Linkmeister

Right-wing nervous breakdown

So does Joe Klein describe "the froth-at-the-mouth-rabidity [which] seems to be increasing across the board...and the reason for this is the probable passage of the health care reform legislation on Sunday in the House of Representatives."

Klein goes on to enumerate several of the things the bill will do, and then says:

This is a big deal.

And a big problem for Republicans who, yet again, have chosen not to participate in the extension of a basic human right to all Americans--the right to health care--a right that is common throughout the rest of the civilized world. There is talk of the GOP starting a "Repeal Health Care" campaign as soon as the bill is passed, but that's not a likely scenario. Indeed, Democrats are salivating over the notion of such a campaign. They'll be able to run for Congress next fall, saying: "We made sure no one can ever take away your health insurance...and the Republicans want to repeal that right."

I hope Speaker Pelosi has the votes on Sunday.

March Madness 2010, Day One

I've already got two losses. Murray State over Vanderbilt? A thirteen-seed beating a four-seed?

The other loss? Old Dominion over Notre Dame. I didn't put any thought into any of these choices; if I had I might have been torn about this one. Yes, I'm a lapsed Catholic with residual good feelings about Notre Dame, but I'm also a former Virginia resident, although Norfolk is about as far south as you can get from where I lived in Annandale.

Update: Oh fer cryin' out loud, Georgetown! Obviously a three-seed put you way too high in many people's estimation, including mine and more importantly Ohio's. UNLV losing to Northern Iowa, meh. An eight losing to a nine isn't that unusual. Washington better come back on Marquette or I'm gonna stop bothering to look at my brackets for the next two weeks (well, not really).

A joke thread? Really?

Yes, really. Every "3 X walked into a bar" construction you've ever wanted to see, along with other forms of wisecrack.

This one's not new, but for some reason it really struck me funny when I read it this morning:

A grasshopper hops into a bar, says "Gimme a beer." The bartender serves him and says, "Y'know, we have a drink named after you!" Grasshopper goes, "Really? You have a drink named Larry?"

Click the first link and read for a while; you'll find your funny bone tickled, I gua-ran-tee it.

Lost, Season 6, Episode 8

Blurb: Locke assigns Sawyer a mission.

Sheesh. Could that be any more vague?

Ryan

Alan Sepinwall

EW Pre-episode blather

EW Recap

Special bonus! A Playlist of 71 of the songs used in Seasons 1-5, downloadable!

Continue reading "Lost, Season 6, Episode 8" »

A self-reminder

The Navy Exchange Pharmacy has a late lunch hour. Get there before 2:00pm or after 2:30pm. Do not get there at 2:05pm.

This is the second time you've done this, idiot. Get it through your head.

When my convenience trumps tradition

I love baseball and I love the Dodgers. I have since 1959, when we moved south from Monterey to San Pedro just in time for the newly-arrived Dodgers to beat the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. I've always wanted to go to spring training at Vero Beach to see the team play someday. One reason: the atmosphere is more relaxed than that of a regular-season game (unless you're a player trying to make the team). Another reason: to travel around and see lots of different teams.

Well, the Dodgers moved to Camelback Ranch in Phoenix last spring, and it looks like they've got lots of company. More than that, the travel distances are far shorter than they are in Florida, and Phoenix is 3,000 miles closer to me than Florida, too.

Someday just got a little sooner.

HBO's "The Pacific"

We've had HBO off-and-on ever since we first got cable. We'd get it, pay for it for months, realize that we never watched it or any of the other premium channels with which it was bundled, and cancel it. We've done that at least twice.

We're in an "off" period at the moment, and that's kind of a shame, as we'd both kinda like to see its new 10-part series The Pacific. We've been living on islands in that ocean since 1968, whether Guam, Japan or Hawai'i, so we know a little about the locale.

We'll just wait for the DVD, I guess.

Rob (G.I.) Joe to pay (St.) Peter?

In an ordinary world, this behavior by Pawlenty would badly damage his political chances, even with Republicans.

Sen. Don Betzold, DFL-Fridley, told City Pages’ Matt Snyders on Thursday that Gov. Tim Pawlenty has diverted funds from the “Support Our Troops” license plate program to his Governor’s Office of Faith-Based Initiatives, an office that works to connect religious organizations with state funds.

Betzold says that $30,000 from the license plate program was supposed to go to the Department of Military Affairs and the Department of Veterans Affairs, but instead paid for a position at the faith-based office which is part of the Pawlenty’s office. The funds, writes Snyders, “by law, were supposed to go to the Department of Military Affairs and the Department of Veterans Affairs.”

If those funds really were mandated in law to be used solely for the purpose as stated and instead were shifted to another purpose, that's criminal behavior.

It used to be that veterans were the one group Republicans didn't dare muck with, because too many of their supporters are vets themselves. We'll see if this story gets any legs and what harm it might do to that slick so-and-so.

via Balloon Juice

What is this great yellow thing in the sky?

And why are the trees standing straight up? For the past ten days they've been leaning over at 45-degree angles.

'Twas a great day for going to the library, parking in its lot in an illegal space and paying $2 in overdue fines. Then for going over to the barber shop and paying $13.61 for a haircut which took the barber 5 minutes. If the shop were busier that would work out to $163.32/hour. Nice work if you can get it.

Unfortunately for the barbers, I was the only customer in the shop.

Texas has some very stupid elected officials

In particular, the State Board of Education qualifies as my candidate for "dumber than a box of rocks."

“I reject the notion by the left of a constitutional separation of church and state,” said David Bradley, a conservative from Beaumont who works in real estate. “I have $1,000 for the charity of your choice if you can find it in the Constitution.”

Ahem. Mr. Bradley? Meet the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

For much much more, you can read a liveblog of the goings on at that meeting by the Texas Freedom Network. Be forewarned; it's nauseating.