TOLES ROCKS!!!

he's very quick, and this is even more sharp and clever than i had expected on the gay marriage/constitution issue. see for yourself.

john and i have long praised tom toles, both as a cartoonist and one of the more incisive political minds out there. this has largely just been back and forth between the two of us, since we expect few other people give a damn about this stuff.

today's cartoon is refrigerator art material. from the [as expected] always cute and somewhat bewildered looking bush, to the legacy question, to referencing certain other republican presidents, this is completely on point. he's captured bush pretty well: our very own tiny, divisive, shameful, anti-lincoln.

a picture's worth

you know...

the denver post's political cartoonist on bush's hateful pandering. the dog looks a bit like gary bauer, no?

i can't wait for tom toles to do something. he always makes bush look so cute. even when hateful.

i hope to soon have some cogent thoughts on this mack truck of a wedge issues the republicans have unleashed upon our country with regard to same-sex marriage and the constitution, but i've lately been reading too much about it to venture anything original.

all i can say for now is that the notion of an amendment that explicitly denies a group of people rights is abhorrent. go here and here to read some measured and clearheaded reasons why.

and the only thing worse than a wedge issue is one that wedges for sole purpose of making people choose x or y, when even reasonable people may have problems with both x and y. Fortunately, it looks as though the votes aren't there to allow this to pass the senate.

sadly though, this whole issue will have likely done its job of making decent people like edwards and kerry look like wafflers and equivocators, and of making bush look like the patently offensive Christian soldier so many on the right fringe want him to be.

after all, he'll want to resemble a soldier of some kind come november.

grr...frustration. comments are better sent via parcel post apparently.

foiled again

comments disabled. dammit. i'm really dying to criticize myself.

trying w/ the unreliable program ness uses now...

periodic plugs, edition #1.

i realize this little corner of bloggy town gets less traffic than bush's policy briefing in-box, but i thought i'd go ahead and occasionally suggest things worth your checking out. whoever you are. actually, who are you?

i'm lately listening to lots of music my friends make, which is both great fun -- because you actually know and like the people making new stuff -- and a bit frustrating, because what the hell, i'm not doing that stuff.

in any event, you would do well to give challenger a listen, as i'm doing now.

comment allez vous?

comments perhaps enabled? only god and ashcroft know for sure...

ohmygod! an enormous philippe de montebello is out of control!!

From the NYT

Met Adding Space to Show Works Now in Storage
By CAROL VOGEL

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is creating thousands of square feet of new exhibition space, including a grand Roman Court and renovated Islamic galleries, substantially increasing the number of artworks it is able to display.

The $155 million remodeling project, to be announced today, will allow the museum to display world-famous pieces like its richly decorated Etruscan chariot, which has been in storage since the early 1990's.

i still don't think i've seen a third of the met in all my years on this planet, but if they want to keep getting bigger, that's fine by me. someday my dream of being locked in there overnight will come true, at which point, i'll apparently be devoured by the museum's director.

i predict a substitute secretary of education being needed very shortly

Rod Paige should soon be taking an extended idiocy sabbatical.

Education Secretary Paige calls national teachers union a 'terrorist organization'

Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Education Secretary Rod Paige called the nation's largest teachers union a "terrorist organization" during a private White House meeting with governors on Monday.


Democratic and Republican governors confirmed Paige's remarks about the 2.7-million-member National Education Association.


"These were the words, 'The NEA is a terrorist organization,' " said Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle of Wisconsin.


"He was making a joke, probably not a very good one," said Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania. "Of course he immediately divorced the NEA from ordinary teachers, who he said he supports."

Why is it that the first memorable thing to come out of this guys mouth in 3 years has to be so stupid? This is why people get fired.

don't. please.

the vehicle flips make development fun

this is why technology is good. it's not the only reason, i suppose, but this is the best one right now. period.

Yahoo has this rather remarkable internet music thing called launchcast, which is free to join and free to set up. The results make mondays at work feel like fridays and fridays feel like snow days. You can search for songs, or just listen, and rate each and everything that comes along on an artist/album/song level. Everything from 100 [Yo la Tengo/Cone of Silence/Ride the Tiger] to Zero [don't you ever play anything by Nelly again, understand?!] . The yahoo whiz kids then suggest other songs by that person, songs recommended by others who like said band, etc.

I'm sure it's a simple thing to do, but I'm easily impressed by some things.

It takes a while and you hear lots of questionable stuff as you start, but in the end, you come out with something you can leave on all day without even having to look at.

I know there's no accounting for taste, but here's the last 11 songs it's picked for me. They stream, I write letters, and all is well with the world.

Yo La Tengo
Night Falls On Hoboken

Tom Waits
Looks Like I'm Up Shit Creek Again

Vehicle Flips
Song For Pahaquarry, NJ (1824-1997) [WOW!!]

R.E.M.
Half A World Away

The Used
Poetic Tragedy

The Pixies
Here Comes Your Man

Low
Immune

Cat Power
Fiance

Sigur Ros
Viðrar Vel Til Loftárása

Bad Religion
The Answer

Galaxie 500
Oblivious

Try mine. Or better yet, make your own. It's like an iPod for poor people.

possibly important and definitely worth watching if it happens.

[why i am scanning drudge these days is beyond me]

Kerry and Edwards go Head to Head on ABC News
Fri Feb 20 2004 15:26:35 ET

Senator John Kerry (D-MA) and Senator John Edwards (D-NC) will go head to head on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” to air this Sunday, February 22, 2004 on the ABC Television Network (check local listings).

In what will likely be the first and only head to head match-up before Super Tuesday on March 2, the exclusive on-the-trail interviews with Senator Edwards and Senator Kerry will focus on the candidates’ positions on five major policy issues and how they differ from their opponent’s.

“No politics, no process no gotcha,” said George Stephanopoulos. “We want to focus the candidates and the voters on the big differences over the big issues.”

The five issues are jobs, trade and the economy, health care, Iraq, and terrorism.

- -- ABC -- --


i thought george was good at the 'gotcha' he's so tiny.

moo.

Woman Fined for Registering Cows As Voters

Feb 19, 9:50 AM (ET)


LONDON (AP) - Brenda Gould is in trouble again for registering her cows as voters.

For the second year running, the woman from Newmarket, near Cambridge in eastern England, has listed two names on the registration form who turned out to be cows, East Cambridgeshire District Council said Thursday.

The previous year, in addition to registering two cows as "Henry and Sophie Bull," she listed "Jake Woofles," later found to be a dog, as eligible to vote in local government elections, the council said.

This year she indicated that her address had been split into two properties, that she resided in one part and that two other persons lived in the second, a council spokesman said. The persons she claimed lived in the second property were, in fact, her cows, the spokesman said.

Gould had been scheduled to appear at Ely Magistrates Court on Tuesday but did not arrive. She was convicted in her absence and ordered to pay a 100 pound (US$189) fine and 110 pounds (US$208) in costs.

"This was the second time that Mrs. Gould had given false information on electoral forms and so, regrettably, the council felt it was necessary to take action to prevent this abuse of the election system from continuing," said Maggie Camp, the council's senior legal assistant.

Gould was not available for comment.

"I'm sexy, I'm cute, I'm popular to boot..."

Quiz: spoken by a] a misguided president b] a peppy cheerleader ?

to be fair, the answer's [b], but it just as nicely captures the delusions of grandeur bush seems to have these days. Fortunately, you can have it both ways. I had forgotten about this movie, but if the republicans are smart, they'll pull it out this year as means to put a smiley face and some ripped abs on what to my mind ranks amongst bush's most crass and unpresidential utterances to date:

from cnn back in July.

"Anybody who wants to harm American troops will be found and brought to justice," Bush said. "There are some that feel like if they attack us that we may decide to leave prematurely. They don't understand what they are talking about if that is the case. Let me finish. There are some who feel like the conditions are such that they can attack us there. My answer is, bring 'em on."

That said, I'm really sorry Kerry co-opted the phrase. His three word "bring it on" message to the president caps off nearly every news excerpt i hear or see about him these days, whether he's talking about national security or most other issues. To me, it sounds just as macho, just as false, just as inappropriate. Alhough he's tirelessly hammering away on the president's poor judgement and insensitivity for having said it the first time, hearing the phrase from Kerry's lips doesn't make me feel any better about it. We need a president, not a cowboy. It's like he's channelling Dean's bravado right now, and I'm not sure that's in anyone's best interest.

Three word suggestion: Knock it off.

wow, i hate ann coulter. a shrill tactless bitch if ever there was one. not convinced? read this. that she's joining the long line of bush national guard apologists is one thing, but this cleland smuggness is just too much. they say the left denigrates the sacrifices made by soldiers -- whatever they may be and however they may occur while in service. they could learn a thing or two from this one.

america's next top model is surprisingly easy to watch. i cannot tell a lie. i'm sorry.

Stellar performance by the commander-in-chief on Meet the Press. It was like watching an hourlong ad for the Democratic National Committee, despite Russert being kind of softball-y. We'll let the commander-in-chief speak for himself:

BUSH: I think, if I might remind you that in my language I called it a grave and gathering threat, but I don't want to get into word contests.

...because you will lose. often.

misposted, poorly conceived diatribe on gays and politics has been removed until it is coherent. apologies to any who stumbled on it early.

friday beckons and saturday taunts...

only this: they're calling it her "presence" now?!? WTF?

Jackson's Presence to Be Felt at Grammys
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: February 6, 2004


Filed at 4:31 p.m. ET

Even without appearing at the Grammys Sunday night, Janet Jackson's presence will be inescapable.

The singer was supposed to have presented a special award for Luther Vandross, but pulled out amid the furor following her Super Bowl performance.

Victory for bipeds everywhere!!

It appears as though that wacky superintendent i wrote about awhile back has had an intellecutal revelation.

ATLANTA, Georgia (AP) -- Georgia's school superintendent Thursday dropped plans to remove the word "evolution" from the state's high school science curriculum.

"I will recommend to the teacher teams that the word 'evolution' be put back in the curriculum," Kathy Cox said in a statement.

Cox said she originally wanted to replace "evolution" with the phrase "biological changes over time" to avoid controversy.

"Instead, a greater controversy ensued," she said.

The proposal drew widespread criticism. Former President Carter said it exposed the state to nationwide ridicule.

Go Wes Clark -- really not bad last night, all things considered. Other observations: Kerry still has me worried and confused, and as people are pointing out nearly every 5 minutes, Edwards is one hell of a talker. One of these men will teach W. a lesson very soon, and I can hardly wait.

chilly willy's hat fell off, but not before his soul left his body.

it's fair to say that the penguin game is old news by now, having been bandied about the internet by animal haters and ice man lovers everywhere. it's more fun than the paris hilton video, and helps develop the hand-eye coordination of the next generation of seal clubbers.

just as there may be more than one way to skin a cat [though i am not aware of any way], there appears to be more than one way to smack an aquatic bird.

despite my best efforts with the first one i was sent, i was only able to knock the little guy about 500 yards/meters/penguin lengths, and quickly tired of it. I don't need to be emasculated by no computer game, thank you very much.

today, though, i see yet another link to the game at a different site and BOOM got a score of 2387.1.

maybe bush had a point with those performance enhancing drugs for athletes. it's like arctic levitra or something.

i was strangely entertained by the superbowl this year. it is strange to even write that sentence, actually. i know jack about sports, but it turned out to be a great game. even i know a good game when i see one. and friends and flannery's always helps.

the cultural component of the evening left much to be desired, but i'm glad it prompted justin timberlake to summon all of his rhetorical powers to explain something that i'm fairly certain made half of utah blush:

from the NYT

Still, shortly after the performance, MTV released a statement: "The tearing of Janet Jackson's costume was unrehearsed, unplanned, completely unintentional and was inconsistent with assurances we had about the content of the performance. MTV regrets this incident occurred, and we apologize to anyone who was offended by it."

Timberlake released a statement, too: "I am sorry if anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the halftime performance of the Super Bowl. It was not intentional and is regrettable."

Well said, professor.