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Saturday, October 11, 2003

I'm conflicted about Rush Limbaugh's admission to OxyContin addiction. On the one hand, I just want to dance around singing the Limbaugh is a Junkie song. He deserves it. Tom Tomorrow explains as well as I could. On the other, doing that would be hypocritical. If people complain that Rush has been unfair to addicts over the years, how could it be right to make fun of him for addiction? So, I'm going to leave it at that. If he comes back on the air and goes back to his old ways, though, all bets are off. Everyone deserves a second chance, but Limbaugh of all people should understand that a second chance doesn't mean a free pass.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 6:06 PM
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Note on Political Philosophy: It's usually not a good idea to send out an email making fun of the leaders of the other party and everyone in your party that doesn't oppose them vehemently enough, then miss the vote you were ridiculing them about because you really had to see a football game. Ah, those wacky Texans.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 5:52 PM
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Friday, October 10, 2003

Added Where's George? to the links under "Fun Stuff". Where's George lets you enter in the serial number of a dollar bill in your possession, along with your location. The site then keeps a record of that serial number, so that you can track your bill as it travels around the country (assuming the people who end up with it remember to register the bill.)
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 1:43 PM
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This is absolutely brilliant. I received the following email this morning from moveon.org, under the subject line "Help President Bush":

Today we're giving you a chance to clear your name. We're asking you and tens of thousands of other MoveOn members to sign an affidavit affirming that you didn't leak the identity of an undercover CIA agent to the press last July.

Here's why:

President Bush told the press on Tuesday that he doesn't "have any idea" whether the senior administration officials who blew a CIA operative's cover will ever be found. But if he just asked his staff to sign a legally binding affidavit confirming that they weren't involved, and referred anyone who wouldn't to the FBI, it's possible he could flush out the perpetrators in a day. To date, the President hasn't even discussed this matter with his staff.

We've already done the President's homework for him by writing the affidavit. Now let's show him how easy it is for innocent people to legally declare their innocence. You can sign the affidavit and send it to the President in under a minute by going to:
http://moveon.org/affidavit/

On Sunday, Reuters reported that Valerie Plame, the CIA agent whose cover was blown "was probably the single highest target of any possible terrorist organization or hostile intelligence service that might want to do damage," according to a former senior CIA official. It's now clear that the leakers in the White House are willing to put national security and the lives of CIA operatives in danger for their own ends. But President Bush seems unconcerned -- he hasn't even looked into who it might be.

Here are a few quotes from the Bush Administration that give some contrast to the task of finding the leakers.

On finding Osama Bin Laden in Central Asia:
"We're going to hunt them down one at a time. . . it doesn't matter where they hide, as we work with our friends we will find them and bring them to justice."
--President George W. Bush, 11/22/02

On finding Saddam Hussein in the Mideast:
"We are continuing the pursuit and it's a matter of time before [Saddam] is found and brought to justice."
--White House spokesman McClellan, 9/17/03

On finding the leaker in the close confines of the White House:
"I don't know if we're going to find out the senior administration official. I don't have any idea."
--President George W. Bush, 10/7/03

President Bush can do better than that. He could start by simply asking his staff to sign a legally binding affidavit. Show the President how easy it is. Sign the affidavit and send it on to the President today at:
http://moveon.org/affidavit/

This has got to be one of the best PR moves I've ever seen. Funny, and at the same time painfully on the mark. I have already taken the opportunity to clear my name and advance the investigation. I suggest you do the same.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 10:02 AM
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Thursday, October 09, 2003

The FBI has admitted bugging Philadelphia Mayor John Street's office. The hell?
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 1:00 AM
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Wednesday, October 08, 2003

My home state has been Gubernated. But really, what's the worst that could happen? Inexperienced, moderate, and secretive (Arnold) is a whole lot better than experienced, far right wing and explicit that he'll do whatever he'll take to push that (McClintock), probably better than idiotic, inane, and indebted (Bustamante), and I suppose can't really be any worse than who-knows-because-he-never-stopped-campaigning-long-enough-to-govern (Davis). So, we'll see. Worst case scenario, he proposes a whole lot of awful plans, most of which get blocked by the heavily Democratic rest of the government, and gets replaced in 3 years.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 5:31 PM
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Tuesday, October 07, 2003

If Kobe Bryant can't play this season, Phil Jackson is thinking about calling on - wait for it - Micheal Jordan. Will somebody please just leave the man alone?
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 3:59 PM
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Bob Graham has finally figured out out he's not going to be president in 2004. Gee, Bob, that took you long enough. The New Republic, who had been dutifully following his campaign after listing him as at least a marginal contender (as opposed to Sharpton, Braun, and Kucinich, who they're not even bothering with), had this to say about the issue a few days ago: "At this point, it couldn't be much clearer: Bob Graham has no shot at the Democratic nomination. None." Maybe the man was counting on his CD to pull him through.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 3:47 PM
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JetBlue to split again! Yeeha! Chalk one up for the amateur doing his research on Yahoo Finance and The Motley Fool!
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 3:40 PM
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Angry Moroccan teacher throws pupils out of window

Need I say more?
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 2:10 PM
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Monday, October 06, 2003

Why do prominent Americans insist on being so bloody stupid? Now, Rep. Cass Ballenger (R-NC) has publicly blamed the breakup of his 50-year marraige on the stress of living near the Washington headquarters of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an American Muslim advocacy group. He told The Charlotte Observer that he and his wife worried that the group was so close to the U.S. Capitol that "they could blow the place up." This is because he had decided that CAIR was actually a front group for Islamist terrorism (based on the fact that he saw people unloading boxes late at night and women "wearing hoods" going in and out of the office building), and simply could not understand the FBI and CIA's unwillingness to act on his tips to that effect. Well, I can certainly see the logic there.

Note: I can't actually see the logic there. Just clarifying.

On top of that, he blames Congress for banning lobbyist gifts to lawmakers in 1995, because 'meals and theater tickets from lobbyists once meant "a social life for [congressional] wives."' Right, because you couldn't afford to take your wife out every once and a while on your $150,000 per year salary, right? Ballenger's other claims to fame included quipping that Rep. Cynthia McKinney, a black Democrat from Georgia known for her abrasive style, had stirred in him "a little bit of a segregationist feeling."

Exactly what constituency does this guy appeal to?
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 10:38 PM
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Update on Operation Plasma Grape - I actually got some pretty good sparks and arcs, but nothing sustained, and no plasma ball as of yet. You've really got to dry it out first to get anything. Stay tuned.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 12:48 AM
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Sunday, October 05, 2003

At this juncture, I must report abject failure in my attempts to microwave half a grape.
posted by Mr. Ripzaw at 2:23 PM
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