UConn James

What can you say? They make tangible products. We shuffle papers and have a circle-jerk services and 'Everyone Can Be An American Idol' economy. I think the big blow to the American psyche has been that most of us can't point to something and say "I made that." At the end of the workday, what we do amounts to nothing. Ross Perot and (as much as you hate them) the labor union Democrats were entirely right about NAFTA and other trade agreements that gutted our industries. Sure, it reduced prices a little but what is that when there are no productive jobs to replace the ones that were lost? This is a great country to live in if you make $100,000 a year, but.... The work ethic is there, and for people who have to work 60 hours a week just to keep the checkbook balanced, I wouldn't say Lazy. And I wouldn't say Spoiled either, just, we've been conditioned to expect too much.

They made a special exemption for themselves and displays like it. Pro'ly don't want those simple prole construction workers in their chambers. The last time the Ten Commandments were codified "law" was when Moses came down from the mountain after inscribing them. When were they ever the law in this country? I point directly at the quote from Thomas Jefferson I gave above. Maybe there's a basis or the few obvious big ones like "thou shalt not kill" -- hardly the intellectual property of the Bible -- that are in common with our laws, but they are entirely different in breadth and depth. Why don't they display the Code of Hammurabi then? How about displaying our own laws on the walls? Seems that the people who got behind bars weren't very familiar with them....

I remember Cheney saying recently on CNN that the insurgency "is in its last throes" and that their "back has been broken." I guess one of them was Off Message. Sorry Dick, but I think Sgt. Rummy is right. BiB, I'm just going to ask b/c you have a lot of good answers... What are we staying there for in such numbers? I think the Afghanistan model was one that worked pretty well. Personally, I don't think staying another month or another six years is going to have much effect on what is going to happen when we actually leave. What remains besides training Iraqi police and national guard?

Today's ruling is a little weird. Some displays, such as ones that have been up for 40+ years, are allowed. Brenner chalked this up that if no one had a problem with it before, it could stay -- never minding the silent headshaking of those of other faiths, atheists, etc., but whatever. Displays in and around public property like courthouses are not allowed. Watching the evening news tho, I get flashes of Al Sadr's rhetoric. A quote from Thomas Jefferson, which runs contrary to what some people claim of the Founding Fathers: "“Christianity neither is, nor ever was part of the common law.” If anyone was watching "The West Wing" this season, Alan Alda as the fiscal Republican candidate had a nice bit somewhat on this topic.

What was the germination of this, the Gaughan article? It's been weeks since I've seen a 'Trade Travis' thread, and everyone is pretty level-headed about it at this point. I don't see any mobs forming, dude. Yeah. I heard he hangs around with Satan, Mephistophales, Beelzebub, and Jon Lovitz.

How 'bout Natalie Gulbis? (And she's 22).

I've watched the live 'Pops Goes the Fourth' concert on Ch. 5 the past couple years and haven't been disappointed. Don McLean was great and EVERYONE sang along to "American Pie." Probably tough to get into that tho. Also saw a thing on Chronicle about the Duck Tours. Those look fun. Just watch out for the crazies walking outside Quincy Market selling books like "How Aliens Colonized Earth: And What Will Happen When They Come Back." Wish I could tag along for No. 5, only I'd drink a 2-liter Coke and pee on his foundation.

1. A lot of guys who impress in their first full year have that ol' sophmore slump. If there's anyone who can beat it tho, it's them. 2. If he stays healthy. (If he takes out JP again, the TBD mob will be after him. ) 3. Meh. Reluctant yes, in that you're really underestimating Pat's contribution. Anderson or Edwards steps up, or scheming by Gray, and it's still a dropoff. 4. Yup. 5. Yup. He had it last year but he's got it even more this year.

I've always been under the impression that there's a built-in allotment for signing draft picks (and even then, only a 1st or 2nd rounder would be high enough to count toward the cap), and that unused cap space cannot be transferred to use down the line. You use it that year or lose it. It'd be nice if this is creating some room to sign Clements (tho it's virtually guaranteed that he's going to test the waters) or lock up McGee. No. According to Billsdaily's front office info, MW signed a 6-year/$38M contract in 2002.

Kenneth Davis and Kent Hull. They never got the recognition for the roles they served and they never b----ed about anything, just showed up with their lunch pails. I respect that.

Jeff Buckley -- fabulous voice ranging seven octaves. "Hallelujah." I don't care what you say about Nirvana; "Grace" was *the* debut of the '90s. John Denver -- PBS tribute/concert special awhile back hooked me on a guy I previously thought was a little fruity, but he really loved the music. "Sunshine On My Shoulders" Buddy Holly -- I'd be interested to hear what he'd do with today's equipment, etc. He had a lot of great tunes in a short time. Jim Croce -- I pop the box set in frequently. He's the best songwriter- singer I can think of.

So much for that pesky 5th Amendment and those 'property rights' thingies. This is a fundamental shift in the power of govt to deny individual rights and do whatever they want for the almighty tax dollar. There was a piece about this on 60 Minutes awhile back; the city was categorizing houses in the area where the development was proposed that didn't have X-amount of square feet and a two or three car garage as unlivable/condemnable. Steve Croft asked the mayor if she had a two-car garage. The classic response: That's different. The deal with commercial/retail taxes is a vicious circle. More people move into the town, more kids in their schools, more roads, etc. Which leads to more stores going up, which leads to more people moving there.... Look at Manchester, CT. It's soon going to be the largest concentration of retail stores in America. Sadly, that's where the economy is going: selling other countries' goods and losing the capacity for production. Everyone here talks about a new Revolution. I'll have to check my Palm Pilot, but I think I'm free next Saturday....

I was there two weeks ago visiting family and I tell you buddy, it's a nice place to visit for about three days. I agree about the positives you list (the water sucks tho, even after treatment, and Blue Cheese? Ugh.). I saw a lot of nice homes for sale, but there's probably a reason why they're leaving. You pass by all of the "Wayne County Blah Blah Blah" signs and you realize that the tax situation (relative to wages) with four layers of govt to support isn't going to get better b/c it's like trying to put toothpaste back in the tube. Jim Croce had it right when he sang "New York's Not My Home."

No, but I carry something else if the PETA/militant vegan people ever show up. I know people who work in the industry. You know that phrase of things you don't want to know how they're made? Add beef and milk. I'm not tin-hat paranoid about it, but I like to know where my food comes from. Plus, doing it like that is cheaper per pound, it's great tasting meat and it supports a local farmer.

If you think that's just the second, or that the first was the first.... Farmers stood/stand to loose a lot even with the utterance of 'Mad Cow' and its symptoms. Swept under the rug, never happened, whistle a little ditty and they're Sgt. Schultz. Standards and tracking still aren't what they should be. I buy a 1/4 cow from a local farmer I trust and watch the butcher cut it while I Ziploc my hamburger and steaks.

I just made a batch of s-r jam from what's in my backyard. I make the pies from scratch from an old Amish recipe (tho I think Mrs. Lapp is on the Crisco payroll). Garrison Keillor says that the key to a good rhubarb pie is to add 6 cups more sugar than the amount you think you need to add to make it really, really sweet.

Cheney is now saying that Bush may now forgo private accounts. For people whining that Dems aren't doing anything, this has been the sticking point. Now that they're relaxing an idea that would require a $2T (read: $15T) govt kick-in to start them. If you've seen the Dem's "it'll still pay out 72 percent" argument, that's code for Make SS self-sufficient, which if there has to be SS, that's the best way to do it. So we may soon see some movement and some of the backroom ideas. That sounds like a great plan. Too bad it'd never happen b/c the Ponzi scheme would end.

I guess Eli Lilly wants more kids enrolled in their space program. AD, for as much as you and others spout about how great your third party is, it's pretty sad that this guy is basically a Libertarian. And this is the drivel we get from him.

Someone gave me a copy of "The Screwtape Letters" recently and I got to page 15. I hate allegory, and especially religious allegory. I don't know but his children's books don't seem much better to me.

This is the guy who was running around screaming that he's God? What's the harm in Wyatt repeating what Bowden's been drilling into his head all along?

So I read that Nader is calling for Bush's impeachment? Well, Ralph, I guess there was a difference b/w the candidates after all. Idiot. One of my older cousins, she's ~45 now, worked on one of his campaigns twenty-odd years back. My uncle, an avowed Maine Republican, voted for Nader twice on the premise that he didn't play grabass with her. If you read that expose of Nader on Salon at election time he makes John Bolton's management style look like Barney and Friends.

And all that yellow stuff on your car this time of year? I wonder if the oak trees feel ashamed because they masturbated. I had a botany and Shakespeare class in the same semester years ago. It's pretty cool how the Bard compares people's life cycles in terms of the planting season. Look at the process, and in the grand scale, the processes of Life really aren't very different.... In re: to the original subject, I always remember a scene from my youth at my grandparents' church in WNY (Palmyra?), a pretty big congregation. I excused myself to use the facilities downstairs shortly after the collection. There on the table was the biggest pile of money I'd ever seen and there were five guys sitting around smoking and counting it up and words can't describe the look in their eyes and faces, but it's probably a lot like Silas Marner when he was counting his gold pieces in his dark hovel. I visited them last week actually, and got the annual You're Going to Hell speech. Whatever. I don't like an entity that allows things to happen like He does and call it His Plan.

Just looking at her in those interview previews (and as I told my buds when she first went missing), you can tell she's 20 kinds of crazy.

I've been re-watching. It's good to have it each week w/o the 4-week gaps and such. I don't have Tivo so it's good to have a refresher. Very interesting article on Season 2 in the L.A. Times today. It includes a few spoilers, altho they're given freely by the writers and it's nothing that hasn't been said here.

If the only qualification for being a lesbian is liking females, then I guess I am a lesbian.