Unfortunately, I can't recall where I copied and pasted this article from (judging from the spelling, probably the BBC!), but it's pretty compelling so check it out:
Ex-US state department spokesman PJ Crowley, who quit after criticising the treatment of the man accused of leaking secret cables to Wikileaks, has told the BBC he has no regrets.
Mr Crowley told the HARDtalk programme that the treatment of Bradley Manning was undermining "a very legitimate" effort to prosecute him.
Pte Manning has been held in shackles in solitary confinement.
Mr Crowley left the department after calling his treatment "stupid".
"I thought the treatment of Bradley Manning was undermining what I considered to be a very legitimate prosecution of an individual who has profoundly affected US national security," Mr Crowley said in his first public remarks since stepping down on 13 March.
He said he had not anticipated his criticism of another arm of the US government - the military - would spark such a controversy, and said it was appropriate for him to step down because his remarks had put President Barack Obama in a "difficult position".
The Crowley controversy was the first, very public expression of the intense debate and tension that the Wikileaks Cablegate caused within the administration, including between the state department and the Pentagon.
For his first media interview since resigning, Mr Crowley spoke to the BBC and showed how strongly he feels about the military's handling of the Wikileaks suspect.
While many liberals took Mr Crowley's comments as a defence of Pte Manning, the former official makes clear he believes Pte Manning is in the right place.
He doesn't say why the DoD may be acting the way it is and steers clear from any criticism of President Barack Obama, who said he had been assured by the Pentagon that Pte Manning's treatment was appropriate.
"Quite honestly I didn't necessarily think the controversy would go as far as it did but I don't regret saying what I said," Mr Crowley said.
Mr Crowley, a former Air Force officer and national security aide to former President Bill Clinton, declined to say whether he had been asked to resign.
Pte Manning is being held at the US Marine Corps base in Quantico in the US state of Virginia, pending trial on 34 charges related to the leaking of 720,000 secret US military and diplomatic documents to the Wikileaks website.
Supporters say he has been held under harsh conditions, confined to a spartan cell for for 23 hours a day without a pillow, sheets, and personal possessions, and forced regularly to disrobe.
'Counterproductive, stupid'
At a forum at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology this month, Mr Crowley was asked to comment on the matter.
"What is happening to Manning is ridiculous, counterproductive and stupid, and I don't know why the DoD [Department of Defence] is doing it," he said. "Nevertheless, Manning is in the right place."
Mr Crowley affirmed his remarks were on the record but later clarified the opinions were his own, not those of the state department.
"I'm a believer in something like strategic narratives," he told HARDtalk on Monday, "that the US, as an exceptional country in the world, has to be seen as practicing what we preach."
4/19/11
The Most Rewarding Hour You'll Ever Spend
Barring an accident or other personal choices, we're all going to get old. And many of us - too many - will be isolated and all alone. Although I've been aware of this, peripherally, it's really been driven home for me the past few months.
To be honest, when I started working at Friends of the Elderly, it was mainly coz I needed to get away from Youth Court, I wanted a job in the City, etc. I hadn't worked before with an organization focusing on the elderly, and was a bit leery for a variety of reasons (something new, cranky elders, etc.).
Now, after barely two months, I'm so glad I came here. Seeing this program in action, what it means for the seniors, and what it means for the volunteers, is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Heartwarming in the feedback we get from both elders and visiting volunteers about how much these visits mean to folks--and heartbreaking when you see how some of these folks live.
The first monthly "in-home" visit event I attended, I decided to go do a visit myself. I picked a guy who happens to live exactly one block over from me, whose name is also David. He's "only" 66 (the average age of our elders is 80!), is a retired MUNI driver, and lists his interests as movies, politics, reading, and history. Bingo on all counts for me!
So I show up at David's door and am immediately struck by his tiny living space. Although he does have his own bathroom, David lives in a SRO that barely has room in between his hospital bed and the "kitchenette" lining the opposite wall to get his wheelchair in between the two. He has pretty severe rheumatoid arthritis and spent our entire visit "working" his fingers out of a seemingly permanent "claw" position.
He also has slight TMJ and so his jaw would be clicking while he spoke. Oh, and did I mention he's a chain smoker in a tiny room with windows that won't open?
And STILL, despite the depressing surroundings, despite the smoke stinging my eyes (and infesting my clothes), despite my discomfort listening to the TMJ clicking and watching him constantly trying to pry/keep his fingers open, I toughed it out beyond the normal hour we ask folks to visit for about 90 minutes total. Partly out of a weird sense of guilt, partly out of "duty" as the Ex. Dir., but mostly coz I could see it meant a lot to David to have this human interaction.
We started talking about movies, and I ASSUMED he'd be all about the classics, or westerns, or boring "old" stuff, but I was a bit shocked, and pleasantly surprised, to find him interested in a wide range of movies and directors - some I also like and some I don't.
He's a big Aronofsky fan, as a matter of fact! He also liked "Happiness" - one of THE most twisted and darkly comic brilliant films I've ever seen and only few others know. And he's a bigger fan of the Cohen brothers than I am - much more accepting of their (IMHO) overly-gratuitous violence.
It turns out he was also involved in "The Movement" as he kept referring to it - as in the 60s counter-culture. When I mentioned my Peace Corps experience, he told me how those "in the movement" had a big debate about Peace Corps - some of them loved the idea, the goals, etc., while others saw it as a cynical ploy by JFK to "infiltrate" and/or validate some of the Latin American despotic regimes we were supporting. I'd never heard or thought of this. He said he'd been at "house discussions" in both Boston and Chicago in the late 60s where this was a big debate.
He used to hang out with Noam Chomsky back in Boston, and hitch-hiked cross-country with some other "movement folks" in 1968 (he never used the word hippies). Of course we also chatted quite a bit about history.
The low point of the visit came when he asked, somewhat sheepishly, if I were going to be "formally matched" with an elder. It turns out David is one of about 100 elders we have that have been assessed and are waiting to be matched with a regular visiting volunteer (the monthly in-homes we do are for folks who only want to do occasional visits).
I could tell David enjoyed my company/talking with me, and despite all the "sad" aspects of his living situation, I enjoyed visiting with him, too. But the smoke was just KILLING me. I don't know how I survived back in the day when we used to go clubbing and folks smoked all around me. But my eyes were on FIRE and as soon as I got home I had to take a long shower, toss my just-washed clothes in the hamper, etc.
And I told David it wouldn't be "right" for me to "play favorites" and get formally matched - but that I'd rather visit as many different elders as I could. This is, of course, only partially true - and truth be told, I went to David's thinking that if we hit it off, I would indeed be formally matched with him. Sigh.
We have another elder who is SO excited to have company/visitors, she tells everyone that comes to see her, over and over again during their visit, "I'm just so happy you're here to visit me!" and beams. She often interrupts herself to say that!
I hope hope hope against hope I don't end up like these folks we serve. I just can't imagine what it must be like to be stuck in a grungy little room, all day long, day after day, no work, no school - and no human interaction. No wonder these folks are so grateful!
We are doing in-home visits this Saturday before Easter, the 23rd. If you're interested in trying it, click HERE to register. If you're interested in becoming a regular visiting volunteer, and being matched with an elder - or want to try coming to a party or other social event, check out all our volunteer opportunities HERE.
I swear you won't find a much more rewarding volunteer opportunity - or spend a more valuable hour of your time. I SWEAR! :)
To be honest, when I started working at Friends of the Elderly, it was mainly coz I needed to get away from Youth Court, I wanted a job in the City, etc. I hadn't worked before with an organization focusing on the elderly, and was a bit leery for a variety of reasons (something new, cranky elders, etc.).
Now, after barely two months, I'm so glad I came here. Seeing this program in action, what it means for the seniors, and what it means for the volunteers, is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Heartwarming in the feedback we get from both elders and visiting volunteers about how much these visits mean to folks--and heartbreaking when you see how some of these folks live.
The first monthly "in-home" visit event I attended, I decided to go do a visit myself. I picked a guy who happens to live exactly one block over from me, whose name is also David. He's "only" 66 (the average age of our elders is 80!), is a retired MUNI driver, and lists his interests as movies, politics, reading, and history. Bingo on all counts for me!
So I show up at David's door and am immediately struck by his tiny living space. Although he does have his own bathroom, David lives in a SRO that barely has room in between his hospital bed and the "kitchenette" lining the opposite wall to get his wheelchair in between the two. He has pretty severe rheumatoid arthritis and spent our entire visit "working" his fingers out of a seemingly permanent "claw" position.
He also has slight TMJ and so his jaw would be clicking while he spoke. Oh, and did I mention he's a chain smoker in a tiny room with windows that won't open?
And STILL, despite the depressing surroundings, despite the smoke stinging my eyes (and infesting my clothes), despite my discomfort listening to the TMJ clicking and watching him constantly trying to pry/keep his fingers open, I toughed it out beyond the normal hour we ask folks to visit for about 90 minutes total. Partly out of a weird sense of guilt, partly out of "duty" as the Ex. Dir., but mostly coz I could see it meant a lot to David to have this human interaction.
We started talking about movies, and I ASSUMED he'd be all about the classics, or westerns, or boring "old" stuff, but I was a bit shocked, and pleasantly surprised, to find him interested in a wide range of movies and directors - some I also like and some I don't.
He's a big Aronofsky fan, as a matter of fact! He also liked "Happiness" - one of THE most twisted and darkly comic brilliant films I've ever seen and only few others know. And he's a bigger fan of the Cohen brothers than I am - much more accepting of their (IMHO) overly-gratuitous violence.
It turns out he was also involved in "The Movement" as he kept referring to it - as in the 60s counter-culture. When I mentioned my Peace Corps experience, he told me how those "in the movement" had a big debate about Peace Corps - some of them loved the idea, the goals, etc., while others saw it as a cynical ploy by JFK to "infiltrate" and/or validate some of the Latin American despotic regimes we were supporting. I'd never heard or thought of this. He said he'd been at "house discussions" in both Boston and Chicago in the late 60s where this was a big debate.
He used to hang out with Noam Chomsky back in Boston, and hitch-hiked cross-country with some other "movement folks" in 1968 (he never used the word hippies). Of course we also chatted quite a bit about history.
The low point of the visit came when he asked, somewhat sheepishly, if I were going to be "formally matched" with an elder. It turns out David is one of about 100 elders we have that have been assessed and are waiting to be matched with a regular visiting volunteer (the monthly in-homes we do are for folks who only want to do occasional visits).
I could tell David enjoyed my company/talking with me, and despite all the "sad" aspects of his living situation, I enjoyed visiting with him, too. But the smoke was just KILLING me. I don't know how I survived back in the day when we used to go clubbing and folks smoked all around me. But my eyes were on FIRE and as soon as I got home I had to take a long shower, toss my just-washed clothes in the hamper, etc.
And I told David it wouldn't be "right" for me to "play favorites" and get formally matched - but that I'd rather visit as many different elders as I could. This is, of course, only partially true - and truth be told, I went to David's thinking that if we hit it off, I would indeed be formally matched with him. Sigh.
We have another elder who is SO excited to have company/visitors, she tells everyone that comes to see her, over and over again during their visit, "I'm just so happy you're here to visit me!" and beams. She often interrupts herself to say that!
I hope hope hope against hope I don't end up like these folks we serve. I just can't imagine what it must be like to be stuck in a grungy little room, all day long, day after day, no work, no school - and no human interaction. No wonder these folks are so grateful!
We are doing in-home visits this Saturday before Easter, the 23rd. If you're interested in trying it, click HERE to register. If you're interested in becoming a regular visiting volunteer, and being matched with an elder - or want to try coming to a party or other social event, check out all our volunteer opportunities HERE.
I swear you won't find a much more rewarding volunteer opportunity - or spend a more valuable hour of your time. I SWEAR! :)
4/11/11
The Best Tax Day in DECADES for the RIch!
This month the rich have extra reason to celebrate - it's their best tax day in decades! DECADES! Coincidentally, since right before Reagan started the country down the road to ruin. Don't just take my word for it, tho - read these clips from other columnists:
From David Horsey, editorial cartoonist:
Over the past 30 years, as 40 percent of the nation's wealth has shifted to the top 1 percent of the population, less and less of it has been liable to taxation. The highest income tax rate, 55 percent in 1965, is 32 percent today. Taxes on capital gains and dividends have been slashed as well. Meanwhile, corporations have won a wide array of tax exemptions or have moved profits offshore.
Most of this tax cutting was done on the theory it would boost the economy, create new jobs and, thereby, increase tax revenue. Over the past decade, that theory has proved false. The benefits of growth have gone to the very rich, middle-class jobs and incomes have stagnated, and public revenue has plummeted.
Yet, in the face of gaping budget shortfalls, Republicans in state after state are handing out hundreds of millions of dollars in additional tax breaks as if they are magic beans that will sprout a gigantic beanstalk of growth.
It's a fairy tale, and we are certainly not going to live happily ever after.
This is from Jesse Drucker, Bloomberg Business Week
For the well-off, this could be the best tax day since the early 1930s: Top tax rates on ordinary income, dividends, estates, and gifts will remain at or near historically low levels for at least the next two years. That's thanks in part to legislation passed in December 2010 by the 111th Congress and signed by President Barack Obama.
"This is clearly far and away the most generous tax situation that's existed," says Gregory D. Singer, a national managing director of the wealth management group at AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB - News) in New York. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
For the 400 U.S. taxpayers with the highest adjusted gross income, the effective federal income tax rate -- what they actually pay -- fell from almost 30 percent in 1995 to just under 17 percent in 2007, according to the IRS. And for the approximately 1.4 million people who make up the top 1 percent of taxpayers, the effective federal income tax rate dropped from 29 percent to 23 percent in 2008. It may seem too fantastic to be true, but the top 400 end up paying a lower rate than the next 1,399,600 or so.
That's not just good luck. It's often the result of hard work, as suggested by some of the strategies in the following pages. Much of the top 400's income is from dividends and capital gains, generated by everything from appreciated real estate -- yes, there is some left -- to stocks and the sale of family businesses. As Warren Buffett likes to point out, since most of his income is from dividends, his tax rate is less than that of the people who clean his office.
The true effective rate for multimillionaires is actually far lower than that indicated by official government statistics. That's because those figures fail to include the additional income that's generated by many sophisticated tax-avoidance strategies. Several of those techniques involve some variation of complicated borrowings that never get repaid, netting the beneficiaries hundreds of millions in tax-free cash. From 2003 to 2008, for example, Los Angeles Dodgers owner and real estate developer Frank H. McCourt Jr. paid no federal or state regular income taxes, as stated in court records dug up by the Los Angeles Times. Developers such as McCourt, according to a declaration in his divorce proceeding, "typically fund their lifestyle through lines of credit and loan proceeds secured by their assets while paying little or no personal income taxes." A spokesman for McCourt said he availed himself of a tax code provision at the time that permitted purchasers of sports franchises to defer income taxes.
For those who can afford a shrewd accountant or attorney, our era is rife with opportunity to avoid, or at least defer, tax bills, according to tax specialists and public records. It's limited only by the boundaries of taste, creativity, and the ability to understand some very complex shelters.
From David Horsey, editorial cartoonist:
Over the past 30 years, as 40 percent of the nation's wealth has shifted to the top 1 percent of the population, less and less of it has been liable to taxation. The highest income tax rate, 55 percent in 1965, is 32 percent today. Taxes on capital gains and dividends have been slashed as well. Meanwhile, corporations have won a wide array of tax exemptions or have moved profits offshore.
Most of this tax cutting was done on the theory it would boost the economy, create new jobs and, thereby, increase tax revenue. Over the past decade, that theory has proved false. The benefits of growth have gone to the very rich, middle-class jobs and incomes have stagnated, and public revenue has plummeted.
Yet, in the face of gaping budget shortfalls, Republicans in state after state are handing out hundreds of millions of dollars in additional tax breaks as if they are magic beans that will sprout a gigantic beanstalk of growth.
It's a fairy tale, and we are certainly not going to live happily ever after.
This is from Jesse Drucker, Bloomberg Business Week
For the well-off, this could be the best tax day since the early 1930s: Top tax rates on ordinary income, dividends, estates, and gifts will remain at or near historically low levels for at least the next two years. That's thanks in part to legislation passed in December 2010 by the 111th Congress and signed by President Barack Obama.
"This is clearly far and away the most generous tax situation that's existed," says Gregory D. Singer, a national managing director of the wealth management group at AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB - News) in New York. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
For the 400 U.S. taxpayers with the highest adjusted gross income, the effective federal income tax rate -- what they actually pay -- fell from almost 30 percent in 1995 to just under 17 percent in 2007, according to the IRS. And for the approximately 1.4 million people who make up the top 1 percent of taxpayers, the effective federal income tax rate dropped from 29 percent to 23 percent in 2008. It may seem too fantastic to be true, but the top 400 end up paying a lower rate than the next 1,399,600 or so.
That's not just good luck. It's often the result of hard work, as suggested by some of the strategies in the following pages. Much of the top 400's income is from dividends and capital gains, generated by everything from appreciated real estate -- yes, there is some left -- to stocks and the sale of family businesses. As Warren Buffett likes to point out, since most of his income is from dividends, his tax rate is less than that of the people who clean his office.
The true effective rate for multimillionaires is actually far lower than that indicated by official government statistics. That's because those figures fail to include the additional income that's generated by many sophisticated tax-avoidance strategies. Several of those techniques involve some variation of complicated borrowings that never get repaid, netting the beneficiaries hundreds of millions in tax-free cash. From 2003 to 2008, for example, Los Angeles Dodgers owner and real estate developer Frank H. McCourt Jr. paid no federal or state regular income taxes, as stated in court records dug up by the Los Angeles Times. Developers such as McCourt, according to a declaration in his divorce proceeding, "typically fund their lifestyle through lines of credit and loan proceeds secured by their assets while paying little or no personal income taxes." A spokesman for McCourt said he availed himself of a tax code provision at the time that permitted purchasers of sports franchises to defer income taxes.
For those who can afford a shrewd accountant or attorney, our era is rife with opportunity to avoid, or at least defer, tax bills, according to tax specialists and public records. It's limited only by the boundaries of taste, creativity, and the ability to understand some very complex shelters.
4/4/11
Deep thoughts, cheap shots and bon mots - XIV
As reported in Harper's magazine's "Findings" section, a recent study found that autistics are more likely than non-autistics to blame a woman named Janet for the death of Janet's friend who dies of jellyfish stings after Janet tells her the jellyfish are harmless.
This begs SO many questions:
1) who thought to study such a thing in the first place?
2) did they also compare against folks with Asperger's?
3) why Janet, dammitt? (sorry, couldn't resist) are autistics less likely to blame a woman named Mary?
4) why jellyfish? what about bee stings?
5) finally, and most importantly, did Janet tell her friend that jellyfish stings are harmless or did she tell the autistic person that?
At first glance, this other study seemed odd, too: a study published in the journal Gut found that a black Labrador from Japan's St. Sugar Cancer Sniffing Dog Training Center (hey, there's your explanation for the why) was able, by sniffing the feces of patients, to detect the presence of colorectal cancer with greater effectiveness than the standard clinical screening, the fecal occult blood test.
I mean, I've always heard that a dog's sense of smell is, well, superhuman...or I guess suprahuman would be more appropos, here. So it makes sense to train dogs for this. And I find it amazing that scientists/trainers are able to even have the capacity themselves to be able to make a dog understand what cancer smells like in the first place. My guess is that it smells like the inside of a Payless Shoe Store. Seriously, go inside one and take a whiff. I bet the smell alone in there would KILL a dog!
Random thought from the other day: Why don’t we call the homeless—or, rather, I guess I should be asking when will we start calling the homeless “differently-domiciled”? I mean, we’ve moved from “retarded” to “developmentally disabled” to “differently-abled” so it seems to follow…
I think, if we did that—if we counted people like, say, Kyle who is currently couch-surfing after spending time in Folsom County Pri…..I mean , the Petaluma Shelter (apparently, one of the top shelters in the country! And to think I was fool enough to leave that town!)—then the number of “homeless” people would SKYrocket. Thanks again, Reagan! Instead of naming an airport after him, they should have called crack “Ronnie.”
Think about it: it would still sound cool/hip/funky/unique, and would be tied to its genesis as one of the contributing factors for homelessness—i.e., it was introduced into the Black community by the CIA during Reagan’s tenure. Thanks again, Ronnie! I mean, oh yeah, baby, I got some sweet Ronnie to smoke later – some seriously good shit, the best Ronnie you’ve ever had! I’ll even let you have a taste for free so you can see I’m not lying! (shaking slightly)
I mean, thank GAWD Reagan also cleverly manipulated the sentencing requirements for people busted for coke (i.e., the Bush twins demographic) vs. people busted for Ronnie (i.e., you know – THEM) so they could incarcerate all the Blacks they weren’t killing already with Ronnie and the horrible ramping up of uber-Capitalism as basically a fucking religion—a religion that requires a peonage class. Wal-Mart is its church. The Republicans are the high priests. And the Democrats are the squabbling, easily-manipulated and trod upon masses.
Finally, before sharing a couple of fun links, I have to give a shout out to the show "Friday Night Lights" - even if you don't like football, this is one of the best shows you'll ever see. I mean, I love me some "Glee," but "FNL" is so much better in terms of acting, realistic (although still dramatic) plots, and I swear to god almost every show makes me cry - not in a sad way, but in a "heartwarming" way and not like the club you over the head emotions "Glee" often tears out of you! :)
Now, for those of you who have not had the pleasure of reading Tom Tomorrow's strips, DO SO. He is far and away one of the most consistent, hysterical commentators on crap both left and right. His recent strip entitled "The Very Wealthy Man" is both funny as hell and horrifying in how we let crooks rob us blind with no punishment. Check it out here:
http://www.salon.com/entertainment/comics/this_modern_world/2011/01/04/this_modern_world
Finally, since I'm in a sharing mood this week, I want to share a link to one of Garrison Keillor's recent columns. Not only is it insightful and humorous, he said the same thing I've been bemoaning about myself and not being more sociable!!
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/garrison_keillor/2010/01/12/anonymity/index.html
This begs SO many questions:
1) who thought to study such a thing in the first place?
2) did they also compare against folks with Asperger's?
3) why Janet, dammitt? (sorry, couldn't resist) are autistics less likely to blame a woman named Mary?
4) why jellyfish? what about bee stings?
5) finally, and most importantly, did Janet tell her friend that jellyfish stings are harmless or did she tell the autistic person that?
At first glance, this other study seemed odd, too: a study published in the journal Gut found that a black Labrador from Japan's St. Sugar Cancer Sniffing Dog Training Center (hey, there's your explanation for the why) was able, by sniffing the feces of patients, to detect the presence of colorectal cancer with greater effectiveness than the standard clinical screening, the fecal occult blood test.
I mean, I've always heard that a dog's sense of smell is, well, superhuman...or I guess suprahuman would be more appropos, here. So it makes sense to train dogs for this. And I find it amazing that scientists/trainers are able to even have the capacity themselves to be able to make a dog understand what cancer smells like in the first place. My guess is that it smells like the inside of a Payless Shoe Store. Seriously, go inside one and take a whiff. I bet the smell alone in there would KILL a dog!
Random thought from the other day: Why don’t we call the homeless—or, rather, I guess I should be asking when will we start calling the homeless “differently-domiciled”? I mean, we’ve moved from “retarded” to “developmentally disabled” to “differently-abled” so it seems to follow…
I think, if we did that—if we counted people like, say, Kyle who is currently couch-surfing after spending time in Folsom County Pri…..I mean , the Petaluma Shelter (apparently, one of the top shelters in the country! And to think I was fool enough to leave that town!)—then the number of “homeless” people would SKYrocket. Thanks again, Reagan! Instead of naming an airport after him, they should have called crack “Ronnie.”
Think about it: it would still sound cool/hip/funky/unique, and would be tied to its genesis as one of the contributing factors for homelessness—i.e., it was introduced into the Black community by the CIA during Reagan’s tenure. Thanks again, Ronnie! I mean, oh yeah, baby, I got some sweet Ronnie to smoke later – some seriously good shit, the best Ronnie you’ve ever had! I’ll even let you have a taste for free so you can see I’m not lying! (shaking slightly)
I mean, thank GAWD Reagan also cleverly manipulated the sentencing requirements for people busted for coke (i.e., the Bush twins demographic) vs. people busted for Ronnie (i.e., you know – THEM) so they could incarcerate all the Blacks they weren’t killing already with Ronnie and the horrible ramping up of uber-Capitalism as basically a fucking religion—a religion that requires a peonage class. Wal-Mart is its church. The Republicans are the high priests. And the Democrats are the squabbling, easily-manipulated and trod upon masses.
Finally, before sharing a couple of fun links, I have to give a shout out to the show "Friday Night Lights" - even if you don't like football, this is one of the best shows you'll ever see. I mean, I love me some "Glee," but "FNL" is so much better in terms of acting, realistic (although still dramatic) plots, and I swear to god almost every show makes me cry - not in a sad way, but in a "heartwarming" way and not like the club you over the head emotions "Glee" often tears out of you! :)
Now, for those of you who have not had the pleasure of reading Tom Tomorrow's strips, DO SO. He is far and away one of the most consistent, hysterical commentators on crap both left and right. His recent strip entitled "The Very Wealthy Man" is both funny as hell and horrifying in how we let crooks rob us blind with no punishment. Check it out here:
http://www.salon.com/entertainment/comics/this_modern_world/2011/01/04/this_modern_world
Finally, since I'm in a sharing mood this week, I want to share a link to one of Garrison Keillor's recent columns. Not only is it insightful and humorous, he said the same thing I've been bemoaning about myself and not being more sociable!!
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/garrison_keillor/2010/01/12/anonymity/index.html
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