Judicial activism.

Ann Althouse has an insightful op-ed in today's Washington Post titled "No Exit: Judicial activism is inevitable."

Fun with puns.

Sharon (5:53:00 PM): so registration for spring is coming up, and I get to take a lot of fun classes
Sharon(5:53:12 PM): I only have to take 2 more to finish my majors, so i'm taking like tennis and sailing
Eric (5:53:16 PM): nice
Sharon (5:53:21 PM): and either a music class or human sexuality
Eric (5:53:28 PM): human sexuality
Eric (5:53:33 PM): sounds productive
Eric (5:53:36 PM): no pun intended

"Obviously, people are talking about whether I will or should be running for president, and I’m flattered by that.”

Said Hillary Clinton during her first debate with the challenger for her senate seat in NY. MSNBC has this quote as the centerpiece of an article with the headline "Clinton acknowledges she's thought of '08 [presidential] run." -- but that quote doesn't add up to an acknowledgement that she's considered running. Of course she has thought about it, and probably is planning on it, but misleading headlines are a dirty way to get people to read an article. And I fell for it.

"German prisoners have no obligation to agree to leave jail before their sentences have been completed."

An inmate turns down several offers of freedom to stay in prison.

Gossip and Booze

Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette has been getting a ton of (apparently) un-earned coverage. Almost every review I've read has been mixed, but I still want to see it.

I have a confession.

A few years ago I coached at a basketball camp for kids. My team was 8-10 year old boys, some of them intense Spiderman fans. I was told, over and over, "Hey, you're Spiderman's girlfriend!" Ever since then I've gone to see every Kirsten Dunst movie, so I can re-affirm that I don't look like her.

I don't, right?

This is The Stranger's review, from which the title of this post is stolen, and here's New York Magazine's review, which is actually quite kind. Premiere reviewed it as well.

Does this count as child abuse?

Cheap, political, hilarious Halloween costumes for kids. I just might use one of these ideas for myself.

Look how smiley the kids are -- that makes it extra creepy.

John Roberts Day.

Tomorrow is Chief Justice John Roberts Day, and I'm not missing it to be in the library like I missed the Mayor's talk tonight.

Tomorrow is also D-Day, as in the day when LSAT scores come out.

Yeah, I'm gonna sleep well tonight.

Fun with text messaging.

Text conversation with Drew tonight, while I was seriously preoccupied with Jon Stewart:

Drew: Unitarian Universalism is going to save the world, look into it. Also Emersonian theories of originality and genius- interesting stuff.
Me: You're always the optimist Drew. It's almost endearing.
Drew: A realist, not an optimist- it's not so much in a religious capacity but in that its philosophy works toward being able to peaceably blend different religions within a single culture without violating the beliefs of any. And you know we're gonna blow ourselves to hell if something doesn't enable that.

Normal people use text messages for short thoughts and making plans, like "My house at 8." Philosophy majors aren't normal.

Also, last night I talked about John Ashcroft on The Daily Show, and the clip is here.

Steve Wynn destroyed a Picasso with his elbow.

Las Vegas millionaire Steve Wynn had just made a deal to sell his original Picasso for $139 million when he poked a hole in it with his elbow while telling what had to be the greatest story ever told at a cocktail party. No, really. He poked a hole in his Picasso while telling a story at a party.

I bet he was telling a story about how his painting La Reve (The Dream) would set a new record as the highest private art sale ever, $4 million more than the Klimt sold earlier this year. It's too bad that story didn't end happily ever after -- the sale is off now.

The Explainer Daniel Engber tells how it could possibly be mended.

NBC decides not to indulge Madonna.

The network is airing Madonna: The Confessions Tour on November 22. The 2-hour show includes Madonna's usual tactic of demanding attention by doing something offensive, then explaining it away in a statement released by her rep. This time, she hangs on a cross adorned with disco-ball style mirrored pieces while wearing a crown of thorns. NBC, however, decided to cut to other shots of the show while she does her mock crucifixion.

Speaking of YouTube...

...Troy Patterson argues that YouTube is like porn.

Oops.

I ended up not making it Mayor Riley's talk tonight. I have a paper due tomorrow and stayed at the library to get that done.

I live an exciting life, let me tell you.

Here's his bio on the College website. If I can find it, I'll post a YouTube clip from the speech.

Coming soon:

Chief Justice John Roberts will be in Charleston tomorrow to speak to the law school and take part in a panel discussion. Senator Lindsey Graham will introduce him and say a few words as well. The event is only open to the law school and Charleston lawyers, but I'm in one of Judge Carr's classes (I'm in my senior year at CofC and he teaches a few sections at the college) and he worked it out so that his students could attend.

Also, tonight Mayor Riley is speaking at the College. I'll attend both events and post something about them tonight or tomorrow.

John Ashcroft on The Daily Show

He has a book coming out called "Never Again." Isn't that a statement associated with the Holocaust? That seems horribly exploitative to me.

I am, however, impressed with how articulate Ashcroft is. He seems more at ease than Bush would be in interviews like this (though I know Bush would never go on The Daily Show as president.)

Ashcroft on torture: "You play louder music in here than they do at...[Gitmo!]"

Project Runway Finale

Jeffrey!?

Uli should have won.

I'm bitter.

Lost

I have never watched this show. My roommate Nicki is a fan, but I have intentionally steered clear of Lost because I've heard how addicting it could be. I do not need another TV show to watch every week.

That being said, I'm watching right now because Nicki's watching it and (regrettably) my laziness prohibits me from getting off the couch.

I thought this show was about people stranded on an island! So far I've heard references to magic, Mr. Echo the dolphin, an imploding underground hatch, a drug dealing priest and a polar bear. What kind of island is this?

Also, I think the show has some kind of magic power that makes people get physically excited when it's on: jumping, fidgeting, spontaneous yelling of things like "Locke was going to save Echo and kill BEARS!" I've also heard about paralysis and cancer being cured by the show.

Oh wait, that was on the show. I've been corrected.

The story of a North Korean defector.

Soyoung Ho of Slate traveled to South Korea and interviewed a man who escaped from North Korea and is now living in the capitalist south.

"Stephen Colbert has America by the Ballots."

I subscribe to New York magazine for articles just like this one about Stephen Colbert. In it, Adam Sternbergh compares Colbert to Ann Coulter in part of the article, and lists quotes by both without attribution so the reader can guess whether the quote was from Colbert or Coulter. It's surprisingly difficult to tell who said what; I didn't do well matching them.

Try it, maybe you'll do better than I did.

Speaking of clothes...

The Look Book: Aaliyah Taylor, Patti La Belle's stylist.

A little junk food for the mind.

I've had midterms the past two days, which means I've had very little sleep. My reward for working hard: goofing off at work by indulging in some junk food for the brain.

Like looking at the Project Runway collections and predicting who will win. My choice is Uli. I'm partial to beachy clothes, and that's what she does best, but I also like the non-Miami clothes in her collection, like the silver minidress with long sleeves. The best piece is the green dress at the end.

Here's Laura's collection, which is different variations of lace and feathers and black and white. Some pieces are elegant, but most of it is quite boring to me. Michael's collection was so disappointing! His clothes on the show had such reach; usually he came up with something stunning, no matter what the style. His collection for fashion week is very limited. It gives off an ostentatious in-da-club vibe, like a 50 Cent video. I can see it on beautiful, rich black women, but that's about it. He was absolutely my favorite on the show, but his collection changed my mind.

And here's Jeffrey, doing his '80s rocker thing again. It's different, I guess, but none of it is attractive. Isn't that the goal? To make creative, innovative, attractive clothes?

Conclusion: Uli wins.

UPDATE: I was wrong, but at least the Fug Girls agreed with me. Congrats, Jeffrey, but I wouldn't wear your clothes. Take that.

Sunrise

Sunrise, sunrise
Looks like morning in your eyes

Near-death by naval piercing; mom's going to jail.

A girl in Boston almost died because her do-it-yourself belly button piercing got infected. She was 13 and wasted away on the couch for a few weeks (dropped from 115 to 75 pounds) because her mother didn't take her to the hospital.

The mom was convicted of endangering her daughter's life.

"Area Woman Emotionally Invested in Jennifer Aniston's Well-Being"

Because we all need some cheer on days like these.

CBGB closes.

And I never got the chance to go! Did you know it stands (stood?) for Country, Bluegrass and Blues?

Evangelicals and the White House.

In my mind, I really pull for the good in people to come out. I generally give people the benefit of the doubt; sometimes even a little too much.

But that's just my hopeful side coming out. In reality, people are absolutely selfish. Some people do a wonderful job of thinking about others first, but only after they've overcome that first instinct to protect themselves. Especially in politics.

That's why I don't doubt David Kuo's story of how the White House views Evangelical Christians. Kuo was deputy head of the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives for Bush, and is now coming out with a book about his experience. Kuo says that he doesn't doubt Bush's faith, but that the president has treated Evangelicals as a way to win elections. Here's a quote from the excerpt of the book in Time:

"...President George W. Bush is a politician and is ultimately no different from any other politician, content to use religion for electoral gain more than for good works. Millions of Evangelicals may share Bush's faith, but they would protect themselves--and their interests--better if they looked at him through the same coldly political lens with which he views them."

I've had numerous discussions with my parents and others about faith and politics, and all that I've concluded is that religion and politics don't mix. I went to the Southern Baptist Convention with my dad this year and was dismayed at what I saw. The word "liberal" was being thrown around as a surrogate for "evil," and all the political talk just came across as hateful. Isn't the church supposed to care for poor and hopeless? Where in the Bible does it say that the church should slander political opponents? Where does it say the church should take political positions at all?

While there are still millions of people dying from disease and starvation in the world, churches have better things they should be doing.

I wish Evangelicals and all religious organizations would stay out of politics. Of course people have the right to organize and lobby the government, but not under the name of a church or religion. "Republican" does not equal "morally right," and the Bible doesn't belong to a political party. Reputations (and more) are damaged on both sides when churches and the government do business together.

As Helen put it, "People need to stop being so naive." But then again, David Kuo has a motive: he has book to sell.

NBC's 'Heroes' tarnishes the brand name of a garbage disposal. Forever.

Emerson Electric is suing NBC because in the first episode of their new show Heroes, a cheerleader with superpowers shoves her hand in an Emerson-made garbage disposal to show that it won't hurt her. The brand name was visible in the scene.

"But [Emerson spokesman Dan Callahan] also pointed out that, according to data from the government's Consumer Products Safety Commission, you are actually ten times more likely to get injured by your dishwasher than your garbage disposal."

It sounds like they're taking a little free publicity and using the court system to get some more. Had you ever heard of Emerson Electric before reading this?

Happy 300-Million Day.

The BBC has better coverage, and it's not as obsessive as the US news outlets. Obsessive is annoying.

"But it is not possible to say if the 300-millionth American will be born, or cross one of the country's borders. "

I just told the cashier at the grocery store that I wanted to be a pirate.

For Halloween. He looked like he was having a bad day, but he laughed when I told him that.

He laughed a little too much.

What, you don't think I could make a scary pirate?

I'll show all of you doubters. Wait and see.

"I've just got to live my life, this attention is negative..."

"...it's not something you want." -John Mark Karr, on Larry King Live. He's saying, on Larry King Live, that he doesn't want attention.

Then why give the interview?

"I think we are welcomed. But it was not a peaceful welcome."—Philadelphia, Dec. 12, 2005, on the reception of American forces in Iraq.

Anyone who has cameras recording their days for any significant amount of time will have some slip-ups, some statements that can be isolated and mocked. President Bush isn't just anyone. He's made comedians' jobs much easier by providing so much material.

It's his 6th year of being president. We should be used to it by now, but these are still funny to me. Jacob Weisberg has compiled the definitive Bushism list.

The HP Ads.

The only two computers I've ever owned are HPs. I'm a fan, and I love the new ads. You've probably seen them, and there's an interesting discussion of them here.

Weird dream.

I had a dream last night that was a little disturbing. I usually don't remember dreams, but this one I do, vividly.

I was traveling with a group of friends, and we were on an English speaking island somewhere near Australia. It was Sunday and we decided to go to church, but Helen had to leave to go home and the boat was leaving as church started. I went with her to the ferry and then came to church late to meet everyone. There was a line of men in suits, Secret Service style, standing in the back of the church, and for some reason I knew they worked for the government. After I sat down and everyone was singing, one of them came up behind me, and said "Next Sunday you're expected to be here, on time."

In the dream I was so angry! I turned around and said "Is it really the government's business whether I come to church?" and the guy, very sternly, said "Yes, it is." and walked to the back again.

Then my alarm clock went off, but I was angry at the government for a solid ten minutes or so until the dream wore off.

Have you ever had a dream so clear that you were angry/happy with someone in real life for what they did in the dream? I have, if only for a few minutes.

"Making men cry."

My little sister Grace is almost 16. I woke up to this IM from her:

Grace (8:56:50 PM): I read your blog and it was pretty interesting, you sound way too old though, when i read it i dont picture my 21 year old sister i picture a woman in a business suit making men cry.

300 Million

The Census Bureau says that the US will reach 300 million people at 7:46 am Eastern time on Tuesday. How can they know that? And will the parents of the 300 millionth person know about it when the baby is born? I'm assuming this means that the 300 millionth person will be born; but could it be someone moving here, or gaining citizenship, or illegally crossing the border?

CNN is making a big deal out of this. I suppose it should be a big deal- 300 million is quite the landmark. But their headline is "At 300 million, US enters uncharted territory." Every baby born or citizenship granted is "uncharted territory." There won't suddenly be a host of new needs the country has once that one baby is born.

This picture is screaming for a caption.

Please, please somebody step in and give a caption to this picture of giant Paris and scared little girl Nicole.

Postsecret.

It's fitting that Postsecret is updated every Sunday, when people wake up regretting the things they did Saturday night.
















I like to focus on the funny secrets instead of the sad ones.

Booksale!

Charleston has a book sale once a year where they sell books from the libraries that they want to take out of circulation. Paperbacks were 50 cents, hardbacks were $3.00. I walked away when it was getting difficult to carry all the books I wanted.

I bought some polisci staples: Henry Kissinger, a Bob Woodward book, the Washington Times' Starr Report. The classics: two by Faulkner, two by Hemingway, one Dostoevsky, one Salinger (NOT Catcher in the Rye). I filled out my philosophy shelf with some Aristotle and another version of the core Plato dialogues: Apology, Meno, Crito and Euthyphro. These four are almost always presented together, and when I see another version/printing that I don't own I feel compelled to get it. I have four so far. I bought a book of short stories by Jonathan Sanchez called "Fools All of Us: Tales from the White City." They're all about Charleston.

All of those, I think, were worthwhile purchases. But my favorites were several Better Homes and Gardens recipe pamphlets from the 70's and an Esquire cookbook from 1958. The Better Homes and Gardens ones have some frightening pictures of meals using jello and cheese. Microwaving is a primary cooking method, and the backgrounds are gloriously kitschy Brady Bunch kitchens.























Appetizing, no? I like these for some reason! Maybe just to look through them and gasp at what people actually found appealing. They remind me of this, Weight Watchers recipe cards from the 70's. Yum.

The Esquire book is different. It doesn't have any pictures, and it's a discussion of foods in Europe with some tips for men cooking for themselves. It's a companion for a "gentleman bachelor," because you know in the 50's if the man was married the wife would do the cooking.

Sitting on the floor.

It was a theme on Thursday. I went to a philosophy department talk on the appropriateness of teaching Intelligent Design in public schools. I arrived at 3:17 (it started at 3:15) and there were almost no seats left. There were already students sitting on the floor in the aisles, and rather than disrupt a row by making people stand while I slid past, I took a seat on the floor.

Dr. Nunan spoke mostly about the history of the ID movement, beginning with Creationism. The most interesting parts addressed what Creationists "did wrong" in terms of getting their proposed policy past the courts, and how ID advocates have changed their strategy.

Towards the end Dr. Nunan posed some questions about this issue that would have to be addressed in the future. He also recognized that although ID is often deemed outrageous by the secular world, religious parents have a legitimate concern: because school is compulsory and evolution seems to be necessary to science curriculum, shouldn't some alternative or an "opt-out" be offered as well? I enjoyed the talk, but it was more about process than ideology, so it would have been more appropriate as a political science department sponsored event.

After the talk, I met my friend Sarah and we went to see the advanced screening of Borat. We arrived half an hour early, and there was a line to the end of the parking lot. The organizers had given out too many passes! We stayed anyway, hoping for a spot, and it paid off. We were the last two people let in (have you ever had a velvet rope opened for you and then closed behind you? It's a good feeling. Then I had to remind myself that it was just a movie...)

There weren't two seats together, so we sat on the floor on the aisle. The movie was so wonderfully, universally offensive. I can't think of an ethnic/minority group that Borat didn't say something offensive about. Borat was traveling across the country, and there are a lot of his interactions with "regular" people in it. Borat would say something offensive, like an anti-Semitic comment or something about how women have smaller brains than men, and then the regular people would start their own tirades. I think some of it was acted, and the rest of the people had to sign waivers or releases, but this movie might get some people in trouble.

Here's my question: is something less offensive if it is universally offensive? Borat had demeaning views about Jews, black people, women, southerners, gay people, and almost everyone in between. Does the fact that we (the audience) can say "Oh, well he's like that about everyone." temper our personal reactions, whether or not we're offended? I don't get offended easily, especially from movies. But I can see a lot of people being offended by this one.

My recommendation: go see it. Laugh at Borat and how ridiculous he is, but don't turn this movie into an Old School-esque quote fest. That would get annoying very quickly.

Classic Colbert

I saw Borat last night, which I'll get around to posting about in a little while. I hadn't laughed that hard since I saw this, Stephen Colbert interviewing Eleanor Holmes Norton, congresswoman from DC.

"Thank you for taking time away from not voting to talk to me, congresswoman."

We all scream...

...for Ice Cream! Mary caught my mistake in the Ice Cream post and sent the link to the commercial. Either way, it's a great song. Here's the Intel commercial that made me want to look it up in the first place.

I dabble in Bad Jokes (capitalized).

This one is a philosophy joke.

"When a philosphy major graduates, he won't get a job...but at least he'll know why."

Ashlee Simpson is shrinking.

She's verging on dieting herself to a little-girl body, like Nicole Richie's done. I guess it was inevitable.

Snow is evil.

In my mind, hell is more like Buffalo, NY today than a fiery pit. I belong in the tropics, where it's still 80 degrees in October and I can wear a skirt year-round. Charleston's a ringer on both counts.

Oh, you don't have a clue what's coming.

I don't think my editor realized the extent of my outrage at this new "Snipe Ordinance" in Charleston when she agreed to let me write an opinion piece about it. Expect bitter sarcasm and evisceration (Google says that's not a real word!) of the city council.

I'm on my way to a philosophy department talk, but later tonight when I finish the article I'll post it. It'll be the unedited version, of course; I don't think they'll actually print the real article. I'll probably have to tone it down and re-submit it, but it's fun writing a first copy without censoring my thoughts.

"I can give you what you want."

The new Intel commercial has a really catchy song in it. I searched the only lyrics that were in the commercial (it's short) and found the group that the song is by. Here are the lyrics from the commercial:

"I can give you what you want
I can make your heart beat short
I can make you ice cream
We could be a sweet team..."

Recognize it now? It's by a group called the New Young Pony Club from the UK, and it's called Ice Cream. Here's the video for the song, but I couldn't find a video of the Intel commercial online. Let me know if you have more luck, I'll link to it.

It's a great song for a commercial because it demands attention, but I have to confess that I didn't remember the brand associated with it until I looked it up. So I guess the commercial as a whole isn't that effective. They need a better balance- get a song that's good, but not so good that it overshadows the product.

"I would like to make romance inside of her."


I was given free passes today to an advanced screening of Borat, which is tomorrow night. In my excitement, I came home and looked up the trailer on YouTube, which I've linked to before, but I also stumbled on a clip of Borat on Conan.

I'm typing this with tears in my eyes from laughing so hard.

Charleston's "Snipe Law."


The city recently passed a law making it illegal to post flyers on public property. The fine is $1087, or 30 (THIRTY) days in jail, and it also applies to flyers ("snipes") found on sidewalks or in the street. So if someone picks up a flyer at the Music Farm and drops it accidentally, the owner of the Farm is fined for it. Keep in mind that the number of robberies, murder, and assaults in Charleston has gone up this year, but instead of funding more patrols or hiring new officers, the city has deemed it more important to fight snipes.

The city council must be partaking in the crack that is abundant in Charleston ghettos for them to conclude that colored pieces of paper pose a greater threat to the city than violent crime.

Here's the City Paper piece on it.

I am irrationally fascinated with Scientology.


It started with the Southpark episode, which you can watch here. Then I met my friend Paco and read his absurdly charming story about identity issues, "Growing up Hispy," which includes this:

"In all, I’d say I’m a fairly standard American pseudo-intellectual. Oh, and I’m Hispanic. No, no… don’t worry; keep your wallet. All that means is that I’m perennially tanned. ...I was born under the glow of the Hollywood sign in a hospital on Sunset Blvd across the street from the Church of Scientology and the L. Ron Hubbard Center for Dianetics. Let the adventure begin."

Paco lives in California, and I visited him a few months ago. We went to LA for a day, and where was the first place he took me? The L. Ron Hubbard Center for Dianetics. It's a shame we didn't
go inside; I so would have been up for getting my thetan levels measured. But seeing it from the outside was enough to make me giggle for half an hour.


































I like reading about Scientology because it has so much comedic potential. I'm not a naturally funny person, but I can't help but think of all the ways Scientology could be mocked and parodied. Yeah yeah, it's not nice to mock another religion. But this one was started by a science fiction writer and includes aliens; in my head, it's fair game.

Michael Crowley has a piece in Slate today on the life of L. Ron Hubbard. Hubbard's biography includes witchcraft, science fiction, living in the desert and many legal problems. Despite all this, he was able to enlist millions of people for his "religion." That's frightening testimony to the power that charismatic people have.

Here's the Wikipedia entry on L. Ron Hubbard. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Jotto.


The new video from Jotto: Nashville in the Winter. Look for the drummer. He's a friend from Annapolis, Kristian Almgren.

How embarrassing.


A security camera caught a prosecutor walking around a government building after hours, completely naked. It happened in Hamilton, Ohio, and the guy is facing up to a month in jail.

What made this guy think that there weren't security cameras in a government-owned building? Walk around naked in your own house next time.

The Norks Have Nukes: Update


North Korea effectively said "up yours" to the US when they went ahead with their nuclear test. Don't worry though; someone at CNN is getting revenge, and having a little fun while they do it. Instead of running a picture of, say, a bomb or Kim Jong Il to accompany the story, they chose one of a boy in his Halloween costume throwing a rock.





















And the caption further emphasizes the middle-school recess-spat feel of CNN's portrayal: "US: We won't bend to North Korea Bullying." The Norks need a lot bigger rocks to scare us!

Congratulations, CNN, for showing a sense of humor.

I know where you live.


Not exactly, but I do have a sitemeter that shows where people are who read my blog. In the past week people in Dubai, Moscow, Singapore, Egypt and France have wasted their time reading my thoughts and rants. I checked this morning, and since I'm getting some traffic from Berkeley, here's a shout out to their student-run webpage: The Heuristic Squelch. A friend recommended it to me a while back, and there is some truly funny material there. The top ten (and five) lists are especially funny:

Top Five Pickup Lines for Poli Sci Majors
5) "Need a job? Some money? Here is half my sandwich."
4) "How 'bout you show me your Capitol Hills?"
3) "All it took was a minute of legislative analysis and you gave me this Washington Monument."
2) "What's the point of going to college when you can get a B.A. in Poli Sci?"
1) "I'm seeing U.N. me getting it on, IMFing you from behind, and NAFTA we can get some breakfast. Just don't give me USAIDs."


I realize that by declaring this funny, I'm revealing just how uncool I am...but I'm pretty comfortable with that already.

"The Norks have Nukes."


This is a series of interesting pictures of North Korea. It just seems so odd that today there are whole countries that are cut off from the rest of the world. There is no internet and no cell phones in North Korea, and almost no oil, so most labor is done by hand.

After you look at those pictures and get good and depressed, click here and laugh at the clay figure of Kim Jong-il. Making a world leader into claymation just has a way of sucking all the scariness out of him.

Jon Stewart totally reads this.


I mean, of course he does- he confirmed it the other day. Jon Stewart reads blogs.

Learn from the Friend-Making Experts.


This is in an email that was sent to students at my college today:

"Need help learning how to meet people and make more friends?
Come to a FREE mini-class and learn from the experts.

Wednesday, October 11
12-1 PM
Small Bldg., Rm 319
Feel free to bring your lunch!

Call 953-5640 for more information.
Sponsored by Counseling & Substance Abuse Services"


First of all: there are experts in friend-making? That sounds slightly creepy to me. "Come learn how to persuade people to talk and hang out with you!" Secondly, this is sponsored by the substance abuse office, which makes me think the email should read "Come learn how to make friends while you're sober!"

I'm curious to know if anyone will show up to the friend-making workshop- and if cocktails will be served. Probably not. On both counts.

Change: Postsecret.

Story time.


I was an alcoholic in high school. Well, that's what they said about me. I went to a private Christian school in Maryland where it was common practice for the faculty to "investigate" rumors they heard about the students. "There was a party at Jane's house this weekend? With alcohol? We'd better call an assembly and interrogate the students. Lord KNOWS what kind of damage was done to their souls." I drank maybe once or twice a month, which is probably half of what normal kids did. My vice wasn't drinking too much; it was being really bad at getting away with it (or really good at getting caught.) By senior year, I was having regular chats with the administration about my "alcohol problem."

For spring break of senior year, my family and a couple other families went on a cruise to Mexico together. Justin was one of my closest friends, and he had a girlfriend named Lindsay. Both of their families went on the cruise. Justin and I snuck some tequila shots when our parents weren't looking, and that fact mysteriously made it back to our principal once we were back in the states. I was effectively kicked out of student government because Lindsay, it turns out, thought something was going on between Justin and me and got her revenge by telling on me for drinking in Mexico. Good thing she's such a good Christian.

Fast forward 4 years. Last night, Justin called me. He was in Maryland on fall break and had gone to a party. A few minutes after he got there, some guys come downstairs looking for "The guy who just came in- some kid named Justin who made the girl upstairs cry."

The girl upstairs was Lindsay's little sister. She was crying because she was drunk, and because Justin "ruined" her sister's life by cheating on Lindsay with me four years ago.

This story is humorous for several reasons.

1) Justin and I have never, ever been more than just friends. Nothing happened in Mexico except illicit tequila shots and ridiculous souvenir purchases.
2) Lindsay's sister, who was driven to drunken hysterics by the sight of Justin, is underage. Nineteen, I believe.
3) I got Justin kicked out of a party in 2006 for something that didn't happen in 2003.

I'm glad my legacy is still going strong.

Justin summed it up nicely in an IM earlier today:

Justin (5:25:00 PM): ...what a loser, i can't believe i had an affair with you
Justin (5:25:38 PM): actually, i feel powerful knowing i've had such an impact on people's lives
Justin (5:26:30 PM): i mean hell, if i don't even do anything and girls' little sisters are still traumatized four years later, imagine what i could do if i TRIED to mess people up
Justin (5:26:36 PM): thats power

Justin could rule the world one day, and I'll still be riding his coattails.

"Is it weird that I'm getting a little emotionable?"


I have a strange fondness for Jessica Simpson. She sounds like she's incredibly dumb, but her stupid comments helped make her a millionaire. She invented a new word, "emotionable," at the VH1 Big in 2005 awards.

How do you feel about Friday afternoons?


This semester, I'm not working and I don't have class on Friday afternoon. I also can't get my body to cooperate and take satisfying naps anymore. So while everyone finishes up class and work for the week, I'm just waiting. I'd rather be working! I'd always rather be working than just waiting.

But I'd rather be shopping than waiting, so that's what I'm on my way to do.

Tara Reid is not a rock scientist.


Or a rocket scientist, for that matter. She accurately recognized that she was sounding dumb in an interview, and attempted to play it off by saying:

"I'm sounding worse than Jessica Simpson right now. She's sounding like a rock scientist!"

Nicki's friends amuse me.


Message Nicki received tonight: "Lets get naked chug tacos it's Gage's birthday!"

"Chug tacos"? I can't decide which mental image is worse.

Pink does more than you think.


The new pepto bismol commercial is great! I think its length made me notice it: it's only long enough to make you realize what they're rapping about, then you're left to giggle through the next commercial. "Was that a pepto bismol commercial? With white guys rapping? And dancing?"

Yup.

"I always think, When I die, they’ll lay me out in a casket, and who’s going to do my mustache?"


The Look Book: the attorney.

They find such eccentric-yet-cool people to profile in this section. It ignites this urge of mine to move to NYC and cultivate my own eccentric-yet-cool persona; never wear a polo shirt again. Play guitar and wear funky clothes and be too cool to care.

But what sober person, really, is too cool to care?

The rational basis for banning gay marriage.


What is it? I think the strongest argument is probably:

- The government has an obligation to act in society's best interest;
- It is in society's best interest for citizens to procreate;
- Children are more likely to be productive citizens when they're raised in homes with both a mother and a father.

But gay couples are already allowed to adopt (along with single people, etc), and surely adopted children are better off in homes with gay parents who are legally bound to each other than in a home with gay parents who aren't. A legal contract would either be neutral or increase stability; it wouldn't decrease the stability or longevity of a union.

So what's the rational basis for banning gay marriage? There's a good discussion about it here.

The LSAT drained my patience supply.


I cannot study like I used to! Maybe this will go away in a few weeks, and I hope so. Lately I haven't been able to sit still and study for longer than a few hours. I have a test tomorrow in Constitutional Rights of the Accused, and it's not even that complicated -- just memorizing some cases-- but I can't make myself do it!

My plan now is to get up at 5:30 tomorrow morning and memorize them quickly. I do work better under pressure, but this is pushing it.

Wish me luck.

"Muslims to Boycott All Pope Merchandise"


From The Onion.

"We are sending a message to Rome that they cannot insult the prophet, may Allah's blessings be upon him, and if they do, we will close our hearts and our pocketbooks to their extensive line of retail products," said Pakistani cleric Sheikh Othman Malik, who spoke to an estimated crowd of 10,000 in downtown Karachi Monday. "Our only recourse is to refuse to buy anything—be it candles, incense, Pope Oaties breakfast cereal, Popeshine shampoo...'"

Mark Foley is so off my buddy list.


This whole situation is horrifying. From the fact that he was an advocate for laws protecting children from pedophiles, to his "confession" today that he was molested by a clergyman as a child...didn't I see this on Law and Order once?

This is just begging to be made into an SNL skit. Or a hundred. Alex has been going crazy at Wonkette, and who can blame him? So, so much material here.

"Closet drinker." Hahaha.

Can the Amish ride in helicopters?


It depends on their ordnung.

Sharon's finally ready to talk about the LSAT.


After months of study and a 3-week pause in my social life, I took the LSAT on Saturday. It was the first step in a long process, and I'm glad it's over. Like exam week, huge tests like the LSAT create a sort of bond between people studying for them. I was in the library practically all of last week, and I met quite a few people with their Kaplan books spread out and their eyes glazed over.

I thought my primary enemy would be fatigue, that my concentration would fade and I'd become careless towards the end of the test. It is a 5+ hour ordeal. I was surprised when I found it hard to concentrate in the beginning. Worries kept creeping in, irrelevant thoughts. After the first two sections my focus returned, and I think I finished strongly. Scores come out in 2-3 weeks, so we'll see.

I feel like taking that test was an official declaration of intent. Like it's binding now: Sharon's going to law school. That's assuming I'll be accepted. If I get in, I'll continue this blog and join the flock of law school students with blogs. If I'm rejected, I'll probably keep writing anyway, but I'll have more interesting things to write about.

I'm just glad I can get back to the enjoyable tangents of senior year. Happy hour, anyone?

We should kick chaplains out of the military.


Or so James Madison said (as reported by Christopher Hitchens.) It is hard to get around the fact that chaplains are spokespeople for religion being paid by taxpayers' money. But should we deny soldiers whatever comfort they might get from talking to a chaplain or attending a religious service because of a church-and-state debate? That seems backwards. Sometimes the pragmatic concern outweighs the ideological one, and Hitchens is too caught up in the false piety of his own position to consider the effect this would have on soldiers.

He does, however, bring up an interesting point. If the military provides chaplains and/or religious services for every major religion represented, what about Muslim services that would be segregated by gender? When religious teachings interfere with military protocol or standards, the situation becomes much less clear.

Holy Photoshop!

Generally, airbrushing improves the appearance of the person in the photograph. In this case, Janet's neck was swallowed by a 1980s aerobics instructor. I guess this was the best the editing department could do with the aftermath. Jazzercise, anyone?

"Sometimes holes were cut in the paddle to make the beating more painful."


The NYT has a piece on corporal punishment in public schools. Of the 300,000 students punished by being popped with a paddle in public schools in 2002-3, seventy percent were from 5 southern states: Texas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas. The south just doesn't like change.

I was spanked growing up. It worked, and it didn't make me any more likely to punch someone on the playground. But I would not want a school principle to touch my child, especially with a wooden board.

"You're just going to end up doing the 'walk of shame,' and that's not cute."


Fox has a video about college students have sex (via Wonkette.) Fox News' "relationship expert" even advises against spending the night afterwards. Because the walk of shame is so not cute.

Oh, Helen.


"Ok, I have some girl to girl advice. Yelling out "I would totally do the whole left side of the table!" is NOT the proper way to meet men. Especially when the left side of the table is composed of gay men."

Borat: Cultural Leanings of America for make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan


It doesn't come out until November 3, but it has already received mainstream media coverage thanks to Kazakhstan's legal threats against Sacha Baron Cohen, the comic and star of the movie. They say it portrays Kazakhstan in a bad light, etc. To combat the negative attention they mistakenly thought the movie would bring their country (as opposed to what, no attention? Had you ever even heard of Kazakhstan before this?) the Kazakh government launched an enormous PR campaign in the US. And because that wasn't quite enough, the Kazakh president himself scheduled a diplomatic visit to the US to meet with Bush.

So to fight the bad attention they think a movie will bring them, they take out ads in the NYT to say "No, look, we're really a great country!" All they're doing is free advertisement for the movie itself, and doing it more effectively than a movie studio could have done.

There's a screening for the movie coming up and the Kazakh president is visiting the White House today. Coincidentally, Borat himself showed up at the White House today to personally invite "Premier George Walter Bush" to the screening. Also invited, he told secret service agents, are O.J. Simpson, "Mel Gibsons and other American dignitaries." Not surprisingly, he was denied entrance.

Watch the trailer.

"This is an American delicacy. We call it a 'twinkie.'"


Jon Stewart interviewed Pervez Musharraf and gave him a twinkie. "Now, where is Osama bin Laden?"

The fact that Comedy Central can land an interview with the president of Pakistan is proof that the network plays a solid role in American politics. Young people who don't recognize the names of network anchors watch The Daily Show, and it's a primary source of political knowledge for a lot of them. If only Jon Stewart could get them to vote.

Stewart-Colbert '08, anyone? At least it would get my generation involved.

I take the LSAT on Saturday.


But I can't bring myself to talk about it. Not until after Saturday, after the memory of the fear fades a little. It's just a test.

It's just a test.

I love it when unexpected funniness occurs.


(Sidenote: I don't like how the word "random" has become a catch-all word to describe things that aren't really random. Since that was the word that came to mind when I was writing the title of this post, I looked it up in a thesaurus and saw something amusing. Listed as a synonym for random: promiscuous. If random means choosing or proceeding without exercising reason or preference, does promiscuous mean sleeping with people without reason or preference? Like picking people out of the phone book? Ew. Now try to get that out of your head the next time you hear the Nelly Furtado song.)

The other night my roommate Nicki and I were watching TV, and she got a text message. Looking at it with a confused expression, she said "I don't recognize the number." Then she fell off the couch laughing. I grabbed her phone and read the message, which was from an Atlanta number that wasn't in her phone. It said "Everybody get naked!!!!!!"

She still doesn't know who sent it.

A New York Times food critic trades places with a waiter.


If you've never waited tables, you have no idea how much pleasure I derived from reading this article. If you have waited tables, God bless you.

CofC probably would have rejected me this year.


When online socializing led to getting in touch with people I went to elementary school with, several of them asked "What college is CofC?" Legitimate question, I suppose. We don't have a football team, and if you're not from South Carolina you might not know who we are. Maybe that's slowly changing.

The new George Street Observer has a small piece on the SAT scores and grade point averages of freshmen admitted this year. The average SAT score was 1220, and GPA was 3.81. The honors college averages were 1340 and 4.34.

The honors college numbers make me wonder about the high school classes that allowed the students to have obscene GPAs like 4.34. I thought that was barely possible. How can it be the average?

I was accepted in the honors program, but the 8 required credits of history and post-calculus 2 that was required scared me away from it. By the time I arrived here, I was done with high achievement. I wanted to go to a party school; to roll off the beach and into class with sand still on my feet. It looks like people seeking that type of atmosphere are increasingly better students.

Either way, if I had applied this year straight after high school, I might not have been accepted. It looks like I was just in time.

What would Donald Trump do?


"If my religion were based on the teachings of Donald Trump, I would try to make a lot of money and keep it all. And I’d feel good about it because I was being true to my beliefs. I’d hate to go through life feeling like a hypocrite."

Sometimes I read things and wish I had thought of it first. This made me giggle and wish I had thought of it first.

Six Flags turns Fear Factor.


Six Flags Great America is offering a pass that would let you jump to the front of the line for any ride in the park. How do you get it?

Eat a LIVE Madagascar hissing cockroach. Live. Whole.

You have to sign a waiver to do it. I wonder about this kind of thing, like contestants do on Fear Factor. How do they know it's safe? Did someone try it out first? And who would do that?

People have died this week from eating spinach, and now Six Flags is asking you to eat a live cockroach. I'll pass, thanks.

"Insulting Turkishness" and the pope: free speech.


Ann Althouse discusses both here.

Michael Jackson wants to open a leprechaun-themed amusement park.


In Ireland. Michael, having sex with little boys is illegal in Ireland too. Will somebody please tell him that?

This is offensive in many, many ways.

"I judge you when you use bad grammar." update:


Members: 1407!

As requested, the category has been changed from "Just for Fun: Totally Pointless" to "Common Interests: Beliefs and Causes." We're now officially a cause.

In praise of reasonable professors.


I have a cold but I went to my 8:00 class this morning anyway. In my next class we were supposed to have a quiz, but I got there and was told by another student that it had been moved to next week. As I was standing up to leave, the professor walked in. He caught me!

My heart dropped; I would have to stay a whole hour and fifteen minutes and be that annoying person sniffing and coughing every twenty seconds.

He asked where I was going, and I said "Nowhere. I have a cold and was going to leave when I found out the quiz was moved, but I guess I'll stay."

"What? I'd rather have you leave than infect the whole class! Go home and sleep. I'll see you Tuesday."

And now I'm off to curl up under the covers.

Hugo Chavez to Bush: "You're the devil...um, and you smell really bad!"


I work at a law firm that shares space with an organization called the NEFA foundation. It stands for "Nine-Eleven: Finding Answers." They fund counterterrorism, or something along those lines. Whenever people get arrested on planes, or there's a military coup in another country, or a world leader calls Bush a name, they get mad and the office gets busy. I just overheard them talking about this in hushed, intense voices, so I went to CNN.com to see what the big deal was.

Hugo Chavez told Bush he smelled bad. Hahaha, so playground insults carry over into adulthood in Venezuela? To be fair, this is the actual quote (via CNN):

"The devil came here yesterday," Chavez said, referring to Bush, who addressed the world body Tuesday from the same lectern. "And it smells of sulfur still today."

"I judge you when you use poor grammar." update:


I posted the other day about the Facebook group I created, and only 41 people had joined. Are you ready for this?

We're up to 520 members. Keep spreadin' the gospel!



UPDATE #2: 682 members. I'm in love.

My favorite posts from the group:

"People who suck at English aren't real people." - Michael Howell
"I love it when people tell me 'your retarded.'" - Mark Gardner

"Their breasts will sag and their faces will wither..."


A pastor from Texas predicted this to be the fate of Jessica and Ashlee Simpson because they use sex to promote their albums and movies. "Their breasts will sag and their faces will wither and they will be left with nothing but a hollow shell." Ouch.

I bet Jessica Simpson is tired of people talking about her breasts in public. Ashlee, not so much, but Jessica's breasts have been the focus of entirely too much publicity. Aren't there other subjects worth speaking publically about, especially for a pastor? You know, like war or murder or poverty...Pat Robertson or killer spinach? In my humble opinion, these are far more significant threats to the souls of Americans than Jessica Simpson's breasts.

Nice work Al Qaeda, prove the pope wrong.

Above is a picture of an Al Qaeda linked group burning a figure of the pope in a demonstration in Basra. And what, exactly, are they protesting? Being called violent.

So the pope quotes a centuries-dead emperor saying that Muslims spread religion using violence. The pope then clarifies his statement by saying that this is not his opinion, he is only quoting someone else. In response to being called violent, the group releases a statement that says, in part, "We will break up the cross...the only thing acceptable is a conversion [to Islam] or the sword." And figuring that words weren't enough to show exactly how non-violent they really are, they burn an effigy of the pope.

Nice comeback guys.

That's like Bill Clinton saying "I am not unfaithful! Stop saying that, or...or I'll sleep with your wife too!"

Grammatical violence!


The other day I created a group on Facebook called "I judge you when you use poor grammar." Forty-one members so far! It's funny to me how Facebook has served as an outlet for stating irrational annoyances. The most gratifying part is seeing other people agree. Did I mention that 41 people agree with me?

This pet peeve isn't totally irrational though. I see companies sometimes that print flyers, posters, etc. with grammar and spelling errors (and misused words), and it makes me think how I'd never want to work for them. If there are grammar mistakes in materials that they post in public, how conscientious are they about other things? I don't have much confidence that they do quality work when I see sentences like "We'd love to have you're business."

The latest one I spotted was a sign on a certain King Street business stating:

"Now excepting applications."

It makes me want to carry around a red pen and mark things up, or maybe stab the offenders in the face with it. But that would be taking things a little too far.

Wouldn't it?

Messages from my brother: Part I


3:30 PM Friday (voicemail):
"ANSWER YOUR PHONE! I have a joke: What did the blind and deaf kid get for Christmas?"
...Silence.
"Leukemia. I love you call me back."


4:30 AM Saturday (voicemail):

"ANSWER YOUR PHONE! I just watched a kid jump out of a second story window. I mean he had a rope and everything, but whoa."


10:03 AM Sunday (in a text message):
"I woke up on a bench."


Some background in case you don't know Jay: He's a sophomore at University of Alabama, in a fraternity, and an aspiring alcoholic. He's also my hero.

Beware...


Deadly spinach!

Hallelujah, revisited.



It’s raining, Nicki and I are attempting to study, and I’m taking a break. I’m playing Ari Hest doing Hallelujah because it fits with the night. The rain and quiet demand it.

I listened to it today walking and was reminded of his command of his voice, of pitch, dynamics, the emotion reflected in the breaks. He knows the direction and arc of the song, and he pushes two climaxes out of it. Yes, like sex. “Remember when I moved in you, and the holy dove was moving too, and every breath we drew was Hallelujah.”

Probably because of the roughness of his voice in other songs, I’m always surprised by how he hits in the very center of pitches in this one. A bulls eye. That’s rarer than it should be in pop music. His falsetto is also startling; his range is higher than I’m comfortable with as a girl, and below it he’s a strong baritone.


Maybe there’s a God above
And all I’ve ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you
It’s not a cry that you hear at night
Not somebody who’s seen the light
It’s a cold and it’s a broken hallelujah


After this verse his voice breaks and it sounds like he’s faltering, like he’s about to cry. If it’s an act, then I’m fooled. And smitten.

Five years ago.


Five years ago today I was a junior in high school. The loudspeaker called us into the auditorium, and Geoff said that planes crashed into some buildings in New York, and I didn't believe him. No way, we were just in trouble again. Trash in the hallways, gossip, bad sportsmanship at a soccer game (things that were offenses at Annapolis Area Christian School).

I remember feeling disbelief even when it was official, announced by our principal. We were sent back to our classes, and someone found a radio. I was in Mrs. Brown's English class. It seemed like we were in a war decades ago, huddled around the radio for news. The people talking on the radio were hesitant. They didn't want to sound hysterical, so they announced information in uncertain terms: "As far as we know..." "I'm being told now that..." "It seems to be...". Responsible journalism.

I called my mom on my cell and it took a few tries to go through, but I got her. She taught at the middle school. When she announced it to her class of 7th graders, a little girl raised her hand: "My dad works at the Pentagon." How do you respond to that?

My dad didn't work at the Pentagon, but he was flying that day. From Birmingham to Baltimore, and I couldn't reach him. I knew he was okay but I wanted to hear him.

I got Jay, a freshman, and picked up Grace from the middle school and went home, driving carefully. The radio wasn't playing any music.

I remember going to Wednesday night dinner at church and feeling outraged. Normal life was still happening. We were gathering, talking, eating, laughing. The next night a few friends got together at Robbie's. We watched the President speak and I was comforted by the Bible verses and his strong words. It is so different now.

Are you going to watch the 9/11 miniseries?


Because I'm not. Not yet, anyway.

It hasn't been long enough to make a quality, artful portrayal of September 11th. Saving Private Ryan and other war/conflict movies are so heart wrenching because they show weakness in the heroes: a soldier crying for his mother on the beach at Normandy. We're too close to the event to show any weakness in the heroes for 9/11. It would be crass, disrespectful. The miniseries might make you cry, but that's because it's evoking the feelings you had during the actual event. It's not a testament to the effectiveness of the series that we're crying.

I might watch it later, when it comes out on DVD perhaps. Just not yet.

Finally, the GSO website is being updated. It's a week behind, and all the articles aren't there, but it's better than nothing. My piece on Plan B should be on it when they update it for this week.

George Street Observer

I've resumed blogging, as long as Blogger cooperates.

One last week in Greece. It's bittersweet, but I've found that life is almost always that way.

Truthiness- Word of the Year