From Passgo’s Flickr.

Now everyone will be going, “awww … God rest his soul” - typical. In Boston, I used to work at a place where I transcribed news programs. You read that right. Every night I was not only force fed news, I had to spit it back out. I had to transcribe Dapper O’Neil’s words many, many times. From today’s Boston Globe obit:

Flamboyantly conservative, Mr. O’Neil was defined more by the enemies he made than his political views. At various times, he railed against feminists, gays, and immigrants. He made a career out of his opposition to school desegregation, affirmative action, and other government initiatives he considered social engineering.

He was the only one of 13 city councilors to vote against a local ban on assault weapons and the city’s human rights ordinance, which prohibited discrimination against gay men and lesbians.

In the process, Mr. O’Neil seemed to delight in his ability to enrage liberals, who considered him insensitive at best and a bigot at worst. But his stands on issues served to solidify his conservative political base.

In the 1970s, he lambasted “hippies” from a bullhorn on the back of a pickup truck circling Boston Common. In 1990, after viewing nude photographs at the Robert Mapplethorpe exhibit at the Institute of Contemporary Art, he said, “This country’s going down the drain. And while there’s guys like me in it, I’ll put a stop to some of this.”

During the 1992 Dorchester Day Parade, he was captured on a home video exclaiming, “I thought I was in Saigon for Chrissakes,” while he passed through a Southeast Asian part of the city.

The incredibly mediocre field of GOP Presidential candidates rates poorly with the American people — even with Republicans:

Three weeks before the Iowa caucuses, Republican voters across the country appear uninspired by their field of presidential candidates, with a vast majority saying they have not made a final decision about whom to support, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

Not one of the Republican candidates is viewed favorably by even half the Republican electorate, the poll found.

~~~

On the Republican side, in contrast, Mr. Giuliani is viewed favorably most frequently, and that is by only 41 percent. Senator John McCain is viewed favorably by 37 percent, and Mr. Romney by 36 percent. Mr. Huckabee is viewed favorably by 30 percent, and 60 percent say they do not know enough about him to offer an opinion, suggesting that he may be vulnerable to the kind of attacks that his opponents have already been mounting against him.

Those are the numbers among those considered likely Republican voters. How can the GOP faithful be so indifferent to outstanding candidates like Mitt Romney, to whom the National Review gave a ringing endorsement as “none has everything — all the traits, all the positions — we are looking for. . . . has less foreign-policy experience than Thompson . . . . [and] plagued by the sense that his is a passionless, paint-by-the-numbers conservatism?”

SEPARATED AT BIRTH?

You gotta hand it to the boys and girls at the National Review. After 5 years of pimping a failed war and an imbecilic presidency, they’ve endorsed a candidate who, in terms of sheer guts and personal fortitude, makes the incredible Mr. Limpet look like Vince Lombardi.

And the endorsement is a ringing one, too:

Each of the men running for the Republican nomination has strengths, and none has everything — all the traits, all the positions — we are looking for. . . . It is true that he has less foreign-policy experience than Thompson [ed: he's the really lazy one, in case you forgot] . . . . It is true that he has reversed some of his positions. . . . Romney has been plagued by the sense that his is a passionless, paint-by-the-numbers conservatism. . . . In this most fluid and unpredictable Republican field, we vote for Mitt Romney.

Vote for Romney — he’s likely better than a dose of clap.

More: Great minds, and all that.

That’s “Black African American” in case you get him mixed up with a “White African American” (Charlize Theron?) He doesn’t sing “White Christmas” either.

I guess if you work for the DHS, a black man in prison stripes not in jail is original:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — The employee who wore what some said was a racially insensitive Halloween costume to a party hosted by a top immigration official is being directed by the Homeland Security Department Secretary to take administrative leave.

Julie Myers, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, called the man’s costume “offensive.” The employee’s leave will continue while a Department inquiry is conducted, according to Secretary Michael Chertoff.

The employee wore a striped prison outfit, dreadlocks and darkened skin make-up to the party hosted by Julie Myers, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Myers was on a three-judge panel that originally praised the prisoner costume for “originality.”

After some employees complained, Myers apologized for “a few of the costumes,” calling them “inappropriate and offensive.” She said she and other senior managers “deeply regret that this happened.” A department photographer took a picture of Myers with the man, but the photograph or photographs, originally posted online, were deleted after it was determined the costume was offensive, ICE spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said.

How long before those photos get circulated?

Nantel said one employee, whom she declined to identify, was wearing a black-and-white striped prison outfit, dreadlocks and a skin “bronzer” intended “to make him look African-American.” But, she said, it was not immediately apparent that he was wearing the make-up.

“Most people in the room didn’t realize he was wearing make-up at all,” she said.

In a November 2 email to ICE employees, Myers said, “It is now clear that, however unintended, a few of the costumes were inappropriate and offensive. While we were all thrilled to be a part of the CFC fund-raising effort, I and the senior management at ICE deeply regret that this happened.”

She reminded all employees to be compliant with the department’s diversity training requirement.

… so next time, add some diversity to your prisoner outfits.

Source

Oh, a little slip of the tongue … nothing serious.

“Actually, just look at what Osam - Barack Obama - said just yesterday. Barack Obama, calling on radicals, jihadists of all the different types, to come together in Iraq. ‘That is the battlefield. That’s the central place,’ he says. ‘Come join us under one banner’.”

Mr Romney was apparently referring to a tape released on Monday, in which a speaker believed to be Osama bin Laden calls on insurgent groups in Iraq to unite.

Kevin Madden, Mr Romney’s spokesman, dismissed the error, made during a speech on global trade at a South Carolina chamber of commerce, as “just a brief mix-up”.

“Governor Romney simply misspoke. He was referring to the recently released audiotape of Osama bin Laden and misspoke when referencing his name,” he told the Associated Press.

Note the use of the word words “simply” and “brief.” One can hope they will soon apply to Romney’s status on our radar.

Well, now Ted we can understand. Obviously still in shock at the fact that a Mormon could be Governor of Massachusetts, he medicated in the only way he knew how:

Speaking soon after Mr Obama’s election to the senate in 2005, Washington veteran Ted Kennedy made a similar mistake.

When whether Democrats should move to the centre to recapture the majority position during an appearance at the National Press Club, the Massachusetts senator said: “Why don’t we just ask Osama bin — Osama Obama — Obama what — since he won by such a big amount. Seriously, Senator Obama is really unique and special.”

… like the vintage I’m imbibing in right now! But I can’t put Ted down, being a native Bostonian. Had I still lived there, I’d be drunk too.

Then there’s the “bad” word. You know, you put it in front of a descriptor when you’ve done something really, really wrong:

In January this year CNN was forced to air an apology to the senator after committing a “bad typographical error” in which the broadcaster used a graphic reading “Where is Obama?” in a story about the search for Osama bin Laden.

I wouldn’t be surprised - ever read the closed captions? They’re a surrealist masterpiece that don’t have much to do with the subject onscreen. That’s one of my favorite things to do at the gym when I’m not obsessing over catching drug-resistant staph.

Source

The Honorable Larry E. Craig
United States Senator, Idaho
Specialty Recipe
Super Tuber

Congress Cooks! Index

Super Tuber is a great snack that uses one of my favorite vegetables: The Idaho Potato. Of course, I suppose any type of potato could be used, but I cannot guarantee that a Super Tuber made with anything but a true Idaho potato would taste as good.

Sincerely,
Larry E. Craig,
United States Senator

Ingredients
1 hot dog, cook’s choice
1 Idaho baking potato, 7 to 10 ounces
Mustard for dipping, any style
Other condiments as desired such as cheese sauce, sour cream, chili, chives, bacon pieces or black olives.

Wash and dry potato. Rub with shortening or butter. With an apple corer or small knife, core out the potato center (end to end). Push hot dog through the center. Bake until potato is cooked through.

To Microwave: Place on microwave safe plate; cover loosely (to avoid splatters). Microwave on high about 4 minutes per potato until fork tender.

To Bake in Conventional Oven: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake for approximately one hour or until potato is fork tender.

To Barbecue: Wrap in aluminum foil and place above medium hot coals, turning at least once during cooking. Cook until potato is fork tender.

Serving Suggestions: Allow potato to cool slightly. Eat as a finger food, dipping in your favorite hot dog condiments (mustard is my favorite).

Kudos to Eve for finding this one.

I don’t even mind the kid trying to drive. That’s not that unusual. But he’s hungry so what does he do? Go to the kitchen? Ask his parent/grandparent or whoever takes care of him? No. He tries to drive to Applebees. He even grabbed his booster seat!

Updated: 2 hours, 20 minutes ago

BROOMFIELD, Colo. - A 6-year-old boy was hungry and decided he’d go to Applebees. So he grabbed the car keys, took his booster seat from the back seat of his grandmother’s car and placed it in the driver’s seat, then made a go of driving himself to the restaurant Tuesday.

He made it about 75 feet. Unable to take the car out of reverse, he crossed the street and ran into a transformer and communication box, knocking out electricity and phone service to dozens of townhomes.

Nobody was injured and the boy, whose name was not released, got out of his car and told his grandmother what happened.