I started posting links to interesting articles and columns in September 2001, and this is my third archived batch. For the most recent article links click here. And please don't forget to check out my latest humor columns and Dubya's Dayly Diary.
June 30, 2002
People have been making a big deal about yesterday's transfer of power to Cheney during Bush's colonoscopy. But I don't understand what the fuss is all about. Okay, so Cheney was President Saturday. How was yesterday different from all other days?
June 28, 2002
I get a lot of hate-mail from right wing loons, most of it unprintable and downright scary. For one thing, these "writers" seem to think that my Dubya's Dayly Diary should earn me the death penalty. For another, they just don't think I'm funny. I guess they prefer Bush's sense of humor, which boasts his tasteless and over-used trifecta joke. Too bad the alleged joke is a big, fat lie. Details, details, details.
Here's one of the very few negative letters that's actually printable:
I don't mean to be rude or anything but I gather from everything you said that you aren't too fond of George W. Really quick, I think he is a great President. What did Clinton do when the USS Cole (I think) was attacked, nothing! Ever hear of defending your country. What did Clinton ever do against Arafat and his bombings, nothing! How many scandals was Clinton involved in, Lots! What were his morals for our younger generations, Nothing! What did Bush do when we were attacked, Fight Back! How many scandals has he been involved in, go ahead find some! What kind of morals does he have, oh he has good marriage! What did he do with Arafat, warn him and now he wants him out! Moral of this. Bush is terrible and Clinton was great and Gore would have been better. Riiiiight. Madkane....You're an absolute moron. Get a life and if you don't like our country and its values, get out of here. Later. (Name withheld)
Hey, at least he didn't call me a communist whore, like they usually do.
So what lesson do I draw from that email? Beware of letters beginning with the words "I don't mean to be rude or anything but..."
June 27, 2002
A federal appeals court (9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals) has finally declared the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional because of the words "under God" added by Congress in 1954. "A profession that we are a nation `under God' is identical, for Establishment Clause purposes, to a profession that we are a nation `under Jesus,' a nation `under Vishnu,' a nation `under Zeus,' or a nation `under no god,' because none of these professions can be neutral with respect to religion," Judge Alfred T. Goodwin wrote for the three-judge panel.
Thank God!
Bush gave his usual thoughtful and measured response on hearing about the decision: He labeled it ridiculous. Of course it could have been worse. At least he didn't have the three judges arrested. Not yet, anyway.
The Senate was on the ball too, immediately recognizing that this travesty of justice was far more important than defending our Homeland. So they dropped everything and passed a unanimous resolution denouncing the court's decision.
Hearing stuff like that makes me want to burst into song. God Bless America, anyone?
For some reason I can't quite fathom, the New York Times devoted an entire article to Bush's incessant prattle about his dogs. I guess his dog-loving act is supposed to be humanizing, maybe even endearing. But I find it unbearably annoying. I happen to like dogs. In fact, I come from a dog-loving family. But the only thing I want to hear about Dubya's dogs, is that they've moved with Bush back to Crawford.
Here's something else I'm tired of hearing about: How fast Bush can run. The only good part of this story is that a handful of staffers had the strength of character to not let him win.
You've probably figured out by now that I'm unlikely to say anything good about Bush on these pages. But there'll be some positive stuff here too. For instance, I'll be recommending favorite sites, humorists, books, music, and cartoons. And there's sure to be lots of blogscratching. What's blogscratching? A clever word coined by blogger Public Nuisance. According to Nuisance it means "the exchange of links and/or favorable mentions between blogs. I.e. you scratch my blog and I'll scratch yours." Public Nuisance -- consider yourself blogscratched.
And while I'm on the subject of blogscratching, I'm going to plunge ahead and blogscratch one of my favorites weblogs: E-Media Tidbits This group weblog is always packed with juicy stuff. On 6/25 it introduced me to a new must-read: Corante On Blogging, which Steve Outing describes as "The Bloggers Blog." It deserves that title.
And here's the weird part: Before I got a chance to post this, Corante On Blogging kindly and coincidentally, recommended my Bloggers Rhapsody. Thank you, Corante.
While I'm acknowledging kind deeds, many thanks to Bob at one of my very favorite liberal sites Democrats.com. He sent a ton of traffic my way Tuesday with his enthusiastic mention.
I have to go now. My other blog is feeling neglected.
June 25, 2002
Be afraid. Be very afraid. Ann Coulter has launched a website. And it even has photos! No doubt she posted them as a public service. Who needs pornography when you have Ann Coulter?
The Rittenhouse Review did a very entertaining send-up of Coulter's site on June 24th. Don't miss it!
I note that Coulter's June 20th column, currently decorating her home page, has something negative to say about Bush's policy on racial profiling. She'd better watch out, or Ari won't let Dubya walk around pretending to read her new book.
And now that we're discussing Bush, his administration's motto re corporate malfeasance (and so many other things) could well be described as "Feign Outrage. Do Nothing." Case in point: Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill says "people should be 'outraged' by recent corporate scandals." Tapped points out that we're outraged already and wonders when O'Neill and his boss plan to do anything more than spout about it. I wonder the same thing. Then again, working out can be very time-consuming.
And President Gym-Rat does seem to spend an inordinate amount of time working out and telling others to do the same. I'm most impressed with his diligence in the phys-ed department, though I can't help wondering why Bush doesn't have a better bod.
Hmmm, I guess the damage from early bod-abuse is tough to undo. In any event, thanks to Smirking Chimp for pointing me in the direction of Walter Brasch's thoughtful and entertaining column which skewers Bush's hypocritical "Healthier Us" initiative.
I was going to write something angry about the proposed Homeland Security Law and its despicable provision exempting employees from whistleblower protection. Because heaven forbid another Coleen Rowley-type person tells tales out of school about the department's screwups. No, we can't be having troublemakers like her getting away with stuff like that.
Oh yeah, and the department would also be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act. I am so angry I could... Never mind. Anyway, for more on the subject check out Josh Marshall.
June 24, 2002
Boy am I blushing! Eric Olsen of the fun & eclectic Tres Producers had some lovely things to say about my humor, even comparing me to the much better known -- damn him! -- James Lileks. Olsen says in a June 22 entry that I am a humorist "who is actually funny.... She has a great song parody about blogging here."
If you have any interest in culture, politics, or music, you'll want to check out Tres Producers regularly. And if you don't, what the heck are you doing here?
I think the story about the treatment of political cartoonists post 9/11 should be very disturbing to anyone concerned about censorship and self-censorship. The always insightful Tom Tomorrow has some interesting thoughts on the subject today, saying in part: "There's nothing in the Constitution that guarantees your right to exercise freedom of speech free from criticism. That's just part of this job, always has been. Yes, it's gotten a lot uglier since Sept. 11. The smug vileness harbored by many self-defined "real" Americans is extraordinary to behold, and it's admittedly disturbing to be on the receiving end of that sort of barrage, but I just can't throw out my arms and cry martyrdom when, to my knowledge, I haven't lost a single paper as a result of my "unpopular" opinions."
For my satirical take on the issues of censorship and self-censorship, written shortly after 9/11, there's this.
Public Protests NPR Link Policy NPR has officially joined the ranks of the clueless. They've posted a notice saying you need written permission to link to them. Hahahaha! Aside from the seriously questionable legality of this policy, it's out and out stupid. No links, no traffic. Hell, maybe we should just comply and let them see what the consequences are. And while we're at it, maybe we shouldn't listen to NPR shows either. Naaah, no can do. That would leave me bereft here in NYC with but one classical music station plus right-wing radio. Hmmm, on the other hand, maybe I'll just spend that donation check on something else.
Seriously, what's wrong with their brains? Everyone knows that the key to getting site hits is links, the more the merrier. Ask any blogger The ironic thing is that NPR's hits have surged because bloggers are now punishing it by flagrantly violating its policy and linking. Could this have been NPR's plan all along? Maybe I should post my own "no linkage without permission" notice so I can be punished too.
Bush's Blog Just in case you've missed all my "subtle" references to Dubya's Dayly Diary, Bush has his very own weblog based right here. But mine's more literate.
A Wall St. Push to Water Down Securities Laws So, you thought Enron, etc. might lead to tougher securities laws? Dream on. An amendment being pushed by the usual suspects would prevent states from policing securities fraud. But don't you bother your little head about that: Ashcroft's fed regulators will protect us, if they have any time left over after monitoring brothels and prosecuting medical marijuana "felons." And to think that Bush ran as proponent of states' rights. Oh yeah, I forgot -- he was a lowly governor back then.
Politicians on Drugs Paul Krugman does his usual fine job. This time he's comparing and contrasting the two Medicare prescription drug plans being considered in Congress. The Democrat plan is workable. The Republican plan sucks. Now there's a shock.
Bush, Rumsfeld Voice Support for Army Secretary What I want to know is, what the hell does White have on Bush and Rumsfeld? White's ability to hold on to his job no matter what he's caught doing is beyond belief.
May 7, 2002
The Intrusion Explosion Did Dubya lie to us about his position on privacy? William Safire sure thinks so and he has the health care privacy facts to back it up. Read about an issue that manages to bring Georgia's conservative Bob Barr and New York's liberal Jerry Nadler together on some sorely needed legislation.
Bush isn't on the ballot, but his influence is "The White House is running the earliest, most elaborate political operation in 20 years, reaching deep into key campaigns across the country…Bush has headlined 23 fundraisers since taking office and collected $66.8 million for the GOP. At the same point in his presidency, Clinton had appeared at half as many..." Read on , and let's just hope that the Democrats are paying attention.
