The International House of Bacon

As a matter of baseball, I’ve generally learned to trust the Red Sox front office - they can’t seem to put together a competent bullpen to save their souls, but they know what they want, they know what they value, they get it, and they succeed.

With that said, how packaging Manny Ramirez, one of the best hitters of my lifetime, with an outfield prospect and a #1 relief pick for a good-to-great outfielder makes any sense is beyond me. That we had to essentially dump him with prospects is disheartening.

I hope Jason Bay hits .330 with 20 HR in the stretch. I hope he’s a powerhouse. I think I’ll like the guy here. But still.

I just hope people realize exactly how great Manny was for this team, warts and all.

I’m in an incredibly sour mood, and I’d rather not project it further. No new updates on this front until Monday.

I was going to do that crazy “Favorite album of every year” thing, but between having half the list be R.E.M. and having heard no albums from other years, I decided to drop it.

Recent album/song obsessions:

The Ting Tings - “Shut Up and Let Me Go”: Upon first listen, I figured they were CSS. They’re not - they’re very similar, though. Not quite singing, shake-your-butt-in-the-driver’s-seat music. I really like it. The rest of the CD is somewhat grating at times, but when it’s on, it’s on.

The Hold Steady - Stay Positive: Initial thoughts are that it’s a) not as good as Boys and Girls in America, but b) better than Separation Sunday. “Sequestered in Memphis” is still catchy as hell, though, regardless. The issue I have right now is that there seems to be a large amount of songs designed solely for Craig Finn to ramble over, and none of them are as good as “Chillout Tent” was. Not to say Finn isn’t a good storyteller, as he is, but it almost seems counterproductive at times.

Jakob Dylan - “Something Good This Way Comes”: Honestly, who knew he had it in him? An incredibly simple song that just nails it on multiple levels. Simple three chord country song that just sounds perfect. It almost makes the last 7 or so years of the Wallflowers forgivable.

Fleet Foxes - s/t: The next big blog band with one fairly addicting song and a very passable album the rest of the way. It’s interesting, but nothing crazy special on the first few listens.

Sigur Ros - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust: This may sound sad, but I think I might be over Sigur Ros. Three phenominal albums, follwed by the lackluster Takk.. and then this album which has maybe two songs that I like? The band has evolved into something I suppose I just don’t like anymore. Stick with the 8 minute epics!

The Baseball Project - Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails: Songs about baseball by Steve Wynn, Scott McCaughey, Peter Buck and Linda Pitmon. It’s essentially what the Minus 5 singing about baseball would sound like, but somehow much better. “Ted Fucking Williams” would be the best song if it weren’t for “Gratitude (for Curt Flood).” The whole thing is amazingly fun, and will likely be completely overlooked in a week, if it hasn’t been already.

Finally, can someone explain why I’m loving this so much?

* If you missed it, my account of last night’s Bob Barr campaign stop in Manchester.

* Don’t look now, but oil has dropped over $20 a barrel in 12 days.

* The surge really might become a bad issue for Obama if he keeps this up. When Katie Couric is turning the screws on you, there’s a problem. Also, when you can’t seem to follow the way things went, it doesn’t speak much to being ready.

* While the first few paragraphs are golden, the rest of the article isn’t that great, but speaking to some earlier comments, is Obama Constitutionally old enough to be President. Yeah, sure, he’s 46, but the Constitution was written in a much different time and didn’t account for longer life expectancies, etc. A fairly funny read.

* I remember the hoots and hollers when it was alleged that Bush was staging fake press conferences. Obama’s not even waiting until entering office to do it, allegedly. Change we can believe in, right?

* Finally, it’s official: Waldorf and Statler have found the internet.

I went to the Bob Barr campaign event last night at Murphy’s Taproom in Manchester. A good sized crowd, Ann came with. Some random, scattered shots:

1) I kind of get the Obama thing now. Not that he’s any better a candidate (he’s not), but I get the inspiration thing - it’s the first time I’ve ever been around a bunch of like-minded people, and hearing a person with the credentials and the recognition that Barr has talking actual sense? Really great to hear. The line that stuck with me from the night was when he said (paraphrasing) that everyone is libertarian about something, that it’s almost hardwired. It’s true, too - I can even think of everyone I know reading this who feels that way about something. And Barr’s been talking about more Big Tent libertarianism, with the NH chair noting that it’s probably more important to work on that 80% we agree on rather than the 20% we don’t. But yeah, back to the initial point - I get it, now. The difference is that Barr is advocating a clear philosophy, one that is truly individually empowering and represents something you simply don’t hear every day. Obama’s Rorshach-style candidacy where, even now, you know there are supporters who think Obama’s on the same page as them even when he’s not, means that you get a lot more of that inspiration simply from people seeing themselves in Obama in some way. That “blank screen” Obama talks about when referring to himself. So I get it - I walked into the event tonight probably leaning McCain, and walked out 99% sure Barr’s getting my vote in November.

2) I got to ask him a question. I didn’t do too badly - I do not speak well under pressure these days - but I asked him about the judiciary in the context of Heller and Boudemaine and how I’m pretty afraid of Obama choosing any judges, let alone three. I noted the polling from Monday, but his line was more about the rare poor points of Scalia and Thomas and McCain’s relative statism than any sort of answer in either direction as to protection of the judiciary for the next 20 years. I don’t know what answer I expected from him, but the one I got was the one I assumed I’d get, but didn’t want. A small disappointment in an otherwise great night.

3) On a more down note, a lot of the evening reminded me why I don’t think I can ever really join the Libertarian Party again. The very first question was a guy ranting about why Barr feels that the questioner should ever consent to be governed again, there was some ranting about medical marijuana, some very heated discussion about the federal reserve, and the last guy I encountered told Barr that he thought JFK was assassinated because he was too close to finding the truth about the federal reserve - something Barr responded to with a “well, I really must be leaving now”-type escape. No Truthers, thank god, but I was worried about it. The good thing was that Barr does handle the more fringy types very well - an adequate amount of respect, veering his answers back into a more sane place, and not mocking anyone, which is good.

I was really pleasantly surprised by the whole thing - he’s the real deal, I think, and that’s not going to be a bad thing for the Libertarian Party or those of us lucky enough to hear him. He’s probably the best spokesperson the Party could field, and if they could get any traction on getting him some actual significant publicity, it could be a very good thing for them - he speaks about incremental movements, he’s looking long term, and he actually seems to grasp why the ideology isn’t getting the mainstream respect it deserves while addressing that very issue with a simple kernel of truth - libertarianism is part of existence as individuals, and we all share some of it on at least some issue. Simple, yet true.

Pics or it didn’t happen, right?

Stolen from everyone.

What movie have you seen the most times in the theater? How many times?

Serenity, four times. Twice before it was released in theaters officially, which was still cool. There’s a pile of movies I’ve seen in the theaters twice, and South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut was three.

What was the last movie you walked out of in the theater?

Technically, The Matrix, but only because it was longer than we expected it to be. I happen to like the first Matrix flick.

What is the first movie you remember seeing in a theater?

Song of the South. I wish they’d release it on DVD.

What is your favorite movie soundtrack?

Hm. I’d go with Magnolia, Spawn (yes, really), Vanilla Sky, Garden State, or A Mighty Wind.

Have you ever dressed up as a movie character for Halloween? If so, who?

Shaun from Shaun of the Dead, complete with bloody cricket bat. It was pretty awesome.

What was the first R-rated movie you ever saw? Were you allowed or did you sneak?

Grosse Pointe Blank, actually. I really didn’t see my first R rated movie until I was 15. And it figures that the only reason that one was rated R was due to language.

Star Wars (orig. trilogy) or Lord of the Rings?

LOTR. The prequels took out too much good will, and LOTR was much better done anyway.

Pacino or De Niro?

Pacino.

Titanic…did it suck or was it great?

Neither? It was a mediocre big budget studio epic. The hype was hard to resist, though.

What’s your take on Cassavetes?

John had better be rolling in his grave based on Nick’s track record.

Favorite John Hughes character?

I get called Bueller more than Ducky, so I’ll go with Bueller.

Which movie gives you a boner (or makes you tingle)?

There Will Be Blood gives me a mental boner, for sure. Physical, well, I can’t actually think of anything.

Which movie always makes you cry like the big puss you are?

I don’t cry at movies. It’s the only manly thing about me.

What’s the furthest you’ve ever gotten in a movie theater? (i.e, second base…)

If I want to make out, I’m not spending $8-10 to do it.

Speaking of sports metaphors, what’s your favorite sports movie?

Baseketball. I don’t like many sports movies.

Favorite
(a)… teen movie?

She’s the Man. Amanda Bynes FTW.

(b)…Quentin Tarantino movie?

Pulp Fiction, without question. I haven’t watched it in ages, though.

(c)…Bill Murray movie?

Ghostbusters, probably. Groundhog Day a close second.

(d)…romantic comedy?

Love, Actually, I suppose? Is Clerks II technically a romantic comedy? Maybe Jersey Girl, actually…

(e)…gangster movie?

Does Pulp Fiction count on this? Maybe Reservoir Dogs, actually.

(f)…horror movie?

Short Circuit.

(g)…made for TV movie?

The Langoliers, starring Bronson Pinchot. I’m not joking.

(h)…director?

Paul Thomas Anderson, hands down. I’d put three of his movies in my top 15 all time.

(i)…drug movie?

Trainspotting is a trendy answer, but there you have it.

Which movie have you seen already but will never, ever, ever watch again?

The Dark Knight is the most recent, but I can say that about lots of flicks.

Which movie are you embarrassed to really like?

Sydney White, again with the Amanda Bynes. That might be one of my favorite recent releases, actually.

Which movie should be remade asap?

Logan’s Run, which may be the most dated movie in existence.

What the F happened to (insert answer)? He used to be so damn funny!

Inspired by Andy’s post yesterday, Dana Carvey. His new stand up special is atrociously unfunny.

For the love of everything that’s sacred, please someone stop (insert answer) from making another movie!

Ryan Reynolds.

Which movie do all your friends love but you think is whatevs?

Gladiator. The Dark Knight. Batman Begins. Spider-Man. Sensing a trend?

Which movie do you love but all your friends think is whatevs?

Any exploitation film ever?

If you could hump/date/marry any movie character, who would it be?

Tough one. No one’s jumping to mind.

Best movie ever?

Magnolia. If you haven’t invested 3 hours in this movie, fix that.

Book you wish would be made into a movie, and who would direct it?

Ender’s Game, for god’s sake. Get it done already.

* Want to know why I’m still technically undecided? This. I’m actually going to a Bob Barr campaign event tonight, and I’m hoping to ask him about the judiciary, as that’s really the only reason McCain’s still on my radar.

* I had to laugh seeing how two stories popped up around the same time: The Rasmussen poll showing that nearly half the nation believes the media is trying to help Obama win comes the same day as the New York Times turning down McCain’s Iraq op-ed after publishing Obama’s. Even if the NYT was 100% right in their denial of the op-ed, it’s simply too funny not to highlight the two in the same sentence. The NYT editor response is a fascinating read anyway, even if McCain’s alleged op-ed leaves me kind of cold. Still, way to go, media.

* If “tax progressivity” is your issue of choice, the Bush tax cuts did the trick.

* I’ve said elsewhere, if not here, that this election is likely to have 1976 ramifications. This is a pretty good article on that.

* Wardrobe malfunction fine tossed. Anything to kick the FCC in the mouth is a good thing in my mind. How’s that satellite merger coming again?

* I wouldn’t be the least bit shocked if most of my readership has a negative view on Grover Norquist, but he’s started the “Leave Us Alone” coalition, which really speaks to me on a level very few political organizations do. Here’s a really good interview with him through Reason.

* Excuse the Fox link, it was the easiest transcript I could find of Obama’s somewhat embarrassing foriegn policy interview.

* McCain’s latest ad. Not the strongest, but still an issue McCain is firmly correct on. I think the end line on these ads is better than anything else that he can offer, though.

* Also, this should make an Obama supporter wince.

* Finally, The 11 Best Star Wars Remakes.

Catching up…

* The big story from the weekend is the commentary from Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki about withdrawal plans, allegedly supporting Obama’s timetable. Not surprisingly, a ton of people dove on this, and, not surprisingly, the translation was probably more than a little off. Keeping in mind the discussions with Bush that al-Maliki had prior to this, I agree with a lot of the pundits on this issue in two places: one, the comment utimately supports McCain more than Obama in the grand scheme of things, since Obama was so far off on the surge, and two, that the first point won’t matter and this might end up hurting McCain on the one area he was, to this point, completely in command. Go figure.

* Obama has 300 foriegn policy advisers? No wonder his policies are so schizophrenic.

* Dick Heller, of Heller v. Washington, DC, can’t register his bottom-loading pistol due to some new idiotic regulation put in place in the wake of the gun ban being overturned. It’s as if DC wants to go to court again.

* From FactCheck: The Democrats aren’t 100% honest in talking about the oil leases. Shocking, really. The thing is, they know it, and we might see a drilling vote soon. I can’t wait to see Obama vote no on this one. Or yes. Either one is a problem for him.

* Some great news: The archaeological looting that apparently occurred following the 2003 invasion in Iraq? Didn’t happen.

* In the “Captain Obvious” department, Obama aides worry that Obama has created unrealistic hopes for his supporters. No, really?

* I try to avoid things like this on these, but I’m just curious - for those of who who highlighted the McCain “Czechoslovakia” commentary last week, will you be harping on Obama’s “eight to ten years” comment? Just wondering.

* I’ll take stupid government interference for $200, Alex. Oh, and what a nice Armani tie you’re wearing.

* Who’s the change candidate on education?

* Finally, if you’re mourning the loss of our semi-daily Dr. Horrible, I’ve started watching The Guild, starring Dr. Horrible’s Felicia Day. It might be a bit too nerdy for many of you, but I also know it may not be nerdy enough for others.

So, The Dark Knight.

Likes:

* Heath Ledger, who was really the highlight of the whole movie, and who probably deserves an Oscar even though he’ll likely get a pity one anyway. If someone without his capabilities is running this role in this film, it’s a travesty.

* It’s a well done movie - the pacing, the filming, not bad at all, and miles ahead of Batman Begins.

Dislikes:

* Everything else.

I’m on record as not being a Batman fan, and Batman was not the problem. He was a problem for me, which I’ll explain in a moment, but not really the issue at hand. Instead, the broader picture is that you have an amazing crime drama that’s trapped in a universe it doesn’t belong in, that is ultimately stuck in superhero mores and otherwise disposable constructs. Thus, what would be a neat and clean two hour movie about the police trailing an absolute psychopath who has zero regard for human life and is fully willing to play tricks on everyone along the way becomes a nearly 3 hour behemoth that’s stuck with a superhero unnecessarily (and unconvincingly) being made a scapegoat and an incompetent mob who’s forced to play along with whatever comes along because of the Batman issue.

Batman himself is only an issue for me because I feel his existence drags the whole thing down - I get *why* he’s there as a matter of plot and all that, but it’s not necessary. There’s no reason to engage him or root for him, and I say that having seen (and hated) Begins. Ann felt the same way, knowing only the two Michael Keaton Batman flicks. Compared to Iron Man (which I absolutely loved) or Spider-Man (which I didn’t like), there was still no investment for me, and that’s probably where it’s weak. Yeah, things go sour, Batman sometimes shows up and saves the day, people get mad about it. Great.

I dunno. I feel like I’m missing some sort of major life experience with this one, but there you have it.

* So, the big news from yesterday is Obama’s fundraising numbers. Once again proving that you can’t trust Obama’s folks when they claim anything (they noted it was “a little slow” at a dual fundraiser a few weeks back), but the numbers put the combined totals only a couple million behind McCain. There’s some interesting spin with the numbers that I don’t necessarily like, and, in reality, it’s still kind of interesting that it wasn’t higher, but it appears the fundraising juggernaut rolls on. It kind of has to with the amount of money he’s burning through.

* Who does Obama turn to for advice on mortgage and housing policy matters? On an unofficial basis, Franklin Raines, formerly of Fannie Mae, who ended up leaving that post in an accounting scandal.

* Also, the best takedown I saw of Obama’s Iraq op ed this week came from The Washington Post.

* Radley Balko asks some questions of McCain. The worst part is that we’re never likely to even see this addressed by McCain, let alone answered.

* A Fact Check on Obama’s “fast track” for energy.

* Maryland cites low union membership as a plus for businesses to come there, gets some crap for it. Fun times.

* Oh, and by the way, Obama? If you don’t want your wife to be a campaign issue, don’t have her campaign.

* And a pile of fun links to start your weekend: Athens, GA: Inside/Out is a documentary on Athens bands from the 1980s, with scenes from R.E.M. and the B-52s as well as lesser known but still awesome bands like Pylon and others. Worth your time if you’re bored, streaming at Pitchfork. Also, signed first edition of The Republic available, insuring Batman, and a great article on how sports video games can’t get things right.

* The trailer for Watchmen is up, and it looks pretty awesome. It could end up being a trainwreck, but the trailer wowed me a few times. Of course, using a Smashing Pumpkins song from a crappy Batman movie doesn’t help things much, does it.

* Meanwhile, I’m no longer all that excited about Twilight. Granted, I’m not a 16 year old girl (really, it’s true), but having read the first book in the series finally, I was pretty stoked. This trailer, though…no. Just no. Dead wrong.

* I know I’ve said I don’t like Batman, but I won’t lie - I’m drinking the Dark Knight kool-aid full bore.

Perhaps the first in an ongoing series:

Things that are not happening: Health and Human Services are NOT redefining contraceptives as abortion, and they definitely are not redefining it based on polling data. That’s what’s being spun by the Huffington Post and by certain folks interviewed by The New York Times as evidenced here.

The document, which allegedly leaked and is linked above, is mostly about the long-standing problem regarding religious belief and medical practice, specifically the distribution of certain drugs by those who are religiously opposed to it. As there are various nondiscrimination statutes and work freedom issues involved, along with the various pooch-screwings that go on when you have the federal government giving money to private entities for health issues. The definition of what is abortion is entirely secondary, and acts only as a definition for the piece, which is standard practice. See this:

Abortion: An abortion is the termination of a pregnancy. There are two commonly held views on the question of when a pregnancy begins. Some consider a pregnancy to begin at conception (that is, the fertilization of the egg by the sperm), while others consider it to begin with implantation (when the embryo implants in the lining of the uterus).17 A 2001 Zogby International American Values poll revealed that 49% of Americans believe that human life begins at conception.18 Presumably many who hold this belief think that any action that destroys human life after conception is the termination of a pregnancy, and so would be included in their definition of the term “abortion.”19 Those who believe pregnancy begins at implantation believe the term “abortion” only includes the destruction of a human being after it has implanted in the lining of the uterus.

That’s the part that has people up in arms. The following paragraph, however, should put people at ease:

Both definitions of pregnancy inform medical practice. Some medical authorities, like the American Medical Association and the British Medical Association, have defined the term “established pregnancy” as occurring after implantation.20 Other medical authorities present different definitions. Stedman’s Medical Dictionary, for example, defines pregnancy as “[t]he state of a female after conception and until the termination of the gestation.”21 Dorland’s Medical Dictionary defines pregnancy, in relevant part, as “the condition of having a developing embryo or fetus in the body, after union of an oocyte and spermatozoon.”

The concept that the definition is changing based on polling is false - does the document cite polling as a part of its research? Yes, but only to demonstrate that the popular definitions match up with commonly-used definitions in the field. Perhaps “inform medical practice” is a poor term to use, but it’s clear where they’re going with this.

As it only has to do with discrimination practices and the belief structures that often run afoul of those statutes in place, that’s all this does. There’s surely plenty of debate around whether pharmacists should be allowed to refuse to fill prescriptions that counter their beliefs, and this document will ultimately do nothing to quell that, but that’s what it’s about - this isn’t some end-around on contraceptives.

I strongly, STRONGLY encourage anyone who really cares about this issue to read the whole document - the whole thing is around 29 pages, the meat only the first 20-25 or so before it gets into the basic legalese required of any report. Assuming this report is genuine - and, being a draft, it will likely change considerably if it exists at all in reality - it’s not doing what the spin suggests.

I may not have time for a real link post for Thursday, as I got home late and decided to write this. If something pops up later on, you’ll figure out that I had time.

Fun All-Star game last night, eh? I went to bed after the 10th inning. Tonight, Ann & I hit the AA Eastern League All-Star Game, which is an exciting prospect all its own.

* Let the Obama shift On Iraq continue. I do find the “we’re just going to pretend this never happened” part somewhat amusing, but yeah.

* Thomas Sowell on Obama and the facts.

* Common wisdom suggests that defense spending is the biggest line item on the budget, and that the spending has exploded. Not true.

* Honestly, if Bush spoke like this regularly, he’d be much more popular. Where was this Bush the last 7 years?

* Speaking of Bush, an interesting thing appears to have happened Monday: Bush lifted the executive ban on offshore drilling, and crude futures dropped nearly $10. This is why drilling now is a good answer for prices now - the parts that are governed by speculators will decrease as the ability to get more oil increases.

* Rasmussen: Hillary Clinton still polls better against John McCain.

* Finally, for some fun you can either read the Onion’s AV Club list of The 20 most jarring “Darren Effect” recastings, or play Defender in the favicon.

E3 is this week! Already, craziness that I’m wicked excited about:

* Thing that is cool: Netflix “Watch Now” on the XBox 360 in the fall.

Why it is cool: Because it allows me to stream movies from Netflix on my 360. How is that not awesome? A piece of hardware I already own, on a bigger TV, it’s like adding 4000 On Demand stations. That’s just ridiculously awesome.

Why it might suck: Standard def to start, and streaming doesn’t always work great for me.

* Thing that is cool: Final Fantasy XIII on the XBox 360, no longer a Playstation 3 exclusive.

Why it is cool: Because it’s Final Fantasy XIII on a system I own. Considering one of my chief concerns with the 360 v. PS3 debate was this possible exclusivity, I’m now incredibly pleased that the system I have will have it. Will I likely get a Ps3 at some point in time for the Blu-Ray? Yeah, but now I don’t need to worry about this game.

Why it might suck: Final Fantasy 11 was online only and kind of meh. Final Fantasy 12 I missed the boat on. Final Fantasy 8 was crap. Final Fantasy X? Don’t get me started. In a series that hasn’t had a superior game in 11 years, well…

* Thing that is cool: Loading games onto the XBox

Why it is cool: Because I get too many damn disc errors sometimes.

Why it might suck: 20 GB drive ain’t much.

* Thing that is cool: Portal: Still Alive, the sequel/add-on to Portal from The Orange Box.

Why it is cool: Because it’s more Portal, because it’s Valve, because it’s more Portal, because the original was so good, and because it’s more Portal.

Why it might suck: I don’t even want to imagine such a possibility.

And to think, this is only after day one…

Let’s see what we can plow through.

* 100 pubs in Ireland, 7% of their total, have closed shop since Ireland’s smoking ban went into effect. The prediction is that 100 more will close in the next year. Take from that what you will.

* Jacob Sullum wrote an excellent piece for Reason about the Texas FLDS raid. Since going to print, however, more information has surfaced, such as the fact that only two children were indeed underage parents per Texas law. Those two being the impetus for taking 468 children from the compound because of alleged danger. My goodness, did the authorities screw up this one.

* How will Obama’s 16 month withdrawal plan work (assuming that’s his plan)? Soldiers in Iraq suggest it won’t.

* So IndyMac collapsed, in part because of a run prompted by Chuck Schumer’s commentary (although it likely would have collapsed anyway), and Fannie and Freddie Mac are in a little trouble. Interestingly, the problem some are describing on the left is not enough regulation on the latter companies, even though the Democrats stood in the way of those regulations. Regardless, I do find the regulation calls to be empty, considering how heavily regulated these companies are and how they’re not-so-subtly urged to lend to otherwise unworthy candidates. Part of capitalism is failure - it’s time we understand that a bit.

* The Manchester Union-Leader is spot-on: “MAYBE THE quickest way to lower oil and gas prices would be this: Immediately enroll every Democratic member of Congress in an entry-level economics class.” I wonder if the drilling situation will hurt Democratic chances in the House and Senate at all in November.

* Why is Obama’s Iraq op-ed so ridiculous? He was so dead wrong about the surge, and yet he tries to claim he was right anyway. There are more problems with the op-ed than just that, but it’s really the most glaring part. Ridiculous.

* Oddly enough, New Hampshire had straight ticket voting. I didn’t know that. It’s gone now, though - that should make things more interesting.

* Christianity Today has an election blog now, which is a great read. Here’s a post about a Congressional candidate requiring his volunteers to do 10% of their volunteering as community service. The blog is filled with a lot of these notes you wouldn’t hear about otherwise, so it’s a good pickup for your daily reading.

* Finally, 20 abandoned cities. I found this fascinating. This kangaroo didn’t.

Oh, also? Joss Whedon’s web musical, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog, posted its first act today. It’s absolutely worth your time - among others, it stars Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Fillion.

Woke up late, so here’s some fun stuff for your monday morning:

The video for She and Him’s “Why Do You Let Me Stay Here.” It’s pretty odd.

Described as a “Russian hardcore ode to Gorbachev.” Riiight…

How to make iced tea. This is a little creepy.

* I’m not crazy, for the record. I’ll keep saying this for a while.

* Yesterday was “completely frustrated with McCain” day. First, excuse my TPM posting, but Josh Marshall is right about this one, but for the wrong reasons - Social Security is a disgrace, and McCain is wrong to waver from that statement. That McCain isn’t talking privatization, but add-ons, and Obama is keeping up the “Social Security is working” myth, is just as much of a disgrace. One thing, I can handle. But when Phil Gramm speaks the truth about the economy, and then gets thrown under the bus for it, that’s no good. He’s also right - the gap between economic perception and economic reality does exist, and there is a “whiner” segment who would rather complain about how crappy they think things are rather than be honest about it. Of course, the DNC pounces on some ridiculous meaning, Gramm’s forced to clarify, and McCain bails. What happened to the Straight Talk Express here? Either you’re interested in reality or you’re not, and McCain is in a good position to take ownership over reality in this election cycle, and punted twice on the issue. Absolutely disgusting.

* Why isn’t the media discussing Iraq progress?

* If there was any good news for McCain yesterday, it’s his fundraising totals: $22m in June, $26m+ cash on hand, nearly $100m when you factor RNC dough. Meanwhile, we’re told to expect Obama’s numbers to be lower, as fundraising has been “a little slow.

* Where does Obama stand on missile defense?

* The FDA now isn’t sure about the tomatoes and salmonella, and think it might be peppers now. Tomato growers are rightfully peeved.

* A few fun links to end the day. First, Rock Band 2 coming with a real electric drum set? More info here - if true, that would probably get me on board.

* Captain Rainbow? The hell? The Wii is weird.

* Finally, and these links are from Liz, Happy Hamilton-Burr Duel Day! It was 204 years ago that Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton got into the most famous duel in American History. While this might be one reason, leave it to Michael Cera and the guys at Drunk History to explain it better.

Have a happy weekend!

* I think Judicial Watch runs a pretty important thing for itself, but poking at Obama’s mortgage thing is a little overboard. Yeah, he got a good rate - there’s dozens of reasons why that happened that anyone can see. This is a bit of a waste and won’t go anywhere.

* Keep repairing those broken diplomatic ties, Obama. Yeesh.

* Change “Jesse Jackson” to “Pat Robertson,” and then tell me how this would turn out. The worst part is that this might actually help Obama.

* Is the tide turning on drilling?

* Finally, I often wish I lived in the golden age of cigarette advertising.

Slow day? Yeah, I thought so.

All my plans for the evenings this week are shot, as I have become hopeless addicted to Desktop Tower Defense. It’s a good thing I dropped $500 on an XBox 360 last year so I can play dumb flash games for hours on end.

Er, where was I?

* Bad Bush, bad! This is what we want: the Iraqis to be confident in taking over and rolling on their own. I hope to god this is just some posturing and some meetings will fix this.

* Political perspectives poll. Apparently, the “McCain is old” meme is sticking with a good deal of voters. But as we go lower down on both ends, it’s interesting - the “McBush/McSame” thing doesn’t seem to have much traction, and Obama’s #2 and #3 are both fairly negative.

* The negative side to Obama’s nomination plans at the 76k seat stadium - the networks might not bother covering as much of the convention because of the costs. Then again, the RNC royally screwed the pooch by having McCain’s speech the same night as the NFL kickoff. Ah well.

* Speaking of McCain, this ad is the first one that’s really caught my eye/ear. Compared to this RNC ad, I can’t say it’s especially good - it really isn’t, and could be cut by 30 seconds and be more powerful - but the last 20 seconds really seal the deal. I notice it during Red Sox games, so that must mean something’s going right, in any regard.

* Meanwhile, Obama can’t seem to get the ads quite right. He might have to stop talking about things of substance altogether. Again.

* Thomas Sowell on conservatives for Obama. If there’s any better political thinker alive and working today, I’d love to know.

* McCain’s also making a bold promise to balance the budget by 2013. I don’t see that happening, but it’s a good thought, and actually possible if he’s smart. Obama can’t offer that to you, folks.

* In case you weren’t aware, Pringles aren’t chips.

* Finally, I love being a Red Sox fan for moments like this.

Things I needed to do Monday night: many.

Things I did: none.

So excuse me if this is quick.

* For all the crap I give Barack Obama, this is a good thing. My main beef with the meme that McCain “flip flops” or whatever more than Obama is that, generally speaking, you know how McCain got from point a to point b in his thought process, while Obama seems to just be changing stuff around without ever mapping out his route. Even if you disagree with Obama’s position on FISA, at least on this issue, we know where he’s coming from. Guaranteed - if he did this more often, the inconsistency charges would ring very hollow.

* This doesn’t mean Obama’s completely off the hook today: Does this sound like the Barack Obama you fell in love with?

* DNC woes. Give the DNC credit, though - even if there’s some background stuff behind it, moving the nomination party to the nearby football stadium is great political theater.

* The other great news from Monday: Iraq appears ready to take the lead. Want to know what John McCain’s Iraq plans were leading up to? This was it. This is what we’ve been waiting for all this time. Let’s hope this can work out.

* Peak oil is a ways away.

* Sean Oxendine at The Next Right looks to history for the “fresh face” v. “established product” races and sees what comes up. I don’t necessarily agree with all of his conclusions, but it’s worth noting, regardless.

* This boggles my mind: If your child says “yuck” when eating foreign food, s/he might be showing racist behavior. And here I was, thinking I just didn’t like tomatoes - I guess I just hate Italians.

* An interesting piece on the onion futures market. Or, specifically, the lack thereof.

* Finally, some cool news if you hadn’t heard yet: An almost-original cut of Fritz Lang’s Metropolis was found. I’ve (shamefully) never seen the cut that’s been available for however long, but seeing as I have such an interest in films that appear to be lost and gone forever, this is a really great story to hear.

A great, relaxing weekend. Finally.

* So, the fun political news was the most expected unexpected shift in the Obama campaign yet, as Obama is now quibbling over his Iraq withdrawal plan. What his plan was (and still is on his website as I write this) involved “immediately” withdrawing troops from Iraq over the course of 16 months. This plan was re-specified at the ABC News/USA Today debate, described by Charlie Gibson as a “rock-hard pledge.” Now, today - well, he’ll be meeting with some commanders and the policy might change. Now, a lot of people have been trying to say there is no difference, but the difference is clear. McCain isn’t helping matters in this case, but, using Josh Marshall as an example, neither are the Obama apologists: Obama’s position on rapid withdrawal has been clear to this point, and he’s slowly abandoning it, more than likely because the situation on the ground there is simply too good to hold the ridiculous position he held. Even now, in his “clarity” statement, he’s trying to stop the bleeding by somewhat re-affriming his old, ridiculous position. Given the not-so-tiny pile of switches (some more important than others, some of which are completely unimportant), what can we expect next? Does he even have a real plan for Iraq? Is he going to stick with a pre-surge plan when the post-surge Iraq landscape looks so positive? When even the New York Times editorial page is getting fed up, doesn’t that say something?

* Gotta love arresting someone for a DUI when they didn’t drink.

* Gas prices in context. May explain why driving habits aren’t being affected quite as much as many may expect.

* On one hand, it’s nice to see someone debunking the whole “Obama’s birth certificate was a forgery” thing. I think there are segments on the right on the web who are too emboldened by the National Guard Memos bullseye that they fail to see things clearly anymore. On the other hand, that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy reading the theories from time to time. Either way, not complaining that I can safely ignore the birth certificate story.

* Here’s a shocker: wind power not all its cracked up to be.

* I found this sadly amusing out of Texas: Fireworks are illegal in Houston, but legal in bordering counties. People build stands outside the border to sell fireworks. How does Houston respond? By quietly annexing the roads the stands are on, allowing people to buy the fireworks legally, and then fining them when they turn on those roads. Such slimy crap.

* A follow-up from last week: Justice Kennedy: The Worst Justice. Lowry makes a good point here.

* I fear for my kids, and hope they don’t worry like this.

* Finally, some fun: Either Historical events as they may be depicted by 5 year olds using MS Paint, or the beginning of “Pork Week” at Salon.com. I have to say this much - bacon is trendy now, but I registered this domain sometime in 2002 because a friend didn’t want bacon on her cheese fries. I consider myself a bacon trendsetter, let the record show.

Feels like Friday, and that’s alright by me.

* The Massachusetts cigarette tax went up by a dollar this week. Meanwhile, the “end the income tax” proposition made the ballot for 2008. It did surprisingly well last time it hit the ballot, so I’m interested to see how it works out.

* Okay, maybe we’re not going to unilaterally re-open NAFTA.

* Christopher Hitches got himself waterboarded for a piece in Vanity Fair. Very compelling read no matter which side of the discussion you’re on.

* Interestingly, that uber-annoying Katy Perry song, “I Kissed a Girl?” There’s a bit of hubbub about it, as Perry used to be a Christian music artist, but it never took off. That’s nearly as funny to me as Alanis Morissette’s rise to fame through You Can’t Do That on Television.

* Reason on fireworks. I live in a state where they’re legal, and rarely a night goes by during the summer that I don’t hear some going off during the summer.

* Finally, an amazingly detailed look at Game & Watch, the precursor to Game Boy. Talk about a memory trip.

That’s all I’ve got. Happy Fourth!

Books:

American Nerd: The Story of My People - Benjamin Nugent: Possibly the most mainstream academic-type book on nerds and nerd interests ever written. A fascinating read, even as someone who could relate, but I have a feeling this might be more for people who are intrigued by sociology and may have actually had “normal” interests.

The Revolution - Ron Paul: Ron Paul’s version of The Conscience of a Conservative falls a little flat - not terribly interesting and not important enough to reach the people it needs to. Yet it’s still a sound read and is probably good for those people who had to answer “who’s that guy you voted for” so many times.

The Devil in the White City - Erik Larson: Really, really fascinating account of the creation of the Chicago World’s Fair. It ties it together with a murder mystery of sorts that I honestly couldn’t have cared less about, but the book itself is extremely accessible and a fun read, especially since I wasn’t too familiar with the World’s Fair. Now I want to read about the one in Paris.

Scott Pilgrim & The Infinite Sadness - Bryan Lee O’Malley: I’ve liked the Scott Pilgrim series, but this is the first one that’s actually really pulled together for me. Good fun.

Twilight - Stephenie Meyer: Yeah, finally got around to reading this. I see what all the fuss is about - it’s a non-sexual-but-really-sensual love story! There are vampires! Oh emm gee!! But it’s actually not too shabby - I’d likely never pick this up on my own, which is telling, and the writing is far from spectacular, but for a teen novel? I’ll take it. I’m waiting for the next one to come back to the library.

McCain: Myth of a Maverick - Matt Welch: I’ll have a longer post about this soon - this book did the exact opposite that I expected, to be short about it.

Brett McCarthy, Work in Progress - Maria Padian: An interesting YA read about a sort-of coming-of-age deal. Has a bit of the requisite “special snowflake” thing going, but as the type of story it is, it ain’t bad. First YA book to talk about medical marijuana that I’m aware of, though.

Superman: Red Son - Mark Millar: I think Mark Millar might be pretty awesome. This is a “what if” scenario involving Superman crashing in the Ukraine rather than a farm in the midwestern US. It plays really well with the whole concept of what a Soviet society with a Superman might be like, and ties up at the end rather nicely. A very enjoyable read, surprisingly.

Ultimate Spider-Man: Silver Sable - Brian Michael Bendis: Kind of scattershot at times, although I like me some Kitty Pryde. Almost caught up, though…

No movies in June. How sad!

Race free edition!

* No, really - some meta-blogging here - if you’re going to comment, please be aware that there are people who may not think like you do, and as much as we might not want to mince words, sometimes we have to to get a point across, and that means going by the basic expected norms. This goes for everyone, even though yesterday was a tipping point of sorts - I don’t want to or plan to monitor everyone or set hard and fast ground rules, just remember that we’re all human beings here is all. We have great conversations with these posts, I’d like to not see this turn into a morass.

* Now, onto real issues: Obama wants to expand Bush’s faith-based initiatives. A more detailed explanation from the campaign can be read in PDF form here, and some statements from the man himself here. It’s okay that I find this whole thing completely laughable at this stage, right? Yet again, Obama, who was being praised again for this speech for its secularistic tendencies, decides to run from wherever he stood before to…what, exactly? I don’t even know who this is supposed to grab in this case, given his other positions. But this is still incredibly funny to me. I’m officially wondering where the line is for many of his supporters.

* More good news from Iraq: not only are we seeing great achievements in the benchmarks, but the Sunni boycott may be coming to an end. I still think Iraq is way overblown as an issue this election - the progress we’ve been seeing as of late almost definitely means that we’ll be seeing gradual withdrawals as we continue on anyway, and neither Obama or McCain are truly foolish enough to mess with that. Right?

* Surprise surprise - Justice Kennedy’s assertion about capital punishment for child rape? Not entirely true. I feel like this is what happens when you decide to create a “consensus” out of thin air.

* Yesterday marked 35 years of an all-volunteer military. Something to cheer about.

* The Heritage Foundation blog offers some comparisons with Obama’s tax plan and how it has affected others with similar situations.

* Oh, wait, something changed again - Obama apparently supports gay marriage now. Remember, he used to be against gay marriage. EDIT: I may have dove at this too early - this isn’t a de facto support for gay marriage, but it’s still an interesting move on his end.

* Obama in 2005: “We will NOT support the removal of [North Korea] from the State Department list of State Sponsors of Terrorism until such time, among other reasons, as a full accounting is provided to the Kim family regarding the fate of Reverend Kim Dong-Shik following his abduction into North Korea five years ago.” Obama in 2008: Apparently, as long as they meet disarmament conditions. I’m sure the Kim family is pleased.

* As gas prices rise, remember that Obama called for a global ban on fissile materials. You know, the stuff that makes nuclear power. The stuff that’s probably keeping demand for oil and coal-based energy at bay in many western nations. The stuff that could act as a clean, workable alternative for the United States very soon. Worth remembering.

* Obama’s also taking credit for welfare reform, even though he was against Clinton’s reform, against his state’s reform, and consistently dodged the question up to this point. Anyone want to tell me what positions Obama has that he won’t shift on?

* Protectionism sucks. You listening out there?

* Finally, a fun 1940 election ad.

Be good, folks!

Round one. More today/tomorrow as time permits.

* First, some old stuff: GDP for 1Q 2008 was revised upward, further staving off recession fears.

* One of the more damning pieces on Obama I’ve seen recently comes from CNSNewswire. Obama’s been consistently inconsistent as of late, but you’d think he’d make the easy things happen - like, for instance, providing equal pay amongst his own Senate staff when he’s touting “equal pay” on the campaign trail. Why, then, are the women on his staff paid noticeably less than their male equivalents? If “equal pay” is so important, why can’t he so easily walk the walk here? This doesn’t appear to be some bizarre Senate regulation - women on McCain’s staff actually make more than the men - so I’m not sure what the issue is unless, well, it’s proof positive that discrimination isn’t the default reason for income disparity.

* Where’d Obama’s state senate records go?

* Mississippi wants to make it illegal to serve the obese.

* The Mehdi Army led by Moqtada Al-Sadr? Essentially dissolved into an insurgent group, perhaps worse. Obviously, this is further indication of the need for a rapid withdrawal from the disaster therein.

* RedState provides a clearinghouse for Obama’s consistent position on gun rights.

* Kyle Smith on the gap between people’s personal fiscal perception and their perception of the rest of the country. It’s quite the disparity.

* QandO offers Obama observations. Among them is a discussion of Obama’s line in The Audacity of Hope, where he declares himself to be “a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.” Charles Kesler, a professor and editor of the Claremont Review of Books, notes that “Democrats in general, I would submit, confuse change with improvement. They fail to weigh the costs and benefits of change, to consider its unintended consequences, or to worry about what we need to conserve and how we might go about doing this faithfully.”

* Obama finally condemns the folks behind the “General Betrayus” nonsense. Still waiting for him to condemn Murtha…

* Not shockingly, Wesley Clark strayed off script and Obama had to step out and say “oh, no, he’s not speaking for me.” The funny thing is what Clark was saying not too long ago, when it wasn’t a Republican with the war record. This sort of tit-for-tat is kind of silly, but shame on Clark for being so blatantly partisan about the whole thing.

* Joe Ponanski on Baseball Hall of Fame voting. Interesting read if you’re into that stuff.

* Fun with the American Family Association. When your autofilter consistently changes “gay” to “homosexual,” unintended hilarity ensues in Olympics coverage of sprinter Travis Gay.

* Finally, a fond goodbye to Coney Island’s masturbating walrus. If that’s not your style, enjoy the greatest Rickroll ever.