And now for tonight's rant...

And it's a doozy.

This past weekend, I went to Pittsburgh for my husband's cousin's wedding. Yesterday, I was reading through the Post-Gazette's opinion section, where I found a column about shame.

Shame is a timely topic in the wake of the Rev. Ted Haggard's recent, ah, coming-out. But the focus of the column, which can be found here, was about a local minister, the Rev. Brent Dugan.

Rev. Dugan was not a controversial figure by any means. He was well-liked by his parishioners and regarded highly by the Pittsburgh Presbytery, which oversaw his church.

Yet KDKA-TV decided that there was something wrong anyway, and decided to "investigate" this man's "crimes", heavily promoting the story for sweeps week. Was he accused of molesting children or stealing from the church accounts? No. The Rev. Dugan's sole offense was that he was seen in an adult bookstore. There were also apparently tape recordings and other information, but it is not known if they contained information about illegal acts. If he were married, this would be fodder for a private investigator, but he wasn't. He was single. So nothing criminal probably happened, but KDKA took it upon itself to enforce what it assumed was church rules, because, y'know, the public has a right to know. KDKA eventually chose not to run the story, citing concerns that Rev. Dugan might harm himself.

Which he did. He checked into a motel in Mercer County and ended his life with an overdose of alcohol and aspirin. He left a suicide note alluding to the shame that was about to be made public.

Journalism is, by definition, a scummy business. Reporters sometimes have to go into less-than-glamorous outposts of the world to report on human misery, both in America and abroad. The lucky ones get to put on a suit each day and don't have to worry about sweating or getting shot at.

But KDKA-TV, and especially its reporter, Marty Griffin, deserve to be censured. Griffin, in fact, was sued for libel for a similar stunt he pulled in Texas. Erik Williams, who was playing for the Dallas Cowboys at the time, had been accused of rape and sexual assault by a woman who later recanted her story. Griffin reported the former fact but not the latter, which is what led to the suit. Griffin's employer settled the suit for $2.2 million and fired him. Griffin did not admit to any wrongdoing and claimed that he did not approve the settlement. (Dallas Morning News story)

And, according to the Post-Gazette, Mr. Griffin was cited last year for misdemeanor trespassing in an incident in which he went to a bus garage with a cameraman, claiming that he was merely demonstrating what he described as lax security on the part of the Port Authority; he was ultimately found not guilty on appeal; the appellate judge cited First Amendment grounds. (KDKA article)

Now, you may argue that Griffin is merely being a zealous advocate for the people. He has won at least one regional Emmy for investigative reporting.

But responsible advocates check their facts before going public, particularly where personal reputations are at stake. When they are wrong, they admit to it publicly and don't hide behind a "Who, me?! What did I do?!" attitude. From a First Amendment standpoint, this man has a right to say what he wishes. But from an ethical perspective, the man is scum. He makes me ashamed to be a journalist.

If KDKA listened to me, I'd tell them to fire Mr. Griffin and see to it that he never works in journalism anywhere. He's caused too much damage and Lord knows what else he's capable of. At the very minimum, I'd require that he take a course in journalistic ethics. His audience deserves no less.

Well, it's official...

Conrad Burns conceded to Jon Tester and George Allen conceded to Jim Webb. This gives the Dems a two-seat majority.

I have to give Allen credit for one thing, though. He's classy enough not to demand a recount. He's accepted his loss and doesn't want to see this drag out through December.

Dass mah boy!

I was trying to explain what happened last night to my four-year-old. I said, "Once upon a time, there was a man named George." He said, "George isn't a man, he's a monkey."

Of course, he also says that George is curious. I need to disabuse him of that notion.

It's all over but the hangovers

So the Democrats took the House and are likely to take the Senate, too. This makes me happy beyond words because it means that George Bush is effectively neutered.

The only question that remains is, do the Democrats have the balls to stand up to Bush now that they have the numbers to do so?

Awwww....... (The new cuteness)

Last night was my son's first year to go trick or treating in the neighborhood.

Here are some pictures.

The trial of the century

So the trial in which I was an alternate juror ended today. I can talk about the case now.

What happened was, one Robert Baker and one Marianna Kelly went out drinking. Jason Baker (no relation to Robert) asked to go along, but Robert said no, telling him that he and Ms. Kelly were going to a private club. Jason and another friend, Ty Mullen, stayed at Ms. Kelly's house, drinking and doing whatever, along with a third party, Dave Richardson. Robert and Ms. Kelly went to the club, then after the club closed, went to Blondie's, a public bar, where Robert apparently bought a six-pack to take home. Ms. Kelly had too much to drink, so when they got back to her house, Mullen and Richardson helped her upstairs, where she was apparently throwing up. Richardson stayed with her, while Mullen went downstairs.

According to Robert, he was leaving to go home when Jason cold-cocked him, punching him in the face and knocking him unconscious. After he came to, he found Mullen standing over him trying to help him. He was in "defensive mode", so he took a small pocketknife out of his pocket and sliced Mullen in the arm. He was okay enough to drive himself home, despite the fact that his left eye was swollen shut and he had a concussion. And, of course, despite the fact that he'd basically had the snot beaten out of him, he didn't trouble himself to seek any kind of medical care or notify the cops that he'd been assaulted until sometime the next day. And the first words out of this genius's mouth were "I don't have any insurance. Somebody's gotta pay these medical bills."

Others alleged that Mullen kicked Robert Baker, that there was a beer bottle thrown, and a lot of other confusion.

I talked to my brother about this, and he said that cases like this are hard to prosecute because the sequence of events are very messy to sort through.

I just talked to the judge's secretary. Jason Baker pled out. Damn, that is unsatisfying.

I'm letting Moveon.org borrow my blog...

Joe Sestak is running against Curt Weldon. You may remember that Weldon is currently being investigated for using his influence to get his daughters employed; one got more business as a lobbyist, the other works for a corporation.

There's nothing wrong with helping your kids; my parents have helped me out of many a jam. There is a lot wrong with using your position as a Congressman to peddle influence. (Here is an article from the Kansas City Star.)

alt="Call For Change" width="150" height="200">

The joys of audition tapes

I've been spending the better part of two days now trying to get a news audition tape together. It hasn't been easy. The wire service WSYC subscribes to sucks for PA news. I was able to cobble together enough news, sports, stocks and weather to put together a 4:57 broadcast. Oh, and I had actualities, too, for three of the stories.

What's kicking my ass is this cold. I sound terrible. Fortunately, I'm applying for a job where they know I sound much better than that, and that I can write.

Which helps.

Kermit the Frog You scored 52% Organization, 51% abstract, and 69% extroverted!

This test measured 3 variables. First, this test measured how organized you are. Some muppets like Cookie Monster make big messes, while others like Bert are quite anal about things being clean. Second, this test measured if you prefer a concrete or an abstract viewpoint. For the purposes of this test, concrete people are considered to gravitate more to mathematical and logical approaches, whereas abstract people are more the dreamers and artistic type. Third, this test measured if you are more of an introvert or an extrovert. By definition, an introvert concentrates more on herself and an extrovert focuses more on others. In this test an introvert was somebody that either tends to spend more time alone or thinks more about herself. You are mostly organized, both concrete and abstract, and more extroverted. Here is why are you Kermit the Frog. You are both somewhat organized. You have a good idea where you put things and you probably keep your place reasonably clean. You aren't totally obsessed with neatness though. Kermit is also reasonably tidy. He'll even dress up for interviews. You both are sometimes concrete and sometimes abstract thinkers. Kermit spends a lot of his time as a reporter collecting facts, but he is also the author of the dreamy song "The Rainbow Connection." You have a good balance in your life. You know when to be logical at times, but you also aren't afraid to explore your dreams and desires... within limits of course. You are both extroverts. Kermit gets along with everyone. Sure a few folks annoy him, but that's just because they are annoying. Kermit likes to meet new people when he does his job as a street reporter. You definitely enjoy the company of others, and you don't have problems meeting new people... in fact you probably look forward to it. You are willing to take charge when necessary or work as part of a team. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Kermit starred on Sesame Street years before The Muppet Show. The other possible characters are Oscar the Grouch Big Bird Snuffleupagus Ernie Elmo Cookie Monster Grover The Count Guy Smiley Bert If you enjoyed this test, I would love the feedback! Also if you want to tell me your favorite Sesame Street character, I can total them up and post them here. Perhaps your choice will win!

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 99% on Organization You scored higher than 99% on concrete-abstra You scored higher than 99% on intro-extrovert

Link: The Your SESAME STREET Persona Test written by greencowsgomoo on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

The emperor has no clothes

It may take a gay ex-Congressman to reveal the nakedness of the Republican Party, even though they've been nekkid as a jaybird since 2001.

Dennis Hastert (R-Illinois), who has basically kept power in the House because he's a nice and inoffensive guy whom everyone likes, is waffling on whether he knew about Mark Foley's clumsy attempts at cybersex. He's now fighting for his political survival.

What's interesting is not that Americans care about Mark Foley, necessarily. This could cost the Republicans the majority in Congress by energizing Democrats enough to get off our collective butts and vote.

One more, for amusement...

I got an interesting postcard in last night's mail.

Mensa testing day is October 21. For $30 ($25 since I got the postcard), I can take their test to see if I fit into the top 2% of the population in terms of intelligence.

Of course, if I were truly intelligent (and I am), I'll keep my $30 and not join.

An observation

Yanno, I don't know why everyone's getting all worked up over the fact that former Rep. Foley was the proponent of legislation that ostensibly protects children from those of his ilk. After all, lobbyists for various causes draft legislation all the time.

(Apologies to the CNN cartoon I stole this from)

The sun is shining

The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and I'm almost done with my paper. Whoo-hoo!

On a more amusing note... (deep, bitter irony alert)

Some idiot in (where else) Texas is pushing the Caney Creek school district to ban Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, a novel which is about censorship.

I don't know which is funnier. The fact that said idiot is from Texas or the fact that Bradbury's vision of dystopian hell is coming true.

Just for that, I think I'll re-read Fahrenheit 451 again tonight, just to spite the idiot. That'll learn 'em.

I wanna know where you are!

In memory of the 93 Jewish Maidens

This was something I hadn't heard of until today.

The 93 Jewish Maidens were students at the Beth Jacob school for girls in Ghetto-era Warsaw. They learned that they were to service the German troops. Instead of submitting to the Germans, they chose mass suicide. Chaya Feldman wrote letters about the students' decision; unfortunately, I cannot find a copy online. (Here is a post about the 93 Maidens, and here is the Wikipedia article about the Warsaw Ghetto.)

I also had the opportunity to read other writings by and about Holocaust victims.

Reading this material and watching films like Schindler's List really hits home for me, largely because the only things that separate me from those who had to face that evil are 50 years and an ocean. That's it.

Add yourself!

This just torques me off...

I'm sitting here in my office watching Studio 60 (the best new show of the season, as far as I'm concerned!) when a commercial for Friday Night Lights comes on. There's a contest where a high school can win $50,000 for its football program.

We live in a culture where schools don't have enough money to properly fund libraries or guarantee Internet access or get up-to-date textbooks, but money for football is there for the asking.

Violent death on television

The Black Dahlia is currently ranked as the sixth highest-grossing film for the weekend of September 22-24. As I've posted previously, it's the story of a victim of one of the most notorious crimes in recent American history. There are scenes in the film showing her mutilated corpse; her body had been cut in half, burned with cigarettes, a breast nearly sliced off, and the corners of her mouth had been cut to give her a grotesque smile reminiscent of Victor Hugo's The Man Who Laughs. Indeed, the novel and film versions feature prominently in both James Ellroy's noir novel and in the current film.

In the past, news photos of her body showed her covered, with both halves together to resemble a more normal body. In fact, a search of the Corbis photo archive (formerly Bettman Archive) brought up a news photo. (In the interest of delicacy, I won't post the image here, but here is a link.)

This brings me to my point. Man's inhumanity to man is pretty well documented. You can make the argument that seeing images helps to raise awareness of the problem at hand and hopefully do something about it. Back in the 1980s, the Western news media showed images of the Ethiopian famine. People were forced to confront the fact that so many people in an area of the world most Westerners don't often think about. The ensuing reaction was awesome. There were two benefit songs, one from the UK and one from the US; people donated money to aid in the relief effort. In that case, the publicity worked.

And that's one example. Another, perhaps better, example is documentary footage of Holocaust victims. Most of us have seen pictures of skeletal human bodies stacked like cordwood or film of crematoria as the smoke billows up into the sky. It's gruesome, but necessary if we are to remember the atrocities committed on the European Jews.

So, from the historical perspective, it's not hard to accept that some upsetting imagery is desirable. But there's a difference between historical and news footage that is intended to enlighten and inform, and the gratuitous display of violence in the name of entertainment that is intended to entertain and shock the audience.
The Black Dahlia is in the latter, the Black Dahlia is in the former.

A movie review

Los Angeles is a city that doesn't want to remember its past. It has one, and it's pretty well documented in such lovely tourist destinations as the La Brea Tar Pits, Olvera Street, William Mulholland and his legacy, and a bunch of other things. Oh, and Hollywood.

Its past includes some pretty bizarre murders. William Desmond Taylor is an example, as is Virginia Rappe. The Manson Family murders of Sharon Tate et al. are probably the best example.

But one murder that still fascinates those knowledgable about L.A. history, and probably the most bizarre single murder is the Black Dahlia. Born Elizabeth Short in Massachusetts, she moved west in the 1940s to become an actress. She was a drifter but not a prostitute. Her body was found in two pieces in a vacant lot in the Leimert Park area of Los Angeles. The murder is officially unsolved, although given the fact that it's been nearly 60 years, it's unlikely that anyone will be brought to justice; the case seems destined for the Jack the Ripper-style theories but no definite culprit. (For the truly interested, here is the FBI's file on her murder.)

Some 40 years after the murder, noir writer James Ellroy published The Black Dahlia, now made into a movie starring Josh Hartnett, Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Scarlett Johanssen, and Mia Kirshner. The novel is excellent. The movie, sad to say, is not.

It is possible to make a movie from an Ellroy novel. It was done quite successfully with L.A. Confidential, for my money one of the best recent noir films. It can be done.

Unfortunately, it can't be done by Brian DePalma, who also directed Scarface, Carlito's Way, and Dressed to Kill. In fact, a quick once-over of his filmography reveals that his most famous films are known for violence. And so it is with The Black Dahlia. From the beginning, gore pervades the movie like an unwritten, unwanted character. Even as Short enters the scene, her corpse is treated not with respect, but as a piece of meat. In the vacant lot, the audience doesn't see it, but a crow lands to peck at it. When the body is finally shown, it's on an autopsy table in two discrete pieces, and we see all of her facial injuries. "Graphic" doesn't do the violence justice. It's violence as pornography. It doesn't advance the plot or clarify things. It's there just to be there. That was strike one.

Strike two was the very confusing plot. L.A. Confidential's writers cut a lot out of the original story to come up with a small handful of cogent plots. Josh Friedman's adaptation of The Black Dahlia tried to use all of the novel's plotlines. The end result is a muddled story that was hard to follow, and that didn't give any necessary back story. I've read the novel numerous times and still couldn't follow the movie. I felt like I needed to take notes for future reference; if there had been a quiz at the end of the movie, I wouldn't have passed it.

Finally, the acting was horrible. It was mostly flat and without any sort of inflection; it was as though the actors couldn't stand to be around each other and resorted to the flat affect of forced civility.

So, with three strikes, this one's outta here. Save your money and if you must, wait for it to come out on cable or Netflix. Spend the money on the novel instead. It's worth it.

New Jersey is the fourth-largest spinach producer in the United States, and its spinach has not been affected by the recent E. coli outbreak.

Apparently, the toxic waste kills the E. coli.

Comments on the Declaration of Independence

Every year, NPR has some of their people read passages from the Declaration of Independence, which then gets mixed into a montage. Throw in some dramatic music and it's really kind of cool. This year, I swiped it by copying it from Windows Media Player into Audacity.

As I was doing this, the text of the DoI made me think about that in light of the current political situation here in the Good 'Ol US of A. Most of you know that I am fairly liberal in my political leanings and as far as I'm concerned, Bush has a special place in hell waiting for him. But juxtaposing the current situation against the DoI makes me think the Founding Fathers are rolling over in their graves at what their brainchild has become.

What follows is the text of the DoI along with some commentary. You are not only free to disagree, but the debate is welcome.

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

No argument from me here.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Bush presumably believes in a Creator; he bangs that drum constantly. Obviously, he disagrees with the concepts of Life (witness his record as Governor of Texas and his jokes about Karla Fay Tucker and the 15 minutes he gave to each capital case that crossed his desk), Liberty (just ask the people currently imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay without trial or counsel), or the pursuit of Happiness (his opposition to stem-cell research on purely religious-pandering grounds is depriving many millions of Americans of their happiness by putting a cell before a living, breathing human being who wants a shot at a normal life).

--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,

Or the "signing statements" which he thinks give him the right to ignore what he doesn't agree with or what he doesn't want to enforce. Or the military tribunals which, fortunately, got slapped down by the Supreme Court.

--That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it,

Vote the bastards out in '06 and '08. You've got the ballot, USE IT!

and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

I repeat: VOTE! Complaining doesn't accomplish anything if your vote doesn't back it up.

Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.

The devil you don't know is sometimes better than the devil you do know. It's too dangerous right now to let apathy take over.

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. (emphasis mine)

The Founding Fathers and subsequent generations made sure we have the tools at our disposal to do that. We can vote our consciences and speak out without fear of arrest. Unless we're tied, however tenuously, to an organization that the government thinks is related somehow to terrorism. Then all bets are off.

--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government.

The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

Okay. This paragraph, not so much. As of December, 2005, Bush has refused his assent to exactly zero laws Congress has passed. In fact, thanks to the aforementioned "signing statements" and other Executive-branch "national security" programs, he's had a hand in legislation that doesn't belong there. Of course, this has been overtaken by events. He has vetoed exactly one law having to do with stem-cell research.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

Hm. I don't know about Representation in the Legislature, but it looks like the people of Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004 were deprived of the right to vote.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

These two don't apply. It's hard to dissolve a legislature when they're in full agreement with you, and when they operate by inertia.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

Hmmm... immigration debate, anyone?

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers. He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries. He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

Wow. This is a biggie. It seems like the Founding Fathers were foretelling the existence of the Department of Homeland Security, whose job it is to peek under our collective (and individual) bed for the bogeyman. To do this, they inspect our telephone records, financial records, and personal belongings including personal communications, whether they have a court's permission or not.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures. He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

Ask a Guardsman how he feels about rotating from Iraq to Afghanistan to hurricane zones to border patrol. For that matter, just think of the servicemen who stand accused of committing murders and rapes while stationed in Iraq. But it's okay. They're doing their jobs. Oh, and torture is OK because the Geneva Convention is "quaint". (Memo from Alberto Gonzales, 2002) I guess things are different when their skin is brown.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us: For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

The armed services prosecute some murders. But not all.

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world: For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent: For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

So much for the FISA courts and the poor schmucks at Gitmo. And thanks for imposing future taxes when the bills for Bush's tax cuts and the Iraq war debt come due.

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

Sucks to be Canada.

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments: For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

Maybe not all cases, but where it counts.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

This definitely applies to Iraq. How's that new puppet government working out?

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

See above. If their skin is brown, then a new paradigm is involved, so torture is okay. Gotcha.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions. In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury.

Right. Unless the Indians had the good fortune to be able to afford Jack Abramoff's services. (Further update: Bob Ney of Ohio has pled guilty to various crimes involving Abramoff.)


A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us.

Nah, we're too chicken to warn anyone about anything.

We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence.

They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved;

and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do.
And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

A-bloody-men!
Let's not piss on the graves of the people who fought and risked their lives so we could live freely. Speak out and VOTE.

My iPod is my constant companion. It gives me hours of faithful service, assuming I remember to charge it up. Thanks to the podcasting phenomenon, I can learn about any subject, even Russian. Mine happens to hold my entire music collection and according to the little bar at the bottom of my iTunes window, it's just over half full.

I bought the iPod as a gift to myself last fall. I was about to graduate from college and had landed my first professional job. Okay, it's just a part-time gig that came along with an internship, but it's in radio, and I'm optimistic that it'll turn into a real job with benefits and everything.

I could wax rhapsodic (hee!) about my iPod for hours. I could talk about the "MOM'S toy" etched into the back. I could talk about the video screen. I could talk about the hours and hours and hours of entertainment at my fingertips. But I won't.

The reason why is because it seems everyone has one. This afternoon at school, it seemed everyone walking past me had those white earbuds. I'm sure the squirrels on campus have them, too, but I'm not sure how they'd get into the computer labs to download music, but if they could get in, I'm sure they'd listen to the Squirrel Nut Zippers. (I slay me.)

And, of course, there's lawsuit pending about the noise levels these things deliver. They are pretty loud; if I've got my studio headphones plugged in, I can't hear myself think if the volume's set much more than half. I prefer it that way, although the voices in my head disagree. They claim the iPod has been detrimental to their efforts to communicate with me.

The reason I've been thinking about this is because all those people who answered the siren call of the white earbuds remind me of the Walkmen of my youth. (Walkmans? Walkpeople?) Back in the day, everyone had the black headphones on. The usual mavens whined about the excessive personal space people made for themselves. I agree, it's hard to strike up small talk on the bus with someone who's listening to a Tom Clancy book on tape. Of course, who wouldn't want to engage in casual coversation with a guy who smells like he hasn't bathed since the Carter administration and who thinks you're purty. In the 1980s, we were all dancing to the beat of our own drummer, or at least, to the beat of Madonna's drummer.

But the Walkman is so 20 years ago. Thanks to the iPod, we can still ignore the unpleasantness of the world around us and we can continue to go deaf in the process. Who needs self-amusement skills when we can simply plug in and watch all of Season One of Drawn Together or Desperate Housewives?

The real question is this, and I await more whining from the usual suspects: Are we so starved for entertainment that we must spend hundreds of dollars to take it with us? In an age when we can access the Internet from our cell phones, do we really need constant musical and video entertainment? Are we all so alienated from each other that a small box the size of half a deck of cards seems like a good alternative to conversation?

If you were around 20 years ago, the answer is "yes".

The "Shit" Heard 'Round the World

I'm no fan of George Bush; I think he's a petty, small-minded simpleton whose sole reason for existing is to glorify himself.

But c'mon. The man says "shit" in a private conversation and OH NOES!!!!!11!!!!! Let's get real, for a second. Bush is putatively an adult. He is the leader of the free world. I'm sure he lets out a few expletives now and again, just like I'm sure your parents do.

Here is the CNN story, which includes a link to the footage.

Curiously (or not), Faux isn't being quite so hysterical; they merely describe the event as "unscripted".

Boom!

It's raining outside. We're probably getting the storms that passed over the Midwest yesterday.

I've never minded thunderstorms. As long as I'm inside, they're not going to hurt me. They're also a good excuse to turn the TV off and just sort of be for a while. And, living in Central Pennsylvania as I do, the rain helps reduce some of the humidity that seems to settle in from May until mid-September.

When I was driving home this afternoon, I noticed ears on the cornstalks. Cumberland County is very corn-intensive and during the summer, you see acres and acres of it. Other things grow here, too; there are a lot of orchards that grow apples and stone fruit, but corn predominates here.

In fact, fresh food is the only reason I like summer at all. Summer is hot and humid and buggy. It's going from cool house to air-conditioned car to air-conditioned building and back. It's mosquito bites on inconvenient body parts. It's too much sun. It's long days with not a lot to do. Winter isn't that much different, except that it's too cold. Spring makes me sneeze.

Which leaves fall. Fall is, without a doubt, the best season. It's warm, but the first little chill is nice. The leaves on the trees on Kittatinny Ridge are vivid red, orange and yellow. I like breaking out the sweatshirts and being able to wear jeans without roasting to death. And football is the best. Game. Ever.