Methinks He Doth Protest Too Much.....And So He Apologized

Emma Sullivan [l] and Governor Sam Brownback [r]

They say you gotta have a thick skin if you wanna be in politics, but apparently Kansas governor, Sam Brownback didn't get the memo.

See last week Shawnee Mission East High School senior, Emma Sullivan, was among a group of students at the Statehouse for a Youth in Government program. And as Brownback, a Republican, was addressing the group, Sullivan, who says she is a Democrat and who recently registered to vote, tweeted from her cellphone, “Just made mean comments at gov. brownback and told him he sucked, in person #heblowsalot.”

Kinda funny. Didn't happen. Oh, not the Tweet, that's real, but Emma Sullivan never told Brownback he sucked, though she could have, and had she, well, then all this brouhaha might have seemed sort of appropriate.

Brownback’s staff, which monitors social media like Facebook and Twitter, saw Sullivan's Tweet and complained about it, and complained about it, and complained about it. In fact, Brownback’s spokeswoman, Sherriene Jones-Sontag, said: “It was important for the organization to be aware of the comments their students were making. It’s also important for students to recognize the power of social media, how lasting it is. It is on the Internet.”

All that complaining, foot-stomping, neck-snapping, whining and kvetching led to a trip to the principal’s office for Sullivan, who was scolded and told to write letters of apology. For her opinion. Sullivan was told by the school principal, Karl Krawitz, that she had embarrassed her school and district, and needed to write the letter of apology. 

At first, Sullivan said she would apologize but said she wasn't sorry. Then she refused to apologize, at which point the principal foot-stomped, neck-snapped, whined and kvetched, until the Shawnee Mission school district issued a statement saying Emma Sullivan didn’t have to apologize: “The district acknowledges a student’s right to freedom of speech and expression is constitutionally protected. The issue has resulted in many teachable moments concerning the use of social media.”

But, to quote one of my favorite films, this was "all far from over."

What followed was a national fire storm, most of it critical of Sam Brownback and Principal Krawitz, with folks saying Brownback was trying to intimidate a teenager, abridge freedom of speech, waste taxpayer dollars by monitoring what was written about him and being paranoid.

So, on Monday, Sam Brownback was the one who apologized, saying his staff had overreacted to the Tweet.

Ya think?

The “overreaction” certainly added to Sullivan’s popularity. Before the incident, she had about 65 Twitter followers. By mid-afternoon Monday, she had more 10,000, or more than three times as many as Brownback.

Suh-nap!

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Architecture Wednesday

They say that people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, but, sometimes, people who live in glass houses, need to remodel them.....with more glass.
This house was designed and built in 1956 by John Black Lee, an architect affiliated with the so-called Harvard Five--a group of architects that included Philip Johnson and Marcel Breuer who, in the 1940s, began transforming New Canaan, Connecticut, into a hotbed of Modernism.
John Black Lee’s original symmetrical, one-story structure featured a large open space with a central fireplace, a living room, and small kitchen. This room had clerestory windows and two all-glass exterior walls, providing views of the woods. Bedrooms, two each on the east and west sides, flanked the main space, with a veranda surrounding the house on all four sides.
The current owners bought the property from Lee in 1990 and commissioned Toshiko Mori to renovate the house. Mori made subtle alterations that included raising the central roof which enlarged the clerestory windows, and replacing wood columns with stainless steel. The changes made the elegant structure seem more delicate and graceful. Even Lee, who lives in another house he designed a few miles away, approves: “It was one of the most sensitive remodelings in New Canaan.”

In 2004, the couple transformed the unfinished basement into a family room. The space had previously been accessible only from a hatch near the front door, but Thomas Phifer and Partners designed an interior stair protected by a minimal glass balustrade for the house’s southwest corner, in what had been one of the four bedrooms.
The couple was already planning further expansion when a tree crashed through the roof during a storm, providing the impetus for another renovation. So, on the homes fiftieth birthday, it was decided that she needed an expansion. But there are few architectural firms willing to take on such a risky task as adding to a building that is so rigorously symmetrical. An expansion could compromise the integrity and symmetry of the original. But the challenge was met by Kengo Kuma for his first US commission: to create a new wing for an almost temple-like mid-century Modern house.
Kuma designed a transparent, L-shaped addition that sits just to the west of the original. The interior is almost entirely open, with very few walls. Instead, stainless steel mesh screens differentiate circulation space from other parts of the structure. The addition is composed of steel columns only 3 inches wide and 6 inches deep, with equally minimal steel beams, and a roof supported by exposed glue-laminated spruce joists.
The project also modified the existing house by replacing one section of solid exterior wall near the addition with glass, in order to provide a visual connection between new and old. As part of the renovation, the small kitchen was removed, making the entire central zone of the older structure into an airy space. The master suite addition, like its mid-century neighbor, also has an encompassing veranda surrounding it. 
Even though Lee might find reason to quibble--he wishes the connection had been made without piercing the skin of the original--the expansion shows a respect not only for the natural surroundings, but also for the original home. While Kuma did not mimic Lee’s style, the addition is clearly the product of thoughtful reinterpretation, of the piece built more than a half century earlier. 

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Just For Giggles: OCD

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Letters!! We Get Letters!!

One of the things i love about doing a blog and reading other blogs, is the conversation. I like differing opinions and I like hearing what people to have to say. And this happened again yesterday.

I had written about rapper T.I. and his assertion that if anyone says anything anti-gay, the the gay community and even some corporations, try to shut that person down.

Think Tracy Morgan and his anti-gay rant, when we all got mad, and demanded that NBC fire him, and the companies end their sponsorship of 30 Rock.

That I understand because Morgan was saying he doesn't like gays for religious or moral views, he was saying that if his son announced he was gay, Morgan would kill him.

Big difference between saying I don't like and/or approve of gay folks and saying if you're gay I'll kill you.

That's my point. Sometimes we're too sensitive. We all, every one of us, has the right to dislike whomever we choose, for whatever reason we choose, even if the reason is invalid or moronic.

We.Have.That.Right.

And T.I. doesn't say he doesn't like gay folks, he just says he doesn't like the way people  get 'shut down' for saying anti-gay things. Most people missed the part where TY.I. says he's in favor of gay marriage. See, he isn't anti-gay and he isn't saying anti-gay things, he's just saying people should be allowed to say it--in a non-derogatory, non-hateful manner--without fear of reprisal from the LGBT community.

I think Wonderman said it best: 

"I don't know if he understood what he was trying to say."

I agree. T.I.'s message was fair, but the way he said it seemed off.

Sean said: 

"While I agree with you that people should have the right, then I should have the right to think muslims are dangerous to the US and should be treated as less than. I should have the right to say black men are dangerous, uneducated and drug dealers because so many are. I should have the right to say and convince and raise children with lies because I have the right. Of course I don't think these thing are correct but I do associate them with yelling fire in a theater when there is none."

But see, Sean, you do have the right to that opinion about Muslims and Black men--wrong as I think they are--but you never hear the Muslim community or the Black community try to shut someone down for being anti-fill in the blank. And before anyone reminds me, yes, I remember Don Imus got fired, and others too, for saying a racial slur, but T.I. isn't talking about slurs, he's talking about an opinion that some folks don't like The Gays.

DeepBlue said:

"Right on, Sean! ;) Freedom of speech is a double-edged sword!"

And because it's double-edged that everyone has the right to voice their opinion.

Mitch Block said:

"I think I understand what I think he said but I'm not sure what he said is what he meant. I don't think I agree with him but I do think I agree with you. I'm sick of listening to these shmucks, but shmucks do have the unfortunate right to be shmucks."

That makes sense.

I guess what I was trying to say, is that there's a difference between T.I. saying that people should be entitled to, and have a right to voice, their opinions on the LGBT community. What they cannot do, is use a derogatory slur, like, oh, say, Kobe Bryant, calling someone a 'faggot' during a game, or Morgan, saying he'd kill his own son if he was gay. Or, using your opinion of gay folks, whether religious or moral, or narrow-minded, to legislate inequality toward our community.

Still, as I said at the beginning, I live for the conversation, for the dialogue, because it's when we stop talking that the real trouble starts.

Is It Okay To Hate The Gays?

Someone called T.I.--I've been told he's a rapper, but the only kind of wrapper I know does seasonal work at Macy's--recently made news when he said that celebrities should be allowed to speak out against gay people without fear of being shut down: "“[The Gays are] like,‘If you have an opinion against us, we’re gonna shut you down.’ ... That’s not American. If you’re gay you should have the right to be gay in peace, and if you’re against it you should have the right to be against it in peace.’"
Now that doesn't mean that T.I. doesn't like The Gays, it simply means he should be allowed to speak out about The Gays, and, guess what, I'll say it again, he's right.
If he thinks being Gay is anti-Christian, or is a one-way ticket to Hell, or is just plain nasty what those gay folks do, then that's his opinion, and I'll fight for his right to that opinion.
Even if I think he's utterly wrong.
Now, of course, T.I. is commenting on his comments: "I was quoted correctly, but I was taken out of context...I'm not saying that being gay is being un-American. What I was saying was to use whatever power or authority you have to shut people down because they don't agree with you that's not what America was built upon. The institution allows us, it affords us the right, to speak out peacefully and respectfully in opposition of any point or any topic that comes up...I'm not against gay marriage...but for the people who may have an opinion against it, then for the corporations to throw their weight around to shut them down, that's not fair."
See, it's his opinion, and he has a right to it. Just like I, or any other LGBT person, or LGBT-friendly person, has the right to stop buying his music or watching him on TV. That's my right.
But to decide that because he has certain views means we ought to 'shut him down' is ridiculous. We are all never going to agree on everything, but we need to have the discussion. Should T.I. change his mind? Sure, if he decides to do so, but not because he's been forced to do so.
So I won't buy any T.I. raps, not because of his opinion, but because the only wraps I like these days have Turkey and Swiss in 'em, or a big frilly bow on 'em.
But, that's my opinion.

Pastor Byrth Is On A Mission

Religion is a big deal in South Carolina. When i was a kid, i used to marvel at four-way stops on main roads, and how there were gas stations on all four corners. Well, here, it's churches. Everywhere you look, down every street. Churches.

But, one thing we have as much as we have churches, are new HIV/AIDS cases.

In 2007, the rate of diagnosed AIDS cases in the Southeastern United States was much higher than in other regions of the country: 9.2 per 100,000 people, versus 2.5 in the Midwest, 3.9 in the West and 5.6 in the Northeast.

And rural areas like Dorchester, South Carolina, have it particularly bad. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] reports that while HIV diagnoses have slowly decreased in metropolitan areas since 1985, rural areas are still showing an increase because of stigma, poor education and a lack of funding.

Which brings me to Brenda Byrth. She's the pastor at Bibleway Holiness Church in Dorchester, one of the smaller towns in a state filled with small towns. And she is on a mission.

You know, working to keep marriage equality off the books. No? Not that.

Well, then, she must be trying to keep discrimination laws against the LGBT community on the books. Not that either.

So, what's her mission?

At Byrth's church, with a congregation of about 25, she holds monthly HIV/AIDS awareness meetings. And she usually has about 10 or 12 people attend these meetings, which shows the impact that HIV/AIDS is having on the South.

Pastor Byrth and her husband, Carl

That's Pastor Byrth's mission.

And while it wasn't exactly her choice, it may be her calling. Brenda Byrth says herself that she really doesn't want to be where she is....in rural South Carolina. She's a big city gal, and can't even explain it herself how she ended up in a town of less than 3,000: "I'm pretty sure you can't get more rural than this."

But her mother is why she came, and why she's stayed. Byrth spent part of her childhood in Dorchester before leaving to go to college. She wasn't planning on coming back. She eventually moved to Europe with her husband, Carl, and their five girls. But when her father died of lung cancer and her mother, Marie, had a stroke, Byrth returned to South Carolina to take care of her.

At the time, Byrth's mother, Marie, was the pastor of Bibleway Holiness Church. And Marie wanted her daughter to take over, but Brenda Byrth said no. "I said, 'I'd give my life for you, but I can't do that,' " Brenda Byrth says. "I saw how my mom had run herself into the ground. I didn't want to do that. I wanted to go on a cruise, take a vacation. Mom just said, 'You'll do it.' Turns out, she was right."

And her mission to help Dorchester, and all 3,000 of its inhabitants began.

On a muddy clay road.

When Dorchester's Marion Road got rained on, it literally washed away, and that meant meant no school for the kids, no church services, no vehicles in or out. And folks there were used to it. But then, after a brutal thunderstorm that flooded the area, an elderly man died and the ambulance couldn't reach him for three days because a thunderstorm had flooded the area.

Brenda Byrth was enraged: "Some of the men in our community rolled up their pants legs, got the stretcher and went and got him, and brought him out to the end of the road."
Byrth attended county council meetings every month for two years before the council finally agreed to pay to put asphalt on the road. Then she started hearing about other parishioners who were too old or sick to leave their houses. She began delivering food and clothing to people in a 40-mile radius of the church.

On a mission.

"My mom always said: Just standing around and looking doesn't help the problem, you've got to get involved. Even when it's someone else's problem, it's your community, and you're a part of that community."

And it was during a visit to the "sick and shut-in" that Byrth had her first encounter with AIDS in Dorchester. A new couple had moved to town and Brenda Byrth heard that the husband was ill. She decided to pay the family a visit and see what she could do.

When she got to the house, she found the middle-aged man, scarcely able to breathe, lying on excrement-soiled sheets. His wife had gone away.

In a perfect world, Brenda Byrth would have reached the man in time, and fought to get him a doctor and medicines, and the man would have lived a far longer life. But, as far too often happens, the man died, and Brenda Byrth discovered HIV/AIDS in rural South Carolina.

"I said if things can't change, then I need to leave, because I can't live like this."
Byrth stayed in Dorchester. She is raising awareness for HIV/AIDS in her congregation of 25, where almost half show up to meetings. She is visiting those with HIV/AIDS and shwoing her town, and all the other small towns, that you needed be afraid, you needn't pack up and leave. You just lend a hand.

Yep, churches on every corner in these parts, but when even one houses someone like Pastor Brenda Byrth, it all seems to make sense.


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Just For Giggles

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California Senate Bill 48--the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful Education Act--Faces New Repeal Efforts

It's history, y'all, but some folks don't like what is says. So, now there are, not one, but two anti-gay initiatives that have been submitted to California state officials to try and stop the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful Education Act.

You know, cuz it talks about what The Gays have done historically, and to some folks, well, we just don't matter.

In the first hateful proposal, the opponents of Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful Education are trying to alter the law so that California school students don't have to learn about LGBT Americans' historical contributions.

We just don't matter, and if we did anything historical, it's really not that important, so don't teach our kids!

Foot stomp. Head snap.

Not to be outdone in the hate-spree, are other anti-gay activists who propose a second initiative to allow parents to opt their children out of school instruction in social science and family life that conflicts with their moral convictions. 

Cuz gay folks don't count, so stop talking about 'em to my kids! 

The bad news is that these two hateful proposals come at a time when Equality California, a key SB 48 sponsor, has been weakened by leadership and financial troubles, and appears unprepared to protect the legislation.

Protect legislation to teach history because it includes the historical accomplishments of LGBT people. Oh California, have you learned nothing?

Richard Rios, the chair of the Christian Coalition of California, submitted the two anti-gay proposals, and says "It's not a homophobic issue. It's an issue of the requirement of the teaching of something that's contradictory to one's faith."

Oh, Dick. May I call you Dick, because you are a Dick. It's most decidedly homophobic. It's also kinda illegal because you want to use faith, specifically, your faith, to decide what gets taught in public schools.

You don't like The Gays, Dick, and you don't think The Gays deserve their rightful place in history, Dick, then take your kids outta public schools and enroll them in the Bible-Thumping-Limited-World-View-Anti-Gay-Any-Effing-Christ-Like school you can find.

And take a light. I hear it  hard to see in the Dark Ages. Dick.

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Reaction To Barney Frank's Retirement

President Barack Obama

"This country has never had a Congressman like Barney Frank, and the House of Representatives will not be the same without him. For over 30 years, Barney has been a fierce advocate for the people of Massachusetts and Americans everywhere who needed a voice. He has worked tirelessly on behalf of families and businesses and helped make housing more affordable. He has stood up for the rights of LGBT Americans and fought to end discrimination against them. And it is only thanks to his leadership that we were able to pass the most sweeping financial reform in history designed to protect consumers and prevent the kind of excessive risk-taking that led to the financial crisis from ever happening again. Barney's passion and his quick wit will be missed in the halls of Congress, and Michelle and I join the people of the Bay State in thanking him for his years of service."

National Gay & Lesbian Task Force

“Barney Frank is one of kind. He has brought his own brand of brashness, boldness, unmatched wit, discipline and skill to Capitol Hill, at times ingratiating and infuriating friend and foe alike. We thank him for his years of service. As an openly gay member of Congress for nearly a quarter century, Barney Frank has made his mark on history. Yet his legacy is much more than that — for 30 years, he has dedicated himself to bettering the lives of the people he serves, and the country he serves. His voice — often loud and uncompromising — will be missed by many, including me.”

Human Rights Campaign

“Barney Frank has exemplified true leadership over his more than 30 years in the U.S. House of Representatives. As the first openly gay Member of Congress, Barney defied stereotypes and kicked doors open for LGBT Americans. Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ and passage of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act would never have happened without his leadership. But it goes beyond that. His service as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee during a time of great economic upheaval made a gay man one of the most powerful people in the country and he used that power for great good. America, Massachusetts and LGBT people are better off for Barney Frank’s service.”

Freedom To Marry

“As a public servant, Barney Frank has been an inspiration and a giant in an age where we've had few, and losing him as a leader in Congress and in public debate will be a painful blow for the country. Barney's excellence in shaping legislation and unparalleled voice in battling many of the wrong turns the country has taken have made extraordinary contributions to the history of our times. His singular and authentic personality has made politics look good at a time when so many events and electeds have made it look bad. I will miss his leadership, his brilliance, his liberal vision and values, and, of course, his corruscating wit. We need more Barney Franks in public life, not fewer, and fortunately we will always have his indelible example to work from."

via JMG 

What's A Little Pepper Spray When TV's Are 50% Off?

I don't like shopping. I have never done, and will never do, those Black Friday things where you have your Thanksgiving dinner and then head out to a store to sleep on the concrete so you can buy a TV at 4 AM.

I.Don't.Shop.

I purchase. What I need, when I need it. I know what I want when I head out and I find it, buy it, bag it, and drive it home. I don't even like Internet shopping. That's how much I hate shopping.

So, naturally, this story about the woman who pepper sprayed customers at a Wal-Mart in what many folks are saying was a deliberate attempt to get more "door buster" merchandise makes me ill. Weren't we all just up in arms last week about the UC Davis police officer who pepper sprayed the protesters? And now a woman uses the same tactic to save a couple of bucks?

That woman, who so needed to buy whatever it was that was on sale, injured some 20 customers, including children, in her rampage. Shoppers complained of minor skin and eye irritation and sore throats. And it neither started nor ended at the door. This particular wacknut--and WTF is her name?--used the spray in more than one area of the Wal-Mart "to gain preferred access to a variety of locations in the store." 

"This was customer-versus-customer 'shopping rage,'" said Los Angeles Police Lt. Abel Parga.  Los Angeles Fire Capt. James Carson, said, "She was competitive shopping."

No, she was assaulting people and should have been arrested. Unfortunately, too many people were temporarily blinded, or burned, or frightened to give a detailed description.

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Just For Giggles: Occupied

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Outstanding Guest Comment Of The Week: Thanks for Giving

All righty then....it's time to present another coveted...coveted?...ISBL Outstanding Guest Comment Of The Week award, but, well, something changed. I guess it was Thanksgiving that did it to me. You know, all that Thanking and Giving.

I decided that, for this week, there wouldn't be one winner, because I just love the fact that all of you come here to comment, to make me laugh, to educate me, to call me out on my stuff, and, well, just to listen.

So, this week--although i am presenting some of my favorite comments--you are all winners of the ISBLOGCOTW award.

That means you, Twunty McSlore, and you Wonderman, DiatribesandOvations, Cubby, Mark, and Mark, and Mark In DE,  and you RJ and Joy, and Mitchell and Maddie and Wally and DavidDust and Miss Ginger, Marc, Biki, DuPree and Ken AKA Bucko and Beth, and Princess, Corey, The Bitchy Waiter, Don Pezzano,  Mr PeeNee, Tom, FDeF, Sean, Tivo Mom, Todd, Rainbow, Mac, Dave, Toddy, Tiger Chanter, BosGuy, and Howard and Buck, Damien, Ivan, Stephen, Deep Blue, S'A, Susan, Kevin, Sam AKA Tug, JustAMike and Tamayn, Robert-Kent, Jim, and Jim, and Jima, TheaterDog,  Mad Professah, StaninNH and Kyle, Will, Jacob Woods, Anonymous--both the nice and the snarky--and, lastly, but never least, Anonymous AKA Carlos.

That said, here are some good ones from one of my favorite stories of the week. It was the story of the Texas Republican who said he was gay. George Clayton Comes Out? was a good, pleasant post, but some of you had a field day with it:

Princess said...
Oh My Goodness! They did find the Elephant in the room!
I guess that's one less customer for the Gals with the "Golden Corridors" 



froggy said...
Dear Gawd! *Golden Corridor Republican Women’s Club*??
ROFL!! snort, chortle, LOLOLOLOL!! I'm going to be laughing at inappropriate times all day now!

And then she said:

What color are Democratic Women's corridors?
What about us independents. I guess I'd have to ask the gynecologist...

And then she said:

And the Republican Men........
Do they have Golden Spears?
No, with a corridor you would have a mail cart, right? Or a broom? The Golden Brooms.
Okay, I'm going to hell now and I need to look to dinner fixins.

designing wally said...
Tincy is a perfect name for such a small-minded, small person! 

So, thanks to all of you winners, all of your comments, all of you bloggers, for making me laugh, tear up, zip-my-lip, and give me amazing blogs to read and follow.

Thanks for Giving.

Sheesh. I feel like Oprah.

You get an award and YOU get an award and You and You and YOU get an award!!

Harvey Milk May 22, 1930 – November 27, 1978

Harvey Milk died thirty-three years ago today.
His words still echo........


“My name is Harvey Milk and I’m here to recruit you.”

“I cannot prevent anyone from getting angry, or mad, or frustrated. I can only hope that they’ll turn that anger and frustration and madness into something positive, so that two, three, four, five hundred will step forward, so the gay doctors will come out, the gay lawyers, the gay judges, gay bankers, gay architects … I hope that every professional gay will say ‘enough’, come forward and tell everybody, wear a sign, let the world know. Maybe that will help.” 

“All young people, regardless of sexual orientation or identity, deserve a safe and supportive environment in which to achieve their full potential.”

“If I turned around every time somebody called me a faggot, I’d be walking backward – and I don’t want to walk backward.”

“All men are created equal. No matter how hard you try, you can never erase those words.”


“If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door.”

Tweet Tweet Tweet

It's Time........

Thanks Tug.......

I Ain't One To Gossip, But.....

Kash Kow Kardashian is working overtime to repair her damaged, money grubbing, whore yourself out, get married for money image. And man, if she worked this hard every day, she wouldn't need to be a money grubbing, whore yourself out, get married for money Kash Kow.

So, how does KK repair her image?

Slap on some makeup and pose with a homeless dude while dishing up soup at the Los Angeles Mission Thanksgiving Dinner.And then spend a bit of time posing alongside that other famous media whore, Jennifer Love Hewitt. And, to finish off all her hard 'work', Kash Kow managed to squeeze in an interview with People, to tell them how much she cares about family and holidays and marriages that are finished by dessert.

All of which plays into the KK plan to revamp her image from money grubbing, whore yourself out, get married for money dumbass to victim.

Yup, KK is a victim. She and her fame-whoring family, mom Kris, and step-mother, Bruce, are painting Kris Humphries, KK's husband-for-a-minute, as a bully. They're saying he called KK a fat-ass--um, she is--and said some rather homophobic things about one of KK's close hangers-on, and are now saying Kash Kow is an innocent woman who spends her free time doing charity work for the homeless.

As much as she whores herself out, and apparently knows her product, does Kash Kow really think anyone will buy her as an Innocent victim?

Katie Holmes famously declared over the summer that her daughter is "an amazing athlete, singer and dancer." Now, apparently, Suri Cruise will be a published author. Odd, since Suri can't be bothered to attend school during New York Fashion Week, or at least her mother can't stand to see the shows alone.
So, you see, education isn't exactly Suri's strongsuit, in her parent's eyes at least, but she's "written " a book. And her parents think the children's book Suri "wrote" is so good, that they are demanding it be published upon completion, or else face the wrath of Xenu. And, as she is the most amazing child ever, in addition to "writing" the book, Suri is also doing all the illustrations.
The story will be a trilogy, starting with Help! My Father's A Wingnut, followed by Help! My Mother's A Robot, and ending with Help!
Or something like that.

Oh that JLo.
She's such a homegirl. 
As long as the home is in California.
Y'all remember JLo's Fiat commercial--and I don't mean her performance at the American Music Awards, which was an extended Fiat commercial. But the real commercial?
Well, that commercial where JLo was seen cruising around the Bronx and talking about the old neighborhood and how it inspired her to become big and to keep it real, was faked. JLo never left California. A body double, with a double-sized ass, was used in the scenes filmed on Jenny's block.
In the ad, when JLo says, "This is my world. This place inspires me....They may be just streets to you, but to me, they’re a playground”....she's 3,000 miles away from there.
There was no way Jenny was going back to the block.

Hmmm, you marry a woman who's nickname is CoKate and you think she'll stop partying?
Not gonna happen.
Supermodel, and super-party-monster, Kate Moss married Jamie Hince over the summer and promised that they would leave London and the drunk-and-drug lifestyle Kate was used to, and move to the country.
Didn't happen.
And now the marriage is in trouble, so let's break it down:
She's a hard partying razor thin model who has pictures of her snorting cocaine slapped all over the media in the past. And because her husband is off playing with the band, she's ALLEGEDLY drinking even more.
He plays in the band The Killers with his ex-wife, with whom he spends a great deal of time. And because his new wife won't move to the country, stop drinking and have a baby, he's hanging with the ex more and more.
Yeah, this marriage has success written all over it.

If you're the "star" of a show called Project Accessory would you ever leave your house without an accessory?

Forget your purse?

Your earrings?

A watch, a belt?

Your shoes?

Perhaps not, but if you Molly Sims, host of the PA--a drowsy knockoff of the PR--you might leave your house without putting on a most necessary accessory.

Your eyebrows.

Okay, they're there, but they're really light.

Girl needs to keep at least one accessory handy at all times, in case this happens again:

A Sharpie.

Start The Weekend

It was just a few days ago that i stopped in at Mistress Maddie's place, and she was offering a little Pearlie Mae Bailey. 
Now, I just loves me some Pearl....and when you throw in Sarah and Ella, well, it just says, Aaaaaahhhhhh!
Happy weekend all!

Just For Giggles: Friday

I Didn't Say It........

Paul Rudnick, playwright, on remaining unmarried after 18 years with his partner despite "feeling the New York nudge:
""Gays are beginning to experience what a lot of long-running straight couples go through. A lot of straight people find marriage dull or a government inroad into their private life. I think marriage should be available to everyone, but I don't think it's right for everyone....I'm a little in the Rachel Maddow camp. I'm 100 percent for the legalization of gay marriage, but I'm not so sure I'll take a sip."


Which is just fine.
We should have the right to be legally married and have our unions recognized.
Or......not.

Alex Morse, the new 22-year-old openly gay mayor of Holyoke, Massachusetts, on a CBS News story that failed to mention he was gay:

"It didn't matter to me. I've always been open and honest about my sexuality. CBS News - I don't think they intentionally left it out...It didn't come up. At the end of the day, voters don't care if I'm gay or straight. We had to overcome questions of my age more than questions of my sexuality. I always thought that I would have to overcome my age more so..."

I may be in the minority here, but what difference does it make if he's gay? Sure, some gay folks can feel proud, and young gay kids might feel less afraid, but at the end of the day he wasn't running for Gay Mayor, he was running for mayor.

Had it have been mentioned, that would have been cool; not mentioning it, says, to me at least, that his sexual orientation should play no role in his politics.

Dylan McDermott, on not being bothered that guys hit on him:
"I’ve never been uncomfortable with sexuality. That goes back to my growing up in New York in the ’70s, which was a very sexual time. I was sort of a club kid, and I’d go to places like the Mudd Club and Max’s Kansas City. Being a part of that whole world, sexuality always seemed very normal to me....Honestly, I’m cool with everyone, and people pick up on that. I’d say, 'I’m not gay, but it’s all good.' It’s kind of like going to Paris when you don’t know the language; some Americans get into trouble over there, but I’m just like, 'Sorry, I don’t speak French.'"


Well, good to know, because if I ever meet Mr. McD, I'm gonna hit on him.
And speak French.

Rick Santorum, on how he should be president because he hates fags more than anyone, well, except god:
"If you want to see the contrast, the contrast is there. I'm a solid conservative who fought for the federal marriage amendment as opposed to Mitt Romney, who issued gay marriage licenses and actually violated the constitution of Massachusetts to institute gay marriage in his state. One of the reasons I do talk about the past is because I have the best record in the field."


You gotta give Frothy credit for standing his ground, shaky as it is, douchenozzle-y as it is.
Plus, isn't it fun to poke him, and watch him get all Frothy? Especially knowing that there isn't a chance in hell that he'll ever be elected president. Of anything.

Mike Gronstal, Iowa state Senate Democratic Majority Leader, reiterating his position on fighting for, and maintaining, marriage equality in Iowa:

"People's rights should not be put to a popular vote.  If I can put, if you can put my rights to a popular vote of the people then I can put your rights to a popular vote of the people and eventually, and eventually--well, we didn’t put slavery to a vote of the people in Iowa, we didn't put the right to go to a school in your neighborhood to a vote of the people of Iowa, we didn't put public accommodations law to a vote of the people in Iowa.  The Supreme Court said certain inalienable rights....when you say the Pledge of Allegiance, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all, you don't say for all except for gay people, you don't say that.  That is what this is about and you don't put ... you don't put that up to a vote of the people ..."

I think he says it all in that first sentence.

You cannot let The People vote on the rights of 'other' people because, well, one day, those 'other' people might have all the cards and then may want to vote on your rights.

Equality is equal. That's the only way it works.

Newt Gingrich, serial adulterer, on using children to clean schools:

"You say to somebody, you shouldn’t go to work before you’re what, 14, 16 years of age, fine. You’re totally poor. You’re in a school that is failing with a teacher that is failing...Most of these schools ought to get rid of the unionized janitors, have one master janitor and pay local students to take care of the school. The kids would actually do work, they would have cash, they would have pride in the schools, they’d begin the process of rising.”

Seriously.

How mind-fuckingly dumb is this asshat.

So, take all the janitors jobs away in this economy.

Cut jobs so kids can clean schools and, then what?

Become corporate CEO's to rob from the poor and give to the rich.

Typical GOP back-asswards logic.