Pretty Slow
I just discovered that the above month date has been set on November all of December and no one has bothered to tell me.
Glad I fixed that before it became embarrassing for all time.
Happy New Year

According To George
"They keep talking about drafting a Constitution for Iraq. Why don't we just give them ours? It was written by a lot of really smart guys, it's worked for over 200 years, and we're not using it anymore."
And...
"The real reason that we can't have the Ten Commandments in a Courthouse? You cannot post 'Thou Shalt Not Steal,' 'Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery, and 'Thou Shall Not Lie' in a building full of lawyers, judges, and politicians! It creates a hostile work environment!"
-- George Carlin
We Be Back In Bunker City

Haven't read the paper or been online so I have no idea what's going on. If you know, let me know. Emma and Ann got in 2 days of skiing before it rained and melted all the snow. Our apartment is vacant again, so... if...
19th Anniversary tomorrow, so congrats to us. The dread season is nearly over and the tree goes out the door on Monday.

Merry Christmas

Hiatus
The T Monk Memorial WebLog will be on vacation from Monday-Friday (12-26 to 12-30). Going up country and it's just too boring being on a modem. Plus, I don't even have an account up there anymore.
Back online for New Years Eve. Deal with it.

Tranlate Your Favorite Phrase 5x & Back
Go HERE.
No, It's Not A Typo

For those who love spotting bad Engrish.
Go HERE.
Der Dodo
Lots of bones found.
Go HERE.
WlfSng914
©Glenn Andersen
Glenn just finished Diane's Christmas Windows.
Who Is Brad Renfro?
Actor Brad Renfro, 23, was arrested in a sting operation after he allegedly tried to buy heroin near downtown's Skid Row, police said. Renfro was booked for investigation of felony attempting to possess heroin. "He was intending to buy real heroin from an undercover officer," Detective Ron Hodges said.
Renfro, the star of the 1994 film "The Client," was caught during a random sting operation Thursday that resulted in the arrests of 14 other suspects.
The actor was charged in 1998 with possession of cocaine and marijuana, but avoided jail time in a plea deal.
He was sentenced to two years' probation in January 2001 on charges of trying to steal a yacht in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
He was arrested in May 2001 and charged with underage drinking.
The next year, he was charged with driving without a license and public intoxication. Both violated terms of his probation.
Renfro was ordered into an alcohol rehabilitation program in March 2002.

MacDries wants to know, "And why is this guy still walking the streets? If he was black he'd be on death row. Hell, if he was ugly, he'd be serving a life sentence."

Osama Mama!!
Bin Laden's niece wants her props. And she'll probably get them.
Go HERE.
Artist Of The Day
The Pope. Bessie Harvey is one of two artists whose work I have actually bought. She is called an Outsider Artist, which is another name for self-taught, out of the art school trained mainstream, careerist, art stars you will find in most galleries today. You should really check her out.
Go HERE to see the video.
Go HERE for more.
So Right For The Job
Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito defended the right of government officials to order domestic wiretaps when he worked for the Reagan Justice Department, documents released Friday show.
The memo dealt with whether government officials should have blanket protection from lawsuits when authorizing wiretaps. "I do not question that the attorney general should have this immunity," Alito wrote. "But for tactical reasons, I would not raise the issue here."
And.
In a recommendation to the solicitor general on filing a friend-of-court brief, Alito said that the government "should make clear that we disagree with Roe v. Wade and would welcome the opportunity to brief the issue of whether, and if so to what extent, that decision should be overruled."

MacDries says, "Cunning little evil-doer, isn't he."
Consorting With The Enemy

Upstairs neighbor Ram shamefully seeking PR with the extremely short Mayor.
Robert Rauschenberg's Caveat

Just read that Rauschenberg's famous combines at The Metropolitan are displayed in "vitrines"; behind plexiglass boxes to protect them from what...?
Just like Mona Lisa and Michaelangelo's Pieta etc...
Might want to just skip it...

Don't Read This...
if you're younger than, say, 21. There is no Sanity Clause. And if you don't know this by now, you have never watched a Marx Bros. movie.

Deborah Butterfield @ Ed Thorpe Gallery

Emma and I both love Butterfield's horses. Emma because she loves horses, in general. Me because I think she's a talented sculptor, obsessed with the singular form of the horse. I can't imagine she doesn't live next door to a whole herd.
Go HERE.
BaBa WaWa
Poor Babs must be feeling mortal as she reaches retirement age (plus). She did a show about Heaven; if and when and possible loopholes.
BloomBush Pretends
Mayor Mike takes his limo to Brooklyn so he can walk across our BB in jeans in pretend solidarity with the working class.
He stole this photo op from Republicrat Ed KochSucker.
Pataki/BloomBush Still Union Busting
Tell the boys to get off their Republican asses and support the Unions. 1 Billion $ surplus???????
Don't blame the workers. Their children are having trouble getting to school too.
Go HERE to send them a letter.

Mission Accomplished
"My fellow Americans: major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed."
In May 2003, President George W. Bush stood in front of a "Mission Accomplished" banner on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and told the world that the United States and allies had achieved success in Iraq.
How many times can a lie be proclaimed?
Tom Cowette

Still a great painter. I own this one.
Why Not Kinky?

Send a message to Texans and The Shrub in the White House.
Go HERE.
Santa Bennie Claus
Papa's got a brand new hat.
Senate Says...
"Up yours." to Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) and his oil wells.

MacDries says, "Somebody is still thinking in the Senate, occasionally, if not often."
After 12 Years...
... he finaly makes an honest girlieman of him. Which him is who is another question but Best Wishes guys.
The First Move - 10 To Go
U.S. District Judge James Robertson, one of 11 members of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, known as FISA, sent his resignation to Chief Justice John Roberts on Monday. Why not? He is not needed, according to the Shrub.
Strike Stories
Asked the guy at my frame shop how he got to work today, since he was closed yesterday. He said he took the LIRR to Penn Station, then the PATH train to New Jersey, then PATH to lower Manhattan (now called Ground Zero) then walked 8 blocks. Took him 3 hours. He cut me a piece of glass for $10. Hope he has more business than that.
Kate walked over to Megan's house on 12th street in the West Village (about 45 minutes) and then Megan's folks drove them up to LaGuardia at 66th & West Side.
Ann rode her bike to 43rd street again today.
Snowball Fight
Go HERE.
Don't hit Santa.

Body Piercing
Why do images such as this from African sources look beautiful, yet when we see a young American child with similar piercings it seems sick?
Arnold Makes An Ass Of Himself
Go HERE.
Why Did Shrub Commit An Impeachable Act
He didn't need to, yet he did. Go HERE. BuzzFlash.
Clapton, Lennon, Richards, Mitchell
Play Yer Blues. Go HERE. Google.
Photographic Site
Adam Krawesky. Interesting. Go HERE. Lens Culture.
Mission Still Accomplished
Three more American women blown to bits in Iraq, the day after the much touted elections established Democracy.
Transit Strike Is On
Ann rode her bike to work. Emma will walk 2 hours late. Kate was sleeping late and seems to think it is a day off. I slept an extra hour.
So it goes here in Bunker City.

Who Suffers?
So, what happens (when/if) the transit workers go out on strike tonight. The bosses will still cab or limo to work as will the white-collar workers as they wait to see who will cave. The blue collar workers' children will or will not make it to school. And their husbands/wives and the dilligent will find a way to walk, bike or pool to work or school. But it is cold out there folks so button up. Alternate means will be difficult or impossible to find. My god, no one will be buying anything unnecessary as Xmas approaches and the loss of business/tax revenue will be in X dollars. Lots.

MacDries says, "Is this any way to run a Christmas/Hannukah/Kwanza/Etc. in the greatest of all Bunker Cities?"
Keeps Going Deeper
I know Nixon was insane and dangerous. Ford was nothing. Carter was great (meaning normal) but the Democrats couldn't handle sucesss and they dumped on themselves.
I think Reagan was a movie star prez, a stupid, handsome, hypnotist who gets credit for Gorbchev's achievements. Bush1 was merely inept. Clinton could have been great but he turned out to be merely human.
But this little twerp BushWhacker now occupying the White House is insane, stupid, inept and also quite evil. Bush/Cheney/Rove/Rumsfeld is Al Qaeda Extreme.
Is there no one who can rid us of this meddlesome dwarf?
Y'know, if the inept Kerry had been handsome (and had voted against the Iraq war), instead of such a horse-face, he would have walked all over The Shrub.
And now we will have to deal with, next in line, McCain/Guiliani in 2008 because the U.S. of A will never settle for Hillary. Nor will I.
You heard it here.
The Word
Paranoia. Does that ring a tiny bell in relationship to the foreign policy of the Bush Administration?

MacDries says, "I believe there are crazy people out there who would do me (or anyone) harm. But I do not think this extends to my immediate family or friends or even acquaintences. I worry, a bit, when my girls are out on the streets but I do not follow behind them in a weird hope to thwart some random evil-doer. And I do not think that is a way for any person or any country to live."
9-11, 9-11, 911, 9-11!!!!!!!!!
"Americans want both liberty and security. They are not contradictory. We do not have to sacrifice our basic liberties in the course of strengthening national security."
-- Senator Harry Reid (D-NV)
This Is Your Veep Speaking
"...the rule is whether or not it shocks the conscience. If it's something that shocks the conscience, the court has agreed that crosses over the line. Now, you can get into a debate about what shocks the conscience and what is cruel and inhuman. And to some extent, I suppose, that's in the eye of the beholder."
--Dick Cheney

MacDries says, "It shocks my conscience that dick head is the veep."
NYTimes Video
If you don't subscribe to the paper edition of the New York Times, you might want to subscribe to TimesSelect on the web site. It's free to subscribers and opens up the archives for research. There is a great video piece today about a young boy who ran a porm webcam for a time. There is also content available on Bruce Springsteen and Tom Otterness.
The delivery bugs seem to have been worked out pretty well.
The Nixon Doctrine
Yet again, The Shrub declares that he believes "if the President does it, it is therefore legal".
And no one seems able to stop him.
The Dems will whine a bit but they are powerless. So it goes...
Allure
If you're daughters read Vogue or Allure tell them to Go HERE to see the real deal.
One Color
A new theory. Go HERE.
*Courtesy of RomDog.

Gay Cowboys
Anyone else getting tired of the recent theme and variations? Article after article, everyone has to have a slant on it. Even Frank Rich (NYTimes) feels obliged to weigh in and he usually has a bit more class. Damn the hype does run deep.
Now, Midnight Cowboy, 1969, was a great film dealing with the affection and even love two men can develop for one another without so much as a tepid kiss or two. Just a final hug when the physically repulsive Ratso dies in the arms of the attractive hunk Buck.
I'll wait for the DVD to confirm my prejudiced opinion, just as I did with last years Ray which proved to be as bad or worse than I could imagine and I had to bail at about an hour into it. And this year's Walk The Line I won't bother. Gimme a break Hollywood. Indy Films are non-existant.
And bad films are somehow less bad when you watch them on DVD for a few bucks for three or four friends and family and you can turn them off or go into the other room. compared to $10.45 per adult. For our family now, if we could all agree on a single film to see: $40. It better be as good as Sullivan's Travels at that price.
I'm Not A Lawyer, But...
Asked why the president authorized skipping the FISA court, Secretary Of State, Condiment Rice said the war on terrorism was a "different type of war" that gives the Commander In Chief "additional authorities."

MacDries says, "Huh? And where does he get these new "authorities"? She forgot to say, 9-11, 9-11, 9-11."
Bono & Bill's Billions
And don't forget Melinda, she's the one who convinced Bill that he had enough shekels to start doling them out a bit.

MacDries says, "Other than his empty poseur music, why is it so difficult to like Bono?"
Illusion Of Motion

The theory is: The slower this image moves, the more you are able to handle stress. How this is determined is beyond me. Ask WlfSng.
Arlo's Riding The City Of Nerw Orleans
Trying to raise money for the city.
Arlo says, "I think we owe it to them, because the music that we're playing - the kinds of traditions that we come from - have their roots in New Orleans," Gutrhie said. "You got Delta blues and you got Chicago blues and you got bluegrass - all kinds of stuff that was all mixed because New Orleans was sort of the original melting pot."
Robert Rauschenberg's Combines

Possibly the show of the decade will open at the Metropolitan Museum on Tuesday. Be there or be square.

MacDries says, "When I was a child a "combine" was a motorized farm machine to harvest a grain crop using a cutting, threshing, and cleaning machine."

Shrub Blames the Messinger
After the NYTimes delayed revealing the story for a year, after he re-authorized himself 30 times, he now blames the bearer of ill-tidings.
Sounds about right.
More Mona
Scientists analyzed the portrait of the Mona Lisa hoping to unlock her smile. They applied emotion recognition software that measures a person's mood by examining features such as the curve of the lips and the crinkles around the eyes.
The findings? Mona Lisa was 83 percent happy, 9 percent disgusted, 6 percent fearful, and 2 percent angry, according to the British weekly New Scientist.
Go HERE for my take on Mona.
Murray @ MoMA

Well worth seeing. She certainly deserves the retrospective. Tough hardboiled paintings if looked at abstractly. They only begin to pale when you begin to see the coffee cups and puppy dogs in them. Then they look just a bit silly.
I asked Emma if Murray was a better painter than me and she said, "No."
I told her she was wrong but not by much.

They Might Be Giants
Go HERE.

MacDries says, "Not giants so much as interesting dwarfs."
Credit Card Show
Go HERE to see the Credit Card Show (mentioned below) streaming.
Latest Painting

Good Fences
WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 - House Republicans voted on Thursday night to toughen a border security bill by requiring the Department of Homeland Security to build five fences along 698 miles of the United States border with Mexico to block the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs into this country.

MacDries says, "That oughta show our neighbors to the south who can't stay in their own yard. I say give the contract to Halliburton, no bid."
Murray @ MoMA

Finally getting around to seeing the Murray show tonight. Unless there is a subway strike.
Bush Approves
Executive order to approve spying on your telephone calls & emails. Why doesn't this surprise me?

Bill Moyers On Freedom of Information*
To download a PDF document: Click HERE.
*Michael Winship, who collaborated with Moyers, sent this to me.
Blowing Ann Derry's Horn
December 15
When Lowell Bergman and Dave Rummel started agitating to make a film about the credit card industry, skepticism greeted them at every turn. Their Bizday colleagues thought there wasn't much new to be said. Their television colleagues thought it would be tough to make it interesting.  Informative, sure. Insightful, no doubt.  But interesting?
Good thing they persevered. Last night Columbia University announced that "The Secret History of the Credit Card" -- made by The Times for Frontline -- has won a 2005 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Silver Baton. These awards are considered the most prestigious prize in broadcasting.  This year, the Columbia Journalism School selection committee chose only 13 winners, from 628 submissions.
The Times documentary, reported by Lowell Bergman, Nelli Kheyfets Black and Patrick McGeehan (then of Bizday), with help from Robin Stein, Marlena Telvick, Michael Schreiber and Remy Weber, examined some of the lesser known consumer pitfalls in the credit card world, including the sometimes deceptive tactics that encourage people to amass debt without understanding the potential   consequences in the fine print. Produced by Dave Rummel and Nelli Black, with Ann Derry as executive producer, the film made complex arcana clear, and used an engaging group of ordinary folks as a Greek chorus to offset the experts' explanations. And Lowell found and interviewed a reclusive character regarded as the progenitor of many of the tactics that created the boom in credit card debt.  Pat, Lowell, Robin and Marlena collaborated on a companion story for the Sunday Business section -- a story that made the most e-mailed list all day.
Lowell is a two-time winner this year. He served as a reporter and the on-screen correspondent for "Al Qaeda's New Front," a co-production of Frontline and the CBC that examined the methods of Al Qaeda's operatives in western Europe.
The awards presentation ceremony will be Jan. 18, and taped for broadcast Jan. 24 on PBS.
Go HERE to see it streaming.
Roger That!!!!
"Don't upset him."
-- Condoleezza Rice to a foreign diplomat, warning him not give Bush bad news.

MacDries says, "That's supposed to be your job, Condiment."
White House Agrees To Accept McCain Torture Ban
I wondered when they would stop torturing the poor man. I think he suffered enough in the 2000 campaign, not to mention Vietnam.
William Proxmire, R.I.P.
Senator William Proxmire (D-WI) (one Of The Good Ones) died at 90. The Senator's monthly "Golden Fleece" awards, which he began in 1975 to point out what he thought were frivolous expenditures of taxpayers' money, became a Washington tradition.
Proxmire was elected to the Senate in 1957 in a special election to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Sen. Joseph McCarthy.
Proxmire made a point of accepting no contributions. In 1982 he registered only $145.10 in campaign costs, yet gleaned 64 percent of the vote.
Transit Strike
Deadline is midnight tonight. Will it? Won't it? Emma walks to school but Kate takes the subway and Ann does too. Ann rides her bike when it's warm but such is not the case these days. Oh, bother.
Poor Snake
Just looking for a little warmth.
Another Bad Tooth
Gotta go find another dentist. My life has caught up with me.

No Thank You, NO!
NEW YORK Dec 14, 2005 - New York adopted a health code regulation Wednesday that will make it the first American city to keep track of people with diabetes in much the same way it does with patients infected with HIV or tuberculosis.
The city will occasionally use its database to prod diabetics to take better care of themselves. The policy breaks new ground because it involves the collection of information about people who have a disease that is neither contagious nor caused by an environmental toxin. It has also raised privacy concerns in some quarters.
New York's health commissioner, Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, said the program's potential to save thousands of lives outweighs what it gives up in medical privacy.

MacDries says, "As a diabetic, I say no. I do not give Bloomberg permission to monitor me in any way. And to Dr. Frieden, I say, I will be the one who decides what outweighs what."
Totally Kewl

Not bad for Mayan graffiti, eh? 100 BC!
Nevermind
Bush admits he (NOT WE) went to war on false (NOT FAULTY) intelligence but insists it was still the right decision and he is responsible. He did not, however, admit that he knew it was false intelligence. Nor did he acknowledge that false intelligence is an oxymoron. Nor could he, since the moron doesn't know what an oxymoron is.
Forgot To Tell You Yesterday
Friday the 13th came on a Tuesday this month. (I'll bet Grupp is the only one that gets this joke.)
High School Classmates

Betsy & Sally Sokol, twins married brothers and still farm in Iowa.
The Good Beatle
George Harrison was an enormous Ukulele freak so he would no doubt have enjoyed this little clip.
Go HERE.
Once again from TransBuddah.com. (link below)
Come Visit Bunker City
Starting at the top, you can get the penthouse suite at Four Seasons for around $30,000. That's per night. But, of course, you can bring the whole Clampett clan for that price.
Get Shopping For America

Still lots of stuff to be had in Chinatown.

A DJ To Deal With
Bob Dylan will start a new career as a radio DJ when he launches a new weekly music show on XM Satellite Radio next March.

MacDries says, "I'd be there except I don't listen to radio. It's so 40s."
Former President Ford Hospitalized
They say for routine tests and a cold that he can't shake. He's 92 and unless Tricky Dick is mentioned, it's not easy to remember he was ever actually President. Remember Agnew was forced to resign (no jail time), then Ford was appointed until Tricky was forced to resign (no jail time), then Ford pardons Tricky. Then yadda yadda...
Ford also suffered a mild stroke while attending the 2000 Repbulican National Convention.

MacDries says, "Doesn't surprise me. The whole damn country had a stroke as well and we're still trying to recover."
The 3 Shades

I'll match my 3 girls with anybody's. And I'll raise you a great son as well.
AOL Still Sucks
Sent an Xmas card out to my holiday list of 100 or so. Everyone who had trouble downloading the .jpg was on AOL.
Why do they put up with it?
Latest Painting

There are about 31 Tondos in this series so far. Go HERE to see them all.

Subway Strike
Go HERE for a useful tool especially in the event of a strike.
The Shrub Does Global Warming
Go HERE.
Go HERE for TransBuddha.com, links to all sorts of interesting stuff.
Captain 11
In the early days of TV, in the time of Howdy Doody and Pinky Lee, there was a local (Sioux Falls, SD) newscaster named Dave Dedrick who doubled as an afternoon character called Captain 11. A few years later when we were old enough to start drinking with spliced driver's licenses, he became infamous as a late night drunk hanging around the bars looking to be recognized. A couple years ago I spotted him at a restaurant and he was still trying to make eye contact with everyone who passed by. I thought at first he was gay cruising but then I recognized him and said, "Hey! Captain 11." And he just beamed. It made his day.
Grupp Does Cheney
Disgusting.

Xmas Soft Porn
Gimme one a those... and one a those... and two of those.

MacDries says, "What ever happened to my subscription to Victoria's Secret Catalog. I never figured out what the secret was..."
The Terminator

Girlie man Arnold, son-of-a-nazi, says, "Terminate the nigger."

MacDries says, "I still can't get my mind around how this guy got to be a governor of a state with a somewhat intelligent population. Oh well, I don't get a lot of things."
We Can Count
30,000 Iraqis dead. Bush says he'd do it again. And I believe him.

MacDries says, "I don't feel any safer, with evil-doers like Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld running the country. Do you?"
Can't Stop Some People
Insults don't work. They still send you such things. Only the Holy Lord knows where they find them.
Go HERE.
And go HERE.
Huh???
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Monday, Dec. 12 - American and Iraqi forces raiding an Iraqi government detention center last Thursday in Baghdad discovered more than 600 prisoners packed into a cramped space, 13 of them mistreated so badly they had to be taken to a hospital, a senior American official said early Monday.

MacDries says, "Iraqi forces raid an Iraqi government prison???? I'm confused once again."
Rove Perp Walk

Looks like Rove may be in trouble. And it couldn't have happened to a bigger jerk.
The Horror!!! The Horror
Oliver Stone is making a movie about 9-11, 9-11, 9-11, 9-11!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MacDries says, "And all those who enjoy picking scabs are already lining up.

Internet Video???
Don't know about you but I no longer click on any Watch Video buuttons. What it really means is wait a while, watch a commercial and then watch the video.
Richard Pryor
"I had some great things and I had some bad things. The best and the worst," he said in 1995. "In other words, I had a life."
--Richard Pryor
Tried to rent Richard Pryor, Live in Concert to show my girls but the store didn't have it. They did have 12 copies of Spiderman however. That figures.
Runner Up, R.I.P.
As in politics, Eugene McCarthy is running second to Richard Pryor in the obits today.
Never was a big fan of Gene. Who wants a college prof, mediocre to awful poet, for President?
Tree Day
Every year it gets earlier. I set the 15th as the earliest date but the girls keep slipping it up. January 1st it goes out the door but last year that date slipped by as well.
My vote means nothing.

Sounds Aboot Right
MONTREAL, Quebec -- More than 150 nations agreed Saturday to launch formal talks on mandatory post-2012 reductions in greenhouse gases -- talks that will exclude an unwilling United States.

MacDries says, "To quote Pogo, 'We have seen the enemy and he is us'."
Richard Pryor R.I.P.
The funniest man of all time has died at 65 of a heart attack. Caught in bed with another women by his wife one time, he famously said, "Who are you gonna believe, me or your lying eyes."
Billie Holiday
Just because.
Here's The Drill
The four-hour drill to prepare for an outbreak of Avian flu at the White House complex involved Cabinet secretaries and top federal officials. President Bush, did not participate. He went for a bike ride in suburban Maryland on a cold winter morning. Vice President Dick Cheney also stayed away.

MacDries says, "I'm guessing they both didn't want to get close to being prepared. Deniablitiy, you know?"
New Edition
Remember the Bush Cards. Go HERE for the new slant on the second term.
Artist Of The Day
Ellis Gallagher is a Brooklyn artist whose chalk drawings are a private joke between him and anyone in Brooklyn who takes the time to look at his work before the snow or rain washes it away. "This work won't be around," Mr. Gallagher says "God knows, it could be gone tomorrow.
He spent many years putting graffiti on New York's train tunnels, walls and other public spaces. But graffiti "missions," as they are known in some circles, took their toll on Mr. Gallagher, who works as a waiter when he is not making art. There were the fines, the frantic footraces with police officers and the nights in jail. A 1999 arrest resulted in a community service sentence and probation.

MacDries says, "Can't keep a good artist down."
Today's Rant
Bar & bat mitzvah when it is extended to those who do not share the Jewish faith (or indeed any religious faith) is a scam of enormous proportions. Non-jewish friends of the honored child are invited to the ceremony and expected to give large sums of money. To decline the invitation is considered an insult and puts the invited in a compromised position. So they go along with it. I say keep your religion to yourself.

Me & The Hamsters
I feel a whole lot better now that I know that my S.A.D.ness (seasonal affective disorder) is not confined to me alone. Hamsters have it too. But I'd hate to think I'm like a rodent.
I hate rodents.
Cheap Suit Serenaders
R. Crumb had a band in the 70s and recorded 3 albums. Rather like the music of Leon Redbone. I've got two of them but you can go HERE to find out more.
What Do We Have To Lose?
Clinton says "Bush Is Flat Wrong on Kyoto Protocol".

MacDries says, "Go Bubba. It's way past time to kick some ass on all sorts of issues and the sooner the Dems learn that the better off we'll all be. Stop trying to get elected by sounding like watered down Republicans. I repeat what Truman said, 'Given the choice between a Republican and someone who acts like a Republican, people will vote for the real Republican all the time'"
NYC Street Scene

Obviously not today.
Here's an Idea For A Movie
Call it a film, hire two hetero-hunks to play gay and advertise a tasty kiss or two, add a little bi-sex conflict and hype it as a serious love story.

MacDries says, "I am like, so there, dewd. Think I'll take my girls along to show how sensitive I am."
Gift List
Emma got her ears pierced, her beloved iPod Nano and Nano socks, some CD mixes and a Billy Collins book of poetry, and she's happy. Says she's usually depressed after her b-day but not this year for some reason. Go figger.
Wet Sloppy Snow
Only god could love a day like this and we all know there ain't no such beast.

Latest Painting
My Sparkler (for Emma @ 13)
There are about 31 Tondos in this series so far. Go HERE to see them all.

House and Senate Reach Deal To Extend "Patriot" Act
Well, congress is now complicit in the erosion of our Civil Rights. The books you read, your telephone conversations can be tapped, your hospital records are now public information. The FBI can now compel businesses to turn over customer information without a court order or grand jury subpoena. Deal with it!
Here's A Question
MIAMI, Dec. 7 - Federal air marshals shot and killed a passenger at Miami International Airport on Wednesday after the man claimed he had a bomb in his backpack and ran from an aircraft, officials said.

MacDries would like to know: "Why would a man run from an airplane and tell you he had a bomb? Unless of course he was nuts and wanted to die.
It's Been Proven
As I always suspected, you can get brain cancer from listening to Mariah Carey.
Snarky Returns To NYTimes
It was David Pogue's turn today in his Circuits entry: "At a recent technology conference, an executive from an electronics company was waxing snarky about her rivals."
Unfortuneately, he doesn't quite know what the word means. (def. Irritable or short-tempered; irascible.)
He also doesn't know what waxing means. (def. a gradual increase in magnitude or extent.)
Happy Birthday Sparkler

My baby is a teenager today. We all ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ Emma.

Gimme Some Truth
Fuck Lennon, I miss Abbie.
Count Down
I know it's chump change but if you want to count the days until The Shrub is Gone, gone. Go HERE.
Let's See... Where Were We...?
"Over the course of this war, we have learned that winning the battle for Iraqi cities is only the first step," Bush said.

So we are learning...
"We also have to win the battle after the battle by helping Iraqis consolidate their gains and keep the terrorists from returning."

The same terrorists that were conspiring with Saddam? The ones that are in Afghanistan? Osama? Those guys? Who?
Bush praised criticism from key Republicrat (scumbag), Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, who, after touring Iraq recently, said "mistakes have been made."

Bush quoted Lieberman, saying, " 'What a colossal mistake it would be for America's bipartisan political leadership to choose this moment in history to lose its will,' and, in a famous phrase, 'to seize defeat from the jaws of the coming victory.'
"Senator Lieberman is right," Bush said.

He's right, now. But not when he and Gore were running against you? And what "bi-partisan" leadership are we talking about?
"There's an important debate going on in our nation's capital about Iraq," Bush said. (And I wish they would just shut-up) "And the fact that we can debate these issues openly in the midst of a dangerous war brings credit to our democracy. We adjusted our approach."

And just how? By pumping billions of deficit dollars more into Iraqi bank acocounts?
The president said U.S. strategy to rebuild Iraq's cities was shifted because the cities couldn't be controlled after U.S. forces left. "So we adjusted (read increased: see below) our approach," Bush said. "We increased the amount of money commanders had at their disposal for flexible use. We worked with Iraqi leaders to provide more contracts directly to Iraqi firms," Bush said.

None to Halliburton? Does this signal that the big Dick is in disfavor?
"In two and a half years, the Iraqi people have made amazing progress," the president said. "They've gone from living under the boot of a brutal tyrant to liberation, to free elections, to a democratic constitution."

To living under the boot of the most powerful nation on Earth.
Bush conceded reconstruction "has not always gone as well as we had hoped," but he vowed the United States would not abandon Iraq until "complete victory" is accomplished.

No welcoming us with open arms? And "complete victory" would mean... what, exactly?
Despite Bush's concession, Democratic Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, an outspoken critic of the war, said the president failed to define "political, economic and military benchmarks that need to be met" in Iraq. "Democrats firmly believe that the U.S. can and must succeed [in Iraq] but the president's open-ended, ill-defined policy will not get us there."
Decorated Vietnam War veteran Rep. John Murtha, a 17-term Democratic hawk from Pennsylvania, repeated his call for U.S. troops to pullout of Iraq immediately, an idea Bush has rejected. "The American public is thirsting for a plan -- they don't see a plan, a way out," Murtha said. "I had one of the generals tell us in a closed hearing ... '20 years it's going to take to settle this thing'. The sooner we get out, in my estimation, the better off we'll be."

20 years. Hell I've been hearing about the Mid-East turmoil since I was a child. 50 years and counting. Stop selling weapons to all nations!!!!!!! Let the bastard use sling-shots and pebbles.

MacDries says, "The Shrub Administration's grasp of Reality is null, lower even than Nixon's at his lowest level of denial."
Bravo! Harold Pinter
The Bully Pulpit that attends the winning of a Nobel prize was not squandered. Harold Pinter had this to add to his honor.
"The truth is to do with how the United States understands its role in the world and how it chooses to embody it. The US government has supported and in many cases engendered every right-wing military dictatorship in the world. I refer to Indonesia, Greece, Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Haiti, Turkey, the Philippines, Guatemala, El Salvador and, of course, Chile."
"You have to hand it to America. It has exercised a quite clinical manipulation of power worldwide while masquerading as a force for universal good."
He also called for President Bush and Prime Minister Blair to be arraigned before the International Criminal Court of Justice. "But Bush has been clever. He has not ratified the International Criminal Court of Justice."
I'm An Eye Man Myself
"I can absolutely understand why Brazil is totally devoted to my favorite body part -- the ass."
-- Arnold Schwarzenegger, in a travelogue about Rio de Janeiro, in which he is seen groping Carnival dancers.

MacDries says, "Not to put too fine a point on it, but there is also a theory about body builders not being too fussy about the gender strutting the gluteus maximus."
Lennon Loved You And Died For Your Sins
"They're just sucking us to death. About all we can do is do it like fucking circus animals. I resent being an artist in that respect. I resent performing for fucking idiots who won't know - who don't know - anything. 'Cause they can't feel - I'm the one that's feeling, 'cause I'm the one expressing what they are trying to. They live vicariously through me and other artists."
--John Lennon on his fans

MacDries says, "He was a Prince. And you should read what he has to say about Mick and the Stones who actually played rock'n roll. And still do."
Still Freezing
This is way too early. I'll never make it through December, Merle.

Go Weicker
Ex-Gov and Senator Lowell Weicker (I-CT) is the only one willing to take on that Republicrat Lieberman from Connecticut (Bush's best-friend). The Dems are too dead to kick the little jerk out.
Tondos To Date

There are about 30 in this series so far. Go HERE to see them all.

Our 20 Acres (no Mule)
Approximately. Want a topographic map of your place? Go HERE.
Still Laughing Tommy?
Money laundering and conspiracy to launder money.
One Good Dewd Off The Market
The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead announced on Monday that Sir Elton John & David Furnish would formalize their 12-year relationship through a civil partnership ceremony on December 21 at the Guildhall, Windsor. This being the same town where Prince Charles & Camilla recently bit the bullet. John was previously married to Renate Blauel but that marriage ended in divorce.

MacDries says, "Betcha Sir John, devoted friend of Saint Lady Di, is putting a bit of a bugger up the Prince's butt by his choice of site (Maidenhead?). Though, how anyone can take royalty seriously, in any way, is beyond me."

New Yorkers Are So Kind*
Hobo: Do you have the time?
Hipster guy: Yeah, and I also have a job that earned me money to buy a watch so I could have the time.
* From Overheard In New York.

MacDries says, "Well, that's a polite New Yorker, he could have said, 'Whatty you care what time it is? Need to catch Oprah?'"
77 Million $ Ego Trip
That's how many dollars Mike spent to be re-elected Mayor of Bunker City. Wonder how much he'll pony up to be Prez. He's got a few billion left over.

MacDries says, "I'll bet he's already running and will settle for Veep alongside McCain. Unbeatable!"
No Diet Diet
Go HERE.

MacDries says, "Makes sense. I can get behind this."
Another Girl
Margaret Ruth van Amburgh, 7-7, born on 12-1-05
Welcome. Never enough girls in the world. Congrats to Paul & Phyllis.
Slug A Bed
The whole bunch overslept this monrning by 1/2 hour. Shocking. But somehow everyone got off to school/work on time. My excuse is: I was awake for two hours smack in the middle of the night. I wonder if it's a full moon.

Headline
Arkansas Man Scales White House Fence
No, it was not Bubba. Beyond that it has not been determined why he wanted into that cesspool.
NYC Scene
There is a homeless guy in our nabe who is a huge football fan. Whenever there is a big game on TV, he stands outside the Paris Bar next door watching the game on the big screen inside while listening to the commentary on a battery driven headset. His Century 21 plastic shopping bag of possessions is next to him on the sidewalk. He's there now and the temperature is 2C, 35F and misty snow falls.
Latest Painting

One Brief Scuzzy Moment
Written by Gary Indiana, one Big Scuzzy Nothing. If you forget how scuzzy, self-ingratiating and self-indilgent he was go HERE.
Here's an example: "One standout memory is a night when the legendary J. J. Mitchell, Frank O'Hara's lover years before, spilled an entire bottle of poppers up my nose."

MacDries says, "That's what qualified as art criticism back in the day. And what ever happened to Carlo McCormick?"
Don't Need It
Snow fell overnight and the doldrums begin.

Not Quite

Be Here To Love Me
Went to the noon showing at the Angelica and it was well worth it, except the pre-show commercials were at such a volume that MacDries had to scream at the projectionist to "TURN IT DOWN". When that didn't work, he was forced to scream, "IT'S TOO FUCKING LOUD."
No one else was screaming, so he gave up. Luckily the volume on the feature was at a tolerable level and he settled down. This is the sort of behavior that embarasses his girls. He tries to curb himself but is seldom successful.
In Your Dreams, Dewd
Jan Luedecke, a Canadian man, was recently acquitted of rape because he claimed he was asleep when he forced himself on a woman he didn't know. The two had fallen asleep on the same sofa after a party. They had both been drinking. (doh!) When she awoke, Luedecke, 33, was having sex with her. She pushed him away and he said he awoke only when hitting the floor.
He claims he had no memory of having sex with anybody. And he, in fact, didn't know an assault had occurred until he woke up to use the washroom and found he was still wearing a condom.

MacDries says, "It's call a nocturnal emission. It's usually a solo act and often less than satisfying but hardly ever does it land you in court.
Not Quite 13
Emma's having her party today, 5 days early. I ♥ Emma.

MacDries says, "That's 10 more dead persons. American persons. Judeo-Christian-Atheist-Agnostic persons. Almost as many as the number of my brothers and sisters, in one fell swoop. Perhaps the dead persons also had brothers and sisters. I'm sure some of them did. And, of course, they all had mothers and fathers. Just like G.W. (The Shrub) Bush and Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz.
Anyone else getting pissed off?"
Yeah, I'll Buy That, Sam
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, who expressed strong opposition to abortion rights two decades ago, pledged Friday that his personal views on the subject "would not be a factor" in his rulings.

MacDries says, "Jesus Damn Scalito, do you stand for anything?
Remember This Name
Eldar Djangirov. He has one CD under his belt so far but the kid plays like Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson.
Laura Cantrell
She doesn't get the press she should. Go HERE.
Be Here To Love Me
A new biopic about Townes Van Zandt just opened at the Angelica. Gotta go. Can't get enough of Townes and he's dead so there won't be anymore songs or CDs. Steve Earle said, "Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that."

MacDries says, "Townes wrote the saddest god damn song ever written. It's called Marie and you can find it recorded by him solo and also duet with Willie Nelson. Willie also does it solo. Check it out if you want to get into the soul of poverty and the homeless."
Artist Of The Day
Letters From Home 6
Zarina Hashmi has a show @ Bose Pacia, 508 West 26th Street, 11th floor, Chelsea, Through Dec. 23
Catalog available by Ram Rahman
The Dread Season
It is upon us and though I resist, my shopping eyes are always open until it has to end or madness will prevail.
I do it early cuz then I can be done with it and just let it be. I can then start working on my Xmas pate. Recipe is available upon request.

Remember Nkosi Johnson?
On AIDS Awareness Day, you might remember this beautiful young man who died of AIDS at age 12.
Johnson was born in poverty in KwaZulu-Natal, one of the South African provinces hardest hit by the HIV virus. Before his death, he was the longest surviving child with AIDS in South Africa.
He spoke to the International AIDS Conference in Durban in 2000, reminding the audience that AIDS victims were no different from other people: "You can't get AIDS by hugging, kissing, holding hands. We are normal. We are human beings... We have needs just like everyone else. We are all the same."

MacDries says, "This years slogan, plastered on T-shirts We All Have AIDS, is clever but a bit gratuitous. Don't you think? Some innocent people actually die from it."
Shrub Tapped For Duty (jury, that is)
Would you want this man on your jury?
Wail Away
In Jerusalem, a journalist heard about a very old Jewish man who had been going to the Wailing Wall to pray, twice a day, everyday, for a long, long time.
So she went to the Wailing Wall and there he was! She watched him pray and after about 45 minutes, when he turned to leave, she approached him for an interview.
"Sir, how long have you been coming to the Wall and praying?"
"For about 60 years."
"60 years! That's amazing! What do you pray for?"
"I pray for peace between the Christians, Jews and the Muslims. I pray for all the hatred to stop and I pray for all our children to grow up in safety and friendship."
"How do you feel after doing this for 60 years?"
"Like I'm talking to a fuckin' wall."
Grupp's Backyard
Be thankfull you don't live in Sioux Falls. Or, maybe you do. I once did.
PR Does Not Equal Policy
Most people will recognize this fact but just in case, The Shrub's speeech yesterday, expensive banners and Mad Avenue pitch, is merely more flag waving. Sorry, yet sad and true.
Dead In The Water
Scalito is so gone he is fish bait. Every day a new piece of the chub is dredged up about what a scum bag this little twit is. Phil E. Buster in on the way to save the day and the Republicrats will have to dig deep to push this guy through. He's been Borked! He got a whole lot a 'splainin' to do.
Truck Art
Art Galleries on the run.

Back at'cha Shrub. You little twerp!
Go HERE to see the whole tape.

For The Latest Dries Art GO HERE
For The Latest CyberToonz GO HERE
I've never actually watched an episode of The Simpsons (I'm more of a Pixar kind of guy) butt...
*Dislaimer

Go To: MacDries Design

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