Yushchenko is clearly the winner of the election, yet the current Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich is challenging the results and vows to stay in office.

Yushchenko has called on the people to create a blockade of the government building on Wednesday to keep the prime minister's meeting from occuring.

Folks, this is opposition to tyrany, and it's being done right, with a strong justice and media involvement and thus far no bloodshed. I pray that tommorrow's blockade continue that trend.


Update: The blockade was successful and no violent confrontations occured.

Giant tsunamis follow 9.0 mag. quake in Bay of Bengal. Death toll feared to reach 60,000

Who said this and when?:

"There is no academic virtue in playing mediocre football and no academic vice in winning a game that by all odds one should lose. There has been a surrender at Notre Dame, but it is a surrender to excellence on all fronts, and in this we hope to rise above ourselves with the help of God."


Btw, GO Irish, beat the Oregon St. Beavers tonight!!

Last night I returned from my trip home to San Diego and realized one thing, that city sure does suck. While I have only been to Indianapolis once, and for a total of maybe 2 hours, it is a much superior city and I would give up my U2 iPod to have spent my Christmas there.

What is so superior about Indianapolis you ask? I will give you FIVE (5) reasons.

1) Weather. Who wants a 68 degree Christmas? Not I. Give me five feet of snow. Give me cabin fever. Give me freezing temperatures. Give me a real Christmas.

2) Minorities (or lack there of). Enough said.

3) Dive bars. I don't know this for sure, but I assume that Indianapolis has better dive bars than San Diego. On the Eve of Christmas Eve, I was VIP at the Onxy Room in San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter and boy did that suck. I like places where I can fear touching any part of the establishment with anything other than the soles of my shoes because of the opportunity to contract STDs.

4) Nicer people. Who needs cool when you can have nice?

5) Superior football team. As evidenced by the Colt's win over the Chargers yesterday in OT, it is much better to be a Colt fan than a Charger fan. Actually, for at least the past 10 years, it has been better to be a Colt fan than a Charger fan. Maybe I should be upset that the Chargers blew a 15 point fourth quarter lead yesterday. But I am not. I am just glad that the Chargers could hang with a much superior football team.

5a) Lucas Sayre, whose football knowledge is far superior to my own. He is truly the king of football today.

Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko proclaimed "Now we are free" to the people, claiming victory in that nation's new election, held on Sunday... Just as I predicted on Dec. 14.

That's two elections down (we must not forget about the success in Afghanistan), and one to go in Iraq. Speaking of which, the latest poll shows that Iraqis are confident that the election will take place as scheduled, and they strongly oppose inclusion of Baathists in their government.

VDH thinks so, and after reading his column, you will too.

[ed. I thought about quoting the strongest sections of his column, but just read the whole thing with an emphasis towards the second half of it; thanks to Dan Ornelas for the link]

The board is set, the pieces are moving... the battle for the judiciary has begun

[ed.: can you tell I'm in a LOTR mood :-)]

Hey Matt: it's winter.... not big news dude.

Growing up as a young conservative, I learned early on two of the supposed liberal ideological strong-holds: the media, and academia.

To be fair, the media has not entirely been dominated by either political ideology. Conservatives like Rush Limbaugh love to rant against the liberal media, but pick a selection of middle-American newspapers from the last 50 years, and see just which way they lean. Of course, the big networks, NYTimes, et al., are liberally dominated. But with radio personalities like Limbaugh and a strong conservative collective in the blogosphere, the never too-dominated liberal media loses leans even more towards the right.

Academia has been another story. Collegiate faculty have traditionally leaned extremely far to the left as far as numbers go, and according to this great article, they continue to do so.

The article also talks about a growing conservative movement on campuses to fight the liberal bias. I can personally testify regarding this movement, as I met and talked with members of several conservative think thanks that were funding and organizing conservative groups and newspapers across the nation.

Largely at stake is academic freedom. The problem with these conservative campus movements is that they sometimes strive to censor what their professors say and teach. I need not explain why this is a bad thing.

But academic freedom also has a flip-side, the freedom of students to write and say what they think in class, when relevant, without fear of bias in grading. Therefore, I would urge conservative groups to not focus on what professors might be saying or teaching, but rather on how they grade and on diversity of thought at college campuses.

Easier said than done, I know.

[thanks to Jim Ryan for the link]

Remember the good old 1980s?
When things were so uncomplicated?
I wish I could go back there again
And everything could be the same.

I've got a ticket to the moon
I'll be leaving here any day soon
Yeah, I've got a ticket to the moon
But I'd rather see the sunrise in your eyes.

Got a ticket to the moon
I'll be rising high above the earth so soon
And the tears I cry might turn into the rain
That gently falls upon your window
You'll never know.

[CHORUS:]
Ticket to the moon (ticket to the moon)
Ticket to the moon (ticket to the moon)
Ticket to the moon (ticket to the moon).

Fly, fly through a troubled sky
Up to a new world shining bright, oh, oh.

Flying high above
Soaring madly through the mysteries that come
Wondering sadly if the ways that led me here
Could turn around and I would see you there
Standing there (and I would see you there, waiting...)

Ticket to the moon
Flight leaves here today from Satellite Two
As the minutes go by, what should I do?
I paid the fare, what more can I say?
It's just one way (only one way)...

[REPEAT CHORUS]

[REPEAT CHORUS]


-Electric Light Orchestra, "Ticket to the Moon"

In case you've forgotten... Last week a reporter fed a soldier a question about armor at an event in which Defense Secretary Rumsfeld was doing a Q & A with soldiers.

The event was between soldier and Rumsfeld and apparently this reporter was jealous and wanted to get into the action-- but as his defenders have been saying, he had a good cause and his question was legit.

But not so fast. A reporter with a cause, as we've seen so many times in the past, is often a reporter not doing the public a journalist's service... and it turns out that his question looks like it was not legit afterall.

The reporter's question (as dishonestly relayed through the soldier, but no no ethics issue here... sarcasm) provoked images of our brave soldiers digging through junkyards to armor their vehicles and conveyed the notion that our army was severely handicapped by a lack of armor.

The truth? Let this be very clear: I will not question that one soldier's honesty, perhaps he did have to dig around for armor for some reason, and that is deplorable if the situation was caused by his commanders. However, these facts from a Department of Defense press conference between General Speaks and reporters shed an important light on the situation:

- in that soldier's unit: 784 of 804 humvees WERE up-armored
- 80% of the humvees in Iraq are up-armored
- the army already (before the soldier's question) had contracts and plans in process to up-armor the remaining humvees
- the non up-armored humvees were focused on less dangerous missions

I will add this, however: this questioning reporter was embedded in that unit, and perhaps he personally saw a scary incident involving one of the non up-armored humvees, which then was the impetus for his question. I do not question his motives. But the end result of his action was to mislead the public, and that is what a journalist should never do.

I'd like to thank all of the guest-bloggers for their blogging throughout the last few weeks. It allowed me to focus not as much effort on my blog and more effort on such fun things as implied negative reciprocal covenants, the prima facie case of a negligent infliction of emotional distress tort, promissory estoppel's replacement of consideration in a contract, and the connection between 28 U.S.C. 1367 and rules 18-20 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

I have some great (hopefully!) pent up posts waiting to be unleashed, and now that I have more time, open-blogging will return to Fridays.

Happy Holidays!

...just like the Intel Bill:

D.C. Council Approves Deal to Finance Stadium!!!

I like to use Pat Roberts allusions whenever I can, so here goes. Two weeks ago, the supporters of DC baseball had cigar in mouth, celebrating baseball coming to DC, like Pat Roberts celebrating what he thought was going to be the passage of the Intelligence Bill. Sadly, last week the chances of DC baseball died. To quote Senator Roberts in a completely out of context way, the chances of MLB coming to DC were "slim to none. And slim just left town." Yet us baseball in DC supporters never lost hope and now the council has, in a 7-6 vote, finally adopted a stadium package. I'm booking my Padres v. Expos tickets for August riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight...NOW!!!

Also inside the magazine: ARod's tips for wearing purple lipstick!

Apple is being smart this time around.

First they came out with an HP-branded iPod last year, and now they have licensed iTunes to work on a Motorola cell-phone. This is brilliant-- cell phones are becoming nearly ubiquitous and this move will increase Apple's stronghold on the online music market, a consistent and growing source of income for the company.

Some might worry that this move might hurt iPod sales, but music enabled cell phones are going to hit the market and impact the iPod whether or not Apple joins in.

They royally screwed up when they refused to license the Macintosh operating system 15 years ago, and Microsoft took over on the desktop. Now, Apple is faced with a nearly identical decision with regards to iTunes and the iPod. I have called on them to open these things up, and it appears they are taking the bait.

When Pedro Martinez signed a 4 year, 53 million dollar contract last week with the Mets, he not only betrayed Red Sox fans, but he also betrayed Nelson de la Rosa. Who is Nelson de la Rosa you ask? Nelson de la Rosa is a 28 inch man, who Pedro Martinez befriended last season and became the Red Sox's unofficial good luck charm. But all the good luck de la Rosa brought to the Red Sox did not seem to matter to Pedro when he "laughed off" de la Rosa's role in bringing a World Title to the Boston Red Sox and said, "That was just a trick." De la Rosa was naturally crushed and said, "[Pedro] broke my heart." I know you might be hurt Nelson, but keep your head up high because by May the Mets will already be eliminated from post-season contention.




De la Rosa during better times.

How did gay marriage happen? Activist justices? Crazy liberals? Devil worshipping hedonists? Nope.

According to J. Edward Pawlick, this was all engineered by the New York Times

The NYTimes has a wonderful article, revisiting the Rwandan Genocide with ex-National Security Advisor, Anthony Lake. Mr. Lake screened pubicly screened the movie "Hotel Rwanda," on the condition he could speak about the situation in Darfur. An altogether fantastic article, Mr. Lake and the NYTimes leaves us thinking by comparing how the Clinton administration dealt or didn't deal with Rwanda and how the Bush administration is dealing (or not) with the situation in Darfur. The last few sentences read:

It was "shameful," he added, that his administration refefused to employ the term "genocide" for a period of six weeks. "It was based on the belief that if you used the word, then you're required to take action," he said. "They didn't go the sophistry route - using the word and finding a way to weasel out of it. Now in Sudan, we've used it and we're wriggling out of it's meaning. Which is more unattractive? I don't know."

President George W. Bush has been named the 'Person of the Year' by Time magazine.

...and now for a little rant. Slip up and call the award "Man of the year," no big deal. That's what it used to be called... no big deal. But, should you choose to purposefully call it that out of some purported principle: shame on you! This isn't about political correctness, it's about accuracy-- it would be rediculous to call a female recipient of the year, a man of the year. And yes, women are now in positions to gain such recognition. Get over it.



Also, congrats to PowerLineBlog, Time's 'Blog of the Year.' PowerLine was the primary blog to "break" the CBS forged documents story.

Planning a trip "down under" anytime soon? Be careful what you say: the government is listening.

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,11722782^26462,00.html

Apparently Australia's version of hate crimes legislation (gag me) includes mere words. The gist of the article is that some wacko (yea, that's a technical term) Christian sect said that Muslims were plotting to takeover the country. So a tribunal in Victoria convicted the group of "religious vilification", sentencing them to a fine.

Sure, nobody's going to prison, but's disturbing nonetheless. I got the story from "The Corner", over on NRO. Andrew Stuttaford made the post, and put it quite succinctly:

"Multiculturalism or free speech? You choose. You can't have both."

The FCC unanimously ruled to allow passengers to talk on their cell phones while aboard an airliner.

As far as convenience and entertainment goes, this is pretty cool. What could make a long flight pass quicker than a phone call with a loved one or friend? Also, if your flight is running early or late you can phone ahead to somebody set to pick you up, so that less of their time is wasted.

But some people are already complaining that this change will make flights highly annoying, and these concerns are well-grounded (no pun intended). Imagine five people in your immediate area chatting on their phones for a half hour. It could drive you up a wall. There's always headphones and an iPod though to help with that.

Last week, Victor David Hanson had a great piece in NRO likening Europe's dormant capacity for war to J.R.R. Tolkien's ents, which once awoken played an instrumental role in saving Middle Earth. [thanks to Dan Ornelas for the link]

And way back on November 21, I spoke of anti-Islamicist rumblings in Europe and the possibility of Europe fighting back. Now, we have this column, thanks to Chris Ptak, from Germany's Welt newspaper... strong words for the continent:



EUROPE -- THY NAME IS COWARDICE

by Mathias Doepfner


A few days ago Henryk M. Broder wrote in Welt am Sonntag, "Europe -- your family name is appeasement." It's a phrase you can't get out of your head because it's so terribly true.

Appeasement cost millions of Jews and non-Jews their lives as England and France, allies at the time, negotiated and hesitated too long before they noticed that Hitler had to be fought, not bound to agreements. Appeasement stabilized communism in the Soviet Union and East Germany in that part of Europe where inhuman, suppressive governments were glorified as the ideologically correct alternative to all other possibilities.

Appeasement crippled Europe when genocide ran rampant in Kosovo and we Europeans debated and debated until the Americans came in and did our work for us. Rather than protecting democracy in the Middle East, European appeasement, camouflaged behind the fuzzy word "equidistance," now countenances suicide bombings in Israel by fundamentalist Palestinians.

Appeasement generates a mentality that allows Europe to ignore 300,000 victims of Saddam's torture and murder machinery and, motivated by the self-righteousness of the peace-movement, to issue bad grades to George Bush. A particularly grotesque form of appeasement is reacting to the escalating violence by Islamic fundamentalists in Holland and elsewhere by suggesting that we should really have a Muslim holiday in Germany.

What else has to happen before the European public and its political leadership get it? There is a sort of crusade underway, an especially perfidious crusade consisting of systematic attacks by fanatic Muslims, focused on civilians and directed against our free, open Western societies. It is a conflict that will most likely last longer than the great military conflicts of the last century -- a conflict conducted by an enemy that cannot be tamed by tolerance and accommodation but only spurred on by such gestures, which will be mistaken for signs of weakness.

Two recent American presidents had the courage needed for anti-appeasement: Reagan and Bush. Reagan ended the Cold War and Bush, supported only by the social democrat Blair acting on moral conviction, recognized the danger in the Islamic fight against democracy. His place in history will have to be evaluated after a number of years have passed.

In the meantime, Europe sits back with charismatic self-confidence in the multicultural corner instead of defending liberal society's values and being an attractive center of power on the same playing field as the true great powers, America and China. On the contrary-we Europeans present ourselves, in contrast to the intolerant, as world champions in tolerance, which even (Germany's Interior Minister) Otto Schily justifiably criticizes. Why? Because we're so moral? I fear it's more because we're so materialistic.

For his policies, Bush risks the fall of the dollar, huge amounts of additional national debt and a massive and persistent burden on the American economy-because everything is at stake.

While the alleged capitalistic robber barons in American know their priorities, we timidly defend our social welfare systems. Stay out of it! It could get expensive. We'd rather discuss the 35-hour workweek or our dental health plan coverage. Or listen to TV pastors preach about "reaching out to murderers." These days, Europe reminds me of an elderly aunt who hides her last pieces of jewelry with shaking hands when she notices a robber has broken into a neighbor's house. Europe, thy name is cowardice.

I've added Kanka's Sports Page to the sidebar-- a great place to get sports and especially ND-related sports news.

Why the adult industry. How you ask? According to WTOP in Washington, D.C., Robert Siegel, who owns 11 properties that includes several gay nightclubs, a gay pornshop and adult theaters, spent several thousand dollars on automated phone calls, neighborhood signs and lawyer fees to get the City Council to vote down the Mayor's plan to build the stadium in the South Capitol area. Siegel's business's would have to move to make room for the new stadium if the funding for the stadium is approved.

This was originally posted on the ndnation message boards.

Notre Dame to College Football World: We're Done F#$%^&*! Around

December 16, 2004

(AP) South Bend, IN- The University of Notre Dame gave their players, alumni, and fans exactly what they were looking for this Christmas---an honest to goodness football coach. Charlie Weis, offensive coordinator of the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, replaces Tyrone Willingham, totemic African American saint and martyr, as the next head football coach of the Fighting Irish.

The hiring of Weis, 48, a white man who is neither Jewish, Hispanic, female, gay, trans-gendered, Pacific Islander, nor Inuit, shocked many observers. In an unexpected move it appeared that Notre Dame had hired its new coach based on actual football knowledge and an unapologetic commitment to winning. Nonetheless, the decision was cheered by the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA)

"It's a high-profile position that all wide-profile people can be proud of," said Barnie Ledbetter, a spokesman for the organization.

Notre Dame introduced Weis Monday, and the new coach addressed the curious crowd of reporters with confidence and enthusiasm. He described the remarkable journey that has brought him to the pinnacle of the coaching profession from his humble beginnings as a regular Notre Dame undergrad shotgunning Schlitz tall boys in Green Field. With fond remembrance for the tailgaters of his youth, Weis declared an early priority. "First thing we gotta do is dynamite that new quad."

Weis embraced the challenge of his first and, to his thinking, last head coaching job. "We come to Notre Dame with the intent of retiring here," he said. The implicit promise of winning multiple national championships was understood by all. At one point Weis said that he wanted to have a "nasty" football team, prompting gasps throughout the audience.

There were other indications that Weis would bring a tough, no nonsense approach to the job. He refused to complain about the schedule. He spoke confidently of his ability to win the battle of X's and O's. And when a reporter tried to goad him into commenting on Willingham's ouster after only three years, Weis stuffed him into a utility closet.

Weis' performance left an immediate impression among Notre Dame's assembled administrative ciphers.

"That was Parcellsian," declared associate athletic director John Heisler.

"It was Belichikesque," remarked vice president for university relations Lou Nanni.

"Did he really shoot a man in Reno?" asked assistant athletic director Missy Conboy.

The blunt talk of the press conference paled in comparison to the unconfirmed reports of the language Weis used in his talk with the team. "I counted six f-bombs and three mother f-bombs. And that was just when he was talking about playing USC," enthused one player.

"He said 'ass' and 'kick' in a way I've never heard a coach say it before," said another player.

"Before it was always, 'Men, we sure got our asses kicked today.' But Coach Weis said things like, 'We're going to kick BC's ass,' and 'We're going to run a kick-ass offense.' I was a little disoriented at first, but then I got really excited."

Added a third player, "Finally, we have a coach who knows that X's and O's doesn't mean kisses and hugs."

Notre Dame officials hoped that the unveiling of their new, spirited head coach would stem the tide of negative publicity that accompanied the school's decision to terminate slain civil rights leader Martin Luth---edit---Tyrone Willingham just three years into his six year contract. The controversy intensified when Notre Dame's presumptive first choice, Urban Meyer, turned down his so-called "dream job" in order to become the University of Florida's third choice to replace Ron Zook.

Zook's firing was significant because it meant that there were no coaches left in Division 1A with surnames beginning in "Z".

Comparisons between the two prominent programs were inevitable. The twelve days it took Notre Dame to hire a new coach from a standing start was an excruciating eternity marked by embarrassment and scandal. By contrast the 43 days it took the University of Florida to replace its coach were both brief and a model of efficiency and honest dealing.

Scientists call this anomaly the ESPN time-space distortion.

As much as the university tried to downplay the racial ramifications of the coaching change, some commentators weren't willing to let it go. Mike Wilbon, ESPN sports personality and spokesman for the Black Panthers, remarked, "What happened to coach Willingham was completely unjust. I predict Denzel will play him in the movie!"

Even former Irish players joined in publicly bashing their alma mater. Aaron Taylor, Mike Golic, and Raghib "Rocket" Ismail, who have each parlayed their gridiron fame at Notre Dame into highly compensated jobs at ESPN or its parent, ABC, were quick to take the company line.

"Notre Dame has lost its mystique," decried Taylor.

"No coach can win at Notre Dame today," lamented Mike Golic.

"Yo, yo, yo. I gotta represent for Ty. The Irish dissed my homey," said Ismail. "And they lack speed."

"They've gone native on us," grumbled sports information director Bernadette Cafarelli when asked to comment on the former players' defection to the ESPN chorus. "Can I say that?"

In an interview, Chris Zorich, former Chicago Bear, member of the Fighting Irish 1988 national championship team, Notre Dame Law School graduate and ingrate, accused his alma mater of selling out. "They're just like any other football factory now---except for the entrance requirements, the going to class, the bona fide majors, and the graduation rate...Oh, and the losing. Other than that they're just like Florida State."

Former Notre Dame quarterback and ESPN analyst Joe Theismann defended his school. "If selling out mean coming up with innovative game plans, making halftime adjustments, and recruiting effectively, then I'm all for it. Charlie Weis gets it. He can win and do it the Notre Dame way."

Tim Brown, the last Irish player to win the Heisman Trophy, agreed that Notre Dame could win with the right direction and leadership. "It's one thing to fight with one hand tied behind your back," said Brown, referring to the school's academic restrictions, "it's another thing to fight with your head up your ass," he said, referring to the incompetence or the school's administration.

Brown's comment was a thinly disguised reference to the tenure of outgoing university president, Rev. Edward "Defrocked" Malloy. Fr. Malloy opened the press conference that introduced Weis to the media. There had been some question as to whether Fr. Malloy would attend the media event after he had publicly and emphatically disassociated himself from the firing of Willingham, the numinous symbol of Malloy's racial sensitivity. The reverend's presence confirmed earlier reports that he had absolutely no shame. Fr. Malloy quickly turned the podium over to his successor, Rev. John "The Knife" Jenkins before retiring to a feinting couch that was brought in for the occasion. It was Fr. Jenkins, backed by key members of the board of trustees and their checkbooks that led the move to oust Willingham. Together, they hand picked a professional search committee that included such well-respected figures as former athletic director Gene Corrigan, who was responsible for hiring Lou Holtz.

This search process stood in sharp contrast to the one that followed the firing of Bob Davie three years ago. That time the school suffered embarrassment when it hired George O'Leary only days before discovering that the coach had falsified key elements of his resume. AD Kevin White had described O'Leary as a coach "right out of central casting." This time, White confirmed, the theatre department had no role in the search. Still, that didn't keep Chandra Johnson, drama queen and special assistant to Fr. Malloy, from shaving her head in an act of protest qua performance art.

In the end the search committee chose the highly credentialed Weis, who wore one of his three Super Bowl rings to the press conference.

"I had to rummage through my dresser drawers to find one," remarked Weis. "I usually just wear my Notre Dame class ring....It's the one I'm most proud of."



On a serious note, Father John Jenkins addressed the faculty board on Wednesday and here are his comments. The sooner Father Jenkins takes over as President the better.

Playboy is now offering iBod, a free collection of 25 soft-porn photos that can be downloaded and then transferred to your iPod-- for your... ummm... on the go enjoyment.

Apple has legally challenged such content geared for the iPod in the past, in efforts to maintain their image. I'll leave the morality to you.

The measure is the biggest change to U.S. Intelligence gathering and analysis since the creation of the CIA after World War II to deal with the newly emerging cold war.

Size matters. Face it, most people are fascinated by the enormous and the extreme. Color me no exception. Here are two examples of captivating enormity:

The first is that construction of the world's tallest building has begun. This big ass skyscraper, when finished, will measure an intimidating 800 meters tall, and 160 stories! That is around 1/3 taller than the current world's tallest building. To compare, this structure will be over 2400 feet tall, while the planned Freedom Tower in NYC will only be 1776 feet tall.

The second is the growing lava dome in the crater of Mt. Saint Helens. This line from the LiveScience article is quite dramatic, "...the dome's construction can be likened to a runaway freight train in terms of the steady forces involved..." The article also says that the new lava dome is bigger than an aircraft carrier. Dang.



Some say that girth matters more than height... when it comes to office space.


Oh, and we also have this spectacular "world's tallest bridge" in France:

Back in September, I expressed a hope that Major League Baseball would quickly award Washington, D.C. , the Expos, before the new anti-stadium Council Members such as Marion Barry take over on January 1, 2005. I assumed that if the Expos were awarded to DC before the end of the year, the votes would be there in the DC City Council to pass the stadium financing plan. How sadly mistaken I was.

Last night, the DC City Council passed a stadium financing bill, but with the admendment that half of the stadium financing has to come from private financing. Shockingly, this amendment was not proposed by the head of the DC City Council, Linda Cropp, until after ten hours of debate on the stadium financing issue. The passage effectively sinks baseball's return to the District since all this private money does not currently exist or is likely to exist before the end of the year, which is the deadline Major League Baseball set.

The reaction from Major League Baseball was not surprising. Bob DuPuy, the President of Major League Baseball, stated, "The legislation approved by the District of Columbia City Council last night does not reflect the agreement we signed and relied upon after being invited by District leaders to consider Washington as a home for Major League Baseball. The legislation is inconsistent with our carefully negotiated agreement and is wholly unacceptable to Major League Baseball."

As much as these latest events shocked me, it really should not be surprising considering that Marion Barry is reassuming a public office in a month. What irritates me most about what has transpired is the underhandedness Cropp went about in deep-sixing the stadium financing plan. I agree with the sentiments of Washington Post Columnist, Thomas Boswell, and DC Councilman, Harold Brazil, that if she was truly unhappy with the stadium deal that Mayor Williams has negotiated, she had two options: She could have voted against the stadium plan or she could have proposed her amendment, oh I don't know, maybe yesterday morning, as opposed to 10 pm last night. In short, Cropp blinded sided Mayor Williams and she even admitted it yesterday! So be proud Linda, after 33 years of no Major League Baseball in DC, you successfully drove out Major League Baseball before the team recorded its first out. I hear Linda that you're thinking of running for Mayor in 2006. Don't expect my vote or a vote from anyone with a brain.



Yeah, having to deal with Linda Cropp will cause intense emotional trauma.

Well, although this has probably been repeated ad nauseum about other shows, I think that reality TV has finally crossed the final line and gone off the cliff. Seriously, how more wrong can you get than having a show where someone who was given up for adoption has to guess who her real father is for a $100,000 prize? Sweet sassy molassey, what has our society come to? Is this entertainment? Sigh...

I don't know if DC has mentioned it before, but a friend turned me on the the blog Blue-Gray Sky, an ND-related blog. Right now it's all Weis all the time, but the contributors seem to know what they're talking about (a breath of fresh air compared to every mainstream media outlet that covers ND). Current post had me in stitches; if the recent Ty/Weis "situation" were made into a movie, whom would it star? Check it out, it even has pictures. Some of the highlights:

Donald Sutherland as Monk
Gary Burghoff (Radar from M*A*S*H*) as Fr. Jenkins
Frankie Muniz as Urban Meyer
Reginald VelJohnson (Carl Winslow) as Dave Duerson
Chuck. E. Cheese as Mike Shannahan
and my personal favorite, Francis the Talking Mule as Michael Wilbon

From this article from The Onion:

"Ever since I was a kid, Mom and Dad have avoided talking about their first couple years of marriage," said the 28-year-old Henderson, who visited his parents last weekend. "My sisters and I knew they lived in Indiana for two years, but we never knew why they moved back to Minnesota. Eventually, we started wondering if it was something too horrible to talk about. Who would've imagined it was such a non-story after all that drama?"

According to Henderson, whenever he asked his parents about Indiana, they responded in a "vague, noncommittal way, then changed the subject." . . .

Opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, only lost to the Ukrainian incumbent by a slim margin, despite the thousands of fraudulant votes in the incumbent's favor that led to the election's invalidation.

When the election is reheld on December 26, Yushchenko will be victorious. And the Ukrainian opposition, predominantly Catholic, will have succeeded in dragging that Soviet vestige into the west.

Why am I so confident? Well, the Ukrainian parliament recently agreed on a comprehensive electoral reform package, which should hopefully bar a repeat of the last election's fraud, and the confirmation of Yushchenko's poisoning has energized the opposition even more. How do you defeat a walking martyr?

A penny in your pocket
Suitcase in your hand
They won't get you very far
Now you're a 21st century man.

Fly across the city
Rise above the land
You can do 'most anything
Now you're a 21st century man.

Though you ride on the wheels of tomorrow (tomorrow)
You still wander the fields of your sorrow
What will it bring?

One day you're a hero
Next day you're a clown
There's nothing that is in between
Now you're a 21st century man.

You should be so happy
You should be so glad
So why are you so lonely
You 21st century man?

You stepped out of a dream
Believing everything was gone
Return with what you've learned
They'll kiss the ground you walk upon.

Things ain't how you thought they were
Nothing have you planned
So pick up your penny and your suitcase
You're not a 21st century man.

Though you ride on the wheels of tomorrow
You still wander the fields of your sorrow (sorrow)
Tomorrow, 21st century man
21st century man
21st century man...


-Electric Light Orchestra, "21st Century Man"

Mr. Weis, you have the 2nd most difficult job in the entire world (the 1st being the President of the United States)... God's speed! [photo thanks to The Backer ... scroll down and check out his other posts]



Christ beside us,
Christ before us,
Christ behind us,
Christ within us,
Christ beneath our feet,
Christ above us,
Everywhere Christ.

[in a Jerry Seinfeld voice] ... I mean, what is the deal with the Intel bill? Does it make us safer? Does it infringe on civil liberties? Iiiiiii don't know.

[end Seinfeld voice]

From my cursory glance at the bill's provisions, I think it's overall a good thing. It will probably make us safer, but how much so? One big worry is that this bill could give us a false sense of security. Another concern is that it could hurt privacy? But I have not seen this argument's particulars. Of course, it didn't even cover the huge issue of immigration. Some people are flipping out, I've been told, but I have no clue why... probably just being dumb.

Key provisions:

- doubles border patrol (good)
- requires all states to require certain documents to issue driver's licenses (seems good, but constitutional?
- National Intel Director (probably good, but I have concerns)
- "Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center" (good)
- Sets up a Privacy and Civil Liberties Board of presidential appointees to ensure protections. (good sounding but probably very bad)
- Strengthens rules to require a personal interview for nonimmigrant visa applicants between 14 and 79 years old. (good)
- Provides for wiretap powers to pursue individual terrorism suspects not affiliated with a group. (doesn't sound good)

Yup, you read that right. Students at Bennington College are fighting for their right to bare all, which they argue has traditionally been protected at the school.

Who volunteers to be DC's intrepid photo correspondant for this story?

The following was posted on ndnation.com today by one "ndoldtown".


Monday in the Monogram Room - a full crowd of ND supporters and press, an organ plays in the background.

Fr. Jenkins: "Charles, do you renounce the bubble screen?"
Weis: "I do renounce it."

(Scene cut - Kevin White leaving a hotel after a meeting of the National Conference of Athletic Bureaucrats Who Wear Real Estate Salesman Blazers finds himself stuck in revolving door. He looks out and sees a large swarthy man in a pinstripe suit and fedora "Mr. DeBartolo sent me. . . ")

Fr. Jenkins: "Charles, do you renounce 'parity', 'too tough a schedule', 'needing time to upgrade the talent', players not 'executing it the way we drew it up'?"
Weis: "I do renounce them."

(Scene cut - Joe Paterno settling in for his daily rubdown from his brother George and laughing about his comments regarding ND to ESPN. A figure appears in the doorway. Joe can only make out that the man is holding something small black and metallic and notices a gold ring with a blue stone on his finger. He begins to put on his thick bottle-bottom glasses, but only gets them halfway on. . . )

Fr. Jenkins: Do you renounce 'making the players fit the system,' do you renounce the West Coast Offense and all of its empty promises?"
Weis: "Yes, I do renounce them."

(Scene cut: Bill Diedrick had been planning on a trip to the coaches seminar on organizing play charts. Having developed five hundred new plays it was hard to keep them all organized and he was looking forward to the conference. A Notre Dame car and driver was arranged for him. As he settled into the front passenger seat, he noticed Jerome Bettis sitting in the back seat holding a stretched-out "Play Like A Champion Today" towel in his beefy hands. "Bill, you have to answer for twelve yards rushing against BYU. . . .")

Fr. Jenkins: "Charles, do you believe in God, the Father almighty, the Holy Catholic Church, Mary, the virgin Mother of God, Knute Rockne, Frank Leahy, the Gipper, Green Jerseys only for big games, Fair-Catch Corby, the Golden Boy, Bo kicking to Rocket, blue-grey October skies, Wayne the Train, Touchdown Jesus, the Bus, the Comeback Kid, Fling and Kling, the Springfield Rifle, the Crashing Croate, Number-one Moses, Theisman as in Heisman? Do you believe in the miracles: St Ara stopping the rain, parting the Tide and bringing precious gifts of Orange and Sugar, the wind dying before the toe of Blessed Oliver, St. Louis quelling the Hurricane and converting the Seminole, St Jerome gentling the Gator, St. Timothy's two letters to the Spartans, St Daniel escaping the Trojan's den with his cloak of green, Ismael the Moslem's two epistles to the people of Blue, St. Joseph changing the Chicken Soup into fine Italian wine on the frozen field of Cotton, the Four Evangelists on Horse traversing the meadow of Rose? Do you believe in one Holy, Catholic and Independent team, do you acknowledge no Conference for the forgiveness of mediocrity, do you look to the resurrection of the fullback dive and the life of our team to come? Do you believe in Notre Dame?
Weis: "I do believe."

(Scene cut: Father Malloy has been invited fishing on St. Mary's Lake with John Affleck-Graves. It is a good thing. He thought everyone would never forgive him after selling out ND to the WASP academics and the New York Times at that conference in the Big Apple. "No hard feelings Monk," says JAG. When they get out to the middle of the lake Affleck-Graves says, "Here let me show you my special trick for catching fish. . . "
Meanwhile, at the Grotto, Brady Quinn is lighting a candle for the new coach. He is jolted by a loud sound from the lake and a flock of birds scattering. He follows their flight as they rise and he sees the Dome. He smiles.)

Fr. Jenkins: "Charles, would you be Coach."
Weis: "I will."
Fr. Jenkins: Then I name you Head Coach of Football at the University of Notre Dame, In Nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti, Amen."

(Organ music rises)

Imagine if U.S. troops were accused of sexually exploiting children in impoverished nations. Imagine if a U.S. Cabinet secretary were accused of groping a female subordinate, whose complaint was then swatted aside by the president. Imagine if the head of a U.S. government agency and the president's own offspring stood accused of complicity in the biggest embezzlement racket in history.

Those would be pretty big stories, no? Above-the-fold, top-of-the-newscast stories. Yet the United Nations has been mired in all these scandals and until just recently hardly anybody outside the right-wing blogosphere has noticed. . . .

The U.N.'s friends are doing their favorite international institution no favors with this knee-jerk defense. Until it cleans up its act, the U.N. can never be as influential as its boosters would like. Even Annan recognizes this.

- Max Boot, as adeptly quoted by InstaPundit.


Then I must ask: why is the U.S. supporting Kofi Annan?

According to this report in the Chicago Tribune, Notre Dame interviewed Redskins's Defensive Line/Defensive Coordinator, Greg Blache, earlier this week. Blache, an African-American, previously served as a Notre Dame coach between 1973-1975 and 1981-1983, and is a Notre Dame graduate. Redskins officials believe Blache has an "excellent shot" at the job.

Call me cynical, but I believe this interview of Blache was Notre Dame's way to placate the Black Coaches Association and Black Alumni Association. Blache was a mediocre defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears between 1999-2003. Blache is most remembered in Chicago for saying that "sacks are overrated." In addition, Blache has never been head coach and nor is likely to become one soon in the NFL like Charlie Weis. But if this interest in Blache is indeed serious and they do hire him, I will very tempted to mail my diploma back to the University.

UPDATE: Looks like I was right. WMVP in Chicago is reporting that Charlie Weis has agreed to a contract to coach the University of Notre Dame.

UPDATE II: Whoops not so fast on Weis. Chris Mortenson on ESPN is saying that Weis and Notre Dame are in negotiations, but it still seems like it's a done deal.

UPDATE III: Ok, it's now a done deal.