Tag Archives: politics

Blackout

Posted on January 18, 2012 | Leave a comment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If Congress censors the web, this is all you’ll read online.

Sign the Google petition and urge them to vote NO on SOPA and PIPA on January 24th.

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Posted in Blog, Blogging, Blogs, Commentary, Internet, News, Politics, Technology

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Will-a-Mania

Posted on August 15, 2011 | Leave a comment

August 15th is a big day in music history.

  • 1969: The Woodstock Music Festival opens.
  • 1965: The Beatles play Shea Stadium.
  • 1935: Will Rogers and Wiley Post die when their plane crashes after take-off in Barrow, Alaska.

Now, you might not put Will Rogers in the same music sphere as the Beatles, but for a Broadway fan, The Will Rogers Follies — winner of the 1991 Tony Award for Best Musical — is a pretty big deal.

Prior to that show, Will Rogers was just a name in the history books to me.  Once a year or so in movie theatres, I did see cans passed to raise money for the Will Rogers Institute, which funds medical research in asthma, tuberculosis and pulmonary diseases….but that was the extent of my knowledge.

Keith Carradine’s portrayal brought Rogers to life — his years in vaudeville and radio, his common sense approach to life, his wife, his politics and witticisms, and his love and support for the then fledgling aviation industry.

I used to listen to the musical’s soundtrack in my car driving back and forth to work…back when I had a car and actually worked in an office.  It has amazing energy and lyrics — perfect ‘pick-me-up’ music.

Who needs a car?  I’m gonna listen to Will today.

It is August 15th.

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Posted in Airplanes, Broadway, Celebrities, History, Humor, Life, Movies, Music, transportation, Travel

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First impressions

Posted on August 9, 2011 | 2 Comments

Did Newsweek go too far?

Their latest cover features a wild-eyed Michele Bachmann and the headline “The Queen of Rage.”

I’m not questioning their word choice.  I mean that photo — that maniacal look on Bachmann’s face.  Does it step over a line?

Or merely capture the real essence of Bachmann?

She is the Republican candidate for President who said — and I quote — “not all cultures are equal.”  Who called global warming “voodoo, nonsense, hokum, a hoax.” Who said we were “running out of rich people.”  Who wants to abolish the minimum wage.   And who said “gay marriage is probably the biggest issue to impact our state and our nation in the last 30 years.”

Huh.  Whadda ya know?

You can judge a book by its cover.

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Posted in Advertising, Celebrities, Commentary, Design, Humor, Magazines, Photography, Politics, Writing

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Some party

Posted on July 28, 2011 | Leave a comment

Happy Birthday, 14th Amendment.

Yes, it was on this date back in 1868 that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution was certified, guaranteeing due process of law.  How ironic that before it finishes blowing out the candles on its cake, it’s being called back to work to fix the debt ceiling crisis.

Or that’s what some lawmakers contend.

Assistant Minority Leader Rep. James Clyburn said that if Congress doesn’t agree on a long-term deal by the deadline, President Obama should sign an executive order raising the debt ceiling — a move justified by the section of the 14th Amendment that reads “the validity of the public debt … shall not be questioned.”

Some constitutional scholars don’t agree.  It didn’t sound like the President did either during a town hall Friday at the University of Maryland. And the Treasury Department holds firm that only Congress has the legal authority to extend the U.S. borrowing authority.

Hear that, Congress?

Stop trying to pass the buck.  That 143-year old bill isn’t going to let you do nothing, and then later point the finger at the audacity and legality of a Presidential executive order.

Do your jobs.  Make it work.

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Posted in Commentary, Education, History, Life, News, Politics

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A good read

Posted on July 21, 2011 | Leave a comment

The fifth sentence from page 56.

That’s how folks are honoring National Book Week on Facebook — grabbing the book closest at hand and posting that random phrase.

I thought I would go one step further and talk up one of my favorite books.  Not my ‘desert island book’ — A Prayer for Owen Meany, which I have lauded here before — but a book by Mario Puzo that did not achieve the commercial success of the Godfather saga.

I have read and re-read The Fourth K countless times since its 1990 publication.  Although it was a commercial failure, Puzo called it his “most ambitious novel.”  I would argue it is his most imaginative.

The novel follows the Presidency of Francis Xavier Kennedy, the fictional nephew of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Ted Kennedy. On an Easter Sunday at the end of his first term of office, the Pope is assassinated and Kennedy’s daughter is taken hostage and murdered.  Soon after, a nuclear device is discovered in midtown Manhattan.

The crises have a fundamental effect on the President’s approach to governing, and impact his decision to seek re-election.  But many question his ability to lead after his daughter’s death and attempt to invoke the 25th Amendment.

It’s an exciting, edge-of-your-seat read, and I think it would make an incredible film.

But it’s National Book Week, so I’ll say it — the book would be better.

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Posted in Books, Celebrities, Commentary, Entertainment, Holiday, Humor, Movies, Politics

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Bright idea

Posted on May 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

This weekend a friend and I were discussing a possible move to Florida — hers, not mine — and were listing pros and cons.

The relatively low cost of living was number one on her list, as well as being closer to her family.

Me?  I’ve never thought about living there…but I guess being able to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter whenever you’d like would be a decided advantage.

But here’s a little fact about Florida that may change her mind…and perhaps the mind of anyone considering a move to The Sunshine State:

Florida lawmakers recently voted to outlaw sex.

Yep.  Apparently they were trying to outlaw bestiality, but instead made “knowing sexual conduct or sexual contact with an animal” illegal.

Turns out humans are animals, too.

Florida says the wording was intentional.  Once signed by the governor, the law as written will go into a special chapter that only deals with crimes against ‘dumb’ animals, so it doesn’t pertain to humans at all.

Now, I applaud any legislation that gives animals additional protections.  But a state that accidentally outlaws sex and calls my dog dumb?

Two strikes, you’re out.


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Posted in Comedy, Commentary, Entertainment, Humor, Life, Love, News, Politics, Travel

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Where’s the love?

Posted on April 28, 2011 | Leave a comment

There’s a whole lotta hatin’ going on Facebook and Twitter about tomorrow’s Royal Wedding.

True, the news media is filled to bursting with coverage — all the minutiae on Kate and Wills, their families, the wedding parties, the route, the ceremony, the receptions, the ridiculous souvenirs.

It’s almost as annoying as NBC’s promotion of The Voice.

But how can Americans spew such bitterness upon these nuptials, when we typically lavish such love on all things British?

Don’t we get all excited each summer come Wimbledon… even though its finals fall on or around our nation’s Independence Day?  Sure, we have the US Open in September, but their tennis tournament has the Duke and Duchess of Kent, strawberries and cream, and spiffy tennis whites.

It’s so proper.  It’s soooo not us.

And don’t we love the actors and actresses who hail from the British isle, with their superior dramatic training and — most importantly — their glorious British accents?  Didn’t we just bestow the Best Actor Oscar on the very worthy Colin Firth for his performance in The King’s Speech?  We love him ‘exactly as he is’ — for his Mr. Darcy-ness — a quality that could not be achieved if he were not British.

You know it’s true.

So, America, try to recapture some of the love for the British that was in your heart when you gave The King’s Speech the Best Picture Oscar…when the very prickly, very American The Social Network clearly deserved to win.

It’s there.  You’ve just forgotten.

(Ad campaigns will do that to you.)

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Posted in Academy Awards, Advertising, Celebrities, Commentary, Entertainment, Family, History, Humor, Internet, Life, Movies, News, Oscars, Politics, Television, TV

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Dead wrong

Posted on January 20, 2011 | 4 Comments

Can I be serious for a moment?

Well, I’m gonna try.

A different celebrity death seems to make the headlines every day — TV and movie stars, sports icons, politicians, you name it.  I realize this isn’t a new phenomenon, but the coverage today is so much more saturated.  Reports of their demise are on TV and Facebook and Twitter and every single web browser that you open.

You can’t escape death…and now online, people are trying to earn points for it.

Even before the celebrity’s body has grown cold, folks on Facebook are celebrating… ’cause the newly deceased notable is in their Dead Pool!  Sometimes their expression of rejoicing is in the same sentence as their expression of sympathy.  That’s…efficient.

Now, I usually like sick humor, but I just can’t find the funny in this game.  The majority of the celebs listed in these pools are old or seriously ill or both, with a few random youngsters thrown in to wreck the curve.

And folks are betting on when they will die.

Call me old-fashioned, but this reeks of bad karma.  I wouldn’t wanna tempt the fates — they might decide to take a swing in my direction.

Sure, these people were famous, but can you imagine the faces of their family when they see their newly departed mom or dad or husband or wife or sibling or child listed on one of these Dead Pools…with a points ranking assigned?

I know it seems like some celebrities ‘sell out’ for fame and fortune.  But that doesn’t mean we have to sink even lower when they’re not around to fight back.

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Posted in Celebrities, Commentary, Death, Entertainment, Family, Friends, Games, Internet, Life, Movies, Philosophy, Politics, Television, TV

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We are New York

Posted on November 3, 2010 | Leave a comment

I don’t normally talk politics.

But today, I’m breaking my rule…simply because this speech is too good not to talk about.

I highlight it not because of the candidate — although I did vote for him (full disclosure) — but because of his message of diversity.   I think the way he  structured his message is particularly effective as well.

(What can I say — I teach public speaking.  It’s interesting to me.)

Start watching at 5:35.

I, for one, am particularly proud to call myself a New Yorker today.

Because I, too,  believe that diversity makes us strong.

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Posted in Celebrities, Commentary, Life, Politics, Television, Travel, TV

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Hair don’t

Posted on September 27, 2010 | 123 Comments

As someone who works from home — often in jeans, t-shirt and a ponytail — I hesitate to make a bold proclamation on fashion or beauty.  But in matters of business dress, it must be said:

Hair clips are a don’t.

I have long hair, so I use ‘em….to pull my hair back when I wash my face.  To section my hair when I straighten it with my hot iron.  To pull my hair back quickly when I’m walking my dog Rory around the neighborhood.

But the plastic hair clip is not an acceptable accessory with a dress or a business suit or any situation where you want to look pulled together.

Right?

That’s why this recent photo of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is especially horrifying.  First of all, she’s wearing the offensive clip with a formal suit and spangly baubles.  Secondly, she’s attending a meeting at the United Nations.

Good God, woman…if I was on a tour at the U.N., I wouldn’t be wearing a plastic hair clip.

And I certainly wouldn’t be wearing it on the tippy-top of my head.  It’s not a crown, Hillary; it’s a clip.  Push her on back…ya know what I mean?

Now, I don’t post this entry simply to poke fun at Hillary.  I respect the work that she’s doing.  I consider it a cautionary tale to all women who have given the plastic hair clip a bit too free rein in their wardrobe.

The next time you reach for it, ladies — picture Hillary at the U.N….and select another hairdo.

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Posted in Beauty, Celebrities, Fashion, Humor, Life, News, Politics, Shopping

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