I've long resisted putting my family/kids show demo on the Internet but the agent who books me for fairs has added it to his website. I've gotten lots of emails over the past few months from people who want to see my other incarnation. So if you want to see proof that I am the Internet's only blogger who is an admitted, authentic dummy, CLICK HERE and you can see it. … [Read more...] about It’s Election Year But Watch A REAL Dummy
McCain and the Meltdown
The latest meme being thrown by the Obama team is that McCain hasn't done anything to prevent the crisis taking place on Wall Street. But the thing is, McCain had a lot to say about Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae in recent years. According to Ed Morrissey, McCain was one of three co-sponsors of an act that would have done something about the two companies: Mr. President, … [Read more...] about McCain and the Meltdown
Chris Matthews Illustrates Republicans’ Key Problem
MSNBC's Chris Matthews, who had been a superb, hard-nosed print political reporter and bureau chief before he switched over to broadcast, had an exchange with GOP surrogate Rep. Eric Cantor which illustrates a problem Republicans are going to face this year: running as Republicans but not running as...Republicans. In this clip, the machine-gun-talking Matthews is behaving as … [Read more...] about Chris Matthews Illustrates Republicans’ Key Problem
Sabato’s Crystal Ball: MEET THE NEW MAP—SAME AS THE OLD MAP (ALMOST)
Larry J. Sabato on MEET THE NEW MAP---SAME AS THE OLD MAP (ALMOST) In early summer, the Crystal Ball took its first look at the likely November 4th Electoral College map. Our assessment was that, in the College at least, the contest appeared close. John McCain had 174 solid or likely electoral votes to Barack Obama's 200 solid or likely. The lead switched once we added in … [Read more...] about Sabato’s Crystal Ball: MEET THE NEW MAP—SAME AS THE OLD MAP (ALMOST)
World Cartoonists View Wall Street Economic Crisis And Government Bailouts
Cartoonists throughout the world are weighing in on the ongoing Wall Street nosedive and government bailouts. Here's an extensive cross section of cartoons on the subject. Some are witty, some are biting. And some are sad. Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune John Darkow, Columbia Daily Tribune, Missouri And there are lots more below. … [Read more...] about World Cartoonists View Wall Street Economic Crisis And Government Bailouts
CBS Poll: White Women, Independents Go Back to Obama
Much of John McCain's RNC convention bounce was fueled by the movement of white women and Independents (and the largely crossover within) away from Obama. Even our own Polimom moved "back on the fence" after the two conventions. If the new CBS/NYT poll is to be believed, those same voters are going back to Obama this week. And they have moved the top line numbers from McCain … [Read more...] about CBS Poll: White Women, Independents Go Back to Obama
Banking 2.0: Manage Your Money in the Cloud
Banks may be falling down but money management web sites are springing up all over. ReadWriteWeb has a roundup of the top Banking in the Cloud sites: These sites aren't just simplified versions of our former desktop apps... they offer a number of features that take advantage of their "always on" status. Forget downloading updates and typing in your transactions line-by-line, … [Read more...] about Banking 2.0: Manage Your Money in the Cloud
Dow Plunges Again – Panic of 2008?
On Wednesday the Dow Jones average dropped 449 points, a day after the Federal Reserve bailed out AIG. While yesterday the market gained 140 points the net drop for the Dow this week is over 800 points, or over 7 percent. Honestly, I'm shocked at Wall Street's behavior today. When the Fed stepped in to save Bear Stearns in March the Dow rallied. When the government took … [Read more...] about Dow Plunges Again – Panic of 2008?
Thoughts on Wall Street
Crossposted at the Square Deal: I'm not very good when it comes to things like money, my partner (who is the Democrat in the family) is better at those things than I am. So I will venture into this whole talk about what is going on with Wall Street with some fear and trepidation. As we stumble through this crisis, I have seen much ink spilled not as much on how to … [Read more...] about Thoughts on Wall Street
Quote Of The Day: On Attempts To Derail Palin Troopergate Investigation
Our political Quote of the Day comes from Dan Fagan, writing in Anchorage Daily News about news that GOP Vice Presidential nominee Gov. Sarah Palin isn't going to cooperate with the "Troopergate" investigation and news reports that the GOP is lawyering up to try and delay or derail the investigation totally: Meanwhile, this Palin VP thing has Alaskans all stirred up? … [Read more...] about Quote Of The Day: On Attempts To Derail Palin Troopergate Investigation
Scientific Breakthrough: Three Ply Toilet Paper
Toilet paper manufacturers sometimes come under fire for flimsy one- or two-ply rolls and they used to have to turn the other cheek, but now there's good news for those concerned with the real bottom line: three-ply toilet paper. If two-ply toilet paper is good, then three-ply tissue must be better. At least that's what toilet-paper researchers in northeastern Wisconsin … [Read more...] about Scientific Breakthrough: Three Ply Toilet Paper
Media Alert… Sort Of
For those of you familiar with the writing of James Joyner at Outside the Beltway (among other sources) you may also know that he hosts a weekly radio show on politics. James is on the road this week and I'll be helping to fill in for his show tonight at 7 pm Eastern, 4 pm Pacific Time. So tune in to Outside the Beltway Radio and we'll cover the current topics of the week in … [Read more...] about Media Alert… Sort Of
John McCain And The Economy
Some differing views... … [Read more...] about John McCain And The Economy
Why is Sarah Palin Soft on Child Molesters?
"Sarah Palin's latest explanation for why she fired Walt Monegan," writes TPM Muckraker's Zachary Roch, referring to the Troopergate scandal, "is that he had gone over her head in seeking federal money for an initiative to combat sexual assault crimes, before she had approved the program." Yeah, sure. It's insubordination, it's this, it's always some excuse. But, even if … [Read more...] about Why is Sarah Palin Soft on Child Molesters?
Zogby Gallup Polls: Obama Regains Lead As Voters View McCain As More Negative
Two new polls now show Democratic Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama slowly on the ascent in his political battle with Republican Sen. John McCain, who had been ahead in both polls. A new Zogby poll has Democratic Presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama regaining the lead in his battle with Republican Sen. John McCain -- in a survey that finds Democrats starting to come … [Read more...] about Zogby Gallup Polls: Obama Regains Lead As Voters View McCain As More Negative
McCain: Witness for the Prosecution
For the 9/11-like Commission he wants to study the Wall Street collapse, John McCain could well be the star witness about failure of government regulation to prevent chaos in the financial industry. His actions as a member of the Keating Five in the 1980s, which the Senate Ethics Committee later labeled "poor judgment," were the start of two decades of McCain opposition to … [Read more...] about McCain: Witness for the Prosecution
Fun With Sticky Notes
And now for something completely different... EepyBird's Sticky Note experiment from Eepybird on Vimeo. A triumph of corporate-sponsored art. But why did the Spectacular Sticky Note Experiment premiere during the ABC Family miniseries Samurai Girl, and why did the show’s stars participate in the antics? “ABC Family was looking to do something innovative to promote … [Read more...] about Fun With Sticky Notes
A Market Observation
The Federal Reserve is bailing out AIG to the tune of $85 billion. Ever wonder where the money to do deals such as this comes from? In this case the bailout will be paid for by a special bond sale by the Treasury to the general public. Or to put this another way, the full faith and credit of the United States of America is being used to raise money to support a company that … [Read more...] about A Market Observation
Obama Takes a Risk with a Two-Minute Economic Ad
In today's political climate, it's a bit of a risk to invest money in a two-minute ad about policy issues. But Obama's latest ad about his economic policy may be just what he needs, precisely because of the serious tone. Viewers may or may not pay attention to the details, but the sober and substantive tone contrasts sharply with the negative, and sometimes silly, ads run by … [Read more...] about Obama Takes a Risk with a Two-Minute Economic Ad
The Winning Ways of Our Lying Pols
Richard Cohen's column in which he goes from lap dog to attack dog, The Ugly McCain, is sweeping through the blogosphere. A snippet: McCain has turned ugly. His dishonesty would be unacceptable in any politician, but McCain has always set his own bar higher than most. He has contempt for most of his colleagues for that very reason: They lie. He tells the truth. He internalizes … [Read more...] about The Winning Ways of Our Lying Pols