Greetings from Lansing, Michigan. Once again today we will likely see some posts from our great Guest Bloggers. (TMV personally thinks this site looks a lot BETTER with the addition of the guest perspectives given by people who truly know how to write). Our posts may resume here today a bit more frequently after 12 noon EST. There are some things we kept on hold due to our all … [Read more...] about TMV On The Road: An Improvement In Air Travel

Over the past decade, comity between the two parties has deteriorated rapidly. The specter of the "nuclear" option looms over the United States Senate, and an impending ethics battle threatens to envelop the House. Some have even claimed that bipartisanship in Washington is dead. However, as the AP's Jim Abrams reports today, Democrats and Republicans have finally found at … [Read more...] about The Great Bipartisan Majority

TMV loves Wendy's which is a few minutes drive down the street. So today he craved chili. And he couldn't resist. "I'll have a large chili," he told the shift manager. "Without the finger." She cocked her head and asked him something so he said in Spanish. "Queria un chili. Sin el dedo." And she roared with laughter. See? Some people DO have a sense of humor. PS: The … [Read more...] about A Visit To Wendy’s

One of the most amusing political defenses you'll ever hear is the libertarian's plea to "legalize it," whatever "it" may be, temporarily tossing aside their distaste for regulation to wildly overpromise how much better things will be if only (insert here) were under the state's bureaucratic purview. (Then again, there's at least one issue where I happily and fervently make … [Read more...] about Prostitution no panacea for Germany

Yes, it does exist. Believe it or not. And Seattle Blogger has the details here. OUR VIEW: From the description it sounds as if the producers tried to get a decent cross-section of bloggers. Still, we wonder how commercially viable this is. Some years ago someone showed up at one of the Ventriloquists Conventions (there are two major ones) to do a movie about ventriloquists. … [Read more...] about A Movie About Bloggers And Blogging?

Here's more evidence that senior citizens are increasingly energetic these days:To the tune of "Start Me Up," the Rolling Stones played an energetic, three-song set on a stage outside The Juilliard School in Manhattan yesterday to announce their 2005 world tour. The set also featured a new song, "Oh No, Not You Again" and ended with "Brown Sugar." The year-long tour begins … [Read more...] about They’re Getting Off Their Rocking Chairs To Rock

Daveed Gartenstein-Ross has a fascinating piece about sycophantic journalists during the bad-old days in Iraq under Sadaam Hussein — and especially his late, unlamented son Uday. This link has a short summary post plus links to read the whole piece. … [Read more...] about When Journalistic Syncophants Attack

TMV travels today to Michigan. We have put a few things on a timer, but basically today you should see some thought provoking posts from a Guest Blogger or two. TMV will post something later tonight, from Lansing, Michicag. … [Read more...] about TMV Travels Today

The Talking Dog has a fascinating ORIGINAL INTERVIEW with the attorney for a prisoner at Guantanamo Bay. It's required reading for several reasons. First, TTD has again shown what the medium of blogging can do, when an enterprising person who has a weblog decides that rather than just report on newspaper articles, commentaries and link to other weblogs he'll do his own … [Read more...] about Interview With A Guantanamo Bay Prisoner’s Lawyer

If you enjoy video bloggers — those folks who are spicing up weblogs by having videos of key events — then you need to know that some of them need your help to keep operating. Our friend at Crooks and Liars recently emailed me when I asked him a question about it and said, yes, it certainly does run into a lot of money. And now The Political Teen has this message … [Read more...] about A Note: Do You Like Video Bloggers?

If you look at the CONTACT column on the left you'll see the name of another Guest Blogger who will be contributing to TMV from time to time. His name is Jonathan Singer who has the great blog BASIE! We first read his site after finding one of his original Q&A interviews and felt it was as professional as any interview anywhere. And when we began to explore his site, we … [Read more...] about Introducing A New Guest Blogger

It'll be interesting to see what happens to Congress' approval ratings if the "nuclear option" to eliminate judicial filibusters is triggered as predicted next week — because the latest Gallup poll shows it has fallen to an 8 year low: These are not good days for Congress. The latest Gallup survey shows that only 35% of Americans approve of the way Congress is handling … [Read more...] about Latest Poll: Congress Job Approval Takes Nosedive

Now, here's a holiday that even teenagers would enjoy: RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Sex rarely makes the news in Brazil's conservative Northeast — until a small town declared an official Orgasm Day on Monday. Espertantina Mayor Felipe Santolia endorsed the May 9 holiday, which he said was intended to improve relationships between married couples.Well let you read the details … [Read more...] about A Truly Arousing Holiday In Brasil

A museum to the Jewish victims of the Nazi holocaust opened in Germany — amid controversy centered on whether it was appropriate to have a memorial that only honors the Jews murdered by the Nazis and not others. Why? Part of the reason is that in recent years there has indeed been a focus on the totality of victims singled out the by Nazis. That doesn't take away from … [Read more...] about Holocaust Museum Opens In Germany Amid Controversy

If you are, then does John Hawkins have some (good) advice for you. He gives you 25 tips, all bluntly but earnestly offered. Ignore them at your peril.. … [Read more...] about Are You Interested In Blogging Or Doing More Effective Blogging?

With each hour it seems increasingly likely that the "nuclear option" to ban filibusters on judicial nominees will be triggered by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist — a move that will be hailed by GOP partisans and the White House but could usher in an era of intensified polarization in Congress and throughout the country. The latest point-counterpoint in this political … [Read more...] about Polarizing Nuclear Option Filibuster Vote Likely Within A Week

A new poll suggests that women are now returning to their traditional fold -- in the Democratic party: The gender gap is now 25 years old and, according to recent polling, it is alive and well. A Democratic polling memo released yesterday found that women, who voted for President Bush last year in large numbers, have begun migrating back to their traditional home in the … [Read more...] about Women Leaving GOP For Democratic Party

Firefox has been catching on due one highly touted characteristic: it was sidely said to be much more secure to use than Internet Explorer — but that claim is now undermined by warnings about newly discovered Firefox flaws. The BBC reports:The Mozilla Foundation has said it is "working aggressively" to fix two flaws in its open source Firefox browser. The … [Read more...] about Firefox Not That Secure After All

Amid a spate of reports indicating high GOPers believe his nomination will pass, John Bolton's image received another knee in the stomach from a new report that a high State Department official had put restrictions on his speeches and testimony. This is yet one more indication that the Bolton nomination for U.S. Ambassador to the UN is flawed — the kind of nomination … [Read more...] about More John Bolton Nomination Problems Or Is It A Done Deal?

The punch line that's often used is "Do you want fries with that" - but perhaps it'll be revised for Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick as "Do you want to be drummed out of public life for that?" As if government hasn't already looked into every possible area where it can impose a tax, how about the good mayor's latest idea: a tax on fast food. (No joke.)An additional tax on … [Read more...] about Dumb Government Department: Detroit Mayor Proposes Fast Food Tax