Month: June 2008

Like a Junkie to the Needle.

“‘Both parties talk a good game on cutting earmarks, but at first opportunity, the House larded up,’ said Stephen Ellis, vice president of the watchdog group. ‘This is just another broken promise.’” With another big defense bill imminent, congressional earmarks are sadly back in vogue. “In the Senate, Lieberman led the way with his participation in 14 requests worth more than $292 million, some of them involving more than one lawmaker, the watchdog group data show. Sen. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) made 48 requests, many with colleagues, worth more than $198 million. Sens. Jeff Sessions (Ala.) and Elizabeth Dole (N.C.) led Republicans by participating in requests totaling $188 million and $182 million, respectively.”

Indiana Jones and the Abandoned City.

Here’s an interesting read, particularly for those similarly underwhelmed by Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: The famed Darabont draft, Indiana Jones and the City of the Gods, leaks (If that link’s dead, G4 has a review, and Google should also be able to help.) For those who didn’t follow all of Indy 4‘s development woes, this is the draft that, apparently, Spielberg and Ford loved and Lucas singlehandedly vetoed.

To be honest, I’m not much of a Darabont fan: Yes, The Shawshank Redemption is a true TNT New Classic, but The Green Mile was inert throughout, and I thought his take on The Mist was ham-handed and shoddy. Still, City of the Gods is worth a look-thru, if nothing else than to see how a project like Indy IV evolved over time. There’s no Mutt, Mac, or Agent Spalko here, and both Marion and Indy are more dynamic and well-rounded characters in this version. But there’s also a lot of fan service (in its broader sense) here, and most of the really egregious moments from Crystal Skull are in this draft too. Oxley does the Tarzan instead of Mutt, and the rubberband tree, atomic fridge, and waterfalls are all still present. Plus, Indy gets eaten by a giant snake. No, really. So…this would’ve probably made a better film than the one we saw, but this script needed some work too.

The Court: Show us the Bodies.

“The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times,” Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for a five-member majority clearly impatient that some prisoners have been held for six years without a hearing.” In a setback for the Dubya administration and a victory for the American way of life, the Supreme Court grants habeas corpus rights to Guantanamo detainees. (The decision in Boumediene v. Bush is now the fourth time the Court has reaffirmed the rule of law over Dubya’s monarchial anti-terror policies.)

In vicious dissent, the conservative bloc: Roberts, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito, with Scalia in particular scowling and ranting like a Batman villain. “‘America is at war with radical Islamists,’ he wrote, adding that the decision ‘will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed.’ He went on to say: ‘The Nation will live to regret what the court has done today.’” To which I say, “Get over it.” I highly doubt we’ll regret it as much as your being put on the Court in the first place, Justice Scalia.

Don’t blame me, I voted for Two-Face.

“When the chips are down, these civilized people will eat each other. You’ll see…I’ll show you.” So, did you vote? Gotham City elections closed yesterday, and the winner will soon be announced on Gotham Tonight with Mike Engel, a.k.a. Anthony Michael Hall, his identity now disclosed. (I voted Harvey Dent, natch.) Of course, it’s Friday the 13th, and the Joker has threatened another round of viral shenanigans as well…which I suspect will lead to this new alternate Dark Knight trailer. Enjoy it before WB takes it down.

Update: Dent wins! But he he doesn’t seem too happy about it…

Endless Tours? | Catching Up with John McCain.

“When asked if he knew when American troops could start to return home, McCain responded: ‘No, but that’s not too important. What’s important is the casualties in Iraq.'” Not too important to you, maybe. While John Kerry and others jump on the latest McCain screw-up, these handy Youtubes bring us up to date on other recent goings-on aboard “the Double Talk Express.” Without the Democratic primary feeding the beast anymore, hopefully Senator McCain’s convenient U-turns and gaffe-a-minute tendencies will get more attention from the media powers-that-be.





The Enemies List.

“Mr. Band, who declined to comment, is hardly alone in tallying those considered to have crossed the former candidate or the former president in recent months by supporting Mr. Obama. As the Obama bandwagon has swelled, so have the lists of people Clinton loyalists regard as some variation of ‘ingrate,’ ‘traitor’ or ‘enemy,’ according to the associates and campaign officials, who would speak only on condition of anonymity.” They’re making a list, and checking it twice… Via Blackberry, Clinton flunkies draw up a post-primary enemies list. It ain’t politics without grudges, I guess.

The Fix was In?

”My first thought [upon hearing Donaghy’s allegation] was: I knew it,’ [Scot] Pollard said Tuesday night. ‘I’m not going to say there was a conspiracy. I just think something wasn’t right. It was unfair. We didn’t have a chance to win that game.’” If he’s going down, he’s taking the League with him: In court filings yesterday, disgraced ref Tim Donaghy insinuates that NBA “company men” refs fixed several playoff games, including the much-disputed Lakers-Kings Game 6 of 2002 (a.k.a. “the Nader game.”) Uh oh…

Prelude to a Rout.

“There is widespread agreement among Democratic and Republican observers that the GOP is headed for a loss of seats in the fall. But the depth of those losses remains a point of real debate, as more and more Republican districts appear to be vulnerable while the GOP campaign arm continues to struggle to match its Democratic counterparts in fundraising.” In both the House and Senate, it seems, 2008 is looking to be a rough year for the GOP.

Webb 2.0? | The Twenty.

“The symbolism of all this to average swing voters just seems to me too powerful to pass up. The GOP is going to hang the elitist tag on Obama, as they’ve always done in recent elections. It’s worked in the last two elections, and it might well work in this one. But it stands far less a chance of working if Obama has this ruddy-faced, shit-kicking, pugnacious, southern white guy standing next to him vouching for him.” The Guardian Michael Tomasky makes the case for a Vice-President Webb, while The Prospect‘s Ezra Klein (he should stay in the Senate), Slate‘s Tim Noah (he’s too volatile), and The Atlantic‘s James Fallows (he’d hate the gig) demur.

Update: Webb aside, Sen. Kent Conrad leaks that the Obama campaign is currently floating a list of twenty or so names for veep. He “told CNN that some of those on the list are ‘top officials now,’ others are ‘former lawmakers’ and others are ‘former top military leaders.‘”