Oh How the Mighty Have Fallen

Nader selling video of him "debating" with Kerry and Bush action figures.

GOP -- Bin Laden's Biggest Fans?

From today's New York Daily News:

"We want people to think 'terrorism' for the last four days," said a Bush-Cheney campaign official. "And anything that raises the issue in people's minds is good for us."

A senior GOP strategist added, "anything that makes people nervous about their personal safety helps Bush."

He called it "a little gift," saying it helps the President but doesn't guarantee his reelection.

Al QaQaa: SOP?

It may be that leaving munitions dumps unguarded was Standard Procedure in Iraq for some reason. Army commanders may have been too short staffed to secure Iraq properly, but didn't it occur to anyone that every explosive left unguarded was one more attack on US forces down the road?

This American Life: Election Fraud

Listen or read.

Bin Laden Transcript

Hard to say if this coming out today is in Bush's favor or not. But bin Laden getting in his digs about "My Pet Goat" should allay any tinfoil worries that the Bush campaign wanted this to come out right before the election. It's difficult to slog through, but here it is.

More Last-Minute Halloween Costumes

A man with the improbable name of Rosecrans Baldwin has some suggestions.

Michael Chabon Adapting 'Snow White'

He's recasting it as a Hong Kong-style martial arts film. Sounds nutty.

Killers in the White House

An historical overview.

Homeland Security: Keeping Us Safe

From unliscensed Rubik's Cube knockoffs, at least. I'm so glad someone else will be running the show in January....

Maybe Bush Doesn't Have the Goth Vote Sewn Up

Morrissey makes an endorsement.

Bin Laden Threatens More Attacks

New bin Laden tape released.

I think the electorate is smart enough to realize that if Bush had simply done his job instead of playing soldier and "nation building," there wouldn't be any bin Laden left to be making more tapes, and more threats.

We're getting a new President on Tuesday!

Clipper Box Seats

A friend had tickets through her company to last night's Clippers/Suns game. It probably doesn't get much more pointless than a preseason Clippers game, but I jumped at the chance because (a) I have to find a team to root for this year, and (2) they were seats in the company box.

The company box is way cool, except for the dozen or so of her cow-orkers. (They were perfectly nice, I just don't like strangers. [Or most of the people I know, for that matter.])

So, you take a VIP elevator to one of the corporate box floors, and it's like you're suddenly in a Double Tree Inn, rather than a sports arena. The hallways are carpeted and there are taseful photographic prints on the walls, and it's oddly quiet.

It's a lot like watching the game from a hotel suite or your living room, if your living room happens to be missing a wall and is perched 200 feet above an NBA court. And has people catering in sandwiches and chips. You still have to buy your own $10 beers -- yup, stadium beer at hotel martini prices.

Finally, just to rub it in to all the plebians down on the floor (yes, I'm talking to you, Frankie Muniz -- whadda ya want, it's the Clippers, not the Lakers), everyone gets free cake.

It was nice to see Steve Nash play -- I think he may have a bit of a Kobe problem this year, as he seemed to be trying to win the game singlehandedly when he was on the floor. Once the Suns were up by 20 in the third quarter, the Clipper feckless started to trickle out, and most of the crowd ended up cheering on Yuta Tabuse, the Sun's 5'9" Japanese whirling dervish of a guard.

I don't know if I can really become a Clipper fan this year. Corey Magette is pretty fun to watch, and I think the Clippers have a good shot this year if they just work on their defense and scoring. Just those two areas....

On the whole, if someone offers you box seats to an NBA game, take 'em.

Bush/Cheney2004 Victory Party Update

I'm still trying to get into this party.
Here's a reformatted rendition of the email exchange thus far, with my commentary in italics:

---

Frank San Filippo to bushcheney2004club.com

Can you please send me details on how I may attend?

---

bushcheney2004club.com to me:

In a message dated 10/28/04 3:40:46 PM Pacific Daylight Time, franko@gmail.com writes:

> Can you please send me details on how I may attend?

And you are who? From which Republican Group and how [did] you hear about it?

~SJ

---

• Hey hey, what's with the snotty attitude? That's no tone of voice to take when you're on the winning team, kiddo!

---

Frank San Filippo to bushcheney2004club.com:

I'm not from any group, just an enthusiastic supporter of the office of the President.
I heard about the celebration on one of the internets.

---

• Note that I scrupulously avoided lying -- I do in fact support the office of the President. I also like the Senate's chambers, and the House or Representative's foyer.

---

bushcheney2004club.com to me:

In a message dated 10/28/04 6:13:37 PM Pacific Daylight Time, franko@gmail.com writes:

> I'm not from any group, just an enthusiastic supporter of the office
> of the President.
> I heard about the celebration on one of the internets.

OK, what is your phone # so I can call you.

~SJ

---

Frank San Filippo to bushcheney2004club.com:

My cell is 310-xxx-xxxx. Could my cousin attend as well? He's an
infantryman who just got back from Iraq.

---

• Note here that my scruples have gone entirely out the window. I'm totally lying, I have no such cousin. But I'm trying to set up a big funny for later. Note also that my phone number doesn't really have all those x's in it, I just don't want you calling me, punk.

---

So that's where it stands now -- I'll let you know if I get a call....

2004's Scariest Halloween Costumes

Some last minute ideas for those with kids.

NASA Scientist Finds Something Hinky About Bush's "Tailoring"

Slate has the story, though I can't read it. Perhaps my Internets are broken, but I can't get through their day pass. If anyone does, please copy and email to franko atsymbol gmail d0t c0m.

Game. Set. Match.

No way around it. BushCo screwed the pooch on securing explosives in Iraq once we "accomplished the mission." David Kay confirms.

Spite? Maybe she just wanted the beer and the smokes!

There's an important election coming up, and we shouldn't laugh at the plight of the dead. But still.

Kerry Will Win Convincingly

Incumbents lose elections that poll close, as a rule, because undecideds tend to break for the challenger something like 2:1. The Republicans are clearly desperate in Wisconsin, because they are attempting 19th-century methods of intimidating black voters.

If you've read this blog before, you may be surprised that, rather than angering, this comforts me. Because you don't get that nasty if you think you can win fairly.

OK, it still really pisses me off that they're trying to subvert Democracy while sending kids to die to supposedly promote it in Iraq. And it does worry me a bit, because Rove will play as nasty as he wants to be.

But I still think Kerry's gonna clean W's clock on Tuesday.

If he doesn't, don't tell me, as I will be on the largest drinking binge in history to try to blot out the awful truth.

Lists: Good and Bad Covers

Bush Victory Party in Malibu Next Weekend

This could be fun. I've already emailed them for info on attending. I'll keep you posted.

Orchestrating the News

Probably only interesting to me, but here's a good article on writing scores for news coverage.

Blogger Gets a Visit from Secret Service

All in all, it's probably a good thing that Roy gave up on the bloggifying.

100 Facts and 1 Opinion for Voting Against Bush

From The Nation

You With the Queer Eyes

According to E!, in January Bravo is introducing "Queer Eye for the Straight Girl," a "new weekly one-hour series featuring 'The Gal Pals' making over a straight woman."

I do hope by 'gal pals' they don't mean they're having a pentad of lesbians make over a woman. I've watched Will & Grace enough to know that it's the gay guys you want doing the makeovers for men and women.

(Pretty weak Cyndi Lauper allusion in the headline, I know....)

O'Toole Still Bitter over WWI, II

In the New York Daily News dissing "Troy": "Ugh, what a disaster. The director [Wolfgang Petersen], that kraut, what a clown he was. When it was all over, I watched 15 minutes of the finished movie and then walked out."

In other news: Peter O'Toole is still live!

Lists: The Ten Worst Cover Songs

I think we can do better.

Kerry: Pete Rose Doesn't Belong in Hall Of Fame

I'm still voting for Kerry, anyway.

Lip-sync scandal!

A good, but too brief, list from the Village Voice of performers not entirely performing.

A Soldier's Tale

A sobering, if purely anecdotal account.

Sex and the Suburbs!

I hope you all are setting the TiVo to catch "Desperate Housewives!" on ABC, an HBO-like drama/comedy/satire. If nothing else, it fills the lull between "Curb Your Enthusiasm" seasons.

Some scribes have called "Housewives" a mix of "Sex and the City" and "Twin Peaks." Fair enough. The show, which airs Sunday nights, stars Teri Hatcher and the oof-worthy Eva Langoria. (Yeah, there are sites out there that are a little more revealing of Ms. Langoria than IMDB, but this is a PG-13 blog and I'm a gentleman.)

Back Atcha, Big Guy

I can't hear the audio on my lame work computer, but check out this video of Bush giving the camera the finger when he was Governor of Texas.

MyPollingPlace.com

Find out where to vote.

Goths For Bush

Hillarious parody. I think.

Macca: Let it Be...Kerry!

From WaPo's "Reliable Source":

Add Paul McCartney, British citizenship aside, to the list of celebs weighing in on the presidential contest. The queen's subject was in Silicon Valley last weekend headlining a benefit for the Bridge School, favorite cause of fellow rocker Neil Young. Interrupting his rollicking rendition of "Let It Be," Sir Paul looked up from the piano with a grin and yelled, "Let it be Kerry!" The crowd, reports special correspondent Rita Beamish, responded with a roar.

Nasssty Little Hobbitsessss!

Denver Post Sorta Backs Off Bush Endorsement

And no wonder: "Every letter we received was critical of the Post endorsement." (Emphasis added.)

Bill Maher on Religion

Good for some yuks, like his take on Jesus-as-co-pilot: "It's OK when you're a child. Children have an imaginary friend. When you get to be an adult, no more imaginary friends."

One Week Till Regime Change!

And only five days till Halloween.

California Broadcaster Donates Airtime to Republicans

This totally violates the spirit, and I would think the letter, of the equal time provisions that the FCC is charged with enforcing. Unfortunately, the head of the FCC is Colin Powell's son, who's a bigger stooge for the Republican party than his old man.

Outrageous.

Scathing Editorial on Rice's Campaign Stop

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Huge Cache of Explosives Vanished From Site in Iraq

Happy Monday!

SI forecasts NBA for '04-05

The mag's cover has Shaq basking in South Florida. No sign of Kobe.

The predictions: Pistons over Spurs for the title. Miami edges O-Town in the Southeast. The Lakers? They'll finish second in the division behind SacTown.

Orlando Sentinel Endorses Kerry

My hometown paper has endorsed a Democrat for President for the first time in 40 years, reflecting a national landslide for Kerry in newspaper endorsements. Something like 40 papers that endorsed Bush in 2000 have come out for Kerry, as opposed to about 2 that endorsed Gore moving over to the Bush column. And the papers endorsing Kerry are in larger urban areas, like the Washington Post and NY Times. And of course, Bush's hometown paper in Crawford, TX has also turned its back on him.

Sadly, newspapers don't get to vote, though....

Bill Maher Interview

The (Canadian) interviewer seems to barely speak English, but it doesn't matter too much -- Maher's in full-on rant mode here.

Jazz Bagpipes

Who knew?

New Voting Fraud Website

Hopefully, we won't need this site in a couple of weeks; but something tells me it's just going to be starting to get busy about Nov. 3....

New Mirror for the Triumph Video

This one works -- if you haven't seen it yet, it rocks. Jody and I just got done watching it twice.

iFilm has it now as well, but I couldn't get it to work. For that matter, I couldn't get to georgewbush.com today to watch the new 'Puppies' ad -- are the Internets broken?

Follow-up: That Nick Nolte's Diary? Not Really Nick Nolte's Diary

It's like finding out there's no Santa Claus.

Two Men Nail Ann Coulter

With pies.

There's a bored and saucy headline writer in Pittsburgh.

Krugman on Polls and Undercounting

Read it.

Gah.

The subtext being that only one candidate is actually serving under God, directly (and literally, in the picture -- not a coincidence how the text lays out there, I'm quite sure).

Republican Vote Tampering Already Underway

I guess Ohio and Florida really are the battleground states.

There needs to be mandatory sentencing for this sort of activity, and it should be pursued extensively by law enforcement. Five-to-twenty years, no parole. This is outrageous. People are dying and killing in a misguided attempt to spread democracy in the middle-east, while the party that sent them there is doing everything they can to subvert it here at home. People are dying and killing on behalf of these very scumbags, who are trying to destroy the very things our unfortunate sons and daughters are trying to protect.

It angers me.

Open Letter from Sister of Slain Soldier

Your Friday afternoon heartbreak is here.

Comedy Jokes

I miss Dixie cups.

Jon Stewart on 60 Minutes this Sunday

Not sure what the Vegas Over/Under is for him calling Andy Rooney a dick.

Moving Anti-Bush Campaign Video

Really effective.

White House Scrubbing Website of Gaffes

Sadly, given the laundry list of crimes being perpetrated by the current administration, this comes off as a pretty minor scandal. But it should be bigger than that -- White House employees shouldn't be using my tax dollars to support an incumbent President, of either party, dammit.

12 more days....

The Libertarian Vote

Reason magazine has an interesting list of various mid- to high-profile Libertarianish types from politics, print, and showbiz, discussing who they're voting for and why. Some interesting surprises, like how few of them vote regularly, or seem to know who the Libertarian candidates are.

Isaac Newton

James Gleick on the man who changed the way we look at figs.

'Four more years of George Bush will be like four more years of syphilis'

Ah, the inimitable Hunter S. Thompson: "The question this year is not whether President Bush is acting more and more like the head of a fascist government but if the American people want it that way."

Man 1, Bank 0

Bestest thing I've read on any of the Internets in a long time.

Triumph Pees in the Alley

Spin Alley, that is. These feeds seem to be overloaded at the moment; let me know if you find this clip somewhere that isn't farked.

He's in the Big Leagues Now

Is he a dumbass, or just trying to get traded to Portland?

Boston to Win

In a sweep!

Shoot the hippo!

Guns are back on the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland.

Yay, BoSox!

I gave up on baseball when the Dodgers traded Itallian-American Superstar (and reluctant gay icon) Mike Piazza. But (a) Eff the Yankees, and (2), I want to see a Boston-Houston World Series. In this year, of all years, it is only fitting. And despite my childhood love for their colorful uniforms and boxy hats, it should come as no surprise to our dozen(s) of faithful readers that I want to see Houston crushed and humilliated for continually lying to the American public and getting us mired in an unwinnable and fruitless war.

The O'Reilly Factor for Lesbians

Frank Rich has a great op/ed on LesboGate.

Since it Worked so Well the First Time...

"Do They Know it's Christmas" to be re-recorded in bid to re-end famine in Africa.

Oh, Arshad...?

It's German. It has LEDs. It's a toilet seat.

Fainting Goats

That's all, just Fainting Goats.

Why Are the Dems Waiting...

...to trot out "It's the economy, Stupid!"

Pat Robertson: Bush Claimed "No Casualties" in Iraq War

Hard to tell if he's trying to support Bush or not.

Maybe She Can Save Up to Buy a Bra

Good to see Lori Petty getting some work.

Flav & Bridgette's Reality Show

Well, this ought to be the capper to the whole reality-tv thing. From "I Wanna Marry a Midget" to "Wife Swap" to "Substance-Addled C-list Celebs Try to Emulate an Actual Human 'Relationship'." Where do you go from there?

I <heart> TeeVee.

Blood is Thinner than Oil

Bush relatives for Kerry

Recruiting and Redemption Figured In Tommy Lee TV Thing

Love the vague headline. UNL Chancellor tries to justify the Tommy Lee "Back to School" remake (and with Rodney's body practically still warm! For shame!)

Clampdown in Key West!

The southernmost city tries to rein in debauchery. Didn't Vegas try this in the mid-90s?

Key quote:

"We do want to keep our uniqueness and funkiness," said Tom Oosterhoudt, one of the City Commission's five members. "What we don't want is major strip-joint chains on every corner, so it looks like Anywhere, U.S.A."

Methodists Against Bush

If you're a Methodist, maybe you can join the drive to get him kicked out of his church?

Cell rage in Fargo!

A scantily clad, goggle-wearing former college wrestler goes to the slammer for 60 days for going nuts at a Verizon store.

Key quote: "I want to apologize; I'm sorry. I gotta change my ways a little bit."

Betty Hill, possible UFO abductee, dies at 85

The name probably doesn't mean much to most people. But I read the story of Betty Hill and her husband, Barney, many times when I was kid. In elementary school, I consumed as much as I could about UFOs, Bigfoot, yetis and Nessie. This included books, "documentary" films and TV shows, including the "Six Million Dollar Man" episodes where Steve Austin took on Sasquatch.

I have a faint memory that books on these subjects were in the 100-200 range in the Dewey Decimal system. And the tale of the Hills was almost always a centerpiece of a UFO book.

The gist: In 1961, the Hills were driving back to their New Hampshire home from Canada when they "lost" two hours of the trip. Under hypnosis years later, they told a story of UFO abduction that became a sensation among UFO buffs and was even made into a TV movie in the 1970s.

Barney died in 1969. Betty carried on the cause, although she grew weary of "flaky" UFO researchers.

Betty died of cancer in New Hampshire this week. My interest in UFOs and Bigfoot faded when "In Search Of" went off the air, and I couldn't tell you where to find such material using the Library of Congress system.

How Many Gore Voters Switching to Bush?

I was having this very discussion this past weekend: that perhaps the election isn't as close as the polls suggest, because most who voted for Gore last time will surely vote Kerry this time, while there seems to be a number of former Bush voters swinging Kerry this time. Rodger A. Payne has a somewhat equivocating response that's worth checking out.

Google Print

First your hard drive, now books. Coming soon: Google for Truckstop Bathroom Graffiti and Google for Intensely Personal Teenage Diaries.

Eggheads versus Gojira!

Finally, an academic conference worth attending. The University of Kansas is host to a meeting on the cultural meaning of Godzilla, pegged to the 50th anniversary of the release of the original film.

Career in decline: a case study

I offer rocker Tommy Lee of Motley Crue/sex tape fame. At 42, he has enrolled at the University of Nebraska and joined the marching band for a possible reality show.

Snakehead, kraken on the march!

The feared denizens of the deep continue to extend their reach. The jumbo flying squid is prowling the California coast and cruising into Canadian waters, and the Great Lakes face the threat of the "frankenfish."

Fuzzy Math

Funny.

Freeway Blogging

Seven pages of protesty goodness.

Paralyzed, a Soldier Asks Why

Last heartbreaking soldier story for the week, I promise.

Vote Trading

If you live in a blue state and sign up for one of those services that matches you up with a Nader voter in a battleground state so that you can swap votes, please lie; trade with the misguided Nader voter, and then vote for Kerry anyway.

I'm one of those fools who voted for Nader last time -- I like the idea of a viable 3rd (4th, 5th) party. But this year, I want Bush to get a trouncing. I want Kerry to win by so much that the Republicans can't even think of cheating the vote, and that the rest of the world hears us say, "Whups, our bad. We'll put the dirty little chimpanzee away now."

Dissension in the Ranks

A 17-member Army Reserve platoon is under arrest for refusing to undertake a blatantly unsafe mission, for which they don't have the equipment to pull off.

Injured Vets

Returning home to poverty and collection notices - from the military itself.

Bulge Update

A reader at corrente has speculated that this wearable defibrilator may be the answer to the Great Jacket Bulge Mystery. It makes some sense -- Bush skipped his physical this summer, and stipulated in the debate rules that he not be shot from behind. If it's not one of these, I imagine it has some medical basis, as the White House has, for some reason, denied that the President wears a flack jacket.

Dungeons & Dragons Turns 30

Still living in its parents' basement.

Doonesbury URLs

Trying to embed URLs in a comic strip is a pretty silly gimick, but Trudeau is putting some worthwhile links in there. Over on his Doonesbury@Slate site, there are clickable links to take you to those URLs.

Google for Your Desktop

Eh. We'll see -- they do somethings very well at Google, and search is one of them. Their expansion beyond GIS services lately hasn't been to impressive, including what they've done with Blogger. But I know there's a lot of smart people there like Salim, so....

Debate

Well, I think Kerry went 3 for 3, and I think it has really helped him in the polls. I'm also expecting a big Rovian October Suprise, so, sadly, it's still BushCo's race to lose -- if hey pull off the OS skillfully enough they can win; if not, it will backfire.

I don't have much to add to all the other commentary in Blogikstan. (Summary for those who never click through to Atrios: the chimp hung himself on his own petard with that "I don't remember saying I'm not worried about Osama. Sounds like one of them ex-ag-ger-ations." He also seemed to be drooling. Seriously. But other than that, he did much better on this debate than the others, despite moving every topic back to No Child Left Behind, no matter the question. Oh yeah, and Kerry made reference to Cheney's openly gay daughter, which has apparently incensed Lynne Cheney, the one person in the country who didn't know Mary's out of the closet.) I do have one comment I haven't seen elsewhere, though:

Take the f-ing flu vaccine, Mr. President. I don't have an ounce of goodwill toward you, and yes, you screwed up again on this one, but we'll let it slide. You have to pretend to be the President for another three months. For the sake of the stock market if nothing else, we need to at least seem to have a healthy "leader."

Physics profs gone wild!

So if your professor threatens you and has to be sent away for a while, do you get an automatic A?

Key quote from student: "Then he told us if we got out of our seats, he's gonna kill us. He went on the blackboard and wrote '911 now', so we were really in fear for our lives."

Follow Up on RNC Voter Fraud

Letter from head of DNC to head of RNC.

Wow

Moving video from Operation Truth.

Terror Attack "Imminent"?

Intercepted memo indicates Ashcroft certainly thinks so.

Do you feel safer now than you did four years ago?

Breaking Ranks

Iraq Veterans Against the War

Former Republican Governor Alleges GOP Voter Fraud

Janklow says the national GOP is encouraging campaign workers to cheat.

The O'Creepy Factor

Yeeggh.

Uh Oh, Now Bush Has Done It

He's pissed off Norway.

Throwing the Book at Bryant

Phil Jackson tells all.

2:1 Jim Carrey Plays Murdoch

Yup, they're making A Team: the Movie.

Everybody's Blogging!

There's an odd dude for you.

RNC Disenfranchising Democrats in Nevada, Possibly Oregon

This is truly outrageous. Voter Outreach, a company largely or entirely funded by the RNC, has been registering voters outside shopping centers and the like, and in at least hundreds if not thousands of cases, simply ripped up the registrations of Democrats.

This is a scandal that should be making national headlines, and someone should be going to jail for this. These same assclowns who are purporting to "sow democracy" in the Middle East are doing whatever they can to subvert it here at home so they can stay in power. This, as you might surmise as an astute reader of this blog, angers me.

Nothing's perfect in life, so you have an election that's not quite perfect. Is it better than not having an election? You bet! -- Donald Rumsfeld

American Versions of Beatle Albums to be Released

Eh. I want the mono versions of Sgt. Pepper and the White album, personally.

Uh Oh

A disturbing account from Seymour Hersh (who broke the Viet Nam era My Lai story) about atrocities being committed in Iraq, namely the intentional murder of civilians being counted as "insurgent kills."

The Great Pigeon Debacle of 2004

Funny.

Last Friday's Lies

Kevin Drum has a great summary of both candidate's most recent debate whoppers.

Bush's Lies on Wednesday's Debate

Krugman's predicting them in advance.

J.Lo is always copying J.Hi

Following our Buddhist wedding by only 2 months, Jenny from the Block is taking the Middle Path.

I guess the Kabbalah Center was too crowded with celebs already....

Wish You Weren't Going to... Be Here Again...

Or Something. The point is, Why?

Your Tax Dollars at Work

The federal government has spent $2.3 million over the last four years on prayer research.

Thank God the party of "fiscal responsibility" has been in charge....

Dean of deconstruction is dead

I guess there's more than one meaning to take from the obituary of Jacques Derrida, the Frenchman who roiled English departments across the land.

Key paragraph:

For 17 years, from 1962 to 1979, he refused to be photographed for publication, in an effort to keep his face -- square, with a strong nose, thick eyebrows, dark skin and bushy white hair -- from becoming part of the investigation for meaning in his work.

Despicable

W. Virginia Republican Headquarters phoning Democrats to tell them they're not registered to vote and won't be able to vote on election day. Someone needs to serve jail time over this.

Dred Scott used as code by Bush for Roe v. Wade?

A compelling and unnerving argument.

NY Times: The Mystery of the Bulge in the Jacket

Apparently, Bush wasn't wearing a flack jacket. But still, if someone was feeding him answers, how could he have blown the first debate so badly?

Conservative TV Group to Air Anti-Kerry Film Near Nov. 2

Sinclair is at it again.

Borat!

I like you.

The Emperor's New Clothes

They're getting a bit old. Krugman has a nice bit in today's NY Times:

The point is that in the real world, as opposed to the political world, ignorance isn't strength. A leader who has the political power to pretend that he's infallible, and uses that power to avoid ever admitting mistakes, eventually makes mistakes so large that they can't be covered up. And that's what's happening to Mr. Bush.

Bush a Dummy?

As in "ventriliquist's dummy?" There's a lot of blogospheric speculation about the mysterious bulge under his jacket at last week's debate, his strange speaking patterns, and the Rep's stipulation that no cameras be allowed to shoot from behind the candidates. I Personally think it was just some sort of Kevlar vest or something -- but I wouldn't be gollywhumped to find out I was wrong about this; there's apparently some evidence that Bush has had an electronic prompter in his ear for past speeches.

Anyhoo, Salon has a good summary of the evidence, probably worth sitting through their ad if you're so inclined.

He Made Drawrings

Ono interviewed about Dr. Winston O'Boogie's artwork.

Unfortunate Animal Of The Month Club

Christmas is just around the corner.

OK, I Take it Back

They're not trying to lose the election. They're just completely nuts.

Cheney said today that this week's report by the chief U.S. weapons inspector showing that Iraq produced no weapons of mass destruction after 1991 and was a diminishing threat to the US justifies rather than undermines President Bush's decision to go to war.

The Word for Today is up-is-downism.

Bush Backs Off of Rendition

Well this is a good sign, at least. I don't care if he's only doing it for election-year political purposes or not....

Rock Paper Scissors Spock Lizard

In case you weekend roshambo warriors need a new challenge.

Depends on What Your Definition of "Met" Is

That's really the tack Cheney's handlers are taking to counter the flap about his egregious claim of never having met Edwards, despite having demenstrably met him on at least three occasions.

Are these people trying to throw the election? Seriously, maybe they realized "Damn, we've messed up Iraq beyond repair -- let's take our lumps, let the Dems have the presidency for 4 years, then they get saddled with the inevitable carnage and conscription, and we can run as the anti-war party in '08."

No One Shot or Murdered in Chicago Yesterday

First time in five years.

A Reformed Vampire Speaks Out.

Pastors and prayer counselors need to know that vampirism is real. If a person has genuinely come to Christ, they need not be afraid of confessing that sin and getting set free of oppression. If they hide it out of shame, it may only prolong their oppression. We had to gently pull it out of the people, after all other options were tediously exhausted. They were so relieved that we did not condemn them, and they were even more relieved when Jesus set them free of this sinful compulsion. It is a sin like any other. It can be forsaken and renounced with Jesus' help, but it does have to be acknowledged.

Sadly, these people are allowed to vote. Make sure you get out and counter the nutjob vote on Nov. 2.

Frank Rich on How BushCo Blew Their Lead

Inneresting essay in the NY Times, with this jaw-dropping nugget:

"Time reported last spring that even the Department of Homeland Security was told to take a break from its appointed tasks to round up one terrorism-fighting photo op a month for the president."

WHAT!?

If that's true, the SCLM should be sharpening their knives over this! The Department of Homeland Security really could be a legitimately useful organization. If our country weren't being run by a bunch of assclowns.

Newsflash: Cheney a Big Fat Liar

Factcheck.org refutes statement by Cheney that they back him re: Edwards' charges that Haliburton, while Cheney was CEO, used offshore subsidiaries to do business with Iran, and had to pay millions in fines for concealing their actions:
"Cheney ... wrongly implied that we had rebutted allegations Edwards was making about what Cheney had done as chief executive officer of Halliburton.... in fact, Edwards was mostly right."

Have I mentioned enough today that Cheney and the Bush administration often mischaracterize the truth?

BlogShares

This is kinda odd -- a sort of fantasy stock market based on blog popularity. I'm sure it's useful, though I can't see how.

Cute Bunny

Tasty, too.

FBI Confiscates Bin Laden Bio, Demands Library Say Who Checked it Out

Amazing what a minor intrusion it seems in the face of the larger civil liberties abuses enabled by the Patriot Act, but kudos to the Whatcom County Library for taking a stand.

The Debate, Round-by-round

Keith Olbermann does a funny blow-by-blow on last night's debate, with a thrilling overturning of his results based on today's uncovering of Cheney's lies.

If the Dems spin the untruths from last night's debate correctly, it could go a long way to underscoring one of their central, and most effective themes: That the Bush Administration is not straight with the American people.

Like Bush in the Gore-Bush debates of 2000, it's possible that Edwards may have been a bit behind on the debate itself, but will wind up winning (deservedly) the post-debate debate, if the take-away for voters is that Cheney and Bush are liars.

Try rolling it around on your tongue with me: President Kerry. Ex-President George W. Bush. It just sounds right.

Factcheck.com

One of the more entertaining bits from the debate was Cheney telling folks to check out Factcheck.com -- which, by the time most did, was rediriecting them to George Soros' site, with the headline, "George Bush is endangering our safety, hurting our vital interests, and undermining American values." Kevin at Washington Monthly drums up the entertaining scoop on how this came about.

Edwards' "Hometown Paper"

Apparently it's a left-leaning weekly that hasn't, contrary to Dick's claim, taken to calling him 'Senator Gone'.

Business School Profs to President Bush: Pbbbbbbbt!

250+ B-school profs wrote an Open Letter to President. (Boy, how many profs does Harvard b-school have?) Lots of teachers from MIT, Stanford, and other big names as well, taking him to task. The effect on the election will of course, be negligible, but I take this as a good sign that Bush's no-confidence vote is going to be larger than people expect on Nov. 2.

New Video at Democrats.org

I think the debate was fairly even last night -- but as the video shows, it's easy to hold your own in a debate when you just make shiat up.

Easiest. Blade Runner Quiz. Ever.

Even a dullard could get them all right.

That is, especially a dullard.

And They Call It....

Puppet Love.

Forget Spaceship One

To quote Ray Davies, "I wanna fly like Superman!"

Too Much Time, Too Much Corn

I really don't know what to say about this.

Anheuser-Busch Producing Caffeinated Beer

It's called "B to the E power". And you just know the "E" stands for "Exxtreme."

Tools.

Bush Schedules Last-minute Talk on Iraq

They realize he botched the first debate, and probably expect Cheney to lose more ground to Edwards tonight, so they scheduled a last-minute Iraq speech to get their talking points out there before Friday night's town hall debate.

Good to see them running scared. And good to see Rumsfeld and Bremmer not helping out too much.

Legalizing Torture

Katherine at Obsidian Wings has a series of follow-ups to her original post about extraordinary rendition. If this passes and gets misused in the manner it seems to be intended, it could be the largest blemish of all on Bush's shameful tenure, and a stain on American democracy for letting it happen. Sadly, it's not exactly subtle, but not easily sound-bitable either, so I don't think this has gotten a lick of press in the mainstream media.

Smile

Bill Sherman has a great review and historical backgrounder on Brian Wilson's newly-released Smile. I caught him doing 'Heroes & Villains' on the Leno show last week, and it seemed loopily charming, so I'll probably pick it up when I see it used. I heard a howlingly bad track he did recently with Paul McCartney on 'Breakfast with the Beatles' (a Sunday-morning Beatlemaniac radio show here in LA) -- but maybe that was Macca's fault....

The Pits

Fun story on pit musicians from the NY Times.

I played guitar for a few 99-seater shows here in LA, 6 shows a week for 8 weeks. You do get incredibly bored. I got to the point where I was reading programming books while I was playing, and realized I just couldn't keep doing it. Glad to have had the experience, though.

"He Forgot Poland"

I guess you may as well forget about Poland too, George....

Ringo's Postcards

Nice story for Beatlemaniacs.

The Last Starfighter, the Musical

Not making it up.

I think it's about time I start working to get Godot! into theaters....

If You Accidentally End Up in a TGI Fridays...

...keep an eye out for their new ATKINZ-friendly menu.

About Those 100,000 Trained Troops

Actually, just under 23,000.

Mistakes were made.

Kerry Draws Even in Newsweek Poll

Actually slightly ahead, but within the margin of error. Nice picture accompanies article.

Volunteer

Volunteer to help the DNC.

Michael Ian Black to Host Late Late Show?

Could be a good choice. He's funny. He does snark pretty well. I'm suffering from snark fatigue personally, but at least if he takes the gig it might stop VH1 from producing "I Love the Oughts" without their go-to guy....

The Passion of the Bush

The New York Times' Frank Rich on Bush and his co-pilot.

.

R.E.M.'s new disc, "Around the Sun," drops Tuesday (Buy it! ) It is inevitably being described as a comeback, return to form, etc. You can listen to it now on the official site.

I am probably in the minority in defending their other post-Bill Berry albums, "Up" and "Reveal." Although neither is a masterwork, both have their moments and show that these guys can age more gracefully than, say, the Rolling Stones or the James Bond franchise. This was further evidenced by last year's tour.

Therefore, I will inevitably say that R.E.M. never went away.

Star Wars Chick

It's people like this that make me love the internet. You get to observe, from a safe difference, all sorts of people you would not have otherwise known existed.

And now, just because of the headline on this entry, I'm going to get all sorts of wierd search-engine traffic....

The 5-Second Rule

Thank God our Universities are tackling the really tough questions.

The Area Code Class System

To anyone who has never lived in LA, this essay may seem a bit ridiculous, but there are quite a few grains of truth in it. The amount of time I get to spend with friends is directly (or perhaps logorithmicaly) proportional to how close they are. When I lived just 5 miles inland from where I am now, my Santa Monica friends were much more likely to say "Party at your place? East of the 405? YeahIdunno." My selection of band members is at least somewhat influenced by their willingness to rehearse at my place. And I saw my little brother more often when he lived in Berkely than do now that he lives a 45 minute drive from me here in LA.

Watch the Monkey Make Faces

I thought the debate was fairly close -- Bush scored points on speaking to the camera, wheras Kerry looked kind of shifty by speaking to the moderator, eyes downcast. A lot of folks in Blogikstan seem to think the repetitive nature of Bush's answers was a liability, but I assumed it was a deliberate attempt to get just a few select anti-Kerry talking points out there, which could be smart -- except Kerry did a good job of refuting them almost immediately. The main thing Kerry accomplished was look like, yeah, I could see him as President. And Bush kind of hung himself by looking like a maladjusted chimpanzee.

Fortunately, I seem to be completely wrong about it being close, as people seem to feel across the board that Kerry clearly won it. I guess I was hoping for more of a knock-out from Kerry, and my expectations of the chimp were so low that he easily surpassed them. I'm quite a bit more hopeful about Kerry's chances today -- foreign policy, the CW goes, should have been Bush's strong suit in these debates.