Early voting turnout here in Washington County continues to set records. There's been around 13,000 early votes as of end of Saturday, and the clerk's office is expecting up to 2,000 more on Monday.
I read somewhere yesterday that there were a little over 1,700 voters just on Friday. Don't doubt it, as my daughter stopped by there around noon to vote, and the line reached from the county clerk's office on the second floor all the way downstairs & out the front door of the courthouse. (She left without voting because she didn't have time to wait and is going to try again on Monday.)
Our county clerk says if these numbers hold up on Tuesday, we may have an 80-90% voter turnout.
That's just un-freaking-believable.
Is OBL getting his talking points from the DNC now or what?
The official, [John Brennan] who was briefed on the entire tape, said much of what has not aired amounts to a sustained diatribe against President Bush and his father, former President George H.W. Bush. It criticizes the current president's economic and jobs programs and contends that the Iraq war is all about oil, the official said.
Priceless.
My regular readers will remember my occasional mention of all the 'kill yer neighbor' folks around the Ozarks. Here's a good profile of one, done by our state left-wing rag. If they ever stop fighting each other and get really organized, we're in big trouble. As this guy reportedly told a college friend,
Republicans are good and conservative. But, after the....revolution comes, you better choose the right side. Because we’ll kill you the same as Democrats.
Scary folks.
TOT, but if you ever wondered what the Arkansas political left is like, go here.
It's raining today and BitchKitty has been sleeping all morning. She's not feeling too well either I suspect, or she'd never put up with this....or especially this.
Dogs are so rude.
You know, in some ways I kinda feel sorry for Bill.
NEW YORK Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton says she worried that former President Clinton's low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet was unhealthy before he was diagnosed with heart disease. She says he brushed off her concerns.
Nothing like saying "I TOLD you so" in the national media, is there?
We had a mock presidential election at the community college this week, and the results were encouraging.
According to Jim Hall, NWACC executive director of public relations and marketing, the students supported Bush by 54.23 percent, with 44.78 percent voting for Democrat John Kerry. Independent Ralph Nader got less than 1 percent of the votes.
The student body there is a pretty broad cross-section of the population as a whole, I think. There's everything from high school graduates to elderly to business people taking additional training classes.
Of course I voted. Had to show my student ID to get a ballot too.
Sorry for my absence, but I'm trying to get a little homework done this morning because my life may be about to get interesting. I interviewed for a temp position yesterday, nothing exciting but a decent enough job that would fit my class schedule. But.
The interviewer called last night after looking over my resume to see if I would be interested in another position. I can't say much about it due to confidentiality constraints but....it looks very interesting.
I'll know more after I meet with her again this afternoon. It may not work out, but it's definitely worth investigating further.
I'd tell you more but you know how it is. Then I'd have to kill you. And I kinda like you guys.
Drudge has a link to a video of Bush....uh....fixing his hair before going on camera. (Requires stupid QuickTime)
One thing's for damn sure. He's no John Edwards.
'Victory salute' indeed.
Heh.
The world has gone stark raving bonkers. (Link via Fark)
A man has been arrested and charged with driving his car on a sidewalk and nearly hitting Republican Congresswoman Katherine Harris as she stood on a street corner campaigning for re-election.
He's charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and may also be facing federal charges. Why? He did it deliberately.
He told a police lieutenant that Harris supporters were standing in the street and impeding traffic.
"I intimidated them with my car," he said, according to the police report. "I was exercising my political expression. I did not run them down, I scared them a little."
Think we can get the election over before someone gets killed?
Now here's a headline I never thought I'd see, given this state's history.
"2 Arrested for Enslaving Mentally Ill in Kansas"
Details are pretty sketchy, but this is what's known so far.
Two people have been charged with holding six mentally ill patients at group homes and making them work against their will, authorities said.
A man and a woman were arrested Tuesday under a federal law banning involuntary servitude (search) after 20 FBI agents searched two group homes in Newton, Kan.
If the allegations are true, that's pretty damn sorry.
You know, it's pretty bad when the AP acknowledges Kerry's lying.
Kerry's latest ad accuses the Bush administration of failing to secure nearly 400 tons of explosives that disappeared from a military installation south of Baghdad around the time U.S. forces were toppling Saddam Hussein's government, and he pressed the point at rallies Tuesday.
He said in Green Bay, Wis., the explosives "could be in the hands of terrorists, used to attack our troops or our people."
Going beyond the known facts, he said later in Las Vegas that the explosives have actually been used against U.S. troops. [emphasis mine]
It's seared, seared in his memory I tell you.
Here's a good summary of the local voter numbers for this year's election.
Pretty amazing.
Record numbers are continuing for the early voting. Here in Washington County, they're averaging a steady 900 per day since Oct. 18th. Mike voted Saturday, and said there wasn't a line when he was there....though the clerk told him they'd been really busy earlier and it was picking up again by the time he left.
Good thing there wasn't a line because he took WildChild with him, because he thought the boy was old enough to start learning about such things. He said WildChild had a million questions about it all on the way up there, and that as they were heading up the stairs to the clerk's office WildChild proudly announced that he was going to vote too.
Mike replied, "Sorry son, but you're too short."
Which, he said, cracked the security guard up who was standing by the courthouse door.
That's the first instance of voter intimidation I've heard of, so at least things seem to be working pretty smoothly here.
I hope it stays that way.
Yeah, yeah I know. It's not even Halloween yet. But I just talked to my parents, and Christmas dinner is all set. My brother-in-law got a big 6x6 elk on his annual hunting trip to Colorado. And my dad got an 8 point buck on the last day of muzzleloader season....shot it on the back side of his property at the edge of one of our old strawberry patches, so all he had to do was back the Jeep up to it & load it up for the trip to the butcher's. I told him he was getting lazy in his old age. He said it was merely good planning.
Mmmm....deer tenderloin & elk roast.
Them's good eats.
I posted some pics of the punkin my stepson made yesterday....including a spooky night shot. There's even a shot of my trusty photo assistant, who lurves me more than squirrels.
Almost.
Here's an interesting Arkansas statistic.
A Justice Department report says Arkansas rejects a higher proportion of attempts to buy firearms than most other states.
One of every 48 prospective gun purchases in the state is rejected. On average, the survey of 40 states shows one of every 65 attempts to buy a gun is rejected.
Doesn't that also imply that we have a higher proportion of criminals than 39 other states? Or are we just really, really good at running background checks?
Some moron over in Marion County decided to start deer season a little early this year.
A 22-year-old Yellville man was recently arrested for charges of DWI and illegally shooting a deer about 200 yards away from an Arkansas Game & Fish Commission ranger station occupied by AG&F Cpl. Joe Purdom.
D'oh. Bubba apparently either didn't know where he was or thought he could get that ol' slickhead loaded up before the game warden got there. Either way, he couldn't have been more wrong.
The suspect was taken to Marion County jail in Yellville where he was charged with night hunting, use of artificial lights from a road, hunting from a state road and DWI. Modern gun season does not open in Marion County (Zone 2) until Nov. 13.
His car was also impounded and his .22 rifle seized. I don't know the District Judge over there, but I'm guessing it's gonna suck to be Bubba when he makes it to court. They've started really cracking down on spotlighters in the last 10 years or so. Which is a good thing, as anyone who lives near a county road can tell you.
Bubba's gonna be wishing he'd stayed home.
I thought the 'family' stories Kerry told at the end of the last debate fairly odd.....his daughters 'keep him honest' and the whole 'integrity, integrity, integrity' thing from his mother. Interesting implication there, especially after all the claims there's been of Kerry's fabrications and distortions of his record. Now apparently Kerry's caught once again exaggerating claims of his derring-do.
At the second presidential debate earlier this month, Mr. Kerry said he was more attuned to international concerns on Iraq than President Bush, citing his meeting with the entire Security Council.
"This president hasn't listened. I went to meet with the members of the Security Council in the week before we voted. I went to New York. I talked to all of them, to find out how serious they were about really holding Saddam Hussein accountable," Mr. Kerry said of the Iraqi dictator.
Speaking before the Council on Foreign Relations in New York in December 2003, Mr. Kerry explained that he understood the "real readiness" of the United Nations to "take this seriously" because he met "with the entire Security Council, and we spent a couple of hours talking about what they saw as the path to a united front in order to be able to deal with Saddam Hussein." [Emphasis mine]
'All'? 'Entire'? Not exactly.
After conversations with ambassadors from five members of the Security Council in 2002 and calls to all the missions of the countries then on the panel, The Times was only able to confirm directly that Mr. Kerry had met with representatives of France, Singapore and Cameroon.
In addition, second-hand accounts have Mr. Kerry meeting with representatives of Britain.
Worse, not even the French representative is backing Kerry's story, saying that Kerry only had meetings with 'a few' UN representatives and that there was no group meeting with all the Security Council members.
The Kerry camp has already backed off his claims, releasing a statement that basically confirms these charges.
The statement did not repeat Mr. Kerry's claims of a lengthy meeting with the entire 15-member Security Council, instead saying the candidate "met with a group of representatives of countries sitting on the Security Council."
Guess it all depends on what your definition of 'all' is, dunnit?
UPDATE: Alert reader Tony let me know that the link cited below no longer contains the text as quoted. (Bloody stupid Yahoo news.) Anyway, you can find the same quote here at Reuters.
Kerry revealed his plan to capture OBL.
"With the same energy ... I put into going after the Viet Cong and trying to win for our country, I pledge to you I will hunt down and capture or kill the terrorists before they harm us," Kerry said. "And we will wage a war on terror that makes America proud and brings the world to our side."
Let's see, how did that work? Oh yeah. Wait for someone else to wound them, run up behind them & shoot 'em in the back. Then come back, testify before Congress about fictitious war crimes and lobby for the end of the 'unjust' war against the terrorists.
I don't think I like that plan.
The BBC has a cool election toy, an interactive US map that shows how states voted in past elections from 1948-2000. (Click on the 'Past Elections' tab)
It's interesting to see how the states' changed over the years. I had forgotten, for example, that Arkansas went for George Wallace in 1968.
Go check it out.
I stepped inside the house yesterday and was immediately hit by a 70's Cheech & Chong flashback.*** Akitas have fairly sensitive stomachs, and the evening before I'd given Sassy a few bites of porkchop against my better judgment. But she was looking at me with those pleading eyes, and well.
Anyway, it had not agreed with her. The weird thing was that there was a stack of newspapers in the living room floor, and she'd spread them all over the floor before relieving her quite considerable 'intestinal distress' on them. What made her think of that I don't know, because she was never trained to use paper and she's never done anything like that before.
Not that I wasn't grateful mind you.
But it was a little disconcerting to be reminded of just how smart she is.
***You know, the skit that begins with them walking through the Arctic when one of them says "What's that?", and the other one goes "Looks like dogsh*t to me."
Remember how there was all this fuss about Disney refusing to release F 9/11, and supposedly it was because Gov. Bush had threatened to cut their tax breaks? Well, it seems there might be a more plausible explanation.
On July 1, just a week after “Fahrenheit 9/11” opened, the Times reported “Disney Gives Details of Plan to Aid European Parks.” The story details the financial history of EuroDisney, including this one important fact that has somehow been overlooked: In 1994, two years after the theme park opened and was already plunged into financial chaos, one man saved it. That was Prince Walid bin Talal of Saudi Arabia. His investment, valued at above $24 million, literally saved EuroDisney from closing and created a bond between the Saudi royal family and Disney CEO Michael Eisner that lasts until this day.
Of course, one of the major subjects of “Fahrenheit 9/11” is the connections between the Saudi royal family and the Bush administration, in which the prince is perhaps the most visible international businessman. According to my sources, Eisner was keenly aware of this when he banned Miramax from releasing the movie. Disney was also trying to get the prince to take part in the financial restructuring of EuroDisney this summer, according to my sources, which would have been severely hindered by the company’s release of the Moore film.
No censorship it seems, just some good old-fashioned brown-nosing for dollars.
Which is usually the case.
Mike has to dress as a member of the Addams Family for a Halloween thing at work next Friday. Which one should he be?
He wants to go as this.
I think he should go as this.
What do you think?
A couple of guys in Missouri have teamed up & made a chopper that runs on Everclear a/k/a PGA....named 'The Bootlegger'. They even built a spigot into the tank and dare people to drink from it.
Interesting idea.
(Not the drinking thing, who in their right mind would drink straight PGA?)
Does this year have the potential for the most boring World Series or what? I don't follow baseball like I used to (that whole strike thing kinda pissed me off), but I do usually watch some of the playoffs and always the World Series.
Not this year.
I watched a couple of innings of last night's game until it became painfully obvious that the Yankees were getting majorly outpitched. They looked like a group of t-ballers playing against a college team. Sheesh.
Now the Series is going to be the Sox against potentially the Astros? Who the hell cares? Not that the Cards would be much improvement. There's just something about their manager that just pisses me off every time I look at him.
Pah! A pox on all their houses.
Jennifer says most of the persimmon seeds are spoons this year. That's a bad sign. We'd been wondering if the unusually hyper-frantic activity of the squirrels & chipmunks was due to this year's sparse nut crop or a portent of a bad winter. Looks like it may be both.
Plus, there was sleet in Rogers the other morning....the earliest I've ever known since we moved here. Sure, it snowed on Halloween back in '96 or '97, but that was abnormal. That was hell on the trick or treaters too, snow, high winds, wind chills down in the teens. Brrrr!
Time to start stocking up the cupboards.
Teresa Heinz has issued an apology for her statements about Mrs. Bush. (Link via Drudge)
"I had forgotten that Mrs. Bush had worked as a school teacher and librarian, and there couldn't be a more important job than teaching our children. As someone who has been both a full time mom and full time in workforce, I know we all have valuable experiences that shape who we are. I appreciate and honor Mrs. Bush's service to the country as First Lady, and am sincerely sorry I had not remembered her important work in the past."
Sounds like someone had a chat with a certain little missy.
You know, lately I've been wondering if the Kerrys are deliberately trying to lose the election, or if they're just that clueless about average Americans.
I'm still not sure.
Is it just me, or is this incredibly rude.....and stupid?
Well, you know, I don't know Laura Bush. But she seems to be calm, and she has a sparkle in her eye, which is good," Heinz Kerry said. "But I don't know that she's ever had a real job — I mean, since she's been grown up. So her experience and her validation comes from important things, but different things."
Yeah, I can see where teaching school isn't a real job like those rich-husband-hunting jobs at the UN. Teaching is just so....common, don't you know.
Unlike some noveau riche guttersnipe giving away her dead husband's money to 'worthy' causes.
Dah-ling.
Something tells me these boys ain't too bright.
Two Boone County men charged with breaking into a Harrison convenience store allegedly told police they only stole $77 worth of cigarettes because it was dark inside the store at night and they forgot their flashlight.
Guess it never occurred to them to steal a cigarette lighter from one of those displays that are always on the counter & use it to see with.
D'oh.
Some people have been complaining about our Gov's wife working as an election poll worker.
A number of people casting ballots complained on the opening day of early voting in Arkansas when they found the wife of the Republican governor working a polling site.....Precinct Election Judge Helen Burr said she believes Mrs. Huckabee's presence is a political act. But, since neither she nor Governor Huckabee is running for office, she is not banned from working the polls.
It doesn't say what Burr's political leanings are, but let me hazard a guess that she's not a Republican.....and apparently not qualified to oversee an election.
Burr said Mrs. Huckabee once improperly asked a voter for identification, and another official said Mrs. Huckabee will have the rules more clearly explained to her.
Perhaps someone should more clearly explain the rules to you two fools. Let me volunteer. Ark. Code Ann. 7-5-305 clearly states:
"(a) Before a person is permitted to vote, the election official shall:
(1) Request the voter to identify himself or herself in order to verify the existence of his or her name on the precinct voter registration list;
(2) Request the voter, in the presence of the election official, to state his or her address and state or confirm his or her date of birth;
(3) Determine that the voter's date of birth and address are the same as those on the precinct voter registration list; " [emphasis mine]
As any good lawyer or judge can tell you, the use of 'shall' in a statute means 'required', 'mandatory'....as in 'you must ask for id you freaking moron'. There is a requirement that election officials be able to read & write English you know.
Interestingly, here's what qualifies as identification:
"(8)(A) Request the voter for purposes of identification to provide a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and address of the voter."
I don't know what all the complaining's about. Throw on a wig, a little makeup & with a copy of your dead granny's bank statement you can cast her vote just like always.
Or if you're in a smartass mood, refuse to provide id. They have to let you vote anyway.....but there's one small catch. They have to put your name on a list of no-id voters and:
"(iii) Following each election, the county board of election commissioners may review the precinct voter registration lists and may provide the information of the voters not providing identification at the polls to the prosecuting attorney.
(iv) The prosecuting attorney may investigate possible voter fraud;"
If there's a close election, you can bet your bottom dollar some of them will be doing just that.
I found, via Matt's comments, a new Arkie blog.....Techography, "a mix mash of politics, technical, and general news stuff."
Looks right interesting. Y'all drop by and say howdy to Bloodspite from downtown Avoca, Arkansas. Population 432.
Sal-ute!
'Fess up. You know all of ya'll watched HeeHaw every week.
Something tells me that after the election, there'll be a new star for those Clairol Herbal Essence commercials. (Link via Drudge)
Perfect for that Freshly Fluffed Look.
Ooooh, yes! Yes! YES!
No intimidation at the early voting that I noticed, but I was asked for a photo i.d. Oooo, scary. Obviously a scheme to stop people from voting....illegally.
The place was packed, which I didn't expect this early on a Monday morning. But there was enough extra staff to keep everything moving along, so there wasn't much of a line. Judging from my ballot number and the steady stream of people I saw going into the courthouse, I predict a record turnout for Washington County at least.
Be interesting to see today's numbers in tomorrow's paper.
Yesterday WildChild was happily playing in the gravel pile when a gust of wind caused a shower of leaves to fall on him. "Tree!" he commanded, "You better stop throwing leaves at me. If you no stop, I throw leaves back at you."
Unfortunately the breeze stopped before I could watch him try to follow through on his threat.
Satisfied when no more leaves fell, he harrumphed and started playing again.
But I could hear him muttering to himself "Tree throwing leaves at me. I tell tree stop it."
It's so funny to see how their minds work, isn't it?
Early voting begins today in Arkansas, and I'm planning to go this morning. That armed deputy monitoring the entrance and the courthouse security cams better not try to intimidate me cuz....cuz...I don't have any outstanding warrants. So there.
And I'm taking a rolled-up newspaper for protection in case there's any of those pesky stray Democrats roaming the parking lot. A sharp swat on the nose and a firm "No!" is all it takes to stop them. Don't worry, it doesn't really hurt them, it's just the noise that scares them.
Heh.
This is one scary chick:
The Washington County Prosecutor’s office Friday charged Lisa Paulette Lewis, 39, with second- and thirddegree battery for allegedly punching her husband several times and running him over with her vehicle after he hid her ice cream, injuring his legs, on Sept. 22. She was arrested by Springdale police. [Emphasis mine]
Day-amn.
Sadly, I doubt there's much ice cream where she's going.
Had an interesting conversation with my daughter yesterday about the upcoming election. She's pretty typical I think of the 18-29 demographic, doesn't really follow politics all that much....but she's decided to vote this year and is trying to find out about the candidates. She said she hadn't decided for whom she would vote in the presidential race, but didn't think she could vote for Kerry.
Why?
Because, she said, she didn't believe she could trust anything that Kerry said. Her impression of him is that he says whatever's popular with the group to whom he's speaking....but he doesn't really mean any of it. Plus, she said, his statements about Cheney's daughter were wrong and unfair.
Then there is the issue of Iraq. She thinks it's wrong to pull out of Iraq too soon. As she put it "What will we say to all the mothers whose sons were killed? That they died for nothing? That we started something and now aren't going to finish it?"
I pointed out that it was also wrong to desert the people of Iraq at this point, wrong to leave without making sure they had the tools to keep the freedom that they now have.
She agreed and mentioned that she'd been talking to a co-worker who had just come back from serving in Iraq. He'd told her that most of what the media had been showing wasn't the whole picture, that for example they weren't showing all the schools that had been built, and all the things that we were doing for the kids in Iraq....in other words, the media was only showing the bad and ignoring the good news. She'd thought about it, and decided that he was right because all she ever saw in the news was about bombings and people getting killed. There was never any good news about Iraq.
If she's typical of her age group, and I think she's a fairly typical kid, that's bad news for Kerry.
No one likes a pusillanimous prevaricator.
I'll not spoil it for you, but Oh. My. God. I laughed so much my face hurts. Is there anything funnier than puppet sex? And the whole d*cks, p*ssies and *sshole bit killed me. And all the Top Gun references. And the Pearl Harbor song. And the Star Wars parodies. It was great.
Definitely this year's must-see movie.
A big thanks to Matt for meeting us, and we hope Miss Vicky feels better soon. We still owe you guys a dinner BTW.
While we are definitely going to see "Team America", I don't plan to spend a dime to see the remake of "Shall We Dance?". I rented the original a few years ago, and I highly recommend it....poignant and funny.
But Richard Gere as a shy, repressed, unattractive guy trapped in an unfulfilling life?
Gigolo yes. Shy guy no.
It's things like this that has given trial lawyers such a bad name.
And the rest of us attorneys get undeservedly tarred with the same brush.
Chris has an interesting discussion going about the death penalty for juveniles.
Drop by & give him your two cents worth.
Edwards may be able to raise the dead & make the crippled walk, but 'Loose Cannon' Heinz-Kerry can cure arthritis.
Heinz Kerry ended with what she called “a highly effective” remedy for arthritis that drew laughter and some skepticism from the audience.
“You get some gin and get some white raisins — and only white raisins — and soak them in the gin for two weeks,” she said. “Then eat nine of the raisins a day.”
Well Hallelujah sister! Guess I'll be hobbling to the liquor store just any minute now.
'Course, knowing me, I'd have to substitute olives for raisins. They're practically the same, right?
Mmmm. Bombay Sapphire soaked olives. Makes my mouth water just thinking about them. Funny thing though. They always seemed to have a detrimental effect on my ability to walk.
Open invitation to join us at 7:15 tonight. (bottom left column)
Be there or be a card-carrying tree-hugging hippy liberal.
You know, you're taking a big chance when you tell your hair stylist "Go wild."
Sometimes you get exactly what you ask for.
At least I didn't go for the Mohawk.
...to fall???? It's currently 48 freaking degrees outside, with a 17 mph wind. It looks as if it could snow.
I want my warm autumn days back!
We watched the final debate last night and thought it was intensely....boring. I'd call it a draw if I cared. It basically boiled down to this:
Kerry will use cloned embryos' stem cells to power a time machine to transport us all back to the pre-9/11 days where life was beautiful all the time and we all lived in happy homes with trees and flowers and chirping birds. But he won't raise taxes to pay for it. Really. Honest. Oh, and he has A Plan. Several of them in fact. And they all remarkably sound like this
Bush, God love him, has to be one of the worst debaters I've ever seen. Example: Kerry answered the flu vaccine shortage question with a mini-rant about health insurance. Bush's rebuttal was about health insurance.
No. No. No.
I doubt if even a 1L would fall for that old debater's trick. You know the one. You don't want to answer the question asked, so you morph it into an answer about a topic on which you're stronger. The correct response is to call them on their non-answer....something like "I'm not sure how health insurance is responsible for the flu vacccine shortage, but..." And regain control of the discussion by demonstrating that the shortage is the type of thing that happens when the gov't controls health care. Slam dunk. D-freaking-'oh.
I found myself repeatedly wishing that Bush did have a wireless receiver....and I had control of it. Sheesh.
The only other thing that stands out is Kerry saying that he wants to help me. Anytime a liberal says they want to help me, I run in the opposite direction, and keep a firm grip on my wallet. The only thing they want to 'help' with is help getting their hands on more of my money.
Can you tell I'm getting really sick of the election? Seriously people. When you're reduced to arguing over whether Kerry took a freaking pen or piece of paper out of his pocket, or whether Bush was wearing a wireless receiver or a bulletproof vest....you need to step back, take a deep breath and regain a little perspective.
And a better grip on reality.
I was a bit puzzled by all the traffic on I-540 last night until I saw this headline this morning.
"Nearly 400,000 expected for Northwest Arkansas arts and crafts festivals"
That's right Matt. Another weekend hiding in our homes to escape the maddening crowds. Why I just as soon try to get between a sow bear and her cub as to get in the way of one of these very determined shoppers.....who will, I swear, buy dried shit on a stick as long as you twine a grapevine around the handle and price it at $18.95.
I think I'll just stay home.
Stress that is. As if tonight's C++ midterm wasn't enough, I've been belly-deep in a recalcitrant C++ program all day....until the phone rang & I rapidly found myself in a pre-interview for a temp job. Which sounded promising, so I ditched the C++ program for a bit to dig up my bestest resume & e-mail it on its merry way.
Back to the C++ program for the rest of the day, which STILL isn't working quite right but I have until midnight to turn it in...so after I finish the midterm and the rest of class (because god forbid that we 'waste' half a class by dismissing after the exam so let's just dive right in to the next chapter on sorting arrays because it's not like we'll all be brain dead after the exam is it) I should have an hour or so to tweak it some more...at least enough to make a reasonable grade.
My eye is twitching.
I have to go now.
This is one of those things that make traveling Arkansas fun.
A load of pig entrails sloshed out of a truck hauling the guts to a dog food plant on Monday, leaving the slop across a busy Little Rock intersection.
The Monday accident occurred when an 18-wheeler driven by Billy Day, 55, of Russellville, made a quick stop. About 1,000 pounds of the innards gushed past a tarp that covered the trailer.
Happened right before the lunch hour too.
Yummy.
Free chitlins for everybody!
Jennifer was kind enough to alert me to the latest on the investigation into the death of Janie Ward. (Registration req'd, but you can use 'bugmenot' 'bugmenot'. The story is worth the aggravation BTW.)
Olivia Jane "Janie" Ward died Sept. 9, 1989, near a home at Zach Ridge in Searcy County while attending a party. Friends said Janie died after she fell off a porch that was 9 inches high.
Autopsy results by former state Medical Examiner Fahmy Malak on Sept. 11, 1989, initially indicated Janie died of an "upper spinal cord and neck injury." Malak's opinion was later changed by the state to read "undetermined" after two independent pathologists said they could not rule out a "natural rare disease, drowning or some other cause of death."
I was still living in Marshall when this happened, and knew pretty much everyone involved. Her parents have been fighting all these years trying to get an independent investigation of her death. And based on the pathologist's interview released today, looks like they may finally get one.
A Searcy County teenager was killed 15 years ago by a blow to the head forceful enough to break her neck, according to a private forensic pathologist who called the death a homicide....Bonnell said his autopsy revealed an impact to the left side of the face, with bruising of the left cheek, fracture and bleeding in the cartilage of the nose and bruising of the left forehead.
Olivia’s body also exhibited an injury Bonnell said is sometimes referred to as a "hangman's fracture," a hyper-extension injury in which the head is knocked so far backward it causes a spinal fracture.
Further, Bonnell said, he found no evidence of an impact to the back of the head, as described in the original autopsy. "Since the injury found at autopsy does not agree with any of the stories provided by witnesses, I consider this to be a homicide," he said.
If Dr. Bonnell's name sounds familar, it's because he performed the autopsies in the Laci Peterson case. And if you'll Google Malak's name, the doc who performed the original autopsy, you'll find that he was basically run out of Little Rock on a rail after evidence surfaced about his incompetence and multiple botched autopsies.
Like any other unsolved death in a small town, this has spawned a multitude of questions, rumors and rank speculation over the years. (As my daddy allus said about small town gossip, you can hear everything but the meat a'frying.)
Maybe now there'll be some credible answers.
As of 13:44:01 Pacific time, there's a giant black spider on the upper left of the lens of the Mount St. Helens webcam. *screams* It's the attack of the giant mutant spider! We're all gonna die!
I know, I'm easily amused.
I was sitting here surfing the web around dark 30 this morning when I heard the most awful squealing, growling, snarling, hissing sounds coming from the front of the house. I first thought it was a cat fight, but as I hustled to get the flashlight it became obvious it wasn't a cat....unless some wild animal had attacked our cat anyway.
I didn't see anything on the ground or the porch, so I started scanning a big hollow tree that's close to our front porch. A telltale green gleam caught my eye, and I spotted the culprit.
A medium-sized raccoon.
From the looks of things, the coon had tried to evict one or more of the squirrels from their dens in the hollow tree. And the squirrel(s) had naturally objected to being evicted out into the cold rain. I kept the flashlight on it, and it finally clambered down and trundled across the lawn, though he/she will probably be back.
It seems a bit early for coons to be looking for a place to den up. Winter, I suspect, is going to arrive early this year, judging from this and the frantic activity of the squirrels and chipmunks the last couple of weeks.
Yippee skippy.
One of the statewide newspapers commissioned a poll, and the results were pretty interesting. (The methodology is here, if you're interested) Not so much the 9 point Bush lead, that wasn't much of a surprise. Kerry just doesn't play well in Arkansas.
"In terms of Yankee type presidents, this candidate is Michael Dukakis with one notch up," Shields said, comparing Kerry to the 1988 Democratic presidential nominee. "He's very aristocratic. He's very New England. He has very little in common with hunters and NASCAR fans."
As for Bush, Shields said, "you could see him just sitting down at a NASCAR race or going fishing or going hunting. And I think voters can relate to that."
Right you are Todd, even if you do imply we're all a bunch of gun-toting stockcar racing hicks. Kerry's biggest problem in Arkansas, and much of the South, is that he not only appears to be a damn Yankee, he also appears to be a rich, French-loving snobbish damn Yankee.
What I did think was interesting was the economic & educational breakdown of Kerry supporters in the state.
-Bush did better among those with higher education levels. Fifty-seven percent of those with some college and 58 percent with a college degree support Bush. Fifty-six percent of voters with some high school and 51 percent of high school graduates support Kerry.
And since education level is correlated to household income level, these results aren't too surprising.
-Support for Kerry is greatest among the lowest income households. Fifty-seven percent of households earning under $20,000 picked Kerry as did the 54 percent earning less than $30,000 annually.
-Support shifts dramatically to Bush as soon as incomes rise above $30,000. Fifty-six percent of the $30,000 to $40,000 bracket pick Bush.
-In the $40,000-$50,000 bracket, Kerry regains support - 54 percent to Bush's 42 percent.
-Bush's support is greatest among households with incomes above $50,000. Sixty-six percent earning between $50,000 and $75,000 support Bush, and 65 percent of those earning more than $75,000 pick Bush.
Kerry. The #1 choice of the poor, uneducated Arkansan.
Not the demographic he was going for I suspect.
Since Jim didn't know what a mule jump was, here's an article with the results from this year's competition.
Mule jumping does have its practical side. Mules, which are the hybrid offspring of horses and donkeys, have the unique trait of being able to jump over obstacles up to 6 feet tall from a near-standing-still position. Hunters traditionally used them to jump over fences, which takes less time than finding a gate....In competition, the mules attempt to jump over a pole with a cloth hanging to the ground. The cloth is necessary because mules won't jump over something they can't see. Sometimes they won't jump over something they can see. Several contestants simply walked around the barrier.
Competitions are great fun, both because of the athleticism involved (the winner of the under 51 inch tall amateur class cleared a jump of 48 inches) and the antics of the owners trying to get the mules to jump.
Great clean family fun for a day, and fairly inexpensive, only $4 admission. There's pony rides for kids, an adjacent playground and various food and craft booths. We've gone the last couple of years, but the weather yesterday was just too chilly and damp to take WildChild.
Otherwise we wouldn't have missed it for anything.
Jacques Derrida is undergoing the ultimate deconstruction.
He dead.
Read into that what you will.
Not overly familar with Derrida?
Mr. Derrida was known as the father of deconstruction, the method of inquiry that asserted that all writing was full of confusion and contradiction, and that the author's intent could not overcome the inherent contradictions of language itself, robbing texts - whether literature, history or philosophy - of truthfulness, absolute meaning and permanence. The concept was eventually applied to the whole gamut of arts and social sciences, including linguistics, anthropology, political science, even architecture.
The putative father of much of postmodernist thought, you might say. I was required, during my undergrad years, to read more of Derrida (and his trusty sidekick Heidegger) than the law allows. I grew to hate him. He destroyed my ability to enjoy reading. Once throughly indoctrinated in his school of thought, it was impossible for me to read fiction without 'deconstructing' it. It became an conditioned response that took me years to unlearn.
In a Los Angeles Times Magazine article in 1991, Mr. Stephens, the journalism professor, wrote: "He gave literature professors a special gift: a chance to confront - not as mere second-rate philosophers, not as mere interpreters of novelists, but as full-fledged explorers in their own right - the most profound paradoxes of Western thought."
"If they really read, if they stared intently enough at the metaphors," he went on, "literature professors, from the comfort of their own easy chairs, could reveal the hollowness of the basic assumptions that lie behind all our writings."
They sure jumped into that with both feet didn't they? Oblivious to the irony of someone who believed that one could not communicate by writing being such a prolific author, literature professors shredded everything in sight. Oblivious too to the fact that sometimes a story is just a story, and that the 'hidden meanings' they were so gleefully deconstructing said more about the deconstructor than the author. But really, what could be more Derrida than that?
I was often sorely tempted as a goof to write a thesis on the rampant feminism inherent in "Gone With The Wind"....but feared I would be unable to keep a straight face. It wouldn't be that hard to do. Scarlett was forced by a rigid patriarchal society into a series of marriages with the wrong men, but overcame her oppression by using those men to become a successful businesswoman & landowner....which thereby gave her the freedom & power to escape her bonds. Her ultimate liberation came when, with the death of Melanie, she realizes that her desire for Ashley is a false dream perpetrated by society....and casting away the shackles of repressive societal mores, she retreats to her power base to contemplate her pursuit of what she really wants.
See how easy it is to make a story 'say' anything if you start with the presumption that it has no meaning except what you, the reader, give it?
Not that there's not a grain of truth in what he said. You, as a reader, do filter the author's words through your own set of beliefs, prejudices, etc. Being aware of that has greatly improved my critical reading skills. But that doesn't mean that as a reader you cannot really understand what the writer was trying to communicate. If words are useless as a means of communication, why do we keep using them?
Because I am trained in a profession in which words are both my tools and my weapons, I think they're pretty useful.
You just have to be careful how you use them.
JibJab released 'Good To Be in DC' on the Tonight Show last night. I just couldn't stay awake long enough to watch it, though Mike did wake me up because he was laughing so hard.
Takes a little while to load, but be patient.
It's been raining since yesterday, and looks likely to continue most of the weekend. Not that I'm complaining much mind you, it's the first decent rain we've seen in a month or so....and it's a nice, slow soaking rain, just what we needed.
But it's not without its problems. The Pea Ridge Mule Jump is this weekend, as is Fayetteville's Fall-Fest. We were planning to take WildChild to one or both, but it looks like we may spend the weekend cooped up inside with a bored hyperactive toddler, 2 bored dogs and 1 cat who seems to think I could stop the rain if I really wanted to but I'm being bitchy and making it rain just to piss her off.
Then there's my daughter, who after witnessing a really bad wreck a while back caused by the rain, gets all freaked out and has panic attacks when she has to drive in the rain.....so she calls me. Like last night when she was driving home from Russellville after visiting her dad who's in the hospital after a wreck*** of his own. So I spent the better part of an hour repeating over and over "You're doing fine. Keep in the right lane, drive slowly and don't worry about all the traffic that's passing you. According to the radar, you should drive out of the rain any time now."
So the rain is a mixed blessing, but all things considered a good thing. It could be much worse, you know.
It could be freezing.
***Before you feel sorry for him, let me explain. He was waiting to pull out onto a street, and decided that since the car in front of him had pulled out safely it was ok for him to pull out across the street behind that car without looking for oncoming traffic. Can we say 't-boned'? And he wasn't wearing a seat belt. He's an idiot.
And got off much more lightly than the fool deserved. 4 broken ribs, a partially collapsed lung and a few bruises. So I don't have much sympathy for him. As in none.
If I were a few years younger, I'd be first in line for this. (link via the always interesting dustbury) Reality, however, requires that I limit myself to just drooling.
I may've misremembered, and Bill or Mike please correct me if I have, but I believe my father-in-law was one of the few survivors of Operation Torch. (Link via Right Wing News) The French have never been our friends, and have only been our allies when it suits their own goals. If you believe otherwise, you're as big a fool as the generals who naively sent those boys in there expecting a 'token' resistance/surrender from the Vichys, but got them slaughtered instead.
Go read and you'll see what I mean.
This is the last thing we need: giant killer hornet.
Insect specialists at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville said Thursday that a rare breed of hornet known as the European hornet is breeding for the first time in northwest Arkansas.
Jeffrey Barnes, curator of the Arthropod Museum at the university, said he has been collecting stories from people who have seen the rare hornet. The bee can grow up to 1.5 inches long -- much larger than the more common yellow jacket breed.
Ever been stung by a hornet? It hurts like the devil. Much worse than a bee or wasp, though not as bad as a bumblebee.
If I see one of these 'rare specimens' I'll be collecting it all right....with a big can of Raid or my fly swatter.
Bam!
Ran across Chuck's Bar and Grill following a link from my referrals this morning. I don't usually add to my blogroll until I've read 'em for a while, but I just thought this was too interesting to wait.
Go drop by and give him/her a big "Whassup, Chuck".***
***I know, that's bad. But I can't help it. It makes me giggle like a little girl.
A quick reading of the Key Findings of the US inspector's report suggests that all the headlines trumpting that 'Saddam Had No WMD's' are a wee bit disingenuous. It looks to me that the more accurate interpretation was that Saddam was doing everything he could to get the UN sanctions lifted so he could get back to business as usual, including gaming the oil-for-food program to bribe key officials. It appears that he prolly didn't have stockpiles of WMD's lying around, though they haven't been able to inspect most of the stockpiles of weapons to be completely sure about this.
What is chillingly clear from the summary is that if he didn't have 'em when we invaded, he was doing everything he could think of to get them again.
(There's also links to the full report here)
Thanks to Lawren, I found this reminder of the really crappy music of my teen years.
In my defense, let me enlighten you that I never learned to disco dance very well. There was just something about being pregnant & disco that just didn't mix.
Go figure.
Think the foreign election observers are bad? Hell, here in Arkansas we're going to be beset on election day with a roving attack pack of........lawyers.
[Washington County Election Commission chairman] Burrow said he declined an offer from an ad hoc group in Little Rock to join a team of lawyers overseeing the general election in an effort to avoid voting irregularities similar to those found in Florida in the 2000 presidential election.
Campaign spokesmen for President Bush and Sen. John Kerry have said they want to field more than 100 attorneys to witness Arkansas polls to ensure voters have access to ballots and have their vote counted.
Burrow said the team of "roving attorneys" would be welcome.
You can't be too careful around a pack of attorneys, you know. Sure they're well-groomed, but they haven't always had all their shots.....and some of them have these big, sharp teeth. And when you get more than a couple of them together, the pack mentality takes over and....well, the result isn't pretty.
*snicker*
But seriously, not a bad idea, though it'd take more than a measly 100 attorneys to make any substantive inroads into corrupt elections in some parts of the state. Heck, I can remember many close elections in my home county in which there was always this one precinct that never managed to get their ballot boxes in until the day after the election. And amazingly, it always contained just enough votes to re-elect the ruling party's candidates. Which was Republican, BTW. I doubt that's changed much since the Democrats took over.
I'm not a cynic, I'm a hyper-realist.
I have to say that I wasn't very impressed with Edwards' alleged great trial lawyer skills last night. He may've tried to tone it down for the debate, but if that's similar to his typical court performance he ain't much punkins as a trial lawyer IMO. I've seen great trial lawyers, and he ain't it. A good trial lawyer's performance in court is a thing of beauty from a rhetorical skills standpoint.
I'll give you an example of one of our local attorneys, Mr. John Everett, whome I once had the pleasure of watching during a medical malpractice trial. First let me digress and explain that one of the most important skills you learn as an effective trial attorney is to spot people's 'tells'. A tell, as any good poker player can tell you, is an involuntary action by someone when they're trying to fool you....or are doing a particular thing. Just about everyone has one, some subtle like my son's always including 'probably' in an answer when he's lying or telling me what he thinks I want to hear. Some are not so subtle, like a witness I was once cross-examining who would rapidly bat her eyes and jerk her head around when she was lying. Every time. I had fun. Heh.
Ol' John has a tell too...a couple of them in fact. One is when he says "Now I'm just an old country lawyer, but...", you know the hammer is about to fall. (He plays the old country lawyer to perfection too, with seersucker suits and mannerisms that make you expect him to have a big chaw of t'baccy. But under all that, Ol' John is pretty damn smart.) The other tell is when he follows that statement by crossing his arms. You know then that the hammer that is about to fall is gonna be a big 'un.
I'd been watching him in court that day, cross-examining an expert witness. The expert witness had previously confidently testified at length that the plaintiff's illness wasn't a direct result of the hospital's failure to treat. But John had gently led this witness down the primrose path by gradually getting him to admit that well, yes, the administration of a particular antibiotic during the plaintiff's initial visit to the ER would've prevented the subsequent, more serious illness that had caused her permanent & total loss of hearing. And John elicited testimony about the cost of the antibiotic, when it was indicated and so on.
By this time I'm trying to hide my grin because I knew where John was going. Finally he paused, looked at the witness and said "Now I'm just an old country lawyer" and he crossed his arms "and I'm not sure I understand all those big words you've been throwing around." He glared at the witness and said with righteous indignation "But aren't you telling me that baby's permanent loss of hearing could've been prevented by a $12 shot of medicine if the hospital could've been bothered to give it?" The expert witness, who finally realized he'd been inescapably painted into a corner, could only quietly answer "Yes, that's true."
One look at the jury confirmed that as far as they were concerned, the trial just ended right there....in the plaintiff's favor.
Now _that's_ a trial lawyer.
Y'all prolly thought I was exaggerating when I said that insulting a man's wife used to be a killing offense around here.
100 years ago Oct. 6, 1904 LONOKE — Thomas Jones, a farmer living south of town, surrendered to Deputy Sheriff Bryant. Jones had shot and killed a man named Stone and seriously wounded another by the name of Flynn. It seems that Jones had trouble with the two men because of remarks they made concerning his wife.
This clip doesn't say, but I'd bet that Mr. Jones was acquitted by a jury of his peers.
It's not like that so much these days, but it's still a good idea to watch your mouth and mind your manners. There's still plenty of hardcore old-school guys around who believe respectable women should be respected.
And that's not a bad thing.
I didn't get to hear much of the VP debate last night, but I watched enough to confirm my suspicions that trial lawyers don't necessarily make good debaters. Cheney pretty well cleaned Edwards' clock.
Not too surprising really. Generally, trial lawyers are persuasive, smooth-talking, all smoke-and-mirrors speakers.....but they usually don't know jack about facts and the law. (Which is why you'll always see a 'book' lawyer like me, the Queen of Research, backing them up at a trial.) Good skills for a plaintiff's attorney, but not so much in a one-on-one debate with someone with a good, solid grasp of the facts.
I was amused too by Edwards' use of many of those trial lawyer tricks of rhetoric....especially the one where you take what I call a 'money phrase' and use it to head each of a long list of persuasive statements. (I can't remember the name of this particular rhetorical device) Edwards used one pretty well, something about 'You, the American people' something something, blah blah blah. Cicero would've been proud. Pretty handy little trick, I've used it myself on occasion.
One thing Edwards kept bringing up in the part I saw was drug deregulation that would allow cheaper drugs to be imported from other countries. That is enough to convince me to not vote for Kedwards. Leaving the economic realities of other countries' refusal to pay their share of drug companies' R&D, for me there's the bigger issue of safety. I take 5 different medications daily, and will for the foreseeable future.
I do not want those drugs coming from other countries that may or may not have the quality controls we have here.
And that's what deregulation would result in. Everyone talks about imported drugs from places like Canada, but that's just bullshit. They would be imported from the country in which drugs were the cheapest....like our little NAFTA partner to the south, Mexico.
No thanks. I don't mind paying a little extra to decrease my chances of you know...dying.
And just think of all the international lawsuits that would spawn.
It'd be a trial lawyer's wet dream.
This sounds like a good bill:
Under the terms of the Orderly and Timely Interstate Placement of Foster Child Act, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services would be authorized to make incentive grants to states that complete timely interstate home studies.
The White House also singled out a provision in the House bill that eliminates the ability of states to opt out of requirements to conduct criminal background checks on foster and adoptive parents.
I can't tell you how frustrating it was to have a child hanging in limbo because we were waiting on another state to complete a home study. Some states *ahem* Texas *ahem* drag their feet for months before doing them....they're just not a high priority.
And no state should be allowed to skip criminal background checks on potential placement homes.
That's just stupid.
It always cracks me up when someone says they want to move out of the US because they're 'losing' their rights. Boy are they in for a rude awakening. How about moving to Finland, fool?
In Finland fines are given according to one's salary and Ihamuotila was originally asked by a local court to pay 54,000 euros, corresponding to 16 days of his salary in 2001, when he received extraordinary income from share sales.
The Helsinki appeals court ruled on Monday however that the fine should be based on his income from 2002, the year prior to the offense, saving the speeding banker almost 40,000 euros.
That's correct. This guy's speeding ticket was reduced to $17,951 because it was based on his freaking income.
Finland, home of the socialist income redistribution system, not too appealing? How about Wales, where you apparently can't keep trespassers off your own property?
Last year there were a series of raves in Pembrokeshire. In August 2003, 20 party organisers approached a farmer in Marloes and told him they were about to have a party on his field, and he was unable to stop them. More than 500 people attended the illegal rave, which lasted four days.
They set up their own sound system and farmer Owen Morgan said he felt 'powerless' because he would need a court order to move them on.
As a result, Welsh farmers have started spreading cow shit on their fields to keep the ravers away....unlike here, where a shotgun and/or your friendly neighborhood deputy will do the trick in a few minutes. There's a reason all those property rights were written into our Constitution, you know.
And if you don't, go ahead and move to another country. You'll find out just how good you had it here.
This story's kinda interesting....not because it basically calls Arkansas for Bush. (I already told you that the other day.)
But it also includes fun facts about Arkansas, like:
--there's 22 churches per 10,000 people, the 4th highest in the nation.
--we kill an average of 37 chickens per second, or 3.25 million per day.
--"Until Richard Nixon in 1972, the only Republican to win Arkansas was Ulysses S. Grant, during Reconstruction 100 years earlier." (Yeah, both of those worked out really well, didn't they?)
No mystery, really. The power (and money) used to be concentrated in the Delta....a Democrat stronghold. Think of it as a natural extension of the plantation system: Those in power know what's best for the have-nots. Now, thanks to 'evil' corporations like Wal-Mart & Tyson's, to name a few, the power (and money) is becoming more concentrated in northwest Arkansas.....which is much more conservative and Republican.
Arkansas. It's not what you think.
Today's OpinionJournal has a quote from a review of Jimmy Carter's new novel, The Hornet's Nest, that sounds like a real bodice ripper uh, interesting book. I placed it in the extended entry in case you, well.....ever wanted to have sex again. If you do, don't read it.
Mr. Carter, you should be ashamed. That's one of the more unseemly things I've ever read from a former President.
Just imagine that Georgia accent when you read the following:
“He was overwhelmed with a feeling of tenderness, and was also aroused sexually, which his tight trousers made obvious to both of them.”
Eeeeewwww!
NRO links this unconfirmed story:
Iraqi intelligence documents, confiscated by U.S. forces and obtained by CNSNews.com, show numerous efforts by Saddam Hussein's regime to work with some of the world's most notorious terror organizations, including al Qaeda, to target Americans. They demonstrate that Saddam's government possessed mustard gas and anthrax, both considered weapons of mass destruction, in the summer of 2000, during the period in which United Nations weapons inspectors were not present in Iraq. And the papers show that Iraq trained dozens of terrorists inside its borders.
I have no idea if this is credible or not.
But if it is, would it really be that big of a surprise?
Speaking of go away, the Supremes rejected the telemarketers' appeal of the Denver court's ruling which upheld the 'do-not-call' list.
Mark one up for the right to be left alone.
I'm thinking of applying for a temporary position at Technisource, but don't know anything about them. Anyone have any info I should know? Is it a good company for which to work, or should I grab my resume & run screaming in the other direction?
For all my Arkansas readers, just a reminder that today is the last day to register to vote. If you haven't already done so, get off your ass & go visit the county clerk.
Early voting will open on October 18th. Avoid the lines (and door-to-door campaigners) by taking advantage of this opportunity to cast your vote. I think this year I'll post a sign on our front door: We've already voted. Go Away!
Remember what I always say:
Vote early, vote often!
I noticed over the weekend that the political signs of both presidential candidates continue to disappear around Fayetteville. In NYC, things are apparently getting a bit more heated.
Linda Fuda, 62, told The Post she was waiting in the lobby of a friend's Central Park West building yesterday carrying a Bush/Cheney sign and bumper stickers when Ruth Spitz, who was also in the lobby, suddenly accosted her.
Spitz told her "get out of here with that trash, you don't belong here," Fuda said.
Fuda answered, "It's not your building, it's everyone's building," at which point, she says, Spitz ripped the sign and threw it down.
"I bent down to pick it up, and she hit my backside with her cane and then she tried to push me out the door." Fuda said.
The alleged assaultee is a retired college professor who denies the assault, but claims they did shove each other.
She added she's not worried about the cops.
"There's nothing I can do about it. I felt she had no business carrying that sign," she said.
First there's destruction of private property, now there's two little old ladies throwing down in a high-dollar Central Park lobby.
I hate to think of what else is likely to happen between now & the election.
The Arkansas Supremes ruled Friday that Nader will be on the ballot for the upcoming election. (Read the opinion here.)
So move Arkansas over to Bush's column. This'll kill Kerry's chances here, which is why the Arkansas Democratic Party challenged his inclusion on the ballot.
I've posted some of our photos from the Bikes, Blues & BBQ rally yesterday. The rally promoter is claiming a weekend attendance of 250,000.
That might be a little high, but it was pretty packed on Dickson Street yesterday afternoon.
Yep, it's my 44th birthday. Yay me! And yay to Paul for being the first to comment with anticipatory happy birthday wishes on Friday.
And an even bigger Yay to Daniel, who is the very first to wish me a Happy Birthday today.
Thank you very much to both of you. You guys are the bomb!
My son had to catch a 6 am flight this morning back to Japan, so we all loaded up yesterday afternoon and headed for Tulsa. Got back this morning around 8 am, and after 4+ hrs. cramped up in the car & only a few hours sleep, my knees weren't in very good shape. But nevertheless, we caught a few more hours sleep and headed out to take in the BBB rally this afternoon.
I have never seen so many freaking motorcycles in one place in my life....except maybe the time we were in DC & caught a Veteran's Rally. And Dickson St. was wall-to-wall people. Interesting people too, including this one 'chick' about my age wearing black leather chaps, white lace underwear and a white lace bustier. And nothing else. She would've been much more interesting if the gag factor hadn't outweighed the giggle factor. Trust me guys. It wasn't nearly as attractive as you might think.
The bikes at the Discovery Biker Build-off were really awesome....though we didn't actually vote for either. We were headed inside to vote when we noticed a large sign that said if we went inside, we would be filmed & Discovery could basically use our images in any way they chose, in perpertuity.
No thanks, and kiss my ass Discovery Channel.
We wandered around for a couple of hours, and I'll bet we still didn't see half the bikes there. There were just about any type of bike you could imagine, and many that were beyond imagination. Really cool, and worth the aggravation of the huge crowd & limited parking.
Now if I can just find an ice pack for my aching knees.
The 5th Bikes, Blues & BBQ motorcycle rally starts today, and it should be a big success.
Organizers expect as many as 200,000 people and 75,000 motorcycles on and around Dickson Street through the weekend. At least 5,000 bikes were on Dickson by 8 p.m. Thursday, with tonight and Saturday expected to be the biggest nights.
One of the local tv stations said the other night that the BBB (as it's called locally) was currently ranked in the top 5 bike rallies nationwide. Heck, even the Discovery Channel's going to be here Saturday night, filming their season finale for their Biker Build-Off show. We may even brave the crowds for that.
Y'all drop by too if you're in the neighborhood.
Apparently political advertisment vandalism is more of a problem than I originally thought, judging from some of the comments I got to my previous post.....and now this in this morning's local paper.
The Fayetteville Police Department announced they are investigating the theft of political campaign signs. "The stolen signs are not limited to one candidate, but a group of candidates," said Sgt. Shannon Gabbard.
Sgt. Gabbard doesn't say which group of candidates, but it really doesn't matter. Stealing or defacing political signs is morally wrong....and illegal.
Theft of a political campaign sign is usually a misdemeanor offense. If the cumulative or individual value reaches $500.00, the charge may be escalated to a felony offense.
That'd be real impressive on your resume wouldn't it, a felony conviction for destruction of private property?
First it was cigarettes, then fattening food. Now caffeine is headed for the Health Police hit list.
A single cup of coffee a day can produce "caffeine addiction," according to a study from Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, which has declared caffeine the most "behaviorally active drug" on the planet....Based on his findings, Dr. Griffiths anticipates that caffeine withdrawal could be included in the next edition of the national Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, compiled by the American Psychiatric Association and considered the veritable bible of such things among medical professionals.
So what you say? Guess what's coming next.
In March, Albany-based Soy Coffee began promoting "National Caffeine Awareness Month" to raise the American consciousness about "detection and prevention of caffeine addiction in the U.S."
In a statement last year, the coffee substitute manufacturer noted that "caffeine can hurt a person's overall health and well-being," declaring that "caffeine is not only considered habit forming, but also addicting."
Coffee just took the first steps towards being regulated and restricted. Because after all, you people can't be trusted to make your own decisions.
Just you wait and see.
Watched the debate last night, and I have to agree with Dick Morris. (Ick! Did I really just say that?) From a strictly collegiate debating standpoint, Kerry kicked Bush's ass. He was smooth, well-prepared and collected.
But this ain't a college debate competition.
Kerry not only had little of substance to say, what little substantive information he gave showed an appalling ignorance of how the real world works.
Example: repeatedly hammering Bush for sending 'Afghan tribal warlords' after bin Laden. Hello? Does he really think we'll capture Osama any other way? I'm no Afghan expert, but I do recognize a hillbilly clan culture when I see one. And you're not going to find anyone who doesn't want to be found in that kind of culture without getting the locals' assistance, except by accident. Ask any former revenuer.
And does Kerry really believe that we don't need China's help with North Korea? Clinton already tried 'bilateral talks' and we've all seen what that led to. The carrot didn't work, now we're left to wield the stick. And no one wields a bigger stick with Kim il Poofy Hair than China.
I'll leave it to others to nitpick over the blatant contradictions in his statements (and there were several), but for the most part his message was what it's always been. A) He's not Bush; and B) he would do things differently & better cuz he's just cool like that.
That may've played in a pre-Sept. 11th world, but that world no longer exists. As Bush said, this isn't about just Afghanistan or even Iraq. This is a global war, against an enemy whose hatred of us knows no bounds.
And nothing I saw last night convinced me that Kerry understands that at all.