Bravery

Ever wonder why that Danish paper published the Muhammad cartoons in the first place? Wonder no more.

More political earthquakes

Some very exciting stuff going on in New York today, but unfortunately, despite the disclaimer in my sidebar, I'm not supposed to write about any of it.

Still, since I've made no secret about my support for KT McFarland, directing you all to stories coming out of today's conventionsurely can't be breaking any rules.

Queensbridge, represent.

Dawn manages to insult Queens, New Jersey, F-Train and 40-year old single Japanese women in her latest slice of life post.

What I'm reading this week

The New York Republican party is having its convention this week on Long Island.

If, like me, you're interested in keeping up with developments, Urban Elephants, Capitol Confidential (the Albany-Times Union political blog), and the new New York Times NY politics blog, Empire Zone, are covering the festivities thus far.

Daily Politics (the must-read Daily News political blog written by Ben Smith) and 51st State (the newish NY Sun political blog written by the fabulous Azi Paybarah) should be in attendance tomorrow.

If any other bloggers are on-site in LI, drop me a line and I'll link you.

Music of the Right (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

The Top 10 Conservative Songs of All Time

1) “Freedom (Live)” by Paul McCartney (2001) - While it was written, and originally performed, as a response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, "Freedom" is a timeless song; its lyrics (only 138 words!) may seem repetitive to the casual listener, but "Freedom" is a hymn to liberty that the youngest among us, and the oldest among us, are bound to remember.

2) "Taxman" by The Beatles (1966) – The Beatles park in second place with their 1966 smash, "Taxman." Roasting income taxes (even death taxes!) as authentic conservatives would, the boys from Liverpool make a compelling case against over-taxation and, ultimately, against government waste.

3) "Oppression" by Ben Harper (1995) – Ben Harper, along with his band of Innocent Criminals, wrote a conservative classic with the folksy, unplugged, acoustic song, "Oppression." Here, in a soft, understated voice, Harper rails against repressive government with courage, conviction, and hope.

4) "Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)" by Pink Floyd (1980) – More than twenty years before the left-wing bias of state schools was betrayed Ward Churchill, Pink Floyd wrote, with incredible foresight, about the misguided public education system in its monster-hit "Another Brick in the Wall."

5) "Having My Baby" by Paul Anka (1974) – Crawling past more explicit songs by Madonna ("Papa Don't Preach") and the Sex Pistols ("Bodies"), "Having My Baby" is a mellow, anti-abortion tome to the euphoria of parenthood, and the sanctity of life.

6) "Soldier’s Heart" by R. Kelly (2003) – R. Kelly salutes the troops with "Soldier’s Heart," his tome to the men and women of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Reminiscent of wartime classics, such as "Over There" and "Ballad of the Green Berets," it – deservedly – parks at Number Six.

7) "Small Town" by John Mellencamp (1985) – He gets a cool reception from conservatives nowadays, but John Mellencamp was the poster boy for community spirit, and regional flare, when "Small Town," his paean to the “fly-over” states, meandered up the Billboard charts in 1985.

8) "Have You Forgotten" by Darryl Worley (2002) – Country singer Darryl Worley wrote "Have You Forgotten" to honor Americans lost on September 11, 2001. Worley, in this song, is the epitome of the "angry white man" and, by the end, we share in his anger, his outrage, and his anguish at 9/11.

9) "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone" by Paula Cole (1998) – Paula Cole arrives at ninth place with her anti-feminist anthem, "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" Vowing to stay home, and raise her children, while her spouse pays the bills, Cole bucks feminist theory that women have to work professionally to have a purpose in life.

10) "If" by Janet Jackson (1993) – Though parents may reel at the strong sexual overtones, and hip-thrusting beats, they will appreciate the message: monogamy. Here, Jackson refuses to consummate her relationship until she and her partner are committed. "If" might be dripping with sexuality but it’s a repudiation of "hook-up" culture, and a lesson in self-respect.

Check out lists by John Miller and Bruce Bartlett.

UPDATE BY KAROL: Continuing with the political music debate, Robert George points us to a shortlist of conservative hip-hop songs. They include Slick Rick's "A Children's Story" one of my favorite songs. They also include Tupac's "Dear Mama", which, personally, I find less conservative than his "Papaz Song" which includes lines like "the things I would do to see a piece of family unity" and his pledge not to be a father until he's got the time.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Reader Bob sends in his choice of conservative song: Downeaster Alexa by Billy Joel. I love that song. Bob describes it as "A vivid ode to the workingman who gets screwed by the 'liberal elites' in Blue State New York of all places."

Keep on rocking in the free world

John J. Miller started the most important debate of this week: what are the best conservative rock songs? Robert George weighs-in here.

So....

....how was your weekend?

Update: Mine looked sort of like this. The pool on property? Closed. The tennis courts? Lacking a net. But hanging out with 10 of my friends (and 3 dogs named Puba, Mottz and Brooklyn) in the sunshine, grilling burgers and kebabs, breaking out the Belvedere at night, playing Klabbar (a Russian card game) all day long, and generally just chilling out on a long weekend--it's perfection all on its own.

I'm one of the 37 million!

I'm, unbelieveably, actually getting out of Dodge. I'm not sure of the details but it involved 4 bungalows in Monticello, NY with a pool, lake and tennis courts on property. If you're staying in NY, though, Fodors has a list of cheap things to do in town. Most of them are pretty touristy, but it's fun to be a tourist in your own town sometimes (but read this Gothamist post on street hustlers so you don't get taken like one.

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend everyone and do take some times away from bbq-ing and swimming to remember the members of our armed forces who gave their lives for our country.

Who didn't grow up in Brooklyn?

Construction noise confused for gunshots in House Office Building

But not me :-(

37 million expected to travel this weekend

My friends and I started looking for a house yesterday. Our requirements? Oh, nothing major. Just waterfront, with room for 12 or so people, no more than 3 hours away from NY, preferably with a jacuzzi or pool on property. It should be pet friendly and have a grill. What, the day before Memorial Day weekend isn't the best time to start looking for a house with such specific conditions? Sigh.

By the by, if anyone reading this has actually has such a house available, we're still open to the idea of making this trip happen.

Quote of the Day

"Taking on your base is a risky game on the best of days, and these are not the best of days for the GOP."

-Jim Geraghty on the incomprehensible defense by Dennis Hastert of William Jefferson.

I miss Ronald Reagan

How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin.

-Ronald Reagan

On the Road Again (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

Hillary Favors Lower Speed Limit in Speech to National Press Club

REPORTER: During the Carter administration there was a 55-mile-an-hour speed limit, which even the oil company executives say driving slower would save gas. Would you favor a return to a national speed limit?

HILLARY: The 55 mile speed limit really does lower gas usage, and wherever it can be required and the people will accept it, we ought to do it.

Via: Rush Limbaugh

Uh, ewww.

Washington Post reports that Tony Snow and Helen Thomas had a flirtatious exchange. Ick.

Via Media Bistro.

Lying liars

If, like me, you missed the story of Jesse MacBeth, the anti-war veteran who turned out to be a fraud, Michelle Malkin has the summary in video form over at Hot Air.

Salam is famous

"Baghdad Blog", the blog of Iraqi Salam Pax, is to become a film.

I wonder if Peter will be mentioned as I believe he was the first blogger to discover Pax (and they had a sort of funny, snarky exchange that led Salam to add Peter's Pandavox Blog to his blogroll and Peter to send him a mix cd).

Scary

Massive fire in Turkish aiport

I've spent the night in that airport.

The times they are a-changing

Mr. Kim has sold his luncheonette.

Things that are not going to happen

There is talk of having both the Republican and Democrat conventions of 2008 in NYC. I don't think the Republicans will be having their convention in NY again anytime too soon, despite the boost they got from the coverage of the lunatics on the street the last time around. And if the Democrats have their convention in NY, I'll be tempted to call it for the Republicans on '08. They have to appeal to middle America to survive. Focusing on the coasts has not worked out for them and having their convention in NYC would only solidify the impression they ignore the great middle.

What my friends are blogging

**Fisch got schooled in scrabble by an old man and lived to tell the tale. Hi-lar-ious, especially if you read his "I won my first ever boxing match" post.

**Robert George looks at the N-word and wonders if its usage can still be proof of bigotry.

**Dawn Summers seems to have had a somewhat successful first BBQ. Of course, she takes her grilling cues from Homer Simpson so really, how successful could it have been?

**JD at Bloggerale seems to like the political blogging, in this case about Howard Dean's amazing political instincts. I wonder why he never started a political blog?

**Over on the poker blog, Dawn and I have added a new phrase to the Karol-Dawn Poker Glossary.

**Joe Grossberg wants more gun control where Britney Spears is concerned.

**Gib notes that Mexican law bars naturalized citizens from certain jobs. That's, ya know, legal immigrants.

**Do not visit Steve Silver's site unless you already know what happened on the last episode of Sopranos. I, sadly, didn't. :-(

My new favorite expression that I haven't used yet

It comes from Big Love: "Good night" to mean, basically, "oh hell".

By the way, did you know the character of Margene has a blog? It's kind of funny reading the comments left for her as if she was a real person.

And since we're on the topic of "Big Love" (we were, weren't we?), I think the most brilliant part of the show is how amazing they make Bill. I wrote before that he's the epitome of a perfect husband. That's what makes the show work. You can see how a woman would love to be married to him, almost to where one can understand their ability to share him.

What's wrong with this picture?

The headline (with the implication that Tony Snow watches CNN): Fox, What Fox? New Press Secretary Changes Channels

The actual story: "There is no official channel at the White House," Mr. Snow said in a telephone interview last week. "I'm looking at my four TV's here — we've got Fox, we have CNN, MSNBC, CNBC." (At 6:30 p.m., the televisions in his office automatically change to the broadcast networks for the evening news.)

I will never look at Barnes&Noble the same way again

"So instead, I settled for the detached anonymity of the bookstores and rest stops - a compromise, but one that was wholly unfulfilling and morally unsatisfactory."

-Ex-NJ Governor Jim McGreevey on how he'd find anonymous sex in the time before he came out as a gay American.

Quote of the day

"Next time, we do it without the Italians."

-Japanese cab driver to a German tourist in Tokyo, as related by Peter who just returned from Japan. He was there with Jessica, who has been blogging the trip here and here.

It's because they're brown, right? Racists!

Europe raises bar for immigrants:

AMSTERDAM -- A naked woman frolics in the surf. Gay men nuzzle in a park.

These images are featured on a video, ''Coming to the Netherlands," that the government shows to prospective immigrants, part of the country's stringent new screening measures to determine whether newcomers can accept Western ''values." Anyone offended by such images, Dutch official reasoning goes, will probably be unhappy living in the country and should not be admitted.

...

New laws are raising the hurdles for newcomers, especially Muslims, and winning cheers from many Europeans. Polls indicate that strong majorities in almost every European country favor not just tightening restrictions on ordinary immigrants but also casting a colder eye on the hard-luck tales of refugees seeking asylum.

The alarms sounding over immigration have some economic basis, such as perennial worry that newcomers are taking jobs from locals. But analysts say Europeans are mainly fearful of terrorism and the fast spread of Islamic culture.

How dare Europe expect immigrants to follow the customs of their culture?! Racists!

Both Sides, Now (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

John Kerry Supports, Opposes Border Fence

Sen. John Kerry joined most of his Democratic colleagues last week in voting to build a wall along 370 miles of the U.S.-Mexican border. But he now says that after the wall is built it should be taken down as soon as possible.

Via: NewsMax

Oh Axl, I miss the days when you'd 'get in the ring'

Axl Rose and Tommy Hilfiger get into a tussle:

The scuffle reportedly started after the Guns N' Roses front man moved the drink of Hilfiger's girlfriend, Dee Ocleppo.

"I moved his girlfriend's drink so it wouldn't spill," Rose told the Los Angeles radio station KROQ on Friday. "It was the most surreal thing, I think, that's ever happened to me in my life."

According to the 44-year-old singer, Hilfiger, 55, smacked him in the arm and told him to put the drink back.

"He just kept smacking me," Rose said.

But at least Axl still has a sense of humor:

Rose was there to play a surprise set for "Rent" actress Rosario Dawson for her 27th birthday party.

At the time of the dustup, The Plumm was packed with a celebrity crowd including Lenny Kravitz, Mickey Rourke, Kid Rock, Peter Beard, Molly Simms, Wentworth Miller, Ann Dexter Jones, Lydia Hearst and Damon Dash.

Rose did perform, and dedicated the song "You're Crazy" to "my good friend Tommy Hilfiger."

Via Ark.

¿Cómo se dice, "Finally?" (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

Senate Votes English National Language

Via: NewsMax

Gimme

If Waffle House and Cracker Barrel are popular enough to have every 20 feet down South, how come its owners don't feel it will work in the North? NY can really use a Waffle House and a Cracker Barrel. I will happily trade any number of TGIFs and IHOPs.

How much do you hate this guy?

"I think she's worth about seven million (dollars), which means she's really poor. It's disgusting. She lives in a motel."

-Rich guy retard Brandon Davis, about Lindsay Lohan, while his girlfriend Paris Hilton giggles next to him.

NSA Taps Millions of Phones! (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

Oh, wait.

No.

No.

It doesn't.

Via: Rush Limbaugh

UPDATE: This story is also in Business Week.

What's up, advertisers?

It's a sad state of affairs when mine+Dawn's poker blog has more ads than this site (despite getting a fraction of the hits).

Cultish

The website for Al Gore's new movie, about the 'truth' in global warming, asks you to 'pledge' to see the movie opening weekend. "Your pledge will send a message to the world that global warming is a genuine threat to our planet." Eye-roll.

Via my friend Ren who has made the pledge.

"Earthquake in Pennsylvania"

Blogger wins election--My friend Mark Harris of Save the GOP, who I mentioned here the other day, forced a stunning upset in Pennsylvania, "defeating a five-term state House incumbent from Mount Lebanon in Tuesday's Republican primary". Mark is this brilliant 21-year old that I had the pleasure of working with on the Herman Cain campaign. When Herman couldn't attend certain events, Mark would go speak in his place (and he was something like 19 at the time). He's the truest fiscal conservative and I can't wait to see the amazing things he accomplishes.

Update: Raj Bhakta, who was on the show Apprentice, is running as a Republican for Congress from Pennsylvania's 13th district. I only caught the show a few times but he was one of my favorite personalities on it. Vote Raj!

Hi-lar-ious

A guy goes in to interview for an IT job with the BBC and finds himself live on-air in a case of mistaken identity. I think he actually handles himself not too badly.

Hat-tip W.O.

Messy

Polipundit, a popular right-wingish political blog, is having some very public problems. Polipundit, who owns/runs the blog had allowed several guest-bloggers to join him regularly on his site, in particular the fabulous Lorie Byrd. Apparently, Polipundit feels very strongly on the illegal immigration issue--being a legal immigrant to this country, he opposes the illegal kind wholeheartedly. Several of his guest-bloggers do not and so there has been a split that has ended the guest-blogging experiment. It's sad because Polipundit was such a good group blog, and tempers are flaring now in a big way.

I can't help but see both sides of this coin. In the end, it's Polipundit's blog and he shouldn't have to share it with people he disagrees with so vehemently. On the other hand, debate and disagreement is good when it's between smart people who share the same goal--making America the best country it can be-- and it was good to have the debate happening all in one place.

The blogosphere is very impetuous, because of the immediacy of what we do, but I would urge bloggers and readers of Polipundit not to choose sides and to keep appreciating what all the various bloggers in this disagreement have on offer.

Marriage for everybody?

Megan at Jane Galt asks if you can oppose polygamy while supporting gay marriage. I don't see how.

Megan had a great piece on gay marriage last year as well.

Bloggers on the ballot

Mark Harris at Save the GOP is running for State Representative in Pennsylvania. The election is tomorrow so if you live in the Pittsburgh suburbs, get out and vote for Mark.

Also, Philip Pidot of Suitably Flip is running for NY State Senate in the 26th district, my home district, in November.

No such thing as free medicine, or free speech

From the London Times:

Edward Atkinson, a 75-year-old anti-abortion activist, was jailed recently for 28 days for sending photographs of aborted foetuses to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn, Norfolk. That draconian sentence was not deemed punishment enough: the hospital has banned Mr Atkinson from receiving the hip replacement operation he was expecting.

Via BOTW.

"He knocked my skull one way, and my brain swam the other and splat."

My cousin and I, all fill out release forms for the boxing; basically if we got our necks snapped the club wasn’t responsible. Also, if we won, we get a video of the fight and a 50 dollar bar tab.

-Fisch in a post on how he became a boxer, won the big fight and ended up in the emergency room. He never says if he gets the girl.

An Incongruent Comparison (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

CNN compares Bill Clinton to George W. Bush

No organization scoring such pathetic numbers opposite Fox News is in a position to denounce low ratings, but CNN seems bent on precisely that in its issue-by-issue comparison of Bill Clinton to George W. Bush. The problem with this poll is that it compares a retired president, absolved of responsibility, to a current, controversial, president in the midst of a War on Terror. Worse, it compares the lowest poll numbers that Bush has ever received to the highest poll numbers that Clinton has ever received. And, since CNN never commissioned a comparison of Bush to Clinton when Bush’s approval numbers surpassed 90%, it is hard to imagine why, at this moment, in May 2006, it has suddently realized the intrinsic value of a Bush-Clinton match-up. Why?

When you absolutely, positively must let the world know you're a moron

Via Gawker.

Over there

I'm not entirely sure what my friend A is doing in Iraq, but he's got interesting stories and pictures here.

NYC, USA

What, exactly, does it take to be a 'real New Yorker'?

Not that there's anything wrong with that, but....

...the gay Vito scenes make me want to gouge out my eyes.

One of those 'read the whole thing' ones

Do you really think a Democratic Congress will get tough on illegal immigration? Yes, Howard Dean has said, “The first thing we want is tough border control.” He’s also talked out of another orifice about gay marriage on the 700 Club and blamed conservative Supreme Court justices for Kelo vs. New London when the four most conservative ones voted against it. (For that matter, you’re a conservative. Why the heck are you listening to and trusting Howard Dean?)

-Jim Geraghty in a great piece on the dumbness of a conservative sit-out for election 2006. A must-read for all Republicans.

Via Insta.

Yet another reason polls don't matter

So, Bush is getting crushed in the polls. His favorable rating is at 31%. I bet if the election against Kerry was held right this minute, the man with a plan (7:12pm, 7:14pm, 7:40pm, 7:49pm) would win. Right? Right??

Self-hating Americans

Mary Katharine Ham, who I had the pleasure of meeting at the poker event I attended in DC last month, quotes Jim Geraghty on what is worse: the ugly American abroad or the ugly American travel snob abroad.

I have to admit that I've been both and now definitely prefer to be the former. I've told this story before but my younger brother snapped me out of my snobbery. We were traveling through Britain, he was 14 and I was a snotty 19, and he was acting so...I dunno, American. He wasn't trying to curb his slang so people could understand him better, something I always did, and seemed to be going out of his way to throw 'yo' into sentences. He would ask random stores if they would accept dollars so he wouldn't have to go get pounds (I'd yell at him for it but the truth is they always said they would) and just generally making sure that no one was confused as to his nationality. I said to him exasperated "you act so American!" He shot back "I am American!" When he said it, I saw that I was using 'American' as a synonym for bad and, c'mon, even then I knew we were the best.

Hands off the internet

Earth to legislators: the move to restrict access to sites like My Space in schools and libraries, to protect children from internet predators, is idiotic. Most kids have computers at home these days so all you're succeeding in doing is making sure that poor kids don't have access to the same stuff as the rich kids. And really, Congressman Fitzpatrick (sponsor of the bill), do you want to be the politician who is insensitive to poor kids? Do you?

Don't you cry tonight

Joe Grossberg, in a naked attempt to make me cry first thing in the morning, sends along the last scene of Six Feet Under on YouTube. Even without the sound, I had to turn it off right around when Ruth dies. I'm not a mushy girl but the last episode of SFU puts a lump in my throat every time.

Why always us?

Paul Reynolds at the BBC goes through all the arguments about whether a US attack on Iran would legal under international law and the ways in which the US might go about it.

I don't get it.

Why isn't the British Broadcasting Corporation looking at the legality of, oh I don't know, Britain attacking Iran? Why America? Doesn't the entire world stand to lose just the same from a nuclear Iran? Why is it always our problem that the crazies got weapons? Where is the rest of the world?

How the Kennedys do

Pictures of Patrick Kennedy in blackface as Michael Jackson surface. I can't tell if that's better or worse than the picture of a girl sucking a drink out of his bellybutton.

Sure, that makes sense.

Gay people must vote Democrat because Democrats support gay marriage. Or, something like that.

Why I find myself writing about Britney Spears--an explanation

You know how people who work in a pizza shop say that they wouldn't eat pizza if you paid them? Well, I work in politics.

Comments

I was sad when I thought no one was commenting and even more sad when I found out my comment section was randomly eating comments. But all is now fixed so please comment away.

Democrats would win if only Americans weren't so stupid

A post on Daily Kos pimping Kos's new book notes:

One of the biggest advantages the opposition enjoys is the right-wing noise machine: a well oiled juggernaut of interlocking media outlets, think-tanks, internships, wonk factories, and networks all knitted together with money and more spin than a newly formed black hole. They need it, they're utterly dependent on it. Their agenda is repugnant to most Americans and their ideology has been a catastrophic failure in the last five years. But media works.

If the Republican agenda is repugnant to 'most' Americans, how come Republicans control the White House, the Senate, the House and most governorships? Oh yeah, because of our noise machine, which, of course, implies that the majority of Americans are too dumb to see through it like the genuises on Daily Kos. Will the Democrats ever learn that calling voters stupid isn't a winning strategy? I hope not. I like winning.

Another Spears-Federline on the way

Britney Spears has announced that she is pregnant again. Yee-ha. Her husband, Kevin Federline, must be the most fertile man in the land as he's but 28 and already has 4 kids by 2 women.

Perez Hilton, a celeb gossip site, has some of the best comments on the Britney development. Some are genuinely funny:

"That's 4 kids for Kevin, 4 for Shar [Kevin's ex] now Brit only has 2. Whoever has the most kids wins!"

"Is there room for two kids on her lap behind the steering wheel??? I guess we will just have to wait and see."

"Aww good luck to ol Brit though, hope Kevin doesn't do a runner like he did when his second child was due last time."

Others are 'point and laugh at the commenters' funny:

"GOD NO! I hope she's joking just to piss people off. her legs and hips are looking super slim lately. nooooooo why would anyone sleep with that scumbag federlizzard he's discusting and brainwashing her telling her she doesn't have to listen to anyone and be her own person. obviously she would fall in love with the first person to tell her that.. why couldn't it have been justin [Timberlake]!?!"

"IF she comes back, it wont be until may or June 2007. I was reading that people are really tired of her and the interest in her has gone down 37%. Thats even more then jessica simpson who has gone down 24%. So she may have a comback next year but she'll NEVER be as big as she was"

Went out for the weekend, it lasted forever*

Dawn Summers blogs about her weekend and meeting Jason, of Worldwide Rants, with his wife Bree.

My weekend involved celebrating my friend Fisch's birthday. He turned 26(!) on Saturday and so Friday night we had one of our famous, marathon heads-up poker sessions, that lasted until morning, before meeting up with the aforementioned Dawn, Jason and Bree. After which, we played some more poker.

So, I realize it's now Wednesday, but did y'all do anything fun last weekend?

*Major props to whomever gets this lyric without the help of google.

Ban TV

Tom Elliott sees a much bigger threat to children than stray bullets and urges Mayor Mike Bloomberg to act.

Love, love, love

"When we couldn't get together for epic make out sessions we often talked on the phone. We talked about topics ranging from "What are you doing right now?" to "What are you going to do later?" It was fascinating stuff."

Seldom Sober has part 2 of part II of his excellent past loves series up now.

Learning to love the disengagement

The best part of Israel pulling out of Gaza is that when I see headlines like this "Renewed Clashes in Gaza Leave 12 Injured", I know it's just Palestinians fighting other Palestinians. The fact that 5 of the injured were children brings me no pleasure but Palestinian violence has always hurt children, it's just that Israelis generally got the blame. Now, there's no one to blame but themselves.

Fighting Tuesday broke out in Gaza City just hours before international mediators met in New York to discuss whether to ease the financial siege on Hamas over its violent anti- Israel ideology.

Hamas gunmen later attacked a Fatah funeral procession in the southern Gaza Strip and three unarmed bystanders were wounded, witnesses said.

The funeral was for a Fatah gunman killed in a clash with Hamas on Monday. Fatah officials and witnesses said Hamas set off two bombs and opened fire on the procession, setting off a firefight between the two sides

I'm not waiting for Europe to condemn these animals, we all know that's not going to happen. I'm just glad that Israel has no part of it. If Palestinians want to kill each other, they should certainly feel free.

Memo to Iran: the man speaking is considered the dove in Israeli politics

"The president of Iran should remember that Iran can also be wiped off the map." -Shimon Peres

Ouch

Via Away with Words.

Blogroll Update

In NYC:

*Tom Elliott- Tom sent me an excellent email about our mutual interests in hip-hop and rightwinging (and signed it with 'holler'). Also, he's a friend of Robert George, an immediate plus for anyone.

*Away With Words- The writer of this funky evangelical blog went to my high school (I got there after he graduated but his brother was in my class). You might think that's not enough to get on my blogroll but you'd be wrong.

*Canonist
*Downtown Dancer
*Sense of Soot
-Three bloggers I met at the Pajamas Media launch in NY. I could have swore that I had already blogrolled them, but apparently I had not.

*Capitol Confidential- An Albany-based must-read blog for those interested or involved in NY politics.

*Syntax of Things- I had meant to add this young lady for awhile. Her blog is a mix of personal blogging and pictures of cupcakes, I like that.

Internationally Known:

*Freedom and Whisky- It's hard enough being a libertarian in NY, imagine being one in Scotland.

But I thought he was to lead the free speech revolution, what happened?

Drudge: HOWARD STERN SAYS HE MAY RETURN TO FREE RADIO

MSM Announces Winners for 2006, 2008 (by guest blogger Dorian Davis)

Nancy Pelosi is Speaker of the House!

Hillary Clinton is President!

UPDATE: No one has voted yet.

Lesser of the two nannies

It's a bad scene when your government has to tell you how to poop.

Via Freedom and Whisky.

Drowned dead

Robert George takes issue with David Blaine-- and not for the usual reason of Blaine being a moron.

Hahahah

Ad right now on my gmail page: The Liberal Link - www.itsez.org - To defeat Bush III (Jeb), we have to start now!

Give

Jeff Goldstein of Protein Wisdom is having a fund drive. Jeff is one of the funniest and most prolific writers in the blogosphere. Whether he's analyzing issues or writing about his conversations with inanimate objects, his writing is just phenomenal. I once told him that I can't leave him comments because I feel like they won't be nearly as good or funny as his posts. If you enjoy his work as I do, throw that man some cash.

For all the girls out there

Don't do this.

Hat-tip Fisch.

I have found it

For the past few years, I've been halfheartedly looking for a synogogue to attend on the upper east side. I'm not religious but I do feel a real connection to Judaism and I want to encourage it. Today, I passed by an upper east side synagogue that had a Leonard Cohen quote up on the bulletin board outside: "there are cracks in everything, that's how the light gets in". I think any shul that quotes Leonard Cohen is the shul for me.

Quote of yesterday

"I love the blogosphere. All the bloggers we met have been so nice." Pause. "Well, all the bloggers we've met from outside NY, anyway."

-Dawn Summers upon meeting the excellent Jason, from Worldwide Rants, and his lovely wife Bree.

Dumb idea fails, film at 11

Hawaii Gives Up on Its Attempt to Control Gas Prices

"In a lot of people's minds, they thought the gas cap wasn't working," said Sen. Paul Whalen, a strong supporter of the law. "It was hard to generate lots of support for it because ... we're paying more than we ever were before."

Hawaii first imposed weekly limits on wholesale gas prices Sept. 1 based on the average of prices in Los Angeles, New York and the Gulf Coast. Then allowances were added for what it costs wholesalers to ship to Hawaii and distribute gas to more remote islands.

Price caps differed for each island. There was no cap on the markup added by gas stations.

Some opponents argued that the state's limit on gas prices actually helped the oil companies boost profits because they knew they could charge up to the maximum allowed.

Another problem was that it was hard to tell whether the law did any good.

"It's ridiculous. Prices jumped up 20 cents in the last couple of days," said Calvin Reddick, who paid $15 for just over four gallons of gas for his Volkswagon Beetle. "Usually when you have a cap, it's supposed to freeze prices off. Obviously, their idea of a cap is different from mine."

I just wish there was some way to, you know, set the price depending on how much gas people need and how much gas is available at that time. We can call it 'supply and demand', or something.

Cool but totally useless skills

Who would even want to memorize every zipcode in the country?

Racist Russians

I've always wondered what life was like for black people in Russia. Now I know. Of course, it was all better under Communism, according to AP.

I heart Jarvis Cocker

This is the first I've heard of a solo Jarvis Cocker album. I. can. not. wait.

"I didn't want it to be a moany record. I haven't set myself an agenda apart from: 'Don't moan, and make the songs as short as possible." PULP star JARVIS COCKER aims for an upbeat sound on his upcoming first solo album. (ZJS/NCM/GES)

I'll take whatever you give me, Jarvis.

This and that

That was obvious: Kennedy Says He'll Enter Rehab For Addition And Depression

That was quick: Porter Goss resigns as CIA chief

That's pathetic: Britney hires a babysitter — for her husband

That was funny: US Uses Iraq Terrorist's Own Video to Mock Him

That's a start: Israeli Air Strike Kills Five Militants

That's an idea: Kathy Griffin advises Clay Aiken to leave the country

That's so cool: Dawn Eden's book cover is awesome

Man of the people

Drudge: Castro worth nearly $1 Billion...

But it's the American blockade that produces starving Cubans.

The problem with Wikipedia

The current entry for Reconstruction begins "Reconstruction refers to one of the most boring parts of American history WHATUP".

Our very first open thread

What are you all thinking about/reading today?

Update: Ok, ok, we've never done one before so you guys aren't sure what to do. Well, the way it works is I don't write anything but you guys still comment. :-)

Who didn't see this coming?

Valerie Plame Seeks Book Deal

Via Media Bistro.

Glad to see Chicago is so problem-free

Chicago City Council bans Foie Gras. How ridiculous is it? It's so ridiculous that NY City Councilmembers are making fun of them for it.

Hat-tip Ark.

Turns out, it was never missing in the first place

King Tut's Penis Rediscovered

It's been 3 days....

....but I'm still in the Bahamas.

Weird article of the day

Hey, did you know conservatives have parties? It's true, they do!

Random Thought

Why are spicy tuna rolls always inside out?

Question

Am I the only one who feels sort of bad for Kaavya Viswanathan?

Yeah, just like 9/11.

Suspicious Fire
Grips Big Apple
400 Firefighters Battle Inferno
New Yorkers Reminded of 9/11

Fourteen firefighters suffered minor injuries, no civilians were hurt and there was no need to evacuate the area, authorities said

Love or something like it

Seldom Sober posts part II of his excellent 'Past Loves' series. Part I is here, try not to die over how adorable it is.

Update: I had been following the story of Sam and A for some time on Sam's blog when he just disappeared. He's back now with a sad conclusion to the story which he writes with the same honesty I had appreciated in his blogging all along.

Actually, it can probably do a better job.

Evan Coyne Maloney has made a generator that can replace Bob Herbert of the NY Times.

Hat-tip W.O.

Stopping illegal immigration as a way of helping immigrants

Resident liberal Dawn Summers has a thoughtful post on immigration. I agree with some parts and not others (as you'll see in her comment section) but there's no doubt that she is better, and more consistent, than her side on this issue.

What media bias?

From the Guardian:

Israeli soldiers accused of raping 11-year-old

"The news was greeted with shock by Israelis, who tend to believe their army is morally superior to those in other countries."

Actually, apart from the fact that the soldiers say the girl lied about her age and also that she says she gave consent (though, obviously, an 11-year old is unable to give said consent), the morally superior part, as Michael Parker who sent me this tip points out, is that it's being prosecuted! In many of the countries that surround Israel, the girl could be killed for tempting the men and woe is her if her family is one of those 'we kill you ourselves for bringing shame to our house by being raped' kind. So, yeah, the Israeli army is morally superior, especially when compared to the countries that surround it.

Hat-tip Michael Parker, who really should return to blogging.

Tony who?

Our flight got in late Sunday night and so I missed Sopranos and Big Love. Yesterday, finding myself with an hour of free time before neighbor girl Ari and friend Pheeleepok were to come over, I chose to spend that hour watching 'Big Love' over everyone's favorite New Jersey crime family.

When I tell people that I love 'Big Love', I inevitably get a smirky 'so you're into polygamy?' Ya, that's it, you got me. And I'm into Sopranos because I am a mobster and I liked Six Feet Under because I secretly want to own a funeral home. For some reason, liking Big Love is seen as a vote of approval for what the show portrays in a way that I haven't seen applied to other shows. So, no, I'm not into the polygamy thing, I'm just completely fascinated with the characters, the plotlines and the subtleties of the show.

I love that Bill is having an affair with his 'first' wife Barb, I love Margene's adorable innocence and I even get a kick out of Nicki's buttoned-up insanity. I also have a huge crush on Bill. He's this loving, dedicated, strong man who has enough patience to deal with three wives (not to mention with his father and his three wives) and a whole mess of kids. While Six Feet Under's Nate was always my example of the worst possible husband (he doesn't beat you or anything obvious like that, just is never really present and essentially wastes your time with his wallowing and self-absorbtion), Bill is the epitome of a husband-- the fact that he is husband to three women is neither here nor there.

With Six Feet Under off the air, I needed a quirky replacement and I've found it in Big Love. I highly recommend it.

Update: This is kind of interesting: Polygamists discussing Big Love.

Applying the Moby rule to the blogosphere

Back during the election of 2004, Moby came up with a genius idea: pretend to be Republicans when speaking to Republicans about Bush. Attack him for not being conservative enough, plant rumors about him being pro-choice and generally just gum up the works on Republican chat sites and bulletin boards.

"You target his natural constituencies," says the Grammy-nominated techno-wizard. "For example, you can go on all the pro-life chat rooms and say you're an outraged right-wing voter and that you know that George Bush drove an ex-girlfriend to an abortion clinic and paid for her to get an abortion.

"Then you go to an anti-immigration Web site chat room and ask, 'What's all this about George Bush proposing amnesty for illegal aliens?'"

Moby's tireless effort helped elected President Kerry, hahahaha, sorry, I couldn't even continue with that joke.

Anyhoo, I have reason to suspect that some people are applying this method today, on the issue of immigration. I have received three very similar emails on a "Bush betrayed America"/"Don't vote Republican ever again" theme:

* "Bush and crew have basically betrayed America"

* "Current Republican leaders (probably taking bribes from Vicente Fox) are selling America out. They are more interested in helping illegal Mexicans than long standing Americans. They have betrayed working America. I've been a Republican for 17 years, have worked on campaigns, but if they pass any bill, I will not vote for Republicans this fall. Please, promise me. Do NOT vote Republican."

* "Traitors to America: G.W. Bush, John McCain, Mike DeWine, Arlen Specter, Lindsey Graham, Sam Brownback. Please, do NOT vote Republican and convince everyone you know not to vote Republican."

It's possible, of course, that it's a coincidence that all three emails use very similar language and urge people not to vote Republican. However, I present as further proof that it's no coincidence:

*Two of the email addresses are things like "republicanguy1996" and "rightwingguy1997". The third email address is a woman's name followed by a 1997.

*Two of the emails implore me to "forward this to all the Republicans you know".

*The subject line of all three emails begins with a "Re:" (one is "Re:Republicans" and two of them are "Re:Immigration").

Be vigilant, bloggers, that your anger at Bush isn't being provoked by those who would outliberal him any day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Conversation of the Day

Me: Why aren't you home in solidarity?

Dawn Summers, Leftist Hispanic: Dude, I was born here.

Me: I know, but you know, solidarity!

DSLH: Are you crazy? I have a job. That's probably their whole plan. Make those of us here legally stay home from work and get fired, then come in and say "I will do this job if the American won't".

My "Day Without Immigrants"

Today is May Day and there is a movement in the US to prove the worth of immigrants by holding a 'Day Without Immigrants'. This features a call to immigrants, both legal and illegal, to stay home from work and not do any shopping today. Here is how it has gone for me, so far:

I was born far away (in 'Russia proper' as I described to someone this weekend) and brought to America as a kid. This morning, I woke up in my apartment in New York. I said hello to my immigrant doorman (Dominican), bought coffee from the immigrant (Middle Eastern, likely Egyptian) who has a coffee cart on my corner, and got into a cab to work (I was late, ok) driven by an immigrant (Nigerian). Once there, the immigrant (Central American, likely Dominican) security lady checked my id before letting me onto the elevator.

So far, bang up job keeping immigrants at home today. From the AFP story about the protests:

Though the economic impact of the "Day Without Immigrants" is hard to predict, some analysts expect a major social impact akin to the dawning of the US civil rights movement in the 1960s.

Here's my prediction: negligible economic impact and that only because certain companies like Goya and Tyson's closed their plants in some twisted show of solidarity.

Social impact? Any immigrant who is in America because they are seeking a better life for themselves and their families will not be taking today off to participate in some dumb protest with the leftist fringes of society. I think the bigger social impact might be how little impact this protest will ultimately have. What if they held a "Day Without Immigrants" and no one noticed?

Update: Michelle Malkin reports the country is still standing and Ace of Spades has a name-change suggestion for illegal immigrants that don't make them sound quite as, well, law-breaking.

If by 'mainstream feel' you mean 'final nail in coffin'

Madonna brings mainstream feel to Coachella

Back from paradise

If I ever get married, I will now have to insist on an exotic locale joined by family and friends.

This weekend was phenomenal. Two of my good friends, MD and BB, got married. The weather was gorgeous, the ceremony was perfect, and most of the closest people in my life were in near proximity. We'd lay on the beach listening to The Game, Depeche Mode and Biggie. We drank strawberry daquiris and hung out on each other's balconies. We played the Russian card game Clabbar. Everybody sported their hottest summer gear. Peter wore linen the entire time. Nighttime meant huge dinners, bottles of vodka on all the tables, cigars for the boys. It was like living in some gluttonous fantasyland for 4 days. I highly recommend it.

On our Miami-New York connection, we randomly found ourselves on the same flight as Superfischel. We made history by taking one of the last Song flights ever. Just as well, really, as Song has this trivia game, that passengers play against each other on individual terminals at their seats, that I can see inspiring violence in, ahem Fisch ahem, competitive sorts.

Back to real blogging in the AM....