than The Band’s The Last Waltz. Absolutely none. If you don’t own it, you’re life simply isn’t as full as it could be.
Just in case you forgot or missed the other times I’ve mentioned it.
May you live as long as you love ‘n’ laugh and love ‘n’ laugh as long as you live.
Be excellent to one another.
Wizbang’s got proof that not all members of the bin Laden clan are worthless.
Rodney’s finally given up the Santa references and is back to…politics as usual.
And a question for you regulars. Do you WANT me to pick a winner or are you okay with my just letting it fade away?
There was a particularly contrary officer that worked in my area. He wasn’t in my chain of command, but I had to deal with him on a regular basis. His problem: He simply didn’t trust anything enlisted people said. He wanted chapter and verse and a copy of the page where it’s written. And sometimes even when he’s wrong he’ll argue that it didn’t apply to us because we weren’t assigned to the Air Force at the time. He made me tired.
After two plus years and two hours of going around on one issue in particular, I threw up my hands in exasperation and simply said:
“Sir, I’ve come to the conclusion that no matter what I say to you, I’m going to be wrong.”
Without any irony whatsoever his response was:
“Now that’s just not true.”
Luckily we were interrupted by one of the older civilian guys dragging me away because he needed something and I didn’t ruin the rest of my time there by laughing in the man’s face.
go to the NSA’s official website and read their mission statements and outline of Signals Intelligence (SIGINT). Hell, dig through the whole thing.
Tell me again the kerfuffle? I’m more confused than ever. If the signal orginates overseas from a known bad guy, we’re supposed to ignore it because the guy at this end might be a U.S. Citizen and
a righteous dude?
Shamelessly stolen from The Venemous One, here’s a list of end of year memes for you all to play with:
1. Who is your candidate for the Biggest Idiot of 2005 (excluding yours truly, of course) and why?
Howard Dean for making it appear that the Democrats truly do hate our country.
2. If you had a time machine, what one event in 2005 would you undo?
Hurricane Katrina.
3. List someone famous (living or dead) who ought to be a blogger and think up a blog title for his/her blog.
John Belushi blogging at, Did we give up when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?
4. Run to your underwear drawer (or wherever you stow your undies) and list all of the things there that are not underwear. (No fibbing!)
Various and sundry laundry tags, a collection of orphan socks and an old Zippo Lighter.
5. List the title (with a link) to the single worst entry you wrote during 2005. (Score extra karma points if you post an entry on your blog linking back to this question.)
I don’t like most of what I write about two days after I’ve written it. Why don’t you all tell me what your least favorite post of mine was?
6. Let’s pretend you’re going to write your autobiography next year. What will it be titled?
The Recruiter Forgot to Mention That
MORE:
7. What did you do in 2005 that you’d never done before?
Shaved my head.
8. What was the best thing you bought?
Toss up between our iPods and the Bose Home Theater.
9. Where did most of your money go?
Paying off debt and getting some things that improved our quality of life.
10. What was your greatest musical (re)discovery?
Led Zepplin. Especially Robert Plant.
The Islamic States of America, could this happen? America’s resources stretched razor thin by an extended war on terror. Our economy falters under the strain. Our leaders fail to have a plan. Western Europe’s Muslim minority becomes the majority.
Sound like any blogs you know? Sound like your blog? This is premise Robert Ferrigno puts forth in Prayers for the Assassin.
The novel will be published by Scribner in February. We have been given 400 advanced reader editions to send to writers focused on politics, religion, world events or books.
If you actively blog or podcast about politics, religion, world events or books, we invite you to request a free advanced reader edition of this novel. Just fill out the form below. Note, we only have a limited supply and cannot guarantee every request will receive a free book.
I think it’s very cool that they thought of sending advanced copies to bloggers. I’ll let you know what I think when I’m done with it.
And what are you going to buy now that you know you didn’t get it?
Oh…me? My friends know me. I got 30 bucks worth of iTunes Credits. I really haven’t had any sittin’ and shoppin’ time.
Stryker mentioned it here, but I think it needs more discussion.
What in the name of holy HELL is with all the toy bondage? What could possess anyone to want to secure a toy to it’s container in a fashion that requires TOOLS in order to get them loose? Power Rangers. GI Joes. RC Cars. All of them! Bound to their containers using the nefarious wire surrounded by slickery, grey, flexible plastic that you simply can’t get a grip on. If that’s not enough, it’s supplemented with the invisible rubber bands that must have been created in the middle of the Nevada desert because those things are the stealthiet things I’ve come across in my entire life. You get done working on the twisty things with the wire cutters and you’re sure the toy is finally free and you practically take Duke’s head off because of the Rubber Bands of Satan.
“Some Assembly Required” I understand. Been doing that since my nephews were young. Did it for much of Boyo’s life.
“Batteries not included” I also understand. There’s not a Dad out there that has missed that little notice more than once. You try findng a pack of Triple A Batteries on Christmas Day in the middle of Europe only one time…your lesson is learned.
It’s not like we can stage a boycott or anything. For some reason, all the toys Boyo “must have” are subjected to a treatment out of The Story of O.
Do yourselves a favor. Earn yourselves a little goodwill. Stoppit.
Stop the toy bondage.
Stop the toy bondage.
STOP THE TOY BONDAGE!
Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
…for this holiday season so here’s quickies for what we’ve seen.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Definitely worth seeing on the big screen. Lots of fun and they did justice to the book. Well done. It’s over before you know it.
Aeon Flux: Charlize Theron in tight fitting clothes. What more do you want? Okay, fine. Add a decent hard science fiction story and a grownup storyline and then you can wonder how the drug use got past then censors for a PG-13 rating. I never saw the animated version so I have no idea how it compares. But this is probably the best science fiction movie I’ve seen in years. It wasn’t watered down. It was much better than we expected and actually had to explain some things to Boyo which almost never happens. It’s already been bumped out of the theaters in our area but definitely worth picking up on DVD to add to your collection. Warning: You may have to think. You may have to decide how you feel about things like genetic engineering and environmental manipulation. You may have to wonder which is the lesser of evils. I’m hoping for a director’s cut version when the DVD comes out.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe: I read these books as a kid but only once vs once a year like I did with Tolkien. I don’t have the details memorized like I did with Tolkien. Anyway, the movie was a great tale of good vs evil. It was exciting. Boyo “WooHoo’d” through the battles. A good time was had by all. And most important to me, they didn’t screw up Aslan. Because I do remember Aslan quite clearly. If they had Jar-Jar’d Aslan I would have been pissed, they didn’t. A great exercise in the way CGI should be done.
We’re off to see King Kong this afternoon. I’ll let you know how it goes but from what I’ve heard, I’m thoroughly expecting “WOW.” I’d go see this movie if it was JUST Jack Black or JUST Peter Jackson or JUST a remake of a classic. The fact that it’s all three is a no-brainer for me. We’re going.
Update: And King Kong was amazing! Worth the money. A fantastic movie. We laughed, we cried, etc.. Seriously, the best movie we’ve seen all year.
Something to do while you wait to eat, or before you nap.
1. YOUR PORN STAR NAME: (first pet and street name):
Fluffy Ashland
2. YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME: (grandfather/grandmother on mother’s side first name, favorite candy):
Leo Snickers
3. YOUR “FLY GIRL/GUY” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name):
T. Tra
4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite animal, name of high school mascot):
Cat Tiger
5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born):
Joe Chicago
6. YOUR OPPOSITE SEX NAME: (name of dad/mom, cell phone Company you use):
Rita Verizon
7. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (first 3 letters of your last name, last 3 letters of mother’s maiden, first 3 letters of your pet’s name)
Tra Ers Mik
Luke, Chapter 2:
7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
8And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
God bless us. Everyone.
I received my new liscense plates and registration the other day and forgot to mention something weird on them:
Bar Codes. There are bar codes on my liscense plates. So not only does the state government have me cross referenced by my liscence plate number, it also has me related to this bar code. Somewhere there’s a database that has my name attached to that bar code.
Part of me really wants to take that code to a tattoo artist and have it done just below the collar line in the center of the top of my back. But that’s also the part of me that still listens to XTC and New Order so…the rest of me doesn’t pay much attention to him…unless we want to dance badly and look completely like a middle-aged white guy. My hips don’t slip as easy as they used to.
…but I’ve had a little time to catch up on the news and I’m confused about something.
Taking off my glasses and pinching the bridge of my nose:
Another unknown scum-sucking traitorous bastard (or bitch, I want to be politically correct) turns over classified information to the press. The press holds onto this information until things are looking good, no, great in Iraq with an amazing turnout for the elections, something we should all be feeling good about and celebrating. The press then releases that classified information, embarassing the United States, completely destroying an ongoing intelligence operation, letting our enemies know that our civil liberties are no longer a cover for their operations.
The story from all the media outlets is that the President ordered the electronic surveillance of Americans (whispering) who are in contact with terrorists overseas?
The story isn’t the ongoing scum-sucking traitorous actions of people who believe that releasing classified information is okay and that our press continues to sell us out to our enemies?
And unless I’m mistaken, the same people who are currently beating up the President for being over-zealous about protecting our country are the exact same people who have been blaming him for not being zealous enough about protecting our country from the attacks on 9-11-01.
Do I have that right?
Because if I have that right, I think I’m going to get ready to retire soon. My country has gone batshit crazy.
And yes, IF the President acted illegally then the Senate should have exercised their powers of oversite and done THEIR FREAKING JOB and they should have done it quietly so as not to embarass the country and ruin the intelligence that may have been gathered. This was a bullshit hit job on the administration for purely political purposes and it didn’t do anyone any good what so ever.
Update: If you want to read and mess around with the various legal arguments, head over to Protein Wisdom. Goldstein has a real good wrap-up. Start at the top of the page and scroll down, because some of it’s just plain funny.
May the new persona fit you well.
I’ve been waiting for this album since American Idol ended last season. On first listen I was a bit confused. Bo, crooning? Bo doing love songs? And why the hell do some of these songs sound like Bon Jovi? Where did the orchestra come from? WTF? No “Whipping Post?” No “Freebird?”
Okay, shaddup. This is not the album anyone was expecting out of Bo Bice. Someone (producer Clive Davis maybe?) decided that Bo could sing and they made him do it on every track. There’s very little growling, very little dramatic breathing, almost no soaring, there’s just good, solid, rock’n’roll singing. While I want a rock singer to tear it up on every track, I understand that hurts vocal chords in the long run and someone is managing this guy for the long haul. While that’s good to know, I also know what kept me watching Idol, Bo Bice’s vocal RAWKING.
I’ve got one overall problem with the album. There’s very little for me on here. It’s been marketed to the girls. From the love songs to the digital booklet where some yahoo decided that Bo should try to steal Constantine’s “dreamy eyes of death,” this is a chick album. How chicky is it? Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora do some writing and playing on it. Chick. Album. (Note to singer/songwriters/producers, there are now enough songs out there with the title/words, “It’s My Life.” Stoppit. Stoppit now.)
After watching Idol last season and seeing and hearing what Bo is capable of, this album is a bit of a let down. It left me wanting more. I KNOW there’s more there. Everyone who watched the show knows there’s more there. We didn’t get all of what we already know he’s capable of. I feel ripped off.
The last two tracks almost let me forgive him for the photo shoot. Willing to Try, a man and his piano number, and Valley of Angels, a solid gospel number with The Waters backing him up, end this album on a spiritual high that took me completely by suprise.
And I want more. You’ve done the chick album, now give us the rawk album please. Thank you.
UPDATE: Reader Claudia points out that there’s a dual disk version available with more songs from Bo and his band Sugarmoney. This version is not available on iTunes yet. Bad iTunes, bad.
What a bunch of whiny-assed losers!
They didn’t vote for the one who played the game the best, they voted for the one who was least offensive.
You were one funny mother fucker.
If it wasn’t for the radio I probably wouldn’t listen to John Lennon at all. And the little bit I heard today…didn’t do much for me.
Don’t get me wrong, “Imagine” is amazing.
“Happy Xmas” is a nice tune, right up to the point where Yoko starts to, ahem, sing.
The Beatles? Please, his guitar drove that sound.
I’m sad that Lennon was shot. I don’t think anyone should have to go that way. Famous people shouldn’t be targets for psychos.
But why the reverence? What’s the deal? He was a pop singer. He wrote pop tunes. Help me out. Explain it to me.
You’ve got to see them to believe them.
Via Michele…who’s NOT blogging at A Small Victory anymore. Yes, I check there now and then hoping that she’s lost her mind and come back.
…from the deck of the Battleship Missouri, summer 2000.
You’re already taken aback by the museum on the island of Oahu. When you take the boat out to the memorial, they ask that you treat it as you would a cemetary, for that’s what it is, with reverence. Even so, when you get to the memorial you’re simply not prepared unless someone has told you and even then your heart leaps into your throat as you step into the memorial proper.
I’m mostly listening to the soundtrack from “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” “Diana Krall’s Christmas Album” and “Barenaked for the Holidays.”
What says Christmas to you? What song does it for you? Do you have to have Bing doing “White Christmas?” Is it Bing and Bowie doing “Little Drummer Boy?” What puts you in the spirit?