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The hottest topic in the progressive blogosphere.
Bush's approval rating falls in the South
"A new Elon University Poll shows support for President George W. Bush stands at 43 percent in five Southeastern states, while 52 percent of citizens disapprove or strongly disapprove of the job Bush is doing."
Source: elon.edu
Bush approval sinks in Indiana
"Only 37 percent of those surveyed last week think Bush is doing a good job as president, while 56 percent disapprove."
Source: indystar.com
"I’ve always wondered what it would take to get some of those Bush supporters to peel off.I used to think you’d need to have photos of Bush running naked through the Rose Garden chasing a little boy."
50 Cent: "I’m not supportive of the war, but I’m definitely supportive of the soldiers"
In a complicated transaction, an interviewer gives rapper 50 Cent a penny for his thoughts and gets his two cents worth on his upcoming role in a film about the Iraq war with Samuel L. Jackson.
“My character’s 22 years old. [The movie] shows the effects of war. That’s what’s exciting to me about it, because it’s totally relevant to what’s going on right now. It shows not just what happens to a person after killing, but what happens when there’s a lot of death around you. How your spirit changes. I actually went to perform for the soldiers in Iraq. I’m not supportive of the war, but I’m definitely supportive of the soldiers. A lot of people go [to Iraq] who were just trying to get a college education.” Source: rockrap.com
ABC refuses to air KFC commercial containing hidden message.
"Viewers can slowly replay it to find a message to enter on the fast food restaurant's Web site to get a coupon for a free sandwich. A University of Missouri advertising professor said he doesn't think it's a subliminal ad. In fact, he thinks it's just the opposite -- because people have been told to look out for the message. The Kentucky-based company is pleased with the results. It said more than 70,000 people have entered to receive coupons. The strategy is meant to counter the growth of new technology that lets viewers skip through commercials." Source: kcci.com
Hidden [subscribe to The Progressive] messages in [subscribe to The Progressive] commercials are [subscribe to The Progressive] bad even if [subscribe to The Progressive] they are just marketing [subscribe to The Progressive] gimmicks.
Fox execs support Santorum
"A simple search of Federal Election Commission records reveals that many News Corp. employees, including chairman and chief executive officer Rupert Murdoch, have made direct, personal donations to the Senator's re-election campaign, as well as other mostly Republican candidates. Records indicate that in November, 2005, Murdoch personally donated $2,100 to Santorum's campaign. This wasn't he first monetary gift Murdoch made to Santorum; the right wing media mogul shelled out $1,000 to elect the Senator in 2000." Source: rawstory.com
Could Sen. Lieberman win the Republican nomination too?
FDR used to say "you can judge a man by the enemies he's made." What does a primary challenger and talk of a cross-party endorsement say about the Senator from Connecticut?
"Lieberman, who has faced criticism from his own party for his support of the war in Iraq, will not accept a cross-endorsment, his spokeswoman said. "Would he accept the endorsement of the Republican Party? No, he is seeking the Democratic Party nomination," said Casey Aden-Wansbury, Lieberman's communications director. Lieberman did accept an endorsement from Republicans while seeking his second term in 1994. Source: boston.com
Jedi Skeptics
Every religion has its skeptics. Check out this site run by deniers of the Star Wars religion, The Force.
"Good against remotes is one thing. Good against the living? That's something else. If the Jedi ability to 'see' the Remote with their eyes covered and only the Force to guide them is so central to the Jedi's repertoire, then why do Jedi engaged in combat against opponents with real blasters always deflect the bolts with their eyes open?" Source: pw2.netcom.com/~rogermw
Forget Condi and Hillary. Vote Quimby!
We know more about The Simpsons than we know about the Constitution.
"A telephone survey of 1,000 random adults with an error margin of 3%, showed that 22% of Americans could name all five Simpson characters. By comparison, just one in 1,000 people could name all five First Amendment freedoms. The names of American Idol TV show judges and popular advertising slogans also proved more memorable than the five freedoms - speech, religion, press, assembly and petition for redress of grievances." Source: bbc.com
Candidate allegedly steals opponent's yard sign
"I swear occifer, I was just fixin' the sign."
"A Maryville [Tennessee] police officer says he watched a candidate for Blount County General Sessions Court judge carrying a campaign belonging to an opponent. The officer's report says when attorney Robert Maynard Cohen saw the policeman watching him, he walked back across the street and tried to put the sign back where it had been. The sign was for the campaign of Rocky Young, an assistant district attorney general who is running against Cohen for the judgeship. The police report says Cohen had an extremely strong odor of alcohol about him, had slurred speech and was unsteady on his feet. He wasn't charged with DUI because the officer didn't see him driving his truck, which was found parked nearby. He was cited for theft of property." Source: wate.com
What's good for one Mickey Mouse operation is good for another: Disney is hiring an intelligence analyst
The good news: someone is monitoring world events and worrying about security. The bad news: you'll have to pay admission and trade your car in for a teacup and saucer on wheels.
"THE POSITION: The analyst thoroughly reviews information from open/public sources, official sources, and professional contacts, and conducts regular assessments of world events, regional/national security climates, and suspect individuals and groups. The analyst produces a range of written and verbal analyses for employees and management of the company and provides tactical intelligence support to the company’s security and crisis management operators." Source: defensetech.com
Don't mess with history
Tired of that boring history with all those dates and facts? Try "alternate history," brought to you by the Texas Republican Party.
"The classroom has industrial carpet, fluorescent lighting and a projection screen. Tonight, the lights are out so the class can watch a video. On the screen, a man in a red tie and dark suit stands in an old-fashioned study. This is David Barton, vice chairman of the Texas Republican Party, champion of a controversial alternate history. On the screen, Barton talks about the Founding Fathers. Many of them were evangelical Christians, he says. He says that Benjamin Franklin called for prayer at the Constitutional Convention. He says that, through prayer, George Washington made himself bulletproof during the French and Indian War." Source: sptimes.com
Couple ties the knot under the golden arches
An Ohio couple got married this week under the golden arches. They exchanged their vows at a McDonald's near Dayton where they work together and met three years ago. Trisha Lynn Esteppe says she and Tyree Henderson couldn't imagine a more romantic spot to hold their wedding. So, Monday afternoon they walked down a white aisle laid on the restaurant's floor. They had a traditional ceremony – not far from the counter where customers continued to place their orders for Big Macs and Chicken McNuggets. They were married by the Reverend James Hartman, who says his first fast-food wedding was 'just wonderful.' " Source: news.aol.com
The marriage was not official until they pulled up to the second window.
We can't let bath towels and polyester pants fall into the wrong hands!
Want to get Homeland Security's attention? Forget having a levee break in your neighborhood, just pay too much on your JC Penney card! Walter and Deana Shoehng, a retired couple in Texas, paid the $6,522 balance on their JC Penney Platinum Master Card. Or, at least they tried to make the payment. The payment was red-flagged by Homeland Security and never applied.
"They were told, as they moved up the managerial ladder at the call center, that the amount they had sent in was much larger than their normal monthly payment. And if the increase hits a certain percentage higher than that normal payment, Homeland Security has to be notified. And the money doesn't move until the threat alert is lifted." Source: The Providence Journal
Today's Video: McDonald's
"There's clean. And then there's McDonald's clean."
There's frightening. And then there's 80's era McDonald's training film frightening. Video: Inside Custodial Duties.
Today's Bonus Video: Why Rush now sits in a small studio and has his calls screened
Watching someone, even the loathsome Rush Limbaugh, getting shouted down by a mob is never a pretty sight. This 1990 talk show footage features a panicked Rush getting pushed around by hecklers. He might be more worthy of our sympathy if he didn't begin the festivities by insulting people he's never met and then accuse his audience of the same when it happens to get sticky for him. Video
Today's Site: Make your own coffee roaster from a popcorn popper
If you haven't wasted enough time reading this page, learn how to turn an air-popper into a coffee roaster!