Hmmmm

I didn't drink last night (unless you count coffee and yes, a sip of my partner's bad Cabernet) so the hungover feeling I have must be from someone else who over-indulged. I have only experienced a hangover once in my life (for about 10 minutes) in college and I'm not partial to them. So I was surprised when the only thing I wanted to do for three hours after waking up was sit wrapped in a blanket on the sofa reading an unabridged dictionary because it was the only thing I didn't have to get off the couch to read.

So please come retrieve your hangover so I can do some editing later. Thank you.

House Considers Weakening Ethics Rules for Delay AGAIN

Lovely. If this trend continues, Denny "Whore" Hastert will also propose legislation that allows DeLay to exterminate Democrats, deflower your teenage daughters, and sodomize your puppies.

CNN's Drag Queens

No, I'm not referring to Anderson Cooper or Paula Zahn (ahem). Their Florida New Year's contingent seems filled with them. But they're also the most interesting and refreshing touch I've seen on the network since Tucker got a new hair weave. I'm sure, however, that CNN is gonna hear from the right wing about this... that is, as soon as the righteous right sobers up.

Speaking of Mindless Things on New Year's Eve...

I was amused to see that Anna Nicole's 88 million court award got reversed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. I suspect, however, she's already spent that much in drugs based on her commercials and TV appearances. If she ever comes to, boy, is she gonna be pissed.

My More Personal Resolutions

Well, I've already quit smoking, lost (some although not all the extra) weight, and become more involved and outspoken. But there are so many other qualities/behaviors I would like to obtain.

In 2005, I resolve to:

* Be more thoughtful
* Be more tolerant (although Karl Rove, Grover Norquist, that fat fuck Limbaugh, that thinner but bigger fuckface Bill O'Reilly, Anna Nicole Smith and Amber Frey will sorely test me)
* Look more deeply even when it hurts; even when what I find and must report makes me the target of those who don't like truth-telling
* Educate and accept more education
* Fulfill some dreams and do what I can to help others do the same
* Say "yes" more often
* Ask for help as frequently as I try to tender it
* Face and learn to live with some of the fears I haven't yet tackled
* Oh yeah, and remember what sex is

So what are your resolutions? Share them here.

Resolutions for My America

I'm not America; I'm just a 290 millionth of it. But if America were me, these are the resolutions I would like to fulfill in the coming year:

* Take a long hard look at the Constitution and other documents created by our forefathers which stress separation of church and state, racial and religious tolerance and equality, protections for liberty by citizens and non-citizens alike
* To stop mentioning and using torture like it's a solution rather than an extension of terrorism
* To not send our young men and women to war for corporate America, for oil, and under the guise of liberating others
* To force politicians to be accountable to those they represent
* To stop being an icon and start being a member of the global community
* To stop giving lip service to freedom, dignity, and caring and start actually behaving that way
* To turn away from our worship of stars and football players and the ultra-rich and turn our appreciation toward everyday Joes and Janes, Moustaffas and Abrahims, Chongs and Garcias
* To realize that our schools, our teachers, our libraries are great entities and worthy of our support
* To find a way to provide health care for all
* To cease handing over America's assets to the richest and most powerful

Amber Frey: Proving Prostitution Does Pay

NBC is making me sick with non-stop promotions of their long interview with Amber Frey - the Modesto "massage therapist" who is passionate for married men and having children out of wedlock who got involved with Scott Peterson.

Although Gloria Allred (her attorney, which seems funny because Amber's main source of income seems to be money given to her by married men) assured us Amber only got involved with the court case to help and for no financial gain, Amber's got a book. I guarantee you she did not write it. This woman couldn't write a grocery list and I suspect she pines over the fact that there is no "i" in her name so she can dot it with a heart.

The nicest thing that can be said about Amber is that she's a skank. Scott wasn't her first married man. So spare me Allred's purple prose about how Peterson deceived her. I hope NO ONE buys her book. Let's send this little trash tart back to the dumpster.

NBC should be ashamed of itself. But so should Amber who should be rushing to have a third child out of wedlock with another married man before her eyes become as fertile as her brain.

Please Give

Although we're hurting badly financially here, we sat down today and had a bouse meeting to decide how much we can give to the disaster relief effort. As little as some of us have right now, those people have far less.

Please consider doing the same. Prove that America is better than our president. Prove to South Asia that we care, that there is some hope. You'll find a full list of disaster relief groups all over the Web, including at Countdown.

Sending Jeb Bush to Southern Asia

Haven't the people there suffered enough without having the plumpest member of the Bush family go over there? Perhaps he can teach the tsunami victims how millions of people with far more damage can made do with $15 million in aid from the U.S. while Fat Boy took in $14 billion to replace pink lawn flamingos and double-wides down in Florida.

The last thing the world needs - especially that part of the world - is another Bush.

Potential Love Interests for Judith Regan

Poor, poor Judith Regan: not only does her affair with a married man get spread out all over the news (the tsunami giving us some respite from the continuing saga of Bernie Kerik's messy personal and professional life), but we also got the assorted details about how she sent Bernie (who sent NYPD detectives) after Faux colleagues when she misplaced her cell phone and how she then hired a bodyguard once she broke up with Bernie.

So - trying to be ever helpful - I decided to come up with a list of potential mates for Dame ("Please, put another inch of Vaseline on the camera lens") Stunningly Beautiful Regan. Since she doesn't appear to be too picky, neither will I in suggesting possibilities.

These are:

* The Gropinator - Arnold can grunt sweet nothings into her ear while he shows her just how much he respects women (not at all)
* Rudy Giuliani - Rudy's about due for another extramarital affair and another bout of shooting himself in the groin
* Roger Ailes - fat, old, hate-filled - what could be more perfect?
* The Donald - he'll call her "classy" although Judy's about twice the age of his reent girlfriends

Poll: Most Americans Now Say War Was a Mistake

Shame some came to this opinion far too late to save many thousands of lives.

From Editor & Publisher:

In a historic shift, a majority of Americans express the view that the U.S. made a mistake in going to war against Iraq, according to a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll.

The poll, released on Tuesday, shows that 51% now hold this view, with 48% supporting the decision to go to war. In November those numbers were virtually reversed.

In January, 63% approved of the war and 35% disapproved.

Eighty percent of Democrats find the war a mistake, while 80% of Republicans defend it. The split among Independents is 53% disapprove and 46% approve.

Other views also turned more negative.

By 58% to 39% the public disapproves of the way the U.S. has handled things in that country in recent months.

Nearly half the sample says things are going worse in Iraq than a year ago, with only 20% saying it is going better.

Tin Patriots and Constant Threats

This makes me sick: where those who drink the Kool-Aid in copious quantities (it's much easier than thinking) are happy to spread hate and fear and threats to anyone who speaks out against the current shamble in Iraq.

Loving Thy Neighbor Bush Style

Quote Republican Jesus (as channeled by General JC Christian):

Sometimes you can't love your neighbor until after you've applied 10,000 volts to his testicles."

Bush will give him a Medal of Freedom for this, I bet.

President's Vacation More Important Than Disaster Relief; So Why Did We Send an Aircraft Carrier?

WTF? Military assets? Why?

From the Washington Post (and the interesting part is reading between the lines in what is not said:

The Bush administration more than doubled its financial commitment yesterday to provide relief to nations suffering from the Indian Ocean tsunami, amid complaints that the vacationing President Bush has been insensitive to a humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions.

As the death toll surpassed 50,000 with no sign of abating, the U.S. Agency for International Development added $20 million to an earlier pledge of $15 million to provide relief, and the Pentagon dispatched an aircraft carrier and other military assets to the region. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, in morning television appearances, chafed at a top U.N. aid official's comment on Monday that wealthy countries were being stingy with aid. "The United States is not stingy," Powell said on CNN.

I wonder how much Colin got paid to sell his soul.

Farewell, Jerry Ohrbach

I was about to write a tribute to this talented actor, but found that Skippy had done it well. If you're a fan of the man's work, please read.

Are These Qualities We Want in a President?

RDF at Corrente (a great blog) looks at some of Mr. Bush's qualities and why they should concern us all. Go read.

Shameless Plug: "Buying Rx Drugs Online"

One of the projects that kept me so busy the last few months is now out: "Buying Rx Drugs Online". It's a one-of-a-kind book that explores the burgeoning offerings of prescription drugs online but also looks at all the vendors out there who aren't quite legit.

In it, you'll:

* see how to weed out the illegals from the legit
* understand why you need to involve your medical professionals even if you're trying to chart your own treatment course
* learn how to find information about the drugs you take, their interactions with other meds, and their side effects
* find out how to determine whether your kids are pharming
* much, much more

Here's the link to buy it from Amazon (they'll say it's not released yet, but in fact, it came out last night). It makes a great home reference title.

Max Debunking Bush's Social Security "Emergency"

If you want some intelligent discussion about the so-called Social Security emergency, look no further than excellent sources like Max at MaxSpeak.

The Sad Focus

With more than 60,000 confirmed dead now, it's very sad to see how news organs like CNN are spinning the gigantic earthquake-begot-tsunami story in Southern Asia:

* American Swimsuit Model Escapes!
* Hundreds of Americans believed dead
* Oprah guest alive!
* Tsunamis shatter celebrity vacations (oh, the horror!)
* Stingy Americans? UN Comment Strikes Nerve (good)

Washington GOP: Fuck the Voters

Story here. They won't rest until they seat their candidate, whether it's fair or not.

Goodnight, Susan Sontag

You will be missed. Thankfully, some of your work and the thought it inspires will live on.

South Asian Death Toll Rises; We're Still Stingy

The death toll now stands at 52,000 with many more to find, and the estimate is that at least 50,000 more will die from the crisis, disease, et al.

Today, WH Chief Apologist Colin Powell came out today to say we weren't stingy, that we were going to give a whole $20 million in aid. Unfortunately, that's only a FRACTION of what taxpayers will spend on Bush's Inaugural party, which is just a part of what corporate donors will spend on one big party for Bushie at a time of such desperation here in the U.S., let alone this nightmare of epic proportions in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and beyond.

Happy Blog Day to Us

It's been a year since this little blog debuted.

Thank you to those who visit.

Did Rummy Say Flight 93 Was Shot Down?

That's what Raw Story/Blue Lemur says after looking at the transcript of Rummy's latest trip to the troops.

Bush Tax Plan

According to The Times and other sources, this could involve eliminating the deduction for state taxes, a big deal in blue states (and great punishment, I guess, in making the GOP work harder to steal votes elsewhere). The Times article features Max Sawicky, of Max Speak.

Joe Scarbrough: Time for More Opiates

So Joe Scarbrough is FINALLY returning to his MSNBC show (not that he was missed but...) with reports that there is a great rising tide of support for Mr.Bush's Iraq plan. To this I can only say: Joe? While it's clear you've been taking WAY too many painkillers for your supposed back problem (following in good ole Rush's tradition, I guess) and clear you're begging to get on Faux that won't take you, it's also clear you need to take a lot more painkillers if you think anybody will buy this bull.

Republicans and drugs: they abuse the hell out of them but want them restricted for everyone else.

Little Help?

Word's out that a lot of countries - perhaps the U.S. included - are being anything but generous in rushing money and other aid to southern Asia in response to the devastation in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia, the Maltese Islands, et al. Right now, the estimates are more than 24,000 dead (one Indonesian province estimates they will have 20,000 dead all by themselves) and that probably doesn't begin to reflect the final numbers of those who died immediately and the many more who will die because of disease.

We're giving $15 million. A pittance.

Nice to Know

Democracy works in Ukraine. If only it did here. Perhaps we can learn from them before GOP operatives take a third presidential election in 2008 when we'll have Bill (here, kitty, kitty - I want to torture you) Frist and McCain/Giuliani contending, condescending, and obfuscating.

Speaking of which, here's Keith Olbermann's piece on Ohio from the Countdown Bloggerman.

The Rumsfeld Follies

Sure, I believe that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had this "heart-warming" photo op to Iraq (complete with "good", not confrontational questions from the troops) planned before the messy brown stuff hit the fan.

But then, I'm also still waiting for the Easter Bunny, The Great Pumpkin, and Santa to arrive. Hmm.. they seem to be late. But I'll keep waiting!