PJ Bowls Hillary on CATO

P.J. O'Rourke just came out with a goodie on Hillary posted at CATO:

"Being a Republican, I'm backing Hillary Clinton. Because she could lose. The reason is not that she's a woman. The reason is that she's the particular woman who taught the 4th grade class that every man in America wished he were dead in. Hillary Clinton is Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown. Hillary Clinton is "America's ex-wife."

A man can be a Democrat to the core, going into the voting booth to pull the lever with the donkey label no matter what. Then he sees Hillary's name on the ballot. And it all comes back to him … the first marriage … the time he came home a little late, it wasn't even midnight, and he'd only had four or five beers, and she threw his bowling ball down the storm sewer .The Republicans will have a hard time coming up with someone who can't beat Hillary Clinton. But I don't put it past them. "

He goes on to castigate all the candidates in an effort to explain the process to our European friends. Worth a read no matter who you like (except maybe Hillary).

Bono's Gift to Bush: Pride

From the Christian Science Monitor:

"But Durbin singled out for praise Mr. Bush's request that Congress reauthorize his AIDS relief plan and double the plan's funding with an additional $30 billion over five years.

"I applauded ... his renewed commitment to the global AIDS fight," Durbin said. "Of all the things this president has done in the foreign-policy realm, it is the one thing that he can point to with pride in years to come after his presidency.""

Maybe Bono should have lobbied Bush on more issues....

South Carolina, I Salute You

From an author at The Nation:

"When I was growing up in North Carolina, our neighbor South Carolina played an important role in our lives--giving us something to look down on. We fell for too many racist demagogues through the years (y'all remember Jesse Helms?), but we weren't always run by them. We didn't have no rebel flag flying over our statehouse. We elected a racially moderate governor at the height of the civil-rights backlash in 1960. It was something to say for ourselves, and we appreciated South Carolina's making us look relatively all right.

After Saturday's primary, this Tar Heel can do nothing but offer a big, deep bow to the Democrats of South Carolina. Not because I was particularly rooting for Barack Obama over John Edwards--but because of these fine folks' rejection of the Clintons' gutter politics."

Thank you South Carolina. I think it's the first time I've said that!

U2 3D is the future

Saw U2 3D yesterday in Raleigh, and it was unbelievable. The new 3D is a huge leap forward. Movie theaters are going to love this new technology, you can't get this at home or download it. Highly recommended!

Christopher Campbell writes: "When The Jazz Singer arrived in theaters in 1927, it was far from perfect. In fact, despite heralding the arrival of sound pictures, its audio was quite poor in quality, and it would take many years before the sound in sound films would be accepted as natural. But The Jazz Singer will forever be remembered in the film history books. I'm not so sure that U2 3D will hold the same kind of prestige as that film, but it ought to, because as the first live-action digital 3D film, it is certainly opening the door for a brand new kind of movie experience, one that will likely be the standard in coming decades, if not years."

No Putative President

Bill Clinton's boorish behavior acting as Hillary's pit bull, using divisive politics, comparing Obama to Jesse Jackson, etc. ....he's really showing his a** again. Do we want him back in the White House (didn't they leave in disgrace)?

Beyond that, do we want anyone like George W. Bush who is dependant on Dick Cheney, just as Hillary is dependant on Bill? I think not! On Aug. 29, 2007, I wrote:

"Lastly, a point I have not seen elsewhere... I believe Hillary's run is against the spirit of the 22nd Amendment. That's the one about a two term limit. Sure, Hillary was not president, but she was part of the team. When they ran, Bill claimed that we'd be getting "two for the price of one". I suggest that Hillary has already served two term in the White House, and her attempt to regain control runs counter to the spirit of the 22nd Amendment. She's flaunting our Constitution, folks! "

Today, Gary Wills backs me up and runs with it:

Gary Wills at The New York Times writes:

"One problem with the George W. Bush administration is that it has brought a kind of plural presidency in through the back door. Vice President Dick Cheney has run his own executive department, with its own intelligence and military operations, not open to scrutiny, as he hides behind the putative president.

No other vice president in our history has taken on so many presidential prerogatives, with so few checks. He is an example of the very thing James Wilson was trying to prevent by having one locus of authority in the executive. The attempt to escape single responsibility was perfectly exemplified when his counsel argued that Mr. Cheney was not subject to executive rules because he was also part of the legislature.

We have seen in this campaign how former President Clinton rushes to the defense of presidential candidate Clinton. Will that pattern of protection be continued into the new presidency, with not only his defending her but also her defending whatever he might do in his energetic way while she’s in office? It seems likely. And at a time when we should be trying to return to the single-executive system the Constitution prescribes, it does not seem to be a good idea to put another co-president in the White House."

NYT Endorses:

Billary! Rejoice. The endorsement was made by

The New York Times Editorial Board

Click the link to see who these, a-hem, folks, are. Two of them used to work for, you guessed it, the Clinton administration.

Maybe these folks want to share their votes with us? Defend themselves? No, they'd rather give a blanket endorsement, an establishment endorsement, if you will. This is the same NY Times that helped lead us into Iraq. Luckily, The Times is, at times, a good paper, and runs columns by some folks who will stand in public behind their endorsements.

Frank Rich has an excellent article out about Billary, a must-read.

And Caroline Kennedy has a stirring Obama endorsement in the NYT today:
A President Like My Father
(Kennedy compatriot Ted Sorensen has endorsed Obama already)

This Billary endorsement is just another kick in the pants from a once great paper in decline.

Painting Says A Lot

This painting has a lot to say about our President and his belief system.

From Timothy Noah at Slate:

According to The Bush Tragedy, a new book by Slate's Jacob Weisberg, Bush suffers from a similar inability to distinguish between what he wants to see and what is there to be seen. This is nicely captured in an anecdote about a painting (that's it to the left of this text; click to enlarge) that Bush put up in his office when he was governor of Texas.

Basically, Bush sees himself in this painting, stalwartly leading the good Methodists into the wild west. Unfortunately for Bush, it's actually a painting of a horse theif, about to get caught. Click through for the article from Slate.

Clintonian Toofer

Two-for-one. Great deal, right? I don't think so...

From David Boaz at Cato:

"To a Southerner of a certain age, Bill Clinton's vigorous campaign to elect his wife to the office he once held brings back memories of George Wallace's 1966 campaign to elect his wife, Lurleen, governor of Alabama and of their ensuing co-governorship.

Like Clinton, Wallace could not run again because of term limits. Early in Lurleen Wallace's term, it was reported that when people called the governor's office and asked to speak to "the governor," the receptionists would cheerfully ask, "Gov. George or Gov. Lurleen?"...

..."The problem facing the Clintons in 2008 is that those old rules no longer apply. Today, "two presidents for the price of one" sounds like a recipe for confusion. Do we really want White House callers being asked, "President Bill or President Hillary?""

I didn't think Bill should have been impeached, what a waste of time and resources. But, I don't want him back in the White House with lots of time on his hands either, if you know what I'm talking about (I'm not going to say anything, but you can read about it in his book....hers, too!)

43-13 at Half

Sidney Lowe says:
"If we make a couple of those or we get a couple fouls and get to the line who knows it is maybe a different game, a little closer anyway."

Not this year, Sidney. I heard Costner was cussing at his coaches throughout the game. Nice.
Sid needs a great PG to run that offense.

Have you seen all the great recruits UNC has lined up?:

"(DEXTER) Strickland is UNC's fourth commitment in the junior class, joining forwards John Henson, David Wear and Travis Wear."

You need to get one of them great PG's, Sid. Good luck ;-)




More Sidney news....

Drunk Driving for Hillary

Sidney Blumenthal, known advisor to Hillary Clinton, got caught driving drunk for Hillary:

"...Blumenthal himself faces charges of driving drunk. Blumenthal, an unpaid senior adviser to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, was arrested in Nashua on the eve of the New Hampshire primary and charged with aggravated DWI, according two members of the Nashua police force.

Sgt. Mike Masella, one of the arresting officers, said the movements of a Buick caught his eye. “I observed all his erratic driving,” Masella said. “When I first noticed him it was at an intersection. He abruptly stopped. That caught my eye … He was drifting in his lane.” Masella followed the car, a rental, for a mile and a half, and clocked its speed at 70mph in a 30mph zone--more than twice the legal limit. Masella pulled the car over at 12:30 a.m. Monday morning."

Why Hillary Won NH

I blame Maria Menounos, the fine anchor/model/actress who interviewed Hillary for Access Hollywood right before the NH Primary.
Maria showed Hillary's "soft" side and thus hoodwinked the middle-aged women who won the primary for the ol' bag. (Did I just write that? Whoops.)
It wasn't "the crying" like all the other pundits said, it was the heartwarming interview with the hottie:

Here's a "bit" from the interview (for real):

"With only days to go before the New Hampshire primary, Senator Hillary Clinton sat down exclusively with Access Hollywood’s Maria Menounos for a candid interview.

From a love of “Dancing With the Stars” to not knowing how to program her iPod, the presidential candidate revealed she’s more of an everyday woman than some might think.

In an era when image can make or break a presidential campaign, Hillary Clinton told Access Hollywood that she is concerned with the same issues many other women think about, including weight and body image.

“Who isn’t, really?” Clinton said.

Clinton credits her friends for lending their support and sense of humor when it comes to dealing with image concerns.

“I have such a great group of friends — friends that I have going back to literally kindergarten,” she enthused. “Sometimes we have the same conversations we had in high school or college. I am still being kidded by my friends because I am, you know, hopeless when it comes to doing my own hair.”"

John Edwards, that's your cue!

The Rat is Dead!

No, not another Stop Hillary post (that one's still brewing). This is the sad tale of the closing of Chapel Hill's greatest haunt, The Ramshead Rathskeller has closed due to new owners who started selling frozen pizza and stopped paying taxes. Among other reasons:

"(2) The quirky subterranean location MIGHT have actually complied with at least one current building safety and fire code but no one is willing to bet it did …. For the past 20 years. Between bumping your head on low overhangs, tripping on uneven floors and nightmarish thoughts of what might happen if anyone yelled “Fire” …. The Rat was one spark in a faulty greasetrap away from reducing all of Franklin Street to a smoldering ruin. ….. and Amber Alley …. Oddly, no one owns Amber Alley. If a patron slipped on gawd-knows-what he would find no entity public/private for which to sue. So sue everybody ….. Insurance companies frown on such circumstances."
(From BobLeeSays.com)


I hope they find a way to bring The Rat back in that spot, but it might be gone for good this time. Man, I'm gonna miss that place.

Tiger in Greensboro

bPALM_120807_002b, originally uploaded by Watts4.

Saw a couple of these bad boys about two weeks before the San Fran mauling. I thought he was being silly when Dad asked, "Do you think there's any way one of these tigers could get out?"

Coupla more... if you click the picture you'll find 'em at flickr

3 Hours Left in Iowa....

....and I forecast the winner for the Democrats will be none other than North Carolina's own John Edwards.

Update 1/4: I was wrong. Still a good showing for Edwards, but probably not enough to get him going.

Edwards got special treatment from some notable lefties yesterday:

Michael Moore
Tom Hayden
Ralph Nader

and one today:

Normon Solomon

(I'll link to the articles later, time constraints with my prediction and all) update: Links!

I could be wrong, but something tells me Edwards has the mo'

It will be funny to see how few people choose Hillary as their #2. I guess you're either with her or against her.