Potpourri on a Sunday Evening

OBSESSIVE SARAH PALIN STUFF

1. For all that she’s the darling of the conservative set, Palin is being kept under wraps and away from interviews, despite earlier plans (FLASHBACK: In July, McCain Promised His VP Pick Would…). This is apparently according to openly-admitted plan (McCain Campaign Plans To Keep Palin Away From The…, Sarah Palin has yet to meet the press – Michael Calderone…), since nobody cares about journalists along long as Our Ms. Sarah is talking (via speech-writers) direct to the American people who love her. That said, the GOP has finally realized that it seems kind of odd that she’s ostensibly fully qualified to stand up to the Russians, but not talk to the press, thus, Palin agrees to interview – Mike Allen – Politico.com.
2. Jim Wallis: Palin Owes Some Good People An Apology. Yeah, the whole series of slams against “community organizers” was pretty low — esp. when you consider the whole “Thousand Points of Light” thang that Bush Sr. was all about.
3. Letter from Wasilla – Not some distant Harvard elitist here, but someone who’s been around Ms. Palin since her early days. No wonder Karl Rove likes her.
4. Do Democrats Need To Learn Some Respect? – Again, criticism about Palin (or any candidate, for that matter) has to be directed toward her, not toward the ideas and values and “lifestyles” of those to whom she appeals. 
5. Happy Hour Discurso – On the other hand, don’t worry about all those back-home scandals haunting Gov. Palin — they’re being quashed by the Republicans.

SEMI-OBSESSIVE NON-PALIN POLITICAL BITS

1. Words They Used – 2008 Political Conventions – Interactive… – Words mean things. The most amusing item here is that, despite Rudy’s rant, the Dems actually mentioned 9/11 more than the GOP folks tracked. And here’s some additional analysis of sentences, and who was displaying the most ego by talking about himself so much (Comparisons).
2. John McCain Cancels Habitat For Humanity Event – Was it embarrassment about the whole “how many houses?” thing? Or the fact that the previous day his running mate (and crew) had spent the evening slamming community activists … like Habitat for Humanity?
3. Out of Touch Watch Part 7 – The whole “elitist” taunt by the GOP toward the Dems is … pretty freaking weird, except as a desperate attempt to try and turn back criticism of their own wealth and prestige by making a demogogic populist appeal toward workers and small town folk.
4. Rep. Chris Smith: ‘Our Students Must Find The God in Schools … – Goofball alert …
5. McCain Winning Coveted “Stock Photos” Demographic? – It’s easy to find black people for your convention photomontages when you can just pick and choose them from stock photos.
6. Heart Duo Furious Over Republicans’ Use of ‘Barracuda’… – Why do the Republicans keep getting in trouble with rock groups by using their tunes without asking permission? Where’s the RIAA when you need them?

JUST PLAIN WEIRD APOLITICAL STUFF

1. Amazon will sell OLPC laptops – Buy one, get one sent to a Third World country. Cool.
2. High Flight, 1960s TV sign-off shown on Mad Men – I remember this from those rare occasions when I was up to see a TV station shut down for the evening. Yes, they used to do that rather than cycle into reruns or infomercials.
3. Construct Layout Generator – CSS layout system. Very cool idea. Flagged for future reference.
4. How to Get Away with Buying a Playboy, circa 1970 – Kids are never quite as clever as they think they are. Cool parents realize that without taking advantage of it.
5. 2008 NFL TV maps – Fascinating look at how the NFL breaks out its game telecasts based on regional interest, stadium sales, and what the rest of the country might be interested in.
6.  Getting Started? The Answer is a Question – Interesting suggestion on how to get your gaming group to focus, either starting off, or (to my mind) mid-game. Cool.