CONTEXTUAL MUSINGS

Hey Sarah Palin . . .

2008-10-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

This is super funny . . . more than worth the 4 minutes it takes to watch it!

Autumn in Western New York

2008-10-13T07:44:00.000-07:00

I went on a walk around my neighborhood and beyond yesterday after a few hours of grading papers - I HAD to get off my butt and outside - it was sunny and warm and the leaves are doing their thing. Have I mentioned lately how much I love the architecture here? :-)

Betty White on McCain, Palin and Obama - FUNNY!

2008-10-12T08:00:00.000-07:00

Praise the Sweet Baby Jesus!

2008-10-10T11:23:00.000-07:00

Bush approves transition planning . . . the long national nightmare is almost over. Joe Sudbay · 10/10/2008 10:46 AM ET · AMERICABLOG

The first piece of good news to come out of the Bush White House in eight years:

A piece of paper that President Bush signed Thursday helps ease his way out of the White House when his term ends and clears the way for his successor.

For seven years and nearly nine months has signed virtually every memo or order or piece of legislation imaginable. He even vetoed a few bills, but the directive he put his name on Thursday was one that few talk very much about. Basically, it's the executive order that turns the keys to the White House over to whomever is elected president on Nov. 4.

Whomever is elected better be Barack Obama -- and he is inheriting an unbelievable mess in the U.S. and the world because of George Bush, Dick Cheney, John McCain and the rest of the Republican hacks.

But, the Bush presidency will be over. Thank god.

John McCain is not a guy who puts "country first"!

2008-10-09T14:09:00.001-07:00

His campaign slogan is yet another BIG lie.

In the middle of the growing and spreading financial crisis (picture #1 is of a distressed trader in Indonesia), all McCain and Palin can do is try to talk trash about Barack Obama (picture #2 shows the top stories of the the day, note what McCain is up to). John, your campaign is OVER, as it should be -- and we are all thankful because if all you can do in the middle of a crisis is sling mud, you're no maverick, and certainly no world leader. If you were REALLY putting country first you'd be doing something to help the situation . . . instead of playing nasty political games.

Cindy McCain, PLEASE shut the F*CK UP!

2008-10-07T21:03:00.000-07:00

Your old, cranky husband didn't do what he needed to do, and YOU are delusional if you think Obama has "run the dirtiest campaign in history". Pick one of your many houses and STAY PUT like a proper rich good for nothing trophy wife should.

---

Cindy McCain said today that she expects her husband to clear the record at tonight's debate and let America know where he truly stands. McCain, who stopped to visit a half-dozen children at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt today, said the presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama has "waged the dirtiest campaign in American history," and her husband Sen. John McCain will use tonight's debate to correct the distortions.

Sorry, but this woman just makes me soooooo angry!

Autumn Light Through 130 Year Old Glass

2008-10-06T08:08:00.001-07:00

I love the Autumn light here in Buffalo, and the windows in my 1870's bungalow make it all the more charming . . . my whole neighborhood is a historic preservation district. Living in the "newness" that is Seattle for the last 13 years has really made me appreciate the cozy comfort to be found in things that have a history.

Reason to Vomit

2008-10-05T07:18:00.000-07:00

The National Review's Rich Lowry gives Sarah Palin's debate winks a rave review:

I'm sure I'm not the only male in America who, when Palin dropped her first wink, sat up a little straighter on the couch and said, "Hey, I think she just winked at me." And her smile. By the end, when she clearly knew she was doing well, it was so sparkling it was almost mesmerizing. It sent little starbursts through the screen and ricocheting around the living rooms of America. This is a quality that can't be learned; it's either something you have or you don't, and man, she's got it.

Sarah Palin Debate Flowchart

2008-10-03T17:56:00.000-07:00

Palin: "How long have I been at this? Like five weeks?"

2008-10-02T20:24:00.000-07:00

Yeah, THAT'S the PROBLEM, Sarah!

----

A strange moment in the Vice-Presidential debate, where Sarah Palin refuses to answer if her ticket would have to pull back on some campaign promises in light of the financial crisis:

Ifill: "As Vice President, there's nothing you've promised as a candidate that you would take off the table because of this financial issue?"

Palin: "There is not, and how long have I been at this? Like five weeks?"

John McCain = LIES, LIES, LIES

2008-10-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

And a few of the many are documented here . . .

Oh Canada!

2008-09-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

To me, one of the great things about Buffalo is it's proximity to Canada. Much like Seattle, Buffalo shares a lot with it's neighbor to the North - though, of course, Buffalo is even closer to Canada than Seattle is. I can literally leave my house and walk to the border in about 20 minutes across the Peace Bridge, which, as you can see by this photo, is in the process of being re-lit in a very cool way. Since discovering Canada decades ago I have visited quite often, venturing to Victoria, Vancouver, the Sunshine Coast, Whistler, Lake Louise, Jasper, Vancouver Island, and most recently, Toronto. Next up is Montreal and Quebec - and I can't wait! I simply think the Canadians have done so much right, and I have always had a wonderful time on my trips there.

Conservative or Liberal? Your Living & Work Spaces Reveal All . . .

2008-09-29T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is rather fascinating, really. Though I'm far from being a conservative in any way, I am very clean, neat, orderly and organized, though I'm also very eclectic, having a large variety of CD's, and tons of books . . . and I love color.

---

The researchers took inventory of five office locations - a commercial real estate agency, an advertising agency, a business school, an architectural firm and a retail bank - all in a large U.S. city. They had observers check out the workspaces of 94 male and female employees. The subjects' average age was 37. The snoopers had no idea of the workers' political orientation.

Political orientation was measured with survey questions.

Liberals' offices were judged as significantly more distinctive, comfortable, stylish, modern, and colorful and as less conventional and ordinary, in comparison with conservatives' offices, Jost said.

The researchers also sent snoopers into the living spaces of 76 undergraduates at the University of California, Berkeley, arriving at similar results.

"Conservative rooms tended to be cleaner, more brightly lit, better organized, less cluttered, and also more conventional and ordinary in terms of decoration," Jost said during a panel discussion on "The Neuroscience of Elections and Human Decision-Making" at NYU, adding: "Conservatives' rooms were rated by independent raters as better organized and tidier in general."

Specifically, individuals who reported a more conservative ideology also had bedrooms that contained more organizational and cleaning supplies, including calendars, postage stamps, ironing boards and laundry baskets.

Liberals' rooms on the other hand were marked by more clutter, including more CDs, a greater variety of CDs, a greater variety of books and more color in the room in general.

Read the rest here.

Sarah Palin Should Scare the Hell Out of You!

2008-09-27T07:12:00.000-07:00

Jack Cafferty, a long time journalist (award winning) and now a commentator on CNN (who equally criticizes Democrats and Republicans), rips Sarah Palin a new one in this piece - it is so RIGHT ON! There IS no excuse for either Palin's continued ignorance, or her presence on the Republican ticket. The only good thing about it is that, between McCain's cranky constipated look in last night's debate and his sad VP pick, the GOP is doomed to loose come November! Sweet Jesus let it be so!

This Modern World - by Tom Tomorrow

2008-09-25T21:00:00.000-07:00

Click it to make it bigger. :-)

Senator McCain, you are a sad, sad man!

2008-09-24T18:07:00.000-07:00

Senator McCain is just a sad, sad figure . . . almost tragic, really. Honestly, I think he could be WORSE than Bush!

Sarah Palin? Well, she's just an idiot since she's letting herself be used by Senator McCain (not that she has all that much intelligence or much to offer the country otherwise, but she's just trying to "be something" other than what she is . . . unexciting and lackluster, and I feel rather sorry for her - in a meanspirited and catty kind of way).

:-)

---

Gimme The Money, Or The Debate Gets It!
by Hunter - The DailyKos
Wed Sep 24, 2008 at 05:45:03 PM PDT

Marc Ambinder:

A senior campaign official says that McCain will NOT debate -- no matter what -- if Congress hasn't reached an agreement on a bailout package.

Yep. Solve the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression in the next 48 hours, or I ain't showing up. That's John McCain's "leadership". Do what I say, or I'll hold my breath and turn blue. (Or hold my breath and turn the whole country blue?)

Better still:

The aide did not know whether Gov. Palin would attend Oct. 2's vice presidential debate if Congress, by that point, still hasn't reached a deal.

Um... wha? Palin might not be able to attend either, because she has to... um... do Senate stuff? Conduct photo ops with leaders more important than her? What exactly would be cutting into her schedule, such that she couldn't manage to show up for her one scheduled pre-election appearance in front of a crowd made up of anything but hardcore Republicans?

Sheesh. This is just sad, at this point.

Stop Henry Paulson's Plunder!

2008-09-23T10:05:00.000-07:00

George Bush wants taxpayers to give Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson a $700 billion blank check - $2,333 for every man, woman, and child -to bail out Wall Street for its reckless speculation and greed. That's on top of $1.1 trillion for other recent bailouts, including A.I.G., Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Bear Stearns.

The Paulson Plan is a total outrage with no restrictions, no accountability, and no repair of the underlying problem of foreclosures on fraudulent mortgages. Each of Bush's previous bailouts was sold as a cure for the financial crisis, but each had little effect. The Paulson Plan achieves only one goal with certainty: stealing from the middle class to protect the rich.

The current financial crisis is the direct result of 28 years of rightwing Republican deregulation, corruption, and greed, which became fatally toxic under Bush-Cheney and the Republican Congress.

Congress must reject Paulson's Plunder and enact a plan with these progressive principles from the Backbone Campaign:

*The people who caused the problem or profited most should pay for it

*Re-regulate to prevent this from happening again

* Include Main Street in the bailout and invest in a new productive economy

Email your Senators and Representatives and spread the word that we WILL NOT SUPPORT THE PLUNDER OF THE TREASURY! - click here

Weep for the Strippers

2008-09-22T07:25:00.000-07:00

Hey! A girl's gotta make a living too, right?

---

(TMZ.com): So the NYC economy (and the economy in general) is headed for the crapper, sure -- but who's really suffering?

Weep for the strippers.

We're told first-hand by the pole-gymnasts at joints like the Penthouse Executive Club in NYC and Scores that biz has come to a grinding halt -- and to add insult to injury, strippers say one-dollar bills have replaced tens and twenties. Oh, the (in)humanity!

Sources tell us traffic at some super-exclusive Manhattan nightspots is down 40-50% since the wheels came off Wall Street.

One Day More!

2008-09-21T06:06:00.000-07:00

Barack Obama + Les Miserables = FABULOUS!

Sarah Palin: If SHE shoots you . . .

2008-09-19T06:49:00.001-07:00

. . . in the face, it's because she was aiming for it!

It's TRUE!

So What?

2008-09-18T20:18:00.000-07:00

I'm TOTALLY addicted to Pink's new song . . . man, once it gets in your head, WATCH OUT! Pink kicks ass, and takes no shit!

Ramblin' McCain

2008-09-17T19:12:00.000-07:00

If this were George Bush I'd say the guy just sounds dumb, but I don't think John McCain is dumb. I DO think John McCain has lost his mind, however. What is the rambling about? Lord!

Bad Buffalo Drivers!

2008-09-16T19:38:00.000-07:00

Yikes!

I thought it would be hard to top some of the crazy things that Seattle drivers did on the roads, but the drivers here in Buffalo aren't just crazy, they're actually incompetent. I know I'm generalizing, but in the last few days I've almost been hit twice, and saw at least 3 cars go through red lights (one almost hitting an older woman with a cane who started to cross). Now, I grew up near Philadelphia, and have driven in NYC, the beltway around Washington DC, and in Europe, and I've never seen such bad drivers (aggressive is different than bad in my opinion).

But, I guess if that's my biggest complaint . . .

The Silly and The Scary!

2008-09-15T21:00:00.000-07:00

The silly: this blurb from CNN just today . . . notice the two guys behind the reporter!

The scary: nothing more needs to be said.

Contextual Musing IV

2008-09-14T14:05:00.000-07:00

Someday we’ll discover that everything we sought to define really needed no help creating, organizing or expressing itself . . . and that the only thing we’ve managed to create is unnecessary complexity.

~ J. David Zacko-Smith, September 14, 2008