Ever since some time last winter, I have been referring to J. Francois Kerry as the "Maginot Candidate," that is, someone who looked big, impressive and "presidential" to the Dems but when put to the test has proven slipshod, obsolete and damn near useless. Oh, and of course he's French too.
The New England Republican has a meaty round-up of the latest polls documenting the Bush blitzkrieg around the embattled Kerry fortifications. The basic upshot is that Bush has got the Big Mo' going for him right now and if Kerry doesn't do something fast, he's toast.
Meanwhile, Mr. Vietnam himself is now waffling over, well, waffles.
Even as I type this, the Llamas are rolling past the 40,000 hit mark. Not too shabby for a couple of complete goobers, if I do say so meself.
Thanks so much to everyone who has made us the most lovable four-hooved South American herbivores in the Blogsphere.
Yip! Yip! Yip!
The Silver Fox has the news that the Red Sox are going to Wrigley for inter-league play, in June 2005.
Let's just say whatever Dan promises to do publicly to get his paws on good tickets, I'll do backwards and in heels...
Yips! from Robbo. After all, Steve, it's not like you haven't done that before....
Sheila has a funny post about finding herself propelled along a serious writing jag by the music of the Everly Brothers.
My experience with that is that it's sometimes the bizarre random stuff that really works. For the paper I cranked out the week before last, I was listening to a playlist that looped non-stop between Patsy Cline, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and John Coltraine. Of course, the downside of this is that now everytime I hear "Walking After Midnight" I'll be reminded of Indian assimilation, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and the Ghost Dance religion...
Interesting thing happened Sunday. (Well, I think it was interesting.) Before the processional hymn at Church, the organist usually plays a prelude or some other piece of a suitable religous nature. Lots of Bach, of course, but sometimes someone else. This time, however, he swung into a transcription of the 2nd Movement Larghetto from Beethoven's 2nd Symphony. I've never heard that done before. (There may be some history behind the music that I'm not aware of, but I'd never have thought it had any kind of religious connections.) Listening to such a familiar secular piece in a spiritual setting was vaguely disconcerting.
Just one more example of us crazy Palies living on the edge, I suppose.
The resplendent mango with the oddest headline of the day.
Because, remember, just because you find the guy in the middle of the school dressed like the terrorists and holding a gun doesn't necessarily make him a terrorist......
Everybody's favorite newspaper The Guardian is featuring an online poll asking their left readers what went wrong in the Kerry campaign.
I think a little ballot box stuffing is in order---to the Batpolls, Robin!
I have the most uncomfortable office chair. This is the only chair I know of that causes one to pull one's bum muscles just by the act of sitting. The Gov'mint must have bought it from Crazy Torquemada's Discount Consignment Mart. Wish they'd gone to Cardinal Fang's House o' Comfy Chairs instead.
After having watched The Empire Strikes Back over the weekend, I think I've got to come out and say this: For space-based science fiction, Star Trek beats Star Wars, hands down and on all fronts - characters, plot, vision, space and space travel - I can't think of any way in which the Star Wars universe is superior (well, other than Carrie Fisher in a slave-girl get up, but that's a gimme).
Especially given the way the Star Wars saga has spun in, looking back at ESB I am even more agitated by George Lucas' delusion that he is some kind of modern day cross between Homer and Sophocles. It just ain't so, George.
At least I did have one nice surprise - Lucas' tinkering with the reissued ESB isn't anywhere near as bad as his reworking of the first movie (which had always been my favorite of the lot).
Even given the awfulness of Star Treks I, III and V, I'd still take the Trek cycle over its Star Wars counterpart if made to choose between them. And that's before the last of the Star Wars movies comes out - I have every expectation that this one is going to be as big a stinker as the last two.
UPDATE: As our Llama Military Correspondent points out, Natalie Portman's six-pack abs almost make the last movie worth watching.
Pejman points to an article by Roger Simon arguing that comparisons of Kerry to Dukakis are really unfair......to Dukakis.
Yeeeeouch.
Now even though I expect that Bush is going to win comfortably (barring some unforseen turn of events), I realize that we've still got eight weeks to go and that the cocky enthusiasm we Republicans are feeling post-convention will have to be replaced by disciplined focus and determination. But not today, Oh Lord, not today. I am going to indulge in just a wee bit more crowing. In that spirit, allow me to direct your attention to Brendan Miniter. He's pointing at the upper deck in left-center field.