Time Magazine has released the results of a poll, in the wake of the passing of Walter Cronkite, on who is now America's most trusted journalist.
And the results...well, call it a LOLsob. In related news, seismic activity detectors reported a sustained tremor coming from the direction of the late Mr. Cronkite's grave.
This is not to suggest that Mr. Stewart isn't entertaining. But he is, by his own admission, an entertainer, and makes no claim of being a journalist.
Still, it could be worse. When I clicked on the link to this, sent me by a friend, I had a horrified moment of thinking that a certain Faux News anchor would top the list.
LOLsob
Bringing Our People Home - Update
A few weeks ago, I wrote about Ms. Suaad Hagi Mohamud, a Canadian citizen being held in a Kenyan jail after being detained trying to leave the country, when a customs official in Nairobi said she didn't look enough like her four-year-old passport photo. Her Canadian passport.
After weeks of arguments, and a certain amount (not enough, IMNSVHO, and I'm disappointed in my fellow Canadians for the sheer xenophobia of some of the comments made about the situation) of public pressure, Canada Customs & Immigration has finally agreed to conduct a DNA test, to prove that she really is the mother of the son she left behind when she went to visit family in Somalia.
Because apparently her OHIP (government health insurance) card, Ontario driver's licence, Canadian passport, and citizenship certificate aren't proof enough.
Once again, I'm left wondering whether I, as a white, UK-born Canadian, would have any of these kinds of challenges to my identity, were I to have been stopped in Nairobi. I wish I could say I thought it likely, but it seems much more probable that she isn't as credible because she's dark-complected, and thus easily suspected.
Once again, I find myself in the position of being ashamed of my government. This kind of petty harassment of the "wrong kind" of immigrants is shameful, not to mention illegal under our very own Charter of Rights.
Mr. Harper, pull your thumb out and get our fellow Canadian home.
Photo of the Day
Actress Emma Thompson with her husband Greg Wise, mother and fellow actress Phyllida Law, daughter Gaia, and son Tindyebwa Agaba, whom Thompson and Wise adopted six years ago and who has just graduated from Exeter University with a degree in politics. [Trigger warning.] Tindy came to Britain as a refugee after losing his father to AIDS, being forced to serve as a child soldier, and losing his mother and sister during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, after they were likely abducted, raped, and possibly killed by soldiers.
[The] charity Care International eventually helped him flee to Britain, where he met his adoptive parents…at a Refugee Council party in 2003, when he was 16 years old.Blub.
…"He didn't have much English, but we just got talking," Miss Thompson has previously said. …"He's such a lovely, enchanting boy, so I said, 'Come and spend Christmas with us.' And he came for half the day. Slowly he became a permanent fixture, went on holidays with us and became part of the family."
Adopting Tindy also helped the actress, who had tried and failed to have more children after undergoing IVF to conceive daughter Gaia, now eight years old.
…After learning to speak English, Tindy studied GCSEs and A-levels before winning a place at Exeter University.
He said he chose Exeter because his surrogate family had told him of the "stunning beauty there, where they shot Sense And Sensibility" - the 1995 film on which Miss Thompson met her 43-year-old husband.
From September, Tindy plans to attend London's School of Oriental and African Studies, where he will study for a Masters Degree in Human Rights Law.
[H/T to Shaker tessrae, who recalled my abiding Emmalove.]
I Write Letters
Dear Hollywood:
Depp's on board.
Now Channing's on board.
Put down the BACKGAMMON: The Backgammoning!!! script and make this shit happen. Like, yesterday.
Love,
Liss
P.S. H/T to Shaker The Bald Soprano.
Hey!
In case you weren't still hating George Bush and Dick Cheney at maximum capacity, here's an article to rev up your engine again.
*clunk*
Obama Presser
Speaking of last night's press conference, which was indeed mostly about healthcare, the full transcript is here. And here's the AP's highlights video:
Krugman calls him the Professor-in-Chief, and says: "I found Obama's health care presentation so impressive—so much command of the issues—that it had me worried. If I really like a politicians' speech, isn't that an indication that he lacks the popular touch? ... Seriously, it's really good to see how much he gets it."
He also notes that Howard Fineman is an idiot, as does Digby. Yeah, Bush was a cowboy. That worked out great. Sigh.
Ms. Janke's Profession
Here's your "weird news from Florida" story for the day.
Okay, let's see: Mr. Janke was doing his job without any complaints, and his wife, who is not involved with the city government in any way, has a job that is perfectly legal and that we can only assume has nothing whatsoever to do with the business of the city. And yet Mr. Janke gets fired?A South Florida town manager who married a porn star last year was fired at an emergency meeting after the mayor and council members learned about it.
Fort Myers Beach town council voted 5-0 to fire Scott Janke "without cause" after Mayor Larry Kiker called the Tuesday night meeting.
Kiker said he learned that afternoon that Janke's wife is an adult film star, and the elected officials took the action a few hours later.
"At no time did we make a judgment call on the activities of Mr. Janke or his wife," Kiker told The Associated Press. "It's a matter of how effective he becomes after this situation. How much disruption there is."
Adult Industry News recently reported that Janke's wife, Anabela Mota Janke, goes by the stage name Jazella Moore.
Kiker said a clause in Janke's contract permitted the council to fire him with a majority vote. He said he considers the Jankes friends.
"Our heads are held high," Scott Janke said. "We have nothing to be embarrassed about. We've done nothing wrong."
There's nothing in the article that identifies the political affiliations of the members of the town council, but knowing that part of the state, I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that they are probably identified with the one that carries on about how it upholds "traditional family values." So they're firing a guy who is happily married, raising their children, and serving his community all because they're worried about appearances? (And I wonder how many members of the city council suddenly recognized Ms. Janke from their private film collections.) In light of recent revelations about public figures like senators and governors who actually committed adultery and lied about it to their families and their constituents yet remain on the job, this is just a tad ironic.
I'm not going to make any judgments about Ms. Janke's profession and whether or not she contributes to the exploitation and objectification of women. That may easily be, but in this instance -- her husband being fired because of her profession -- it is breathtakingly irrelevant.
The city may have been within its legal rights to terminate Mr. Janke without cause, but sure makes them look like ignorant tight-asses.
Crossposted.
Obama on Gates Arrest
On Monday, I wrote about Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates being arrested at his home for "exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior" when police, who were called by a neighbor because Gates had to fiddle with a jammed door to get in, refused to leave after he provided proof of residency. Charges against Gates have since been dropped.
Last night, during his press conference, President Obama weighed in on the case, and he did not hold back:
The Gates arrest came up in the final question of the hourlong news conference in which Mr. Obama largely stuck to familiar talking points about why the country needs to overhaul its health care system right now. Lynn Sweet of The Chicago Sun-Times asked him about the case and what it said about race relations in America.I really love him for saying that so plainly and unapologetically. And what an amazing thing to have a black president able to say that with an authority that a white president never would.
Mr. Obama paused, then said, "Well, I should say at the outset that Skip Gates is a friend, so I may be a little biased here."
Then he made his only joke of the evening, as he speculated about what would happen if he were seen trying to force the door of his own home? "I guess this is my house now," he said, "so it probably wouldn't happen." Then, after a beat, he added, "Let's say my old house in Chicago. Here, I'd get shot."
..."I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in [the events]," Mr. Obama continued. "But I think it's fair to say, No. 1, any of us would be pretty angry; No. 2, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and No. 3, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is there is a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by police disproportionately. That's just a fact."
Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime
With David Bowie, who was sitting in on keyboards, giggling away in the background.
What The Hell?
Shaker Siobhan
What the hell is with that funky hat? What the hell happened to your knees?? What the hell is with those weird-ass glasses??? What the hell????
[See also: Deeky, Liss, evilsciencechick, katecontinued, ClumsyKisses, Mistress Sparkletoes, Liiiz, Reedme, Mama Shakes, Mustang Bobby, RedSonja, MomTFH, Portly Dyke, SteffaB, Icca, Christina, Orangelion03, and Car.]
Question of the Day
Suggested by Mama Shakes: What's the most interesting thing you've ever seen on a gravestone or at a gravesite?
Mama Shakes quotes an engraving she saw on a headstone in a cemetery in New York many years ago: "Minnehaha Bedell, wife of Elephalet Snedecor."
Now those are some kickass names.
The most interesting thing I've ever seen was a game of Monopoly left beside a headstone, with the little hat left on top of the headstone, as if to say, "Your move."
Nerdz/Not Nerdz?
Liss and I were talking earlier today about what big nerds we are.
Actually, she was claiming we were nerds while I countered that I've never worn a wizard hat. As per usual, the conversation degraded to the point where she pulled her trump card, threatening to Photoshop me into a compromising position with a house plant. (It's a long story.) We giggled over this a while, because we've both the maturity level of a couple of ten year olds, and after a time we were a little relieved (and strangely disappointed) that she wasn't going to make good on her threat.
At this point it was decided the only thing that could "salve Liss' soul" was gazing upon the Xanadouche. Its restorative powers are amazing, in case you didn't know.
Inspired as she was by Xanadouche, she lit upon a new and groundbreaking idea: Photoshopping me into a new movie poster every week. Pure genius.
And with that, allow me to present the first installment in that series.
Braveheart
p.s. 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42.
OMFG
Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on the House floor earlier today, "extolling the virtues of a balanced budget" during a debate about PAYGO:
Let's agree that we're going to have PAYGO enforcement—that we're not going to cry 'emergency' every time we have a Katrina, every time we have a tsunami, every time we have a need for extra spending, that we don't go call for a special appropriation that allows us to circumvent the PAYGO rules.Let's agree, Congressman, that you revise your contention that Katrina wasn't an emergency, and I won't "cry" you're a fucking idiot! from the nearest rooftop. Deal?
Quote of the Day
"I think people should get to choose whoever they want to marry. It should be their choice, not somebody else's." — the four-and-a-half-year-old daughter of Salon blogger Palindrome, in an Open Salon post a little over a month ago.
As she says further down in the same post:
If she can figure out something so simple, what is everybody else's problem?You said it, Palindrome. And so did your wonderful daughter.
Sigh
Feel the hopey-changeyness!CheneyObama refuses to release visitor logs showing whichenergyhealth care company executives visited the White House.
Late Update: It's an especially painful continuation of Bush policies since candidate Obama promised to let CSPAN in to cover the creation of a health care bill and his campaign website still promises transparency in meetings between White House staff and outside interests.
In Things To Which I Can't Relate
The urge to participate in a de-baptism.*
If you're really an atheist, I don't see what difference it makes if you were baptized. It seems to me that a de-baptism just legitimizes baptism as something more than a little water dumped on your head, empowers it in a way that simply ignoring it never would.
I mean, I get the symbolism of it: There are certainly times I wish that I didn't have to carefully unwind years of being told by God-Chosen Menfolk (tremble) that I was less than because of what is (or isn't) between my legs. Not to mention other bigotries. But what feels more liberating to me now is existing in a space where I am free of that tribe, afloat on my own, my ethics self-contained, not connected backwards to that which once held me, not by resentments nor recriminations—just free.
Only of myself.
Truth be told, I don't really get group-minded atheists at all—by which I don't mean membership in a group like Americans United for the Separation of Church and State or in the ACLU or some other group that defends atheists' right of freedom from imposed religion, but participation in group rituals and atheist services and so forth, which strike me personally as turning atheism into a variation on organized religion of its own.
Most of my issue with organized religion is the religion part, but some of it is the organized part, which is what allows for institutionalized bigotry and corruption.
Especially when so much of the stuff seems centered around hatred of religion, which is quite separate from both atheism and standing steadfast against the legislation of religion or a specific morality which extends therewith, I must admit I deeply worry that movement atheism risks becoming a reactionary version of that which it purports to reject. Same shit, different dogma.
I hope I'm wrong.
I guess I just have this (possibly fanciful) ideal of a world of people, free and only of themselves, bonded to others in ways wholly separate from god-belief or the lack thereof, for reasons that are decidedly human, earthly, chosen and renewed every day.
-------------------------------
* More power to ya if you find that stuff cathartic. It's just not my cup of water wine tea.
Wednesday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by Shaxco, distributors of the totally original Lady Googoo hit, "Just Prance."
Recommended Reading:
Andy: John McCain Calls Piggyback of Hate Crime Bill an 'Abuse of Power'
Chris: Chris Matthews vs. Rep. John Campbell, Co-Sponsor of a Birther Bill [video]
Dorothy: What Happens in Top Chef...
The next three are a matched set:
Mindy: There Is Nothing Technical About It
Marcella: Those Good Old Days Before Feminists Ruined Rape Trials
Laura: Why Rape Jokes Aren't Harmless Fun
Leave your links in comments...
Radio Shakesville Rewind
Just a reminder, if you haven't caught the latest, or any, episode of the Radio Shakesville podcast, you should do so now. You can download them here, or on iTunes if you're so inclined. You can put them on your iPod or Zune and listen to them on the El or burn them to CD and listen to them in the car. Whatever. There are seven shows out, so you owe it to yourself to listen to at least one.
I'm always taking requests. Just call (641) 715-3900, extension 44515 and leave a message with my service. Of course, if you don't want to request anything, that's fine, you can always just call in tell me your crazy theories on Obama's birth certificate or why healthcare reform is imperative or why you hate Joe the Plumber or your erotic dreams featuring Dick Cheney. Or better yet, just tell me I'm an asshole like everyone else does.
I've embedded the shows below, should you want to give them a spin right now. I suggest playing them all at once so it sounds like the latest Einstürzende Neubauten CD. Are Einstürzende Neubauten still around? And why is it I'm the the only Shakesville contributor to ever mention Einstürzende Neubauten?
Enjoy!
Episode 1
It Started As An Accident
(play in popup)
Episode 2
Women Who Dare To Make Noise, Pt. 1:
This Woman’s Work
(play in popup)
Episode 3
Not Enough Time
(play in popup)
Episode 4
Blood, Graffiti and Spit
(play in popup)
Episode 5
There Is a Light That Never Goes Out
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Episode 6
Women Who Dare To Make Noise, Pt. 2:
Woman Power
(play in popup)
Episode 7
The Day The World Turned Day-Glo
(play in popup)
Situation Normal: The Media Stinks; Republicans Are Pathetic
Speaking of song-stealing…
So, first of all, I have to admit I'm a little bit in love with Lady Gaga. I mean, we are talking about a woman who gave an interview in a Kermit the Frog pelerine and matching fascinator:
So I was admittedly a little shocked and disappointed when I saw the headline on CNN: GOP's new youth ambassador: Lady Gaga? I mean, sure, it happens—Alice Cooper is a Republican, after all, but still. How could you, Lady Gaga?
Of course, if one actually bothers to read the article, one finds the headline is totes bullshit: GOP congressman Dave Reichert (R-Wanker) just used a video by some douche parodying one of Lady Gaga's songs ("Just Tax" instead of "Just Dance," ho ho ho) to "show his colleagues the video to encourage them to get young people involved using new media," because, according to his spokesperson, Reichert "wanted them to encourage the youth in their district, and share the message on a level that young people can relate to."
So, it's less "Lady Gaga as GOP youth ambassador" and more "Republicans are dipshits."
The awesome video is below, but before I leave you to it, I'd like to note that my favorite part of the CNN article is this:
Asked about the video, House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence, R-Ind, laughed and said "it's part of the Pence youth initiative."Huh!
Pence admitted that very few members were familiar with the original Lady Gaga song.
Youth of America, the GOP thinks you will like this:
Fake Newscast: President Obama today announced a new trillion-dollar spending package. This investment and stimulus money will be paid for by future generations of Americans. The increased deficits in the federal budget will be made up by increased taxes and cuts to the Department of Defense.
Song:
Yeah! Democrats in the White House. Remix.
We've Spent a little bit too much.
All of this change has been a crutch.
Control your party, man.
Spending is out of hand.
Youre gonna have to make some cuts.
What's going on on the floor?
I've seen this same old type of overspending before.
Please don't mortgage our future away.
I don't know what to do;
I worry every day.
Wait—I know what you'll do!
Just Tax, it will be ok.
Just Tax, spread that wealth around.
Just Tax, it will be ok.
Just Tax.
A billion here, a billion there.
When will the people start to care?
(Please start to care now.)
This shouldn't happen, man.
Go on and ask Japan.
Remember the 1990s.
(Google it!)
Spend your way out of debt.
Buy up the banks, the cars, and toxic assets.
Wait, let's think this through.
(Think it through, man!)
Just Tax, it will be ok.
Just Tax, spread that wealth around.
Just Tax, it will be ok.
Just Tax.
I'm getting paid and that's all good 'cause times are rough.
Got my paycheck and I'm thinking about buying some brand new stuff.
I'm short some dough, and wonder who is this FICA man.
I can't believe my eyes; all the money that's going to Uncle Sam.
Government's broke but they're spending more money.
Government's broke but they're spending more money.
Government's broke but they're still spending money.
Hey kids, its your Uncle Sam and I'm in debt.
Big time! And I need your help. So give me your money.
Think that I can do that? Yes I can.
Tax and spend it, idiotic.
Do it again, it's robotic.
Complain for 8 years, ironic.
Get more in debt, it's moronic.
Tax and spend it, idiotic.
Do it again, it's robotic.
Complain for 8 years, ironic.
Get more in debt, it's moronic.
Don't throw away the future by making even more debt.
(You just don't get it.)
You need to slow, stop the spending, wait 5 days, be more transparent.
(Before you sign it.)
(Obama: I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody.)
Just Tax, it will be ok.
Just Tax, spread that wealth around.
Just Tax, it will be ok.
Just Tax.
