Enjoy!

(Oh, there's always time for email on this blog,
Yes there's always time for email on this blog,
Yes there's always time for email
From a guy or girl or she male...)

My pal Corey Klemow (aka The Beaver) sent me a link to the YouTube page of his friend, Amy. Seems Amy's a singer/songwriter/actress who's set herself the task of writing a song a week all through 2008.

Corey writes:

I suspect (perhaps wrongly, as usual) that you may enjoy her work.

Let me explain why Corey hedges his bet. You see, while Corey and I agree on the fun quotient of many things--Doctor Who, Mark Evanier's blog, The Iron Giant, Sandman--we diverge occasionally on the subject of music.

(This is best exemplified by the fact that the man does not know the difference between Marvin Gaye and the Bee Gees, something I plan never, ever to let him forget.)

In this case, however, his suspicions are correct. I did enjoy her work.

Here are two demonstrations of same, you can hear more at the link, above.

This is Song 7, titled "7 Deadly Sins," synchronistically enough. It's introduced by a musicalized Shakespeare's Sonnet. Pet Shop Boys did the same thing (tho not the same sonnet) with Liza Minnelli, but it sounded nothing like this. Also good, but nothing like this. That's all I'm saying.

Her song kind of reminds me of Crowded House, maybe a little Bowie.



And this is song 11, or "Equator Song:"



She mentions Colin Hay as an influence and I can really hear it.

See why it pays to support your friendly blogger?

Charlotte Casiraghi in Chanel pre-fall

I'd just like to mention here and now for and for the record that I still think Pink is incredibly pretty.

Thank you for your attention, go on about your day.

one Nation, under...yes...yes...oh God yes...

Puffins are a panic

"My god...Phil jumped."
"I never thought he'd actually do it, y'know?"





















"Snicker........snort."

Random Flickr-blogging 1515

Capturing the exact precise moment a man realized the chocolate his ex-girlfriend gave him was laced with a laxative.

Credit.

There are black birds over The grayish cliffs of Dover And the rats are preparing to leave the B.B.C.

I went for a walk this afternoon to take in the movie Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, and also to return a DVD of the last Harry Potter film.

Miss Pettigrew is a bit like a lesser Noel Coward song, to use a reference in-period to the film (which is set in 1939 London). By that I mean it's lighter than air, but sufficiently charming, stimulating, funny and moving to entertain for an hour-and-a-half's time.

It's based on a novel but seems very much like a play, with only a few lengthy scenes placed in the same settings. But if it were a play, it'd be one with a very strong cast.

Frances McDormand gets to add just enough weight to her character to make her substantial, but not so much as would overbalance the film.

I especially liked a bonding moment or two between her and Ciarán Hinds, as a lingerie designer named Joe. As the shadow of WWII gathers, they conclude they're the only ones, in the social set in which Miss Pettigrew finds herself and in which Joe lives, who remember the last war.

Amy Adams is gloriously bouncy and bubbly as a young actress who is perhaps not as opportunistic at heart as she thinks she is.

In the "New (at least to me) Faces" department, a pretty Scottish actress named Shirley Henderson (next to Adams, above) is hard to keep an eye off. Though it's an underwritten part that's more of a plot mechanism than a character.

And Christina Cole (below) is sexy in a small role as Adams' rival.



Two minor notes: If you think well of swing music of the period, which I do, you'll enjoy the soundtrack, which I did.



And for I think the first time in my life, I'm going to predict an award nomination for someone not an actor, writer or director: Costume Designer Michael O'Connor. The man knows how to dress women...(see above)

For anyone who likes reading my occasional Amazon.com reviews...

My latest is up.

Mothers of Invention

Mario Cuomo--the Barack Obama of 1984, only he chose not to run--makes the best case I've seen yet for an Obama/Clinton (or Clinton/Obama) ticket.

Secretly, Emma Bunton liked the ego boost of watching Ben and Johnny Bacardi fight over her.

Reese Witherspoon arrested for smuggling pineapples

But hey, at least I don't cuss.

My strength is as the strength of ten, Because my heart is pure

A.J. Michalka in BCBG

Cameron Diaz in Missoni

Fergie in Dolce & Gabbana resort

Paris Hilton in Diane von Furstenberg

Debra Messing in Donna Karan

Melissa Baldwin in Prada

Victoria Beckham in Antonio Beradi

The idea illustrated

The idea, by George Carlin:

"More than happy." I bet you say that sometimes, don't you? Once in a while you say to somebody, "Oh, I'd be more than happy to do that."

How can you be more than happy? To me, this sounds like a dangerous mental condition. “We had to put Dave in the mental hospital. He was… *shudder* more than happy.”

The illustration:


I don't know who she is, but that girl is more than happy...

And then, just to be on the safe side, Ben, having already shot himself, drove to the nearest bridge and flung himself off it

From the blog of Quinn Cummings, former kid star:

EDITOR: I’ve taken your blog to the head of publishing and he’s very excited. We’d love to publish your book.

QUINN: Great, where can I send you a writing sample?

EDITOR: I…don’t need a writing sample. We’re offering you a deal.

QUINN: Terrific! So, I’ll just be waiting for you to think it over, decide if I’m right for you.

EDITOR: (Very slowly) Hyperion…wants…to…publish…your…book...now.

You’ll have to forgive me. People get book deals all the time but the book deals come though years of hard work and the tender ministrations of a dogged literary agent (or because the author has had sex with a famous person, which is another kind of hard work and tender ministration). Book deals don’t just leave emails saying “Hey. You want to write a book?”

Only, apparently, sometimes they do.

If you listen very, very carefully, you might hear the tiny smack!-splash...

Thasright, brother

Take the quiz at dicepool.com

You are the rare, the overlooked, yet incredibly useful dodecahedron: the d12. You are a creative, romantic soul. You often act without thinking, but make up for your lack of plans with plenty of heart. You easily solve problems that stump others, but your answers tend to put you into even deeper trouble. You write long, detailed backgrounds for all your characters, and are most likely to dress up as one or get involved in cos-play. You can be silly at times and are easily distracted by your own day dreams, but are at the end of the day you're someone who can be depended on.

"What dice are you?"

Geekiest quiz ever.

How hard can it be?

Per Yahoo! Movie News:

Living in Brooklyn, Michael Martin had just totaled his car in an accident. While in physical therapy, he entered a screenwriting competition, hoping to win the prize money for his new set of wheels.

"I had never written a screenplay before," said Martin, who had studied film in college. "I thought, 'How hard can it be?' I was more like, 'If I win this, I can get a new car."'

...Gere and Cheadle are now polishing their badges to star in the ensemble police thriller, which Fuqua will direct for indie financier Millennium Films. Hawke is also coming on board to star, a move that will reteam him with Fuqua, who directed him to an Oscar nomination in "Training Day." Ellen Barkin is also booking a part.

Martin, a new dad, was recently promoted to construction flagger within the Transit Authority, working inside the subway system. He is writing "New Jack City 2," often during his breaks in the subway tunnels.

And then...Ben shot himself.

apathy and know-nothingness

There's a commentary here by a man named Joe Galloway, military columnist & co-author, with Lt. Gen. Hal Moore, of "We Were Soldiers Once ... and Young." It's summed up in these excerpts, but I recommend you read the whole thing.

This week, the Iraq war claimed its 4,000th American killed in action, but that sad and tragic milestone came as the war seems to have slipped off the evening news, off the front pages and from the minds of the American people.

I suppose this benign neglect of so important and damaging an event is combat fatigue on the part of the public. No doubt the White House is happy to see Iraq shoved to a back burner...Shame on them, and shame on us, for such callous indifference to the service, sacrifice and suffering of the families of the dead, wounded and injured troops who've given so much for so little in return.

That's the sort of apathy and know-nothingness that elected and then re-elected Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney. They're what happens when fewer than half the eligible voters in this great experiment in democracy and freedom even care enough to vote on Election Day.

The war that Americans don’t want to know about drags on because its authors don’t care what you think or even if you think. In fact, they'd prefer that you didn’t think or ask any pesky questions that they can’t answer without lying.

Now. Surely it will surprise few or none of you who have read this blog for a day or more that I agree with the casting of shame upon Bush, Cheney, etc. But I think there's something missing from this commentary which needs to be taken into account.

First of all, if the war has "slipped off the evening news, off the front pages," shame on the newspaper people. Shame on the managing editors of the commercial-driven evening news. Shame on both these groups for being only too happy to spread lies and dirt across our screens and papers.

Shame on them because they helped the Bush administration rush us in a panic to this needless war. Shame on them because even now, they're not doing the hard and serious job of looking at the deceptions of that administration or, god forbid, themselves.

Shame on those dullards, both known and unknown, because they aren't just trying to smooth over those deceptions...they're actually glib about it.

This is Wolf Blitzer, on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, in 2004.

(Emphasis mine, because I want to stress that for almost four years now, it's been known that this war is at least a mistake. And that's only if you want to be very, very gracious; myself I'd just say it was criminal.)

Here's Stewart & Blitzer:

STEWART: Let me ask you... you work in news... [laughter] and I don't... the Senate Intelligence Committee, they come out with this report that says "Oh, the Iraq War... yeah, that's kind of a funny story... it was a mistake... [laughter] We were wrong about all that..."

BLITZER: Mmm-hmm...

STEWART: Taking the country to war based on information that turns out to be completely wrong because it was told to you by a guy named "Curveball"... [laughter]... Shouldn't that be... I mean, just out of curiosity... The biggest scandal we've ever had in the country? Or no? Am I thinking...

BLITZER: Well, you know... you never made a mistake in your life?

STEWART: That's a good point.

BLITZER: The CIA's not perfect, and sometimes they... get it wrong.

STEWART: That's right...

BLITZER: They got it wrong.

STEWART: And if... but in that situation, shouldn't someone be... fired? [laughter, applause] ...or is it... I could be wrong...

BLITZER: Well, George Tenet did leave this weekend.

STEWART: After being told he was doing a "superb job!"

As I've said, Stewart is more gracious than I. I remember watching that exchange at the time; it has stayed with me, and I remember thinking: A mistake? A mistake? Yes, I'm sure Stewart has made mistakes (six words: You Wrote It, You Watch It). As have I. As has every one of you reading this.

Remarkably few of us, however, have been in a position to make "a mistake" that leads to the deaths of 4,000 of our fellow citizens. A "mistake" that, in a very real sense, may have hastened the destruction of this country itself.

(Notice too: "They" got it wrong. Not "we" got it wrong)

I could (barely) forgive such a mistake...if I thought it was an honest mistake, and that those who had done it were properly horrified by the consequences of their actions, and had been held accountable. But brazenly, they're not, and they haven't been. And what I cannot forget is the cowardly act of being flippant about that mistake.

I once said here that I think if George W. Bush had an ounce of true patriotism in his body, he would have submitted his own resignation after demanding Cheney's. Years ago. To that I'll now add that if Blitzer and people like him were true journalists they would put 45s in their mouths and pull the trigger.

And now I come back to the Joe Galloway piece which urges shame upon the American people for what he perceives as "Iraq fatigue, " "callous indifference to service and sacrifice" "apathy and know-nothingness" about our elected "leaders" and "The war that Americans don’t want to know about."

But it wasn't "Americans" who (for only one example) proposed to cut veterans' benefits in a time of war, it was the Bush administration.

It wasn't "apathy and know-nothingness" that elected Bush & Cheney the first time...they weren't elected the first time. As for the second time, "apathy and know-nothingness?" Or a damp squib of an opposing candidate who could be "swift-boated" instead of standing up?

(Yes, the "swift-boaters" themselves did it, with the help of the news corporations...but if Kerry had been an adult human being...) Of course Bush and Cheney were re-elected over him. A hamster would have been re-elected over him.

Finally, "the war that Americans don't want to know about?" Or the war that Americans weren't, aren’t, and probably won't be for years, told the truth about?

I have very little stomach for the "everybody is to blame" style of comment. There are some very specific people who are to blame. And if Americans as a whole ought to be ashamed of anything, it's that those people haven't been forced to resign in disgrace.

If we're "fatigued" about anything, it's not the war itself, but the utter refusal of virtually anyone in power in politics or journalism to listen to our reasons for not supporting the invasion of Iraq until it was too late. And now it's a few years past too late.

It's because even now, "journalists" are still listening to people whose mark of distinction in the months leading up to the Iraq war was how wrong they were. Instead of the people who were right.

(I still think that's a big part of why Obama is in the lead, and should be talked about more)

But when 82% of Americans say we should be out of Iraq before the end of the next president's first term (personally, I'd say before the end of his-or-her first 100 days)--don't tell me we don't care and we don't know.

We care. We know.

And we know who doesn't care.

People & things that are more inspirational than Paris Hilton

Hilton:

"I don't pay attention to lies because I am a good person. I work very hard and I've built this empire on my own. I think this is an inspiration for a lot of girls out there."

A good episode of Star Trek or Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Joss Whedon, champion of feminism.
The planets.
kd. lang's voice.
Shakespeare.
Shannon Elizabeth's rack.
David Letterman.
Barack Obama.
Julie Delpy.
Libraries.
Life.
John Lennon.
Marvin Gaye.

Tempting as it might be, this is not about her politics

But does anyone else see a certain...inconsistency, at best, to Christian darling Patricia Heaton dangling the symbol of God's infinite mercy between her pumped up, plastic breasts?

A look at the story board for next years' final (thank God!) season of "The L Word."

Unnecessary headline of the morning

"Dalai Lama pleads for peaceful dialogue on Tibet."

Really. You don't say. The Dalai Lama pled for something peaceful.

Is it just me, or is that not headline news?

"Dalia Lama says if China doesn't back off, he's gonna slap some bitches and put his boot up an ass or two," now that would be a headline.

I'm just saying is all.

Stephen Sondheim loves This Is Spinal Tap, and less surprising choices

The Facets website is collecting "favorite film" lists from celebrities as varied as Sondheim and Jean-Luc Godard.

For the record, just for today, right now, my own list of "all-time favorites" would be...

(in no particular order)

Fast Times at Ridgemont High. The writer of which, Cameron Crowe, has a list at the site including The Apartment, The Best Years of Our Lives, Harold and Maude & Pulp Fiction. This has always been one of the most interesting of the teen movies.

Finding Nemo. One of the best films of any kind, not just animated, ever made.

The Sign of Zorro. And why not?

The American President. Four words: Written by Aaron Sorkin.

Ratatouille. One of those movies that's sort-of surprised me how well it stands up to repeat viewings.

Broadcast News. What can I say that I haven't said?

The Dover Boys. "Unhand her, Dan Backslide!"

It's My Party. For many reasons, but I like to stress one of the best ensemble casts ever.

Much Ado About Nothing, followed closely by A Midwinters Tale. Branagh's filmmaking at its most lush, followed by it's most utterly stark (in filming style, which is low-budget, I mean, Midwinter is actually a greatly uplfting film).

Movie I plan to add to my list just as soon as I see it: Get Smart. Yes, I have high hopes for this one. The first trailer was funny, word from the set in "the trades" (inasmuch as you can trust that) sounds good, and...oh yes, Anne Hathaway appears in it. In her underwear.

Coleen McLoughlin's Style - Whats your thoughts?

Coleen Mcloughin has topped Look magazine's survey to find British women's number one style icon. Beating off stiff competition from some bona fide fashionistas, including Victoria Beckham, Kate Moss and Sienna Miller, the Liverpudlian lady came in at number one after 1,200 UK women were asked to name their best-dressed celebrity.

To be honest I really cant see it! Dont get me wrong I'm sure she is a lovely girl and all but I have seen a FEW no no's on her and I have also never been blown away by anything that she has worn. So how has she done it?

The complete top 10 shapes up as follows...

1. Coleen McLoughlin

2. Kate Moss

3. Sienna Miller

4. Victoria Beckham

5. Cheryl Cole

6. Kylie Minogue

7. Gwen Stefani

8. Keira Knighley

9. Lily Allen

10. Angelina Jolie

Jenna Elfman denies reports that she is merely a puppet of Scientology.

Sigh.

I miss Daphne Zuniga...

Everything I touch turns to song and is freed by the color of my eyes?

What Kind of Empath Are You? created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Artist You are an Artist Empath, one who creates their own reality and infuses the realities of others with your energy & emotions. You are poetic and sensitive. You turn your feelings into creations and share them with the world. Everything you touch turns to song and is freed by the color of your eyes. Your spirit dances with the winds and paints delight in the evening sky. (from the "Book of Storms" by Jad Alexander at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Empaths/) Artist 85% Traveler 70% Judge 70% Universal 65% Fallen Angel 50% Precog 45% Healer 40% Shaman 40%

Mamie Gummer in Calvin Klein resort

Camilla Belle in Carlos Miele

Estefania Luyk in Gucci

Martina Klein in Versace

Preposterous. She's not nearly that attractive.

The question is being asked: Is Clinton the Tonya Harding of the Democratic party?

...oh, they mean that as a bad thing...

The senator from Arizona's got a new writing staff...or does he?

The lives of a nation's finest patriots are sacrificed. Innocent people suffer and die. Commerce is disrupted; economies are damaged; strategic interests shielded by years of patient statecraft are endangered as the exigencies of war and diplomacy conflict. Not the valor with which it is fought nor the nobility of the cause it serves, can glorify war.

Whatever gains are secured, it is loss the veteran remembers most keenly.

Only a fool or a fraud sentimentalizes the merciless reality of war. However heady the appeal of a call to arms, however just the cause, we should still shed a tear for all that is lost when war claims its wages from us.

...I am, from hard experience and the judgment it informs, a realistic idealist. I know we must work very hard and very creatively to build new foundations for a stable and enduring peace. We cannot wish the world to be a better place....

This is from a good speech by John McCain. (That link is to a story on the speech, here is the entire work)

Not a great speech, but a good speech, and since I've praised Barack Obama's writing (and that of his presumed staff), I thought in the interests of equal time I would tell you: I think this is a good speech.

Better than I've seen him give in a while, if not ever; certainly better than anything I've seen Mrs. Clinton say lately.

For me to think it a great speech, I would have to feel that I can trust John McCain, and FWIW I agree with DNC Chairman Howard Dean:

McCain's ``new appreciation for diplomacy has no credibility after he mimicked President Bush's misleading case for a unilateral war of choice when it mattered most. Why should the American people now trust John McCain to offer anything more than four more years of President Bush's reckless economic policies and failed foreign policy?''

Further to the above, for me to think it a great speech, I would have to find some other way of seeing what McCain's been saying about keeping our troops in Iraq as anything other than "wishing the world were a better place."

Or to re-re-state a question I've been asking almost three years now, Where you gonna get 'em, John?

To be a great speech, it would have to name names and place blame. It is not sufficent to say ''Passive defense alone cannot protect us,'' in reference to the lessons learned from 9/11. You must name the president on whose watch this occured.

Speaking of which...ETA via the War Room at Salon:

Only a fool or a fraud sentimentalizes the merciless reality of war.

-- Sen. John McCain, March 26, 2008


...If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed.

It must be exciting for you ... in some ways romantic, in some ways, you know, confronting danger.


-- President George W. Bush, March 13, 2008

For me to think it a great speech, I would have to forget the differences between what candidate Bush said, and the way president Bush led (and I use the word loosely). From the story linked above:

Duke University professor Bruce Jentleson...who served as a policy advisor to then-presidential candidate Al Gore, said McCain's speech reminded him of Gov. George W. Bush in 2000, who pledged a ''humble'' foreign policy and dismissed ''nation-building.'' The question for McCain is, Jentleson said, ``is this really what the policy would be about?''

For me to think it a great speech, I would have not to know that

Six-and-a-half years earlier, McCain used...almost the exact same language to drum up popular support for military action in the greater war on terror.

Except then, McCain added:

Shed a tear, and then get on with the business of killing our enemies as quickly as we can, and as ruthlessly as we must...Let's get on with it."

Still and all, though, a well-written speech is a well-written speech.

No wonder he wanted to use it again.

As you can see, like Fred Kaplan's book Daydream Believers, this story is a bit of a downer

Being "downers," in this context, is not a bad thing; in fact maybe I should rather say "sobering" since that has a more positive connotation.

Here's a few 'graphs by Kaplan, Mark Evanier's most frequently recommended columnist and author, with a link to the full story.

As the toll of Americans killed in Iraq topped 4,000 this week, President Bush publicly vowed "to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain"—that the war's outcome "will merit the sacrifice" and that "our strategy going forward" will be to "achieve victory."

We all wish that this were so. But what does he mean by "victory"?

...look at what is happening. First, the surge is ending this July, not because it has been successful (as Bush has sometimes claimed) but because of simple math. The five extra combat brigades, which were deployed to Iraq with the surge, each have 15-month tours of duty; the 15 months will be up in July; the final brigade will go home; and the U.S. Army and Marines have no combat brigades ready to replace them. To the extent that the surge has improved life in Baghdad, the end of the surge (the timing of which is inexorable) may make life worse.

Sobering though they may be, both this story and Kaplan's book are good and well worth reading. Because:

“When his enemies complain that all his opinions are negative, I think they forget that nowadays there is a positive value in merely standing against a current of events which you believe is moving to suicide.”

-Kenneth Tynan

Oh my.

This is, I believe, a self portrait of a blogger called "vanityca5e" (ooh--how Bond girl).





This is a photo by Clayton Cubitt I found at her blog.

Finally, this is Miss Case (AKA Eve), as shot by her friend Beatrice Neumann, whose photos I've posted before.



PS: You probably don't need me to tell you this, but the links in this post may be considered by some, as they say, "not safe for work."

Jokes for which I'm going to hell, #97 in a series

“If I go [to auditions] with blonde hair it goes well, yet when I’m dark, I fail to land the parts” - Lindsay Lohan

Ahem. I got a part I'd like to land...

(Thank you. Thank you all very much. See you in hell.)

(quote and pic via backseat cuddler)

My god. It's ten years ago.

There's an item bouncing around the celebrity blogs and the news...

Geri Halliwells nude shots to be released in US

English singer Geri Halliwells nude shots, taken before she became famous as one of the Spice Girls, have come back to haunt her.

The shots, which showed the then-teenage wannabe, posing in nothing but fishnet stockings, will be making their debut in America in the upcoming issue of porn magazine Hustler.

Now. I happen to like Geri Halliwell. I think her nude body is nothing to be ashamed of, then or now. But...didn't this already happen?

...why yes, yes it did.

Christa--you've come back to me!

Christa Miller Lawrence [ the most beautiful woman on television (1995-2005)] may be in a position to regain her title.

Greek is still the girliest show I watch

Though I admit I've never seen much of Gossip Girl. Caught an episode of Lipstick Jungle, though, and it made me sick. What I'm saying is that although I'm not embarassed to like girly things, I don't like things just because they're girly.

But I like Greek, even though I'm out of its demographic by both sex and age. It's doing pretty well for itself nonetheless.

If everything said below isn't enough, you wanna check out the sexy babes?


Left, Jessica Rose, aka lonelygirl15.

Below, Dilshad Vadsaria.


Left, Amber Stevens.

In a way I'd compare it to Friday Night Lights--because like that series centered around a football team, it's from our "I can't believe how much I like a show about this" category.

If you haven't discovered it yet, here's a worthwhile article on the series, which returned last night (the first "chapter" just came out on DVD, too). Excerpts:

Maybe you don't like fraternities and sororities. Maybe you hate nepotism and therefore refuse to watch a show starring Kelsey Grammer's daughter.

Or maybe you're just inherently opposed to anything on ABC Family.

I'm here to tell you it's well worth watching.

Even if Greek doesn't sound like your cup of tea, it's worth experiencing because it may surprise you. In many ways, the show resembles the Judd Apatow TV world, a cross between Freaks and Geeks ([Jacob] Zachar, who plays Rusty, even looks like John Francis Daley) and Undeclared, particularly the episodes that focused on frat life. Greek is smarter than you'd expect from a show about sororities, it's sweeter than you'd expect from a show about fraternities, and it's a whole lot better than you'd expect from the network that has recently specialized in straight-to-cable sequels of movies like Bring It On or The Cutting Edge.

That's the second time I've gotten this result...

Which South Park kid are you most like? Stan You're pretty normal. Infact you`re usually the sane voice of reason when everyone else is going crazy.

Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

BTW, has anyone else noticed that the last two South Park episodes have been not so much funny as sad? I don't mean sad, pathetic, I mean they were sad. The Britney Spears episode was just brutal--though oddly kind...

Hey, Becca! Here's one you missed...

Beautiful.

From TPM Election Central:

This is pretty funny. Hillary spokesperson Phil Singer blasted out an email at 11:23 insisting that Obama release his tax returns for back years,

Exactly two minutes later, at 11:25, Obama spokesperson Tommy Vietor emailed out word that Obama had posted his tax returns for 2000-2006 on his campaign web site. Turns out the Obama camp has been planning this for some time.

You can view them here.

In pure political terms, this will obviously give more political potency to the Obama camp's efforts to make Hillary's failure to release her returns a key issue in the campaign. The Obama camp is now free to beat this drum between now and mid-April, when the Hillary camp has promised to release hers.

I believe that's called "It's your move."

Nice one, Chels

I still don't think her mother should be president, but I like the way she handled this.

Demi Moore in Chanel

So long, ladies...hope to see you again soon in something more worthy of your evident talents

You think Amy Sherman-Palladino wishes she had stayed on for the final season of Gilmore Girls? Today, FOX canceled The Return of Jezebel James after just three episodes. The Return of Jezebel James was the first post-Gilmore Girls production from creator Amy Sherman-Palladino. It starred Parker Posey as a book editor and Lauren Ambrose as Posey's difficult sister who is going to carry Parker Posey's baby – a baby who now will never, ever be born. There probably aren't a lot of people out there upset by this news. The Return of Jezebel James received abysmally low ratings and universally terrible reviews.

It saddens me a little that Palladino didn't get more time to try and improve the series.

Me, too...but not that much.

Better luck next time, Amy, Parker & Lauren.

I’ll try to see hope that is right in front of me.

So, you know how it is. You're clicking through Google image when suddenly you see a photograph of a lovely young woman.


"Who is that lovely young woman?" you ask yourself. So you investigate and you find out her name is Adrina Thorpe, and she is a musician. Well, now you're intrigued. You want to know more, hear more.

So you go to her web site, where you learn she is clearly trying to turn your head by posing in your favorite color.

And you listen to a few of her songs and whadaya know--they're quite beautiful. But they're only clips and you want to hear full songs so you head to YouTube (via video Google). Sure enough:

This song is called "Sorry."



(Her MySpace page, BTW, lists her influences as including sarah mclachlan, tori amos, jewel, coldplay, palo alto, loreena mckennitt, avril lavigne, alanis morissette, norah jones, sixpence none the richer, dido, and natalie merchant.)

And this is "Round The Bend,' with a short introduction by Thorpe explaining what sparked the song.



Since you like to support musicians by presenting them to your vast blogreading audience, you write up a post.

Finally, you also discover on that her second album is coming up. And you think to yourself, if only you knew someone who still occasionally writes music reviews for an online magazine.

Suddenly it dawns on you...

Mystery spooky-ass talk show host Theatre 3000

Chris Matthews, on the MSNBC program Morning Joe:

I think we make a big mistake trying to see things through the eyes of the Clintons, in a kind of a Clinton-centric world. I mean, there's a larger globe out there of people -- 300 million Americans and billions of people around the world. I think we should look upon these decisions by people like Bill Richardson as important to people like us, instead of how it affects the sensibilities of the Clintons.

"People like us."

Chris Matthews is paid more than $5 million a year.

"People like us."

Chris: Shut the fuck up.

I really think we got to stop talking about this as if this were a sitcom. We had eight years of this sitcom: What are the Clintons up to? How do they relate to each other? What do they feel today?

OMG, I totally get it now. I finally understand why Matthews's thoughts and perception are so spookily separated from what "people like us" might call reality.

He's been trapped in a time bubble for eight years, and he still thinks it's March, 2000. That's the only explaination. You doubt me? Read on.

We're stuck in Iraq; 4,000 people are dead now because of decisions made by politicians like the Clintons

What?

I'll just bet most of you, without trying very hard, can think of a couple of people whose decisions are more to blame. Here, I'll make it easy--should Matthews be Yahoo! searching his own name and come across this blog.

To find the answer, Chris, just unscramble this phrase:

'He grew bogus; hence Dicky'

(god love the Anagram Genius)

Item courtesy of Media Matters.

Never let it be said that we here at dragon dancing with the Buddha would shy away from running an occasional Republican viewpoint

In the interests of equal time...

I'm ashamed to have the same name

What's Ben Stein been up to?

Some things just call for a spit take.

I try to ignore homophobic coward Michael Savage, partly because he's a homophobic coward, but mostly because attention is clearly just what he wants.

However, I've been strolling through the book The Angry Right of late. The book's only average of its kind (compared to similar books by, say, Joe Conason) but it does contain a positive gem of information which I'd previously missed. Due to, as I said, the whole ignoring Savage thing.

Michael Savage is not the homophobic coward's real name. It is the pseudonym of the man born:
Michael Allan...Weiner.

That's right, friends. The man changed his name from "Weiner" to "Savage."

Now if that ain't a little x-ray picture of his psyche, I don't know what is.

Video games cannot be high art

However, this picture, apparently of a character from a video game, isn't half bad.

Kristin Kreuk has crazy eyes

...however, she still looks pretty darn sexy against a backdrop of my favorite color.


She's half-Chinese, which may be one reason why she kills me.

I don't suppose it bothers anyone else to see Democrats attacking each other using language I would expect to hear from Rush Limbaugh?

Calling "confidence" the economy's "true currency," Clinton made the case that "we need a president who can restore our confidence...

Why yes, yes we do. Excellent. You'll be getting out of the race, then?

Also, to quote the stand-up comedian Jimmy Tingle, "People don't lack confidence. People lack money. People in this country are not buying lottery tickets to boost their self-esteem. You give the average American one million dollars, I'll show you an individual brimming with self-confidence."

Here's where a Clinton supporter starts following in the liar Limbaugh's footsteps.

[Clinton] allies like union president Tom Buffenbarger attack Obama and his supporters as elitists. "I've got news for all the latte-drinking, Prius-driving, Birkenstock-wearing, trust fund babies crowding in to hear him speak," Buffenbarger said at a February rally in Ohio,

Speaking as someone who fits into none of those categories, but who loves to hear Barack Obama speak...you don't have to be a rocket scientist to see he's a great orator. Agree with him or not, compared with the likes of George W. Bush or John Kerry...there's no comparison.

You could say the same about Ronald Reagan, the president of the United States nicknamed, "the Great Communicator." You could also say it about another Clinton. But as Buffenbarger (great name, I'll give him that) continues:

"This guy won't last a round against the Republican attack machine. He's a poet, not a fighter."

So in this Clinton campaign, we see that a gift for language is something to attack. Does that strike anyone else as, if not self-defeating, at least an implicit acknowledgement of what a pretty pass we've come to? A poet is preferable to The Electric Mother.

Really. "A poet, not a fighter." ...who won 12 contests in a row against Hillary Clinton.

"A poet, not a fighter" who's

leading in the popular vote, pledged delegates, states won and picking up virtually ever superdelegate endorsement since Super Tuesday,

And by the way, about the most recent "superdelegate" endorsement and the response to it...

Hillary Rodham Clinton adviser James Carville is refusing to apologize for comparing New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson to Judas.

"That's typical of many of the people around Senator Clinton," Richardson said on Fox. "They think they have a sense of entitlement to the presidency."

Does anyone take Carville seriously any more?

Why?

What sadness

President Bush pledged Monday to ensure "an outcome that will merit the sacrifice" of those who have died in Iraq, offering both sympathy and resolve as the U.S. death toll in the five-year war hit 4,000.

Really. And what might that outcome be, and have you any hope of ensuring it?

"One day, people will look back at this moment in history and say, `Thank God there were courageous people willing to serve because they laid the foundation for peace for generations to come,' " Bush said at the State Department after a two-hour briefing on U.S. diplomatic strategy around the world. "I vow so long as I am president to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain."

Knee-jerk response: Too late.

Slightly more thought-out and considered response: Actually, I say "Thank God there are couragesous people willing to serve" now. But I also say, "God damn those wimpy, lip-service "patriots" who never served in a war* and are so careless with the lives of those who do."

*in fact most of whom went to some extremes to evade doing so.

Hellooo nurse!