How to be an ambassador- November 19, 2004 Oh, this is nice. AP headline: A third of Bush fund-raisers got appointments Nov. 18, 2004 Washington -- One-third of President Bush's top 2000 fund-raisers or their spouses--246 "pioneers" who raised at least $100,000--were appointed to positions in his first administration, from ambassadorships in Europe to seats on policy-setting boards, an Associated Press review found. And after all that harping about Clinton and the Lincoln bedroom. At least he was just giving them a chance..http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/18.html#a1477 Drinking Liberally- November 11, 2004 I think someone told me about Drinking Liberally while back, but we didn't have one out here in the hinterlands. New group starting tonight, though. For locals, it's from 7-10 p.m., at The Tavern, at 17th and Pearl, in Denver. Everywhere else in the country, it's somewhere else, though the same time, like a meetup. Follow the link for more info. See you there.http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/11.html#a1472 Should blogs be partisan- November 11, 2004 This little entry has been simmering in my head for weeks, but I'm going to use the occasion of an Atrios entry to jump in. Here's the entire entry: I'm Not a Big Fan of MoDo She's far too willing to take cheap shots at liberals just to show that she's one of the cool kids. But I'd never call her a high brow hussy from New York City. (My first reaction was incredulity that anyone would describe MoDo as highbrow. Those cutesy little columns she writes are lucky to hit middle. Now that I...http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/11.html#a1471 'Hearts & Minds' in the red states- November 11, 2004 Ahhhhhhh. I think I finally got why the red states prevailed last Tuesday. And why they'll keep hammering us if we don't start listening differently. I'm watching last night's Charlie Rose, a discussion of the attack on Faluujah, and this thoughtful prof woman is saying that we can and win every battle militarily, and we could still lose the war. Because, obviously, this is a political battle. The old hearts and minds concept. Which we learned at such a bitter price in Vietam. But did we really.http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/11.html#a1470 Ashcroft Resigns!- November 9, 2004 Ahhhhhh. Brief AP story here. It's getting better already. And a minor annoyance, Commerce Secretary Don Evans, who made me want to retch everytime they put him on TV, went with him. Of course I have mild mixed feelings, because a lightning rod for public disgust is gone. But good riddance, all the same.http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/09.html#a1467 Women and Islam, the great big irony- November 9, 2004 This Clash of Civilizations bs scares me a bit. But one early victor seems to be emerging, which is as pleasing as it is unexepcted. Perhaps the most prominent of all Western charges against Islam has been its treatment of women. Leading of course, to the standard strange bedfellows: feminists joining the neocons and the Christian Right. With the latter two leading the charge, since it's primarily their fight. I can't tell you the number of times in the past year I have heard conservatives...http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/09.html#a1466 Why do I keep beating my brain against the Mike Leigh wall- November 8, 2004 Mike Leigh. Why do I keep sitting through his interminable films I hated High Hopes, despised Life is Sweet all the more--with extra resentment for the ironic titles, which nevertheless suckered my naive optimism. Despite all that, Naked just fascinated me too much, and I took a chance and adored it. OK, I guess that's why. I'll sit through several hours of dreck for one gem. Plus, the critics keep taunting me with ecstatic reviews. Leigh's Rotten Tomatoes page is a nearly...http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/categories/politics/2004/11/08.html#a1464 |