In the news...

Arnold Schwarzenegger caved to the administration's demand that the California National Guard troops be sent to the Mexican border to keep out the 'illegals'.

This whole thing is a bad idea for many reasons but the 'Oak's objections (and his about-face) seem to have been mostly financially motivated.

Probably some kind of payola going on in the background.

Dennis (The Menace) Hastert is now longest-serving GOP speaker of the House in U.S. history.

Seven years.

About six years, eleven months, three weeks, six days, twenty three hours, fifty nine minutes and some odd seconds too long if you ask me!

Some people will do anything for publicity. Anna Nicole Smith is pregnant. She's old enough to be a grandmother, has more plastic in her body than a used Geo and has probably consumed more recreation pharmaceuticals than the average English rock star.

'Nuff said.

Criticism of Dixie Chicks too extreme? Wait just a minute. Did anyone ever stop to ask just why the reaction to the lead chicken's criticism of the President met with such rancor? Many other celebrities have opposed our current and other presidents and have not been so ostracized. Many have been even more vocal and candid in their political statements.

Hey, maybe that could be it. The others were HONEST and FORTHCOMING in their criticism. Although the Dixie Chicks completely misunderstood and totally underestimated the intelligence of their following, they really did nothing wrong...

Nothing except that Natalie Maines chose to call Bush an idiot in front of a foreign audience, hoping no one back home would notice. These days, most anyone could walk onto a stage and call Bush an idiot and most people, including me, would nod in agreement and never give it another thought. But Ms. Maines tried to play both sides of the fence. To her loyal (perceived) Red-state American, tobacco-chewing, pickup-driving, gun-toting fan base, she kept quiet about her political opinions. But on the international stage, she catered to the (again, perceived) sophisticated and refined European mind by very imaginatively calling Bush an idiot. It was a deceptive and cowardly tactic (and not a particularly thoughtful putdown) that backfired on her in the absolute best possible way.

Question: Why did she not make these kinds of comments to an American audience?

Answer: Because she was afraid that her comments would hit her where it hurts the most - in her bank account.

Which is exactly what happened anyway.

He-he.