Local politics
by Pete on July 27, 2007
The local Democratic caucus is coming up in a week and a half. As a registered Democrat, I am currently being inundated with campaign literature, the hottest race apparently being that for town supervisor. Here’s the sum-total of my knowledge (…)
“U.S. attorneys are emanations of a president’s will.”
by Pete on July 22, 2007
From Friday’s Washington Post: Bush administration officials unveiled a bold new assertion of executive authority yesterday in the dispute over the firing of nine U.S. attorneys, saying that the Justice Department will never be allowed to pursue contempt charges initiated (…)
Because when I look at Iraq, the first thing that comes to mind is “simple solution”…
by Pete on July 17, 2007
Pointing out flaws on the Washington Post’s editorial page is like shooting fish in a barrel these days. At the same time, so long as the paper remains one of the bellwethers of mainstream media consensus, the nonsense published in (…)
Transformers
by Pete on July 16, 2007
There are many complaints I could make about this movie, not the least of which is that large segments of the plot make little sense. Why would you store something that needs to be kept frozen in the middle of (…)
Minsk – The Ritual Fires of Abandonment
by Pete on July 15, 2007
I first heard about Minsk in an article on PopMatters more than a year ago. Adrien Begrand, their main metal writer, did a column on the increasing indie cred of metal bands like Mastodon, Between the Buried and Me, Isis, (…)
Spoon – Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
by Pete on July 15, 2007
Most of the reviews I’ve seen of the new Spoon record have been of the “Their best album yet!” variety. My feelings regarding this album are more of a mixed bag. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is a good album, (…)
One more thing Alberto Gonzales probably doesn’t recall
by Pete on July 10, 2007
Submitted without comment… from this morning’s Washington Post: As he sought to renew the USA Patriot Act two years ago, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales assured lawmakers that the FBI had not abused its potent new terrorism-fighting powers. “There has (…)
Powell
by Pete on July 9, 2007
The Sunday Times ran a piece this past weekend about the “increasingly outspoken” Colin Powell: THE former American secretary of state Colin Powell has revealed that he spent 2½ hours vainly trying to persuade President George W Bush not to (…)
Republicans vainly attempt to appear slightly less useless
by Pete on July 6, 2007
According to this morning’s New York Times, “We cannot continue asking our troops to sacrifice indefinitely while the Iraqi government is not making measurable progress,” said Mr. Domenici, a six-term senator who has been a steadfast supporter of the president. (…)
The Polyphonic Spree – The Fragile Army
by Pete on July 3, 2007
The Polyphonic Spree has launched the latest salvo in its ongoing battle against musical subtlety and nuance. After several listens, I’m still trying to discern in The Fragile Army any sign of progress or development from the band’s previous outings. (…)