Soap Operas Are To Heroes As...

I've never understood why so many people watch the Soaps (All My Children, As The World Turns, etc.), until I started watching NBC's Heroes. You see if I were home during the week, I would sometimes flip through my nine channels (I don't have cable) and land upon some Soap. Try as I might, I could never sit through the whole thing - it was always that bad. Well, with Heroes, I kind of, I think, understand the allure of the Soap and it has something to do with the endings. I think that while you are watching YnR or General Hospital, you may not be exactly entertained, but you are intrigued to see how a situation will resolve itself. It is the same way for me and Heroes. While watching the show, I am not terribly entertained, but I feel the need to see how it ends which Heroes accomplishes nicely. Heroes use of a "hook" at the end of each episode makes you want to come back for more; it is the same, I assume with Soaps. It is the overall arch of the story that keeps me coming back to Heroes, not the individual episodes. Make sense? I would imagine if I started watching the Soaps at the beginning of some new story arch, I might be more inclined to follow through to the ending, much like it is with Heroes since I started watching Heroes from the start.

Where am I going with the post? Basically, I am saying Heroes as individual episodes is not really that intriguing, but the story arch is. It is the arch of the story that keeps me coming back. So that is why I posted this. And I'm bored at work today.

The "N" Word (Nazi, not the other N-word)

money quote:

"When the administration established a class of nonpersons known as the "unlawful enemy combatant," I flashed on how the Nazis legalized their treatment of the Jews simply by rendering them stateless. And then in 2004, the Republicans threatened to override Senate rules and abolish the filibuster in order to thwart the Democrats' stand against Bush's most extremist nominees for federal judgeships. This "nuclear option" (so named by Trent Lott in acknowledgment of his party's willingness to destroy the Congress in order to save the country) struck me as a functional analog of the Enabling Act of 1933, which consolidated the German government under Chancellor Hitler and effectively dissolved the Reichstag as a parliamentary body."

Why don't you read the whole thing? Definitely worth the read.

via Slate

Snowboard

Most of my friends are gay. Actually, all my friends seem to be bent. As such, I don't have anyone that goes snowboarding. Now, I know there are gays that snowboard, I just have had a difficult time finding them. So, I am officially asking, nay, pleading, for someone to go snowboarding with. Because I don't have a car, I can't drive up myself for some solo boarding. If you have a car, snowboard, and don't mind hanging out with a gay guy (assuming you are straight), please drop me a line.

I must warn you though, it has been a couple of years since I've been 'boarding, so don't expect me to do too well on the slopes.

Kermit Speaks

We all know how revelations can be revealing.

Recently, having listened to Dan and Jimmi's latest Varietycast, Dan played the voicemail I left after I listened to the first Dan and Jimmi Varietycast. Well, it is now clear I should never speak into any recording device again. Futher, I should never speak at all. I've said it before that I sound like a gayer Kermit the Frog. Well, after listening to the Dan and Jimmi Show, I have decided to never speak again. From now on I shall only speak using sign language. So, if you do not know sign language, you will not understand a thing I have to say. Your loss. Having said that, to communicate with me via cell phone, please only text me. If you run into to me on the street, please be prepared with a pad of paper so we can have a conversation.

My only consolation is that when I do speak, my voice is easily distinguishable from all those gays on Dan and Jimmi's show.

;-)

Random

A few things...

Mikey, in an email today, implied I am not trendy. You see Mikey claims to have found my new boyfriend, "He’s brunette, a bit shorter than you. Not too skinny. Not overly trendy. Nice smile." While I appreciate that Mikey is on the look out for my next boyfriend, I must protest the implication that I am not trendy! After allonly the coolest cats shop at Gap.

__________________________________________________

This is a public service announcement to any contracting company that gives small packs of cookies to the people that hire your contractors. If you are going to thank us (by "us" I mean me) by giving a small gift of cookies, please be sure the cookies are actually edible. Cookies tasting like moist chalk will not impress the office manager (that would be the office manager that ensures you contractors get paid in a timely manner, btw). Mmmkay?</DIV>

____________________________________________________


We all know by now that the Democrats did rather well in the last election and I want to give you, my many reader, my opinion why the Democrats are now in power.

Now many of you may believe the Democrats took the House and the Senate because of the the War in Iraq, Katrina, crazy out of control spending, corruption, hypocrisy, War in Iraq (did I already mention Iraq?), but you would be wrong. The country (and the Democrats) should thank the true power behind the Democratic take over of both houses of Congress, Whitney Houston. That's right, it was Whitney that turned the tide of leadership in our government. For too long Whitney was the Diva manifestationf the United States, once strong and proud with a voice that soared, but she fell in with the wrong crowd and started a dysfunctional and dangerous relationship with someone many knew to be a bad influence, Bobby Brown. Now Bobby is the coke-head manifestation of George H.W. Bush and the Republican Congress. Bobby has surrounded himself with "yes men" and at every turn with nary a care to listen to what others were saying (Bobby never reads the papers, I guess). While on the outside there were many calling for him to change his ways, Bobby refused to grow up and act like an adult.
Every now and then Whitney would come out to try to change her image that had been so damaged by years of selfish indulgences, but inevitably she would fall back on the old, comfortable, bad habits, much as the United States would half-heartily try and fail, too. This cycle of pain finally came to a stop when Whitney realized her mistake and dumped the source of all her problems. It is when Whitney dumped Bobby, that the United States started to realize change can happen, we can get out of this mess. There is hope. After all, if Whitney can wake up and break the bonds of recklessness, so can the United States. With Whitney as metaphor the the United States, the citizens of the United States felt they too felt it was time to dump their Bobby Brown Congress.
In short, we owe to Whitney Houston our thanks for showing us we can take our country back from the Bobby Brown's of the world. Without Whitney's strength, America might be a very different place.

Thank you Whitney Houston, thank you!

Drive By Review: Casino Royale

A better Bond you will not find.

My Love For Dan Savage Is Like A Steamroller. Only Faster. You Know Because Steamrollers Are Kinda Slow. Except Mine. Because It's Fast.

I appologize for the extended and painful metaphor, but love does that to me. You know that love that's like a steamrolloer? Yeah, that one. Anyway, on with the post...

Rural Rubes:

"It doesn’t matter to the rural rubes that Democrats, by backing programs like family leave to national health care to an increased minimum wage, demonstrate that they actually value families, and don't just pay lip-service to "family values." What matters to the rubes, it seems, is voting for people they want to have a beer with-even if, at the end of the legislative session, they can't actually afford to buy a beer."

read the whole post via The Stranger Slog

Mortified

Funy, funny shit...



via Kyle

Quote Of The Day

From CNN's John King referring to Ken Mehlman's resignation from the Republican National Committee:

"He's been on the gerbil wheel, as one of his close friends put it, for well in excess of six years now and he's tired."

Gerbil wheel?

Did he just say "Gerbil wheel"?

via Americablog

Creepy

Am I the only one that finds it extremely creepy that Santorum's daughter is wearing the same dress as her little doll?

Rumsfeld To Step Down?

That's what the bannerat cnn says.

Update:
Rumsfeld is stepping down.

Arizona! Democrats!

Congratulations on the defeat of Prop 107 Jimmi, Chris, Darin and all the 'Mos I don't know down in Arizona!

And to all the Democrats elected? Let's not forget that whole Checks and Balances thingamajig.

One Of These Things Does Not Belong

I feel it is my duty to tell the candy eating public of the absolute disaster that is this:


Whatever you do, do NOT eat this, this insult to the palette.

Peanut Butter and Chocolate? Mmmm, Mmmmm, Good! Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Caramel? Dear god, NO!

Have these people not heard of market research? And if they did, what market did they research? The blind, tongueless chimpanzees market? (I regret any insult I might have caused to any chimpanzee. Tongueless or otherwise).

Thank you. You may now return to your regulary scheduled exit pole watching.

One more thing: Checks and Balances. That's what this election is about.

Checks and Balances.

Dirty Tricks

Seems the Repuglicans can't play fair. If you ask me, jail time is called for.

In Arlington County, resident Timothy Daly said he got a phone message Sunday, said to be from the "Virginia Elections Commission," telling him he was registered to vote in New York so he couldn't vote in Virginia.


"If you do show up, you will be charged criminally," said the message, the text of which appeared on Daly's affidavit to the Board of Elections.

Lawrence Peter Baumann, a Northampton County resident, said in his affidavit that he got a call on Friday from a woman claiming to be from the Webb campaign. He said he assured her he planned to vote for Webb.


"She then told me that I would be voting at West Reed Street. I told her that there was no street by that name and that if she was supposed to be helping Webb, she needed to give correct information," Baumann's affidavit said. "She never gave me the correct precinct and never offered to get back to me with my correct precinct."

via SFgate

Voting Problems?

If you encounter any irregularities in voting, call:

888-DEM-VOTE (888-336-8683)

War In Iraq Is Over

That's what military recruiters are telling kids to get them to sign up.

"Nobody is going over to Iraq anymore?" one student asks a recruiter.

"No, we're bringing people back," he replies.

"We're not at war. War ended a long time ago," another recruiter says.


Wow, Bush Co. has made me soooooo proud to be an American.

So. Proud.

Freedom

via Andrew

The Closet Opens

Usually when an actor finally comes out of the closet I'm kind of "ho hum" about the whole thing But Neil Patrick Harris has now come out and I'm all smiles. NPH is the main reason why I watch How I Met Your Mother, anyway. I also think it is more significant than when Grey's Anatomy actor T.R. Knight came out simply because, with regard to NPH, a lot of America saw NPH grow up as Doogie Houser, MD. It is also important for actors to come out simply because they work in the most powerful and influential industries when it comes to shaping how people think. When you count the number of televisions in a household, you can see why having more people that are on television shows to come out is very important.

Legislation granting rights to gays and lesbians is all good, but too often people feel put upon by those scary gays on the news demanding rights. But when a popular actor comes out, a familiar face, a face that is in your house every week, our cause gains more sympathy, I think. After all, if Doogie Houser is gay, maybe we aren't as scary as so many think.

Poor Katie Couric

It seems Katie Couric can't get The CBS Evening News out of the third place gutter. I think this goes to show that just because someone is a popular perky morning show host, doesn't mean she will be a popular evening news host. It seems to me that there is one big obstacle that CBS didn't think about when they hired Couric to anchor the CBS Evening News. Her voice. When I watched Couric on her first broadcast, I was struck by how annoyingly tinny her voice is. Let's face it, we have gotten used to the "anchorman" voice - the voice that is recognizable in its authority and smoothness. Katie is lacking in all that. Her voice has no depth or gravitas that makes you listen, pay attention. This is not to say a women can't anchor a news program. I really liked Elizabeth Vargas when she anchored ABC's news; she has a distinctive lilt to her voice that doesn't ring hollow like Couric's.

This is Michael from Try Not To Panic. Thank you and good night.

Overheard In The Castro

Other than some fucktwatasshole shooting people.

Walking down Castro Street from JR's apartment:

JR: "I wish I could turn back time."
Kel: "I wish I had peripheral vision."

Okay, maybe you had to be there.

At 2:37 am (long after the festivities have ended) a gaggle of girls and their lunk head admirers - they were probably just trying to get into the girl's pants - loudly talking on the street below my apartment window using lots of "oh my gawd!" and "and then she said" and "I know!"

After opening my window:

Me: "Could you keep it down, some of us have to go to work. Why don't you talk up at Market Street?"

Girl: "But it's so loud up there it's hard to hear each other."

Me: "And you say this without any hint of irony."

Girl: "What?"

Me: "Never mind"