Phew, it was a dream!

Funniest thing just happened to me, I was over at eschaton, scrolling through what I may have missed while I was catching up on the Soprano's last night, and it reminded of a dream I had last night. In part of the dream I was watching Faux News and the always smarmy Brit Hume was reporting about Bush's bounce and reported his approval ratings at 48%, and I started screaming at the TV about how we are such idiots in this country and other rants such as that. Then I went on to dream about a mistake on my Credit Card bill or something of that nature. Anyhow, I didn't realize this was a dream until 5 minutes ago when I read this: (CBS) The latest CBS News poll finds President Bush's approval rating has fallen to an all-time low of 34 percent, while pessimism about the Iraq war has risen to a new high. I guess this country isn't that dumb after all, or at least not as dumb as I thought. (via Atrios courtesy of CBS

10/10 for me too

Yay, I passed eighth grade math as well. Now I don't have a PHD in Economics like Duncan, but I do have my undergraduate degree in accounting and I do love math. Hopefully, Mr. Cohen of the Wash. Post will realize that math is important when he is trying to figure out his retirement savings or how many more articles he needs to write till he can finally retire for the good of everyone. You Passed 8th Grade Math Congratulations, you got 10/10 correct! Could You Pass 8th Grade Math?

Not too much on the mind...

Nothing noteworthy to blog about today other than the fact that it's almost my favorite time of year again, baseball season. The Cubs first spring trainging game is only 3 days away and Opening day is a little over a month away. To celebrate almost spring training I will be going to my favorite street sausage griller out in Philly for a hot dog and hot sausage for lunch. On another note... I am really sick and tired of this whole port deal thing, the part that makes me the most upset is that the only reason there is such a massive uproar from both sides is that this is an arab country, I think the politicians are turning a blind eye to the bigotry behind the uproar and using it to make it a black and white issue, Are you for the terrorists or are you against them? I really hope we can get out of this Rovian method of painting things in black and white, it really makes us look like idiots, and in regards to the port deal this bigotry in no way whatsoever helps our image with the majority of Arabs who are not terrorists, I know this may surprise the majority Americans as well as our wonderful press corps who love the idea of the evil arab bad guy. By the way... Somewhat related to the port deal, but has anyone thought that Michael Jackson is behind all this? I know this is in really poor taste, but maybe he bankrolled the port deal as a means for smuggling that which he holds most dear. His Neverland amusement rides and animals...Sheesh you all have sick minds.

V for Vendetta

It opens March 17th and I can't wait. Recently I haven't been too excited about many upcoming releases, seeing as that everything seems to be a remake of movies that should not be remade, Steve Martin I am looking in your direction. V for Vendetta, seems to be a fresh movie, with a political message about how a government can use fear to control it's citizens. The Wachowski brothers of Matrix fame are behind the movie with their Assistant Director from the Matrix movies James McTeigue directing the movie. The best thing about the movie right now is that as with the Matrix, the Wachowski's seem to be keeping the publicity for the movie to a minimum, as opposed to the massive publicity storm that most movies get these days. Here is the synopsis: Set against the futuristic landscape of totalitarian Britain, V For Vendetta tells the story of a young working-class woman named Evey who is rescued from a life-and-death situation by a masked man known only as "V." Profoundly complex, V is at once literary, flamboyant, tender and intellectual, a man dedicated to freeing his fellow citizens from those who have terrorized them into compliance. He is also bitter, revenge-seeking, lonely and violent, driven by a personal vendetta. In his quest to free the people of England from the corruption and cruelty that have poisoned their government, V condemns the tyrannical nature of their appointed leaders and invites his fellow citizens to join him in the shadows of Parliament on November the 5th – Guy Fawkes Day. On that day in 1605, Guy Fawkes was discovered in a tunnel beneath Parliament with 36 barrels of gunpowder. He and his co-conspirators had engineered the treasonous "Gunpowder Plot" in response to the tyranny of their government under James I. Fawkes and his fellow saboteurs were hanged, drawn and quartered, and their plan to take down their government never came to pass. In the spirit of that rebellion, in remembrance of that day, V vows to carry out the plot that Fawkes was executed for attempting on November 5th in 1605: he will blow up Parliament. As Evey uncovers the truth about V’s mysterious past, she also discovers the truth about herself – and emerges as his unlikely ally in the culmination of his plan to ignite a revolution, bringing freedom and justice back to a society fraught with cruelty and corruption. The early reviews look promising and the trailers at the official site look really good as well. Now if anyone knows how to score sneak preview passes, I don't know if I can wait till March 17th.

Some more bright ideas....

I want to get this out before I go into more details in the post, I am not opposed to handing control over our ports to the United Arab Emirates because they are Arabs, I am opposed because they have strong ties to Al Qaeda, The Taliban, and assisting rogue nations in their pursuit of Nuclear Weapons, something even Iraq did not do. The Bush administration has once again proved that it is incapable of making decisions that make any fricking sense. From appointing a former lawyer from the Arabian Horse Association to this latest debacle involving a terrorist supporting nation being put in charge of one of our weakest security points, it seems to me that a four year old is simply rolling the dice and making these important decisions. We at Out of Context, meaning me at Out of Context, have decided to look into our crystal ball and predict the next blunders of the Bush Administration: 1. James Dobson will be appointend the new Head of the Department of Education and Evolution will only be taught in the back alleys on university campuses. 2. In a surprise move, Manuel Noriega is pardoned and immediately appointed the new Drug Czar in our "War on Drugs". In a complete coincidence, deliveries of "sugar" to the White House quadruple and in public appearances Bush is viewed as a little paranoid and shaky. 3. After much thought about the global warming crisis, Bush decides to appoint fellow global warming denier Michael Crichton to lead the Department of Energy. As a rationale for this appointment, Bush states,"No one has done such thorough research in this field as has Mr. Crichton, it is my belief that America must be vigilant in preventing Dinosaurs from escaping from Jurassic Park and Mr. Crichton is the man to do it." These are just some of the bright ideas, we at Out of Context, I mean me at Out of Context have, we hope you enjoy and welcome future suggestions.

A new blog is added to the list of regular reads...

I see a huge spike in this blogs traffic since my blog is so heavily read. The great TBOGG is about to be added to the blogroll, I would like to thank the great and wonderful Suburban Guerrilla for guiding me to TBOGG's pre-friday random ten. As a result I have decided to purchase the latest album from the Black Keys.

Irrelevant Conservative Blogger of the Day

We at Out of Context, meaning me, today begin a new feature where we highlight, actually poke fun at, an irrelevant conservative blogger. Today's irrelevant conservative blog, Tim Saler.com. Tim Saler bills himself as, " a nationally-recognized emerging political activist, analyst, and writer. He resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania." After reading through his site I find his analysis to be somewhat longwinded, biased to the right, and the prediction maps to be somewhat juvenile as if they were pulled from a coloring book. Since I am an irrelevant blog, I know how Tim must feel, especially since it looks as if he has put a lot of work into the design of his blog. He has even made up some credentials such as, "Tim’s work has been highlighted on CNN’s Inside Politics, and his popular election projections have been featured on numerous websites as well as in newspapers such as the Times Record of Fort Smith, Arkansas, the Herald Leader of Siloam Springs, Arkansas, and the Star of Pipestone County, Minnesota." If I were you Tim, I wouldn't mention the name CNN in those conservative circles, that is the kiss of death. As for Fort Smith, Arkansas and Siloam Springs, Arkansas, making up cities in America is just not a cool way to self-promote. As for the Star of Pipestone County, Minnesota, I read that paper every day and have yet to see any of your colorings featured. In closing, I would like to thank Tim Saler for being the inaugural Irrelevant Conservative Blogger of the Day, if I may be so inclined again I may take aim at another Irrelevant Conservative Blogger, I know the suspense will kill you. Eritor's note: The proprietor of Out of Context would like to acknowledge his own irrelevancy as well, but he feels his irrelevancy is less relevant seeing as his blog is merely a cure for his boredom and not a self promotional vehicle like Tim Saler's site

It's been a week since my last post...

and I would like to say what a week it's been. Over the weekend we ventured to Beaver Creek, Colorado for my first attempt at skiing, thanks to my girlfriend's dad for taking us there for a great christmas present. All I have to say is Colorado is a beautiful place and skiing is a hell of a lot of fun. If I only had about 2 million dollars I could afford a one bedroom condo in Beaver Creek. Oh yeah, and did you hear that the Vice President shot a 78 year old man in the face. If you didn't you must have been hiding under a rock. The official word is that it was an accident, but my diagnosis is that the wounds to Harry Whittington's face were caused by stupidity. Dick Cheney is so stupid that he couldn't distinguish between a quail and Whittington's face. If Dick Cheney was not so stupid none of this would have happened. Even Ari Fleischer is somewhat critical of the response by Cheney and his staff. Anyways I'll be back later with more.... Update: Here is one of the pics from the trip....

The nutjobs at the AFA are at it again

The American Family Association is crying persececution against Christianity again. After aiding in the cancellation of The Book of Daniel , they have decided to aim higher at stopping an April 13 episode of Will and Grace cancelled. Here is the letter: SPECIAL ALERT! NBC to mock the Crucifixion of Christ NBC, fresh from giving us the anti-Christian The Book of Daniel , has decided to hit back at the Christian community by presenting an episode of Will and Grace which mocks the crucifixion of Christ. On the April 13 edition of NBC's Will and Grace , Britney Spears will appear as a Christian conservative sidekick to Sean Hayes' homosexual character, Jack, who hosts his own talk show. Jack's fictional network, Out TV, is bought by a Christian TV network, leading to Spears contributing a cooking segment called "Cruci-fixin's." To further denigrate Christianity, NBC chose to air it the night before Good Friday. Click Here to read the Associated Press article. NBC does not treat Jews, Muslims or other religions with such disrespect. Yet the network demonstrates a deep of hostility toward followers of Christ. TAKE ACTION 1. Call your local NBC affiliate and ask them not to air the April 13 episode of Will and Grace . Ask others to call. Click here to find your local NBC station. 2. Click here to send a letter to NBC Chairman Bob Wright. Ask your pastor to run a notice in your church bulletins and newsletters and request members to go to www.afa.net and send the email to NBC Chairman Wright. 3. Click here to print out a petition (pdf) asking your local NBC affiliate not to air the April 13 episode and distribute it to your Sunday School class and fellow church members. Next, and this is very important, please forward this to your friends and family today! If you feel our efforts are worthy, would you consider making a small donation to help us in this effort. Click here to make your donation. Thanks for caring enough to get involved. Sincerely, Don Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman American Family Association Help stop the AFA's persecution of "freedom of expression", do exactly what they say but instead let NBC know that they should stop bowing to pressure for conservative christian nut jobs, let the American Family Association know that they can always change the channel. Update: Here is the link to find your local NBC affiliate

What's next, turning the Governor's Mansion into a hotel?

Just as I was thinking that there was nothing to blog about today, something comes along and hits right at home. A foreign controlled private company that bought the rights to operate the Chicago Skyway Toll Road that connects Indiana and Illinois, appears to have locked up a deal to buy the 157 mile stretch of the Indiana Toll Road. Having grown up in Chicago, I have driven across both the Skyway and the Indiana Toll Road many a time. I can attest to the fact that private ownership may do the skyway some good, since it is been constantly under construction and in disrepair my entire life. The Indiana Toll Road is not in as bad of shape, but I do understand that due to lack of federal funds as a result of poorly timed tax cuts during a time of war, Indiana and other states may need this funding. I know privately owned toll roads have been successful in Europe among other places, but I can just foresee the contracts being abused, either through exorbitant toll amounts or insufficient maintenance. But then there is the other side of my thoughts that thinks, higher tolls may force people to travel by car less, carpool more, or demand that the government provide more public transportation. This type of trend could lead to more responsible driving. This is what happens to me, I go into an article with the premonition that I will not like the privatization of the toll roads, due to my lack of trust in certain corporations, but after I think it through a bit more I realize, "Hey maybe it's a good thing!" Your thoughts are welcome on this most recent stream of consciousness, if anyone's out there.

A new "food blog" to be added

Thanks to Susie for directing me to a new coffee blog called "Smelling the Coffee", this blog will be added to the food section for all your food needs. Hopefully I can get back to posting regularly and maybe I will get more than 10 visits a day. If you do read my blog and you like some of what you see, tell your friends. If not I will wallow in my anonymity, which is fine for now. By the way, anonymity is one of those words that doesn't roll off my tongue, was just trying to spell it by sound. Anyways I'm out till next time.