Russell Shaw's Brainstorm Central

Over In A "Flash"

I have been going on and on about how Flash animations refuse to load in IE6. Read somewhere the problem is Norton Personal Firewall. My updated computer installation does not include this program. Now, Flash loads fine.

For Good Measure

I just mailed in my ballot, and I voted for Measure 23, the universal health care thing. While I had some serious reservations about the financial ramifications of this statute, my heart won out. No one should have to be sick, just so that bean-counter policy-setters at big hospital chains and pharmaceutical companies can make the hearts of their institutional investors go pitter-patter. I am far more concerned about the beating hearts of the laid-off, chain-smoking timber worker, the sick child, the sweet senior citizen with three strokes.

Being kind is not a weakness. It is a strength.

Blue Cross-ed?

Another referendum stipulates single-payer, universal health care for all Oregonians. Everything would be free. Sizable tax hike. The practical person in me says (there are bumper stickers to this effect) "It's Too Extreme." I mean, income tax would rise, people in earning years would move out, uninsured would move in, companies would leave for across the river in Vancouver, Wash. Docs would probably leave as well. But then goes my heart, which feels and fuels my distaste for the medical and pharma profit machines, the red tape, and the poor ones left behind.

Designer Genes?

Upcoming referendum here in Oregon calls for labeling of genetically modified foods. Farmers yell it is cumbersome law and will be expensive to enact. But I like farmers and are sensitive to their concerns; I moved here from a state where turning farms near cities into cul-de-sacs was and is a manifest destiny. But, then, I drive past many farmer's fields not all that far from here, and most have Mannix for Governor signs. I see the labeling supporters, sometimes via rally coverage or even driving by where they are handing out literature. More beards, more earth tones, more body piercings, more bicycles, everyone with a backpack. I know instinctively they are more "like me." Their claim that consumers should have "a choice" makes sense. But then again, as a loyal technologist, I sense a certain amount of Luddite in their resistance to genetically modified foods. Listen. The "concept" sounds scary, at least superficially. And both sides have some good evidence to support their position. Put me down as "Undecided."

Keeping Disbelief Suspended

I do not completely understand the psychological mechanisms that enable us to suspend our disbelief when we watch a movie or television drama. But I think whatever is at play here is quite cool. As a result, I have long had a habit of reflexively turning my eyes away from the screen when the "this story is fictional" fine print appears near the end of the production. Sure, I know it was "just a story," but I like to stay stoked for a time after I have watched the film or program.

Unlike a couple of other compulsions, I think this one is totally normal.

Reading The Tea Leaves

As someone with degrees in Political Science and Sociology, elections fascinate me. As a journalist, I watch them closely. Check out my article, which ran on the Gannett News Service wire.

Now, I'm at ya with my predictions, as of Wednesday evening, October 30:

New Hampshire

Shaheen 52% D pickup; NH used to be solid R but that was older generation; now replaced somewhat by fiscally moderate, socially liberal migrants from Mass. exurbs like Andover; moved to NH for cheaper homes. Shaheen would have beaten Smith by 10 points, perhaps more.

New Jersey

Lautenberg 56%. "Finding Forrester" is a movie, not a prognostication. Solid D state; conservatives moved away, in-migrants vote.

Maine

Susan Collins won the hearts of older voters with her chairing of committee that produced major changes in the sweepstakes industry. I know Maine is hurting economically, but I think she will pull thru.

North Carolina

Liddy Dole appeals to the socially moderate and polite ex-sorority crowd of professional women in a way that Jesse Helms did not. She might even get some of the Research Triangle vote, which, actually, isn't as numerous a block as you might think.

South Carolina

Graham, 51%. I don't see this heavily R state having two D Senators.

Georgia

Cleland 51%. Commentator whose name I forget recently said once in voting booth, it will be hard for people to "vote out a cripple."

Louisiana

Landrieux, 47% in run-off, 51% in finals. Against 3 R, there will be a run-off, but I think she will pull out narrowly in rubber match.

Arkansas

Hutchinson 51.5%. Christians would rather forgive one of their own for having sinned rather than vote for -- in their judgment), a "liberal."

Tennessee

Alexander 53%. He is popular there, and D's have trouble winning statewide.

Minnesota

Mondale 54%-sounds about right. Might have gotten 55.5% or so but for Independent and Green Party candidates.

Missouri

Carnahan 50.5. For sentimental reasons.

South Dakota

Thune 52%. Thune is proven vote-getter: Bush carried the state by 25 percent.

Colorado

At this point, tossup between Allard and Strickland. I spend a lot of time in Colorado, but I don't know just yet. Will be won in Denver suburbs. Far fewer "John Denver" enviro-liberals than one might think...limited to Denver city, some of the ski towns. Remember the recent tide conservative California in-migrants...in terms of sheer voting numbers, more numerous than the Latino base. And, the growing number of "leave us alone" R's in the intermountain regions of Western Colorado; the Mormons there too, and the mushrooming area around Colorado Springs, with the strong appeal to military families (USAF) and conservative Christians.

Texas

Kirk 51%. I see a massive get-out-the-vote.

Oregon
Smith 57%. He and Bradbury run relatively even in the Portland metro, the big college towns, along part of the coast, where Bradbury is from. A letter-writer to Oregonian says she likes both Wyden and Smith; there is a widespread mentality here, once that I share somewhat, that Oregon is two states, each with one Senator, but the two work well together on so many issues. Although I will vote for Bill, I have seen this argument close up, and it does have validity. That's different than two years ago in Washington State, where Slade Gorton and Patty Murray were diametric opposites who only came together over Microsoft. But Wyden and Smith work closely together. see: So it won't be like Washington State, where Maria trounced Slade in Seattle and close-in burbs, and rode to win on the strength of those urban numbers. Smith and Bradbury will break even in metro Portland, and Smith trounces Bill everywhere else. The only reason Gordon won't crowd 60% is he is being squeezed from the right by Constitution Party nominee Lon ("a vote for Gordon Smith is a vote for the gay agenda") Mabon. I see a few Mabon stickers in farms, fields and on the side of garages.

Summing Up

I have D 50, R 48, Jeffords 1 (OK, D51). If D can get either Colorado or Texas, than D 52-48; counting Jeffords. But I don't think D will get both of those states, and not entirely sure of La. But if get either Col or Texas, that's a one-seat pickup, and even if lose La., D, with Jeffords, still prevail 51-49. But D needs to win one of those three states, Tex., La. or Col., or ...put it this way, you thought *Lon* Cheney was scary? "Werewolves Of London" was only a song. Process-servers in your local Women's Health Center won't be, especially if a D majority isn't in place to block the next Supreme Court appointment.

Fully Functional

Computer is back up, full speed! Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Here's a free plug for Pacific Solutions, resourceful healers of balky silicon-powered devices.

Dad Tried

Dad would have been 85 today. He passed away in 1987. Looking back, I admit that I wasn't the easiest child to raise. A postal
worker who let educational opportunities pass him by when he had the chance, he took my personal journeys and academic inconsistencies of the 1960 and 1970s as a worrisome forecaster that I would wind up "like him." In one such confrontation with the educational establishment, it got back to my parents that I told an academic dean I refused to abide by a "spoonfed education." Parents freaked; didn't see that as a sign of rebellion, but as a rationale for laziness, or perhaps even an indicator that I was psychologically askew. I didn't run away to the Haight; took the path of least resistance and listened to Dylan under my pillow. I thought, here was someone who mocks the educationally and materialistically acquisitive culture my parents so wanted me to qualify to be a part of. Eventually, I sucked it up and have done it my way. But Dad tried. I don't blame him. Half of me is him. Having never been a parent, I can't really get inside the way Mom and Dad felt. It is a matter of no small redemption that Mom, who turns 80 next week, has seen me succeed. But a "spoonfed education?" Thirty-odd years later, I regard that remark as one made with insight, courage and honor. It says a lot about who I am, to this very day.

Sleazy Ryder

Are we really supposed to believe today's witness testimony that Winona Ryder shoplifted because she was doing research for a movie role? GMAFB.

Crime And Punishment

I am a big believer in community service. Here are my ideas for appropriate punishment:

Liz Grubman

CRIME -Ace celeb publicist runs over 16 people in
parking lot of restaurant in Hamptons.

PUNISHMENT- Be required to work pro-bono p.r. for a
disabled rights organization --some of whose members
might be disabled due to actions by inconsiderate
drivers.

2. Scott Thomasson

ALLEGED CRIME-Leading Portland car dealership owner does
a hit-and-run at an accident scene (car damaged, but no
people.

PUNISHMENT-Donate a wheelchair-capable vehicle or two to
an organization that provides transportation for the
physically challenged.

3. Winona Ryder-

ALLEGED CRIME- Shoplifting $5,000 of hats, handbags,
etc., from Saks.

PUNISHMENT-In addition to appropriate restitution and
court costs, sizable donation to one of those "dress for
success" philanthropies that subsidize purchase of
suitable business attire for low-income women seeking to
enter the workplace.

Atta Boys

Mohammed Atta was day-to-day chief of hijacking operation that directly led to war in Afghanistan, and interaction with warlords there. As reported in the news today, the chief Tajik warlord's name is Atta Mohammed.

"Been Laden" By High Gasoline Prices?

Great title of Bill Maher's book: "When You Ride Alone, You Ride With Bin Laden." I've noticed the loudest patriots with the most flags drive the biggest SUVs. These are the same people who cuss the electric car owners, the hydrogen-power types and the cyclists for being hippies. And, of course, the hippies are all leftists. Do you get the disconnect here?

Touched By The Angels

My "give a hoot level" was about a three on the scale of 10, but glad Angels won. While I have no answers on these matters, I found it refreshing that in post-game awards ceremonies, Mrs. Autry stayed away from gushy, theologically debatable "I know he is looking down and smiling" spirituality. She was asked whether she felt Gene's "presence." She said something to the effect of, I am looking at his photo now (on the scoreboard), and remembering how much this team meant to him.

Why She Doesn't Leave Him

We've all asked ourselves this question about women we know, who remain in verbally (and, sometimes, physically) abusive relationships. I'm no expert, but here's my take:

Many men are so very good at positioning themselves as protector/provider that they, sometimes even subconsciously, rewire their mate's brain circuitry to not even be able to perceive of a life as an independent woman. They may have been in that position before, and are scared to go there again. Other times, "staying with" somebody is a matter of having built up so many experiences together, that disengagement gets tougher and tougher. And some other times -- not to the exclusion of the other factors I just mentioned, it is, frankly, good sex. I know this from women I have been with for longer than I should have been. See, when a woman gets older, and is going thru or has already gone through the changes in her body, she wonders if she would be able to attract another man if she was on her own. A man in his 50s has parallel concerns. He goes to a bookstore, a theater, a bar, and he sees a shapely woman, and the 35-ish guy with her has more hair and less paunch. He remembers when he was 35, and he realizes that he no longer is, and wonders if he could succeed in dating again. So he uses controlling mechanisms to hold on to the woman he already has.

Touched By The Angels

Back in the 1970s, I was in love with a woman who, it turned out, was in love with a guy who was a graduate student at Duke University. Although neither he or she were sports fans, I began to root against the school's sports teams. I still do. Tonight, the Anaheim Angels came from behind to defeat the San Francisco Giants. I found myself rooting for the Angels, for not entirely dissimilar reasons.

You are not seeing me at my best. I know it sounds petty, but I am a Scorpio, so cut me some slack.

Sign Of the Devil?

This afternoon, I was driving along I-5, listening to a travel show segment on a place in Naples, Italy, where wandering, dead souls are thought to dwell. Then, I happened to glance at my odometer. It read, 66,666.

Paul Wellstone

Counter-Intuitive Ironies (Don't Ya Think)?

Today I saw a guy wearing a Trans-Alaska Pipeline work jacket -- the kind they give to their crews.
He was riding a bicycle through traffic. By riding the bicycle, he was saving gallons of gasoline that could well have started its route to the gas pump via the pipeline he presumably worked on. An act of rebellion? A gesture of contrition, perhaps?

Darndest counter-intuitive irony on the Portland streets in several months. Earlier this year, I saw a panel truck festooned with American flags, a very noticeable "God Bless America" bumper sticker -- and, a Nader 2000 sticker as well. Not that voting for Nader would have been ungodly or unpatriotic, but the sociopolitical demographics in play do not cut smoothly across the wide swath of passions expressed on that vehicle. Two other possible reasons: a politically divided household, or new owner. Given that the Nader campaign preceded (why isn't that word spelled "preceeded"?) post 9/11 patriotic fervor, maybe the Nader sticker was put there by the previous owner, and the new owner hasn't had time to remove it just yet. Then again, maybe he is a Bushie who is grateful to Nader for getting Bush elected.

How Do You People Live Like This?

I am back on dial-up Web access until Monday evening. That's because tech couldn't make it here to the cliffside today. Life moves slower at 24-28 K, but still, it moves on. Until then, it is back to the age of dial-up, and for some reason, 24-28K, not 56. For me, the main challenge is to remember that since my dial-up modem runs thru my talk line, not to pick the line up to speak. Muscle memory needs to be checked and rerouted; I am sure you know what I mean. That's where the fax phone comes in handy. Manageable hassle, but can't wait until my system is fully functional and I access the Web at broadband speeds, can see my OE address book and archived messages; burn CDs, get sound and video,etc. But have come a long way from the way the week started, which was Safe Mode, Wordpad and the looming, ever-present risk of sudden power-offs.

Mo-Tive?


I am a prejudice-free individual, but not everyone is. That's why I could not help but envision the reaction in millions of American television households last night -- when it was revealed that a material witness in the sniper shootings had taken the last name of Mohammed. I, as a member of the media and a liberal -- am the last person to go ranting about the "liberal media," but I can recognize Political Correctness wherever I see it. I could not help but notice the lack of any speculation or discussion of what or who that surname change could ultimately point to with regard to these incidents. But, wait till the Thursday talk-radio shows. Michael Savage's program of obnoxious sarcasm and cruel hate is not ever to be played in my home or car, but the implications of what I have been discussing here will find a forum.

This Too, Shall Pass

At least four or five people who I care a lot about have made no, or very little, money in the last several months. Smart, well-educated, talented, good people. I hear stories of Paxil scrips; occasional self-medication; loss of self-esteem issues, occupational counseling, guilt-tripping parents, "will-I-be-able-to-pay-the-mortgage/rent-this-month" night terrors and morning sweats. I am doing better than most, but hearing these stories hurts nonetheless. I try to help when and how I can -- by advice, pep talks, etc. Who is at fault here? Alan Greenspan? Ken Lay? Bernie Ebbers? GWB? Clinton? Mohammed Atta? Probably some of all of the above. The key thing to remember here is, that -- if my own life and career experiences are any indicator, this will pass.

Gateway "Tech Support?" Look Under the Gateway "Cow"

Well, $500 later, my computer is *almost* fixed. My tech, Ron of Pacific Solutions here in Portland, had to come out here to the cliffside and do a clean install. Ran out of time, back tomorrow for the rest of it; getting my broadband back up (I CAN'T SURF 56!!!!) and doing some DLL sleuthing and mending. Damn, I hate DLLs. He agrees with others that they are some nefarious Microsoft plot.

*The bigger lesson here is that online "support," in this case Gateway, is -- to put it mildly -- not skillful. Tech support lacks the experience and intuitive sense to diagnose problems; instead they often take a flawed understanding of the problem at hand and then search a knowledge base which may or may not have relevant and specific info.

My in-person tech agrees but says cut them some slack because of difficulty diagnosing problems from afar...you need to be at the machine itself to do this. Kind of like being diagnosed by a radio doc or shrink...he probably has a point but still doesn't forgive the fact that vendor tech support (actually in more cases than not, third-party outsourced), is often clueless.

All Of You, And One Of Me

I saw a great bumper sticker the other day. Went something like this:

"You laugh at me because I am different."
"I laugh at you because you are all the same."

Knowledge Bases Are Sometimes Off-Base

Over the weekend, I noticed that my desktop computer conked out every few hours. Went into power save mode, but locked up. I suspected there is a problem with my CPU fan. If the fan is not working, the innards will get hot, and the CPU will shut down to avoid frying the CPU chip. But when I went online and e-chatted with the Gateway tech rep, he said I should do a limitedde-install, re-install of my Windows ME OS. Guess fucking what. I can't get beyond Safe Mode, and my power is still conking out. Listen, people. Most of these techs do not have first-hand knowledge about issues such as I have described. When you ask them a question they can't answer right away, they use a proprietary tool to search their knowledge base. Then, they get back to you with a course of action. That course has at least some probability of being wrong, and gumming up your PC. I can't have my PC gummed up.

Having your PC diagnosed from a knowledge base -- a glorified cheat sheet -- is like obtaining a diagnosis and scrip from a radio doc or shrink. In all but the simplest, most obvious cases, the problem needs to be observed directly.

But the tech from Pacific Solutions is coming to my home on Tuesday to try to undo this mess. If he succeeds, as well as gets a new CPU fan or power supply to fit into my Gateway, this Blog will temporarily assume the persona of a Pacific Solutions advertorial.

Pray for my PC.

Kinko's Idea Of "Closure"

As I post this I am at a Kinko's in Salem, Oregon, about 50 miles south of my Portland Home. Have been running errands down here. Kinko's is an American treasure. They smite the family run, office supplies and services outfits that stay open 9-5 during the week and 9-1 on Saturday. But now, they have a bit of a scar on their reputation. Some Kinko's are closing at 11 p.m. on weekend nights. That sucks. Memo to Kinko's apparently bean-counting corporate management: what has been done can be undone.

"Holloween" Is More Like It

Halloween? Bah. I just don't get it. Never have, even when I was a child. I'm not one of those types who condemn the holiday as associated with devil-worship or anything like that. Nor am I an overserious person. Many of my evenings in this life -- too many, arguably -- have been spent on the pursuit of let-it-all-hang-out silliness. But see, I do not like to have that silliness pre-programmed for me by peer pressure, or scheduled for me by the calendar. To me, silliness is an act of benign rebellion. Halloween makes silliness an act of conformity. I don't like conformity. I will be silly when I damn well feel like it, thank you.

*I decided I will vote for Bradbury over Gordon Smith. While Gordon has been very good for Oregon as an interlocutor of sorts, and I would not experience revulsion if he got back in, I agree with his stances 50-60% of the time. Higher batting average than most Republicans, but I agree with Bradbury's stances 90% of the time. The value-set of people like Bradbury is a key reason I moved here.

Check Korea:

Not all that worked up about North Korea. They seem more inward and insular than inclined to revolutionarily proselytize. It could be that their admission of a nuclear weapons program could be taken as a confessional, aimed at better relations. Iraq denies these pursuits, encouraging our wrath; NK admits to them. And the fact is that in other parts of the world, possession of nukes has proven to be a deterrent. But with regard to NK, watch the Republicans milk it for all it is worth -- the "dangerous world" scenario. True, but many ways to manage a dangerous world. But in terms of the campaign rhetoric, if you are a D in Senate or House races, and haven't voted for *every* defense authorization, then watch out for the "soft on..." rhetoric. On related matter, wouldn't be surprised to see an Orange Alert right before election day.

Bush Baby:

*In a perverse way, Noelle's bust might benefit Jeb. A few may conclude, "they have problems too, like our family." No, they aren't...duh... if Noelle came from a different class, she would be serving years or months, rather than weeks or days.

If you've got a media or tech job in this economy, and someone makes you an offer, think at least twice before you leave. My counsel goes beyond "the grass is always greener." Sometimes, it is. The new position you are being offered may sound enticing, but if the technology or media industries keep going the way they are, you -- as a new employee -- may be the first one laid off. If you had stayed at your previous employer, you may well have accumulated the added seniority that would have made it more difficult for them to can you.

Sometimes, being an "I told you so" is painful, and I'd rather have been wrong than right. I happened to pick up the monthly newspaper of the Pacific Green Party the other night. Headline: "dump Bush, not bombs." Well OK, Greens, I got a couple of numbers for you: Nader got 77,000 votes in Florida, votes that if even 60% would have gone to Gore, and things would be different now.

To laugh often and love much;
to win the respect of intelligent persons
and the affection of children,
to earn the approbation of honest critics;
to appreciate beauty;
to give of one's self,
to leave the world a bit better,
whether by a healthy child,
a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
to have played and laughed with enthusiasm
and sung with exultation;
to know even one life has breathed easier
because you have lived --
that is to have succeeded.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I am here to remind you of two truths. If you remember these well, you will get hurt less.

Don't ever confuse obedience with respect.
Don't ever confuse admiration with love.

About the tragedy in Bali:

Ihurt so deeply for the innocents, some of whom were searching for their own restoration, on another island of tropical beauty on the shores of another ocean just as blue. But today, blood red.

And who, instead of fun and joy, found fear and death.

Is death any more merciful when it comes suddenly, amidst beauty, rather than slowly, amidst ugliness and pain?

Although I have thoughts and opinions on many things, that is a question I am unable to answer.

I am not a religious person, but I do know is that life is precious beyond all manner of description.

And that all those who have lost their lives, done too soon, tell us in a chorus audible on the wind to live our lives, to love our lives, and to love the people and all other sentient beings around us who, via their own free will, have chosen to grace our lives with their love, friendship, and goodness.

That is the way I aspire to live my life.

I would hope that others see the duty of life the same way. To live your life with kindness, while pursuing the possibilities of empowerment, dignity and accomplishment that is in the grasp of each of us.

And that is living a life worth living.

I'm not saying you are unpatriotic if you drive an SUV, but I am saying you are patriotic to God and country if you buy an electric car. You honor creation by keeping the air clean, and you reduce our dependence on fuel from nations that have at best, a mixed history with terrorists in their midst.

Here in Oregon, self-service gasoline is illegal. Even though we are across the continent from the sniper attacks on innocent people filling up their tanks, the no-self-serve gasoline policy -- which never made sense to me before -- has taken on a bizarre appropriateness.

Where's Osama?

I have a hunch where Bin Laden is. My WAG (wild-assed guess) is not offered from the standpoint of what might or might not be coming, but more from the purely speculative "love a mystery." True, there has been no definitive contact and some of his fiercely loyal bodyguards have been captured away from him. Probably still alive, but I think that if he were on Afghan-Pak border he would have been spotted by satellite. It would take just one of thousands who would have seen him to rat him out. With those types of numerical odds, you would find a malcontent in any crowd, almost like a closeted atheist in a conservative small town in the American south. And malcontents sometimes like to monetize their alienation. So that leads me to think although he is probably alive, he is not moving around in that region. If he's alive, I'd bet he is in Karachi, city of 14 million where it is easy to hide. I'd bet he is sequestered away in some simpatico Saudi or Egyptian ex-pat mansion. True, Paks have helped us nab some mid-to-senior folks, but I'd say his presence there is known by few, and the few that know either are protecting him or have been bought off. As commentator Richard Reeves once told the Atlanta Press Club when asked why more people didn't know about JFK's cheating, "the rich have long driveways."

Angels win the pennant. Gene Autry, who founded the team some 40 years ago lived 35 years or so without capturing the flag. He would have been proud. I cannot say I truly understand these matters, but maybe he is proud.

Read this. Remember this. Long-distance relationships may be attainable, but rarely are they sustainable. I am, of course, talking about dating relationships or the pursuit thereof, but a certain applicability appends to work relationships as well. Kind of ironic I am posting this to a virtualspace medium, but I really do believe that out of sight is out of mind.

One of my colleagues is a big believer in e-books. I would like to be, but I have some serious doubts. I believe that e-books will attain visual and functional appeal within a couple of years, but just because something is technically possible doesn't mean it will be a marketplace winner. In the case of e-books, seems to me the real challenge will not be attaining the cool UI holy grail, but in altering consumer behavior. In most cases, such alteration, if it occurs at all, is not mercurial but takes several years, and only happens in response to a better solution to a pervasive problem. But no problem exists here. People don't grumble about the inconvenience of paper books, the way they grumble about other things they must deal with, tech and non-tech. Even with grumbling, people become habituated to the familiar. That's why it usually takes several years for new solutions and platforms to ripple through the marketplace, and convince people to replace the old habits and consumption patterns with the new. My colleague cites the fact that links can be incorporated into portable e-books as a market-maker. I come down on the other side of that argument. Links, IMHO (In My Haughty Opinion) are a non-factor except in certain genres...few people outside of scholars ever read footnotes, many books are now undertaken without them, so what is the big deal about links?

In its lyrics as well as its production values, few if any songs have captured the oft-futile battle of human beings against the violence of nature as eloquently as "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgarald," by Gordon Lightfoot.

Few songs, including most blues tunes, have captured the mindset of one who has recently ended their relationship with you, and no longer cares one way or the other about it or you, as simply but as eloquently as "For No One," by The Beatles. I have been humming this song to myself in recent weeks, hanging on the truth of its every word. Or, as Elton sang in his early 1980s hit "Sad Songs: "When someone else is suffering enough, oh, to write it down...when every single word makes sense, then it's easier to have those songs around. Pick inside and find the line that finally gets to you... and it hurts so good to hurt so bad, and suffer just enough to sing the blues."

Online job-bid sites are virutally useless. Inexperienced or underfunded businesses put bids out, which are answered by torrents of desperate job seekers. I still check thse sites, but sometimes I wonder what for. Same reason why fine art collectors visit flea markets and yard sales. Just like Cupid sometimes performs random acts of kindness for the lovelorn, hope springs eternal for that diamond in the rough opportunity found on a job-bidding site.

Am I the only person out there who thinks that Flash is almost always totally unnecessary? I admit my view is skewed by the fact that my IE 6 refuses to load Flash animations. I have tried every security setting I know in my computer and my browser, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. While Flash works fine on Netscape 7, when it comes to Flash animations on IE 6, they lock but don't load.

E-mails written under the influence of askew emotions or too much red wine are nearly impossible to atone for. In comparison, one of the best things about Blogging is that when you post something intemperate -- and you later realize you shouldn't have -- you can go in and change it to something totally innocuous. Like I am doing here.

Right now I am listening to the feed from the digital cable in the living room. "Rainy days and Mondays always get me down," Karen Carpenter sang. Not me: a rainy Monday morning is the perfect way to start a work week. Why? Because rainy Monday mornings are good backdrop to stay in and work, and as such, are an authentic signatory for the notion that the weekend ended at just the right time.

Look up the phrase "American treasure," and you will find Charlie Rose, who is the most-informed interviewer out there by many country miles. So many tv interviewers are either fawning of guests, try to hog the spotlight themselves, or try to outshout the people that guest on their shows. Charlie converses, and as such, is an evolved human being.

If you are a sexually active woman, and subscribe wholeheartedly to the views of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Michael Savage, well, then, I hope your birth-control pill fails this weekend, and you get knocked up. I don't mean to be mean spirited, but these guys are assholes who think that Reagan and both Bushes --- who belittle politicians that will let you control your own body --- were/are great Presidents. And in denying you the right to control your body, they are meaner than any Blog could be.

W(hat) W(ould) J(immy Carter) D(o)?

I wonder how Carter would be handling the current Iraq and terrorism controversies. If I mentioned this calling up one of those right-wing talk show hosts, I'm sure they would say that because he was President when our hostages were held for 444 days, he would have been facing the situation like a wimp. OK, now, who was president when our barracks in Beirut were blown up? There, they al died...our hostages came back alive. Who was President on 9/11...OK, say he was only in office for less than eight months, and then blame some of it on Clinton, but Bush didn't seem to have problem with Clinton's counterterrorism infrastructure before 9/11. I mean, he kept Tenet around, and even Freeh around for the first five months of his term. I think the real issue here points to the fact that the Democrats are seen as nurturers ... more womanly, and the R are seen as someone that will let you do what you want (except of course, have an abortion). And especially if you are a guy, not taking any nag, not putting up with it, is seen as more "manly." To me, that is a character flaw that too many of my brothers in the fraternity of the Y chromosome suffer from.

I was sitting around thinking early this a.m. In my life, most of the women I have had love connections with have been liberal Democrats. Maybe that is because, I truly believe that to be a conservative, it really helps to be a me-first person at the expense of caring about people and society in general. That's quite far from my inner nature. No mystery then, that I have trouble giving my heart to the heartless.

My journalistic colleague, the wise and irreverent Jade Walker, has posted some very wise and sage quotes on her Web site.

Thought some of these might lighten and brighten your day a bit. Feel free to forward to friends! Here goes:

"You don't have to be a house to be haunted." --Emily Dickinson

"Dreaming permits each and every one of us to be quietly and safely insane every night of our lives."--William Dement

"When you live in the shadow of insanity, the appearance of another mind that thinks and talks as yours does is something close to a blessed event." --R. Pirsig

"Nothing makes you feel more stupid than finding out you were wrong when you thought you were loved." --A. L. Kennedy

"My darling girl, when are you going to understand that 'normal' isn't a virtue? It rather denotes a lack of courage." --Robin Swicord

"Ask no guarantees, ask for no security, there never was such an animal. And if there were, it would be related to the great sloth which hangs upside down in a tree all day every day, sleeping its life away. To hell with that...shake the tree and knock the great sloth down on its ass." --Ray Bradbury

"Writing is easy. All you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead." --Gene Fowler

"Everyone has a talent. What is rare is the courage to nurture it in solitude and to follow the talent to the dark places where it leads." --Erica Jong

"A lady came up to me on the street and pointed at my suede jacket. 'You know a cow was murdered for that jacket?' she sneered. I replied in a psychotic tone, 'I didn't know there were any witnesses." --Jake Johansen

"Your work is only as good as your concentra-- Hey look! A cloud shaped like Snoopy!" --Martell Stroup

"It wasn't a dark and stormy night. It should have been, but that's the weather for you." --Terry Pratchett

AND MY FAVORITE, WHICH JADE WROTE HERSELF:

"I never said, 'Thou shalt not think.'" --God

Looks like Feds are trying to turn Andy Fastone on Spilling and Lay (last name there needs no irreverent adjustment). But I sense he thinks either can beat it, or will do a year in a country-club prison. Important to remember that in corporate circles, blacklisting after a fink-out -- even a prosecutorally forced one -- can last a lot longer than a prison sentence might.

If the Supreme Court votes against the Ds and Lautenberg this week, and I'm not sure they will, my first thought is, write-ins are impossible to win, and the R getting in could cast the 51st vote the next Scalia will need. Buy some stock in coat-hanger manufacturers and airlines that fly to Scandanavia, if ya know what I mean. Then on the other hand, the battle would be joined, evoking much blowback and giving new life to Democrats in cliffhanger Senate races. Example: enough of the Goddessdamned fucking Greens would be convinced not to vote for their own guy rather than Wellstone in Minnesota, etc.