Them's Fightin' Words

Clinton, come back to us. From the NYDN:

The former President is said to have been strolling through the park with his Secret Service team recently when a man pushing a stroller taunted, "You were an embarrassment to the office of commander-in-chief."

Lakshmi Kumar, writing in Citizen Culture magazine, says she saw Clinton stop and deftly tell his heckler, "Oh, really? I think I did a helluva job.... I'll admit I misled people about my personal life. And I have even apologized for it, but I never misled the people about policy and I certainly never misled the people about going to war."

Clinton is said to have spent 45 minutes taking questions from a mostly adoring crowd, then told his detractor: "I hope your children turn out to be as perfect as you are, sir."

The group applauded and Bill walked to a nearby SUV, where, Kumar says, Sen. Hillary Clinton looked impatient.

And then he got roadhead.

Even Though I Don't Support Holiday Shopping. . .

Why not make it a partisan event? Check out these two sites to see which companies support Dems and which support the GOP, and buy accordingly.

Buy Blue

Choose the Blue

When you're done doing that, read this article.

Blockbuster Drops Late Fees

This can't be good for investors. Thankfully, my money's in Netflix. Booyah!

From CNN Money:

Blockbuster Inc. announced Tuesday it is abolishing late fees on all its video tapes, DVDs and video games as of Jan. 1.

The world's largest video rental company will still have due dates for their rental products -- one week for games and two days or one week for movies, depending on whether it's a new release.

But customers will be given a one-week grace period after that to return the product. After that grace period ends, the chain will automatically sell them the product, less the rental fee. If the customers don't want to purchase the movie or game, they can return the product within 30 days for a credit, less a restocking fee.

Edwards in '04!

Yep, you read that right. Check out this little story that will be a footnote in your children's history textbooks. From AP:

An unknown Minnesota Democrat earned a footnote in history Monday by casting one of the state's 10 Electoral College votes for John Edwards, the Democratic vice presidential running mate for John Kerry.

The Edwards vote gives Minnesota its first "faithless elector," the dubious name for Electoral College members who snub the candidate who won the state's popular vote in the general election. Kerry, who beat President Bush in Minnesota but lost overall, wound up with nine of the state's electoral votes.

That's quite a ballsy political statement. Let's find out this freedom fighter's name so we can laud him.

No one claimed credit for the Edwards vote. Several electors said they suspected that someone unconsciously mixed up the two Johns on the ticket rather than purposefully made a political statement.

"If it was meant to be a protest-type vote I would be up front and say, 'This is how I voted,' " elector Frank Simon of Chaska said. "It doesn't seem like anyone is coming forth to say that."

Added elector Michael Meuers of Bemidji: "I'm certainly glad that the Electoral College is not separated by one vote."

Accidentally voted for the wrong person? In writing? And we have an Electoral College to protect us?

So who is this rogue elector that is toying with national politics? My guess is him.

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised. . .

Because the Parents Television Council will deem it inappropriate and write a million letters to the FCC, thus getting it banned from TV.

That's right folks, you know how when you hear about people protesting and writing letters to the FCC complaining about all the dirty stuff on television, you always wonder "Who the hell does that?" Well wonder no more, because it seems to be the same group of people every time: the PTC.

From Mediaweek:

In an appearance before Congress in February, when the controversy over Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl moment was at its height, Federal Communications Commission chairman Michael Powell laid some startling statistics on U.S. senators.

The number of indecency complaints had soared dramatically to more than 240,000 in the previous year, Powell said. The figure was up from roughly 14,000 in 2002, and from fewer than 350 in each of the two previous years. There was, Powell said, “a dramatic rise in public concern and outrage about what is being broadcast into their homes.”


What Powell did not reveal—apparently because he was unaware—was the source of the complaints. According to a new FCC estimate obtained by Mediaweek, nearly all indecency complaints in 2003—99.8 percent—were filed by the Parents Television Council, an activist group.

This year, the trend has continued, and perhaps intensified.

Through early October, 99.9 percent of indecency complaints—aside from those concerning the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” during the Super Bowl halftime show broadcast on CBS— were brought by the PTC, according to the FCC analysis dated Oct. 1. (The agency last week estimated it had received 1,068,767 complaints about broadcast indecency so far this year; the Super Bowl broadcast accounted for over 540,000, according to commissioners’ statements.)

I Can't Tell if This Guy is a True Patriot. . .

Or just crazy. From The Marion Star:

Dr. John Caulfield thought it had to be a mistake when the Army asked him to return to active duty. After all, he's 70 years old and had already retired - twice. He left the Army in 1980 and private practice two years ago.

Today, Caulfield, a colonel from Satellite Beach, Fla., is an example of how the continuing demands of keeping ground troops in Afghanistan and Iraq are forcing the military to go to extraordinary measures to keep its ranks filled. He's attending to patients - U.S. troops, Afghan soldiers and civilians - at the Army's 325th Field Hospital in Bagram, Afghanistan.

He is one of about 100 over the age of 60 known to be serving. The Department of Defense couldn't provide exact figures.

Ok, so I'm coasting a little and stealing from Andrew Sullivan again. Big whoop. I'll probably doing it until Friday when exams are over. Just warning ya.