10 things they don’t want you to know about the upcoming Presidential “Debates.” Apparently there is a 32 page contract full of clauses ranging from the size of the dressing rooms to permitted camera angles. [via]
In the next few days I’ll be temporarily moving over to scamcity.us
Just a reminder to update bookmarks, links etc.
But remember, it’s only temporary…
EDIT (3:48 pm): I’ve got the site mirrored over there now (sharing the same db so any updates here will be reflected over there too)
With the infamous 4-1 (.800) record hanging in the balance, me and Robyn took in one last regular season game at Turner Field… This time, though, Phil and Erika came along to join in the fun.
Because of the heavy rain that pelted Atlanta on Monday night, Tuesday turned into a double header with the New York Mets, we had tickets for the second game but they still let us in for the first one… We arrived round about the 5th inning and made a beeline for the Chop House and the BudZone where, after numerous failed attempts during the season, we got on the big screen. We sat there for most of the first game, drinking and eating until we were ready to take our seats, which were pretty damn sweet… Front row along the 3rd baseline beside the Mets dugout.
For the purposes of record keeping, the Mets won 2-1, we claimed as we didn’t pay to see it, the result shouldn’t count towards our season record, or at very most have an asterisk beside it.
At this point I should mention Erika is a Yankees fan, and thought it would be funny to wear the Yankees pinstripes to the game(s), and I’m sure she got a few funny looks off the few Mets fans around us. Anyways, we all had a good time, Phil and Robyn especially, they were bordering on embarassing at times, but that’s part of the game…
In the second game, the Braves came out on top by a score of 5-2, despite losing starting pitcher Jared Wright to a hard line drive to the shin that looked particularly painful. A highly enjoyable match that included the Braves hitting two home runs in the 5th inning from Adam LaRoche and Marcus Giles, we left right before the end of the 9th inning, but John Smoltz made short work of the Mets to get the save.
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So the season record ended at 5-1 (.833)… Not *5-2 (.714) thank you very much.
And at last, the return of the obligatory panoramas… First from the BudZone during game 1 and then from the front row during game 2.
SpaceShipOne completes the first of the two runs needed to claim the Ansari X-Prize. They now have two weeks to do a second run in to space inorder to bag the $10m prize money…
Jeremy Zawodny describes how Yahoo’s “My Yahoo!” is ditching personalization and embracing aggregation and syndication through RSS and Atom feeds. Not only that, but it get’s a new look to go with it… I’ve already played about with mine, requires more news feeds though…
To infinity… And beyond. Richard Branson sets his sights on the stars with the birth of Virgin Galactic…
Drop the puck, the hockey season is back on… Virtually… G4TechTV makes sure the NHL season isn’t entirely lost… [via]
Everyone has a conspiracy theory about the recent spate of hurricanes rocking the state of Florida, the funniest being the way the state voted in the Presidential Elections in 2000…
Thanks to the zipdecode, we’ve found a slightly more plauseable one…
Load it up and make sure the zoom function is on, then enter “3329” which is the first 4 digits of the zip code for Miami… What do you see?
Looks like a hurricane, let’s take a closer look…
Coincidence??? I think not…
Voting arrangements in Florida do not meet “basic international requirements.” Just a little bit of history repeating…
It was only a matter of time, but my 100% record at Turner Field (the only thing I held dear) has finally succumbed to the L column with a few weeks left in the regular season. On Thursday there, we went to see my 5th game (Robyn’s 6th), both sporting a fine 1.000 season record, but the Cincinnati Reds had other ideas…
The Reds walked away with a scrappy 3-2 win after staging a 6th and 7th inning “comeback” and using 7 different pitchers along the way. We had pretty great seats thanks to a contact of Phil and Erika, 17th row on field level, and right beside the Braves dugout.
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It was a great atmosphere, despite the Braves losing, as a win would have clinched the National League East Division if the Philadelphia Phillies could beat the Florida Marlins in Miami, so we were glued to the action on the field and the scoreboards in center field throughout the night. There was a great cheer when it was announced that the Phillies had indeed beaten the Marlins but a huge wave of disappointment when the Braves were struck out in the 9th, losing by a single run…
As I mentioned in the last linklog post, they went on to beat the Marlins the following night to wrap up the NL East… All that’s left is a game against the New York Mets on Tuesday night to keep my 4-1 (.800) record alive (it doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it?) then maybe the post season, if the season was to end today, the Braves would be playing host to the Chicago Cubs, so thats something to look farward to…
The Atlanta Braves beat the Florida Marlins 8-7 to win their 13th straight division title. It would have been much better if they beat Cincinnati the night before as I was there, I’ll post my recap over the weekend at some point…
Taken from Michael Hanscom and via buzzflash…
Politicians lie, but numbers don’t. How does the economic record of Bush, Jr. (and Sr.) stand up against Clinton’s on Unemployment, Job Creation, the Stock Market, and the Budget Surplus/Deficit. No one statistic paints a true picture, but taken together, life under a Bush is dark and not very prosperous.
I’d hate to see it after another four years of Bush…
Ever wanted to be an Associate Producer for a movie? Well now you can be, thanks to “Dumped!… The Musical” and eBay, your name in the credits for only $20… [via]
We watched “Gone With The Wind” last night as Erika has recently read the book and the “sequel” Scarlett, it was also the first time I’ve actually sat through the whole 3 hours 53 minutes of it…
I shouldn’t need to go into any kind of detail regarding this movie, but during it I was going through the pages on IMDB and noticed that Margaret Mitchell, the author of the book, was born (and killed) in Atlanta, so that took me to my newest addiction… Wikipedia, I could easily spend hours trawling through Wikipedia, so I brought up the Atlanta page and I find some other famous Atlanta residents there… Obvious ones like Martin Luther King, Jr, OutKast and Ted Turner (though originally from Cinncinnati, OH) and what not. But real surprising ones like Elton John lives in Atlanta, Spike Lee was born in Atlanta (I associate Lee with New York, or Brooklyn in particular) & Steven Soderbergh…
Funny what you find out by accident…
These are going to be running thoughts on the debate…
9:00 pm - Live from Miami, Florida, we have Fox News coverage, this should be unbiased… Jim Lehrer is moderating this debate, sponsored by the Commision on Presidential Debates… Topic is Foreign Policy and Homeland Security. This should be interesting.
9:04 pm - Out come the candidates, little handshake and we’re off…
9:05 pm - First question to Kerry: “Do you think you could do a better job than President Bush?” Answer, Hello Miami and Florida, oh and I can do a better job than Bush… Rebuttal, 9/11, 9/11 uh uh uh uh 9/11… Al-Quaeda, 9/11, Taliban, 9/11, Iraq, 9/11, threats, safer, 9/11, weapons of mass destruction, 9/11, free nations reject terror, 9/11.
9:08 pm - Question to Bush: “Do you think America would be safer with Kerry as President?” Answer, America will be safer, cause Bush thinks he’s gonna win and we will defeat this enemy. Rebuttal, we should be strong, resolute and determined, and I’ll kill the terrorists (Osama Bin Laden), but not in Iraq, that was a collosal error in judgment, and he has the military behind him.
9:12 pm - Question to Kerry: “What collosal misjudgments?” Answer, where to begin? (Ouch) America was going to war as a last resort, but he doesn’t believe the United States did that. Money could have been used on healthcare and stuff like that. Rebuttal, Kerry saw the same intelligence Bush saw and said they should go to war… World is better without Saddam Hussein.
9:15 pm - I missed the question, but Bush is still going on about how their after Saddam Huss… Osama Bin Laden, but they’re making progress. When Iraq is free then America will be more secure. Rebuttal, Iraq isnt even close to the centre of attention in the war on terror, and he rushed to war without a plan to win the peace. And it’s getting worse by the day… Bush extension, Kerry voted for use of force, and now he’s flip-flopping. Kerry, we have to be steadfast for the troops now we’re there…
9:20 pm - Question to Kerry: “As President, what would you do differently about Homeland Security?” What message does it send about sending money to Iraq and not the police? Bush thought it was better to give rich people tax cut than invest in homeland security. Rebuttal, How is Kerry going to pay for all these promises? (you spent it all George!!) We’re modernising our borders, a good offense is the best defence. PATRIOT Act is vital, we must stay on offence…
Dammit, I need a break from this…
9:27 pm - Bush says the troops will come home when the mission is successful, but didn’t he proclaim that the mission was accomplished last year?
9:29 pm - It’s getting a bit hectic up in this piece, extensions, rebuttals… Kerry talks about his Vietnam days, he’ll lead the US to victory.
9:30 pm - Question to Kerry: “Are troops dying because of a mistake?” He says the planning for the whole affair was a mistake, invading Iraq because of 9/11 would be like America invading Mexico because of Pearl Harbor (snicker). Bing! First mention of Haliburton… Rebuttal, Bush frequently talks to world leaders, and says they wont follow a leader who thinks the war was a mistake. Kerry extension, it’s American run, along with Britain and Australia. Bush extension, you forgot Poland!
9:35 pm - Question to Bush: “Was was the miscalculation in post war Iraq?” Answer, our victory was too quick, the enemy laid down their arms and disappeared but we’re fighting them now. We have a plan in place and we’re making progress… Rebuttal, Kerry says Bush would do the same thing, even knowing the intelligence was a load of bull. Switches over to North Korea about nuclear weapons.
Another break, I think I’m going to need a few of these… Kerry has had one consistant position, Saddam was a threat but America went the wrong way to disarm him, and Bush goes back the the flip-flopping.
Kerry hits backs with his promises and says with Bush it’ll be 4 words “more of the same.”
OK, I’ve given up even trying to follow this, it’s kind of like a car crash, I don’t want to watch it, but I just can’t help it, besides, I’m more looking forward to the Daily Show after debate round up.
Anyhoo, Kerry’s on the offensive about troops guarding the oil ministry in Iraq and not anywhere else. Bush responds with some incoherant babbling before questioning how Kerry can “change the dynamics on the ground” and “if we give our word, we keep our word.” And it’s essential “we hold the line.”
9:54 pm - Question to Bush: “Would you run the US into another war?” He didnt want to run the US into this war let alone another one, but he would, only as a last resort, there was no doubt he thought that Saddam hoped the world would turn a blind eye and the world would be worse off because of that. Rebuttal, Kerry says Bush said something revealing, he said the enemy attacked the United States, Saddam Hussain didnt attack the US, Al-Quaeda did, and they had them cornered in the mountains in Tora-Bora, but he outsourced that job to Afghan warlords. He then goes back to North Korea and nuclear werapons
9:59 pm - Question to Kerry: “Whats your take on pre-emptive war?” Answer, it’s a Presidential right to do so, but you have to do it in a way “that passes the global test” and the word of the President of the United States used to mean something, not anymore… Rebuttal, Bush babbles about tests, but he takes pre-emptive action to secure the safety of the United States
10:03 pm - Question to Bush: “Whats your stance on North Korea and Iran?” He said it! He said Nooculur!!! Twice!!! Three times!!! Love it!!! At least Kerry can pronounce Nuclear, that’s gotta mean something.
10:07 pm - Question to Kerry: “What would you do about Sudan?” Kerry, sanctions, sanctions, sanctions… Provide logistical support, not just humanitarian support. We can’t allow another Rawanda. Bush agrees it’s genocide, and he’s commited $200m in aid to them and he’s going to commit more.
10:11 pm - Question to Bush: “Are there underlying character issues with John Kerry?” Bush says it’s a loaded question, but he admires what Kerry has done for his country and his family. Not so sure he admires his senate record, his concerns are his flip-flopping on Iraq and what he believes you cannot lead if you send mixed messages. Rebuttal, Kerry aknowledges that being President is tough and has great respect and admiration for President Bush’s family and he wont comment on the President’s character.
10:16 pm - Question to Kerry: “What do you think is the most important threat to the United States?” Answer, nuclear ploriferation, and Bush isn’t doing enough about it. Rebuttal, Bush says funding has increased for nooculur ploriferation (hehe) and he started a ploriferation security inititive.
10:21 pm - Last question to Bush: “Do you think Russia has done the right thing about terrorism?” Answer, Putin doesn’t believe in checks and balances (whatever the hell that means) but he backs the war on terror, and he has a good releationship with “Vlad’mir” and Russia is a country in transition. Rebuttal, Kerry understands the transition in Russia better than anyone, he was the first senator in Russia after the downfall of communism, he then switches over to North Korea again.
Kerry rounds up with saying that America should be respected more, and who will get the kids home and the job done, he looks us in the eye and says he defended the country as a soldier in Vietnam and he’ll do it again as President… Tough talking there.
Bush rounds up with saying the if America shows weakness, the world will drift towards tragedy, but not if he’s President for four more years… Irony of ironies there.
And so ends the first of three debates on the Election So Bad, You Shouldn’t Vote Sober™. Tune in next week for my ramblings on the next debate (if I can be bothered to watch it)…