Good Reading: It speaks for itself

* eptember 23, 2009, 1:45 PM ET

Excerpts of Sarah Palin’s Speech to Investors in Hong Kong

Alex Frangos reports from Hong Kong on Sarah Palin’s speech.

Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee, delivered her first major international speech outside North America Wednesday in Hong Kong at an investor conference. The speech was closed to the media, but The Wall Street Journal reviewed a recording of the event. Here are some excerpts on various topics, from death panels to Chinese human rights.

Sarah Palin, Hong Kong, CLSA Asia Pacific Markets Conference, Sept. 23, 2009 Speech Excerpts

U.S. DOMESTIC POLICY

On Conservatism:

You can call me a common-sense conservative. My approach to the issues facing my country and the world, issues that we’ll discuss today, are rooted in this common-sense conservatism… Common sense conservatism deals with the reality of the world as it is. Complicated and beautiful, tragic and hopeful, we believe in the rights and the responsibilities and the inherent dignity of the individual.

We don’t believe that human nature is perfectible; we’re suspicious of government efforts to fix problems because often what it’s trying to fix is human nature, and that is impossible. It is what it is. But that doesn’t mean that we’re resigned to, well, any negative destiny. Not at all. I believe in striving for the ideal, but in realistic confines of human nature…

On Liberalism:

The opposite of a common-sense conservative is a liberalism that holds that there is no human problem that government can’t fix if only the right people are put in charge. Unfortunately, history and common sense are not on its side. We don’t trust utopian promises; we deal with human nature as it is.

On what caused the financial crisis:

While we might be in the wilderness, conservatives need to defend the free market system and explain what really caused last year’s collapse. According to one version of the story, America’s economic woes were caused by a lack of government intervention and regulation and therefore the only way to fix the problem, because, of course, every problem can be fixed by a politician, is for more bureaucracy to impose itself further, deeper, forcing itself deeper into the private sector.

I think that’s simply wrong. We got into this mess because of government interference in the first place. The mortgage crisis that led to the collapse of the financial market, it was rooted in a good-natured, but wrongheaded, desire to increase home ownership among those who couldn’t yet afford to own a home. In so many cases, politicians on the right and the left, they wanted to take credit for an increase in home ownership among those with lower incomes. But the rules of the marketplace are not adaptable to the mere whims of politicians.

…

Lack of government wasn’t the problem. Government policies were the problem. The marketplace didn’t fail. It became exactly as common sense would expect it to. The government ordered the loosening of lending standards. The Federal Reserve kept interest rates low. The government forced lending institutions to give loans to people who, as I say, couldn’t afford them. Speculators spotted new investment vehicles, jumped on board and rating agencies underestimated risks.

On Milton Friedman:

Now even Milton Friedman, he recognized that the free market is truly free when there is a level playing field for all participants, and good financial regulations aim to provide the transparency that we need to ensure the level playing field does exist, but we need not, we need to make sure that this regulatory reform that we’re talking about is aimed at the problems on Wall Street and won’t attack Main Street.

On the Federal Reserve:

How can we discuss reform without addressing the government policies at the root of the problems? The root of the collapse? And how can we think that setting up the Fed as the monitor of systemic risk in the financial sector will result in meaningful reform? The words “fox” and “hen house” come to mind. The Fed’s decisions helped create the bubble. Look at the root cause of most asset bubbles, and you’ll see the Fed somewhere in the background.

On deficits and Reaganism:

Common sense tells you that when you’re in a hole, you have to stop digging! A common sense conservative looks to history to find solutions to the problems confronting us, and the good news is that history has shown us a way out of this, a way forward from recession. Ronald Reagan, he was faced with an even worse recession, and he showed us how to get out of here.

If you want real job growth, you cut taxes! And you reduce marginal tax rates on all Americans. Cut payroll taxes, eliminate capital gain taxes and slay the death tax, once and for all. Get federal spending under control, and then you step back and you watch the U.S. economy roar back to life. But it takes more courage for a politician to step back and let the free market correct itself than it does to push through panicky solutions or quick fixes…

I can’t wait until we get that Reaganomics sense supplied again because we are going to survive, and we’re going to thrive and expand and roar back to life. And as the world sees this, the world will be a healthier, more secure, safer and more prosperous place when this happens.

On greenhouse gas legislation:

It seems like some are looking to ever more ways that will actually destroy economic opportunities today. Take for example, Washington’s cap-and-trade scheme. I call it the “cap-and-tax” scheme. Right now we have the highest unemployment rate in 25 years, and it’s still rising. And yet some in D.C. are pushing a cap-and-tax bill that could cripple our energy industry or energy market and dramatically increase the rates of the unemployed, and that’s not just in the energy sector.

American jobs in every industry will be threatened by the rising cost of doing business under this cap-and-tax plan. The cost of farming will certainly increase. That’s going to drive up the cost of groceries and drive down farm incomes. The cost of manufacturing, warehousing and transportation will also rise. We are all going to feel the effects. The Americans hardest hit will be those who are already struggling to make ends meet today, much less with this new tax every month…

I am not indifferent to environmental concerns. Far from it. As governor, I created a sub-cabinet to study the impacts of climate change in my state. And I was the first governor to do so. It took us in a new direction…

I’m a supporter of nuclear power and renewables. We can develop these resources without destroying our economy. And we can help the environment and our economy through energy independence.

On health care:

I seem to have acquired notoriety in national debate. And all because of two words: death panels. And it is a serious term. It was intended to sound a warning about the rationing that is sure to follow if big government tries to simultaneously increase health care coverage while also claiming to decrease costs. Government has just got to be honest with the people about this….

As I said, it’s just common sense to realize that government’s attempts to solve large problems like the health-care challenges that we have, more often create new ones, and a top down one size fits all plan will not improve the workings of a nationwide health-care system that accounts for some one-fifth of our economy.

Common sense also tells us that passing a trillion dollar new retirement program, that’s not the way to reduce health-care spending. Real health-care reform is market oriented, patient centered and result driven. It would give all individuals the same tax benefit, that an ideal plan that I would have in mind, same tax benefits as those who get coverage through their employers. And give Medicare recipients vouchers so that they can buy their own coverage. And reform tort laws and change regulations to allow people to buy insurance across state lines. Rather than another top down government plan, we should give Americans themselves control over their own health care with market friendly responsible ideas.

FOREIGN POLICY

On relations with China:

We engage with a hope that Beijing becomes a responsible stakeholder, but we must take steps in the event that it goes in a different direction. See, we all hope to see a China that is stable and peaceful and prosperous. Optimism that yes, it will be.

Asia is at its best when it is not dominated by a single power. In seeking Asia’s continued peace and prosperity, we should seek, as we did in Europe, an Asia whole and free. Free from domination by any one power…

On China’s relations with Taiwan, and other controversial issues:

We simply cannot turn a blind eye to Chinese policies and actions that could undermine international peace and security. Here, China has some one thousand missiles aimed at Taiwan and no serious observer though believes that it poses a serious threat to Beijing. Those same Chinese forces make our friends in Japan and Australia kind of nervous.

China provides support for some of the most questionable regimes, from Sudan to Burma to Zimbabwe. China’s military buildup, it raises concern from Delhi to Tokyo because it’s taking place in the absence of really any discernable threat to it. China, along with Russia, has repeatedly undermined efforts to impose tougher sanctions on Iran for its defiance of the international community in pursuing its nuclear program. And the Chinese food and safety, uh food and product safety record, of course it’s raised alarms from East Asia and Europe to the U.S. and domestic instance of unrest. From the protest of Uighurs and Tibetans to Chinese workers throughout the country rightfully makes a lot of people nervous.

On human rights and democracy in China:

The more politically open and just China is, the more Chinese citizens of every ethnic group will be able to settle disputes in court rather than on the streets. The more open it is, the less we’ll be concerned about its military buildup and its intentions. The more transparent China is, the more likely it is that they will find a true and lasting friendship based on shared values as well as interests. And I’m not talking about a U.S.-led democracy crusade. [We’re] not going to impose our values on other countries. We don’t seek to do that. But the ideas of freedom and liberty and respect for human rights, it’s not just a U.S. idea. They’re very much more than that. They’re enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and many other international covenants and treaties.

On China-U.S. economic relations:

Our economic interdependence drives our relationship with China. I see a future of more trade with China and more American high tech goods in China. But in order for that to happen, we need China to improve its rule of law, and protect our intellectual property. We need to avoid protectionism and China’s flirtation with state assisted national champions. On our part we should be more open to Chinese investment where our national security interests are not threatened. In the end though, our economic relationship will truly thrive when Chinese citizens and foreign corporations can hold the Chinese government accountable when their actions are unjust.

Copyright 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved

WTF??

I am so sick of hearing about these health care town hall protests. Here's my 2 cents and then I'm done thinking about this topic.

I support free speech. I support the right to protest your government. I support the right of dissenters to be heard.

I do not support the childish behavior that some of these protesters are exhibiting. Since when is it appropriate to scream and yell at someone who is trying to make a point? Since when is it appropriate to interrupt someone who is speaking? This behavior is not tolerated in elementary school and it should not be tolerated at these town hall events.

What happened to civility?

This is embarrassing.

I believe it is a mob mentality at work here. The conservative groups that are providing this mis-information are empowering people to disrupt an otherwise orderly event b/c you can "hide" in a crowd. These folks feel like they don't have to take responsibility for their actions because it is too easy to just yell at the Congressman from the back of the room rather than approach a mic and ask an intelligent question and possibly have to explain yourself and your position to the person you are asking the question to.

It just makes me sick and sad.

Bill Maher has a great article in Huffington Post posted last Friday that pretty much explains why I am embarassed, sick, and sad about the whole thing:

New Rule: Just because a country elects a smart president doesn't make it a smart country. A few weeks ago I was asked by Wolf Blitzer if I thought Sarah Palin could get elected president, and I said I hope not, but I wouldn't put anything past this stupid country. It was amazing - in the minute or so between my calling America stupid and the end of the Cialis commercial, CNN was flooded with furious emails and the twits hit the fan. And you could tell that these people were really mad because they wrote entirely in CAPITAL LETTERS!!! It's how they get the blood circulating when the Cialis wears off. Worst of all, Bill O'Reilly refuted my contention that this is a stupid country by calling me a pinhead, which A) proves my point, and B) is really funny coming from a doody-face like him.

Now, the hate mail all seemed to have a running theme: that I may live in a stupid country, but they lived in the greatest country on earth, and that perhaps I should move to another country, like Somalia. Well, the joke's on them because I happen to have a summer home in Somalia... and no I can't show you an original copy of my birth certificate because Woody Harrelson spilled bong water on it.

And before I go about demonstrating how, sadly, easy it is to prove the dumbness dragging down our country, let me just say that ignorance has life and death consequences. On the eve of the Iraq War, 69% of Americans thought Saddam Hussein was personally involved in 9/11. Four years later, 34% still did. Or take the health care debate we're presently having: members of Congress have recessed now so they can go home and "listen to their constituents." An urge they should resist because their constituents don't know anything. At a recent town-hall meeting in South Carolina, a man stood up and told his Congressman to "keep your government hands off my Medicare," which is kind of like driving cross country to protest highways.

I'm the bad guy for saying it's a stupid country, yet polls show that a majority of Americans cannot name a single branch of government, or explain what the Bill of Rights is. 24% could not name the country America fought in the Revolutionary War. More than two-thirds of Americans don't know what's in Roe v. Wade. Two-thirds don't know what the Food and Drug Administration does. Some of this stuff you should be able to pick up simply by being alive. You know, like the way the Slumdog kid knew about cricket.

Not here. Nearly half of Americans don't know that states have two senators and more than half can't name their congressman. And among Republican governors, only 30% got their wife's name right on the first try.

Sarah Palin says she would never apologize for America. Even though a Gallup poll says 18% of Americans think the sun revolves around the earth. No, they're not stupid. They're interplanetary mavericks. A third of Republicans believe Obama is not a citizen, and a third of Democrats believe that George Bush had prior knowledge of the 9/11 attacks, which is an absurd sentence because it contains the words "Bush" and "knowledge."

People bitch and moan about taxes and spending, but they have no idea what their government spends money on. The average voter thinks foreign aid consumes 24% of our federal budget. It's actually less than 1%. And don't even ask about cabinet members: seven in ten think Napolitano is a kind of three-flavored ice cream. And last election, a full one-third of voters forgot why they were in the booth, handed out their pants, and asked, "Do you have these in a relaxed-fit?"

And I haven't even brought up America's religious beliefs. But here's one fun fact you can take away: did you know only about half of Americans are aware that Judaism is an older religion than Christianity? That's right, half of America looks at books called the Old Testament and the New Testament and cannot figure out which one came first.

And these are the idiots we want to weigh in on the minutia of health care policy? Please, this country is like a college chick after two Long Island Iced Teas: we can be talked into anything, like wars, and we can be talked out of anything, like health care. We should forget town halls, and replace them with study halls. There's a lot of populist anger directed towards Washington, but you know who concerned citizens should be most angry at? Their fellow citizens. "Inside the beltway" thinking may be wrong, but at least it's thinking, which is more than you can say for what's going on outside the beltway.

And if you want to call me an elitist for this, I say thank you. Yes, I want decisions made by an elite group of people who know what they're talking about. That means Obama budget director Peter Orszag, not Sarah Palin.

Which is the way our founding fathers wanted it. James Madison wrote that "pure democracy" doesn't work because "there is nothing to check... an obnoxious individual." Then, in the margins, he doodled a picture of Joe the Plumber.

Until we admit there are things we don't know, we can't even start asking the questions to find out. Until we admit that America can make a mistake, we can't stop the next one. A smart guy named Chesterton once said: "My country, right or wrong is a thing no patriot would ever think of saying... It is like saying 'My mother, drunk or sober.'" To which most Americans would respond: "Are you calling my mother a drunk?"

Bill Maher is the host of HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher," and will be joined on the show tonight by Arianna Huffington. "Real Time" airs fridays on HBO at 10:00PM Eastern Time.

Twitter?

Ok - so i am a nerd. I was reading a transcript of a WaPo Chat on Lost and the moderator said that she would be Twittering from ComicCon next week during the Lost panel. So... i took the leap and joined Twitter. I have no intention of ever Twittering - I just wanted the ability to follow her. I tried to "follow" her but the software was messed up or something and it didn't work so i need to log back in and try again...

in the two days that i have had my Twitter acct I already have 2 followers. I have never even posted anything... this is interesting. i wonder how many followers I can get without ever Twittering a thing....

Adventures with Craigslist: Part IV

"The Concert Tickets"

A few months ago we got tickets to the NIN / Jane's Addiction show at Merriweather Post. Last week we heard that the Beastie Boys were playing at Rams Head Live the same night. We took the gamble and were successful in getting Beastie tix even though the show sold out in 8 minutes. (Ticketmaster still sux tho).
As soon as we got the Beastie tix I posted the NIN / Janes tix on Craigslist. I didn't get any hits until Sunday night but that person never wrote me back. I got two more hits last night so I went with the first guy. I called him - we set up to meet at Little Havana later in the evening - and that was that. Ok so far.

So hubby and I meet up with the guy at LH, I gave him the tix and he gave me the money (which I counted there). Thanks, thanks, and the guy was on his way.
So that was easy. But why? Is it easier when dealing with big ticket items or was it this guy didn't have any drama? I'm at a loss to explain... i'd like to conduct more experiments but the rest of the stuff i have to sell isn't really worth much... i'm about ready to toss some of it. I just need to look up when it is "electronic / hazardous waste" disposal day for the city...

ass

I am blogging from the train with a guys ass totally in my face. Not fun. I really wish I could figure out how to turn the sound off when I take pictures with my bberry.
Too funny - these irritating people just realized they are on the wrong train. Good job losers.

Adventures with Craigslist: Parts I, II, and III

Prologue:

We have a lot of crap. So much that it is really hard to park in our garage. Ever since we combined households (5 years ago), moved into our new house (3 years ago), and got married (1 year ago) we have so much stuff that we don't use and will likely never need to use again. So what's a person to do? Craigslist of course!

Part I: "The College TV and TV stand"

Hubby purchased this TV in 1996 after moving into a house with a bunch of guys and NO ONE owned a TV. After a few weeks of "getting to know you," board games, and rounds of asshole, he couldn't take it anymore and decided to purchase a TV at Walmart. I was a nice big TV (at the time) and he also bought a Nintendo 64 to go with it. Why not?

This TV made it though college and several moves before ending up in Baltimore. In '02 (i think) hubby decided to purchase one of those fancy flat screen TVs. Although this TV was a flat screen it is also 3 feet thick - a huge TV - and the old TV migrated upstairs and became the bedroom TV (see part II of this story for what happened with the "original" bedroom TV).

On Christmas of 2006 my dad gave us a really nice gift certificate to Best Buy and with that we purchased a new TV for the bedroom. The Walmart TV moved to the guestroom in the new house where it was united with my old TV stand from college that hasn't held up a TV in many years.

After sitting in a room not being used and collecting dust (also not hooked up to cable or DirecTV) we decided to get rid of it last summer.

This was our first experience w/ Craigslist. We posted pics of the TV and stand, all of the relevant info, we still had the original instruction book and remote, etc and we asked for $40.00 for the TV and $15 for the stand. After a few days we got an offer for $50 for both - and they requested that we deliver. I was working in Timonium the next day so I said I could deliver to Owings Mills, no problem.

The next day w/ Hubby's help I loaded the TV and stand into the car and went to work. On my lunch hour I went to deliver the TV.

First of all, the place this family lived was super difficult to find. Of course I google mapped it, etc. but the main road I planned on taking into this neighborhood had a gate across the road. Great. So I had to figure out another way into this neighborhood of apartment buildings and townhouses that ALL look the same. ugh.

I finally find the place and they had to buzz me into the building. I got to their apartment and they showed me where they want the TV. OK.... um... is someone home to help me carry the tv from the car? oh no. Dad is at work and the rest of the extended family that lives in the apartment (2 women, 2 children, and grandpa) couldn't help. really? ok fine.

I went out to the car and carried this super heavy tv into their house. (At least they held the door for me.)

I hooked up the tv to their cable (at least they have cable - see part II) and showed them how to use the remote. Ok works great. Thanks. The entire time I am there they keep asking me why I don't want the TV anymore.

Does it work ok? Yes. Anything wrong with it? No. Then why don't you want it? - It isn't like I can say, "well, I already own 3 tvs and this one has been collecting dust for 2 years and i just don't want it anymore because I can purchase a new tv anytime i want." Geeze. Can I have my $50 bucks so I can get the hell out of this apartment???

After I bring in the TV stand the woman tries to only give me $40 b/c the TV stand is scratched. I told her that the scratches were clearly visible in the pics on the Craigslist ad and that I won't take anything less than $50 otherwise I will carry the TV back to my car. OK she says and gives me the $50. Sweet. I am out of there.

I am barely down the driveway when my cell rings. The sound button on the remote doesn't work. huh? I just checked the damn thing before I left. Damn it! Ok, so I turned around and went back in. The button was just sticky. It worked just fine - you just needed to press really hard to make it work. Again they tried to ask for some of their money back. No way. Once I showed them they just needed to press hard on the button I got the heck out of there and headed back to work.

whew.

Part II: "Grandma's TV"

Hubby's grandmother died in early 2000 and he inherited a small 12 inch TV which became the original bedroom TV. This TV was the bedroom TV until 2002 when hubby purchased the flat screen referenced in Part I.

For the last seven years this TV was brought along on all of our moves but was never hooked up anywhere since we already had more than enough TVs.

Since our last Craigslist adventure was SO successful we decided to finally list a bunch of stuff - an old (and totally unused) Palm Pilot, a diskman w/car adaptor and headphones, an i-river MP3 player w/ headphones, and grandma's old tv for $15. The only hit we got was for the TV. The responder asked if we had an antenna for the tv since they don't have cable. Actually we did have an antenna - an HD antenna - that we didn't need anymore. We said we'll throw in the antenna for an extra $5 - and I volunteered to deliver the TV since I was "working from home" the next day anyway.

The respondent indicated that she only had $18. We said fine. I just wanted to get rid of the thing and we could use the cash to see a movie later that night. So i get to her apartment building - a really fancy building I might add - and she meets me out front. She doesn't want me to bring up the tv to her apartment. She wants me to bring it to the computer lab off of the lobby and plug it in there and hook up the antenna to show her that it works. Really? Ok, if that's what you want. So I hook everything up, turn on the TV and we have snow. Of course we have snow. We are in the basement of a huge apartment building surrounded by computers. uuuggghh.

OK, so I move the antenna around and show her how to get a signal and we sort-of get 3 or 4 channels. I explained to her several times that it will be better in her apartment and oh by the way, i told her that she is going to need cable in an month or a DTV converter box otherwise it won't work (this info was also in the craigslist ad). After 20 minutes! of going over all of this with her - showing her how to use the remote (Apparently she is a Hopkins Grad student from "overseas" and wasn't sure how to operate the thing. great.) she said that since she couldn't get a better picture she only wanted to give me $15 bucks. NO WAY. Look lady - we already came down from $20 to $18 and I delivered it. If you don't want to pay the $18 we settled on then I will take it home. - This was what hubby and i decided. $18 or nothing. - in reality if we didn't get the $18 for it I was going to head straight to goodwill and just donate it. It is the principle of the thing.

So fine - $18 it is. She hands me a wad of $1's which looks like $18 and I leave. I get back to my car (no ticket thank goodness. The woman kept me 10 minutes past my meter) and I counted the money. The woman only gave me $17!!! AAAHHH!!! Geeze - how stingy can you get?? She totally knew that she only gave me $17. It wasn't a mistake. Of course I wasn't going to go back in to get my other dollar - likely she was already upstairs in her apt anyways. Damn. Seriously.

Part III: "the futon"

We have two rooms in our house that we rarely go in. One is the guest bedroom and the other is the "random furniture w/ bookcases" room. This is the room that the Walmart TV and old college TV stand lived in. Also in this room was my futon that I purchased when I got my own apartment in Alexandria after college. The futon hasn't really served any useful purpose for several years but has made all of the previous moves with us... In my effort to eventually turn this "random furniture" room into a study/reading room I decided it was time to get rid of the futon.

I didn't want to deal with haggling over such small amounts of money (like we had to do w/ the TV's) so I decided we would list it for free - as long as the "buyer" picked it up. No delivery this time. We cleaned it up, got all of the cat hair off, took pics and listed it. We got several hits within minutes of posting it. Wow! I wonder if people get notices or something when free stuff gets listed or what. It was super fast. I was kind of surprised at how many people wanted our free futon. One respondent "want to know how much for our stuff?" - um yea. it's free. says so right in the listing in big letters. That guy didn't get it.

We went with the Hopkins student whose boyfriend was going to pick it up later that night. Perfect.

The guy shows up... wait for it.... in a freaking tiny little hatchback civic. Seriously? You do know how big futons are, right? Geeze - nothing is easy around here....

The guy says that actually he only needs the mattress as they already have a frame. Um no. You cannot have only the mattress. Who is going to take a futon frame w/out the mattress? The whole point was to get the entire thing out of the house. AAAAHHH!!!

OK. So the guy says that he will take it but needs to get a different car. So he calls his dad who lives in Columbia and they arrive back at our house around 9 pm. With Hubby's help they get the futon frame and mattress into dad's minivan. Finally - that damn thing is out of the house.

Selling was a hassle 3 of 3 times we tried... These events have made me think...

Are all Craigslist purchasers totally high-maintenance or did we just pick the wrong people to sell our crap to?

Today is June 8, 2009

Let's see.... what's been going on? Other than my new job and hubby's new job not much actually.

New job is an extention of what I've been doing on the Hill but from a different angle - i'm now a state employee. woo hoo.

It is an interesting switch. I've been thinking like a federal employee for so long that it is hard to turn around and start looking at the world from a state angle. All of a sudden unfunded mandates mean a lot more.

Hillary Clinton Looks Like Tang

So... did you see Hillary Clinton yesterday at the unveiling of the new Sojourner Truth bust at the Capitol Visitor Center? Horrible. That's all I can say. Apparently she wore the same suit at the Dem convention last August.... Top pic is from yesterday and bottom is from the convention.

Random Stuff

I know its been a while - blah blah blah

I'm watching HBO. I love "Flight of the Concords." I don't know if other people dig this show or not but they are starting a new season on Sunday. The humor is just so funny. I just find it hilarious. The songs and the dream sequences are awesome.

After FOC is a Chris Rock special filmed in the fall of 2008. Very timely and relevant. He is sooo funny. His stuff about Barack Obama and McCain/Palin is priceless. If you have an opportunity to see this special i highly recommend it. It is called "Kill the Messanger"

Birthday: The Big 27 + 5

Yep. I'm 32. If he were alive it would be his birthday too. I used to love Jim Morrison....

It's funny when you get into your 30's and it's your birthday. No one really cares too much - including me. I think I got more emails from retailers wishing me a happy birthday (My Hair Salon, Gap, Corrigan Sports, Borders, etc.) than from people I actually know. I'm not complaining or anything - it's just funny.

When you are 32 all of your friends have kids so no one can go out to celebrate on a week night - AND being the holiday season getting folks together on the weekend is just as hard....

Hubby and I celebrated my birthday on Saturday by spending the afternoon in 2 different bars to watch VT beat Boston College in the ACC Championship Game. We went home, took a short nap and then went to Sotto Sopra for dinner. Food was great but a little overpriced. I think next time we will just go to Paza Luna...

I guess that's it for now.

Other than I feel the need to comment on some recent posts by Capitol Swell.... I love the B52's.

So Sorry

It has been a while since I've written. Sorry.
Hubby had foot surgery and then Thanksgiving came and went and now i'm back at work. Fun Times.
2 more weeks until Christmas break. I can't wait.
Let's see... what's new.... not much really. I need to do some more Christmas Shopping. That's about it. Oh, I need to send out my Christmas cards too. Maybe I'll get around to it this weekend.
I have a busy weekend coming up. Friday is my office Christmas Party. I guess we can call it Christmas again since the one Jewish person on staff will be leaving soon. ;-)
Saturday is the ACC Championship game with VT and Boston College at 1 and then Hubby and I are going out to dinner for my birthday Sat night. Woo Hoo! Sunday night the Ravens are playing the Redskins at home. We might go out for a bit to watch the game.
hmm..... work is kinda slow right now. Just focusing on constituent mail. yuck - but it must get done.
perhaps i'll write something a little more interesting later.
peace.

Hmmm.....

This Op-Ed got me thinking.... I think smoking is nasty and will kill you and those around you (eventually) and i am really concerned that President-elect Obama still smokes. I think it would be a great publicity event if he came out and said that he is quitting and ask others to quit with him. I think a President who smokes sends the wrong message to impressionable kids who might think it is OK to do b/c the President does it.... BUT - then I read this article. I was not inclined to change my position on this issue until the last 2 sentences.... If he needs a smoke once in a while, let him have it.

Let the Guy Smoke

Obama Is Probably Fibbing About Giving Up Cigarettes. That's Okay.

By Michael KinsleyThursday, November 20, 2008; A23

It is still okay to discriminate against one group of Americans. This discrimination is not only legal, it is encouraged. You see members of this oppressed minority huddled outside in rain and snow, forbidden to seek refuge. No one feels sorry for them. And yet we may have just elected one of these pariahs as president.

Smoking is a disgusting habit that can kill you and those around you. Barack Obama claims to have quit, but the evidence is ambiguous. And the media's lack of interest in this question supports the charge that Obama is enjoying a honeymoon with the press. Compare the attention given to John McCain's melanoma -- a health problem more likely than smoking to kill him in the next four years, but also a problem beyond his control. Smoking, by contrast, is behavior. It sets a deplorable example for young people, millions of whom Obama has inspired into active citizenship.

Obama has never denied that he was a smoker for much of his adult life. He said as early as February 2007 that he had promised his wife he would quit in order to run for president. He also admitted as recently as this June -- when his presidential campaign was about three-quarters over -- that he hadn't done so. In May the Obama campaign released a carefully worded letter from his doctor, who wrote that Obama's "own history included intermittent cigarette smoking. He has quit this practice on several occasions and is currently using Nicorette gum with success." Obama has declined to amplify.

The instructions on Nicorette say to stop smoking before starting with the gum and to stop using the gum after 12 weeks. We know, because he has said as much, that Obama was still smoking the month after his doctor said he was using the gum. And even if he smoked his last cigarette on May 28, the day before his doctor said he was on gum therapy, the 12 weeks would have elapsed Aug. 20. Wouldn't you think that some reporter since then would have asked Obama whether the gum had worked? Yet no one seems to have asked.

According to Nicorette's Web site, the gum "can more than double your chances of quitting versus just willpower alone." Those chances are less than one in 20. Double that is one in 10. Obama is a man of impressive determination and self-discipline, as we are learning. But it would be astonishing if he managed to beat these odds during the past high-stress summer.
Now, I have been enjoying Obama euphoria as much as anyone. Without it, the prospect would be depressing indeed. But where is the skepticism? If Obama actually has accomplished the miracle of giving up cigarettes at the apogee of a presidential race, he should be happy to let us know this and add to his superman image. And if he hasn't? Well, if he is straight with us about it, we should forgive him. So he's not a superman. Neither are we. In a democracy, that is a good thing for ruler and ruled to know they have in common. Furthermore, as presidential vices go, this one is not near the top. As for being a role model for youths, Obama's good habits outweigh this single bad one. He's great on hydration, apparently.

Obama is 47. A recent Journal of the National Cancer Institute study determined that 49 out of 1,000 American male former smokers age 45 (close enough) will die of all causes over the next decade, compared with 91 out of 1,000 who are still smoking. If he is still smoking, Obama is doubling his chance of an early death. Of course, he increases that risk by becoming president as well. But we allow candidates to take that second risk. Whether he takes the first one is his business, too.

Another question is what effect a president desperate for a cigarette and trying to quit might have on your life expectancy and mine. Obama's steely calm is now one of our country's major assets. If he needs an occasional cigarette to preserve it, let's hand him an ashtray, offer him a light and look the other way.

Michael Kinsley, a columnist for Time magazine, is an occasional contributor to The Post.

tomorrow is the big day

Probably the most significant election that will occur in my lifetime is tomorrow. I am really nervous - I just want Obama to win and for everyone to stay safe.
Will post again tomorrow night hopefully with good news.

The Next President Wears Blue Jeans

I want a President who wears blue jeans. Maybe SOMEDAY blue jeans will be an acceptable item to wear to my office....

live blogging from the train

To do list:
Download new songs to my ipod and remember to bring it with me to work so I don't have to hear the random conversations that people have on their cell phones while riding the train.

Case in point: lady sitting across from me on the phone with her husband just talking about her day - blah blah blah - and before she hangs up says " ok, well, I'll see you in an hour when I get home."

That whole 15 minute conversation didn't have to happen until she got home. That is what I call environmental noise pollution.

Acceptable phone conversations include:
Making dinner/going out plans
Determining grocery list
Plans for pick up at destination

These calls should not last for more that 2 minutes.

I was never a fan of text messaging - and still really not - but if a situation called for it - riding the train is the place for it.

That is all.

A recent pic of my baby....

Taken a few days ago... never looked cuter! ;-)

Worst Movies Ever: The List

I am only listing movies I have actually seen.
A quick brouse of Rotten Tomatoes' list of 100 worst movies ever has shown me that there are many really bad movies that I have not seen. Thank god.
You will notice that many movies on my list have "A list actors". Just because you won an Oscar doesn't mean that you can't make bad movies....

The Talented Mr. Ripley (Matt Damon, Jude Law)
Fallen (Denzel Washington)
The Happening (Mark Wahlberg)
Anything with Madonna (except Desperately Seeking Susan)
Catwoman (Halle Berry)
Spice World
The Beach (Leo DiCaprio)
Galaxy Quest (Sigourney Weaver)
Die Hard 3 (Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson)
You've Got Mail (Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan) - yes, this movie is worse than "Joe Versus the Volcano" also starring these two actors....
Look Whose Talking and all sequels (John Travolta, Kirsty Ally)
Michael (John Travolta)
Phenomenon (John Travolta)
OK - i need to stop here... i am sure there are more that i can add to the list if I keep going further back in time. i am going to work on a new list. "Bad Movies I'm Willing To Watch Again."
Coming soon.

Movie Review: The Happening

One of my top 5 WORST MOVIES I HAVE EVER SEEN. Don't spend any money to see this movie! Don't even bother spending 2 hours of your life watching this movie for free on HBO. It is 2 hours of your life you will never get back. You would be better off watching reruns of "Designed to Sell" on HGTV for 2 hours.
Seriously. D and I spent the entire two hours simultaneously laughing and cringing at the horrible dialogue and acting by John Leguizamo, Mark Wahlberg (no disrespect), and the chick that plays his wife. I think the only decent performance in the movie is by the little girl - and i HATE kid actors. Not sure what else I can say about it. Just stay away...
Maybe it is time for a "Worst Movies Ever" list... i'll get to work on this right now.

2:23:13

i made it! Yea! pretty tired right now and i need a nap.
my time is about 3 minutes longer than last year. oh well. my goal was to at least do the race in the amount of time as i did it in last year. this year the course was a bit different and the weather was about 10 degrees hotter. that might have been a factor. Like last year i ran the entire time only stopping for water. i felt pretty good most of the race until mile 10. My ankles were killing me for the last 3 miles - and they still kinda hurt right now.
ok - that's it for now. gotta take a nap.

a-holes aplenty

On the MARC train today. Every kind I've ever mentioned are on the train today. I got to my seat 15 min before our departure time and it began with a lady in a wheelchair and her entourage of 3 people arriving on the train at 602 - 3 min before departure. This group not only displaced me and the 3 people sitting in my area but the other 4 people sitting by the door so her fat entourage of 3 people could sit and take up seating for 4 people.
The second a-hole appears as I begin to look for a new seat with 2 min left befor the train leaves. Now I'm the a-hole thinking I can get a seat this late in the game.
So... I start looking and immediately I find 2! Seats "available". In quotes because one seat was holding this guy's newspapers and the other seat was holding another guy's briefcase and starbucks iced coffee. Wow! 2 a-holes at once! I said excuse me (kinda loud on purpose so the other people in the car knew these guys were a-holes for taking up 2 seats each) and the news paper guy moved his papers so I could sit. Starbucks guy - now across from me working on his laptop - gave newspaper guy a look like "ha ha you got screwed" then a few seconds after everyone has settled in a guy from my car who was also displaced by wheelchair lady walked over and said "excuse me" loudly to starbucks guy who proceeded to grudgingly move his crap. Dude has like 8 bags and a big piece of luggage in addition to the stupid laptop he is working on. Thanks asshole.