What is Left? What is Right? Does it matter?

An interesting thread at tcp. My favorite is when pat buchanan calls CPAC, "the Komsomol Kids."

MLK's Assassination -- 39 Years Ago

Last week marked the 39th Anniversary of Martin Luther King's assassination.

A believable theory of how MLK's legacy works in America today was offered by James P. Pinkerton.

Why are we holding Kurdistan?

Nation building anyone? More to come.

"Not all of Iraq is like Baghdad" -- Zalmay Khalilzad

Sanandaj

I am, as an Irishman and as a logician, not in favor of partitioning countries to cover up bad nation building or failed imperialism, but I have to wonder why the US is allowing Kurdistan to be held in to the current abortive version of iraq-oidia. Are we doing favors for our lukewarm ally, Turkey? Are we using kurds for bait in the "democratization" of iraq? Are we using kurds as a human shield until we can set up permanent bases in their confines? Have we promised their oil to some other faction? Have we promised their oil to some cronies of bushco?

Here's a link to Kurdistani news. Here's a link to blogs on Kurdistan.

Which way to the front?

Cunning Realist nails it again. When will our-war-prez and our-war-prez-wannabee be able to answer this simple question?

Coincidentally, I am reading The Assassin's Gate: America in Iraq by George Packer. Dubya and straight-talk are excused somewhat since apparently no one has known the answer during the period from March 2003 to the present. Dick cheney has known an answer at various times, but there seems to be no correlation to the facts on the ground.

Top 50 (or so) Forelle TeeVee Shows

1. The Rockford Files
2. Curb Your Enthusiasm
   
3. Seinfeld
   
4. The Sopranos
5. Naked City
6. Twin Peaks
   
7. Boomtown
   
8. Harry O
   
9. Ernie Kovacs
10. Jackie Gleason
11. Sportsnight
12. Deadwood
    
13. The Steve Allen Show
14. Alfred Hitchcock
    
15. Buffalo Bill
16. Maverick
17. Get Smart
    
18. The Daily Show
19. The X-Files
20. The Colbert Report
    
21. The Bob Newhart Show
22. Newhart
    
23. Richard Diamond, Private Eye
    
24. Hill Street Blues
25. Boston Legal
26. Star Trek
27. Columbo
28. The Larry Sanders Show
29. Twilight Zone
    
30. All in the Family
31. The Late Show with David Letterman
32. The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson
33. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
34. The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
35. Sid Caesar (Your Show of Shows, etc.)
    
36. Cheers
    
37. Dragnet
38. You Bet Your Life
39. Red Skelton
    
40. The Wide World of Sports
41. The West Wing
42. Dirty Jobs
43. Monty Python
44. SCTV
45. Saturday Night Live
46. Bakersfield PD
47. The Night Stalker
48. Red Buttons
    
49. The Avengers
50. The Ed Sullivan Show
51. Gumby
52. Rocky and Bullwinkle
53. Tom Terrific
54. Modern Marvels

Please note, I was raised at a time when only one TV could be found in a home. My choices here are often dictated by the family's choices at the time. Thus, Steve Allen was the weekly choice, Ed Sullivan on rare occasions (elvis, johnny cash, the beatles), and no Perry Mason.

kf mini-review: Longitude

I suppose the reason Longitude had a relatively low RT% is because it was an A&E miniseries (4 hours long), never a theatre release. Nevertheless, it is hard to imagine any population of reviewers where 1 in 5 would not approve of this work. So I just chalk it up as an aberation of low numbers (5 reviews).

This tells the story of John Harrison and his invention of a reliable way to measure longitude -- before that time navigation was pretty much a question not of if you were going to wreck but when you were going to wreck.

Michael Gambon and Brian Cox are magnificent adversaries, science against power (not unlike today in the usa).

This is the better of the 2 greatest (non-pay-TV) miniseries, Lonesome Dove being the other. Roots was good as well but has not as yet made my list. For quality, intensity, and acting Longitude is in step with The Sopranos and Deadwood.

April Fools and a Full Moon

A perfect time to consider the achievements of the bush administration: