Barack Obama is the antichrist and/or Hitler

"Do you think before you speak?" Hahahah, hilarious.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Unusual Suspect

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

The Brokers With Hands on Their Faces Blog

Funny stuff:

U.S. Troops out of Iraq by 2010

My boy looks like he's going to fulfill this promise:

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama plans to order that all U.S. combat troops be withdrawn from Iraq by August 2010, administration officials said Tuesday, ending the war that defined his upstart presidential campaign three months later than he had promised.

Obama's plan would pull out all combat troops 19 months after his inauguration, although he had promised repeatedly during the 2008 campaign that he would withdraw them 16 months after taking office. That schedule, based on removing roughly one brigade a month, was predicated on commanders determining that it would not endanger U.S. troops left behind or Iraq's fragile security.

Pledging to end the war in 16 months helped to build enormous grass-roots support for Obama's White House bid.

Mormon Commerical, "Who Broke My Window?"

Thanks to my brother for this. I can now die a happy man.

Devin Harris's Half-Court shot for the win last night against the Sixers

Mormon Commercials from the 1980s

Anyone else remember this classic gem from the 80s? I would be eternally grateful if someone had a video of this somewhere:

ON: Who broke my windooooooow?
AR: Mr. Robinson, Mr. Robinson!
ON: What a horrible mess!
AR: I broke your window with my ball--
ON: YOU?
AR: --and I've come to confess.
ON: You knew I'd be angry!
AR: Yes!
ON: You're afraid!
AR: YES!
ON: You'll have to pay for this mess you've made, but I'm proud of you boy, for you have displayed honor! The stuff from which heroes are made!
AR: I! Told! The! Truth!

"Arrested Development" movie is going to happen

Good news here. Too bad Michael Cera is acting like a diva about all this:

Ron Howard confirmed at Sunday's Oscars that the "Arrested Development" movie was in fact going ahead and that show creator Mitch Hurwitz is in the process of writing the script. (Video of MTV's brief interview with Howard is pasted below.)

Howard also said that he's been asked not to talk about who's in and who's out, which is an obvious reference to long-time hold-out Michael Cera.

A fish with a transparent head

All I can say is wow.

My cousin's correspondence with a scam artist

He may have too much time on his hands, but this is funny stuff:


> From: confirmation@westernunion.com> Subject: Treat As Urgent ----- Western Union> Date: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 07:41:56 +1030>> Hello,>> I'm Sure you must have been trying to send me an email regarding the $100,000 which is meant to be transferred to you.>> There is an error with the previous email.>> All you need to do is send me the last email you sent me to my previous email and we would go from there.>> Just reply to this email and we would receive it.>> Thanks,>> Western Union



From: _@hotmail.comTo: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comSubject: RE: Treat As Urgent ----- Western UnionDate: Thu, 19 Feb 2009 23:31:50 -0500
Hi--
Thank you for contacting me. Here is my information:
1.Full Name: Karma Sonam Wangyal2.Full Address: 4234 Alameda las Pulgas, Redwood City, CA, 943123.Marital Statue: Single4.Occupation: Engineer5.Age: 366.Sex: Male7.Nationality: American8.Tel.Number: 650 845 96759.Country Of Residence: United States
Thank you again.



From: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comTo: _@hotmail.comSubject: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 06:45:47 +0000

Attn
I am happy to inform you that the verification of your information sent to us was submitted to Your embassy here in united kingdom for screening and we just received a telegram stating that all your data submitted have being confirmed correct. (though it corresponded with what we have on record from the IMF) we have been advised to proceed with your transfer once you meet with the payment of our charges, but please be informed that transfer made cannot be picked up by you until you have fulfilled all your financial obligation as required of the International Monetary Fund(IMF). Please be informed that the funds are coming directly from the International Monetary Funds headquarters and we are only to pay beneficiaries once they meet their financial obligations. Also note that Western Union is not allowed to make all payment at once via Western Union Money Transfer due to the way the fund came to our headquarters and for security reasons. You are required to pay for the International Remittance File and the service charge attached to your first pay-out of $10,000.This is because the IMF did not pay for them.
The Western Union Charges fee/payment for your International Remittance File is £490 ( 490 pounds ) Your first pay-out of $10,000 has been sent to you but it has no Receiver's Name therefore you will be unable to pick it up until you remit the £490 ( 490 pounds ) to us before we can purchase the Remittance file with your name and put your name as the Receiver Name. Note that the remaining fund/payment will be paid in installments in the following order: 1. $10,000 made payable to you from the western union
2. $90,000.00 made payable to you via bank wire transfer from our designated paying bank. Upon receipt of the fee for the purchasing of your International Remittance File, you are receiving your first Pay-Out of $10,000
The money which has already been made ($10,000) will be withdrawn back and remember that the detail of the money that is available for you now does not bear your name as the Receiver's Name until you make the payment of the £490 ( 490 pounds ) You are to send the required £490 ( 490 pounds ) through any Western union outlet in your country to me using the information below so that your Remittance file can be purchased. Name: Mac Taylor
Address: 3 western union building,
City: London
zip code: SW15 6TL
country: United kingdom As soon as you have made the payment,you are advised to send the below to me immediately in order to pick it up and effect your transfer. Sender's Name:Sender's Address:Money Transfer Control Number (M.T.C.N):Total Amount Sent:
Have a nice day. Regards,
Mr. Mac Taylor


From: _@hotmail.comTo: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 01:50:20 -0500
Dear Mr. Taylor--
Thank you for the email below. I have just wired you over 500 pounds. Please confirm the receipt.
Thank you.
Karma


From: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comTo: _@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 06:53:09 +0000
Hello Again,
There is nothing to confirm as i didn't get any information from you
What is the details for the money you wired?


From: _@hotmail.comTo: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:24:59 -0500
Hello Sir--
I wired the money to the address you gave me below. Please confirm the receipt.
Thanks.


From: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comTo: _@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 15:28:06 +0000
Hello Again,
You are advised to send the below to me immediately in order to pick it up and effect your transfer. Sender's Name:Sender's Address:Money Transfer Control Number (M.T.C.N):Total Amount Sent:



From: _@hotmail.comTo: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:38:41 -0500
Sir--
Here is the info you requested below:
Sender's Name: Karma SonamSender's Address: 2234 Alameda de las pulgas, Red Wood City, CA, 94312, USAMoney Transfer Control Number (M.T.C.N): 213-45678-534e346Total Amount Sent: 500 Pounds.
Thank you.


From: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comTo: _@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 15:40:08 +0000
Scan the receipt


From: _@hotmail.comTo: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:57:35 -0500
Dear Sir--
I don't have a scanner, can you please wire me $10 so I can go to the shop to scan the receipt.
Thank you.


From: westernuniotransfers@hotmail.comTo: _@hotmail.comSubject: RE: WESTERN UNION TRANSFER FEEDate: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 16:04:24 +0000
Do not contact us again

An Apple smackdown

I feel this guy a little, although I think he's a bit over the top and is generalizing a bit. I have used a lot of Apples at past jobs and thought they were great computers and have considered buying one and will probably own an Apple laptop in the future, I'm sure. But, I must say the whole "cool code" with Apple bugs the shit out of me. Just think about those condescending PC vs. Mac commercials, for example.

And here's the other thing in terms of just system performance there is no difference anymore. The reason: all new Apples use the same fucking Intel chips as the PCs do.

Of course, there is an argument to be made that OS X is superior to Vista, and which very likely may be. (For the record, I am using Vista right now, and dig it quite a bit. Whether it compares to OS X is hard for me to say.) Anyway, check out this guy's comments:

As I have said many, many times, there are good things about Apples and good things about PCs. If it makes sense to you to buy an Apple, go with god. And many Apple owners do just that, buy a product, use it and enjoy it. I’ve considered getting an Apple laptop in the past and may in the future. But it amazes me, absolutely amazes me, the number of Apple owners who lack the clarity or self-awareness to realize that purchasing a commodity from a enormous, soulless corporation that is also owned by several million other people doesn’t make you a unique and beautiful snowflake. Apple has a better PR campaign, better advertising and a more gullible, credulous customer base. That’s it. It’s got nothing to do with individuality or noncomformity. I know many people are probably saying that this is a completely banal thing to say but I am consistently astounded by otherwise smart people who will tell you different.

Kate Winslet finally gets her "holocaust" oscar

Oh delicious irony.

The future of books?

What do you think?

The robust e-book market—more than 50 percent of the sales of many titles (also a bit more than 10 years off)—will have been fueled by features built into e-books that can’t be replicated in print versions. For example, e-books will frequently use moving images as illustrations, rather than stills. And, of course, e-books all will have links, which will be consistently listed as the No. 1 deficiency responsible for the rapid abandonment of paper books.

Rihanna's Beaten Face

Pretty fucking bad. 

Great Quote

"Had one of those days When you wanna try heroin, Drunk driving, Some form of soft suicide."
-- The Weakerthans, "Leash."

I've been there. I think we've all been there.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs new single

Stereogum has a stream of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs new single "Zero." I kind of dig it, I'm looking forward to the new album.

Michael Cera Flips Out ala Christian Bale

God, this is funny.

Great Quote

Bunk Moreland: I'm just a humble motherfucker with a big-ass dick.
Lester Freamon: You give yourself too much credit.
Bunk Moreland: Okay then. I ain't that humble.

Nate Silver moves on to the Oscars

Yes, the sage who predicts baseball players stats and elections, has moved on to the Oscars, again using statistical analysis to predict the winners:

Supporting Actor
Heath Ledger...........................85.8%
Josh Brolin.................................5.0%
Philip Seymour Hoffman........4.4%
Michael Shannon......................3.6%
Robert Downey Jr. .....................1.2%

Last year, Javier Bardem’s sadistic killer in No Country for Old Men swept all the awards. This year, it’s The Dark Knight’s Heath Ledger. Usually we’d need to account for a small chance of an upset; the Academy does lean toward the lighthearted in this category (think Alan Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine). But given Ledger’s untimely death, he’s a lock.

---

(Photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures)

Supporting Actress
Taraji P. Henson.......................51.0%
Penélope Cruz..........................24.6%
Viola Davis................................11.6%
Amy Adams...............................11.6%
Marisa Tomei.............................1.2%

Most of the major awards in the Supporting Actress category have been won by Kate Winslet for The Reader—a role the Academy misguidedly considers a lead. That’s nice for Winslet, not so nice for our computer. Penélope Cruz, who won the BAFTA for her role in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, would seem the logical default. But computer sez: Benjamin Button’s Taraji P. Henson! Button, which looks like a shutout everywhere else, is the only Best Picture nominee with a Supporting Actress nod, and Best Pic nominees tend to have an edge in the other categories.

---

(Photo: Niko Tavernise/Courtesy of Fox Searchlight)

Lead Actor
Mickey Rourke.........................71.1%
Sean Penn.................................19.0%
Brad Pitt.....................................5.9%
Frank Langella..........................3.4%
Richard Jenkins........................0.5%

Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke have split the two awards that traditionally predict success in this category, with Penn winning Screen Actors Guild and Rourke the Golden Globe. But Rourke has an additional advantage: If an actor, like Penn, has been nominated several times without nabbing a statue, his odds of winning increase. Once he does win, odds go way down. Penn won Best Actor five years ago for Mystic River.

---

(Photo: Melinda Sue Gordon/Courtesy of the Weinstein Company)

Lead Actress
Kate Winslet.............................67.6%
Meryl Streep.............................32.4%
Anne Hathaway........................0.0%
Melissa Leo................................0.0%
Angelina Jolie ...........................0.0%

While Streep has won both the sag Award and the Critics’ Choice for Doubt, Winslet has amassed even more hardware for The Reader (albeit as Supporting Actress—Silver resolved this dilemma by giving Winslet half-credit for awards she won as a Supporting Actress). Equally important: Winslet is due. She’s sitting on her sixth nod without a win, while Streep has won both Best Actress (Sophie’s Choice) and Best Supporting Actress (Kramer vs. Kramer). One thing’s for sure: Anne Hathaway’s going home empty-handed.

---

(Photo: Patrick McMullan)

Best Director
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire.................................99.7%
Gus Van Sant, Milk...................0.1%
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button..................0.1%
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon......0.0%
Stephen Daldry, The Reader..0.0%

When the Academy wants to rebel, it does so with Best Director—this is where “edgy” films are rewarded when it can’t muster the courage to do so for Best Picture (Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain, Steven Soderbergh for Traffic). That means Danny Boyle—who has won all the top awards for Slumdog Millionaire—is a shoo-in.

---

(Photo: Ishika Mohan/Courtesy of Fox Searchlight)

Best Picture
Slumdog Millionaire..............99.0%
Milk................................................1.0%

Frost/Nixon...................................0.0%
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.......................0.0%
The Reader..................................0.0%

Slumdog Millionaire won all three awards associated with Oscar success: the Directors Guild Award, the Golden Globe, and the BAFTA. It’s also a serious film, which the Academy favors. If there’s an upset (which would be a shocker), it will be Milk; guilt over Prop 8 and the Brokeback snub of ’06 could split the vote, with Boyle getting Director and Milk getting Picture.

Who is this guy?

I really want to meet this cat...

200 greatest rock songs of the 1990s

In preparation for a 90s party I'm planning to throw soon with my roommates, here's a list of the 200 greatest rock songs of the 1990s. Here's the top 50:

1. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana
2. Losing My Religion - R.E.M.
3. Jeremy - Pearl Jam
4. One - U2
5. Nuthin' But a "G" Thang - Dr. Dre
6. Under The Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
7. Waterfalls - TLC
8. Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton
9. Doo Wop (That Thing) - Lauryn Hill
10. Loser - Beck
11. Nothing Compares 2 U - Sinéad O'Connor
12. Gangsta's Paradise - Coolio
13. Creep - Radiohead
14. You Oughta Know - Alanis Morissette
15. California Love - 2Pac
16. O.P.P. - Naughty by Nature
17. Wonderwall - Oasis
18. November Rain - Guns N' Roses
19. Black Hole Sun - Soundgarden
20. Mama Said Knock You Out - LL Cool J
21. Enter Sandman - Metallica
22. Smooth - Santana and Rob Thomas
23. Mo Money Mo Problems - Notorious B.I.G.
24. 1979 - Smashing Pumpkins
25. Paranoid Android - Radiohead
26. My Name Is - Eminem
27. All I Wanna Do - Sheryl Crow
28. Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve
29. Come As You Are - Nirvana
30. No Diggity - BLACKstreet
31. Closer - Nine Inch Nails
32. Sabotage - Beastie Boys
33. Alive - Pearl Jam
34. Don't Speak - No Doubt
35. Vogue - Madonna
36. Tennessee - Arrested Development
37. Song 2 - Blur
38. Killing Me Softly - The Fugees
39. Been Caught Stealing - Jane's Addiction
40. Groove Is In The Heart - Deee-Lite
41. What I Got - Sublime
42. Killing In The Name - Rage Against The Machine
43. Regulate - Warren G
44. Longview - Green Day
45. Hard Knock Life - Jay Z
46. Iris - Goo Goo Dolls
47. I Believe I Can Fly - R. Kelly
48. Plush - Stone Temple Pilots
49. Enjoy The Silence - Depeche Mode
50. Crash Into Me - Dave Matthews Band

My favorite song of these top 50? Probably "Wonderwall" by Oasis.

Who believes in evolution?

Another reason that I'm proud to have grown up in a Buddhist and Hindu home:

The Claim: Never Blow Your Nose When You Have a Cold

This seems pretty counterintuitive. I know I don't stop blowing my nose when I'm sick:

To test the notion, Dr. J. Owen Hendley and other pediatric infectious disease researchers at the University of Virginia conducted CT scans and other measurements as subjects coughed, sneezed and blew their noses. In some cases, the subjects had an opaque dye dripped into their rear nasal cavities.

Coughing and sneezing generated little if any pressure in the nasal cavities. But nose blowing generated enormous pressure — “equivalent to a person’s diastolic blood pressure reading,” Dr. Hendley said — and propelled mucus into the sinuses every time. Dr. Hendley said it was unclear whether this was harmful, but added that during sickness it could shoot viruses or bacteria into the sinuses, and possibly cause further infection.

The proper method is to blow one nostril at a time and to take decongestants, said Dr. Anil Kumar Lalwani, chairman of the department of otolaryngology at the New York University Langone Medical Center. This prevents a buildup of excess pressure.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Blowing your nose can create a buildup of excess pressure in sinus cavities.

What Alabamians and Iranians Have in Common

I always thought the Middle East and the South had a lot in common. Now it looks like I have proof:

The proportion of those who say religion is important in their daily lives is highest in Mississippi, at 85% -- a figure that is slightly higher than the worldwide median (among all countries, rich and poor). Two others, Alabama (82%) and South Carolina (80%) are on par with the worldwide median.

Lining up these percentages with those on our worldwide list allows us to match residents of the most religious states to the global populations with which they are similar in terms of religiosity. The results produce some interesting comparisons -- Alabamians, for example, are about as likely as Iranians to say religion is an important part or their lives. Georgians in the United States are about as religious as Georgians in the Caucasus region.

Great Quote

"I don't wanna go to no dance unless I can rub some tit." -Lester Freamon.

If anyone cares...

I'm taking a day off from blogging. I have too much to do.

Milton Friedman on Greed

My knowledge of economics is too limited to make any really sound economic counterarguments against what Milton Friedman says here. But I will say this: any society that is founded on the concept of "greed" is going to inherently be a materialistic one. And in my view, materialism and spiritualism are incompatible concepts.

I just think to many of the role models and celebrities of today's society and wonder are they the result of greed and materialism gone rampant? Paris Hilton, Donald Trump, corporate lawyers making $200,000 a year defending pharmaceutical companies, Wall Street douchebags at some ritzy Manhattan bar? Why are these the most lauded in our society? I don't know. But I think back to that great American novel, The Great Gatsby, and what it has to say about greed and whether it is making America spiritually bankrupt. Those characters, Daisy and Tom, had more money than they knew what to do with. But they were the shallowest, most miserable and amoral people around.

These aren't and never will be my role models because despite what Gordon Gecko might say, Greed is not good.

Great Poem: Craig Raine's "a Martian Sends a Postcard Home"

I just discovered this poem, and it took me about three readings before I understand everything that was going on. A riddle poem is always nice to read because of the challenge. Toughest line to figure out? "Only the young are allowed to suffer openly. Adults go to a punishment room with water but nothing to eat." It took me a bit, but I'm fairly certain I got it. Be curious to hear what you think.

A Martian Sends a Postcard Home
by Craig Raine

Caxtons are mechanical birds with many wings
and some are treasured for their markings --

they cause the eyes to melt
or the body to shriek without pain.

I have never seen one fly, but
sometimes they perch on the hand.

Mist is when the sky is tired of flight
and rests its soft machine on ground:

then the world is dim and bookish
like engravings under tissue paper.

Rain is when the earth is television.
It has the property of making colours darker.

Model T is a room with the lock inside --
a key is turned to free the world

for movement, so quick there is a film
to watch for anything missed.

But time is tied to the wrist
or kept in a box, ticking with impatience.

In homes, a haunted apparatus sleeps,
that snores when you pick it up.

If the ghost cries, they carry it
to their lips and soothe it to sleep

with sounds. And yet they wake it up
deliberately, by tickling with a finger.

Only the young are allowed to suffer
openly. Adults go to a punishment room

with water but nothing to eat.
They lock the door and suffer the noises

alone. No one is exempt
and everyone's pain has a different smell.

At night when all the colours die,
they hide in pairs

and read about themselves --
in colour, with their eyelids shut.

Obama still popular as fuck

Despite all the noise over the stimulus bill, Barack Obama is still damn popular. And in the interest of bipartisanship, I say this: suck it, Republicans. Pass the damn bill already:

CNN, shows that President Obama is viewed very positively in the legislative battles over the stimulus bill, while the Republican Party remains the unpopular player in this game

Obama has a 76% overall job approval and 23% disapproval. On the economy specifically, his rating is 72%-28%. Meanwhile, Congress has a very poor rating of 29%-71% -- but it quickly becomes clear that this should be not be simply laid at the feet of the majority Democrats, and is instead the GOP's fault.

The Democratic leadership in Congress has a solid rating of 60%-39%, while the Republican leaders are at 44%-55%. Furthermore, respondents said by 74%-25% that Obama is doing enough to cooperate with Republicans, while they say by a 60%-39% margin that Republicans are not doing enough to cooperate with him.

10 Greatest Running Backs of all-time

Here's a list of the 10 greatest running backs of all-time. While Barry Sanders is number 3 on this list, I think he should be number 1. Just check this highlight clip below. Unreal.

A-Roid

So A-Rod admits to using steroids. It's too bad. Even before he started taking steroids, he was a once in a generation talent:

Alex Rodriguez admitted in an interview with ESPN on Monday that he used performance-enhancing drugs for several seasons at the beginning of this decade, but he said he has not used the substances since then.

“When I arrived at Texas in 2001 I felt an enormous amount of pressure to perform,” Rodriguez told Peter Gammons.

He added: “Back then it was a different culture. It was loose. I was young. I was stupid. I was naïve. And I wanted to prove to everyone that I was worth being one of the greatest players of all time. I did take a banned substance, and for that I am very sorry and deeply regretful.”

The acknowledgment by Rodriguez came two days after Sports Illustrated’s Web site, SI.com, reported that Rodriguez had tested positive for steroids in 2003, when he was in his last season with the Texas Rangers and won the first of his three Most Valuable Player awards.

Job Losses in Recent Recessions

Scary.

Sarah Palin: What I've Learned

Apparently she hasn't learned much. I think the kids I work with could come with wiser thoughts than "everything I've needed to know I learned through sports." Really?

We had flutes and trombones around the house. For my siblings and me, music was important to give us some balance. If it weren't for music, our entire social life, our avocations, all would have had to do with sports.

Everything I've ever needed to know I learned through sports.

Bored, anonymous, pathetic bloggers who lie annoy me.

I'll tell you, yesterday the Anchorage Daily News, they called again to ask — double-, triple-, quadruple-check — who is Trig's real mom. And I said, Come on, are you kidding me? We're gonna answer this? Do you not believe me or my doctor? And they said, No, it's been quite cryptic the way that my son's birth has been discussed. And I thought, Okay, more indication of continued problems in the world of journalism.

You have to let it go. Even hard news sources, credible news sources — the comment about, you can see Russia from Alaska. You can! You can see Russia from Alaska. Something like that — a factual statement that was taken out of context and mocked — what you have to do is let that go.

I would think we all tear up during the national anthem at the beginning of a baseball game, don't we? That's an alikeness between Alaskans and New Yorkers.

If I were giving advice to myself back on the day my candidacy was announced, I'd say, Tell the campaign that you'll be callin' some of the shots. Don't just assume that they know you well enough to make all your decisions for ya. Let them know that you're the CEO of a state, you're forty-four years old, you've got a lot of great life experience that can be put to good use as a candidate.

Maybe it's like when someone says, "I love you, you're perfect the way y'are, now let me change you." And I'm sure Senator McCain had to struggle with some of that, maybe early on in his campaign.

I'd been a fan of SNL for decades, and I have a lot of respect for the present talent. I knew it would be a good thing to be a part of. And also, of course, to let Americans know that I can laugh at myself, too.

My favorite place in Alaska is on a cold winter day in my own house, with fat snowflakes falling. In my nice warm home.

I eat, therefore I hunt. I want to fill my freezer with good, clean, healthy protein for my kids. That's what I was raised on. It is abundant and it is available here in Alaska, with caribou and moose and different game and lots of very, very healthy and delicious wild Alaskan seafood. That's what we eat. So that's why I hunt and why I fish.

A courageous person is anyone who loses a child and can still get out of bed in the morning.

This is what I've been telling Bristol, before she gets married, is, Bristol, there are definitely gonna be tough parts in marriage. You have to look at those tough times and remember that you have essentially a business contract with this person. You've signed an agreement: You're going to be together. And you look at it that way as you work through the tough times, because I guarantee the better time is there on the other side. That's how we've looked at it.

Fleece, lots of fleece, and skinny white-chocolate mochas. That's the best way to stay warm.

I know He hears me when I just call out to Him, which I do a lot. Oh, yes, I pray. I talk to God every day. I've put my life, so I put my day, into God's hands, and I just ask for guidance and wisdom and grace to get through one situation after another.

The secret to chili is you gotta have good mooseburger in there. I don't know if you can get moose commercially in New York. You'd have to come up here and visit me in my home, and I'll prepare it for ya.

Carmex. I'm addicted to Carmex. I don't go anywhere without Carmex.

The first place was an ice-cream store called Ferina's, in Wasilla. In a fishing village called Dillingham, I worked waitin' tables at a bar. Serving people, you learn patience. When someone's mad at you 'cause you're not serving them in the manner that they want to be served, and you've gotta be tempered and graceful.

Two meanings in Bristol's name: I worked at the Bristol Inn, and Todd grew up in Bristol Bay. But also, Bristol, Connecticut, is the home of ESPN. And when I was in high school, my desire was to be a sportscaster. ESPN was just kicking off, just getting off the ground, and I thought that's what I was going to do in life, is be one of the first woman sportscasters. Until I learned that you'd have to move to Bristol, Connecticut. It was far away. So instead, I had a daughter and named her Bristol.

Hot? If only people could see me as I come in from a run early in the morning without a trough full of makeup on, I think that they'd have a different opinion.

After a long day, if the weather's good, I like to take a long, hot run to unwind. Otherwise, lately, I take a bath with Trig, and I answer e-mails, and then we all fall asleep in my big bed while we listen to Piper read her Junie B. Jones books out loud. She's learning to read and she'll read for hours on end. It's idyllic. It's amazing.

Online Extra: Four More Quotes from Palin

I bite my lip when I'm tempted to wisecrack, because I'm always thinking of something that I'd love to say but know that I better not say it because of the position that I'm in.

There is one America, but there are different priorities reflected in individual Americans that certainly can stand in stark contrast with — I'll give you an example. Some people, money is the be-all, end-all to them. Money and power, prestige, a title next to their name is the be-all, end-all. Other people, the highest priority would be their character, their reputation, their word, and money has nothing to do with that. The beauty of America is that individuals making up this great country do have different priorities. And that's the contrast that I would point out.

We pulled out of some states that I believe we should have continued to campaign in and sent a stronger message that those states really mattered, regardless of the number of electoral votes there. The people mattered. I would have loved to have had more influence on where it was that we campaigned.

Running is my sanity. Sweat is my sanity. And that was a frustration of mine on the campaign trail, when we couldn't carve out a half an hour or an hour a day to run. The day never went as well as it would have had I had that time to go sweat.

A-Rod Used Steroids

Holy motherfucking shit:

SI.com is reporting that Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroids in 2003, the year he won American League MVP as a Texas Ranger, hitting 47 home runs. Though he’s been criticized as a diva in the locker room, A-Rod had thus far been able to avoid involvement in the steroid scandal plaguing Major League Baseball. But in 2003, when the league was struggling with how best to handle the issue, it conducted “survey testing” to determine the extent of use of performance enhancing drugs. Rodriguez’ name appears on a list of 104 players who tested positive. At the time, there were no penalties for the use of performance-enhancing drugs in the majors. A-Rod, who signed with the Yankees in 2004, has always been known as one of the most dedicated athletes in the gym. Now Rodriguez, who is expected to one day usurp Barry Bonds as all time home run king, may also take the slugger’s title as most famous steroid user.

Mickey Rourke just blue himself

Is he on his way to a support group for depressed men?

Steven Colbert goes Christian Bale on Steve Martin

Hilarious...

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Great Quote

"Patience is the greatest of all virtues."- Cato the Elder.

Scenes from The Wire: Chicken McNuggets

I got this from my friend's blog. It's another throw away scene, but like every throw away scene in The Wire, it speaks to the larger themes of the show.

What do you mean, you say?

D'ANGELO: And the nigga that invented them things still working in the basement for a regular wage thinking of a way to make the fries taste better or some shit like that. Believe.

D'Angelo isn't talking about some guy at McDonalds but every low end drug dealer like himself and Bodie.

Paul Krugman's "On The Edge"

I appreciate that Krugman wrote this column. The debate over the stimulus package by the Republicans feels disingenuous and very partisan to me. Instead of working with the president and the Democrats, many of the Republican senators are opposing the bill because of the old buzz words of "wasteful liberal spending" and "pork" and keep demanding more tax cuts to save the economy.

What they don't understand or don't seem to care is that the general theory of Keynesian economics advocates deficit spending during economic downturns to help create jobs and maintain employment. Sure, there is some waste in this stimulus bill. But most of the programs and money allocated in the bill are going to organizations with the express interest of creating more jobs.

Also, this Republican stance against hypocritical to me. We just went through 8 years of the largest increase in government size in the history of our nation and almost every Republican was behind the president on that, despite the many flaws in the Bush's White House thinking. Yet when a plan, created by many of the best economists today, to help a failing economy comes out, all they can do is rip it. Plus, I think after 8 years of Bush tax cuts and the state of our economy now, it's pretty obvious that tax cuts are not the only solution to fixing the economy. It stinks, I tells you.

Anyway, I've said my two cents. Here's Krugman:

A not-so-funny thing happened on the way to economic recovery. Over the last two weeks, what should have been a deadly serious debate about how to save an economy in desperate straits turned, instead, into hackneyed political theater, with Republicans spouting all the old clichés about wasteful government spending and the wonders of tax cuts.

It’s as if the dismal economic failure of the last eight years never happened — yet Democrats have, incredibly, been on the defensive. Even if a major stimulus bill does pass the Senate, there’s a real risk that important parts of the original plan, especially aid to state and local governments, will have been emasculated.

Somehow, Washington has lost any sense of what’s at stake — of the reality that we may well be falling into an economic abyss, and that if we do, it will be very hard to get out again.

It’s hard to exaggerate how much economic trouble we’re in. The crisis began with housing, but the implosion of the Bush-era housing bubble has set economic dominoes falling not just in the United States, but around the world.

Consumers, their wealth decimated and their optimism shattered by collapsing home prices and a sliding stock market, have cut back their spending and sharply increased their saving — a good thing in the long run, but a huge blow to the economy right now. Developers of commercial real estate, watching rents fall and financing costs soar, are slashing their investment plans. Businesses are canceling plans to expand capacity, since they aren’t selling enough to use the capacity they have. And exports, which were one of the U.S. economy’s few areas of strength over the past couple of years, are now plunging as the financial crisis hits our trading partners.

Meanwhile, our main line of defense against recessions — the Federal Reserve’s usual ability to support the economy by cutting interest rates — has already been overrun. The Fed has cut the rates it controls basically to zero, yet the economy is still in free fall.

It’s no wonder, then, that most economic forecasts warn that in the absence of government action we’re headed for a deep, prolonged slump. Some private analysts predict double-digit unemployment. The Congressional Budget Office is slightly more sanguine, but its director, nonetheless, recently warned that “absent a change in fiscal policy ... the shortfall in the nation’s output relative to potential levels will be the largest — in duration and depth — since the Depression of the 1930s.”

Worst of all is the possibility that the economy will, as it did in the ’30s, end up stuck in a prolonged deflationary trap.

We’re already closer to outright deflation than at any point since the Great Depression. In particular, the private sector is experiencing widespread wage cuts for the first time since the 1930s, and there will be much more of that if the economy continues to weaken.

As the great American economist Irving Fisher pointed out almost 80 years ago, deflation, once started, tends to feed on itself. As dollar incomes fall in the face of a depressed economy, the burden of debt becomes harder to bear, while the expectation of further price declines discourages investment spending. These effects of deflation depress the economy further, which leads to more deflation, and so on.

And deflationary traps can go on for a long time. Japan experienced a “lost decade” of deflation and stagnation in the 1990s — and the only thing that let Japan escape from its trap was a global boom that boosted the nation’s exports. Who will rescue America from a similar trap now that the whole world is slumping at the same time?

Would the Obama economic plan, if enacted, ensure that America won’t have its own lost decade? Not necessarily: a number of economists, myself included, think the plan falls short and should be substantially bigger. But the Obama plan would certainly improve our odds. And that’s why the efforts of Republicans to make the plan smaller and less effective — to turn it into little more than another round of Bush-style tax cuts — are so destructive.

So what should Mr. Obama do? Count me among those who think that the president made a big mistake in his initial approach, that his attempts to transcend partisanship ended up empowering politicians who take their marching orders from Rush Limbaugh. What matters now, however, is what he does next.

It’s time for Mr. Obama to go on the offensive. Above all, he must not shy away from pointing out that those who stand in the way of his plan, in the name of a discredited economic philosophy, are putting the nation’s future at risk. The American economy is on the edge of catastrophe, and much of the Republican Party is trying to push it over that edge.

Economy Sheds 598,000 Jobs in January

Bad, bad news:

WASHINGTON — The United States lost almost 600,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent, its highest level in more than 16 years, the Labor Department said Friday.

It was the biggest monthly job loss since the economy tipped into a recession more than a year ago, and it was even worse than most forecasters had been predicting.

In addition, the government revised down its estimates for previous months by 400,000. For December, the government revised the job loss to 577,000 compared with an initial reading of 524,000. Overall, it said, the nation has lost 3.6 million jobs since it slipped into a recession in December 2007.

“Businesses are panicked and fighting for survival and slashing their payrolls,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com. “I think we’re trapped in a very adverse, self-reinforcing cycle. The downturn is intensifying, and likely to intensify further unless policy makers respond aggressively.”

Wow. This feels like another depression, doesn't it?

Great Poem: "Archaic Torso of Apollo"

This is probably my favorite poem. I don't have a lot of time to comment on it at the moment, but let me just say this is the only poem that every time I read it calls me to look at my life and change it.


Archaic Torso of Apollo Rainer Maria Rilke
Translated by Stephen Mitchell

We cannot know his legendary head
with eyes like ripening fruit. And yet his torso
is still suffused with brilliance from inside,
like a lamp, in which his gaze, now turned to low,

gleams in all its power. Otherwise
the curved breast could not dazzle you so, nor could
a smile run through the placid hips and thighs
to that dark center where procreation flared.

Otherwise this stone would seem defaced
beneath the translucent cascade of the shoulders
and would not glisten like a wild beast's fur:

would not, from all the borders of itself,
burst like a star: for here there is no place
that does not see you. You must change your life.

The Impending Obama Meltdown

The Obama administration is a failure! Abandon ship! Abandon ship!

At least that's what the National Review wants us to think. Ugh. For 8 years they supported George W. Bush on everything, and after two weeks, and one bad cabinet pick, the whole administration is deemed a failure:

We are quite literally after two weeks teetering on an Obama implosion—and with no Dick Morris to bail him out—brought on by messianic delusions of grandeur, hubris, and a strange naivete that soaring rhetoric and a multiracial profile can add requisite cover to good old-fashioned Chicago politicking.

Tim Hudson Prospect Retro

I don't think anyone who reads this blog actually gives a shit about this, but too bad, it's my blog. It's a prospect retro of one of my all-time favorites, Tim Hudson:

Tim Hudson was drafted by Oakland in the sixth round in 1997, out of Auburn University. He was very successful in college, going 15-2, 2.97 with a 165/50 K/BB in 118 innings in ’07. Scouts liked his approach to pitching, but lack of plus velocity kept him out of the first five rounds. He pitched well in his pro debut, going 3-1, 2.51 with a 37/15 K/BB in 29 innings for Southern Oregon in the Northwest League. I didn’t grade many short-season players then, but nowadays a guy with this profile (average velocity, good secondary stuff, good college and short-season success) would get a Grade C+.

Hudson began 1998 with Modesto in the California League, going 4-0, 1.67 with a 48/18 K/BB in 39 innings. Promoted to Double-A Huntsville, he found the going a bit more difficult. He went 10-9, but with a 4.54 ERA and a 104/71 K/BB in 135 innings with 136 hits allowed. Scouts were very impressed with his splitter, but his command wobbled, shown by the high walk rate and 13 wild pitches. Scouts his tenacity, but his fastball excited no one, he walked too many guys, and wasn’t rated among the best prospects in the Southern League by Baseball America. I gave him a Grade C in the 1999 book, noting that he had decent stuff, but that the command issue would prevent success unless he solved it. I also wrote that he would probably do better as a reliever than as a starter.

Insulted by my analysis, Hudson took matters in hand in 1999, going 3-0, 0.50 with a 18/3 K/BB in 18 innings for Double-A Midland, then 4-0, 2.20 with a 61/21 K/BB in 49 innings for Triple-A Vancouver, then 11-2, 3.23 with a 132/62 K/BB in 136 innings for Oakland. His K/IP and K/BB ratios took a huge step forward, and he ended up as one of the best young pitchers in baseball.

Aside from a rough 2006 season, the only year his ERA+ was worse than league average, he’s been remarkably consistent, now holding a career record of 146-77, 3.48 with a 1372/619 K/BB in 2017 innings. His Similar Pitchers list is solid: Andy Pettitte, Bartolo Colon, Dennis Leonard, Mike Mussina, Ramon Martinez, Jim Bunning, Jack McDowell, Don Newcombe, John Candelaria, Dizzy Dean. . .all very effective pitchers, though some of them burned out in their early 30s.

As a prospect, Hudson had just one full season and two partial seasons in the minors. His A-ball numbers were very good, and his limited Triple-A exposure went well, but his Double-A performance in ’98 wasn’t very impressive, with mediocre K/BB and K/IP marks and so-so scouting reports that resulted in a Grade C rating. If you look at the totality of his career, college, minors, and majors, it was the Double-A performance which was the aberration. This is a good example of how unpredictable pitchers can be.

"Well, That Certainly Didn’t Take Long" By Maureen Dowd

Maureen Dowd takes some shots at the new Obama administration today. Some of it is justified, of course. Others... well it's part of the being the man in charge to take shit from all side. Rarely are things good enough for everyone:

It took Daschle’s resignation to shake the president out of his arrogant attitude that his charmed circle doesn’t have to abide by the lofty standards he lectured the rest of us about for two years...

The Democratic president has been spending so much time trying — and failing — to win over Republicans that he may not have noticed the disillusionment in his own ranks.

Betrayed by their bankers and leaders, Americans were desperate to trust someone when they made Barack Obama president. His debut has left them skeptical about his willingness to smack down those who would flout his high standards or waste our money.

Companies that have gotten bailouts continue to make a mockery of taxpayers.

Until it came to light Tuesday, Wells Fargo, which received $25 billion in federal funds, was blithely planning a series of “employee recognition outings” to Las Vegas luxury hotels this month.

As ABC reported, Bank of America took its $45 billion in bailout funds and sponsored a five-day carnival outside the Super Bowl stadium, and Morgan Stanley took its $10 billion in bailout money and held a three-day conference at the Breakers in Palm Beach. (Morgan Stanley had also still planned to send top employees to Monte Carlo and the Bahamas, events just canceled.)

The New York Post revealed that Sandy Weill, former chief executive of Citigroup, took a company jet to fly his family for a Christmas holiday to a $12,000-a-night luxury resort in San José del Cabo, Mexico. No matter that the company just got a $50 billion federal bailout and laid off 53,000 worldwide.

The interior of the 18-seat jet, as described by The Post, is posh, with a full bar, fine-wine selection, $13,000 carpets, Baccarat crystal glasses, Cristofle sterling silver flatware and — my personal favorite — pillows made from Hermès scarves.

Aux barricades!

25 random things on Facebook

OK, anyone else tired of these 25 random things posts on Facebook? If it's a person I know really well or is exceptionally witty, I'm fine with it, otherwise I don't need to see it.

Raptors running rampant in Indiana

I didn't realize that Indiana had a raptor population.

Obama says what George Bush could not say once in 8 years

Yes, we finally have a president who is an adult and admits when he is wrong:

WASHINGTON - “I screwed up,” President Barack Obama told NBC’s Brian Williams Tuesday in the wake of his nominee to be secretary of health and human services, Tom Daschle, withdrawing his name from consideration.

Daschle dropped out after acknowledging that he had belatedly paid more than $128,000 in taxes owed to the federal government.

“Today was an embarrassment for us,” Obama said. He said he was “angry,” “disappointed” and “frustrated with myself” over the Daschle episode.

Tom Daschle Withdraws As Health Nominee

Although I thought Daschle was a good choice to lead the Health and Human Services Department, I think it was a good idea for him to withdraw. He just has such hideous glasses. Plus, it was just too big of a distraction for the young Obama administration:

Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination on Tuesday as President Obama’s nominee to lead the Health and Human Services Department, a decision that came one day after Mr. Obama declared that he would stand behind Mr. Daschle as problems over unpaid taxes were scrutinized on Capitol Hill.

“I accept his decision with sadness and regret,” Mr. Obama said in a statement.

The decision to withdraw his nomination as a member of the Obama cabinet comes as the White House battled across several fronts on Tuesday with tax problems of the president’s top political appointees. Mr. Daschle had expressed regret for not paying about $140,000 in back taxes, but on Monday vowed to press ahead.

The move came as a surprise on Capitol Hill, where Democratic senators had rallied behind Mr. Daschle. It is the highest-level political casualty of the young Obama administration.

“Now we must move forward,” Mr. Obama said in a statement.

Mr. Daschle, a former Senate Democratic leader who had been a political mentor to Mr. Obama and whose longtime aides now hold key positions in the White House, said he would not have been able to lead a reform of the nation’s health care system “with the full faith of Congress and the American people.”

“I am not that leader,” Mr. Daschle said, “and will not be a distraction.”