Obamas Vs. McCains: Touch My Body

Looks like Obama wins this contest "hands down"
an excerpt from the huffington post: A Cautionary Tale For Conscious Couples, A Learning Opportunity For Us All by Kathlyn and Gay Hendricks, 10/24/08

Ever since we wrote our piece on the Obama marriage, people have been asking us to discuss the marriage of John and Cindy McCain. We found ourselves hesitating, because while their marriage has elements that could teach valuable lessons to us all, it is also a marriage between a recovering drug addict and a deeply traumatized veteran. Such a relationship is difficult to comment on. Even the most straightforward, non-judgmental comment could be perceived by some people as critical of two sub-groups considered off-limits from close observation. Doing some background research changed our mind, however, because Mrs. McCain has discussed her drug addiction in considerable detail out in public. In addition, John McCain claims to have no emotional residue from his time as a prisoner of war, and he also claims to have been unaware of his wife's drug addiction. We don't know whether these claims are an epic act of denial or just another whopper lie from a politician. Either way, they wave a red flag at all of us who hope to enjoy conscious loving in our relationships at home and authentic communication from our political leaders.
The Hug Moment: Body-Talk Of A Devitalized Relationship
After the last presidential debate we had many requests to give our interpretation of the awkward "hug moment" at the end. From a body language perspective, the moment revealed a great deal about the McCain marriage. If you have time, go back and look frame-by-frame at the end of the debate, when the presidential candidates hugged their spouses. Here is a sequence of still shots that capture to a degree some of the points we want to discuss.
Take note of the perfunctory hug, stiffness and lack of contact between the McCains, and compare those bits of body-talk with the way Michelle and Barack Obama greeted each other with smiles and a long hug. They were still hugging when John McCain tried awkwardly to connect with Mrs. Obama. The McCain hug looked as stiff as a puppet show, while the Obama hug looked as natural and graceful as a ballet.

'Cuz they be all up in my business
Like a Wendy interview
But this is private, Between you and I
Touch my body, Put me on the floor
Wrestle me around, Play with me some more
Touch my body, Throw me on the bed
I just wanna make you feel, Like you never did.
Touch my body, Let me wrap my thighs
All around your waist, Just a little taste
Touch my body, Know you like my curves
Come on and give me what I deserve
And touch my body. I'm a treat you like a teddy bear
You won't wanna go nowhere, In the life of luxury
Baby just turn to me
You won't want for nothing boy(Nooo),I will give you plenty joy
Touch my body
Put me on the floor (throw me on the floor) Wrestle me around
Play with me some more,
Touch my body, Throw me on the bed
I just wanna make you feel Like you never did.
Touch my body
Let me wrap my thighs (let me wrap my thighs, around your waist for just a little taste) All around your waist, Just a little taste
Touch my body
Know you like my curves (I know you like it)
Come on and give me what I deserve (Give me what I deserve babe)
And touch my body.
Oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah (Yeah, yeah)
Oh yeah oh yeah (every little way you like to touch my body baby)
Touch my body (yeah Yeah ooh ooh baby... Oh Oh, ooh ooh baby)
Touch My Body (uh Uh ooh ooh ooh)
Touch My Body (come on Give Me what I deserve... Oh)

Connecticut Is The Place For Me (Not)

sung by Martha Tilton

I know a spot, peaceful and fair
I'd be so happy if I were there
No matter where I chance to be
Connecticut is the place for me
Miss every lake, miss every hill
Even in dreams, I think of them still
And when you see them, you'll agree
Connecticut is the place to be
Village dreams and childhood scenes
Are things that I remember yet
Land of dreams and moonlit streams
How close to heaven can you get
Nights full of stars, hearts full of joy
Paradise for a girl and a boy
I guess it suits me to a T
Connecticut is the place for me to be
Connecticut is the place for me
Sounds like a great stage for a late date
With a mate waiting just for you
And every Yale guy is a male guy
Through and through
Sounds like a great stage
It's never hum drum dating some chum
With her thumbs strumming a guitar
You'll find the chicks slicker and they mix quicker by fa
Sounds like a great, great stage
It's quick and spanner then old Montana
And Indiana can't rate
The nights are longer, the men are stronger
So linger longer and wait
'Cause it's a great, great, great, great stage
Circle the globe, dozens of times
Seen all its wonders and I've known all its qualms
I've searched it with a fine tooth comb
And found that I have only one home sweet home
Connecticut always will be my home sweet home

Joel Klein's Report Card

from the Village Voice's 2008 Fall/Winter Education Supplement
Click on it to get the full text

Rat Bestid

Bloomberg is a disgrace along with every council member who voted with him

The Lady Is A Tramp: Sammy Davis Jr.

From a 1960 television show filmed at Heffner's mansion

I've wined and dined on Mulligan stew
And never wished for turkey
As I hitched and hiked and drifted, too,
From Maine to Albuquerque.
Alas, I missed the Beaux Arts Ball,
What is twice as sad,
I was never at a party
Where they honored Noel Ca' ad.
But her social circles spin too fast for me.
Hark, I thought I heard a pistol shot
My Hobohemia is the place I wanna be.

She gets too hungry for dinner at eight
She loves the theater, but refuses to arrive late
She will never bother with some cat that she hates
And that is why the lady is a tramp
Won't go to Coney, any beach is divine
She digs the ball games, but the bleacher's are fine
She reads Kilgallen, and I mean every line
That's why the lady is a tramp
She likes that free fresh jazz in her hair
Her life's without care
She's flat, that's that
For Lenny Bruce she whistles and stamps
That's why the lady is a tramp
She likes that free fresh wind in her hair
Life without care
She is broke, that is oke
Hates California, it's cold and is damp
That's why the lady is a tramp
Why the lady
That kooky, kooky lady
Why the lady is a tramp

That's Why Sarah Is A Tramp Verse 4

Frank And Ella's version
Original Verse 4

Girls may get pregnant, they cry and they moan
Don't tell Sarah Palin, they must suffer alone
It's all God's will, they're bodies they don't own
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
The view from her home, is perfect no doubt.
All the way to Russia, that's all she can spout
Ask her a question and nothing comes out
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She likes the fresh blank look on her face.
An issueless race,
No brains-so what?
That's why Sarah is a tramp.

Pennsylvania 6-5000

Easton Pennsylvania: True Colors

Despite Crayola the true color of this town is gray

You with the sad eyes
Don't be discouraged
Oh I realize
It's hard to take courage
In a world full of people
You can lose sight of it all
And the darkness, inside you
Can make you feel so small
But I see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow
Show me a smile then,
Don't be unhappy, can't remember
When I last saw you laughing
If this world makes you crazy
And you've taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I'll be there
And I'll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow
So sad eyes
Discouraged now
Realize
When this world makes you crazy
And you've taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I'll be there
And I'll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors, true colors
Cos there's a shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors, true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Beautiful, like a rainbow

That's Why Sarah Is A Tramp Verse 3

from Hollywood Palace Season 1, Ep 5: Host: Donald O'Connor
--Donald O'Connor dances with the Louis DaPron dancers
--Don Knotts (comedian) - appears, in a comedy sketch, as a nervous after-dinner speaker
--Buddy Greco (singer-pianist)
--The Wellingtons (singing group) - perform with Donald O'Connor
--Mary Costa (Metropolitan Opera soprano, formerly a TV pitchwoman)
--Jack Olvin and Yvonne Wilder (comedians, spoofing "Hamlet)
--The Pompoff Thedy musical clowns (Vaudeville comedians)
--Francis Brunn (juggler)
Note: Buddy Hackett was originally scheduled to appear on this episode.
Aired: 2/1/1964

a new verse

Don't know the reason her brain's not alive
She loves flying-animals below won't survive
She craves affection, but from none who will jive
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She reads the news as if she was blind
She'll start a war and Israel won't mind.
We'll be marching behind
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She winks and struts, a natural tease
Smile and say cheese
Our economy will seize
She loves McCain and thinks he's a champ.
That's why Sarah is a tramp.

That's Why Sarah Is A Tramp, With Original Lyrics

from Pal Joey, The original lyrics:

She gets too hungry for dinner at eight
She likes the theater but never come late
She never bother with people I hate
That's why the lady is a tramp
I don't like crap games with Barons and Earls
Won't go to Harlem in ermine and pearls
Won't dish the dirt with the rest of the girls
That's why the lady is a tramp
She loves the free fresh wind in her hair
Life without care
She's broke, it's oke
Hates California is cold and is damp
That's why the lady is a tramp
She like the free fresh wind in my hair
Life without care
She's broke, it's oke
She hates California it's cold and is damp
That's why the lady is a tramp
She goes to Coney-the beach is divine.
She goes to ball games-the bleachers are fine.
She follows Winchell and reads ev'ry line.
That's why the lady is a tramp.
She likes a prizefight that isn't a fake.
She loves the rowing on Central Park Lake.
She goes to opera and stays wide awake.
That's why the lady is a tramp.
She likes the green grass under her shoes.
What can she lose?
She's flat! That's that!
She's all alone when she lowers her lamp.
That's why the lady is a tramp.

My original version:

She gets too hungry, for meals without steak
She loves the country, but not every state
She'd never bother, with people she'd hate
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
Doesn't like crap games, with browns and with blacks
Wont go to Harlem to speak with Barack
Wont dish the dirt, unless it's with hacks
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She loves the free, fresh moose on her plate
Bridges no where
She's a dope, but its oke
She hates big cities, its where minorities make camp
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She goes to go to Wassella-the hunting's is divine.
She goes to hockey games-the brutality's sublime
She follows Dodson and reads ev'ry line.
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She likes a prizefight when whites dominate
She loves the rowing on true american lakes.
She goes to operas and vegetates
That's why Sarah is a tramp.
She likes the green grass but weed she will pass
She's not flat, her curves are real phat
Her mind's alone she's just a fundamentalist stamp
That's why Sarah is a tramp.

That's Why Sarah Is A Tramp

a link to a larger and clearer version of the above slide show a h/t to Buddy Greco
from politico
RNC shells out $150K for Palin fashion, By JEANNE CUMMINGS 10/22/08 The Republican National Committee has spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August. According to financial disclosure records, the accessorizing began in early September and included bills from Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis and New York for a combined $49,425.74. The records also document a couple of big-time shopping trips to Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis, including one $75,062.63 spree in early September. The RNC also spent $4,716.49 on hair and makeup through September after reporting no such costs in August. The cash expenditures immediately raised questions among campaign finance experts about their legality under the Federal Election Commission's long-standing advisory opinions on using campaign cash to purchase items for personal use. Politico asked the McCain campaign for comment, explicitly noting the $150,000 in expenses for department store shopping and makeup consultation that were incurred immediately after Palin’s announcement. Pre-September reports do not include similar costs. Spokeswoman Maria Comella declined to answer specific questions about the expenditures, including whether it was necessary to spend that much and whether it amounted to one early investment in Palin or if shopping for the vice presidential nominee was ongoing. “The campaign does not comment on strategic decisions regarding how financial resources available to the campaign are spent," she said. But hours after the story was posted on Politico's website and legal issues were raised, the campaign issued a new statement. "With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it’s remarkable that we’re spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses," said spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt. "It was always the intent that the clothing go to a charitable purpose after the campaign."
The business of primping and dressing on the campaign trail has become fraught with political risk in recent years as voters increasingly see an elite Washington out of touch with their values and lifestyles.
In 2000, Democrat Al Gore took heat for changing his clothing hues. And in 2006, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) was ribbed for two hair styling sessions that cost about $3,000. Then, there was Democrat John Edwards’ $400 hair cuts in 2007 and Republican McCain’s $520 black leather Ferragamo shoes this year. A review of similar records for the campaign of Democrat Barack Obama and the Democratic National Committee turned up no similar spending. But all the spending by other candidates pales in comparison to the GOP outlay for the Alaska governor whose expensive, designer outfits have been the topic of fashion pages and magazines.
What hasn’t been apparent is where the clothes came from – her closet back in Wasilla or from the campaign coffers in Washington. The answer can be found inside the RNC’s September monthly financial disclosure report under “itemized coordinated expenditures.” It’s a report that typically records expenses for direct mail, telephone calls and advertising. Those expenses do show up, but the report also has a new category of spending: “campaign accessories.” September payments were also made to Barney’s New York ($789.72) and Bloomingdale’s New York ($5,102.71). Macy’s in Minneapolis, another store fortunate enough to be situated in the Twin Cities that hosted last summer’s Republican National Convention, received three separate payments totaling $9,447.71. The entries also show a few purchases at Pacifier, a top notch baby store, and Steiniauf & Stroller Inc., suggesting $295 was spent to accommodate the littlest Palin to join the campaign trail. An additional $4,902.45 was spent in early September at Atelier, a high-class shopping destination for men.

The Truth About Acorn

from brave new films

Who knew that “community organizing” and “ACORN” would become two of the most mischaracterized and maligned terms during this election season? Well, as a few key members point out in this must-see clip from Brave New Films, ACORN had some idea this might be coming. Why? As Interim Chief Organizer Bertha Lewis puts it, “We are the organization that, 365 days a year, challenges the establishment to be fair and just.”

Real Americans In Real America

McCain's Black Family

from crooksandliars

Normally, the story of John McCain's black family -- the ones who are planning to vote for Barack Obama -- might elicit some modest interest in terms of what it says about the complexity of race relations in America. But what's been even more interesting has been how John McCain has responded to the story ever since it surfaced. Initially, back when he first was doing the "Maverick" schtick in the 2000 primaries, he actually denied that the aristocratic Southerners from whom he was descended were slaveholders. But it really became impossible for McCain to deny their existence after a 2000 report in Salon in the course of which reporters showed him photographs and birth records in person and he had to concede to their existence. One account, In the South Florida Times, describes how McCain has handled the connection publicly and privately: White and black members of the McCain family have met on the plantation several times over the last 15 years, but one invited guest has been conspicuously absent: Sen. John Sidney McCain.
“Why he hasn’t come is anybody’s guess,” said Charles McCain Jr., 60, a distant cousin of John McCain who is black. “I think the best I can come up with, is that he doesn’t have time, or he has just distanced himself, or it doesn’t mean that much to him.” Other relatives are not as generous. Lillie McCain, 56, another distant cousin of John McCain who is black, said the Republican presidential nominee is trying to hide his past, and refuses to accept the family’s history. “After hearing him in 2000 claim his family never owned slaves, I sent him an email,” she recalled. “I told him no matter how much he denies it, it will not make it untrue, and he should accept this and embrace it.” She said the senator never responded to her email. In her CNN interview with Kyra Phillips, Lillie McCain discusses this further
PHILLIPS: Do you think it could make a difference with regard to diversity issues, issues of race, if John McCain did participate?
L. MCCAIN: I think it probably could. It would give him an opportunity to know us.
I e-mailed him back in 2000 to remind him of his ties to Tiak, Mississippi. I heard him say on I believe it was "Meet the Press," that his ancestors owned no slaves. Well, I certainly have carried the name McCain from the beginning of my whole life, and I've known of the ties to John McCain and tried to get him to communicate with me about that, but he has been unwilling, at least, to date.
PHILLIPS: Well he found out in 2000, to be fair to the senator there, and he did come forward and gave this quote -- "How the Tiak descendants have served their community and, by extension, to their country, is a testament to the power of family, love, compassion, and the human spirit." And then he added in the statement, "an example for all citizens."
That sure is a warm, fuzzy little sentimental quote from the senator, and the fact that it really says nothing in reality says everything we need to know about John McCain. Since the advent of the Southern Strategy under Nixon, the Republican Party has embraced its role as the Party of White Privilege. John McCain has made a modest career out of making rumbling noises toward some of the uglier aspects of this legacy within the GOP, and he's hoping that those rumbles will be enough to persuade moderate voters to back him. However, the cold realities of the history of race relations in America -- dating back to those dark eons when black women held in slavery were routinely raped and impregnated by their white owners -- still hover like a dark cloud over whites' vision of Golden Age America, the very vision that John McCain and Sarah Palin like to sell to their flocks like so much Coca-Cola. So it's perhaps not a surprise that, given the chance to banish that cloud by doing the human thing, the right thing, and embracing the black side of the McCain family, the Straight Talking Senator From Arizona chose essentially to run from them and hide. Because acknowledging them not only was too painful, but might prove too harmful to his chances of success in a political party predicated on white privilege. Moreover, this also fits what we know about his reflexive predisposition on civil-rights matters. This is, after all, the guy who voted against a Martin Luther King holiday back in 1984. Yes, as the wingnuts already note, Obama's maternal ancestors likely owned slaves, too. But then, it seems doubtful that Obama would hesitate to embrace the ancestors of those slaveowners, either. Running away from black family ties is not exactly a problem for Barack Obama. But it is for John McCain.

The Bill Ayers' Issue: Dr. Alan Singer Takes On Fox 2

This time it's mad dog O'Reilly

The Bill Ayers' Issue: Dr. Alan Singer Takes On Fox

O'Leary, O'Reilly, O'Hare And O'Hara There's No One As Irish As Barack Obama

Knowing this perhaps Alfred E. Smith and our friends from St. James would have endorsed Barack Obama

by The Corrigan brothers Ger,Brian and Donny who are Hardy Drew and the Nancy boysconceived the idea following the international success of their hit song. “ We have been delighted with the reaction to our song, we have received invites to perform from various Obama organizations and have an invite to one states inauguration party if Barack is Successful. We want to mobilize the enormous Irish vote for Barack”. The band will also perform their new song for the first time, “When President Obama comes back home to Moneygall”. Irish band rocking the usa with Obama Song-Massive Youtube hit-Theres no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama
For interviews or MP3 COPIES EMAIL thecorrigans@eircom.net
For interviews Call Gerard Corrigan 00353 61330994 or 00353 872897073

There's No One As Irish As Barack O'Bama
Chorus:
O'Leary, O'Reilly, O'Hare and O'Hara
There's no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama
From the old Blarney Stone to the green Hills of Tara
There's no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama
You don't believe me, I hear you say
But Barack's as Irish as our own JFK
His granddaddy’s granddaddy came from Moneygall
A village in Offaly, well known to you all.
His mam’s daddy’s granddaddy was one Falmuth Kearney
He’s as Irish as any from the Lakes of Killarney
His mam’s from a long line of great Irish Mamma’s
There's no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama
Our Barack’s a hero, I’ve heard them say
Fenian to Kenyan, the American Way
He’s Cuchulainn, Liongo, not Vishnu or Brahma
But there’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama
A name is a name and there’s no doubt about it
Barack O’Bama’s name, you can shout it
Whether apostrophe or inverted comma
There’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama.
Now you Hillary supporters don't you vote for McCain
And the VP needs brains, so forget about Palin
With Cheney and Bush, they are all ignorama
There’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama
From Kerry and Cork to old Donegal
Let’s hear it for Barack, from old Moneygall
From the Lakes of Killarney to old Connemara
There’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama
Last Chorus:
Tooral - U, tooral - S, tooral - A, toor a lama
There's no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama
Thanks for Listening.

Mickmas Day: 1952 World Series Game 7

October 20th was Mickmas Day, Mickey Mantle's birthday. Mickey would have been 77.
from the baseball almanac

In an unusual, but indisputable move Casey Stengel started Eddie Lopat against Game 1 winner and Game 4 loser, Joe Black. The veteran, bothered by shoulder problems, had won only ten games for the Yanks in '52 (after going 21-9 in '51), but it mattered little as the Yankees dominated the seventh inning thanks to Mantle and Gene Woodling who both added homers for the 4-2 lead. Brooklyn almost took the lead after loading the bases when Furillo reached first on balls, Billy Cox singled and Pee Wee Reese walked as well. Anticipating a disaster, Bob Kuzava was summoned from the bullpen. The lefthander came up huge and got Snider to fly out to third bringing up Jackie Robinson. With the count at 3-2, Robinson snapped a textbook pop-up towards the mound. Kuzava seemed confused on the location and Joe Collins, the man in position to make the play, lost sight of the ball. All the while, Dodger runners were tearing up the baselines with two crossing the plate and another rounding third. Billy Martin, who was caught in the middle at second quickly sized up the situation and made a miracle catch inches from the ground.
The phenomenal grab not only ended the chances of a Dodger comeback, but also inevitably sealed the Series victory for the defending champions. Despite their best efforts, "the Bums from Brooklyn" lived up to their nickname, as Kuzava remained in control the rest of the way. The loss was especially devastating after winning Games 1, 3 and 5 and the 4-2 triumph enabled Stengel to match Joe McCarthy's mark of managing a club to four consecutive World Series titles.

Billy Martin talks about his catch

Forum On Mayoral Control of NYC Public School Education

I videotaped this forum. The full two and a half hours will be available later this week on the google video server. I just had to post this segment here. Ann Cook, speaking here, was terrific. Details on the forum

Spotlight on Mayoral Control: Lessons From Recent History, Friday, October 17 at 6:30 PM at Judson Church. Speakers included: Councilmember Robert Jackson, Steven Sanders, former Chair of the NY State Assembly Education Committee, Director of the Center for Law and Justice at Medgar Evers College, Esmerelda Simmons, Parent leader Dorothy Giglio. Sponsored by the Parent commission on School Governance and Mayoral Control. Moderated by Leonie Haimson

Red Sox Nation

Ever wonder why the sox have so few players of color?
from nomaas.org

Go Rays

They beat Red Sox Nation, they get my vote in the series. A Haiku at work in my first cartoon

Weekend Update: Sarah Palin Rap

lyrics from tkbb

one two three
my name is sarah palin you all know me
vice president nominee of the gop
gonna need your vote in the next election
can i get a ‘what what’ from the senior section
mccain got experience, mccain got style
but don’t let him freak you out when he tries to smile
cause that smile be creepy
but when i be vp
all the leaders in the world gonna finally meet me
how’s it go eskimo
(eskimos)
tell me what you know eskimo
(eskimos)
how you feel eskimo
(ice cold)
tell me tell me what you feel eskimo
(super cold)
i’m jeremiah wright cause tonight i’m the preacha
i got a bookish look and you’re all hot for teacha
todd lookin fine on his snow machine
so hot boy gonna need a go between
in wasilla we just chill baby chilla
but when i see oil lets drill baby drill
my country tis a thee
from my porch i can see
russia and such
all the mavericks in the house put your hands up
all the mavericks in the house put your hands up
all the plumbers in the house pull your pants up
all the plumbers in the house pull your pants up
when i say ‘obama’ you say ‘ayers’
obama. (ayers) obama (ayers)
i built me a bridge - it ain’t goin’ nowhere.
(ohhh)
mccain, palin, gonna put the nail in the coffin
of the media elite
(she likes red meat)
shoot a mother-humpin moose, eight days of the week
[three gunshots]
now ya dead, now ya dead,
cause i’m an animal, and i’m bigger than you
holdin a shotgun walk in the pub
everybody party, we’re goin on a hunt
la la la la la la la la
[six gunshots]
yo i’m palin, i’m out!

Sarah Palin On SNL

Tina Fey On Letterman

Michael Palin For President

Green-Wood Cemetery Open House Tour

From 10/12/08, The Program was entitled Angels and Accordions
It was excellent

The cemetery’s rolling hills and woods come to life in this site-specific tour/performance by choreographer Martha Bowers and Dance Theatre Etcetera. Original music by Guy Klucevsek and Bob Goldberg, visual installations designed by Alexander Heilner. Organized by historian Jeff Richman and The Green-Wood Historic Fund.

from Rachelle B who came in from Chicago to view it:

Green-Wood was founded in 1838 with David Bates Douglass serving as the landscape architect and as its first president. It is the final resting place of nearly 600,000 persons, including some of history's most memorable figures: Boss Tweed, Leonard Bernstein, Peter Cooper, William Poole (Bill the Butcher), the Brooks, F.A.O. Schwarz, Louis Tiffany, and Charles Pfizer are among the famous (and infamous) buried here. The cemetery is open to the public all the time, but the big draw for the openhousenewyork crowd was the catacombs. The catacombs have not been open to the public for 165 years.

- Tien’s post on Green-Wood Cemetery
- rion’s photos of Green-Wood Cemetery - small stones
- rion’s photos of Green-Wood Cemetery - grave grandeur
- rion’s photos of the catacombs
- David Gallagher’s photos of Green-Wood Cemetery

Early Autumn At The DeCordova Museum 2

the work of Nam June Paik

Requiem to the 20th Century, 1997, 1936 Chrysler Air Stream, video, audio, monitors, speakers, 6’ x 16 ½’ x 6’, Museum Purchase with funds provided by the Island Fund of the, New York Community Trust 2001.53
Nam June Paik is the father of video art and the most important figure in the art and technology movement of the late twentieth century. In Requiem to the 20th Century, Paik merges art, music, and technology. Using video as his medium, Paik connects the past to the present, and has said that his work explores, “new, imaginative, and humanistic ways of using our technology.” Requiem pays homage to technology and the rise of two predominant inventions of the last century, the automobile and the television. A silver-painted 1936 Chrysler Air Stream sedan is frozen in time, engine removed, insides gutted and immobile. A continuous video loop runs on multiple television monitors set in the windows, presenting themes central to Paik's work: consumerism, mobility, world-wide communication, advertising, and obsolete products. Mozart’s final and unfinished work, Requiem Mass in D minor, K.626, emanates quietly from speakers inside the car as an elegiac ode.
In his theoretical musings Paik foresaw many of today’s technological advances, coining the term “information superhighway.” As an original member of the Fluxus art group he joined fellow members John Cage, Joseph Beuys, and Yoko Ono in challenging the conventions of art and performance. Requiem symbolizes transformation from the industrial to the information age, exploring our relationship to the automobile, and advancements in the field of media and video. Enshrined as a silver reliquary, Paik's multimedia hybrid fuses an eighteenth-century musical mass, vestiges of twentieth-century technology, and a vintage symbol of American automotive engineering into a powerful and engaging installation.

Early Autumn At The DeCordova Museum

an amazing place

When an early autumn walks the land and chills the breeze
and touches with her hand the summer trees,
perhaps you'll understand what memories I own.
There's a dance pavilion in the rain all shuttered down,
a winding country lane all russet brown,
a frosty window pane shows me a town grown lonely.
That spring of ours that started so April-hearted,
seemed made for just a boy and girl.
I never dreamed, did you, any fall would come in view
so early, early.
Darling if you care, please, let me know,
I'll meet you anywhere, I miss you so.
Let's never have to share another early autumn.

Letterman Hammers McCain: The Way Obama Should 2

Barack Obama And The Sense Of Humor Vote

How can you not like this guy?

The Poetry Of Sarah Palin

from slate by Hart Seely

On Good and Evil
It is obvious to me
Who the good guys are in this one
And who the bad guys are.
The bad guys are the ones
Who say Israel is a stinking corpse,
And should be wiped off
The face of the earth.
That's not a good guy.

To Katie Couric, CBS News, Sept. 25, 2008

You Can't Blink
You can't blink.
You have to be wired
In a way of being
So committed to the mission,

The mission that we're on,
Reform of this country,
And victory in the war,
You can't blink.
So I didn't blink.

To Charles Gibson, ABC News, Sept. 11, 2008

Haiku
These corporations.
Today it was AIG,
Important call, there.

To Sean Hannity, Fox News, Sept. 18, 2008

Befoulers of the Verbiage
It was an unfair attack on the verbiage
That Senator McCain chose to use,
Because the fundamentals,
As he was having to explain afterwards,
He means our workforce.
He means the ingenuity of the American.
And of course that is strong,
And that is the foundation of our economy.
So that was an unfair attack there,
Again based on verbiage.

To Sean Hannity, Fox News, Sept. 18, 2008

Secret Conversation
I asked President Karzai:

"Is that what you are seeking, also?
"That strategy that has worked in Iraq?
"That John McCain had pushed for?
"More troops?
"A counterinsurgency strategy?"

And he said, "Yes."

To Katie Couric, CBS News, Sept. 25, 2008

Outside
I am a Washington outsider.
I mean,
Look at where you are.
I'm a Washington outsider.
I do not have those allegiances
To the power brokers,
To the lobbyists.
We need someone like that.

To C. Gibson, ABC News, Sept. 11, 2008

On the Bailout
Ultimately,
What the bailout does
Is help those who are concerned
About the health care reform
That is needed
To help shore up our economy,
Helping the—
It's got to be all about job creation, too.

Shoring up our economy
And putting it back on the right track.
So health care reform
And reducing taxes
And reining in spending
Has got to accompany tax reductions
And tax relief for Americans.
And trade.
We've got to see trade
As opportunity
Not as a competitive, scary thing.
But one in five jobs
Being created in the trade sector today,
We've got to look at that
As more opportunity.
All those things.

To Katie Couric, CBS News, Sept. 25, 2008

Challenge to a Cynic
You are a cynic.
Because show me where
I have ever said
That there's absolute proof
That nothing that man
Has ever conducted
Or engaged in,
Has had any effect,
Or no effect,
On climate change.

To Charles Gibson, ABC News, Sept. 11, 2008

On Reporters
It's funny that
A comment like that
Was kinda made to,
I don't know,
You know ...

Reporters.

To K. Couric, CBS News, Sept. 25, 2008

Small Mayors
You know,
Small mayors,
Mayors of small towns—
Quote, unquote—
They're on the front lines.

To S. Hannity, Fox News, Sept. 19, 2008

John Brown: The Final Scene From Santa Fe Trail

A 1940 view of John Brown. From wikipedia:

Santa Fe Trail is a 1940 western film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. Despite glaring historical inaccuracies, the film was one of the top-grossing films of the year, being the seventh Flynn-de Havilland collaboration. The film also has nothing to do with its namesake, the famed Santa Fe Trail except that the trail started in Missouri. Instead, it follows the life of Jeb Stuart, a cavalry commander (and future Confederate Army general). The film purports to follow the life of J.E.B. Stuart (Errol Flynn) before the outbreak of the American Civil War. Among its sub-plots are a romance with the fictional Kit Carson Holliday (Olivia de Havilland), friendship with George Armstrong Custer (Ronald Reagan), and battles against abolitionist John Brown (Raymond Massey). One glaring inaccuracy has Stuart leading a cavalry charge against John Brown "fort" in Harper Ferry. In fact Stuart was at Harper's Ferry-but John Brown was captured in an infantry assault by US Marines under command of US Army Colonel Robert Edward Lee. Another inaccuracy is the film has Stuart, Custer, and Philip Sheridan all having been part of the West Point graduating class of 1854. In fact, Sheridan was the class of 1853, Stuart 1854, and Custer not until 1861-a year early because of the onset of the Civil War.
The movie is drastically critical of John Brown, portraying him as a bloodthirsty villain and blaming him for causing the Civil War, thereby exonerating the Confederacy for seceding. African-Americans are portrayed as practically content to be slaves and too fearful to fight with Brown in his abolitionist crusade, whereas in reality about one fourth of Brown's group were African-American. After being freed, some African-Americans in the film chant "We's free! We's free!", but later freed slaves say "We don't want it" with regards to freedom.
Massey's John Brown eagerly endorses breaking apart the union of the United States, as though abolitionism was the threat to the union rather than slavery. The movie was made on the eve of World War 2, and its tone and political subtext express a desire to reconcile the nation's dispute over slavery which brought about the American Civil War and appeal to moviegoers in both the southern and northern United States. The American Civil War and abolition of slavery are presented as an unnecessary tragedy caused by an anarchic madman. The heroic protagonists such as Flynn's Jeb Stuart and Reagan's Custer seem unable to conceive how the issue of slavery could place them at odds in the near future, even though by 1859 hostility between the pro/anti-slavery states had reached a boiling point.

October 16th: The Anniversary Of John Brown's Raid

A slide show of various images of John Brown as well as historic sites across the nation devoted to him. Louis Armstrong accompaniment.
A link to a recent podcast done at the Gilder Lehrman Institute by historian David Reynolds

At eight o'clock on Sunday evening, October 16, 1859, abolitionist John Brown led a party of twenty-one men into the town of Harpers Ferry, Virginia, in an attempt to free slaves. The plan soon went awry. Brown was found guilty of treason, conspiracy, and murder, and was sentenced to die on the gallows. Click on the link below to read the address he gave at his sentencing:
David Reynolds, Distinguished Professor of English at the CUNY Graduate Center, reassesses the legacy of John Brown, who was hanged for his role in the October 1859 raid on the federal armory at Harper’s Ferry. Brown, a devout Calvinist possessing unshakable integrity and faith in the righteousness of his violent actions against slavery, was the only abolitionist in the years before the Civil War to live among blacks, advocate a rewritten constitution that would make slaves citizens, and ultimately to take up arms and give his life for the abolitionist cause.

Who Is The Real Batman/Obama?

from truthdig as truthdig mentions McCain's strategist's must have used this as inspiration

Barack Obama And The Jewish Vote

Following the footsteps of another Barak, from wikipedia

Barak (Hebrew: בָּרָק‎, "Lightning"), the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, was a military general in the Book of Judges in the Bible. He was the commander of the army of Deborah, the prophetess and heroine of the Hebrew Bible. Barak and Deborah are credited with defeating the Canaanite armies led by Sisera, who for twenty years had oppressed the Israelites.
The story of the defeat of Canaanites under the prophetic leadership of Deborah and the military leadership of Barak, is related in prose (chapter 4) and repeated in poetry (chapter 5, which is known as the Song of Deborah). Chapter 4 makes the chief enemy Jabin, king of Hazor (present Tell el-Qedah, about three miles southwest of Hula Basin), though a prominent part is played by his commander-in-chief, Sisera of Harosheth-ha-goiim (possibly Tell el-'Amr, approximately 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Megiddo).
Deborah said that Barak would win, but Sisera would be killed by a woman. In the battle at Mount Tabor, a cloudburst occurred, causing the river to flood, thus limiting the maneuverability of the Canaanite chariots. Sisera fled, seeking refuge in the tent of a Kenite woman, Jael. Jael gave Sisera a drink of milk and he fell asleep from weariness. Then she pounded a tent peg through his head. When Barak came along, she let him see Sisera dead in her tent. Later Israel slew King Jabin.

The Sarah Palin American Girl Doll

From the huffington post of 9/15/08

Imagine American Girl is coming out with a new doll: Sarah Palin.
The thought occurred to me the first time I saw Sarah Palin announced as the Republican vice presidential candidate. Sarah most closely resembles Molly, the American Girl doll growing up during World War II, who is "Lively and patriotic, the star of her story." As the American Girl website states, Molly dreams of performing as "Miss Victory." Sarah dreams of becoming President. Like the popular line of dolls and accessories that come with books based on preteen girl characters from various periods of American history, Sarah arrives ready for prime time adventure in a smart red suit and brings along special accessories, such as her Bible and her Moose Dressing Kit. She's soft and huggable, with hair for styling in a beehive. Sarah's doll body is human-sized; her head and smooth limbs are posable for thousands of media shots. As the Republican's first female vice presidential candidate, Sarah will be a collector's item treasured for years to come. Her accompanying "Meet Sarah" story, which debuted at the Republican National Convention, enhances her image with the homespun tale of this lively pioneer girl who goes from being crowned Miss Wasilla in 1984 and competing in the Miss Alaska pageant and others, where she played the flute and won "Miss Congeniality," to becoming governor of Alaska and eventually running for Vice President of the United States of America during Bush's age of "the angry left."

Howard Zinn's Voices Of America: Bartolome de Las Casas

from youtube user arnove

Film maker and writer John Sayles reads the words of missionary Bartolome de Las Casas who traveled to the America's at the same time at Christopher Columbus. Part of a reading from Voices of a People's History of the United States (Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove,) May 2, 2007 in New York, New York.

Columbus Sights Land

The scene of the 1992 film "1492:Conquest of Paradise" when Columbus first sights the New World. Music from the film's soundtrack: "Hispanola" by Vangelis.

Christopher Columbus: Sesame Street Version

Christopher Columbus: Tony Soprano's Version

Christopher Columbus: Melotoons Version

Autumn In New York: Jo Stafford

Bill Evans: Autumn Leaves

A break from Sarah

Waco As Sarah Palin: The Charlie Gibson Interview

from youtube user damnshow

Sarah Palin: Nudge Nudge, Wink Wink

from lisa nova live with a wink wink to Monty Python

Hockey Mom Sarah Palin Booed At Ranger Flyer Game

from youtube via huffington post
from crooks and liars

Hockey Mom Sarah Palin was welcomed in the city of brotherly love Saturday night with a resounding chorus of boos when she took center ice for the ceremonial puck drop. Gotta love the clearly visible Obama/Biden signs in the background.
Lynn Zinser of the Times reports that Palin was greeted with "resounding (almost defeaning) boos." FOX News, on the other hand, reports that the reaction "mixed." Who's right? Jed put together this clip comparing the real footage with the footage FOX uses to make its case. See for yourself.
Looks like Sarah brought her daughter's along as a human shields:
The GOP Vice-Presidential nominee said at an earlier fundraiser that she would stop some of the booing from the rowdy Philadelphia fans by putting her seven year old daughter, Piper in a Flyers jersey. She said, "How dare they boo Piper!"
Stay classy, Wasilla.
By the way, Rangers won 4-3 and improved their record to 4-0, making this their best start in 25 years. Only 78 wins away from a perfect season.

Letterman: Debate Recap

Fox: The Mad Hatter Network

History's Lowest Moments: How Sarah Came To Be John's VP Choice

Friends Of Sarah, AKA Full Of S...

from the Nation Institute

Samuel Jackson's Imagined Response To The Condescending Comments Of McCain

George Wallace: Sarah Palin's Grandpa

from Nathan Persoff, an incredible source of DRUG COMICS - GOVERNMENT COMICS - OTHER INTERESTS

george-for-the-job - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: george-for-the-job

Sarah Palin's Debate Flow Chart

My Name Is Barack Obama

Crazy They Should Call Them: Mad Hatters

The other day while driving down Grand Avenue in Brooklyn I spotted the former Knox Hat Company and stopped to take a picture. It reminded me of what I learned once about Mad Hatter's Disease from Dr. Richard Greenwald, now of Drew University. The above slide show took inspiration from that. Dr. Greenwald was referring to this study

Johan Varekamp, George I. Seney Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, has followed Carroll's Hatter's example by investigating mercury. When he and his students at Wesleyan University investigated cores of sediments taken at the mouth of the Housatonic River in western Connecticut, they found high levels of mercury. The source was a mystery. They traced the mercury back up the river by doing more sampling, finding ever higher concentrations, until they reached the source: the Still River in Danbury. They were initially surprised to find such high concentrations (less than the State identifies as dangerous, but close enough to cause concern should the mercury become concentrated.)
What could have happened nearby, they wondered, to cause the phenomenon?
The Hat City's Past: Danbury Connecticut has always been known as "The Hat City". It was the hat making capital of the world in the 19th century. At first the felt fur hats were made by hand in small shops. During the 1830's, more people were employed in hatmaking there than in any other trade. Some farmers were known to pull out a kettle, gather some furs, and hang up a hatter's shingle as a cottage industry in lean times.
European hatters brought their trade with them when they emigrated to North America. It became such a successful industry that in 1731, King George II banned exports of hats from the colonies to benefit hatters in England. The city of Danbury had all of the necessary prerequisites for a successful hatmaking industry: abundant water, transportation, animal furs, and plentiful labor.
Local legend says the first Danbury hatter might have been Zoe Benedict. Wool felt was already made in many parts of the world. But Benedict found a new twist. Being a busy New England Yankee, when he got a hole in his shoe, he plugged it with a scrap of rabbit fur. Later he discovered that pressure and perspiration had transformed it into felt. He experimented with fur felt, shaping large pieces into hats on his bedpost. His shop opened on Main Street in 1780, making beaver hats at the rate of three per day.
Business boomed, because everyone then wore hats! Hats were indicators of gender, occupation, social status, season, interests, and personality. Abraham Lincoln's famous stovepipe hats were made of beaver felt, and may have been made in Danbury. Hatmaking spread to a smaller degree to other towns in the state. Danbury was burned by British troops in 1777, during the American Revolutionary War, but another revolution, this time Industrial, brought hatmaking back with a vengeance. With mechanization, factories sprang up.
At the peak of the industry, five million hats a year were produced in 56 different factories in Danbury. A process called "carroting" was used in the production, but it had nothing to do with vegetables. Carroting involved washing animal furs with an orange-colored solution containing a mercury compound, mercury nitrate.
The colorful solution facilitated the separation of the fur from the pelt and made it mat together smoothly. The fur was then shaped into large cones, then shrunk in boiling water and dried many times before final shaping, smoothing, and finishing. Workers would often be exposed to mercury vapors in the steamy air. Many hatters with long-term exposure, particularly those involved in carroting, got mercury poisoning.
Mercury poisoning attacks the nervous system, causing drooling, hair loss, uncontrollable muscle twitching, a lurching gait, and difficulties in talking and thinking clearly. Stumbling about in a confused state with slurred speech and trembling hands, affected hatters were sometimes mistaken for drunks. The ailment became known as ³The Danbury Shakes². In very severe cases, they experienced hallucinations.
"Mad as a hatter" became a common term for someone experiencing severe mental problems. Some hatters eventually died of mercury poisoning. In 1934, following intense objections from hatters¹ labor unions, a major scientific study was performed and documented mercury poisoning in hatters. Processes to mat felt that did not include mercury were developed, and by 1943 all use of mercury in hatmaking ceased. Processes to mat felt that didn't include mercury were developed.

vocal by Patty McGovern

I say I'll move the mountains
And I'll move the mountains
If he wants them out of the way
Crazy he calls me
Sure I'm crazy
Crazy in love I'd say
I say I'll go through fire
And I'll go through fire
As he wants it so it shall be
Crazy he calls me
Sure I'm crazy
Crazy in love you see
Like the wind that shakes the bough
He moves me with a smile
The difficult I'll do right now
The impossible will take a little while
I say I'll care forever
And I mean forever
If I have to hold up the sky
Crazy he calls me
Sure I'm crazy
Crazy in love am I
Like the wind that shakes the bough
He moves me with a smile
The difficult I'll do right now
The impossible will take a little while
I say I'll care forever
And I mean forever
If I have to hold up the sky
Crazy he calls me
Sure I'm crazy
Crazy in love am I

Maverick Is Not Her Name: AKA Gwen Awful

The Real McCoy: Michelle Obama 3

More than likely the text on the previous slide show post was too small for most, so here it is as a pdf

Michelle Obama - Upload a Document to Scribd

The Real McCoy: Michelle Obama 2

I was just looking for an excuse to use the Sinatra song. I'd like to believe Frank would be supporting Barack and not McCain. I doubt it, but the pre-1960 Frank would have.

is it an earthquake? or simply a shock?
is it a good turtle soup? or merely a muck?
is it a cocktail, this feeling of joy?
or is what i feel, the real mccoy?
is it for all time? or simply a lark?
is it granata i see? or only Asbury Park?
is it a fancy, not worth thinking of?
or is it at long last love?
is it an earthquake? or simply a shock?
is it a good turtle soup? or is it merely the muck?
is it a cocktail, this feeling of joy?
or is what i feel, the real mccoy?
is it for all time? or simply a lark?
is it granata i see? or only Asbury Park?
is it a fancy, not worth thinking of?
or is it at long, long, long last love?

The Real McCoy: Michelle Obama

The essence of a real American woman, with a real history, is not Sarah Palin. It's Michelle Obama. From the washington post an excerpt:

A Family Tree Rooted In American Soil, By Shailagh Murray, 10/1/08, GEORGETOWN, S.C. The old plantation where Michelle Obama's great-great-grandfather lived is tucked behind the tire stores and veterinary clinics of U.S. Highway 521. But its history and grounds have been meticulously preserved, down to the dikes that once controlled the flow of water into its expansive rice fields.
Not much is known about Jim Robinson, however, including how or when he came to Friendfield, as the property is still called. But records show he was born around 1850 and lived, at least until the Civil War, as a slave. His family believes that he remained a Friendfield worker all his life and that he was buried at the place, in an unmarked grave.
Until she reconnected with relatives here in January on a campaign trip, Obama did not know much about her ancestry, or even that Friendfield existed. As she was growing up in Chicago, her parents did not talk about the family's history, and the young Michelle Robinson didn't ask many questions.
But if her husband is elected president in November, he will not be the only one in the family making history. While Barack Obama's provenance -- his black Kenyan father, white Kansas-born mother and Hawaiian childhood -- has been celebrated as a uniquely American example of multicultural identity, Michelle Obama's family history -- from slavery to Reconstruction to the Great Migration north -- connects her to the essence of the African American experience.

Shenanigans: Past And Present

I'll use this clip from the 1964-1965 show, starring Stubby Kaye, to accompany an excerpt from an excellent Palin profile, chronicling Republican shenanigans, by Matt Taibbi in this month's Rolling Stone

I'm standing outside the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. Sarah Palin has just finished her speech to the Republican National Convention, accepting the party's nomination for vice president. If I hadn't quit my two-packs-a-day habit earlier this year, I'd be chain-smoking now. So the only thing left is to stand mute against th fit-for-a-cheap-dog-kennel crowd-control fencing you see everywhere at these idiotic conventions and gnaw on weird new feelings of shock and anarchist rage as one would a rawhide chew toy.
All around me, a million cops in their absurd post-9/11 space-combat get-ups stand guard as assholes in papier-mâché puppet heads scramble around for one last moment of network face time before the coverage goes dark. Four-chinned delegates from places like Arkansas and Georgia are pouring joyously out the gates in search of bars where they can load up on Zombies and Scorpion Bowls and other "wild" drinks and extramaritally grope their turkey-necked female companions in bathroom stalls as part of the "unbelievable time" they will inevitably report to their pals back home. Only 21st-century Americans can pass through a metal detector six times in an hour and still think they're at a party.
The defining moment for me came shortly after Palin and her family stepped down from the stage to uproarious applause, looking happy enough to throw a whole library full of books into a sewer. In the crush to exit the stadium, a middle-aged woman wearing a cowboy hat, a red-white-and-blue shirt and an obvious eye job gushed to a male colleague — they were both wearing badges identifying them as members of the Colorado delegation — at the Xcel gates.
"She totally reminds me of my cousin!" the delegate screeched. "She's a real woman! The real thing!"
I stared at her open-mouthed. In that moment, the rank cynicism of the whole sorry deal was laid bare. Here's the thing about Americans. You can send their kids off by the thousands to get their balls blown off in foreign lands for no reason at all, saddle them with billions in debt year after congressional year while they spend their winters cheerfully watching game shows and football, pull the rug out from under their mortgages, and leave them living off their credit cards and their Wal-Mart salaries while you move their jobs to China and Bangalore.

The Make Believe Maverick

from the rollingstone by Tim Dickinson
an excerpt:

Make-Believe Maverick: A closer look at the life and career of John McCain reveals a disturbing record of recklessness and dishonesty At Fort McNair, an army base located along the Potomac River in the nation's capital, a chance reunion takes place one day between two former POWs. It's the spring of 1974, and Navy commander John Sidney McCain III has returned home from the experience in Hanoi that, according to legend, transformed him from a callow and reckless youth into a serious man of patriotism and purpose. Walking along the grounds at Fort McNair, McCain runs into John Dramesi, an Air Force lieutenant colonel who was also imprisoned and tortured in Vietnam.
McCain is studying at the National War College, a prestigious graduate program he had to pull strings with the Secretary of the Navy to get into. Dramesi is enrolled, on his own merit, at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in the building next door.
There's a distance between the two men that belies their shared experience in North Vietnam — call it an honor gap. Like many American POWs, McCain broke down under torture and offered a "confession" to his North Vietnamese captors. Dramesi, in contrast, attempted two daring escapes. For the second he was brutalized for a month with daily torture sessions that nearly killed him. His partner in the escape, Lt. Col. Ed Atterberry, didn't survive the mistreatment. But Dramesi never said a disloyal word, and for his heroism was awarded two Air Force Crosses, one of the service's highest distinctions. McCain would later hail him as "one of the toughest guys I've ever met."
On the grounds between the two brick colleges, the chitchat between the scion of four-star admirals and the son of a prizefighter turns to their academic travels; both colleges sponsor a trip abroad for young officers to network with military and political leaders in a distant corner of the globe.

Not So Fast Bosox

The Angels went to Napoli
To stem the tide of Beaneries
Papelbon's dances and cheering songs
But wait a minute, something's wrong
Hey, mambo! Mambo Napoliano!....

Tina Fey For President

Sarah Palin Reading The Economist

abc follows Sarah up on her remark about what she reads

So, at the risk of annoying you," said Cameron, "when you are asked, 'What do you read, which papers and magazines?' You didn't answer it. Or, you said, 'I have all kinds of resources.'"
"Right, right, right," said Palin.
"Well, what do you read?" asked Cameron.
"I read the same things that other people across the country read, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal and The Economist and some of these publications that we've recently even been interviewed through up there in Alaska.

Letterman's Debate Recap

McCain's Election Strategy

from liveleak

The Great Schlep For Obama

from the blue heron blast

Maverick Is His Name

I wonder whether John and Sarah know who the real Maverick is? Nevertheless, they are also living on "jacks and queens"

Who is the tall, dark stranger there?
Maverick is the name.
Ridin' the trail to who knows where,
Luck is his companion,
Gamblin' is his game.
Smooth as the handle on a gun.
Maverick is the name.
Wild as the wind in Oregon,
Blowin' up a canyon,
Easier to tame.
Riverboat, ring your bell,
Fare thee well, Annabel.
Luck is the lady that he loves the best.
Natchez to New Orleans
Livin on jacks and queens
Maverick is a legend of the west.
Riverboat, ring your bell,
Fare thee well, Annabel.
Luck is the lady that he loves the best.
Natchez to New Orleans
Livin on jacks and queens
Maverick is a legend of the west.
Maverick is a legend of the west.

an excerpt about the show from wikipedia. I never watched Maverick. I watched the Steve Allen Show instead

Maverick is a comedy-western television series created by Roy Huggins that ran from September 22, 1957 to July 8, 1962 on ABC and featured James Garner, Jack Kelly, Roger Moore, and Robert Colbert as the poker-playing traveling Mavericks (Bret, Bart, Beau, & Brent). Moore and Colbert were later additions, though there were never more than two current Mavericks in the series at any given time, and sometimes only one. Maverick presented James Garner as Bret Maverick (1957-1960), an adventurous gambler roaming the Old West, Jack Kelly as his equally skilled brother Bart Maverick (1957-1962), and Roger Moore as English-accented cousin Beau Maverick (1960-1961). James Garner was the only Maverick in the series during the first seven episodes, and the show is credited with launching Garner's career. Maverick often bested both The Ed Sullivan Show and The Steve Allen Show in audience size. Series creator Roy Huggins inverted the usual screen-cowboy customs familiar in television and movies at the time by dressing his hero in a fancy black broadcloth gambler's suit, an outfit normally reserved in western films for villains, and allowing him to be realistically (and vocally) reluctant to risk his life, though Maverick typically ended up forcing himself to be courageous, usually in spite of himself. The first broadcast episode of Maverick, "War of the Silver Kings," was based on C.B Glasscock's "The War of the Copper Kings," which relates the real-life adventures of copper mine speculator F. Augustus Heinze. The real-life copper king ultimately went to Wall Street. Huggins recalls in his Archive of American Television interview that this Warners-owned property was selected by the studio as the first episode in order to cheat him out of creator residuals. Bret Maverick frequently flimflammed adversaries, but only criminals who actually deserved it. Otherwise he was scrupulously honest almost to a fault, in at least one case insisting on repaying a debt that he only arguably owed to begin with (in "According to Hoyle"). Maverick was not a particularly fast draw with a pistol, but like all TV cowboy heroes of the era, it was almost superhumanly impossible for anyone to beat him in any sort of a fistfight (perhaps the one cowboy cliché that Huggins left intact, reportedly at the insistence of the studio). Critics have repeatedly referred to Bret Maverick as "arguably the first TV anti-hero," and have praised the show for its photography and Garner's charisma and subtly comedic facial expressions.

Sarah Palin: "He Is The Man We Need To Leave"

At the 00:01:00 mark

Sarah Palin: Supreme BS

Literacy Lessons From Sara Palin

You've Got To Accentuate The Positive

A visit to DREW University and a song by the anDREW Sisters

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium's
Liable to walk upon the scene
To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do just when everything looked so dark?
(Man, they said "We'd better accentuate the positive")
("Eliminate the negative")
("And latch on to the affirmative")
Don't mess with Mister In-Between (No!)
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
(Ya got to spread joy up to the maximum)
(Bring gloom down to the minimum)
(Have faith or pandemonium's)
(Liable to walk upon the scene)
You got to ac (yes, yes) -cent-tchu-ate the positive
Eliminate (yes, yes) the negative
And latch (yes, yes) on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, don't mess with Mister In-Between

Bard's So Vain

Quite beautiful, but they really think who they are.

You walked into the party
Like you were walking onto a yacht
Your hat strategically dipped below one eye
Your scarf it was apricot
You had one eye in the mirror
As you watched yourself gavotte
And all the girls dreamed that they'd be your partner
They'd be your partner, and
You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?
You had me several years ago
When I was still quite naive
Well, you said that we made such a pretty pair
And that you would never leave
But you gave away the things you loved
And one of them was me
I had some dreams they were clouds in my coffee
Clouds in my coffee, and
You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?
I had some dreams they were clouds in my coffee
Clouds in my coffee, and
You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?
Well, I hear you went up to Saratoga
And your horse naturally won
Then you flew your Lear jet up to Nova Scotia
To see the total eclipse of the sun
Well, you're where you should be all the time
And when you're not, you're with
Some underworld spy or the wife of a close friend
Wife of a close friend, and
You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

John McCain And The Reptile Vote