Posted by mesablue on January 30, 2008
The Food Network recently visited a place where I ate a lot of greasy (but good) burgers during my college days. Making sure that you order correctly is part of the of the experience. Not as crazy as the hot dog joint a few posts down, but a great place none the less.
Crazy Jim’s Blimpy Burger.
Posted in cool, food, television, video | Tagged: ann arbor, blimpy burger | 10 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 27, 2008
Anyone surprised?
Posted in crime, food, funny, reality, stupid people, video | Tagged: tarantino | 11 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 25, 2008
If you can’t tell, I’m suffering from a bit of early primary burnout.
Regular silliness to resume shortly.
Posted in cool, funny, video, weird | 5 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 19, 2008
Posted in funny, politics, video, Wordpress Political Blogs | Tagged: Mitt Romney, prank | 4 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 6, 2008
Unfortunately, South Carolina looks almost exactly like Iowa in the most recent polls.
A third place finish in South Carolina and being blown out in New Hampshire and Michigan isn’t going to cut it. I hate to say it, but I think Fred will be out before the end of the month.
Posted in news, politics, video, Wordpress Political Blogs | Tagged: Fred Thompson, south carolina | 9 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 5, 2008
A PSA for men. Slightly NSFW.
Rosetta can skate?
Posted in funny, video, weird | Tagged: balls | 9 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 5, 2008
Romney Takes Early Lead In Wyoming
AP reports that Mitt Romney has taken the early lead in the WY GOP caucus today, potentially providing him with a welcome but barely noted bright spot as he struggles to regain momentum in NH. Romney easily led the overall vote with more than 50%. Duncan Hunter was second with 21% and Fred Thompson, who hadn’t won any delegates, was third with 17%. Results were expected to pour in throughout the day.
Also — Rutgers leading Ball State in the International Bowl in Toronto.
Less surprising than the fact that there is a Bowl game in Canada is that the game’s attendance doubled that of the Wyoming caucus turnout.
Posted in news, politics, Wordpress Political Blogs | Tagged: caucus, wyoming | 1 Comment »
Posted by mesablue on January 5, 2008
No mention of Fred Thompson.
Romney officials said the first voting of the campaign — and the disappointing loss in Iowa — had generated a new sense of urgency among volunteers. And they’re banking on what is by far the most extensive network of political supporters and staff in the state to make a difference between now and Election Day.
“The difference between our organization and others is, we have an organization,” Romney staffer Katie Packer said.
Romney, an Oakland County native and son of late Gov. George Romney, has endorsements from four of the state’s Republican members of Congress and dozens of lower-level officials.
With the crucial New Hampshire contest looming, Romney supporters argued that the former Massachusetts governor is the only candidate competing across all the early states. And Michigan supporters renewed their promotion of Romney as best equipped to address the state’s economic malaise.
“When you look at where our country is economically and the economic challenge Michigan faces, it’s critical that taxes be reduced so we can get the economy humming again,” said Rep. Dave Camp, R-Midland, in a conference call with Michigan reporters Friday. Camp contrasted what he called Romney’s tax-cutting record with that of McCain, who opposed President Bush’s 2001 and 2003 tax cuts. McCain now says he wants those cuts to be permanent.
Romney aides said their campaign would spend the weekend recruiting volunteers and targeting likely supporters with phone calls.
McCain, the winner of the 2000 primary in Michigan, is hoping Romney’s loss in Iowa can give him the momentum to defeat Romney in New Hampshire, where Romney led throughout the summer and fall. The winner in New Hampshire, in turn, likely will carry enormous momentum into Michigan.
“We’re planning the next 11 days of events, getting out the yard signs and making the phone calls, a regular old grassroots campaign,” said Jerry Zandstra, a former Republican candidate for U.S. Senate and former backer of Sam Brownback who has endorsed McCain.
The Arizona senator began airing his first television ads in Michigan on Friday.
Democratic candidates have promised not to campaign in Michigan’s Jan. 15 presidential primary because the state jumped ahead of others, in violation of national party rules. The Republicans are starting to plan their Michigan ground games.
John McCain: Plans to hold rallies at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids and Oakland International Airport in Waterford on Wednesday. He’s scheduled back in Michigan, at events in Warren and Clawson, Jan. 12; Howell, Lansing and Battle Creek Jan. 13; Kalamazoo, Holland, Spring Lake and Grand Rapids, Jan. 14; and Traverse City and Ann Arbor Jan. 15.
Mitt Romney: Plans to be the guest speaker at the Oakland County Republican Party’s 60th Anniversary Gala Dinner in West Bloomfield Jan. 14.
Fred?
I’m getting bombarded by the Romney and McCain campaigns.
I get an email every couple of days from the Thompson campaign asking for money. No information.
It’s starting to look like I may have backed the wrong horse.
And, Michigan Democrats, how does it feel to be left out of the democratic process by your party?
Posted in news, politics, Wordpress Political Blogs | Tagged: Fred Thompson, michigan, michigan primary, presidential primary, republican primary | 9 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 5, 2008
It’s hard not to like a guy that makes statements like this.
Why does he make it so difficult the rest of the time?
via HotAir
Posted in Iraq, military, news, politics, video | Tagged: John McCain | Leave a Comment »
Posted by mesablue on January 4, 2008
DJDrummond of Wizbang!
***Please see updates below***
I used to like Wizbang!
A lot.
It was one of the first blogs I hung out at and I was one of the first members of the Wizbang! Bomb Squad — a blogging forum created by Kevin Aylward for frequent commenters on his site.
The place became overrun by trolls over the years and trying to follow a comment thread became nearly impossible so I moved on to greener pastures — mainly Ace of Spades HQ where I’ve been a very happy little moron. That was a couple of years ago.
A friend stopped by Wizbang! today and decided to comment on a post that DJDrummond had written. DJDrummond didn’t like what he said and started deleting and editing his comments. It wasn’t as if our friend was trolling, he just happened to not completely agree with statements made by the post’s author.
Doubleplusundead, our “friend”, who we also know at AoS as Sinistar has the details — here.
A couple of us from The Hostages decided to go over and see what was going on. Nice Deb left a “nice” comment asking why the treatment was so harsh for discussing the merits of one conservative presidential candidate over another.
I tried to reply to her comment, agreeing with what she said…oops, too late. Her comment was gone and that was just the beginning.
What the hell?
Instant editing of our comments.
I don’t know what DJDrummond’s problem is on a daily basis, but we were just trying to comment as conservatives on a conservative blog. I hadn’t had a chance to agree or disagree with the post’s author before he started taking my comments apart. That’s chickenshit. And, something that I would not have expected from Wizbang!.
DJDrummond closed down comments to the thread after editing my last comment.
So, they just happened to have a post right next door, The Knucklehead of the Day award.
Perfect. We had our knucklehead and decided to nominate him. Oops….not allowed at that great bastion of free speech thin skinned losers.
Yes, we did move into a new thread so I can understand his point. But, he edited my post as well. And, the previous thread had been shut down after it’s author basically shit all over the commenters.
It’s a shame if that’s what things have come to at Wizbang!
It used to be one of the best blogs going. Jay Tea still writes up a storm and I have the utmost respect for Lorie Byrd and Kevin Aylward, but this is childish crap usually reserved for extremist echo chambers.
I’m pulling Wizbang! from my blogroll and won’t ever go back there. I’m sure they won’t miss me, but I’m hearing more and more from dissatisfied visitors to their blog. It’s kind of sad to see a quality blog lower itself to this level.
Cuffy at Perfunction weighs in.
Update: A big thank you to Jay Tea for his comment — I appreciate it.
Update to the Update: Wow. Thanks Lorie and I feel a bit remiss for not mentioning Kim. When she joined the Wizbang! community, it was a little piece of home. Common ground geographically and her direct and straight forward take on things. One of the reasons I decided to blog.
Good things come from the strangest places.
At this point, I’m glad this happened.
It’s all good as far as I am concerned and I’m very happy to hear from past friends.
Take care, everyone. The title of this post is now changed.
Posted in blogs, moral authority, stupid people, weird | Tagged: wizbang | 28 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 4, 2008
From an Iowan who attended the caucus for Fred Thompson tonight, a comment at AoS:
Open Letter to Fred,
I watched your video to Iowans, caucused for you, and brought friends. Yes, you got beat, but there’s a lesson to take away from this, if you’re seeking one.
Huckabee won due to emotional appeal. The people who latched onto him are seeking any sign of strong character. These people are our emotional voters, and are as quick to leave a cause as they are to join one. But they do represent a demographic of importance in the national election, especially when you realize that most of the “other party” is comprised of these types.
Romney came in second due to a strong organization. His people were able to convince the rational, non-emotional voters that he’s a well-polished executive who can lead a country. As the saying goes, “winner’s win and loser’s lose” and Mitt has done a good job convincing many he’s in that former category.
You did marginally well, but can clearly do better. As I heard across Pottawattamie, Mills and Fremont counties, your organization was a mess. Your people do not return calls, your organization can’t get signs out, and overall, you did not convince us executives, business owners and other rational voters that your organization has the capacity to win. You’ve heard the comments questioning your “fire in the belly”? What we’ve observed is the logistical equivalent: you may be the best candidate, but your organization can’t execute and make your success possible. At this level, my friend, intent doesn’t matter. It’s all about execution.
This isn’t time to make excuses, blaming scarce funds, etc. We’re talking basic execution failures at a low level. Ignoring phone calls, emails for information, etc. Long-time party loyalists couldn’t get your people to function, at which people distance themselves from your efforts. If I had outsourced these functions and obtained these results, I’d fire the contractor.
If you’re going to pull it off, you need to lead your campaign organization as you would the nation (from what I’ve heard, you’ve left the operational leadership up to others – which was a clear mistake). Either step up and drive these people to excellence, or set it aside and let someone else win. You’re one of the few people who has the opportunity open to them, but you’ll have to decide whether you really want it.
Your Iowa experience was commensurate with the effort your team put into it. As you’ve hopefully realized, success here is a function of both your vision and the organizational capacity of your team. May this experience guide you in your upcoming challenges.
Best wishes for lessons learned,
Redherkey
Fremont County Iowa
Thanks Redherkey.
Unfortunately, Redherkey’s experience in Iowa perfectly mirrors what we are experiencing in Michigan. We’ve gotten no “official” word, but at this point it looks like we are being written off.
It would have been nice to know.
Hopefully, things are not the same on the ground in South Carolina. But, I doubt it.
Thousands of people are willing to help your campaign, Mr. Thompson, if you’ll just let them. Yes, the money comes first, but without any state or grass roots organization — you are going to go nowhere fast.
Posted in news, politics | Tagged: Fred Thompson, iowa caucus | 7 Comments »
Posted by mesablue on January 3, 2008
Iowans are congregating by the tens of dozens today to kick of the primary season with their quasi-democratic caucus selection process.
Our buddy Russ from Winterset is caucusing for Fred! tonight and promises updates from the scene. The Des Moines Register has full online coverage — here.
Updates as the day goes on. Already Bill Clinton is spinning — “I didn’t win a primary until Georgia.”
Heh, first update from Russ over at AoS:
I went to the Rotary meeting today at noon, and had a good conversation with my “inside source” with the Madison County Republican party. He said that they only anticipate having five precinct captains speak up for their candidates, but that wasn’t the good part.
Guess who’s standing up to speak for Mike Huckabee?
No, God’s going to be busy watching the Virginia Tech/Kansas football game, and Jesus said something about trying to catch up on some NHL games he’s TiVo’d. Huck’s going to be handling this one with a mere mortal.
The Precinct Captain for Mike Huckabee will be: Mike Huckabee’s sister. I. Shit. You. Not. Mike Freakin’ Huckabee’s freakin’ sister. What are the odds of that happening?
Advice time, morons: Should I refrain from calling Mike Huckabee a pigf*&ker in front of his sister, or should I let ‘er rip?
I know what I’d do, but hey, that’s just me.
Update 8:30 pm: With 10 % of the dem vote reported CNN is saying 34 % Edwards, 32% Clinton, 31% Obama and 2% Richardson. The dems have that goofy second place rule in their caucus and it looks like that will come into play tonight for at least a few candidates.
On the Republican side, only 2% reporting: 33 % Huckabee, 24% Romney, 17% Thompson, 11% McCain.
Long night ahead. We’re also live blogging over at AoS.
Update 8:50 pm:
Missed the dems, on the Republican side with 15% in: 36% Huckabee, 23% Romney, 15% Thompson, 12% McCain.
The larger precincts have yet to report and the dem caucuses are still going through their second round of voting.
Update 9:00 pm: Well, that didn’t take long. CNN and Fox just called it for Huckabee.
Huckabee 7,809 35% 0 25% reporting
Romney 5,355 24% 0
Thompson 3,178 14% 0
McCain 2,638 12% 0
Paul 2,425 11% 0
Giuliani 830 4% 0
Hunter 72 0% 0
On the dem side, things just took a turn for Obama.
Obama 206 33% 0 34%
reporting
Edwards 200 32% 0
Clinton 198 32% 0
Richardson 11 2% 0
Biden 6 1% 0
Dodd 0 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Update 9:15 pm: Obama moving up a little more.
Obama 373 34% 0 54%reporting
Edwards 345 32% 0
Clinton 340 31% 0
Richardson 19 2% 0
Biden 11 1% 0
Dodd 0 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Uncommitted 0 0% 0
Update 9:30 pm: It’s a battle for second place in the dem primary with 2/3 of the vote in. Still too close to call, but it’s not turning out to be a good night for Team Hillary.
Obama 505 35% 0 66% reporting
Edwards 452 31% 0
Clinton 449 31% 0
Richardson 25 2% 0
Biden 14 1% 0
Uncommitted 2 0% 0
Dodd 0 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Update 9:31pm: CNN calls it for Obama.
Obama 580 35% 0 73% reporting
Edwards 511 31% 0
Clinton 507 31% 0
Richardson 30 2% 0
Biden 17 1% 0
Uncommitted 2 0% 0
Dodd 0 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Update 9:40: Things are tightening up between Thompson and McCain with 65% in. On the dem side, second place is still too close to call.
Huckabee 25,510 34% 0 65% reporting
Romney 18,668 25% 0
Thompson 10,308 14% 0
McCain 9,891 13% 0
Paul 7,674 10% 0
Giuliani 2,708 4% 0
Hunter 324 0% 0
Obama 664 36% 0 78% reporting
Edwards 561 31% 0
Clinton 557 30% 0
Richardson 35 2% 0
Biden 18 1% 0
Uncommitted 2 0% 0
Dodd 1 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
One thing I like about this caucus thing — stuff happens very quickly. Not that many votes to keep track of and get reported.
Update 10:00 pm: Very tight between Thompson and McCain. Almost dead even between Edwards and Clinton.
Huckabee 28,762 34% 0 72% reporting
Romney 21,213 25% 0
Thompson 11,522 14% 0
McCain 11,281 13% 0
Paul 8,549 10% 0
Giuliani 3,053 4% 0
Hunter 366 0% 0
Obama 816 37% 0 90% reporting
Edwards 663 30% 0
Clinton 656 30% 0
Richardson 48 2% 0
Biden 20 1% 0
Uncommitted 2 0% 0
Dodd 1 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Update 10:15 pm: Thompson and McCain reaching near dead heat status. The dems are still too close between Edwards and Clinton. For some reason Edwards is on TV right now claiming victory. “The status quo lost and change won.” Heh, every democrat is running on a “change” platform. Obama crushed the two of them, I can’t see what Edwards thinks he has to celebrate.
Huckabee 30,852 34% 0 76% reporting
Romney 22,973 25% 0
Thompson 12,289 14% 0
McCain 12,109 13% 0
Paul 8,995 10% 0
Giuliani 3,246 4% 0
Hunter 392 0% 0
Obama 867 37% 0 94% reporting
Edwards 697 30% 0
Clinton 687 30% 0
Richardson 50 2% 0
Biden 22 1% 0
Uncommitted 3 0% 0
Dodd 1 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Update 10:30 pm: Yikes! McCain just passed Thompson, still too close to call. On the dem side, Hillary is done. Edwards takes second.
Huckabee 31,508 34% 0 78% reporting
Romney 23,682 25% 0
McCain 12,520 14% 0
Thompson 12,484 13% 0
Paul 9,132 10% 0
Giuliani 3,321 4% 0
Hunter 395 0% 0
Obama 899 38% 14 96% reporting
Edwards 716 30% 12
Clinton 705 29% 13
Richardson 50 2% 0
Biden 22 1% 0
Uncommitted 3 0% 0
Dodd 1 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Update 11:00 pm: Wow. Fred is back in third w/ 85% of the vote in.
Huckabee 35,257 34% 0 85% reporting
Romney 25,995 25% 0
Thompson 13,786 14% 0
McCain 13,473 13% 0
Paul 9,992 10% 0
Giuliani 3,571 4% 0
Hunter 452 0% 0
Update 12:00 am: Results coming in very slowly now.
Huckabee 35,621 34% 0 86% reporting
Romney 26,524 26% 0
Thompson 13,932 13% 0
McCain 13,693 13% 0
Paul 10,184 10% 0
Giuliani 3,613 4% 0
Hunter 458 0% 0
Update 12:30 am: The dem results are final and we’re at 93% on the Republican side. Looks like Fred may be safe in third.
Huckabee 38,605 34% 17 93% reporting
Romney 28,367 25% 12
Thompson 15,044 13% 3
McCain 14,749 13% 3
Paul 11,232 10% 2
Giuliani 3,853 4% 0
Hunter 499 1% 0
Obama 940 38% 16 100% reporting
Edwards 744 30% 14
Clinton 737 29% 15
Richardson 53 2% 0
Biden 23 1% 0
Uncommitted 3 0% 0
Dodd 1 0% 0
Gravel 0 0% 0
Kucinich 0 0% 0
Posted in news, politics, Wordpress Political Blogs | Tagged: caucus, iowa, iowa caucus | 7 Comments »
Absolute Moral Authority 