Hey kids! Take the Obama Conspiracy-Theory Challenge!

By GottaLaff

Got the end-of-summer doldrums? Feeling glum over "You lie!" outbursts? Wish you could join the fun?

Well then, turn that frown upside down, chum! I've got stupendous news for you!

What will be the right's next big Obama conspiracy theory?

That the government plans to tattoo the presidential seal on the soles of the feet of all gun-owning Christians? That Obama supported the switch from analog to digital TV because government scientists had placed interlocutor rays in every conversion box that would darken white people's skin (and don't Republicans have proof of this in John Boehner, who's been used as a guinea pig in these diabolical experiments)? Or might it be that the failure to maintain a balanced diet will become a felony, punishable by forced labor on the construction of a massive food pyramid somewhere in central Illinois?

Surely you can top that. Send your predictions here, to Comments. Then, when the mainstream media "reports" on just such a "controversy," you, instead of WorldNetDaily.com or the RNC, will be on the record for making it up first!

Conspiracies can be fun! Now go have yourselves a good time.

Liveblog: Obama holds town hall meeting in Raleigh, N.C.

By GottaLaff

President Obama is speaking right now, at a town hall meeting. He's discussing the Recovery Act:
There are 3 parts. I know a lot of people think it's the govt. wasting money... but here's where the money went:

1/3 for tax relief for YOU, for families and small businesses. [applause] 95% of you got a tax cut, you may not notice it, because it appears in your pay check instead of lump sum. That's what our economists advised us to do.

MSNBC cut away. On CNN now.

We kept a campaign promise to give you a tax cut that showed up in your paycheck about 3 mos. ago. We also cut taxes on small businesses' investments. Growing govt? We are actually giving you your money back.

Another 1/3 = emergency relief during Recession. Unemployment benefits expanded. [applause] 12 million Americans benefited. We're making health insurance 65% cheaper (Cobra) for those looking for work. If you lose your job, you can use Cobra while looking for work. [applause]

For states who face historic budget shortfalls, we provided assistance that saved 10s of thousands of jobs for teachers, police, fire fighters...

That's 2/3 of the money, and w/o it, things would be a lot tougher, states would have to make more cuts.

3rd 1/3 = Critics will jump on "investments"... But this third is for short AND long term investments. Not wasted $, we're seeing results. He's listing renovations, construction examples, transit, maintenance, water treatment plants, other projects, employment, etc.

Some critics in Washington say we've been too slow to start these projects...go faster... That's impossible, because we had to be sure that we invested in projects that would create jobs, jump start economy. We KNEW it would take a few months to do it right.

We won't rest until you all find jobs. And we're stopping the economic free fall. THAT is the story of the first 6 mos. It takes time to do this. These same critics contributed to deficit I inherited when I took office. [huge applause]

Seriously, I'm now pres. so I'm responsible for solving it, but we shouldn't have a selective memory for spending habits. You complain 6 mos. later because we haven't paid the trillion dollar bill back... A debt partially result of 2 tax cuts for wealthy and a Medicare drug program that wasn't paid for! These are the same folks who complain we can't pay for health care, you handed us a program you didn't pay for!

Because of that debt, people say we can't do health care, too much debt/deficits. I get that. We dug ourselves a deep hole, recovery package added to it. We can't do it as we come out of recession... so let me explain why the health of America demands health insurance reform.

[What? Health INSURANCE reform?]

Government will NOT take over. You can keep your plan. THESE FOLKS NEED TO STOP SCARING EVERYBODY. [applause]

If you already have insurance, the plan will help you, provide stability and security.

We will stop insurance companies from denying those with preexisting conditions. That will no longer be allowed. [huge applause]

Insurance co's will have to abide by yearly cap on expenses, no one should go broke because of an illness.

Must cover routine check ups, preventive care, like mammograms, colonscopies.

No more dropping/watering down coverage for someone who's become seriously ill.

Whether or not you have insur. right now, the reforms will bring security and stability that you don't have today.

Boils down to a choice: Double health costs over decade, millions more uninsured, bankrupt state/fed govts, and allow insur. co's to run roughshod over insured: That's called the status quo. Your premiums will double over next 10 years, bigger chunk of paycheck would go to insur., eat into possible job raises, and Medicare would be more vulnerable, in the red. STATUS QUO. That's why I'm taking on health care. I don't like that option. That's what we have right now.

Other option: Gradually bring costs down, quality, availability... Will my presidency be damaged if I do this? I have health care. This isn't for me. This is about lives, the future. I want our kids to look back and see this is when we took politics out of it, did something about it!

Q and A: Next post.

'Obama fried chicken' joints ruffle feathers in New York

By GottaLaff

(Photo via)

Did the owners of these places really think they would be ignored? They're using the President of the United States' name commercially, for one. And second, um, racial stereotyping? Hello?

I wonder if they would have put up a McCain Fried Chicken sign if J Sid, heaven forbid, had been elected:

Two New York City fried chicken restaurants in predominantly black neighborhoods are under fire for putting President Obama's name on their signs.

City Councilman Charles Barron said Friday that he would organize a demonstration next week outside Obama Fried Chicken in his Brooklyn district. Organizers said they also may target Obama Fried Chicken & Pizza in Harlem.

"People from the community were calling me and saying they were outraged by this racist connection to Barack Obama and fried chicken," Barron said. "If you think that free speech gives you the right to insult and degrade us and stereotype us, then you've got a battle on your hands."

At Obama Fried Chicken & Pizza on Friday, the "O" and the "A" had been filled in so that the awning sign read "Bam" instead of the president's name. [...]

[T]he owner promised the sign would change on Sunday. If it doesn't, McCall and Barron say, they will rally on Monday.

The White House did not comment on the racial controversy over the New York restaurant names, but spokesman Ben LaBolt said the administration disapproves of using "the president's name and likeness for commercial purposes."

VIDEO: Chris Wallace's gaffe-tastic Bush/Obama switcheroo

By GottaLaff

Don't ever. Make. A mistake like this. Again:



"Old habits die hard," indeed.

Not for 70% of the country, Chris.

Kentucky grand jury won't charge two who hung Obama effigy

By GottaLaff

An effigy for an effigy:

A Kentucky grand jury refused Tuesday to indict two men who hung an effigy of Barack Obama from a tree last fall on the University of Kentucky campus, their lawyer said.

The grand jury dismissed charges of second-degree burglary, theft by unlawful taking and disorderly conduct against Hunter Bush, 21, and Joe Fischer, 22, a UK senior, lawyer Fred Peters said Tuesday. [...]

UK police said the two men told them the act was in response to news reports that an effigy of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin had been hung in California.

The couple who hung the eBay-worthy Palin effigy were not indicted either, which didn't sit well at all with one commenter over at the L.A. Times blog back in October 2008 :

This is a hate crime.
It's artsy-fartsy.
Even though Palin isn't BLACK- it portrays violence.
If this was an effigy of OBAMA- their house would have been burned down already.

Just a preview of the "justice" that will be to come- economic or otherwise that will be- if Obama is elected.

God save us.

McCain-Palin 2008

Call me crazy, but I'm guessing that this distraught commenter wouldn't be too broken up over the news of the two UK guys getting a pass.

VIDEO: President Fetus

By GottaLaff

Misleading? Repugnant? The answer to both is a resounding "yes":


Via David Weigel:

This ad has been making the rounds in pro-life circles and among pro-choicers who find it disgusting. [...]

For one, nobody who has profiled Barack Obama’s family has encountered evidence that the 18-year-old Ann Dunham and the 25-year-old Barack Obama, Sr. conceived their son by accident. [...]

It’s rather silly of Mark Hemingway to “speculate what a 19-year-old (sic) Ann Dunham would have done if abortion had been a legal option.” She wanted to have a baby.

It's also a despicable use of Obama 's image. Count me in as one of the "pro-choicers who finds it disgusting."

The mystery of the Obama Hope photo source

By GottaLaff

James Danziger, over at the Daily Beast, found the original photographer of the now-famous image used in the Fairey poster of Obama that we've all Obamicon'd. The guy had no idea it was his photo:

Reuters was initially—and understandably—put out that they hadn’t been credited as the original source of what turned out to be the presidential campaign’s most enduring visual image, but no laws had been broken.

Like it or not, Fairey's use of the picture is well within the parameters of what’s considered "fair use." His transformation of the image—flipping and re-orienting it, adding jacket, tie and the "O" Obama logo, and converting it to his block print style—make it consistent with all legal precedents for public use. (Fairey is the artist behind the now-famous Andre the Giant prints that are probably wheat-pasted all over your city.)

But perhaps the best proof that Fairey transformed the photo into something all his own is that Young, a Washington-based photographer who has taken, in his words, “thousands” of pictures of Obama, was not even aware that the most ubiquitous image of the election was based on his photograph. He’d seen the HOPE poster countless times and never made the connection to his own photograph, which he snapped at a 2007 Senate confirmation hearing.

Go read the whole article to follow the winding trail to the oblivious photographer. Imagine, not realizing it was your photo that was plastered everywhere on the Blogosphere and well, everywhere else.

I may take credit for an updated version of the Mona Lisa. I'll give her a new outfit, flip and re-orient, add a touch of make-up to her sly smile, and block print it. I could make a fortune! Anyone else in?

It would be like putting lipstick on a painting.

President-elect Obama in Ohio: liveblog

By GottaLaff

P.E. Obama is speaking about the economic recovery plan in Ohio at a manufacturing plant right now.

He's pushing for renewable energy. Good. Obama:

Two workers were hired this week, jobs were created there this week. The need to act is now. [discussing unemployment numbers] Economists say that if nothing is done, the recession could linger for years. But it's not too late. We must put people back to work and get the economy moving again.

We have a plan to jumpstart job creation and economic growth. It will create or save 3-4 million jobs. 90% of the jobs will be in the private sector. We want to create good jobs, not ones that will be shipped overseas. This starts with good, clean sources of energy.

We've seen old factories become clean energy producers. Our scientists are working to develop cars that require less gas... But we also know that nowhere in America are we near realizing the full potential of this work: Wind power, for example. If we don't act now because of the downturn, half of the wind projects for 2009 could be abandoned.

Think of all the businesses, clean energy, that wouldn't be produced. In Germany, Japan, they're surging ahead of us in this industry. It's because their governments have harnessed their people's hard work and energy in investments. We can do that here, too. We commit to double the production of renewable energy in the next three years [I think I got that right].

In the process, we'll put people to work. We'll also create jobs by improving health care, medical records, class rooms, labs. We'll repair our infrastructure. We'll build it by investing in science and technology and putting down new broadband lines.

And we'll provide help to those who need it. That means bipartisan extensions of unemployment and health care coverage. [He's listing services, etc.]

None of this will come easy. Even with this reinvestment package, things could get worse before they get better. But if anyone doubts that we could dig ourselves out of this hole, come to this place, this company.

We need to set our sights higher, look to the future, don't look back. ... That's what we've always done in moments like this.. look to the next big idea, big breakthrough, and when we fail, we pick ourselves up and try it again. I ask all of you to join me in making that happen.

All dolled up: Joe the Action Figure, Beach Blanket Obama, Sarah Palin Schoolgirl

By GottaLaff

As much as I hate to subject you to this kind of thing, I feel obligated to keep you informed:

(Click on image to enlarge)

Forgive me? No? Well, think of the fun you'll have! Imagine the confrontations between Beach Blanket Obama and Super Hero Sarah over media treatment! If only they'd come up with Self-Pitying Sarah and Joe the War Correspondent.

Please note the equal opportunity dollage: John Edwards in a "Rogue" tee, Biden in a "Joe the V.P." outfit, and Spitzer sporting a spiffy "No. 9" shirt. But what's up with Gramm-pa McCain looking like Joe the Hypocrite's twin?

The audacity of hoops

By GottaLaff

There's a very lengthy article all about P.E. Obama and B-ball. I have to confess, between my school-related work, blogging, fielding text messages from students, and fading quickly after having been up since 3:45 a.m., I simply don't have the time or the stamina to read all of it. However, I did skim through it, and these excerpts stood right out:

Indeed, following the May 6 primaries Obama campaigned with bruised ribs, the result of a shoulder Giannoulias gave him on a drive to the basket. "He's tough but not dirty," says Giannoulias, who won statewide office at age 30 thanks largely to Obama's support. "He has fun, but he's intensely competitive. Even as he gets along with everyone, he tries to find a way to win."

"I've seen him stand up for himself," says Robinson, "but I've never seen him lose his cool. That's the Lenny Wilkens part of him." [...]

Maybe Barry O'Bomber needed to be a Punahou reserve to become a Hawaii state champion. Maybe Barack Obama needed to be a community organizer to become a U.S. Senator. And maybe, just maybe, Americans chose him as their next president because they too have come to recognize that in the end it's not about you, it's about the team.

Three-pointer. Nothing but net.

A letter from the President-elect to his daughters: Dear Malia and Sasha... Love, Dad

By GottaLaff

Dear P.E. Obama,

Will you be our dad? You're really good at it.

Love, Laffy

Dear Malia and Sasha,

[...] I also know that it hasn't always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn't make up for all the time we've been apart. I know how much I've missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey.

When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me—about how I'd make my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want. But then the two of you came into my world with all your curiosity and mischief and those smiles that never fail to fill my heart and light up my day. And suddenly, all my big plans for myself didn't seem so important anymore. I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours. And I realized that my own life wouldn't count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours. In the end, girls, that's why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation. [...]

I want us to push the boundaries of discovery so that you'll live to see new technologies and inventions that improve our lives and make our planet cleaner and safer. And I want us to push our own human boundaries to reach beyond the divides of race and region, gender and religion that keep us from seeing the best in each other.

Sometimes we have to send our young men and women into war and other dangerous situations to protect our country—but when we do, I want to make sure that it is only for a very good reason, that we try our best to settle our differences with others peacefully, and that we do everything possible to keep our servicemen and women safe. [...]

That was the lesson your grandmother tried to teach me when I was your age, reading me the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and telling me about the men and women who marched for equality because they believed those words put to paper two centuries ago should mean something. [...]

These are the things I want for you—to grow up in a world with no limits on your dreams and no achievements beyond your reach, and to grow into compassionate, committed women who will help build that world. And I want every child to have the same chances to learn and dream and grow and thrive that you girls have. That's why I've taken our family on this great adventure.

I am so proud of both of you. I love you more than you can ever know. And I am grateful every day for your patience, poise, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House.

Love, Dad

Pass the Kleenex.

To see the letter in its entirety, go here.

VIDEO: Obama drops into Ben's Chili Bowl in D.C., extended version

By GottaLaff

If you didn't get enough of yesterday's very popular video (now at nearly 66,000 views), this version includes a feel-good beginning, showing P.E. Obama posing with some very happy Ben's Chili fans:

Vid disabled because the autoplay was annoying and we don't know how to stop it.

H/t: Dr. President

Shallow Thoughts: Obama draws 'em in edition

By GottaLaff

Today's Shallow Thought:

Based on the response to this post, which included this video from my YouTube page*, it's become even more apparent that President-elect Obama is a man who attracts people to him in the most inspiringly dee-lish and positive way.

That was today's Shallow Thought. Thank you for wading in.

*The chili video has already surpassed the initial numbers of my Bush-In-Mouth Disease, which won Most Popular Comedy Video of the Week (or something) on YouTube when I first posted it. And the comments have been fun and amazing... with the exception of three very negative and/or racist Commenters, one whom I've banned.

UPDATE: Since I posted this about 3 minutes ago, it seems a few more racists have dropped by my YouTube page. They've been banned, too, but what a shame these ignorant asses feel such hatred among so many other Commenters who are expressing complete joy.

Obama 1996: Michelle is "alluring", "I feel dizzy"; Michelle: "He's probably an idiot"

By GottaLaff

Speaking of alluring, how's this for an excerpt:

"Sometimes, when we’re lying together," he says, "I look at her and I feel dizzy with the realization that here is another distinct person from me, who has memories, origins, thoughts, feelings that are different from my own. That tension between familiarity and mystery meshes something strong between us. Even if one builds a life together based on trust, attentiveness and mutual support, I think that’s it’s important that a partner continues to surprise."

I can hear the panting already, and Comments aren't even a twinkle in this blog's eye yet.

The interview is from a 1996 piece that appears in the French newspaper Le Monde. Are your specs steaming up yet? Don't worry, this next snippet will clear them right up:

"It was strange, that excitement over this first-year student," then-32-year-old Michelle Obama recalls when describing the buzz about a new summer associate at the law firm Sidley and Austin. "So smart, so good-looking, so intelligent, everyone was talking about Barack. I’m more of the skeptical kind, I was thinking, 'Yeah, he’s probably an idiot, whatever.'"

Oh, Michelle, you crazy wacky romantic, you. She found herself drawn to him, of course, partially because of his background:

"Usually, these people [at the law firm] are all cast from the same mold, but he came from elsewhere. He had a high level of conversation, while still remaining an average guy. He had an impressive curriculum, but was very down to earth and liked playing basketball. That’s what I found attractive in him. Our relationship was first a friendship. It took off from there."

Like a rocket, it took off. Zoom. Over the moon. Michelle, on their contrasting personalities:

"It’s not certain that we will succeed. But we’re going to be very busy with a number of different things, and it’s going to be interesting to see what life has to offer to us. We’re ready to take on that adventure for various reasons, for instance, for the opportunities it can open to us. [...] He’s more extroverted, more expansive, me I’m more ‘let’s wait and see how things present themselves and how it can benefit us.’""

For those little squirmy trolly types who persist in accusing Obama of turning it on to for political reasons, let's take a look at this quote of his from 12 or so years ago. It's awfully consistent with his recent themes:

He says, "perhaps that’s where the private and public spheres meet, when it comes to couples, relationships, families or tribes. What’s important is empathy, an understanding of shared responsibilities, the ability to put yourself in other people’s shoes. That’s why my marriage to Michelle is vibrant, because we are able to imagine the hopes, the pains, the personal battles of other people, and the challenge for everyone is to transfer that ability (for empathy) from the family sphere to the public sphere."

Obamalicious. Finally, back to the future:

Mr. Obama says that for him and his wife, "kids are an important priority. We really look forward to having them. I think that the issue will be finding a balance between public life and private life, which will mean finding a balance between my temperament that leans towards risk-taking and ambition, and Michelle’s instinct for stability, family and strong values. The way we go about dealing with these issues will be crucial."

They've dealt with them so well that in 10 days, they'll move into the White House with the adorable Sasha and Malia, two of the the sweetest products of their stable, loving marriage.

There's plenty more where this came from, right here.

Interview tomorrow: Obama Calls for 'Grand Bargain' on Economy: 'Everybody's Going to Have to Give'

By GottaLaff

George Stephanopouloploploploplopagus interviews President-elect Obama tomorrow on "This Week":

"And eventually sacrifice from everyone?" I asked.

"Everybody’s going to have to give. Everybody’s going to have to have some skin in the game," Obama said. [...]

In his most comprehensive interview since the election, we discussed…

-- objections to his economic stimulus plans from both Democrats and Republicans, and why Obama believes it must get done by President's Day;

-- his plans for the next $350 billion of the TARP

-- the conflict between Israel and Gaza, and his plans for the Middle East, including a potential crisis with Iran;

--the potential for a Mumbai-style terrorist strike here in the U.S.;

--how and when the Obama Administration will revise U.S. counterterrorism policies and close the Guantanamo prison;

--Vice-President Cheney's advice for Obama, and whether an Obama Administration will move to investigate and prosecute Bush Administration officials for war crimes;

--the controversy over Eric Holder's nomination for Attorney General;

--how Obama is preparing for his Inaugural Address and his search for a church in Washington.

The big treat of the day was having Malia and Sasha Obama tour visit our This Week control room. The girls got on my executive producer's headset and gave me the question they most want their Dad to answer.

The goils alone are worth the price of admission.

The One, The Only, The Barack Obama Action Figure!

By GottaLaff

BuzzFlash gives us the one! The only! Barack Hussein Obama action figure!

Okay, it doesn't look exactly like Obama, but it's sure selling like hotcakes. It's a fun, campy commemorative. [...]

From the manufacturer and designer:

"Like countless others out there, we were inspired by the meteoric rise of Barack Obama and his campaign. In a time when America so desperately needed a hero, along came a man who showed us a brand new vision of what America and the world could be in the 21st century. In many ways, Obama is the closest thing we've ever seen to a superhero... someone who has literally inspired millions of people simultaneously to step past fear, to be brave enough to hope and to go past cynicism and imagine what we could be if we were at our best. That's the stuff of legend! And we wanted to pitch in.

In that spirit we created the Obama Action Figure because every superhero should have one."

The Obama Action Figure is 6" tall.

He has eight points of articulation. Pose him presidentially!

I promised myself not to make any 6" jokes. Or eight points of articulation jokes. I mean, come on, this is the future president we're talking about here... a president I can actually respect.

Even so, you think this kind of self control is easy?

VIDEO: Three charged for seeking out blacks to beat after Obama victory

By GottaLaff

My heart breaks whenever I read stories like this. It breaks even more because I just had to say, "stories like this". There shouldn't be any:

Three young men from Staten Island, who allegedly spent Election Night looking for African-Americans to beat up after they became outraged by Barack Obama's victory, are now under federal indictment.

One victim of the group, 17 year old Liberian immigrant Alie Kamara, was beaten with a metal pipe and a police baton and still suffers from headaches and walks with a limp. Kamara's mother told ABC News, "My son didn't deserve what happened to him. ... He had to jump over a fence for his life."

The alleged ringleader, eighteen year old Ralph Nicoletti, is accused of the most heinous crime, deliberately running down a man whom he believed to be African-American as he drove with his friends through a predominantly black neighborhood.

Ronald Forte, who is actually white, was in a coma for 45 days. In a statement to the court, his mother said, "I have to take care of him for the rest of his life now. I had to leave my job to take care of my 38-year-old son because of this senseless act."

Nicoletti is considered the leader of the "Rosebank Krew" or "RBK," which is known for fire-bombing neighborhood homes and cars. He himself has an extensive history of arrests going back to the age of 14.

More here.

H/t: Babzter

Deanless

By GottaLaff

Is it really that bad between Howard and Rahm?

"If he had been asked to go to that event, he would have been there."

-- Jim Dean, when asked by Politico if his brother, DNC Chairman Howard Dean, was snubbed by President-elect Obama.

Ouch.

VIDEO-- Obama's influence on education: He inspires teacher's book

By GottaLaff


Okay, so there's this kid sitting in the back of the class. And he totally gets the teacher to listen to him when he had a suggestion about all that boring vocab memorization:

The Rev. Eugene Williams Sr., of Clinton, has self-published "Words, Cross & Across: Word Searches on Barack Obama," a book of word searches and puzzles based on the president-elect and his family.

Mr. Williams, 67, said he got the idea for the book last year when his 10th-, 11th- and 12th-grade English students at Annapolis Road Academy, in Bladensburg, didn´t understand many of the words in Mr. Obama's book "The Audacity of Hope" and Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. [...]

Mr. Williams said he eschewed the traditional memorization approach to vocabulary by building on the suggestion of student Aaron Johnson, who sits in the back of the class.

Pshyeah. Teens are so kewl that way. Serious.

Mr. Williams said he crafted the searches and charts with word meanings and usage components so students also could learn definitions. [...]

Words such as "father," "nice" and "bank" are included to balance out "elucidate," "puissant," and "gregarious" so that even younger children can learn from the book. [...]

Mr. Williams said he spent months researching before writing the 156-page book, even watching the president-elect on the Web site YouTube, to help him make better associations with Mr. Obama's word choices. [...]

"One best remembers words through association," Mr. Williams said, adding that students will not forget the word "loquacious" when used to describe them.

Omg, I know, right? Like, Bush: Cretin. Bush: Embarrassment. Bush: Destruction. Cheney: Torture. Cheney: Felon. Cheney: Unconstitutional.

The proceeds from his most recent book will go to Academic Resources Unlimited Inc., a nonprofit group created by Mr. Williams that provides tutoring services for underprivileged students in the D.C. area. [...]

Mr. Williams also has taken a more "grass-roots" approach to sales. He is allowing residents to sell copies of "Words" for 30 percent to 40 percent commission. This not only gives the book publicity, but it also allows people looking for a little extra cash to take advantage of "Obamania."

"People are buying everything about Barack Obama," Mr. Williams said.

Upon release, he sent two copies of "Words" to the Obama campaign office in Chicago - one to Mr. Obama, another to the president-elect's wife, Michelle.

Mr. Williams said he knew the Obamas would appreciate his book because they shared the same philosophy on education.

"With an educated populace, we have a better society," Mr. Williams said.

That last sentence explains so much about the policies of the past eight years. With an uneducated populace, we have a weaker, more compliant society. And what more could a power-hungry administration wish for?

Still E-ddicted: Obama says he'll fight to keep his BlackBerry

By GottaLaff

Some time ago, I had a lot of fun with P.E. Obama's addiction to his BlackBerry. Apparently, his flirtation with B.A. (BlackBerrys Anonymous) didn't take:

President-elect Barack Obama vowed a fight to the finish on Wednesday -- not over his economic plan, but to hang on to his BlackBerry. "They're going to pry it out of my hands," he told CBNC about his BlackBerry [...]

He is trying to avoid the fate of President George W. Bush, who gave up e-mail when he took power in 2001 because his lawyers determined any such electronic communications would have to be preserved for posterity as presidential documents.

There are also concerns that presidential electronic communications could be hacked into by the mischievous or the malevolent. [...]

Obama said keeping in touch by e-mail was a way of escaping the trappings of power and staying in touch with regular people. [...]

"I've got to look for every opportunity to do that -- ways that aren't scripted, ways that aren't controlled, ways where, you know, people aren't just complimenting you or standing up when you enter into a room, ways of staying grounded," he said.

As of now, he is hanging on to his BlackBerry.

"This is a concern, I should add, not just of Secret Service, but also lawyers. You know, this town's full of lawyers. I don't know if you've noticed," he said.

Now that I know he's receptive, I really should e-mail him and let him know how much I appreciated those remarks.

George Bush probably thinks BlackBerry is one of his stuffed Teddy bears that shares space with Woody the Cowboy on his bunk bed.