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:: 8.30.2004 ::
Here's a photo taken from the deck of the tall ship Balclutha, looking toward the Golden Gate Bridge.
Our friends Al&Anne had a wedding on board this ship a feww weekends ago... it was lovely!
:: Deb 11:48 AM :: permalink ::
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I was sick all last week, so I didn't post.
:: Deb 11:37 AM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.20.2004 ::
George Lucas squandering what's left of his image
This guy truly disgusts me now. After the ruin he made of the first two Star Wars prequels (and unfortunately the original movies as well), I thought he had simply subverted his artistic vision to make his kids happy; now I believe that he had very little artistic vision to begin with, and it has been thoroughly squashed by his slavering thirst for cash. I, for one, will not be giving him any more of my money, and I recommend that anyone who is considering paying $10 to see his next movie should first read this article.
When yer done reading that, I recommend "78 Reasons to Hate The Phantom Menace"; here's a good one: Reason #5
"Check it out, Corporal."
An army entirely made of droids I will accept (for the current moment). The fact that they have ranks I will not! How can an army of mechanical objects have ranks? Why are they giving commands through audible microphones? A military droid should not communicate via sound waves nor should one outrank another. They should simply draw weapons and fire. Not only would this make them a scarier foe but they would also probably spend a lot less time drawing comic attention to themselves and falling apart in a humorous manner. Thanks to Jon for the link.
And just in case you care, here's the complete script for Episode I.
:: Deb 10:58 AM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.18.2004 ::
Ah, the Olympics
First off, let me say I've enjoyed watching the swimming and gymnastics events very much. I think all athletes involved have performed with grace and style and unparallelled (does that word really have that many "l"s?!) sportsmanship.
HOWEVER, I think NBC's coverage of the Games has been abysmal. I think it sucks that one company can buy all the broadcasting rights to an event like this, because without competition there is (surprise!) no motivation to provide the best coverage possible, or even to show all the events. At least they show some of the less-popular events on Bravo and TBS (I think that was the other one), which they own... but the commentators talk way too much - even talking over Bjork's solo and announcements made during the games - and have so little to say that's actually interesting or useful or even INTELLIGENT that half the time I mute the friggin' thing. Argh. How much are these bozos getting paid?
They'll spout Madden-worthy drivel like, "she really needs to grab hold of the bar on the way down," referring to a female gymnast who just miffed a catch on the uneven bars. But they won't say anything about why a balance beam routine that was seemingly perfect got a 9.356. Or why the male gymnasts tend to get higher scores than the women on the vault, even when they make bigger mistakes on their landings.
Makes me crazy.
Then there's all the Hallmark-y slop about how hard a particular (generally American) athlete has worked to get where they are today, the adversity they had to overcome to make it to the Games this year, blah blah blah and lots of soft focus and sweeping cheesy music. SHOW ME THE EVENTS AND SHUT UP. I certainly find people's life stories interesting, but that's not why I tune in to watch the Olympics.
Ok, enough ranting for today.
:: Deb 12:07 PM :: permalink ::
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Fun for Friday
Presenting... the Umbilical Brothers!
:: Deb 12:06 PM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.13.2004 ::
Latest Wal_mart casualty: Toys "R" Us
They priced 'em right out of the toy business. More on ABCnews.
:: Deb 3:01 PM :: permalink ::
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Friday the 13th
Ever wonder why we consider this day to be unlucky? Now you can know. Link c/o Fark. In my own personal experience, Friday the 13th is often a particularly good day, so I actually look forward to it.
:: Deb 11:29 AM :: permalink ::
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Priceless: a photo of your rival sucker-punching an opponent in rugby
Oh, this is great. Bob Harris of Tom Tomorrow's This Modern World broke a story Tuesday about this photo he unearthed from a Yale yearbook. "As long as we're re-examining the 1960s, looking for signs of character . . . here's George W. Bush during his college days, hitting a fellow sportsman in the face," Harris wrote. Indeed. Incidentally, while rugby is a contact sport, every player knows that tackling above the shoulders is a foul. So is leaving your feet during a tackle. Either of these is serious enough that the other team is immediately awarded a penalty kick, often directly resulting in points for the other team.
So even without throwing a punch, Bush is already well outside fair play.
Grasping an opponent by the back of the head and punching him in the face is beyond the pale -- I've watched rugby avidly for years, and I've never seen it during an open-field tackle like this, honest -- and will typically result in a player being immediately sent off. And here it is, folks:
Happy Friday!
:: Deb 9:43 AM :: permalink ::
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What's the matter with Kansas?
I heard Tom Frank interviewed on KPFA yesterday; an intelligent, articulate dude who just published a book "examining pop conservatism -- the bestsellers, the radio talk shows, the vicious political combat -- and showing how our long culture wars have left us with an electorate far more concerned with their leaders' 'values' and down-home qualities than with their stands on hard questions of policy." Sounds like a great read!
:: Deb 9:40 AM :: permalink ::
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It's almost National Preparedness Month!
Got your duct tape handy?
Bob Harris was on top of this story first, I believe.
:: Deb 9:37 AM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.11.2004 ::
I haven't posted any new photos in a while, but now that I have a brand-new Elph (thanks, sweetie!) you'll be seeing more of what I see day-to-day.
Here's a picture from my birthday party this weekend, of Sierra:
(She's not a fan of this pic because her mouth is wide open, but I think it came out well)
:: Deb 11:11 AM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.06.2004 ::
Oh and by the way...
...They knew.
:: Deb 4:45 PM :: permalink ::
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Economy's tanking
More on MSNBC. Tax cuts were a great idea, eh Mr. Bush?
:: Deb 4:40 PM :: permalink ::
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This is, without a doubt, the QUOTE OF THE MONTH "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."
-- George W. Bush, August 5, 2004, in a speech at the signing ceremony for a $417 billion defense spending bill Priceless.
:: Deb 4:10 PM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.04.2004 ::
Jeez, did Bush even read the 9/11 Commission's report? “Knowing what I know today we still would have gone on into Iraq,” Bush said. “He had the capability of making weapons of mass destruction. He had terrorists ties ... the decision I made is the right decision. The world is better off without Saddam Hussein in power.” Guess not.
:: Deb 6:40 PM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.03.2004 ::
It's about time, guys
The Democrats are rolling out a so-called "Truth Squad": The Democrats said they will challenge Bush wherever he goes, whether they appear in the same city or say something from afar. A contingent plans to set up shop in New York for the GOP convention at the end of this month, just as Republicans got in their digs from Boston during last week's Democratic convention.
Bush "says one thing and does another," Texas Rep. Ciro Rodriguez, chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, said at the squad's introduction. "He's not been a person of his word." It took them how long to come up with this?
:: Deb 7:59 PM :: permalink ::
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If the election were held today, Kerry would be our next President
According to the latest Zogby poll, the Senator from Massachussetts would win 13 of 16 so-called "battleground states", leaving him with a handy margin of 318 electoral votes to Bush's 220 (assuming the other states go the way they did in 2000). Link thanks to Bob Harris.
:: Deb 7:34 PM :: permalink ::
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Oops! We were fair and balanced there for a minute O'REILLY: ...One last question, 30 seconds. Do you think Osama bin Laden fears you?
NADER: I think he likes Bush, because Bush is playing right into his hands by inflaming the Islamic world with that crazy invasion of Iraq that's picking off our troops, draining our billions of dollars, and in effect, a magnet for more terrorism. A diamond in the rough, found by Bob Harris. Go Bob!
FOLLOWUP:
Here's a gem from Tom Tomorrow's Democratic Convention coverage:You can see down into the Fox skybox from where we are, and here's a fun bit of trivia for you: Bill O'Reilly does not stand up during the national anthem. ... and remember, this is the same guy who said in his "Talking Points" segment that "those who publicly criticize our country in a time of military crisis, which this is, [are] bad Americans." What an asshole.
:: Deb 2:39 PM :: permalink ::
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For those of you who missed the convention...
At www.c-span.org, you can find transcripts and videos of all the speeches. Thanks to Paul Krugman for the heads-up - and thanks to Ty for forwarding his latest column to me. An excerpt: If you really want to see cable news scripts in action, look at the coverage of the Democratic convention.
Commercial broadcast TV covered only one hour a night. We'll see whether the Republicans get equal treatment. C-Span, on the other hand, provided comprehensive, commentary-free coverage. But many people watched the convention on cable news channels - and what they saw was shaped by a script portraying Democrats as angry Bush-haters who disdain the military.
If that sounds like a script written by the Republicans, it is. As the movie "Outfoxed" makes clear, Fox News is for all practical purposes a G.O.P. propaganda agency. A now-famous poll showed that Fox viewers were more likely than those who get their news elsewhere to believe that evidence of Saddam-Qaeda links has been found, that W.M.D. had been located and that most of the world supported the Iraq war.
CNN used to be different, but Campaign Desk, which is run by The Columbia Journalism Review, concluded after reviewing convention coverage that CNN "has stooped to slavish imitation of Fox's most dubious ploys and policies." Seconds after John Kerry's speech, CNN gave Ed Gillespie, the Republican Party's chairman, the opportunity to bash the candidate. Will Terry McAuliffe be given the same opportunity right after President Bush speaks? To paraphrase what Jon Stewart said on Friday after the Daily Show had covered the convention, exclusively, for a week: watch the conventions, watch the debates; then turn off your TV, and MAKE UP YOUR OWN MIND.
And please, please, vote in November.
FOLLOWUP:
You can also check out Tom Tomorrow's coverage of the convention on his blog. With pictures!
You can also read about Bob Harris' convention experiences, here. Bob often contributes to Tom Tomorrow's blog, and has his own morning radio show. (Oops! this last is from the LAST convention.)
:: Deb 10:28 AM :: permalink ::
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:: 8.02.2004 ::
Here's what I don't get about Michael Moore
There's so much shit out there in the public record that could be used to hang Bush+Co, and yet he resorts to vague accusations (a la Saudis have invested so much money in Bush family business interests) and straight-out fabrication. Why, Michael? There's so much great material just waiting for someone to use it.
:: Deb 1:41 PM :: permalink ::
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