Halloween 2004

It's Halloween, and we only got five trick-or-treaters tonight. I'm so bummed.

If there is such a thing as the Great Pumpkin, by the way, chances are he didn't appear in a New Jersey pumpkin patch. As that esteemed philosopher Linus Van Pelt explained, the Great Pumpkin only appears in the most sincere pumpkin patch he can find, spurning any with even a hint of hypocrisy. And that's the problem with Garden State pumpkin patches this year. Due to heavy rain, the pumpkin crop here was less than stellar for 2004. Farms in New Jersey that cater to tourists and daytrippers in October with pumpkin patches where you can pick your own pumpkin had to import the big orange gourds from elsewhere and create fake pumpkin patches.

It reminds me of a Peanuts cartoon where Peppermint Patty - believing Linus's Great Pumpkin tale - buys some pumpkins and assembles her own little patch to lure the Great Pumpkin. Roy, a friend of both Peppermint Patty and Linus, tells her that this smacks of hypocrisy. "Linus told me the Great Pumpkin hates hypocrisy. This is worse than hypocrisy. . . this is commercial!"

Happy Halloween! :-D

Election Enodrsement Withdrawal

I'm withdrawing my endorsement of Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen. Reason? My mother is voting for Jim Buell, his Democratic opponent, on the grounds that even voting for a moderate, mild-mannered Republican like Frelinghuysen only helps the party's national leadership, which is filled with right-wing nutjobs. And she may be right. So I am not endorsing anyone. I don't know whom will get my vote for the House now. But I'm not sure I want to cancel out my mother's vote, either! :-O

Down To the Wire

This is the final weekend in the presidential campaign, and polls still show the race (I hate that word) to be a tossup - although there are plenty of indicators in the polls that you could use to make an argument for either candidate and his chances of winning on Tuesday. It's still up in the air . . ..

A Middle Eastern King Lear

Yasser Arafat, ailing from an unknown but obviously blood-related disease, has been taken to France for medical treatment. Arafat's illness couldn't have come at a worse time for the Palestinian people, as there is great uncertainty over how the Palestinian Authority can continue with its leadership divided and increasingly ineffective. And Arafat himself can be blamed in part for the current chaos, as he has not prepared the Palestinian Authority to continue without him, and with no clear successor. Arafat increasingly resembles a Middle Eastern King Lear, as he helplessly watches his fiefdom degenerate into disorder and disunion. :-(

Al-Qaqaa Concerns

The al-Qaqaa explosives story from Iraq continues to mutate, and not in George W. Bush's favor. The story appears to be that after Saddam Hussein was deposed in April 2003, a U.S. Army battalion visited al-Qaqaa and destroyed several canisters of the explosives, but the missing ones could have been taken from another stockpile in the storage facility. No one knows for sure. The evidence - or lack of it - suggested that we give Dub the Shrub the benefit of the doubt, but should we? His administration hasn't been exactly forthcoming on this issue.

Bin Laden: He's Baaack . . .

Just when you thought it was safe to turn on your TV set. . . . As if the nasty tone of the presidential campaign weren't bad enough, Osama bin Laden has resurfaced on television - here, in the Middle East, and everywhere else. Taking responsibility for 9/11 and warning Americans of more attacks to come, bin Laden has declared that the American people, not George W. Bush or John Kerry, have the power to stop future attacks by demanding an end to U.S. support for Israel and corrupt Arab regimes. Many political commentators are split on whom this helps - Bush for reminding voters of terrorism or Kerry for reminding folks that bin Laden is still out there. They all agree that neither candidate should politicize it.

So what does Kerry do? He criticizes Bush for not having captured bin Laden. Also, he added that the safety of Americans was at stake.

What the . . . ? :-O

You're Gonna Cry 96 Years

One curse remains in Major League Baseball. The Chicago Cubs haven't won the World Series since Roosevelt was President. Teddy Roosevelt. Not since 1908 - ninety-six years ago - have the Cubs won the Series. And they haven't won the National League pennant since 1945, which many believe is due to the Billy Goat Curse. After winning the NL pennant in 1945, the Cubs played the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. During the sixth Series game at Wrigley Field, when the Cubs were leading the Tigers in the Series three games to two, a Cubs fan named William Sianis attempted to enter the ball park with a pet goat. He and his pet were ejected because of the goat's smell. Enraged, Sianis supposedly put a curse on the Cubs that they would never win the NL pennant again. Sure enough, they haven't won it since. The most recent team was last year, when they lost Game Six of the National League championship to the Florida Marlins (a team that has only existed since 1993!), who went on to win the Series. In the sixth game, a fan reached over and caught a fly ball that proved to be in bounds, costing the Cubs the game and then the pennant.

Surprisingly, this fan is still alive. :-O

The Reversed Curse (And Unreversed Curses)

They did it! The Red Sox won the World Series! I honestly never thought it would happen. Well, I'm glad to see someone has shaken off a curse this month.

I feel like I've been cursed this entire month. I've had computer problems, my mother and I spent an entire week (her week off!) at home indoors because of the lousy weather, and of course, I lost my job. And because of that, I've been given a hard time by the unemployment office. I had to go for an orientation yesterday and I have to have a telephone interview to determine my eligibility for benefits (and I have a nasty feeling that I'll be denied benefits when all is said and done). All of this, including the weather, derailed my mother's and my plans to go somewhere one weekend for an overnight trip - we'd been trying to get away from all the craziness I just described. And, something might be wrong with my car.

And here's the kicker. The jazz radio host I was trying to write a profile article about said she could see me this Saturday. I told her by e-mail I'd probably be going somewhere this weekend instead, depending on the weather. As soon as the weather forecast predicted rain on Saturday, I e-mailed her again saying, yes, Saturday was perfect. Too late! She saw my first e-mail and made plans for this Saturday. My plans for Saturday now likely involve cleaning my room or going to the gym to use a treadmill.

Did I happen to mention that I've been trying to arrange an interview with this woman for fifteen months? We now hope to meet sometime between February 30 and the first of Octember.

Ironically, today was a perfect day; I went out to see the fall foliage. When I got home and checked my e-mail. . . well, that was it.

I know most of this may seem insignificant in the Big Bang scheme of things, a point my mom has made clear in no uncertain terms (no one makes you feel smaller and dumber than you already are like a mom), but I can only take so much disappointment, which is now turning into disgust.

P.S. I have a job interview tomorrow. Wish me - ahem - luck.

'The West Wing' Gets Dark

Tonight's episode of "The West Wing" ended with President Bartlet brokering a tentative peace deal between the Israelis and the Palestinians with shared sovereignty over Jerusalem, something that might work out in real life if. . . nah, who am I kidding?

The shocking conclusion was Leo, the President's chief of staff, having an apparently fatal heart attack while walking in the woods, with no one else aware of it. Wow, this show is really getting dark (and I don't mean the dim lighting!).

Alan Alda and Jimmy Smits are both coming soon. . . .

An Explosive Story

So let me get this straight - all of these explosives from an Iraqi site are missing, and John Kerry is trying to hold George W. Bush responsible, even though no one knows exactly if these explosives disappeared before or after Saddam Hussein was deposed. Meanwhile, George W. Bush insists that a commander-in-chief must be trusted, even though his own intelligence sources couldn't be trusted to find out exactly what happened to these explosives and when it happened. You know, I'm really going to sleep better knowing all this . . .. :-(

Slow Bloggin'

Blogger has been really slow in loading today, and early this morning it broke down completely, its main screen and its blogs failing to respond. So whom I can I complain to?

Better yet, whom can I sue? (JUST KIDDING!!)

Eighties Redux

I suddenly feel like I'm living in the eighties again. Let's examine the evidence: An idiot is President, Madonna's latest tour was a success, Duran Duran are back together, Donald Trump is back, Pontiac is coming out with a two-seat sports car, terrorism runs rampant, the rich keep getting richer, the deficit is a problem, AH-nold has the biggest role of his career, and guys are wearing Members Only jackets again! And, Gary Hart and Pat Robertson have been back in the limelight recently. Please, I lived through the eighties once - I don't want to have to live through it again!

On the other hand, that Pontiac Solstice is nice . . .. ;-)

Japanese Derailment

Interesting news from Japan over the weekend . . .. Saturday's earthquake 160 miles northwest of Tokyo, in addition to causing a lot of destruction, also derailed a bullet train, though no passengers were injured. So? So, since the Japanese bullet trains began service forty years ago this month (for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics), this is the first time any of them has ever derailed! And it took a natural disaster to do it! Compare that to the safety record of Amtrak, which has had several derailments, some of them fatal. They always seem to happen on freight lines Amtrak rents for its routes, though the freight railroad companies never bother maintaining the track and Amtrak always ends up being responsible. Amtrak not only needs a more modern train fleet, it needs to own and operate its own tracks, so it can become the world-class national passenger railroad system it so desperately wants to be.

True, trains on the Amtrak-owned Northeast Corridor, including the 150-mph Acela trains, have great safety records. But could a train that goes more than twice as fast as the Acelas, like French trains do, handle the aging Northeast Corridor track? Doubtful. :-(

Personal News and Yet More Election Endorsements

Okay, some news regarding, well, me - and my dad. Not only is he joining the readership of this blog now, he's also celebrating his birthday today. Happy Birthday, Dad! Now that you're reading this, I'll try not to embarrass you.

Regarding my writing career - I may be getting my proposed profile article about a local jazz radio host off the ground. It looks like she can grant me an interview this weekend, even though I might have plans for then. Somehow, it might just work out this time. I'll let you know.

Meanwhile, here are a couple more endorsements for next Tuesday's election. And just to show how bipartisan I am, I'm endorsing a couple of Republicans today!

For U.S. Senator, Arizona: This blog endorses John McCain for a fourth term. Yes, he's a little too far to the right on social issues, but he's also against government waste and means it, he's worked hard for campaign finance reform, and he's also working hard for media reform with the same senator he collaborated with on campaign financing, Democrat Russell Feingold of Wisconsin. Plus, electing McCain for another term is a win-win situation no matter who wins the Presidency. If Bush wins, McCain can give him hell for another four years; if Kerry wins, America's most trusted lawmaker will have a friend in the White House. Take it from me, Arizona; stick with the real McCain. :-)

For U.S. Representative, New Jersey, Eleventh District: This is my district, and this blog, somewhat reluctantly, endorses incumbent Republican Rodney Frelinghuysen. While he supports the Bush tax cuts, he also takes homeland security more seriously than the Bush White House, as he advocates securing New Jersey's container shipping ports and public transit systems. He also wants to spend more time and money on local ponderers who would bear the brunt of fighting terrorism in the event of another wave of attacks. And, by the way, he supports Amtrak and has worked to preserve the New Jersey Highlands, one of the so-called Garden State's last wild areas. Vote for Rod - don't support opposition from a ficus plant! (Inside joke for Michael Moore fans!)

I think that's it for endorsements.

World Series Update

The Red Sox are 2-and-0 against the Saint Louis Cardinals in the World Series! Looks like the Sox are finally keeping an eye on those ground balls! But the Series moves to St. Lou now, giving the Cards a home field advantage. Let's see what happens.

More Endorsements For Election Day

I'm not going to pick a candidate in every race - I mean, I know there are gubernatorial elections in Washington and Indiana, but I have no freakin' idea who's running in either of them. I'm just going to focus on only a few of the many races in the country. So here are some picks -

For U.S. Senator, Pennsylvania: This blog endorses Democratic U.S. Representative Joseph Hoeffel of Montgomery County against incumbent Senator Arlen Specter. Yes, Senator Specter is a seasoned legislator, a tireless worker, and just about the Republican party's last liberal, but he is a Republican, and quite frankly, the Democrats need the seat to take control of the Senate in order to foil the Republican House leadership and also derail Senate Republican leader Bill Frist's presidential ambitions. Also, there's one thing about Specter I never liked; as a former prosecutor in Philadelphia, he has this tough, nasty side to him that he overplays a lot. He's one of those guys that goes after mosquitoes with a hydrogen bomb. Joseph Hoeffel, in addition to being a little less reckless, also promises to be effective in working for meaningful health care reform and helping the middle class.

For U.S. Senator, Illinois: This blog endorses - yeah, big surprise - Barack Obama, the Democrat. Not only is he a charismatic, idealistic crusader, but his opponent, perennial Republican appointee Alan Keyes, is a literal newcomer to Illinois politics who just moved to the state this past summer in order to run against Obama. Now, you don't have to be born in Illinois to be an effective officeholder there - Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas, the late Senator Paul Simon, and Obama himself weren't and aren't Prairie State natives - but it does help if you've lived there for more than, say, two months. You're telling me that, in Illinois, whose biggest city, Chicago, is forty precent black, the Republicans couldn't even find one black conservative to go against Obama when Jack Ryan pulled out of the race and Mike Ditka wouldn't run - they had to send out for one at the last minute? I mean, Illinois must have at least one black conservative. Maryland did. His name was Alan Keyes. Take it from me, and back Barack.

For U.S. Senator, Colorado: This blog endorses Democrat Ken Salazar against Republican brewery scion Peter Coors. The reasons are obvious; the Coors family, after spending a lifetime - my lifetime - of making America the meanest and nastiest place in the Western world by bankrolling ultraconservative political organizations and helping the far right take over the Republican party and the country, wants to do even more damage by sending one of their own to Washington. I don't care if Coors beer is the only domestic beer that can stand up to German and Dutch imports. Not only don't I drink Coors, I don't drink alcoholic beverages - period! Besides, Coors may be the only American beer not watered down, but the Coors family have, ironically enough, helped water down environmental regulations so they their brewery can pollute the earth and water with impunity. When they say they "tap the Rockies," they ain't kidding!

Oh yeah, Pete Coors. Well, he's something of a doofus, and he was caught on TV saying he doesn't know what a "common man" really is. That's just his trouble! Ken Salazar came from a lower-middle-class family, and he knows what it's like to struggle. Also, he supports public health insurance and gay civil unions. Pete Coors doesn't. Vote for Salazar - Pete Coors (also known as Coors Light) is the wrong man now! (And later.)

More endorsements later.

John Kerry For President

With eleven days to go before the presidential election, I am taking this opportunity to offer my endorsement for November 2. This blog, naturally, endorses John Kerry for President. He will lead a more effective fight against al-Qaeda and intensify the hunt for Osama bin Laden, and he will also change course in Iraq to bring that war to a satisfactory conclusion. Also, Kerry will give the middle class more help by providing tax cuts for them and offer a health care reform plan that, while not perfect, will be better than what we have right now, which is nothing.

I'll be back later with endorsements in a couple of congressional (i.e., House and Senate) races.

Hamm Scores

This just in (to me, anyway) . . .. Gymnast Paul Hamm can keep his gold medal from the Athens Olympics. The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that he won it fair and square despite a bungling of the scores by the judges at the Games. Good - he deserves that medal! :-D

Clinton For Kerry, America For Urbanism

It's going to happen - Bill Clinton will campaign for John Kerry. The former President will appear with Kerry at a rally in Philadelphia, and he'll possibly make a couple of other appearances with him in some battleground states other than Pennsylvania. This should give Kerry a boost, but he still has to close the sale by himself. And while the polls showing a dead-even race with Bush suggest Kerry may be on the verge of doing that, he clearly hasn't yet. He'd better hurry; there's not much time left in this campaign.

Meanwhile, on a different topic (and one neither candidate seems to want to discuss), a new poll shows that roughly half of all Americans prefer living in cities or inner suburban towns, rather than the far-flung suburban sprawl they are forced to live in today. Check this article on it from my local paper, right here.

The Red Sox Won The Pennant!

Wow! The Red Sox actually did it! They won the pennant! They're going to the World Series! Let me congratulate them. . . and add that I obviously did not expect that to happen! Boston fans are ecstatic that the Sox won the American League championship, and while they'd clearly like to see the team win the Series, they're satisfied enough that they beat the New York Yankees to get there! Guess they didn't need Alex Rodriguez after all.

Note to the Sox - when you meet St. Louis or Houston in the Series, don't let any ground balls get by you this time! :-O

AL Pennant In the Balance

Three games apiece - Yankees versus Red Sox - in the AL pennant series? Well, maybe the Red Sox still have a chance tonight to pull it off . . ..

"The West Wing" Is Back With Two New Stars

The sixth season of "The West Wing" begins tomorrow night on NBC. Finally. And Alan Alda and Jimmy Smits join the cast as potential successors to President Bartlet. Hmmm, should be interesting . . ..    

What took so long, anyway? :-O

The Sox Are Still Going

Alright, the Red Sox saved themselves at the last minute and kept the American League pennant series going. That's as may be; the odds still favor the Yankees.

(P.S. Although I live in northern New Jersey, I'll always be a Philadelphia Phillies fan at heart, even if they are a big embarrassment to my adopted hometown more often than not.)

Go Sox!

Boston Red Sox fans really thought this was the year they'd not only make it to the World Series, but they'd also win it as well. Note to baseball fans in Boston: Judging from how the Red Sox have been faring for the American League pennant against the Yankees, I personally believe that the only way you'll ever have a World Series victory parade down Boylston Street ever again is if the Braves move back to Beantown! (And even if the Sox do recover and win the pennant, they'll probably screw up the Series like they did in '86!)

In the meantime, play it pretty for Atlanta. :-O

President Elvis?

One thing in this election campaign I'm getting tired of is the barrage of complaints about John Kerry's charisma, or, more appropriately, lack of it. The liberal columnist Molly Ivins, for one, has complained that the Democrats need a candidate with Elvis-like appeal to have a major advantage over George W. Bush, and she laments that Kerry "just isn't Elvis."

Don't get me wrong. I love Molly Ivins, and I agree with virtually everything I've read in her column. But someone should remind her (and everyone else) that we are electing a President, not inducting someone into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! :-O

Bush Gaining In New Jersey

The race between Bush and Kerry is tied in all the polls; both candidates are focusing on the Midwest now. Here in New Jersey, Kerry has regained a comfortable lead in New Jersey, but it may yet be within Dub the Shrub's reach, what with fears of terrorism in the northern part of the state and the saturation of Bush ads from Philadelphia broadcast media (aimed at Pennsylvania) in the southern part. (Kerry ads are saturating South Jersey too, of course.)

Meanwhile, Bill Clinton is still recovering from heart surgery. If there's any better time for him to campaign for Kerry, it's now. Instead, Kerry will have to do what Al Gore wanted to do four years ago - win by himself.

Let the mud be slung! :-O

Bush Slips

Well, George W. Bush seems to have lost another debate with John Kerry. Most commentators, even those on the Fox News Channel (!), believe that Kerry was more informative, crisper, and more confident, and that Bush, despite giving the best debate performance in this campaign, didn't quite measure up.

Of course, the Republicans are trying to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat by getting all incensed over the fact that Kerry mentioned in the debate that Dick Cheney's daughter Mary is a lesbian. The Vice President and his right-wing harridan of a wife complained that Kerry referred to Mary Cheney as a lesbian for "political purposes." Umm, no, Kerry called her a lesbian because that's what she is. But then, Dick Cheney is so crotchety, he would have gotten angry if Kerry had pointed out that Cheney himself is bald.

So what will happen now? Plenty. Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania are in play, Ralph Nader could still be a factor (or, if Kerry loses due to a technicality, a scapegoat), and both candidates are going to sling the mud like you'd never believe. I've never seen it this bad, and I was involved in the Dukakis campaign in the 1988 election! Stay tuned.

I'm On "Fyre"

Some personal news now, good and bad. . . .

The bad first. I will not be getting my job back. Despite my appeal to my now-former employers, they have decided to replace me. They will, however, give me a recommendation for wherever I seek employment next. Gee, thanks a lot!

Now the good. . . . My blog is a hit! A health and wellness Web site, Prairie Fyre ( http://www.prairiefyre.net ), has selected my blog, as well as my Family Web page, as a favorite link. I found out by Googling myself. ;-) I have no idea how they found me, or what my blog (or my Family page) has to do with health and wellness. Yet the proprietors of this site have recommended my Internet work. I don't understand it.

But I like it! I like it! :-D

Under The Influenza

The shortage and rationing of flu shots this season certainly took me by surprise. I have gotten a flu shot every year since 1999, because the last year I didn't get it, well, I got the flu! The director of the Center for Disease Conrtol, Dr. Julie Gerberding (who sort of reminds me of actress Susan Sullivan somehow) went on television news shows and asked for voluntary abstention from getting a flu shot so that preschool children, the elderly, pregnant women, and those with chronic health problems could receive it. Many states and municipalities, though, wisely mistrusting those who need a shot less and expecting them not to step aside and let others go first, are already rationing distribution of the vaccine on their own.

So how did we get into this mess? How did we come to rely on a single British factory to make flu vaccines for us (didn't we declare our independence from Britain some two centuries ago?), only to see that factory contaminate half its U.S.-bound shipment? Why don't we make it here? Four words - no money in it. The flu vaccine market is unpredictable, due to the changing nature of the virus year by year. Talk about being penny wise and pound foolish - risking the health of the nation by avoiding the cost of producing a flu vaccine at home! :-O

So I won't get a shot this year. I will, however, probably get the flu. :-(

The Debates, Round Three (And TV Season News)

The third debate between George W. Bush and John Kerry takes place tonight from Tempe, Arizona. As this debate focuses on domestic policy, this is Kerry's best chance to close the sale. It's also another chance for Bush to list three mistakes he's made in office (yeah, right!).

Meanwhile. . . . We're into the fourth week of the new television season, and the sixth season of "The West Wing" still hasn't begun yet! Maybe the producers don't want to inadvertently influence the election through tapping the headlines for stories (which "Law & Order" is known for). Maybe they just want to keep its faithful viewers - assuming there are any left besides me - in suspense a little while longer. But between special programming and, now, the third presidential debate, NBC doesn't look like it's in any hurry to start "The West Wing"'s new season any time soon. :-(

Woman From Tokyo

I may have lost my job, but I have a unique opportunity to add office experience to my résumé next month.

Sachiyo Ito is a professional dancer from Japan who is now based in New York and has run her own Japanese dance company since 1981. She's looking for volunteers to help with mailings and flyers - along with helping with dance presentations - and she needs such help when she returns from Japan in early November. Even before I lost my job, I wrote her an e-mail and offered her my services. She was very gracious in her reply, and she was happy to have me come aboard. So that's what I plan to do. (I originally planned to work for Ms. Ito on Saturdays, but of course I have every day free now! :-O )

If you're interested in Ms. Ito and her company, go here.

Unemployed Again

So you're probably wondering why i'm posting an entry on my blog on a day when I should be working. No, I don't have Columbus Day off. I have every day off for the foreseeable future now.

I got fired.

I mishandled the funds in the postage meter, and I cost the law firm I worked with a considerable amount of money. Despite my attempts to explain what happened, a senior lawyer at the firm told me that it wasn't working out and that I had to go.

I wrote his uncle - who runs the firm but was not in today - an e-mail begging for my job back. I'm not going to hold my breath.

I liked this job, too. The worst part of losing it is that I just plain screwed up and made a mistake that could have been avoided.

Now what? The job market is no better than it was when I returned to the workforce seven months ago. It seems even worse, in fact. :-(

Celebrity Death Penalty Opposition

Meanwhile, up north in Canada . . . 

Catherine Deneuve (I don't have to explain to you who she is) will take part tomorrow in a march in Montreal, where a conference on ending capital punishment is wrapping up, to protest the barbaric practice. Deneuve, who was joined by American actor Mike Farrell and noted activist Bianca Jagger, among others, declared the use of the death penalty to be revolting, and she's proud to take a stand against it during this conference, which took place next door to the only Western nation that continues to use capital punishment. . . these United Freakin' States.

There should be another anti-death-penalty conference directed at the U.S. from across the border, only the next one should take place in a Mexican border town - say, Matamoros or Ciudad Juarez, both across the Rio Grande from the most execution-happy state in this Union. . . Texas. (How many executions did George W. Bush approve as governor in the nineties? I lost count!)

"Capital punishment is a detergent to crime." - Archie Bunker

"I guess I support capital punishment. . . , so long as it ain't too severe." - his wife Edith

The Debates, Round Two

George W. Bush spent much of tonight's debate in St. Louis cowering, smirking, and speaking in generalities on every issue from Iraq to the environment to tax policy, while John Kerry was solid on all of these issues and more. But will other viewers agree? After all, Bush comes off well in these town hall-style debates by being an average guy, so maybe many voters saw themselves in him. . . and liked what they saw. Kerry's biggest blunder came near the very end when he was asked if he would pledge not to support taxpayer-funded abortions . . . and he couldn't give a straight answer.

Why is this still an issue, anyway? :-O

Almost Hell

Martha Stewart just began her five-month prison sentence in West Virginia. Glad to see that Stewart has been taken down those country roads to the place where she belongs. Enjoy that misty taste of moonshine, Martha!

Friday the Eighth

The debate, as noted, is tomorrow - Friday the eighth. This brings to mind the following exchange on an episode of "The Brady Bunch" where Jan, the middle daughter, informs her parents that a school function she's involved with has been rescheduled for Friday the eighth, disrupting Mike and Carol's plans to go away that weekend.

Mike: "Friday the eighth. . . . Tell me she didn't say Friday the eighth."

Carol: "Okay, she didn't say Friday the eighth."

Mike: "But she did!"

(What do you want, it's late . . ..)

Meet Me In St. Louis

George W. Bush and John Kerry meet for their second presidential debate in St. Louis, Missouri, where they will answer questions in a "town hall style" format. Pundits give Bush the edge here because of his ability to empathize wtih voters and come off as an average guy (an average guy who just happens to belong to one of the wealthiest and most powerful families in America!). But Kerry has an advantage going into this debate because, not only did he come off as a plausible Commander-in Chief, but because many of the questions are expected to be about the economy, where Bush is at his weakest. Bush will probably try to avoid scowling like he did in last week's debate in Miami, but he's bound to screw up in entirely different and unforeseen ways tomorrow. . . if only because a lot of folks have been hurt in this "jobless recovery" and the President can't imagine how the sluggish economy of the past four years has affected the ordinary people he professes to understand.

I endorse a different kind of a jobless recovery. . . . Let's make Bush jobless, then we can have a recovery! :-D

Whole Lotta News

Lots to cover tonight, so I'll try to be brief. . . .

Dick Cheney was caught in a lie from the vice presidential debate when he insisted that he never met Senator John Edwards, his opponent, because Edwards missed so many votes in the Senate, where Cheney serves as the presiding officer. Not only has Cheney met Edwards before in the Senate chamber, they sat together once at a national prayer breakfast! This is one of several lies Cheney told the other night in Cleveland, and of course, most of them involved Iraq.

Today, of course, Weapons inspector Charles Duelper announced that Saddam Hussein destroyed all of his lethal weapons at the end of the 1991 Persian Gulf War. George W. Bush nonetheless defended his decision to go to war yet again because Saddam still harbored fantasies about amassing an arsenal of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. So we invaded Iraq not because Saddam tortured Shiite Muslims or gassed the Kurds, but because he essentially had "impure thoughts?" What is this, Catholic school? :-O

Saddam probably did have fantasies about military might, but they were just that - fantasies. Hey, I once had fantasies about dating Jennifer Connelly, but that doesn't give her husband the right to come to my house and punch my lights out.

Now He'll Get Respect

Rodney Dangerfield just died. :-(

Unreal Estate

The nimrods who run my hometown are up to their old tricks again. The town council decided to sell a vacant lot behind my house to allow the construction of a new house there.

So what's wrong with that? There's a stream running down the middle of it, that's what's wrong with it!

The stream bisects the property behind my house, leaving little room on either side for a house to fit. The property, which has several trees, tall grass, and overgrown shrubbery, was apparently left in a wild state to allow for flood control, as the stream collects rain water that would otherwise flood several houses nearby - except for mine, as it rests on a higher slope over the property. Building a house on it would require several compliance measures with state environmental regulations, making it virtually impossible to build anything there.

But not completely impossible. The right developer would be able to shoehorn a house there with a little ingenuity, and the town hopes to make a decent profit by selling it to a prospective buyer (and collect property taxes from the eventual homeowner). While I believe building anything there would be foolish, I also think leaving the land in a completely natural state is inconsistent with the subruban landscape surrounding it. That's why I proposed to the town that it be made into a small park with a flower bed and a couple of benches. But that would force the town to take better care of the property, and they barely take care of it now; they've allowed people to dump autumn leaves there, the grass grows for months before they cut it, and the sidewalk bordering it is deteriorating. So what better way for the town to improve the lot than to sell it for development and get it off their hands?

The neighbors are up in arms over this as much as I am, and they and I showed up at the auction for the property tonight to address our concerns. Although it was auctioned off to a woman for $160,000, the township council of West Caldwell reserves the right to debate the bid and accept or reject it afterward, so there's no guarantee that the woman who bid on the land will get it. The land could easily remain in the township's hands.

Meanwhile, I've decided to renew my efforts to make a park out of it. Stay tuned.

Hello Cleveland!

Vice President Dick Cheney and Senator John Edwards participate in the vice presidential debate tonight from Cleveland, Ohio. I hope it's as good - and as damaging to the Republicans - as last Thursday's Bush-Kerry debate. :-D

All About TV

In case you haven't noticed, TV Guide magazine now publishes its television schedules running from Sunday to Saturday, instead of running Saturday to Friday. It's nice to know that they've joined the rest of the civilized world in how to put a TV timetable together. :-)

Meanwhile, speaking of TV, "The West Wing," which is supposed to feature in its sixth season Alan Alda as a conservative Republican (!) and Jimmy Smits as a potential Democratic successor to President Bartlet, has not begun its new season yet - and won't this week. And we're going into the third week of the 2004-05 season! Guess I really am the only one who cares about this show anymore. I mean, the sixth season of "The West Wing" hasn't premiered yet, and no one seems to notice its absence. Meanwhile, NBC is broadcasting any ol' thing in Wednesday's 9 PM ET one-hour time slot - including an edition of "The Apprentice." :-O

Caldwell, NJ Street Fair

The annual street fair in Caldwell, New Jersey, was held today. The fair contained the usual bric-a-brac, food, and kiddie rides. I bought a crab cake sandwich and a Coke, and I watched the kids on one of the amusement rides, one of those Hampton kiddie car rides featuring Model A and Mustang replicas with glittery paint and a steering wheel it front of every seat - oh, for the fun of them when I was one of them! I didn't but any trinkets, though, but they were fun to look at. I used to go to the sand art booths and fill the bottles with layers of different colored sand; I gave them to my grandmother. She liked them. :-)

One thing I didn't like, however, was the absence of any live entertainment this year - no local bands or anything like that. Just four clowns giving out lapel stickers - whoppee! Bring back the rock bands next year, I say. If they still want four clowns, they could compromise and get a Kiss tribute band! :-D

Astrological Twins at Four Score Years

Former President Jimmy Carter turns eighty today.

So does Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

(Fun fact: Carter is the only President since Andrew Johnson who did not appoint a Supreme Court justice during his Presidency. Hopefully, George W. Bush will be the next President to bear that distinction - as of November 2! :-D)

RIP Richard Avedon

Fashion and portrait photographer Richard Avedon just died of a cerebral hemorrhage at 81. This is really spooky; back in January, on this blog, I noted that fashion photographers Francesco Scavullo and Helmut Newton died within several days of each other and I wrote the following in response (and you can go to the archives for January 2004, if you don't believe me):

"If I were Richard Avedon, I'd be very worried right now."

Hey, I was only kidding! :-O But it shows that my mother was right - famous people die in threes. And, three famous fashion photographers died this year, two of them in the same month. Weird, isn't it?

Avedon had been in the middle of an assignment, taking pictures related to the issue of democracy, when he died. :-(

A Good Debate

Alright, I take back every nasty thing I said about the format for last night's debate. Since I actually watched it. :-)

The debate between George W. Bush and John Kerry was a spirited duel of ideas and ideology that made the differences between the candidates on foreign policy (at least regarding Iraq and international terrorism) clear. John Kerry wants to take a more conciliatory approach with other nations in combating terrorism and figuring a way out of Iraq while Bush would continue doing what he's been doing - whatever that is. Kerry also made it clear that he never supported going to war in Iraq, only that he voted to give the President the authority to do so if it was absolutely necessary - and he plainly insisted in no uncertain terms that it wasn't.

Also, Bush looked uncomfortable in listening to Kerry's remarks, squirming and moving resltessly while waiting for his turn to speak. Kerry did what he had to do by establishing himself as a credible alternative to Bush, and Bush merely did okay in what was supposed to be his strongest issue - foreign policy (ironic for a xenophobic, United Nations-disparaging, culturally uncurious President, to be sure). When the next debate opens the floor to questions on domestic policy, Bush won't look so strong.

Overnight polls show the Kerry won the debate. Meanwhile, Bush still has an average lead of seven percentage points in polls that, as I indicated yesterday, could be wrong. How will last night's debate change the dynamic of the campaign? Stay tuned.

As far as I'm concerned, you should use this little rhyme as a rule of thumb: "Vote for the candidate who doesn't hate a good debate." That would be Kerry. :-D