Adventures in marketing

The wife picked out a hair-care product for the oldest boy to use.
It has a cool name "Snake Peel."
She brought it to the register, and they scanned it. Unfortunately, there was room for eight characters, not nine.
So it looked like we bought "Snake Pee."
Might be a great name for a product aimed at teenage boys.

It's quite a long line

NRO's Campaign Spot (in the Daily Jolt email) has the phrase of the day to describe the administration's troubles.
Problem after problem is piling up like a long, nervous TSA line.
And it's always good to see a quote from Larry Sabato.

From the speechgiver-in-chief

The Other McCain deals with President Obama's "freeze the pay of high-paid federal employees" speech.
Why did he listen?
I just happened to be working in my basement office when Obama came on the television and, because my kids have lost the remote control to the TV in my office, it would have been a hassle to interrupt my work to get up and change the channel. I tried to concentrate on my work and ignore what the president was saying, but enough of it seeped into my consciousness to inspire exasperated curses.

Thanks, kids.

Picking up the Rule 5 flag

Troglopundit notes the contenders attempting to carry the Rule 5 flag as Smitty heads overseas.
You have Fishersville's own Yankee Phil.
And Gator Doug.
Who does the best Rule 5 roundup? To decide, click over to their sites. Again and again and again.

Yes, we Cain

Recently, President Obama has been compared to Job in his suffering in office.
How about going deeper into the Bible for another person to compare him to? The man who tried to dodge blame after doing wrong.
It's a good comparison, since President Obama does such a good job blaming George W. Bush for all the ills the country faces today.
Can we compare President Obama to the world's first known murderer?
Yes, we Cain.

He just needs a long time to learn

Blue Virginia has the strangest phrase I've seen in a while.
Every day is another day President Obama gains on executive experience and accomplishment over any potential Republican opponent.
In 2003, every day President Bush was on the job he gained experience and accomplishment. Didn't mean we should call off the election then, and doesn't mean we let President Obama's on-the-job training continue for four more years.

How's Chris Long doing

It's been a few years since Chris Long disrupted offenses as a member of the Virginia Cavaliers.
Playing with the Rams, you usually don't hear much about him. Sports Illustrated's Peter King brings you up-to-date on his big day Sunday.
Repeat after me: The Rams enter December in first place in the NFC West. The Rams enter December in first place in the NFC West. And as much as the team deserves credit, and as much as Sam Bradford has been incredibly important to getting the Rams to 5-6, this 36-33 win over Denver on the road had one Mariano Rivera: Long.
With 60 seconds to play, and Denver down by three with the ball at its 34, Long sacked Kyle Orton for a six-yard loss on first down. Then, on fourth-and-16, he rattled Orton and changed the direction of a last, desperate, incomplete pass. He keeps playing like that and he won't be known as Howie Long's kid much longer. Howie will be Chris Long's father.

Get to work

It's a hard day for everyone in the country - the first day back after a four-day weekend.
Only 19 working days until Christmas Eve. And my kids only have 15 school days until Christmas break.
You can make it, America.

Why we worry

The U.S. budget isn't at the brink yet. But you can see it from here.
Social Security is in effect a giant Ponzi scheme. Today’s contributions are used to pay beneficiaries who contributed yesterday, and the surplus of current contributions is “lent” to the federal government and used for general spending.
The people with money are the people who are most worried.
The people who exist to give taxpayer money to other people ought to be worried. Their way of doing business won't work.

Journalism as pure vandalism

Max Boot isn't impressed by the latest from Wikileaks.
Coming next - every foreign leader suspected of using botox.

Almost Christmas in Shreveport

Pat has her tree up, with before and after trimming pictures.

From the Facebook files

It's great to check Facebook to find out what people from your past are saying.
My best update - Today started with me answering Teddy, "No, nobody is getting a pet monkey for Christmas."

Your Saturday night place to click

Yankee Phil linked the quest of Pirate's Cove to reach 1.5 million hits.
Just checked, and less than 1,400 to go.
Visit and there will be a party.

Your Saturday night radio

Tired of turkey?
Tired of football?
Catch DaTech Guy on DaRadio Saturday at 9 p.m.

Trouble on the court

Grandpa John finds out the truth about President Obama's troubles on the basketball court.

Too much Sarah?

Pundette poses the question - is Sarah Palin at risk of over-exposure?
I tried watching the Alaska show Sunday but had to change channels. I've got my own two boys to fight each other, so I don't need to see Palin's girls battle on the way to the halibut fishing expedition.
Let's see how things stand in January. Get the Alaska series over, the book tour over, and no more Palins on "Dancing with the Stars."
The GOP-led House will be in Washington, attracting attention. Obama will need to do something if he doesn't want to limp into 2012.
The media will always have great interest in Palin. But it needs other interesting things to run to avoid falling into the "Let's see what Sarah Palin is doing" trap.
Maybe Palin is just in "Inspire and Draw Fire" season. Relax, and let's see what 2011 brings.

Watch out for HTSS

The Other McCain has a new syndrome to worry about.
Will the mainstream media hype his worries?

As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly

A short version of the classic WKRP Thanksgiving episode.

Weekend watchdog

When the NFL schedule came out, fans circled the Cowboys-Saints game as the highlight of Thanksgiving football.
Then the Cowboys flopped.
Sure Dallas has won two straight since chopping coach Wade Phillips. But their season is still a turkey.
The show must go on, and the Saints must win to keep pace with Atlanta in the NFC South. FOX has the festivities Thursday afternoon, after CBS opens the day with Tom Brady and the Patriots visiting Detroit.
The day concludes with the Bengals visiting the New York Jets on NFL Network. But people will likely be asleep by then, either due to the turkey dinner or getting ready for Friday's shopping.
The NFL weekend continues Sunday with the Redskins hosting the Vikings at 1 p.m. on FOX. Just six more games until Brett Favre's next retirement.
CBS in Washington will offer Miami at Oakland at 4 p.m., and FOX shows Eagles at Bears in Fishersville and Ravens-Bucs in Washington.
In primetime, the Chargers visit the Colts on NBC Sunday, then Monday ESPN has the NFC West contest between the 49ers and Cardinals.
College football pretty much closes down the regular season through the weekend, starting Thursday with Texas A&M meeting Texas at 8 p.m. on ESPN.
Friday features plenty of great football, as No. 2 Auburn plays No. 11 Alabama on CBS at 2:30 p.m. In primetime, No. 1 Oregon takes on Arizona on ESPN, followed by No. 4 Boise State at Nevada.
ABC has an afternoon doubleheader, starting with the Backyard Brawl between West Virginia and Pittsburgh at noon. Colorado closes out its time in the Big 12 with a visit to Nebraska.
The day starts with a Big East battle between Louisville and Rutgers at 11 a.m. on ESPN2.
Virginia Tech prepares for the ACC championship game by hosting Virginia Saturday at noon as the ACC game of the week.
Saturday's slate starts with Michigan's contest with Ohio State at noon on ABC. In the afternoon, fans will see either Wisconsin-Northwestern or Florida's visit to Florida State (the other game is on ESPN) and in primetime it's Oklahoma against Oklahoma State and Notre Dame heading west to meet USC.
ESPN2 starts Saturday with Michigan State against Penn State, and contests with ACC teams fill up the rest of the day on the Worldwide Leader of Sports. Boston College visits Syracuse at noon on ESPN, then ESPN2 shows N.C. State against Maryland at 3:30 p.m.
In primetime, South Carolina visits Clemson on ESPN2 and it's Georgia Tech-Georgia on ESPN.
CBS closes the SEC regular season with LSU's matchup with Arkansas.
Versus offers two of the top six in action, with No. 3 TCU at New Mexico at 4 p.m., followed by No. 6 Stanford hosting Oregon State. Comcast has the Big 12 contest between Missouri and Kansas Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
MASN shows the Big East game of the week Saturday at noon - Cincinnati vs. Connecticut - then heads west for the WAC contest between Hawaii and New Mexico State.
The NBA has a Thanksgiving doubleheader on TNT, with the Wizards in Atlanta at 8 p.m., followed by Sacramento visiting the L.A. Clippers. The Wizards then host Orlando Saturday on Comcast.
ESPN2 has the Friday twinbill, with the Rockets traveling to Charlotte at 7 p.m. and the Warriors-Grizzlies late.
The Capitals host a pair of 5 p.m. games this weekend - Friday against Tampa Bay and Sunday versus Carolina on Comcast.
It's Feast Week for college basketball over at ESPN. There's four games from the Old Spice Classic Thursday - starting at noon with Boston College vs. Texas A&M - and two more from the 76 Classic at 5 p.m. and 11:30. Friday there's five more tournament games, including the NIT Tipoff.
Saturday, ESPN2 has the Las Vegas Invitational at 10:30 p.m., then Sunday it's finals from the Old Spice Classic at 7 p.m. and 76 Classic at 9 p.m.
MASN has two games from the (not so) Great Alaska Shootout Thursday - Houston Baptist vs. Arizona State at 9 p.m., followed by Weber State against Alaska-Anchorage. There's two more games Friday, starting at 9:30 p.m., then the third place game Saturday night followed by the championship contest at 11:45 p.m.
West Virginia's Mountaineers host VMI Saturday at 7 p.m. on MASN. Comcast has Maryland's game with Elon Friday at 8 p.m. and Sunday goes with Florida against Florida State at 7:30 p.m.
The second UFL season closes with the championship game between Las Vegas and Florida Saturday at noon on Versus.

Happy Thanksgiving

Enjoy your holiday, and give thanks for friends.
Like No Sheeples Here
Obi's Sister
SWACgirl
Paco
And others. You know who you are.

Thanksgiving pun

Hope the guys in Wisconsin don't get bogged down checking out this post from Camp of the Saints.

Quite a combination

Instapundit likes this part of an article about Sarah Palin's appeal.
"It’s a sign of another thing: that liberal men are wimps who can’t handle the hot potato that is a combination of feminine sexuality and female political brilliance.”
Ouch, indeed.
The closing is pretty good, also.
Unfortunately, Sarah Palin is not very bright, not very thoughtful and not very qualified to run a country. Or a state. But really, are any of the other idiots who want the job so much better?

When to drive in Virginia

NBC29 in Charlottesville had a story on VDOT's historical study on the best and worst times to drive over the Thanksgiving weekend.
Watch out Sunday on I-81.

My first bacon

While Ace of Spades is away, the morons will play.
And find a link to "My First Bacon."
Just 31 days until Christmas.

Using the stars to track the White House

2007-08 - Cory in the House.

2010 - Cory and Bristol on "Dancing with the Stars"
2013 - Bristol in the House?
Best of luck to the two stars born after Jennifer Grey had the time of her life at Virginia's Mountain Lake.

Who's headed to the White House up in D.C.?

Spongebob Squarepants.
At least that's what I read at the Other McCain.
Spongebob Squarepants could not be reached for comment, due to a speaking engagement in New Hampshire. Sources close to the Nickelodeon star denied that Spongebob is considering a campaign for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

The media does act like Squidward Tennacles most of the time.

It's Sarah Palin's world

Her book is out today.
Will Bristol win Dancing with the Stars tonight?
Will liberals recover from her presence?
And we're not out of November yet.
Imagine how things might be if Palin decides to run for President.
Might need some of those clubs Palin used on Sunday's Alaska show. Instead of hallibut, you club liberals.

Watch out, Santa

The TSA stays away from sleighs, thankfully. Santa learned his lesson, according to GrandpaJohn.

Obamacare in the screening line

Are people just getting over-excited about the TSA's x-rays and pat-downs? Or is this just the Obamacare debate again?
Only a few people each day are selected for the x-ray machine, and only a few undergo the pat-down. Only a few of the thousands who fly each day. Chances are you'll never be bothered by the "enchanced techniques."
But last year at this time, President Obama and his friends were bringing out sad stories of people losing their health care, or having their rates sky-rocket due to problems beyond their control. It was only a few people, but enough for Democrats to push for a totally revised health care system.
Will a few tales of woes in the screening line force the TSA to change their new system? Or will they stand firm, that they know best?
And how come, in battles between the mass of people and the government, the government always thinks their way is the best?

The new town hall

Professor Jacobson sees the screening line as kindling to citizen rage, just like the town halls of last summer spurred the tea party.
In a nation already revolting at the ballot box against overly intrusive government, the prospect of having your junk fondled out of bureaucratic inflexibility and political correctness is feeding the anger. Providing security at airports and generally is a perfectly appropriate role for government. But the seemingly mindless TSA screening procedures show what happens when bureaucracy takes over.

Bureaucratic inflexibility. If the government doesn't bend, it will break.

How to cook a turkey

My six-year-old niece gets ready for Thanksgiving. With help like this, her mom can post it on Facebook.
I will get the turkey from the market. It will look like a real turkey. It will feel good. It will weigh 1 pound. I will pay 5 cents for it. I will cook it by making it good. It will cook for 5 minutes. I will serve frosting with my turkey. I think this is how you cook a turkey.

"Your papers, please"

Instapundit makes a great point about the "your papers, please" vs. "TSA's grope and change."

Favre farewell tour

Troglopundit took the day off to go hunting.
Brett Favre looks like he'll be taking the rest of his career off after a lousy game against the Packers Sunday.
What will ESPN talk about his offseason if Favre really retires?

Gravitas vs. Palin

Frank Rich is in a panic - can anything stop Sarah Palin?
What might bring down other politicians only seems to make her stronger: the malapropisms and gaffes, the cut-and-run half-term governorship, family scandals, shameless lying and rapacious self-merchandising. In an angry time when America’s experts and elites all seem to have failed, her amateurism and liabilities are badges of honor. She has turned fallibility into a formula for success.
Professor Jacobson has the answer - gravitas ain't what it's cracked up to be.
And a commenter adds New Coke as a blunder brought to the public by experienced people with gravitas.
So all of you with gravitas and education - it's your fault Sarah Palin is doing so well. Your failure breeds her success.
We're speaking to you, President Obama. And your TSA friends, too.

Not putting its best foot forward

When liberals think of government, it's often a way to help people they want to help. So it's hard to understand where the other side comes from. George Will nails it.
The average American has regular contact with the federal government at three points - the IRS, the post office and the TSA. Start with that fact if you are formulating a unified field theory to explain the public's current political mood.

I agree with Ted Rall

Rall rips into President Obama for not being liberal enough.
It was obvious from the beginning that Mr. Hopey Changey was devoid of character, deploying a toxic blend of liberal rhetoric and right-wing realpolitik.
Not to worry.
Nobody listened to Rall in January, 2009. Nobody will listen to him now.

The end is near

Instapundit links this story about TSA agents not happy with the new policy, either.
This is going to be a serious problem for the TSA if it doesn't figure out something quick. So far, the TSA seems to be in near absolute denial that this is actually a problem, but if these TSA responses are indicative of how most TSA agents feel, there are going to be a lot fewer security people at airports very, very soon.
I'd be surprised if the patdowns make it to Wednesday. Politicians can't stand policies that nobody likes. And nobody likes this policy.

He ought to be a smart football player

Versus is showing the Harvard-Yale game this afternoon.
As the game winds down, Harvard leads 28-21 and has the ball. On a running play, the announcer is impressed that the Crimson running back knows not to go out of bounds at the end of the play. After all, he's just a sophomore.
But he's a sophomore at Harvard. He ought to know to stay in bounds to run the clock.

Click this, you ding-a-ling

Instapundit posts the Reason TV video about TSA screeners.
I thought it was going to be this song.

Carville doubles down

I thought I'd check out James Carville's complaints about the 2010 Democratic campaign.
He's upset with their messaging, but he thinks his message stands up.
You know, the 40-years of Democratic dominance that's coming?
The one that doesn't look so likely after two years.
Carville still believes his analysis.
Both Carville and Greenberg, who jointly founded Democracy Corps, painted a rosier picture of Obama’s electoral future in 2012, mainly because of the country’s rapidly changing demographics.
Declining to pinpoint a Republican favorite, Carville said any GOP presidential candidate would be forced to “double-down on older whites” — a strategy that becomes less reliable each cycle.
“When you get into a presidential electorate, it decidedly favors Democrats, and every year it’s going to decidedly favor them more and more,” Carville said. “Demographics don’t do anything but get better for Democrats. Every election becomes less white.”
Two African-American Republican congressmen? A Latina governor in New Mexico? No difference, the minority vote is theirs.
The demographics will vote in Democratic lockstep - no matter what the economy does.
Keep thinking like that and there will be 40 years of dominance coming - for Republicans.

Your TSA in action

SWACgirl provides a link to the newest slogans for the TSA.
Find a favorite. I started at the top.
Can't see London, can't see France, unless we see your underpants.

Not thinking ahead

I now work in Charlottesville, home of the University of Virginia and roads that haven't changed much since Thomas Jefferson's day. Fortunately, I work on the west side of town, so I can get home quickly.
Except for today. After work, I decided to go shopping north of town. And ran into the traffic jam that would make northern Virginia proud.
In the same amount of time I could have covered 27 miles of interstate to get to Fishersville, I traveled two miles through the rush hour traffic to U.S. Route 29 north. Me and all the Charlottesville workers. And UVa students heading home for Thanksgiving break.
And it wasn't just a five o'clock nightmare. About 6:15 p.m., the traffic was still backed up getting to 29 North. Cars and truck heading from southern Virginia to the D.C. area.
North of Charlottesville there's a nice stretch of U.S. 29, four lanes going each way. But to get there, it's two lanes from the UVa grounds and the route 29 bypass. City traffic and through traffic combine in a clogged stretch that hasn't been upgraded much since the early 1970s.
Virginia has tried to build another bypass to get trucks and through traffic separate. Charlottesville didn't want it. A new highway would bring more people to their lovely town.
Guess what? People have come anyway. And they're stuck in traffic, wasting gas and time.
Except for us west of town, who usually can quickly escape the mess.
With today's budget woes, the door may have closed for a big traffic improvement north of Charlottesville. At least people will have plenty of time to think about roads they could have had.

"State-sponsored scrotum squeezers"

The headline on the Daily Caller roundup grabs your attention.
Hopefully, nothing else is grabbed.

"Don't touch my junk"

Isn't that what voters told Democrats and President Obama on November 2?
Charles Krauthammer expounds.

Weekend watchdog

Can Jimmie Johnson win another NASCAR championship?
Or will Denny Hamlin or Kevin Harvick hoist Sprint Cup sometime Sunday?
The NASCAR season is down to a three-way shootout for the title. When the green flag drops Sunday at Homestead, ESPN viewers will be watching the closest contest of the "Race for the Cup" era. One that may not be decided until the white or checkered flags drop.
Johnson has won the last four championships, and enters Sunday only 15 points behind Hamlin. Hamlin finished 12th at Phoenix to watch his lead dwindle, and basically needs to finish ahead of Johnson to win the championship. But we really won't know for sure until the race is over.
The Nationwide racers close out their season Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPN2.
Also ending this weekend is the MLS season. FC Dallas will compete with Colorado for the 2010 MLS Cup, starting at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN. Neither team has won an MLS championship, although Colorado lost to D.C. United in the second league title game in 1997.
College football still has a few more weeks left, but some traditional rivals close out their season this weekend. Versus has the Ivy League battle between Harvard and Yale Saturday at noon. If you can't park the car at Harvard yard, sit in front of the TV for the game.
The weekend starts on Friday, when ESPN2 goes back to the blue turf as Boise State hosts Fresno State.
Notre Dame meets Army at new Yankee Stadium Saturday at 7 p.m. on NBC. The Fighting Irish kept their season alive by whipping Utah last Saturday, and a win makes them bowl eligible.
CBS offers Mississippi's visit to LSU Saturday afternoon, while ABC offers the Big Ten battle between Ohio State and Iowa.
In primetime, ACC country will likely watch Florida State's game with Maryland. Other parts of the country will get either USC-Oregon State or a top 20 contest between Nebraska and Texas A&M.
Virginia Tech can wrap up a spot in the ACC championship game when the Hokies visit Miami Saturday afternoon on ESPN.
At noon, Wisconsin and weary Bucky Badger travel to Michigan on ESPN while Pittsburgh takes on South Florida on ESPN2. In primetime, Arkansas visits Mississippi State on ESPN and Oklahoma heads to Baylor on ESPN2.
Arch-rivals clash in the ACC as North Carolina State faces North Carolina in the game of the week.
Comcast has a Saturday doubleheader, starting with Oklahoma State at Kansas at noon. They then head to the Pac-10 for Stanford's big game with California. MASN's doubleheader begins with West Virginia at Louisville at noon, then offers Stony Brook against Liberty from the Big South.
The big game of the NFL weekend is on CBS, when the Patriots and Colts meet in their traditional November battle. The early afternoon games have the Ravens visiting Carolina on CBS, while the Redskins travel to Tennessee on FOX.
In primetime Sunday, the Giants visit the Eagles on NBC. Monday night, it's an AFC West contest between the Chargers and Broncos - usually the top two teams in the division, but this year they are at the bottom.
ESPN's Friday NBA doubleheader begins with the Thunder heading to Boston, then the Bulls face the Mavericks. The Wizards play the Grizzlies Friday on Comcast-plus, then head to Detroit to face the Pistons Sunday at 6 p.m.
College basketball continues its opening schedule this weekend. Sunday, Virginia Tech is on the road at UNC-Greensboro on Comcast.
ESPN2 has a Coaches vs. Cancer doubleheader Friday starting at 5 p.m., then Sunday ESPN2 shows two games from the Puerto Rico Tip-off begin at 5:30 p.m.
MASN features the Charleston Classic Friday, with games at noon and 8:30 p.m.
The Capitals visit Atlanta Friday on Comcast, then host the Flyers Saturday.

"I am slow of speech and tongue"

So much Democratic commentary on election losses has focused on messaging - we didn't get our message out right.
Reminds me of someone who didn't need great talking to get things done - Moses. He didn't talk very well. He was afraid of going to Pharaoh. God got Aaron to go along, and you know the rest of the story.
It's not the message, but the messenger.

Saying of the day

The Other McCain brings the wisdom from Bristol Palin's Facebook page.
“May we always be happy, and may our enemies know it!”

Gravitas? She's got gravitas

Does Sarah Palin have a gravitas problem? The New York Times seems to think so.
Roger Simon thinks it's probably no problem.
Does Palin have sufficient education and experience to be president? Compared to others who have held the office, realistically she does. But if she is nominated, look for the Times to keep raising the phony issue of her intellectual preparedness, just as they did with Bush and Reagan.

Fly the flag

Grandpa John has an inspired flag to fly this Thanksgiving holiday.

Inside the numbers

Blue Virginia has been touting Public Policy Polling's recent work in Virginia.

• President Obama leads potential 2012 Republican rivals.
• Sen. Jim Webb leads potential opponents George Allen and Ken Cuccinelli.
• Gov. Bob McDonnell's approval rating is below 50 percent.

Is it good news for Democrats, so just a poor sample of the electorate? Let's look inside the numbers.
This poll has a breakdown of 35% Republicans, 36% Democrats and 30% Independents.
It's 37% Conservative, 19% Liberal and 44% Moderate.
How does this compare to the final 2009 pre-election poll? The one that had Bob McDonnell up 14 points - when his final margin was 18 points.
Then, it was 35% Republicans, 35% Democrats and 30% Independents. Basically the same.
But it was 43% Conservative, 40% Moderate and 16% Liberals. Using a few more liberals and a few less conservatives should bring a poll more to Democrats' likings.
And the 2009 poll was likely voters, not just voters as in 2010.
Bottom line, Democrats still need to sweat 2012. And will keep sweating as the day gets closer.
Filtered good news in 2010 does not mean good news in 2012.

"Too critical to roll the dice"

Who do Republicans have to run against Obama in 2012? Contentions asks the question, and finds the quest worthy.
There is unease that those who are running are deeply flawed (either hobbled within the party or not viable in a general election) or unexciting, while those most attractive aren’t interested this time around (e.g., Christie, Marco Rubio).

To a large degree, the concern is premature. If 2008 showed us anything, it was that an early start, high name recognition, and gobs of organization don’t necessarily mean all that much two years before the first primary. Otherwise, Giuliani or Romney would have been the last nominee. But the concern among Republican activists is a healthy sign — a recognition that electability, personality, experience, and ideology must all be balanced and that this is a very critical election, too critical to roll the dice on a shaky candidate.
Of course, throughout the 2010 campaign, Democrats crowed that the Republicans were not well-liked. That didn't save the Democrats, and might not save Obama in 2012.

Happy meal, unhappy liberals

Ed Driscoll takes apart San Francisco liberals and their friends - so worried about Happy Meal toys, not so worried about cultural issues.

Mistrust is a two-way street

I'm glad I'm not flying for Thanksgiving. What a mess.
Poor government. Trying it's best to protect citizens, and instead gets ripped with a wave of protests.
When I've flown the past few years, I've hated the "take off your shoes" dance. Add kids and it's that much worse. I don't feel very peaceful getting onto my plane for that relaxing vacation.
Add your body scanners and the public explodes. But it's just a natural consequence of how the government has treated us through the years.
Honest people have to jump through hoops to do normal things in life, in case someone somewhere might decide to do something wrong. The government doesn't trust the public, putting everyone in the same basket with the bad guys.
It's only natural that the public doesn't trust the government. Doesn't trust the images they say are deleted will be deleted. Will be destroyed. Will not get out into the world wide web.
The people would likely feel better about airport security if those who appear trustworthy were trusted. Sorry for those who might feel targeted, but don't blame those different than you. Blame those who look like you and spark such distrust.

"Grope and change"

Pundette looks at the news of the day.
Don't touch my junk.
And there's no truth to the rumor that the official song of TSA is "I've got friends in low places."

License plate of the day

Driving east on I-64 outside of Waynesboro, a black Hummer passed me.
Vanity license plate:
BADMPG
Sorry, no pictures. He was gone down the road.

Don't you think they've thought of this?

Blue Virginia and the Daily Kos highlight an interesting poll breakdown - some people disappointed in President Obama's performance wish he were more liberal.
They take that number - nine percent - add it to the popularity number and they find a strong president.
Not so fast, my friends.
If being more liberal were the path to popularity, don't you think the Obama administration would be doing it? Must be something else in the numbers.
Perhaps more of Obama's current supporters would leave if he were more liberal. If you lose two supporters for every one you gain, you're not stronger.
The Obama crew has spent the past two weeks thinking and thinking. If the "more liberal" thought has a chance, we'll see soon enough.
If Obama turns right (even one degree might be too much for him), we'll have our answers. Liberal pundits can whine and moan, but Obama's actions will show more of what the country is really thinking of him.

Obama is smiling

After watching the first half of the Redskins' game, he knows he's not the worst thing in Washington tonight.

Big desk, little man

Don Surber analyzes President Obama's problems perfectly.
The desk wasn't too big for Reagan. Probably won't be too big for Palin either.

Ride to school proudly, boys

Don't think anyone will be telling kids not to ride to school displaying the American flag anymore.
Look what it gets you.

I think they're in trouble

While the President went to Asia, members of his staff did some thinking.
They thought.
They thought.
And they thought.
And they've realized what we've known all year - they are in deep, deep trouble.

Swiss Army phone

Via Instapundit, a list of items that will lose out as smartphones add more and more features.
One device with everything at your fingertips. It's great, unless you misplace it.

I wanna talk about me

Jonathan Last at the Weekly Standard offers a glimpse into Barack Obama's soul.
Commentary Magazine likes his work picking apart Obama.
Jonathan Last’s must-read piece on Obama eschews exotic or fanciful explanations for the president’s mindset and precipitous fall to earth. It’s not anti-colonialism that motivates him, or imitation of his absent father that propelled him to the White House. He’s not a secret Muslim. He is, rather, an egomaniac, Last posits. He’s got a ton of evidence for this, mostly in the form of cringe-inducing statements from Obama’s own lips.

Part of the Yankee Phil media empire

As our buddy Smitty prepares to head off to Afghanistan, Internet readers wonder - who will continue the rule 5 tradition?
Yankee Phil does his part this week.
Because there are countries out there where no one was visited his blog. Fewer every day, but they are there.

Blame the Rich

The Other McCain sums up the looming battle over extending the Bush tax cuts and shrinking the size of government, what we'll be talking about all of 2011.
Saying that “society must take action” to solve some problem — homelessness, pollution, childhood obesity, etc. — is a very different thing than saying, “Hey, let’s pass a federal law empowering a bunch of bureaucrats to go poking their noses into your personal business at taxpayer expense.”

As an experiment, just increase taxes to New York Times subscribers. See what that does to their behavior.

Inspire. And draw fire

Happy Sarah Palin TV day. The Alaska show debuts Sunday 9 p.m., guaranteeing more craziness from the left.
What are her chances in the 2012 Presidential campaign? Is she so damaged by the insults of the past two years that there's no way she can win? Or will her personality and force of the ideas she supports push her into the White House?
I doubt Palin can win, because so many have such a bad image of her. Their minds are set - in stone. Nothing can really change their impression of her from the 2008 campaign.
But that doesn't have to limit her role in the national dialogue. She can continue doing what she's done - inspire and draw fire.
She inspires by using her platform to build momentum for conservative ideas. She voices opinions that many share, but aren't normally voiced in the mainstream media.
She inspires by touting like-minded politicians and bringing them needed attention. We'll see how much her "pack of grizzlies" will change Washington and various statehouses in 2011.
Drawing fire might be the most important job. Insults to Palin pile up, but they are very shallow. She's dumb. She quit her job. She's only popular because she's pretty.
The longer those are the talking points, they become less and less effective. Watch her in her natural element - Alaska and its wilderness beauty - and lots of Americans will relate. Maybe not those in New York taxi cabs or on the Washington Metro, but there's more to the United States than the liberal strongholds.
While Palin draws the left's fire, other politicians can go to work. While they are busy feeling superior to her, she runs rings around them.
Palin does inspire.
Palin draws fire.
Thanks to her, our hopes in 2011 are higher.

Mr. Nuance struggles

Barack Obama is president because of George W. Bush.
George W. Bush looks better in hindsight because of Barack Obama.
And looking to 2012, the pendulum may swing again.
Looking at the 43rd and 44th American presidents right now, it is worth reflecting that it was only the unpopularity of Bush and all he represented that enabled someone as inexperienced and unproven as Obama to ascend to power.

By the same token, perhaps only a performance in office as myopic, self-absorbed and hubristic as that of Obama could have brought about a Bush rehabilitation so swiftly.

Taking the long view

Miss him yet?
George W. Bush's new book has brought out the knives again. He shrugs.
"A long-term view is the only way to judge an administration. Also, with a new president, you tend to get judged against the backdrop of predecessors and successors."
Time is on George W. Bush's side.

What's the worst thing about Wisconsin's win?

Wisconsin won really big Saturday. Really, really big. Can't believe they scored that many points big.
Wisconsin 83, Indiana 20.
The worst part? Indiana opened the season with a 51-17 win over Towson.
My school.
Losing by 34 points to a team that lost by 63 points. Ouch.

Enjoy your weekend

Coming to terms with one-term Obama

Chris Graham at Augusta Free Press opines on whether President Obama is destined to be just a one-term president.
What's keeping Obama out of the grave?

1. It's a long way to 2012.
2. The Republicans can self-destruct.
3. Obama is still pretty popular.

All things Larry Sabato knows when hanging the one-term anchor on Obama's neck. Here's the key sentence:
Well, yes, he’ll be on the ballot in 2012, but they’re likely disillusioned with him, too.

It's not a beauty contest for president. More like an ugly contest. Just because our candidate is ugly doesn't mean your candidate is beautiful.
Just because Republicans will fight amongst themselves the next two years doesn't mean it will help President Obama stay in the White House.

How the House works

Southern West Virginia sent Rep. Nick Joe Rahall back to Washington again, this time as a member of the Democratic minority. Which means musical chairs in the world of committees.
Thanks to Minnesota, Rahall has his eyes on the Transportation committee.
“I’m excited about this position,” Rahall said. “It’s going to mean West Virginians, while we won’t be driving the car when we do the next transportation bill, we will be in the front seat. We’re going to be riding shotgun.”

The position does have potential to channel funding to West Virginia, an ability West Virginia politicians have scrambled to replace since the death of Sen. Robert C. Byrd and the defeat of Democratic Rep. Alan Mollohan. Byrd, particularly, was famous for utilizing his position in the Senate Appropriations Committee to bring large projects and federal dollars back to West Virginia.
More transportation dollars for West Virginia? Sounds good to me when I visit family. Probably not the best use of limited money now.
But what about Rahall's current committee, Natural Resources? Will it go to a friend of coal? Not Ed Markey of Massachusetts.
“He’ll be tough. I mean, after all he was the main sponsor of cap and trade, the main sponsor of climate change,” Rahall said. “He’s your typical Northeastern liberal that has not always had coal as his No. 1 goal. There’s no doubt about that.”
But Washington watches out for its own.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m not turning my back on coal,” Rahall said. “Markey is a fair individual, he has his views, but first of all he’s not chairman. (Republican Rep. Doc) Hastings from the state of Washington is chairman of that committee and I worked with him and treated him fairly. When I was chairman he was my ranking member. ... I can go to Doc Hastings any time I want and expect to be treated fairly and have a fair hearing from him on coal issues."

We'll see how all of this sorts out.

Pick your side

The greatest civil war of the post-election period - Iowahawk vs. Iowahawk.
It's hard to choose a side after this exchange
After a contentious meeting where I demanded an apology from me, me countered that it was actually me who deserved an apology from I. Of course, me stormed out of the meeting, but not before telling I that me was rejecting his suspension and would immediately go on strike. Me will soon be issuing an official Open Letter to announce my upcoming Special Comment on the Me vs. I matter. Until then, me am making myself available to all high-traffic media outlets for interviews.

Best and worst of health care

Professor Jacobson at Legal Insurrection explores the good and bad of modern-day health care.
The good:
As I pointed out as the health care debate raged in 2009 and early 2010, the vast majority of people in this country have health insurance, and the vast majority of those people are satisfied.
If your comeback is that there are many people who do not have such benefits, I agree.  So let's make the current system more accessible, let's not destroy it.for the rest of us.
The bad - the waiting room TV.

Smitty goes marching away

Smitty of the Other McCain has new orders - head to Afghanistan for a year in his alter ego as a Navy reservist.
The attentive may recall that I’m a Navy reservist, and Afghanistan’s hasn’t much coast. Welcome to the modern, double-Jointed world, where Semper Gumby (always flexible) is the watchword.
Best wishes as he heads off for Christmas in Kabul. May he be battling D.C. traffic again by Christmas 2011.
A year may seem like a long time. But as President Obama knows, 2012 is not that far off.

Weekend watchdog

Do you have NFL network? It's the most popular of the league networks, but not popular enough to make most basic cable packages.
So the second half of the season, eight games on NFL network means most fans must head to a sports bar or a friend with the upper tier programming to watch. Fans in the local cities get to watch over-the-air, but out-of-market areas like Fishersville are out of luck.
This year's slate starts with a good one - Ravens visiting the Falcons Thursday. Teams with young quarterbacks who have had success in the past two years, and continue that in the 2010 campaign. They are among a bunch of teams with 6-2 records midway through the season, so the winner gets a big boost toward the playoffs.
Fire up the computer or catch the highlights. And wait for whatever's left for Sunday afternoon.
Elsewhere in the NFL, the Redskins get prime time exposure Monday night against the Eagles. Sunday night, the Patriots visit Pittsburgh on NBC.
In the Sunday afternoon coverage, CBS will show the Colts against Bengals. The FOX doubleheader starts with the Vikings at Bears, then heads to the New Meadowlands as the bumbling Cowboys visit the Giants.
The college football weekend begins Thursday on ESPN when the Pitt Panthers head to Connecticut. Friday, Boise State continues its run for a prefect season at 9 p.m. against Idaho.
Virginia Tech's big contest with North Carolina gets coverage on ABC Saturday, starting at 3:30 p.m. Other games in the slot include Penn State going against Ohio State (likely ESPN game in the mid-Atlantic) and Texas Tech at Oklahoma.
In primetime, ABC shows Clemson-Florida State or USC at Arizona.
CBS has a doubleheader Saturday, with Mississippi facing Tennessee at noon and Georgia taking on Auburn at 3:30 p.m. Notre Dame tries to bounce back against Utah on NBC. The Utes got blown out for their first loss Saturday, so might not be a good day for the Fighting Irish.
The Big Ten gets more coverage at noon, with Iowa at Northwestern on ESPN and Wisconsin-Indiana on ESPN2. In primetime the SEC takes over, with South Carolina visiting Florida on ESPN and Mississippi State-Alabama on ESPN2. Close out your night with Nevada-Fresno State on ESPN.
Miami's visit to Georgia Tech gets the coverage as ACC game of the week Saturday at noon. Comcast offers the Big 12 game of the week as Kansas State visits Missouri Saturday afternoon.
MASN goes with the Big East game of the week between Connecticut and West Virginia Saturday at noon, then offers Louisiana Tech at New Mexico State from the WAC at 6 p.m.
Versus gets to show some of the top teams in the country, with San Diego State at TCU at 4 p.m., followed by top-ranked Oregon battling California. The day begins at noon with Brown-Dartmouth.
NASCAR is in Phoenix for the next to last race of the season - Sunday at 3 p.m. on ESPN. Can Denny Hamlin hold onto the chase lead? Will Jimmie Johnson's crew troubles continue?
The Nationwide racers go Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPN2.
TNT's Thursday doubleheader features the Celtics visiting the Heat at 8 p.m., followed by the Lakers taking on the Nuggets. ESPN's Friday doubleheader starts at 7 p.m. with the Hawks hosting the Jazz, then the action shifts to Oklahoma City with the Thunder meeting Portland.
The Wizards take on Charlotte Friday on Comcast, then play the Bulls Saturday night on Comcast-plus and WGN.
College basketball begins gearing up this week, and MASN offers Kentucky Wesleyan at Louisville Thursday at 7 p.m. Friday, it's a Big East doubleheader with Connecticut hosting Stony Brook at 7 p.m., followed by Prairie View A&M at Marquette.
Saturday, Pittsburgh takes on North Florida at 4 p.m., and Sunday there's the Patriot League game between Lafayette and Rider.
The Capitals host Tampa Bay Thursday on Comcast, then visit Buffalo Saturday and close a busy weekend with a 5 p.m. home game against Atlanta on Sunday.
The MLS has Dallas battling Los Angeles Sunday on ESPN2 for a berth in next Sunday's MLS cup. For your college action, MASN has the Big East men's soccer tournament championship at noon, while the ACC title game will be on Comcast-plus Sunday at 1 p.m.

He's had enough time

Since the Election, the excuse has been offered - two years wasn't enough time to clean up all of George W. Bush's messes.
Of course, the same people blamed Bush for not stopping 9/11 - just eight months into his term.
As someone once said, the buck stops here. At the Oval Office desk.
Not in Texas.

Seats saved or created

After months of touting jobs "saved or created" by the stimulus, Democrats are counting seats "saved" by last-minute changes in spending plans.
Those thrown overboard surely appreciate the gesture.
Next up - was Obama's win a one-time thing in 2008 or a base to build on in 2012.

You've got a friend in D.C.

Via NRO's Corner, an analysis of the election results through the eyes of Toy Story 3.
Well, the deficit is going "to infinity, and beyond."

Beef - it's what's for stress reduction

Via Instapundit, fire up the grill and see those worries disappear.
Troglopundit could not be reached for comment. Too busy eating.

Ten questions to ponder

NRO's Jim Geraghty looks at 10 puzzling parts of the Republicans' good election day.
One clear lesson from the 2010 results is that the red-state/blue-state divide established at the beginning of the decade is stronger than ever — the red states turned redder, while many blue states barely budged in a big Republican year. Self-financing Republicans on the coasts spent fortunes only to fall short, while the GOP largely wiped out long-serving Democrats who had hung on in heavily conservative regions of the country.

Can you imagine?

Former President George W. Bush was in New York this morning to appear on the Today Show.
In the intro, Matt Lauer said Bush was cracking jokes to keep the atmosphere light as the show started.
In two years or so, when former President Barack Obama is touting his memoirs, can you imagine him making the TV crews feel at ease?
Will they still be bowing down to worship him?

Another kind of football

Did you know that Baltimore has a franchise in the Lingerie Football League?
The Baltimore Sun ran some pictures of last weekend's win against Orlando. Never seemed to identify the individual players. I wonder why.

Herewith, a brief primer

I think it's the "phrase that pays" at some Wisconsin radio station.

The trust that need to be busted

Blue Virginia isn't sure what to think of Sen. Jim Webb's comments about the Democratic party after the election.
Blue Virginia lauds Teddy Roosevelt's trust-busting of big companies in the early 1900s and would like to see more in 2010.
So would Sarah Palin, I bet. But the hugh organizations that need to be brought to size now are the Democrats' friend - government - not business. Government calls the tune so much and needs to be reined in. Business mostly works inside the rules set by government, while often government fails to keep the rules - deficit spending and exceptions for Congress from the rules they pass.
Remembering Teddy Roosevelt doesn't just mean beating up on business. It's containing the bully, and now that is often government.
If we bust government down to size, then life will improve for the ordinary American.

5 million and riding high

The Other McCain surpassed 5 million hits in his two-and-a-half year effort to take over the internet.
On to 5 million more, and a few tweets from Alyssa Milano.

Counter programming

Sarah Palin's Alaska show debuts Sunday. What possible shows could liberals or Democrats run to match Palin's TV exposure?

• Keith Olbermann's New York apartment?
• Nancy Pelosi's coast-to-coast private flights?
• Tom Perriello's Rt. 29 south?
• The Blue Dogs' trip to the pound?
• Barack Obama's Tow Truck Wars?

Six days to the Alaska show

Sarah Palin's Alaska show debuts Sunday.
Anti-Sarah Palin commentary continues unabated.
The New Yorker‘s Nancy Franklin’s level of vitriol and venom against Sarah Palin and her family goes beyond the pale. Yes, liberals work for the New Yorker, but when you are reviewing a TV show, this goes beyond a critique of a television show, to spiteful and malicious smear of a family.
Makes me want to watch the show more.

Source with no name

Listening to Rush Limbaugh Monday, he highlighted Politico's bunch of "unnamed sources" in the story blasting the White House.
The Democrats are headed into the political desert with a "source with no name," my parody inspired by America's song from the 1970s.

On the first part of our journey
Our party had all the life
There was health care, stimulus and friends to help
There was lots of change to make
All of those things made the tea party buzz
And we lost much support
Anger was hot; town halls overwhelmed
But we paid them no mind

We're going into the desert said a source with no name
It felt good to have Obama to blame
In the desert, they won't remember our name
Having Republicans in charge will give us such pain
Nah, nah......

After two years of Obama's run
The country began to turn red
After more days of tea party fun
We heard what Sarah Palin said
And the story she told of the anger that flowed
Let us know all our careers were now dead

I see we're going into the desert said a source with no name
It felt good to have Obama to blame
In the desert, they won't remember our name
Having Republicans in charge will give us such pain
Nah, nah......

And now, we're stuck with Pelosi
'Cause the Blue Dogs have had to flee
No more plans for tax hikes for the rich
It's the end for liberal things
Obama is a man with his head in the clouds
And no plan how to lead
Outside the cities, he tries to connect
But the voters pay him no heed

We're going into the desert said a source with no name
It felt good to have Obama to blame
In the desert, they won't remember our name
Having Republicans in charge will give us such pain
Nah, nah......

Here's the inspiration:

America -1971- Horse with No Name (1973)
Uploaded by zb3786. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

I feel like a Democrat today

An hour into the work day, the lights went out in our office building.
No computers.
No phone.
No work could be done.
I felt like a Democrat.
A few seconds later, the fire alarm blared. Outside to stand around and wonder what's going on.
I felt like a Democrat.
The power coming into my office building had blown. It couldn't be fixed quickly, so they sent us home. A full day's pay for one hour of work.
I felt like a Democrat.
Tomorrow, if the power's back on, it will be a day to work hard and catch up for what couldn't be done today.
I look forward to feeling like a Republican.

Ravens' advice for Republicans

I enjoyed watching the Ravens' first drive against Miami Sunday. They scored a touchdown, and it seemed every running back and receiver had a play designed for them in the drive.
Willis McGehee scored the touchdown, with help from his teammates blocking Dolphins downfield that made a screen pass a big gainer.
I hope the Republicans in the House watched that. Spread the activity around so everybody gets their chance to shine. And when your teammate has the ball - whether it's Eric Cantor or Michelle Bachmann - give them the support they need to do their job.
And winning helps make people happier than losing.

For the end of fall soccer season

Via Instapundit, a dad learns an important lesson from his son's soccer team.

Trog's advice for bosses

We hope you enjoyed your extra hour this weekend.
Troglopundit has a thought as you get ready to return to work Monday.

Proving Luntz's point

Blue Virginia reacts angrily to Frank Luntz's column on his polling of the Tea Party movement.
And proves Luntz's point.
Luntz takes positions - removes the party labels - and finds plenty of people agree with Tea Party members. Blue Virginia says, "So? People don't like the Tea Party."
Exactly what Luntz is saying. Positions are more popular when the party label is removed. Liberals push their policies as being popular, but call them Democratic policies make them as popular as the plague.
Luntz tried to tell people what he's seen. We'll see if either side listens or learns.

It's the end of their world

Check your post-Election analysis, and you get a bunch of "why are the voters so stupid" pieces.
A bad one comes from Franky Schaefer, and Mayor Bloomberg pushes stupid further in an interview.
“If you look at the U.S., you look at who we’re electing to Congress, to the Senate—they can’t read,” he said. “I’ll bet you a bunch of these people don’t have passports. We’re about to start a trade war with China if we’re not careful here, only because nobody knows where China is. Nobody knows what China is.”

Saying, "I'm so smart and you're so dumb" doesn't work well when you'd like to persuade people to your point of view. Unless you just want to berate them into giving up their view.
The Other McCain pointed me toward the Schaefer piece. I remember him and his father's books well from my college time in the 1980s. He's now reduced to saying "I've learned from my days in the Religious right. Read my book to find out how."
He has met some people who went too far thinking "the end is near" and projects that line to millions of people across the nation. The election results are a mistake made by people who don't see reality.
What just happened in this election is that the culturally left-behind hit back.

They won but will still claim they are victims of the "liberal elite." Actually they are victims of bad theology that has tutored them for generations to accept myth for fact.
It's no wonder that these folks believe lies more easily than truth. Sure the bad economy played a part in the mid-term results, but so did bad theology that has made a virtue out of being misinformed. We're sorry to hear of the problems from Schaefer's life - that the reality he lived was different from what he and his dad talked about for years. But it doesn't mean that the voters are divorced from reality.
If you're spending more you don't have, or see Iran preparing for it's own version of end times, maybe you want elected oficials who share your concerns.
The longer people see the election as a paranoid reaction against President Obama's background, they will remain in the background.
It will only be the end times for their careers.

"Get out" the vote

You can easily sum up the past few elections.
2006 - "Get out" of Iraq.
2008 - "Get out" George W. Bush's crew.
2010 - "Get out" of our pockets.

"He's a stud. Plain and simple"

Ace of Spades likes seeing Marco Rubio out front. They approve of his message.

Keep fighting, Democrats

Let others talk about Keith Olbermann. Give me a Virginia Democratic battle anyday.
Who should be the DPVA chairman? Brian Moran, who got creamed in the June 2009 primary?
The most liberal of the three candidates, can one position on one issue destroy the party?
If Brian Moran is chosen as DPVA chair and continues lobbying against Obama (on for-profit education), Obama will probably decide he can't work effectively with the DPVA and will likely write off Virginia in 2012.  Obama's path to victory would be much narrower without Virginia, and he will have to focus more of his time in states like Ohio.  Without Obama's energy and coattails in Virginia, Senator Jim Webb will probably also lose to George Allen or Bob Marshall.
Hey, I'm now supporting Brian for DPVA chair. Go Brian, go.

"Loathesome Rhodes" hits the road

Poor Keith Olbermann. Caught dishing out campaign contributions to lawmakers he interviewed.
Time to break out my parody ballad for Olbermann, "The ballad of Loathsome Rhoads." His nemesis, Glenn Beck, stays on the air. Sorry.

Hear the popular talk show host
His fans come in sky high
My numbers took another blow
I'm so loathsome I could cry

I've never seen a crowd so big
They fill the mall, oh my
Hear Sarah Palin wow the crowd
I'll hide my face and cry

Did you ever see a grown man cry
When his hope begins to die?
That means nobody watches my show
I'm so loathsome I could cry

Can't silence this big radio star
Can't beat him though I try
And as I drop out of sight
I'm so loathsome I will cry

How about a little Hank Williams Sr. doing the original classic.

What's the biggest rebuke for Obama?

On Tuesday, the voters ousted more than 60 Democratic members of the House.
And McDonald's brought back McRib for several weeks.
Which will drive President Obama crazier?

You can't please some people

On Facebook last night, one of my friends was complaining about the rich, white men lining up to run for president as Republicans.
I suggested a nice woman whose father was a teacher. A lady who knows hunting and fishing.
My friend doesn't like rich white guys, and doesn't like Sarah Palin. He's not going to be happy for a while.

The looming battles

Two posts at Instapundit sum up the intra-party battles of the next two years.
Democrats wonder if Obama is cool.
Republican political insiders think their work make it a good Election Day.
Inside vs. outside, not Democrat vs. Republican, will be a big part of the next two years.

Know your president

Is Barack Obama a muslim? No.
Is Barack Obama a muslin? No. He's cheap polyster.

Read this, Chuck Todd

Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, NBC's Chuck Todd has the same thought - the Republican house majority will be smaller than the current Democratic majority.
The message behind the thought - if Democrats had trouble getting their agenda passed, then the new Republicans would too.
Instead, the likely scenario comes from Fred Barnes.
Ten Democrats whose seats are up in 2012 come from right-leaning states or saw their states scoot to the right this week: Ben Nelson of Nebraska, Bill Nelson of Florida, Herb Kohl of Wisconsin, Kent Conrad of North Dakota, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Jim Webb of Virginia, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Jon Tester of Montana, and Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico.

It’s a good bet that some or all of them will be sympathetic to cutting spending, extending the Bush tax cuts, scaling back ObamaCare, and supporting other parts of the Republican agenda. With Democratic allies, Republicans will have operational control of the Senate more often than Majority Leader Harry Reid and Mr. Obama will.
Democrats needed a party line vote to get their agenda passed. Since Republicans have the momentum and ideas that are attractive to many Democratic voters, Republicans have more margin for error.
That's the error in Todd's thinking.

Weekend watchdog

After losing its first two games of the season, Virginia Tech has rolled to six straight wins. Will the trend continue in the November stretch run?
The Hokies host Georgia Tech Thursday in ESPN's Prime Time game. Since being upset by James Madison, Virginia Tech has righted its ship nicely - leading its division by two games over Georgia Tech, Miami and North Carolina.
A win Thursday puts the Hokies in great shape to spend the first Saturday of December at the ACC championship game. Then a BCS game is only one win away.
Friday, ESPN2 shows the C-USA contest between Central Florida and Houston at 8 p.m. Saturday at noon, ESPN will feature Illinois against Michigan.
CBS has the top 20 battle between Alabama and LSU Saturday afternoon. ABC gives the country four choices in that time slot, with ESPN2 showing either Washington-Oregon or Northwestern-Penn State. ACC country will watch North Carolina's game with Florida State, and parts of the Midwest will get Nebraska at Iowa State.
In primetime, ABC has the Pac-10 matchup between Arizona and Stanford or Missouri at Texas Tech. ESPN goes with an SEC contest between Arkansas and South Carolina at 7 p.m., while ESPN2 has Texas taking on Kansas State.
Clemson hosts North Carolina State on the ACC game of the week Saturday at noon. Comcast offers CAA action Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m., with James Madison taking on Richmond. Later in the evening, there's Arizona State's visit to Southern Cal.
On MASN, the Big East game between Louisville and Syracuse kicks off at noon. Then it's Navy's visit to East Carolina. Versus has Penn-Princeton from the Ivy League at 3 p.m., then heads west for Oregon State-UCLA.
The Redskins have a bye this week - maybe Donovan McNabb can catch his breath - but fans can enjoy watching the Cowboys limp into Green Bay Sunday Night. ESPN features the Steelers' visit to Cincinnati on Monday Night football.
Sunday afternoon, CBS has the doubleheader - Dolphins at Ravens early followed by Peyton Manning taking the Colts to Philadelphia. FOX in Washington plans to show the late game of New York Giants at Seattle.
NASCAR's chase for the Cup heads to Texas, with the green flag dropping at 3 p.m. on ESPN. The Nationwide racers hit the track Saturday at noon on ESPN2.
The NBA on TNT Thursday starts with the Knicks taking on the Bulls at 8 p.m., then Oklahoma City against Denver. ESPN's Friday doubleheader starts with the Bulls' visit to the Celtics at 8 p.m., followed by the Clippers vs. Nuggets.
The Wizards take on New York Friday on Comcast-plus, then host the Cleveland not-LeBrons Saturday on Comcast.
It's Breeders Cup weekend on ESPN2 Friday, then ABC and ESPN Saturday afternoon.
The Capitals are home twice this weekend, meeting Boston Friday and Philadelphia Sunday at 5 p.m. on Comcast. With no local action Thursday, Comcast shows the Rangers facing the Flyers.
The MLS playoffs continue Thursday with San Jose's trip to New York on ESPN2. Sunday at 9 p.m., Seattle battles the L.A. Galaxy.
On Sunday, Comcast has a pair of ACC women's championships - the field hockey contest at noon and the women's soccer tournament final at 2 p.m. MASN has the Big East's women's soccer title game Sunday at noon.
ESPN2 has Big 10 volleyball Sunday afternoon with Penn State facing Michigan.

"I hope he fails" succeeds

American Spectator has a lengthy look at Rush Limbaugh's January 2009 comments - and where it led.

Helping out the "Teapublicans"

I found a new word at Blue Virginia - Teapublicans.
Their advice for Democrats:
ATTENTION DEMOCRATIC LEADERS: Get out there and start convincing the American People that they just got hoodwinked by a bunch of extremists.
Because calling Tea Party members extremists the past few months worked out sooooo well.

Trog got an Insta-lanche

Hey dude, don't get cocky.

Keep analyzing like this

I like checking out Blue Virginia to see the unhappiness of Democrats.
And you can only watch Lawrence O'Donnell mention the debt limit vote so many times.
The latest analysis looks at the clean energy bill. More than half of the Democrats who voted against it lost on Tuesday.
So is that because:
1. Voters were unhappy with their no vote.
2. Voters were unhappy their party members voted yes.
I lean toward number two on many of the Democratic excuses coming out. The vote that ousted them came in January 2009 - voting for Nancy Pelosi as speaker.

Whiners and losers

Blue Virginia looks back in sadness at the election.
The losers part is best. Probably because Democrats know losing best.

Bring on redistricting

The election is over, and now the fun begins - redistricting.
You take the census numbers and try to create 11 districts across Virginia with nearly equal population. Problem one for Republicans - three members live very near each other in the southwest part of the state.
We know the 9th District will grow north and east - at least to pick up Morgan Griffith's home. But they've got to give Bob Goodlatte something in Roanoke and Robert Hurt something around Chatham.
I can't wait to see the new 9th.
Wonder if the Democrats will float a proposal with Griffith and Goodlatte in the same district? That would really be fun.
Another reason for Democrats to mourn losing so many races in 2009.

Round the clock with Instapundit

Instapundit and Ed Driscoll provided nearly round the clock election coverage.
Scroll down and see what you've missed.

Remember how you messed up

Blue Virginia starts the parade of unhappy Democrats trying to figure out what went wrong.
Among the ways Democrats failed:
Finally, I've got to say, too many supposed "Democrats" ran campaigns that only can be described as pathetic, pusillanimous, and principle-less. For instance, we had one Democratic campaign in Virginia bashing health care reform in its TV ads, posing a false equivalence of blame between Republicans and Democrats, distancing themselves from Nancy Pelosi, and generally failing to stand up for Democratic core values and accomplishments. With Democrats like this, who needs enemies, yet across the country, we saw way too much of this disloyalty and Democratic "brand" damaging. It's inexcusable, and my bet is that most of these jerks will lose anyway. Good riddance.

It's going to be fun the next few days.

Enjoy your Election Day evening

If you've voted, it's time to wait until the votes are counted. Forget about those exit polls.
They just help the media know where to look Election night. You don't need polls to know where to look tonight.
Relax and enjoy yourself. Or relax and hide from the news. In 1974, my family went to see "2001: A Space Odyssey" at the movie theater. Better than watching election coverage with three boys ages 12, 10 and nine.
Election Days as a newspaper reporter aren't as good. All the waiting with none of the payoff for being on the winning team. Although when I lived in South Carolina, I would write-in the names of my newspaper colleagues and my precincts' results were the first ones posted. That gave them a good laugh.
In 1988, I was in a back room of the county courthouse, calling in voting totals precinct by precinct. Where was the internet when I needed it?
My co-workers celebrated in 1992, and I celebrated in 1994. Even if you aren't supposed to root in the newspaper's editorial area.
Tonight, I'll probably be watching Cartoon Network or Nick with the boys. As long as I get to check the computer for the latest news.

More time for "Sourland"

Looks like later tonight, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid will have more time to devote to their country music duo Sourland. From April 2009, here's my first parody for the duo - "All I want to do is Tax you."

Apologies to Sugarland - Jennifer and Khristian – and their fans.

I don’t want to listen baby, turn off all the phones
I don’t see those tea party people or want to turn my fax on
I’ve got ways to spend on my to-do list anyway
Hide behind this door and waste away money
Taxpayers think we’re lazy when we drive them crazy

All I want do wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo woo
All I want do wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo woo is tax you

I’ve spend my whole life winning votes to climb the ladder
Look at me, look at me, I’m the only thing that matters
Come a little closer Reid, we’ll pass bills without dissent
Hang a sign on Capitol Hill please do not disturb
Taxpayers think we’re lazy when we drive them crazy

All I want do wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo woo
All I want do wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo woo is tax you
Pass me a bill, full of that pork
I don’t want to cut this
All I want do wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo woo
All I want do wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo wo woo is tax you
All I really want to do
All I really can do
All I really want to do is tax you, tax you, tax you

Go a lot higher baby, we can spend without remorse
Hang up on those complainers, please do not, please do not, please do not disturb
When I sit down in my office, all I really want to do
When I fly back, when I fly back to Frisco baby, all I really want to do..

For you Sugarland fans, here's the original performance

40 years already?

GrandpaJohn looks at how quickly time slips past you.

Frost on the car; ballot in the box

It's a boring Election Day in Fishersville. The Democrats didn't bother having a candidate to face Rep. Bob Goodlatte, and there's no statewide races in Virginia this year.
I scraped some frost off the car and headed off to the polls. Several Fishersville residents were there when I arrived at 6:07 a.m. to cast my ballot.
Get out and vote in your races, since they have to be more exciting.

The Giants win the pennant

The Giants won the World Series without Willie Mays in the lineup. Here's how he helped them win in 1954.

Twas the night before the election

Pat's ready for Election Day. Are you?

How to stop Sarah Palin - gain 90 seats

It's not even Election Day and the establishment GOP is trying to slow the Sarah Palin express.
Haven't they seen the promos for the movie "Unstoppable?"
Only one way to slow the express. Get on board. Sitting in your seat and reading your paper, you can't tell if it's going 5 mph or 105 mph. And the Palin express is going 105 mph this Election Day.
If GOP operatives and current political gurus want to keep Palin from running for president in 2012, the best way is an overwhelming win Tuesday. Palin doesn't need to run for president if everybody gets on board with her message.
If Republicans only has 230 seats in 2011 (only, just 51 more than now), then the battle continues and will be rough. Palin will need to weigh in to keep the momentum going.
With 250-plus Republican seats in the next House, everybody will have gotten the message. Palin can keep doing what she does so well, instead of dealing with the expectations of a presidential primary run. No dealing with the package other people carry when they think of her.
Palin doesn't need to run for president to be powerful. Those operatives and gurus need somebody powerful to make them powerful.
The operatives and gurus just need to take Palin's message to heart. The message will win, even if they doubt Palin would win in 2012.

Be the wave

Ace of Spades has been promoting "Be the Wave."
Interesting where the slogan can appear.

What's Creigh Deeds thinking?

Is it, "They thought it was my fault, heh?"

Awaiting the expected horrors

Politico helps me start Monday on a good note.
Hope it brightens your day also.
Among those in the Democratic consulting class, there’s a gloomy acknowledgment that many of the incumbents the DCCC has spent millions of dollars to protect won’t be coming back to Congress.
“Everybody that is tied will lose, and everyone that is ahead by a few points will lose because of the GOP wave,” said one party media consultant who is involved in a wide array of House races. “There are going to be some surprises.”

November is here

It's November. It's here.
Soon, numerous Democratic lawmakers will not be here.
Vote Tuesday.