The Truffle

This blog has just GOT to be bogus. (Via Running Scared)

There's another heat wave rolling toward the northeastern US. Why should California and the midwest have all the fun? Surely NYC is up for a few more days of 100-degree weather. Right? Man, am I nervous about the coming week. Especially with Kevin "Denial Ain't a River in Egypt" Burke as the man ultimately responsible for this city's power grid. Note this little nugget of comedy gold: Burke says despite the failure of 10 out of 22 feeder cables in northwest Queens, the area's power network has a better performance record than others around the city. "Despite the failure of 10 out of 22 feeder cables." BWAH! The NY Daily News weighs in on the matter, faulting the Public Service Commission along with Con Ed. It points to a report by attorney general Eliot Spitzer that Con Ed's feeder cables have had a tendency to fail; seven cables went down in 1999. Spitzer has said that if elected governor, he'd whip the Public Service Commission in...

So sayeth Charles Barkley, who wants to run for governor of Alabama in 2010 as a Democrat.

Kevin Burke, Con Ed's CEO, is trying to do damage control. Uh...Kevvie? It's nice that you want to win back our trust, but don't you think you should try to UPGRADE YOUR COMPANY'S INFRASTRUCTURE first?

Yes, I needed that extended weekend. Le Sweetie and I joined friends at their cabin and spent the time hiking, horseback riding, swimming, and visiting an amusement park. The hiking, swimming, and horseback riding were cool. The amusement park...well, it wasn't Great Adventure, but hey. Last time we were there, we went to a different water park that was really nice, so perhaps one day we'll go back there. I came home to find that the electricity was still here. A good sign!

On Thursday, I leave for the Poconos, where friends have a cottage. Out in the picturesque wilderness, where things are usually dark for a reason (i.e., it's night and you're out in the middle of nowhere). After camping out at Le Sweetie's for four days, I get to spend more quality time with Le Sweetie (and friends) without having to follow the Con Ed follies on NY1. Yaaaaaaaaaaay!!!

Northwest Queens may have spent a whole week suffering in the heat and darkness, but it seems we're not alone. See Parenthetical Remarks for more. Meanwhile, Dusty over at It's My Right to Be Left of Center is experiencing brownouts and oppressive heat over in central California. Misery shore loves company, don't it?

Yes, NYC's power company, Con (Artists) Edison spent about a week bungling and lying and bungling some more before they finally got all the power back up in northwestern Queens. For some, the power first went out on Monday, 7/17. As mentioned earlier, this blogger gal noted that something was, well, not right on Tuesday as her AC grumbled its way through the night in 100-degree weather. Boy, was that fun. As it turns out, my apartment was experiencing a brownout, and the power grew dimmer and dimmer and dimmer. Wednesday, the power was almost gone, Astoria was in the dark, and I came home to a fridge full of spoiled food and melted frozen spinach. With cooking not an option, I found one restaurant that was still open. I walked there and back with a flashlight in hand. It felt like camping, only without the s'mores and Girl Scout leaders singing folk songs. No, there was no looting or burlary. Just a lot of really pissed off people walking around on a humid summer night....

For one thing, there's no electricity to make said blogging possible. That said, my neighborhood of Astoria, Queens was in the dark for about a week. I had a brownout in my own apartment starting on Tuesday, meaning that my 60-watt light bulbs were operating at 10 watts and all my food was ruined. And this dragged on from Tuesday until Sunday or so. AAARRRRRRRGGGGGGH! There are still about 3,000 people in Woodside who still haven't gotten their power back, and it's been over a week. Luckily, I had Le Sweetie to provide me with a place to sleep that had electricity and A/C, but it still sucked to see my neighborhood (along with four others) in the dark. I'll offer more opinions on the con artists at Con Ed and the mayor's response to this fiasco later...

Can't Bush just keep his mouth shut for the rest of the presidential term? Here's the scoop from CNN: During a joint news conference Saturday in St. Petersburg, Bush said he raised concerns about democracy in Russia during a frank discussion with the Russian leader. "I talked about my desire to promote institutional change in parts of the world, like Iraq where there's a free press and free religion, and I told him that a lot of people in our country would hope that Russia would do the same," Bush said. To that, Putin replied, "We certainly would not want to have the same kind of democracy that they have in Iraq, quite honestly." I imagine Putin desperately trying to keep a straight face as he spoke. Via Mockingbird's Medley.

Peter Coors, former GOP Senate candidate and scion of the family that makes crappy beer, has been arrested for drunk driving.

Spent yesterday in the sun in fun, sunny, funky, exciting Coney Island! Le Sweetie and I were there for the Village Voice's Siren Music Festival, a free event starring cool indie bands on two different stages. We met up with several friends and spent the afternoon listening to music, eating hot dogs, and, of course, going on the rides. The Siren Festival is set right in the middle of Coney Island's Astroland amusement park, home of the world-famous Coney Island Cyclone. Every time I visit Coney Island, I take a few minutes to gaze longingly at the Cyclone. The coaster seems to beckon silently: "Come on...jump aboard! You know you want to!!!" Le Sweetie doesn't quite share the coaster love. In fact, he needs someone (usually me) to hold his hand. He also needs to keep his eyes closed. In fact, this time he decided to pass on riding the Cyclone and I jumped aboard with a friend. C'mon, doesn't this picture make you want to head for the nearest amusement par...

No one is united All things are untied Perhaps we're boiling over inside They've been telling lies Who's been telling lies? There are no angels There are devils in many ways Take it like a man The world's a mess it's in my kiss The world's a mess it's in my kiss You can take it back Pull it out of the fire Pull it out In the bottom of the night Pull it out Chords of red-disease Drag on the system Drag on my head and body There are some facts here That refuse to escape I could say it stronger But it's too much trouble I was wondering down at the bricks Hectic, isn't it? Down we go Cradle and all From "The World's a Mess (It's in My Kiss)". Words and music by John Doe and Exene Cervenka. Recorded by X. Mind you, X guitarist Billy Zoom has since become a born-again Limbaugh listener (sigh), but it's still a great--and very appropriate--song for the beginning of the twenty-first century. Even if it was recorded in 1980.

Apparently, the Young America Foundation refused to issue press credentials to a reporter from CampusProgress.org and said they'd also deny credentials to The Nation and Alternet. Here's the whole story. What's YAF afraid of, anyway? It's all over again deja vu as the American people decide the GOP has overstayed its welcome. And just twelve years after that great GOP sweep. That long-term Republican majority didn't last long, did it? This is just stomach-wrenching. Even the tabloids think it's repulsive. (Via Debsweb ) What can I say about the Israel/Lebanon/Hamas/Hizbollah conflict that hasn't been said before? It's really making me nervous. Best case scenario? It's one of those Israeli/Arab conflicts that doesn't last longer than a few days. Worst case scenario? Don't ask.

"I and my former colleagues trusted the government to protect us in our jobs." So said Valerie Plame yesterday, at a press conference with her husband, Joe Wilson. They have now filed a civil suit against Dick Cheney and Karl Rove. For three years, Plame has remained silent while her husband took her case against Bushco to the American people. Lest anyone think this is a victimless crime, I should add that Plame specialized in nonconventional weapons and had extensive contacts in the Middle East--contacts who may well be dead by now. Novak, the guy who blew her cover, even admitted as much. And yes, wingnuts, she was indeed a covert operative. The CIA said so. Former CIA agent Larry Johnson has more, for anyone non-Kool Aid drinkers. Amazing how the extremists will go into a homicidal rage over The New York Times but conveniently overlook the outing of a CIA agent. Gee, you don't think that outing a CIA agent specializing in WMDs somehow hurts national security...

That's Ms. Liberal Airhead to you. (Via The Green Knight )

Tucker Carlson weighs in on immigration: Tucker Carlson: Those may be -- nationally those stats may be correct. You may have -- you may be counting Hispanic immigrants from Puerto Rico or Cuba, but those two countries make up less than 1 percent of the Hispanic immigrants in Dallas, Texas. For the kazillionth time, Puerto Ricans are NOT immigrants. Puerto Rico is NOT a foreign country. It's a US territory; hence, Puerto Ricans are US citizens. This is common knowledge...or at least it should be. Maybe wearing those bow ties interrupted the blood flow to Li'l Tucker's brain all those years. First Paste-Eating Pete, now this. (Via Eschaton )

Well, he might read a story in The Onion about a lady named Caroline Weber and how thrilled she is to be getting an abortion. And he just might blow a gasket. He might then respond with a strident, rather humorless post. Something along the lines of: Miss Weber, you have killed your child, which you admit is a baby/human being, intentionally. That does make you an admitted murderer. I'm not going to "condemn you to hell", I'm going to pray for your forgiveness and for the suffering which you will endure when you realize what you have done. Every baby you see from that moment on is going to wake you up to the realization that you killed your child. Needless to say, he might then get a flood of comments, all seeking to educate him as to the facts: namely, that the article was a humorous piece in a paper that specializes in humor, that Caroline "Yippee, I'm Having an Abortion!" Weber does not in fact exist. Confronted with these undeniable facts, he wou...

...Hence this blog's sunny new look. I was just in a really summery mood.

So why Homeland Security cut NYC's funding by 40 percent? Well, it seems this city doesn't have any assets worth protecting, while other states do. That's right, the Empire State Building is not a national asset, but our country's petting zoos, flea markets, and popcorn factories are. See, there's something called the National Asset Database, and according to this database, Indiana is one big ol' bullseye for terrorists, with 8,591 "assets." What kind of assets? Well, it has Amish County Popcorn. I didn't know the Amish even made popcorn. The company's owner could come up with only one explanation: "Maybe because popcorn explodes?" Le Sweetie suggests, "I think they should also delist 1600 Pennsylvannia Ave as a threat since they're obviously not doing any defense for this country."

Okay, which paragon of business and marketing savvy thought that this ad was appropriate? "White is coming?" What is this, Birth of a Nation ? (Via The Hackenblog ) UPDATE: The offending ad has been withdrawn.

R.I.P.

Why was Ken Lay taken from us so soon? Jon Swift thinks he knows. As a follow-up to yesterday's post, here's a short, short story starring Bush and Chirac. Poppy's boy sure has a way with heads of state, doesn't he? Via Elayne Riggs, I have found out about something called PayPerPost.com . Yes, in the future, we won't need advertising mascots or has-been actors selling. We can get a bunch of mouse potatoes instead. Saves advertising dollars. Whoopee! Truly horrible. So what exactly is the US doing to stamp out al Qaeda. Are they going to shut down any more CIA programs? Over at Parenthetical Remarks, fun for the blasphemous.

It's right in the middle of the country. It doesn't seem to have any lakes or rivers or any bodies of water whatsoever. It's a state where little girls get swept away by tornadoes and ending up in weird countries where people practice witchcraft. A Mediterranean gecko has been spotted there. And a Republican husband and Democrat wife are running for the same seat in the Kansas legislature.

WARNING: This post is rated NC-17 for adult language, squicky theories, and hot, sweaty sex stuff. It should not be read by kids, overly serious political bloggers, or anyone with a weak stomach. A-HEM... There's a curious underside to the Bush presidency, one that his most vehement moral values voters refuse to acknowledge even as they struggle to justify their loyalty. It's something that the 36 percenters don't dare speak of, because the very idea is not only morally abhorrent to them, but just plain icky yucky gross. Before we talk about what that ickiness is, a bit of history: During the 1990s, when it was okay to not give a shit about politicians, I was an active, sometimes overenthusiastic member of science fiction fandom. I hung out in chat rooms. I posted to Usenet groups and AOL boards. (Yes, I was on AOL. I got smart later on, okay?) I loved The X-Files and Farscape. I thought Xena was way fun. But my favorite show was Star Trek: Deep Space Nine; I cried my eyes ...

Yes, Senator Orrin Hatch is a professional recording artist in his own right. In fact, he's Mormonism's best-known musical figure since the Osmonds, and you can sample his artistry at his official Web site. There, you'll find out about how his parents, despite being very poor, always made sure their kids had seats at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. You'll also learn that he wrote a song for his friend Ted Kennedy and that he started writing poetry at Brigham Young Unviersity. Orrin Hatch is a career politician with the soul of an artist. Maybe that's why he was moved to help R&B producer Dallas Austin, who was busted for cocaine in Dubai. Or maybe it's because they have the same lawyer.

Via Rox Populi . If there's ever a Deuce Bigelow sequel, Ms. Fleiss will surely make a cameo. LA Weekly has more.

Joe Biden, SHUT UP!

Even though Tom DeLay's not running for re-election, it seems the Republicans are stuck with him. As you may recall, the little weasel won the Republican primary but dropped out of the race a month later. This prompted Democracy for America to send him a bunch of farewell cards and rubber chickens. Well, a judge has ruled that he can't get off the ballot. The Texas GOP can't replace him. He's the Republican candidate whether he likes it or not. Even though he may be wearing a prison jumpsuit before the next election cycle. His opponent, Nick Lampson, has got to be dancing on air right now. As one unfortunate DeLay constituent puts it: In a charming and delightful twist of fate, Republicans must now "Judge Shop" for an "Activist Judge" to get their way. I mean, even Republicans will have to admit that's funny.

Herman B. Hayes of Conservatives for American Values offers some words of comfort regarding Ken Lay's passing. Most people don’t know that Ken “Retirement is for Losers” Lay was a leader in the fight against obesity in the elderly. By keeping so many ex Enron employees from collecting pensions, Ken Lay was doing them a huge favor. Old people with money have a tendency to get lazy, and getting lazy makes old people fat. Everyone knows that if you are fat and lazy, God will kill you with a huge heart attack. I do not know how our Good Lord chose to take Ken “Not Like Fred Sanford” Lay, but I doubt it was a heart attack. I cannot bring myself to watch the liberal media tear this great man apart, and I am not sure that I need to know how he died. Makes me regret my earlier snark regarding Kenny Boy. I'm such a mean socialist sometimes.

I don't mean to speak ill of the recently deceased, but wouldn't it be nice if the money from Ken Lay's estate was distributed to his employees--you know, the ones who lost their pensions because of him?

From the NYT: The Central Intelligence Agency has closed a unit that for a decade had the mission of hunting Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenants, intelligence officials confirmed Monday. The unit, known as Alec Station, was disbanded late last year and its analysts reassigned within the C.I.A. Counterterrorist Center, the officials said. The decision is a milestone for the agency, which formed the unit before Osama bin Laden became a household name and bolstered its ranks after the Sept. 11 attacks, when President Bush pledged to bring Mr. bin Laden to justice "dead or alive." Yes, this is a unit that was formed under the Clinton administration for the sole purpose of finding bin Laden. And under Bushco, it's been shut down. So WHO is soft on terror?

For July 4, we turn our attention away from picnics, fireworks, and holiday sales. People, we've got a national identity crisis with our national anthem. According to a Harris poll, two thirds of Americans don't know all the words to "The Star-Spangled Banner." I know what you're thinking: "What're you talking about? Everyone knows the words to that song! We've been hearing it and singing it since elementary school. It's sung before every baseball game. Besides, it's only eight lines long, so how can you not have it committed to memory by the time you're twelve?" Um...erm... only eight lines long? Not quite. In fact, the original song consists of four verses of eight lines each--32 lines total. And while most people do indeed have Verse 1 committed to memory, Verses 2-4 are never sung and remain unknown to most Americans. For the record, the complete lyrics to "The Star Spangled Banner" are as follows: Oh, say, ...

Before I was a city girl, I was a small town girl. The small town in question was Red Hook, in Dutchess County, New York, right across the river from Woodstock. The area's scenic delights, apple orchards, pretty houses, and antique stores bring lots of visitors from New York City on the weekends. However, the lack of anything much to do was enough to drive this small town girl out of town before boredom took its toll. My mom still lives in the area (which is about the only reason I ever go back). And periodically, I'll stick my nose in to get an idea of anything new happening in my hometown. Actually, several things have happened since I left: They built a multiplex theater, a Dunkin Donuts, and a Pizza Hut. There were plans to build a Shop Rite, but that didn't happen. And so far, no Starbucks; in fact, Red Hook is probably the only town on earth that doesn't have a Starbucks. Traditionally, Dutchess County has been conservative. Never mind that its most famous...

...And some other stuff as well. The plaintiff is someone with the gigolo-esque name of Dirk Summers; the defendant is Rue McClanahan, aka Blanche on "The Golden Girls." The facts of the case have the distinction of being both muddled and thin, perfect for the Hollywood climes from which they sprung. Whatever golden age that there was for the couple seems to have gone sour over plans to create and develop something called the Elan Vital Wellness and Longevity Centre (there is no indication that the name of the project will be optioned to a B grade science fiction film). To boil things down: Summers (no relation to Buffy) claims that McClanahan was supposed to cough up $10 million so that they could borrow another $40 million against it to get the epic experiment in Wellness rolling. Somewhere down the line, McClanahan got the impression that Summers forged her name on escrow and bank documents and subsequently stole $200,000 from her. That's where the allegations of li...

Oooooops, wrong Jerry Lewis . Actually, I'm rather relieved by this. The Jerry Lewis in question is a Republican congressman involved in yet another lobbying scandal. (YAWWWWN!)

Well, I've returned from a fun-filled four-day weekend in the Poconos. Le Sweetie and I have friends who just bought a cool-looking 1970s-style A-frame cabin. The cabin has a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, living room area, and loft area. Weather in the 60s/70s and no humidity. What could be better summer weather than that? And it was all water water water! those four days. Canoeing in the lake. Playing at the water park. Swimming in the pool. Getting a sunburn on my back. Oh, who cares about the sunburn? We had a blast and can't wait to go back later this month. There are more water parks and even a water-slash-amusement park in the Poconos. In other words, more fun to be had up there. I'm wondering if we could work in a little retail therapy at some point and check out a gift shop or two...Alas, the main shopping hubs seem to be the occasional strip mall, outlet store, or ubiquitous Wal-Mart. But this being the Poconos, there has to be a cute gift shop around t...