Apparently, I’ve been taking it so easy (obv) that I didn’t notice that back on 12/28, this blog, taking into account several former incarnations, had its 4th anniversary. If it were a child, it would just be learning to sass back right about now. I kind of love it.
I’ve been poking around on the internet since before God…er…Larry Lessig (is that even possible?), but the blog has been a truly remarkable thing. Sometimes I love it, sometimes I hate it, but its part of me I can’t bear to live without, which is weird, because I usually get tired of everything (jobs, men, clothes, etc.) after about four months.
So thanks for sticking around, oh ten…er…twenty(!) readers of mine. I love you, but you knew that, too.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
America will apparently no longer be in existence after 2010, allowing China and Russia, who have “increased” in strength in 2008, to control the world. As such, they appear to be stockpiling nuclear weapons again, or at least Russia is.
The bad news is, within the next two years, we’ll all have to learn either Chinese or Russian, both of which are languages with no basis in the Romance system, making them more difficult to memorize and understand. The good news is, NASA appears to be predicting unprecedented solar storms in the year 2012, ushering in a new solar cycle, destroying satellite communications, GPS, some power grids, and because of the large concentration of nuclear waste in the outer layers of the Earth’s protective ozone shield, lighting our atmosphere on fire, thus killing us all as the Mayans predicted back in the day.
Which means, after all that work at world domination, China and Russia get, oh, two good years, tops.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
You know, I often think I would be better suited to other forms of journalism than conservative political journalism. Curse Hunter S. Thompson and his memoir of the Nixon campaign, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, as it veered me clear off the course of fashion criticism and Hollywood gossip into a life of cynically chronicling the misdeeds of Americas elected officials, their staffs, their consultants, and their unfortunate hooker addictions, because I would have been a damned good fashion journalist. Even better, at least fashion journalism can be done whilst clearly inebriated.
This month, a goddess stepped onto the world stage and made it her own.
First Lady-in-waiting Michelle Obama, who looks as chic in a chainstore’s $148 printed tank dress as she does in Narciso Rodriguez designer wear, proved that you can be tall, have unruly hair, be amother [sic] of two demanding daughters, be married to someone who is, frankly, a sex god, and come out smiling, confident and truly a style icon. […]
WORST DRESSED
There were lots ofcontenders [sic] for thistitle [sic]. Dannii Minogue, the Geldof girls, Beyoncé, Madonna inthat [sic] dress made of grass. But the award simply has to go to Sarah Palin, who may have spent $150,000 on six suits but still resembled a hopelessly sexless, up [sic] hockey mom who buys all her clothes from Wal-Mart.
Now before anyone goes all liberal on me and starts complaining about how what I just said is a clear affront to the calling of journalism which may or may not actually require alcoholism, let me be clear. I’m not calling Liz Jones an alcoholic. I’m calling her, quite simply, utterly blind.
Perhaps this is not her fault. It appears that many in the media have be struck with a sudden neural disorder which creates physical arousal at any mention or sight of the Obamas (this is best illustrated with 60 Minutes, Road to the White House DVD available at fine retailers nationwide). Liz may be its next victim. No matter, she’s still wrong.
Lets review the facts, shall we? Throughout the campaign, Sarah Palin dressed for her body-type in moderately expensive, well-cut suits that were purchased not only to use up donor money quickly, but to head off idiot stories such as this one, which would inevitably liken Palin’s ability to govern to her ability to choose clothes, and lest we forget, she was voted one of the most attractive political woman of 2008, second only to some chick in Italy who is made of mostly plastic. If Palin had actually appeared in the American flag bikini that they’d photoshopped her into, we might have actually won this thing. This is not to reduce an otherwise excellent politician with good prospects to nothing more than her body and a suit of clothes; its just stating facts. There’s a lot of things you can say about Sarah Palin; “sexless soccer mom” is not one of them. Heck, I thought the primary criticism of her legions of conservative voters was that they were nothing but horny men anxious to have something hot to stare at during press conferences.
In sharp contrast, Michelle Obama repeatedly made fashion mistakes, whether it was ordering a shapeless suit of clearance items from the JCrew website (that wasn’t cheap, by the way — those separates are still on clearance for more than I can afford), or wearing a dress on election night that made her look like she was the most current victim of the Alien alien. Straight-off-the-runway and pret-a-porter is not for everyone — you’d better have excellent taste verified by at least several sources many of which should be gay men who you don’t know personally before you even think of touching one of those designs, and even then, people like Queen of Couture Daphne Guinness frequently make embarrassing decisions — and judging by her recent usage, Michelle Obama should be hiring a couture expert as a member of her transition team or stay away from “up and coming designers” who have no understanding of the female body.
I could go on, but at this point, its shooting fish in a barrel.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
I’m on “vacation” from politics, because I feel like it consumes my entire life and I want to shop and eat in peace for at least a week, but I was watching Meet the Press for lack of a better option this morning and caught an interview with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said at the meeting that while world leaders were pressing for restoration of the calm, they were placing the blame for the current violence on Hamas. This is an important message, she said.
However, she added, “If civilians are hurt and as the operation goes on, international attempts to bring about quiet will become greater.”
But Livni said that Israel would stand firm on its demands, and would not be satisfied with superficial solutions and would accept only a true answer to the problem.
Let me just say, this is my new favorite woman. Ever. Not only was she kicking the crap, out of David Gregory, but she was adamant about the fact that Israel has the right to protect itself and its citizens right to remain in peace, that Hamas, not Israel was the one who broke the cease fire, that Hamas is a terrorist organization that doesn’t even represent the Palestinian people, that its a menace to international order, that it should be condemned by the international community, and that this time, Hamas is going to get its ass kicked to the point where its just not going to be able to lob missiles into Israel again. The time for diplomatic solutions has passed. Hamas doesn’t have a right to terrorize a peaceful nation, and they’re certainly, after Israel is finished this time around, going to have the ability.
She kind of makes Maggie Thatcher look cuddly. She’s incredible.
Who says women can’t be excellent at foreign negotiations? I can’t wait to see this woman go toe to toe with Hillary Clinton. Hillary has no idea how quickly she’s going to lose and its a sweet, sweet thought.
Since I’m not really fantastic at foreign policy in the Middle East, other than some more existential observations, you can read more about the implications of the current conflict over at Hot Air.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
I’ll be back later with some thoughts (possibly about the last two days I’ve spent traveling…w00t!), but until then, I just want to say that I am truly blessed to have each one of my ten readers, and I wish all of you a very happy holiday and a truly blessed new year!
And yes, I’ve added this, just as I do every year.
Felix dies Nativitatis, everyone!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
This is a pretty decent ad compared to what KC usually churns out. They’re known for being cheeky with current affairs, but I’ve never seen one turned into a commercial.
Its too bad their shoes are ugly and poorly shaped or I might consider possibly considering looking to purchase a pair.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
There’s an unwritten rule of Facebook that unless you’re Facebook “friends” (and by that, I mean your profile lists them as someone you vaguely know, probably better through social networking than, say, anyone bothered to know you in high school) with other “friends” of mine, I don’t approve your friend request. Apparently, this is good policy to keep you from being unintentionally linked to Jidhadists, who have finally discovered the wonders of social media.
Online jihadists have already used YouTube, blogs and other social media to spread their propaganda. Now, a group of internet Islamic extremists is putting together a plan for “invading Facebook.”
“We can use Facebook to fight the media,” notes a recent posting on the extremist al-Faloja forum, translated by Jihadica.com. “We can post media on Facebook that shows the Crusader losses.”
Besides the fact that using Crusader-made technology to expose the failures of the Crusaders (man, I kind of wish I actually WAS a Crusader, not just called one by some random cave-dwelling goat herder) is so blindingly ironic its making American Apparel look like slackers, you’d think they would have automatically, through the moniker “social networking” discovered the obvious problem with using Web 2.0 to spread terrorist propaganda. In order to send out their home-made videos and poorly-written edicts against random cultural phenomena, they have to “Friend” people. As soon as the “friend” people, the FBI, Homeland Security and Santa Claus can all track their connections and interactions with ease. In fact, Facebook collects all of the information you input and sends it not only to your friends, but to a host of market research firms that then try to sell you things. Its like handing McDonalds, Playboy and the Central Intelligence Agency your entire terrorist network. The first time someone clicks on an ad for goat porn, Al Qaeda is kaput.
Haha…we Infidels and our sneaky, sneaky ways of microtargeting core markets.
On the plus side, this actually kind of reminds me of a quote by P. J. O’Rourke:
Once people get rich, they don’t go in much for war-making. The shoes are ugly and the uniforms itch. Some day, Osama bin Laden will call a member of one of his “sleeper cells” - a person who was planted in the United States years before and told to live like a normal American, and…
“Dad, some guy named Ozzy’s on the phone.”
“Oh, uh, good to hear from you. Of course, of course… Rockefeller Center?… Next Wednesday?… I’d love to, but the kid’s got her ballet recital. You miss something like that, they never forget it… Thursday’s no good. I have to see my mom off on her cruise to Bermuda in the morning. It’s Fatima’s yoga day. And I’ve got courtside seats for the Nets… Friday, we’re going to the Hamptons for the weekend…”
What better way to expose these tools to American culture and the ecstasy of materialism than by immersing them in a virtual society dominated by airheads who never left high school, airheads who are currently IN high school, and people who post drunk pictures of themselves on a routine basis thinking it will not ultimately affect their professional career? There’s no chance the cream of the American educational crop will understand the propaganda unless its conveniently set to a Chris Brown/Rihanna mashup and flashed at them using strobe lights, but they will be very effective at making certain that our Jihadist “friends” are well aware of every last aspect of pop culture, have a favorite beverage at Starbucks and are constantly being virtually thwacked with a variety of small animals, political figures and pixelated undergarments. Life could get very difficult very quickly.
They have no idea what they’re getting themselves into and that knowledge should be sweet to every American. The obnoxious digital generation could be our secret weapon against terrorism.
Bwa ha ha.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
On the plus side, this means that she won’t be terrorizing Barney’s employees in the city of Chicago for extended periods of time, but on the negative…well, I suspect that Washington DC is not entirely ready for Oprah.
OPRAH Winfrey wants to be as close to Barack Obama as possible. Insiders say Winfrey has started a preliminary search for a home in Washington, DC. A nine-bedroom Georgetown mansion she’s said to have asked about is listed at $50 million, but another source said, “She has never personally been to see it.” We’re sure Winfrey will try to swing by during Inauguration week. Her rep didn’t return calls.
I heard something not too long ago about her wanting to move the Oprah show to DC so that she could be intimately involved with the Obama administration (if that doesn’t strike fear into your hearts, perhaps you haven’t watched enough Oprah), but that doesn’t seem plausible considering how much Chicago needs her and how much Oprah needs the Chicago public transportation system (which also conveniently covers the suburbs) to fill up her audience chairs with an endless supply of suburban women. DC just doesn’t have the convenience of a massive suburban sprawl within a convenient 20 minute, $3 ride.
Of course, the condo is probably for important events, and days when she feels like serving as the Vice President, or those days when her new job as Illinois Senator requires her to be in the nations capitol for meetings. You think I’m joking, yet deep inside know that someone, somewhere must have suggested that to Blago. She is Oprah, after all.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Every year, you people beg me for evidence of how insane I actually am in real life, and I stubbornly refuse to give it to you. Well, this year is different. At some point, the quest…those hours spent plotting and planning attacks on Target and Urban Outfitters the day after Christmas so that I could get my hands on the prizes necessary to complete my collection, well, they have to come to something at some point, so…here you have it.
The Hello Kitty Christmas tree.
Thank you, carry on, and Merry Christmas.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Whenever I do “investigative reporting,” by which I mean “conduct a Google search for information before actually sitting down and writing something,” it usually comes back to bite me in the ass, but here goes nothing.
This Arne Duncan guy that everyone is all excited is going to run the nation’s public schools as Secretary of Education? He’s not exactly a proponent of secular education in the city of Chicago, and by that I mean, he’s very fond of inculcating Chicago students with more than just a top-notch education.
So, how often do you think that the Old Media will mention that Barack Obama’s choice for Secretary of Education, Chicago schools chief Arne Duncan, supported to be opened in Chicago a gay, lesbian and transgender high school? Any takers?
I have looked over many of the stories on Obama’s pick for Sec of Ed, but seen mention of his support of the gay high school only a few times. Only three stories mentioned it out of the first 20 I checked. Even the Wall Street Journal didn’t mention it in their announcement of the Obama pick.
Now, in the end, I’m not THAT opposed to this. As a kid who was bullied for most of my life (yeah, glasses, braces, even a retainer that covered both the top AND bottom teeth and was attached with a joint at the ends, like one of those plastic skulls they use in high school anatomy classes will get you that), I can understand why kids who find themselves “different” from other kids would want to have a school all their own. Granted, once in a separate school, those kids will quickly form a food chain and beat up on kids who don’t fit in with the crowd THERE, but suffice it to say, the idea, in its conceptual form, makes some sense somehow. The proposal eventually became a proposal for a school for kids who were bullied. Okay, big deal, right?
Well, that’s not really the end of it. In fact, its just the beginning. My favorite subject in all of this Chicago mess is the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, which is the project on whose board Bill Ayers and Barack Obama served together. I love this project because right up the street from me, I have an Annenberg Challenge school, which I think is known in the community as the “Peace School,” and is very interactive with residents of my little neighborhood. They hold peace studies rallies, drum circles, indoctrinate children in what appear to be Marxist values and hold the weekly farmers market (who said communism couldn’t taste fresh?). They are a continual annoyance to me, particularly because, in the summer, my favorite Thai restaurant has a mini-cafe right across the street and I have to stare at their peace signs and “Vote” posters until I seethe, and it ruins my basil chicken.
Anywho, Arne Duncan is Bestest Buddies with the Chicago Annenberg Challenge. In fact, he worked with the Annenberg Challenge to program curriculum in Chicago Public Schools. From an official statement by the Annenberg Challenge:
The Challenge’s work is still carried on today through to the bipartisan Chicago Public Education Fund, which coordinates closely Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan and Mayor Daley…
In that piece, Stanley Kurtz carefully outlines how Ayers served on the board of and influences the activities of the Annenberg Challenge. According to Kurtz, Ayers had much more control over the direction of the project than either then Annenberg Challenge or Duncan will ever be willing to admit. And the Annenberg Project, according to Education Week, which is a go-to resource on all things curriculum related in public schools, had a heavy influence on Duncan’s curriculum agenda.
If we were to assume Kurtz did due diligence, which I think we can, and then look at Kurtz’s investigative reporting together with the spotlight article for Education Week, we could logically conclude that some, if not much, of what Bill Ayers placed into the stream of action at the Annenberg Challenge was implemented, even officially, in the Chicago Public Schools. CAC and Duncan worked hand-in-hand to the point where they and the greater educational community viewed the partnership and its resulting curriculum modification in Chicago’s schools as a success. And to add insult to injury, his greatest cheerleader? The NEA.
I’m not one to normally make weird connections, but this one seems logical. If there’s one person I don’t want influencing nationwide educational policy, that person would be Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears, the creators of Still Standing, Margaret Sanger, or, for that matter, Kirk Cameron, but lets just say that Bill Ayers is near or at the top of that list. As much as I love a good protest, I’m not entirely sure teaching a generation of children that the Weather Underground had the right ideas about domestic terrorism, or really ANYTHING, is a good idea.
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
All opinions expressed on this web-log are those of the authors alone. Most people -- including the New York Times -- are aware by now that E.M. works for the Sam Adams Alliance; the views expressed on this PERSONAL page DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF HER EMPLOYER and SHOULD NOT be construed as in ANY WAY representative of that organization's views or opinions (we're serious...note the capital letters). The other authors' opinions DO NOT necessarily represent their respective employers' positions, strategies or opinions, either. All complaints (or praise) regarding content of this blog should be directed TO THE AUTHORS. That's why we have a "comments" section.
All original material is copyrighted and property of the authors, but available for use with attribution under a Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution License. Use of this content in any future Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings is strictly prohibited.
Comments posted to individual entries do not necessarily reflect the views of the authors, and do not assume that AP authors and editors agree with or otherwise endores the sentiments posted. Commentary is free, open, and unmoderated save for initial approval of new commenters, and we subscribe to the "delete and ban" school.
Is it true what they say about E.M.?
"You are the reason conservatives should be ashamed." -- Glenn Reynolds
"Some may call you elitist, over-privileged, preening with a snotty sense of entitlement. I call you my hero."--Stewie Griffin
"[An] amusing staple of the Right blogosphere" -- Salon.com
"A foxy fascist is still a fascist."
"E.M.'s got that punk-Catholic-schoolgirl, intellectual-bawdy-dichotomy "thing" going for her...I'd find her irresistible even if I didn't agree with many of her views."--Kevin of Counseling Kevin
"Fun writing with a twist of the conservative disease. But enjoyable all the same. Besides, we’re suckers for a nice pair of legs."--Got Detroit?
"E.M. has a certain je ne sais quoi that evokes an admiration for her brilliance, wonder at her beauty and laughter for her way of breaking it to you." -- ZP of The Zero Point
"I believe if E.M. were a superheroine, her main power would be sarcasm." -- Mr. Bryce Poole
"Really, she had me at "Blame France" -- KG of Cagey Mind
"If Pope Benedict is conservative Catholicism's posterchild, E.M. is the pin-up centerfold."
"Considering all of the other right-wing nutters out there, The American Princess is only mildly ridiculous." -- A Moderate
"A well written, very conservative blog with an author who offers no apologies for her beliefs." -- Drew of Conservative Friends
Yes, absolutely, [its] cheap, trashy; Im well aware of that. But we live in the age of Paris Hilton, my dear, so what are you going to do? A show where you discuss Flaubert with people that call in? No, I dont think so.
"E.M., you are your own subculture. I would like to be part of that subculture, but I don't think its acceptable for me to wear that much pink."
"Hey E.M., I thought you said this was a porn site...?"
December 31, 2008 
Posted by E. M. Zanotti in Uncategorized 
22 Comments »
