Der Parson's rant

Hostage standoff at Clinton campaign office - International Herald Tribune: " Hostage standoff at Clinton campaign office,Reuters Published: November 30, 2007

ROCHESTER, New Hampshire: A man claiming to have a bomb strapped to his chest seized several hostages at Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton's New Hampshire campaign office on Friday before releasing two in a tense standoff with police. It was unclear whether there were any hostages remaining in the campaign office in Rochester, New Hampshire and police were still surrounding the building."

I don't really want Hillary to be president either, but I think the Republicans are even more worried.

I wonder if Bill Clinton will get one of these for Christmas?


Hillary Nutcracker : Stupid.com: "You may hate her. You may love her. But friends, you've never seen her like this. THE HILLARY NUTCRACKER"

I thought about buying one, but they cost $22.00. It's too bad they ran out.

If you were wondering what to get the President that thinks he knows everything. Here is the perfect stocking stuffer.

Center for Constitutional Rights: "Send Bush an early holiday gift, courtesy of CCR.
The President needs to be reminded that he swore an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States-his administration has been systematically destroying the Constitution since he took office."

I can't believe I forgot about this a few weeks ago.
The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald November 10, 1975

November 10, 1975 the bulk freighter Edmund Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior with all hands.

Here are some links to site with lots of information, I'll let you check them out for yourself instead of cutting and pasting the stuff here.

SS Edmund Fitzgerald

The fateful voyage of the Edmund Fitzgerald

And of course the Gordon Lightfoot song

Putin Says U.S. Is Meddling in Russian Election - New York Times

MOSCOW, Nov. 26 — President Vladimir V. Putin today accused the United States of trying to taint the legitimacy of upcoming Russian parliamentary elections by pressing a group of prominent independent election observers to abandon their attempts to monitor the campaign.

Putin has to have gone insane. How does the world have so many nuts running all these countries? Between Imanutjob in Iran, Putin in Russia, Bush in USA, Chavez in Venezuela, and Kim Jong-il in North Korea. Just to name a few of the biggest nuts.

It looks like Putin is taking Russia back to the old USSR ways, and doing everything he can to make the United States the enemy once again.

Mr. Putin has turned the parliamentary elections into a referendum on his leadership, and in recent days he has stepped up his campaigning for his party, United Russia. At the same time the Kremlin has used its control over the election laws, government agencies and the news media to ensure that the opposition has little if any chance of gaining a foothold in the next Parliament.

Make me wonder is George Bush taking notes on how to stay in power? Maybe George and Putin making plans over the red phone so they both can consolidate their power. What a great excuse George will have for declaring marshal law and suspending the constitution, or if nothing else helping ensure we end up with rotten Rudy as the next president.

I really hope we can do something to get this country back on track, and keep the Russian's from going back to their insane cold-war days.

Check out what famous classic Movie I am(on the left side at the top, I don't know how to resize the picture though). I did the famous leader test, but I didn't like what I got. (I was Adolf Hitler, maybe I was too honest?) This Personality Test site has tons of test, at the bottom are links to the classic movie and famous leader test.
The reason I'm excited about this is, I love the movie Apocalypse Now. The Redux version is also just as good, just very long. I think I would have to say Apocalypse Now is my favorite movie, even above Cool Hand Luke, The Godfather, or Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. I have always wanted to read the book Heart of Darkness (wow, it's only $1.50, guess I should order it) or read it online. I think having the book would be much better though.

Former Bushie sheds more light on the Bush administration.

Comcast.net News - Former Aide Blames Bush for Leak Deceit

By MATT APUZZO, AP
41 minutes ago
WASHINGTON —
Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan blames President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for efforts to mislead the public about the role of White House aides in leaking the identity of a CIA operative.

In an excerpt from his forthcoming book, McClellan recounts the 2003 news conference in which he told reporters that aides Karl Rove and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby were "not involved" in the leak involving operative Valerie Plame.

"There was one problem. It was not true," McClellan writes, according to a brief excerpt released Tuesday. "I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest-ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff and the president himself."

It's amazing how Bush and Co. can stay in power. I guess it's these types of tatics that make it possible though. Do the Bush guys have any morals or ever have trouble sleeping at night? I'm not sure what this says about Scott McClellan either, "he unknowingly passed along false information." It makes him sound like a dupe, maybe that is why Bush hired him though.

Here is a link to the book publisher PublicAffairs Books: What Happened

I thought this was a joke, but I guess it's not. I am sorry I don't think you can not blame this one on the conservatives.

Virginia Heffernan - The Medium - Sesame Street - Television - Internet Video - Media - YouTube - New York Times

Sunny days! The earliest episodes of “Sesame Street” are available on digital video! Break out some Keebler products, fire up the DVD player and prepare for the exquisite pleasure-pain of top-shelf nostalgia.
Just don’t bring the children. According to an earnest warning on Volumes 1 and 2, “Sesame Street: Old School” is adults-only: “These early ‘Sesame Street’ episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today’s preschool child.”
Say what? At a recent all-ages home screening, a hush fell over the room. “What did they do to us?” asked one Gen-X mother of two, finally. The show rolled, and the sweet trauma came flooding back. What they did to us was hard-core. Man, was that scene rough. The masonry on the dingy brownstone at 123 Sesame Street, where the closeted Ernie and Bert shared a dismal basement apartment, was deteriorating. Cookie Monster was on a fast track to diabetes. Oscar’s depression was untreated. Prozacky Elmo didn’t exist.

Nothing in the children’s entertainment of today, candy-colored animation hopped up on computer tricks, can prepare young or old for this frightening glimpse of simpler times. Back then — as on the very first episode, which aired on PBS Nov. 10, 1969 — a pretty, lonely girl like Sally might find herself befriended by an older male stranger who held her hand and took her home. Granted, Gordon just wanted Sally to meet his wife and have some milk and cookies, but . . . well, he could have wanted anything. As it was, he fed her milk and cookies. The milk looks dangerously whole.

No more plastic bags in San Francisco grovery stores

Starting Tuesday, plastic bags illegal at big S.F. grocery stores: "Attention San Francisco shoppers: Plastic grocery store bags are going, going, gone. Starting Tuesday, large grocery stores in the city can no longer use the traditional plastic bags that are a staple of the supermarket checkout line, as a city ordinance passed earlier this year to ban the bags takes effect."

This is a pretty good idea. Other cities are following and hopefully more American cities will follow.

Oakland passed a similar ban that goes into effect early next year and London and Paris both have followed San Francisco's lead

GOP seeks recount in Fort Wayne’s 2nd District | The Journal Gazette

GOP seeks recount in Fort Wayne’s 2nd District
By Benjamin Lanka
The Journal Gazette

The Allen County Republican Party will ask for a recount in Fort Wayne’s 2nd District City Council race, which was separated by 13 votes.

I was kind of surprised this didn't happen sooner. You can't blame them for asking for a recount, with only a 13 vote difference. Hopefully Karen will still have enough votes to be our council person for this area.

H/T The Scoop

I read through this slide show on Slate.com earlyer, It made me a bit sad, but a bit happy. I always loved "Peanuts", even the strips from the 50's and 60's there is still something about it I can relate too...

The genius behind Peanuts. - By Brian Doherty - Slate Magazine: "Happiness Is a Warm Puppy, The dour genius behind Peanuts. By Brian Doherty"

Oh that Georgie, he's at it again,

Bushism of the Day - By Jacob Weisberg - Slate Magazine: "'In other words, he was given an option: Are you with us or are you not with us? And he made a clear decision to be with us, and he's acted on that advice.'—on President Pervez Musharraf, Crawford, Texas, Nov. 10, 2007"

It makes my brain hurt, how does asking someone a question turn to them acting on advice? There must be some conservative Bush worshiping nutjob out there that can explain this too me.

Have we got this lazy? Now you don't even have to get off the couch and walk to the computer, just pick up a cell phone and send Papa John's a text message.

Papa John's Short Message Service (SMS)/Text Messaging Information Center: "We've made ordering hot & fresh Papa John's pizza easier than ever with our convenient text messaging options. Find Papa John's locations, receive special offers and more--all through the convenience of text messaging! And now we have a NEW text ordering feature that's made ordering Papa John's pizza as simple as sending us a short text message. Check out all our text messaging features and try them today! "

I might give it a try this weekend though...

Update, actually after some checking, no I'm not going to be using text messaging to order my pizza, it looks like you send them a message, they send one back then you send another one, then you have to conferm it with another, I don't have unlimited text messaging, that could get expensive, and it looks like a pain in the butt. I will stick to the internet or the good ol' phone call.

Oh that wacky George is at again. Butchering the innocent English language. Maybe they should hire a actor to play the president? oh wait we already went through that in the '80s

Bushism of the Day - By Jacob Weisberg - Slate Magazine: "Bushism of the Day By Jacob Weisberg Posted Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007, at 2:39 PM ET
'I don't particularly like it when people put words in my mouth, either, by the way, unless I say it.'—Crawford, Texas, Nov. 10, 2007"

Click here to see video of Bush's comments. The Bushism is at 27:17.

Bush vetoes health-labor bill - Yahoo! News

Bush vetoes health-labor bill - Yahoo! News: "Bush vetoes health-labor bill By Caren Bohan 35 minutes ago NEW ALBANY, Indiana (Reuters) - President George W. Bush on Tuesday vetoed a measure to fund education, job training and health programs, marking the sixth veto of his presidency and the latest salvo in a fight with congressional Democrats over domestic spending."

Once again Bush demonstrates his willingness to keep the Iraq war going and going and going. When it comes to spending money on things we really need like education, job training and health, he whips out that veto pen. Then of course all the republicans and libertarian types hail him as some kind of hero.

"I understand some of them in Congress didn't agree with my decision, that's fine," he said. "But whatever their position on the war is we should be able to agree that our troops deserve the full support of those of us in Washington D.C."

What about the rest of America you jackass? Don't we deserve some support? I am getting tired of these right wingnuts that cry about how the troops are fighting for our freedom. They are fighting in Iraq. Iraq didn't invade us or have us under control. Iraq was never a threat to our freedom. Iraq was just used as threat for Emperor Bush and Darth Chaney, and their domestic spying and bypassing the constitution every chance they can.

I don't know if anyone seen this story run in the NY times about Hillary's waitress tipping ordeal.

I could care less about the tipping, I've forgotten to tip once or twice in my life. (I never forgot to tip a stripper, but that's another story).
Here is part of what the waitress had to say, (from the NY times story).

Ms. Esterday said she did not understand what all the commotion was about.
“You people are really nuts,” she told a reporter during a phone interview. “There’s kids dying in the war, the price of oil right now — there’s better things in this world to be thinking about than who served Hillary Clinton at Maid-Rite and who got a tip and who didn’t get a tip.”

I thought this was interesting though,

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential campaign on Thursday introduced a Web site dedicated exclusively to the instantaneous rebuttal of charges or news reports it deems offensive or wrong.

The web site is "The Fact Hub". Don't go there looking for a unbiased view of Hillary. If the top banner doesn't give it away "The Fact Hub : The Straight Scoop On Election '08 From The Hillary Clinton Campaign", at the bottom of the page it says "Paid for by Hillary Clinton for President". A few entries I read through didn't really seem to shed any light on things. It looked like more spin to me.
Here is there rebuttal for the tipping story, the NY times story seems to have a little different version.

I think I have to give someone credit though, this is a great idea. If your running a campaign in these days for blogs and Youtube video, you need to have a place to answer your critics or get the spin out after your caught tapping your foot in a airport restroom. I think some local Fort Wayne politician's could have used such a site. Especially with some of the blowhards (on the left and right) around our local scene, sometimes the guy defending you does more damage then the attack would have. At least this way you or "your people" have control of the spin. On the The Fact Hub they have a rebuttal to something Obama said about Hillary not having a plan for Social Security. The rebuttal the quotes and such they have try to spin it as her having a answer, but the way I read it, Obama was right, she does the ol' tap dance around the issue, but never gives a direct answer. I guess at least they are seeing the threat and trying to get a spin out there, hopefully people can make up their own mind. I would say if you going to "The Fact Hub : the straight scoop on election '08 from The Hillary Clinton campaign", your already sailing on the HMS Hillary in the kool-aid seas. On "The Fact Hub" they have a link to another site called "HillaryHub.com", it's just a list of links to news stories blogs about Hillary, another pretty good idea. Both sites have RSS feeds, so if your running a "I love Hillary" blog you can get the kool-aid hooked right up to your veins.

If you really want to do some fact checking, I found these websites, FactCheck.org (added their RSS feed to the right side under the WP Issue tracker). They are nonpartisan and nonprofit, and seem to be credible source to check up what the candidates are saying, they also run FactCheckED.org it is aimed at high school students, sort of a answer to Wikipedia and the possibilities incorrect or just plain false information.
This site, PolitiFact seems ok, but looks likes it's part of a newspaper's website so may not be completly "fair and balanced". Same as the Washington Post Issue Tracker on the right side, it might lean a little.

Comcast.net Entertainment - Winona Ryder Goes Trekking

STAR TREK GEEK WARNING!

I'm sorry, but this movie is going to SUCK and suck hard. They are just beating a dead horse, if they had any respect for Gene Rodneberry they would just let Star Trek go, let the fans imaginations run wild with how things started and end. Star Trek "jumped the shark" a long time ago, sometime during Deep Space 9. Then Voyager just made things worse, Enterprise wasn't as bad as Voyager, but it wasn't that great either. At least they could do is put money into the actual story and writing for a movie, not put all the money into special effects. Give us a actual story, hire some good writers. I hear there a bunch out of work and might need some money. This is just crap, making Spock's mother a Vulcan! Anyone that ever watched any Star Trek would know Spock's mother was human. She was even in a episode of the original TV show. I could care less about Winona Ryder, I'm sure she would be good in the role playing a human or Vulcan. (If you want to see a twisted movie watch A Scanner Darkly with Winona. It really messes with your mind)

Just like the whole Star Wars episodes I,II, III. The only half decent movie was episode III, and only because it paralleled our own screwed up government. We were better off left to our imaginations on how Anikin became evil and all that.

ALL I WANT FROM HOLLYWOOD IS TO STOP SCREWING WITH MY CHILDHOOD MEMORIES!

Gina Serpe, eonline
Fri Nov 9, 9:24 AM EST
For Winona Ryder, it's a fine line between pixie-like and Vulcanesque.

The actress has become the latest boldface name attached to J.J. Abrams' highly anticipated reboot of the Star Trek franchise, signing on to star as mother to a young Spock.

It will be Ryder's biggest studio film since 2002, when the two-time Oscar nominee costarred in Mr. Deeds with Adam Sandler and S1m0ne with Al Pacino. Ryder laid low for several years following her shoplifting arrest and has only appeared in a handful of mostly independent films, most notably in Richard Linklater's 2006 rotoscope-animated feature, A Scanner Darkly.??

Variety reports the erstwhile Heathers star will play the Vulcan mother of the Starfleet logician,?? sending Trekkers into a tizzy. Abrams is messing with a key element of the Star Trek canon: In all previous installments of the franchise, Spock's mother was human, not Vulcan (the pointy ears come courtesy of his father's side of the family).

As conceived by Trek mastermind Gene Rodenberry, Spock's mother was Amanda Grayson, a teacher who met and married Sarek, the Vulcan Ambassador to Earth. The two later decamped?? to planet Vulcan. Spock's maternal unit was first introduced in a 1967 episode of the original series and portrayed by actress Jane Wyatt. Wyatt reprised the role in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

The 36-year-old Ryder will mother Heroes' Zachary Quinto, an actor just six years her junior. It's unclear whether movie makeup magic will make up the age difference or whether Ryder's character will only appear in flashback. Original Spock Leonard Nimoy is also slated to appear in a cameo role, though it's unclear in what capacity.

No official details have been released about the film's plot, other than it will revolve around the Starship Enterprise crew's first mission together.

Ryder's addition signals the end of casting. In recent weeks, Abrams beamed up Chris Pine (Kirk), Karl Urban (Dr. McCoy), Simon Pegg (Scotty), John Cho (Sulu), Zoe Saldana (Uhura), Anton Yelchin (Chekov) and Eric Bana (the nefarious Nero) to the film.

Shooting is scheduled to begin on the film this month and is expected to last through March 2008. The film is slated for a Christmas 2008 release.

?? 2007 E! Entertainment Television, Inc. All rights reserved., http://www.eonline.com/about/copyright/index.jsp

Senate overrides Bush water projects veto - Politics - MSNBC.com

WASHINGTON - President Bush suffered the first veto override of his seven-year-old presidency Thursday as the Senate enacted a $23 billion water resources bill despite his protest that it was filled with unnecessary projects.

Wow, it's almost shocking that Congress and Senate finally stood up to the tyrant and chief.

The bill funds hundreds of Army Corps of Engineers projects, such as dams, sewage plants and beach restoration, that are important to local communities and their representatives. It also includes money for the hurricane-hit Gulf Coast and for Florida Everglades restoration efforts.

"his protest that it was filled with unnecessary projects", Bush is pretty much clueless to what goes on outside of the oval office.

The Senate vote was 79-14 to pass the bill. The House voted 361-54 to override the veto Tuesday. Both votes easily exceeded the two-thirds majority needed in each chamber to negate a presidential veto.

Do you think he will get the hint that he was horribly wrong? I would bet not. With so many Republicans turning against him he will probably be sending Darth Chaney and the waterboard crew to visit. I can almost hear Chaney saying "you have failed me for the last time, Senator"

The bill among other things would authorize the construction of navigation improvements for the Upper Mississippi River, at an estimated federal cost of $1.9 billion, and an ecosystem restoration project for the Upper Mississippi costing $1.7 billion.

The Indian River Lagoon project in the Florida Everglades would be funded at about $700 million.

The bill calls for an independent peer review process of all Army Corps projects costing $45 million or more, a bid to cut down on wasteful spending.

To me that all looks like good things. The type of thing any president should support. He has his head so far up his ass and just wants to spend all our money in wars or spying on his own citizens. With global warming this water bill is needed more then ever. We see what happens when a flood happens (FEMA sits on their ass), so we need to spend more on prevention. Hasn't Bush ever heard the saying a ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?

Ron Paul Raises More Than $4 Million in One Day - New York Times:

"Ron Paul Raises More Than $4 Million in One Day
By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: November 6, 2007 Historians and British schoolchildren remember Guy Fawkes as the Roman Catholic, anti-Protestant rebel who on Nov. 5, 1605, tried to assassinate King James I by blowing up the Parliament. Supporters of the Republican primary campaign of the libertarian Representative Ron Paul may remember Fawkes as a wildly successful fund-raising gimmick."

I found this pretty interesting, good ol' Ron Paul. Wouldn't it be great if someone like this could actually become President. I think it will be really hard for Ron to get the actual Republican nomination. I have a feeling the GOP good ol' boys are going to be backing that idiot rotten Rudy. I have noticed a Ron Paul yard sign in front of a house on my way to work, I have ment to get a picture of it, but there is usually someone behind me or such, so I don't want to be stopping traffic just so I can play with my cell phone.

I got up nice and early about 6am. and drove down the street to the polling place. They opened at 6 so there really wasn't anyone there. I was able to walk right in show my ID and sign some book. Go to a electronic voting machine and push the buttons for Henry and Goldner, I even voted for a libertarian for At Large. This was the first time I ever voted. I don't know why but it felt pretty good. I never really paid much attention to politics as I have this year especially locally. I can't wait till next year when (if Georgie W. allows it) there will be presidential elections. I need to get my self in the habit of sleeping more at night so I can get more involved with volunteering the next time around.

I noticed something kind of funny outside the polls there were lots of political signs, but none for Republican golden boy Matt Kelty. The kool-aid must not have been made early enough for them to get some people out to put up signs.

I went downtown to the Court house green for the Henry for Mayor rally. Senator Evan Bayh came in from Washington to support Mr. Henry.
These videos aren't very good (done with the cell phone camera)
Here is Tom Henry rallying the troops

Here is Senator Bayh talking about Tom's character


Robert from Left of Centrist has a better quality video, it shows pretty much the whole rally.

Here are some still photos.
Senator Bayh speaking

Here are Mr. and Mrs. Henry

Here is Tom Henry talking to local blogger John Good of Left in Aboite kids

Here is one of Bayh and Tom Henry, some how another local blogger Rober Rouse from Left of Centrist got in there.

Here is another picture of Senator Bayh with Mike Montagano who is running for Congress.


I thought it was a good rally, I think there was a pretty good turn out. We had great weather and the speakers really got everyone charged up. We have to get out and vote Nov. 6, don't sit home just thinking your guy will win, you have to vote to make sure that will happen.

That's right boys and girls, it's my favorite time of the year. The time when all us good Hoosier boys and girls have to set the clocks BACK one hour. It's called Daylight savings time! I don't think even local super hero Matt Kelty can save you from be drug kicking and screaming into Daylight savings time. Welcome to the 20th century Indiana, hope you enjoy the stay. So don't forget to turn those clocks back when you go to bed Saturday night.



Wait! does this mean I'm going to loose a hour at the bar Saturday / Sunday morning?

Bill Maher hits the nail on the head again. Here is post from Hffington Post about how even "No Child Left Behind" makes money for Bush's corprate buddies.

Bill Maher: No Crony Left Behind - Politics on The Huffington Post

New Rule: In the next fifteen months, President Bush has to perform at least one act that doesn't make money for someone he knows.

Take "No Child Left Behind." At first it just looked like gentle empty bullshit, a way to neutralize the Democrats edge with voters on education issues. What did it even mean? And how could you be against it? Education. It was a perfect cause that would honor the legacy of any president...'s wife. Which made it even more perfect for pre-9/11 Bush. And who could it hurt? No one. It made Lady Bird Johnson's wild-flowers-by-the-highways project look like the fucking Marshall Plan.

Except, like all Bush ideas, there was more to it. To meet the requirements of "No Child Left Behind" America's public schools have ordered more than eleven million standardized tests in the last two years. (New York State alone ordered 1.7 million.) The cost of the tests -- and the testing industry, including test prep -- now exceeds two billion dollars a year. And 90% of the industry is controlled by five corporations. And the largest of them is McGraw-Hill. And the McGraw family just happens to go back 80 years with the Bushes.

Another beneficiary of No Child Left Behind? Neil Bush's educational software company. The one funded by the United Arab Emirates. The one Barbara Bush said the Katrina victims had to spend her donation on.

Which is, of course, all blood under the bridge. But when Bush does anything, there's always some profit motive behind it. Nothing is free but the hookers. So it wasn't surprising that he announced his post war plans were to replenish the coffers with speeches. But before that, he has to do one purely altruistic thing. Just one.

Here is a video found on Youtube about our local boy running for mayor. Some pretty funny slogans!