Goodbye to Moneypenny

According to CNN.com Lois Maxwell, who for years played Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond series, has died of cancer. She was 80 years old.

Something nice to say about the Bush Administration

Those of you who have perused previous posts clearly understand that I'm not a big fan of the policies of the current administration. And while the nominee for Attorney General, Michael Mukasey, may have some scary ideas about executive power, he did offer up the following opinion which in my mind makes him at least interesting.

Seems one beer maker was running an ad criticizing Coors for making beer that sucks. Coors filed suit in an effort to try to get the ad campaign stopped. (As an aside, I wonder if Coors supports so-called tort reform efforts because there are too many frivolous lawsuits. Seriously, if all those companies and individuals that support tort reform would stop filing silly suits they probably wouldn't have any reason to want tort reform in the first place.) But let's get back to the case at hand. Coors is feeling bad because they've been criticized in an ad campaign by a rival, they sue to stop the campaign.

Judge Michael Mukasey tosses out the suit by saying, according to the New York Times,

"De gustibus cerevesiae non scit lex"

I don't know Latin but the Times translated the phrase this way,

"…the law takes no account of taste in weak beer."

Finally, someone in the Bush administration takes a stand I can believe in.

I'll enjoy it while I can.

Blogging Austin Texas

I'm in Austin for about 24 hours. It is fun to be back. I had dinner tonight at a steak house called III Forks. The food was great. The service was great. The sales pitches were probably more aggressive than what I've experienced in other restaurants. Our waiter pitched pretty hard. For the most part we said no and avoided the expensive items.

We drank Zinfendel and Pinot Noir wine. It reminded me of something I read this week that said diners never order the cheapest bottle or glass of wine on a menu. People just don't want to look that cheap. So, most people order the second most expensive wine on the menu. What this article said is that as a result, most restaurants take a cheaper bottle of wine and make it the second most expensive. The article recommended going for the cheap glass or bottle.

I'm staying at the hotel San Jose. It is a funky, hip fun hotel in the SoCo district. I picked it because it is right across the street from the Continental Club and I liked the idea of having a beer and seeing some live music before I go to bed and there are few spots better in the world for live music than the Continental Club.

Tomorrow it's breakfast with friends, a work meeting, a quick drive past the old house and then a short flight home to Lone Tree.

Finding a memory on top of a mountain

Below is an e-mail I recently sent to the Program Director at WCCO-AM, 8-3-0 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Hi Wendy,

I wasn't sure who to share this with but I'm a native Minnesotan who now lives in Colorado. As I grew up in the 1970s and 1980s, first in Brainerd and then Luverne, my father kept our radio tuned to WCCO. We'd listen to Boone and Erickson in the morning and Steve Cannon in the afternoon. As a kid I'd sneak a radio into my bed at night and scan the AM dial trying to see what cities had stations I could pull in. I was fascinated by the idea that I could listen to radio stations from Cleveland, Louisville, Denver, Fort Worth and St. Louis while I was in a small town in Minnesota. I especially enjoyed catching a football, basketball or baseball game.

A few weeks ago, I spent Labor Day weekend at a friend's condo on a mountain about 1,500 feet above the town of Silverthorne, Colorado. Saturday night, the Gophers were playing their first game. My family and I went out to supper in Dillon, CO and as we headed back up the mountain to the condo I thought I'd see if I could find out how the game was going. I tuned the radio in our mini-van to the still familiar 8-3-0 and there was Dave Lee coming through as clear as could be. It was fun to listen to a bit of the game. And it brought back memories of those late nights when I was a kid, scanning the dial to find a distant station that was broadcasting a game.

Running for President without a brain or any common sense.

And some people think our current President is dumb. Read this quote from brand new Republican Presidential Candidate Fred Thompson as reported by the New York Daily News.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa - Freshly minted GOP White House hopeful Fred Thompson puzzled Iowans yesterday by insisting an Al Qaeda smoking ban was one reason freedom-loving Iraqis bolted to the U.S. side.

"They said, 'You gotta quit smoking,'" Thompson explained to a questioner asking about progress in Iraq during a town hall-style meeting.

Thompson said the smoking ban and terror tactics Al Qaeda used to oppress women and intimidate local leaders pushed tribes in western Anbar Province to support U.S. troops.

But Thompson's tale of a smokers' revolt baffled some in the audience of about 150 who came to decide whether the former Tennessee senator is ready for prime time.

"I don't know what that was about," said Jim Moran, 72, who had driven from nearby McCook Lake, S.D.

Life in Iraq

I just found this interesting blog written by an Iraqi woman. She's been living in Baghdad although today's post is about her getting out of the city and fleeing to Syria. I think it provides and interesting look at one person's experience in Iraq.

http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/

Are You Ready For Some Football

With the NFL season kicking off tonight I thought I'd offer you a preview of what's to come this NFL season. Just as I did a year ago on this blog, I offer you my predictions for each team's record as well as a road map to the Super Bowl.

First, the final standings will look like this as we head into 2008.

AFC North

Pittsburgh 12 - 4
Cincinnati 10 - 6
Baltimore 9 - 7
Cleveland 1 - 15

AFC South

Tennessee 13 - 3
Indianapolis 12 - 4
Jacksonville 5 - 11
Houston 3 - 13

AFC East

Buffalo 10 - 6
New England 9 - 7
NY Jets 4 - 12
Miami 2 - 14

AFC West

San Diego 14 - 2
Denver 8 - 8
Oakland 3 - 13
Kansas City 3 - 13


NFC North

Minnesota 16 - 0
Chicago 11 - 5
Detroit 10 - 6
Green Bay 4 - 12

NFC South

New Orleans 14 - 2
Carolina 5 - 11
Atlanta 5 - 11
Tampa 1 - 15

NFC East

Dallas 12 - 4
Philadelphia 11 - 5
NY Giants 5 - 11
Washington 5 - 11

NFC West

Seattle 11 - 5
St. Louis 10 - 6
Arizona 10 - 6
San Francisco 7 - 9


Now, here's what the playoffs will look like.

Wild Card Weekend

Cincinnati at Pittsburgh
Indianapolis at Buffalo
Chicago at Dallas
Philadelphia at Seattle


Divisional Playoffs

Indianapolis at San Diego
Pittsburgh at Tennessee
Seattle at Minnesota
Dallas at New Orleans

Conference Championship Weekend

Indianapolis at Tennessee
New Orleans at Minnesota

Super Bowl Sunday

Minnesota defeats Tennessee

Going a step too far

According to this story from the BBC, regulators in the UK have approved a proposal from scientists to make human-animal embryos. They want to merge human cells with animal eggs so that they might harvest the stem cells from the embryo.

I'm all for allowing stem cell research but I get scared when we start doing things like making embryos that are half pig and half person. I think it is a dangerous path to walk down and I think we have no idea whether or not the merger will be helpful or whether the merger might spawn some awful disease we've never even considered.

The problem with Larry Craig

So right-wing Senator Larry Craig of Idaho gets busted soliciting sex in a Minneapolis Airport bathroom. The political pundits go nuts, cable news has a story to beat to death and the Republican party forces the Senator to announce he will resign.

There is absolutely no reason Larry Craig should resign.

Is the guy a hypocrite? Yes.

Is the guy a liar? Yes.

Did he break the law? I doubt it. I can't believe that toe tapping constitutes lewd behavior.

Did he want to break the law and exhibit improper public behavior? Sure looks like it.

Are those reasons not to vote for him? Yes.

Is that a reason to resign your US Senate seat? Never. They'd all have to resign. Every single senator.

But you don't force a Senator to resign because he is struggling with dealing with the idea that he is at least bi-sexual and maybe gay. I spent six months working with the gay community in Portland, Oregon, and was shocked to learn what a rough thing it can be to come to terms with the idea that one is not straight. Then, to make matters worse, you have to announce it to your family and friends. The process is so brutal that the rate of suicide among gay teens is four times that of straight teens.

There is no glee in the downfall of Larry Craig.

I think the worst behavior in this case was committed by the Idaho Statesman. In a long story detailing years of rumors and innuendo about Senator Craig's sexuality, the Statesman included this bit of absolute proof Senator Craig must be gay,

Craig also took piano lessons in high school and was in the high school choir.

WHAT?!?!?!?!?

And that's what's wrong with this entire situation. If this story were about improper conduct in a public facility it would be one thing. It's not. It is about America's hang up with sexuality. A hang up that makes otherwise intelligent writers and editors point to interest in music as proof of homosexuality. Our unwillingness to have open, honest conversations about what it means to be gay, straight, bi and / or transgendered allows for the perpetuation of ridiculous stereotypes that are harmful to everyone.

That is why I believe there is no joy in the downfall of Larry Craig.

High Country

It is almost midnight Mountain time and I'm hanging out among the peaks in Colorado's Summit County. The windows are wide open as we expect a low temperature tonight in the 40s. We'll cuddle under blankets while we sleep. It is calm and a welcome break from travel schedules and suburban life.

We have no plans for this long weekend in the mountains. We simply want to be here. The five year old wants to hike. The three year old has a bum toe and wants to ride in a stroller. We'll have to find a happy medium.

On the drive up today, we stopped by the lake in Georgetown, Colorado and ate a sugar cookie. It was so simple. We didn't do anything elaborate. There were no picnic blankets or even any preparation. It was a family moment. We pulled off the highway, parked by the lake, got out of the mini-van and enjoyed being surrounded by mountains as we looked at the water and ate our sugar cookies. It was beautiful.