Blog Master G

Bush and his War Team are at it again, already planning the next war, this time in Iran.

The New Yorker / The Coming Wars:

“This is a war against terrorism, and Iraq is just one campaign. The Bush Administration is looking at this as a huge war zone,” the former high-level intelligence official told me. “Next, we’re going to have the Iranian campaign. We’ve declared war and the bad guys, wherever they are, are the enemy. This is the last hurrah—we’ve got four years, and want to come out of this saying we won the war on terrorism.”

More…

[ See also: AlterNet / Iran: The Next Strategic Target ]

And you thought the latest $80 billion that Bush will request for Iraq was bad. As if we’re not already screwing over ourselves and future generations for years to come, now we’ll likely be paying for yet another Middle East war for the rest of our lives.

Thank you, Project for New American Century, for spreading American ideals to those who despise America for wanting to spread her ideals the world over!

Stella’s a pretty unique dog. I’ve seen only a handful of dogs in the past 5+ years that she’s been in our lives who look similar to her. My jaw dropped last week when Stella got a Dogster PupPal request from Yogi, Stella’s doppelgänger if ever there was one.

I woke up this morning and had the urge to make coffee with water from the Brita pitcher; I usually use the tap and let the coffee machine’s built-in filter do the work. Good thing I went Brita today. After pouring 6 cups of water into the coffee pot, I proceeded to refill the pitcher from the sink. I noticed that the water pressure wasn’t very good, but wrote it off to Jen’s being in the shower upstairs. Still a bit dreary and out of it, I didn’t realize that something was wrong until the Brita pitcher was mostly filled again — with brown water. Whoops.

When the air temperature (that is, before any wind chill is factored in) is at -12 degrees Fahrenheit at 8am, I can’t imagine what it was overnight. Whatever it was, though, it was enough to at least partially freeze the pipes leading to our kitchen sink. Hopefully after running the water for a few hours, it will unfreeze.

In the meantime, I’m just glad my coffee is Italian roast brown and not dirty, frozen pipe brown.

Rest in peace, Johnny Carson.

Following our 3-hour trip home from Hoboken today, Jen and I were greeted by a foot of fresh snow at home. This is the most snow we’ve had to date as homeowners. And today I learned what it’s like to really be a homeowner in the Northeast — winter style.

For the first time, I could relate to why everyone around here seems to dread the snow. Don’t get me wrong — I still love the stuff and am already looking forward to the next blizzard — but man, is it hard work to remove this much snow.

The snowblowing is the easy part, especially with our industrial-strength 8.5-horsepower beast of a machine. It’s all the other cleanup that takes a toll.

I spent more than an hour tonight snowblowing, shoveling, scraping, digging, and sweeping snow to and fro. The hardest work? Climbing onto the flat, only slightly angled part of our roof over the kitchen with a push-broom and clearing away 200+ square feet of snow piled a foot high.

I think I’ve been officially broken in to the Northeast lifestyle to which one cannot possibly relate until one has lived here and cared for one’s own property.

Jen and I really know how to pick a weekend to travel south. I’m in Hoboken at the moment, getting ready to take the Path Train into Manhattan to meet up with Jonty and Dan for brunch. And a blizzard is on the horizon.

Starting around 3pm today, the city is expected to get at least 2 feet of snow. Meanwhile, Saratoga Springs is only expecting a mere foot. Of course, that kind of snow in the north country is easier to deal with than it is down here in the city, if only because there’s not really anywhere to put the snow when it comes in force in this neck of the woods.

When we woke up this morning, we contemplated driving back home, but decided against it. I think blizzards are fun. After our afternoon outings, we’ll be staying warm by the fire and eating in tonight.

After some more snow tomorrow morning, it should be all cleared up for the most part, so hopefully we’ll make it back home in time to pick up the dogs from their B&B (bed & biscuits) before it closes.

In the meantime, I’m looking forward to trotting around Manhattan in my Bugabootoos. As a north countrier, I’ll likely be more prepared than most cityfolk. But until I get to the point where I’m wearing a hunting hat and camouflage jacket to trot around the city, I can at least pretend I’m chic in my big boots.

Bob Herbert wrote an excellent editorial in today’s New York Times — Dancing the War Away:

As the well-heeled Bush crowd was laughing and dancing in tuxedos and designer gowns, the situation in Iraq was deteriorating to new levels of horror. The Black Tie and Boots Ball was held on the same day that 26 people were killed in five powerful car and truck bombs in Baghdad. With the elections just a week and a half away, American commanders, according to John F. Burns of The Times, are seeking “to prepare public opinion in Iraq and abroad for one of the bloodiest chapters in the war so far.”

…

The disconnect between the over-the-top celebrations in Washington and the hideous reality of Iraq does not in any way surprise me. It’s exactly what we should expect from the president and his supporters, who seem always to exist in a fantasy realm far removed from such ugly realities as war and suffering. In that realm you can start wars without having to deal with the consequences of them. You don’t even have to pay for them. You can put them on a credit card.

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Watch out! Those crazy, gay-loving cartoonists are at it again, this time trying to distribute gay propaganda in the guise of Sponge Bob, Barney, and friends.

Grab your children, cover their eyes, and head for the hills! Here come the gays!

CNN.com / Christians issue gay warning on SpongeBob video:

The wacky square yellow SpongeBob is one of the stars of a music video due to be sent to 61,000 U.S. schools in March. The makers — the nonprofit We Are Family Foundation — say the video is designed to encourage tolerance and diversity.

But at least two Christian activist groups say the innocent cartoon characters are being exploited to promote the acceptance of homosexuality.

“A short step beneath the surface reveals that one of the differences being celebrated is homosexuality,” wrote Ed Vitagliano in an article for the American Family Association.

More…

(Thanks, Jen, for the link.)

Not until Jane pointed it out did it occur to me that all the yellow “Support the Troops” and red and white “God Bless America” magnetic vehicle ribbons were such a regionalized phenomenon. I guess I’m just so used to seeing them on every SUV and minivan, I don’t really notice them anymore.

Regardless, the site Jane found, which sells protest and parody ribbons, is awesome. I’m never one to stick anything like that on my car, but these ribbons are the closest I’d come, with classics like these:

• My Ribbon is Bigger Than Yours
• God Bless Corporate America
• Real Patriots Question Bush
• Demand Open Source Voting
• I Wish God Did Talk to Bush
• Of Course Iraq Had WMD. They Were One of Our Best Customers

It’s just a tad cold here in the north country today. The treemometer isn’t always honest with me, though, I’ve realized. This morning it shows right around 0, while the bank I drove past earlier showed -7 and Yahoo Weather shows -6 and “feels like” -25. Let me just tell ya: That’s cold. I think the treemometer may be protesting about getting its needle below that 0 marker.

Over the past couple days, I’ve noticed a significant spike in my site traffic — up from about 500 average visitors per day to 673 average visitors per day as of this moment. The culprit? Searches like this one:

Eric Steel Golden Gate Bridge

… which bring up my blog entry from October 14, 2003, Golden Gate Bridge Jumpers, as the number 1 result.

Why this entry and why all the hub-bub?

This entry because Eric Steel commented on it on December 27, 2004, wanting to contact others who left comments on my blog.

All the hub-bub because it seems that Mr. Steel has been making a documentary about folks who commit suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge.

SF Gate / Golden Gate officials angry with filmmaker who recorded suicides:

The film project was proposed as a “monuments documentary” intended to “capture the grandeur” of the Golden Gate Bridge.

But after a year, filmmaker Eric Steel ended up with footage of 19 deaths and several attempts by people who wanted to end their lives by jumping off what is regarded as the world’s No. 1 suicide landmark.

Bridge officials who approved the filming are now furious at Steel, saying he lied about his project. They are looking for ways to see the footage and possibly prevent him from showing it.

Grim? Yes. Tragic? Maybe.

Though suicide is something that stems from deep psychological troubles, I think it is an incredibly selfish and cowardly act and one that should be dealt with on one’s own. Jumping off a bridge is a fine way to go if one must kill oneself. Much better than, say, driving a car into oncoming traffic or doing something else that puts others at risk. I just hope that someone jumping off the bridge doesn’t land on a passing boat below and kill someone else in the process.

As for capturing these suicides on film, sure, it’s grim. But why not examine what causes people to go to this extreme? Why not shed some light on the act rather than pretending it doesn’t happen? It sounds like Mr. Steel’s intentions are just this, so I hope his documentary does screen at a major festival, as he hopes it well.

This country tends to be so repressed and uptight in terms of discussing problems in the open, so I say more power to you, Eric Steel. Good luck with your documentary.