my thoughts ... with a roadmap!

When the government limits who can vote, things like this happen. I realize that the government did not outright disenfranchise public housing residents, but banning voter registration isn't exactly progressing an inclusive America. If I had the time and inclination, I might find try to find examples of Democrat shadiness, but I have neither.

Or maybe Republicans are trying to get out the vote, as this story from the Onion suggests.

[from politics to kids]

I overheard a little boy say, "Auntie, my dad says Bush is a liar because he saw this movie called, um, um, Fahrenheit, um, 9/11," to which the aunt responds, "You better go tell your daddy he's wrong!" What will we all talk about come November 3rd?

[from one kid to another]

I love Halloween. It's the best to be a kid in a clown suit strutting around in a restaurant and not the least bit self-conscious your huge multi-colored jumpsuit.

[from confidence to lameness]

My Contracts class was cancelled yesterday, so some classmates and I went to a local Italian restaurant at lunch. When it came time to pay for the bill, I calculated my share ($8 X 1.25 to account for tax and tip), and then it hit me: the last time I had to do this was when I ate with my friends in Chicago. In other words, I haven't eaten a nice meal with my peers in 2 1/2 months. When Adrienne and Tedd visit, I'll be like a woman who's travelled through the desert with no water. Only a few more days away ...

adding to the mix

I wished for an end to all the gross descriptions of Curt Schilling's ankle (heroic, yes; but ultimately stomach-turning), and the media gods granted my wish. Too bad I got Schilling's Bush endorsements instead (see here)

"I'm not your monkey"

I have no access to cable, so this might be old news already. Jon Stewart was on Crossfire to promote his new book, and instead of being his usual funny self, he called the hosts on their lack of journalistic integrity -- to put it mildly. Among the highlights are Stewart telling the host that he should go to journalism school, pointing out the purpose of bow-ties for 35-year-old men, and calling the host a dick.

When I grow up, I want to be like Jon Stewart.

priests and points

A classmate and I were talking today about priests today . She's orthodox Christian, and in her church, a man must be married before he can become a priest. They believe that a priest who has never had a family is not qualified to give family advice to his congregation. Nor can he really understand his role as "father" of the congregation. Also, they believe that celibacy would actually backfire because a man is unlikely to resist today's sexual temptations forever.

This makes more sense to me than Catholicism. It's hard for me to get serious about church again after the latest wave of molesation accusations. I realize that the issue concerns individual priests, but you can't compartmentalize the church from its ministers. Sometimes I think organized religion is not the only way to reach God, but that feels like a cop-out too. Look at me, thinking about religion again. Religion is so much more appealing to me when people aren't constantly telling me what to think.

On a unrelated note, Westlaw and LexisNexis are the two leading internet legal research companies who are in heavy competition for law students. They both give points for every time you research, and if I get 19,000 points on Westlaw, I get a mini Ipod. Need some legal research done? Ask me, and I'll let you listen to my Ipod in the next year or two.

a hazard of being in l.a.

I can't wait for mini-skirts to go out of fashion. If you have to keep your arm stretched behind your rear to avoid inadvertant flashing, it's too short. If people can see how little underwear you're wearing when you're walking down the stairs, it's too short. If you have to sit on the edge of your seat to prevent obscenity, it's too short. My delicate sensibilities can't take it anymore!

why (obviously) lie?

During the vice-presidential debates, Cheney alleged that last night was the first time he had actually met Edwards, thereby insinuating that Edwards hardly ever showed up for Senate.

On this morning's Today Show, however, Tim Russert spoke about how Cheney's remarks was a blatant lie and how Cheney and Edwards had been on Meet the Press together early this year.

The fact that Cheney and Edwards have met twice before does not disprove Cheney's allegations. If Cheney wanted to challenge Edwards' dependability, though, he could have easily done that without saying that he's never met the South Carolina senator before (i.e., without lying). What a dumb move. Blatant lies seem out-of-sync with Karl Rove's typically tight campaign. This, of course, does not preclude Rove's reliance on obtuse lies. Take Halliburton. Allegations and lies come up all the time, but the multiplicity of issues and the general public's lack of familiarity with government bid process decreases the risk of public outrage. Frankly, people don't understand and they don't care about Halliburton. But we regular folk can handle an easy analysis of last night's comment: either (1) Cheney met Edwards before, and or (2) he didn't. If it's (1), he lied. If it's (2), he told us the truth.

If there's some 1.5 hidden here, please educate me.

Bill O'Reilly also tackles the issue of lies but in a slightly different context -- a children's book. *shivers*

reconnection

I spent about 80% of yesterday working on my Contracts outline, and I finished only half of my goal. Being the anal retentive student I am, I would normally freak out in my quietly fuming way. But yesterday I re-connected with some friends gave me some peace of mind in my stressful little world.

One of the best feelings is when I talk to a friend after a long period of separation and it feels like time never passed. At dinner last night, I ran into my old doubles partner from high school. It's been over six years since I've talked to her, but she recognized me instantly. To be honest, there's no reason why she wouldn't, but you would think the brain would need some time to warm up to reach those tucked-away memories. We only talked for a few minutes, but the reunion was palpably exciting. I have friends with whom I've kept random contact since high school, but I haven't had an accidental encounter like this since my former crush delivered a pizza to my house four years ago.

And on a less dramatic though equally good note, I got calls from Sandra and Wayne yesterday after a few months of unintentional neglect.

Moments like this make me realize how quickly, rapidly, turbulently time flies, but they're also nice reminders of how people who've shared a part of your life can ground you along the way.