As a side note, but still related to vegetation in my yard, one of my weekend tasks was pruning the shit out of the bridal wreath (spirea) on the side of my stoop. Before, trimming involved a ladder and precarious climbing off the porch. Now . . .
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyNTPTtb85Ufd2Ksh8BFu-Vy6LWxcU_HInmqOTaMmn4utafZWr3oT_BF6z6ueGRB3yB-wwm8cG3BlQPRWcS__W8Q7LGoXyhikyGqtBP9jpgLWFu8MaUkEZESJpcPQGK366-e46fTbJxip/s320/spirea1.jpg)
Because who doesn't want to be regaled with the minutiae floating around in my brain?
That's what I thought.
I don't know. It still seems a little weak and liberal-ish to me. Maybe if we took away the choice part.On the heels of today's SCOTUS decision in Kennedy v. Louisiana barring the death penalty for sex offenders, Gov. Bobby Jindal released a statement calling the ruling an "affront to the people of Louisiana" - and what's more, vowing to do whatever possible to amend the state's laws in order to maintain the death penalty for child rape.
But that's not all he did.
Today, Gov. Jindal signed the "Sex Offender Chemical Castration Bill," authorizing the castration of convicted sex offenders. They get a choice: physical or chemical. Oh, and they don't just get castrated and leave - they still have to serve out their sentence.
But on the bright side Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN), did manage to clarify a very important question. Just what branch of government is the Vice President in?
Cohen: Mr. Addington, what branch are we in?Addington: Ah, sir, perhaps the best that can be said is that the Vice President belongs neither to the executive nor to the legislative branch, but is attached by the Constitution to the latter. That's from two legal opinions issued by the office of legal counsel to the Department of Justice dated March 9th, 1961, and April, I believe, it's 18th, 1961 by, I believe, Mr. Katzenbach if I remember. . .
Cohen: So he's a member of the legislative branch?
(cross talk)
Addington: No. I said attached by the Constitution to the latter. He is not a member of the legislative branch because the Constitution says that the Congress consists of a Senate and a House of Representatives. The Constitution further says that the Senate consists of Senators and the House of Representatives consists of Representatives and he is neither a Senator nor a Representative.
Cohen: But he is attached to the legislative branch?
Addington: That's the quote I read you.
Cohen: So he's kind of a barnacle.
(voice off camera): Kind of a what?!
Addington: He is attached. . . the word was attached by the Constitution to the latter. I don't consider the Constitution as a barnacle, Mr. Cohen.
Cohen: No, the Vice President. Since he's really not fish or fowl, he's just attached to something.
Possibly this tack has been inspired by recent polling showing Nader drawing more support away from McCain than Obama.Nader was asked if Obama is any different than Democrats he has criticized in the past, considering Obama's pledge to reject campaign contributions from registered lobbyists.
"There's only one thing different about Barack Obama when it comes to being a Democratic presidential candidate. He's half African-American," Nader said. "Whether that will make any difference, I don't know. I haven't heard him have a strong crackdown on economic exploitation in the ghettos. Payday loans, predatory lending, asbestos, lead. What's keeping him from doing that? Is it because he wants to talk white? He doesn't want to appear like Jesse Jackson? We'll see all that play out in the next few months and if he gets elected afterwards."
"Sex and the City" the TV series was a revolution, yadda yadda, because it was one of the rare forms of entertainment that showed women in the flesh (and flesh), with all their vulnerabilities, anxieties and intelligence. But when you listen to men talk about it (and this is coming from the perspective of a male writer), a strange thing happens. The talk turns hateful. Angry. Vengeful. Annoyed. It's not just that they don't want to accompany their significant others to the movie. How dare Carrie and her girls hijack the box office during a time when the Hulk, Iron Man, Indiana Jones and the good old boys of the summer usually rule?
Is this just poor sportsmanship? I can't help but wonder—cue the Carrie Bradshaw voiceover here—if it's not a case of "Sexism in the City." Men hated the movie before it even opened. They flooded IMDB.com, voting early and often, so that the movie would have a low rating of 3 out of 10 among users before Friday (although now that number is higher, at 4.8). Movie critics, an overwhelmingly male demographic, gave it such a nasty tongue lashing you would have thought they were talking about an ex-girlfriend. "Sex" mustered a 54 percent fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.com, compared to the 77 percent fresh for the snoozefest that was "Indiana Jones" (a boy's movie! Such harmless fun!).
I blogged a few weeks back about a convicted criminal, Larry Sinclair, who'd been begging the media to cover his wild allegations about Barack Obama [ed.--that Sinclair and Obama had a hot man-on-man encounter in a limo circa 1999. In Gurnee, IL! No news on whether it was in the Ikea parking lot]. Today Sinclair trotted into the National Press Club to air the allegations before what can literally be described as an audience of international press, and can more accurately be described as an amused bunch of people taking in a circus act.
It got worse when Sinclair's lawyer Montgomery Sibley—whose license is currently suspended in D.C. and Florida—showed up in a kilt and told reporters that his above-average endowment made slacks tight and uncomfortable.
Mr. Laffer said that Ohio's poor economy is a microcosm of the nation's. "Ohio is not in very good shape. Taxes have gotten totally out of control," he said. He criticized former Gov. Bob Taft, a Republican, by name for tax boosts that Mr. Laffer said have crippled the state economy. For 30 years, Mr. Laffer has endorsed the notion that if an economy is to grow, taxes must be eased. Only when taxes are lowered can businesses make greater profits and subsequently expand operations, provide cheaper products, and hire more employees, he contends.If we only would loosen the yoke of taxation, we could experience the bounty of the trickle-down trickle! This certainty of vision and--dare I say, commitment to the course in spite of evidence and reality--is refreshing to see, especially in this day and age, isn't it? You just don't see it that often.