Gingrich Love Affair

Those wacky Republicans. They just seem to keep stepping in one giant pile of hypocrisy after another. The latest incident involves former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich who admitted to having an extramarital affair at the same time he was leading the charge against President Clinton over his affair with Monica Lewinsky.

According to Gingrich, "There are times that I have fallen short of my own standards. There's certainly times when I've fallen short of God's standards."

Yeah. Ain't that the truth.

Gingrich tried to defend his actions by stating that he had no choice since Americans cannot accept perjury in our highest officials. Well, that's a nice sentiment. But if Gingrich truly believes that, then I expect him to vocally support the verdict which was just handed to Scooter Libby. As well as being the first in line to demand that George Bush NOT grant a pardon to the former Cheney aide.

I'm sure Rush Limbaugh will find some way to spin this story on his show on Friday. However, one thing is for certain. They won't be hearing Rush's verbal diarrhea in Fargo, North Dakota. The local Fargo affiliate just decided to pull the plug on El Rushbo.

Swamped

Wow. I am totally swamped at the office. We're in the Development Phase for a new research project and my workload has increased a ton. This is going to be a long next couple of months. Bleh.

Disneyland Streetcar

Join Sara and Tim as we take a ride aboard Disneyland's Horse-Drawn Streetcar.

Coulter Speaks Her Mind

Looks like the Republican's mouthpiece, Ann Coulter, is in trouble again. Coulter was speaking at a Conservative Conference last Friday and called Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards a "faggot".

Frankly, I am no longer surprised at anything Coulter says. But I do believe that it is time for the Republican party to hold her to task for the hatred and bigotry which spews out of her mouth. Or better yet, just stash her away someplace where we don't have to listen to her anymore.

50th Anniversary

Okay, keep up here. Sara has a cousin, Maria. Maria's in-laws just celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary. On Saturday afternoon, Sara and I attended the Mass where the couple renewed their wedding vows. In the evening, there was a reception with all five of the couple's sons and their families in attendance. It was a wonderful party. Congratulations to the happy couple!

10 Reasons I Didn't Start a MySpace Account

For anyone who has ever looked at any ridiculous MySpace page, you will absolutely be able to relate to this hilarious Top Ten List.

Listen to MiceCast

I want to plug this cool podcast I listen to: MiceCast. The show consists of two former Disneyland Cast Members (Disney-speak for "employee") sitting around and giving their views on the current state of the Disney Company, especially Disneyland. The cool thing about MiceCast is that these two guys don't sugarcoat anything. They tell it like it is and don't pull any punches. As such, the language is sometimes not exactly "family friendly", so don't play it for kids.

Podcasts are great. Think of them like radio shows that you can listen to any time you want. In fact, I hardly ever listen to regular broadcast radio anymore since there are so many podcasts out there on topics I absolutely love. And, like regular radio, most podcasts are totally free

You don't need an iPod to listen to a podcast. All you need is a computer with internet access and some type of media player (like your computer) and/or an mp3 player. Enjoy!

Marc Germain Back On The Air!!!

Fabulous news! Radio host Marc Germain will be joining the on-air staff of our local Air America Radio affiliate, KTLK. I've been listening to Germain for years and am a big fan. He was previously an evening host on local Los Angeles stations KABC and KFI. This guy has a terrific show and I'm totally jazzed that he is back on the air. The only bummer is that I now have to decide whether to listen to him or to podcasts on my evening commute.

The Promise of Berkeley

Click here for a great video about my alma mater. What can I say? Go Bears!

Mission La Purisimia

Sara and Tim continue their tour of all the California Missions with a visit to Mission La Purismia on February 18, 2007. Enjoy this photo essay.

Kerry Demands Answers from Swift Boat Liar

At an Ambassadorship Confirmation hearing on February 27, Senator John Kerry blasted nominee Sam Fox about the $50,000 contribution Fox gave to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Now why couldn't Kerry have done this before the election???

Lazy!!!

Yikes!!! I haven't updated this blog in quite some time. Well, let's see if I can get on it!

Bears at the Top of the PAC

With U$C's hilarious loss to OSU, the Cal Bears are at the top of the PAC 10 Conference!!!! This means the Bears control their destiny as they head into the final weeks of the regular season. All the next four games (UCLA, U$C, Arizona, and Stanfurd) are important. However the November 18 contest against U$C in Los Angeles will take on special significance as it should decide who's going to the Rose Bowl. I'll be there with my brother, Mark.

Go Bears!!!

Limbaugh Supports Sex Tourism in the Dominican Republic

After returning from vacation in the Dominican Republic, Right-wing mouthpiece/gas-bag/oxycontin popper Rush Limbaugh was detained for more than three hours at the Palm Beach International Airport for possession of a bottle of Viagra without a prescription. According to Limbaugh's attorney, Roy Black, a doctor had prescribed the drug which treats erectile dysfunction to el Rushbo, but left the name of the radio talk show host off the bottle for "privacy purposes."

A concerned listener immediately called Rush's show on Tuesday to ask if Rush thought the government should expand the domestic surveillance program to include sex tourism in the Dominican Republic. Limbaugh provided no response.

The latest incident comes only a month after Limbaugh reached a deal with prosecutors for charges brought against him for "doctor shopping", the practice of illegally deceiving multiple doctors to receive overlapping prescriptions.

Limbaugh has been divorced three times and has recently ended a relationship with CNN anchor Daryn Kagan. So, if Mr. Conservative Family Values is currently single and not in a monogamous relationship, what exactly was he planning on doing with all of those blue pills?

Works For Me!!!

Late Show host David Letterman on that right-wing idiot, Ann Coulter:

"Ann Coulter is in trouble for her inflammatory statements. Ann is blonde and single. Hey, let's set her up with O.J.!"

2 Billion People Can't Be Wrong

Today at Disneyland in California, 12-year old Emmalee Mason became the two-billionth visitor to a Disney Park. The event was marked by streamers, Disney characters, and a speech by the Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Jay Rasulo.

In addition, Mason and members of her family were presented with lifetime passes to all 11 Disney Parks around the world. Of course, travel was not provided.

I'm Just A Bill on Capitol Hill

Any fifth-grader who has taken Social Studies, or any kid who has watched the "I'm Just A Bill" segment on Schoolhouse Rock, would be able to tell you how a bill becomes a law in the United States: One House of Congress passes a bill, the other House passes the same bill, and then the President signs it into law. However, the Republican-controlled House would have you believe it no longer works that way. In February, President Bush signed a bill into law that had never officially passed the House.

The Republican-backed bill would cut nearly $40 billion over five years by reducing Medicaid rolls, raising work requirements for welfare, and trimming the student loan program. Some of these massive cuts would be realized by restricting Medicare payments for durable medical equipment, such as wheelchairs and oxygen tanks.

A clerical error caused the House to receive a different bill than the one that was passed by the Senate. With the mistaken change, the measure squeaked through the House, 216 to 214. After the mistake was revealed, Republican leaders decided that they didn't want to have another vote on the bill, so President Bush simply decided to sign the Senate version into law.

The issue could be simply resolved if the House were to vote again on the correct bill. However, with the midterm elections coming up, Republican leaders in the House are more than happy to sweep this whole issue under the carpet rather than making all these unpopular cuts center stage.

So, is that how things work in this country? Ignoring the Constitutionally-prescribed method of creating a law? Apparently it is when the Republicans control so many branches of government.

Blast!

On Saturday night, I attended a performance of Blast at the beautiful Pasadena Civic Auditorium with my buddy Dr. Bill Marelich. For those of you who haven't heard about Blast, the show takes the pageantry of Drum and Bugle Corps and moves that entire experience from outside on a football field to inside a theater. In simpler terms, it's marching band on steroids. Bill had never seen the show before, but I had previously seen two productions of the full touring show, as well as countless viewings of an abridged version back when it was being performed at Disney's California Adventure.

The show was slightly scaled down from what I remember, but it was still great. Those performers are absolute monsters. Both Bill and I had played in high school and college bands, so this experience brought back a lot of memories.

Matt Leinart Knows His Fans

I really have to hand it to former U$C Quarterback Matt Leinart. He knows his fans. The last few weeks, these billboards have been popping up all over Los Angeles. After two successful seasons at the University of Spoiled Children, Matt wants to say goodbye to his fans.

However, I was amused to see the Leinart billboard pop up just right outside "The Spearmint Rhino", a local strip club.

From the interesting placement of the ad, I can only assume that Leinart thinks many $C fans frequent the Spearmint Rhino. So, when those Trojans come stumbling out of the club in the middle of the night, Leinart wants to make sure they look up, see his big mug smiling back at them, and remember just how much he loves them.

Go Bears!!!!

Disneyland Dedication Speech

The opening of Disneyland back in 1955 is sometimes referred to as "Black Sunday". That's because there were a lot of problems: it was the middle of summer and there weren't enough water fountains; there was a gas leak in Fantasyland; and women's' high heels were getting stuck in the wet cement.

In that spirit, I took Walt Disney's Dedication Speech and made a few changes. Take a listen.