Music for pressing the same button over and over and over and over for *12* hours two day in a row

I could have married my cousin or had four kids by five guys by the time I was 23, but no...I went to engineering school. Stupid!!!

On with the music:

Metallica - Hero of the Day

Excellent song. Incredibly stupid video.



Weezer - Beverly Hills

You can make a lot of money playing just three chords.



A Flock of Seagulls - Space Age Love Song

No video here, just the music. Beautiful New Wave song.



Political blogging suspended temporarily, until I stop wanting to slit my wrists just so I never have to see a computer screen ever again. Although I'm definitely tuning into Hillary's big speech next Tuesday with a bucket of chicken wings and a six-pack of Spotted Cow. *grin* Muahahahahahaha.

Heh. Heh heh.

Nelson Muntz, call your office.

What could be worse than Wal-Mart?

I thought "progressives" loved recycling. *snicker* It's for Teh Planet, people! Everyone needs to suffer to save Teh Planet, whether you like it or not, and you think you deserve an exemption because you hate WalMart?

Gutfield: "People who hate Walmart really hate the success that's eluded themselves." I'm guessing that's also a reason to hate a recycling facility that turns a profit instead of sucking up tax dollars.

On second thought, it's less funny than it is disgusting.

(I've had an apartment across the street from WalMart in two different Iowa college towns; the traffic wasn't half as bad as when I lived behind the upscale Fashion Mall. Dear God.)

Bah!

The Des Moines Roosevelt graduate [Lolo Jones] clipped the top of the second-to-last hurdle with her lead foot and dropped from first to seventh today in a stunning Olympic women’s 100-meter hurdle final at National Stadium.

Unrelated:
Iowa Chops at Milwaukee Admirals
December 30, 2008 - 06:00 PM

Yes. Iowa Chops. Love at first squeal.

Random observation

Why are all the people on the "No Condom, No Way" ads on the Milwaukee County buses so unattractive?

Oh, yeah.

According the Des Moines Shawn Johnson, Barack Obama never made it to the Iowa State Fair, becoming the first non-incumbant presidential candidate to skip out since WWII. So, he thinks he's too good to be seen with the bitter masses admiring Freight Train? (I've never believed the "secret Muslim" stuff, but if being that close to male animal commanding high stud fees makes him nervous I would have accepted a photo op near the butter cow, especially since he was immortalized O in butter himself.)

So yeah, despite playing the "single mother" card ad nauseum, he's an elitist. And apparently he's already forgotten that the Iowa Caucus was where the rest of the world realized Hillary Clinton wasn't guaranteed the nomination--thanks for voting for me, now go away and don't bother me with your silly little traditions, you worms.

Hey, if people can vote for him based on his skin color, his swim trunks, his "soft eyes", his love of arugula, or George Clooney's man-crush, I can not vote for him because he's a jerk who despises most of the country.

Meanwhile, while I was enjoying 36 hours with my computer off, I came across this quote from Michelle Obama in a Limbaugh Letter:

Somehow I've been caricatured as this emasculating wife. Barack and I laugh about that. It's just sort of, like, do you think anyone could emasculate Barack Obama? Really now.

Rush follows it with a Jesse Jackson joke, but I didn't see it until after I stopped laughing. Something we can agree on--you can't emasculate O. It's impossible to emasculate someone who was never a man to begin with. Which is probably not what she meant. Then again, caricatures exaggerate the truth, so who knows what she has in a jar in the fridge?

Don't ever let anyone tell you schools don't have enough money

They have more than enough money, they just choose to waste it.

(Why does an elementary school gymnasium need a rock-climbing wall?)

WTF??

Also, some letters to legitimate Milwaukee central city addresses are coming back undeliverable, possibly because letter carriers fear those neighborhoods, said Nat Robinson, chief of the board’s Elections Division.

What?

I know that awhile back home delivery was stopped in some neighborhoods because of crime (why is this considered the fault of the USPS, not the fault of the people comitting the crimes against carriers??), but residents could still pick up their mail at the local post office. That's not the same as "undeliverable." The route carriers know the names and addresses of their neighborhood. "Undeliverable" indicates the person the letter is addressed to does not reside at that legitimate address. And I'm sure your letter carrier appreciates your smear, Mr. Robinson...

The excuses for registration fraud keep getting dumber and dumber.

I do not think that word means what you think it means.

Speaking of reading blogs too much, MoveOn.org is having an Obama art contest, so quilt blogs are off my list for the next few weeks. I just want to look at color and fabric and threads; if I want to read ill-informed socialist screeds with my breakfast I'll go to the actual MoveOn website, thank you.

I like the way this artist thinks O is the antithesis of "narcissism...power-hungry, deluded, frankly incompetent." What? The rest of her work is very good, maybe you do have to be insane to make art.

(I'm only halfway there, heh.)

In this house, we obey the laws of Thermodynamics!*

I don't know who "Reader Brian Anderson" is, but he's my kind of people.

Have you noticed that the people shouting loudest to make developing oil fields impossible, to tax gasoline to astronomical levels, and to have government subsidized "Manhattan Projects" to create the breakthroughs in solar, wind, waves, bio-mass, etc., are the same people who did not take the math, science and engineering courses in college? Despite their profound ignorance in these subjects, they are sure that creating enough pain will cause those of us who did grind away in these fields for all these years to suddenly have that amazing insight which will let us repeal the third law of thermodynamics. Their core belief is that genius comes forth when misery is piled sufficiently high.

*

Give me a break

I'm less...bemused by "Marie Claire magazine dubs Milwaukee its ‘sexiest city’" than I am disgusted that anyone takes garbage from "women's interest periodicals" of the sex-and-fashion variety seriously enough to publish it in the newspaper.

Especially when there's serious issues afoot.

Just in case you're not getting enough green and gold already

18 to 88, a Colts blog I read, is promising a weekly feature on Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy.

This may be a sign I should stop reading so many blogs and read some books or something.

Heh.

It's lucrative to be a Hawkeye.

Forbes has released a "Best and Worst College Football Coaches for the Buck" list. No surprises here:

The most overpaid coach is Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, who made $3.4 million last year despite lackluster results on the field, for a score of 71. Just how lopsided is Ferentz’s deal? During the last three years he’s pocketed $10 million, including a record $4.7 million in 2006, but has led the Hawkeyes to just a 19-18 record.

Hey, when his players rape fellow students, he helps 'em cover it up. You can't put a price on that kind of selfless devotion to a team.

You know why I like WI? I can wear my "BEAT IOWA" shirt three times as often. :P

Everyone in Paris is on vacation

Including the pharmacies.

Huh.

I can't read God's mind

But He doesn't strike me someone who would be amused by the irony of babies being left to die in closets in a place called "Christ Hospital."

That family had wanted a baby, but when they learned that theirs would be born with Down syndrome, they wanted an abortion. For that, they went to Christ Hospital in the southwestern suburbs of Chicago, which is affiliated with the United Church of Christ.

Bizarre.

Even NARAL's stance is that if the abortionist screws up, a living baby is a person to be cared for until their short life ends, so I can't figure out who Obama is pandering to. Hospital admins who don't want to get stuck with the bill?

"We've picked up a weirdo... "

My roommate is obsessed with licking plastic bags. Ziploc bags, stiff shopping bags, the plastic bags that hold shredded cheese...

Don't ask him about it.

Lo-lo-lo Lolo

Des Moines Register profile of Lolo Jones, representing the U.S. in the 100 meter hurdles.

I don't know if NBC or anyone else is giving her any airtime, but it's an excellent story. Liberals will no doubt bemoan the tragic lack of government assistance that allowed her mother to bounce from job to job instead of settling comfortably into a project somewhere. The rest of us should be awed and inspired by Lolo and all the churches, organizations, and individuals who have helped her out along her way.

Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee

Went for a long walk around the east side this afternoon. Perhaps too long; we're still six weeks from the equinox (mid-August and it's not 95 degrees!!! I love it!!!) and SPF 75 was not enough.

So, for two years now, everytime I've driven down 145 toward Water Street, I've thought, "You know, that pedestrian bridge must be the best view of the skyline." Today on my way home I finally detoured over there.

Marginally disappointing, although I got some interesting artsy-fartsy shots of the broken windows at the Pabst brewery. And now, everytime I drive down there, I can think "You know, that pedestrian bridge would be a great view of the skyline if it wasn't for the stupid road signs."

And GABE KAPLER. Yum.

Anyone have $150M I can borrow?

Why should David Geffen have all the Pollocks?

CEDAR FALLS - The Iowa Board of Regents has agreed to study a possible sale of a famous Jackson Pollock painting at the University of Iowa to help pay for flood recovery on campus....

June's record flooding swamped 20 buildings and caused an estimated $232 million in damage. The university's Museum of Art was among the flooded buildings. Most of the collection was removed without damage, including Pollack's 8-by-20-foot ''Mural.''

What? Saving taxpayers $100M or so? In the Socialist Republic of Iowa City? As I type, students are organizing against it...

Well, he's got balls.

I know he still believes in "global warming", but this I like*...

DES MOINES - Republican presidential hopeful John McCain stopped by the Iowa State Fair on Friday, repeating his opposition to ethanol subsidies and vowing to open markets around the world to Midwest commodities.

Excellent.

He said expanding exports could expand profits for farmers in the nation's top hog-producing state.

Of the $150 in profit from each hog produced, $30 comes from exports, McCain said.

''If we approve a free trade agreement between the United States and South Korea, that will be 10 more dollars,'' McCain said. ''Agriculture products here in the state of Iowa can feed the world and we're not afraid to compete with anybody.''

Ha. Iowa Dems are totally afraid of free markets. Reaction was predictable:

''He voted against ethanol subsidies, he's opposed to the farm bill,'' said Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Scott Brennan. ''What it proves is he doesn't care about what's important to Iowa.''

Translation: "McCain wants to take away the free gubbament money from the rich guys who vote for me! Waaah!"

There's a zip-code search at www.ewg.org where you can look up exactly who is getting federal money. The guys I went to high school with are doing quite well for themselves before they sell a single bushel (these are the families who "couldn't" pay my dad and collected free lunch while driving brand-new Camaros registered as "farm vehicles" to school). *gah* Also interesting--you can sign up husbands, wives, and the family collective as three different subsidy-collecting entities for the same farm. How 'bout that. I have no idea how my grandparents and uncles didn't figure out how to work the system so there would still be a family farm on which I could grow hops.

Maybe someone else can explain the people collecting farm subsidies in downtown Milwaukee (some of them seem to be estates, trusts, and investment groups, but not all) and how the benefits of granting a $6 subsidy to a farm outweigh the cost of processing and approving the application. I'm just not smart enough to figure that last one out.

P.S. I want to see Barry O in that hog pavilion, scratching the ears of Freight Train, the biggest boar EVAH, depending on how you spell it. PLEASE, Obamamessiah, grant my wish.

* Everytime he says something that makes me feel a little bit better about having to vote for him, the next day he says something that could have come straight out of the mouth of Dick Durbin or Charlie Rangel. Sigh.