'TBH Politoons'
(Held Over)
Thanks, again, Tim!
Reader Rant
Re: 'Passion...'
"Passion", my rump...
Doesn't history teach us enough about sheepism, and science about the behavior of lemmings? Any political science course will inform that repetition of a lie enough times will tend to reinforce erroneous beliefs.
I do not dispute the existence of a historical Jesus, but the bullshit over supernaturalism has to be fought! I'd like to think of myself as a secular Humanist, but the sight of so many tearful self-flagellants exiting theaters who buy this crap as anything other than "Hollywood" makes me retch!
Given what we know about the universe, and our "dust-mote" status therein, this collective hypnotism has got to stop. It is useless for the common good, and misdirects from a hopeful future that depends upon religious differences to be set aside.
All religion requires that one suspends evidence of the five senses we are all born with, and buy flavors from a menu in the sky that have yet to manifest themselves.
Mel Gibson has spent his millions on his personal ghosts, betting on his name to perpetuate more myth. To date, he seems to've succeeded. More shame on really stupid people who never got past the psychic need for Mommy, Daddy, Tooth Fairy, and Santa.
I fear for the human race when so many claim to have a clear path to their personal gods, "speak" for them, and attempt to lead us "bullshit" detectors down their garden path. Every single mass murderer throughout history has been a master at manipulation to bolster their case, tossed in religion, and would probably wish that they had Gibson's cute face and financial purse to shut up detractors.
Mel Gibson is one sick puppy who is obsessed with violence. If he had some conviction that violence might perpetuate love, he is sadly out of touch with what I wish to teach my grandchildren. He is on an ego-trip to push idiocy to a new level, ---witness the goulash that was "Signs". So the guy is famous --- his education is severely limited.
~ Michelle V
Thanks, Michelle!
from Mark
Another Bumpersticker
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
Reader Rant #2
Help...I'm surrounded by idiots!
Hey, Marty:
You want a rant? I've got a huge one, and please feel free to edit...I am pissed and I tend to get carried away!
The supreme idiots here, in South Dakota's Repugnant-controlled state legislature have actually passed legislation outlawing abortion, making no provision for rape or incest! That's right, no provisions for the incest-factor!
I'm not a native to S.D., and am seriously wondering what the hell I am doing here. To make it worse, after a tornado (one of 64 in one day in this state) put an 80-year-old tree through my roof, I moved from S.D.'s largest town to a county the size of Rhode Island, with only 7,500 people, 3 paved roads and 2 towns. This is the kind of place where you don't get a job at the county courthouse unless you are republican. This is the kind of place where a man (republican, of course), governor for over 16 years, our one state representative in congress, and admitted publicly that he sped all the time (hey, he paid the fines when he got caught, that makes it okay, right???) could kill a man while he was speeding and only get 30 days in prison.
Now this...I honestly didn't think that the folks here could get anymore small-minded or judgmental!!
If Gov. Mike Rounds signs this into law, South Dakota will face shelling out millions of dollars in court costs when its wisdom is inevitably challenged. Needless to say, the state does not have the money to spare for this!!
I can't help but feel that this is something that's been in the works for a while, and would not be a bit surprised if it turned out that Dubya's admin. has decided it needed someone to challenge the Roe vs. Wade amendment and needed some sucker state to initiate the proceedings. Now, I hear on the news as I write this, that they passed a bill in the House, giving victims rights to fetuses. Bush has supported this bill, an "election-year priority for his conservative base". Sounds like Dubya is definitely angling toward outlawing abortion nationally. (Read about it at:
http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/02/26/unborn.victims.ap/index.html).
Gov. Mike Rounds has 5 days to decide whether or not to sign our new bill into law...I wasn't able to find an email address for him or his office, but I hope that people will take the initiative to contact him and let him know just how archaic this thinking is!! Our lawmakers are not only out of control, but not representing the wishes of the majority in good faith on either the state or national level!
Thanks for listening!!!
Tiera H
OMG, Tiera!
In my little corner of the PA backwoods, when Choice became legal, certain members of the local catholic church took it upon themselves to check into the lives of several women following nursing careers out of the area.
This self-righteous, self-appointed church committee felt they HAD to because the nurses might be assisting doctors performing abortions, and if they were, then everybody in the world HAD to know these women were baby killers. They went way out of their way to make life unpleasant for the nurses & their families. Ah, small town America, where all the memories are golden...
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Mostly overcast, but no rain.
Local news is reporting the grocers strike/lock out may be close to over. Would be nice, but I'm not gonna get my hopes up.
Ernest Borgnine looked great on Letterman!
So did Carville on Conan.
The Oscars™ are on Sunday. Anybody have any predictions?
Tonight, Friday, CBS begins the night with a FRESH 'Joan Of Arcadia', followed by a FRESH 'JAG', then '48 Hours'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Dave are Bill Cosby and Toby Lightman.
Scheduled on a FRESH Craiggers are Peri Gilpin, filmmakers Jayson Lamb, Eric Zala, Chris Strompolos, and Hanson.
NBC starts the night with a 2-hour 'Dateline', followed by a FRESH 'Third Watch'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Jay are James Caviezel, Larissa Meek & Average Joe finalists, and Los Lonely Boys.
Scheduled on a FRESH Conan are Grant Rosenmeyer and Pete McCarthy.
Scheduled on a FRESH Carson Daly are Chris Masterson, Jim Breuer, Sklar Brothers, and Joss Stone.
ABC opens the night with a FRESH 'George Lopez', followed by a FRESH 'Married To The Kellys', then a FRESH
'Hope & Faith', followed by a FRESH 'Bonnie', then a FRESH 'Super Regis!'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Jimmy Kimmel are Diane Sawyer, Bobb'e J. Thompson, comedians David Wain & Michael Ian Black, with this week's guest co-host Anthony Anderson.
The WB offers a RERUN 'Reba', followed by another RERUN 'Reba', then a
FRESH hour-long 'Grounded For Life'.
Faux spends 2-hours with 'The Great American Celebrity Spelling Bee'.
UPN has the movie 'Mercury Rising'.
PLEASE check local PBS listings for not only the BEST, but also the most IMPORTANT program on over-the-air-TV, 'NOW With Bill Moyers'.
A&E has 'American Justice', followed by the movie 'Platoon', then 'Airline', and another 'Airline'.
AMC offers the movie 'Barbarosa', followed by the movie 'The Eiger Sanction', then the movie 'Piñata: Survival Island'.
BBC -
[6pm] 'BBC World News';
[6:30pm] 'Cash in the Attic' - Smith;
[7pm] 'Parkinson' - Clint Eastwood, Sheryl Crow, and Jennifer Saunders;
[8pm] 'My Left Foot';
[10pm] 'At Home With The Braithwaites' - Episode 6;
[11pm] 'So Graham Norton' - Nia Vardalos;
[11:30pm] 'So Graham Norton' - Roger Moore;
[12am] 'My Left Foot';
[2am] 'At Home With The Braithwaites' - Episode 6;
[3am] 'My Left Foot';
[5am] 'At Home With The Braithwaites' - Episode 6; and
[6am] 'BBC World News'. (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has 'Inside The Actors Studio', 'Queer Eye', followed by the movie 'The Player'.
Comedy Central has 'MAD TV', 'Premium Blend' (Jeff Dunham; Merrin Dungey), 'Comedy Central Presents' (Darrell Hammond), 'Comedy Central Presents' (Gabriel Iglesias),
'Comedy Central Presents' (Vanessa Hollingshead), and 'Comedy Central Presents' (Carlos Alazraqui).
History has 'Modern Marvels', 'Dead Men's Secrets', 'Mail Call', and 'Heavy Metal'.
SciFi is 'Stargate SG-1' most of the night.
TCM - Day 27 of '31 Days of Oscar™', where every movie is either an Oscar™ winner or nominee.
[6am] 'The Broadway Melody' (1929);
[8am 'The Life Of Emile Zola' (1937);
[10am] 'Around The World In 80 Days' (1956);
[1pm] 'The Apartment' (1960);
[3:30pm] 'Marty' (1955);
[5:30pm] 'Oliver!' (1968);
[8pm] 'From Here To Eternity' (1953);
[10pm] 'West Side Story' (1961);
[1am] 'Annie Hall' (1977);
[3am] 'The Last Emperor' (1987). (ALL TIMES EST)
Actor Ed Asner studies the cards while playing poker at the World Poker Tour Invitational during filming of the 'World Poker Tour' series for the Travel Channel, Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2004, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif. The second season of the series, which shows everything during the game including each player's hidden cards, begins its second season Wednesday, March 3.
Photo by Rene Macura
The Information One-Stop
Moose & Squirrel
'Government Is Inspiring'
Aaron Sorkin
Aaron Sorkin was among those who took part in a discussion Wednesday night about how Hollywood's portrayal of government workers can inspire people to enter public service.
"It's a lot of hard work for the greater good without very much reward at all," Sorkin said.
But he also joked about the differences between Washington and Hollywood: "I think in Hollywood, the writing is better."
The panel's moderator was Joe Lockhart, White House spokesman under President Clinton.
The panel also included Carol Mendelsohn, executive producer of "CSI: Miami"; Neal Baer, executive producer of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"; and Max Stier, president and CEO of The Partnership for Public Service.
Aaron Sorkin
Worth $110,000
Oscars 'Goody Bags'
Even if they lose out on an award, this year's Oscar nominees won't go home empty-handed after Sunday's ceremony. They'll be showered with gifts totalling tens of thousands of dollars just for showing up.
While most details of this year's haul of loot are being kept under wraps, each presenter and the performer will walk off with a hefty consignment of gifts worth around 110,000 dollars.
Gifts to the presenters will include a seven-day all-expense paid sea cruise in the Mediterranean or the Caribbean, business class air tickets from Los Angeles to Auckland, New Zealand, luxury hotel stays and a 1,500 dollar dinner for two at world-class steak-house, according to USA Today.
Also featuring in the hard-to-carry booty is a giant 6,000 dollar television set and a 500-dollar expresso machine for an elite group of people who either have or can afford the items anyway.
Oscars 'Goody Bags'
A hand out image received on February 26, 2004 shows a set of 10 Lord of the Rings stamps issued by Britain's Royal Mail. The stamps were launched on Thursday to mark the 50th anniversary of the publication of the first two parts of JRR Tolkien's mystic stories of Middle Earth.
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Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award
George Barris
Car customizer George Barris, creator of Hollywood's Batmobile, the Munsters coach and the jalopy that carried the Beverly Hillbillies to Southern California, is being honoured by the automotive community.
"George was the first to bring rod and custom cars to Hollywood," publishing magnate Robert E. Petersen said in announcing Barris as his pick for the third annual Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Hot Rod Magazine founder will present the 2004 award, given for extensive contributions to the business and sport of hot rodding and restoration, during the Hot Rod & Restoration Trade Show in Indianapolis Friday.
George Barris
Passes on Limo
Keisha Castle-Hughes
Keisha Castle-Hughes, the 13-year-old "Whale Rider" star and best actress contender is one of a handful of celebrities who will be chauffeured to the gala in a Toyota Prius to help promote the use of hybrid cars powered by both gasoline and electricity.
"Even though I am not old enough to drive, I am old enough to know that the environment is in danger," Castle-Hughes said in a statement. "By taking a hybrid car to the Oscars, I can show my support for helping the environment."
Charlize Theron, Sting, Robin Williams, Jack Black, Tim Robbins and Will Ferrell were among those committed to arriving at the red carpet in a hybrid car, courtesy of the environmental group Global Green USA.
Keisha Castle-Hughes
www.globalgreen.org
Visits Libya
Jesse Jackson
US civil rights advocate Jesse Jackson arrived in Libya for meetings with government officials and to attend an extraordinary summit of the African Union, the head of the Libyan-American Friendship Association said.
Reverend Jackson, who has made several previous visits to Libya, will stay in the north African country for three days, Adel al-Daimi told AFP. The visit is a "personal initiative," Daimi said.
Jesse Jackson
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
Clear Channel Cares
Howard Stern
Radio shock-jock Howard Stern on Thursday blamed a conservative backlash prompted by the exposure of singer Janet Jackson's breast on television for the suspension of his show after a broadcast including talk of anal sex and offensive racial slurs.
During on-air banter with Rick Salomon -- whose claim to fame is a widely distributed tape of him having sex with reality TV star Paris Hilton -- a caller asked Salomon if he had ever had sex with a famous black woman, using offensive language.
"They (Clear Channel) are being forced to say that I did something wrong," he said on Thursday's broadcast.
Stern was pulled off radio stations in Rochester, N.Y., Pittsburgh, San Diego, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Fla., and Louisville, Ky. indefinitely, by San Antonio, Texas-based Clear Channel. He remains in about three dozen other U.S. markets.
"It was vulgar, offensive and insulting, not just to women and African Americans but to anyone with a sense of common decency," Clear Channel President John Hogan said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
Howard Stern
So John Hogan finds Howard's guests' words 'vulgar, offensive & insulting' - and not just to women & African Americans? Has he ever listened to Pigboy?
Huge waves batter Baker Beach in San Francisco on Thursday Feb. 26, 2004 as storms continue to approach the West Coast. Waves are expected to reach 30 feet.
Photo by Susan Ragan
'Ashamed' of Programs
Clear Channel
"Bubba the Love Sponge" is gone and radio shock Howard Stern is on hiatus from some stations. TV networks are time-delaying certain shows to make sure inappropriate material doesn't make it onto the airwaves.
Several broadcasters endorsed higher fines. John Hogan, president Clear Channel Radio, said the move would "serve as a 'shot across the bow' of the industry, putting us all on notice that Congress and the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) are serious about cleaning up the airwaves."
Hogan said he was "ashamed" of the "Bubba" show. The program, which aired in Florida, recently brought a proposed $755,000 FCC fine for sexually explicit content and other alleged indecency violations.
"We were wrong to air that material," Hogan said. "I accept responsibility for our mistake and my company will live with the consequences of its actions."
Clear Channel
So John Hogan is 'ashamed' of the 'Bubba' show? Has he ever listened to Pigboy?
New Album
Afroman
More than two years after scoring an offbeat hit with the stoner track "Because I Got High," hip-hop artist Afroman is readying the release of a new two-disc set.
Due April 20, "Afroholic: The Even Better Times," will be issued on the artist's own Hungry Hustler Records label, distributed by Redeye.
"Afroholic" taps into familiar territory for the blunted rhymesmith, boasting more than 30 songs, including "Let's Get High Tonight" and "Just My Paranoia."
Afroman
Wedding News
Carpenter - O'Donnell
Former talk show host Rosie O'Donnell married her longtime girlfriend Thursday, taking what she called a proud stand for gay civil rights in the city where more than 3,300 other same-sex couples have tied the knot since Feb. 12.
"I want to thank the city of San Francisco for this amazing stance the mayor has taken for all the people here, not just us but all the thousands and thousands of loving, law-abiding couples," O'Donnell said, after she Kelli Carpenter emerged from their brief ceremony inside Mayor Gavin Newsom's office.
Carpenter - O'Donnell
Film Institute Honors
Jack Valenti
Jack Valenti, head of the Hollywood trade group that oversees the movie-ratings system, received the American Film Institute's Charlton Heston Award Thursday for his contributions to the industry.
Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Association of America and a founding board member of AFI, was the second recipient of the Heston award, which the group instituted last year. Heston himself was the first to receive the honor.
Jack Valenti
Formerly 'The Vidiot'
Agrees to Plea Deal
Mike Tyson
Former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson agreed on Thursday to plead guilty to disorderly conduct instead of assault for his part last year in a Brooklyn hotel brawl.
The case had appeared set to go to trial when last-minute settlement negotiations broke down on Thursday morning, but just as jury selection was about to begin in Brooklyn criminal court, Tyson struck a plea deal.
The trouble-prone Tyson agreed to 100 hours of community service -- lecturing, training and instructing at Gleeson's boxing gym in Brooklyn and undergoing counseling. He also took responsibility for his actions.
Mike Tyson
Millions of gallons of water gush from bypass tunnels near Hoover Dam, Thurdsay, Feb., 26, 2004, in Nevada, as part of a Bureau of Reclamation safety test.
Photo by Joe Cavaretta
Wins Journalism Award
Michael Jackson Interview
A British television interview in which Michael Jackson said he sometimes let children sleep in his bed has been named program of the year in the Royal Television Society's TV journalism awards.
The industry group on Tuesday announced the award to Martin Bashir's 2003 interview, saying it showed "great journalistic enterprise."
Michael Jackson Interview
May Head to ABC
Martin Bashir
British celebrity interviewer Martin Bashir, whose talk with Michael Jackson was seen by 27 million people on ABC a year ago, is negotiating to come to American television.
ABC spokesman Jeffrey Schneider would not comment Thursday on a report in a British newspaper that Bashir had agreed to move to ABC when his contract with Granada Television expires in July. But Schneider called Bashir a talented journalist who "would be a great addition to any news organization."
Martin Bashir
Putting Manuscripts Online
Johann Sebastian Bach Archive
The Johann Sebastian Bach Archive in Leipzig will restore and digitalize original scores by the composer, with the idea of giving people access to the works via the Internet, officials said Thursday.
The project will restore 44 original compositions from Bach's second Leipzig cantata cycle, as well as scores, manuscripts and books about Bach from the 17th to 19th centuries.
At the same time, the archive plans to electronically catalogue its holdings, considered to be the most important in the world, and make them available on the Internet as well.
Johann Sebastian Bach Archive
Wedding Scene Cut From Film
Affleck & Lopez
A wedding scene with Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez has been scrapped from director Kevin Smith's upcoming "Jersey Girl," according to Us Weekly magazine.
"I didn't know if (it was right) to leave it in," Smith is quoted as saying in the March 8 issue. "People might forget they're watching a picture, like, `Wait, didn't these two NOT get married?'"
Affleck & Lopez
Guard Reportedly Admits Theft
Georgia O'Keeffe
A security guard accused of trying to steal a Georgia O'Keeffe painting from the museum where he worked admitted he also lifted an O'Keeffe from a nearby museum, authorities said.
Authorities accuse William Crumpton of trying to steal an O'Keeffe painting and cash from the privately owned Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, where he worked. The 1919 painting "Red Canna," valued at about $500,000, was recovered along with the cash, police said.
Crumpton, 44, later admitted to a December theft of another O'Keeffe painting, valued at $1 million, at the nearby state-owned Museum of Fine Arts, authorities said. Crumpton had worked there as a security guard from 1992 until 1997, according to officials.
Georgia O'Keeffe
1st Spotted in 200 Years
Michigan Wolverine
A biologist has confirmed the sighting of a real Michigan wolverine, about 200 years after the species was last seen in the state that uses the small but ferocious animal as its unofficial nickname.
Coyote hunters spotted a wolverine near Ubly, about 90 miles north of Detroit. Michigan Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologist Arnie Karr saw the forest predator Tuesday and snapped pictures of the animal as it ran out of the woods and across a field.
The appearance is "up there with having a caribou or a polar bear turn up," Department of Natural Resources spokesman Brad Wurfel said Wednesday. "It's unprecedented."
Michigan Wolverine
ABC OKs New Episodes
5 Series
ABC is stocking up on five of its comedies, ordering extra episodes of "My Wife and Kids," "According to Jim," "Hope & Faith," "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter" and "Less Than Perfect."
The additional order will bring the total order for "My Wife and Kids" to 30 half-hours, for "According to Jim" and freshman "Hope & Faith" to 26 and for "8 Simple Rules" and "Less Than Perfect" to 24.
5 Series
A Lesson In spin
'Disappearing The Dead'
When planning war, military officials have various targets: enemy combatants, their support forces, the surrounding civilian population, and their national infrastructure. But there are other targets as well, although these are not always discussed publicly. Among the most important of these is public opinion, both the world at large, and the highest priority - that of their own public. This holds true especially in a democracy, when one is fighting a war of choice - as in invading another country - instead of fighting a war of national survival.
In such wars, issues like human rights and civilian casualties loom larger. Since such casualties are inevitable, special pains must be taken to explain them away. But how to do so?
In a word, spin. Such is the conclusion of a just-released monograph, "Disappearing the Dead: Iraq, Afghanistan and the Idea of a New Warfare" by Carl Conetta of the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Project on Defense Alternatives (PDA).
The PDA documents how the Bush administration has taken spin to a new level. It notes that increased international and domestic attention to the collateral effects of military operations has been a persistent concern of the US defense community since the Vietnam War. And thus has it taken significant steps to minimize that concern. The "US Defense Department, State Department and White House conducted large-scale perception management" or "strategic influence" campaigns in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, as well as in support of the broader "war on terrorism" according to the PDA study.
For the rest of a most enlightening read, 'Disappearing The Dead'
The Body Politic
Jesse Ventura
Like a pro wrestling match where the featured performer walks out and whips up the crowd beforehand, Jesse Ventura's first Harvard class began early and outside the ropes. Arriving at Lowell House for his weekly seminar, Ventura -- a visiting fellow at the Kennedy School's Institute of Politics this semester -- waited for another class to finish. While he stood outside, students eager to hear from the former wrestling star and Minnesota governor, whose reputation for shooting from the hip is well established, gathered around. He did not disappoint.
Teaching at Harvard: "Some felt I'm not academically qualified, and they're right."
Political fund-raising: "It's panhandling. . . . That's the system we have, though. It's based on bribery."
The California recall election, won by his pal Arnold Schwarzenegger: "A joke."
For the rest of an entertaining read, Jesse Ventura
Found in Antarctica
Two New Dinosaur Species
Two new species of dinosaur, one a quick-moving meat-eater and the other a giant plant-eater, have been discovered in Antarctica, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.
The 70 million-year-old fossils of the carnivore would have rested for millenniums at the bottom of an Antarctic sea, while remains of the 100-foot-long herbivore were found on the top of a mountain.
Not yet named, the animal probably floated out to sea after it died and settled to the bottom of what was then a shallow area of the Weddell Sea, said Judd Case of St. Mary's College of California, who helped find the fossils.
A second team led by William Hammer of Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois found the 200 million-year-old plant-eater's fossils on a mountaintop 13,000 feet high near the Beardmore Glacier.
Two New Dinosaur Species
Giant panda Shuan Shuan eats bamboo at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo Thursday, Feb. 26, 2004, two days after the 16-year-old, currently on a breeding mission from Mexico, received artificial semination following she was unable to spark the interest of Japan's male panda Ling Ling.
Photo by Chiaki Tsukumo
'The Osbournes'
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