 hours of President Obama speaking at events like he did yesterday (sans teleprompter), answering questions, on chat shows etc...Take notes and send me clips of his speech. I think you will find that it is not as bad as the myth you believe.

Second, let's also put to rest the bizarre right wing myth that if you make a mistake that somehow that means you are weak. President Obama has said on several occasions that he is only human and he makes mistakes. In fact, he speaks very plainly about his faults and how dunderheaded he can be. Last night was an example of that. He was insensitive and rude. Thus he apologized.

And the reason why you would never here a similar reaction if the same thing happened with Bush is because: a) He would never apologize because b) mistake? What mistake? To admit error is weak and weaklings shall perish in a sinful pit of boiling sewage.

Part 3 of Dick

Cheney on the Middle East...

The Chen-Ster Part Deux

More denial and bullshit....

Liberal Media Watch

Ah, the "liberal media." Here we have former VP Dick Cheney lobbed softball question after limp noodle question and essentially given a forum to air his bullshit. This is just Part 1!

A Giant Pile of Steaming...(Part 7 of 7)

The best for last, natch!

Scenario:
Pedro fails high school English.
1958 - Pedro goes to summer school, passes English and goes to college.
2008 - Pedro's cause is taken up by state.
Newspaper articles appear nationally
explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist.
ACLU files class action lawsuit against state school system
and Pedro's English teacher. English banned from core curriculum.
Pedro given diploma anyway but ends up
mowing lawns for a living because he cannot speak English.

What a grand display of hyper inflated over exago bull crap. And, yes, FUCKING RACIST! This is the exact kind of bullshit that will piss me off no matter who the fuck is president. The fact that...and I know this is true because I hear about it every day from some of my conservative friends....these people think that if you don't learn English you end up mowing lawns is, without a doubt, the purest example of ego centrism combined with jingoism I have ever seen. Guess what, d bags? We aren't number one anymore largely thanks to the buffoon who occupied the oval office from 2001 to 2009. If any language should be learned, it's Chinese, not English.

"English banned from core curriculum?" Douche Bag Code for "Them firners are a comin'!"

"ACLU files...?" Douche Bag Code for "Please release your inner racist or you will be speaking firner soon."

"Newspaper articles appear nationally..." Douche Bag code for "All media are liberal commies who should be taken to camps and/or shot in the head."

"Pedro's cause is taken.." Douche Bag code for "Liberals are fascists who want to take your guns."

How much longer are we going to listen to this crap? People that say these types of things are fucking liars. Period. Liars who seek only to instill fear and fan rage.

The real reason why Pedro has failed high school English was that he was probably given a standardized test (see: No Child Left Behind) that has no sensitivity whatsoever to his learning style or his culturally diverse background. This essentially means that it is the worst fucking gauge of his actual intelligence.

In addition, his instructor was more than likely a lazy ass and did not pay attention to Pedro's differentiated learning style. If, instead of lecture, he had been taught in one of the other MILLION instructional strategies available to teachers, he would NOT have failed. Off the top of my head, if I have an ELL (English Language Learner) in one of my classes, I try to use as much audio and visual material as I can. I certainly don't stand up there and jabber away with an ego the size of a hot fucking air balloon while my students doodle, text, or pass out from boredom.

So, all of you...please...the next time you hear anything remotely like this, call the moron on their bullshit. Tell them to take a walk down Main Street and see who actually lives in our country now as opposed to the make believe land they have in their delusions.

A Giant Pile of Steaming....(Part 6 of 7)

More silliness...

Scenario:
Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee.
He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary hugs him to comfort him.
1958 - In a short time, Johnny feels better and goes on playing.
2008 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job.
She faces 3 years in State Prison.
Johnny undergoes 5 years of therapy.

Ok, this happens every day at my kid's school and no one is accused of being a sexual predator. In fact, I would wager that it goes on in most schools and this is just more "code" for psychology is a myth and if everyone just pulled themselves up by their boot straps, their lives would be fine.

A Giant Pile of Steaming....(Part 5 of 7)

This one is sort of vague.

Scenario:
Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from 4th of July,
puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.
1958 - Ants die.
2008- BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called.
Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents,
siblings removed from home, computers confiscated,
Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list
and is never allowed to fly again.

I assume they mean at school? If not, this happens pretty much all summer long in my neighborhood and no one so much as lifts a finger.

A Giant Pile of Steaming...(part 4 of 7)

This one is just plain silly.

Scenario:

Mark gets a headache and takes some aspirin to school.
1958 - Mark shares aspirin with Principal out on the smoking dock.
2008 - Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations.
Car searched for drugs and weapons.

First of all, smoking dock? I asked everyone I know who was alive in 1958 if their school had a smoking dock and the answer from everyone was no. Teachers could smoke in the teacher's lounge but students got in trouble if they got caught with cigarettes.

As a parent, I can also relate that there are a wide variety of forms that parents can fill out to allow their kids to take aspirin, Tylenol, or anything else they might need. No police are called, no cars are searched, and no one is expelled.

The conceptual lens of people who think this way is in desperate need of an anti-bacterial wash.

A Giant Pile of Steaming...(Part 3 of 7)

Continuing with the email forward...

Scenario:
Johnny and Mark get into a fistfight after school.
1958 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins.
Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.
2008 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark.
Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it

They shake hands and end up buddies? Seriously, is this person writing this email FROM the year 1958 and is his Dad named Ward Cleaver?

I showed my mom this and she laughed. As a principal, she told me what actually happens as opposed to what happens in ignorant over exago land.

No Swat team is called and no charges are filed. Both Johnny and Mark are shown to my mom's office. She asks them what happened. They both lie. Their parents are called in and told that the children are suspended for a day or more (depending upon the severity of the fight). They come back to school and avoid each other for awhile eventually becoming more concerned seeing the latest comic book movie.

A Giant Pile of Steaming...(Part 2 of 7)

Continuing on with the email forward I received from a friend.

Scenario:
Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car
and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.
1958 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal,
goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.
2008 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse.
Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang.
State psychologist tells Billy's sister that she remembers
being abused herself and their dad goes to prison.
Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.

Actually, what 1958 should read is this:

Billy has a wide variety of mental and emotional issues related to the physical abuse his dad inflicted on him, fails to go to college or land a decent job, and grows up to abuse his own kids because that's WHAT ACTUALLY FUCKING HAPPENS IN THE REAL WORLD AS OPPOSED TO NEVER NEVER LAND!!!

The person who wrote this email clearly has never spent any time with abused children or adults and is completely lacking in any sort of knowledge of even rudimentary psychology and behavior development. To them, these fields are probably just "more liberal bullshit" which is quite apparent in their view of 2008. What a bunch of over exaggerated nonsense.

In addition, what's with the violence thing again? Seriously, I honestly think that people that view the world this way get off on beatings and death. It reminds me of the time I watched the Passion of the Christ a few years back. I was with some friends of mine who are very right wing Christians and, for many of them, it was their third or fourth time! Honestly, I could only watch Jesus Christ being beaten and mutilated once. It was sad and nauseating. They didn't seem to mind, though, as they were over taken by emotion and, strangely, almost seemed to enjoy it.

Put that together with how they seem to always have to find an enemy to blow up somewhere and it really makes you wonder. Maybe they might fit in just fine in Iran or Saudi Arabia.

A Giant Pile of Steaming...(Part 1 of 7)

Last week a friend of mine sent me an email forward that I have decided to make the topic of the week. I want to be clear up front that the person that did sent to me is a very kind hearted and wonderful human being who viewed this email as a joke. I am hoping that when all of you read it you will find it to be yet another excellent example of a giant pile of steaming right wing tap into your inner rage horse manure that, sadly, she did not recognize.

Each email consisted of a comparison between a school in 1958 and a school today. There were 8 comparisons and a concluded paragraph which ordered

This email should hit every email box to show how stupid we have become.

So, let's take a look at how "stupid" we have become and start off our Monday with two comparisons.

Scenario:
Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other students.
1958 - Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by the Principal.
Returns to class, sits still and does not disrupt class again.
2008 - Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie.
Tested for ADD. School gets extra money from state
because Jeffrey has a disability.

Scenario:

Jack goes quail hunting before school,
pulls into school parking lot with shotgun in gun rack.
1958 - Vice Principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun,
goes to his car and gets his shotgun to show Jack.
2008 - School goes into lock down, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail
and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselor called in
for traumatized students and teachers.

Let's begin the idiocy in the first example of beating a child with ADD. Really? Is that a solution for someone who has a learning disorder...violence? As we go through the week, we will see more examples of how violence seems to be the only answer for people who think like this...which, of course, begs the question...aren't believers in Christ supposed to support non violence?

And of course, we do have the rip about the school "getting money from the state" which is right wing douche bag code word for "evil" big government taking YOUR money and giving it some retard somewhere. If only that gimp could heed those magic words of the right....just pull yourself up by your bootstraps and everything will be fine.

The second example shows an oldie but a goodie...Gubmint's a comin' to take our guns! I loves my guns! And then Jack is going to be sent away...to jail! What a pantload. First of all, who goes quail hunting before school? And if they do, it is probably in Montana or Wyoming where no one is going to call the FBI. I do quite enjoy the counselors getting called in thing though because everyone in education, of course, are all a bunch of lily livered faggots who are all a-feared of guns...right?

Now, the do have a good point about the over medication which is why I paired these two together. If Jack were on an SSRI (Serotonin Re-Uptake Inhibitor), then he would probably go on a school shooting spree. Drugs like Paxil, Prozac, and Lexepro should never be given to any person under the age of 21 as they tend to make their still developing minds think more violently (1 out of 100 young adults!) and possibly act that way. Look at any school shooting in the last ten years and ALL of the gunmen have been on anti depressants.

But seriously...this makes us "stupid?" That we want to take care of people that are mentally challenged? That we don't want our children to carry guns in schools? That we don't beat our kids anymore?

Folks, the word "stupid" is actually right wing douche bag code for "weak." Essentially, problems are too complex for them in today's society so...let's resort to violence, which seems to be their answer for everything. Anyone want to guess what countries in the world still beat their students and mistreat children that are mentally challenged?

Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Pakistan...

So I guess the right wants us to be just like them:)

Cool.

The Grudge Match

Rush Limbaugh, who I guess is now the head of the GOP now that Michael Steele wussed out, has challenged President Obama to an on air duel. While it's doubtful that it will ever happen, it does bring up some interesting ideas.

A few weeks ago I wrote about how President Obama made his first mistake by even mentioning Rush Limbaugh. For the most part, I think this is still true. He has much more important things on his mind than to address an entertainer. But now this entertainer has hilariously been set up as the head of the opposition which, in all honesty, is fucking great, I hope Rush stays in the news for a long time. Why?

Now the entire country can truly see what the GOP has become...an ignorant, hate filled group of jingoistic psychotics who subscribe to a divisive belief system. Either you are with us or you are a traitor, is their motto and they will shout it to the highest tree tops in identifying who are the enemies of the state...who are the "real" Americans and who are not.

If President Obama is even marginally successful in his efforts to help the economy, it will be the end of the douche bagedness of the conservative movement in this country. It might even be the end of the GOP period. Check out this quote from another blog I post on:

We will fracture from the Repubes and go by a new party name-the Limbaughians. And then he can head things up. I will gladly go to work for him. He loves smart women, pays very well, and we are on the same page ideologically. I could never work for a liberal.

Cool.

Pelosi on Hannity

Here is a clip of Alexandra Pelosi hawking her HBO special on Hannity. They show another clip from the doc which is very interesting...Hannity as the messiah.

Also, check out how much he fawns over Alex:)

A Clip

As promised, here is a clip from Right America: Feeling Wronged.

A Sad Tale

Last week I had the pleasure, if you can call it that, of watching the HBO documentary Right America: Feeling Wronged directed by Alexandra Pelosi. Yes, she is the daughter of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Before all you righties out there start screaming about bias, Alexandra did direct the wonderful film Journeys With George which chronicled the 2000 campaign of George W Bush. President Bush and Ms. Pelosi became friends during the filming in which she was allowed complete access to him. They are still friends to this day so please...leave the fucking "tap into your inner rage about liberal media bias" thing over at the Kool Aid stand.

Her latest film examines the aftermath of President Obama's election and its effect on right wing America. I started it and stopped it at least three times (had it on TiVo) because I just could not take the magnitude of the ignorance in the 50 minute piece. Finally, as any political wonk would, I somehow managed to get through it. I'll put up a clip tomorrow from the film but I urge all of you who have HBO to watch this documentary. It will be airing on HBO all month. After you do, let me know if you reach the same conclusions that I did, which are:

• Complete vindication of my assertion that the loons in the Republican Party are far more abundant, organized, and strong than the loons on the left. In fact, they are the base of the conservative movement.
• Just as with the loons on the left, their complete and utter ignorance knows no bounds.
• Their ignorance is willful...again just like on the left.
  
• Complete destruction of Jonah Goldberg's fucking dumb ass theory that liberals are secretly fascists. Watch this documentary and you will see that the conservative movement is about fervent and warped nationalism fed by very strict views on race, gender, religion, and sexual orientation....all key ingredients to a fascist state (more on this later in the week).
  

Now, Pelosi says that "while not representative of the entire Republican Party, these are just some of the party faithful who turned out at campaign rallies along the way." Of course she has to say that in an attempt to sound fair and balanced. And even I am willing to admit that, after numerous arguments over the years about Yassar Arafat being a "freedom fighter," the left is full of shit about many things.

But where is the left's equivalent of Rush Limbaugh...or should I say Herr Limbaugh? His speech delivered at the CPAC conference over the weekend was nauseating. He talked a lot about freedom...freedom as long as its his way, mind you. Where is the left's equivalent of CPAC? Or Grover Norquist? Or Sinclair Broadcasting? Or Clear Channel? Oh, that's right. That would be the delusion that NBC, ABC, and CBS are all liberal.

Honestly, folks, I just don't see any sort of organizing principle on the left like I do on the right...like we clearly see in this documentary. To simply say that "there are just as many crazies on the left as on the right" is overly simplistic. Jerry Falwell said it best when he said that the conservative base is the largest minority voting bloc in this country. Guess what?

They all turned out for Alexandra Pelosi.

Still Laughing (and hurting from it)

Thanks to Last in Line for sharing this with me...this is the funniest thing I have seen since "Jizz in My Pants."

Once Again, Remarkable

Yesterday, President Obama called various leaders of Congress, of both parties, as well as key US financial minds to the White House for a meeting on fiscal responsibility. In what has to be one of the most interesting things I have ever seen, he set up the event like a press conference in which he was standing at the front fielding questions and everyone else was out in the audience. I'm not sure I have ever seen a president do this before...certainly not the last four. It sets the tone for how different our new leader is going to run the show.

He took some tough questions and had some very interesting answers..one of which was a promise to reduce the federal deficit by half. He said that the economic crisis “will require us to make difficult decisions" and that he “going through our budget line by line to root out waste and inefficiency,” and “eliminating programs that don’t work.” In addition, he “will stop the fraud and abuse” and “make more tough choices,” he said, “to start living within our means again." All of this said after last week's remarks regarding cuts in Social Security, Medicare and a reformation the tax code. What the? Is he really a Democrat?

But talk isn't enough...which is what most Republicans said who attended the meeting...I think with good cause. As our new President addresses Congress tonight and unveils his budget on Thursday, let's all take an honest look to see if he is going to actually make cuts and raise revenues.

Alright, conservatives, if you see the cuts are you going to give him credit or will you continue to do the "tap into your inner rage and find fault with everything" rag?

And My Pick Is.....

Tonight are the Oscars. It seems like Slumdog Millionaire has all the momentum. Of the five films nominated, I think that Milk is the best but I think Slumdog will win. Milk has really hung with me in the last week and it is such an amazing film.

If I had to rate the rest of them I guess Frost Nixon is a close second followed by Benjamin Button, then Slumdog and finally The Reader.

Where It All Began

I thought I would save Frost Nixon, the fifth of the five films to be nominated for this year's Academy Awards, for last. Why? Of all of the films nominated this year, Ron Howard's latest gem is the most congruent with the subject matter of this blog.

To begin with, the film is excellent. Frank Langella and Michael Sheen are absolutely stunning in their performances. The supporting cast, consisting of Sam Rockwell, Kevin Bacon, and Oliver Platt, is also quite good. The film is based on the great interviews that David Frost had with Richard Nixon in 1977.

For me, the most intriguing part of the film (actually using the interviews themselves as dialog) was the haunting similarity between Nixon's explanations of Watergate/Vietnam and President Bush's explanations of...well everything he did. Dick Cheney and Don Rumsfeld both worked for Richard Nixon in his second administration and they learned well from the master. The complete and utter bald face lies told time and again in the face of basic facts is as nauseating today as it was 31 years ago.

The money line:

"I'm saying that when the president does it, it's not illegal"

Sound familiar?

Tell Me A Story

Braving the relatively minor snowfall last night which, for some reason, inexplicably causes the new wimpy Minnesotan to drive like total douche bags (see: green light means FUCKING GO, BITCH), I trekked over to neighboring Edina to see The Reader.

Based on the novel, the film tells the story of a young man named Michael who has a chance encounter with an older woman named Hannah. They have an affair over the spring and summer of 1958 in which he learns the art of love making. It's been awhile since I was turned on...in that way...by a regular film and some of scenes gave me the screaming thigh sweats!

Hannah moves unexpectedly and leaves Michael wondering what happened. Years later, Michael is a law student and goes with this class to watch trials of suspected Nazi sympathizers. It turns out that Hannah is one of the suspects and the story unfolds from there in a very tragic yet terribly romantic way.

Ralph Fiennes plays the older version of Michael who is essentially a man who never got over his one true love. The main hook of the story, which I want give away, is very near and dear to me as I am a vociferous reader. Kate Winslett is her usual wonderful self and has several nude scenes ( great ass btw). David Kross plays the young Michael and is the real star of this film. He does silence better than any actor I have seen in a long while.

For those of you looking for a night of tragic passion and unrequited love, check this one out.

Life Outside the Bubble

Slumdog Millionaire was the first of the five films nominated for Best Picture that I saw. Generally, I had an idea what it was about but had no idea that it would be as compelling as it was.

The film tells a story of a young man named Jamal Malik and his rise from the slums of Mumbai all the way to a chance appearance on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Jamal is played by Dev Patel who I knew I was going to like because of my obsession with the British TV show Skins.

As he recounts his life to a police office who is torturing him for information as to why he made it onto the game show in the first place, we see the horrors of poverty, the insanity of the human condition, and, of course, the power of love. For most Americans, the sight of the slums in India is horrific. When I saw the film, there were actually people shouting at the screen because they couldn't believe what young Jamal had seen and done in his life.

Convectional wisdom says this is the one that is going to win. I'm holding out my pick until I see The Reader tomorrow night.

Americana At Its Best

Continuing with the Oscar nominations for Best Picture, last Sunday night I took in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Of the five films nominated, I thought this one would be the one I would like the least. It turned out to be one of my favorites.

The film tells the story of a man born old and living backwards...getting younger and younger as the years roll on. His story begins in 1918 and moves forward to present day. The first hour of the film is typical period piece, shoo in for and Oscar nom fare. As we get into the World War Two years, the tone becomes a little more stark. Right about at mid point (the film is almost three hours) you realize that this is a movie about the relationships that one has in one's life. In particular, how the people you love are dynamic...in a constant state of change...and are highly unpredictable.

I have been going through some tough stuff with one such relationship in my life recently and, as usual, the reason why I love films as much as I do was fully illustrated in this narrative. The relationship between Benjamin (Brad Pitt) and Daisy (Cate Blanchett) was nothing short of extraordinary. I have always had questions in my head, for my whole life really, about relationships....questions like why does love seem eternally unfilled...confused...sad..and ultimately lonely?

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button answers these questions quite well which, as films often do, made me feel a lot better about the aformentioned relationship.

And it is a very nice tapestry of Americana, from a rabid historian's point of view.

Harvey Delivers from the Grave

A couple of nights ago I called my 91 year old grandmother to check in. I try to call her at least a couple of times a week since my grandfather passed away last April. She was doing just fine.

My grandmother has been a staunch conservative for her entire life. She has gone to the same church for over 60 years and is a strict believer in the word of God.

So, it came as a real surprise to me that she told me that she saw the film MILK recently with her friends. The movie, currently nominated for several Oscars including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Screenplay, tells the story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to a public office.

Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977. He also was instrumental in defeating Proposition 6, a state wide referendum which would have banned all homosexuals from teaching in public schools. He, along with Mayor George Muscone, was assassinated by another member of the Board named Dan White on November 27, 1978. White's motive was anger over the liberal, multi cultural turn that the board had taken. In addition to electing the first gay man, the Board had also elected its first single mom and first Chinese American, two other people that White had planned on killing but changed his mind after he shot Muscone 4 times (3 in the head) and Milk also 5 times (2 in the head) with hollow point bullets.

I had recently seen the film as well, being a part of my usual Oscar blitz at this time of year, and both of us talked about it. She remarked of the horrible treatment by fellow Americans that gay people have had to endure which is depicted quite vividly in the film. She was angry at how un-Christian supposed followers of Jesus were when the topic of homosexuality comes up. And then she dropped a bomb shell on me.

She told me that homosexuals are born the way God intended them to be and it was not learned behavior like some people thought. Wow! Even 20 years after he was shot, Harvey is still changing people's minds.

Needless to say, I was very happy. We talked some more about the film and how incredibly sad it was that America has so many stories about people who try to stand up and change things to make people happier only to be gunned down by psychotic morons.

If you go see the film, a word of warning: they show everything in the assassination scene. It is very difficult to watch. I have no qualms about saying that I wept like a baby before, during and after it.

Guess What?

Well that didn't take long. From CNN.com

Blogger Michelle Malkin, in a story on the conservative Web site TownHall.com on Wednesday, said that if Hughes "had more time, she probably would have remembered to ask Obama to fill up her gas tank, too."

"The soul-fixer dutifully asked her name, gave her a hug and ordered his staff to meet with her. Supporters cried, 'Amen!' and 'Yes!' " she added.

"How does a 61-year-old homeless woman who's living in a pickup truck with her son JUST HAPPEN to get a ticket so she can VERY PUBLICLY ask Prez. Obama for a HOUSE? Anyone? Who pushes her up on stage? She's right at the front of the crowd. Did she just happen to get a seat there?" asked reader Erik E.

I don't know, Erik but as is the usual with the right, you have demonstrated a complete lack of taking any sort of responsibility and completely missed the point.

What a fucking shock.

Wait For It

President Obama spoke today at a rally in Ft Meyers, Fl to pitch his stimulus package to the American people. Ft Meyers has been hit hard by foreclosures so the audience was filled with people in economic trouble.

He took questions and the woman at left, Henrietta Hughes, got up and told him how rough her life had been lately. I predict the right will pile on her like flies on shit in the next 48 hours. She is a perfect example of who they love to rip apart. Let's keep an eye out, shall we?

The Sad Return of a Monster

Well, Dick didn't waste anytime did he? Less than two weeks after leaving office, former Vice President Cheney said that there is a "high probability" that terrorists will attempt a catastrophic attack on US soil and the policies of President Obama will make it easier for them to do so.

Dipping deeply into the "fear and shit your pants" bag of old tricks, Dick specififed that the closing of Guantanomo Bay will lead to a nuclear attack on this country. Protecting the country’s security is “a tough, mean, dirty, nasty business,” he said. “These are evil people. And we’re not going to win this fight by turning the other cheek.” He went on to say that if these kind of policies continue, the United States will be at risk in more ways than we can possibly understand.

DUM DUM DA!!!

I don't mean to make light of something as serious as our national security but I'm sorry.....I laughed my fucking ass off when I read this. He sounds like a character from a cartoon for crying out loud. And highly simplistic and child like one at that. Thank God this fucker isn't in charge of anything anymore and we can finally get down to the business of stopping these guys.

Someone needs to ask the former vice president if he is so concerned about Al Qaeda, why are Osama bin Laden and Ayman El Zawahari, the men responsible for 9-11, still at large after SEVEN AND A HALF FUCKING YEARS! Why did he insist on invading Iraq and allow Al Qaeda to reconstitute itself as it has been fully proven in this NIE report. In fact, Dick should review this blog post and come back to reality.

As for the rest of us, in light of Dick's outburst, why don't we review what appeal to fear means.

Siimply Wonderful

So, where does my guy go when needs to "get out of the White House" for awhile?

A school, natch. It's so refreshing to have a president that relaxes by hanging out a school...the place where the future begins.

And anything can be fixed:)

Liberal Media Watch

There has been an awful lot of talk on all the major news networks regarding President Obama's cabinet picks and their failure to pay taxes. Actually, it's been wall to wall coverage and every day, it seems, a new appointee has come out with yet another sob story about "honest mistakes."

Hmm...what I am missing here?

I thought that the media was all liberally and soft and shit on Obama. Could it be that (gasp!) the media is actually more interested in ratings and profit than political leanings?

Nah, can't be.

The Most Liberal Agenda?

Conservatives have been trying since inauguration day to paint President Obama as pursuing the most liberal agenda in modern history. At first it just seemed silly what with our new president keeping on Robert Gates, appointing life long Republican James Jones to be National Security Advisor, and appointing Ray LaHood to be Secretary of Transportation.

Today, it will sound absolutely ludicrous.

In about an hour, President Obama will appoint Judd Gregg, yet another Republican, to be Commerce Secretary and serve in his cabinet. Gregg is a fiscal conservative and staunchly pro life. The American Conservative Union, which is THE congressional ratings association for Republicans, gives him a lifetime rating of 78 percent.

Now, how can our president be pursuing the most liberal agenda in our country's history and still have people like this on his team? Is it because, unlike my esteemed colleagues on the right, that my guy actually likes to listen to (gasp!) alternative viewpoints?

A Quick Goodbye Please

Alright, I know I am biased but Tom Daschle should withdraw his nomination for Secretary of Health and Human Services. Geithner I can forgive because he has talents and skills we sorely need right now but Daschle does not have any such skills. In fact, I always cringed whenever he was on TV stumping for Obama. Why my guy made him the co-chair for his election is still a head scratcher for me.

Tom Daschle represents so many things that I loathe about the Democratic Party that I am hoping and praying that he goes away soon to a life of quiet rumination.

Show Me A Child

In his first ever interview on Arab TV (in an interview with Dubai based Al-Arabiya), President Obama told the Muslim world that the United States is not their enemy. He proposed immediate engagement with various Muslim leaders as well as a pledge to speak from a Muslim capital within his first 100 days. The balls on him...:)

The best bit though was when the interviewer asked about Al Qaeda and how they seemed nervous about the Obama era. Our new president responded by saying

They are nervous. They are nervous because they are going to see a changed America on my watch. No longer will they have a devil to point at and the world will see their ideas for what they are..completely bankrupt. Show me a child that Al Qaeda has helped during the last eight years. The only way they understand is violence.

My guy hits one out of the park...all the way past Waveland.

His First Mistake

President Obama, in a meeting with Congressional lawmakers on Friday, said to the Republican representatives "you can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done." While he was stating the obvious, he made a critical error.

By mentioning Limbaugh in a meeting regarding the stimulus package, our new president has now empowered him and elevated him to the status of having a seat at the table. Rush Limbaugh should have no such fucking seat at the table when it comes to anything related to the direction of our country. He is an entertainer and lacks, in just about every way, the intellectual and moral strength that it takes to run this country. Or any country for that matter.

Now, someone like myself (a fourth rate blogger who only has about 200 readers as opposed to Rush's 13.7 million listeners) can mention Rush and get away with it as it usually makes my page loads go up. The fact that President Obama lowered himself by mentioning Rush's name nauseates me. Rush's ideas regarding where this country should go are akin to a 5th grader who is on an eternal temper tantrum...never admitting fault...never shutting up....never, EVER being wrong.

I knew he'd make mistakes, and I think the economic stimulus is going to hold a big one for him, but I didn't think he would ever make a dumb one like this so early. Ah well, he is only human:)

Oh....no.

From rld in comments earlier this week

you are going to be in the same boat as Jon Stewart and Olberman, as in what are they going to talk about now?

Well....

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Changefest '09 - Obama's Inaugural Speech

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

Oh...no. That's going to leave a mark:)

"I Hope He Fails"

These were the four words uttered by Rush Limbaugh on his radio program yesterday in regards to Obama's economic plans.

Setting aside the fact for just a moment that if President Obama does fail that will mean a worse economic situation than we have now, I think Rush is beginning to sound desperate. Odd, because he still gets around a 5 share which, in radio lingo, is pretty amazing in ratings . Obama HAS to fail because if he doesn't or even if he is marginally successful it proves that Rush and other conservatives are wrong (see: End Times).

It is absolutely unconscionable that Rush Limbaugh, in this truly challenging and uncertain time, wants the president of the United States to fail. Doesn't he have even the slightest sensitivity for the people in this country that are hurting right now? If he is the patriot he claims to be, he will set aside his own hubris and attempt to be helpful.

Think he'll do it?

Um...wow...

Well, I guess he didn't waste any time did he?

This is only a small clip of the whole speech which I heard on NPR today. If I find the full speech, I'll put it up. White House wages are being frozen, a stern reminder was handed out that government serves the people not the other way around, and then there was this secrecy thing...

Someone needs to check to see if mother (Dick Cheney) needs help going to the toilet today:)

44 is in the House!

Today

Today...means so much when you consider Tomorrow..

Happy Birthday, Dr. King!

The End and The Beginning

On Tuesday, Barack Hussein Obama will take the oath of office and become our nation's 44th President. I have to admit I am still in a state of disbelief.

If you would have asked me one year ago that the man I wanted to be president more than just about anyone else on the political scene was actually going to win, I would've told you that you were nuts. In fact, I probably would've chalked the whole idea up to a pipe dream. There is no way that a country that elected George W. Bush twice would vote for a man like Barack Obama. The last eight years have produced an America that is a three headed monster...a monster that would never elect a man like our next president. It's just not possible, is it?

Before we take a look at how it happened let's take a look at what we have become in the last eight years. What are the three heads...exactly?

1. Hate. For all of our talk of loving thy neighbor, we sure have done an awful lot of hating in this country. Turn on any right wing radio dick and you will hear what I am talking about. They will tell you of the traitors in this country that continually plot to ruin our way of life. These traitors are...well...our next president and anyone else that supports him. They are the media. They are the teachers. They are you and they are I.

Of course, the irony is that they will also tell you that it is the LEFT that is full of hate but I think we can all see, after their convention in my home state of Minnesota, that they should take a look in the fucking mirror. There is no doubt that there is hate on the left. It's just not as prevalent and well organized as it is in the current incarnation of the Republican Party. Even President Bush is appalled by it which is ironic because he helped to create it.

2. Fear. The right does a great job with this one. My eight year old daughter has been told by fellow classmates, whose parents are conservative, that Barack Obama, after he becomes president, is going to give guns to babies so they can kill each other thus leading to infant genocide. I suppose it's possible that something was lost in the translation but I think you get my point.

Bush, Rove, Cheney and minions have been extremely successful in making many people in this country so hysterical with fear that they truly believe that Barack Obama is going to destroy them. Their propaganda has been so effective that I have had people tell me that I "best purchase" a gun to fight off the liberals that are going to take my family away from me and put them in camps. Three people told me this. I am not fucking kidding. And I thought the "liberals are fascists" argument was loony. The cheese is just flying off the cracker now.

3. Ignorance. This one is key. Destroy the credibility of the media and education (e.g. all commie liberal traitors), and you can get #1 and #2 with ease. An ignorant population is easier to control. If twenty percent of this country believe that the media and public education are doling out biased information, where are they going to turn? Either to the Republican Party's various information outlets or nowhere. More than likely it's the latter.

It's not just enough to get people to tune out or follow the party line. They have to be happy about it. Somewhere along the line it became cool to be a fucking moron. We like smart doctors, elite athletes, and business savvy CEOs but when it comes to our government-specifically our president-we want someone with whom we can have beer. Being smart is the absolute last thing many of us seem to want in president. I offer as evidence of this Governor Sarah Palin who has broad support amongst many conservatives.

So, folks on the right have done a great job of crafting this three headed monster in order to essentially gut this country as the mob would bust a joint out that it has taken over. Take a look around you. Know anyone that has lost a job recently? I bet you do. Where did all the money go? It's pretty obvious...the people who are on their way out the door. And funny thing...they don't really care. They got what they wanted from a bunch of hateful, fearful, and ignorant people who STILL believe in them. I have a friend who works in the mortgage industry who is just about destitute and will not, under any circumstances, admit any fault on the part of any conservative. It's all Barney Frank's fault!

So, how is it possible that through all of this we elected a man like Barack Obama? There's the crappy economy, the failed policies in the Middle East, and the shit stained image of the United States in the world...all things that I'm sure helped contribute to the victory. I say it's something else.

When Barack Obama takes the oath of office on Tuesday morning, it will be because the good guys are finally starting to win. I want to be very VERY clear about this. The good guys are not just Democrats. They are Republicans and even far right conservatives. They are independents, socialists, communists, constitutionalists and everyone in between. The good guys are people exactly like our next president...people who have an infinite supply of intellectual and moral strength. People who are going to show those who have succumbed to the three headed monster the true meaning of patriotism.

And there were just enough of them to win an election.

Under The Weather

Hey folks, sorry it has been so long since the last post. School has been busy and my whole family got socked with the stomach flu.

Inauguration next week...the day after Dr. King's birthday...

Now That's What I Call A Bail Out!

Sometimes I wake up in the morning, read the news, and wonder what country I am living in. It seems that one of the many industries...pardon me while I stop for a moment to laugh my fucking ass off...that wants a bail out from the US government is.....THE PORN INDUSTRY.

Larry Flynt, of Hustler fame, and CEO of Girls Gone Wild Joe Francis are going to ask Congress for $5 billion to help them through these tough times. Spokesman for Flynt, Owen Moogan, says, "The porn industry has been hurt by the downturn like everyone else and they are going to ask for the $5 billion. Is it the most serious thing in the world? Is it going to make the lives of Americans better if it happens? It is not for them to determine.”

Most of you know that I do take my porn seriously but folks, c'mon, this is completely ludicrous. I know it's sad that people aren't spending as much money at lovemyass.com as they should be but aren't there more important things to be dealing with now?

Hmm...

A report is out that Vice President Dick Cheney has admitted to FBI investigators that he altered certain talking points to the press so Valarie Plame's name would come to light. Murray Waas is the reporter that somehow got access to the document, still highly classified, and wrote about what he saw.

Waas, you may recall, is an investigative journalist who helped break the Iran-Contra scandal. He has been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and has won the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting, awarded by the Joan Shorenstein Barone Center on The Press. So the guy is no hack.

I'm going to wait until the report comes out before I completely believe Mr. Waas. I suspect it won't be out until later this year. If it is true, will we have enough balls to put Cheney in jail?

Happy New Year!

Thank the Lord that 2009 is here. There were some pretty rotten things that happened in 2008 in this country. The inauguration is less than three weeks away. Yea!

I wonder what is going to happen this year....

Best New Year's Present

Well, I got a nice end of the year gift with some great news. One of my all time favorite bands is getting back together...BLUR!!

That's right....Damon and Graham have buried the hatchet. They are going to rehearse in early 2009 and "see what happens." They scheduled a gig for Hyde Park in July that sold out in 2 minutes! So they added another one the day before. They have promise more tour dates (in America!) and possibly a new album.

Happy New Year!
I am a very happy man:)

BEST OF 2008

What a year. I have to say that when it comes to entertainment, 2008 was really mega. I saw many great bands, some really fantastic films, and a few really groovy TV shows. So, the following is a list of those artistic endeavors that really stood out in my mind in each of aforementioned categories. If you have any you would like to share please do so in comments at the end of this column. I would welcome them.

Without further adieu, here is my list...

BEST CD

A Tortured and Wonderful Howl From the Heart
In April of 2006, Billy Lunn, guitarist, singer, and songwriter for the Welwyn Garden City, Hertforshire, England trio The Subways, was diagnosed with nodules on his vocal chords. They canceled several appearances in support of their wonderful first album Young For Eternity, including one that I had tickets for here in Minneapolis. Doctors said that years of intense screaming during his songs may have damaged his voice permanently and it was entirely possible that he would never be able to sing again. His scream, in many ways, is one of the best in the history of rock and roll. It epitomizes that Janovian wail that only true disciples of the medium can capture and convey. An excellent example of its supremacy can be heard in the song "Rock & Roll Queen", from Young For Eternity, a high-octane, balls-to-labia shag tune that is a must for any playlist. Shortly after the diagnosis, Lunn and his girlfriend (and bass player in the band), Charlotte Cooper, broke up. The question of whether the band would even continue weighed pretty heavily on the trio. With the future of the group in doubt, Billy started writing.

And what we wrote has become the album of 2008: All Or Nothing.

In fact, it may be the album of the decade and is, without a doubt, in my top 25 records of all time. To borrow from the late Heath Ledger from Brokeback Mountain, I can’t quit this album. It is absolutely infectious on just about every level. As I listened to it the first few times, I could smell the beer, the smoke (if not illegal in your city), the vodka-Red Bulls, the sweat, the women, and the absolute human glory that is the CLUB. Every time I listen to it I get the urge to be body passed in a slimy, hoard of humanity…my Chucks flailing uncontrollably…as I revel in the majestic splendor of the pit. Clearly, Billy's voice got all better:)

Much of this feeling is due to the stellar production work of Butch Vig (of Garbage and Nirvana fame), and one really gets the sense that this is the next logical progression from Nevermind… Brit-Style. The first four songs are like Ali’s fucking fist (”Girls and Boys”, “Kalifornia”, “Alright”, and “Shake Shake”), pummeling you with such might that you are immediately brought to your knees in gratitude for hearing such great music. The next track, “Move to Newlyn”, is a wonderful travelogue that brings you on a journey of self discovery around the United Kingdom. We get back into the power with the title track, “I Won’t Let You Down” (his scream at the end…OMG!), “Turnaround”, and “Obsession”, the latter of which has a terribly haunting harmony vocal by Charlotte.

Then we get to the track of the album: “Strawberry Blonde”. To say that this song is gorgeous is the understatement of… history. It is three levels above gorgeous and there hasn’t been a word yet invented to define the truth and beauty of this instant top ten love song. I will say, like any great song, it reaches into my heart, pulls out a jumble of words, and puts them together to describe exactly how I feel. The album finishes with “Always Tomorrow” and “Lost Boy”, another shovel-to-the-head stunner of a track.

I have listened to this CD pretty much every day since I bought it last summer and still have not grown tired of it. You won’t either. No one will.

Because Billy approaches life like I do…fucking mega or fuck you…All or Nothing….and it is magnificent. Thank God.

BEST TRACK

From the moment I heard the opening seconds of it, I knew it was the song of the year. I also knew that there was a reason why I liked it but I couldn't figure out why. Then when I visited the Essex band Magistrates' web site and saw that their favorite two bands were Prince and The Talking Heads, I realized why I instantly fell in love with "Make This Work." Talk about a combination! I adore the Talking Heads and my hometown boy? Let's just say that Prince's super funk charged and deliciously dripping with sexuality music has made me a happy lover throughout the years...

Looking at it from this perspective, "Make This Work" is a fucking gorgeous gem that makes you believe that all romance and all love are possible in spite of the simple fact that most people are dicks. In all honesty, the hope of this song is something I really need right now and so should you!

BEST FILM

It is a rare thing when a film changes your life. My pick for 2008 Best Film changed certainly changed two lives as well as my own. Woody Allen's Vicky Christina Barcelona is an emotional gut wrencher in the most positive way you can imagine. The film reached into my heart, tore it open, and laid it bare for the whole world to see. Life, as the film states repeatedly, is lonely, dark, and often boring. This is why everyone needs to seize whatever moments of passion they can...regardless of how crazy it makes you...and cast aside conventional wisdom, and sometimes even emotional balance, to get to THAT place. For those of you who have been there, you know what I am talking about...:)

The story revolves around two women who visit Barcelona for the summer and how they each come to view romance, love, and passion through the events that unfold over the course of the narrative. What makes Allen's film so interesting is that it is not just about these two women. Every character in the film...even minor ones with only a few lines...convey very specific and wonderful ideas about the human condition as it relates to the female-male relationship. I found bits and pieces of myself in EVERY character in the film which lead to an enormous amount of self reflection after each viewing. I have seen the film three times and each time its impact on me grew, driving me to ask an amazingly intense question of my friends and of myself:

When faced with the choice of the comfort of boredom or the insanity of lust...which would you choose?

BEST TV SHOW

For the second year in a row, Mad Men is the best show on television. Honestly, I didn't think it was possible given how amazing the first season was. The second season was an absolute stunner. It picks up a little under two years after the end of the first season...the height of Kennedy era cool, which basically means I just jizzed in my pants.

So, Jack is president and women are either looked at as a Marilyn or a Jackie. Mega! Every episode was fucking incredible (mainly due to my girl, Christina Hendricks (left) and her amazing hips!) but the most interesting one was "The Jet Set" in which our hero, Don Draper, goes off the map on a David Lynchian experience in the wilds of California.

If you aren't watching this show, there is something seriously wrong with you and you need to get the first season on DVD immediately. The second season will be out in the first quarter of next year. If you do watch the show, can someone please tell me what the fuck Pete Campbell was doing with the shotgun at the end of the show?

Those are my picks for the year. What are yours? Leave comments below...

The Situation In Gaza

Before I put up my Best of 2008, I thought it more appropriate to address the situation in Gaza.

When Israel pulled out of Gaza, I lauded the move and was roundly chastised by several conservatives for being "weak" on terror. I predicted that some time would pass, Israel would lose patience, and then attack them as one sovereign country would attack another.

For those of you who don't know, the Israeli military has decided to end the mortar attacks from Hamas once and for all. They have been pounding Gaza for the last three days and well over 300 people in the Hamas stronghold have been killed.

While I find this loss of life to be terribly sad, I think the amount of restraint Israel has shown has been remarkable. Most of you who know me know that I am a staunch supporter of Israel so this opinion will not come as any surprise. Hamas has two central goals in mind in their operations: abuse their own people by ripping them off financially and killing Jews. It's just that simple. When they broke with Abbas and the real Palestinian governing body, they basically made their bed. It's sad that innocents in the Gaza Strip have to suffer as a result but I don't see that they have any other recourse.

As a holocast survivor once said, "When someone says they want to kill you, believe them."

Merrry Christmas

To all of you who read Notes From The Front, I wish you and your family a very Happy Christmas. Thank you for being such loyal and devoted readers.

Hee Hee....what? Really?

I was flipping around the news channels the other day and I caught a little of Bill O'Reilly. He was talking about the War on Christmas. At first, I thought it might be an old tape or a nostalgia bit but no...oh no...it was live and this year. It was the usual rant about liberals hating Jesus, wanting to outlaw Santa, and force people into celebrating Kwansa at gunpoint. In other words, it was the classic "They's a comin'" bit.

Apparently, O'Reilly and other conservatives have not gotten the message that our country has much bigger problems to deal with than how people greet each other at the holidays. General Powell was correct. It's time for the right to decide if they want to continue to yell and be divisive (i.e. lose election after election) or if they want to showcase their message, several items of which would have an appeal to a great number of Americans, in a more positive way.

I wonder what they will decide?