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Tuesday, November 26, 2002
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!! I am completely overwhelmed. I need to get through three meetings... follow up on a million things with about half a million people... do laundry... pack... clean the apartment a bit... and get projects off the ground at work before 5:30 today. I was at the office last night until about 11... and got in early this morning. I dunno how I found time to iron a shirt for my presentation at 2. All that just to say don't expect another post until Sunday or Monday of next week... and then I'm sure I'll have all kinds of fun things to tell you about Lori's and my trip to Ohio. We're still not sure about Dar Dar's inclusion. It may be decided tomorrow morning at 4 AM. Have a great week, y'all!! | private feedback | (0) public comments Monday, November 25, 2002 The Ithaca Mayoral Race has officially begun... Noone will officially announce their candidacy until next spring, but the Ithaca Journal asked our Common Council Reps if they have any intentions of running for Mayor. Alan Cohen has decided that two terms is enough for him, so its a wide open race... Ithaca will elect their next Mayor in 2003. Some rumors seem to be true... during Barbara Lifton's campaign, someone tipped me off that Paulette Manos would most likely seek the Mayor's job. As evidence of this, people are pointing to the fact that she *very* recently changed her party affiliation from Independent to Democrat. (She was a registered Republican not too long ago and before that she was a registered Democrat for a bit in the 70's. Talk about enough party-switching to make your head spin.) And there are a few others who 'haven't ruled it out.' Susan Blumenthal, Diann Sams, and Carolyn Peterson are among them. I can't wait to see who the Republicans and Greens have to offer. This could be a very interesting race. | private feedback | (0) public comments Tina Turner was *soooo* last Friday Now I'm hooked on Kelly Clarkson. Saturday, I was in the car with Chris and 'A Moment Like This' came on the radio. I said, 'Who sings this!?' (I had only heard it once before performed by a scary drag queen.) He said, 'Uhmmm, the American Idol girl.' So... I'm not cutting-edge when it comes to my musical choices. No surprises there. Unlike the rest of America, I never saw a single episode of that American Idol show. And I don't ever listen to pop radio. Just like every song I love... I'm a little behind the times. (When I told Mike that I had Tina Turner on repeathe said, 'Shane, that song is like... What? Four years old now?') And the treasure that I found alongside 'A Moment Like This' was a copy of Kelly's duet with Reba, 'Does He Love You.' I'm stoked!!! iTunes is working overtime today. | private feedback | (0) public comments Fun times... Talking to my good friend Chris about my Web site, he had this to say: 'Your Web page is like the cliff notes of my political ideology.' Woohoo! Love ya, Chris! And... when you're in doubt about what produce to buy... look for an elderly lady wandering aimlessly around the produce section who has something similar in her cart. Chris and I asked this barely lucid woman if sweet potatoes and yams were the same thing. She sort of stared at us and gave a little grin. Then she said, 'Well... they're so close its not even funny.' Maybe you had to be there, but I got a lot of mileage from that one this weekend. | private feedback | (0) public comments Friday, November 22, 2002 My Thanksgiving plans... First it was car trouble. Then it was budgetary issues. The latest threat to our upcoming trip to Dayton for Thanksgiving is Dar-Dar's feelings of being 'spiritually bereft' about the whole thing. We worked through the first two (we'll take Darlene's car and we'll keep eachother on a strict budget, respectively). I called Dar-Dar today to find out two things: One, why it seems she's changed her mind all of the sudden... and Two, what exactly it feels like to be 'spiritually bereft' since I am pretty certain this is something I have never felt before. But it *does* sound unpleasant. Unfortunately, she was at work, so she really couldn't talk about it... Aside to Dar-Dar: If you read this... I really, genuinely, truly want you to go with Lori and I on this trip. And if there is anything, *anything* I can do to make you feel less 'spiritually bereft,' please pass that on. Alright? | private feedback | (0) public comments I'd like you to meet my new friend Betsy! I feel I need to take a moment from my busy Friday and respond to Ms. Betsy Wrisley of the town of Ithaca... and her letter to the editor published today in the Ithaca Journal... I'm starting to like my bracket system, Betsy... so look for them throughout your letter as though you and I were having a conversation over tea... 'The purpose of this letter is to explain my serious conscientious objection to paying the 2002 Ithaca school tax because of the psychologically and morally destructive impact of some of the practices of the Ithaca City School District.' [Psychologically AND morally destructive? My goodness this sounds serious, what could you possibly be talking about? You sound very upset.] 'Please consider the Joshua Keenan drama as an example of several deeply offensive actions.' [Ohhhhhhhhhh, right... the play about the gay kid coming out in high school. I suppose this is about that one line where the kid says 'My dad's Christian and he hates gays' or something like that, right? P.S., props to you, Betsy, I *love* hearing straight people use the word 'drama.' That tickles me in a way you cannot even imagine.] 'The first offensive action was using the Lord's name in vain on several occasions. Second, the false and deceptive characterization of the biblical faith practiced by me and other conservative Christians. We were falsly portrayed as bigots, homophobes and given other derogatory labels. Very few conservative Christians are bigots and homophobes.' [Up until now I've been trying to comfort you, Betsy. But seriously... do we live on the same planet?] 'It is very demeaning for those who do not in any way resemble those disparaging classifications to be described in those ways.' [I feel very secure making this assumption, Betsy... I bet the writers were not describing you. Just as the writers of 'Queer as Folk' aren't describing me when they portrayed Brian Kinney as a power hungry, manipulative, recreational-drug-using, deceiptful, heartless whore. Well.. maybe a little but that's not the point. Have you ever seen this show, Betsy? Queer as Folk? I doubt someone with concerns about using the Lord's name in vain subscribes to Showtime, so you may not understand my correlation here. But I think the correlation is valid. I can totally sympathize with you... cause I was totally pissed at the way 'Queer as Folk' presented gay characters... Until I got over myself. My friends tell me not everything is about me, and they're right. There are fags out there like that. Oh, I'm sorry, that was really irresponsible of me. I tend not to use that word in mixed company. *ahem* There are Gay guys out there like that. Come on, Betsy, you can't tell me that NONE of your friends are bigots. And like it or not, you conservative Christians have quite a bad rap when it comes to acceptance of Gays and Lesbians. If you're really concerned about your religion's reputation you should direct your first letter of concern to Jerry Falwell. Don't even make me go into some of the mass generalizations heaped upon me and other Gays and Lesbians by organized religion...sucks, right? In the meantime, get over yourself. And pay your taxes.] | private feedback | (0) public comments Fun with brackets... Just the highlights of an article at CNN.com... and if I have any comments, I'll make them in brackets. :-) Nearly 1 million unemployed workers across the country will start losing jobless benefits three days after Christmas because Congress failed to grant an extension before leaving for the year. [Gee, I wonder what they were doing that was so important to ignore millions of unemployed middle class workers? Giving money to special interests perhaps? Disguised as a Homeland Security Bill?] The extension passed in March starts expiring December 28. Without congressional action, an estimated 820,000 people will lose benefits that day, with an additional 95,000 each week thereafter. [!!!!!] Democratic leaders made a last-ditch appeal Thursday to the White House, asking President Bush to urge House Republican leaders to pass the Senate's extension plan when they convene Friday. The White House has remained on the sidelines in the debate. "We strongly urge you to take action to help these families," said the letter from outgoing Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt. [Good luck, guys. We've already established that George W Bush doesn't give a shit about actual people.] Asked about the Democrats' letter, Ari Fleischer made clear that Bush did not intend to take the lead on the issue. [WHAT THE...!? Not even a 'Hey, come on guys. Let's look out for the folks that have been fucked over by the economy I ruined.'] GOP leaders also say the economy is improving. [Oh really? Improving SO MUCH that in a month's time there will be MILLIONS more jobs? I highly doubt it.] AFL-CIO President John Sweeney criticized House Republicans for "turning their backs on unemployed workers" while approving perks for drug companies and insurance companies in last-minute legislation before adjourning. That "is just plain mean-spirited and perverse," he said. [I agree.] | private feedback | (0) public comments My two cents... I went a few days managing to resist posting this... but I can't stand it anymore... WHY DOES ANYONE GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THAT FREAK MICHAEL JACKSON?!?!? Why is this man's inability to get a grip on his life and reality newsworthy? His life is one big publicity stunt (or judgement error?) after another... and we do the worse thing we could possibly do for him or any attention-whore... we enable him. We put *scary* pictures of him dangling a baby over a balcony on the covers of newspapers. Now, I know what you're thinking. But *you're* writing about him. Yes, I know... and I resisted for days... as I said. Writing about NOT writing about him was basically negating my whole point. But I'm so over going to google.com news and seeing that face in the 'top news stories' section. | private feedback | (0) public comments Thursday, November 21, 2002 Sorry, Michael Moore... I still *love* Hillary Clinton. (Michael Moore ran an internet campaign to get Representatives and Senators to vote 'No' on the war with Iraq... the 'You're either with us or you're fired' electronic signature drive.) Hillary voted 'Yes', and so technically I should never vote for her again... But, on the other hand I think she's about the best thing we got going in the Democratic Party right now (and probably the only reason I'm not officially a Green yet). Her appearance on Hardball last night confirmed all of my admiration of her. She has the quick wit, the intelligence... and the sprezzatura (I have been dying to use that word for weeks) to make her an ideal candidate for President some day. (I am convinced that *if* the country is ready for a female president, she'll *will* be the first.) Even though I think the world of her, I also enjoyed a bit of guilty pleasure in watching her get 'booed' last night during the broadcast. The first time was when she said she was against gay marriage and the second time when they talked about her voting for the war in Iraq. Even still, they gave her a standing ovation at the beginning (and I think the end, too). She handled it all in stride... basically said she understood why they were booing her, and that she totally respected them and that this was what was great about America was that all our different opinions were valid and that people do disagree. (Just as an aside, when's the last time you ever heard a Republican do anything but villify people who booed them? If you disagree with Republicans you're an obstructionist... like Tom Daschle.) Hillary Clinton is just plain fierce. In my opinion, 2008 (i.e. Hillary's campaign for President) can't come soon enough. | private feedback | (0) public comments Someone actually used my feedback form... And this is what they sent: 'Your website is superb! It is informative, while being intellectual... it is nice to look at, and it has stuff worth reading. Your use of related links is thoughtful and innovative. Having been in publishing and communications for many years, your website is a "breath of fresh air" on the information superhighway.' I couldn't have made up anything better myself! ;-) Thanks 'phonemac'! | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, November 20, 2002 How many times... ... can I listen to a single song on repeat? Apparently a lot... I'm still jammin' to Tina. When the heartache is over, I know I won't be missin' you. Won't look over my shoulder, 'Cause I know that I can live without you. Fierce-ness! | private feedback | (0) public comments God really did think of everything... I was reading about this proposed plan that would move 98% of our nuclear waste from aging power plants all over the United States to one centralized location... Yucca Mountain in Nevada. This, apparently, is the best we can do... since, as Winona LaDuke sarcastically says... 'There is no nuclear waste fairy.' I can't even fathom how a plan like this has ANY support. Moving this waste is downright dangerous (estimates predict nearly 268 accidents over 30 years while transporting the loads of waste to Nevada)... AND the plan calls for dumping the waste on an Indian Reservation (Yucca Mountain is in the heart of the Western Shoshone Nation). And how about in the meantime? Where would we put this waste while we're building the $35 Billion centralized dump in Yucca Mountain? Oh, that's easy... another reservation in Utah (!?!?!?!). Not everyone thinks this is as inappropriate as I do, however. I came across a disturbing quote from Representative Lindsey Graham of South Carolina (of course he's a Republican)... 'God made Yucca Mountain for the express purpose of storing high level nuclear waste. There's nothing within 100 miles of the place.' GOD!? MADE Yucca Mountain for... WOW. God sure was thoughtful, wasn't he? I wonder which day of creation he decided to place the high level nuclear waste trash recepticles? Or maybe that was just a last-minute, decorating kind of decision. 'Gee, I'd better create some places to stash all of the really nasty toxic waste they're going to produce later on. In the meantime, we'll just call 'em mountains. *wink wink nudge nudge*' | private feedback | (0) public comments Tonight's TV Viewing Schedule 8:00 PM: Amazing Race 3, CBS 9:00 PM: Hardball College Tour w/ guest Hillary Clinton, MSNBC | private feedback | (0) public comments Jammin' to Tina Turner... I found a copy of 'When The Heartache is Over' on LimeWire this morning. I LOVE IT! | private feedback | (0) public comments Tuesday, November 19, 2002 Special guest appearance... by request Lori just called me from Ellis island in NYC. She and Darlene are there to take Keelinn to see Les Mis before it ends its run on broadway. She said, 'Has anyone ever called you from Ellis Island before!?' I said, 'No, as a matter of fact, this is definitely a first for me.' 'Then I want a mention on your blog!!' came the response. There you go, sweets! :-) | private feedback | (0) public comments What's wrong with this sentence? From a Wall Street Journal article about Bush's proposed tax cuts: 'In an effort to woo Democrats, targeted tax cuts for lower-income workers may also become part of the package.' In other words: George Bush, if he didn't have to deal with those pesky Democrats always looking out for the average working guy, would just pass his tax cuts for the wealthy and corporate America and be done with it. As it is, he's got to 'woo' their vote with concessions he'd rather not make... like a tax cut to the lower-income workers who really *need* the relief. Amazing. Priorities I didn't write this... its from DemocraticUnderground.com, but I REALLY liked it: 'Last week it was revealed that nine linguists, including six who speak Arabic, have been dismissed from the military - because they're gay. Yup, it seems that there are more important things to do than fight the War on Terrorism, and discriminating against gays is one of them. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there a huge flap about the military not being able to translate September 11 warning messages fast enough? Unbelievable.' Check out DemocraticUnderground.com's 'Top 10 Conservative Idiots' every Monday. | private feedback | (0) public comments Harry Potter Mania I'm convinced that nothing is going to get me excited about the phenomenon that is Harry Potter. My initial 'reject-all-mainstream-BS' response was, 'Well if its this popular, it *can't* be any good.' With some prodding I was convinced to read the first book (and, not least important, everyone I knew had a copy of the book so I didn't have to *buy* it). I finished it in a weekend. It seemed harmless and cute enough... but no masterpiece. I didn't rush out to buy (or borrow) book #2, and I still haven't read the 'Chamber of Secrets' or any subsequent installations to date. Then the movie comes along... the first one, and I watched it on video on a ten-inch television with a 4-year old acting out her favorite parts and climbing all over me. I love kids, so it was a pleasant experience altogether, but the movie was sort of a backdrop for the interaction more than anything else. So this past weekend, Lori and Darlene asked if I wanted to go see the second 'Harry Potter' movie with them. Keelinn had seen it and warned us, 'You'll probably get nightmares.' So, this intrigued me enough to say yes, and check it out... I feel like the Harry Potter movies are trying to have it both ways (trying to appeal to both adults and kids)... and in my opinion they do a really poor job of it. I could not get into the storyline at all. And it was, as Keelinn suggested, more violent than I would have imagined. So, overall, a pretty disappointing experience. I can't imagine the movie studio is going to be able to keep this franchise fresh for the (what's the count now?... 35? *grin*) movies they're going to have to make. I think I'll stick with the books and MAYBE renting videos from now on unless Keelinn drags me along to the next release herself... | private feedback | (0) public comments Thursday, November 14, 2002 I'm still here, promise... A few of you have expressed some concern that I'm not posting enough. I think with the campaign season over... and the results not exactly ending up the way I was hoping, I'm a little demoralized. I'm bracing myself for Republican control of the country. While there are a few good signs, Nancy Pelosi being elected as Minority leader in the House for one... I'm trying to settle back into my normal, boring, old non-political life. An update on Chrissy? She went to the Vet last weekend for her final post-treatment check up. She is 100% back to her old, energetic self. In fact, now that she's gaining weight, the Vet warns me to keep an eye on her so that she doesn't get TOO FAT. Amazing, just a few months ago she was down to nearly 7 lbs, all skin and bones. We didn't know if she was going to start eating on her own, let alone put on weight. And now she's nearly 11 pounds and back to normal. Her hair has bascially all grown back where her tummy had been shaved for the exploratory surgery. I joke that she's the most expensive thing I own now... but she was worth it. Bitter irony There's something slightly amusing about finding out that someone who condemned you as a phony, oversensitive jackass is actually a phony, lying thief. And speaking of thieves... I suppose nothing is going to happen to that shithead that stole and used my credit card. It's been what, 4 months, since I filed that police report? Apparently the Binghamton Police have something better to do with their time. And my Crime Victim's Advocate doesn't even work with that agency anymore. They'll probably never figure out that my case fell through the cracks. The credit card company isn't going to hold me responsible for any of the money... but I still hate the thought that that jackass is going to be wearing clothes and using stuff that he got for free. I certainly don't get anything for free in my life... but then I'm not ballsy or dishonest enough to steal. And just in case any of you forgot his name... Beware of Scott Chaplin from Binghamton, NY. He'll steal from ya. Disappointing my mother, one holiday at a time... Lori, Dar Dar and I are planning a trip to Ohio for Turkey day. I'll get into more details later... I *gotta* do laundry before it gets too late. | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, November 13, 2002 Marilyn Monroe's Dresses Today I touched three dresses that once belonged to Marilyn Monroe. The accountant for my office has started a side business buying and selling collectibles... (apparently accounting just doesn't pay as much as it used to) and his biggest acquisitions are these dresses from the collection of Joe Franklin. (Apparently, Joe Franklin was a talk show host in NYC back in the day and many of his guests would give him personal belongings for his 'archive.') Anyway... his bookkeper wanted to show them off while I was getting my financial reports. Pretty cool, huh? Its amazing, the shit that happens to me during a day. | private feedback | (0) public comments Monday, November 11, 2002  Bowling for Columbine...
... is one of the best movies that I've seen all year. You'll laugh. You'll cry. You'll get angry (and rightfully so). We live in a gun-loving, violent society that has thousands of gun deaths compared to most other industrialized nations' hundreds. Bowling for Columbine, by one of my newest heroes (and lifetime NRA member), Michael Moore, is a dissection of what is at the root of gun violence in our country. The answers are only party forthcoming in this movie... we're encouraged to consider racism, fear, media, poverty, and the 'shoot first, ask questions later' mentality (i.e. 'pre-emptive strikes') championed by some in our government, among other things. And Michael Moore's goal is not to present gun control as a simple, cure-all solution. In fact very little of his movie is about gun control. The bulk is about something much deeper than that. Go see this amazing documentary! It will give you plenty of food for thought... ... and, in the meantime, check out film clips and one of the best parts of the movie, A Brief History of America, at the 'Bowling for Columbine' site. | private feedback | (0) public comments City of Evil Merchandise... Apparently, this is the guy that made all the 'Ithaca is the City of Evil' merchandise (a lunchbox!?!?). I guess it takes all kinds, right? | private feedback | (0) public comments Should I be offended... ... that a story about a travelling gay history exhibit is in the 'OFFBEAT' news section at cnn.com alongside headlines like, 'Squirrel terrorizes British town' and 'Rats invade courthouse'? Doesn't that sort of imply that gay history is as insignificant as, well... the story about lawnmower racing. Hmmmmmmmmm. | private feedback | (0) public comments Good things that happened this weekend... FRIDAY: I went to see 'Sweet Home Alabama' with Mikey. SATURDAY: I spent Saturday morning with Lori and Darlene... raking leaves and laughing. I saw 'Bowling for Columbine'!!!! (more later) I had a great dinner at Mahogany Grill with Aaron. Rodney, Don and I went to RAIN in Syracuse. (I had a blast.) SUNDAY: I got a load of laundry done. I sat at Juna's and read most of the Sunday New York Times. I cleaned the apartment. I went bowling, the Harlem Pin Divas took 1 of 4 points. (Better than Zero!!) Rodney, Sally, and I went to see a Psychic perform at CG. I'll try to get some details up later... | private feedback | (0) public comments Friday, November 08, 2002 Working Families Party The New York Working Families Party was one of the few third parties to retain ballot status in 2002. (The Liberal, Green and Right to Life parties did not cross the 50,000 vote threshold, though it's possible the RtL crowd still will in the recount.) In fact, WFP got about 85,000 votes total. The WFP's base held and even grew. They got 2% of the overall state vote, compared to 1% in 1998 and 1.5% in 2000 Nearly 6% of McCall's overall vote was cast on our line, up from 2.5% (1998) and 3% (2000). A few more years... and WFP will be running their own candidates! | private feedback | (0) public comments Thursday, November 07, 2002 Punch-Drunk Love I kept forgetting to post that when I was in Rochester last weekend I saw 'Punch-Drunk Love' with Adam Sandler. -- Let me preface this by saying that in general I cannot stand Adam Sandler. In fact, I have *never* seen a movie of his that I like and I avoid the whole Adam Sandler genre like the plague. But I do give added weight to movies that our little independent theaters play... and that's where I originally saw the preview for this movie, and saw that it had gotten such acclaim on the film festival circuit. I wasn't expecting it to be so bizarre. I'm not really sure what the movie meant... and I definitely felt a little disoriented leaving the theater. In one particularly disturbing scene, Adam Sandler's character, Barry, and his new girlfriend are about to make love and he says, 'Your face is so beautiful I could just smash it with a sledgehammer. I just want to smash it.' Yikes! It was definitely an interesting character study of 'Barry,' who had some sort of mental imbalance (in my layperson's diagnosis)... Barry is generally likable, but he has this intense rage that comes out in bursts... bursts which seem delayed so that you're never 100% certain what the trigger is, or even if there is one. Adam Sandler did a great job portraying this character, the acting was very consistent and solid. And then there's the whole symbolism of the piano-like instrument. What is *that* about. If anyone knows, tell me. :-) I might have to see this again, just to see if it makes any more sense the second time. But, what I'm really waiting to see is 'Bowling For Columbine' which opens Friday at Fall Creek. 'Bowling for Columbine' is Michael Moore's documentary about gun violence in America and our culture of fear. Everyone who has seen it has said great things. (I saw some unedited rough footage of it when Michael Moore was in Ithaca last.) I can't wait!! | private feedback | (0) public comments Finally getting back on track... ... with sleep. Yesterday, I was on the go all day long. I stopped by the Democratic headquarters to say hi/bye to folks. It was sort of sad to see them carrying stuff out of the office, preparing Barbara for Albany. And then at some point during the day, I had confirmed with Lori that we'd go see Winona LaDuke speak at Ithaca College. For those of you that don't know... Winona LaDuke is an environmental activist and was the Green Party Vice Presidential candidate in '96 and 2000, running with Ralph Nader. She was a great speaker... amazingly witty. When she said one of her biggest pet peeves the last few months was reading about 'Regis and Kelly all over the place,' I about died. She has a very common sense approach to activism and her views are mostly based on native teachings and the rules we teach our children, such as 'don't be greedy' or 'don't steal' which are not reinforced in our society at large. I'm really looking forward to reading more of Winona LaDuke's writings... whenever Lori finishes with the book. hehe So I got home all excited about seeing the last bit of 'Amazing Race'... but the Country Music Awards were on instead. I watched those for a while. No sighting of Reba anywhere. And I think I even missed who got Entertainer of the Year cause I was washing dishes. *shrug* But I *did* get to sleep at a decent hour... so I'm feeling better today. And that's a good thing cause it looks like I have a lot of phone calls and emails to return... so I'd better get started. | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, November 06, 2002 Brace yourselves... Looks like the Republican party is going to control the House... the Senate... and the White House. Gonna be a fun two years, folks! | private feedback | (0) public comments CONGRATULATIONS, BARBARA!!  Barbara Lifton *will* be our new representative in the State Assembly. All day yesterday I dropped literature, I made phone calls, I helped track voter turnout... oh yeah, and I voted. All leading up the big events of the night... tallying the results and celebrating.
Since all the fun yesterday was in the details... I'll spare you those. I had such a great time hanging out at headquarters all day. I did not end up going to the Victory party at Bistro Q, I was way too exhausted. (I had been up since 5:30 AM and started dropping flyers at 6 AM.) There's always next year. For Governor... Surprise, surprise. 4 more years of Pataki. Ugh. For Sheriff... I would have loved to see the Green Party make history and Pete Meyers get elected, but Peter Meskill will get another term in the Sheriff's office. On the plus side, Meyers raised some really great issues that forced Meskill to go 'left' and defend himself when he'd rather stay pretty conservative. AND, definitely not the least important thing... Pete Meyers got over 5,000 votes throughout the county (compared to Meskill's 14,600) which is a pretty impressive showing for the Green Party. Great job, Pete!! I'll be interested to see how the Working Families Party did yesterday. I voted for all the 'Democratic' candidates on the WFP line... | private feedback | (0) public comments Monday, November 04, 2002 Busy, Busy, Busy... Tonight I have a mediation to do... And as for tomorrow, I was so infuriated by the super-lame comments from Mike Sigler's mailers that I am going to take the day off work and dedicate it to Get Out The Vote efforts for Barbara Lifton's campaign. Smart move, sending your mailings to Democrats, Mike. :-) So don't look for any posts from me tomorrow. It will be a long day. | private feedback | (0) public comments Not the logic I learned in high school... I thought that if A=B and B=C, then A=C. If Americans feel that our poor economy is the #1 issue... and most Americans feel that democrats are better at handling economic issues... how come the republicans still have an 'edge' in tomorrow's elections (indicated by a USA Today headline). *scratches head* I guess that's what I get trying to apply logic to politics. | private feedback | (0) public comments Proud to be 'Evil' An ultra-conservative Web site, FreeRepublic.com has listed Boulder, Berkeley and Ithaca as the 'Axis of Evil' for being so out of touch with their 'American values.' (Are there any lingering questions about why I love Ithaca so much!?!?!) Go here and read why (you have to scroll down a little to see the list of reasons). Its side-splitting hilarious! If you're so inclined, do a search for 'Ithaca' to see all the really funny articles about how 'inappropriately' liberal Ithaca is. I'm bookmarking this site for a good laugh every now and again. And... they even sell 'Ithaca is the City of Evil' t-shirts, aprons, and mugs. That's fab! I *so* want one, but I *so* don't want to give them any of my money. | private feedback | (0) public comments Harlem Pin Divas As of yesterday, our bowling team was ranked #10 of 13 teams. I have a feeling we may drop a notch since we only took 1 of the 4 points yesterday. But, on a more optimistic note... all the Divas bowled better than their averages. (And my average is *still* a 122.) Go Divas! | private feedback | (0) public comments If voting is such a crucial democratic institution... ... then why not make 'Election Day' a national holiday? I can't think of a better way to remind people (and encourage them) to vote than by giving them a day off work. Maybe we could replace 'Columbus Day' in October (why do we still celebrate this!?) with 'Election Day' in November. Just a thought. | private feedback | (0) public comments Less than authentic? I've been struggling with something since Saturday night... see if you can help me out with this... I got a tour of a friend's house on Saturday night... (I will not mention names cause they're gonna read this) and they showed me a peice of furniture they were very proud of. It was an entertainment center and they said, 'It's Amish' very matter-of-factly. I know that Amish folks make furniture, but I thought, 'Wait a minute. The Amish made an entertainment center complete with a special rotating shelf for a television!?' Amish certainly wouldn't own a television set, so they wouldn't *own* this particular peice of furniture. See, in my mind... that makes the entertainment center just a little less than authentic. It makes it somehow less, well... Amish. Like, you wouldn't walk into an Amish person's home, see it in their living room and say, 'Gee, look! They have an entertainment center just like the one you have! Except where you put a TV, they use that little rotating shelf for books!' I'm happy that the Amish have found a demand for modern furniture which they can supply.. but half the charm, I would think (I wouldn't *know* as I've never shopped for Amish furniture), would be the simplicity and that its something the Amish might build for themselves. Am I wrong? I was struck by the same revelation on Sunday morning as I was walking on the Commons. I saw an African wood carving outside the Ten Thousand Villages store. And lo-and-behold the base of the statue was carved so that it would have been used as a CD holder. Is there really someone off in a third-world African country *carving* CD holders? The whole idea of the Ten Thousand Villages store is to provide an outlet for third world artisans (who I assume don't have many CDs, but I could be wrong. I don't know many third-world artisans) to sell their wares, and help them earn a decent living. But isn't the art enough? Why does it also have to hold CDs? The idea of an 'African-wood carved CD-holder as art' was just a little too obscene for me. | private feedback | (0) public comments My Bad... I posted a Web site... but apparently didn't close the link tag... which made the comments link actually link to the Web site... or something like that. But the worst part is I can't get rid of that post. :-( I'll just chalk it up to Monday morning. So.... here is the site I wanted to send y'all to. ;-) Its called Democratic Underground.com and it features such funny things as 'The 10 Commandments (GOP Modified)' and 'The Top 10 Conservative Idiots.' Check it out!! | private feedback | (0) public comments Found a great Web site | private feedback | (0) public comments Golisano's non-announcement All weekend long I was on pins and needles at the possibility that Golisano might pull out of the Governor's race and endorse Carl McCall. (Not that it would have made a huge difference except it would be a little drama, nonetheless.) Golisano even made it sound like that... right up to the last minute. He taped a 2-minute statement in which he did withdraw from the race and endorsed McCall. But then he taped a second spot in which he stood firm and remained a candidate for Governor... and *that's* the one that aired at 6:28 last night. Golisano's still in. Mike Sigler's disgusting mailings I came into my office this morning to find two of Mike Sigler's mailings on my desk. (Mike Sigler, for those of you who don't know... is running against Barbara Lifton for State Assembly.) Apparently, his campaign has been sending the mailings to my boss's wife (as a registered Democrat I dunno why) and she thought I'd get a kick out of them. I don't think there's a positive thing on them anywhere... just negative, negative, negative scare tactics. Gotta love those republicans. They've perfected the art of negativity. I never would have thought... ... that the Ithaca Journal would endorse Pataki. Yikes. I am *so* moving to Rochester. Oh, and my apologies... When I was in Rochester this weekend I saw my Web page on my mother's PC... that table on the top with the candidates in it... was a disgusting puke green color on her screen. (Its supposed to be a light, subtle purple.) I hope its just her computer and that I haven't been subjecting PC users out there with such a visually putrid color. | private feedback | (0) public comments Friday, November 01, 2002 Michael Moore was on Donahue the other night... Interesting facts from the transcript: 'May I just review, Michael, here are gun deaths in a year. Germany, 381, France, 255 — this is one year. Canada, 165 deaths, United Kingdom, 68, Australia, 65, Japan, 39. The United States of America, 11,127. Is that shocking enough? Check out Michael Moore on Oprah this afternoon, and his movie, 'Bowling For Columbine' is coming to Ithaca soon! | private feedback | (0) public comments |
Hey! I'm Shane... a proud gay progressive Democrat who has recently relocated to New York City from Ithaca, NY. As I am no longer in Ithaca, I haven't quite decided the fate of this blog. Drop me a line!
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