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March 2005

Dear George W. by bean, at Cool Beans 10:49 am / 23 March 2005

Please tell us when you'regoing to drop the big one. I'll be tunedto CNN or MSNBC. I could even buy a second set.I won't miss a thing. It will be more grand than towers tumblingto the ground. No people falling, though. Instead, they'll maybebounce into the air? Or just be running fast, their hair on fire? Willwe see them screaming? See their body parts? What will we see,George? Will we hear their

The Mice are Keeping Me Away by bean, at Cool Beans 10:33 am / 19 March 2005

Alas, it seems the severe mouse infestation in our house has migrated to my bedroom. Since that's where my computer is, and since I've been avoiding my room as much as possible (due to my extreme phobia of mice), I have not been able to post much (or sleep, or much of anything else other than have severe anxiety attacks because of the mice).It looks like until the mouse problem is dealt with, I

Rambling thoughts on recent news by Amazonfemme, at amazonfemme 6:56 pm / 18 March 2005

Because It Just Doesn't Make Sense, That's Why

To the great joy of all who believe in basic human rights, San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Richard Kramer ruled on Monday that withholding marriage licenses from gays and lesbians violates California's Constitution.

Quoth Judge Kramer - who is not only a Republican but also Catholic - "It appears that no rational purpose exists for limiting marriage in this state to opposite-sex partners." Amen, Yer Honor.

No rational purpose has ever existed for any form of discrimination against the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community... but it's certainly nice to hear it from a relatively conservative judge.

The ruling will be appealed. We know that. The issue will eventually make its way to the Supreme Court, where the issue will have to be decided on the merits of the law - not on religion or tradition or whether half the country freaks out at the thought of gay people having the same rights as their own selves.

Until that day comes, however, we celebrate victories wherever we find 'em.

A Case for Living Wills

The tragedy of Terry Schiavo continued, with the Florida legislature and both chambers of Congress rushing last-minute measures to a vote, all in an effort to keep Schiavo's husband from having her feeding tube removed against the wishes of her parents. In a breathtaking example of Congress's penchant for theater of the absurd, House Republicans issued a subpoena for Schiavo to appear before a congressional hearing - a blatant attempt to subvert a court order allowing her feeding tube to be removed.

The Florida judge presiding over the case finally told Congress where to stick their subpoena, and the feeding tube was removed at 1:45 EST this afternoon. It could take as long as two weeks for her to die, and who knows what legal gymnastics we may witness before then.

There is no happy ending to this story. None. But it serves as a potent reminder that every adult should make out a living will.

No Guts. No Glory. No Damn Wonder.

My seamhead husband and I spent a couple of hours last night watching C-SPAN's rerun of the Congressional hearings on steroid use in baseball. My beloved had never actually sat down to watch C-SPAN - and probably never will again - but for a while there, it was more entertaining than an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.

After listening to a pack of obsequious, butt-kissing congressman lob softballs that Mario Mendoza could have jacked, and hearing Jose Canseco, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro and Curt Schilling make statements that ranged from pugnacious to pathetic, we came to a few conclusions:
  • Jose Canseco is an asshat.
  • Sammy Sosa looked like he got lost on the way to Camden Yards and somehow wound up in the Rayburn building.
  • Sammy also managed to conveniently forget he knows how to speak English.
  • Jose Canseco is an asshat.
  • Raffy Palmeiro is one serious hunk of man-meat.
  • Curt Schilling needs to make up his mind whether steroid use in baseball is or isn't a problem, because he contradicted himself half a dozen times.
  • Jose Canseco is an asshat.
But what saddened me most was Mark McGwire's non-testimony. The man who kept us glued to the screen in 1998, as he and Sosa chased Roger Maris, was a mere shadow of his former self - and I'm not just talking about the considerable change in his physical appearance (which could be explained by the fact that retired ballplayers don't need to retain all that muscle, couldn't it?).

My respect for McGwire came not only from his talent at the plate, but from the way he conducted himself during that remarkable season - with dignity, humility, and a refusal to feed the rivalry the press kept trying to cook up between him and Sammy. Most of all, I gave him huge props for speaking openly about going through therapy - an admission that most athletes wouldn't make if you held a .45 to their heads. He had integrity, and we loved him for it.

The Mark McGwire I saw at yesterday's hearing was not the Mark McGwire of 1998. This Mark McGwire stammered and stalled, feebly refusing to answer questions about whether he or any player he knew had used steroids. Over and over again, he bleated, "I'm not here to talk about the past." "I'm a retired player." "I can't answer that." "It's not for me to determine." "My lawyers have advised me that I cannot answer these questions."

After a couple of hours of that, how can anyone not think that Big Mac was ducking the questions because he was, in fact, juiced while he was playing? That those 70 runs, and the entire magical season, were the result of - let's say the word - cheating. By choosing to all but plead the Fifth, McGwire forever tarnished his legacy as both a great player and a man of integrity. Moreover, as today's Washington Post noted, McGwire's crowning achievement will now be tagged with an "unwritten asterisk."

What a cryin' shame.


Of Punks and Poseurs by bean, at Cool Beans 9:22 am / 16 March 2005

Amanda and Volsunga have both been talking about punk. Really, they're both good reads. But, I have to admit, they made me giggle.Volsunga said:What the hell is with teen tribes? It seems like all of a sudden, the past few years, kids have been more and more keen to label themselves as “punk” or “emo” or “goth”[...]It’s not the little ones that annoy me. It’s the 17 year old+ people who think all

Sick and Stressed by bean, at Cool Beans 2:49 pm / 14 March 2005

I want to apologize to everyone for not posting in almost a week. Last week was a very bad week for me. I spent most of the week dealing with a stomach bug. It was pretty bad -- but I did get to spend some of that time watching a lot of Freaks and Geeks, so I guess it wasn't all bad.I don't usually post about personal things, but there's this one thing that's got me so stressed right now, I can