Cause if you don't wear one, then you're obviously not patriotic. Oh yeah - except for the guy who's saying that Barack Obama is unpatriotic for not wearing one - who isn't wearing one. But he would wear one. So that resolves that issue.
Silly political crap. Although, a woman called into a radio station I was listening to yesterday and felt that Barack Hussein Obama was working for Al Qaeda and part of her proof is that he doesn't wear a flag pin.
Apparently a DVD documentary will be available on April 15. Looks good (and includes 2 clips from when they warmed up for the Who at Shea Stadium - you know, the concert when I had to abandon my car afterwards - cause it was on fire.)
1. Complete Control (From The Essential Clash)
2. I Fought the Law (Jan. 1979, London Lyceum)
3. Police & Thieves (Jan. 1980, Aylesbury Friars)
4. What's My Name (Nov. 1977, Manchester Elizabethan Suite)
5. Capitol Radio One (Nov. 1977, Manchester Elizabethan Suite)
6. White Riot (April 1977, Beaconsfield Studios)
7. I'm So Bored With the U.S.A. (Nov. 1978, Manchester Apollo)
8. London's Burning (April 1978 London Victory Park)
9. 1977 (April 1977, Beaconsfield Studios)
10. (White Man) In Hammersmith Palais (July 1978 Glasgow Apollo)
11. Tommy Gun (1978)
12. Safe European Home (July 1978, London Music Machine)
13. London Calling (June 1981, New York Bonds International Casino)
14. Clampdown (Feb. 1980, Lewisham Odeon)
15. The Guns of Brixton (April 1980, Fridays)
16. Train in Vain (Feb. 1980, Lewisham Odeon)
17. This Is Radio Clash (June 1981, The Tomorrow Show)
18. The Magnificent Seven (June 1981, The Tomorrow Show)
19. Brand New Cadillac (Feb. 1982, Tokyo Sun Plaza)
20. Should I Stay or Should I Go (Oct. 1982, New York Shea Stadium)
21. Know Your Rights (May 1983, US Festival)
22. Career Opportunities (Oct. 1982, New York Shea Stadium)
Americans is in prison...
Incarceration rates are even higher for some groups. One in 36 Hispanic adults is behind bars, based on Justice Department figures for 2006. One in 15 black adults is, too, as is one in nine black men between the ages of 20 and 34.
Does this mean that we're doing a really great job of catching the bad guys? Or that we're putting people who need rehabilitation or psychiatric assistance in prison? And what about the racial breakdown? I'd also be interested in seeing the social class breakdown as I have a little suspicion that most of these folks are from the lower economic strata.
Either way, said Susan Urahn, the center’s managing director, “we aren’t really getting the return in public safety from this level of incarceration.”
“We tend to be a country in which incarceration is an easy response to crime,” Ms. Urahn continued. “Being tough on crime is an easy position to take, particularly if you have the money. And we did have the money in the ’80s and ’90s.”
(Thanks NY Times!)
According to today's NY Times, John McCain was not born in one of the 50 states. He was born in a military installation in the Panama Canal Zone.
Personally, I don't think it's a big deal, but it could waste time and energy on his campaign's behalf. The Times says:
Mr. McCain’s likely nomination as the Republican candidate for president and the happenstance of his birth in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936 are reviving a musty debate that has surfaced periodically since the founders first set quill to parchment and declared that only a “natural-born citizen” can hold the nation’s highest office.
Almost since those words were written in 1787 with scant explanation, their precise meaning has been the stuff of confusion, law school review articles, whisper campaigns and civics class debates over whether only those delivered on American soil can be truly natural born. To date, no American to take the presidential oath has had an official birthplace outside the 50 states.
“There are powerful arguments that Senator McCain or anyone else in this position is constitutionally qualified, but there is certainly no precedent,” said Sarah H. Duggin, an associate professor of law at Catholic University who has studied the issue extensively. “It is not a slam-dunk situation.”
1936!!!
A guy speaking before McCain at a McCain rally yesterday was disparaging about Barack and Hils, including repeatedly referring to Barack Hussein Obama (which of course is his name, but I'm thinking he may have had a negative motivation for doing so...)
Which leads me to the type of logic people who insist on referring to Barack's middle name because they think that this will turn people off (and to the logic of the people who are turned off by his middle name). If there's enough of them to make a difference in this presidential campaign, then this country is in much worse shape than I realized.
Here's Stephen Colbert's perspective on this type of thinking:
I rode my bicycle to work today as it was going to be fairly nice (in the 50s) and not supposed to rain. I haven't been eating really well lately, so I thought that this would be a good way to start fresh with exercising.
Lesson learned: after having a seriously bad cold (5+ days), bicycling stirs up icky things in your lungs and makes you cough like you need an iron lung.
If you wander this blog with any regularity, you should be familiar with my crush on Jon Stewart, so of course I was thrilled that he would be hosting the Oscars this year.
I still think he's super adorable and smart, but obviously the writers didn't have enough time post-strike to really provide the fun and charm that makes him special (not that I don't think that he's not special on his own, but...)
I thought that he was fine. He said a few funny things and I really liked when he brought the songwriter back on stage to finish saying her thank you's after the orchestra cut her off. That was sweet (and the movie - Once - was pretty good too).
I was really happy that the French lady from La Vie en Rose won for best actress - she did a great job on that flick. If you haven't seen it yet, you should rent it asap.
Other than that, nothing particularly outstanding - I thought that the musical numbers were particularly boring this year (but they always are).
And, Cameron Diaz's hair? It's the Oscars! That's what I do to my hair when I'm rushing to work. Odd...
aka "New Zealand's fourth most popular folk parody duo" - they've been off the air for a while (they have an HBO show), but my friend Rosie reminded me today about why I love them. Here's a bit to show you why
they amuse me so (plus Brett doesn't have a beard so you can see his face - he looks so much younger!).
"Two minutes in heaven is better than one minute in heaven."
She's running for Congress in my district. Came very close to winning last time - she really should have, but it's a wealthy Republican area, I guess. She wiped Dave Reichert's butt during their debate - very sharp woman. Oh yeah, she's a former Microsoft manager and was quite pleasant when I bumped into her right after the last election (when I encouraged her to run again this time). :-) (and she's a Facebook friend....)
why it's good that I don't have kids:
I went to work and left Gus the dog outside all day.
The good news is that he was so happy that I came home and let him back into the house that he forgot that I was the one who left him out there in the first place.
Stole this directly from Slog...
Today the Senate voted 51-45 to “establish one interrogation standard” that would follow techniques laid out in the Army Field Manual — meaning waterboarding would be officially banned as a technique.
John McCain—the former POW, the man who in the past argued we should follow the Army Field Manual—voted no. Maverick indeed.
Oh, and Bush is planning to veto the bill if it arrives on his desk.
A federal appeals court has struck down a seldom-enforced Texas law making it a crime to promote or sell sex toys.
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, ruling in a case originally filed in federal court in Austin, found that the ban in the Texas penal code on selling or promoting obscene devices violates the right to privacy under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
According to this story. That should make for some happy Texans.
Run to IHOP today - until 10pm, a short stack of pancakes are free! They're suggesting you to donate what you would have paid for the pancakes to the Children's Miracle Network, and are hoping to raise $750,000.
National Pancake Day [IHOP]
Dead.
(From one of my all time favorite flicks "All that Jazz", directed and choreographed by one of my all time favorite choreographers, Bob Fosse, who is also dead. Watch it through to the end - it's creepy, but totally worth it. And how beautiful is Jessica Lange?)
That's the plan. Wondering when your favorite show is going to be back on the air with new episodes? Check out the details here (below are some of my favorites):
Expected to shoot 5 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.
TBD.
No new episodes until fall.
Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.
Of course, the most important shows (Jon Stewart and Colbert Report) should be back on the air with writers (who were sorely missed) on Wednesday night! Now that's some good news.
Miss Coco Peru has a new (twisted and nsfw) video co-starring Scott Thompson from Kids in the Hall...
So, I went to the Democratic caucus this afternoon and it was quite interesting. It really felt like I was participating in the process much more than going and punching holes in ballots (yes, So. Cal was still using the ballots that produce hanging chads when I moved away...)
I drove up at 12:40 - the caucus was scheduled to begin at 1 and I figured it would be super busy, like all the other primaries and caucuses around the country. I had to park a good 1/2 mile away and walk up, but I started talking with an older (70's-ish) couple who were also attending their first caucus.
As we approached the school, I thought it was really interesting to see Obama and Hillary signs hanging all over the school. Usually, they have to stay a certain distance (100 yards?) away from the polling place, but it's all different at a caucus.
There was one door (on the right. heh) for the Republicans and the door on the left was for the Dems. As you walked in, it was packed with people and there were people handing out Obama '08 buttons, so I grabbed one and put it on immediately. We were all in the same district, but we needed to know what precinct were were in, which apparently is on your voter card (I think I used mine as kindling) or you could stare at a map until you figured out your precinct.
Once I got that straighte ned out, I moved into the gym. First thing I saw was a guy with a guitar and sheet music that had the word Obama in the title. Okey dokey...things are different up here. It got so crowded as we approached 1pm, that folks were in the hallways and there was concern that there wouldn't be enough sign in sheets (apparently, they only had enough for 1,000 people!). There were a lot of different precincts meeting there today.
It was very obvious that the vast majority of people favored Barack. Most everyone was wearing a Obama '08 pin (they were handing them out when you walked in). It sure seemed that support for him was overwhelming, which was great to see.
After some initial info was read (what's the caucus about, how does it work, etc.) three people were each able to speak in favor of each candidate for 3-4 minutes. One lady who had said she was speaking for Hillary and then turned out to be for Obama - which didn't go over very well. Another man named Mohammed had a very thick accent and talked about how glad he was to participate in the election in American and how much he loved it here (he supported Obama and got me a bit choked up).
They sent several of the precincts (including mine) off into classrooms so that we could all be together and include the folks who couldn't fit into the gym. We found out that we had 3 delegates for our precinct. We elected someone to run the meeting for the precinct, someone to take notes and someone to count the votes, which we had written down when we signed in (you listed your initial preference or undecided).
The first vote in my precinct was 26 Obama, 13 Clinton and 2 Undecided. None of the Clinton folks wanted to speak on her behalf. One guy spoke on Obama's behalf and then there were general questions which got a little out of control as they became less questions and more "statements". After all that, 1 of the Undecideds switched to Obama.
It ended with us have 2 Obama and 1 Clinton delegates. Oh yeah, rumor is that there only 12 Republicans (total) showed up to caucus in a different room at the same location. Apparently, they originally were going to give the space to the Dems to use and then changed their minds. I guess they wanted us to suffer a little (haven't we suffered enough?)
Oh yes, and I volunteered to be an alternate delegate for the county caucus in April, so I'll let you know how that goes...
"...When you're sinking into madness, and you're thinking you're the saddest, Goth Barbie's here for you!"
Tomorrow is the Washington Caucus which will decide which way the Democratic delegates from Washington State go. (The Republican delegates will be decided partially based on the caucus and partially on a primary on Feb. 19.)
Anyhoo, Hills was here last night for a rally and they (the liberal media, that is) indicate that there were 5,000+ people there.
Today was Obama's rally and...there were 18,000-20,000 inside the auditorium and another 3,000 outside who couldn't get in(according to Seattle Mayor Nickels and the Seattle Times). (I would have gone but of course, I was stuck in meetings.) They're all listening to songs by Kool & the Gang, Natasha Bedingfield, and Eric Clapton.
So what does this bode for tomorrow's caucuses? Probably not all that much. The western part of Washington is the liberal part. The eastern, farming part of the state tends to be more conservative. Also, people who show up for rallies are just a very small indicator of how the votes are going to end up.
Or....
Obama's gonna sweep and get all 78 of our delegates tomorrow! I'll be at the caucus to do what I can to help the cause and will let you know all about what caucusing is like.
Oh, and our governor, Christine Gregoire (who is a superdelegate) endorsed Obama this morning. Our two Senators have endorsed Hillary.
Updated on Saturday morning cause we have 78 delegates not 20.
Just a few things I noticed today.
1. When it's someone's anniversary (for when they started working here), they bring in one pound of M&Ms for each year they've been here. They put them on a table (or more often a chair) outside their office for everyone to share.
2. I had been asking around about where to bring my bicycle to get tuned up for the spring and I got an email that I can get a $70 bike tuneup here on campus cause they're bringing in a local bike place to do that. It will cost me $20 and the company kicks in the other $50.
That makes me happy.
I want a President who thinks these kinds of things and gets people to believe it's possible to change. I got a little choked up watching this. I totally buy into the hope thing, the fact that younger people are becoming engaged in the process, the possibility of greatness...sigh.
Really interesting posting on Slog this morning about Washington State's impact on the Democratic race, which sorta confirms that I need to cancel my photo class on Saturday and go caucus:
... And for delegate-hunting Democrats, the next sizable prize is here in Washington, where 80 delegates and 17 superdelegates are on the table in our caucuses this Saturday.
That’s the largest number of delegates at stake in any Feb. 9 contest.
...
Obama has raised much more money in Washington State than Clinton ($1.7 million for him vs. just under $1 million for her), and he’s raised it from a considerably larger base of donors (average donation for him is $700, average donation for her is $1,200).
Last night, when John McCain was making his speech, almost directly behind him (but a little to the side so that you could see his smug face) was Joe Lieberman. You know Joe - the "Democrat" who votes with President Bush all the time. The President Bush that almost 70% of the country disagrees with - including the Republicans. Of course, as a Democrat, Lieberman doesn't have any responsibility to vote with the group, and I'm all about being independent and sticking to your principles, but he agrees with Bush on some truly frightening items, including the war.
Lieberman ran as an Independent when he lost the Democratic primary in Ct last time, but he still has the gall to call himself a Democrat. He endorsed McCain a few weeks ago - to the best of my knowledge, he's the only Senator to endorse someone on the other side of the aisle. I guess he's once again showing his independence and sticking to his principles (which, in principle I should admire, yet, I can't).
This morning, McCain was making a speech and again, the one person attached to his hip was Joe Lieberman. To my mind, the reason that Lieberman is following McCain around instead of showing up to work at the Senate is because he is going to be McCain's running mate. I suppose that "Democrat" Lieberman is going to be the way the McCain shows his conservative bona fides.
If he stopped calling himself a Democrat, then it wouldn't bug me so much. I guess if he's the running mate on the Republican ticket, he would (properly) be listed as a Republican. He should just switch and get it over with. I don't understand why he would bother to continue to call himself a Democrat at this point.
He irks me.
At least on the Democratic side. This Saturday, there will be caucuses where delegates will be elected and the votes for the Democratic candidate for President will be collected. Then on the 19th, there's a primary. But the Democratic primary votes don't count. They're considered "advisory" - for the caucuses that will have already been held.
Suffice it to say, this has confused folks. So, the wise Democrats in Washington have made a video and posted it on YouTube:
I signed up to take a photography class on Saturday, but I really want to caucus. At first I just wanted to have the experience and see what it was all about as I've never lived in a state that held a caucus. And now, I find out that this is the only way that my vote will count, so I think that I'm going to have to cancel attending the class.
Urgh - the video just indicated that we should not be surprised when we're asked to contribute to the Democratic Committee at the caucuses. They need more money so that they can continue to make fine decisions like this?
And the Republicans in Washington? They're sorta screwy too - their delegates are split between being decided by the caucus and the primary.
Ahhhhh....America. I appreciate the opportunity to mock.
He just announced that he won in three states where he and his wife have lived. I immediately thought that he should buy a house in California before the polls close, cause he isn't going anywhere with Utah, Massachusetts and North Dakota!
Gus was very happy that the Giants won. He got a little rowdy and slept in the next day.
He's quite the party boy. More pix here.
I always check in with Fox News when I'm wandering through the 24 hour news channels. I like to see their perspective on things, what's important to them, etc. It's important to know what the other side is saying so that you are prepared for the assault. Sometimes I can watch it for a while and not feel that they're being the voice of the Bush administration. But this morning...
An anchor was talking to the evil Bob Novak about McCain not being a good conservative. The anchor said "Yes, but he voted against Bush's tax cuts and interrogation."
You heard me - he said McCain voted against interrogation. Not torture, not "aggressive" interrogation, but just plain ole interrogation. Oy.
(btw, evil Bob Novak basically said that conservatives should hold their nose and vote for McCain cause he was better than Hillary.)