'TBH Politoons'
Thanks, again, Tim!
Fun Link
Astro's Link
The Onion
Thoughtful, Well Written Essay
'Is There Anything Left That Matters?'
by Joan Chittister, OSB
This is what I don't understand: All of a sudden nothing seems to matter.
First, they said they wanted Bin Laden "dead or alive." But they
didn't get him. So now they tell us that it doesn't matter. Our
mission is greater than one man.
Then they said they wanted Saddam Hussein, "dead or alive." He's
apparently alive but we haven't got him yet, either. However,
President Bush told reporters recently, "It doesn't matter. Our
mission is greater than one man."
Finally, they told us that we were invading Iraq to destroy their
weapons of mass destruction. Now they say those weapons probably
don't exist. Maybe never existed. Apparently that doesn't matter
either.
Except that it does matter.
I know we're not supposed to say that.
I know it's called "unpatriotic."
But it's also called honesty.
And dishonesty matters.
For the rest, 'Is There Anything Left That Matters?'
from Steve B
Thanks, Steve - what a great essay!
But, I learned at an early age that nuns know words, and how to use them.
(I also grew up in the Erie diocese)
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Overcast til mid-afternoon, and it was lovely.
Then, what started out to be a good day, rapidly went south when the kid complained that he had a 'juicy mouth'. That means regurgitation will soon follow, and I really regretted the rice we had for lunch.
I'm good with most things gross, except puke - triggers my gag reflex, so we ended up with 2 generations 'driving the porcelain bus'.
And lots of laundry for later. Argh.
But, because I'm up late, saw James Earl Jones on Letterman, and then the new Dead do 'Casey Jones'.
Tonight, Friday, CBS begins the evening with a FRESH 'Baby Bob', followed by a RERUN 'Yes, Dear', then a RERUN
'Hack', and finally '48 Hours'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Dave are Luke Wilson and Jesse Malin, with guest host Kelsey Grammer.
Scheduled on a FRESH Craiggers are Carnie Wilson, McG, and Skye Sweetnam.
NBC starts the night with a RERUN 'Crossing Jordan', followed by 'Dateline', then a RERUN 'Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Jay are Matt LeBlanc and Pink.
Scheduled on a FRESH Conan are Luke Wilson and Solomon Burke.
Scheduled on a FRESH Carson Daly are Cheri Oteri, Joey Fatone, Jack Hanna, and Jewel.
ABC opens the night with a RERUN 'America's Funniest Home Videos', followed by a FRESH (but recently cancelled) 'Whose Line Is It?', followed by another
FRESH (but recently cancelled) 'Whose Line Is It?', then '20/20'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Jimmy Kimmel are Steve Garvey and Jane's Addiction, with this week's guest co-host Perry Farrell.
The WB offers a FRESH 'Reba', followed by a FRESH 'What I Like About You', then another FRESH 'Reba',
followed by a FRESH 'Grounded For Life'.
Faux has a FRESH 'Fastlane', followed by another FRESH 'Fastlane'.
UPN here has baseball & it's a freeway series - the no-longer Disney Angels cruise up I-5 to visit Rupert's Doggers.
Check local PBS listings for the BEST SHOW ON TV - 'NOW With Bill Moyers'.
KDOC, channel 56 (aka: the Pat Boone channel) from Orange County has the Roger Corman classic 'Little Shop Of Horrors' at 7:30pm. Shot in under a week, it stars Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph, and Jack Nicholson.
A&E has 'Biography' (Johnny Cash), followed by 'Live by Request: Starring B.B. King & Friends'.
AMC offers the movie 'Enter The Dragon', followed by the movie 'Highlander'.
BBC has 'Ground Force' - Saltash (7pm),
'Changing Rooms' - Penistone (7:30pm),
'Coupling' - My Dinner In Hell (8pm),
'Manchild - Episode 1 (8:40pm),
'Coupling - The Man With Two Legs (9:20pm),
'The Office' - Episode 1 (10pm),
'The Office' - Episode 2 (10:40pm),
'The Office' - Episode 3 (11:20pm), and
'So Graham Norton' - Jerry Hall, Sylvia Kristel (12am). (ALL TIMES EDT)
Bravo has 'Fame', followed by the movie 'Dressed To Kill'.
History has 'Histories Mysteries', followed by 'Mouthpiece: Voice', then 'The XY Factor'.
SciFi starts the night with the 'Hulk' infomercial, followed by 'Tremors: The Series', then 'Stargate SG-1', and 2 'Scare Tactic's.
TCM celebrates experiments gone wrong night with the movie
Frankenstein (1931), followed by the movie Donovan's Brain (1953), then the movie
The Invisible Man (1933), followed by the movie Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941), and then the movie
The Satan Bug (1965).
USA has the Season Premiere of 'Monk'. Hopefully, ABC will pick it up again to fill their overtly shitty and monumentally deficient summer schedule.
Anyone have any opinions?
Or reviews?
(See below for addresses)
Actors Kevin Bacon and his wife, Kyra Sedgwick, pose for photographers at the '6 Degrees: Kevin Bacon Tribute Event to Benefit Earth Communications Office's Climate Star campaign' special pre-opening event held Wednesday, June 18, 2003, at AMC Burbank 16, in Burbank, Calif. Various movies in which Bacon appears were shown at the event, which raised money for Earth Communication Office's print advertising campaign about global warming. AMC is opening a new movie complex to the public on Friday.
Photo by Ann Johansson
The Information One-Stop
Moose & Squirrel
Explains Album Title
Radiohead
Sales of Radiohead's new effort Hail To The Thief, Number Three on the Billboard 200 album chart, have been spurred on by the release of the album's first single, "There There," MTV's airplay of the video, and some one-off shows in the New York City area, including the Field Day festival.
Radiohead bassist Colin Greenwood said the band chose the title Hail To The Thief because they didn't want to be subtle about where they stand on world politics.
"The title of the record for us was all about shaking hands with the world as we all find it, rather than sort of hiding in a bunker and sort of moaning or berating it from within some kind of retreat," Greenwood said.
Radiohead
Not Happy With New FCC Rules
Senate Commerce Committee
The Senate Commerce Committee voted Thursday to restore ownership restrictions that limit how media companies can merge and grow, aiming to counter a Federal Communications Commission decision to relax the rules earlier this month.
The proposed legislation would roll back changes allowing individual companies to own television stations reaching nearly half the nation's viewers and combinations of newspapers and broadcast stations in the same city. The bill also would change radio ownership rules in a way that could force companies to sell stations.
"I would like the FCC to start all over," said Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, who supported reversing the rules. She said they are "potentially dangerous to media diversity in this country."
FCC Chairman Michael Powell and the two other Republicans on the five-member FCC relaxed those rules on June 2 in a 3-2 party-line vote.
The bill, sponsored by Sens. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and Ernest Hollings, D-S.C., would roll back the national ownership limit so a company can own TV stations reaching only 35 percent of U.S. households instead of 45 percent. The bill passed by a voice vote.
News Corp., owner of Fox, and Viacom Inc., which owns CBS and UPN, benefits from the higher cap because mergers have pushed the media giant above the 35 percent level. The News Corp. companies could be forced to sell stations if a new law is enacted and upheld in court.
Senate Commerce Committee
The Library of Congress has acquired the first map to name America as a separate continent, the only known copy in existance. The 1507 map by Martin Waldseemueller was printed from 12 separate woodblocks and covers 36 square feet. Labeled the crown jewel of the library's map collection by Librarian James Billington, the map is scheduled to go on display July 1, 2003 at library's Jefferson Building across from the capitol in Washington.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Visit U.S. Troops
Hollywood Celebrities
Some 7,000 U.S. soldiers sweated and swayed through a USO show in an aircraft hangar in Baghdad on Thursday, as several American celebrities competed for their attentions.
Stars who flew to Baghdad for the show included singer Kid Rock, actor Gary Sinise, National Football League players Duce Staley and Jason P. Taylor and actress Rebecca Romijn-Stamos and her husband, actor John Stamos.
The stars signed autographs and shook hands with the troops.
Hollywood Celebrities
Shake Hands
Clinton & Giuliani
Former President Clinton and former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani shared a backstage handshake at a charity luncheon.
That wouldn't be news ordinarily, but a New York Post columnist reported Wednesday that organizers of Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope luncheon had labored to keep the Republican ex-mayor and the Democratic former president far apart because they "can't stand each other."
Giuliani arrived at Cipriani's restaurant after Clinton had left the podium Wednesday but met him backstage and offered his hand. Later, he told the crowd: "I want to make it clear that on the way in I shook hands with President Clinton."
As the crowd tittered, he added, "And I don't want you to read anything into this but I also — just in order to prove that any allegation to the contrary is untrue — I gave him a little hug. Don't read anything into that. We don't need any more rumors."
Farm Aid
Nelson, Young, & Mellencamp
Farm Aid
Farm Aid mainstays Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews are set to headline the 2003 edition of the annual festival, to take place Sept. 7 at the Germain Amphitheater in Columbus, Ohio.
Additional artists will soon be added to the concert, which raises awareness and funds for family-owned U.S. farms.
Farm Aid tickets will go on sale June 28 via Ticketmaster. Tickets range from $36-$78, and proceeds are donated to farm organizations across the U.S. To date, Farm Aid has raised more than $24 million to promote the family farm agriculture system, according to the organization.
Farm Aid
Art Auction
Elton John
Shopaholic pop star Elton John will offload 11 years of collected artworks at an auction of the contents of his London home later this year that is expected to fetch close to $1.7 million.
It will be the second time he has cleared his shelves to make room for more items after he sold the contents of his Windsor home in 1988 in a three-day auction of nearly 2,000 lots of memorabilia, jewelry and works of art.
The sale of more than 400 lots from his home in west London's Holland Park suburb includes 19th century Biedermeier chests of drawers, tables and chairs, paintings by Edward Bower and William Larkin, Italian bronzes and Venetian glass.
Elton John
The Gay Icon?
Terminator
The eagerly-awaited Terminator sequel Rise Of The Machines is poised to turn Arnold Schwarzenegger's time-traveling cyborg into a gay icon. At the opening of the new sci-fi thriller - touted as the most expensive movie ever made - Schwarzenegger's naked character enters a gay nightclub featuring erotic male dancers to steal a black leather jacket and trousers.
But the muscle-bound star insists the camp reference isn't a deliberate attempt to win over gay fans. He says, "The Terminator has been associated with leather. It's the most memorable kind of outfit that was created for any character in the history of motion pictures. I think the gay population is part of our society and the Terminator is an icon character for people who are gay or not gay - liking him has nothing to do with sexual preference."
Terminator
Billboard Vandalized
Johnny Carson
Don't mess with Johnny Carson in his hometown. Someone used fluorescent pink spray paint last month to scrawl vulgar words on one of three billboards featuring Carson that greet visitors as they enter Norfolk, Neb.
"We received several calls right away and dispatched a crew to remove it entirely," Chamber of Commerce President Dan Mauk said Wednesday.
The damage was discovered May 27. There's little chance the culprit will be caught, Mauk said.
People volunteered to help pay for repairs, and one person who wanted to remain anonymous asked simply that the bill be sent to him. Repairing the sign, which took about a week, cost a few hundred dollars, Mauk said.
Johnny Carson
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
Baby News
Kate Hudson & Chris Robinson
"Almost Famous" actress Kate Hudson and her musician husband Chris Robinson announced Thursday they are expecting their first child. The couple has been married since December 2000.
It will also be the first grandchild for Hudson's mother, actress Goldie Hawn, and stepfather, Kurt Russell.
The child is due sometime early next year, according to the couple's publicist, Brad Cafarelli. He refused to say how far along the pregnancy is.
Kate Hudson & Chris Robinson
The North American Eagle, a former Lockheed F-104 Starfighter that will be used in an attempt to set a new land speed record in the fall of 2004 at Black Rock Desert north of Reno, Nev., or at Cold Lake in Alberta, Canada.
North American Eagle
Romance On The Rocks?
Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock got engaged in the Las Vegas desert in April 2002, but never set a wedding date.
Anderson wasn't wearing her engagement ring last week during a promotional appearance for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in Florida.
"The word that best describes me now is 'free,'" the 35-year-old told People magazine for its June 30 issue. "That's all I will say. I'm a mom, and that's where my life is at."
She also showed up at a June 10 party at the Playboy mansion without Rock, whose real name is Bob Ritchie. When Us Weekly magazine asked about future nuptials, she said: "Assume what you want about a wedding. ... I'm here with family and friends. That might be a hint."
Pamela Anderson
Spinoff Jettisoned
'Gilmore Girls'
The WB Network's spinoff of its hit dramedy "Gilmore Girls" is not going forward.
The network and sibling producing studio Warner Bros. TV have decided to pull the plug on the project, which had received a six-episode midseason order.
The series, from "Gilmore Girls" creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and her husband, Daniel Palladino, was to center on "Gilmore Girls"' Jess Marino (Milo Ventimiglia), who goes to live with his estranged father (Rob Estes) in Venice, Calif.
To set up the spinoff, Marino left the small Connecticut town where "Gilmore Girls" is set for Venice in an episode of the show this spring. It is not clear whether the character will now return to the mothership series.
'Gilmore Girls'
Appeals Court Upheld Injunction
Spike Lee
Film director Spike Lee won a victory against media conglomerate Viacom Inc on Thursday when an appeals court upheld an injunction preventing the company from renaming its TNN cable network "Spike TV."
The five appellate judges of the State Supreme Court ruled that Viacom could appeal in September.
Lee, the 46-year-old director of such films as "Malcolm X," "25th Hour" and "Do the Right Thing" had won a temporary injunction last week stopping the name change. He said he feared he would be erroneously associated with the network.
Spike Lee
Formerly 'The Vidiot'
Postpones Show at MGM Grand
Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield will not perform at the MGM Grand Garden Arena next month as planned.
Dangerfield, 81, needs more time to rest after recent surgery, said Kevin Sasaki, the comic's Los Angeles-based publicist.
Sasaki said Dangerfield's doctor decided the July 19 show would have been too demanding and advised rescheduling it later this year.
Rodney Dangerfield
www.rodney.com
A nun looks at a painted cow placed in central Brussels June 19, 2003 as part of an exhibition called 'Art on Cows'. One hundred and eighty-seven cows have been decorated and will be dispatched around the city for a three-month exhibition to promote art before being sold for charity.
Photo by Yves Herman
Speaks on Alcoholism
Willard Scott
Willard Scott is talking about his battles with alcohol abuse in hopes of helping other people get sober.
The longtime weatherman on NBC's "Today" show said he attended his first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting two months after his wife, Mary, died of cancer in October 2002.
"I didn't fall down to the gutter but I had my problems," Scott, 69, said in an interview for C-SPAN's "Booknotes," where he was discussing his book "The Older the Fiddle, the Better the Tune." The interview airs at 8 p.m. EDT July 13.
"I think I drank pretty good. And Mary used to always keep me in line," he said. "I drank three or four drinks every night. I mean I was up to about 12 ounces of scotch seven nights a week. Loved it, loved it, loved it. And then after she died, there was nobody to keep me straight."
Willard Scott
C-SPAN "Booknotes" Web site
Farewell Grosses Confound Biz
Cher
During one of the more playful moments in Cher's long-running farewell concert tour, the redoubtable Oscar winner cracks a ringmaster's whip and issues a stern warning to would-be successors "J. Lo, Britney and Christina," challenging them to "top this, you bitches."
Turns out she needn't have given those ladies a second thought.
While formerly hot sellers like Mariah Carey have scaled down this summer because of poor sales, and others such as Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake aren't doing quite the hoped-for business, promoters continue to wring far more out of Cher's farewell than they -- or she -- ever could have imagined.
After more than 140 shows, Cher's Living Proof Farewell Tour has grossed $130 million and enters its second summer as one of the season's strongest draws; her new greatest-hits CD, "The Very Best of Cher," just hit 1 million in sales and spent two improbable months in Billboard's Top 10; on July 6, NBC will rebroadcast the concert special that was a ratings-grabber in April; ABC's "Prime Time Live" just refreshed a 2002 interview for the third time with new footage; there's a concert DVD due in August; and Warner Strategic Marketing is also readying a long-awaited music video package on DVD for Oct. 28.
Yet there was little fanfare or media coverage when the 57-year-old singer slipped quietly (for her) into New York's Madison Square Garden last week to celebrate the tour's one-year anniversary with two lively sell-outs. While she has pared at least four songs since the tour premiered, jettisoning a low-key segment that used to be a highlight, ovations from the all-ages crowd were as passionate as ever. Fans are rightly sensing her contentment onstage, a relaxed confidence that has often eluded her over her wide-ranging 40-year career.
For the rest, Cher
Recruited For CBS Spinoff
Sasha Alexander
Sasha Alexander has been tapped to star in CBS' new drama "Navy CIS," a spinoff of the network's veteran military legal drama "JAG."
Alexander will play a tough, competitive Secret Service agent who joins the Naval Criminal Investigative Service team in the center of the show and butts heads with the team's leader, played by Mark Harmon.
The series is slated to air in "JAG's" Tuesday 8 p.m. slot and extends the actress' relationship with CBS. This spring, she starred in the network's drama pilot "Expert Witness." She also co-starred on CBS' medical drama "Presidio Med" this past season.
Sasha Alexander
Top 100 Celebrity List
Forbes
Pop princess Britney Spears learned on Thursday that fame can be fleeting as she disappeared from this year's Forbes Top 100 Celebrity List after last year's No. 1 spot.
Replacing her at the top is Jennifer Aniston, one of TV's "Friends" stars, who earned $35 million last year and appeared on more magazine covers than any other celebrity.
Jennifer "J-Lo" Lopez and Ben Affleck emerged as Hollywood's hottest new power couple, occupying the fifth and seventh spots on the list, with a combined income of $65 million.
Rappers Eminem and Dr. Dre take the number 2 slot this year, also earning $35 million, but with nearly 2 million web hits. Golfer Tiger Woods slipped from 2 to 3, while earning $78 million -- $9 million more than last year.
Aniston's female "Friends," Lisa Kudrow (30) and Courteney Cox (41) made the list, but only one male co-star, Matthew Perry (25).
"Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling, catapulted from 34 in 2002 to 15 this year amid anticipation about the latest book in the children's series. Rowling's earnings increased by about $90 million, up from $41.8 million.
While golfer Woods was by far the most powerful sports celebrity, basketball legend Michael Jordan was 13 with motor racing's Michael Schumacher at 19. Soccer star David Beckham entered the list at 56, but without Spice Girl wife Victoria.
Rounding out the top ten were movie director Steven Spielberg (4), ex-Beatle Paul McCartney (6), Oprah Winfrey (8), Tom Hanks (9) and The Rolling Stones (10).
Forbes
Indian tribal girl Karnamoni Handsa, 9, looks at her husband, a two-year old dog named Bachchan, in Khanyan, 60 km (37 miles) northwest from Calcutta, state capital of the eastern Indian state of West Bengal June 19, 2003. Local media reported on Thursday that Handsa married the stray dog in a ceremony last week as part of a ritual to ward off a bad omen. Other news media reported that the marriage does not interfer with Handsa's life, with her being allowed to marry again later in life and suffer no stigma.
Photo by Sucheta Das
'Ark of Darkness'
"The Ark of Darkness", a Political/Science-Fiction work, in tidy, weekly installments (and updated every Friday).
Set in the Himalayas, researchers investigating a glacier bound shipwreck quickly learn it's not Noah's Ark.
Driven inside, the group must journey through Hell itself to get back to the 21st century world.
Today, Hitler returns as our adventurers fall back from the end of time and land in the heart of the Inferno.
'The Osbournes'
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 4
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 3
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 2
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 1
