Ann Coulter's Adam's Apple (beta)

Been busy in real life.  But I’m still tweeting when I can.  Fortunately, no one actually reads this blog…

It’s not a good point, or even a credible point, but, yes, technically he does have a point.

Tonight is likely the series finale of CBS’s successful crime fighting procedural Numbers, or, as I like to call it: TV’s most anti-semitic show.

Finally, a TV show about Jewish crime fighters, but what is their secret weapon?  They’re good at math.

I know what you’re thinking:  ”But isn’t that a good stereotype?”

To which I say:  No such thing.

Sarah Palin is still talking about the palm of her hand.  Okay, we get it.  She got caught doing something stupid, so instead of just letting it go away (as these things do), she’d rather keep bringing it up herself in some vain attempt to “control the story” (or whatever her handlings are telling her to do these days).

Her latest addition to the “palm-troversy” — God does it too.

Basically, she says a fan sent her a bible quote that says even God wrote on the palm of “His” hand.  Palin then adds: “So, I’m in good company.”

Of course, if she’s such a biblical scholar, why did she need to be told about that passage?  But whatever.  That’s not my point here.

My point is this:  I’m sure a lot of people have written things on their hand.  It’s no big deal.  But what people usually write are things they know they’ll forget.  ”Buy eggs.”  ”Wish grandma a happy birthday.”  ”Call Jenny, 867-5309.”

And what did Sarah write on her palm that caused this whole bruhaha in the first place?  ”Energy.” “Tax.” “Lift American Spirits.”  That’s it.

Gov— er, I mean— Mrs. Palin, no one has a problem with you needing a crib sheet.  The problem is that YOU COULDN’T REMEMBER THOSE FIVE FREAKIN’ WORDS!

Energy and taxes.  Really?  Aren’t those the most generic political words out there, the two things every politician is already talking about?

And If “lifting American spirits” is so important to you, how the hell could you forget about it?   Did you have a mock debate, that somehow didn’t include ANY of those words?

And, since we’re on the subject, what in the world have you done in the last year that’s done anything to actually lift anyone’s spirits?  Last I checked, exploiting people’s fear to enrich your bank account was the exact opposite of spirit lifting.

I love this.

Contrary to popular belief, the GOP has not become the party of “do nothings.”  They do want to do something.  They want to make symbolic gestures and, yes… human sacrifices.  They believe the only way out of our collective national woes is to appease a God who they think is punishing us.  The symbolic gestures involve moving the word of God into as many public spaces as possible.  And the humans they want to sacrifice… that would be mostly non-Christians and gays.  And the sacrifice comes in the form of the 50 years of human rights history they want to undo. Muslims have become the new lambs, torture the new form of sacrifice, and Guantanamo the new altar.  And gays… well, since they’ve “chosen” such a sinful way to live, they must be punished, or God will get really angry.  At least, that’s the way that many in the GOP today see it.

Okay, I’m exaggerating as usual.  But there is an undercurrent of all this within the more extreme elements of the right — and it’s the extreme side that seems to be calling all the shots.  The GOP has become a hostage to it’s own fringe.  And I challenge anyone to turn on Glenn Beck and show me how symbolism and sacrifice is not part of his message…

Okay, that might seem unnecessarily cruel, but let’s just face facts — all known holidays in the U.S. are grossly commercialized.  At least V-Day, like Halloween, doesn’t threaten to piss away its last shred of spiritual significance every time someone “celebrates” it.

Yes, V-Day, like St. Patty’s Day, actually has a Saint behind it.  But it was never a holiday of much religious significance.   The fact that it’s become a celebration of “love and romance” has more to do with filling a public need than anything else.   The greeting card companies and candy makers only recognized what people were wanting to buy on this day, and gave it to them in spades.  Did they inflate the value of goods on this day by helping generate even more demand?  Yes.  But at least they didn’t sell out the soul of baby Jesus in the process.

Christmas, let’s be honest, is all about bribing kids to like Jesus.  Decorate a tree and open presents!  Why?  Because it’s someone else’s birthday!  It’s a tradition alright, a tradition of exploiting the innocence of youth to get them hooked on religion when they’re at their most impressionable.  To make them customers for life.  Santa Claus serves essentially the same purpose as Joe Camel.

Well, that’s just my opinion anyway.   What do I know?  I’m just a lump in the throat of a crazy woman.

So it’s a been little over a year since President Obama took office, and in all the ruminations, retrospectives, and exposés that have been written about the 2008 election, there’s one thing I haven’t seen written about at all:  The role the Borg played in getting Obama elected.

No, I’m not talking about the collective of singularly-minded young people who stormed across the nation, assimilating the masses in the name of their favorite candidate for change.   I’m talking about an actual flesh-and-blood(-and-whatever-else-they’re-made-of) Borg from Star Trek.  A Borg that hasn’t gotten nearly enough credit for it’s role in electing the current President.

Specifically, I’m talking about this Borg…

President Obama is going to give a speech in Tampa on Thursday announcing a “down payment” on the “future of high speed rail” in Florida.  The high speed rail line will connect Tampa to Orlando, bringing with it untold numbers of jobs for the foreseeable future.

Here’s a link to a St. Pete Times article on the subject.

Why is this interesting?  Because Florida is the largest swing state remaining.  We know how Texas, California, and New York will vote in national races.  But Florida, despite having an overwhelming Republican majority in its state and local governments, is almost 50/50 in any given presidential race.  The last three Presidential races all went down to the wire there.

But here’s the truth about Florida’s swinginess:  South Florida is solidly democratic.  North Florida is solidly republican.  It’s only central Florida — the area between Tampa and Orlando (known as the I-4 corridor) that actually swings the state either way in Presidential elections.  You win the I-4 corridor, and you win Florida and all its electoral votes.

And now the federal government has finally seen fit to send a billion dollars to build a high speed rail line in Florida…  connecting Tampa and Orlando.  Not Miami, Jacksonville, or Tallahassee — just Tampa and Orlando.  (Though Miami is mentioned as a likely expansion in the future.)

By the way, I totally think a high speed rail line is long overdue in FL.  And building infrastructure is exactly what the federal government should be doing right now.  I just think it’s interesting that Tampa-Orlando would be the first to directly benefit from it…

I’m sure there are logistical reasons to start there — distance, terrain, population densities, and commutes.  But I’m also sure when it comes to giving out a billion bucks, it doesn’t hurt to be giving it to people who are, shall we say, impressionable…

Thousands of emails were hacked off a computer system and made public.  But of those thousands, the overwhemling majority of the emails were simply boring exchanges about the minutiae of data collecting.  Why then, release all of them?  Why not just release the proverbial smoking guns?

Because if they release only a dozen or so unflattering emails, people will be more likely to read them and judge for themselves.  And those with unbiased eyes will see they are hardly smoking guns at all.  Heck, even those with biased eyes would have to admit that they aren’t all that damning.  Does it show them to be a bit paranoid?  Hell yes.  But considering how these emails were obtained, their paranoia actually seems justified.

By releasing thousands of emails, though, they are essentially creating their own smoke screen, allowing them to paint whatever picture they want, knowing very few people (including politicians, bloggers, and TV pundits) will actually bother to read through them.

And sadly, it appears to be working.

Author’s note:  Sorry to mix metaphors above — no one would actually paint a picture in a smoke screen, but I think you get my point :)