That John Edwards is rather a hottie (although, don�t judge him from the goofy picture on that link, there).

Now why can�t my man Dennis be his rockin� and righteous self, but look like John Edwards? I know we shouldn't be shallow about such matters, but hey - I get to meet the man on Sept. 21. It would have been really cool if he looked...well, more like John Edwards.

I may just have to apply for an internship�

OK, so last night�s debate�First of all, I would just like to point out that the debate meant I actually tuned in to the freakin� Fox News Channel, which is somewhat of a minor miracle since I like my news to actually be fair and balanced, not just pretend to be so, by using that phrase as a slogan. As if making that its slogan is all it takes to make Fox News fair and balanced.

I only saw the last half an hour or so, dammit! The horrible thing is, Fox repeated it later and I didn�t know they were repeating it so I still only saw the last half an hour. Doh!

Anyway, my thoughts on the debate really aren�t much different than they were after the last debate I wrote about, except that�well, I�m now hot for John Edwards.

And yes, I know little about his positions. What the hell does that matter?

Anyway, I still like Carol Moseley-Braun more than I knew I liked her before she started running for President and I still think she should be somebody�s running-mate. I was again pleasantly surprised by Dick Gephardt�s fire and passion (don�t worry, I ain�t gonna fall for it). I was again a tad disappointed in Dean�s performance and he said nothing that really made me say, �Now he�s got a point there.� Sharpton was again rather witty in the things he said, and I think it�s great that he is getting a lot of people involved in the process who may not have been eager to involve themselves before, but�you know�he ain�t no President.

I do hate Joe Lieberman now more than ever. He truly bugs me. Where he finds the stones to call himself a Democrat is really beyond me. I didn�t like him when he was Al Gore�s running mate, either and it bugs me the way he keeps dropping Al�s name everywhere. I mean, if you can�t get elected on your own merit, should you really be running? Also, frankly, I really hate the shit he says about Israel. There are two sides to that story and we have been far too content in accepting only one of them. But staying neutral is the way we need to handle that whole thing. We can�t take sides at all which means, yes � we�re going to have to break with tradition a little bit, Joe. Just because we�ve always done something is not a valid reason to continue doing it that way. I tell my employees that all the time.

John Kerry was�John Kerry. I have no strong opinions about the man, really. A lot is being said about how he stated toward the end that if Bush can�t answer all of their questions about this $87 billion he is asking for in additional Iraq War funding, he is willing to vote �no� on giving him the money. That was a semi-startling statement, yes�but Dennis Kucinich stated right away, from the get-go that he will vote �No.� He wants our troops home and the UN in to take care of Iraq. Although I think it will take a while to get our guys out of there and transition the UN in, I have altered my opinion on this matter and now agree with his position. Anyway, it was far gutsier for Dennis to come right out and say it, point blank, than it was for Kerry to be backed in to a corner and finally cop to the position, which is how it panned out.

One interesting thing that happened was there were a few hecklers in the audience, apparently Lyndon Larouche supporters. I have no idea what they were yelling, but they were somewhat disruptive.

Aside from Joe Lieberman, I wouldn�t be unhappy if any member of this group got the nomination.

Oh, I forgot about Bob Graham. Well, in attempting to write his name just then, I couldn�t remember it at first. What does that tell you?

The highlight of last night�s debate was, of course, when each candidate told us what their favorite song is. I am working from memory here and we all know what the mota does to short-term memory, so I�m sure you can all understand that I don�t recall all of their favorites. I know that Howard Dean chose a Wyclef Jean song; I know that two of them picked Bruce Springsteen songs and that Gephardt fuddled his name when he said it. He also picked �Born in the USA� and I just have to wonder if he�s ever actually listened to the lyrics or if he�s just pulling a trick out of Ronald Reagan�s bag and grabbing on to that song because of its title. Joe Lieberman picked �Don�t Stop (Thinking About Tomorrow)� in another attempt to latch on to great Democratic candidates of the past in order to absorb some of their thunder and he also picked �My Way�. Add these to the reasons why I hate Joe Lieberman.

Al Sharpton picked a James Brown song which had a very funny title that allowed him a funny reference to the Bush administration and if I could remember what he said, I�m sure you�d all be rolling in laughter right about now.

Dennis� favorite was �Imagine� by John Lennon. As in �Imagine a better America� or some shit. And yes, I thought that was cheesy, but that�s probably because I hate it when politicians try to manipulate songs to fit their agenda. �Imagine� is a fine song to have as your favorite, as it stands, and it�s fitting for Dennis� campaign.

I just have to say this�granted, I only saw half an hour of this 90-minute debate. That said, for the half hour I watched, Dennis Kucinich got the most applause from the audience and said some terrific things. They were also things which could be seen as controversial; they were certinly different from most of the other things being said by the candidates and thus he distinguished himself mightily. In addition, most polls I have seen recently show him gaining on Dean�s heels in a big way.

So where the fuck is his news coverage???

Say what you like about Dean, but the real truth about why he gets so much media coverage and is touted as the �front-runner� is that AOL/Time Warner is his biggest financial contributor.

This is a great time to point out to you folks that Dennis Kucinich refuses to accept corporate campaign contributions.

How can you not love this man?

Of course, this is why he hasn�t raised anywhere near the amount of money as have the other candidates. And also why he needs lot of people working for him. One of the things I have volunteered to do on his behalf is write letters to news organizations.

Guess I�d better leave out the �where the fuck is his news coverage???� line, huh?

~~~

Let�s see�what else is going on in my world?

Well, I was told last week that I was going to be written up due to the Case of the Missing $600, even though they have no idea why that money is missing or who is at fault. I have mixed emotions about that and figured I would wait to explode after I read the verbiage on the write-up, but seeing as I have yet to lay eyes on it�well, I�m hoping they forgot about it.

Tomorrow, aside from being the horrible anniversary that it is, is also my second anniversary at this here job. And I still like it. That�s pretty much a shocker. Of course, the fact that I have not only the ability but the time, most days, to piddle around on this here journal may have a lot to do with that. Really, though, there are a lot of reasons I like this job, not the least of which is the group of people I work with.

Anyway, I reminded The Little Big Man of my anniversary date because this would also traditionally be the day I should get a review�and a raise�however, it turns out that they have changed things around here. I am now supposed to get my review, along with everybody else, in January. They're going to do everybody's in January, going forward. My raise will be retroactive.

Aside from the fact that I hate retroactive raises because they pay you in one check that, because it is larger than usual, gets completely ripped off in the way of taxes; I think it�s really shitty that nobody was ever told about this change in policy. It became effective Sept. 1 and my review date is Sept. 11. Damnmit! I tried to talk them in to making the effective date Oct. 1 since none of us were notified, but something tells me they don�t really care what I think about the matter.

I am going to see John this weekend and we�re going to the Renaissance Faire on Saturday. So I shall leave work at noon on Friday. Yay!

Guess that�s it.

Hasta, kids!

~~~

Word of the Day for Wednesday September 10, 2003:

caveat KAY-vee-at; KAV-ee-; KAH-vee-aht, noun:

1. (Law) A notice given by an interested party to some officer not to do a certain act until the opposition has a hearing.

2. A warning or caution; also, a cautionary qualification or explanation to prevent misunderstanding.

Quote A Day:

"The only way around is through." --Robert Frost

Inspiration of the Day:

Keegan Rielly turns a crank to propel his arm-powered, 'Scarab' climbing apparatus to take a step forward. He lost the use of his legs in a 1996 car accident. But if you think that's gonna stop him from climbing atop the 12,385-foot Mount Fuji -- Japan's highest peak -- guess again. Last week, this paraplegic had this to say after his climb: "I want to show people what I am able to do. Maybe it will inspire them."

Be The Change:

Next time you see someone in a wheelchair, ask them about their most inspiring moment.

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~~~~~~~~~~~peace, love and smooches~~~~~~~~~~~~~


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