Lake Superior State University agrees with me: time to dump the “baby bump”

Wanna touch our baby bumps and watch us giggle?

I’ve been saying for a long time that the term “baby bump” infantilizes women, turning them into baby girls in baby doll dresses parading their baby bumps for everyone to ogle and pet. It belongs in the language trash bin next to “fecal pancake” (okay, I made that one up) and a long list of cringe-worthy things adults say without realizing it makes them sound like juveniles. No expectant mother (oh, excuse me, expectant “mom” since any woman with a child of any age is now a “mom”, including the mom they found stuffed in a barrel in Queens and reported it that way) with an ounce of self-respect will allow her pregnant stomach to be called a “baby bump.” It seems our collective growth is more stunted every year.

From USA Today:

DETROIT (AP) – Before passing comment on someone's "baby bump," take a pregnant pause. Likewise, give up promoting "shared sacrifice." And if you're tempted to proclaim your desire to "win the future," you've lost it here in the present.

Michigan's Lake Superior State University is featuring those phrases in its annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness. The 2012 list, released Friday, was compiled by the university from nominations submitted from across the globe.

What else do the syntactical Scrooges want to cast out with the good cheer in the new year? The list also includes "occupy," "ginormous," "man cave" and "the new normal."
In all, a dozen words or phrases made the 37th end-of-the year list. The list started as a publicity ploy by the school's public relations department on New Year's Day 1976, and has since generated tens of thousands of nominations.

Wendy the country cat

We're at the house in Stockton for the Christmas vacation. I had to bring Wendy along to give her medicine, since the cat sitter was skittish about it. She's the most laid-back, friendly, relaxed and curious cat I've ever known. I knew she'd like it here and she seems to be having a great time. She's also gaining weight, which is good. I'm hoping she surprises us all and sticks around another year or two. And in any event, she got the treat of her life spending a week out here with just Frank and me, with an entire house to explore.

Did Bob Vander Plaats sell his endorsement to Santorum?

Well, well, well.

From ABC News:

ABC News’ Shushannah Walshe and Michael Falcone report:

DAVENPORT, Iowa — An Iowa Christian conservative leader who bestowed his highly sought-after endorsement on presidential candidate Rick Santorum this week is now at the center of a controversy over whether he asked for cash in exchange for his public support.

Less than 48-hours after receiving the backing of Bob Vander Plaats, the head of the prominent evangelical group The Family Leader, Santorum disclosed that the prominent Iowan told him he needed money to make the most out of the endorsement.

And sources familiar with talks between the conservative heavyweight and representatives from several of the Republican presidential campaigns went a step further, describing Vander Plaats’ tactics as corrupt.

“Clearly the endorsement was for sale — without a doubt,” one source said.

Good reads: the Taxi Insider

I never knew there was such a thing.

Happy birthday Erica Kane!

65 and smokin' (in a 65 and smokin' kinda way!).

When atheists go caroling

A few new photos

Just a few more. From MadeMarkPhot.net

GOP lawmaker says Michelle Obama has a big-ass butt

Crazy-eyed turkey-necked GOP pol checks out Obama’s behind

Wisconsin Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner was overheard saying that First Lady Michelle Obama had a big-ass butt.

From MidiaBistro:

Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.), known for his cantankerous ways and for not speaking to media unless it’s his idea, was overheard at the Delta Crown lounge at Reagan National Airport today talking on his cellphone about an incident he said occurred three weeks ago while at an Episcopal church auction. Please note, a church auction.

Our source, a Democratic operative who heard the whole thing, said he was “very loud”. Sensenbrenner was overheard saying that after buying all their “crap” (his word) a woman approached him and praised first ladyMichelle Obama. He told the woman that Michelle should practice what she preaches — “she lectures us on eating right while she has a large posterior herself.”

Finally a YouTube sensation that deserves to be!

As creepy as it is funny.

Siri: a holiday horror story

Aztec or Mayan or whatever end of the world countdown starts today

Won't it be hysterical if the Mayans were right and they upstage all the end-of-the-world cults we've had to deal with?

From ACB News:

We're one year away from Dec. 21, 2012, the date that the ancient Mayan Long Count calendar allegedly marked as the end of an era that would reset the date to zero and signal the end of humanity.

But will it?

There have been many end of times predictions over the years. Christian radio host Harold Camping faced widespread ridicule when his predictions that the world would end twice this year - on May 21, and then on Oct. 21 - failed to materialize.

But in the flurry of doomsday predictions - there have been similar dire warnings about the world coming to an end from various cultures, including Native Americans, the Chinese, Egyptians and even the Irish - the supposed Mayan prophecy seems to have held the most sway with believers.

The Mayan civilization, which reached its height from 300 A.D. to 900 A.D., had a talent for astronomy. Advanced mathematics and primitive astronomy flourished, creating what many have called the most accurate calendar in the world.

The Mayans predicted a final event that included a solar shift, a Venus transit and violent earthquakes.

Their Long Count calendar begins in 3,114 B.C., marking time in roughly 394-year periods known as Baktuns. Thirteen was a significant, sacred number for the Mayas, and they wrote that the 13th Baktun ends on Dec. 21, 2012.

Newt Gingrich's bad lip reading day

"NEWT GINGRICH" — a Bad Lip Reading Soundbite - watch more funny videos

Cool blogs: Stuck in Customs travel photoblog

I stumbled upon this and am very intrigued. Trey Ratcliff has the most popular travel photoblog on the internet. See why at the site.

From his "about me" description:

I’m quite a humble person, really, but I have had so many nice people and new internet friends ask About Me that I decided to make a whole page about it. People ask more and more questions… so it grows and grows!

I live a strange, unplanned, and unexpected life of photography and adventure. I do my best to balance this with my family, who is starting to accompany me on more and more adventures as the kids get older. But more about me, the site, and everything else below.

Terry Gilliam says Merry Christmas

A visit with Fred

"Can you spare a quadah for an old altah boy, fadah?" (The Exorcist)

It was great to see my old friend Fred, now Father Nilus.

Snappy Gramps

I mostly hate "YouTube sensations", especially when they're forced on me by newsfotainment shows telling me I must love this, it's just amazing, but this one is a mood-lifter.

New best of MadeMarkPhoto

I thought it was time for a new "best of" selection from MadeMarkPhoto.net

Animals never un-friend you

Cross-posted from lgbtSr.com

This is inspired by and dedicated to my cat Wendy. She’s one of four we have, all adult females, even though one is named William. We’re a gender non-conforming household.

I adopted Wendy, now approximately age ten, at a pet store on 49th Street. They have an adoption service in the back of the store, and one chilly winter evening I was there to look at cats. I’d been single a long time and had started to think I’d be staying that way, possibly for the rest of my life, and maybe it was time for some feline companionship. I walked into the store and there was this spunky white cat with gray patches walking around the front room. Not in a cage, not confined in the back, just walking around taking the measure of everyone and everything in the place. I knelt down and she walked up to me, clearly thinking I was there to rescue her from the boredom of life in a pet store. A week later she was living in my one-bedroom apartment in Astoria, Queens.

Fast forward several years. Wendy had been joined by Jessica shortly after I got her, since I didn’t want her being alone all day while I was working. Then I met my partner Frank five years ago, and in very short order we all moved into Manhattan (a return for me, having lived in Chelsea (surprise!) for six years before the Queens move) with Frank and his three cats, one of whom was a very skinny but grand old dame who has since passed on. I happen to think that if heaven exists it is reserved for animals – no humans allowed. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Wendy was always what you’d call a big-boned gal. Of course, when those big guys and gals lose weight we discover there is no such thing: their bones are the same size as everyone else’s and it wasn’t the bones making them tip the scales. Our cat sitter (we spend our weekends in New Jersey and travel quite a bit) told me Wendy was losing weight. I hate hearing these things and have the bad habit of ignoring them for a while. I finally took her to the vet. Blood tests: fine. X-ray: nothing wrong. Ultrasound: looks like a small mass and enlarged lymph nodes. The vet tells me it’s probably lymphoma, common among cats. Surgery would be traumatic and ill-advised. Prednisone is well tolerated with cats and dogs so let’s go that route and hope for the best.

In all likelihood Wendy will only be sauntering around our apartment for a few more months. Which brings me to the title of this blog post: animals have much to teach us. If you disagree, fine, I’ll say they have much to teach me. Wendy is a supremely self-confident cat. Not arrogant, just very sure of herself. She is unafraid of anyone at any time. She has never been skittish, and appears to take life as it happens, in stride, with a degree of acceptance all the serenity prayers ever uttered have not provided me. When she decides to lie down in a doorway, that is where she will stay until she feels like moving and it is up to the people coming in and out of the room to step over her.

And she is my friend. She has no use for Facebook, but if she did I know she would never un-friend me. I have not always been the nicest human companion, nor the most patient, but she has been with me nonetheless. She has never threatened to withhold her friendship. She has never stopped meowing to me. She has never told me to lose weight or stop smoking (I have done the latter) or delivered an ultimatum. Animals are not in the business of treating humans the way we treat each other. Their love is the one true example of unconditional love we have. And – the hard part – they trust us completely. The day is coming when I will have to “put her to sleep” knowing as we travel to the vet for this final goodbye that she trusts me. It would never enter her cat-head that I would be taking her off to kill her. That’s how it feels, I know, I’ve been through this enough times. It does not feel like I’m sparing her or putting an end to her suffering. It feels like I’m killing her, and that takes a while to get over. These wonderful creatures who allow us into their lives never put us out. It’s a standard I can at best aspire to, but never be sure I’ve achieved.

What to do when the waiter pisses you off

Not really . . .

Today in evil queenery: Archbishop John Nienstedt

From the Star Tribune:

In an effort to promote the passage of the marriage amendment to the state's constituion, Twin Cities Archbishop John Nienstedt wants Catholics to recite a special prayer during mass.

He’s also urging area Catholics “to embrace Fridays as a particular day of prayer and sacrifice for the success of this most current struggle to defend marriage with our civil constitution. Without such deliberate prayers and sacrifices, our efforts will be in vain. But with God, all things are possible.”

[SNIP]

The prayer:

Heavenly Father,

Through the powerful intercession of the Holy Family, grant to this local Church the many graces we need to foster, strengthen, and support faith-filled, holy marriages and holy families.

May the vocation of married life, a true calling to share in your own divine and creative life, be recognized by all believers as a source of blessing and joy, and a revelation of your own divine goodness.

Grant to us all the gift of courage to proclaim and defend your plan for marriage, which is the union of one man and one woman in a lifelong, exclusive relationship of loving trust, compassion, and generosity, open to the conception of children.

We make our prayer through Jesus Christ, who is Lord forever and ever. Amen.

Christian group recalls pink bible – and not because it’s gay!

From the HuffPost:

From contraceptives to breastfeeding to eating disorders, many women's health issues are controversial. And it seems even breast cancer isn't above all the bickering. On Wednesday a Christian group recalled the pink bible it manufactured and sold for those with breast cancer over concerns that some of the proceeds would go to Planned Parenthood.

The "Here's Hope Breast Cancer Bible," which included favorite passages from scripture, plus testimonies from breast cancer survivors, was sold at Walmart stores and other major retailers. $1 of the $24.99 spent on each bible went to Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation, the largest breast cancer organization in the country and inventor of the now ubiquitous pink ribbon worn to indicate support for breast cancer patients, survivors, and research.

Last week, pro-life websites began expressing outrage over the Bible, reports The Tennessean, since some Komen for the Cure affiliates give grants to Planned Parenthood to provide breast cancer services. Planned Parenthood, as everyone in American has been told, a lot, also performs abortions.

Flash mob makes best case for euthanasia

Gingrich promises to obliterate Obama in 27 nine-hour debates!

What a pompous, arrogant asswipe. Gingrich said during last night's GOP clown showdown that Barack Obama would not be left standing after 7 three-hour debates, as if anyone would be watching.

From The Economist:

PERSONALLY, I think everyone who wants to debate the president should get a chance to do so. Maybe Barack Obama should spend a little less time in the situation room and a bit more time preparing for a series of multi-hour engagements with a man who may or may not be his opponent in next year's election. What is he, some kind of elitist? So I'm sympathetic to Newt Gingrich's idea that Mr Obama should meet him for a series of Lincoln-Douglas debates. Still, I agree with Ross Douthat that it's striking that Mr Gingrich's debating skills have become a selling point for his candidacy. As Mr Douthat argues at the New York Times, Republican primary voters may be reacting to a perceived advantage (Mr Obama's rhetorical skill)—or overreacting, given that this revenge-of-the-nerds thing has never propelled anyone to the presidency:

“How does a Columbia-Harvard graduate, who was the editor of the law review ... supposedly the best orator in the Democratic Party,” Gingrich asked recently, “how does he look himself in the mirror and say he’s afraid to debate a West Georgia College professor?” It’s a line that evokes a kind of conservative revenge fantasy, in which the liberal elitists who sneered at George W. Bush’s malapropisms and Sarah Palin’s “you betchas” receive their richly deserved comeuppance at the hands of Newton Gingrich, Ph.D.

Christoher Hitchens dies, Christians pop the champagne

Christopher Hitchens is dead. Many Christians will crow, using his death from esophageal cancer and his sufferings with the treatment as proof that god was not amused with his strident atheism and fucked him over, real good. The problem with that - for which they show a remarkable disconnect - is that millions of people suffer horribly on any given day, and we all die, most often in unpleasant ways. God no more exacted revenge on Christopher Hitchens than he exacted revenge on my mother, who died from lung cancer, or on my cat Wendy, who has lymphoma.

There are many reasons I've abandoned nearly all religious explanations for anything. Among them are the vicious, vain and insecure manifestations of god so many religious people delight in (kill ALL those Egyptian babies, we'll just call it "Passover", and be sure to praise me constantly because otherwise I'll forget I'm god), and their self-indulgent insistence on thinking humans have the oppotunity to live forever, to be "saved", while not extending that unique grace to any other living thing. Vanity in extremis, in perfect reflection of the god they imagine. I'd rather drop some tithing into the collection box for Isis or Thor or one of the really cool gods, a belief in whom these otherwise rational Christians would find absurd. Think about it.

Anyway, Hitchens is gone. Expect comments and victory speeches about as hateful as those they've drafted for George Michael.

U.N. High Commissioner Moms Mabley tells countries to end LGBT discrimination

From the AP (via Washington Post):

GENEVA — The U.N.’s top human rights official urged countries Thursday to abolish legal discrimination against gays, including the death penalty for consensual sex, days after the U.S. government said it would use foreign aid and diplomacy to promote gay equal rights.

The U.N.’s High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, said governments should also outlaw all forms of abuse based on sexual orientation and set the same age of consent for heterosexual and homosexual activity.

Navi Pillay’s appeal came in a report released Thursday to the 47-nation U.N. Human Rights Council, which in June passed the global body’s first resolution condemning anti-gay discrimination. That vote was hailed as historic by the United States, European countries and others, but decried by some African and Muslim nations.

The Case of the Cat with Chemo

Very sad news: my best-ever cat Wendy has what the vet thinks is a common cat cancer. She's got symptoms of lymphoma and has to go on medication starting today. There's no telling how it will help her, but she seems pretty okay other than having lost a lot of weight. Hopefully this will get her to gain and make her more comfortable. She's an awesome creature and a wise teacher for those of us with much to learn about patience, acceptance and determination.

Amy Winehouse still breaks your heart

In this posthumous collection she covers Leon Russell's "A Song For You" and makes it new again, with all its inherent melancholy.

Interview with NY State Senator Liz Krueger

Cross-posted from lgbtSr.com

I had the pleasure of conducting an interview with New York State Senator Liz Krueger. Senator Krueger has been in the New York Senate since being elected in a Special Election in 2002. She is currently the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee and is a member of five other committees.

I receive Senator Krueger’s events emails and was aware that seniors and the aging population are among her signature issues. She was also the second person to sign on to the New York marriage equality bill, back in 2002, just behind the bill’s original sponsor, Senator Tom Duane. I had the chance to speak with Senator Krueger and get her responses on some questions about issues we face in aging and about LGBT equality, specifically marriage now that it’s legal in New York State. Many thanks to Senator Krueger for taking the time to speak with me.

MM: What’s the response been like to the community roundtables you’ve been holding, such as the recent one on “The Graying of the American Workforce”?

LK: They're going extraordinarily well. We did a series last year of five workshops primarily focused on senior issues for their caregivers. We had an overwhelming response from the community, but a number of people would come to the breakfasts and say they wished they'd known about these issues five years ago, how to plan for these issues ahead of time before facing them for themselves or their partners or parents.

Out of that we decided that this year we would again host a five-breakfast series but focus it on planning for your older years and the changes you or your loved ones may face. A little overwhelmingly, we had 80 people attend our first breakfast, 70 of whom we didn't know. What we found was overwhelming interest from a whole new universe of people starting to learn about this set of topics.

Shit girls (and gay men) say . . .

It occurred to me that there are some similarities between the "shit girls say" and some of the shit gay men say. Am I wrong?

Bronx LGBT center moves into building named after Ruben Diaz

I can't decide if this is fitting or a sad twist of fate. The Bronx Community Pride Center is moving into a building named after virulent homophobe and storefront "reverend", NY State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. Delicious, in a nasty-taste way.

From Breaking Bronx:

The Bronx Community Pride Center, the borough’s only organization that caters specifically to the needs of the LGBT community, cut the ribbon at its new location last week — inside a building named after State Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr., a fierce gay rights opponent.

The Pride Center, which was based in Mott Haven on East 149th Street for the last 17 years, has its new home at 975 Kelly Street in Hunts Point. The building, Rev. Ruben Diaz Gardens, was developed with funding from the outspoken state senator and named in his honor.

“Our new space is much more usable and is wheelchair accessible,” Executive Director Dirk McCall said in a statement. “The new space is wonderful and we welcome everyone in the community to come by and visit us.”

Finally going to see Joan Rivers at the Laurie Beechman Theatre

I've wanted to see Joan Rivers for a long time. She performs regularly at the Laurie Beechman Theatre on 42nd Street and all proceeds go to charity. You never know at her age when it will be too late. Can't wait.

Trump fires himself, claims conflict of interest

Billionaire buffoon and hair magnate Donald Trump has announced he won't be ringmaster at a circus with only two elephants. He claims it's because he may still run for president (if he's not too busy doing something more important) and wouldn't want any appearance of a conflict.

From The Chicago Tribune:

It would have been huge. But Donald Trump has bigger plans than to moderate a presidential debate -- perhaps to participate in one as a candidate.

That's Trump's excuse for bowing out of the Dec. 27 forum hosted by Newsmax and Ion Television, which had attracted only two of the remaining Republican candidates.

In a statement, Trump cited the concerns of those who declined the invitation that he might mount an independent bid next spring after his reality show, "The Apprentice," signs off.

"It is very important to me that the right Republican candidate be chosen to defeat the failed and very destructive Obama administration," he said. "But if that Republican, in my opinion, is not the right candidate, I am not willing to give up my right to run as an independent candidate. Therefore, so that there is no conflict of interest within the Republican Party, I have decided not to be the moderator of the Newsmax debate."

Ben Smith to join BuzzFeed

Ben Smith leaves Politico to write for BuzzFeed.

Happy 5th anniversary to us!

That's to me and Frank. It was five years ago tonight that we met at a dating event at the LGBT Center in Greenwich Village. I'd been single for thirteen years or so and decided to go to this thing and just have fun. We met, had a few dates, and here we are five years later.

A lot happens in five years. We both had our fathers die. Lots of travel, lots of changes, and a lot more good years to enjoy.

Ed "59th Street Bridge" Koch backs Christine Quinn for Bloomberg throne

Now that it's clear Mike Bloomberg won't be granting himself a fourth term and Ray Kelly isn't interested, The Man Who Would Be a Bridge, Ed Koch, is throwing his weight behind Christine Quinn for our next mayor.

From Politicker NY:

Former Mayor Ed Koch thinks Chris Quinn is the best person to take his old job in 2013 now that he’s given up his dream of seeing NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly in City Hall.

“I urged Ray Kelly to run for the last year-and-a-half. He told me he would not. I urged him again, he told me he would not. And when he decided he would not, I started backing Chris Quinn,” Mayor Koch told Politicker.

Back in March, Mayor Koch still held out hope for a Kelly campaign. He spoke before a crowd at the Downtown-Lower Manhattan Association and said the commissioner was his top pick to follow Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Ms. Quinn was his second choice. In late June, he gave Ms. Quinn a $1,000 donation, and now, he thinks she’s clearly the cream of the Kelly-free crop of current candidates.

“I believe that she is the best one for New York because I think she’ll be in the tradition of being in the center–a center candidate like I was center left,” Mayor Koch said. “I think she’ll follow in the tradition of Mike Bloomberg, and of all the candidates, I think she has the most experience and the best philosophy to lead New York in these difficult times.”

Former Alabama gubernatorial candidate caught in sperm donation frenzy

Some weirdness. Former candidate for Alabama governor and right-wing poster boy Bill Johnson has been donating sperm willy-nilly in an effort to satisfy his need to have a child, since his wife is unable to conceive.

From Huffington Post:

A conservative Alabama politician and former gubernatorial candidate has been slammed by reports that he had secretly been donating sperm to lesbian couples in New Zealand.

As the New Zealand Herald is reporting, Bill Johnson -- who ran for governor of Alabama in 2009 -- has spent most of this year in Christchurch helping run the earthquake recovery without his wife, Kathy, all the while using the online persona "chchbill" to meet women who want help to get pregnant.

The Herald quotes the 53-year-old Johnson as saying the urge to become a biological father inspired him to donate sperm, after revealing that his wife couldn't get pregnant following a hysterectomy. "There is nothing my wife would want to give me more in the world than a child of my own," he said. "Every person who is a father and a mother knows why I am doing this. If life's circumstances had dealt me a different hand I wouldn't be doing this. It is not the hand that life has dealt my wife. Reproduction and having children is as basic a human need as eating."

Naked Santas try for record in San Francisco

Romantic evening ends in gunfire

A retired New York City cop showed his love with a firearm over the weekend, shooting his wife several times.

From ABC News:

BRIARWOOD, Queens (WABC) -- Police have made an arrest in the shooting death of a woman inside her home in Queens.

Officers responded to reports of shots fired inside an apartment building on 84th Drive in Briarwood at around 11:15 Saturday night.

Upon arrival, police found 42-year-old Tracey Young had been shot in the head and torso.

Responders pronounced Young dead at the scene.

"You just don't wake up in the morning and say that's it, this is your last day, I know she didn't get up yesterday and say this is it," Young's friend Maple Dong said.

[SNIP]

Police says Tracey's husband, Clarence Cash, killed his wife inside their 8th floor unit.

The retired NYPD officer allegedly shot his wife several times in the torso and head around 8 p.m. Saturday, waited it out overnight and then eventually turned himself in to police at the Midtown South Precinct at about 6 a.m. Sunday.

The tree is up

Grenade Christmas ornaments for that hard-to-gift loved one

From Dorothy/Give/Take:

Don’t be beguiled by the beauty of these hand blown cut glass grenades. The human cost of violent conflict is devastating. 90% of modern war victims are civilian and 75% of the world’s refugees displaced by war are women and children. Limited edition of 10.

Are Callista Gingrich and Michele Bachmann the same person?

Seriously. Has anyone ever seen them in the same room together?

New York City in the 1970s - video montage

From Gothamist.

Rick Perry models Brokeback jacket in anti-soldier ad

He just cain't quit it.

Scary the Snowman

Funny once or twice, then it gets old.

Santorum hates illegals as much as gays

Well, almost as much. He claimed in an Iowa speech that everything an undocumented immigrant does is illegal. Perhaps they can join forces with the poor children Gingrich maligned, who only know how to pimp, deal and prostitute themselves.

From HuffPost:

GOP Presidential candidate Rick Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, took a hard line on unauthorized immigration during a Wednesday campaign stop in Spencer, Iowa, saying undocumented immigrants are breaking the law with "everything" they do.

"You can't be here for 20 years and commit only one illegal act ... because everything you're doing while you're here is against the law," Santorum said, according to the Spencer Daily Reporter. "I understand Congressman Gingrich saying, 'Well, you know, people have been here and they've been good citizens and paying taxes.' Yeah, under somebody else's Social Security number because you stole it."

Gingrich gives Republican base the hate they feast on

I don’t know how anyone who’s not vicious and bitter to the core can stand the thought of this vicious, bitter man in the White House. He even looks miserable, and you can see the fires of darkest hell burning in his eyes. Which is why the Christian fanatics love him! He’s as nasty and mean as they are.

From the HuffPost:

JOHNSTON, Iowa -- Newt Gingrich grinned as he pledged to dog President Barack Obama at every turn and from coast to coast next year if he's the Republican nominee.

"The White House will be my scheduler, and wherever the president goes, I will show up four hours later to respond to his speech," the GOP presidential candidate said wryly on a recent visit to Iowa.

Seemingly in unison, the 500 Iowa Republicans crowded into the banquet hall rose from their seats applauding, for there he was – the tested antagonist that Republicans here have been craving to go toe to toe with the Democratic incumbent.

Rick Perry trashes American soldiers in desperate bid to matter

I'm not ashamed to say he's an asshole.

Hillary Clinton's speech on LGBT human rights

We won't see the likes of her in a Republican administration. Vote, people! If you think the two parties are the same, tell it to Ralph Nader who gave us George W. Bush and this economic disaster as surely as the conservative justices on the Supreme Court did. Don't get me started . . .

Photo keepers

See more at MadeMarkPhoto.net

Going to see Patti and Mandy for our 5th anniversary

A splurge every five years is a good thing I think. Frank and I turn five next Tuesday and I thought it would be a great treat to go see Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin. We're set for the 23rd (which is also the Friday when our Christmas week vacation starts - great way to get it going!).

Romney speaks French in shocking YouTube video

Not badly, I might add, but likely to cost him dearly.

NYC cops hate parade duty, trash West Indians on Facebook

Like, nobody's going to know you said it when you put it on Facebook?

From the New York Times:

They called people “animals” and “savages.” One comment said, “Drop a bomb and wipe them all out.”

Hearing New York police officers speak publicly but candidly about one another and the people they police is rare indeed, especially with their names attached. But for a few days in September, a raw and rude conversation among officers was onFacebook for the world to see — until it vanished for unknown reasons.

It offered a fly-on-the-wall view of officers displaying roiling emotions often hidden from the public, a copy of the posting obtained by The New York Times shows. Some of the remarks appeared to have broken Police Department rules barring officers from “discourteous or disrespectful remarks” about race or ethnicity.

The subject was officers’ loathing of being assigned to the West Indian American Day Parade in Brooklyn, an annual multiday event that unfolds over the Labor Day weekend and that has been marred by episodes of violence, including deaths of paradegoers. Those who posted comments appeared to follow Facebook’s policy requiring the use of real names, and some identified themselves as officers.

Occupy Wall Street protester occupies Wall Street desk job

Zuccotti office park

Welcome to the cubicle life . . .

From Gothamist:

Those hippie bums looking for a handout in Zuccotti Park can pack up their drums and go home: a Wall Street brokerage firm has magnanimously started offering protesters jobs, starting with one Tracy Postert, who's traded in her protest sign for a desk job just blocks from the park. Postert had been demonstrating at Zuccotti holding signs such as “Reagan sucks," "I’ll vote after the revolution," and "Ph.D. Biomedical Scientist seeking full time employment, ask me for my resume." Guess which one got her the job at John Thomas Financial Brokerage?

Naturally, the firm is milking this hire/publicity stunt for all its worth, and the Post is all too happy to make it their cover story today, with the headline "Occupier gets an occupation."

School removes 'gay' from Deck the Halls

From Slog:

Someone had to straighten out that carol—can't have children donning gay apparel.

Says Slog tipper Nicole:

Cherry Knoll Elementary School, of which I am an alumna, is removing the word 'gay' from Deck The Halls at the children's Christmas concert. Please bring some attention to this issue! As far as I can find there has been no local press coverage, but you can see outrage from some community members at the school's Facebook page. Information to contact the school's administrators can be found here.

Herman Cain calls dead campaign "America's loss"

Everyone knows by now that Herman "vegetables are for sissies" Cain has dropped out of the race. What amused me most was hearing him say it was a loss for Americans. So much for conservatives being all about accountability and responsibility. C'mon, of course Herman grabbed those gropes and kept that mistress, but he'll deny and deny and deny. I can't recall a political primary this entertaining.

Ron Paul and Donald Trump trade barbs in irrelevance sweepstakes

Whatever happened to humility as a virtue? Sure, most politicians are egomaniacs, but the self-love and self-importance of New Gingrich, who fancies himself an intellectual giant, takes the breath away. And then there’s Donald Trump, clown of clowns, shooting back at Ron Paul’s refusal to participate in his circus that Paul’s candidacy is a joke.

This would all be most amusing if the stakes for the country weren’t so high. Paul said joining Trump’s “debate” would be beneath the presidency. But isn’t this entire Republican primary?

From the HuffPost:

WASHINGTON -- Real estate giant Donald Trump says former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney "doesn't get the traction" he needs to nail down the Republican presidential nomination.

Trump, who will moderate a GOP candidate debateon Dec. 27, says Romney struggles to stay in front, saying "I don't know what it is."

Trump tells NBC's "Today" accusations that Romney flip-flops on issues are absurd, saying "we all change our minds on things."

He brushed aside decisions by both Ron Paul andJon Huntsman to stay out of the debate, calling them "joke candidates."

Herman Cain believes marriage is between one man, one woman and one mistress

Not to mention a half dozen gropes along the way . . .

From the Mail Online:

Herman Cain's presidential campaign could be all but over after he dramatically revealed today he provided money for 'month-to-month bills and expenses' to the woman who claims she was his mistress for 13 yehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifars.

The embattled Republican candidate, facing his latest allegations of inappropriate sexual behaviour, insists he and Ginger White remained only friends throughout their relationship.

But the former Godfather's Pizza CEO admitted his wife, Gloria, knew nothing of their relationship until Ms White came forward publicly on Monday about the alleged affair she says ended eight months ago.

At the corner of Mars and Broadway

Empire

Bachmann can’t wait to “shred Obama’s radical agenda to pieces” then scratch his eyes out

She really is unhinged. Fortunately for the survival of the republic she has exactly zero chance of being the President.

Here Michelle Bachmann chats with Fox's Greta Van Mouthpiece and says she’d likely pick Trump or Santorium as her running mate. Manna from heaven for the Democrats if it were even remotely possible.