Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Bounty
Monday, July 30, 2007
I've Got a Secret
Mark sent this ancient clip of something that seems too freaky to be true--composer John Cage appearing on "I've Got a Secret," one of my grandmother's favorite game shows.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
The Trip in Pictures
From a visit with Elbridge Gerry, inventor of the gerrymander, to a pleasant evening on the porch of the Red Lion Inn, here is a smattering of what we did on our summer vacation.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
We're Back!
After an overnight at PZ/Lisa's beautiful newish house, we arrived back to hot sticky weather and dogs who had partied a little too much while we were gone. The housesitter called the night before we left the Vineyard to say that they'd gotten into Alex's painkillers. Since she didn't know which one had eaten them all, both dogs got their stomachs pumped. They look none the worse for wear, but our poor housesitter may never do this again. . . .
The only important thing in the Journal since we left is this.
The only important thing in the Journal since we left is this.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
What a Day
This was one of those perfect MV days. The haze burned off early, and we had sunlight and a high of maybe 78 with a nice breeze. Paul biked a dozen miles or so while I was still asleep. O and I hiked a couple of miles. Then we all went to Lucy Vincent Beach (south shore, private, but the Feinsteins helped us get a pass). There was a vicious riptide that kept O from going in past her knees, but it could not have been prettier. Then we drove around looking for Portuguese sweet bread, which we located in Vineyard Haven, and clams for Paul's lunch. We were stopped for speeding (40 in a 25-mph zone), but they let us off with a warning. After lunch, we hammocked, jigsaw puzzled, read, dozed, etc. Dinner was at Gay Head (now Aquinnah), one of the most spectacular places on the planet. (Living in Dryden, which is pretty spectacular itself, I'm usually fairly critical of other pretty spots, but Gay Head is one of my favorites.) Tomorrow we expect a high of 90, which means every human being on the island will descend on the waterfront. But this was a good day.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Marblehead
It's cool and cloudy in Marblehead, where I'm sitting in Elizabeth's office, admiring the sloping front yard. The cousins are playing video games (O brought her own controller), and the other adults have taken Robert's new truck to get a dresser from a nearby friend. The house is spacious and has a beautiful half acre back yard, hard to find this close to the city.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Off to MV
Caucus Results
Mary Ann Sumner for Town Supervisor!
Dave Makar and Joe Solomon for Town Board!
Jason Leifer for Town Justice!
All results unanimous.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Reading List
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Condemned to Repeat It? Not Likely
Here's a scathing review of the NYS Regents American History exam by a teacher who regularly grades it.
Caucus
Tonight is the Dryden Democratic Caucus. We're one of the few places around that still chooses candidates through this process rather than by petitioning. In theory, all Democrats in the Town of Dryden are welcome, but in reality, very few show up. So it's not as democratic as it was meant to be. We'll be nominating two Town Board members, a Town Supervisor, a Town Justice, and a Town Clerk.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Go, Dryden
Here's some nice free advertising for our town board candidate. Sadly, the editor failed to note that Dryden Schools have been moving their meetings around for years. We hold two a year at Freeville, two a year at Cassavant (in McLean), and two a year at Dryden Elementary. The rest are usually at the library in the HS/MS.
The Emergence of Ron Paul
Carrie sends this:
Our friends at Hotline made this excellent point: We all know by now that Paul has more cash on hand than McCain. But he also has more cash on hand than seven other presidential hopefuls combined (Tancredo, Brownback, Huckabee, Kucinich, Hunter, T. Thompson, and Gravel).He's a genuine libertarian and the only Republican running who's truly against the war. He's also against the war on drugs, btw. Of course, he's "pro-life" and basically a nutcase, but don't count out his appeal with a wide-ranging constituency.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Sunday, July 15, 2007
One Went and Choked, and Then There Were Nine
Republican Jim Gilmore has left the campaign trail and thus has left my list at right.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Fundraiser
We ended up having a perfect day weather-wise, despite the sudden downpour an hour before the event. The backyard was especially stunning, and it was cool enough to stay outside without discomfort. I didn't do a head count, but there were quite a few people here, and O made fast friends with two ten-year-olds who were visiting their grandma and insisted on coming to the party. It's fun hosting an event when you have no responsibility for anything other than supplying the location (and a minor amount of cleaning up afterward). Our congressman gave a brief speech that was well-received (although interrupted briefly by Roxie, who escaped from the bedroom and started to sing in the doorway), people drank plenty of donated wine and raspberry iced tea, and we had little in the way of leftovers (and took in some $ in the meantime). If Simon sends me pix, I'll post some (or send you over to his blog, if he posts 'em there).
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LATER: (click on photos for better viewing and titles)
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Friday, July 13, 2007
At Home and Abroad
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Here at home, we're getting ready to host our Congressman at the TCDC fundraiser this afternoon. Here's hoping the weather stays okay--they're threatening us with possible thunderstorms.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Simon Blogged His Truck, So. . .
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Committee Assignments
Last night was the reorganizational meeting of the Dryden School Board. We re-elected Anderson Young and Russ Kowalski President and VP, and committee assignments were as follows.
Policy Committee: KAZ, Brad RauchThe Board decided last year to outsource policies to some group in Erie County that's putting them together for lots of school districts. This seems weird to me, since it's one of the Board's two duties, the other being budget preparation. Nevertheless, it will be a huge job this year to take what Erie sends, compare and contrast it to what we already have, and merge the two. Strategic Planning is critical and hasn't happened at all in the several years this committee's been around. And as Legislative Liaison, I'm the liaison between the district and legislators from the village, town, county, state, and federal gov't, as well as to the Central NY School Board Association. I'm starting today with a letter to Frank Proto on the County Legislature, asking for a meeting to discuss moving the Health Dept into the NYSEG building, a move I totally oppose.
Strategic Planning Committee: Anderson Young, Brian June, Brad Rauch, KAZ
Safety Committee: Jeff Bradley
Facilities Committee: Brian June, Brad Rauch, Anderson Young
Audit Committee: Chris Gibbons, Russ Kowalski, Brad Rauch, Karin Lamotte
Finance/Budget Committee: Chris Gibbons, Brian June, Perry Dewey, Karin Lamotte
Representative to TST SBA: Chris Gibbons
Legislative Liaison: KAZ
DAA Negotiations Reps: Brian June, Russ Kowalski
Exempt Employee Negotiations Reps: Jeff Bradley, Perry Dewey
Monday, July 9, 2007
Uber-Hamiltonian Executive Power
This is a rather chilling article on the minority report from the Iran-Contra investigation, which turns out to have been authored by a Cheney-picked American Enterprise fellow with assistance from the guy who's now Cheney's chief of staff. The minority report clearly indicates Cheney's views on executive power with regard to foreign policy.
I hope someone's writing the definitive book on our VP, who seems to have had his hand in every nefarious overseas activity of the past 20+ years.
I hope someone's writing the definitive book on our VP, who seems to have had his hand in every nefarious overseas activity of the past 20+ years.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Hatin Flickr
I'm experimenting with Flickr, which has absorbed the Yahoo Photos I once belonged to. Here's a link to photos O took yesterday at Waneta Lake.
There's no question in my mind that Flickr, for all its innovations, is worse and less user-friendly than Yahoo was.
There's no question in my mind that Flickr, for all its innovations, is worse and less user-friendly than Yahoo was.
Live Earth Dead Wrong
Paul points out the inherent folly of a worldwide concert to combat global warming in which thousands of participants fly or drive huge distances to attend a show that uses the electric power of a small city.
In today's column "Live Bad Go Green," Thomas Friedman suggests that we take carbon offsets one step further and allow people to break a commandment as long as they offset it by planting trees. I think indulgences already cover this, but he's right about the fact that we're looking for a quick fix for which no one has to sacrifice. Not gonna happen--or if it does, it will surely result in class warfare, as the haves increasingly push back on the have nots, keeping them driving donkey carts in the dark.
In today's column "Live Bad Go Green," Thomas Friedman suggests that we take carbon offsets one step further and allow people to break a commandment as long as they offset it by planting trees. I think indulgences already cover this, but he's right about the fact that we're looking for a quick fix for which no one has to sacrifice. Not gonna happen--or if it does, it will surely result in class warfare, as the haves increasingly push back on the have nots, keeping them driving donkey carts in the dark.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Why Me?
This report helps explain why I'm censored in China. I mentioned Tibet because PZ was traveling there, and I've used the words equality and Democrat. On March 28, I wrote, "It's clear that if we really want a revolution in this country, we've got to catch the other side abusing small pets." All of this is block-worthy.
Just to make sure there's a good reason, here goes:
Just to make sure there's a good reason, here goes:
Dissident Taiwanese pornographers are revolting.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Censored
PZ, who has logged on successfully from Dubai and Ulaanbaatar, reports that my blog is blocked in China.
Perhaps KAZ means "boogers" in Mandarin. I'd protest, but I hardly know what to say.
Perhaps KAZ means "boogers" in Mandarin. I'd protest, but I hardly know what to say.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
The New Moe, Larry, and Curly
Perjury
This is a thoughtful piece by Michael Kinsley that gets to the heart of why the Libby case is squirm-worthy.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Pardon Me
There's a lot being said about the fact that GWB has pardoned hardly anyone, including some woman on death row in TX for whom the Pope intervened. Here's a comparative list, courtesy of CNN:
George W. Bush:
Pardons: 113
Commutations: 4 (including Libby)
Bill Clinton:
Pardons: 396
Commutations: 61
George H.W. Bush:
Pardons: 74
Commutations: 3
Ronald Reagan:
Pardons: 393
Commutations: 13
Jimmy Carter:
Pardons: 534
Commutations: 29
Gerald Ford:
Pardons: 382
Commutations: 22
Richard Nixon:
Pardons: 863
Commutations: 60
Lyndon Johnson:
Pardons: 960
Commutations: 226
John F. Kennedy:
Pardons: 472
Commutations: 100
Dwight Eisenhower:
Pardons: 1,110
Commutations: 47
Harry Truman:
Pardons: 1,913
Commutations: 118
I've also seen an analysis claiming that Bush commuted rather than pardoned Libby because that preserves Libby's Fifth Amendment privileges and keeps him from talking.
George W. Bush:
Pardons: 113
Commutations: 4 (including Libby)
Bill Clinton:
Pardons: 396
Commutations: 61
George H.W. Bush:
Pardons: 74
Commutations: 3
Ronald Reagan:
Pardons: 393
Commutations: 13
Jimmy Carter:
Pardons: 534
Commutations: 29
Gerald Ford:
Pardons: 382
Commutations: 22
Richard Nixon:
Pardons: 863
Commutations: 60
Lyndon Johnson:
Pardons: 960
Commutations: 226
John F. Kennedy:
Pardons: 472
Commutations: 100
Dwight Eisenhower:
Pardons: 1,110
Commutations: 47
Harry Truman:
Pardons: 1,913
Commutations: 118
I've also seen an analysis claiming that Bush commuted rather than pardoned Libby because that preserves Libby's Fifth Amendment privileges and keeps him from talking.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Plants and Critters
We've got some new asparagus, which should be edible next year, we hope.
Meanwhile, I planted identical flowers in two barrels on the patio. One did well, and the other had its flowers vanish. I replanted, and they vanished again. Then O spotted the little vole and his tunnels in the barrel. I was making him very happy by feeding him roots, stems, leaves, and flowers over and over again.
Petition Season
Late June and early July mean the beginning of summer to most people, but to committee workers, they represent the dreaded petition season. This year, we're carrying only two--one with a delegation that will pick our three supreme court judicial candidates, the other with us local reps. Nevertheless, I've as usual waited till the last moment and must get out this week to collect signatures.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Supremes Veer Right
In case you were wondering whether the Roberts Court was making a sharp right-hand turn, here's a nice review.
Equal protection badAnd one of my favorites is the notion that we, the taxpayers, have no legal standing to challenge the Bush administration's spending of our federal tax dollars on faith-based initiatives.
Price fixing good
Antitrust laws bad
Student free speech bad
Cheney, The Complete Story
Here's the entire Washington Post series on Cheney. I'm still working through it, but I consider it a must-read.
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