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Morning Seditionists

Wednesday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 21, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 11 Comments

Not a lot to say this morning. I feel bad about Teddy. Of course, people go through just as bad – and worse – every day. People whose families – on top of having to deal with the potential loss of a loved one and provider – don’t have the means to pay for the best treatment money can buy. So I reckon Teddy at least doesn’t have to worry about the money aspect.

Unfortunately for Teddy, “the best healthcare money can buy” probably means an aggressive combination of chemo and radiation, followed by periodic aggressive chemo treatments. In other words, he’ll more or less be tortured to death while being lauded for his fighting spirit, because staying alive at any cost no matter how miserable that makes your final days is what it’s all about (at least for the medical/pharmaceutical industrial complex).

Better to have 18 months of miserable, undignified life than six months spent with your loved ones being made as comfortable as possible and taking time to smell the roses, right? That extra time spent puking your guts out or rotting in hospital waiting rooms is more than worth it, isn’t it?

I hope somebody lets him smoke pot, at least.

I dunno. Why the hell does Teddy have to have a brain tumor, while Bush, Cheney, et al live to fuck the world for yet another day?

Visakha Puja Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 20, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 34 Comments

Visakha Puja, is a big day for Buddhists (not that I’m an expert). To put it in Christian perspective (which, being a heathen and all, I am also no expert in), it’s a bit like Christmas, Good Friday, and Jesus’ realization at age 12 all rolled into one. Today (the day of the full moon in May) is the day that the Buddha was born, and also the day 35 years after that when he had his “self-awakening,” and also the day that, 45 years after that, he passed away into total Nibbāna (aka, Nirvana), from eating bad pork, I think.

So, whatever you do today, whether you offer flowers, candles, and incense in material homage (amisa-puja), or offer homage through “the practice” (meditation to develop the mind so that it may stand in its own inner goodness, independent of outside ickiness) — patipatti-puja (which is just downright fun to say, and something I would love to be able to master) — or just go out to the park with the puppies after work and try to become one with the trees for an hour before drinking yourself to sleep, Happy Buddha Day!

Oh, and lay off the pork.

Monday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 19, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 21 Comments

Nice weekend here, lacrosse-wise. The SU Women won, putting them into the Final Four for the first time ever, under first-year coach Gary Gait (I’m sure most – more likely none – of you have never heard of him – let alone care – but he’s a former SU player who is to lacrosse as Michael Jordan is to basketball or Wayne Gretsky is to hockey). LeMoyne College’s mens team won, meaning they’ll be playing for their third straight (and fourth since 2004) Division II national championship next weekend. Cortland also won, sending them to their third straight Division III championship game. And to cap of the weekend, SU beat Notre Dame yesterday, returning them to their rightful place in the Division I final four.

Otherwise, back to friggin’ work again.

Booblehead Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 18, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 14 Comments

OK, let’s see what wonders they have in store for us today. First up, on Press the Meat, Timmuh has Jim (VP maybe?) Webb. Then the DLC’s creepy Harold Ford, Jr., good old boy (and very Christian) Mike Huckabee, and potatoheads to rival even the great Timmy’s, Republican creep Mike Murphy, and Democratic mastermind Bob “squeaky” Shrum, who had a hand in such stellar presidential campaigns as George McGovern’s, Mike Dukakis’, Al Gore’s, and John Kerry’s.

On CBS’s Faze the Nation, Bobby Scheiffer hosts ‘Governor Day,” with Kevin’s Gov, Charlie “H” Crist, our former Governor here in NY (back before they had sense enough not to get caught with expensive prostitutes), Mario Cuomo, and some former Governor from Colorado, Roy Romer. Plus Republican ‘strategist’ Ed Rollins.

At Fux News Sunday, Weaselface Wallace hosts Krazy Jon Kyl (never trust a guy without a vowel in his last name, and don’t give me this “sometimes y and w crap.” Either it’s a vowel or it isn’t – pick a side) and the Senator from CT that isn’t a weaselly asshole, Chris Dodd). Plus Fux’s ‘Power Player” of the week, horse trainer Rick Dutrow, Jr. But the guest you won’t want to miss is the ever fair and balanced Pillsbury Butt Boy himself, Karl Rove.

This Weak with George Snufalufagus brings us Joe Biden, to talk about what an asshole George Bush is, plus Poppa John Boehner, on to talk about what a bunsh of losers the Republicans have become (I wonder if he’ll cry). Then it’s a rountable with the always creepy and disgusting Peggy Noonan, the Sunday Times’ Matt Bai, political mastermind Donna Brazile and the man with nowhere else to go, George :jerk: Will.

U-boat Commander Wolf Blitzer’s Late Emission includes Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, former Senator Brylcreem, Trent Lott, and Gary “Monkey Business” Hart.

Later, on 60 Minutes, I think they’re recylcing some stories this week. Scott Pelley reports on one man’s efforts to try and get the thousands of Iraqis who helped the U.S. in Iraq who are now labeled collaborators by the insurgents out of Iraq. Bob Simon visits Indonesia, and apparently somebdy out there (Steve Kroft, anyway) still gives a shit about Jon Bon Jovi.

On this week’s episode of The Tudors, the end nears for Anne Boleyn, as Henry insists that Jane Seymour (no, not that Jane Seymour) be made Anne’s lady-in-waiting. Yo, Anne, better start wearing turtlenecks, if you know what I mean.

Enjoy your Sunday.

Saturday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 17, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 12 Comments

Something odd happened to me last night. Seeing as it was Friday, on the way back from the park with the boys, I stopped off at the good old Delta Sonic to pick up a couple six packs of Middle Ages IPA. So, I go up to the cashier (who’s a cute kid, probably 22 years old, give or take), and she says to me, “is that all, honey?” So, I say yeah, and she says “that’s $9.23,” and I hand her my credit card thinking “nine bucks for two six packs that cost $7.99 each?” So she does the whole credit card thing and hands me that part you gotta sign, and says, “I just need you to sign this one, sweetie.”

Honey? Sweetie? What is this, Mel’s Diner? But this cute young girl sure don’t look like Flo.

I was trying to figure out if this was some experiment to see if a female calling a male ‘sweetie’ would be offensive in light of the whole Obama thing (didn’t offend me one bit, BTW), or if maybe that’s just how the kids talk to the old folks these days.

Either way, if she wants to charge me half price for beer, she can call me honey, sweetie, asshole, douchebag, or whatever else she wants.

Friday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 16, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 39 Comments

Th cheap gas station is now up to $3.85 a gallon. I remember when gas first got ready to he a buck. They had to figure out how to charge you, ‘cuz the pumps didn’t have a way to go over 99.9¢. I hope they’re ready for when it hits $10 a gallon.

Thursday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 15, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 24 Comments

To quote Satchel Paige, “sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits.” This is one of the latter times.

Wednesday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 14, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 63 Comments

Forgot to buy a lottery ticket yesterday. I either saved a buck, or lost $166 million. Either way, another day of work awaits. Most of this one will consist of meetings. These people love their freakin’ meetings.

Tuesday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 13, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 38 Comments

Mega Millions is up to $166 million today. I’m not feeling especially lucky today, but I reckon I ought to get a ticket or two. A couple bucks is worth the daydreaming I can do until I find out I didn’t win.

Monday Open Thread

Posted by pjsauter on May 12, 2008
Posted in Uncategorized  | 36 Comments

Big weekend here, with SU graduation and all. Ah, seems like it was just a year ago when I was graduating myself. Oh, yeah, that’s right. I was the old guy amongst all the fresh-faced young grad students. Speaking of old people graduating, SU gave Vanessa Williams her BA this weekend, too, 25 years after she dropped out to become Miss America (funny, she’s only a couple years younger than me, but she looks a hell of a lot better; then again, she started out a helluva lot better looking than I did, so I guess it’s not so surprising after all). She also gave the commencement speech. I wonder why they didn’t ask me to give the speech last year?

Once they cleared all the riff-raff out of the Dome, SU was able to make its return to the NCAA Lacrosse tournament (they missed it for the first time in 25 years last year, having broken their string of 22 consecutive final four appearances the year before), by kicking the crap out of Canisius, 20-3. Next up is Notre Dame, down in Ithaca.

I hate Notre Dame.

Anyhow, back to work today. Bummer.