Entitlement - You Don't Have One

Today's headlines from MSNBC tell me that McCain is accusing Obama as being a "typical tax-and-spend Democrat". The article goes on to refute the claim, talking about how Obama's plans may actually save the middle class tax money... whatever.

Do people not understand that in order to spend money, you really should HAVE it first? I ask again the question that I've asked a million times - if we don't tax, where does the money come from?

"Oh, Tami," you whine at me, "I can't afford any more taxes! The world is bleeding me dry!". Well guess what? The world is bleeding me dry, too. I have the strictest budget of my life, now that I have a house, and it's all gone to hell since my gas budget went from $250 a month in March to FOUR HUNDRED DOLLARS in June. That's a serious adjustment to make. I did it, but I'm not happy about curbing my very spoiled spending habits.

Still, curb them I have. Do you know why? Because when you don't have the money to pay for things, the responsible thing to do is not to buy them. You can't go without necessities, but maybe we can all take a step back and consider what's a necessity and what's not these days. For example, I do not have movie channels on my cable TV subscription to save a few bucks. Guess what? Even the cable is a luxury. I want social programs, and art grants, and beautiful public parks as much as the next person, maybe more, but someone has to pay for them. Seriously.

The thing that kills me most about the idea of "tax and spend" as an insult, is of course the fact that the other side of the coin isn't "not spend". Oh, no. All the talk of smaller government is bull, we don't have smaller government, we just have a less efficient government who can't help the people. In this age of Republican rule, are we spending less to go with our shiny lower taxes and economic stimulus checks? No, sir, our debt levels are just going up. What am I going to say now, can you guess? I bet you can! The other side of "tax and spend", my friends, is "borrow and spend".

Guess which one I think is worse.

Who Knows One?

OK, so Lautenberg won the NJ Democratic primary yesterday. Good enough, I do like him as a lawmaker, and as long as he remains alert and, um, alive, he's OK with me.

That's the sticky part, though. Last time I checked, the average life expectancy for a male in the US was somewhere around 77 or 78, depending where you look. Also, last time I checked, Lautenberg was 84. His life expectancy is now, um... 0. At that age, and I know I'm being indelicate here, but please forgive me, because I'm just trying to be practical, you can just suddenly die for no reason whatsoever, no warning. You just wear out. I am not wishing this on the Senator, I am just stating what I believe to be true.

So, if the Senator should pass away before the actual election, who gets to be on the ballot? I'll start looking, but if any of you know, please pipe up.

Well Now I'm Pissed

McClellan says in new book that White House used propaganda to sell war

Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan writes in a new memoir that the Iraq war was sold to the American people with a sophisticated "political propaganda campaign" led by President Bush and aimed at "manipulating sources of public opinion" and "downplaying the major reason for going to war."

God damn it, he didn't fucking sell it to me.

I was not misled; I was shouting from the trees that they were wrong.
I do not support the concept of this war to this day. Unfortunately, I understand that we are now living with it, and that we need to work within the parameters that we already have, but I never, never, never wanted us to send troops to Iraq. If someone can find me a place where I wrote, "Yes, we should invade a country that hasn't attacked us, that's the best way to move our country forward!" then I will eat my shoes.

Maybe other people bought what Bush was selling, but I did not. My blogging friends did not. The "American People" is not a single, unanimous body.

Don't Get Around Much Anymore

I won't look to see the last time I posted. The presidential nominee thing has me feeling apathetic, because my dog in the race was Edwards. He's not there anymore, and I have no idea if either of the two dogs left can hunt. No idea.

I have been working on getting the new house together, and some of the wonderful benefits are that I can have company all the time, and that no one thinks I'm getting in the way of their stamp collection (which is on the kitchen table, of course) if I wish to use the kitchen for baking. Time to experiment!

I made up a no-sugar-added strawberry cake yesterday. It had:

4 egg whites, beaten
24 packets Splenda
1 stick of butter, softened
2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
about 1 cup strawberry puree (6 large strawberries in the food processor)

I put the strawberries in the FP to puree, creamed the Splenda into the butter, whipped the egg whites, and went to sift the baking powder into the flour, when I realized that I had no baking powder. Crap! I ran to the store, knowing that the cake would suffer since I'd already whipped the eggs. Got back, did my sifting. Added the dry ingredients to the butter/Splenda, folded in the egg whites, had a lump that looked like dry bread dough. Not good. The strawberries that I had intended to use as a topping got folded in. Much better! I made 6 mini-bundt cakes. I think if I try this again I'll go 6 egg whites.

I estimate these to be about 300 calories per mini-cake. Maybe more like 305. I could cut the calories significantly if I switched out the butter with Smart Balance.

I'm not a strawberry fan, but apparently if you dilute the flavor enough, I can enjoy them.

So there you go.

Find Your Best Advisor

Barack Obama will face some challenges this fall, no matter how Rosy you may find the outlook for Democrats. And he'll need good advice to make the best plans for success. So who would any Democrat turn to when looking for sage words? Why, Newt Gingrich of course!

Dear Senator Obama,

Your campaign has been brilliant. It has given you more support and more momentum than most analysts expected a year ago. Keeping things simple and vague has worked so far, and it might work all the way to the White House. "Change you can believe in" is a great all-purpose slogan. It allows every person to fill in his or her own interpretation of what it means. In some ways, it's reminiscent of Jimmy Carter's 1976 promise to run "a government as good as the American people."

The challenge you will face in the next few months is stark. Do you want to remain vague? You might win—but you might find that, in winning, you have a "victory of personality" with no real policy consequences. Or do you want to provide specifics? If so, your victory could be a clarion call from the American people to Congress to join you in achieving your goals.

Ok, it may sound a little crazy for a member of the Donkey Tribe to be looking to the former GOP speaker of the house for hints and tips, but Newt's been around the block a few times and may be on to something here. As long as you stay vague and focus on positive imagery like hope and change, you deny your opponent the ammunition he desires to pick apart your platform. And it may just be that this is the kind of campaign you need to get across the finish line in November.

The problem with this, of course, is that you then need to show up in January after the inaugural balls are concluded, the balloons popped and the banners taken down, and actually get to work. And if you surprise a whole bunch of your supporters who thought you would do certain things, your support erodes. Getting into the office in the first place is critical, certainly, but you need to maintain that coalition of support through your term to actually get anything done. Failure to manage that feat leads to a one term president.

So, Senator Obama... don't trust Newt's intentions too much, but you may want to give some thought to that advice.

A Brief History of Arugula

For those of you wishing to avoid the tags of "limousine liberal" or "latte drinking leftist" or what have you, there are numerous pitfalls in the food and beverage world. Apparently, should you hope to not be lumped in with the "lift your pinkie whilst drinking tea" crowd, you need to add arugula to your list of right wing vulnerability targets. Just ask Ezra Klein.

When did arugula become the new latte? Newsweek is using it as the counterpoint to beer (which, though drunk by hipsters and sold in Trader Joe's, apparently denotes blue collar cred), but does that register with folks? Arugula just looks like...lettuce. I couldn't even identify it offhand. Sushi, frappucinos, "SmartWater" -- all that I could see. But a sort of obscure salad ingredient? That's a more advanced degree in in yuppie than even I have.

Here's what I know about arugula. It doesn't have any double letters in it. (Or so my spell checker tells me.) I'm not sure if I've ever had it. Yet, I've voted for several Democrats over the years, and a number of Republicans, mixed in with various third party candidates and cartoon characters. I kind of like American Prospect commenter Mark F's conundrum.

I live in Worcester, MA. About as blue collar and non-elitist as you get. I had a turkey buger with arugula for lunch on Saturday. To drink I had two Narragansett tall boys. WHO DO I VOTE FOR?

Here's something more official, from your friends at wikipedia.

also known as arugula or rocket, is an edible plant. It is a species of Eruca native to the Mediterranean region, from Morocco and Portugal east to Jordan and Turkey.[1][2] It is closely related to Eruca vesicaria and included by some botanists in that either as a subspecies E. vesicaria subsp. sativa[3] or not distinguished at all;[4] it can be distinguished from E. vesicaria by its early deciduous sepals.[3]

Now I feel better. Doesn't sound like anything I'd put in my beer.

Misguided, Or Misguiding?

So what do you think makes a person sit around and decide which methods of torture to use? Do you think it's that they have become so divorced from reality that they didn't understand that they're condoning torture, or do you think that they knew exactly what they were doing, and that they're all just a certain kind of (and I HATE using this word) evil?

I don't know, but I know it's a disgrace. Some public noise needs to be made, a lot of public noise. Jane at Firedoglake has a plan, and an easy way to speak up a bit.

"I'm aware our national security team met on this issue. And I approved," Bush told ABC News' Martha Raddatz on Friday. "I don't know what's new about that; I'm not so sure what's so startling about that."

He doesn't see what's so startling about that, so now it's up to us to tell him.

I'm a detective!

The definitions of detective include "fitted for or used in detecting something." This week, though I'm sure The One True Tami (Blessed be Her name)would not approve, I finally took one of the final steps toward becoming a grumpy old man yelling for those damned kids to get off his lawn. I purchased a metal detector. Now all I really need is the cloth cabby hat and the baggy golf shorts in some really blaring colors.

I think there's something inherent in our genetic code that these companies have tapped in to. It's a hobby that I never would have even considered a few years ago, and in fact made fun of. Do I expect to find untold riches and retire to the South of France? Not bloody likely. But there is just something addictive about the idea of wandering around, listening for little beeps in a pair of headphones, and digging down into the earth to see what mysterious objects might lie below us, just out of sight. Could it be a rare old coin? A lost diamond earring? A civil war military artifact? 99 times out of 100 it's going to be a pull tab from a soda can, a beer bottle cap or a rusty old nail.

I took it out into the yard last night for just a few moments and "detected" my very first metallic item from the earth. It was a rusty old bolt of some sort. I don't care. I cleaned it up with a wire brush and I'm going to string it on a chain to hang around my neck. Yeah, there's a fashion statement for ya.

So I wish you all a good weekend and invite you to laugh at me if you will. Oh, and just make sure you stay off my lawn ya little bastards.

More on Negotiating

To clarify further how I feel about negotiating with anti-Israel "government officials" such as Hamas leaders:

If you have a group of people in a position of power that behave as an immovable object regarding unreasonable expectations, you know, like say, blowing the entire country of Israel up because they believe it is an abomination, there are two approaches that I would consider as having a chance of succeeding. The first is to treat the leaders as adults, and to continue trying to discuss things openly, hoping that reason may eventually sink in, and that a more peaceful existence can be achieved. The second is to attempt to kill every single man, woman and child within the belief system you are opposing, not stopping until you have at least decimated their existence. Kill, kill, kill until the devastation overwhelms, and your enemies have no possible resources to use in order to rise up against you.

I don't really believe that either one of these methods can "solve" the Middle East conflicts, I believe that they will exist in form or another until the end of the earth. I think that method two, though, is idiotic, irresponsible towards our fellow humans, and an evolutionary step backwards.

The future has to go forwards, people.

Carter Criticism Connundrum

(via Memorandum)

Carter to meet with Hamas Leader (possibly)

Wow, people judge Jimmy Carter pretty harshly. Personally, I was quite young when the whole Egypt/Israel Camp David peace treaty thing happened, but I remember how happy it made my parents.

“I’m not surprised that Carter would do this, as he has been supporting Palestinian extremism for many years,” said Steve Emerson, director of the Investigative Project on Terrorism, a watchdog group.

Carter would be the first Western leader of his stature to meet with the Hamas chief. Though Meshal met with Clinton officials in the 1990s, the Bush administration has sought to isolate Hamas, enforcing rigid sanctions on its government in Gaza and refusing to meet with its leaders unless it recognizes Israel and abandons terror.

“I think this [visit] undermines the U.S. policy of isolating Hamas,” said Emerson. “I think this encourages Europeans to further dilute their sanctions against the Hamas government.”

Really? Carter supports extremism? Why is it that I honestly feel that this guy supports peace above all else? Is it his mild demeanor? His lack of declaring wars? His work to provide housing to low-income families? His willingness to sit down with people who have their thumbs on an entire race of people and can influence their emotions at the drop of a hat to try and convince them that working with the US could help them more than working against it? Am I the only one who thinks he's trying to make things better for everyone? Oh, wait -

But Ibrahim Hooper, communications director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a non-profit advocacy group, said Carter's efforts demonstrate he's a true partner in peace.

“I think if true, this report would indicate that President Carter is willing to travel any road in search of peace,” he said. “I think President Carter would only undertake such a mission if he believed that something could be achieved in terms of peace and reconciliation in the region.”

Hooper added that because of Carter's reputation among Palestinians he might be able to bring some pressure to bear.

“Obviously President Carter has a great amount of credibility in the region because of his past efforts seeking peace internationally,” Hooper said.

OK, I agree with the American-Islamic relations guy. I'm pretty sure that I'm an example of a Jewish person who wants good things for Israel. Am I turned around, here, or are people just being inflammatory out of reflex, and hurting themselves?

I think that people need to be working for peace, not supremacy. Maybe that's my problem.

Oprah Exposed!

Right up front, let me just say, if you came to this post looking for naked pictures of Oprah Winfrey, you:

1. Will be vastly disappointed
2. Have some very serious issues and should seek help immediately
3. May have a future with Fox Television

The real story, of course, is that Oprah is doomed. And why? She has been poisoned by the toxic aroma of Barack Obama.

Much hay was made nearly a year ago when Oprah Winfrey announced that she would support — and campaign for — Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama. Her effect in boosting support for Obama in early primary and caucus states like Iowa (which he won), New Hampshire (which he lost) and even South Carolina (which he won) is debatable.

But what has received far less attention is the impact Oprah’s endorsement has had on her own popularity... Almost instantly, Oprah’s popularity in America plummeted. An August 2007 CBS News poll showed only 61 percent of Americans were favorably disposed to her — a considerable drop of 13 percentage points from a similar survey conducted just seven months prior.

According to the always non-partisan and never challenged Journal of Convenient Facts for Me, it is clear that virtually everyone in the country hates Barack Obama. In a second, highly scientific poll, my basset hound responded saying, "I'd bite that Obama loving beeyatch if I had half a chance and could get my pudgy arse off this couch." From this it's clear that not only can Obama not be elected president, he will sink the careers of everyone who has ever met him... including the Pope who will be cast down from the Vatican into a pit of burning brimstone prior to November.

Then again, let's just get crazy for a moment and imagine that something else could explain the ratings change for the daytime talk diva. Who makes up Oprah's biggest demographic base? I'll leave you to do the Neilson research yourself if you don't believe me, but it happens to be women. And what group is Hillary Clinton's biggest fan base? (Cue the Jeopardy music.)

So once she endorses Obama, do you suppose that some disgruntled Hillary fans are a bit less enthusiastic about her in this highly charged political environment? History will be the judge. Somehow I don't think Oprah or Obama are going anywhere soon, but then again... what do I know? I believed the story about penguins being able to fly.

Oh Happy Day!

Fafblog is back!

This is because I wore my Fafshirt this weekend, I just know it.
Don't bother me with the fact that they came back before the weekend, I'm not listening.

Obsession Continues

While other people, smarter people, maybe even better people (nah!) around the world are thinking globally, I continue to think locally. Really, really locally.



I am so damn happy about the kitchen.

The Truth Can Finally Be Told

Otis was right. Penguins really can fly. At least one particular sub-species.

Camera crews discovered a colony of Adélie penguins while filming on King George Island, some 750 miles south of the Falkland Islands. BBC1 viewers will see the penguins not only take flight from the Antarctic wastes, but fly thousands of miles to the Amazonian rainforest to find winter sun.

And there is photographic proof.

Nipples!

There doesn't seem to be much that the media, the TSA and the Department of Homeland Security can agree on these days. But if there's one item at the top of all of their agendas, it's the overwhelming importance of getting out any story that involves nipple rings.

A Texas woman who said she was forced to remove a nipple ring with pliers in order to board an airplane called Thursday for an apology by federal security agents and a civil rights investigation.

Hamlin, 37, said she was trying to board a flight from Lubbock to Dallas on Feb. 24 when she was scanned by a Transportation Security Administration agent after passing through a larger metal detector without problems.

The female TSA agent used a handheld detector that beeped when it passed in front of Hamlin's chest, the Dallas-area resident said.

A friend of mine had convinced me to get my nipples pierced back in the nineties. In fact, she convinced me roughly seven times, but only managed to do it after I'd had about seven shots of tequila and, by then, all the piercing places were closed. I'm feeling more and more lucky about that these days. I'm considering going out to the Democratic National Convention this summer, and I'd hate to be caught in some bloody, tearful incident involving needle nose pliers at the boarding gate.

So, for all of you who are now cringing and crossing your arms over your chests, happy Friday!

Where Josh and Big Tent Both Get It Wrong

There was a rather controversial post today from one our favorite bloggers, Josh Marshall at TPM, purporting that Hillary Clinton's supporters are trying to game the system outside of the rules to put their candidate over the finish line.

I imagine playing poker around a table with friends. Player A has a Straight Flush; Player B has four of a kind. Then B says well, sure, if you're counting straights, but if we were adding up the numbers rather than going by straights winning, I'd have won.

A similar theory was extolled at KOS. Over at TalkLeft (another excellent blog) Big Tent Democrat retorts that Clinton's strategy is exactly within the rules.

Let's focus on whether the rules allow this. The answer is obviously yes, they do. It seems to me that it is Obama supporters like Markos who are complaining that the rules MAY NOT favor Obama. It is they who are whining that the rules permit Super Delegates to pick a nominee who is not the pledged delegate leader. I do not like the rules either. But for a different reason. They allow Super Delegates to pick a nominee who might not be the popular vote leader.

While I may sound like a tiresome Mike Brady trying to settle a dispute between Greg and Marsha, might I suggest that each of you have many technical points which recommend your theories, but that you are both missing the big picture and getting it completely wrong. The problem here does not lie with the current rule set (which is in desperate need of improvement) or with the party leadership or with the supporters of the two candidates. It is with the two campaigns themselves.

On the one hand, this is the Democratic Party you're talking about, and thwarting the will of the popular vote, the total pledged delegate count, most states won, etc., would send a terrible, fracturing message to the party membership, possibly keeping new, excited voters on the bench in November. On the other hand, the rules are clear and are there for a reason. The super delegates exist for the express purpose of being able to resolve such disputes in their best judgement, so a candidate asking to push the contest to the convention for such a "coup" is completely within their rights and might be putting the decision in the hands of experienced players better suited to reading the tea leaves for the upcoming election.

But none of this addresses the real fault here. First, let me say that we are in no way out of time... yet. Some of the numbers are not yet out of reach for either candidate for all the major metrics being discussed, and allowing Pennsylvania, Oregon, and North Carolina (among others) to have their say will not kill us. However, the longer this drags on past that, the more harm is done. As Ron and I discussed during our interview with Shaun Mullen on today's edition of Mid Stream Radio, time is on McCain's side. A story on St. John McBush's questionable relationship with telecom lobbyists passed almost without notice today. And why would the media bother? Why chase scraps of bread sticks when there are chunks of filet mignon on the table?

The solution to this conundrum can not come from the blogs, the media, the DNC, or even the super delegates. Any forced resolution will come at a higher cost to the party than all of these pretty rationalizations would lead one to believe. It is high time for both of these candidates to act like adults who are committed to the one concept which both of them seem to embrace - that they both wish to see the Democratic party prevail in November. The only viable remedy is for one of these candidates to come out very publicly to their own supporters, well ahead of any type of Waterloo, and say that they will never forget the boundless support of their followers, but that for the good of the party they are going to bow out and support their opponent. This need not be done now, but this pause before the Pennsylvania primary is indeed the time for them both to sit down, look at the numbers, and decide on the parameters which each will accept for moving forward by June at the latest.

What this does is allow both candidates to come together and say, "No. This is most certainly not a case of some anonymous group of party power brokers robbing you of the nation's first [black] - [female] president. It is to our great credit and honor that both have been fairly considered and given this opportunity. It is simply a case of our party coming together to decide that the most electable one of this pair of historic contenders will be the person to defeat John McCain in November."

Anything short of this is nothing less than yet another case of the Democrats snatching defeat from the jaws of victory and giving away the White House in an election year where they should have taken it in a walk. There is too much blood in the water for either candidates' supporters to bow down gracefully before a victor anointed by the Powers That Be during the convention. I personally find it difficult to envision a scenario where Hillary Clinton makes this case successfully, given the math, but that could still change in the primary battles next month. Be that as it may, I will gladly take either of them at this point if the other is willing to make that long, hard walk down the hall and do what is in the best interest of the party.

What I know about Purim

I realize that most One True Tami fans (blessed be Her name) are itching to talk about the eagle ray that jumped out of the water and killed some woman in a boat in Florida, and for failing to do this, I humbly apologize. (For the record, I ran into a couple of those bastages when scuba diving off the Florida Keys and had no idea they were so lethal. I should have eaten them when I had the chance. Perhaps the poor woman would be alive today.) However, given the season - both political and religious - there are bigger things afoot which require our attention.

Here's what I know about Purim. Pretty much nothing. I recall reading that it celebrates a narrow escape by the Jewish people from some bad man during biblical times. Apparently it's customary to party down and wear costumes at this time, so perhaps that's why the increasingly senile appearing Sen. John McCain thought that Purim was the Jewish version of Halloween. (Hat tip to Jill from Brilliant at Breakfast.)

McCain made the incorrect statement during a press conference with Defense Minister Ehud Barak after touring the Israeli city of Sderot to view buildings damaged by Hamas rocket fire. McCain was discussing the numerous rock attacks on the city. "Nine hundred rocket attacks in less than three months, an average of one every one to two hours. Obviously this puts an enormous and hard to understand strain on the people here, especially the children. As they celebrate their version of Halloween here, they are somewhere close to a 15-second warning, which is the amount of time they have from the time the rocket is launched to get to safety.

Now, let's face it. McCain is some regular old vanilla dude, much like myself, and it might be considered rather typical that he's no expert on Purim either. But the follow-up to this little gaffe is what I found remarkable. No less an august Jewish personage than Joe Lieberman rushed in to McCain's defense and took credit for the unforced error.

When Sen. Lieberman had a chance to speak at the press conference, he placed the blame of the mistake on himself. "I had a brief exchange with one of the mothers whose children was in there in a costume for Purim," Lieberman, who is Jewish and celebrates the holiday, said. "And it's my fault that I said to Senator McCain that this is the Israeli version of Halloween. It is in the sense because the kids dress up and it's a very happy holiday and actually it is in the sense that the sweets are very important of both holidays."

Now, I'm not Jewish, and neither is McCain. But you might think that Lieberman would have had a clue on Purim. And it's not as if he's lacking experience on the national campaign trail and was unaware how such a mistake could be played in a presidential campaign. He ran for veep himself. But the point is, how likely is it really that Joe Lieberman had no clue about Purim and fed the bad info to McCain? Or was it just his way of falling on his sword for the GOP candidate and was just lying through his teeth?

Didn't he used to be a Democrat?

Does Anybody Else Wonder...

Who client numbers 1-8 are?
People care about scandal more when it's famous people, don't they?

Who are the other people involved? Why don't their lives get blown up on the news, too?

Random Tami News

I am now officially looking to buy a new home. A small home, a condominium/townhouse-type home.

It needs to be within reasonable commuting distance from Morristown, NJ.

Anyone got any suggestions?

The Jewish Google

Yes, my friends. The Century of the fruit bat has truly arrived in style. Here's.... JEWGLE!

Now, you couldn't expect me to stumble across a gem like this without taking it for a test drive, so I typed in "Tami, the one true" to see what sort of results I would get. They included:

Find a Nice Jewish Person - Your mother worries about you -- she just wants you to be happy, and she really does know what's best for you. You can search for tami the one true later...

Call your mother instead of searching the Internet for Tami the one true - These newfangled VOIP services make it so cheap, and she really hasn't heard from you in a while. Would it kill you to pick up the phone and give your mother a call?...

He'Brew, the Chosen Beer - Way more fun than tami the one true -- delicious beer and delicious shtick. L'Chaim!...

You're too thin. Eat something - Soups, smoked fish, bagels -- all strictly kosher....

All Jews Think Alike

Seriously, people believe that. If they didn't then why would the Jerusalem Post have the headline, 'Jewish vote could swing Ohio primary'.

I'm offended that a Jewish-run newspaper has its nose so far up its own butt that it thinks of Jews as a block rather than individuals. Look at this paragraph:

... said that the intense focus on these issues was also telling about the Jewish community, whose contributions - both in votes and donations to campaigns - represent a far larger amount of candidate support than their actual numbers, some two percent of the country's population.

"The community always had influence beyond [its] numbers and this is another sign of that," he said.

In the past, when I've seen something like that, it has seriously raised my hackles. It makes me wonder who's so afraid of Jewish people that they think that we "buy" votes - that there's even a "we" to do the buying?

Oh, wait, that quote was from Matt Berger, a political reporter with NBC News and the National Journal and former Jewish Telegraphic Agency correspondent. Mr. Berger also mentions the "Jewish Black" divide, and apparently, he meant for that whole "influence beyond numbers" thing to sound impressive, not "conspiracy theory".

Well, hell.

If the Jews really do control all the world's money, where's *my* share? I have to work for a living, dammit, and I'd *much* rather be in a smoked-fish-filled room somewhere deciding on who the next world leaders should be.

My Oscar Redux

Owen Wilson really does have the dreamiest hair ever. Is that color natural?

More Irreverence

This morning I awoke to snow. A ton of freaking snow. "I actually turned around on the highway and went home because the roads were so crappy" snow.

Upon my re-arrival, my father, with whom I share a residence, started talking about last night's democratic debate, and health care, but since I'd seen it, too, I tuned him out and checked my email. That's when I saw this:

Gimme a G

Strapless G string underwear. Now that's a confusing health care issue.

No One Is Ever Safe

Stop fooling yourself, nowhere is safe.
Take an extreme example, the "panic room". What happens if you can't get out? Not safe.

I read an article on the MSNBC site, Vulnerability exposed in today’s open campuses

Still, the freer environment of campuses also can pose security risks, said Ron Stephens, director of the National School Safety Center in California.

"For the most part, college and university campuses are much more wide open to the public," he said. "There's not a lot of screening done for students. There are probably few institutions that screen ... to see if someone coming on campus has a troubled or checkered past.

See right there, that's a bad assumption. People don't have to have troubled or checkered pasts in order to crack up, they just don't. The human psyche isn't a perfect machine where you can take it in for a tune up and figure out what's wearing down, and then replace that part. The crux of the issue is that most of the time, you simply cannot tell. If people could tell, they'd try to fix the problem. They would. And location really matters not at all.

"People go crazy whether it's at a school or at a workplace. ... You can't live your life not going to class," said Barbara Coons, a 21-year-old junior at the University of Pennsylvania.

That may be harder to say on a campus ripped raw by violence.

"My dad was saying last year, 'I'm really glad you go to Northern where stuff like that doesn't happen,'" said Bryce Lack, a 19-year-old NIU student, referring to the Virginia Tech massacre. "You look at everybody differently now."

See, Barbara Coons gets it.

Of course it's harder when you've just been through a tragedy. When you're nerves are rubbed raw by a terrible, violent outburst, nowhere seems safe.

I am reminded, though, of the book (and movie) "The World According to Garp". Garp and his wife are looking at houses with a real estate agent, when a small plane crashes into the home they're considering. Garp immediately declares that he'll take it, because it's been "pre-disastered".

It had a certain odd poetry to it - when something really bad has already happened there, what are the odds of it happening again? It's like lightning striking twice.

Do all the reasonable things that people do, and live a reasonable life, If your nerves are raw because of an unusual traumatic incident, get help. That's what psychologists, counselors and support groups are for.

We have to live our lives as a balance. We should not buy guns as presents from people who talk about how much fun it is to watch children and animals suffer. We should not stay locked indoors 24/7, having contact with the outside world only through our mothers, because mothers are the only people you can trust. We have to live our lives in the middle. Avoid things that are obviously dangerous, but continue to do things that should reasonably be safe. Don't take out a wad of cash and count it at night in a poorly-lit, poorly kept up neighborhood. Lock your door at night. Shop at the mall, go to the library, attend lectures. Take your children to the park, or to national monuments. Live your life, because nobody else can do that for you.

More About My Vacation

He had me with his first song, but with this second song, I knew I'd be looking for more Boothby Graffoe.

Thanks to Polyester Angel who took the video

Of Course I Love You

Happy Valentine's Day, people.
Of course I love you all.

I Know I'm Slow

I just got around to watching the "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" episode of Torchwood. OK, people were right, it was pretty hot. I really do like that show.

Also last night, I made Alton Brown's pomegranate lamb recipe.


It's the fourth time I've taken the time to make this, and it's always worth it. You have to be careful not to overcook the pomegranate molasses, though, one second it's heavenly deliciousness, and the next it's a bitter waste of time. I've learned a couple of things in making this recipe multiple times:
- 70 minutes isn't enough time to cook the molasses, but 3 hours is too much. Stop before it gets thick enough to be called real molasses.
- I like my lamb cooked to 145 degrees, not 130. I like rare meat, but that was so rare as to be chewy.
- When it's done, it's so incredibly tasty that it's worth whatever exorbitant price you had to pay for pomegranate juice and lamb.

OK, I suppose I could make the juice from scratch for less money, but holy cow, even I'm not that dedicated.

Going home sick makes for better dinner options. My original plan was to have a Healthy Choice frozen dinner.

Last night I was explaining how I'm tired of giving my political opinions. I've stated them all here, over and over, and it's not like they've changed. So today, you get TV and food. This is what it's like in my brain when I put the blinders on. I'll take them off, soon, though.

It's Going Around

Holy cow, there are a lot of people sick in my office. My boss told me that he's heard that flu shots only prevent the flu 50% of the time.

How come the flu evolves faster than we do?

Office Mates

Today one of my office mates suggested that Edwards would make a good Attorney General.

It was such a novel idea that I had to think about it for a while.

... an Attorney General that I *liked*...

huh.

For dinner the first night of the cruise, I had the rack of lamb.

Just Say You Never Met Me

I love cruises. I do. I love music festivals. If you put the two together, I'm a very happy Tami. There's a group called Sixthman that has made me very happy, indeed. There were more shows than I could get to (or get in to). There was a constantly available view of the ocean. Even the weather cooperated 6 days out of 7.

The word is that Sixthman and Barenaked Ladies will be doing another cruise next year. I expect I'll sign on the day they start selling tickets.

I went to a Caribbean beach without getting sunburned, and I've renewed my enthusiasm for the band Harvey Danger.

Why Jazz Sucks

Jazz sucks because I got home yesterday. Even though this is true, I still love him like a guy who lives four hours away by car and has a wife that I love just as much. Maybe I love them like in-laws. Go figure.

Anyway, my vacation was the perfect nerd-rock-girl fantasy cruise.

Bad Jazz. No Biscuit

I come before you, hat in hand, to offer my most profuse apologies. And it's not just for carrying around this hat, which I never wear anyway. No... it is for the dereliction of my duties. You see, during this period when The One True Tami (blessed be Her name) is off on a well deserved vacation, being worshipped by bronze skinned young men in banana hammocks and eating banquets fit for Her status, I was supposed to be posting some my meandering thoughts to amuse you. In this, I have failed dismally. I could go into a variety of reasons and excuses, many plausible and some of them possibly even true, but the fact is that I fell asleep at the wheel. I should have been here for you, and I was not. For this I offer my sincere and humble apologies.

With that said, I do want to take a moment to speak to you about the pressing subject of the moment, and that is The High Holy Days.

Depending upon your personal beliefs and implications, you may hear that phrase and be thinking of Christmas, Easter, Passover, Chanukah, Ramadan or Yule. But not me. I'm talking about something more important. More sacred. More ... errr... important. I'm talking about Superbowl Sunday which is now upon us.

Trite, you may ask? Frivolous? Hardly. The importance of this day goes far beyond football. You see, this is a time which comes only once per year when America can put aside its many petty differences. It is a time to abandon the hate some of us may feel for others based on their religion. It's a time to set aside the hate which may consume us over the color of people's skin or the cut of their hair. It's a time to eschew the hatred we might harbor for our fellow man because they are a Democrat or a Republican - a conservative or a liberal - a male or a female.

In short, it's time for us to come together and hate each other for no other reason than whether or not we support the New England Patriots or the New York Giants. And that, my friends, is a hatred which I believe we can all come together on.

Oh... and if any of you support the godless Patriots, you all suck phallus flesh in the ninth circle of hell.

All I Ever Wanted

Yes, vacation mode is in full swing, as I leave you tomorrow for a whole week and a day. Internet access from a cruise ship is insanely expensive, so don't expect nothin'.

Perhaps Jazz will post - I'll ask him. One never knows.

I heard that Kucinich has quit the race this morning. I find myself weirdly detached from the primary process. I know who I want to support, and I understand that said candidate will not get the nomination. Somehow I can't make myself pick a new horse, yet. This whole 2-party system is wearing on me.

I'm All About the Middle East

From icanhascheezburger.com:


Why wasn't I reading that every day, already?

author's fun fact: I've actually been swimming in the Sea of Gallilee

Banging My Head Against a Wall

The Mainstream Media Comes Up With an Unoriginal Conclusion

WASHINGTON - A study by two nonprofit journalism organizations found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

...

"Some journalists — indeed, even some entire news organizations — have since acknowledged that their coverage during those prewar months was far too deferential and uncritical. These mea culpas notwithstanding, much of the wall-to-wall media coverage provided additional, 'independent' validation of the Bush administration's false statements about Iraq," it said.

I feel like they're slapping us in the face.

Hard.

Weekend Update

Face the who, when, when I what, now?

I had a dinner part Saturday night. I put my pasta dish too close to the broiler when I was trying to crisp the cheese topping and set it on fire.

That's right, this weekend I was a sitcom.

Luckily, it was a very deep, very wet pasta dish, so only the topping was lost. I tell you this, because I know you were worried.

I hear that John Edwards only got 3.75% of the vote in the Nevada primary. What's up with that?

RIP, Bobby Fisher

Chess champion Bobby Fisher has died in Reykjavik, Iceland at the age of 64.
His life in Pictures, from BBC News.

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) _ Bobby Fischer, the reclusive chess genius who became a Cold War hero by dethroning the Soviet world champion in 1972 and later renounced his American citizenship, has died. He was 64.

Artistic Interpretation

Some people have word-a-day calendars. I have Google's Art of the Day. True, it's all churchy-fied, but art is art, and I can appreciate talent no matter what subject it's using to express itself. Well, if we're talking about drawing and painting talent. If talent chose to express itself by pummeling its fists against my face and body, I probably wouldn't appreciate that.

I've lost the point again. OK, today's art, "Esther With the Decree of Destruction" is a Rembrandt depiction of a scene from the book of Esther:

Mordecai: Esther - the government wants us dead. You're hot, go "persuade" the king to change his mind.

(I'm paraphrasing, there, it's obviously not a direct translation).

So the point is that Esther's supposed to be appealing enough that she can "make supplication unto the king", right? And you're telling me that's what Rembrandt found appealing? Not what I would have expected.

Mac World Live Blogging

Via Gizmodo.

Thin-thin-thin MacBook called the "MacBook Air".

Bizarre.

How Do They Do It?

Seriously, there are bloggers out there that have real jobs and blogging is their hobby, and yet they manage to expound on their political opinions every single darn day.

I'm thinking about getting Visual Studio installed on my new work laptop and when I'll have time to get all my laundry done for my upcoming vacation.

Luckily, I'm going on a cruise from Miami to Jamaica, so I don't have to worry about too much crossover between what I'm packing and what I'm wearing on an every-day basis.

It's hard to think about summer clothes in January!

Douglass Adams once wrote that you can only think about 7 things simultaneously. Blogging on political matters seems to be 9 or 10 on my list right now.

Primary Fantasies

Yesterday I was talking with my trainer about the Iowa primaries. He said that Edwards was wedging himself in between Hillary and Obama. After I stopped dwelling on the fact that he used one first name and one last name, I wondered out loud about whether or not a major scandal about one of the "big 2" would mean victory for Edwards.

My commenters pretty much all think that Edwards stands no chance at all. What if, though, it was a different contest? What if it was Clinton and Edwards? Or Obama and Edwards? How do you think the percentages of support would fall? I think that Edwards could garner more support than Clinton, but I'm not sure about Obama. Maybe.

Think I'm crazy? Doesn't matter, that's the beauty of pointless speculation.

Completely Non-Political Crap

I know someone who I've called friend for years, now.
She annoys me about 80% of the time. I was hanging on for the 20%.
It's not worth it, any more.
Disengaging sucks. I wanted to quietly drift apart, but she's calling me out.

This is a fight I don't want to have. I just want to step backwards into a more distant relationship. She's not a bad person, I just feel that I don't want to be near her and her frenetic energy very often. In fact, I feel like *I'm* the bad person.

Bah.

And The Winner Is...

Pygalgia.

I'm referring, of course, to the "trifecta" game enacted by Jim at skippy the bush kangaroo.

Pygalgia's pick of "Obama, Edwards, Clinton" was right on the money.

I'm personally surprised, but also a bit relieved. I'd rather vote for Edwards or Obama than Clinton. I'd rather vote for Clinton than Huckabee, though. And the truth is, I am in fact slightly fascinated by Clinton. Not as much as Suzette, but a bit.

Too many choices!

Happy New Year

Yup, I was right, I didn't post. I was too busy having a good time away from a keyboard, go figure.

In case anyone was wondering, Ocean City, NJ is a great place to spend New Year's; it was really fun.

Happy Holidays

Sure, I'm still Jewish, but I have tomorrow off of work, anyway, and then it's a mad dash to New Year's Eve! Wheeee!

I'm going to be away for NYE weekend (the 28th to the 1st). I'll take my laptop, and I'm staying somewhere with WiFi access, but whether or not I'll post is any body's guess.

I guess what I'm trying to say is "Have a happy holiday season, everybody!"

But it Doesn't Fly

OK, it looks like:

• a Jetsons car on the outside


• my 1986 Mercury Sable on the inside

It does not fly. It does, however, get 300 mpg with a price tag of $30k. I thought that was expensive, until I realized that my car cost $25k. Yikes.

The Aptera Electric Car

Welcome, Mob-Bust Searchers

Here's what you're looking for.

Mob bust reaches into Morris

Four Morris County men -- including the reputed New Jersey head of the Lucchese organized crime family -- were charged Tuesday in the operation of an illegal gambling ring that authorities say transacted $2.2 billion in bets in 15 months.

The county residents were among 32 people who were rounded up as part of the year-long "Operation HEAT" investigation conducted by the state Division of Criminal Justice. The gambling probe -- with 61-year-old East Hanover resident Ralph V. Perna alleged to be at its center -- also uncovered what state Attorney General Anne Milgram called "an alarming alliance between the Lucchese crime family and the Bloods street gang to smuggle heroin, cocaine, marijuana and cell phones into East Jersey State Prison" with the aid of a prison guard.

[State Attorney General Anne] Milgram said she believes the charges have seriously undermined the Lucchese crime family's ability to operate.

"With today's arrests and charges, we have disrupted the highest echelon of the Lucchese organized crime family in both New York and New Jersey," she said.

Hoo-Nelly, Prncesses!

OK, anyone who has a little girl or has ever been a little girl knows what the phrase "Disney Princess" means, even if they only have the earlier ones ensconced in memory.

A lot of people don't like it because of the anti-feminist slant. In truth, I honestly believe that all young children love sparkly things because they're visually interesting, and they want to play dress-up so that they, too, can be interesting. Not everyone agrees with me. In her article, "Bonfire of the Disney Princesses", Barbara Ehrenreich doesn't agree with me. She sees sexuality being forced on minds too young to comprehend it. I see her point, and I'm not sure if I'm with her 100%, but she had a paragraph in that article that was so beautifully written that I needed to point it out:

In faithful imitation, the 3-year-old in my life flounces around with her tiara askew and her Princess gown sliding off her shoulder, looking for all the world like a London socialite after a hard night of cocaine and booze. Then she demands a poison apple and falls to the floor in a beautiful swoon. Pass the Rohypnol-laced margarita, please.

Holy cow, that's impressive imagery.

OK, wait, I'm still impressed with that writing, but I feel the need to clarify - I am completely against people sexually abusing children and do not mean to make light of it! That's not what I mean.

Spot the Problem

Saudi king pardons rape victim

"The king always looks into alleviating the suffering of the citizens when he becomes sure that these verdicts will leave psychological effects on the convicted people, though he is convinced and sure that the verdicts were fair," al-Jazirah quoted al-Sheik as saying.

I'm not the only one who sees what's wrong with this story, right?

Do I even have to explain? I will, I suppose, if people ask.

Abolishment of Death Penalty in NJ Probably Good Thing

As you may or may not know, New Jersey has decided to abolish the death penalty in our state. This is probably a good thing.

Why do I say "probably", you wonder? How can someone who treasures human life as much as I do not rejoice at this news? Simple- I'm human, and I've had tragedy touch my life. When I was younger, someone I cared about was murdered. Yes, murdered. She was shot by someone who wanted her to give him her purse. It was someone she knew. It was someone I knew. He used to throw rocks at girls waiting for the school bus. I didn't know what made him the way he was, he just was. When I found out, I wanted him dead. I wanted his toenails pulled out and his feet set on fire while he watched. I wanted him to suffer the way he had made so many other people suffer by snuffing out the life of a wonderful woman.

My point is, that when you're touched by crime, you lose your ability to keep a clear head. These feelings can pretty much stay with you for life. I was 14 when that happened, but I still remember the hate. This is not a good reason to make a decision, but it's why I've never opposed the death penalty being on the table. Often I'm not in favor of it - I can't be. Killing others is wrong, with very few exceptions. Exceptions do, however, exist, and the part of me that still wishes for revenge wanted the option open.

So, like I said, not having a death penalty in New Jersey is probably a good thing, but I find myself curiously detached from the news.

The teenager who shot my teacher, by the way, came to a bad end. The story I heard was that he "shot himself" when the police came for him. Yes, it was told to me with those quotation marks. I was glad, and I'm ashamed of that.

Weekend Activities

If you haven't read the book "The Golden Compass", go ahead and see the movie, you'll probably enjoy it. It is, indeed very, very pretty, and the story is a decent one. It's a bot overly violent for the young children - I flinched a lot.

If you have read the book, you don't have to avoid the movie, but know that they cut it to absolute ribbons. There's added dialogue, changed situations, the order that things happen in has been changed, and it ends at a different point. The basic story remains, and just seeing the zeppelin at Jordan College might have been worth it for me.

I do recommend that anyone who likes children's stories involving alternate universes read the book. I'm looking forward to books 2 and 3, but rigt now I can't take myself out of "World Without End". I love Ken Follet, and "The Pillars of the Earth" may be my favorite book of all time. After "Madeline", of course.

The Flying Saucers Have Been Found!

(From Jazz)

Well... ok. Not really, but they sure look like it! This just in from NASA's Jet Propulsion Labs. (Hey hey hey... here comes the science!)

Imaging scientists on NASA's Cassini mission are telling a tale of how the small moons orbiting near the outer rings of Saturn came to be. The moons began as leftover shards from larger bodies that broke apart and filled out their "figures" with the debris that made the rings.

The tip-off was the very low density of the inner moons, about half that of pure water ice, and sizes and shapes that suggested they have grown by the accumulation of ring material. The trouble was, these moons are within and near the rings, where it is not possible for small particles to fuse together gravitationally. So how did they do it? They got a jump start.

If you follow the link I provided above, you'll see a detailed image of two of Saturn's tiny moons out in the area of the rings - Atlas and Pan. These aren't places you would want to build a vacation home on... they are less than 30 kilometers in diameter. But the interesting bit is that they really are shaped like saucers with a bit of a bulge in the middle. Plus, they're fragile enough that you could probably bust them up with a decent sized hammer.

You can sign up for periodic e-mail updates on the Cassini mission (along with everything else NASA is up to) and links to cool pictures by writing to info@jpl.nasa.gov

Enjoy!

Human Factor

I took the "Choose Your Candidate" quiz today (hat tip, Middle Earth Journal). This isn't the first one of these types of things that I've done, and I keep wondering why I consistently score the most things in common with Hillary, with John Edwards second. I know me, and I know what these people are saying, and I know that I would choose Edwards over Hillary. So why do the quizzes say different?

Then, I suddenly got it - the quizzes are based on what I say, and what the candidates say, and they have no way of knowing whether or not I believe that the candidate is being honest. Now it makes more sense.

Why I Might Believe Iran

OK, so there's a report that says that Iran stopped trying to make nuclear bombs in 2003. France and Israel seem skeptical.

I might believe it, though. Know why? 2003 is when we invaded Iraq. It seems perfectly plausible to me that Iran might have stopped that program to put the money towards arming U.S. enemies wherever they could.

Of course, I might be paranoid.

In case you think that my paranoia regarding Iran and it's U.S. enemy status means that I'm in favor of invading Iran, though, think again. We have a stretched-too-thin army (which I've been saying for YEARS) and I have this whole "respect for human life" thing going on that makes me in favor of no wars at all.

But I still might believe that Iran's not actively building nuclear bombs.

Ear Trumpets, Back in Style

Gizmodo makes me laugh.

This is Happening, Baby

Today my phone, which I am reasonably fond of, started giving me the message, "Insert Smart Chip". I'm reading this as a bad sign.

Today at lunch time I'm heading over to the Tice's Corner Apple Store and gettin' me an iPhone. Must be done.

I need me the pretty phone, and if mine doesn't work any more, I actually have an excuse to buy it.

Hell, I even remembered to sync my phone with my computer last week. It's a sign. Guess I'll listen to my 10 voice mails, now.

Is the Long Sleep Coming to an End?

Yesterday morning we had CNN on in the background, specifically, "This Week at War". I was half listening, and then I heard something that caught my attention - "accommodation without reconciliation". Or at least, something really similar to that. The exact phrase isn't as important as the idea that someone was actively trying to get warring neighbors to live together in something resembling harmony without making either side try to bend their philosophy to be more in line with the other's. It's the concept that maybe everyone has the right to their own ideas, and that we should coexist rather than conquer. It's, just so... reasonable.

It was the first time in a long time that I recall hearing on a news network an idea that was full of the shades of gray that make up reality. It wasn't the black-and-white, good-and-evil kind of cartoony talk that I've become used to and sickened by. It was as if intelligent people were having an intelligent discussion.

It made me think that the era of George W. Bush is finally over. I'm going to hope.

Don't even get me started on the part where a military guy was explaining that the same kind of military campaign doesn't work the same ways in different places, against different enemies on different terrain. I'm not ready to talk about how reasonable that is, yet.

November 26, 1968

Forget blogiversaries, it's my 39th birthday.

People tell me I don't look a day over 38 - and yet I am!

I have a political opinion to share, and maybe I'll get it up here later. Maybe I won't. I am whimsical on anniversaries.

There's a Light...

Americans enter holidays in dark mood: Reuters poll

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Americans enter the holiday season in a dark mood, with economic worries, security fears and a lack of confidence in government fueling growing pessimism, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday.

Geez, not me! I've spent the past week with rosy visions in my head of my aunt and I chopping herbs and watching the parade on TV while sipping diet-spritzer beverages. I see my family sitting in my dining room at an attractively set table, with me chatting with my cousin and my aunt laughing at my dad's jokes, so that I don't have to. I anticipate the pleasurable discussion of whether we should play a game, watch a movie in the house, or go out to a movie together.

I plan on having a lovely holiday, and I'm entering the season with a mood of anticipation and happy eagerness. I wish the same for all of you.

Holidaze

Why do I have so much work to do when all I want to do is stay home and bake elaborate desserts?

Don't people know it's almost Thanksgiving?

As if you didn't get enough Jazz

(Yet another Jazz post... roll your eyes now.)

Yes, I write. Many of you might think I do it a bit much. I have opinions on everything - even things I know absolutely nothing about. (I can talk your ear off about artificial turf vs. real grass all day long and I've never even seen a piece of it.)

But if you're feeling like you still aren't getting enough of me, did you know that you can now listen to me and cut out all that bother of reading? That's right. I've been doing some background work on a couple of internet based radio shows, and starting today I will be cohosting, along with Ron Beasely of Middle Earth Journal) a regularly scheduled, one hour political discussion show at Blogtalk Radio! The show will run today starting at 1:00 pm Eastern time. (10:00 am pacific) Shortly beforehand, you can follow the link at the bottom of this post to tune in, listen, call in, or participate in the live web chat which accompanies the show. For that matter, take a tour of the site. There are shows on a wide variety of subjects running pretty much around the clock.

If you register at BTR (it's free and only takes a minute) you'll have your own user name in web chats and you can pick shows as "Favorites" (like ours! hint hint) which will allow the system to notify you by e-mail in advance of any of your favorites going on the air.

Today we'll be discussing the future of Israel (as we've been blogging about this week) as well as the "War On Thanksgiving" (insert spooky music) and last night's Democratic debates. Hope to see you there.

Is Israel a Jewish State? (Part II)

(Part I)

Looks like Jazz is horning in on my angle of talking about Jews and Israel. No worries, there's plenty of room in the opinion lounge on this one.

As I am personally Jewish, I already have my opinions worked out on these subjects; I've had my whole life to think about them. I feel that Judaism is a religion, and that ethnicity is separate. I am an American woman of Russian descent. Actually, my family is from Belarus (father's side), Ukraine (maternal grandfather), and Lithuania (maternal grandmother), but I prefer to lump them in with the Russians because I'm callous about my own roots. Say bad things about me if you feel the need to.

Be that as it may, I also feel that Israel is a Jewish State. It was founded to be a (divided) homeland for Jews and "Palestinians" (I'm still not sure exactly what makes a Palestinian). The government is set up around Jewish and non-Jewish rights. Everybody gets all the Jewish holidays off. A whole bunch of the country closes down from sundown Friday night to sundown Saturday night. The official religion is Judaism. And it's not against some "rules of the world" that no one could have ever written.

Why in the world would Saeb Erekat, the senior Palestinian Authority negotiator, say, "...it is not acceptable for a country to link its national character to a specific religion."? Seriously? This guy believes that?

Most countries were not founded without religious identity, although we know that the U.S. was. Even then, it was only formed as a secular nation because the Puritans were persecuted in England for being weird and stodgy and way too harsh. I mean, seriously, these people were the ones who were "famous for banning from their New England colonies many secular entertainments, such as games of chance, maypoles, and drama, all of which were perceived as kinds of immorality." So they braved the Atlantic Ocean hoping to establish tolerance for their ways.

There are secular nations in the world today, such as Canada, France, Turkey, United States, but certainly even they were not all formed as secular nations. France particularly has had a strong Catholic identity during the years of its monarchy, and was recognized as Catholic country.

The phrase, again, was, "...it is not acceptable for a country to link its national character to a specific religion.". Let me see this guy say that to the Pope's face in Vatican City.

No, countries do not have to link their national character to a specific religion, but many of them absolutely DO. They do, and it is completely acceptable. It is, after all, their country.
The guise of religious tolerance from a man whose group affiliation has represented such blatant and obvious religious intolerance for so long is a giant hypocritical slap in the face.

Just go ahead and change your statement to "...it is not acceptable for a country to link its national character to Judaism." So we can see your real stripes, you anti-Jewish bastard.

Is Israel a Jewish State?

(Cross posted by Jazz from Middle Earth Journal)

Close on the heels of our recent question about Jewgenics, Jeff Jacoby of the Boston Globe ponders the question, Is Israel a Jewish State?

IN ADVANCE of the upcoming diplomatic conference in Annapolis, Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced the other day that he expects the Palestinian Authority to finally acknowledge Israel's existence as a Jewish state. A newly arrived visitor from Mars might wonder why this should even be an issue - after all, Israel is a Jewish state. If the more than 55 countries that make up the Organization of the Islamic Conference are entitled to recognition as Muslim states, and if the 22 members of the Arab League are universally accepted as Arab states, why should anyone balk at acknowledging Israel as the world's lone Jewish state?

Yet Olmert's demand was rebuffed. Saeb Erekat, the senior Palestinian Authority negotiator, said on Monday that Palestinians would refuse to recognize Israel's Jewish identity on the grounds that "it is not acceptable for a country to link its national character to a specific religion."

Rantings of Mr. Erekat aside, apparently, Jacoby decides to tackle the question on the basis of whether or not the dominant religion of a country can be considered the key element of that country's national identity.

In fact, there are many countries in which national identity and religion are linked. Argentinian law mandates government support for the Roman Catholic faith. Queen Elizabeth II is the supreme governor of the Church of England. In the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, the constitution proclaims Buddhism the nation's "spiritual heritage." The prevailing religion in Greece," declares Section II of the Greek Constitution, "is that of the Eastern Orthodox Church of Christ."

At this point in our discussions on the subject, I think we would be hard pressed to say that Israel is not a Jewish state. But, as discussed in the "Jewgenics" thread, is Israel a Jewish state because of the religion of most of its people or because of the ethnicity of its people? Jacoby's points sound a bit hollow to me in this regard. I had no idea Argentina mandated support of the Roman Catholic Church. Given the religious melting pot that England has become and the falling membership of the actual Church of England, it's hard to picture the Queen's place as the head of the church as anything more than a symbolic reminder of grander times past. I also find it hard to picture the Bhutanese kicking you out of their country for not being a Buddhist.

At this point in our consideration of the question, let's take a moment and consider the story of two families - the Hoffstetlers and the Koeppens. Both families lived in the Rhine Valley region of Germany, as had their ancestors as far back as anyone could remember. Like many of the people of that region, they had dark hair and deep, ruddy complexions. They were also very successful business operators, and one day both families decided to undertake a long and dangerous journey to the far off land of Ireland to expand their business horizons.

Upon arrival Mr. Hoffstetler went so far as to legally change his family name to McCoy (all the better to blend in socially and to enhance his business prospects with the locals) and soon both families were established and flourishing.

Time passed, and the children of both families grew to adulthood. Mr. Hoffstetler's son (now a McCoy) married one of the Koeppen daughters and they began a family of their own. By the time their children were grown, they were clearly Irish. They had an Irish name, spoke the local language as natives, and were born and bred in the land. And yet, they still had dark hair and olive complexions. They in no way resembled the predominantly red haired, light skinned neighbors. So were they Irish? Or were they Germans living in Ireland? Just as we have so many "hyphenated" people in the United States, (e.g. German-Americans, Polish-Americans) it might be fair to say they were "Irish of German descent."

Perhaps Jeff Jacoby could have made a more convincing argument if he asked what percentage of the current residents of Israel are actually genetically distinct descendants of the Tribe of Judah? Until recently I would have thought consideration of such a question to be impossible, but now I'm pretty much coming around 180 degrees and I suspect it's possible that recognizing Israel as a "Jewish State" is not only appropriate, but might be based more in ethnicity than some assumption about the religious beliefs of their people.

Jewgenics!

(From Jazz)
OK, it's very weird that the non-Jew wrote this - Tami

While browsing Memeorandum this morning, I clicked on a link to read the answer to the question, Can teen sex prevent delinquency? because, well... it had the phrase "teen sex" in it. In case you're wondering, apparently people who lose their virginity earlier in life are less likely to wind up being delinquents. Who knew this would be the secret to my success?

As I was browsing the article, however, I came upon another link that drew me away from these titillating tidbits. It asked the questions, "Are Jews a race? Is Jewish intelligence genetic?"

This really caught my attention, because I had recently gotten into a fascinating discussion with a reader over at Middle Earth Journal on just this subject. I had opined that there was a distinct difference between being "Jewish" (as in a practitioner of one particular religion) and being an "Israeli" (as in a legal citizen of the country of Israel.) The comments section lit up a bit as one reader informed me that it wasn't quite so simple, as there were people who considered themselves to be "Jewish" by family history, but had never been a practitioner of the religion. The conversation really taught me a lot I didn't know about the history of the Jewish people, but at the same time, I told the reader that I'd never met nor heard of anyone else with that point of view, and I was confused as to how being "Jewish" could equate to a genetic lineage.

Apparently I was way off base.

The average IQ of Ashkenazi Jews is 107 to 115, well above the human average of 100. This gap and the genetic theories surrounding it stirred discomfort in the room. Zoloth, speaking for many liberals, recalled a family member's revulsion at the idea of a Jewish race. Judaism is about faith and values, she argued. To reduce it to biology is to make it exclusive, denying its openness to all. Worse, to suggest that Jews are genetically smart is to imply that non-Jews are inherently inferior, in violation of Jewish commitments to equality and compassion.

My friend Dana Milbank, who's a better (if I may use that word) Jew than I am, watched the discussion, went back to his office, and wrote a column in the Washington Post poking fun at all the talk of superior Jewish intellect. The column, as usual, was really smart.

But what if Judaism as a genetic inheritance is compatible with Judaism as a cultural inheritance? And what if the genes that make Jews smart also make them sick? If one kind of superiority comes at the price of another kind of inferiority, and if the transmission of Jewish values drives the transmission of Jewish genes, does that make the genetics and the superiority easier to swallow?

Apparently so.

So, at least in some schools of study, not only are Jews a different ethnicity, similar to Germans, Indians, Brits and Martians, but they are also smarter than everyone else. I guess if I were Jewish I'd have been smart enough to figure that out on my own. Damn you, Native American genetic code!

Free Rice!

Of course I'm an advocate of The Hunger Site, but sometimes, a gal gets a hankering for a word game.

I saw this on the site of someone I know, pointed out to her by someone else I know. Then, it was once again pointed out to me, in my comments by K (or soobee, depending on where you look). This obviously means that I should link to it here, too. If you like vocabulary quizes, then this is the word game for you!

www.freerice.com

Free rice for the hungry! Vocab quiz 4 U! Win!

Smelling the Roses

This morning, I drove up to the Mahwah office. I take 287 north to 202 north, and drive along Ramapo Ridge.

As I was coming in, the morning light was filtered through the trees, and I realized that there are few things in this world as lovely as fall foliage on a clear morning.

Really, it's very lovely.


Side note - the mayoral election in my town was decided by a margin of less than 500 votes. Yikes

Isn't It About Time?

(From Jazz)

It's election day. In many areas, you may be experencing the odd syndrome known as "Off Year Don't Give A Shit" voting. If there's nobody on the ballot but two open town council seats (and you could never stand the pack of bitches running for them anyway) and a state justice seat, it can be rather hard to build up the motiviation to get out there and hit the old voting booth.

Not so in Kentucky. Republican Governor Ernie Fletcher has gotten himself into one scandal after another, and the Democrats are circling like rabid pomeranians at the scene of a meat wagon crash.

Democrats think they are about to steal the governor's mansion in the solidly red state of Kentucky. On Tuesday, voters will choose between Democrat Steve Beshear and incumbent Republican Governor Ernie Fletcher.

Apparently Mssr. Fletcher won election and immediately rewarded a lot of his political contributors with lucrative state jobs and contracts. This is not conducive to a long political life. If you're going to engage in corruption, that's fine. But you've got to make some effort to be a bit less obvious.

My point here is that you never know what might happen in an election, or afterward for that matter. So even if it's just for the local dog catcher, get out there and cast a vote. You might get to see somebody pouring liquid nitrogen on an opponent at the polling station.

And who in their right mind would want to miss that?

Too Bad Atrios Doesn't Read My Blog

I could have reminded him about Afghanistan a little sooner.

Another reminder: it's election day. I'd show you my purple finger to prove that I voted just before 7am today, but we don't do that, here. Good thing, too - a purple finger would freak me out if I was using that hand to eat a sandwich.

A Really Expensive Pussy (cat)

(Another post from Jazz)

House Cat Makes Scientific History

An Abyssinian cat from Missouri, named Cinnamon, has just made scientific history. Researchers have largely decoded her DNA, a step that may aid the search for treatments for both feline and human diseases.

Doctors at the institute are hailing this as "a significant breakthrough in the field of medicine which should allow us to advance the cause of preventative care for... Cinnamon the cat."

In the future, this research should allow doctors to decode your genome and provide fabulous medical assistance for roughly 2.1 billion dollars.

Is anyone else getting a little impatient with this process? Going back to the time when I was a child (and we're talking quite a while here) we were being told that we were decoding the human genetic structure. And once we were done, we would be able to do all sorts of amazing things. Nobody would get sick, we could turn off "switches" that caused bad things to happen to us, we would all live to be 200, be trim, beautiful, and have large penises and/or breasts.

Thus far the only "practical" application I've seen from all this work was some guys who made pigs glow green in the dark. Now don't get me wrong, here... I'm as big a fan of glowing green pigs as the next guy. God only knows that bacon gets pretty boring and florescent pork products could certainly perk up your next fabulous socialite brunch.

But as useful as that may be, is this all we have to look forward to? Will we next be seeing Cinnamon's name changed to Absinthe when she starts glowing green? Surely there's something more we can be doing with all of this DNA information.

Great. You've got a house cat covered for life without needing an HMO. But meanwhile I'm still sitting here hung like a badger! When will my porn star penis genetic injection be ready?? Couldn't you at least make my eyes blue? The head shots I had done for my soon to be launched radio show came out terrible, and I think sparkling blue eyes could really add to my market value. Get on the stick, you scientists!

Hot Pink!!

Funniest Hat Ever.


I love this and hate this so much! At the same time!
(thank you "You Knit What?")

The Whole Country Has a Short Attention Span

It's not just me.

Democratic rivals target Clinton’s vote on Iran

While Clinton continued to separate herself from opponents who have called for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq — saying, “I stand for ending the war in Iraq and bringing our troops home, but I also understand that it’s going to take time” — former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina zeroed in on Clinton’s vote for a congressional resolution that declared Iran’s Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization.

That vote, he said, cleared the way for President Bush to invade Iran.

OK, so here it is, 2 years after many of us crazy lefty bloggers started complaining that our country was gearing up for war with Iran, and now it looks like we weren't precisely crazy, so much as early. Well here's what I want to know:

Anyone remember Afghanistan?

Man bites dog? No. Dog shoots man.

(Another short note from Jazz.)

I imagine a lot more of this happens than we get to hear about, but I've been expecting it for years.

CHICAGO (AFP) - A pack of hunting dogs shot an Iowa man as he went to retrieve a fallen pheasant, authorities said.

James Harris, 37, was shot in the leg while hunting with some friends on Saturday afternoon.

"Harris reportedly went to retrieve the bird, placed his gun on the ground and crossed the fence near the muzzle end," the press release said.

"When he crossed the fence, hunting dogs stepped on the gun, which discharged and struck Harris in the left calf at a distance of roughly three feet."

If you find this surprising, you shouldn't. On the topic of hunting with canines, you'll often hear people talking about how much the dogs "enjoy" it. "Oh, they're bred for it! They really love getting out there and tracking down the [insert name of doomed target here] on a brisk fall morning!"

Bullshit. Look, people... I happen to own a Basset Hound. Yes, yes... they are supposedly bred to be hunting dogs. But I'm here to tell you that this hound is one of the laziest bastards you're ever likely to meet. He sleeps about twenty hours a day and only gets up to either bark at me if his food and water bowls are running low or to crap on the basement floor. When I get up in the morning and want him to go downstairs with me (so he won't wake up Georg later) I practically need a tazer to get the lazy mutt on to his feet and moving.

You think these dogs want us dragging them out at four a.m. to get dumped into a truck to go run around in some freezing, wet field and chase down animals they don't even get to eat after we shoot them? Ha! Reading this story, all I can say is that Mr. Harris was lucky the dog didn't shoot him in the face. (The dog's name wasn't Cheney, was it?)

Seasonal Humor

They just can't leave Stephen Colbert alone

(Jazz here, checking in on all you Tami fans.) You can build the best floats, train the baton twirlers to perfection, hire top notch clowns and get all the necessary permits, but the one thing you can always count on is that somebody will come along to piss on your parade.

With its snack-food sponsorship, Democratic and Republican affiliations, and Sen. Larry Craig as a possible running mate, Stephen Colbert's run for the presidency is hardly serious business. But the joke could be on Colbert if federal election officials decide his candidacy is for real.

If his campaign plays out the way he's indicated that it will, Comedy Central and Colbert's sponsor, Doritos, could be violating federal laws that bar corporations from backing political campaigns, election law experts say.

Given the quality of candidates being shoved onto my plate by both parties, I had pretty much resigned myself to doing a write-in vote for The One True Tami (blessed be Her name) for president next year. Then, along came Stephen Colbert - a breath of fresh air in a stagnant, if not poisonous political environment. What is his platform? Who cares! He's got to be better than Hillary or Rudy.

Colbert only tossed his hat in the metaphorical ring last week, but a recent Rasmussen poll of likely voters from across the country already shows him grabbing 13% of the vote in a hypothetical three way race against Clinton and Giuliani. (Hillary came in with 45% while Rudy took 35%.) Is Colbert violating "the law" by accepting a $3,500 donation from a nacho snack chip company? Could Comedy Central be liable for allowing him to use his show to flack for his campaign?

Maybe. But compared to the beltway bandits he's up against, if that's the worst sin he commits then he's likely the closest to sainthood of anyone in the running. Sure, the entire thing may be a joke, but he's certainly gotten me to thinking... we already elected an actor as President, not to mention the Governator's mansion in California. Hell, we had a professional wrestler too. Fred Thompson is currently running second place to Rudy and he was an actor on Law and Order. (I'm not really a presidential candidate, but I do play one on t.v.)

Could Stephen Colbert really do worse than the current office holder or the pack of pork fed career politicians seeking the White House? If nothing else, the press conferences would be worth watching. Hey, FEC! Lay off Colbert and go figure out some real vote fraud problems in Florida and Ohio before we have a repeat of 2000.

We Have RULES Here, Damn It!

In my inbox this morning:

George Bush wants to take away health insurance from tens of thousands of New Jersey's poorest children. It's not right, and I won't let it happen.

I'm sure you've heard about Bush's recent veto of extra federal funding to the SCHIP program that provides health insurance to America's most needy families. But before all that even happened, he had already issued an illegal proclamation that would immediately cut health care coverage for over 10,000 New Jersey kids.

It's absolutely outrageous. George Bush and the Republicans in Washington are taking an indefensible stand against health care for kids. They'd rather put political and ideological gamesmanship ahead of bipartisan solutions to protect our most vulnerable children.

That's why I filed a lawsuit on behalf of the people of New Jersey. I know George Bush thinks he can do whatever he wants to defy the wishes of the American people and a bipartisan majority in Congress. But the truth is, we have rules and laws in this country. He can't just do whatever he wants. So I'm taking him to court to hold him accountable.

I don't have to tell you how high the cost of living is in New Jersey, compared to other parts of the country. Ever since the SCHIP program started, we have sought and received approval from the federal government that allows our state's FamilyCare program to cover children at higher family income levels than those covered in other states.

It's bad enough that George Bush won't authorize the funding to expand one of our state's most successful and bipartisan programs, but in an August letter, he reversed years of established policy and took away our ability to cover kids in families making more than about $51,000.

He can't do that unilaterally. There is an established legal process that must be followed to change the way this program works.

It's simply incomprehensible. I never thought I'd see this president circumvent the rule of law to throw the most vulnerable kids off the health insurance rolls.

It's a shameful act, and it demands a response. I'm taking the Bush administration to court and standing up for New Jersey's most needy families.

I hope I can count on your continued support.

Sincerely,

Jon Corzine

I haven't looked up the details, and yet I totally believe that GWB decided to write a letter dictating what individual states could do.

You can't do that, George. You can not give federal funding, but you can't stop a state from providing more state money for a program that's not illegal. We're a republic, not a sand box; not even the President gets to be King of the Hill.

S-CHIP, Overturning the Veto

You know, I dislike the fact that President Bush vetoed the SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program). I think that program has real merit, and should be put into action. So does Congress, because it got to the President for Veto in the first place. I think we should do something about it. So does Louise Slaughter, according to the email I got from her. There's a web site all set up to tell your Congressional representatives that you want them to vote to overturn that veto.

According to the site, every single member of Congress, both the House and the Senate, have received correspondence about this. I just sent them some more. I have this crazy dream, see, where our system of checks and balances actually check and balance something. Wouldn't that just be extra ginchy?

Still Lacking

I haven't written anything for a week. Work continues to suck up my time (I should be coding right now!). At least it's Friday. Have a beer, or something.

Shame Faced

I've been ignoring you again, I know, and I'm really very sorry. Work has been busy, which as we all know, can sometimes happen. Normally, I'd catch up at night, but I've been completely indulging in TV premieres. So far Journeyman doesn't look too bad, but it pretty much is a blatant rip-off of Quantum Leap. Heroes isn't letting me down, the pilot of Carpoolers was reasonably amusing (there's a no-pants guy, a classic comedy winner), and, of course, I remain addicted to Dancing With The Stars.

But things are still going on in the world, whether or not I write about them. You know how I said that Journeyman was pretty much Quantum Leap reheated? Well, sometimes things in the real world happen the same way. Over at Blanton's and Ashton's this morning, I found the post Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

Read it, it makes you think, and it makes you sad, and it makes me wonder why people never learn things. I promise the whole post isn't in French.

It is time, therefore, for us to face the stark reality of the difficult situation before us without the false hopes which predictions of military victory and assurances of complete independence have given us in the past. The hard truth of the matter is, first, that without the wholehearted support of the peoples of the Associated States, without a reliable and crusading native army with a dependable officer corps, a military victory, even with American support, in that area is difficult if not impossible, of achievement;

...