From Huffington Post:
How noble can you get? I'm sure all the families who have lost their fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, wives and husbands, get down on their knees and thank the president for his sacrifice.As violence in Iraq continues -- clashes today left 11 dead and 19 injured -- President Bush has for the first time revealed the great sacrifice he's made for the sake of our soldiers: he's given up golf.
From an interview with Politico and Yahoo News:
"I don't want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the commander in chief playing golf," he said. "I feel I owe it to the families to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal."
(Cross-posted.)
Hear the one about how Politico went to the White House and a softball game broke out?
| posted by Wolfrum | Wednesday, May 14, 2008President George W. Bush doesn't make a habit of speaking to anyone who won't willingly and happily act as his lapdog. Thus, Politico.com easily scored an interview with him.
When Politico came into existence, they had a bold mission statement that included these words:
"There is a difference, however, between voice and advocacy. That's one traditional journalism ideal we fully embrace. There is more need than ever for reporting that presents the news fairly, not through an ideological prism. One of the most distressing features of public life recently has been the demise of shared facts. Warring partisans -- many of whom take their news from sources that cater to and amplify their existing opinions -- live in separate zones of reality. In such a climate, every news story is viewed as either weapon or shield in a nonstop ideological war. Our answer to this will be journalism that insists on the primacy of facts over ideology."
But such is the beauty of "mission statements." Once made, they are easily ignored. Here now is Politico's interview with Bush, which clearly shows Politico and Bush reside in a separate zone of reality all their own.
Interview with President Bush
[First nine questions solely devoted to fawning over Bush and asking about his daughter's wedding.]
Q Mr. President, the one thing we don't see in here is a computer, and we know that >you went cold turkey off email for security reasons>. What are you looking forward to when you finally get your computer back?
(Security reasons? According to Bush in Oct. 2006: "I tend not to email or — not only tend not to email, I don’t email, because of the different record requests that can happen to a president. I don’t want to receive emails because, you know, there’s no telling what somebody’s email may — it would show up as, you know, a part of some kind of a story, and I wouldn’t be able to say, `Well, I didn’t read the email.’ `But I sent it to your address, how can you say you didn’t?’ So, in other words, I’m very cautious about emailing.")
THE PRESIDENT: Emailing to my buddies. I can remember as governor I stayed in touch with all kinds of people around the country, firing off emails at all times of the day to stay in touch with my pals. One of the things that I will have ended my public service time with is a group of friends, a lot of friends. And I want to stay in touch with them and there's no better way to communicate with them than through email.
(All the "e-mails fired off to his buddies" were purged from the system, mind you. From the Star-Telegram - which no longer carries the story on its site: "The Texas e-mail policy was issued in 1999 while Bush was governor. The written directive states that e-mail 'messages and attachments that have been opened will automatically be deleted after seven (7) calendar days.'")
Q Mr. President, we know you're a man of intense faith. And I wonder, what was a moment in this room over the past eight years when you needed that most?
THE PRESIDENT: Michael, I'd say daily. I mean, part of the faith walk is to understand your weaknesses and is to constantly try to embetter yourself and get closer to the Lord. And that's a daily occurrence. Obviously there's been some tough moments in here. When you know that somebody lost their loved one as a result of a decision that I made, that's a tough moment. If you're a faithful person you try to empathize with the suffering that that person is going through. On the other hand, there is a knowledge that the good Lord can comfort during these moments of grief. And that's what I ask for in my prayer.
The Oval Office is a place where there's been, obviously, a lot of amazing experiences over a seven-and-a-half year period. My presidency is one where I've had to make some very tough decisions. I guess some presidencies are kind of — were real smooth, there were no real big issues. Well, that's not the way mine is.
(Translation: God makes me feel embetter about my widespread murder. Also, Presidenting was a breeze until I took over.)
Q Consequential. That's what you want —
THE PRESIDENT: Consequential — if that's how it turns out to be, that's a good word, because I didn't want to come to Washington, D.C. and just hold the office for the sake of holding it. I wanted to come to Washington, D.C. and help be a transformative President. And I think history, when they look back, will say this is a fellow who knew how to make decisions, and made some tough ones, stood by them, wasn't driven by the latest opinion poll, but was driven by some core principles from which he would not deviate.
(Translation: History will judge me as a mindless ideologue.)
[Next four questions are meaningless softballs]
Q Mr. President, thank you very much for having us into the Roosevelt Room for the first online interview. In the spirit of the Internet, I wonder if we could ask a question from one of our users, Steve Bailey, of New York, who says: With oil at $126 a barrel, pushing up the price of everything -- even food -- what can your administration do to help people right now?
(Translation: We'd never ask about oil prices. But, you know, the proles are a curious bunch.)
THE PRESIDENT: I appreciate Steven's concerns. With the price of gasoline going up, it's like a tax. I wish I could give Steven a quick answer. In other words, it took us a while to get to where we are -- very dependent on oil, and in a world in which demand is greater than oil. So my answer to Steven is that the best thing we can do is to increase supply, and to drill for oil and gas in environmentally friendly ways at home, and build more refineries. Steven probably doesn't know this, but we haven't built a new refinery since 1976, and if we're truly interested in relieving the pressure on our consumers, then we ought to have a very active domestic policy now.
(Translation: Has Steve not heard our talking points? TRUTH: No one has offered to build a refinery since 1976.)
[Four questions on oil and global warming with Bush making it clear that by doing nothing, he's been a true leader.}
Q Mr. President, turning to the biggest issue of all, Iraq. I wonder if you -- various people and various candidates talk about pulling out next year. If we were to pull out of Iraq next year, what's the worst that could happen, what's the doomsday scenario?
(We in the business call this "framing a question.")
THE PRESIDENT: Doomsday scenario of course is that extremists throughout the Middle East would be emboldened, which would eventually lead to another attack on the United States. …
(See how that works?)
… The biggest issue we face is -- it's bigger than Iraq -- it's this ideological struggle against cold-blooded killers who will kill people to achieve their political objectives.
(Yes, that is the biggest issue we face. Hopefully in November the cold-blooded killers will be far removed from U.S. policy making positions.)
Q Mr. President, I'm going to surprise you -- there's a question from a user, Bruce Becker, and he asks: Do you feel that you were misled on Iraq?
(Translation: Again, we'd never ask anything like this.)
THE PRESIDENT: I feel like -- I felt like there were weapons of mass destruction. You know, "mislead" is a strong word, it almost connotes some kind of intentional -- I don't think so, I think there was a -- not only our intelligence community, but intelligence communities all across the world shared the same assessment. And so I was disappointed to see how flawed our intelligence was.
(Misled: "to lead in a wrong direction or into a mistaken action or belief often by deliberate deceit." Someone was misled, and it sure wasn't the President.)
Q Mr. President, you haven't been golfing in recent years. Is that related to Iraq?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, it really is. I don't want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the Commander-in-Chief playing golf. I feel I owe it to the families to be as -- to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal.
Q Mr. President, was there a particular moment or incident that brought you to that decision, or how did you come to that?
THE PRESIDENT: No, I remember when de Mello, who was at the U.N., got killed in Baghdad as a result of these murderers taking this good man's life. And I was playing golf -- I think I was in central Texas -- and they pulled me off the golf course and I said, it's just not worth it anymore to do.
(Translation: I'll take myriad vacations, hold a lavish wedding for my daughter, cut veterans' funds, and never go to a soldiers' funeral, but golfing is where I draw the line. Especially after a Brazilian diplomat dies.)
Q Mr. President, you're headed later today to the Middle East. The prospects for brokering peace between Israelis and Palestinians look bleak. I wonder what the best is you can hope for, and why should Americans back home care about your efforts over there?
THE PRESIDENT: It's a great question. Americans at home ought to care for the advance of free societies throughout the Middle East, after all, this is the center of anti-Americanism and hatred. …
(Now that's the way to kick off some peace talks)
In other words, the people that attacked us on 9/11 came from this part of the world. …
(Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Israel, wev.)
… By far the vast majority of people aren't haters, and by far the vast majority of people don't hate America …
(Translation: They all hate me.)
… But there are enough to be able to recruit if forms of government repress people. In other words, if there's hopelessness -- there's nothing more hopeless, by the way, than becoming a suicide bomber. And yet, these ideologues require hopeless situations.
(See "Shock Doctrine, The")
[Next nine questions are about baseball, American Idol, and who does a better impression of Bush, Dana Carvey or Will Ferrell]
Q Mr. President, I know you're not going to believe this transition, but the Congress and Democrats now have been in charge for the Capitol for 18 months. I wonder if you care to give them a grade.
(Translation: Does the slim Democratic majority in Congress suck? Or do they suck Hard?)
THE PRESIDENT: Well, one thing is for certain, Michael, that I've laid out a very aggressive agenda: a trade agreement with Colombia to help our economy continue to grow; making sure we got the tools necessary to protect our country from attack; supporting our troops in harm's way. And there hasn't been much action. And we got a housing crisis, and I proposed a reasonable set of reforms. And so I would call them stalled. I would call them, so far, good at verbiage and not so good at results.
(Translation: They suck hard, Michael. Things were much better when Republicans ran Congress and did everything I said without asking anything.)
Q Now, Mr. President, President Carter recently told Charlie Rose the next President could change America's image in 10 minutes. Here's what he said: "I think the next President could change the image of this country around the world in 10 minutes by making an inaugural speech that would start off and say, 'As long as I'm President we will never torture another prisoner, as long as I'm President we will never attack or invade another country unless our own security is directly threatened.'"
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, well, what he ought to be saying is, is that America doesn't torture. If the implication there is that we do now, then he's wrong. And you bet we're going to protect ourselves by the use of military force. What he really is implying is -- or some imply -- you can be popular; if you want to be popular in the Middle East just go blame Israel for every problem. That will make you popular. Or if you want to be popular in Europe, say you're going to join the International Criminal Court.
Popularity is fleeting, Michael. Principles are forever.
(Translation: Jimmy Carter is an anti-Semite. I think that answers your question that had nothing to do with Israel.)
Q Mr. President, I'm getting the hook here. If I can ask you one quick political question. You have a clear eye. I wonder if at this point you feel sorry for Senator Clinton.
(Wow. Just wow.)
Q Mr. President, as a final question -- and thank you so much for taking this time with us -- the scale of the disasters in China and Burma is amazing. I wonder how the United States can go about getting aid into those closed regimes.
THE PRESIDENT: I talked to Hu Jintao and if he -- I told him if he needs aid he's got it. Thus -- we'd get him some money, but thus far, he feels like he's in pretty good shape. And the relief -- and they've got a pretty good infrastructure in dealing with problems.
The place that really needs help is Burma. And Admiral Keating is there now. I told President Hu Jintao today, of China, if you get -- if you're in touch with the Burmese, tell them that we're genuine in our efforts to want to help. We've got some ships off the coast of Burma now, and so we'll see if Keating and Henrietta Fore, who runs AID, will get a better response from the government than we have gotten so far. We just want to make sure that the aid we give is given to the people -- that it's not squandered, not hoarded, but it actually gets to the suffering people ....
(And if we could find that $8 billion or so that disappeared from Iraq, we'd maybe give them some of that money, as well)
… We've been disappointed by the response. It's taken these people too long to move. It's almost as if they're in a state of denial. But we'll see. We're beginning to make some progress there in terms of getting our aid in.
(Translation: Hell, it only took us a week or so to get moving after Katrina.)
--WKW
Vatican: ETs may exist, but they better not be gay or use birth control
| posted by Wolfrum | Tuesday, May 13, 2008Say what you will about the reign of Pope Benedict XVI, but the guy is all about covering all the bases. In an interview with the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Rev. Jose Gabriel Funes, the Jesuit director of the Vatican Observatory, said that it was fine to believe in aliens and it didn't contradict a belief in God.
"How can we rule out that life may have developed elsewhere?" Funes said. "Just as we consider earthly creatures as 'a brother,' and 'sister,' why should we not talk about an 'extraterrestrial brother'? It would still be part of creation."Funes went on to state that if extraterrestrials did in fact exist, they had better not be homosexual, or practice abortion. "Every life God has created is sacred," said Funes, "even alien fetuses, or whatever it is they may have. And if the aliens commit homosexual acts, they're doomed to Hell unless they repent to the Earth's Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ."
… Funes said that such a notion "doesn't contradict our faith" because aliens would still be God's creatures. Ruling out the existence of aliens would be like "putting limits" on God's creative freedom, he said.
The Bible "is not a science book," Funes said, adding that he believes the Big Bang theory is the most "reasonable" explanation for the creation of the universe. The theory says the universe began billions of years ago in the explosion of a single, super-dense point that contained all matter.
But he said he continues to believe that "God is the creator of the universe and that we are not the result of chance."
Funes added that the aliens would be subject to all of God's laws, and if they used birth control, masturbated, ate shellfish, worshipped false idols and committed other random acts that the Church have deemed sinful, they were pretty much screwed.
"Basically, it's fine to believe in aliens," said Funes. "But you better believe that they are a bunch of sinners."
Asked for comment, John McCain supporter Rev. John Hagee announced that he was withdrawing his recent apology to the Catholic Church and said it was no longer debatable that Catholicism was a cult and that Catholic League President William Donohue was a "huge douche."
Reacting to the news from the Vatican, a White House source said President George W. Bush was already working on a new, $450-billion project to surround the planet with a border fence, complete with armed guards and video surveillance in order to avoid an influx of aliens coming to the U.S.
"The President believes that all aliens currently residing in the United States should receive blanket amnesty." Still, the source added that the nation would have to be on guard against an influx of extraterrestrials relocating to the U.S., thus further weakening Social Security and Medicaid. "We think this is a wise investment in the future, and feel that people finally will start to take the Star Wars Defense System more seriously now."
The news was good for Wall Street, as well, as shares of the blogger "Space Cowboy" went up 475 percent.
--WKW
What's your favorite movie poster?
I am, as you might have noticed, I'm a bit of a movie poster buff, and I know a few other Shakers around here are, too (I'm looking at you, Spudsy!), so I thought this might make a fun QotD.
My favorite is the French poster for one of my all-time favorite films, Harold and Maude:
I mean, that's just fucking spectacular. Of course, it's enhanced by how much I adore the film, too.
Honorable mentions to this version of the Magnolia series and the classic horizontal poster for The Shining.
O' Bully! The Maverick™ will appear on Saturday Night Live this weekend.
McCain is slated to appear on Saturday Night Live this weekend, during which Carell will play host, a McCain aide confirms to CNN.Danger, Will Robinson!
The aide says the presumptive Republican presidential nominee will head to New York Saturday to rehearse for his role, though it remains unclear exactly what part he will play. (CNN)
Here is McCain from his previous appearance on SNL in 2002. McCain sings Streisand.
More Danger! Do not visit the site link embedded in the video.
Another clip below.
I mean, OMG new video. Well, almost. Here's Liam "Kelly" Sullivan with Margaret Cho talking about Kelly's upcoming video, No Booty Calls, which will land on May 27.
My first thought was, "Oh, calling dudez dicks isn't cool," until the other part of my brain said, "That is a dude, dumbass," at which point I began to giggle at how awesomely subversive Liam Sullivan's Kelly character really is.
Pairing Kelly and Cho was, for that reason chief among others, a stroke of true genius.
My dinner for this evening:
French fries topped with ranch dressing, pepper bacon and smothered with a sharp cheddar. I placed it all under the broiler to make the cheese gooey and then covered with guacamole.
IT IS SO GOOD!
And, I made it healthy with the avocado. HA!
FAIL. Got anything better on the burner, Adam Sandler?
FAIL. I blame Sacha Baron-Cohen.
Oh, and, by the way?—Mike Myers, Adam Sandler, you're no Sacha Baron-Cohens.
Shit like this is why it's so natural for feminists/womanists, LGBTQ activists, racial equality/civil rights advocates, fat and disability activists, etc. to be allies, even aside from intersectional identities. There's almost never a backslide of sensitivity or an outright backlash of hostility against one group, but not the others. Between the two trailers, there's plenty misogyny, homophobia, racism, and mockery of different body types to go around.
[To those who would exhort me to see the films before making judgments, I've got no love for films who trick ignoramuses into theaters with the opportunity to laugh at funny accents and zany ethnic wardrobes, or boobies and queers, or fat people and dwarves, for two hours only to try to make it all okay with a tacked-on feelgood moral-of-the-story ending about how even "different" people deserve love or wev. Fuck that. They're the cinematic equivalent of deathbed confessions. It's cynical and nasty, and I'm not going to withhold judgment on films that deliberately market themselves as xenophobic, sexist, queer-hating, lowest-common-denominator muck, and spend most of their screen-time being precisely that, "enlightened" ending or not.]
Following up on Liss's post below about overt racism, the Washington Post has a sobering article on the state of ingrained racism in America and how it manifests itself in the presidential race.
For all the hope and excitement Obama's candidacy is generating, some of his field workers, phone-bank volunteers and campaign surrogates are encountering a raw racism and hostility that have gone largely unnoticed -- and unreported -- this election season. Doors have been slammed in their faces. They've been called racially derogatory names (including the white volunteers). And they've endured malicious rants and ugly stereotyping from people who can't fathom that the senator from Illinois could become the first African American president.It's been an unspoken axiom that racism and irrational hatred would be a part of this campaign since the moment Mr. Obama came on the scene in 2004, and it's been a given that Mr. Obama would not be accepted among certain constituencies regardless of his stands on the issues. The question isn't whether or not it's there; we know it is. The question becomes how do we deal with it?
The contrast between the large, adoring crowds Obama draws at public events and the gritty street-level work to win votes is stark. The candidate is largely insulated from the mean-spiritedness that some of his foot soldiers deal with away from the media spotlight.
Victoria Switzer, a retired social studies teacher, was on phone-bank duty one night during the Pennsylvania primary campaign. One night was all she could take: "It wasn't pretty." She made 60 calls to prospective voters in Susquehanna County, her home county, which is 98 percent white. The responses were dispiriting. One caller, Switzer remembers, said he couldn't possibly vote for Obama and concluded: "Hang that darky from a tree!"
Mr. Obama's speech about race in March went a long way to at least open the door to the discussion, and there's little doubt that the Republicans will do everything they possibly can to minimize the issue by saying that racism is just an excuse the Democrats are using to demonize citizens with real concerns about Mr. Obama and at the same time sowing the seeds of misinformation -- "he's a radical Muslim who won't salute the flag and isn't really American" -- through their "independent" operatives. But regardless of the campaign tactics, it is an undeniable fact that race is a core element in America that transcends the politics of the moment and defines us historically and for the future. If Barack Obama becomes the next president he will face challenges no other occupant of that office has ever faced solely on the fact of his skin color. His life will be in danger, if it isn't already, for the rest of his life because as sure as God made little green apples, there is someone out there with a rifle who believes it is his solemn patriotic duty as a white Christian to shoot the first black man to become president. And it's not just Mr. Obama; it's one of the reasons Colin Powell decided not to run in 1996.
If he's elected, Barack Obama will have to prove himself equal to the task based on higher standards than the previous forty-three occupants, and certainly he will be under the microscope of the opposition, who will, in a head-spinning change of course compared to the current occupant, demand nothing less than Jeffersonian perfection in everything he does. He will be measured not as a man, but as a black man, and any failing will be seen by the bigots and the small-minded as a reflection on every other African-American who has the temerity to challenge the pasty patriarchy.
If there was a simple way to deal with it, we would have dispatched the issue of racism a long time ago. But we know that it is part of our human nature to fear the unknown and the different, and old habits and ingrained lessons die hard. The people who have fought against racism, bigotry, fear, loathing, and outright hatred have dealt with it all their lives. It is part of the deal, and it will never fully go away. But it doesn't mean we don't keep trying, and it doesn't mean we don't fight back and confront it with determination and strength.
(Cross-posted.)
It was mid-morning when The Stranger rolled into the small town of Lawson, California. The townsfolk sensed trouble immediately. They had heard of his type from Lou Dobbs. He would come and take their jobs. He would bring crime, drugs and incest. Lawson would never be the same if they didn't do something about The Stranger.
When The Stranger stopped at Steve's Gas and Laundromat, more than half the town of Lawson had guns in their hands. They were not about to allow this man to destroy their culture, their way of life. He was a threat who didn't belong in America, let alone in Lawson.
Steve warily left his office and approached The Stranger's car. "You speak English? We don't have nothing Mexican here," said Steve, puffing his chest out to let The Stranger know that he would not willingly give up his town. Steve had a pistol tucked into his jeans, just waiting for The Stranger to ask about getting health care or try and get his kids enrolled in Lawson Elementary.
"Fill it up," said The Stranger.
"You got money? American money?" asked Steve.
"Uh, yeah," said The Stranger.
When the transaction was finished, The Stranger drove away. The town folks calmed a bit, but it would be weeks before they put away their guns. The Stranger could come back to try and overrun their town with disease, diversity and DMV manuals written in Spanish. They'd be ready.
As he drove away, The Stranger looked in his rear-view mirror and thought, "That was strange." But he didn't think much more about it, as he wanted to make sure he made it back to Anaheim in time to see the Los Angeles Angels - the team he owned - play a night game against the Texas Rangers.
--WKW
What really puts the cherry on top of this giant shit sundae is that there's nothing "historical" about Native American women being raped. One in every three indigenous women will be raped or sexually abused in her lifetime, putting Native American women in one of the highest risk groups for sexual assault in the nation. Today.
This little gem aired last night on CNN while I was cooking dinner. Needless to say, it nearly put me off my feed. It is, however, a perfect example of how the MSM treats their own creation, the "sex scandal." With an honest-to-Jebus scorecard. A really nifty scorecard that they can write on, just like the teevee football games!
Yeah, yeah... the show's only an hour. Haw, haw. This clip is just infuriating on so many levels.
(For those of you that can't see the video, a transcript will hopefully be available here. Nutshell: the host and CNN Senior Analyst Jeff Toobin breeze through "the stagecraft of handling sex scandals," which they'd been "thinking about." Oy. They briefly discuss several of the more recognizable names (McGreevy, Vitter, Craig, Spitzer and Fossella), then check off on their scorecard if they "admitted it," and if they "survived in office." Charmingly, they make sure to mention that Craig was caught in the men's room, and list that McGreevy had a "gay affair." I'm amazed they left out "hot" and "naked.")
First, I resent the fact that CNN is assuming we give a flying fuck how these abusers of power and privilege survived their various "scandals." They're discussing this topic as if it were a sporting event. We should be outraged that these "scandals" are happening in the first place; instead, it's turned into a puff piece to chuckle over. This isn't a goddamn game of dodgeball. The show is only an hour, so we can only discuss the big scandals, ho ho ho, and please don't think of all the shit that the people we elected are getting away with because we don't know about it yet.
Second, it's absolutely ridiculous to boil "survival" down to simply "Did they admit it or not?" Money, power and politics (not to mention the gargantuan laziness of the media) are completely ignored in order to make a simple, bite-sized chunk of NOOZ that completely ignores the corruption that creates these "scandals" in the first place.
Third, the way they present this, you'd think there are no victims in these scandals aside from the pasty guy sweating under the lights. Nothing about the anguish suffered by the families, nothing about the "other man/woman," nothing about ripped off constituents, nothing about what this says about prostitution, and of course, never anything regarding how these scandals reflect what it means to be gay in this country. It's treated like a fart in a business meeting; horribly embarrassing and you'll probably never live it down amongst your peers, but it was a helluva laugh, wasn't it?
Fourth, oh CNN, are you going to mention that the vast majority of these scandals involve Republicans, who run on "family values" platforms and Good Christian Values (tm), while behind the scenes, porking like Bacchus on a three day weekend? Oh, you're not? Okay then.
Finally: There is no such fucking thing as a sex scandal. This is an issue of ethics. The fact that boners are somehow involved means nothing other than an increase in the titillation factor. Sex scandals are a complete fabrication of the media, who harp on and on about this crap to make it seem important and necessary, while ignoring every detail of the story that might actually be important and necessary. The "scandal" is created by people who will say they're "just giving the viewers what they want," while they're actually treating viewers with staggering amounts of contempt.
This isn't news. It's fucking pointless. Without discussion regarding the ethical issues at play or the damage done to people and constituents, we're in "fireman rescues cat from tree" territory.
One final thing: Everyone involved in any way with this piece of poo was paid well for their involvement. That makes me want to punch things.
(Thanks to Space Cowboy for finding the video)
(To follow on the heels of this story and this one…)
You go, grrl:
Bonnie Richardson ran. She threw. She jumped.Richardson, after being the only athlete from Rochelle, Texas to qualify for the state meet, scored 42 team points to win the Texas 1A track title by herself—a feat never performed by a girl and not seen by a boy since the 1970s, when it was accomplished by Meridian High School's Frank Pollard, who later went on to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Richardson placed first in the high jump and 200 meters, second in the long jump and 100 meters, and third in the discus over the two-day event.
And when it was time to hand out the team trophies, Richardson accepted the 1A team championship for Rochelle High School -- by herself.
"This totally blows me away," the freckle-faced Richardson said while holding the trophy with a gold medal draped on her neck. "This is amazing. I had no idea it was even possible."Congratulations, Bonnie!
…Richardson also plays tennis and led her basketball team to the state semifinals last season.
"I'd play football if my parents would let me," she said. "Not quarterback. Defense."
[H/T to Shaker Veronica, via email.]
Apparently there are a number of people growing concerned about the disappearance of the blogger Jon Swift (who's also a contributor to Shakesville) due to his lack of posting recently—and a blogospheric investigation has been undertaken to determine if he's okay.
Well, let me assure everyone that he is fine. I just spoke to him at Swift HQ and can confirm he's not trapped under anything heavy and hasn't been hit by a bus—he's merely busy, nose-deep in an alarmingly modest proposal, natch.
So, rest assured, Left Blogistan! Jon Swift is in fine form and shall return when he is able.
Our recipe this week comes from Shaker Lexy of the blog Runs in Her Stockings.
Lexy adds: "In lieu of chopping onions and peppers you can use a frozen onion/bell pepper mix to save time. Also I use unsalted butter, low sodium chicken stock and no salt added tomato paste, if you use salted varieties you may want to omit salt when sautéing the veggies, but that's to individual taste. Substituting olive oil for butter and veggie stock for chicken makes it vegan/vegetarian in a jiffy!"Spanish Rice
2 tbps Butter (or olive oil)
1 small onion chopped
1 green bell pepper chopped
1 red bell pepper chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
salt/pepper to taste
1 tsp chipotle chile powder (or to taste)
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 tsp hot sauce
1 cup long grain rice
2 cups chicken stock (or veggie stock)
1. Heat butter in a 3-4 qt sauce pan over medium heat. Once butter has melted add vegetables and salt/pepper/chile powder.
2. Sauté vegetables until soft, about 5 minutes, watch heat so butter doesn't burn. Add rice, tomato paste, and hot sauce.
3. Toast rice/paste mixture for 2 minutes, lower heat if necessary to avoid burning. Add chicken stock and raise to medium-high heat.
4. Bring mixture to a boil then cover and bring heat to low. Simmer for 20-30 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Makes 4 servings
Spicy rating a 6 (out of 10)
If you'd like to participate in Shaker Gourmet, email me (include a blog link!) at: shakergourmet (at) gmail.com
Obama Racism/Muslim/Unpatriotic/Scary Black Dude Watch Part Forty-Three and Clinton Sexism Watch Part Ninety-One.
Bam:
Fuck you,
Norman also says it's "just a coincidence" that the character he chose for the Obama t-shirt is a monkey. It just so happens that Obama looks like Curious George, that's all! Three…two…one… "Norman said those offended are 'hunting for a reason to be mad' and insisted he is 'not a racist'." Bingo!
This horseshit is eerily familiar to item #27 on the Obama RMUSBD Watch, in which a caller into Rush Limbaugh's show said that her 12-year-old daughter thinks that Obama looks like Curious George—and, as I explained then, the difference between comparing George Bush to a chimp and Barack Obama to a chimp is that there is not the same racial history of marginalizing whites by comparing them to monkeys. There's that whole owning the context thing again.
It's also eerily familiar to multiple items on the Clinton Sexism Watch, in which various people have made "hilarious jokes" about how Clinton should be brutally murdered.
Gee, this has been a fun campaign season!
[H/T to Shaker John.]
Hillary Sexism Watch: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One, Twenty-Two, Twenty-Three, Twenty-Four, Twenty-Five, Twenty-Six, Twenty-Seven, Twenty-Eight, Twenty-Nine, Thirty, Thirty-One, Thirty-Two, Thirty-Three, Thirty-Four, Thirty-Five, Thirty-Six, Thirty-Seven, Thirty-Eight, Thirty-Nine, Forty, Forty-One, Forty-Two, Forty-Three, Forty-Four, Forty-Five, Forty-Six, Forty-Seven, Forty-Eight, Forty-Nine, Fifty, Fifty-One, Fifty-Two, Fifty-Three, Fifty-Four, Fifty-Five, Fifty-Six, Fifty-Seven, Fifty-Eight, Fifty-Nine, Sixty, Sixty-One, Sixty-Two, Sixty-Three, Sixty-Four, Sixty-Five, Sixty-Six, Sixty-Seven, Sixty-Eight, Sixty-Nine, Seventy, Seventy-One, Seventy-Two, Seventy-Three, Seventy-Four, Seventy-Five, Seventy-Six, Seventy-Seven, Seventy-Eight, Seventy-Nine, Eighty, Eighty-One, Eighty-Two, Eighty-Three, Eighty-Four, Eighty-Five, Eighty Six, Eighty-Seven, Eighty-Eight, Eighty-Nine, Ninety.
Obama Racism/Muslim/Unpatriotic/Scary Black Dude Watch: Parts One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One, Twenty-Two, Twenty-Three, Twenty-Four, Twenty-Five, Twenty-Six, Twenty-Seven, Twenty-Eight, Twenty-Nine, Thirty, Thirty-One, Thirty-Two, Thirty-Three, Thirty-Four, Thirty-Five, Thirty-Six, Thirty-Seven, Thirty-Eight, Thirty-Nine, Forty, Forty-One, Forty-Two.
Hey kids! It's time for the Muddy Mudskipper show!
(Via CuteOverload)
Sigh... I've tried to keep this to myself for as long as I could but I just can't deal anymore, so here we go. I've a confession to make to all of you.
I know that for months now I've taken on the role of resident Cute Overlord by meticulously picking the cutest offerings from CuteOverload for all to enjoy. It's not that I intend to stop doing this. On the contrary, I've actually found a new site to add to my obsessions.
I have to look at the site every damn day because I can't get enough. I mean, it goes beyond the beyond in terms of crazy cute. The faint of heart should not go below the fold. Should you choose to continue, just know that you've been warned, for you must beware the hypnotic gaze of...
The Disapproving Rabbit!
"The separation between the sexes in Saudi Arabia is so extreme that it is difficult to overstate." (NY)Clinton aims for big win in West Virginia."Amid daily bipartisan sniping over high gas prices, Democrats and Republicans appear to agree on at least one thing: With oil over $120 a barrel, President Bush ought to stop buying crude for the government emergency reserve." (AP)Death toll in China quake reportedly nears 12,000.More than 18,000 buried by quake in one China town: Xinhua. (Reuters)"The international community should use all possible means to deliver aid to victims of the Burma cyclone despite the reluctance of the country's ruling military junta, the EU foreign policy chief said today." (Guardian) The failure of Myanmar's brutal regime to allow aid is a "crime against humanity." (Telegraph)Female artists dominate the Turner Prize short list.Albert Einstein letter shows disdain for religion. (Telegraph)(Guardian)Don't Feed The Animals.When following the leader can lead into the jaws of death."A new study in Psychology of Women Quarterly explored the outcomes of sexual harassment on both boys and girls. While girls were harassed more frequently, boys were indirectly yet negatively affected through a school climate that tolerates the harassment of girls" (Science Daily) Using fruit to create solar cells.Inca Skull Surgeons Were "Highly Skilled," Study Finds. (NG)Another drunk lawn mower rider. This one in a tuxedo. Fancy!It is so "quirkie" when a man is arrested for taking 3000 photos of women's bottoms. Such a "Bum Rap.""A cow was left unhurt in Switzerland after a head-on collision with a car which left the vehicle destroyed." (Ananova) This happened to me and my mother when I was 6 or 7. A cow appeared out of nowhere and landed on the hood. That was after the car hit her. She survived; the car sorta. I like to believe that the cow was returning from an alien abduction and misplaced in the middle of the road. HA!Speaking of aliens, here is the official X Files: I Want To Believe trailer.
Howdy Kids! I was having a conversation with your blogmistress or as I like to call her the "Genius Goddess." It was one of those routine conversations about how Hardballz sucks and SHOEZ. I am sure you all know that despite all the punditry, SHOEZ remain constant. Anyhoo, the conversation diverged into childhood toys and once a geek, always a geek. Thus, there is a Question of the Day.
What is your favorite childhood toy?
I was a big fan of Legos (before a Masters in Engineering was required) and would build garages to park my Matchbox cars. Those were secondary to Star Wars action figures that I could store in my Darth Vader collector's carrying case. Your blogmistress had one too. HA!
Picture snatched from here. My case is well used and in storage.
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