Friday evening musings

Not much in the way of in-depth political musings this evening. First, here a couple of pictures that amuse me. Hope you all enjoy them. (h/t to the Rev. Irwin Addison for the first one.)


For reviews of the RNC, I direct your attention to one of the many open thread discussions on Daily Kos. More later about 9/11 Rudy, Sarah Palin's vitriol and her failed attempt to eBay that plane, and Mr. Noun Verb POW.

Oh, and congrats to Rachel Maddow. Her new show premiers Monday at 9 p.m. She even filled in on Countdown this evening and skewered Palin. Here it is for your review.



Chris

Making your presidential campaign stand out

Now that Pennsylvania is done mattering for the moment, I thought I would post something of very little intellectual value. I got this as an e-mail forward from a co-worker. I appreciate it because it nails all of the candidates and takes a couple of cheap shots at Our Fearless Leader and friend along the way.

h/t to Lin

By Hart Seely
Posted Monday, April 14, 2008, at 12:34 PM ET

Hey there, Zeke, I'm calling on behalf of the Obama for President Yokel-Outreach Hotline, offering you a chance to climb out of your bitter, dead-end hole and do something right for once: Vote for Barack Obama! Now, before we get started, call Charlene in from the pen, and let's put down the gun …

***

Hi, I'm calling on behalf of Senator Hillary Clinton. Sorry to wake you at 3 a.m., but that's exactly the point we're trying to make …

---

***

Hello, I'm calling on behalf of Senator John McCain. Please don't hang up. Oh, God, please, don't hang up! He'll scream at us again. He gets that look, you can't talk to—OHMYGOD, HE'S COMING …

***

Hi, I'm calling for President George W. Bush. According to our records, you are one of the 15 percent of the American public who believes this country is moving in the right direction. Because of that, we've been authorized to give you this one-time chance to buy $10 Rolexes from our special online value store …

***

Hi, I'm calling from the American Polling Institute. Would you approve of an intra-presidential race marriage between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama?

***

Hello there, I'm calling from the Republican National Committee in Washington, D.C. This call, like all your phone calls, is being monitored, not just for quality control but to learn what you're up to …

***

Hello, I'm calling on behalf of Senator Hillary Clinton, the most experienced candidate running for president. As you know, Hillary has overcome terrible tragedies and … (sniff) … sorry … forgive me … I just get emotional whenever I think of what he did to her …

***

Hello? Hello? I'm calling from Septuagenarians for John McCain, and we're hoping that you'll support our … hello? Hello? I think I did something wrong again. Hello? I touched something, and the screen changed. Hello?

***

Hello! I'm calling for Senator Barack Hussein Obama who—praise be to Allah!—shall bring the sword of justice to the infidels as our next president.

***

Hello, this is Dick Cheney. I'm talking to you from a secure bunker deep within the earth. Through a blend of science and the dark, mystical arts, I have transferred my brain into pure energy, and I am speaking to you now, mentally, though it may seem like it's coming through the phone…

Okay, I thought it was funny. Others disagree...


Chris

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day. Have fun and be safe on this most important holiday.

Personally I am going to have an Irish seven course meal: a six pack and a potato. Actually I am going to a Mexican Cantina to hear some acoustic rock.

Chris

Flashback

Who says C-Span never shows anything interesting? Here is a gem I came across tonight. Enjoy.



Chris

Watching Headline News so you don't have to...

Here was the actual content in the order it aired on CNN Headline News for the 4:00-4:30 p.m. time slot this afternoon. This is what passes for the news you need to know at this hour.

McCann girl may have been spotted (by5:30 p.m. they were reporting this was a false lead)
NIU shooting update
DNA from co-ed's panties may lead to her killer
New Jersey College in lock down after bomb threat
Brush fire threatens North Carolina town
Multi-car pile up shuts down I-94 in Indiana
Breaking news: NIU police hold press conference
School bus crash kills four students in Minnesota
Will bad weather scuttle plan to detroy malfunctioning spy satellite?

Market Watch Segment:
Dow is up 90.47 points at this hour
Oil price exceeds $100 a barrel, does not affect markets
Consumer prices rise .4 percent, largely due to increased fuel costs
HP profits up 38 percent

Space Shuttle touches down fine in California
Teaser: Lunar eclipse is tonight

Two minutes of commercials 4:10-4:12

Shuttle touches down just fine (in California again)
Scientific analysis of lunar eclipses (the graphic actual actually read, "Happening Now: Total Lunar Eclipse Tonight")
Teaser: Is Clinton losing her base?

Two minutes of commercials 4:16-4:18

Politics segment:
Teamsters to endorse Obama
Obama wins 10th straight primary
McCain wins primaries in Wisconsin and Washington state
Huckabee: "It's not about ego"
Teaser: Democratic debates at 8:00 p.m. tomorrow
The debate airs in Spanish on Univision at 11:30 p.m. (I might be awake to catch it.)
Al-Sadr threatens to end cease fire

Your Money segment:
What if your 401(k) is mismanaged?
Court shuts down Wikileaks.org over leaked documents in Swiss bank's legal case *
Stocks up 90.04 points at this hour, oil price spike does not affect market
Teaser: Man with no pants orders coffee

Two minutes of commercials 4:22-4:24

Couple scams Girl Scouts, buys cookies with bogus $100 bill
Man with no pants orders coffe from Dunkin' Donuts drive-thru
Man sentenced for his 19th DUI
Pregnant tiger stuck in a tree
Eight-year-old nails buzzer-beater trey from NBA range for win (it was probably the producer's kid)
Teaser for next hour: McCann story

Two minutes of commercial

There you have it. That segment included 32 stories in 22 minutes; the "Bottomless" cup of coffee accounted for approximately two of those minutes. I think will be giving up on Headline News.

Chris

*note: "Ramblin' Man" was playing at the bar during the Wikileaks story, so I did not hear whether or not they mentioned that the site is still accessible.

Come to the Dark Side

This is one of those silly little fun things I found. CAUTION: NOT REALLY WORK-FRIENDLY.

I know I'm a little behind the times with the Obama Girl thing, but this one was pretty neat. It was originally posted here.

Chris