conservative ministers attempt to force a re-evaluation of the separation of church and state (tax-exemption), and one says,

“We want people when you prick them, they bleed the word of God.”

a pilot program to bypass customs! what could possibly go wrong?

it really makes a lovely juxtaposition with those haldol-happy ICE officers. anyone else think we were a more humane nation when we had the immigration and naturalization service, rather than immigration and customs enforcement?

i tell ya, i really should stop reading the morning paper.

from the wapo:

JERUSALEM, Dec. 24 — Israeli military prosecutors have determined that Israel’s use of cluster bombs during last year’s war in Lebanon did not violate international humanitarian law, the army said Monday, closing an investigation into a practice that has drawn heavy criticism from the United Nations and international human rights groups.

move it along, folks. nothing to see here.

(two different things)

first, the card. it rocks:¹

second, the tref. it’s awesome:

(click here, silly)²

and third (a lagniappe): it’s snowing! it’s been snowing all day! people don’t know how to handle it! yay!
_____________

¹ thanks, margot!
² hat tip: nick

according to the NYT,

Verizon plans to share what is known in the industry as consumer proprietary network information, or C.P.N.I, which includes how many calls a customer makes, the geographical destination of the calls and what services the customer has purchased. That information cannot be shared without permission under federal and state laws.

apparently making it opt-out rather than opt-in gets around the permission requirement. so verizon has gone the time-sensitive opt-out route. if you don’t opt out within 30 days of being notified of their intent to share your info, they deem you to have given them permission to do so.

to opt out: call 800-333-9956 ASAP.

this is all such bullshit. hat tip: james.

*phone rings*

hello?

*pre-recorded, male, vaguely african-american voice begins to run*

hello. this is a 45-second survey. do you intend to vote in the 2008 presidential election?

yes.

this question concerns the attempts of some radical members of society trying to create a two-tiered system of justice. do you believe that all human life should be protected equally under the law?

depends on what you mean by “human life.”

please answer yes, no, or repeat.

repeat.

this question concerns the attempts of some radical members of society trying to create a two-tiered system of justice. do you believe that all human life should be protected equally under the law?

*sigh*
no.

are you male?

no.

are you over fifty?

no.

thank you. this survey was authorized and sponsored by the family research council.

*click*

how much do you wanna bet this gets publicized as a properly conducted public opinion poll? and i’d love to see the entire instrument.

it’s 4:30 a.m. i leave todd’s apartment, where i’ve crashed for a few hours after the debate at lolita. i walk out the front door of the building, turn right. up half a block, i’m passing an SUV police cruiser. at the intersection i look right, look left, and stick out my arm to hail a cab.

“hey, lady!” someone yells. i try to ignore it, and search what little oncoming traffic there is in the predawn darkness for the roof light of a cab. “can i ask you a question?”

i glance around, mostly to identify the source of the yells in case i need to take evasive action. but it’s early, i’ve barely had two hours of sleep and three guinness before that, so i’m clumsy. there he is, about fifty feet to my right, next to a northbound yellow cab. i make eye contact. shit.

he’s of an indeterminate age, medium build, dark greasy hair. his skin has an unhealthy sheen under the street lights, and what i can see of his face is blistery and pocked. his clothes look like he’s slept in them for a week. none of these details are reassuring, and he’s started to make a beeline toward me, continuing to yell. i feel the beginnings of an adrenaline panic.

but a southbound cab pulls up, and i half-stride, half-jog across the street to get in the back. “penn station,” i say, settling myself in on the passenger side.

before the cab can pull away from the curb, the door behind the driver opens. “lady, i just wanna ask you a question!”

he’s standing in the street, holding the door open with one hand. i notice that he’s got a folded stack of twenties in his other hand, and feel a completely irrational wave of relief dampen the panic signals in my brain.

because deranged psychopaths don’t carry around that kind of cash, right?

“c’mon, lady, i just wanna talk!” he gets in the cab with me, closes the door. there seems to be an eternity before i realize what he’s doing. this can’t be good. my nose is suddenly filled with liquor and stale cigarettes as he leans toward me. time snaps back, and i don’t even say the first thing that comes to my mind: “what the fuck, man? get your own damn cab!” instead i open the door on my side and get out. the slamming door muffles his voice.

the northbound cab is still there. hack light is still on. i run across the street heedless of traffic, arm out, flagging him down. my sandal catches on a manhole cover, wrenching my ankle, and behind me the guy’s yelling again. “lady. c’mon, lady!”

crap. he’s crossing the street a few paces behind me. it isn’t even five in the morning. i’m not thinking straight. i have a train to catch. what the hell?

i get to the cab, jump in, pull the door shut. “penn station,” i bark, “and lock the damn doors!” the guy is mere feet away, reaching for the door. i slam my hand on the lock button. i can’t tell if it’s locked. i slide back from the door, over to the other side of the bench seat.

the cab pulls into the street, and the cabbie glances at me in the rearview. “crazy, hunh? i just dropped off that guy and his girlfriend. she went upstairs, wouldn’t let him in. then he goes after you!”

yeah, crazy. we turn down FDR drive and i watch the 59th street bridge go by as my heartbeat returns to normal. manhattan. no, thanks.

per their ‘aye’ vote on the war funding portion of HR 2206. they should all be required to watch this NewsHour report. it’s time to spread the cost and bring back the draft.

Altmire (PA)
Andrews (NJ)
Baca (CA)
Baird (WA)
Barrow (GA)
Bean (IL)
Berkley (NV)
Berry (AR)
Bishop (GA)
Boren (OK)
Boswell (IA)
Boucher (VA)
Boyd (FL)
Boyda (KS)
Butterfield (NC)
Cardoza (CA)
Carney (PA)
Chandler (KY)
Clyburn (SC)
Cooper (TN)
Costa (CA)
Cramer (AL)
Cuellar (TX)
Davis (CA)
Davis, Lincoln (TN)
Dicks (WA)
Dingell (MI)
Donnelly (IN)
Edwards (TX)
Ellsworth (IN)
Emanuel (IL) (note: emanuel was chair of the DCCC for the ‘06 elections. illinois: time to vote him out.)
Etheridge (NC)
Giffords (AZ)
Gillibrand (NY)
Gonzalez (TX)
Gordon (TN)
Green, Gene (TX)
Herseth Sandlin (SD)
Hill (IN)
Hinojosa (TX)
Holden (PA)
Hoyer (MD)
Kagen (WI)
Kanjorski (PA)
Kildee (MI)
Kind (WI)
Lampson (TX)
Larsen (WA)
Levin (MI)
Lipinski (IL)
Mahoney (FL)
Marshall (GA)
Matheson (UT)
McIntyre (NC)
Meek (FL)
Melancon (LA)
Mitchell (AZ)
Mollohan (WV)
Moore (KS)
Murtha (PA)
Ortiz (TX)
Peterson (MN)
Pomeroy (ND)
Rahall (WV)
Reyes (TX)
Rodriguez (TX)
Ross (AR)
Ruppersberger (MD)
Salazar (CO)
Schwartz (PA)
Scott (GA)
Sestak (PA)
Shuler (NC)
Skelton (MO)
Snyder (AR)
Space (OH)
Spratt (SC)
Stupak (MI)
Tanner (TN)
Taylor (MS)
Thompson (MS)
Udall (CO)
Visclosky (IN)
Walz (MN)
Wasserman Schultz (FL)
Wilson (OH)

note: the house needs to standardize its URL conventions. having www.house.gov/congresscritter as well as congresscritter.house.gov, not to mention www.congresscritter.house.gov, is really annoying.

so they’re scared of another veto? it would be on bush’s head, not theirs. morons. cowardly, spineless, political morons. and lots of other words i’d be likely to spell with asterisks.

the blood of our soldiers is on the democrats’ hands.

i’ll be watching the votes. moran, this means you. i’m still irritated your office hasn’t returned any of my phone calls.

p.s. the army is demoralized and the national guard is out of town. maybe it’s time to put the second amendment to use.

yes, what happened to the hokies was awful. now if the media would just stop treating it like a damn photo op (could you get more gorgeous than the saturated colors and silhouettes featured by cnn?) and lovefest (”beautiful, clever, talented victims honored” gushes one cnn video clip… [insert snide “what about the ugly, slow, talentless victims?” comment here]) and get back to coverage of the ongoing destruction of our country by the bush administration, i might be less grumpy.

yes, it was tragic. but to be perfectly honest, the coverage is making me - once again - sympathetic to the harrises and klebolds of the world. it’s certainly one way to achieve immortality.

update: according to the beeb, at least 157 people have been killed in a string of attacks in baghdad. and what’s the lead story on cnn? “gunman: ’suicidal’”