Am I Really Wishing Something Bad On An Entire State?

It's true. I want Virgina to get flooded. Like majorly flooded. Like what's happened to people in New Jersey, New York, Vermont, etc. Like what's about to happen, again, to New Orleans. But Eric "I'm The Ultimate Douche" Cantor doesn't understand disaster relief.

I have friends and family in Virginia, so I don't actually want them to get flooded out. But this jerk wants every cent that goes out for disaster relief to be offset by spending cuts. For disasters. Where people lose everything and other people die, he's worried more about austerity?! You've got to be f-ing kidding me.

This guy is the ultimate asshole. What is it going to take for him to understand that people suffering losses from the tornado in Joplin, MO, Irene on the East Coast, and now Lee by the Gulf need help, not more crap about lowering taxes and spending?

I could feel a bit better if he would pay even a bit of attention to the fact that all these disasters are from everything shifting around on the planet due to increased water due to, you guessed it, global warming. Oh wait, he's anti-regulation too.

If only corporations had basements filled with family mementos that got trashed and had offices in these communities trapped by bridge washouts. This this crazy man would care about disaster relief.

Debating Myself - Gun Raffle In Giffords District

Read the CNN story.

Gabrielle Giffords

For all you lazy folks out there, Representative Gabrielle Gifford's Congressional district in is Arizona. Gun-loving Arizona. The Pima Country Republican Party is located in her district. They're having a fundraiser that auctions off a gun. Some say it's insensitive, other's say it's how Arizona rolls. I can see both sides to this argument so here goes.



What insensitive jerks! Giffords was shot by a glock. The woman just started walking around again and they're raffling off a gun of the same type that killed 6 people that day! WTF!

Um... Giffords owns a glock herself. Even the Democrats in Arizona love them some guns. Her office didn't comment on this situation, which probably means they dont' see the big deal.

Just because they didn't make a remark calling these jerks insensitive doesn't mean it's not still insensitive as hell. Are they doing a background check on the people buying these raffle tickets? I highly doubt it. What if another batshit crazy person buys this gun? Who's fault will it be?

They wouldn't just auction off the gun if it were against gun laws. Now you're getting into territory about the state legislation's law on gun possession and purchase. That's so tangential to this case, it's not really applicable.

Like hell it's not applicable. If it weren't for those laws (or lack thereof), she'd have one less hole in her head. But if you want to stay on topic, fine. Let's talk about how this is like dancing on someone's grave. Or more specifically, parking a car on top of it after they've died in a motor vehicle accident. Six people were killed by a glock and they want to raffle one off near where it happened.

Lots of Republican parties auction handguns on a raffle. It happens in several states. I'm sure they're not stopping their raffles in Illinois because of the high gun crime rate there.

Blame the shooter, not the gun, eh? If the shooter had no gun, there'd be no shootings! And don't give me that crap about how they'll just find another way to take people out. The death toll with a semi-automatic is always higher that even a skilled knifesman in a crowd.

Staying on topic, this raffle isn't about her. It's about a fundraiser for the party.

Well, it should be about her. Republicans could stand a little honor these days, even if it has to come on the local level.



Where do you stand in the debate?

Great News About Qaddafi. Not Great News About Perry

The rebels in Libya are feeling increasingly good because it seems that the last of Qaddafi's holds in Libya are falling apart. They've given loyalists one week to surrender. I hope they surrender and don't make this fight last longer than it has to.

Read the CNN article.

I get how someone can be so bogged down in the life they've always known. And for someone who's life has been filled with Cristal champagne, marble pools, and lots o' cash, holding onto what's left of Qaddafi's regime seems like the better idea.

But for those who were subjected to be one of a ton of lower class denizens under a dictator, freedom was their only option. Yay for the NATO involvement and I hope Libya can replace Iraq in our interventionist memory.

In other news, Rick Perry leads in another poll.

Why would anyone vote for this secessionist steal-jobs-from-other-states, Hispanic loathing, education hating, pay-to-play faux cowboy?

I'm about to get real whiny right now. I was batshit crazy Michele Bachmann on top! It's not fair. She sounds reasonable enough. But why does Perry get to spout all the same crazy Christiandoms she does but he's more popular with moderates? Maybe it's cause his spouse isn't trying to de-gay the masses.

Well, there's always still Sarah Palin. I'm waiting on her particlar anti-intellectualistic view of the world to join in this race. Where are you Sarah?

How To Fix Obama's Inaction

The Republicans seemed primed to benefit from their obstructionist behavior for the last few years. At least according to polls, their gamble is paying off. People are seeing Obama as unable to get things done and his approval ratings are suffering as a result.

The Republicans ratings are in the toilet too. But when faced with a decision between bad and worse, people tend to forget which is worse and go with the option they haven't recently tried. I can only hope people are that ridiculously stupid, but alas it may be so.

I get really sad when I think about the possibility of Rick Perry or Michele Bachmann as president. Mitt Romney would be less gag-inducing, but only marginally.

The only real solution in times like these is to get rid of the obstructionists. If the Republicans lose their majority in Congress, they can't say no to everything Obama suggests. Then he can get things done and move this country forward.

They seriously say no to everything he suggests. They have opposed every single revenue raise. But when Obama proposes continuing the social security tax, suddenly they're against it. Are you kidding me!??! They say they only want tax cuts that will grow business. As if business is the only things that needs growth. And those rich folks they're extending the Bust tax cuts for are not running around hiring new people with the saved money. They're hoarding!

These folks are full of it. I just hope enough Americans realize it so they will make the right decision in this upcoming election cycle.

Another Anti-Gay Person Brought Down By Their Homosexuality

Why is it that people just can't be themselves? Why must they hide away their true proclivities? They do that and then the worst happens. They fight so hard against something they desire (I'm looking at you Elliott Spitzer). Then they get into a position of power and use it to abuse others to fulfill their desire (I'm looking at you Bill Clinton).

Who's the latest asshole in this trend of denying yourself until you have to exploit others secretly to fulfill your wants? Why, Bishop Eddie Long of course. Bishop Eddie Long, of the we-hate-gays-so-let's-organize-a-march-against-them-but-isn't-it-questionable-that-I-set-up-my-church-in-Hotlanta variety was in the news last year for this scandal.

He supposedly had sex with teenage boys and used the church's resources to entice them. Read about it here.

And now the boys can't keep quiet anymore. After taking a lot, a lot, of money to keep quiet, they can't help but talk. They're writing a tell all book and gave an exclusive interview to a CNN affiliate. Read about it here.

So what about losing their settlement money?

In Wednesday’s interview, the men said they don’t care that talking about the case could mean risking their settlement money.
“I feel like burning [the money],” LeGrande said.
“I’m going to tell the world – money does not buy happiness,” he said. “When you sleep at night, the problems are still there. The money stuff, who cares about the number.”

Interesting stuff? I wonder if Eddie Long will take on these renewed allegations with claims of being like David again...

Don't even get me started on how this shouldn't even be an issue except poor Eddie Long grew up in a black community that frowned on homosexuality and he was forced to be someone other than himself. Poor not-self-aware baby.

Libya Free From Qaddafi?

According to breaking news on CNN.com, Libya is now under rebel control.

They've arrested a couple of his sons.

Obama made an official announcement on Sunday signalling his belief that Qaddafi was truly done as ruler.

All signs point to him being done.

I have to admit this makes me really happy. I first posted about the revolution in Libya on March 31st. It kicked off on February 15th.

Finally, after much fighting, it seems to have reached a tipping point. I feared it would never end. Libya is no Egypt and there was no way this was going to end as smoothly. But now, hope has returned.

So now, I wait and I watch. I look forward to the day when Libya is building a new future for themselves that doesn't involve anyone with the last name Qaddafi.

Light Fare: New Additions To The Dictionary

Sexting and Jegging and Woot, amongst others, get added to the dictionary

This is my life. I live in a world where pop culture terms get added to a dictionary. You do too. If you can "retweet" and get a word to catch on, you too can be in the dictionary in less than 5 years. Tried and true changes in the English language are no more...

Seriously, does anyone still use the word Bootylicious anymore?

It's like the dictionary is suddenly the pop culture peoples' choice awards. If your term is awesome enough to be in widespread use (read: even old white guys who aren't John Stewart know what it means when they hear it), you get voted by the academy into the dictionary.

I wonder how long it will take before they remove words that aren't in use anymore. I bet pantaloons is still in the dictionary, so mankini may be there forever Sigh.

At least I can depend on Blogger. All those new dictionary words I've typed in this post come up highlighted yellow when I click spell check. Score one for not being on top of the times.

How To Get Your Name In The Headlines: Obscure Repub Edition

There are the big names one thinks of when they think of Republicans today. Those people matter either because of the current position they hold or because of their chances at a future current position. These are people like Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, Paul Ryan, Mitch McConnell, and yes, Karl Rove.

When you hear these names, it's because you've just heard them and will hear them again tomorrow. Those who don't make this cut are sidelines for a number of reasons. Either they're not important enough, or their important belongs more to yesterday.

CNN's Politics page seems to be splattered with insignificant people who've made big statements in an effort to beef up their public exposure. Well, here you go people, I'm exposing you.

Herman I-Wanna-Be-The-New-Token Cain Thinks Obama Should Be Impeached.

Pulling out the big guns a bit early, are we Herman? Who do you think you are? Rick Perry? You're no Rick Perry. Silly rabbit. Who do you think is going to reward you for such insolence?

Christine O'Donnell walked out on Piers Morgan and she is rightly being lambasted for it. I agree with this opinion piece wholeheartedly. What did she think she was going to be asked? Seriously, chick you're no Michelle Bachmann.

On to people who it does make sense to mention these days, and the old folks trapped in their headline by association...

Bill Clinton had the hots for Rick Perry

Maybe it's me, but I don't see it. I don't think Rick Perry is very good looking at all. All I can see is that large expanse of skin from his nose to his upper lip. It's like unkempt landscape over there. I love laugh lines, but his just look angry. His eyebrows don't suit his face, his ears are too big, and that old man loose skin flap threatening to hide the top of his collar is soooo icky. I'm just saying...

Bachmann screw up... oh hell everything. This time it's Elvis' birthday. I think all the people who think education sucks must be her biggest fan. It's totally fine to get everything wrong all the time because at least you're not an egghead. Is that the reasoning? Someone please explain to my why anyone cares what comes out of her mouth?

If my job was fact-checking this chick, I'd be rich! Rich!

Really Perry?! Already With The Talk Of Treason?!?!

So, apparently, it's never too early in one's primary race for president to start throwing around the word treason. At least, not when it comes to Texas Governor Rick Perry.

Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Apparently, being "passionate" is a good reason to call Ben Bernanke treasonous.
Seriously?! You've been campaigning for all of, what, three days and you're pulling out words people used to die over?!

Those are fighting words, Perry. Fighting words!

And seriously?! You're going after Democratic people already?! Why not focus on the actual primary which you must win to even be relevant in this discussion in a year.

And while I'm on the subject, seriously?! You won like 875 votes in the Ames' Straw Poll for emotional farmers and you think it's time to focus on the long game?

Seriously dude, you have to beat batshit crazy Michele I Don't Believe Anyone's Really Gay But They Can Be A Witch Bachmann before you've earned the right to start calling folks treasonous.

If this is what you're doing this early, Lord only knows how much farther you'll sink on the premise of passion. Hopefully you'll sink just far enough for reasonable people to run screaming away from you. Seriously.

He Lingers Cause He Likes What He Sees

A Confident Rick Perry

Iowa is receiving him well. Hell, he might have beat Michele Bachmann in the Ames Straw Poll had he announced his candidacy sooner.

The big thing to remember about this guy is that his talk of job creation is a lie!

He "created" jobs not by increasing consumer demand alone, but by luring jobs from other states because of the low wages most of Texas enjoys. I use enjoy as if it were opposite day, of course.

He simply cannot use his job creation strategy on the whole country, so don't believe that load of crap for one minute.

But let's focus on what's right in front of us. Perry is stealing Bachmann's shine. I think that lade is batshit crazy, but I think I'd rather have her contesting the presidency.

Yes Perry's from Texas, Dubya's state.

Yes Perry's scarily anti-immigration.

Yes Perry hates education.

But all of that won't keep him from picking up more votes than he deserves. By nature of simply not being Barack Obama, people can expect he'll face a less contentious Washington. That alone worries me.

This one guy with the chance to beat both boring-ass Romney and crazy-ass Bachmann is taking his stand. I'll be here to remind folks that he's full of hot air. Hopefully I won't be the only one to notice.

Rick Perry, Get On In Here!

Oh yeah! I'm doing a happy dance as more and more loony ass Republicans hop into the race for President. Rick I-Don't-Like-Hispanics-Even-Though-Countless-Numbers-Of-Them-Live-In-My-State Perry threw his hat in the ring.

The only thing that could make me more happy is if Sarah Palin would join in too.

Although he doesn't officially announce his candidacy until tomorrow, like other Repubs before him, <a href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/11/breaking-perry-will-announce-saturday/">there's been a pre-announcement</a>.

Previous reports had indicated that Perry would use a speech at the conservative RedState Gathering in Charleston to make his intentions clear, but would stop short of officially announcing a presidential bid.

But the Republican source told CNN that Perry will be in the Republican presidential race on Saturday.

And doing her job as the newer, loonier, slightly better educated Sarah Palin, Michelle Bachmann is doing her "look at me" dance by already commenting on his candidacy -- before it even starts. <a href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/12/bachmann-camp-to-perry-why-the-no-show-at-gop-debate/">Read the article</a>.

"I think the interesting thing is, he wasn't here tonight," Bachmann adviser Ed Goeas said. "He's not involved in the Iowa Straw poll. If he in fact…is getting in this race at the end of the week, I think the real question, especially for many of the people here in Iowa are asking was: why weren't you here tonight?"

This was about Thursday's race. And seriously, who cares about Iowa's straw poll? We already know what's going down there, they are going to pick whoever combines the right mix of fiscal conservativism (real word? prolly not) with social freedom with a dash of states rights.

Iowa only matters as much as what the next three states do. For the Democrats in 2008, it was a big deal because no one expected Obama to beat Clinton. But there's far too many candidates in the race for the Repubs to make a difference, in my not-so-humble opinion.

So while they fret about things that won't make a difference anyway, I'll just sit back and grin and hope more and more nutbags join up and muddy the waters.

Widespread Violence

That's a screen shot of CNN's home page at the time I'm writing this. I don't even know what to say about how ridiculous all this violence is.

I don't even have one story to talk about. I could talk about all the violence right now, but where would I start?

All across the country and globe. I know Mercury is in retrograde now, but this is way more than just lost keys.

Calm down everyone, it isn't even that hot anymore these last couple days. There is nothing so bad that you have to kill someone or destroy their livelihood. That goes for you too Congress.

Palin Strings Together A Coherent Argument, If Only Because So Many Others Have Said The Same Thing Before

<a href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/08/palin-on-downgrade-i-told-you-so/#more-170473">Read the CNN article</a>

I'm not saying she's coherent, mind you. I'm saying her argument was. Any conservative can string together a bunch of reasoning about lowering spending and stopping regulation and lowering taxes.

I'm not even sure if it was really coherent or if I'm just so used to hearing conservatives say this crap that it sounds normal.

But let's get real here. Lowering spending gets you nowhere without revenue increases. Every idiot, except Palin knows that.

Stopping regulation is why we got in this mess in the first place. Without regulation, every body gets broke in bubble after bubble, everyone gets asthma, and everyone eats GH-pumped food. But looking at the size of her kids, I guess that's not such bad thing to her.

Mark's no Brawny man, but she makes him look dainty. Big ass.

And lowering taxes is of course stupid. Maybe cause she's in Alaska she doesn't realize how essential roads and cops and telephone lines are to the rest of us. Without taxes, they will never get around to fixing that pot-ridden ass hole on the next block down from my parents' house.

And my biggest gripe is that after all of this, she said "I told you so"?!?!? Seriously?! She's such a brat. She could have said, "I saw this coming," but no, she went more petulant. As is her way.

And yet still, I'm hoping and wishing this woman would throw her hat in the ring.

Post-Racial My @#$

Yeah, Barack Obama represents the shift to a more post-racial world and all that. My father refers to me as "post-racial" occasionally. He means it as a half-compliment.

But, <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/06/mississippi.hate.crime/index.html?hpt=hp_c1">just read this and you'll understand why I titled this post the way I did.

Image: <a href="http://www.mississippilink.com/image_6f47a670-b1b7-11e0-8081-001cc4c03286.html">The Mississippi Link</a>

In these current times where Hollywood etc. are glossing over history and removing evidence that things weren't always so integrated, it's nice to see CNN not shy away from the hard details of what happened. Here's a direct quote from the article:

As the teens were partying and drinking miles away from Jackson that night, in largely white Rankin County, Dedmon told friends they should leave, saying "let's go fuck with some niggers," according to law enforcement officials.

It's hard to read and it makes me very sad. These mis-guided young men did a horrible thing. They suck and they will pay.

The one good thing about the Big Brother-ness of America these days is that this attack was caught on camera. The entire thing was caught on camera.

There's no doubt this was racially motivated. The hate crime designation makes this offense have a stronger punishment, even in Mississippi.

These racists will be punished. James Craig Anderson will be avenged via the justice system thanks to technology. I can't even begin to imagine what his family is going through. Nor can I imagine what the families of the criminals are going through.

I do hope this doesn't spark some sort of race war. This is Mississippi after all. If I could change one thing about the world, it would be to make everyone magically aware of everyone else's humanity.

It's amazing that people forget others are people too! Just because they look different or speak differently doesn't mean they're not still a person with family, hopes, dreams, personality.

If you forget those who are not your in your immediate circle are people too, you're an asshole. It's just that simple.

WTF Non-Compromisers! Are You Happy Now?!

<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/06/business/us-debt-downgraded-by-sp.html?_r=1&hp">S&P Downgrades America's Debt</a>

The financial implications of this aren't clear yet. But one thing is clear: this crap could have been avoided!

Were the political points worth the downgrade of our country's debt rating? Some jerks would probably answer yes. Sigh. I'm moving to France.

I would love to go live in Europe for at least a year after my fiance and I finish grad school. I wonder if I have a baby there with dual citizenship, if I can move there to take my kid "home" when America has slid a little further into decline and is no longer a great place to live...


Image via <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/06/business/us-debt-downgraded-by-sp.html?_r=1&hp">nytimes.com / credit: Scott Ellis/Bloomberg News

These people, this business, they did what they had to do. It's no one's fault, or wait, yes it is! All these folks should have done better. Every single one of you who refused to speak with maturity and clarity and logic. It's all your fault, those who stood by and only complained without ever offering a viable solution.

“The downgrade reflects our opinion that the fiscal consolidation plan that Congress and the administration recently agreed to falls short of what, in our view, would be necessary to stabilize the government’s medium-term debt dynamics,” it said.

That quote points out the big "DUH" that occurred to me when this deal was signed. This deal sucks. I know it, Paul Krugman knows it, and Obama knows it. If this is really the best we can do, I'm going to downgrade my belief in our government.

The Best Part Of The Debt Ceiling Bill

In the midst of a situation that makes me want to move to France, there was something to smile about.

They finally worked out a deal. It apparently had the gooey center that pundits dream of. The only people who voted "Hell no" to this bill were the super conservatives and the super liberals. That usually means the people who need the most help from the bill aren't getting it.

It must be nice to be a special interest, huh?

Well, back to the something to smile about. Gabrielle Giffords returned to the House for the vote.

The big question is, how did she vote?

She voted yes. Yay for bipartisanship.

They say she entered to thunderous applause. It really warms my heart to see someone fight back from the brink, and the first thing they do is continue their fight for a cause. Whether that be public service, healthcare, education, music, whatever. I just like to see someone fulfill their life's potential.

For her to continue to strive for her goals makes me swell with pride. It makes me think, surprisingly, of all the women who can't do what she's done. In some places in time and history, women aren't holding elected positions.

They aren't making a difference in the world. They don't have a platform on which to stand as an example to others. It's nice to see someone up there on that platform really truly being a great example to follow.

From Giffords we can learn perseverance, strength, commitment, and faith.

I wish we had more like her. If more people knew the importance of every day, they wouldn't waste so many of them.

Don't Even Get Me Started On The Debt Ceiling

Anyone who says it's equally both sides making things difficult is a centrist jerk. People who think that finding a compromise in the middle is the best way, always, are crazy. Especially when that middle keeps shifting as those to one side keep taking gigantic steps away from the other side.

I'm looking at you, Roland Martin. You're a crazy person to think that it's both the Democrats and Republicans equally holding up progress.

The Democrats are still whining about having to potentially cut some of the entitlement programs. But they're sure as hell not going to have to be coerced with promises of constitutional amendments and pizza to get their vote on a bill that doesn't completely suck.

The Republicans in general and the Tea Partiers in particular are appearing more and more to be full-blown lunatics. A lot of these freshman members of Congress don't fully understand how the process works. They think they can get an amendment to the constitution passed during election year. Election year. Passed. In all 50 states etc.

Seriously? I know these people constantly deride and undervalue education. But did none of them take civics at any point from 5th grade to grad school? Sigh.

Back to the point at hand. Now, suddenly, there's a silver lining. I don't know that there's more of one than before. I just know that the media tide has shifted and all the calls of the sky falling are shifting to faux rainbow sightings. I'm looking at you New York Times.

This craziness almost made my parents hesitate to sign a contract for my wedding venue. This is where this gets personal. I have half a mind to move to another state, just so I can vote against any one of these rich guys who have no problem pushing the rest of America, and the planet, to the brink of economic disaster.

Every Damn Time I Check My E-mail...

...There's something in the news on Yahoo! that jumps out at me. I open a few new tabs to read the info and then read the "news" "stories" after I've checked my e-mail. I can't wait until I get a newer Blackberry and can see all the pictures on an html e-mail. Then I can avoid getting sucked in. Stupid interesting entertainment news.

So here are the three stories that caught my eye. At least one isn't actually entertainment news.

1. Tiger Woods finally makes a big announcement
I wrote a post ten days ago because I was interested in the big announcement Tiger Woods was going to make. It was reported later that there was no big announcement and for people to stop listening to rumors.

You know what I think? I think there was an announcement. And I think the announcement was that he and his caddy are splitting. I just think they weren't ready for it to come out yet. And instead of being a douche and making an announcement about an announcement (I'm looking at you Donald Trump), he chose to simply wait until he was ready to spread the news.

I don't feel bad for his caddy, he's moving on to another successful golfer and he's a millionaire several times over thanks to Tiger. His life will probably be far less stressful starting tomorrow.


1. A Sinkhole? Can a natural disaster be called life imitating art?
Remind me never to go to Guatemala City. Jeez, it's normal for a giant perfectly cylindrical hole to open up in the ground? In your house? Under your bed? Um, no thanks. That sounds like a horror movie I'd never go see.

I am glad that her kids were okay though.


Kim Kardashian does something else I won't remember tomorrow.
The only reason I even paid-attention to this story is because it involved a look-alike. This has to be the third story this month Yahoo! put on their webpage about a damn Kim Kardashian look-alike. But hey, this one finally caught my eye.

It made me laugh because she's trying to sue Old Navy to get them to stop using a model she says looks to much like her.

So now I have questions: You're too good for Old Navy Kim? Why do you think they're using a model that looks like you? Why are you encouraging our already overly litigious society? Did you ever think that people know it's not you and don't care anyway?

As much crap as you promote, you'd think you'd want to be in an Old Navy commercial, at least their products aren't completely unhealthy. I'm just saying.

I really hope to have more rants about something that actually matters the next time I post.

Seriously, Murdoch? What The Hell?!

First off, shout out to Amazon & Kindle for being awesome! I pay for a monthly subscription to the New York Times newspaper and get it delivered on my Kindle.

When The New York Times started charging people to read their website, Kindle worked with them to get access for their subscribers. So now I can link to articles and you can read them too! It's so great. And now I'm done gushing and back to ranting.

If you haven't read about the scandal in Europe right now, pay more attention to the news. Read this article, and then read all the related articles it links to.

And shame on you for not being on top of this craziness.

So here's my beef: what is Murdoch's issue? After this thing keeps ballooning bigger and bigger, his response is still infuriating.

I feel like had he just distanced himself from the people and organizations involved, he might have emerged a bit better. A good old fashioned under-the-bus-throwing was very apropos is this situation.

But this keeps getting bigger and bigger. I think he thinks he's too big to fail. I think he thinks he's Al Pacino in Ocean's Thirteen.



Look at 1:25, 1:55, 2:45, but especially 2:52 to see what I mean. And with people like Tom Perkins having his back, Murdoch of course believes he'll be okay, no matter how long the earthquake shakes his giant twisted building.

I will be following this story to see what happens when he goes before the committee in Parliament that should be going on right about now.

Light Fare: Dakota Fanning's Possible New Haircut

I'm irritated with myself that I even care about this. But what can I say, I have a soft spot in my heart for child actors all grown up. Especially when they are finding their way into having careers as adults.

Okay, so maybe the movie Dakota is shooting right now is set in London and she's playing a 17 year old, but that counts, right?

Moving on. Here's the photo.


Read the Yahoo article about it

I swear, I come across more things on Yahoo.com that I read that I would never have known without that homepage. This is not a good thing. They suck me in with their oh-so-NOT-important entertainment news.

Since I have to look at this, so do you. What do you think of the hair? It's not the most flattering picture. So I don't know if I like it. She looks like she has a pixie face with longer hair, but then her face suddenly looks overly round with pixie hair.

An unintended side effect of this story is now I care about seeing this movie. Sigh.

I do love Dakota Fanning's acting though. I guess I should just accept it. I wonder how that wise-beyond-her-years thing will play with her portraying a 17 year old. I guess world-weary will work for a cancer patient.

I Can't WAIT To Hear What Tiger Woods Has To Say

Read the article on Golf.com about this.

I can't figure out why, but this has caught my attention. I read the short article a number of times since I first saw it on my way to work yesterday evening.

I have a ton of thoughts as to what he could be talking about.

1. Distancing himself from his drug smuggler friend.

2. Retiring.

3. Surgery announcement.

4. New wife.

5. Endorsement announcement.

6. Book coming out.

7. Still trying to repair his image.

8. Making some other random announcement I can't think of right now.

If you click the link above, you'll skip the CNN.com page and won't see the cute picture they have of him up. I can't help it, I find the slut puppy attractive, especially with the facial hair. I lurv me some facial hair.

But yes, if his announcement is even a little bit interesting, I will probably end up blogging about it, especially if it pisses me off

Can't Wait Til The Casy Anthony Book Comes Out

So I didn't care about the trial while it was going on. But now that the verdict is out, I'm fascinated. I'm reading transcripts from interviews with Anthony's attorney.

When people talk about their opinions of whether or not she should have been found guilty, I find myself not caring again.

The thing I'm most focused on now is the book that is certainly sure to come out within the next two years. No one gets this much media attention and doesn't write a book.

I'll keep my opinion of what I think happened because no one really knows except Casey and her father. But just like every person who has no life to go back to, she'll eventually tell her story.

It's true that I don't care about the hullabaloo concerning what should have or shouldn't have happened, but I will be one of the first people to buy her book when it comes out.

And if you're still reading this post, you probably will too. Let's be real, we all want to know what really happened. Just like OJ's book, she'll be explaining what really happened, hypothetical or not.

Do you think she really killed her daughter? Did the father have anything to do with it? How will Casey move forward? It will be all in the book I bet you.

The GOP Race Is Sorta Getting Interesting

These people are trying to make themselves more newsworthy. They're not making headlines for great campaign moments. It's because of ridiculousness left and right.

Herman Cain is hemorrhaging staffers.  Poor guy, he's acting like Newt "The Titanic" Gingrich. Apparently these staffers this year are serious about winning Iowa. Is that what gave Obama the White House? Is it so key to the election? I guess we'll see.

Bachmann demands to be taken seriously. I guess that means she hasn't ever actually listened to herself when she talks. But that's okay. Fox is playing into it, and so will their viewers. That only increases her chances of winning the GOP nomination and that's only a good thing for Obama. Let's not forget this lady is batshit crazy.

And speaking of Bachmann, her chief of staff left her to back Pawlenty for President. Apparently, he's the Brad Pitt to her Jennifer Aniston. And just like people barely remember those two were married, if Pawlenty has any success, people will forget Ron Carey used to support Michele Bachmann.

And lastly, Bristol Palin makes her mother seem more interesting by association. Her book is out. And even though she trashes Meghan McCain, of who I am a fan, I still found this stuff interesting. I will not spend money on or read her book, but I will be reading blurbs and articles of other people's opinions of it. If only her mother would decide to run for President, I could get stuff like this every day until next November.

I hope the GOP stays interesting. Like a car wreck of course. I don't want to hear anything about economic debates or foreign policy. The less substantive these candidates are, the better for Obama.

Why Don't I Care About The Casey Anthony Trial??

Seriously, I don't care at all. When I've run out of other things to read on CNN.com on my BlackBerry, I'll read through the updates to the case.

I like to be informed so that when it comes up in discussion while I'm out an about, I have something to offer. If you can't tell, I love having an opinion to care.

But I'm having trouble mustering up an opinion. All I'm able to do is fill in the gaps in other peoples' knowledge of the case. Perhaps it's just the company I keep, but concern for this case doesn't seem to match the media coverage.

Why do they want us to care so much? Mothers are on trial all over the country for killing their kids. Why this case?

If you care to read what CNN has to say about it, click here.

There are some interesting aspects. 1. The grandfather's possible involvement as well as his suicide attempt. 2. The grandfather's mistress. 3. Those odd search terms in the family's computer.

Other than that, it's um... boring as hell. Can somebody, anybody, explain to me why this case is garnering so much media attention?

Attack in Kabul Afghanistan, What's The Motivation?

Read the CNN article that explains the gist of this story if you haven't heard about it.

I just don't get it. I get that the Taliban felt like this was the perfect target for their attack. This hotel has lots of international guests staying there all the time. Also, it was where a news conference was scheduled to discuss the transition to Afghanistan's security forces taking over control of their own country. I get that.

But what I don't get is the timing and why. Why didn't they wait until the news conference was actually going on? I guess I just wish they had because I know security would have been more plentiful and their chances of success greatly reduced. Sigh,

But also, there are many other things going on around Afghanistan dealing with this transfer of security forces. Why now? Why this hotel?

I can't help but feel very sad for the loss of life. Both the innocents in the hotel and and the misguided Taliban members who think this barbaric response to things they don't like is the answer.

It's very sad. And it's very frustrating. And what exactly is the change they would like to see happen in the way things are run that would make them stop suicide bombing every damn thing?

Seriously, what do they want? I get the vague demands for the stopping of oppression. But I've yet to suss out what specifically could be changed that would actually be enough for them to lay down their arms.

Does anyone believe there's anything Obama or Karzai could do to make them not want to blow up themselves and dozens of others?

And if there is, after all the fighting is done, how will we peacefully co-exist? I just don't know, I just don't know.

Thank You Michele Bachmann!

Michele Bachmann has announced she is throwing her hat into the ring to run for the 2012 Republican nomination for President. Read the CNN article covering the announcement.

When I gleefully shared this news with my fiance this afternoon, he asked why I was so happy. He wondered if I was a fan of Bachmann and was finally coming out of the closet about it. I laughed because I realized he doesn't read this blog very much, so he doesn't know how I've had my fingers crossed she would decide officially to run.

I see her as a fringe candidate who's somehow gained legitimacy. She even says things every now and then that don't make me want to slit my wrists and hers. But the fact remains that she's just too loony to be elected President.

If she steals the nomination from Mitt "It's My Turn, I Deserve This" Romney, I'll be ever so happy. A few clips from the ridiculous-ness that's come out of her mouth ought to guarantee Obama his job for four more years.

Americans have a short memory, so they don't remember why this woman gained national notice in the first place. It was because she's f-ing crazy!

Don't believe me? Huffington Post has collected her 16 most unforgettable quotes/clips. You've simply got to go through all 16. Then you will understand my glee.

Because she's not just historically crazy. She's also currently very popular. The only thing that could make this better is if Sarah Palin also enters the race and splits the vote of GOP'ers who would vote for a woman. Actually, maybe that's not good. Because then Mitt might definitely win the nomination.

Things that make me go hmmm...

Eric Cantor Has No Spine

Really? You walked away from debate negotiations?!?

Really? Just because you knew whatever compromise you came up with would be unpopular in the GOP, politicians and electorate alike?!?

Really? That thought never occurred to you before the moment you walked away?!?

I call bullshit. He knew. Perhaps he was delusional enough to think they could stick up the Democrats, yet again, for something really Republican-y to appease having to raise the debt ceiling.

The Democrats don't want to touch Medicare and Medicaid. They haven't yet accepted reality that some changes (hopefully not privatization though) need to happen.

The Republicans don't want any tax raises. They haven't yet accepted that closing a loophole so people pay the rate actually in the tax code isn't the same as raising rates.

They came to an impasse and the solution is no one gets satisfied. But the debt ceiling has to be raised. All the politicians know it.

But Eric "I look almost as good as Sarah Palin in glasses" Cantor is too much of a punk to stand up and say it. He's scared of the scary Tea Party.

I call bullshit. He knew it would go this way. Or at least he should have.

So now he's let negotiations fall apart. Really!?!? That's how you feel? I hope you lose your job. I hope the Tea Party makes you lose your job for having anything to do with this in the first place since you couldn't see it through.

Jerk.

McCain, I Officially Respect You Again

I knew of John McCain first from his interviews on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He was the funny charismatic guy who I didn't even mind was Republican.

Then he ran for President and had a real shot of securing the Republican nomination in 2008. Everything went downhill from there. He did what he had to do to win the nomination, but he became someone unrecognizable on that path.

Now, he's back on track. At least when it comes to stances on things like international affairs and defense. He's stood up against his party to support what NATO is doing in Libya. There's an interesting opinion piece on cnn.com you can read here.

In it, it's described how he calls out Michelle Bachmann in particular to let people know the GOP is on the wrong side of this debate. He's right. We should not stand by, yet again, while countless lives are taken by dictators not willing to accept their time as rulers are over.

It's easy to take a stand when you're old as hell and will face no real political repercussions for your stance. But better late than never. Meghan McCain is no longer the only McCain I can bear to hear what they say.

Lupe Fiasco Is A Douche

I've been saying this since Obama was first running for the Democratic nomination in 2008.

People were always surprised that I wasn't a fan of Lupe as a person because I'm a fan of his music and his reputation as a "conscious rapper" (of sorts) gave him a better reputation. That better reputation makes people assume that he's informed on politics and has an opinion worth listening to.

I've been feeling like he's completely full of crap for 3 years now. I think finally now everyone gets it. If they don't yet, I'm not sure how else I can explain my position.

What happened to make me feel like others can understand just how much of a douche Lupe Fiasco really is? This uninformed idiot has really gone and done it now. The article is titled "Lupe Fiasco Calls Obama a 'Terrorist'".

WTF, Lupe? Back in 2008, he was spouting some mess about how Hilary would make a better president than Obama. I could totally understand that statement with good reasoning but his reasoning was simply because she was a woman and had proximity to the White House while Bill was there. Nothing about her experience as a leader, or long-track record of getting things done. Nope, it was all about anatomy and proximity. Dumbass.

But this diss towards Obama is just ridiculous. In these times, there are waaaay better candidates for the title he's bestowing upon Obama. Gaddafi ring a bell?

Once again, Lupe is amazing me with his ability to sound so incredibly uninformed that I'm convinced he doesn't actually read the news, he just listens to old recordings of Bill O'Reilly. Yeah, I went there.

If it were up to me, he would lose his conscious rapper label. No one who is conscious could possibly come to this conclusion. Even the most right-wing nutzoids aren't saying this. Not after all the uprisings across Africa, Asia, and Europe.

Sure he puts political stuff in his lyrics, but he's a jerk of the first kind. He's always complaining about the way things are, but he doesn't bother to try and change it. He doesn't even vote. And America's foreign policies are bad, yes, but they don't compare to what the leaders of these countries the terrorists come from are doing.

What a douche!

I'm Boooooored, Boring Grand Old Party

New Orleans (CNN) -- Conservative after conservative took the stage and railed against President Barack Obama at this week's Republican Leadership Conference, a three-day gathering of presidential candidates, party activists and political operatives in New Orleans.

That quote is from the first paragraph in a CNN.com article you can read here.

I'm reading it and thinking, um, okay, whatever!

I guess I just don't get the point of leading with that paragraph. I must look at it through the lens of recent history and remember that back in 2008, those who could decry Bush the loudest amongst the Democrats seemed to get the most attention.

But still... who cares? Does anyone think anyone other than Mitt Romney will win the nomination? We know how the Republicans are. The person who "deserves the nomination", who's "been patiently waiting their turn" will get it.

I would be surprised (and extremely happy and grateful) if Michelle Bachman or Sarah Palin won the GOP nomination, but it won't be them. It will be Romney. I wish things were more interesting now, but they're just not.

Herman Cain isn't doing a good job of replacing Michael Steele as the token black guy. Tim Pawlenty turned out to be such a punk. Don't even get me started on Next "The Titanic" Gingrich. That's my own personal nickname for him by the way.

Trust me, I hope the most foolish choice possible wins the GOP nomination and guarantees Obama the White House for another four years. But I'd at least like things to be interesting on the way there. Snore.

Jerky Comments On Websites

This rant comes up because of a situation a new friend is in. She was attacked and her attack made the news. She's been interviewed on the news and had to deal with the police (CPD seems quite incompetent through all of this) as they f-ed up her case etc.

In this new day and age, most news stories are reported online. This evening, we looked up her news reports for WGN, ABC, FOX, even Yahoo! news. Each one had an almost identical story. They had the basics of the attack, a description of the attacker, information about the alert police put out. Each one also had a comment section.

And oh. my. God. Those comments!

People, what the hell?! What would possess people to put up such ridiculous comments about a situation they know nothing of?

The types of comments that irritated me the most were:

racist ass folks who were using the fact that the assailants description was a black male as proof that all black people are some sort of primate (who knew gibbon was a new racial slur?!?) and dangerous to the well-being of normal white folk

militant ass folks who didn't know the race of the woman being attacked and assumed she was lying about the assailant being black in the same way white women used to lie about being raped by black men back during Jim Crow times

ignorant asses who went off on a political rant that somehow involved vitriol toward the Tea Party and Barack Obama with no regard to the actual post they were commenting on


I mean seriously?!? What the hell is wrong with you people? The story was very basic and you had to assume a whole hell of a lot more than the facts presented to come up with your comments.

Before you feel so snug and secure in your online anonymity, please think first about how much of a dumbass you appear to people who know the whole story. Jeez!

Light Fare: Hugh Hefner's Love Life

I'm sure Hugh doesn't think his love life is light fare, but whatever, I call it like I see it. And the nuptials of a celebrity are light fare because I only care about this much.

That being sad I feel bad for Hef that he thought marrying a 25 year old was a good idea. Is she even really 25? She looks at least 30. So unless she's been smoking cigarettes for the last 10 years, I call bullshit. She's not 25.

Moving on. They were scheduled to get married June 18, 2011. The wedding got called off just days before in an amicable split. WTF, what's amicable about a gold-digging woman tricking some old man into falling for her and leaving him the day her single drops?

I will be genuinely shocked if her single, Club Queen, amounts to more than a one-hit wonder. That is assuming it will even be a hit.

She rode him (literally) to celebrity status and as soon as she had a guaranteed release for her song, she bailed. Now she's focusing on her music career? Good for her I guess. She actually has ambitions other than to be a reality TV star.

But I just feel some kind of way about a woman using this method to achieve her dreams. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I also have to wonder if the next woman Hef decides to marry will also be in her 20s. Yuck.

Did you know his oldest kid is 58 and the youngest is 9? Double yuck.

Read about their breakup here.

Dallas Beats Miami, Could Have Seen That Coming

I wish I could say I was surprised. I figured which team won depended on who had more to prove.

Miami really only had to prove that the move they made putting Wade, Bosh, and James all on one team was a good idea.

Dallas had to make up for a year of terrible sports. Texas does everything big and their history with football and baseball was just downright disappointing in the last 12 months.

Getting to where they were as a team was monumental for Dallas. Proving they could go all the way was a huge deal.

But for Miami, they beat Boston, and they beat #1 seed Chicago. They proved they could put together this dream team and whoop ass.

When it came down to it, Lebron really didn't play the game he needed to and that's why Miami lost.

I think everyone can agree James lost the series and Nowitzki won it. That's all there is to it.

Newt Gingrich aka The Titanic

What kind of day does one have when the Top New Story for all the networks and websites is you being abandoned?

That's a pretty bad day. CNN sent me a text this morning about Newt Gingrich's top aides in 3 states as well as his campaign manager as well as 4 others resigning. All on one day.

They cited differences in the vision for the campaign. Basically, these seasoned people who run campaigns are jumping ship cause Newt isn't listening to them.

He doesn't strike me as a person who's particularly in tune with those outside his immediate circle. He's probably got a lot of people around him who respect him and what he does and are constantly telling him how successful he'd be in the top position in the country.

I don't know anything about how good he'd be in that position. You'll never know til that person is there. But what I do know is national polls don't agree with that sentiment. America on a whole doesn't think Newt is awesome.

And he's had a really crappy day. Can you tell from the tone of this post that I actually feel kind of bad for him?

I mostly feel bad because he's not taking this situation for what it is. It's a sign that his time has passed and the people he was counting on are jumping ship. He doesn't even have the string quartet playing a soundtrack for this sinking ship.

But at least his wife is by his side, standing in the delusion that this will end well for him.

Democrats should be so lucky that Newt Gingrich would get the GOP nomination. They should be so lucky.

Weiner, You're Such a Wiener

Dude, What The Hell?!?!?

Let's talk about how amazing your wife is. Y'all are still newlyweds! Why are you chasing 20-somethings around Twitter?

Let's talk about how you need some Internet usage training. If CSI has taught us nothing else, it's that if you put it out on the Internet, it can be traced back to you. Dumb ass.

Let's talk about how you've pissed off all the Democrats. Your own party leadership is calling for an ethics investigation.

Let's talk about your lack of personal responsibility. You outright lied about what happened because you "didn't want to get caught"?!?!? What are you, eight years old?

Let's talk about how dumb you are. Who tries to conduct an illicit relationship OVER THE INTERNET??? Seriously dude? You get what you deserve simply because you were so stupid.

Back to your amazing wife. I was so glad she was off living her life and pursuing her career so she wasn't able to stand by your side as you gave your half-assed apology via press conference.

And let's all focus on what's really important: you apology didn't mean a thing because you would not have apologized had you not gotten caught.

Idiot.

Being John Edwards Has Got To Suck

I mentioned in a previous post how Arnold Schwarzenegger was not doing well, but at least he was doing better than John Edwards. And I really really really mean that now.

If you haven't heard, John Edwards was recently indicted for violations of campaign law. They think he may have given those funds to his mistress. His terrible terrible mistress who told on him and got him caught up. I guess she wanted her baby to have a daddy more than she wanted that daddy to be President.

But now he has to go to court to settle those allegations. And the charges are criminal charges. It has got to suck to be him.

Losing a presidential bid, losing his wife, alienating his country, and now criminal charges. He isn't even close to the first politician to have a child out of wedlock. At least his mistress didn't require he go to the Appalachian trail (you know what I'm referring to, South Carolina).

But he did bad things and got caught and now he's paying the price. I'm sure he's scratching his head and wondering how it all happened. Not wishing he hadn't gone down that path, but wishing he had made wilier decisions so he wouldn't be in this exact predicament.

Of course, for a public figure in turmoil, there's only one solution: write a book!

Really Sarah Palin and Donald Trump?

Meeting for pizza in New York City? Really?

Sharing your thoughts about prospective candidates even though one of you is technically still standing on the edge of the ring hat in hand? Really?

Using "kind of" in every damn quote? Really? Is that supposed to be folksy or everyman?

Having your hairstyle be an integral part of who you are as a person? Really?

Seriously, these two bug me. Sarah Palin is on her bus tour across the country going to all these historic sites, but stopping for pizza at the Trump tower somehow fits the vision? I guess.

I suppose I'd do it if I were her. If she does declare candidacy, her only shot is to be backed by someone with deep pockets. And Trump is just batshit birther crazy enough to support that woman.

Those two love their publicity. And I'm unfortunately adding to it. Google is getting my stats. I read every article with either of their names in it. I guess I'm drawn to the still-surprisingly low depths they'll sink to.

Maybe they'll right a book. Then I'll have to read it and look at myself in the mirror and go, "Really?"

The First Hot Day In Chicago Is Always A Trip

Sunday, May 29th was a hot day in Chicago. The temperature reached 90 degrees. It was very humid, so it felt even warmer. And people lost their damn minds.

There were a lot of news reports of people getting hauled off the city beaches in ambulances and paddy wagons. Chicagoans lose their mind. It's been unseasonably cold for a long time and so I guess people had a lot of extra hair they had to let down.

But come on, let's have some sense. It's like when the first snow falls in the city and people forget they have to start driving slow.

Here are my tips:

How To Live In Chicago When It's Warm For Dummies

1. Bring/buy water. It will be hot and you will sweat. You need to replace the fluids you will lose and beer/vodka won't cut it.

2. Dress appropriately. Of course you're hot in your jeans sneakers and matching jacket. This is Chicago! We are not bred to wear jeans in 90 degree weather like it's Florida. In Chicago, we come up out our clothes when it gets hot. Put those chicken legs and untanned arms in a wife beater and shorts!

3. Maintain your calm. People are more likely to argue when it's warm. But arguing makes you hot which only exacerbates the problem. So stop and breath before you respond to person who was rude to you.

4. You can't win against the cops. They will arrest you for public drunken-ness. They can't be convinced to let you past the roadblock. And they don't know where you can get more booze/weed/open fire hydrants.

5. If you stay in your own neighborhood, keep the firecrackers to a minimum. Illinois has laws against everything that is lots of fun and a little bit dangerous. You can get hurt or in trouble with the law by drawing attention to yourself with firecrackers. Plus, it's not 4th of July yet. You can wait.

These 5 tips should help even the least smart of us get through the next really warm day in Chicago.

Why I Shouldn't Rent A Car and Drive To Cleveland And Raise A Ruckus

The Bulls lost with the same crap that's been plaguing them all the Playoffs. They went from up by ever so many points to losing. I was at work, but I had the game cast in a corner of the screen. I watched as the score difference changed. I saw the mark where Derrick Rose missed some important shots. I saw Lebron and Dwayne making great shots when it was needed.

I know Derrick Rose is the MVP, but I hate that the Bulls can't win a game if he doesn't have a great 4th quarter. It just doesn't seem fair. I know Miami had more to prove.

But all I want to do is get in my car, drive to Cleveland, and raise a ruckus. Stupid Lebron James. But of course, Cleveland has enough problems.

They watched the game and saw the vigor with which he played. They know he wasn't doing that for them. Their chance at a ring was handed to Miami on a very expensive platter.

Plus, Miami didn't really outplay the Bulls until the end. The stats were all the Bulls favor until 4 min left in the game. So I must have a measured and accurate response. I'm sad my team is out, but it's their own fault.

At least I can have hope that this time next year, they will have worked out these kinks and will be doing better.

Otherwise, I'm renting a car and driving to Cleveland.

Republicans Announcing Their Bid For President (While Trying To Ignor Their Schizophrenia)

This is not a particularly rant-y post, but is anyone else fascinated by all the people who are and are not throwing their hat into the ring for the 2012 Republican primary for President?

I'm fascinated. There are the obvious no answers, a la Donald Trump. But then there are the surprising no answers, like Mitch Daniels.

And there are the obvious yes answers, like Ron Paul. But there are the less obvious ones like Herman Cain. Does anyone know who he is? What's his platform? "I swear I'm not Michael Steel, We Don't All Look Alike"?

But the real question is do any of these guys have the ability to win a decisive victory and unite the conservative vote? People talk about how the Republicans took back the House of Representatives, so maybe they have fixed their identity crisis going into 2008's election.

I beg to differ. They have too many identities. This party has DID or Schizophrenia. I'm going to go with Schizophrenia. They have this idea of themselves as social conservatives and fiscal conservatives with a religious undertone that helps run the whole show.

But then every time it's time to take a stand on the issue, what you'd expect to happen (something Reagan once stood for, or hell even Newt Gingrich once stood for) is not what comes out in the press release. It's as if the whole party as a person is hearing voices and those voices are instructing them to make rash statements and bold decisions.

When asked why they made these decisions, they can't quite explain it. They were just following the voices in their head. The visions of grandeur that don't quite match up to reality run amok. The focus on issues that are minuscule as if they were huge. And the regret at not being able to control oneself. These are all the cardinal signs of schizophrenia.

The only thing that doesn't match is schizophrenia tends to be most prevalent in young men in their teens and 20s. We all know that doesn't apply to the Republican party or the voices in their heads.

Okay, so maybe this got a big rant-y.

Chicago Bulls, What Can I Say?

I've no one to fuss at. I'm just sad. My Bulls lost Sunday night and therefore they are 2-1. If they don't win on Tuesday, they'll be 3-1. I can't imagine they'll come back from that. Stupid Lebron James. I used to love him before these playoffs started. That's all I have to say

Really Arnold Schwarzenegger? Really?!

I know this news is days old, but really?

Part of me is surprised that this came to light at all since he's done with the governor's mansion. Part of me is sad because this will be just another crazy Kennedy story in the grand scheme of history. Part of me thinks it's interesting how people forget that politicians are people too. And part of me wants to immediately move on from Schwarzenegger and talk about something that's really pissing me off right now.

John Edwards. How did I make that leap you ask?

It's because he also had a love child. He let this love child derail his presidential possibilities. Don't get me wrong, I would have voted for Obama over him hands down, but he let his indiscretion derail his marriage and future.

Schwarzenegger his this child for a damn decade. The child's mother was still on payroll working for their family until recently, like two years. And Edwards couldn't keep a 2 year old from coming to light? Come on!

I think it's their personal business. How French of me, right? But that being said, I'm super upset at Edwards for not pulling Schwarzenegger until his political career was over. I know I know. How cynical.

Bulls vs. Miami

This is a hometown rant, so if you aren't a Bulls fan, you will not appreciate this.

Wanting to be 2-0
Was that so much to ask? Jeez guys, I just wanted to be 2-0. We're heading to certain loss in Miami on Sunday. All these guys had to do was win two games. And did they do it? No! They were tied and up and tied and down, and they couldn't keep it together at the end. You know who I blame? That brings me to the next section...

Boozer, You Suck!
It wasn't his fault exactly that they didn't win. But I'm still upset over the mess he's put me through the rest of the playoffs, so this is also his fault. He drives me so crazy that when I see Gibson's bald head doing something amazing in a crowd of defenders, my first reaction is wry appreciation cause his head looks like Boozer's head. Then I remind myself he's not Boozer, he's someone else altogether more wonderful and I can return to happy feelings.

Referees, What The Hell Did Thibodeau Ever Do To You?
Did he insult someone's mama? Was he a jerk in high school and an unbelievable amount of refs graduated with him? I don't know what it is, but a lot of calls seem to be unfair, and they happen when he is out in the trenches right on the side lines, getting the refs' attention. They can screw with him all they want, but they can't take away the fact that he coached up a team to #1 seed.

All that being said, I really am looking forward to this game. Foolish hometown pride won't let me fully concede that we'll probably lose. Yes, I'm one of those people that says "we" with no real affiliation with the team. Get over it.

Seriously California? Serioulsy?!

So those people who want there to be a law in California denying gays the right to marry are saying the ruling by Chief Judge Walker which says Prop 8 violated the civil rights of gay Californians to be vacated. Did you catch that?

Prop 8 was on the ballot in 2008 in California and passed, effectively putting into law be referendum that gays aren't allowed to vote.

Some gay couples challenged that ruling in court and Chief Judge Walker agreed with the gay couples.
But now the proponents of Prop 8 want his ruling vacated because he has recently revealed that he is gay and has been in a relationship with his partner for 10 years. They say he should have recused himself because by being gay and in a long-term relationship, he would stand to benefit from his ruling and therefore could not possibly be unbiased.

What. The. Fuck?! These people must hate that you can't tell someone is gay by looking at them. Cause then they could keep gays from holding positions like Chief Judge and then they'd never have to call such things like bias into question. Life must be so hard for these poor conservatives, ahem, homophobes.

I guess they'd rather things be like the were in the civil rights era. If you had dark skin or squinty eyes or spoke Spanish or had boobs, it was clear you weren't unbiased and might do something like give women and minorities the same rights as regular white men.

If they had their way, gay Californians would have to wait like the rest of the oppressed groups in America for some white heterosexual Christian males to realize that it was a better economic decision to let the minorities have their "rights". Hopefully those men wouldn't know anyone actually gay to guarantee a lack of bias.

I guess if I'm black and I sign a petition saying the people who want to defund Planned Parenthood are all assholes, I'm biased because I could at some point benefit from their services. Since when is benefitting from a decision a reason to have that decision vacated? This is the most ridiculous logic. Perhaps these Prop 8 people should turn their focus on Wall Street and stop all those self-serving policies.

Oh wait, if they did that, all these religious groups would lose their funding. And then how would they keep finding new and interesting groups to oppress?

Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series: Sudan

The protests in Sudan kicked off on December 18, 2010.
See the whole Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series.
This country completely fell beneath my radar for some reason. I'm going back in history because I missed them in chronological order. So I just saved them until the end. Sorry about that. I guess I should take a look around the internet and make sure I haven't missed anyone else.


Basic History
Sudan's official name is the Republic of Sudan. Geographically, Sudan is located in northeastern Africa. Important bordering countries include: Egypt and Libya. The capital is Khartoum. The population is estimated at 43.9 million people. The languages are Arabic and English.

Sudan's most recent leader is President Omar al-Bashir. The government is setup as a presidential democratic republic. The President of Sudan is head of state, head of government and commander-in-chief of the Sudan People's Armed Forces in a multi-party system. But Sudan is widely seen as an authoritarian state. Bashir's military coup in 1989 ended the last time there was a Prime Minister in Sudan. He also ensured sharia law was the law of the land. It wasn't until the civil war ended that opposition parties were recognized and power wasn't completely concentrated (at least on paper) in one person.

In terms of independence, Sudan has a long history, but the most recent is their separation from Egypt and the United Kingdom in 1956. Their current constitution has been in place in 2005. There have been many conflicts within Sudan, most notably in recent history in Darfur. That is a region in western Sudan that has been in a humanitarian crisis ever since the government of Sudan declared war on the non-Arab indigenous population. If you don't know about Darfur, please look it up.


The Protests
The main causes cited as the reasons for the protests include: dissatisfaction with the government, rising prices, corruption, inner turmoil within the country.

I actually have seen conflicting dates for the exact start of these protests. The thing every website does agree on is that these protests in Sudan are linked to the independence referendum within the country, as well as the revolutions in neighboring Egypt.

Sudan has been dealing with a civil war between the government and the rebels. They signed a peace agreement in 2005, but not all the rebel groups agreed to the treaty. And the country is divided. Most of the oil that brings in much revenue is in the south of the country. The south wants to secede from the north (sound familiar?).

The country held a vote from January 9th to the 15th to see if it would split. the votes were overwhelmingly in favor of a split and an independent state will form this year on July 9th.  Right now, they're trying to work out issues with splitting the revenue from oil since northern Sudan will be it's own country.

But back to the protests. There were calls for protest before the referendum in support of Egypt and Tunisia. But after the referendum, a big protest was organized for January 30th. The police clashed with the people on two university campuses and in the capital city of Khartoum. There were protests reported in other cities as well. Many people were arrested and a number of people were injured.

Other protests were scheduled, but a number of them were stifled by police before they could even begin. In these protests, the demands seem to reflect the growing distrust of government by young people all over the region, but also the strife within the country over what would happen when the country splits.

President al-Bashir has made one major concession. He says he will not run again for office in 2015. That says nothing about who may run from his political party or what changes may need to happen in the country politically and economically between now and then. Some people consider the major protests in Sudan over, but time will tell as they move closer to the secession of the south and as food prices continue to rise.

More information can be found at wikipedia.org, nytimes.com, and alarabiya.net.

Seriously, Laurent Gbagbo? Seriously?

I've been covering the protests in the middle east and north Africa, stretching even to Cameroon. But what's going on in Ivory Coast is an entirely different situation.


Check out the links Google has for news about this situation here.
This asshole Gbagbo is ruining things and almost set off a full-blown civil war in his country. The French had to basically blow a hole in the side of his house and come in and arrest him and his wife.


There was an election in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, Gbagbo lost. He decided that even though the other guy, Alassane Ouattara, won he was still president somehow. This guy, President Ouattara, is nationally recognized as the winner of this election, but Gbagbo didn't listen.


Apparently him and his asshole religious leaders decided God was the only one who could give or take away his presidency, democracy be damned. That's the dangerous part about switching religions while in power. You become a puppet of that religion rather than a follower of it. Yeah, I just went there.


But now Gbagbo is in custody, but that hasn't fixed the Ivory Coast problem. There are still divisions amongst the people because the Gbagbo supporters didn't just disappear into thin air because he was arrested. And President Ouattara's supporters are guilty of some very egregious offenses as well, though in the name of protecting his right to govern.


I wonder where Ouattara is going to live. They wanted Gbagbo out of his residence since it was the official Presidential residence, but now it has to undergo construction I'm sure to repair all the damage inflicted trying to oust him.


I don't have any memories of all that went down in Eastern Europe in the 1980s and 90s, but if it was anything like what's happening in Africa and the Middle East, I'm sure it was riveting. Every week, there's some new jerk putting his quest to maintain power above the lives of the people he's supposed to serve. Jackass.

A Drunk Toddler At Applebee's

I'm stuck in the airport for a delayed flight and I'm watching HLN on the TV. There was just a news report on about a 15 month old baby who got drunk in an Applebee's.

Apparently, he was drinking from a sippy cup. But instead of apple juice, he had a margarita!

His parents didn't see any probs until the baby started saying hi and bye to the walls. The father took a drink from the cup then called over the manager. He smelled the cup and was like, "wow, what a mixup. There's nothing we can do besides apologize".

It was a mixup in the kitchen. And they apologized. The couple wasn't satisfied with that and called the cops. They took the baby's BAL and it was .10. Legal limit for adults is .08!

That damn baby would have gotten alcohol poisoning if he had finished the cup.

I have three questions.
1) what dummy in that kitchen puts a fucking margarita in a baby's sippy cup?
2)What dummy between those parents didn't notice their baby was getting lit?
3)Why did the manager say he couldn't do anything?! At least make their meal free and offer to immediately fire the person who almost killed their baby.


Seriously, lots of dummies involved. A margarita in a sippy cup? If that baby grows up to have poorly functioning kidneys/liver or a proclivity for alcoholism, all those dummies will be at fault.

Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series: United Arab Emirates

The protests in the United Arab Emirates kicked off on March 9, 2011.
See the whole Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series.
UAE is a country I only know of because of the expensive and gorgeous man-made islands. But they are their own people with their own internal culture that has nothing to do with tourism (except with the economy of course). Let's dig in and see what we can learn about these people.

Basic History
The United Arab Emirates is often abbreviated to UAE or shortened to The Emirates . Geographically, it is located in southeast Asia and is part of the Midde East. Important bordering countries include: Saudi Arabia and Oman. it shares the Persian Gulf with several more countries that have been mentioned in this series:  Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Iran. The capital is Abu Dhabi. The population is estimated at 4.7 million people. The language is Arabic.
The Untied Arab Emirates' most recent leader is President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He is also the Emir of Abu Dhabi. He succeeded his father when the father died in 2004. He will be referred to as Sheikh Khalifa in most articles and definitely in this blog post. The Prime Minister is Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and he is also the Emirates Vice President. He was nominated by Sheikh Khalifa and approved by the UAE Federation National Council, only some of who are indirectly elected. All the rest are chosen by appointment in their various emirates. The UAE is a federation of seven different emirates. The UAE Prime Minister is the monarch of one of them, Dubai.

In terms of  independence, the United Arab Emirates drafted their constitution in 1971 after the end of a special treaty with the United Kingdom. There were nine at first with Bahrain and Qatar included, but those two states became independent when a government setup could not be agreed upon that satisfied all nine emirates.


The Protests
The main causes cited as the reasons for the protests include: lack of universal suffrage, dissatisfaction with the constitution,

The intellectuals in the Emirates were the start of the uprising against the government. They wanted universal suffrage and for comprehensive reforms of the constitution. They drafted a petition and had upwards of 160 signatures, many of them academics and former Federal National Council members.

There have been changes made where the 6500 who used to vote for half the 20 FNC positions are appointed. The other half are appointed. They are still hoping for more reforms, but they have yet to come.
More information can be found at wikipedia.org, english.aljazeera.net, and

Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series: Kuwait

The protests in Kuwait kicked off on March 8, 2011.
See the whole Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series.
Kuwait is a country I don't remember hearing about after the 1990s. I'm looking forward to hearing something about it that has nothing to do with Bill Clinton (and that's only a vague connection I kind of remember).


Basic History
Kuwait's official name is the State of Kuwait. Geographically, is it located in western Asia and is considered part of the Middle East. Important bordering countries include: Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The capital is Kuwait City. The population is estimated at 3.6 million people. The language is Arabic.

Kuwait's most recent leader is Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. He's been in power since 2006, when as a 70 year old crown prince, he succeeded the sheik who had just died. Kuwait's government is a constitutional hereditary emirate. They have the Emir, who is the head of state and the Prime Minister who is the head of government. The Prime Minister was Nasser Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah until April 1, 2011, and the position is now vacant until elections are held. Previously, the Prime Minister was appointed by the Emir.

In terms of independence, Kuwait they gained independence from the British in 1961.Through the discovery of their oil fields and an influx of foreign investments, they were able to form an independent country. They settled border issues and gained complete recognition as an independent state by all other countries.


The Protests
The main causes cited as the reasons for the protests include: dissatisfaction with Prime Minister Nasser Mohammed, restrictions on civil rights, .

There were calls for protests on March 8, 2011. Well before this even started, Emir Al-Sabah announced that he would be giving each Kuwait citizen (about 1.12 million of their population) 1000 dinar. It was said in celebration of their 50th anniversary independence year. There have been speculations that the stipend was to curb any protest sentiments floating around before they get moving. But clearly, the money didn't work since there were still calls for protests.

Even in February, there were protests, but they weren't by Kuwait citizens, they were by non-citizens living in Kuwait called diboons. They protested February 19th (I think) about the fact that they have such reduced rights in the country.

On March 8th, Kuwait was bracing itself for protests planned for the day. The primary point of the protests were for the ouster of the Prime Minister. The wanted the person who filled that role to not come from the royal family.

Amid calls for political and economic reform, parliament called in members of the cabinet who were members of the ruling family for questioning. Think of Congress holding a hearing to explore any one of the offenses done by a government official. The three members in question chose to resign their cabinet positions rather than face the questioning. This happened on March 31st.

Politics in Kuwait seem to have been influenced more by what is happening in nearby Bahrain than what is happening in their own country. The resignation appeared to be an attempt by three Cabinet ministers, members of the ruling Al Sabah family, to avoid being questioned over why Kuwait did not contribute troops to the Saudi-led Gulf force that was sent to Bahrain.

It's a bit confusing, but from what I can tell because of the resignation of Prime Minister Nasser's cabinet, he is no longer the Prime Minister. Yet, it is reported that he has been asked to help form a new government. The opposition to the ruling family has protested this request, and time will tell what will happen.

The country is trying to respond to the calls for a different organization of government officials in hopes that there will be better economic options available to the citizens. I'm not sure what will happen with the protests by those who are not Kuwaitis. I don't know if their calls for equality and citizenship will be answered. It's especially sad for those who have no country. Being the descendant of a nomad apparently makes you a man with no country. That sucks, plain and simple.


More information can be found at Wall Street Journal Video, Press TV, MSNBC.

Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series: Pakistan

The protests in Pakistan kicked off on March 2, 2011.
See the whole Middle East/African Revolution/Protest Series.
Pakistan is a country I hear about a lot, especially in terms of terrorism that affects America and relations with Israel. I don't know much about their internal conflicts though and I'm glad to finally learn.
Basic History
Pakistan's official name is the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Geographically, is it located in southeast Asia and is considered part of the Middle East. Important bordering countries include: Afghanistan and Iran. The capital is Islamabad. The population is estimated at 170.6 millions people. The official languages are Urdu and English. Other recognized languages are Balochi, Pashto, Punjabi, Saraiki, Sindhi .

Pakistan's most recent leader is President Asif Zardari. He is the widower of Benazir Bhutto. Click that link and read her wikipedia page. She is a person you should know. But back to President Zardari. He is elected by electoral college after the people vote in Pakistan. He is the head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The Prime Minister is Yousaf Raza Gillani. The Prime Minister is the leader of the political party who receives the most voted for office in the bicameral legislature. The Prime Minister is the head of government.

In terms of  independence, Pakistan as a modern state was established on August 14, 1947. This was when they declared their independence from the United Kingdom. Pakistan has fluctuated in terms of civilian, military, and religious rule over the years. As it currently stands, Pakistan is under Islamic law, but the people in charged are elected (indirectly) to office.


The Protests
The main causes cited as the reasons for the protests include: presidential corruption, oppression of women, lack of basic human rights. Some of these I was surprised to read about as being problems in a democracy, but I guess it makes more sense when looked at through the Islamic lens. Womens' rights are not a priority for Islam.

It's been pretty difficult to get a specific timeline of what's been going on in Pakistan. But I've read a number of articles that decry the use of violence against the protesters. They say the police have over-reacted to the protesters and incited more violence by doing so. You can read more about that here.

Here is the best I can figure from the posts and blogs and reports I've read. There have been various protests around Pakistan protesting corruption, economic turmoil and the like. Some of the clashes have been handled terribly by police. But for the most part, Pakistan isn't covering the protests on a large scale. They see news of it on TV, but it isn't the biggest concern. There seems to be more national concern about that cricket match they lost. But the protests are still ongoing and they are causing President Zardari to make concessions about solutions to the economic problems.

As of now, America stands with Pakistan's government against the protests, but of course condemns the violence against the protesters by police and particularly violent protesters themselves. If you know where I can find more specific information to piece together a timeline, let me know and I'll cover in more detail on this blog.

More information can be found at wikipedia.org, youtube.com, and dawn.com.