Upon reading the diary by sophistry makes me tired on the death of director and actor Sydney Pollack, I went over to Roger Ebert's new blog to see if he'd posted anything yet about the artist's passing.
As it turns out, he hasn't yet (as of this writing,) although I'm sure he soon will, in either his blog, the pages of the Sun-Times, or both.
But what I did discover was a beautiful homage to Ebert's friend and Chicago legend Studs Terkel, on Terkel's 96th birthday, and how Terkel's indomitable spirit has helped Ebert weather his many health issues these past few years. I think it speaks to all of us.
Washington--In a development that threatens to further divide an already fractured party, some members of the GOP are considering adding Republicans to the Endangered Species List.
While the GOP has traditionally opposed the Endangered Species Act, as well as making any additions to the list, three consecutive losses in historically Republican Congressional districts have some party members advocating using the act to save themselves from further population decreases.
I'm sure many of you here in this community were as astonished as I was to learn of some of the heretofore unknown accomplishments of Hillary Rodham Clinton.
From her instrumental work in bringing peace to Northern Ireland, to her work in assisting Kosovo refugees. it's clear that this lady has been hiding her lamp under a bushel these past years.
With that in mind, I took it upon myself to find what other unheralded accomplishments the Democratic party's current frontrunner has been hiding from us.
Join me after the break for my list of the Top Ten Unheralded Accomplishments Of Hillary Rodham Clinton.
In its lead editorial for tomorrow's February 10th edition, (link will be inserted when it becomes available,) the Chicago Tribune addresses CIA director Michael Hayden's admission of the use of waterboarding in interrogations.
In a lengthy editorial so filled with falsehoods, idiocy, and immorality that it is difficult to know where to begin a response, the paper of the "Party Of Lincoln" declares that we are no longer a nation of laws, but a nation of men, and that such a situation is perfectly acceptable, provided, we may assume, that the men involved have an (R) next to their name.
Follow me below the fold and down the rabbit hole:
In a truly "through the looking glass" moment, the editorial board of the Chicago Tribune has decided that adherence to the rule of law is a partisan issue!
What's more, it is an issue that the Democrats are on the wrong side of because, you see, they're in favor of it. Follow me below the fold and down the rabbit hole...
Can somebody cure me of my straightness? It’s been a constant source of unhappiness for me, you see. Maybe somebody knows of a minister who can cure me of teh straight. Perhaps some sort of retreat would be nice. You know, with cabins, and woods, and prayer sessions around the campfire with James Dobson, then some good old gospel singing led by Donnie McClurkin.
I’ll never forget how the heterosexuals first came to recruit me...
Let me be the first to post a diary on this topic. Tonight, on this crisp February, 2008 evening, the spineless, fucking Democrats capitulated to Mr. 18% in the White House.
Again.
As much as it breaks my heart, I won't be attending the upcoming YearlyKos confab, even though it's taking place practically in my backyard, and even though I've been hanging around this wonderful site since the days when a UID came in the low four digits.
I've become the primary caregiver for my ailing, elderly mother, and while I will be at McCormick Place in spirit, constraints on time and finances will be keeping me at home, checking in at my computer as much as circumstances permit.
But I know who will be there: National and international media by the boatload. And many Kossacks may find themselves facing an interesting dilemma...
Okay, it's late Saturday night here, and I'm watching water coming down here in Chicago in practically every state other than steam. While reading this marvelous rescued diary by SteveG I suddenly felt an inspiration to ask my fellow Kossacks, "Who makes you laugh?"
I happen to think that when it comes to technology, Steve Jobs is a visionary. I routinely stay up late into the night to watch a stream of Jobs' latest keynote address. I regularly volunteer to people who inquire as to my religion that "I'm a Mac user." I proclaim that "If my Mac could make coffee, I'd marry it." I'm only half-joking on any of this, although I'd love to see Rick Santorum's head explode as he contemplated man-on-Mac marriage.
However, this past Friday in a joint appearance with Michael Dell in Austin, Texas, Mr. Jobs said some things that are about ready to make my head explode.
For as long as I can remember, my family has been in the habit of picking up the Sunday paper on Saturday afternoon.
While the practice does not, sadly, provide us with the next day's winning lottery numbers, the extra half-day is welcome time to plow through the mattress thick collection of features, book reviews, travel sections, etc., most of which are prepared days, if not weeks, in advance.
I've just returned from picking up tomorrow's (Sunday, 12/31/06) edition of the Chicago Tribune (no link available yet.) And a familiar name jumped out at me.
UPDATE: Link now available here.
I don't know what to think of Lou Dobbs, frankly. I used to pretty much detest the man. I still find him jingoistic in his immigrant bashing.
Perhaps he is worse than an idiiot, or perhaps he's just an idiot, or perhaps he's a useful idiot. But while addressing the 37th International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers convention held in Cleveland, Ohio from Sept 11th to the 15th, CNN pundit Lou Dobbs called himself "a fool."
More below the fold.
My father died a little over two years ago. It is primarily my father to whom I owe my progressive disposition. He in turn had inherited his from his own father, an immigrant from Ireland who greatly admired Eugene Debs and Senator Robert La Follete.
Most folks who've experienced such a loss will confirm that when it comes to dealing with the loved one's personal effects, there are some items you're able to go through almost immediately. Maybe it's the clothes closet, with some things relegated to the trash bin, others donated to charity. But you find that other items can wait. Generally, the more hidden away they are, and the less needed the storage space is, the longer you postpone the task.
This weekend I engaged in some serious housecleaning, going through storage cabinets and drawers that hadn't been opened in ages. And I found something rather remarkable that I wanted to share with this community.
The Chicago Tribune is a newspaper that, as others have said about the Wall Street Journal, possesses Cracker Jack reporters and a crackpot editorial board. The Trib's editorial writers continually display a fealty to George W. Bush and his party that must have the ghost of Colonel McCormick dancing a jig in the hallways of his Cantigny estate.
But in today's (2/22/06) edition, the Trib outdoes itself with an editorial that manages to both repeat a thorougly debunked slander of Al Gore and displays a "whistling past the graveyard" mentality towards blogs and their supposed death.
Bloggy, we hardly knew ye
No sooner had Al Gore invented the Internet than early adopters discovered a liberating opportunity: Anybody with a modem and an ego could share his or her thoughts with the world.
Want to read more, plus learn who to share your thoughts with at the Trib? Follow me below the fold.
I'm going to run a poll on how the folks here believe the Democrats will handle the Alito nomination.
It seems to me that the Republicans played right into the Dems' hands with their (mis)handing of the Miers nomination. She went down without a single Dem having to cast a vote against her. It was the wingnut right who shot her down, and America knows this.
And, as expected, Bush has responded by kowtowing to the wingnut right with his nomination of Alito.
And America knows this.
Cross posted at My Left Wing.
A week or so ago, my posting of some parody lyrics to the Johnny Cash classic "Five Feet High And Risin'" brought some requests for a music video version.
I've completed the video, and it can be found here.
It may take a while to load, especially since Apple has recently updated their iDisk and Backup services and their servers are being slammed. You may just get the giant Quicktime "Q" logo for a couple of minutes, but it will start playing.
put me in mind of the classic Johnny Cash song "Five Feet High And Risin'." If you're unfamiliar with this great song, based on Cash's experience growing up in Arkansas, you can hear a nice sample here, and read the original lyrics here.
With my apologies to Johnny Cash (who, I suspect, understands and perhaps even approves,) my envisioning of Bush's version below the fold:
Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath have revealed to the American public many sad truths about George W. Bush, his administration, and his fellow Republicans.
The people on this site and other progressive sites have been doing a wonderful job in documenting the many crimes of this band of thugs; their callous disregard for global warming, the slashing of funding for flood control, etc.
And yet the apologists for Bush shoulder on. This has nothing to do with Kyoto, they cry. Bigger levees still wouldn't have helped, they claim.
But there's one thing not one single person in America can disagree with, and it is a point that we must hammer home:
