Killer Clown Trailer.

Thanks to my boy, The Horror Geek, for this nugget.


Holy shit. 
This looks AMAZING.

Yesterday's Health Care Summit: Condensed.

For those that didn't have six hours in the middle of the day available to watch politicians talk about health care, here's the nutshell.

(Note from EA:  I may be paraphrasing a little bit.)

Obama:  Thank y'all for coming today. Let's do this.

Random GOPer: Buy Across State Lines.

Obama:  We'll look into it.

Random Dem: We're so close. Please let us do this.

Random GOPer:  Tort Reform.

Random Dem:  Pretty Please???

Random GOPer:  CBO says premiums go up.

Obama:  No, they don't.

Random GOPer:  Uh-huh.

Obama:  No, they don't.

A Running List of Favorite Songs: Soweto by Hieroglyphics

For those that don't know Hieroglyphics, well, now you know.  A legendary hip-hop crew from Oakland, California, these guys never got the nationwide respect they deserve.

I chose this song simply for the fact that it reminds me of home. (Not South Africa... California.)

More Love For The Gays At CPAC.

Ah, you know, sometimes it's refreshing to witness pure, unadulterated dickheadedness.

How Can Reason and Intelligence Argue Against This?

Scenes from CPAC:


Here, Liz Cheney proves to be just as subtle as her father.

And here, Jason Mattera of the Young America's Foundation says that liberal women are ugly, stupid cocaine users.


Yep, maybe Evan Bayh really was on to something when he called out the politics of "brain-dead partisanship" in Washington these days
.

The Austin Bomber's (Confirmed) Manifesto.

I copied the text of the Austin Bomber's Manifesto from the website before it could get pulled. Can't vouch for the authenticity, but this is what went viral over the past few minutes. (Update: Various news sources have confirmed the authenticity of the document.)

If you’re reading this, you’re no doubt asking yourself, “Why did this have to happen?” The simple truth is that it is complicated and has been coming for a long time. The writing process, started many months ago, was intended to be therapy in the face of the looming realization that there isn’t enough therapy in the world that can fix what is really broken. Needless to say, this rant could fill volumes with example after example if I would let it. I find the process of writing it frustrating, tedious, and probably pointless… especially given my gross inability to gracefully articulate my thoughts in light of the storm raging in my head. Exactly what is therapeutic about that I’m not sure, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Bob McDonnell Hates The Gays.

McDonnell and the Huckster

I know, the headline's a bit sensational. But what else can you deduce from the Republican Governor of Virginia's decision to roll back Tim Kaine's executive order that added veterans and sexual orientation to the state's anti-discrimination policies?

Well, to be fair, he kept veterans in there. But gays are definitely back in play to be discriminated against, willy-nilly.

McDonnell won the governorship under the guise of a "moderate," mostly as a ploy to win over left-leaning Northern Virginia.

Suckers.

Cox Communications Is Terrible.

I don't know if I can put it any simpler... Cox Communications is, simply put, the worst service provider I've ever dealt with.

I remember being a kid when cable television came along -- it was a godsend. After years of rabbit ears, or the big antenna on the top of the house, finally a clean signal was magically delivered to my family's 25" console TV. For less than $20 a month, flawless television. It was amazing.

That was nearly 30 years ago.

Technology's reach has progressed exponentially since then. Cell phones are no longer the domain of only doctors or CEOs. People can carry the internet around with them in their pockets. And I think I've probably got something approaching 300 channels through my current carrier, Cox Communications. They provide internet to my home as well.

Granted, the technology ain't cheap anymore. For all the channels, plus high speed internet, I'm paying close to $170 per month. But that's the price for convenience these days.

If only Cox Communications held up their end of the deal.

They don't.

Observe a sample of the HD service I pay triple digits for:

And since that's on the same bandwidth as my high speed internet service, well, you can guess how fucking stable that is. (True story: I actually had to reboot the modem twice while I was working on this post.) I can't even imagine how shitty it would be if I took them up on their "Digital Bundle" offer and got my phone service through them as well.

This shitty service directly affects my ability to telecommute or attend on-line classes. I mean, how the hell am I supposed to VPN into the office on this signal?

I think the final straw has been broken. I might be ready for DirecTV/Dish Network, or maybe even a lateral move to Comcast, since I still need high speed internet. If FIOS was available in my neighborhood here in Fredericksburg, Virginia, I'd look into that.

I just need to get the fuck away from Cox Communications. They've brought nothing but headaches and aggravation.

If you have choices available to you, Cox Communications should not even be on the list.

Steer clear.

Fuck Cox.

How Winter Looks.

A short video of one of the snowstorms we've been hit with in the DC area.

FYI - As nice as the video is... I still hate the stuff.

Sometimes - That Squirrel - He Looks Right Into You.

And, you know, the thing about a squirrel... he's got lifeless eyes. Black eyes. Like a doll's eyes.

A Running List of Favorite Songs: Roads by Portishead

A new feature for a new blog. I'm going to start a running list of my favorite songs of all time, in no particular order. Just whatever I happen to be feeling that day.

And today, it's Roads, by Portishead. (Those that know me, you had to see this one coming.)

Quite simply, to me, it's one of the most beautiful songs ever written. Simple and haunting. Minimal, sparse - yet when the bridge kicks in at around the 3:20 mark, to this day it gives me goosebumps how elegantly lush it becomes.

I can listen to this song, on a loop, forever.

Another Palin Media Blackout

Another venue, another rally, another speech... and another media lock-out. Sarah Palin, employed by Fox News, only allows Fox News to interview her. Look, it's a "private function" and it's absolutely her right to dictate who does or doesn't get invited.

But Sarah, you simply CANNOT casually state that you might run for President (if that what God wants) without fielding a single question from someone other than your fucking boss. You can't lob falsehoods and accusations of the President weakening America on your Facebook page with no opportunity for anyone to clarify your statements or hold you accountable for the words you broadcast.

It's insane to me. We can count on ONE hand the number of times you've been interviewed by the media since you've been thrust into the national spotlight by John McCain. Couric. Gibson. Lauer. Who else? I mean, that's pretty much it, isn't it? Maybe I'm forgetting one or two. You botched them all, either way.

And no, dingbat, the Fox News interviews don't count. I'm pretty sure Greta Van Susteren is probably waxing your Yukon right now. Sean Hannity? Are you kidding? Knucklehead probably came in his pants when you shook his hand. The only "reporter" who even mildly held your pedicured feet to the fire was Chris Wallace:

And you were still allowed to fumble your way out of really answering the question. You quit because of adversarial obstructionists? By that logic, Barack Obama should have quit thirty seconds after swearing in. You've still got people - yourself included - that question his U.S. citizenship, for crying out loud.

Failed one-on-one interviews and meet-and-greets with your biggest supporters... that's all the media scrutiny you've personally had to endure. Haven't been subjected to a press conference. Never attended a town hall meeting without a hand-picked, friendly audience. You quit your governorship without answering a single question. And somehow, you fear the media enough to shut everyone out.

Yet you criticize the administration for a lack of transparency. Okay, then.

Snowpocalypse Now.

FYI to all you jerkholes who are using this record-setting snowfall to lambaste Al Gore and the science behind Climate Change.

There are two requirements for a record snow storm:

1) A near-record amount of moisture in the air (or a very slow moving storm).
2) Temperatures cold enough for snow.

It's not hard at all to get temperatures cold enough for snow in a world experiencing global warming. According to the 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, the globe warmed 0.74°C (1.3°F) over the past 100 years. There will still be colder than average winters in a world that is experiencing warming, with plenty of opportunities for snow.

The more difficult ingredient for producing a record snowstorm is the requirement of near-record levels of moisture. Global warming theory predicts that global precipitation will increase, and that heavy precipitation events--the ones most likely to cause flash flooding--will also increase. This occurs because as the climate warms, evaporation of moisture from the oceans increases, resulting in more water vapor in the air.

So settle down, heathens. Just because Beck scrawled some gibberish on a white-board doesn't make you an expert on arguing against science... it just makes you a dumb-ass. Keep denying reality. It's what y'all do best.

I'm Back, Bitches.

So it turns out I need to do this every once in a while.

I used to run An Essential Liberty, a place where I could vent my thoughts as they pertained to politics. I moved the site from host to host (one version here), which was really convenient for anyone who wanted to follow my ramblings, since I'm too cheap to pay for the domain name.

But inevitably, the posts slowed down, and eventually, the seagull finally took off and AEL went dark. It wasn't because I stopped caring, but in today's rapid-fire world, a political/media blog was simply too resource-intensive to maintain. I'm but one man -- with a full-time job, no less. Just couldn't do it anymore.

So, I turned to twitter. A venue to spew random blurbs in 140 characters or less. And it's fine. But it's not enough.

So, I'm back. I'm not going to kill myself maintaining this, and I'm not going to hold myself to a set posting schedule (see my other failed experiment, http://dailyjojo.wordpress.com). I'm just going to post when I have something to say. And it won't be purely political, because sometimes I've got other bullshit to spout.

Welcome, and if you're familiar with my work, welcome back.