Rachel Lucas

This girl's funny. She's been added to the most prestigious blogroll of all time. Yeah, that's right. Mine.

Married Soldiers Get to Sleep Together

In a historic but little-noticed change in policy, the Army is allowing scores of husband-and-wife soldiers to live and sleep together in the war zone."

Oh, the privilege these guys get! It's incredible! They're actually allowed to sleep together? No way!

NYT Reporter Was Actually a Loyal Officer in Saddam's Army

Richard Miniter: Got that? The New York Times reporter was an officer in Saddam’s army. Nice. By the way, officers were not drafted (that’s how the enlisted ranks were filled). Officers had to be selected and regularly vetted for loyalty and effectiveness. So Saddam decided that he could trust our intrepid correspondent and so did the New York Times.

He is referring to an article by Qais Mizher, apparently a 'war correspondent' and an officer in Saddam's old army. How did the NYT think no one would catch that?

Don't Stop Campaigning

A Washington Post editorial - Don't Stop Campaigning. Either ignorant or conservative, I don't know which. And now for my own version of Don't Stop Campaigning:

Mrs. Clinton, please don't stop campaigning. You are a well-qualified, politically savvy asshole. Yes, indeed, you are more qualified than your opponent. And your desire to remove democracy from a democracy for your own benefit in state races that have already occurred is, well, enlightening. You dazzle us with your fantastic ability to piss off your entire party, the one who used to look up to you, love you. Hug you. Kiss you... oh, wait, that was only Nancy Pelosi. But hug you, they did. And you were their leader. You were respected. So who better to run this country than you? But you really didn't think a political campaign could tire you, hurt you, age you. Thanks to Botox, the latter was true. No, the campaign only cost you the respect of your party, but who needs them anyway? Do you really need Howard Dean, or Ted Kennedy, or Chris Dodd, or John Kerry, or Russ Feingold, or Tom Daschle, or Bob Gee, or Ted Sorensen? No, you don't. You are doing a fine job slaughtering your reputation on your own, thank you very much.

You are such a wonderful person. Even if you didn't run through Bosnia under sniper fire, at least you had the nuts to make up a pretty cool camp fire story, right? And your wonderful ability to paste together words to make a ridiculously impossible story parallels that of the lovely Michael Moore.
I guess what it comes down to, Hillary, is that we over here really love you. We enjoy your biological warfare against your own that will, hopefully, make the whole country red. We love the infighting that would stop if you simply muttered the two terrible words, "I quit." We love when you make our objectively mediocre candidate look like God himself.

So Hillary Clinton, please don't stop campaigning.

Lieberman for... McCain

The one closest, in my opinion to the John F. Kennedy legacy is John S. McCain.

Good guy. Probably the best on the left. But he shoots himself in the foot everytime he's handed a (typically) unregistered gun. Monumental.

I didn't read this, but Drudge thinks it's important.

Just Watch

Can We Stop?

[Obama] was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 1996 and his teaching load eventually increased to three courses a year, less than the load of a professor. Obama won a state Senate seat in 1996. Obama maintained his senior lecturer post from 1996 to 2004, when he took a leave to run for the U.S. Senate.

Nagorsky said there is a major distinction between a lecturer and senior lecturer, though both are not full-time positions. She said the status of a senior lecturer is “similar” to the status of a professor and Obama did teach core courses usually handled only by professors. While Obama was also part of the law school community, his appointment was not part of an academic search process and he did not have any scholarly research obligations which professors often do.

Can we stop splitting hairs please?

Edwards on Democratic Damage Control

Washington Post: Former Sen. John Edwards, in his first public speech since dropping his White House bid two months ago, praised Democratic rivals Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama on Saturday, but declined to endorse either candidate.

"I have a very high opinion of both of them," Edwards said at the Young Democrats of North Carolina convention. "We would be blessed as a nation to have either one of them as president."

Somehow, I think he's more, you know, trying to keep his party on the face of the earth. I tend to doubt he would so openly throw around loving comments about two of his bigger rivals if the case was different. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Not an Empty Promise

Alright, I'm back. I've been shaky with my posting lately, and I know I've been flashing around empty promises of my return, but trust me, we're back to the 3-5 post a day standard. Trust me. Wait, no that's not true. I'm going on a trip to Ecuador for a week in April. So I'll be gone then, but look for an interesting post when I get home, if not a desperate cry for help from some shitty 1999 Dell and the arrival of my left ear at the US Embassy in Columbia. Ugh... shivers. I'll try not to think about that.

I guess the message is that I'm back. And save me if I die in Ecuador.

Just when the party needs them most, the Dems super-delegates are dropping like flies. First there was William Jefferson, followed by Eliot Spitzer, then Kwame Kilpatrick, and today, Anibal Acevedo-Vila.

SD

Dean is Intelligent

Finally, someone has their head on straight on the left. I'm enjoying this chew-out. It's a good time. Dandy time.

Oh, That Crazy Bosnian War

Thanks Ann Althouse.

Ah, Stupidity

Gallup: A sizable proportion of Democrats would vote for John McCain next November if he is matched against the candidate they do not support for the Democratic nomination. This is particularly true for Hillary Clinton supporters, more than a quarter of whom currently say they would vote for McCain if Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee.

Frank J: Finally the Democrats being a bunch of whiny bitches is working in our favor.

Public Override, Much?

The 20 prominent Clinton supporters told Pelosi she should "clarify" recent statements to make it clear superdelegates -- nearly 800 party insiders and elected officials who are free to back any candidate -- could support the candidate they think would be the best nominee.

Maybe I'm restating the obvious, but public override, much? The left complains when Gore loses to Bush via electoral votes, which are actually based on the popular vote. But somehow, it's okay that Clinton can win the primary without having any popular vote or higher delegate count. Someone is smoking weed somewhere, and it's not Obama (finally).

Oh, and here's the article.

Italians and Rev Wright.

I never knew the Italians were offendable. Apparently, they are.

It's Like Star Wars

A California aerospace company plans to enter the space tourism industry with a two-seat rocket ship capable of suborbital flights to altitudes more than 37 miles above the Earth.
The Lynx, about the size of a small private plane, is expected to begin flying in 2010, according to developer Xcor Aerospace, which planned to release details of the design at a news conference Wednesday.

It's like Star Wars.

Oh, Snap

Clinton people: "You know, we don’t have a choice when it comes to our relatives. We have a choice when it comes to our pastors and the churches we attend. Everyone will have to decide these matters for themselves. They are obviously very personal matters … I think the choice would be clear for me.”

oh, snap.

Obama people: "It’s disappointing to see Hillary Clinton’s campaign sink to this low in a transparent effort to distract attention away from the story she made up about dodging sniper fire in Bosnia.”

oh, snap.

McCain people: Can't we all just get along?

H/O people: Shut up, devilman.

oh, snap.

Misspoken Text

Hillary has been under fire for supposedly lying about the uhm... conditions from which she exited a plane in Bosnia in 1996. She cited this trip as one of her marvelous foreign policy hallmarks after being forced into actually explaining what she claims to be excellent foreign policy experience. Anyway, push comes to shove, she is accused of lying about this valiant effort of running through sniper fire after getting off a plane in a third world country. The Caucus talks about how she got nailed down by reporters:

A third reporter then asked about [speaking about the incident in her book], prompting Mr. Howard (Clinton's speaker) to read the relevant passage from her book, in which she wrote: “Due to reports of snipers in the hills around the airstrip, we were forced to cut short an event on the tarmac with local children.” He repeated that this was the one time in which she misspoke.

I find it difficult to misspeak while writing. Very difficult. I'm not talking about the occasional typo; we all do that. Maybe sentence structure needs work from time to time. For me, I think writing is a very actively mind-racking event. How well I get my point across is up for debate, but I say what I intend to say. A simple error from Hillary is fine. But I must find it curious, to say the very least, that Clinton not only misplaced her written words, but also miswrote an entire fairytale regarding children on a tarmac that, according to her, never actually happened.

Somehow, I am in awe.

Juicy Campus

I was watching the local news on channel 12 like every well educated person should, and I saw CT Attorney General Richard Blumenthal going on about how terrible an effect this new website (here - Juicy Campus), can have on people. It's simply a no registration anonymous posting site, where people can literally post anything they want about anyone they want, and the site claims complete anonymity. Curiosity got the best of me, so I logged on to this site to see how crazy it really is. Basically, it's a hotspot for coward idiots who want to rip on people. An example...



Now, I have no idea who David Knoeckel is. I don't know if these are David Knoeckel's two best friend messing with him, or maybe it's actually David Knoeckel himself. But maybe it really is some jerks who despise David Knoeckel enough to permanently tag his name on the internet as "quite possibly the horniest guy at UNC."

I decided to throw my own little bash out there and see how easy this thing really is. I went to the website, and clicked "New Post." I came to this screen:



So I typed in my bash, even daring to throw in a little crazy Virginia Tech stuff.



I doubt you can actually read that. It says, "I hate jerks. They suck. You know what, Joe Shmoe is a jerk. In fact, I plan on murdering Joe Shmoe. Tomorrow, in his bed, with a pitchfork. Police, that's where I'll be."

So I had my sample down, and I hit 'submit' and went back to the main page. Behold...



That whole process took me all of two minutes. For a first time user, that's not bad. 

Now that we've figured out how to work the thing, what are the legal ramifications here? Well, it's freedom will be it's downfall, whether in the public or private sector. I wouldn't want my name plastered all over the site like poor David Knoeckel, but I tend to doubt he'll be hurt in the least in the long run. A google search on his name returns no obvious relevant results, and somehow, I don't think an employer is going to take such a simple online toy seriously enough to block his application.

Students can use Facebook and Myspace as freely as they use Juicy Campus. I know from experience; I have used both sites. The difference is you have at least some control over who actually sees the content, especially on Facebook, as accounts can be blocked off from the public eye. Also, statements on both social networking sites are retractable and names go along with them. Statements on Juicy Campus are completely anonymous and non-retractable.

Certainly, the site is in no way illegal, it is simply a "because I can" use of the First Amendment. No person will take the site seriously. At some level, I tend to think a solid portion of the names tagged up there were done as practical jokes. I suspect the real world knows this, too, and a site such as this is not and will not be taken seriously. So, why not let the thing live, and kill itself on its own?

Happy Easter

What the title said. Also, starting tomorrow, I am back to my normal self. I know I've been inconsistent recently, and I've lost a few readers because of it. But I'll be back to my normal self tomorrow.

More Tibet.

Bill Opens His Mouth Again, Screws Wife (metaphorically, of course... he hasn't literally done that in years)

The former president made the comments while speculating about a general election between his wife and Republican John McCain.

"I think it would be a great thing if we had an election year where you had two people who loved this country and were devoted to the interest of this country," said Clinton, who was speaking to a group of veterans Friday in Charlotte, N.C. "And people could actually ask themselves who is right on these issues, instead of all this other stuff that always seems to intrude itself on our politics."

Not exactly McCarthyism, but that's the word on the street.

Inexcusable

Stupid idiot.

Watch this video. Ouch.

Saudi Women... DRIVE?

A source in Saudi Arabia's Shura Council reports that the council has submitted a recommendation to senior elements in the country to permit women to drive vehicles, with the following stipulations:

The woman driver must be under 30.
The woman's driving is conditional upon the permission of a relative [father, husband, brother, or son].
The woman driver must obtain a driver's license from the center for teaching women to drive.
The woman driver must be modestly dressed.
The woman driver will be permitted to drive alone in the cities, but outside the cities she must be accompanied by a relative.
The woman driver will be permitted to drive Saturday through Wednesday between 7:00 AM and 8:00 PM.
The woman driver must have a cell phone with her, so she can call for help in an emergency.
The woman driver must pay a certain sum when her license is issued; this sum
will be set aside for car repairs.

Holger: "I thought to myself...'Are the Sauds actually trying to progress out of the 7th century?' But then I read into the article..."

Osama is a... Moral Monster

Breitbart: Osama bin Laden accused Pope Benedict XVI of helping in a "new Crusade" against Islam and warned of a "severe" reaction to European publications of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad that insulted many Muslims.

Wanna talk about crusades Bin Laden? Really? Alright...




You see, Mr. Osama, you aren't exactly the moral leader of the world.

Crazy Blogger

I got a slightly.. ehm... nutty email from a fellow blogger:

Greetings Friends.

i just sent the petition to Help His Holiness the Dalai Lama to everyone (not very many people) in my address book. i've been out of touch and working very hard to help Tibet and End War. please sign petition for Non violence and World peace. please feel free to visit me at www.libertyinmaui.gaia.com

We the People can bring peace the Easter . please sign and forward. We must Stand with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Our Role Model and Teacher of World Peace! Help him by signing. thank you very very much. This is the Moment in Time to gather our numbers quickly! Please sign and stand for PEACE on this Earth and with the Loving Father guidance of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Human Man of Love and Kindness. Wisdom and Compassion in the Human Race.

om shanti,

julie christine, LibertyUSA

Curiosity got the best of me... I followed the link. A little taste of what I found follows:

Sister Oprah is American 1st Lady. Send her $1 to stand with Angels instead of Bush War. Help me Help Tibet - We must Break the 2008 China Olympic Rings and Bush's Regime. We must say no to Militant Minds and Leadership. If we do this, we can gain 7 years to our lifespan. 2008 splits and we get a y2K do over. It is 2000 again and we do as we would have done if we had known better. Gore is in and Bush is in the reality tv Jail Cell in the basement learning lessons with other 'leaders' about War and Peace. Liberty and Justice. and Eternal Love. They learn about what Jesus and Buddha walked and talked.

If you support His Holiness the Dalai Lama help me Help Tibet from the WHITE (tara) HOUSE. George Bush is not worthy to sit in a Position of Leadership. Allow Love to move in. Send your name and $1 to Angel Network, USA. United we stand. United we fly. Hang on Tibet, Please don't die! Liberty and Zencoach will try. Please dear God, let Master Zencoach help Liberty spread her wings and join her sister Oprah. Om Shanti. Om Greg. Om the land of the Waking Dead. let us live in peace from now to forever. we must write our names on $1 bills as a commitment we stand with Peace, Angels, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. I do. I have already sent my $1 to Oprah and let her know I am on her team and NOT Bush and Cheney. Angel Network or War Network? Good vs. Evil. Life or Death. Literally. peace - jc
p.s. the tea pot and tea cups were gifted to me a couple of days ago. They were used to SERVE HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA while he was in Maui. Now, they sacredly sit in my World Peace room waiting to be used again.

She has a few problems, not the least of which is an inflated ego. I go to school with a 95 pound scrawny kid. He thinks he's jacked. This girl is kind of like him.

I wish her the best of luck.

McCain Over Obama

"McCain leads 46 percent to 40 percent in a hypothetical matchup against Obama in the November presidential election, according to the poll."

Thank Gawd.

Not that it will last through summer.. it's a nice thought though.

Happy Birthday to Me

Why does my birthday have to land on year 5?

China v. World

The violent protests in Tibet, the most serious challenge in almost two decades to China's rule in the region, are forcing governments and human rights campaigners to re-examine their approach to the Aug. 8-24 games.


China boycott?

Welcome to Failure, Johnny

Althouse talks about a new law in Madison schools:

Under the new system, students will continue to receive a traditional letter grade — A, B, C, D or U (unsatisfactory) — for every subject....

A second section of the report card, known as Academic Performance, will show how students perform compared to the state's academic standards on a scale of 4 (advanced), 3 (proficient), 2 (basic) and 1 (minimal) — the same ratings students receive on annual state tests.

Grades began in schools as a way of keeping students focused and keeping tally of how the students are doing in comparison to one another. Now, though, grades dominate the entire train of thought. In high school, at least from my experience, students feel (and the thought is endorsed almost universally by parents) motivation is solely based on the intent to go to college. As a result, students work their tails off to keep solid grades, but the actual material they were meant to learn is lost in the process.

While missing out on some high school material probably won't have a major effect on the outcome of my life, and it's most likely safe to assume I won't actually need the subjunctive superlative preterite form of the verb "huir" at any point in my life, I get the feeling that learning, especially at the college level is certainly not meant to be such a grade-based adventure. Sure, grades will remain important. I mean, you can't tell an interviewer for a job at... Bear Stearns (heh, in response to a question about your 1.7 GPA, that you thought learning wasn't supposed to be about the grades. But in college, if you walk in to class solely with the motive of coming out with an A, I think it a valid argument that you may not walk out that door with much practical knowledge.

This second grade system in Madison seems to attempt to spackle over the problem by giving out a second grade for "understanding." Maybe it will work from fall through... eh, January. After that, though, I don't think this will be much more than a subjective effort grade. I mean, what Mrs. Smith is going to fail hardworking Johnny in english via crazy new grade if he earned an A? Not many. The new grades will really find themselves correlating with the letter grade. The C kids will become C-3 kids, and the A kids will simply become A-1 students. It's just another way to make the lower level kids look dumb: "not only does Billy have a D, but he also doesn't understand it."

I guess, "no shit sherlock" sums up the thought process.

I Wish I Wrote This

Damn: The problem with many liberals is that while they say they espouse tolerance, love for your fellow man, and discussing problems instead of resorting to fisticuffs, when they’re actually expected to “walk the walk,” things get ugly. To them, just listening to conservative ideas is akin to Dracula finding out about a nationwide tainted blood supply. It’s painful when liberals realize that not everyone thinks the way that they do: that there are unenlightened souls out there who don’t recycle, who go to church once in a while, who respect our military, and who don’t think that the sun shines out of Barack Obama’s nether regions. So, being the enlightened, progressive types that they are, instead of listening respectfully to what the other side has to say — and possibly learning something new — they stick their fingers in their ears, chant “I can’t hear you,” and complain to the person in charge about how awful the experience was.

It’s sort of like the people who believe that vandalizing and bombing military recruiting stations is a great way to get their message of peace out to the masses.

Paterson Is a Sexy Scandalous Slutty Sour Sucker

The new New York: In a stunning revelation, both Paterson, 53, and his wife, Michelle, 46, acknowledged in a joint interview they each had intimate relationships with others during a rocky period in their marriage several years ago.

It could only be more fitting in California... they obviously figured they should beat the press to the punch. Straight up... hey, if they couldn't pull the Harding card, what else should they do?

Chrisconwaymusic.com

Besides the blog you find yourself on now, another project of mine is my brother's website. He's a musician, and he's pretty good. Check out his site.

Back to Black

David Paterson was sworn in. I guess I'll send you back to black.

Bear Stearns

Pushed to the brink of collapse by the mortgage crisis, Bear Stearns Cos. agreed -- after prodding by the federal government -- to be sold to J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. for the fire-sale price of $2 a share in stock, or about $236 million.

Bear Stearns had a stock-market value of about $3.5 billion as of Friday -- and was worth $20 billion in January 2007. But the crisis of confidence that swept the firm and fueled a customer exodus in recent days left Bear Stearns with a horrible choice: sell the firm -- at any price -- to a big bank willing to assume its trading obligations or file for bankruptcy.

Read it.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Tibet

Demonstrations widened to Tibetan communities in Sichuan, Qinghai and Gansu provinces, forcing authorities to mobilize security forces across a broad expanse of western China.


Okay, I promise normalness will return soon, but this is the last post of the day. I'm sincerely sorry.

Oh, and read the whole story here. Gee, I'm off today.

Rackin' Manhattan

A crane mounted to the side of a skyscraper under construction toppled with a roar Saturday, smashing into a block of apartment buildings, killing at least four people and setting off a scramble for survivors in the rubble.

The crane split into pieces as it fell, pulverizing a four-story brownstone and demolishing parts of three other buildings.

Here.

Banking Busts

But those assurances were blown away in what amounted to a bank run at Bear Stearns, prompting JPMorgan Chase and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to step in on Friday with a financial rescue package intended to keep the firm afloat.

Read it.

I'm sorry, I haven't said anything of substance in a few days... I'll be back soon.

New Top Billionaire

The number 13 has long been considered unlucky by superstitious people around the globe. How fitting, then, that Bill Gates’ reign as the world’s richest person ends after his 13th year at the top.

New top dog... here.

Obama is, Actually, Crazy

I just watched this video of Obama and realized the man is legitimately crazy.

IMAO: He wants to end missile defense, hinder development of better weapons for the military, and actually believes in the fantasy of there being no nuclear weapons? Holy crap.

I've especially never gotten idiot liberals' opposition to missile defense. Other countries have nuclear missiles. We don't want to get hit by nuclear missiles. So let's make a defense to nuclear weapons.

No? That would be warmongering? Not wanting to get hit by nuclear weapons is warmongering? Are you retarded?

I thought conservatives were supposed to be anti-science or something, but liberals seem to be quite against the logical progression of technology when it's, you know, useful.

I guess he really hopes we'll never be attacked, otherwise be prepared for some violent change!

Uh.. what he said (points to IMAO).

Glenn Reynolds Isn't a Robot!

Glenn just posted this picture of his office on Instapundit:



Could that be the computer that he posts to Instapundit from??? It's like Disneyland!

I would take a trip there. Hotels probably aren't nearly as pricey, either.

Yay for do-overs!

Ooooh... Yuwin TWUBAL!

Over on PJ:Think New York’s governor has problems? Ardeshir Arian writes that Spitzer’s scandal pales in comparison to the talk of the town in Tehran — the police chief getting caught “praying” nude with six naked women.

General Reza Zarei, Tehran’s chief of police and a member of the Revolutionary Guard, has resigned under a cloud of scandal after he was caught and arrested naked, with no fewer than six nude women, during a government raid on a brothel.

So this means he will... die. At least Spitzer lives through his incident... a pathetic life it will be, but a life it is.

Read it.

You Know Your Life Sucks When:

A senior U.S. official confirmed to FOX News that the severed fingers of five Western hostages were delivered to U.S. government officials in Iraq, giving the men's relatives hope that they are still alive.

You know your life sucks when the rotting bloody finger of your relative shows up in a little cardboard box, and you're happy.

Read the whole story.

So This is Kristen

So this is Kristen. This is the girl who slept with Spitzer for $4,300. Ashley Alexandra Dupre. That's her name. Here's her Myspace page. She is a musician. Not a very good one, but a musician nonetheless. You can also fund her inevitable lawyer fees here by purchasing her one song for $.98. Sweet. It's a bargain; iTunes would hit you up for $.99. 

If you take a look at her Myspace page, you may notice the ridiculous number of sympathetic comments. 

• "Sorry to hear what you're going through. I don't know why they are broadcasting your stuff all over. If it wasn't you it would have been someone else." 
• "DON'T WORRY LIL SIS!!EVERYTHING'S GONNA BE FINE!!JUST KEEP UR HEAD UP!!U KNOW WE GOT U!!" 
• "What's good keep your head up sis you know we got your back all day you how we do and after this blows over we gona make a HOT song like we always do!!!!"
  

Uhh... am I missing something, or am I the only one realizing she's a prostitute. It's not like she was raped. She wanted to do it, and came out the other side with $4,300. In some countries, there's a 50/50 chance she would have been stoned or burned at the stake. America is the only place in the world where people are sympathetic to this girl.

I don't get it.

The Crazy Uniform

A good catch by Adam Kolber:

Apology Uniforms: Red, white, and blue diagonal striped tie, dark suit (with pin), pursed lips, (surprisingly) loyal wife, powder blue suit, pearl necklace, American flag.

Wow, it's incredible. The only difference is literally the direction of the stripes on their tie. Maybe it's not the apology suit at all, maybe it's the crazy politician suit, we just didn't know it. So I'll go back and look at some other recent political loonies before their.... ehem.... incidents:

1. Spitzer in September... casual, but pretty much the same thing. The only difference is the tie and lower lip, the latter being a matter of mere... circumstance. In retrospect, he's so clearly nuts! I mean, just look at him! He wears that jacket, and his hair is neatly combed- he's a crazy person! 
2. Another McGreevey.... he's still fitting the profile. Again, the tie and and lip don't match, but his badguy outfit is about as obvious as the Joker from the original Batman.
3. Throw a little Larry Craig in there... he, too, meets the profile!!!

Ok, so we've established that all nutjob politicians wear the same thing. Using this, let's see who else meets the criteria...

oh..

uhh...

well, I see...

mmhm!

It appears to me that every male politician since William McKinley has solicited sex in an airport bathroom.

Florida... Toiletpaper?

With all the old people in Florida doing nothing, the government down there is running out of things to do. To relieve their boredom, they are drawing up a law requiring that 'enough' toilet paper always be available in public restrooms.

The only problem is the bill doesn't dictate how much toilet paper is "enough."

(Thanks Drudge)

Spitzer is Out, Time to Talk About Black People

Spitzer resigned, and Lt. Governor David Paterson will take over on Monday. New York is now the fourth state ever to have a black governor. The others are Massachussetts, Louisiana and Virginia. Examining the numbers (a few year old), I think it's time to note the black percentages in each of these states... Massachussetts has one of the smallest percentages of blacks in the country (5%). New York is pretty heavy, with 15.9%, although Paterson wasn't exactly elected to governor, so it's not telling. Louisiana is up there (30.8%), but again, he wasn't elected. Virginia has 18.8%.

Mizipee

Obama won Mississippi. Not really much of a shocker - more numbers at RCP.

Dow on Fiya

Wall Street enjoyed its best trading day in more than five years on Tuesday — complete with a 400-point gain in the Dow Jones industrial average — after the Federal Reserve injected a burst of financial adrenaline into the ailing banking system.

Read it.

Billy Madison Now Writes for the NYT

New York Times busts out another excellent editorial. This time, it's Harvard sociology master Orlando Patterson butchering Clinton's "Three A.M." ad. I'll just throw down a brief excerpt:

"I have spent my life studying the pictures and symbols of racism and slavery, and when I saw the Clinton ad’s central image — innocent sleeping children and a mother in the middle of the night at risk of mortal danger — it brought to my mind scenes from the past. I couldn’t help but think of D. W. Griffith’s “Birth of a Nation,” the racist movie epic that helped revive the Ku Klux Klan, with its portrayal of black men lurking in the bushes around white society. The danger implicit in the phone ad — as I see it — is that the person answering the phone might be a black man, someone who could not be trusted to protect us from this threat.

The ad could easily have removed its racist sub-message by including images of a black child, mother or father — or by stating that the danger was external terrorism. Instead, the child on whom the camera first focuses is blond. Two other sleeping children, presumably in another bed, are not blond, but they are dimly lighted, leaving them ambiguous. Still it is obvious that they are not black — both, in fact, seem vaguely Latino."

Mr. Patterson, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone reading this is now dumber for having done so. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

Althouse Beat Me to the Punch, So I'll Just Claim Her Post

And I almost wrote this exact thing, but Althouse beat me to it:

In happier times. He was — is? — her superdelegate. Notice the body language in that video. She's leaning toward him, but he looks as though he's trying to avoid her. He's twisted away from her even as he's supposed to be showing his support. That's odd.

What effect will Elliot's disgrace have on Hillary — and more generally on the Democrats? It will make any sex scandals affecting Republicans harder to use. Hillary, of course, has always had her sexually errant husband, and Elliot's problems might remind us of Bill's. But how does that affect what we think about her? Perhaps we'll be reminded of the old reasons to feel sympathetic toward her. Or, cutting the other way, we may get squeamish about putting Bill back in the White House.

Mississippi Coverage

Coverage of today's Mississippi primary is here.

More on Spitzer

If Gov. Eliot Spitzer opts to roll the dice and not resign, state Republican leadership will force him to go all-in and call for his impeachment from office, according to a state Assemblyman, who admitted he asked the governor to step down.

I was under the impression he wasn't planning on taking that chance, but I guess it's still up in the air.

Buckle Up, I'm Thinking

Recently, I began to stray from direct support of any candidate, primarily because I wasn't sure... I wasn't really sure about anything... who to support, how to support them, and moral blocks I had... but I have come to a conclusion, and it's one I think I knew I would arrive at all along.

The thought that McCain may be another Bush has held me from enthusiastically jumping in with two feet behind him. But this rationalization no longer suffices me any more. McCain has been one who, like it or not, always heard out his opposition. He absorbs ideas from both parties, and arrives at conclusions based on his own inner compass. He has learned to trust that compass, whether it tilts right or left (it happens to lean right approximately 86% of the time, for any of you who care to call me out).

Interviewing Christopher Shays last month opened my eyes a little. I understand, and have more fully understood since the interview, that McCain is a man of true character. See, I always knew this, but I recently realized character is actually more than I thought. It involves actually thinking issue to issue, case to case. Character isn't black or white, it's a shade of gray (a weird, maroon-like shade of grade, but gray nonetheless).

So as this is my first serious and lengthy post in quite some time, I may actually be putting you to sleep by now. My fault, just godda knock the rust off those wheels... but no, I'm not done.

On to the ability to unite. I have recently decided that this is, by far and away, the most important quality in a candidate. A divisive leader will be a lame duck in the modern era; a president who can unite and pass bills will be the one who gets some wind in the sails of this motorless boat that is Congress. I'm not talking about divisiveness within a party (I hope you know I understand it would be impossible to support McCain in such a circumstance), but divisiveness within a nation. In the recent era of 51-49 elections and a red/blue divide that rattles patriotism to no end, a strong, charismatic, war-torn Rough Riders president is really what we need. This country hasn't seen patriotism since Michael Moore went to the big screen, and that's really something that needs to come back to some degree. Patriotism can no longer be synonymous with naivety. So, just running through the candidates, I'll throw parties to the wind and base my judgment solely on divisiveness

Quite obviously, love or hate Hillary, unity is clearly something she cannot provide. So cross her of the list.

Obama. That's an interesting thought. With the raging Obamarama syndrome right now, many have been caught up in the minority, come-from nothing fairy-tale Mulatto Stallion (sorry, Rocky reference), thinking he has unity in the bag. I know, I used to agree... strongly. But take a deeper look, and realize his unity is a brand that applies to only a small minority of the population. The right will be cynical from the start, and the former Hillary supporters will take shots at his (nonexistent) political experience. Not to mention, many conservatives (including myself) will find it difficult to get past his extreme liberalism no matter what he does. So, let's regretfully cross out Obama.

And then there's McCain. McCain is conservative. He always has been. He was one of the first who wanted to go to Iraq, he was one of the few who still wants to be there (which, admittedly, will rarely be swallowed by anything to the left of Coulter). But the man knows how to negotiate. He is one of the few conservative out there who can really get stuff done. This comes from his incredibly rare ability to reason with the liberal mind. Just ask Rush Limbaugh; the guy gets along with nutjobs. On top of this, he is one of the most honorable and respectable man in our military. Watch this video. Yes, it's propaganda, but it's true. No lie.

That's all there is to say. If you don't like McCain now, I doubt you speak English. I am exhausted, good night.

Spitzer Mackin' It, Packin' It

"New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is expected to submit his resignation to the New York General Assembly Monday night after allegations surfaced earlier in the day that he is "Client 9," named in a federal prostitution case.

Four arrests were made last week in connection to the alleged high-dollar ring, known as the Emperors Club VIP. According to a law enforcement official, Spitzer was named in court papers as a client after being taped arranging a meeting with one of the prostitutes."

Read it.

IRS Spends $42 Million to Tell Us About Rebates

The Internal Revenue Service is spending the money on letters to alert taxpayers to expect rebate checks as part of the economic stimulus plan.

The notices are going out this month to an estimated 130 million households who filed returns for the 2006 tax year, at a cost $41.8 million, IRS spokesman John Lipold confirmed.

Amazingly Enough.

Diebold Scam

Thanks Rod ...one of the funnier videos I have seen this election.

5 Year Plan(e)

DARPA five year plane:
The highest-endurance aircraft currently flying is Northrop Grumman’s Global Hawk UAV, which can stay aloft for up to 40 hours. Now Darpa—which, to its credit, is never short on outlandish ideas—wants to beat that endurance record more than 1,000 times. The goal of Darpa's recently launched Vulture Program is to build a kind of atmospheric satellite that can stay aloft for five years at a time with little or no maintenance.

While I tend to doubt this thing actually exists in the foreseeable future, it's certainly a nice picture. Also, I'm not sure if it's manned or a UAV, but I imagine moving crew members to and from the plane and performing maintenance will be a pain. I also don't see any advantage over a traditional satellite. In fact, as I write this, I am becoming increasingly annoyed at the mere thought of this. Why would anyone spend money on something so stupid...

Drugs in Our Water

A vast array of pharmaceuticals — including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones — have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press investigation shows.

This reminds me of the discovery of cocaine on 4 of 5 dollar bills in 1997 (can't find the article, sorry). I personally don't think this is any major breakthrough, I just realize that this means that if drugs can get through industrial water filters, so can anything... flushed drugs, poo, dead goldfish, dog slobber, and so on. I'd much rather find myself ingesting a mood stabilizer (that I may actually need) over human feces. Oh well, I'm not dead... yet.

Read it.

Campus Killers

A valid point over at Phi Beta Cons:

And might such an environment contribute to leading some students to kill?

So asks Bob Parks of Intel Radio Network, who goes on to describe the ways in which college life can "be a bummer" these days. Students are repeatedly told that:

"the world is coming to an end because ... [of] “man-made” global warming ... some women’s studies departments ... push the idea that ... all men are capable of rape ... students have been taught to hate the war ... conservative presidents who take military action ... Students are taught to openly defy and disrespect political leaders they’re taught to disagree with ... [and hate] a “controversial” speaker come to share ideas ... ."

Via Instapundit

Not that overly pessimistic professors are an excuse to kill.

Waterboarding Outlaw Vetoed

President George W. Bush on Saturday vetoed legislation passed by Congress that would have banned the CIA from using waterboarding and other controversial interrogation techniques.

Read it.

BBB Update

Don't expect any more posts today, but things are going well for the new BigBoomBloggers.

Brett Favre Retired

Good bye to the best. Brett Farve retired: