By GottaLaff
Barack and Michelle both wrinkle up their noses when they smile. How cute is that?
By GottaLaff
The publishing industry is betting on Barack Obama like no president in decades. Since Election Day alone, more than half a dozen book deals have been signed to exploit Obamania. [...] Two dozen books in the works range from the serious to the silly.[...]Tsk, tsk. What goes around, eh Georgie?
With few exceptions, the books share a tone of celebration and optimism, and a view of Obama as hero. To borrow from the president-elect, perhaps some hope-mongering is afoot. In contrast, President George W. Bush, who reportedly is having difficulty finding a publisher for a book he hopes to write, has been savaged in many recent tomes.
“The American reading public appreciates great stories. They like heroes, and they like villains,” said Gail Ross, a top political literary agent. As for Obama, “at least for now, he's a hero. Bush books worked when he became a villain.”Snidely Bush. George Whiplash? And, of course, Barack Do-Right.
If these are hard economic times, they are especially difficult in the literary world. [...] But publishers are gambling that the interest in all things Obama will boost sales now and have literary staying power, because many of the new titles will not hit bookstores for a year or more.It's nice to bet on a sure thing once in awhile.
“Every time an editor picks a book, they are making a bet,” Ross said. In a nod to Obama’s campaign theme, she added: “Instead of hope we can believe in, it's hope we can bet on.”
By GottaLaff
Tomorrow night, Sunday, Anderson goes one on one with Michael Phelps... on 60 Minutes, in a swimming pool:
...Anderson Cooper contributes a report on Michael Phelps for the CBS program tomorrow.H/t: Mediabistro
Besides discussing his diet in the profile, Phelps also accepts Cooper's challenge to an on-camera swim race. But Cooper had some conditions: "How about if I get to dive and I get to do freestyle, one lap, you go underwater the whole way, you can't breathe and you can't take a stroke. And you'll still beat me?"
By GottaLaff
Nate the Great:
For now, however, the various iterations if the statistical process that we applied before now show Norm Coleman as the slight favorite, although his edge is small and might reverse itself if Franken is able to get discarded absentee ballots reconsidered. Look for a more comprehensive update on Minnesota tomorrow.
By GottaLaff
Go see this movie. It's one of the good ones:
By GottaLaff
Pharmaceutical companies "delaying cheaper drugs"Like meds are even relevant. Everyone knows that laughter is the best medicine. Unless you're diabetic, or have heart problems, or TB, or hyperthyroidism, or osteoporosis, or depression, or erectile dysfunction, or high blood pressure, or.... make Big-Pharma-Bucks.
The European Commission has accused leading pharmaceutical companies of delaying and impeding the entry of generic drugs to the market, denying the public access to cheaper medicines. Neelie Kroes [European Commissioner for Competition] - whose inquiry began in January with raids at some of Europe's largest drugs companies, including GlaxoSmithKline in the UK – warned that the EC may now launch anti-trust proceedings against individual companies.
By GottaLaff
Open wi-i-ide, babies! Time for your daily minimum requirement of--yummy!-- melamine:
Two months ago, federal food regulators said they were unable to set a safety threshold for the industrial chemical melamine in baby formula. Now, however, they found a way to settle on a standard that allows for higher levels than those found in U.S.-made batches of the product.Food and Drug Administration officials on Friday set a threshold of 1 part per million of melamine in formula, provided a related chemical is not present. They insisted the formulas are safe.
The development comes days after The Associated Press reported that FDA tests found traces of melamine in the infant formula of one major U.S. manufacturer and cyanuric acid, a chemical relative, in the formula of a second major maker. The contaminated samples, which both measured at levels below the new standard, were analyzed several weeks ago.
The FDA had said in early October it was unable to set a safety contamination level for melamine in infant formula.
Who's Mommy's little melaminer? Hmmm? Puts hair on your chest! Makes you grow big and strong... for as long as you survive, that is.
The standard is the same as the one public health officials have set in Canada and China, but is 20 times higher than the most stringent level in Taiwan.
The problem of melamine in infant formula first surfaced in China in September.
Vitamins? Check. Minerals? Check. Melamine? Double check.
The agency still will not set a safety level for melamine if cyanuric acid is also present [...]
A scientist for a national consumer group said it was irresponsible of FDA to assure the public that infant formula is safe based on tests of only 74 samples, especially since cyanuric acid is a byproduct of melamine, making it likely that they will be found together. [...]
Earlier this week, members of Congress and the Illinois attorney general demanded a national recall, something FDA said made no sense because it had no evidence suggesting that the formula would be dangerous for babies at the levels of contamination found. [...]
Melamine can legally be used in some food packaging, and can rub off into food from there. It's also part of a cleaning solution used on some food processing equipment.
I want a big, heaping spoonful right now! What a taste treat! Maybe if Big Biz were forced to ingest "safe levels" of the stuff, they'd be less inclined to feed it to our newborns.
But that wacky FDA. Who's gonna stop 'em? They're always looking out for our well-being, as you can see from these excerpts from a terrific article Bucky sent my way:
Up to 90 percent of the infant formula sold in the United States may be contaminated with trace amounts of melamine, the toxic chemical linked to kidney damage, according to recent tests. The FDA’s test results, which the agency hid from the public and only released after the Associated Press filed a Freedom of Information Act request, showed that Nestle, Mead Johnson and Enfamil infant formula products were all contaminated with melamine. [...]Go read the rest. Then have yourself a nice big bottle of Melamine-avegamin! It's so tasty, too! So everybody get a great big bottle of... this stuff:Prior to these test results being made public, the FDA had published a document on its website that explained there was no safe level of melamine contamination in infant formula. Specifically, the FDA stated, “FDA is currently unable to establish any level of melamine and melamine-related compounds in infant formula that does not raise public health concerns.”
Once tests found melamine in U.S.-made formula products, however, the FDA changed its story. As of today, the FDA has now officially declared melamine to be safe in infant formula as long as the contamination level is less than one part per million (1 ppm).
Astonishingly: The FDA has no new science to justify its abrupt decision declaring melamine to be safe!
By GottaLaff
But this year, they are hitting some newly ascendant Windy City hotspots -- including Hyde Park Hair Salon & Barber Shop, Manny's Deli, 57th Street Books, Valois Cafeteria and Medici on 57th -- all allegedly frequented by hometown boy Barack Obama, who was elected president three weeks ago.
The signs are everywhere: Obama-mania is here.[...]
From delis to barber shops and business offices to bookstores, visitors have been seeking out the Illinois lawmaker's favorite Chicago stomping grounds, sending business spiking throughout town.There he goes, affecting the economy again before he even takes office.
Chicago's official tourism Web site lures travelers to "Presidential Chicago: Experience the city the Obamas enjoy." The Illinois Bureau of Tourism has launched a three-day tour of the "President-elect Obama Trail," taking visitors to 14 attractions from the state capital of Springfield, where Obama launched his presidential campaign, to his Hyde Park neighborhood in Chicago.
Don't forget the "do":
Vendors drop by the barber shop trying to make a buck, too:"We have a lot of Europeans and people from different countries coming in just to get their hair cut by Barack's barber or in Barack's barber shop," Coye said, citing a "big spike" since Election Day, with about five people a day coming in, as well as numerous others driving by to take pictures.
"We try to get it as close as possible," said Coye, on duplicating the Obama 'do'.
[O]ne man [was] seen walking into Coye's barber shop recently selling wood carvings engraved with the words, "Barack Obama and the Book," accompanied by a picture of the president-elect and the Holy Bible.Wait. Isn't Obama a Muslim? Strike that. A terrorist Muslim? That whole Bible thing must be a mistake, a ploy, just to make a working stiff a few dollars. Da noive...
Business also is booming at Obama's favorite neighborhood eateries, including the historic Valois Cafeteria. [...] Visitors to Valois frequently ask for "The Obama Special" -- egg whites, bacon and hash browns -- which Obama still eats about five times a week, sending in an aide to pick up his breakfast at about 7:30 most mornings, according to Chronopoulos.[...]Down the block, at another restaurant, we get a chance to see more high-fat faves and wish we all had Obama's metabolism:"A lot of people don't eat egg whites," he noted. "I remember one time he came in, just ordered his lunch, sat by himself, said 'hi' to people," Chronopoulos recalled about an Obama visit three years ago. "He seemed like a normal guy, just a regular Joe."
An autographed photo of the president-elect, along with a business card from his Senate office, now hangs on the back wall at the cafeteria.
"To Valois, Thanks for the great eats!" Obama signed it.
And what is sure to be a popular attraction:
One of his favorites, along with the breakfast omelettes and bacon cheddar burgers, is the "Garbage Pizza," complete with pepperoni, sausage, Canadian bacon, ground beef, green peppers, mushrooms and onions. [...]
"If it's good enough for Michelle Obama, it's good enough for my wife," said Sibery, who naturally asked for -- what else? -- the "Garbage Pizza."
"Pan or thin crust," asked his waitress, wearing, of course, an "Obama Eats Here" t-shirt.
"What does Obama have?" responded Sibery.
"He has the pan," came the server's reply.
"So that's what I had," he said. "It was wonderful. A little pricey, but very good."
And very big, too.
"I had the small and it was huge," Sibery noted. "I don't know how he stays that thin."
Obama's daughter Malia has also left her mark on the eatery. In green crayon, she followed a restaurant tradition of scrawling her signature onto an upstairs wall.Meanwhile, back at Manny's Deli:
One patron asked this reporter if Obama was coming back into the deli, but sadly, it was just a writer hungry to try the famous corned beef. However, key Obama aides, such as incoming White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and senior adviser David Axelrod, are regular customers.There are a lot more little vignettes in the article. Fun read. And filling.
By GottaLaff
And your point?
This is from an L.A. Times blog. The author's little quips annoyed me. I must be one of those over-sensitive, Obama-voting liberals who don't find superfluous height jokes ("in terms of dollar amounts, not their height"), or snide ("unacceptable to current popular thinking") asides, all that amusing.In fact, Obama's base of small donors was almost exactly the same percent as George W. Bush's in 2004 -- Obama had 26% and the great Republican satan 25%. Obviously, this is unacceptable to current popular thinking.
But the nonpartisan Campaign Finance Institute just issued a detailed study of Obama's donor base and its giving. And that's what the Institute found, to its own surprise. [...]
Adding up the total contributions from the same small individuals (in terms of dollar amounts, not their height), the Institute discovered that rather than the 50+% commonly reported throughout the campaign, only 26% of Obama's contributions through last August and only 24% through Oct. 15 came from people whose total donations added up to less than $200.
The key word there being "total."
It comes down to which definition of "small donor" you accept:
Someone who donated to the Obama campaign by scraping together $199, period.
Or someone who donated $199 to the Obama campaign several times, perhaps totaling close to the $4,600 legal limit for the primary and general elections. In aggregate, that would vault him/her out of the small donor category that was so useful to the political campaign's public relations campaign portraying the donor base as about two times as broad as it really was.
The reported numbers show that Obama actually received 80% more money from large donors (those giving $1,000 or more total) than from small donors.
Through the Democratic National Convention, the Institute estimates, Obama received $119 million from genuine small donors, an impressive sum, to be sure.
But not as impressive as the $210 million he'd raised by then from bundlers and large donors. [...]
Now, we'll see how broad-based news coverage of this real reality is.
By GottaLaff
Few prominent economists will say it, but to me it looks and feels like we are in another Great Depression or a reasonable facsimile.Depression now describes my mood as well as the state of the economy.The current meltdown is dubbed a "financial crisis." But a rose by any other name would still inflict the same hardship and suffering on most people and businesses.
Clearly, the lessons have not been learned from the Herbert Hoover era. Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, a columnist for The New York Times, says the current banking crisis is "functionally similar to that of the Great Depression."
"Many of the symptoms" are the same, including the impotence of monetary policy -- like cuts in interest rates -- that has not halted the economic downturn." [...]
It's all going to get worse, according to the experts. We have had recessions before but nothing like this, with massive layoffs, hundreds of foreclosures, retail stores closing, stock market losses, and widespread fears about the future.
I grant you I have yet to see former wealthy men selling apples on the street corner as I did during the Great Depression in the early 1930s but the current uncertainty is cause for worry. [...]
Obama will have the customary honeymoon and some political running room, at least at the start. But he has to move fast to restore confidence in the market place and trust in the banking system.
His heady presidential campaign is over but prosperity is not just around the corner.
By GottaLaffA reporter talks on her phone as smoke is seen coming from Taj Hotel in Mumbai November 27, 2008. (REUTERS/Arko Datta)
MSNBC is reporting that only 10 very young men were responsible for the Taj attack.
10.
Col. Jack Jacobs says he doesn't believe it.
They'd hoped to kill 5,000.
Also reported: The maze-like design of the Taj, which included many dead-ends and employee elevators, assisted the attackers. The stone structure saved the hotel from complete destruction; but the age and complicated floor plan of the building, partly due to renovations, made it easier for the terrorists to carry out their plan.
By GottaLaff
Had Padlock read her email, she'd have known I am ready with my first post-o'-the-day. Bad Padlock. Go sit in the corner. No pie for you!
By the way, if I were lucky enough to have perfumed silk sheets, I wouldn't be here right now, posting. I'd be slithering around in my silky, fragrant bed. Where does she think I live, anyway... in that mansion she shares with Jeff in Indiana? Winkity wink.
How to Make Night Vision Glasses - video powered by Metacafe
If I had any need for them, this would be cool to try. Just waiting for Gotta to drag herself out of those perfumed silk sheets again...
I'm kind of an architecture geek so I'm sad to hear of Utzon's passing, but thrilled I accidentally found the 3D virtual tour of the opera house above. More Utzon here.
Noble life demands a noble architecture for noble uses of noble men. Lack of culture means what it has always meant: ignoble civilization and therefore imminent downfall.
Frank Lloyd Wright (1869 - 1959)
I'm getting kinda sick of the "only one President at a time" thing. Bush seems to be more than ready to go, couldn't someone just ask him nicely?
(CNN) — President-elect Barack Obama spoke with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh late Friday night, the president-elect's transition team said.Cartoon by Jim Morin of my old hometown paper.
Obama called Singh to express condolences for the victims of the recent terrorist attacks there. He also made clear there is only one U.S. president at a time, the transition team said.
Very weird state commonwealth**.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) _ A lawmaker says the state's Homeland Security office should be crediting God with keeping the state safe.**corrected via comments.
State Rep. Tom Riner, a Southern Baptist minister who was instrumental in establishing that requirement in 2006, disapproves of the fact that Homeland Security doesn't currently mention God in its mission statement or on its Web site.
The law passed under former Gov. Ernie Fletcher, who prominently credited God in annual reports to state leaders. But Gov. Steve Beshear's administration didn't credit God in its 2008 Homeland Security report issued last month.
(snip)
The law that organized the Homeland Security office first lists Homeland Security's duty to recognize that government itself can't secure the state without God, even before mentioning other duties, which include distributing millions of dollars in federal grants and analyzing possible threats.
Gee, you'd think the media is ready for Christmas to come. The whole article is cute, go read.
The streets of Cleveland were still asleep Friday when the Gillens of Miami, Fla., bolted through the hotel lobby, ready to see the city that helped make their father famous.
Like caffeinated shoppers tracking deals, the Gillens were a jangle of joy. After all, the city threads through the family's past; it's where their late father starred in "A Christmas Story."
Twenty-five years ago, Jeff Gillen played the scary, worn-out Santa listening to a little boy in the movie classic that did much of its filming in Cleveland.
This weekend, his wife, Arlene, and children, Phil and Elana, are joining about 4,000 people to visit a convention at the Renaissance Hotel and A Christmas Story House in Tremont.
Brilliant.
Indiana residents in need of a quick stocking stuffer this holiday season have an unusual option: Planned Parenthood gift certificates.
The group's Hoosier State chapter on Wednesday began selling gift certificates redeemable at any of its 35 facilities for any service provided -- from basic health screenings to birth control to abortions.
Betty Cockrum, president and chief executive of Planned Parenthood of Indiana, said the program was initiated in response to the state's ailing economy.
"Our patients are principally low-income women, and so, needless to say, those patients are more challenged now than ever," Ms. Cockrum said. "We find that when women are [financially] strapped, they're more worried about putting food on the table and gas in their car, and their health."
That's some serious recycling. Alas, no online gift shop (I looked).
Take one reindeer dropping, dry it, coat in a clear finish, and then paint it or roll it in glitter. Voila — a Christmas ornament.
That's what's keeping staff at Illinois's Miller Park Zoo busy this holiday season as they keep the gift shop stocked in what zoo marketing director Susie Ohley calls "magical reindeer gem ornaments."
Each comes with a label of authenticity and costs $5 US.
(snip)
Some folks are surprised at the size of the "gems," which are only about as big as marbles. "Reindeer are so big," zoo maintenance worker Sheldon Williams said. But the droppings are "just a big pile of small."
By GottaLaff
Beautiful:
By GottaLaff
"He wore a smile on his face as he sprayed the bullets."
--Sajjad Karim, a British member of the European Parliament, witness to Mumbai attack.
By GottaLaff
Here's the statement I referred to earlier:
"Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of the American citizens who lost their lives in the outrageous terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Our thoughts and prayers are with them, and with all who have been touched by this terrible tragedy.The previous statement was not from him directly, but via a spokesperson.
"These terrorists who targeted innocent civilians will not defeat India's great democracy, nor shake the will of a global coalition to defeat them. The United States must stand with India and all nations and people who are committed to destroying terrorist networks, and defeating their hate-filled ideology.
"There is one president at a time. I will continue to closely monitor the situation on the ground in Mumbai, and am grateful for the cooperation of the Bush Administration in keeping me and my staff updated. We fully support the Bush Administration's efforts to protect American citizens and assist the government of India during this tragic time," said President-elect Obama.
By GottaLaff
I'm trying to dig up Obama's latest statement about Mumbai. CNN read it, but I can't find the text yet. Meantime:
President-elect Barack Obama is expected to announce his pick for secretary of defense on Monday, a senior Pentagon official told FOX News.
By GottaLaff
Want an example of the change Barack Obama is bringing to the country?Munching our way to blissful change. If that's all it takes, I'm in.Check out cookie sales at Baby Boomers Cafe in Des Moines.
Ever since word spread about the president-elect and his family's fondness for Baby Boomers' chocolate chunk cookies, the small downtown restaurant can't bake them fast enough.
“Two months ago I was giving these cookies away,” said co-owner Rodney Maxfield. “Now, it's like 'I need two dozen cookies. I need four-dozen cookies.'” [...]
Obama's main office was next door to Boomers, and his staff made the cafe a second home. [...]
Suddenly, sales of 400 cookies in a good week soared to more than 1,000 a week, with requests coming from as far away as Mexico. Alas, the price is going up, from 50 cents to 75 cents a cookie to make up for the time it takes to make more each day.“I think everybody just ... thought, 'Oh, great cookie, great president — the world is a happy place. Barack's going to fix all the problems and if I have a bite of this cookie it's going to make me feel good,'” Maxfield said.
By GottaLaff
Chris Matthews flatly denied our report indicating his active hiring for the Pennsylvania Senate seat currently held by Arlen Specter.That doesn't mean he's not seriously thinking about it, though.
"It is absolutely not true," said Matthews, in a statement.
By GottaLaff
Fox may be trying to stir up a little trouble:
A former adviser to Barack Obama's presidential campaign who once called Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton a "monster" is now working on the transition team for the agency that Clinton may lead.
State Department officials said Friday that Samantha Power is among foreign policy experts the president-elect's office selected to help the incoming administration prepare for Clinton's anticipated nomination as secretary of state.
Samantha Power is one of 14. Now let's read the last 8 words of the Fox report:
During the Democratic primary campaign, Power called Clinton "a monster" in an interview. She then resigned, calling her remarks inexcusable and contradictory to her admiration for Clinton.
Next to Traitor Joe Lieberman's blatant betrayal, this episode was pretty tame.
By GottaLaff
I'm posting this update because so many people are commenting and/or talking about this woman, and fortunately, worrying needlessly. However, it's still disconcerting, to say the least, that any of this happened in the first place:
A Wal-Mart worker was killed Friday after an "out of control" throng of shoppers eager for post-Thanksgiving bargains broke down the doors at a suburban store and knocked him to the ground, police said.I hope that reassures everyone. She's fine. Sighs of relief all around.At least four other people, including a woman eight months pregnant, were taken to hospitals for observation or minor injuries, and the store in Valley Stream on Long Island closed for several hours before reopening. [...]
A 28-year-old pregnant woman was taken to a hospital, where she and the baby were reported to be OK, said police Sgt. Anthony Repalone. At least three other people were taken to hospitals with minor injuries.
By GottaLaff
You want Ward Cleaver? Meet Barack Obama. Michelle is June Cleaver with a law degree. Family values don't get more traditional than those of the Obamas, who ooze marital bliss and whose adorable daughters make feminist cynics want to bake cookies and learn to smock.
Though we may perish of boredom, the Obamas may do more to elevate the American family than all the pro-marriage initiatives conceived by those who claim to speak for the deity. As a family unit, they're not significantly different from the Bushes, but they can be an inspiration in particular to African Americans. [...]
The change we've been waiting for may not be immediately quantifiable, but personal responsibility, educational ambition and smart public diplomacy -- all by example rather than exhortation -- could go a long way toward curing what ails us.
Whose column is this, you ask? Why, none other than Kathleen Parker's.
Wally Cleaver: What a dumb thing to do. I bet you wouldn't have done anything like this if Mom and Dad were here.
By GottaLaff
"Greed will get you discovered ... every time, and that's what happened to Cheney." -- Willacy County District Attorney Juan Angel GuerraH/t
Dick Cheney owns shares in the Vanguard Group, an investment company that helps finance prison companies. Guerra estimates those shares are worth $85 million.
When inmate, Gregorio De La Rosa, Jr., was killed in one of the prisons Vanguard helps finance, Guerra says Cheney stopped the investigation so that the value of the shares he holds would continue to rise.
By GottaLaff
[I]if you really had foresight, you would have bet the rent on Barack Obama baby bibs.Or Barack Obama mugs, T-shirts, stationery, posters, postcards, notecards, aprons, coasters, dog jerseys, throw pillows and mouse pads. With so many segments of the economy in the fetal position, the Obama memorabilia business is one of the very few that is actually thriving.
In most election years, the candidate T-shirt and button market pretty much disappears after the ballots are counted. Not this time. [...]
At CafePress.com there are 96,000 different Obama-related designs for sale, according to vice president of marketing Amy Maniatis. That includes a T-shirt that says "Now I don't have to move to Canada" and a poster that says "Once you go Barack, you'll never go back." [...]
Anti-Bush stuff sold so well for so many years that there was genuine concern at CafePress that the end of the president's second term would hurt the company's bottom line. [...] Instead, Obama love has more than offset the downturn.
At America!, the exuberantly punctuated chain of patriotically themed souvenir shops, they're moving a lot of life-size cardboard cutouts of Obama, at $42.99 each. (And by the way, all the McCain product -- half off.) [...]
There has even been some additional work for tattoo artists. Some people prefer their Obama souvenirs permanent. [...]
But no one has seized on the Obama keepsake market with quite the ambition of A.J. Khubani, the president of TeleBrands. The New Jersey company is best known for creating the "As Seen on TV" logo and selling items like the Flat Fold Colander, the Stick Up Bulb and the Pedi Paws, "the incredible nail trimming solution for dogs and cats." [...] [He] hired an artist to design a commemorative plate [...]
Khubani expects big things from this tchotchke. He's ordering 1 million of them. Sadly, the manufacturing upsides of the "victory plate" won't be part of the Obama economic mini-surge here in the United States.
The plate is being made in China.
PhenomObama. Take it to the bank.
By GottaLaff
A new poll from Rasmussen Reports indicates that although Americans strongly support the saying of the Pledge of Allegience, less than half of them believe that "the United States is truly the land of liberty and justice for all."They've taken liberties with justice.
Among those polled, just 46% said they would agree with that statement, while 42% disagreed. Even among white voters, less than half, just 49%, agreed that there is justice for all in America.
The highest level of agreement was 62% among Republicans, followed by a majority among men. However, women disagreed by a narrow plurality of 45% and Democrats by a more substantial 53%.
Black voters were the group that disagreed most strongly, with 60% denying that there is liberty and justice for all and only 20% agreeing.
By GottaLaff
A new book about media mogul Rupert Murdoch, whose News Corp. owns Fox News, is to be released next week. Its most sensational revelations involve what the author describes as Murdoch's loathing for leading Fox commentator Bill O'Reilly.The book? Michael Wolff's The Man Who Owns the News. The revelations?
Murdoch is not only embarrassed at times by his ownership of Fox News, but that he "absolutely despises" O'Reilly...Awww, poor Bill-o. Okay, hands: How many think Keith Olbermann will report on this in his Monday show?
Wolff adds that Fox CEO Roger Ailes shares Murdoch's opinion. "It is not just Murdoch (and everybody else at News Corp.’s highest levels) who absolutely despises Bill O’Reilly, the bullying, mean-spirited, and hugely successful evening commentator, but Roger Ailes himself who loathes him. Success, however, has cemented everyone to each other."And guess who wants to improve his image? Hint: It's not Bill-o.
According to Wolff, Murdoch's desire not to be defined solely by his ownership of Fox underlay his purchase last year of the Wall Street Journal, which "was in no small way about wanting to trade the illiberal -- the belligerent, the vulgar, the loud, the menacing the unsubtle -- for the better-heeled, the more magnanimous, the further nuanced."Not workin', Rupert. Arrrh!
By GottaLaff
[T]he other unnamed members are under investigation for “corruption similar to that of Mr. Cunningham.” Seth Hettena suggests two of those five include former Reps. Katherine Harris (R-FL) and Virgil Goode (R-VA). Hettena also reports that the sentencing memo contains hints of a bigger scandal to come:Prosecutors drop tantalizing hints about an even bigger, ongoing investigation. Wade was debriefed in 2006 and provided “moderately useful” background information in another “large and important corruption investigation” that also has not yet resulted in any charges.
Katherine Harris? Under investigation for her involvement in a nice, big, fat scandalapalooza? Mmmm, dee-lish. I suddenly find myself salivating uncontrollably. Unbecoming, yes, but, shhh, no one's around, so it's okay.
By GottaLaff
Hint, hint:
A slip of the tongue from Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) is fueling speculation that Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.) could be chosen as President-elect Barack Obama’s replacement in the Senate.Blagojevich referred to Davis as “senator,” according to the Associated Press. The lawmaker has expressed an interest in the position and the governor said Davis would make a great senator.Other members of the Illinois delegation are also hopeful to be appointed. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. has been very vocal in expressing his interest in the seat. Democratic Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Luis Gutierrez have also been mentioned as possible Obama replacements and have received calls from Blagojevich about the slot.
So much speculation, so little time.
By GottaLaff
Reflecting on his eight-year presidency, President Bush said above all he would like to be remembered as a commander-in-chief who remained faithful to his values and "did not sell his soul in order to accommodate the political process."In an interview with his younger sister, Doro Bush Koch, the president said he was forced to make several difficult choices during his tenure in the White House, but added "I darn sure wasn't going to sacrifice [my] values."
"I came to Washington with a set of values, and I'm leaving with the same set of values," Bush told Koch in an interview taped earlier this month that aired on National Public Radio Thursday.
Can't argue with that last part.
The irony is excruciating. My tongue is throbbing from all the self-inflicted biting.Bush also indicated he hopes his legacy is evaluated on success in the War in Iraq, America's efforts to combat AIDS, and the passage of Medicare legislation in 2003.
"I'd like to be a President (known) as somebody who liberated 50 million people and helped achieve peace; that focused on individuals rather than process; that rallied people to serve their neighbor; that led an effort to help relieve HIV/AIDS and malaria on places like the continent of Africa; that helped elderly people get prescription drugs and Medicare as a part of the basic package; that came to Washington, D.C., with a set of political statements and worked as hard as I possibly could to do what I told the American people I would do," Bush said.
By GottaLaff
This is so cool:
A performance artist who collected hundreds of postcards from Americans expressing their hopes for the future president has a wish of her own: to meet President-elect Barack Obama and hand over the stack of messages. [...]Here are a few of those messages:
To collect the postcards, Oring dressed in the style of a 1960s secretary and used an antique typewriter with carbon paper. She set up a table on street corners, took dictation from passersby and typed their words. [...]
Some of the cards are emotional. Many express ideas for solving the nation's problems or expound on national priorities in next four years. Often they focus on substantial issues and include pleas to end the war in Iraq, create more jobs, improve education and safeguard human rights, women's rights and gay rights.
By GottaLaff
Trudeau does it again:
A well-oiled machine humming right along.
Transition chief John Podesta told Bloomberg that President-elect Obama would complete "virtually the whole Cabinet" by Christmas, and the new president's team will reach beyond the Democratic Party. He said there will be "multiple Republicans" in the administration.
Said Podesta: "You'll see them spread throughout the administration."
Somehow I'd have more faith in this idea if the 50 State Strategy apparatus was still in place.
But turn Texas blue? That's exactly what the party has in mind as it already goes to work building a re-election platform for President-elect Barack Obama. "We want to make Texas the next swing state," says a party big shot. "We believe we can compete in Texas." It's not too far-fetched. Sen. John McCain's victory over Obama was half the margin of President Bush's Texas victory in 2004. And Democrats nationally won 67 percent of the Hispanic vote, one of the two major voting blocks in Texas. The official says the state breaks down this way: white versus Hispanic voters, "and we're making big inroads among Hispanics."
Disgusting, horrifying, disturbing.
NEW YORK New York's Daily News published the grim details this morning of a worked at a Wal-Mart store on Long Island who was stampeded by the crowd rushing in just before dawn. Also, a trampled woman miscarried.
From the paper's Web site:
"Before police shut down the store, eager shoppers streamed past emergency crews as they worked furiously to save the store clerk's life. 'They were working on him, but you could see he was dead, said Halcyon Alexander, 29. 'People were still coming through.'
Very nice. Now if he takes his online presence to the next level, there should be alot more government online, available to the people.
In the 22 days since winning the White House, President-elect Obama has held four press conferences, taken 22 questions from reporters and has done two sit-down television interviews, the Washington Times reports.
In doing so, Mr. Obama "has beat his four predecessors in number of post-election, pre-inauguration press conferences."
Isn't Chavez one of them there Socialists the Governor of Alaska was railing about recently, also? And if she's such a great Governor, an energy expert even, why is this necessary? Someone needs to get on the phone machine thing, you betcha, and clear this up.
VENEZUELAN OIL: Controversial but free program in 3rd year.With heating oil prices approaching $10 a gallon in rural Alaska and reports of neighbors stealing fuel from neighbors to warm their homes, a Venezuela-owned oil company plans to supply free fuel to villages again this winter.
That's what a Citgo executive who oversees the company's free heating oil program told the Alaska Inter-Tribal Council earlier this month, said council director Steve Osborne.
Citgo has provided roughly 15,000 Alaska village households 100 gallons of heating oil each for the past two winters. If the company donates the same amount this year, some families will save as much as $1,000 on their fuel bills. It's part of a program providing assistance to low-income communities in 23 states.
Anyone out there going shopping today?
Pirates hijack chemical tanker off Somalia
Minority Report comes to Britain: The CCTV that spots crimes BEFORE they happen
UN: Taliban could clear $500M from 2008 drug trade
Washington Post: Area's Other Obamas Revel in Rare Moniker
Nicanor Obama began to realize he might be on to a good thing when he didn't get a speeding ticket not long ago. After stopping the 28-year-old for a little lead-footing near the Verizon Center, a District police officer looked at his driver's license and put the citation book away.
Japan workers told to go home and procreate
For Sale: Luke's Skywalker's Lightsaber
Painting that inspired iconic Christmas card is found hanging in pensioner's home... and it's now worth £70,000
Politico: Jill Biden: Untraditional, unapologetic
Jill Biden has long chartered an untraditional path for a career politician’ wife. She has four degrees —a bachelor’s, two master’s and a doctorate. She raised three children and has five grandchildren.
Everybody wants to be a piece of history. Good thing we know that the Obama Administration's infrastructure is up to the job. Via Taegan-
"So far, the transition team has received 290,000 applications for jobs in the Obama administration through its website -- www.change.gov -- and officials believe they could wind up with 1 million job-seekers by the time Obama is sworn into office on Jan. 20," the Los Angeles Times reports.
"By comparison, before President Bush took office in 2001, he received just 44,000 requests for political jobs. As former President Clinton assumed the White House in 1993, he had received 125,000 applications for jobs."
The problem: There are only about 8,000 non-career service positions are available.
Oh my. Someone mentioned this in the comments yesterday and I was skeptical. Guess that'll show me. h/t Greg.
And here's the background on the background, opening with: "Rickrolling is an Internet meme typically involving the music video for the 1987 Rick Astley song 'Never Gonna Give You Up'. The meme is a bait and switch: a person provides a Web link they claim is relevant to the topic at hand, but the link actually takes the user to the Astley video.Imagine, millions of people rickrolled at the same time.
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Lots more photos here.
So now this guy thinks he's the one to put down preconditions? I'm thinking out new Prez ain't gonna play that way.
TOKYO (Reuters) - Iran would welcome talks between President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, the country's vice president said in an interview with Japan's Kyodo news agency
Vice President Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie said in the interview in Tokyo that any such meeting must be held in an open manner and its contents made public, the agency said.
Mashaie told Kyodo the Iranian president had said "direct diplomacy is the best way to peace," but added that Obama must distance himself from Washington's stance so far in order to implement change, Kyodo said.
Torturing people in two medias now. Oy.
The Morning Joe team of Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski are looking for a radio gig — and it sounds like a deal is close.Although Scarborough tells TVNewser "we haven't signed any deals yet," he says, "If we're going to get into radio, we want it to be by the beginning of the year."
The New York Daily News' David Hinckley writes, "Some reports on the New York Radio Message Board yesterday say WABC is eying Joe Scarborough."
By GottaLaff
A driver in Mexico got himself into a sticky situation when he pulled over to help a woman whose pickup appeared to be broken down by the highway.Looks like the guy had a real grasp on things. Sounds kinda stuck up to me, though. Too bad he and the blonde didn't bond. They should have taken the time to cement the relationship.Anadel Carrizales was driving Wednesday near the northern city of Monterrey when a blond woman in a black miniskirt motioned for him to pull over.
Once he had stopped, the woman walked up and told him an accomplice was pointing a gun at him, said David Perales, a spokesman for state investigators.
She then tied him up with packing tape, super-glued his hands to the steering wheel of his truck and demanded money. [...]
With his motor still running and his hands still glued to the wheel, Carrizales managed to drive a few miles (kilometers) down the road until he found a police officer to help him.
Nearly a year ago, a 10-year-old boy in Monterrey glued his hand to his bed so that he wouldn't have to go to school. Paramedics had to free him.
What is it with kids not adhering to the rules?
By GottaLaff
Gee, I don't see Bush 43 on there, do you?Here's an impressive-sounding statistic, even if it's mostly an artifact of population growth. Barack Obama's victory margin from November 4th now stands at 9,124,522 votes, and will probably grow a bit more once states like Illinois, New York and California finalize their counts.
This is the 6th largest victory margin of all time, and the largest ever by a non-incumbent.Largest Popular Vote Margin
Year Candidate Inc? Margin
1972 Nixon Yes 17,995,488
1964 Johnson Yes 17,951,287
1984 Reagan Yes 16,678,120
1936 Roosevelt Yes 11,070,786
1956 Eisenhower Yes 9,551,152
2008 Obama No 9,124,522*
1980 Reagan No 8,423,115
1996 Clinton Yes 8,201,370
1924 Coolidge Yes 7,377,547
1988 Bush No 7,077,121
* Provisional
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