Conservative Corner (my brother, Dan)
Naked and Unashamed (my brother, Scott)
Crazy Aunt Purl
(my friend Laurie)
There's Pie In the Lunchroom
(my friend Chuck)
Too Fat For Ponies
(my friend Sam)
Nashville Junk
(a Tennessean insider)
Recent posts:
2006
Jan 23-27, 2006
Jan 16-20, 2006
Jan 3-11, 2006
2005
Dec 27-30, 2005
Dec 19-22, 2005
Dec 8-16, 2005
Dec 1-7, 2005
Feb, 2, 2006
Well, the groundhog saw his shadow. The weather's pretty mild here, though.
In the comments yesterday, someone made the suggestion that, as a liberal, I should be glad that Bush is finally talking about reducing our oil consumption and looking into alternative fuels. I replied that I would be happy, if I believed he was serious.
A day later we hear from Bush's energy secretary:
WASHINGTON - One day after President Bush vowed to reduce America's dependence on Middle East oil by cutting imports from there 75 percent by 2025, his energy secretary and national economic advisor said Wednesday that the president didn't mean it literally.
Ooookay. Well, did he mean it when he promised to "move beyond a petroleum-based economy and make our dependence on Middle Eastern oil a thing of the past?"
''This was purely an example,'' Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said.
He said the broad goal was to displace foreign oil imports, from anywhere, with domestic alternatives. He acknowledged that oil is a freely traded commodity bought and sold globally by private firms. Consequently, it would be very difficult to reduce imports from any single region, especially the most oil-rich region on Earth.
Asked why the president used the words ''the Middle East'' when he didn't really mean them, one administration official said Bush wanted to dramatize the issue in a way that ''every American sitting out there listening to the speech understands.'' The official spoke only on condition of anonymity because he feared that his remarks might get him in trouble.
What's really funny about all this is that Bush has such a reputation for being a straight talker. He shoots from the hip and gives it to you without any embellishment. In the process, he somehow forgets to say what he really means, though.
A very dumb and very bad man in Tampa, Fla. was arrested for downloading child porn. What makes his story interesting (to me anyway) was how he got caught. It wasn't discovered on his computer. He didn't get caught at work. He burned a disk and left it in a rental car he turned it. The next person to rent the car was an undersheriff in New Mexico.
In Tombstone, Ariz. the deputies are out of control. They have been accused of lying in open court, drinking on the job, trading arrest immunity for sexual favors, harrassing citizens and hoarding sex toys. Wow.
In London, they're putting smog-detecting backpacks and cell phones on pigeons and turning them loose in the city. The backpack will have a GPS, and the cell phones will be used to send text messages about air quality to a pigeon blog. Is this one of those animal/human hybrid programs I've been hearing so much about?
Some very evil people are using cute little puppies as drug mules. They slit open the puppies, put bags of liquid heroin in their stomachs and ship them to the states where the bags are retrieved. I'm appalled.
This video is one of the most entertaining and enjoyable I've seen in months. Keith Olbermann takes a chunk out of Bill O'Reilly's hide.
Congressman Murtha wrote a letter to Bush calling for redeployment of the troops out of Iraq. He's already been called a coward on the floor of Congress and had his citations questions by Republican surogates, but Murtha keeps on fighting the good fight.
Women in Boston are suing Wal-Mart because their pharmacies do not stock emergency contraception. State law requires pharmacies to stock all "commonly prescribed medicines." We'll see how this shakes out.
Having trouble keeping up with which Republicans are in legal trouble? Tired of searching for news stories on the various GOP bad guys? Take a look at this site called Grand Ole Docket. Heh.
Well, so much for those lobbying reforms the GOP leadership promised. Not two weeks after Speaker Hastert announced these sweeping new rules, the Republicans are fighting the new changes. Oh, but they did agree to ban lobbyists who are former congressmen and their spouses from the House gym. That should straighten everyone out.
And hey, at least they were able to agree on budget cuts on programs to help the poor, elderly and sick. Oh, and all that stuff Bush said about America needing to be competative? That went out the window when it came to funding student loans, didn't it? Oh well, at least the tax cuts are safe.
One note about the budget bill. It passed by a slim majority. All 200 Democrats, the one independent and 13 Republicans voted against it. Yet Fox News reported that the vote passed "along party lines."
Tom DeLay is running out of friends. It seems that when you're no longer the House majority leader you can't get people to contribute to your defense fund.
Let's hear it for Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin and Federal Trade Commissioner Jon Liebowitz. They told Congress to ban the sale of phone records by both private companies and the phone companies themselves. Ma Bell is going to be po'd, because they've been making a bundle selling your phone records.
If only Congress will act.
A new book by British human rights lawyer Philippe Sands QC claims that, during the runup to the Iraq war, Bush considered painting a U2 spy plane in UN colors and flying it over Iraq to get Hussein to fire on it and draw him into war. Nice.
Heh. The Republicans even steal their own elections. The vote is in for the new House majority leader, but when the ballots were counted, there were more ballots than Republicans present.
Feb. 1, 2006
This morning, Max and I were running a little late, so I dropped by the local Kroger to get him a donut and something for lunch. After picking out which pre-packaged box lunch he wanted, we quickly made our way to the donut case. There he saw it, surrouned by a golden glow as a chorus of angels played harps around it.
It was called the "kid's donut" and it was ridiculous.
"I want that!" he said. It was a large donut (dough, not cake) covered in pink frosting and . . . I hate to even mention this part . . . gummi bears. Who would create such a monstrosity and market it to kids?
I was too dumbfounded to object before he had it in his hand. So I selected a reasonable chocolate cake donut and off we went.
"You're going to be loaded on sugar when I drop you off at school," I said. "You're going to have lots of energy. It is up to you to turn that into something positive, rather than negative."
"Uh-huh," he said, giggling already.
He only ate about half of it before we got to his school. He wadded the rest into a napkin and handed it to me, getting a little of the bright pink frosting on my finger. I tasted it.
"Ewww," I said. "That frosting is bubblegum flavored."
"I KNOW!" he replied a little more loudly than I thought was necessary. I looked back at him. His lips were frosted pink, like he had somehow traveled back to a cosmetics counter in 1985 and had a free makeover.
"Be sure and stop by the bathroom and look at your face," I said as he got out of the car. "And don't tell your teacher about this."
Oy.
I watched the SOTU, or as much of it as I could take without hitting something or someone. I tend to yell at the screen during these things. I normally wouldn't watch, but my boss asked me to so I could glean some ideas about Bush's healthcare proposals for some rather conservative clients.
That's an interesting part of my job. I write opinion pieces for clients that hold opinions diametrically opposed to my own. I've written some columns and letters to the editor from an extremely conservative standpoint -- well reasoned and provacative missives that I completely disagreed with. It's not easy. But they pay me well, so I do it.
I so need to win the Powerball.
Anyhoo, back to the SOTU. Bush said a few things that I thought were bizarre. Not just the BS about his domestic spying program being approved by the courts, but other stuff. Like what was all that about banning human/animal hybrids? Where did that come from? I didn't realize it was a problem outside the Island of Dr. Moreau.
One thing that really offended me though was Bush's crap about how Democrats should stop second guessing him followed by calling for an end to partisan politics. Who does he think he's fooling?
Oh and his call for ending America's "addiction to oil." What a crock! If you carry that metaphor to it's logical conclusion, then Bush, Cheney and his buddies are the pushers, making sure we get our next fix. After working so hard to kill CAFE reform and stopping congress from enacting legislation that would have required automakers to increase their fuel efficiency, now Bush thinks we're addicted? What a pantload.
You know it was only five years ago when Ari Fliescher told the press corps that consuming mass quantities of power and energy was part of the American way of life that Bush held sacred.
According to an article in the Texas Observer, Jack Abramoff was charging his clients $25,000 apiece for meetings with Bush. Yet, Bush doesn't recall ever meeting him. Hmmmm.
Western Union has stopped sending telegrams. One wonders what took them so long. I don't believe I've ever received one and I'm certain I've never sent one.
A man who has been deaf for 15 years went on a skiing trip, felt his ears pop and can now hear perfectly again.
It's photos like this one that will keep Hillary from being president one day.
Finally, the feud between Weird Al and Coolio has come to an end. I know I'll sleep better now.
Jan. 31, 2006
I watched "24" last night. Man, that is an intense show. And you know what, I dislike the president on that show more than Bush. I didn't think that was possible, but last night's episode clinched it.
Max had a relatively good day at school yesterday. His teacher said he sat down and worked. I explained to him after school that he was headed in the right direction, but a single good day does not make up for the weeks of bad behavior and he had to keep at it. That's been my guiding theme through all of this.
All the pressure, all the bad feelings, all the harsh lectures would end in a second if he just fixed his attitude regarding his school work. His mother, his teacher and I have to work together to make not doing his work more unpleasant than doing it. I believe it's working.
I rarely look to Homer Simpson for sage advice about fatherhood, but he said something in the last episode that rang true.
"Fatherhood is a job. There's no pay, lots of hard work and in the end all you get is someone who says 'You screwed me up.'"
That's a horribly cynical view of fatherhood and in no way reflects my own philosophy. But I can see where Homer's coming from. No, my philosophy is more akin to a different cartoon. There was a short-lived series called "God, the Devil and Bob" about a modern-day Job who was the subject of wager between God and the Devil. Bob had a lousy relationship with his father and he asked God why.
God told him "you should have seen his father and his father before that." He said you should think of fatherhood as a long line of fathers going all the way back to Adam. Each father punches his son in the arm and they pass it along. The idea is to pass along a lighter punch. I doubt there is much in that metaphor that is based in the Bible, but I like it in terms of the lesson it puts forth.
I don't have much of a relationship with my father at all. But I've never told him he screwed me up and I've never blamed him for my mistakes. I just try to have a better relationship with my son. But I'm still dreading the day when he comes to me and tells me I screwed him up.
Gonzales has some explaining to do. Sen. Feingold says that the AG mislead the judiciary committee during his confirmation hearings to be named attorney general. Sen. Feingold asked Gonzales where he stood on warrantless wiretapping.
Gonzales said that it was impossible to answer such a hypothetical question but that it was "not the policy or the agenda of this president" to authorize actions that conflict with existing law. He added that he would hope to alert Congress if the president ever chose to authorize warrantless surveillance, according to a transcript of the hearing.
One would think that lying to the Senate Judiciary Committee would be career ending mistake. But it didn't seem to affect Sam Alito much.
Last September when "Commander-in-Chief" premiered, I added it to my TiVo. I like Geena Davis and Donald Sutherland and it looked like a fun show. Shortly thereafter, "My Name is Earl" premiered and "House" came back for season 2. All three aired at the same time and, since my TiVo can only record two at once, something had to go.
Bye-bye, Geena.
Then, after several weeks, they moved "Earl" to Thursday nights. So, my conflict could be resolved. Bottom line, I started watching "Commander-in-Chief" again last week.
Now I read where the network is shelving the show to make room for a new comedy. Of course, it doesn't help that it is on against "American Idol."
In a speech in Buffalo, NY on April 20, 2004, Bush stated that "a wiretap requires a court order." He said "When we're talking about chasing down terrorists, we're talking about getting a court order before we do so. It's important to our fellow citizens to understand when you think Patriot Act, constitutional guarantees are in place when it comes to doing what is necessary to protect our homeland, because we value the Constitution."
This doesn't square with what he's saying now, namely that as presidient, he can authorize wiretapping without a court order. What's more, if you look at the timing of the speech, he's saying this at the same time that he's doing the opposite.
He expects us to trust him, but he lies to us for our own good? Not gonna happen.
This looks like a pretty cool way to travel.
Jan. 30, 2006
It was not a good weekend for Maxwell, but that's fine because last week wasn't a very good week for him and why break the streak?
Monday, he gets a note from the teacher that he's not doing his work.
Tuesday, I get a phone call from the teacher saying he's not doing his work
Wednesday, he gets a smiley face.
Thursday, he gets sent to the principal's office for not doing his work
Friday, he gets sent to the principal's office for not doing his work.
So, naturally, his mother and I are concerned. But mostly we're angry. So this weekend, we were determined to convince Max that it was in his best interest to do better in school. We did this through a combination of working him like a rented mule and denying him any pleasures.
Dollie pulled out workbooks from his previous school years as well as workbooks we purchased to help him with phonetics. When he wasn't working on those, he was cleaning the playroom.
On Saturday, I took him with me to the comic book store for the HeroClix tourney and made him sit on the sofa and work on his workbooks. He wasn't allowed to get up. We called this "sitting still practice" and he needs a lot of it.
After one particularly harsh lecture right before bedtime, a contrite Maxwell came to me with four NeoPets he'd collected from various Happy Meals.
"Here, papa," he said. "Take these until I get a smiley face."
"I've got a better idea," I replied. "These belong to Rozzy now."
"What!!!!" he cried. "Until I get a smiley face?"
"No," I said. "Until I decide differently."
He began to cry that it wasn't fair.
"Max, we're through being fair," I said. "You don't respond to fair."
"Can she have my Furbies instead?" he asked pointing to the row of Furbies on his shelf.
"No," I replied. "She can have them as well."
The wailing that followed warmed my heart.
"Max, by the time we're done, you're going to wish you were at school doing your work," I said.
Dollie is going to the followup meeting with Max's teacher today. I'm such a PR wonk that I text messaged her talking points for it.
We went to the Nashville Flea Market over the weekend. It was a cool day, so there weren't too many outdoor vendors. We always have a good time though, watching the 
people. And their dogs, sheesh. I've never seen so many pampered pets. I must have seen tiny little dog heads popping out of a dozen purses.
One couple brought three dogs with them, a poodle and two poms. She had the poodle in a snuggly on her belly. He had the two poms in snuglies, one in front and one in back. The one on his back had on a tiny sun visor.
One of my favorite things about the flea market is the weird items people try to sell. Take this one, for example. I'm not sure what they were thinking. It's a little hard to tell from the photo, so let me break it down for you.
It's a clock, shaped like a guitar. There is a cast photo from "I Love Lucy" on the body. The neck of the guitar has a musical note, a football, a basketball, a baseball and a film scene marker.
This item could be yours for $12.
One item I did purchase was a walking stick. I've been wanting one for a week or so, ever since my buddy Badger showed up at my house with his. It's just something to keep the dogs at bay when walking in the neighborhood. I found a shepherd's crook for $8. It's essentially a very long cane. It has the added feature of helping me keep the kids in line while shopping the booths.
The State of the Union Address is coming up. I wonder if Bush will be truthful in it this time?
Awwww man, Wendy Wasserstein is dead.
Well at least it's not just me. Republicans are calling for Bush to release the information about the White House meetings with Abramoff. I don't think the photos of Bush and Abramoff are any big shakes. I mean the president gets his picture taken a lot and with any number of shady characters.
More important are the number and frequency of Abramoff's meetings with White House staff. Who met with him and for what reason? How often did it happen. Abramoff bragged that he could get a meeting with the president whenever he wanted. How accurate is that?
What's galling is that Bush pretends he doesn't know him. That's just not possible. Abramoff had so many ties to the Bush administration, raised so much money for Bush's campaign -- that it just doesn't seem likely that Bush remained ignorant of such an important political player. You'll no doubt recall that, as Enron broke, Bush had trouble remembering his friend Ken "Kenny Boy" Lay as well.
So, while Bush demands loyalty above all else from his subordinates, they should know that it isn't a two-way street.
The NYT lays out the ugly truth about Bush's domestic spying operation and the dissembling the president has engaged in to protect it.
My brother Dan has hit the bigtime. A blog entry of his is featured on the local ABC affiliate's blog roundup Nashvilleistalking.com. Of course the comments were not kind, but Dan has developed a thick blogging skin in a very short time. Good for him.
On "The Simpsons" last night, Bart got in trouble one time too many and was sent to behavior modification camp. Principal Skinner said they use a "time-tested method" for turning kids around "tough hate." Heh.
There are few subjects I care less about than Britney Spears and Kevin Federline. They are, without a doubt, the least interesting celebrity couple on the planet (and that's saying something). But I was glad to hear that Britney put her foot down and stopped her husband from getting their 4-month-old son's ears pierced.
I've never been a fan of children with piercings. I believe you should let a kid get old enough to ask for pierced ears before you go punching holes in them. Hey, it's your kid and all that, but they're not fashion accesories, they don't need to be decorated. Not only that, but giving a kid pierced ears before his immune system fully develops is a good way to give him a metal allergy.
