"Where R U?"

Reader e-mail:

Where R U?

Ahem. Here I am. Had a busy Monday at work and the weekend was a bit out of sorts. But I'm back.

Mmm k?

Al Gore Wins Nobel Peace Prize

The former Vice-President is the recipient of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

And so this morning, I am proud to be an American who backed Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election (and in his elections for Vice-President in 1992 and 1996). This prize strengthens his argument that global warming is, as he puts it, "not a political issue, it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity."

And so now the question remains, will Gore use this Nobel Prize to launch himself into the race for the Democratic Party presidential nomination.

I really wish he would. His leadership on the global warming issue aside, a Gore presidency would restore America's image around the globe, return the presidency to an equal branch of government, and re-focus the fight against terrorism on actually defeating the radical Muslims rather than creating more of them.

In short, he is the only perfect antidote to eight years of hell and disillusion under George W. Bush.

And he would get my full support immediately if he announced his candidacy.

Don't get me wrong, the other Democratic candidates have their strengths and, with the Republican Party so unpopular, most have an automatic advantage going into next year's general election. But their weaknesses worry me. Hillary's ability to rally the radical right, Obama's inexperience, Edwards' "Carter-esque" lack of focus on Iraq, Richardson's rather loopy campaign.

But Al Gore would come into the race as the elder statesman the country and the globe so desperately need; he'd enter the race as the adult who will send the kids back to their rooms, replace the infant imbecile in the White House, and calm a world so thoroughly rattled by eight years of imperialistic American government.

The weaknesses perceived in the 2000 campaign would be forgotten by most. In fact, the independent voters who cast ballots for Mr. Bush in 2000 would probably be more than happy - in fact they would be ecstatic, I think - to cast the most patriotic vote of their lives for Al Gore in 2008.

Will he run? Unfortunately, I doubt it. But what better place for him to do his admirable work than the presidency.

Mr. Gore: Your leadership is truly needed...now more than ever. We beg of you...PLEASE RUN FOR PRESIDENT.

The Weekender

The sun is setting early, the leaves are turning golden red and brown, summer has left this fare city. The new Weekender is the perfect soundtrack for these crisp autumn days. Click here to listen.

The Power - Cher
It's In the Way That You Use It - Eric Clapton
Barely Breathing - Duncan Sheik
Jumper - Third Eye Blind
Welcome to the Boomtown - David & David
Bad - U2
Goodbye - Emmylou Harris
All My Life - Karla Bonoff
Power of Two - Indigo Girls
Lotta Love - Nicolette Larson
Mary's Prayer - Danny Wilson
I Need to Wake Up - Melissa Etheridge

'2 Hearts'

The superb new single from Kylie Minogue - not available in the United States until after the first of the year - is called "2 Hearts." The new album, "Kylie X," will be released in Europe next month.

Enjoy...

Happy National Coming Out Day

(Photo: David Gilmore, via Andy Towle.)

Honey's Milk

Meet Honey, the golden retriever who started producing milk when a stray kitten was brought home and refused to drink milk from a bottle. "She started licking her and loving her. Within a couple of days, Honey started naturally lactating," said Kathy Martin, whose husband, Jimmy, brought the kitten home six weeks ago. "The kitten took right to her."

Today's Must Read...

...Jane Gross' heartbreaking look at the social denigration and isolation elderly gay men and women are facing at assisted living facilities around the country. As this generation of gays and lesbians enter their twilight years, many have no one to turn to for friendship and company but those within the confines of the nursing home (many already having been shunned by family).

At an age when their minds are deteriorating to the point that they really don't know who they are anymore, to be insulted and isolated by the only people they thought they could depend on is the ultimate insult.

As Dr. Melinda Lantz, chief of geriatric psychiatry at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York says:

There is something [very wrong] about having to hide this part of your identity at a time when your entire identity is threatened. That’s a faster pathway to depression, failure to thrive and even premature death.

Another Military Republican Bolts

Gen. Merrill McPeak, the Air Force Chief of Staff from 1990 to 1994, who backed the first Bush in both of his presidential runs, advised Bob Dole in his run against President Clinton in 1996, and voted for Boy Bush in 2000, has thrown his support in the 2008 contests to...

Barack Obama.

Mayor vs President

Quote of the Day:

The Conventional wisdom is that any president after Bush will gain a huge boost from world opinion. The only candidate for whom that would not apply, I think, is Giuliani...He cannot even reach non-white New Yorkers, let along the global Muslim opinion we need to win over.

-Andrew Sullivan, on the differences between Mayor Giuliani (you have to give the guy credit for turning NYC around) and the possibility of a "President Giuliani" (if there's a terrorist attack, the already weakened Constitution wouldn't survive under a Giuliani presidency).

The Kids

Quote of the Day 2:

In every major war we have fought in the 19th and 20th centuries Americans have been asked to pay higher taxes — and nonessential programs have been cut — to support the military effort. Yet during this Iraq war, taxes have been lowered and domestic spending has climbed. In contrast to World War I, World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam, for most Americans this conflict has entailed no economic sacrifice. The only people really sacrificing for this war are the troops and their families.

-Robert Hormats, vice chairman of Goldman Sachs International, and author of “The Price of Liberty” (a book about how America has paid for its wars since 1776) as quoted by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, in his excellent Sunday column about how our kids are going to be paying a tremendous price for George Bush's war of choice.

I've been watching Ken Burns' "The War" series on PBS and let me tell ya, Franklin Roosevelt is rolling over in his grave over the irresponsible way Little Boy Bush has led America during this war. Presidents Woodrow Wilson (WWI), Harry Truman (Korean War), and even Lyndon Johnson (Vietnam) are doing the same. And Ronald Reagan is shaking his head in shame.

He's passed the buck for his war of choice onto his girls and their kids. If I were them, I'd slap the shit out of him. Because the America they're going to inherit will not be the eminent superpower he inherited in January, 2001. The tremendously high taxes they'll pay and the anemic economic growth they'll encounter...well...I cringe to think what THAT America will look like.

Little Miss Chloe

Nappin' on a Sunday afternoon...

Scenes From New York, Part 3

(Better late than never.)

The view from between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges, in what is known as the D.U.M.B.O. neighborhood (Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass)...











(Photos: Brent Sutton / Sutton Communications)

The Weekender: Castro Street Fair Edition

"Are you ready boy? Here I come...catch me, I'm falling."

I'm gettin' all disco on your ass this week! The Castro Street Fair edition of the Weekender can be heard by clicking here.

The Playlist:

Go West - Village People
Pull Up To the Bumper - Grace Jones
Chains of Love - Erasure
Smalltown Boy - Bronski Beat
A Lover's Holiday - Change
J'attendrai - Dalida
Don't Leave Me This Way - Thelma Houston
Come Dance With Me - The Sylvers
Love Is In Control - Donna Summer
Catch Me I'm Falling - Pretty Poison
Disco Down - Kylie Minogue
Rock Your Body (Remix) - Justin Timberlake
and...I finish things off with a song that was crowding San Francisco dance floors on the weekend of the very first Castro Street Fair (which took place on 18 August 1974)...
Machine Gun - The Commodores

Oh, HELL no!

News Item: Jenna Bush, the boozy daughter of the formerly (?) boozy President, has embarked on a tour to pimp her new book...flying around the country on Air Force One.

Ok...it's time to sit back for minute...close your eyes...and think back to 1997. How do you think the Republicans would have reacted had Chelsea Clinton been using Air Force One for such an endeavor.

Now...open your eyes. Tell me...what did you see?

The Murder of Ciara Durkin

Ciara Durkin, a lesbian serving in Afghanistan with troops from the Massachusetts National Guard, was found dead with a single bullet in her head, lying near the church where she worshipped in a secure area of Afghanistan.

The Defense Department is calling Durkin's death a "non-combat-related incident."

According to the Boston Globe:

The Massachusetts National Guard initially reported that Durkin was killed in action, though a Guard spokesman later said the term meant only that Durkin was serving in Afghanistan at the time.

Durkin's sister, Fiona Canavan, one of nine siblings in the family, has concerns that the shooting could have been related to Durkin's sexuality: "Ciara was a lesbian, and that's bound to come out. It is possible that someone over there found that out, and, you know, maybe they were very homophobic."

Canavan added: "She did say to us that she had concerns about things she was seeing when she was over there. She told us if anything happened to her, that we were to investigate it."

Freddy's Nightmare

Quote of the Day:

[Former Sen] Fred D. Thompson brought his remarks to a close with a nod of his head and an expression of thanks...Then he stood face to face with a silent audience.

“Can I have a round of applause?” Mr. Thompson said, drawing a rustle of clapping and some laughter.

“Well, I had to drag that out of you,” he said.

And he's supposed to be the savior of the conservative fascist wing of the Republican Party?

G.M vs Toyota & Honda

Quote of the Day 2:

What I don’t get is empty-barrel politics — Michigan lawmakers year after year shielding Detroit from pressure to innovate on higher mileage standards, even though Detroit’s failure to sell more energy-efficient vehicles has clearly contributed to its brush with bankruptcy, its loss of market share to Toyota and Honda — whose fleets beat all U.S. automakers in fuel economy in 2007 — and its loss of jobs. G.M. today has 73,000 working U.A.W. members, compared with 225,000 a decade ago. Last year, Toyota overtook G.M. as the world’s biggest automaker.

Thank you, Michigan delegation! The people of Japan thank you as well.

span style="font-style:italic;">-New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, getting a bit exasperated over the brain dead domestic auto dealers.

Shortly the attacks on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, at the beginning of World War II, the auto industry ceased passenger car production and did not resume until the 1946 model year. Auto plants converted to plane and ship making in order to keep our armed forces stocked with the machinery needed to wage war against the Nazis and Japanese.

Yet here we are, six years after the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Pennsylvania - by zealots from Middle Eastern countries where oil keeps their citizenry mired in backwards societies and archaic, repressive governments - yet today's auto industry refuses to do it's part to ween America off that oil.

True patriots would have immediately stepped up production on hybrid cars that could get us off Middle East oil within a decade. True American leaders would have done everything in their power to make such a transition a no-brainer for the auto industry executives.

But, alas, neither the American auto industry nor the American leaders have brains. I mean...if the industry was able to transition from AUTO making to PLANE and SHIP making in mere months back in 1942, it could have easily transitioned from AUTO making to AUTO making in 2001.

Sticking his boot...

...up Rush Limbaugh's fat, backed-up-from-Vicodin, ass.

You go, boi!

The Grown-Up Democrat

Quote of the Day:

While other Democrats talk Iraq, health care, and change, Biden talks Iraq, Iraq, and Iraq. At a press conference this month on the steps of Iowa's Capitol in Des Moines [he said], "I know how to make America safer!"

He continued, "Immediately begin to draw down American combat troops.... Immediately give the troops all the protection they need while we're drawing them down...You must change the policy to put in place a federal, decentralized Iraq, giving the warring factions breathing room to establish their own security [and] control over the fabric of their daily lives."

For a year and a half, Biden (along with Leslie H. Gelb, a former president of the Council on Foreign Relations) has advocated devolving power to autonomous regions in Iraq. The presidential campaign has brought the plan into sharper focus - and, as Biden argues, into sharper contrast with what he plausibly regards as the wishful thinking prevalent in both parties.

-From Jonathan Rauch's Friday column in the National Journal on why Democrats should be looking a bit harder at the candidacy of Sen. Joe Biden (Democrat-DE).

I may sound like a broken record here, but the Democrats place too much importance on non-Iraq issues at their peril. While healthcare, the economy, education, and the entire laundry list of important domestic issues rightly have a place at the table in any debate, the #1 issue on voters minds come Election Day 2008 will be Iraq...above and beyond the rest. They may not agree with Candidate A on the domestic issues, but Americans will none-the-less cast their vote for that candidate if they feel that Candidate A has a well thought out plan over Candidate B to defuse the situation in Iraq with the least amount of American blood.

To date, Sen. Biden is the only Democrat to propose a workable solution. To boot, his plan received - just last week - tremendous support from both sides of the aisle. And support from the opposition party will be crucial to the next administration - whoever leads it - when it comes to fixing what is wrong with Iraq.

Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have excellent foreign policy advisers, but their proposals to date have been way too soft and lack a certain gravitas. John Edwards' focus on the "two Americas" leads me to believe that Iraq is nowhere near the top of his list of priorities and that an Edwards presidency would quickly evolve into "Carter 2." The Democratic Party can't afford another one of those.

Following last week's MSNBC debate, Biden moved up quite a few notches in my book. And if the "front runners" don't start laying out solid, workable Iraq plans - whether it is their own or they say, simply, that Joe Biden would be their choice for Secretary of State or Vice-President - then I won't even consider giving them my primary vote in January.

"Spring Awakening"

While In New York, Brent and I took in a couple of Broadway shows. Following is a mini-review of "Spring Awakening"...

On stage and in song, "Spring Awakening" is Broadway's new "Rent." With a tremendous rock score, a compelling story, innovative staging, and a stellar young cast, the Tony Award winning musical is simply superb. It is poignant and funny, it is dramatic and conflicted.

And "conflicted" is the major plot point here. The story concerns a group of teenagers, confused about their first stirrings of sexual desire, and the tragedies that result when parents and other authoritative figures keep the teenagers mired in a morass of sexual ignorance, all in the name of morals.

The musical is based on a banned 1891 play by Frank Wedekind - a play, with strong references to abortion, homosexuality, and masturbation. It didn't see the light of the British stage until 1974. This new adaptation still takes place in a small 1890s German town, but despite the time and place of long ago its portrayal of innocent adolescent sexuality as it collides with the repressive "morals" of the elder generation might well resonate with audiences in the America of conservative rule in 2007. (The next time you see a majority opinion on a social issue from Justices Scalia, Roberts, or Alito, read it and then tell me it isn't straight out of 1890.)

The night we saw the show, the two male leads were taking a breather. Their understudies, however, did a superb job. In fact, had we not known of the substitutions we would have thought they were the originally casted actors. But the leads aside, this was truly an ensemble show, each actor contributing a vital role to the story. Special props to Christine Estabrook and Stephen Spinella who shined in their multiple roles as the many adult authority figures.

Duncan Sheik's score and Steven Sater's lyrics are amazing. With songs like "The Bitch of Living" and "Totally Fucked," it is easy to understand why Broadway bestowed their Tony on these two gentlemen. For me though, the brilliance of their work and the perfection of the cast came shining through in the final number, "The Song of Purple Summer." Following a turbulent angst-filled two hours, the uplifting finale is a plea for tolerance, love, and understanding. And it was the perfect ending.

If you find yourself in New York, I highly (HIGHLY!) suggest you catch this show. "Spring Awakening" is playing at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on 49th Street.

Tomorrow...my thoughts on "Avenue Q."

Iran So Far

Andy Samberg, Maroon 5's Adam Levine, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad jam it up...with a cameo from Jake...

61 Percent

That is the huge majority of the electorate in Montana that would not even consider voting for Sen. Clinton as president. The Democrat has similar negative numbers in Colorado, Nevada, and Arizona.

Bill Clinton won Montana and Colorado in 1992, Arizona in 1996, and Nevada in both of his elections. That Hillary has such high negatives in both states really should give her pause.

I'm sick of the close elections, with each party playing to the most common denominator in the hopes of cobbling together a thin Electoral College majority. For once, can the Democrats nominate a candidate who has the potential to take their ticket up near Bill Clinton territory? (That would be between 370 and 380 electoral votes...100+ over what is needed.)

The Weekender: Folsom Street Fair Edition

The Folsom Street Fair edition...to listen, click here.

Salmon Dance - Chemical Brothers
Everyday - Kim English
Keep Warm - Jinny
Sugar Walls - Sheena Easton
Justify My Love - Madonna
Read My Mind - The Killers
Eyes Without a Face - Billy Idol
Closer - Nine Inch Nails
You Shook Me All Night Long - AC/DC
Finish What Ya Started - Van Halen
Cradle of Love - Billy Idol
Fingered You Out - Nickelback
The Stroke - Billy Squire

Whoop, Whoop

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame goes disco: Madonna, Donna Summer, and Chic are among the nine nominees for induction into the hall.

The other nominees: Afrika Bambaataa, songwriter Leonard Cohen, the Dave Clark Five, the Ventures, the Beastie Boys, and John Mellencamp.

The top five vote-getters will be inducted at a ceremony in March.

Dum Fuk, Part 2

President Bush, earlier this week, to a group of fourth and fifth graders from P.S. 76 in New York City:

...childrens do learn.

And our president doesn't.

Calif. Electoral College Initiative Dead

A proposed California ballot initiative that would have changed the way the state allocates its votes in the presidential Electoral College was on life support Thursday night. Republican backers have been unable to generate enough money to begin a speedy petition signature drive; and two of its key consultants quit yesterday, declaring the initiative "all but dead."

It's the end of that for now but they'll try again, I'm sure. Especially if the Democratic ticket wins the presidency next year.

Scenes From New York, Part 2

From Central Park...



















Photos: Brent Sutton/Sutton Communications

Next up...D.U.M.B.O.

File Under "What the Fuck!?"

Quote of the Day #2:

I'm just a little bit shocked myself that a college in good standing would back up students who insist that people who have been through college and have a master's degree, a couple actually, have to teach that there were such things as talking snakes or lose their job.

-Steve Bitterman, a professor at Southwest Community College in Red Oaks, Iowa, who was fired after he told his students that the biblical story of Adam and Eve should not be literally interpreted.

Next up on the syllabus: Chapter Two: Harry Potter and parseltounge! And then in Chapter Three, we'll discuss how to make the perfect man from mere rib marrow!

When Republicans Marry

Quote of the Day:

I was quiet. He said, 'Are you excited?' I was like, 'I don't know!'"

-President Bush's daughter, Jenna, to People Magazine, on her reaction when Henry Hager asked her to marry him.

I give it a year before Henry dumps Little Girl Lush and is showing off his wide girth in an airport mens room, YaKnowWhatImSayin ?!?

Bush Is Nasty

I advertised this t-shirt on an old blog a few years back, and even though ol' George has only a little over a year to go, I figured I'd post a link to Watson's Closet one more time. With the Folsom Street and Castro Street Fairs coming up, and many 2008 festivals on the calendar, their t-shirts are perfect for the warm weather.

Purchase yours by clicking here.

What A Hunk of Junk

Early last week I ordered up the pilot episode of the new "Bionic Woman" series from Comcast On-Demand. It was being offered free of charge, and since I was bored I thought I'd give it a look. I was expecting it to be marginally bad, but boy was I wrong.

It was one of the biggest pieces of garbage ever produced for TV.

"The Bionic Woman" is the most horribly written piece of trash since "Flyboys." The cliche-filled script was, at best, lifeless and unimaginative; the acting was...well...lifeless and unimaginative; and the special effects were laughably bad.

This has to be the worst show to air on TV in a long, long time. And it would surprise me greatly if NBC still had it on the air come November sweeps.

Don't waste your time with this hunk of junk.

Scenes From New York, Part 1

On the Brooklyn Bridge...





The hole in the skyline is still there...


A view of the Manhattan Bridge...


Near Wall Street...


Tomorrow...Central Park

(Photos: Sutton Communications)

Dum-Fuk

Apparently we are at the point where the White House now has to write the names of international countries and the names of their leaders in their phonetic pronunciation for the teleprompter off of which Little Boy George reads his speeches.

I shit you not.

When Bush addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday, the White House inadvertently showed exactly how it's done:

French President Nicolas Sarkozy was spelled "sar-KO-zee" in the President's text.

Zimbabwe leader Robert Mugabe ("moo-GAH-bee")

Kyrgyzstan ("KEYR-geez-stan")

It's embarrassing, it's sad, and I just want him to go away.

Role Reversal

News Item 1: Noam Chomsky says Richard Nixon was the "last liberal president" the United States has had.

News Item 2: Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan calls President Clinton the "best Republican president we've had in a while."

Who Knew?

...that Howie Michael Smith, the lead puppeteer in the Broadway cast of "Avenue Q," was such a hottie!?

Obama's Overture

An email from my friend, Larry:

I've had my doubts about Obama for a while with all his "unity above partisanship" shit, but after today not a chance in hell I'll come around to supporting him in the primary. I'm so sick of this sanctimonious crap. I can't believe I'll support Hillary Rodham Clinton before Obama, but I will. He's just not ready [and] I simply don't want what he's selling. He gives a good speech but that's about it as far as I'm concerned. I still lean Edwards but I'm not actually open to Hillary. Did I just write that?

I'm still on the fence with the Democrats. It's still early and I'll probably make a decision sometime after the holidays. That said, one of the reasons Sen. Obama is so attractive right now is, as the Sunday Times of London put it this past weekend:

Democrats will realise he has a much better chance of winning a real national majority in the general election than Clinton does. Clinton polarises the way Bush polarises. She can hope for a Karl Rove-style [48% plurality or] 51% majority in a deeply divided country. He’s aiming for 55%.

Clinton, in other words, represents payback for the Democrats and liberals after the Bush era, just as Giuliani is emerging as the inheritor of the Bush legacy of divide and rule. Right now, Obama remains to the side, offering Americans something else: not payback, but a new page.

(My italics.) One of my major complaints about George W. Bush, both after the 2000 election (in which he lost the national popular vote) and - more importantly - after 9/11, is that he remained radically partisan. Following the skewed result of that first election, a true patriot would have shown the country and the world that he respected the majesty of the voice of the people by naming members of the opposition party to key posts in his administration. George W. Bush didn't, of course (well...he named one to the Transportation post). Following the terrorist attacks of 9/11 Mr. Bush had a historic chance to correct that blunder and bring the opposition into the fold as the nation moved to war footing. Once again, the President sold the country up shits creek.

In one of the most unpatriotic moves in American history Mr. Bush and his political guru Karl Rove used 9/11 and the war to advance a fascist right-wing agenda. And for what? A country divided as it hasn't been since the Civil War, and a minuscule 51% of the popular vote at reelection. And now the country is more than ready to close the book on this guy's presidency. Americans have finally had enough of the divide and conquer mentality that defines their form of government.

The next president needs to be the healer America so desperately needs. And as much as my progressive and liberal friends will want a new Democratic president to enact serious revenge for eight dark years of Bush rule, the most important thing that president will need to do is clean up George's mess.

That will mean a unity government, with Republicans in a few key posts. I don't mean the blind Bush-backing Republicans, not by a long shot. Their blind trust in a failed president prove them unworthy of a place at the big boys table. I'm talking about a few moderate Republicans.

But Republicans none-the-less. Because another term of divide and conquer, of blue versus red, is the wrong path to take. A president entering the White House with that mindset in January 2009 is guaranteed one term.

Can the Democrats really afford that?

Can America really afford for them not to?

Dow Then, Halliburton Now

More Iraq/Vietnam parallels from Chicago Sun-Times columnist Carol Marin.

To Trevor...

...feel better my friend. Healing thoughts being sent your way.

Back From New York

A few pictures, plus my thoughts on a couple of shows ("Avenue Q" and "Spring Awakening") and a restaurant in Greenwich Village called Perilla, are forthcoming.

"Quotation" Marks

Take a look at this hilarious new website. I was "peeing" my pants!

Memo to Clinton Kelly

...the men of New York City need to stop. wearing. pleated. pants.

They were everywhere! The Village, Chelsea, the Upper East Side. It was absolutely ghastly!

Iran

Columbia University President Lee Bollinger, introducing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad...



Beelzebub eventually went on to prove himself a fool...



"We don't have homosexuals in Iran because we hang them...even the teenagers," Ahmadinejad failed to add.

On Turkey

Quote of the Day #2:

Iran is a sexy story right now, and rightfully so. But when the dust of history settles on the Iraq War, I'm not sure that the unleashing of Iran will rate as its most significant adverse outcome. That honor might very well go to the deterioration of the American-Turkish strategic alliance. Because unlike Iraq or Iran, which we never really stood a chance of winning over, Turkey was already on our side. And we're in the process of losing it, at the very moment when religious Muslims have begun to dominate the Turkish political scene.

-Headline Junky, thinking out loud about another ball the administration has taken its eye off of.

Screeching

Quote of the Day:

First we got two solid weeks of Republicans screeching over the MoveOn ad. Then we got Republicans screeching over the possibility that maybe the New York Times didn't charge MoveOn enough for their ad. Now we have Republicans screeching about cutting off Columbia University's funding because it provided a forum in which people could laugh at the inanities of Iran's current president.

That's a lot of screeching over trivia. Don't Republicans have anything better to do?

No? Well, OK then.

-Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum, on the continuing saga of the political party without a clue.

Off to New York

I'm heading to New York for four days of Big Apple Leisure. "Avenue Q," "Spring Awakening," and dinner at Perilla are some of what is on the agenda.

Blogging will be minimal - if at all - while I'm gone. I return to San Francisco Monday afternoon.

Later...

It's. Not. News.

On a day when Senate Republicans essentially told our troops in Iraq to sit and spin, MSNBC's Countdown news hour spent about 1/3 to 1/2 of its newscast tonight on the O.J. Simpson "story."

Give me a break people. The country is going to hell in a handbasket, with the rest of the world closely following, and you're running stories on fuckin' OJ ?!?

Memo: It's. Not. News.

WTF?

File under "What the Fuck?"...

Whoopi Goldberg asks Sherri Shepherd if the world is flat. Shepherd's answer? "I don't know."

Apparently Ms. Shepherd didn't attend science class as a kid, and was absent when Christopher Columbus was discussed in elementary history class!

Is It January 20, 2009 Yet?

Think Progress has the rating numbers for the President's speech on the Iraq War last week - and the numbers for the Democratic response from Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island.

On CNN and FOX News (believe it or not), the Democratic Senator received more viewers for his response to Mr. Bush than the Republican Commander-In-Chief received for his initial speech.

Over a year before the end of his term, it seems the President has become quite irrelevant.

The Downward Spiral

I've been super busy at work - and I am preparing to fly to New York for a few days on tonight's red-eye - so I am just now reading at length about the Blackwater incident in Iraq.

Apparently 11 Iraqi civilians were killed recently when security guards from the private U.S. security firm Blackwater opened fire in a busy Baghdad square.

That's the way to "win the hearts and minds."

Shit.

Update: Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo thinks out loud:

A semi-rhetorical question: why do we need Blackwater, a 'private security' firm, to provide security for US officials in Iraq when we have the US Army and US Marine Corps? Not to mention the various security agencies connected to the State Department and the paramilitary arms of our intelligence services?

I say it's a rhetorical question because I know most of the answers experts in the field would give. But none of them are very good answers. And many are very, very bad.

Justice Delayed?

In 1966 William Barnes shot and paralyzed a Philadelphia cop. He served 20 years for the crime and has led a law-abiding life since his release from prison. But...last month, 41 years after the shooting, Walter Barclay, Jr. died of a urinary tract infection the district attorney says is related to the 1966 shooting.

Barnes has now been charged with murder and is being held in a Philadelphia jail until his first court appearance...in December .

It'll be a pretty tall order for the D.A. to link that urinary tract infection to a 41 year old gun shot. Then again, don't under-estimate the lengths a major urban police department will go to in order to avenge the death of one of their own.

But how much do you want to bet that had Mr. Barclay not been a cop, Mr. Barnes would never have been recharged or arrested.

Food for thought.

Brett Somers, 1924 - 2007

The fabulous stage actress, singer, and comedienne, Brett Somers, died this past Saturday. She was 83.

For most people my age, Somers is best known for her regular gig on "Match Game," the # 1 rated game show that aired on CBS in the 1970s. Her banter with host Gene Rayburn, co-regular Charles Nelson-Reilly, and semi-regulars such as Betty White and Fannie Flagg, still keeps viewers in stitches. The show's humor seems pretty tame today, but back then was considered quite racy.

Reilly passed away earlier in May of this year.

Here is Somers, along with Reilly and White, talking about their days on "Match Game" on the CBS Early Show in 2002.


And a classic "Match Game" clip from 1974.



A viewer over at YouTube sums it up perfectly:

[Brett]'s been making me laugh since I was a little kid watching these shows in their first runs. Fitting that she and Charles departed the earth so close to one another, [and] for once Charles got to go first!

We're On Olbermann Watch

Quote of the Day:

I'm in good shape, discomfort minimal, but I am low in stamina and my vocal range is a little proscribed, so we'll see how that goes. Barring any setbacks my big return will be Thursday [or] Friday... Either way I plan to be back on Football Night on Sunday."

-MSNBC anchor Keith Olbermann, to mediabistro.com, on how he's holding up following an emergency appendectomy this past Friday.

Apparently the Countdown host takes the term "workaholic" to a new level. According to a spokesperson at MSNBC, Olbermann's appendix actually ruptured Wednesday, but, chalking it up to a stomach ache, he pushed through and delivered the Thursday night analysis of President Bush's Iraq war speech.

Yikes!

Take That, Rudy!

Fuckin' weasel:

The Dumbing Down of America Continues...

I was putzin' around the apartment last night, doing laundry and preparing for a trip to New York this week, and - despite a new Attorney General nominee, the war in Iraq, a presidential election over the horizon, and nameless other important issues - the only story coming out of the talking heads' pie holes on CNN and MSNBC was the arrest of O.J. Simpson. MSNBC even went so far as to show pictures of Simpson's jail cell in Las Vegas ("Breaking News!") and list what he had for lunch AND dinner ("Developing Story!")

Christ, people! This. Is. Not. News.

John, John, John

If you didn't see it, Sen. John McCain (Bush-Bitch, AZ) was on "Meet the Press" this past Sunday and contradicted himself time and again.

Josh Marshall and the folks over at Talking Points Memo have put together a rather incriminating video clip. Take a look here.

Get Well, Keith

Wishes for a speeding recovery to MSNBC's Keith Olbermann, who underwent an emergency appendectomy this past Friday night.

Clark Endorses Hillary

The former supreme allied commander of NATO, and a nominee for the Democratic Party's 2004 presidential nomination, Wesley Clark has endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton (Democrat-NY) for president in 2008:

She will be a great leader for the United States of America and a great commander in chief for the men and women in uniform.

Clark's supporters were among the most passionate in 2004 and many were still hoping he'd throw his hat into the ring at the last minute this time around. But Clark has been a friend of the Clinton family for a long time and I really think this endorsement was a no-brainer.

By throwing his support to Hillary at this stage of the game, he is setting himself up for a possible VP invitation or a cabinet slot should Hillary go all the way.

Keyes Enters the Fray

Alan Keyes, who ran for the 1996 and 2000 Republican presidential nominations, and the 2004 Republican nominee for a U.S. Senate seat from Illinois (despite the fact that he was from Maryland), has announced that he is running for the GOP presidential nomination yet again.

His three most important campaign issues:

The top three issues, I think, at the moment, are clear. We have got to restore our respect for Declaration principle by defending life, and making it clear that life begins at conception and must be respected, from that moment, as the will of the Creator, God, because that's what the Declaration establishes as our principle, and what the Constitution says we owe to our "posterity." That has to be clearly done, and clearly established.

Number two would be the restoration of our allegiance to and respect for God's authority, especially when it comes to clear moral decisions like marriage, where we need to restore the sense that the God-given family is an unalienable right. I wrote about this, in articles that I've done over the last several weeks, trying to restore a sense of what our principles really mean, when it come to decisions like this.

And finally, across the board, I would be trying to restore the moral character and morale and sense of our commitment to our basic moral values, starting in the area of national sovereignty, both in terms of our security from terrorism, and especially the security of our borders, and our assertion of the sovereignty of the American people, which our elites have been betraying and trying to throw away.

This can only help the Democrats. Keyes is perhaps the one political figure in America who can make George W. Bush look liberal. His fascist leanings come shining through; and with him in the race America will clearly see how terribly off course the Republican Party has become since the days of Goldwater and Reagan.

Chafee Leaves the GOP

News Item:

Former U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee says he has left the Republican Party because the national GOP has drifted too far from him on critical issues, including the war in Iraq, the economy and the environment.
"It's not my party any more," Chafee, who represented Rhode Island from 1999 until 2007 told The Providence Journal.

Had he left the party last year and agreed to caucus with the Democrats, he might be in the Senate. Then again, perhaps caucusing with the Democrats was a step he simply could not take. Disenchanted as far back as 2004, Chafee didn't vote for John Kerry in the presidential election. Instead he wrote in the name of the first George Bush.

Bush Has AG Nominee

Reports are he'll nominate retired Federal Judge Michael Mukasey to replace Alberto Gonzales. First glance shows this guy is not some unqualified fascist. We'll see.

Mark Warner Jumps In

Now that Sen. John Warner (Republican-VA) has announced that he will retire at the end of his current term, you can move that senate seat from "Safe Republican" to "Leans Democratic" - with the announcement by former Gov. Mark Warner (no relation) that he intends to run on the Democratic side.

Thinking Man

Petraeus said something on NPR this morning that's been sticking in my craw:

This is a thinking man's war.

Really?

Well then, with the current Commander-in-Chief, we really are much more fucked than I thought...aren't we?

Before Larry Craig

...there was "Sir Norman Fry," Member of the British Parliament. David Walliams is hilarious as the M.P. and Matt Lucas is brilliant in the non-speaking role of the wife. (From the most excellent British TV series "Little Britain.")



Another clip here...

That Would Be A "No"

The most telling moment in Petraeus' Senate testimony yesterday, courtesy of Sen. John Warner (Republican-VA):



Ummm...if the lead guy in Iraq can't say this war has kept America safe, then what the fuck are we still doing there?!!

Grilled

Sen. Barack Obama (Democrat-IL) and Sen. Chuck Hagel (Republican-NE) let David Petraeus have it.

See Barack here.

See Chuck here.

What Would I Do?

A reader emails...

So you think president Bush has failed in the war against terrorism? Well then what would you do? How would you fight it? Tea and conversation with Osama him self?

You ask, I answer.

I wrote about this last year. You can read the entire essay here.

Oh, and PS..."himself" is one word. Mmm k?

Six Years On

Quote of the Day:

We. Will. Respond.

The question is against whom. And we want to make absolutely sure when we're dealing with asymmetrical warfare such as this, where we're dealing with innocent people, by and large, who are victims of this, that we respond appropriately and not provoke other incidents that are unwarranted in the world, but get the people who actually caused this to happen.

-Rep. Porter Goss (Republican-FL), Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee in 2001, to Tim Russert of NBC News at 11:37am ET on September 11, 2001

Yet here we are, six years later, with Osama bin Laden still free and roaming the mountains between Afghanistan and Pakistan, while our men and women in uniform die fighting a war in a country that contained not one person - NOT ONE - "who actually caused this to happen" - and that has clearly provoked "unwarranted incidents" in the Middle East.

When the founding fathers wrote the impeachment clause of the Constitution, I have hunch that it was this exact scenario - or something pretty damn close to it - that they had in mind when they wrote of "high crimes and misdemeanors." Yet, the former Republican congress didn't have the cajones to stand up to the incompetent president; and the current Democratic congress doesn't want to ruffle political feathers by voting for impeachment, lest they lose their slight majorities in the 2008 elections.

To be fair, the Senate doesn't contain the 16+ Republican senators it would take to get the 67 votes needed to convict Mr. Bush and remove him from office.

I say, do it anyway. Whether the Senate can convict or not, impeach the President anyway.

When endorsing Al Gore in 2000 I argued that George W. Bush was nowhere near ready for the presidency. His past failings (business and political) highlighted his inability to focus on issues and make the decisions necessary to keep America safe, secure, and solvent. (The man couldn't name the prime minister of India, for crying out loud.)

And within months, President George W. Bush proved me right. Presented in August of 2001 with a report titled "Osama bin Laden Determined to Attack Within the United States," this president did nothing. He didn't gather his national security team, he didn't meet with his terrorist chief, he didn't ask the CIA and FBI to pool their resources and figure out what the report was all about. He. Did. Nothing.

And to date he has, essentially, still done nothing. Yes, we invaded Afghanistan pretty easily, driving out the Taliban government who supported bin Laden and his cronies. But we never got bin Laden. Instead, we went to Iraq (and for his incompetent job there, I believe the President should be arrested and tried for war crimes, but that is another argument for another day).

As a result of that horrendous detour, the Taliban is growing more powerful, al-Qaeda is as strong as at was before 9/11, and bin Laden is still roaming free. In fact, the current CIA chief argued in New York last week that he believes another major attack on the homeland is coming.

Yet, Bush remains in office.

Where is the outrage, people? Why aren't Americans clamoring for this President's head. That he still has his job six years later, despite failure after failure on the terrorist front, will confound me until my last breath.

Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt he is not. And the souls of the 3,000 victims of 9/11 deserve better.

"Dark Road" - Annie Lennox

The first single from Annie Lennox's forthcoming album "Songs of Mass Destruction" is out. It's a superb piece of music. Annie's magical voice shines through here. Enjoy...

"Dark Road"

Thompson Worked With Terrorists

I'm all for providing legal representation to criminals - yes, even suspected terrorists - but as a political ploy, should Fred Thompson somehow win the Republican presidential nomination, then the Democratic ticket would have a huge card to play - and it comes straight from the Karl Rove/Lee Atwater playbook.

The NY Times reports that the former Senator from Tennessee (Thompson) provided legal assistance to the lawyers representing the two Libyan men charged with the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scottland.

If that doesn't defeat a possible Thompson-led Republican ticket in 2008, then there is indeed a huge double standard in America. Had it been a Democratic presidential candidate who helped represent the Libyan thugs, the GOP would blanket the airwaves with the news and the electoral map would be blood red on election night.

So...step up to the plate folks. Pound away at this.

Hey, George!

If you can't do it, then I will.

Regards,
Eric Cartman (with props to Bugs Bunny, of course)
South Park, Colorado

Bin Laden & the Case For Impeachment

Just days before the sixth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on America, ol' "Dead or Alive" has reared his ugly head again, appearing in a rambling video that brought really only one very important unforgettable message...

He's still alive and on the loose.

Whatever the President has said in reaction to the bin Laden video, the one glaring fact remains...he has failed to capture the mastermind behind the fiery murders of 3,000 innocent American civilians.

Of all the crimes and misdemeanors this President has committed since taking office (and there are many, and the founding fathers are rolling over in their graves over the fact that nothing has been done about them), THIS is, in my mind, the #1 reason that he should be impeached and removed from office (along with his Vice-President).

Why Americans aren't up in arms over this is beyond me. Imagine for a second what a Republican congress would have done to a "President Gore" had he sat back for six years without capturing the mastermind behind the worst terrorist attack against the United States.

I tell you what they would had done...they would have impeached Gore and scared enough Democrats to vote for his conviction and removal from office. And we'd now be sitting through the administration of President Joseph Lieberman.

Then again, a "President Gore" would have poured all of our resources - everything we had - into Afghanistan. At the end of the seventh year of a "Gore Administration," bin Laden would be nothing but shit dust blowing around the mountains of Pakistan, and we wouldn't be sitting here reading about a new videotape from the murderous son-of-a-bitch.

But sadly, Gore hasn't been president. Instead we've had this imbecile in the Oval Office. The result of Bush's incompetence? I'll let CIA Director Michael Hayden answer that (from a speech today in New York):

al-Qaida has regained strength and its leadership continues to plot a "high-impact" attack on the United States.

Impeach. Bush. Now.

GOP Bumper Stickers

The top 15, courtesy of my friend, Beth:

15. Who do you want on your side in a fight, Bono or Ted Nugent?
14. We're NOT gay!
13. GOP: Gets your whites whiter.
12. Stay the curse!
11. Join the GOP! There's plenty of room in the closet.
10. We have a VERY wide stance.
 9. Vote for us or we'll shoot you in the face.
 8. One more time? LOL!
 7. Vote Cheney for Supreme Overlord.
 6. It's Dem or US
 5. Boobs on Mt. Rushmore? I don't THINK so!
 4. I'd rather be waterboarding.
 3. The "new" GOP: Now 97% less smug!
 2. Every time you vote Democrat, Jesus cries.

...and the number 1 Republican bumper sticker...

 1. Glory, glory-hole-allujah!

Newsom By Default

San Francisco Chronicle columnist C.W. Nevius is thinking along the same lines as I was yesterday:

In 2004 Newsom said he should be "recalled" if he couldn't get the homicide rate to decline. On Wednesday, the 81st slaying of the year was recorded - apparently a homeless man camping in Golden Gate Park, which is another sore point - and puts the city well on the way to passing the 85 homicides in 2006 and a decadelong high of 96 the year before. Public housing remains a mess, Muni continues to struggle...

The deadline for filing to run against Newsom has come and gone. Is there a write-in candidate out there who can mount a serious Tom Ammiano-like challenge? (Just, you know, not Tom Ammiano.)

Yes He Can, No She Can't

Hillary and Obama fight for that much sought after demographic...the Show Tune Queens:

Cecilia Jane Slaby

How does a parent (of a 2-year-old , no less) drive to work, unload their car, yet forget that their child is in the backseat!? H-O-W !?!?

That's exactly what Brenda Nesselroad-Slaby of Clermont County, Ohio did on 23 August. With temperatures outside in the 90s, one can only imagine how hot it got inside the car. As a result, 2-year-old Cecilia Jane Slaby roasted to death in that backseat.

It was announced this week that the mother will not face criminal charges. The county attorney said leaving the child in the car was "a substantial lapse of due care" but did not meet the definition of reckless conduct necessary for prosecution.

What. The. Fuck.!!?

You hear about this sort of thing way too often, yet it still just sickens me each time I hear about it. I don't have kids, but I can't even imagine forgetting that my dog is in the car when I drive somewhere, she is so at the fore-front of my mind when she is with me. I just assumed that parents went above and beyond that state when it came to their human children.

That this woman doesn't have to pay for causing the death of a 2-year-old child (her own, no less) is wrong on so many levels. While it wasn't intentional, her actions cost the life of a child. She should have to pay. And pay dearly.

Freddy Joins the Pack

After months of foreplay, "Law and Order" star and former Sen. Fred Thompson (Republican-TN) officially announced on Jay Leno's show last night that he is running for president. Judging from the audience's response, his candidacy seems to be a popular idea. Then again, my guess is that the audience was purposefully filled with Republican voters who are enchanted by the idea of another actor as their nominee.

I expect Republican primary polling to show an up-tick in Thompson's support over the next few weeks. He may even take a brief lead. Hell, he may even win the nomination. But if this guy starts to lead in general election polling against the Democrats, then it can be argued that this nation really is dumbing down.

The man really doesn't have a clue. He avoids questions on the most important issue of the day (Iraq). When he does speak of the war he shows no comprehension of what's going on. And, when asked, the man can't even remember the details of George W. Bush's Social Security plan. The simple fact that he opted for The Tonight Show last night rather than join his fellow Republicans in a debate speaks volumes.

For what it's worth, you can see his announcement on Leno here.

Six Shy

News item: As of the end of Labor Day weekend, the number of homicides in San Francisco crept up to 79 for 2007...just six shy of the total number of murders for the entire year of 2006.

With news like this, you have to wonder how it is that Mayor Gavin Newsom has no serious challenger in this fall's election. As it stands right now, I'm thisclose to abstaining on that ballot line. The real test will be how Mr. Newsom and the SFPD handle Halloween in the Castro. If they can keep the crowds away - AND make some sort of dent in the homicide rate through the rest of the year - I might entertain casting my vote for the Mayor's re-election.

Until then, I remain on the fence.

Friedkin's "Cruising"

As part of their "William Friedkin Series" this week, the Castro Theatre in San Francisco will present his 1980 dud "Cruising" starring Al Pacino.

I never saw the film (having only been 13 when it was originally released), but from what I understand it was poorly done (Roger Ebert said, "...what could have been a powerful film dissipates...and leaves us feeling merely confused and annoyed") and doesn't live up to such earlier Friedkin films as "The French Connection" and "The Exorcist" (which are being presented this week at the Castro as well).

I may throw the newly digitized DVD in the Netflix rental queue, but a trip to the Castro for such widely panned movie? Probably not.

If you want to see a classic Friedkin film on the big screen, take in "The Exorcist" tonight; or tomorrow's double feature, "The French Connection" (starring Gene Hackman in an Oscar-winning performance) and "To Live and Die In L.A." (starring William Petersen of "C.S.I." fame in his first major film role). The latter two films contain two of the best and most thrilling movie chase sequences ever recorded.

Aaron & Andrew

Congrats to Andrew Sullivan and his handsome new husband on their recent nuptials. And yes...it's legal.

Craig's Do-Over

He wants to take back his resignation.

The Music Man

Can legendary producer Rick Rubin save the music industry? Sony and Columbia Records hope so.

Jay Kay and Ms. Ross

An extension of yesterday's Songs of Summer conclusion...

Diana Ross and Jamiroquai jamming on a live version of "Upside Down"...

Barack, Hillary

Greg Djerejian (pinch-hitting for the newly wed Andrew Sullivan), on the foreign policy strengths of Obama and Clinton:

With Obama there is a sense of an unscripted candidate who will go beyond 'focus group' think. Yes, this has led to some errors in judgment. For instance, the notion of attacking Pakistan without coordinating with whatever Government is in power there is reckless...Meantime, while Obama is right we should be prepared to dialogue directly with our enemies at the highest levels, he might have answered the question with at least a gating caveat or two.

...Still, given the moral calamities of legalized torture, Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and so much more, having a man whose last name rhymes with our collective, demonic arch-villain, and a middle name the same as the surname of the Saddamite monster dethroned--not to mention the paradigm-shifting nature of having a first African-American President--all of this would certainly force the world to stand up and take notice that a significant change had taken place, and that a dramatic course correction was imminent. That said, pragmatism cautions not dismissing Hillary, whose foreign policy views are, as I indicated above, at least far superior to the craven militarism on tap by all the leading Republican candidates, and who’ll have a deep bench of foreign policy advisors on her team. Nonetheless, there is a sense of hope and possibility and freshness with Obama, and above all authenticity, that has me rooting for him somehow...

Despite the occasional blunder I have been quite impressed with Sen. Obama's foreign policy learning curve. (Come on, Gov. George W. Bush was, at best, a "D" student on such matters while he ran for president in 1999 and 2000 and look where it's gotten us!) That he has solicited advice from such heavy weights as Anthony Lake and Colin Powell (yeah, yeah...I know) speaks volumes for his hunger to learn and get it right.

Hillary on the other hand is, herself and on her own, a heavy weight. What she'd bring to the presidency can't be matched by many others (Democrat and Republican) in the current field. She wouldn't be the breath of fresh air that Obama would be (she'd be a breath of cleaner air, though). But the musings by some on the far left that, as president, Hillary would be "neo-con lite" are a bit out of touch.

Who to support? I can't answer that right now. But with the Labor Day weekend now behind us and the first nominating contests set to take place within three months, I will be paying much closer attention to what the Democratic candidates have to say regarding foreign policy.

WTF!?

Quote of the Day:

Iowa, for good reason, for constitutional reasons, for reasons related to the Lord, should be the first caucus and primary.

-Gov. Bill Richardson (Democrat-NM) at the Northwest Iowa Labor Council Picnic yesterday.

The former U.N. Ambassador's comments get a bit more looney each time he opens his mouth. Forget what I've said about the presidency. Perhaps Gov. Richardson would be a better fit in a cabinet position.

Sheesh!

The Songs of Summer

With the Labor Day weekend winding down, I bring this year's Songs of Summer series to a close. (In it's place a new multiple track playlist feature will debut next weekend.)

Closing things out is a Diana Ross track that hit # 1 on this weekend, 27 years ago. After spending early August of 1980 in the lower half of the top 100, this single leap-frogged into the top 10, and by Labor Day weekend had begun its 4-week run in the top spot. To this day it is one the classiest of disco classics. Enjoy...

"Upside Down" by Diana Ross

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"Mississippi Sissy" by Kevin Sessums

I started "Mississippi Sissy" by Kevin Sessums right after the Memorial Day weekend when my friend Larry lent me his copy. Setting it aside briefly to read Armistead Maupin's much anticipated "Michael Tolliver Lives," I picked Sessums' memoir back up and devoured it within a week and am just now sitting down to post this review.

With observation that is humorous and philosophical Kevin Sessums' "Mississippi Sissy" is an incredible memoir that grabs you from the word go and doesn't disappoint. In this book Sessums (who has written articles for Vanity Fair and Interview magazines - and had a small role in Armistead Maupin's "Tales of the City" mini-series in 1994) tells the story of his childhood, growing up in rural Mississippi in the 1960s.

So obviously a gay boy from an early age - he'd rather swish around dressed as the Wicked Witch from "The Wizard of Oz" than join the other boys in a game of basketball - Sessums managed to hit some nerves with brief tales of distant relatives who simply didn't understand him and, in response to his rather feminine ways, would say really stupid things. (His more immediate family loved him beyond measure.)

But "Sissy" isn't about homophobia. Not by any stretch. Rather, it is about how the pop icons and pop culture of his youth led Sessums to a life that most who grew up in Mississippi would never see or understand. As a young boy he insisted on being called Arlene (after Arlene Francis of TV's "What's My Line") and read "Valley of the Dolls" by Jacqueline Sussann for his sixth grade reading project.

Along the way we are told of Sessums' circle of literary friends in Jackson, two sexual assaults (one by a stranger, the other by a trusted preacher), and race relations in the South. The latter is told through the relationship Sessums had with his family's maid and is one of the highlights of the memoir.

"Mississippi Sissy" is an absorbing story. You'll easily get lost in Kevin Sessums' wonderfully written prose. As summer fades, it's the perfect book for one of those crisp fall weekends in which you curl up with a cup of tea and settle in for a great read.

The Songs of Summer

From the heady, over indulgent disco years...specifically, the summer of '78...

"Have A Cigar" by Rosebud

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The Songs of Summer

This song was prominent on Chicago radio during the summer of 1980. The Blues Brothers superb rendition of the Spencer Davis Groups'...

"Gimme Some Lovin'"

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The Songs of Summer

I return to the summer of 1983. This classic Elton John track is one of his best...

"I'm Still Standing"

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