Twenty-One Howitzer Salute
[ Posted Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 – 17:55 UTC ]
The crowd was so ecstatic in making a joyful noise that it almost completely drowned out electrically-amplified artillery fire.
Archive of Articles for January, 2009
The Day Before The Big Day
[ Posted Monday, January 19th, 2009 – 19:18 UTC ]
I have to apologize if this post is a bit disjointed, as it is closer to a stream-of-consciousness blog than I am used to writing. Can we spend all day on our feet and then come home and write it all down for you to read? Yes we can!
As I Went Walking That Ribbon Of Highway
[ Posted Monday, January 19th, 2009 – 10:01 UTC ]
Can even wimpy Californians survive this arctic cold just to witness one man speak an oath? Yes we can.
Guest Column: Why Obama's Election Should Be Considered Historic
[ Posted Monday, January 19th, 2009 – 03:00 UTC ]
Obama has said that he will be the President of ALL Americans. As such, he will certainly disappoint. But that's all right. I didn't just award him my vote, I awarded him my trust. My hope is that he is wiser than I, more knowledgeable than I. And I trust him to make the decisions I hope that I would make, if I were wiser and more knowledgeable. I hope Obama's presidency will be as all presidencies should be: constitutional, ethical, transparent, broadly representative and reality-based. Even though each of us are "special interests," he doesn't have to pander to me, he doesn't have to be "black," he just has to represent me. I don't demand a bigger piece of the pie. I may not even GET a piece of the pie. All I ask is that I have a seat at the table.
Program Note
[ Posted Saturday, January 17th, 2009 – 22:39 UTC ]
A few notes on the upcoming week at the site.
First, the annoying pledge drive image is gone. Due to a last-minute donation flurry, we reached over three-fourths of our total goal. Woo hoo! For this, I am humbled and grateful to everyone who donated, as it was more than I hoped for. [...]
Friday Talking Points [61] -- Pardon Me?
[ Posted Friday, January 16th, 2009 – 16:49 UTC ]
Taking that last one first, the status in Washington is fast approaching Officially Freaking Out (in the tradition of acronym-crazy D.C., I will refer to this from now on as "OFO") as they contemplate the city being overrun by Inauguration visitors. To put this in perspective, Washington's population is around 600,000 people. Estimates of the crowd which has even now begun descending on the city range from one million up to three million. Three million people is five times the population of the city. For comparison, take the population of the town or city you live in and multiply it by five. Now picture that many out-of-towners arriving for an event. It's like Woodstock descending on a small town, in other words. Or, if you prefer, a Medieval siege. No word yet on where to park the catapults and trebuchets.
Bush's Farewell Speech
[ Posted Thursday, January 15th, 2009 – 19:02 UTC ]
Mr. Bush, history doesn't record just seven years of your presidency. It records what happened before 9/11 as well. You were determined to do everything in your presidency differently than Bill Clinton. And because the Clinton people were so alarmed about Al Qaeda, that meant that you could safely ignore it, since getting alarmed about it was doubtlessly the wrong thing to do.
Support John Conyers' Truth Commission
[ Posted Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 – 17:12 UTC ]
Are you one of those people who wants to see what has been done in your name by the outgoing Bush administration? Are you frustrated by all the "we need to look forward, not backward" language from Barack Obama and other Democratic leaders? Well, now you can do something about it, by calling up your House member today and telling them to support John Conyers' H.R.104, a bill to "establish a national commission on presidential war powers and civil liberties."
We Won't Have George Bush To Kick Around Any More
[ Posted Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 – 16:43 UTC ]
Maybe I should re-think that title. After all, when Richard Nixon said "you won't have Dick Nixon to kick around any more," it was in 1962 -- long before his stunning political comeback. But since we have the Twenty-Second Amendment and Bush has already done his time in office, I think I'll be pretty safe when I say that left-wing bloggers (and comedians and political cartoonists everywhere) are starting to feel a little... empty... looking towards a future without George Bush in it.
Bush's Final Press Conference
[ Posted Monday, January 12th, 2009 – 17:36 UTC ]
President George Bush gave his final press conference today. Lest I be accused of "Bush Derangement Syndrome," I'm reproducing some of the most interesting answers Bush gave today, with a minimum of snarky commentary. Actually, what I (and many others) have would properly be called "Bush Fatigue," as even his final week in office seems somehow endless. But I think it's worth taking one last peek inside Bush's thinking because it is so interesting to hear how his views of his term in office differ so significantly from the way others see him. If you'd like to read the entire transcript of the press release, the White House website has it up.