Why Obama Used 22 Pens to Sign the Health Care Bill

[T]he President was just adhering to an obscure Washington tradition. The practice of using multiple pens to sign important legislation dates at least as far back as Franklin Roosevelt and is now one of our government's frivolous little quirks, much like that oversize gavel Nancy Pelosi carried around the other day.

Why Obama Used 22 Pens to Sign the Health Care Bill

Terrorism, Domestic and Foreign

Terrorism, Domestic and Foreign

I dislike using “terrorist” as a boogeyman label, but there are some interesting questions here.

'Renegade' joins 'Twinkle,''Rawhide,''Lancer' on list of Secret Service code names

‘Renegade’ joins ‘Twinkle,’ ‘Rawhide,’ ‘Lancer’ on list of Secret Service code names

I like that they’re alliterative.

Barack Obama Has Read Harry Potter

In last night’s Barack Obama Variety Half-Hour, Michelle Obama mentioned that her husband read all seven Harry Potter books with their daughter.

Has John McCain read Harry Potter?

Whom do you trust to protect America from dark wizards?

We need to know the full extent of the relationship between John McCain and Tom Riddle. Frankly I just don’t think he has the experience to lead us through any sort of dementor- or inferius-based terrorist attacks.

McCain on Letterman

McCain on Letterman

I liked John McCain a lot more before he was a presidential candidate. On Letterman last night he was much more of the McCain you used to see. He was funny at times and genuine at others and didn’t slip too much into his rehearsed campaign lines.

McCain at Alfred E. Smith dinner

McCain at Alfred E. Smith dinner

Also very funny.

Barack Obama does stand-up at Alfred E. Smith dinner

Barack Obama does stand-up at Alfred E. Smith dinner

Funny speech. I wish the camera didn’t feel they had to cut to McCain for every reaction shot though.

Scott Bakula Jumps Into McCain's Body Just Before Election | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

Scott Bakula Jumps Into McCain’s Body Just Before Election

Sarah Palin Thinks Dinosaurs Lived at the Same Time As Humans

The Republican candidate for Vice President of the United States of America actually believes that dinosaurs lived at the same time as humans.

There are many issues on which I respect that people have different opinions than I. This isn’t one of them. If you vote for John McCain, you’re endorsing the possibility that someone could be in the White House who doesn’t believe very basic facts about science and history.

Watching the Election

The two sites I’ve been reading most about the election, besides The Washington Post, are Electoral-Vote.com and Five Thirty Eight.

Op-Ed Columnist - Aaron Sorkin Conjures a Meeting of Obama and Bartlet - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com

Op-Ed Columnist - Aaron Sorkin Conjures a Meeting of Obama and Bartlet - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com

Assorted Things that Never Became Posts

I’ve started to write a few posts over the past few weeks and have lost interest in all of them before coming to a version I wanted to publish. When Twitter lets me say it in 140 characters, why write a whole post?

So here are a few seeds that never grew to full posts, in no order whatsoever.

Politics: Sarah Pailin really worries me. I fear she’s like George Bush in not understanding the nuances and constitutional effects of various positions, like that it’s okay to go aggressively after criminals but still offer them trials. John McCain is making me like him less than I used to, especially with the dirty campaign he’s running. Lies I can understand, all politicians lie, but voter suppression is unconscionable.

Toys: my favorite Batman action figure is from the Hush series that came out a few years ago based on Jim Lee’s art. This week I bought the All Star Superman toy based on Frank Quitely’s art, and I love it. It’s not the definitive Superman, but I like having one of Quitely’s drawings come to life on my desk. (The definitive Superman is, I think, the 1984 Hasbro one that looks like Christopher Reeve. I have that, too, but the cape has faded to magenta.) I’d like a definitive Tim Drake Robin in his most recent red and black costume, but none of them come out just right, and depending on how RIP comes out he might not be Robin anymore.

Star Wars: I rewatched all six movies recently. I’ve been wrestling with a post about the prequel trilogy that I can’t seem to turn into prose that’s worth reading. Summary: I think Episodes II and III would be pretty much fine if a better actor had been cast as Anakin. I think Episode I looks like they filmed Lucas’s rough draft before he took out all the obviously unworkable brainstormed ideas like midichlorians. The overall framework of the film is fine, but you need to fix a few things like make Anakin older, make Jar-Jar a real character, and make the story fit into the trilogy instead of just being the one where Obi-Wan meets Anakin and nothing else important happens.

Comics: All Star Superman makes my heart pitter patter and fills me with hope for mankind, similar to the Juno afterglow. That and Casanova are the two best things to come out in the past year.

Books: I finished George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire and am eagerly awaiting the next one. I finished ‘salem’s Lot and am reading The Stand. After that I have a ton of things I want to read and have to keep reminding myself to just enjoy the thing I have in my hand right now.

Movies: Pretty excited about Quantum of Solace.

TV: The shows I’m most pining for to return are Pushing Daisies and 30 Rock. Lots of others of course but those are the standouts. I’m not watching Heroes, Smallville, or Terminator anymore. Fringe hasn’t wowed me but I’m willing to give it a few more episodes.

Apple: I’d really like the AppleTV/iTunes to be a viable competitor to broadcast cable, but the money doesn’t add up. I’d like to see them allow rentals of TV on a full season basis for a sharp discount.

Register to Vote

In Michigan, the Republican party intends to try to prevent people whose homes have been foreclosed from voting.

In Ohio, the McCain campaign sent out absentee ballot applications that included an unnecessary question that, if left blank, invalidated voters’ applications.

Until the Alaska legislature banned the practice, then Mayor Pailin charged rape victims for their own forensic tests.

Register to vote.

Clinton-Obama Debate: ABC Decides Top Issues Facing Americans Are Gaffes, Flag Pins and '60s Radicals

I’m losing interest in the Democratic race at this point. I’ve already cast my vote in my primary, and I’m about ready to just wait it out until something real happens. So I’m glad I didn’t watch last night’s debate: ABC Decides Top Issues Facing Americans Are Gaffes, Flag Pins and ’60s Radicals.

Lefty Presidents

Both Barack Obama and John McCain are left-handed.

CNN Political Market

CNN has launched a political market website that’s pretty fun to use. Find a market (like “Who will win the Democratic nomination”), and you can buy shares using fake money. They ask a few simple questions that help you narrow down how many shares to buy, and then you can buy or sell based on how the market is doing. Prediction markets like these can be amazingly accurate.

Bonus, the site lets you use an OpenID instead of a password when you create your account, so you can just use your LiveJournal, Vox, AIM, etc. URL and use that password instead of having to create and remember a new one.

Should Generals Resign if Bush Orders an Attack on Iran?

Slate asks, Should generals resign if Bush orders an attack on Iran? It’s a thoughtful piece that goes into what options high-ranking officers really have if faced with terribly inadvisable orders. But it forgets the larger issue: Bush shouldn’t have the authority to attack Iran. That power—the power to declare war—rests with congress, per Article I Section 8 of the Constitution. Whether congress has the backbone to assert this against the president, or course, remains to be seen (or hopefully doesn’t). Certainly they didn’t when we invaded Iraq.

"Daily Show" comics venture to Iraq - Yahoo! News

“Daily Show” comics venture to Iraq - Yahoo! News

The palpable unease in reporting this story is interesting. It's okay for the Daily Show to make fun of the news at home, but everyone's a little too nervous that they're going to upset anyone over there. The troops are real people with senses of humor, t

YouTube - Dick Cheney '94: Invading Baghdad Would Create Quagmire

YouTube - Dick Cheney ‘94: Invading Baghdad Would Create Quagmire

Portrait of the Modern Terrorist as an Idiot

Portrait of the Modern Terrorist as an Idiot

Be afraid!