If they can marry, why can't I?

Will someone on the far right please explain to me why convicted, incarcerated double-murderers have the right to marry but a law-abiding, tax-paying, vote-casting citizen cannot if he is gay

So much for the sanctity of marriage ...

So the Florida legislature has just overruled the state court in the case of that comatose woman. Whatever happened to separation of powers? That court had ruled based on existing law. So the new standard is every time we don't like what a court does we pass an ex post facto law? And what about the sanctity of marriage? This woman's HUSBAND is the one who sought the court order. But instead of honoring that, the legislature and governor sided with her parents. I know Florida, which is one of two states that prohibits gay people to adopt, will never allow gay marriage; but I didn't realize they were against supporting traditional marriage.

Wonderful news for Nancy LaMott fans. I cherish her six albums (plus the few others on whch she sings a track or two, including the soundtrack for the film Jeffrey) How wonderful to hear more from this most splendid artist, who left us too soon and young.

I can't help but fear that yesterday's black out was caused by terrorists testing to see what would happen if they conducted a relatively small-scale disruption to the power grid. Think about it: they targeted a known weakness (the Hart-Rudman report identified it; see p. 27) and probed to see what the effects would be and how we would respond. And what did they learn: no wide-spread pandemonium, no panic, no looting - but also no advanced warning and no way to prevent it. Could this be similar to the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center - a not-so-subtly signalled preview of awful things to come?

Arianna is toast. No candidate can survive such a disclosure. Even though she broke no laws and did exactlty what the tax code allows, people don't want to elect someone who pays less than they do it taxes.

Now that's a smart dog!

I've been shuttling between Washington DC and Boston a lot this summer and have been joined on my travels twice by leading lights of the US Senate - Joe Lieberman and Ted Kennedy. The difference between the two? Lieberman flew first-class while Kennedy took an aisle seat in an exit row in coach (alright - so I'm not sure how comfortable I was entrusting my safety to him in case of an emergency.....). And within 30 minutes of landing at Reagan National Kennedy took the Senate floor to fight against William Pryor's judicial nomination; Lieberman, met by a state trooper on arrival at Logan Airport, was heading to a New Hampshire fundraiser.

The latest right-wing screed against gay marriage and in support of a constitutional amendment to outlaw same comes direct from the Senate Republicans. Notice how their central arguments against gay marriage seem to flow from the consequences of gay divorce - specifically as it would affect child support and the division of property. So the assertion isn't that recognizing loving same-sex relationship is the problem, but rather the (presumed) likelihood that such unions will fail. Could this be more evidence that the greater threat to marriage is not gay marriage but the way divorce laws have evolved in the past three decades? Strange how the focus is on marriage as a legal institution, not a "sacrament," which is a positive development as far as the separation of church and state.

David Brooks is probably the most insightful social analyst writing today, not to mention one of the hardest working - how many jobs does this guy have (The News Hour, Atlantic Monthly, Weekly Standard, NYT Magazine)? His new place on the NYT op-ed page may be a sign that the paper is finally back on track. Now if they'd only dump that gas-bag Krugman....

Pennsylvania's Senator Rick Santorum is an idiot who should refrain from trying to strain his tiny mind by attempting to make nuanced legal arguments. First, bigamy has to do with the regulation of marriage, which we know both states and the Federal government do (ever hear of the "Defense of Marriage Act"?). Second, bestiality is an act which by its very nature occurs without the consent of the animal, so it cannot be properly compared to homosexual activity between consenting adults. As for incest, well...he may have a point regarding the similarity, but when was the last time you heard that someone was was arrested for committing incest? How about NEVER?!

Yo, Adrien!: His win was the most thrilling moment I've had in almost 30 years of Oscar viewing.

Wait - you're supposed to love thy neighbor, not pile snow in front of his driveway

I've waited long enough: it's time to post my top Oscar picks:

Picture: Should win - Chicago; Will win: Chicago
Actor: Should win - Adrian Brody; Will win: Daniel Day-Lewis
Actress: Should win - Julianne Moore; Will win - Renee Zellweger
Supporting Actor: Should win - Chris Cooper; Will win - John C. Reilly
Supporting Actress: Should win: Meryl Streep; Will win - Catherine Zeta-Jones
Director: Should win: Rob Marshall; Will win: Rob Marshall
Adapted Screenplay: Should win: Adaptation; Will win: The Hours
Original Screenplay: Should win: Far From Heaven; Will win: Far From Heaven

I've been tuning into the BBC , which my local PSB station (KBDI) has been running on-stop. While they are slower to report new developments, and seem to rely a lot on Reuters and others, there is something comforting about listening to newpeople whom I don't know simply reporting the facts. And the fact that there are no US-centric assumptions, and certainly no jingoism, doesn't hurt eitehr.

FoxNews is leading the pack in war coverage, IMHO. They are breaking news - reports of oil fires, new scud attackes, caution about the Saddam video tape. Shep Smith did a wonderfully even-handed job of straight "we report, you decide." Who knew Dan Rather would start to grow on me after all these years? I find myself tuning in to him more and more, and to Peter Jennings less and less. Dan makes up for the teadiousness of his quirky, homespun colloqualisms with strong, clear reporting. I noticed this first after the shuttle disaster in January. Peter, on the other hand, seems so flip sometimes, and hardly unbiased in his commentary. And why does a great reporter like ABC's John McWethy seem to be relying on general knowledge, when CSB's guy at the Pentagon, David Martin keeps sharing new, breaking information each time Dan turns to him in his tiny cubicle?

The snow continues to fall for the second day in a row, and they're saying it will continue until tomorrow. I guess we need the moisture - but boy, this snow sure is heavy! Here's what the house looks like:

After talking David into playing hookey with me this noontime, we went to see the first showing of The Hours. The film is true to the spirit and tone of Cunningham's novel, and David Hare has done a wonderful job of presenting fully-realized characters without resorting to voice-over or stilted soliloquies to represent their rich interior lives. A perfect cast, not an untruthful note in any performance.

So, I've finally gotten it together and have joined the blogger brigade. As a daily reader of blogs [AS, Jonno, JMM], I figure that from time to time I have enough of my own ideas that other people might like to read (or not, in which case I don't care since I'll be posting anyway). So, in this space you'll find my random rants and exortations about politics, culture, world events, and of course my life - shared here in Boulder, CO with my man and my dog.

So, in today's NYT Elvis Mitchell writes about actors who decide to direct feature films and their motivations for so doing, and the only actress-turned-director he can mention is Penny Marshall? How's about Barbra Streisand, who's directed three feature films, won a Golden Globe award for best director (Yentl), and whose work has resulted in a handful of acting nominations for her cast members as well?