Don't waste all of your worry on Gustav

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I wonder when the last time two hurricanes made landfall in the United States during a major party convention? Maybe Michael Brown can keynote.

And, oh, by the way, there are now three systems the NHC think might turn into tropical cyclones. This should keep McCain focused on the GOP's powerful service to the country during Katrina.

China is so... China

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Sorry, this is probably not the worst thing China's done during the week, probably not even the most dishonest thing they've done in the Olympics, but it's just so bald-faced.

Fireworks over the Olympics pyrotechnics erupted when it was learned that part of the elaborate display broadcast to the world in the opening ceremony was faked, done digitally in 3-D computer graphics.

...

Even those at the city’s new Bird’s Nest National Stadium, where the Olympics are being held, viewed the fake footage from their seats as they watched on the stadium’s giant television screens, said Britain’s Sky News, in a story, “Olympic Fireworks Faked for TV.”

...

“Seeing how it worked out, it was still a bit too bright compared to the actual fireworks,” [Gao] Xiaolong[, head of the visual effects team for the ceremony] said in comments that appeared in the Daily Telegraph. “But most of the audience thought it was filmed live — so that was mission accomplished.”

Just when you think that your government ranks among the most deceitful in the world, the Olympics creates a reality check and lets you know what the competition's really like. At least 'mission accomplished' is now used to mean 'I have successfully defrauded a large number of people.' C'mon Team Bush! USA! USA!

In Anthrax Scientist’s E-Mail, Hints of Delusions

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I love how the media rushes to reassure us that only madmen acting alone try to kill Senators in the Democratic Caucus, as if to say, "This is still not a rational thing to do." The official government line is that there was one man, acting alone, sending Anthrax out from his grassy knoll.

Does Secretary Rice care to comment on how torture helped close the case?

It's worse for America if we don't

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Dahlia Lithwick from Slate talks to TPMTv. I had no idea people besides me were even talking about Truth & Reconciliation. I guess I should start reading blogs.

Once again, the jig is up

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Just making sure you didn't miss this illicit book preview from the Politico.

“The White House had concocted a fake letter from Habbush to Saddam, backdated to July 1, 2001,” Suskind writes. “It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammad Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq – thus showing, finally, that there was an operational link between Saddam and al Qaeda, something the Vice President’s Office had been pressing CIA to prove since 9/11 as a justification to invade Iraq. There is no link.”

Once again, it looks like the Bush Administration has been caught in an act that would make it impossible for them to govern, and should force Shrub's immediate resignation.

It's important to keep hope alive. One of them might stick!

Agora Financial argues against marriage

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I've been reading Agora Financial's 5 Minute Forecasts, and I'm excited about seeing their IOUSA movie on August 21st, the one night it's playing. But, I just checked out their 'Rude Awakening' and saw this:

[I] prefer as little irrational volatility in life as possible. It’s the reason he prefers gold over Pakistani tech start-ups; a simple espresso over a $19 frappa-mocha-something-or-other; a steady girlfriend to an ex-wife. To be sure, there’s probably value to be found in the riskier alternatives, but the opportunity cost of perusing them invariably outweigh the potential benefits. 

Ah, OK. Apparently getting married is an increase in volatility. Well, there you go.

I wrote a theme song

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You might wonder how often I write songs. I write them whenever I do the dishes, which works out to about four times a year. Anyway, I was thinking of holding a 'Malechem in Manhattan' get together, so each of you could come to know there was more than one of you, but I wondered how you'd know each other. My thought was, each person would sing the first verse when he or she walked in, we'd all respond with the chorus, four people would take a line each of the second verse, then we'd all sing the chorus again. I'd sing the third verse and the chorus, and we'd all sing the last bit together.

But, I can't really see that happening, unless I can get out of the real world and into a movie musical. Without further ado, here's the song

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I get out of bed every day in the morning
A fog in my head and a taste in my mouth
I'm looking around to find someone to tell me
Why it always seems like it's all headed South

(Chorus)
Wo ho! Malechem's on fire
Wo ho! Malechem's the one
Wo ho! We all read Malechem
We read him for profit
We read him for fun

I'd be all for nuke were there no Homer Simpson
I get all upset that sea levels attack
It'd simplify things if we paid tax to Goldman
Democracy's gone, how can we get it back

(Chorus)

I sit all alone 'cuz no one will sit near me
They say I speak doom when I'm speaking the truth
I don't see that much, but I think I see clearly
I've been such a downer since I was a youth

(Chorus)

Wo ho! We all read Malechem
Wo ho! Malechem for fun!
Wo ho! Rionn Fears Malechem
There's only one blog you need under your thumb.

Barack Obama has played the race card and he played it from the bottom of the deck

link via Talking Points Memo
McCain campaign manager Rick Davis said this Thursday on a conference call* with reporters. Doesn't it make the McCain campaign seem kind of inchoate? 'Playing the race card' is an obvious references to a trick game, like Hearts. I think of it like the Queen of Spades. But, dealing from the bottom of the deck is part of, well, dealing. You have a card to want to direct to a certain special someone, so you deal from the bottom of the deck for that person. Or, really, you can see the cards on the bottom of the deck, so you might just deal from the bottom to know what everyone's getting. It's underhanded. Come to think of it 'underhanded' itself may be a reference to dealing from the bottom of the deck, but it's more likely from dueling.

Anyway, the metaphors come from two distinct parts of game play. Mixing metaphors is fine, but these two are so close that the quote just gives you a sense that McCain HQ is sort of falling apart.

* -- I think. It's not actually clear from the story.