President Forever 2004

President Forever 2004 is the perfect computer sim for political junkies. I bought the full version last week (only $12, well worth it!) and have run through six campaigns so far with Dubya kicking my ass all but once. He beat Kerry twice, paired up with Edwards and then Gephardt, neither of whom helped carry their home states. He beat Kucinich twice, with Edwards and then Clark, again with neither VP delivering their home states. Kucinich's default setup is oddly to the right of the real deal. Not drastically, but subtly enough to illustrate the annoying nuances of politics that…

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Random rambling for no particular reason other than to kill the last 15 minutes between Shrek finishing and the kids getting in bed. Isaac's in a trance in front of the TV; India's wandering back and forth between rooms, not particularly impressed; Salomé's cranky from what feels like a longer day than possible, and I'd be in the same place if not for having the latest Presidential debate to give me something else to be cranky about. John Kerry's the kind of candidate that makes voting inconvenient. He makes Howard Dean palatable. Dear Wisconsin: Please derail the bandwagon. I don't…

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A little humor to put the whole Janet Jackson thing in perspective: There was plenty more offensive than Jackson during Super Bowl BY TONY HICKS, Contra Costa Times ...It was almost as if the nipple had been stealing nuclear secrets and was ready to attack. America loves being offended. There's no other conclusion to render, after all that careful, deep-thinking market research produced a multimillion-dollar Super Bowl commercial depicting a horse passing wind in a woman's face. Yes, there was a lot to be offended by last Sunday. And few were innocent: _Janet Jackson: She's playing us like brother Tito…

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Give me a talk show!

I really should have my own talk show. Radio or TV, I don't care which! I first mentioned the following possibility on December 10, 2003: The real New Hampshire winner is a former New York mayor Politically speaking, a Bush-Giuliani ticket would solve a lot of problems...Assume John Kerry and John Edwards make up the Democratic ticket, playing on the same populist themes that are serving them well in the current campaign. Set up against Bush-Cheney, the election becomes a war for turnout of the bases, with many in the political middle written off. Put Giuliani in the mix and…

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I Get Around

create your own visited states map or write about it on the open travel guide Of these, I've lived in NY, NJ, TN, FL and VA. The majority of the other states were solely thanks to poetry gigs as I would otherwise have never visited them at all. Specifically, California, Colorado, DC, Illinois, Minnesota, Texas, Rhode Island, Washington and Vermont. Yeeeeeeeeeeeeearrrrrrrgh! ;-) From 1999-2000, when I did most of my sporadic "touring," my primary criteria for traveling somewhere was whether it was a place I'd likely never visit otherwise. As long as I could make enough money to break even,…

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10 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR GEORGE W. BUSH

10. Because you'd like to see him elected legitimately this time. 9. Because women have too much control over their own bodies. 8. Because affirmative action is reverse racism and slavery was a long time ago. 7. Because you are a CEO or other high-ranking corporate executive. 6. Because you're single with no kids and drive an SUV. 5. Because you can afford your own health insurance, have significant money in the stock market and/or send your kids to parochial school. 4. Because those uncivilized Arabs need a Starbucks, Wal-Mart and McDonald's on every corner. 3. Because the Pentagon is…

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2003 In Review

This will have to last through Monday... 1. What did you do in 2003 that you'd never done before? Contributed $$$ to a political campaign. 2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Don't generally make specific resolutions other than to be true to myself. I am resolving to quit (or more likely, drastically cut down on) drinking. It's been 17 days... 3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Not that I recall, though Frandie announced they're expecting early next year! :-) 4. Did anyone close to you die? No. Knock…

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