Who's He Kidding, Anyway?

E.J. Dionne writes in today's Washington Post:

"This month's offensive by President Bush and his allies in Congress against gay marriage and flag burning proves one thing: The Republican Party thinks its base of social conservatives is a nest of dummies who have no memories and respond like bulls whenever red flags are waved in their faces.

"The people who should be angry this week are not liberals or gays or lesbians, but the president's most loyal supporters. After using the gay-marriage issue shamelessly in the 2004 campaign, Bush and Republican leaders left opponents of gay marriage out in the cold as they concentrated on the party's real priorities: privatizing Social Security and cutting taxes on rich people."

Seriously, does anyone really think that this is more than a red flag being waved at the G.O.P. "base"? And why should they believe him, this time?

Complete Article Here

Weeping steel guitars ...

Talking to verbicide about Deadwood and the handful of Westerns I've ever taken a liking to inspired me to watch Walter Hill's The Long Riders, again, the other day. My favorite exchange in the film goes like this: Cole Younger and Sam Starr are about to fight over Belle -

Cole Younger: What does the winner get?
Belle Starr: Nothin' both of you ain't already had.
Cole Younger: Don't hardly seem worth it.
Belle Starr: It ain't. You're both crazy, but you do keep me amused. I am having a real good time.

The First Interview (That I've Given a Damn About ...)

Last week, I submitted a version of my résumé to a political consulting firm that does grassroots organizing. ( Remember When I Used To Do That? )

I was pleasantly surprised to receive a call from them, yesterday, which led to an hourlong phone interview, earlier today. ( How It Went )