Monday, April 26, 2004

CNN - The Cheney News Network

The Right Wing Media machine has completed their takeover. I can appreciate more then ever why the local Right gets so riled up over the Star and Tribune's editorial section. My feelings for CNN (the new Cheney News Network) now rival that of FauxNews. My disdain for the National network Press is gut wrenching.

I have just spent the morning watching CNN, as I generally do while working at my desk. But the decpetive misleading defense voting record ad, now redone, has run FOR FREE, at least a half dozen times. Kerry has only been mentioned in negative context. It has been an All Bush, All Cheney, morning on CNN!

There is no balance anymore, there is no attempt to report in a non biased nature. The Big corporate media lap dogs are buttering up to GW because they know that he will allow them to grab bigger and bigger chunks of the pie.

This is totally disgraceful.

The Right likes to chide about the Left wing media, well, it doesn't exist, and it never has. It was merely another one of the Republican attempts to create a fact via their echo chamber.

Shows you what big money can do.

Flash
Where is the bottom?

An editorial blurb in a local rag talks about "The Welfare Cycle"
Welfare cycle
For four years in the late 1990s, welfare reform in the United States enjoyed a sort of virtuous circle. Welfare caseloads dropped sharply, leaving states and counties with more money, which they used to help remaining recipients find jobs more quickly. Since the recession of 2001, however, the virtuous circle has changed to a vicious cycle: Caseloads are rising and states are cutting budgets. Because of a reorganization and budget pressures in Ramsey County, for example, one major nonprofit employment agency has seen its welfare caseload rise from 800 to 3,600 families, while its counseling staff has actually gone down.
Where is the bottom? I ask my Right Wing friends and they say there will always be somewhere to cut to save the taxpayers money.

I guess I am not so sure. At some point there has to be a bottom to this. Just like there is a bottom to any economic environment. At some point, which many believe is now, we are trading funds to assist the unfortunate and under peforming, to pay for their incarceration.

See, the bottom can be identified when we realize that there is no more money to be saved. That we will not have a choice but to spend money on the growing population in our penal system OR to spend it on those who need guidance and assistance to remain productive tax paying members of our society.

Less government is a great buzz word during a campaign, but at what cost do we want to restrict the ability of government to keep our streets safer, our society more productive, and our homeland more secure!

Flash

Friday, April 23, 2004

NFL Player dies in Afghanistan

From CNN:
CNN: Former Cardinals safety was serving in U.S. Army in Afghanistan
Posted: Friday April 23, 2004 10:53AM; Updated: Friday April 23, 2004 11:03AM


WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former NFL player Pat Tillman was killed Thursday while serving as an Army Special Forces soldier on a mission in southeastern Afghanistan, Pentagon officials have told CNN.

Tillman, who walked away from a $3.6 million contract as a safety with the Arizona Cardinals to join the military after the Sept. 11 attacks, was in an area where numerous U.S. troops have been killed in battles with suspected al Qaeda and Taliban fighters.

He was serving as an Army Ranger, part of the Army's Special Forces. Tillman played for the Cardinals from 1998-2001.

More details are forthcoming.


[UPDATE] CNN has updated the story linked above:
He was serving as an Army Ranger, part of the Army's Special Forces. Tillman was a member of the 75th Ranger Regiment. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said a formal announcement was expected later in the day.

Spokesmen at the Pentagon and U.S. Army declined comment.

There were no immediate details on his death.

A military official, also speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that a soldier had been killed in action in Afghanistan on Thursday, but could not confirm that the soldier was Tillman.

Tillman played four seasons with the Cardinals before enlisting in the Army in May 2002.

His brother, Kevin, a former minor league baseball prospect in the Cleveland Indians' organization, also joined the Rangers and served in the Middle East.

He made the decision after returning from his honeymoon with his wife, Marie.

Tillman's brother, Kevin, a former minor league baseball prospect in the Cleveland Indians' organization, also joined the Rangers and served in the Middle East. They committed to three-year stints in the Army.

Tillman's agent, Frank Bauer, has called him a deep and clear thinker who has never valued material things.

In 2001, Tillman turned down a $9 million, five-year offer sheet from the Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams out of loyalty to the Cardinals, and by joining the Army, he passed on millions more from the team.

Tillman turned aside interview requests after joining the Army. In December, during a trip home, he made a surprise visit to his Cardinal teammates.

"For all the respect and love that all of us have for Pat Tillman and his brother and Marie, for what they did and the sacrifices they made ... believe me, if you have a chance to sit down and talk with them, that respect and that love and admiration increase tenfold," Coach Dave McGinnis said at the time. "It was a really, really enriching evening."

It was not immediately clear when Tillman went to Afghanistan.

The 5-foot-11, 200-pound Tillman was distinguished by his intelligence and appetite for rugged play. As an undersized linebacker at Arizona State, he was the Pac-10's defensive player of the year in 1997.

He set a franchise record with 224 tackles in 2000 and warmed up for last year's training camp by competing in a 70.2-mile triathlon in June.

Tillman carried a 3.84 grade point average through college and graduated with high honors in 3 1/2 academic years with a degree in marketing.

"You don't find guys that have that combination of being as bright and as tough as him," Phil Snow, who coached Tillman as Arizona State's defensive coordinator, said in 2002. "This guy could go live in a foxhole for a year by himself with no food."

Tillman and his brother Kevin last year won the Arthur Ashe Courage award at the 11th annual ESPY Awards.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

My hopes and prayers go out to all those who have experienced loss in our fight for freedom!

Tuesday, April 20, 2004

The release begins

Now, for every document released, find the corresponding document in the Bush record.

Kerry's Purple Heart citations (PDF)

Kerry's bronze and silver star citations (PDF)

Reports describing Kerry's wounds (PDF)

Flash

[UPDATE] The rest are HERE!

Does Bush have one of these, I'ld like to see it sometime.

We're aren't as think as you dumb we are

My favorite local Righty blogman, ole "Shoot from the Hip" Berg, is on another rant. You can tell when the Right is down,. They totally ignore the latest facts in the current news cycle (I am still waiting for his screed on the stellar performance of GW in last week's press conference. One on the misappropriations of funds to Iraq from Afghanistan will be a reach) and pull some boilerplate write up out of their drafts folder.

His latest screed is trying to defend the level of intellect necessary to be a "conservative". Of course, those of us leaning Left realize that if there was any level of actual synapse firing going on, they would realize how hollow their arguments are as they attempt to defend their misguided ideology.

I question the intellect of the Right due to their BLIND following of a man who doesn't even represent the mainstream views of their own party. Can you say "Spend and borrow!", total lack of fiscal responsibility, total lack of personal responsibility, total lack of comprehension to the effects of his decisions on the country he is suppose to be representing!

He starts by saying:
With all due respect to my liberal friends and relatives, it takes more brain, not less, to be conservative.
I'll give you this. When one has to defend false philosophies, and failed policies, it takes a certain level of smarts to make the lies sound believable! An ability the Right seems to excel at.

He later mentions how children are taught to help people, but by second grade:
From earliest childhood, we are all taught that you should help other people. A second-grader can articulate the main tenets of liberalism; give people what they need. That same second-grader has the same grasp of the consequences that Ted Kennedy does - "Who'll pay for it? Who cares! Someone will!"
Of course, the GW43 answer is "We will just borrow the money, so YOU (the second grader) Has to pay for it"

A fine lesson to teach, Borrow and spend and leave it to someone else to pay for!! Noble!*rolling eyes*

Later on:
But when you're a parent, sometime between second grade and high school graduation you have to teach your kids about consequences.
On consequences, I refer people to a Santana High School parent, in their statement to the Judge during the sentencing hearing:
You see, my parents taught me that you have the freedom to choose to do anything you want in life. You just don't have the freedom to choose the consequences for your actions. So you had better choose wisely, knowing that was the deal.
That is what I teach my children. And when you get the adolescent comment from them that says 'This is a free country" I use the above quote to explain to them what 'Freedom of Choice' means.

Mitch finishes with:
No, not all conservatives are brilliant - in fact, lots of single-issue conservatives (whether the issue is jet skis or gun control or abortion, as worthy as the issues are) deal just as much in jerking knees as the most myopic Wellstonian.
Which is what is mostly left in the middle of the Right wing. One issue (defense) stragglers. Thanks for pointing out your own greatest defect, Mitch.

Read his whole post, and let him know how inaccurate he might be!

Flash

Monday, April 19, 2004

Plan of Attack

On 60 Minutes, Woodward revealed the Bush administration grabbed $700 million from appropriations the U.S. Congress had earmarked for the war in Afghanistan and used it for Iraq war planning. Could this be illegal?
"Some people are going to look at a document called the Constitution which says that no money will be drawn from the treasury unless appropriated by Congress," he said. "Congress was totally in the dark on this."
The Right side of the blogoshpere is 'pindrop' silient on this, right now. Even more silent then they were regarding the Press Conference fiasco.

These lemmings have to wait for their talking points and marching orders from the RNC, and when they don't have any, or can't get to them, they don't know what to say.

They are soooo predictable!

Flash

[UPDATE] While the crickets are still chirping over on the Right, one of their higher ranking members in the Senate DOES issue a statement:
- CHAIRMAN OF THE SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE SAYS WHITE HOUSE DID NOT INFORM HIM: Sen. Robert Byrd (R-WV), who was Chairman of the Appropriations Committee (the committee the President was legally obligated to report money transfers to), issued a statement on 4/20/04 saying, "To the best of my knowledge the Bush White House provided no consultations as required by law about its use of funds for preparation for a war in Iraq in advance of those funds being spent. There is nothing contained in the Administration's quarterly reports indicating that projects were being funded to prepare for war with Iraq. If the Woodward allegations are true, then the Administration failed to abide by the law to consult with and fully inform Congress."

Saturday, April 17, 2004

They found Dru

The body of missing North Dakota student, Dru Sjodin, was found just outside of Crookston, today. Polk County, Minn., Sheriff Mark LeTexier simply said "Dru is home" as he tearfully made the announcment.

My heart goes out to her family and friends.

If you have kids, be sure to give them an extra hug tonight. If not, call someone you haven't talked to in a while and let them know you were thinking of them.

Flash

Thursday, April 15, 2004

The Lumber Puppies

Those of us in Minnesota aren't all that use to stellar professional sports performances. The ViQueens have been teasing us for years. Great teams, great talent, but no clutch! The No Stars had to change their name to just Stars, and the move to Dallas, before that franchise was able to capture the cup. The Twinkies are the anomaly here, having captured the big 'W' in 1987, and then a worst to first ride to the top again in the early 90's.

The 'Puppies', however, have performed down to the level of any Minnesota team. Always good enough to watch, great enough to win, but fail and fade miserably in the playoffs.

Last night may have changed all that. The mighty Timberwolves went into last night’s match-up riding an 8 game winning streak. But breathing down their neck was the Spurs, notching 10 in a row on their own. The winning streak for the Puppies didn’t seem to mean anything at this point, for tonight was a must win. The 'W' would clinch the #1 seed, and a Nugget team in the first round. A loss could drop them as low as 4 on the seed list.

It wasn't even close. The Puppies dominated right out of the gate. They lead by as many as 30 in the second half. The 17 point spread at the end was as misleading as a Bush intelligence briefing on Iraqi WMD's. The second stringers were out there, as the MV3 (Garnett, Cassell, Sprewell) were resting up for Sunday. This team showed it was more then just winning, it was about making a statement and grabbing the momentum going into the second season.

I've lived in Minnesota all my life, and have learned long ago not to overestimate any of our sport's franchises. But this feels a lot like 1987. The first time is the sweetest, and if we can get that first round monkey off our back, I don't think there is anyone who can stop us.

Flash

Wednesday, April 14, 2004

Upgraded Threat Alert Levels

Letter to the editor in this morning's Strib:
Threat Level Lemonade

Terror-alert levels, from lowest to highest:

• Low.
• Guarded.
• Elevated.
• High.
• Severe.
• Bush On Vacation

Monday, April 12, 2004

A Moment in Time

Soon after my divorce, in the fall of 1997, I fell in love with the most fantastic women in the world. I had vowed to never get married again, but my 'Lover' restored my faith in the sanctity of marriage, and the joys of being part of a family. She had one child, a son named Josh, who I have taken in as if he were my very own.

I remarried in June 2000. It was a bittersweet time as the morning after our return, we received an awful phone call. It was my mother-in-law calling to tell us that my new father-in-law had passed away. No warning, very sudden, and very heart wrenching. He was only 57.

My bride would hop on a plane that afternoon, to join her family. Josh was already there as he was planning on spending the Summer with his grandparents. His grandfather, 'PaPa' was the closest think he had to a stable father figure, and now he was gone.

Within a few days, I drove from the Twin Cities to Flint, MI to meet up with my wife and her family. I had spoke of my desire to go to Boston that Summer, but now, with the change in plans, we looked at a much broader opportunity. Josh and I had never spent an extended period of time together. With the difficult issues that needed to be dealt with during a sudden death, I offered to take Josh on a road trip. Him and I, alone, with an opportunity to be together, and learn more about each other.

Our travel goal was simple, a loop through the East, and stop when we can. Starting in Flint, sharing the front seat of a 1996 Grand Am, and a full cooler of sandwiches and beverages in the back, we traveled across Canada to Niagara Falls. We then B-lined to our first destination goal, Boston, MA. After spending the next morning at the Boston Art Museum (I wanted to see the over 30 original van Gogh's that were there. Simply awe inspiring!), we had lunch at the Bull and Finch (The original Cheer's bar) and then walked the Freedom trail.

Our next goal was The Big Apple. While I wanted to see the van Gogh's in Boston, Josh had his heart set on the 'Statue of Liberty'. We took the smart way in and totally bypassed NYC, choosing to come in through the back side and land in New Jersey. From there we worked our way to Liberty Park (I think) and rode the ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. We then hopped on another ferry for the trip to the financial district, and a subway ride to Times Square. During this ferry ride, I took what would become the most popular photo in our family, and one that I will always cherish. It is as powerful as it is poignant. I wanted to share it with all of you.

Here is a ten year old child, awed by the powers of mankind, as he looks off into the most powerful city in the world. Who would know what would happen just 13 months later.

Regardless of what is said on this blog regarding the 9/11 commission, the Bush White House, and the onslaught of rhetoric coming from both sides, I wanted you all to know, that I have my way of keeping things in perspective. This photo is one of them, the other, is the story of where I was on the morning of 9/11, and how it affected my life forever!

Flash

Thursday, April 08, 2004

They do listen once in awhile

Looks like St. Paul, over at Fraters just might take my advice.
Clarke Says Rice’s Testimony Bolstered His Claims

In an interview with Peter Jennings after National Security Adviser Dr. Condoleezza Rice's testimony to the 9/11 Commission, Dr. Clarke states:
I think that Dr. Rice's testimony today, and she did a very good job, basically corroborates what I said. She said that the president received 40 warnings face to face from the director of central intelligence that a major al Qaeda attack was going to take place and she admitted that the president did not have a meeting on the subject, did not convene the Cabinet.

She admitted that she didn't convene the Cabinet. And as some of the commissioners pointed out, this was in marked contrast to the way the government operated in December of 1999, when it had similar information and it successfully thwarted attacks.

So I don't see that there are a lot of factual problems with what Dr. Rice said.
The complete transcript is here.

Flash
More on Condi

While we listen to Dr. Rice this AM, here are some tidbits that I found in the local rag this AM. Here are my favorites from the list of 20:

She's a fitness buff who likes to unwind by working out to music by heavy-metal legends Led Zeppelin, according to People magazine. She wakes up at 5 a.m. and hits the treadmill right away.
Cool, she's a Head banger!
She once had a Chevron oil tanker named after her when she served on the company's board of directors. After concerns that her name made the ship a more inviting terror target, the tanker was renamed Altair Voyager.
Funny how this all seems to come back to oil with this administration.
She was a Democrat until 1982.
Flip-flopper
She's a huge football fan and loves the Cleveland Browns. She's said her "dream job" would be NFL commissioner.
NOOOOooooooo!!
When she was 14, a guidance counselor told her that her standardized test scores showed she wasn't college material.
We never said there was much smarts in this White House!
In February 2001, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told reporters he was distracted the first time he met her. "I have to confess, it was hard for me to concentrate in the conversation with Condoleezza Rice because she has such nice legs."
Ahhhhh, NOW we know why they keep her aboard!
She says she can fall asleep just about anywhere - even once in a helicopter flying over the Gaza Strip.
And intelligence briefings by Richard Clarke!
In 1993, after Rice left the White House, where she worked for the current President's father, to join the Stanford faculty, she told the San Francisco Chronicle the advice she'd give to President Bill Clinton about Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein: "He is an outlaw, but I would be careful about trying to do anything to act to overthrow him."
I wonder if she shared the same advice with GW.

Read them all, while you watch the hearing!

Flash

Wednesday, April 07, 2004

CONFIRM Molnau!

Open Letter to the DFL Senate Caucus"

Certain issues that present themselves, especially in an election year, must be dealt with expeditiously. The appointment of Lt. Governor Carol Molnau for Transportation Commissioner is one of them. You choose to drag this confirmation process out into eternity. I think it is time to move on to other pressing issues in the state.

I, too, have concerns about this administration’s chosen path. This includes the borrow and spend right wing approach to governing and the leveraging of our state's future and placing that burden on the next generation. But love it or not, they are the elected body to carry out the will of the people. There are no legitimate reasons, or issues, that should cause the denial of Governor Pawlenty's appointment of Lt. Governor Molnau. Molnau will carry the bidding of Pawlenty to the Department. The Governor's softening on the Northstar rail, and other transportation issues, should ease the fears you may have. In fact, no matter who is running the department, the very issues that concern us, are those coming from the top, and denying Molnau will not prevent that.

Members, let them govern. Give them a chance to complete the task they were elected to do. Holding up Molnau will not change anything, and will cause animosity along the path.

There are legitimate appointments out there, that the Senate DFL should be concerned about, but this is not one of them.

Please approve Lt. Governor Carol Molnau for Transportation Commissioner.

==

This is also being sent to my local Senator and the entire Transportation committee.

Flash
The Two Seasons of Minnesota, . . .

. . . Winter and road construction. Sometimes I wonder which is worse here in the great north. Although we all wait for spring with kiddy anticipation, we start cursing for different reasons.

Yesterday, acting Transportation Commissioner (and Lt. Governor) Carol Malnau unveiled this years' grocery list of repairs.

The meatiest on the hit list:
MnDOT engineers picked six maintenance projects they expect to cause particular pain for drivers because there is no way around closing lanes:

o This month, the resurfacing of the Cayuga Bridge on Interstate Hwy. 35E north of downtown St. Paul will narrow the freeway from three lanes to two.

o In July, one lane of Hwy. 36 will be closed in each direction from I-35E to Hwy. 61 to paint four bridges in the Little Canada area.

o This month, Interstate Hwy. 94 through Washington County to the St. Croix River will be reduced from three to two lanes for pavement resurfacing.

o In July, Hwy. 169 will be narrowed from two lanes to one for bridge repairs at Crosstown Hwy. 62 and Minnetonka Blvd.

o During weekends in July, segments of I-394 will be closed to allow for repaving from Minnetonka to Minneapolis.

o In May, I-494 in the northwest will be reduced to single-lane traffic for four weeks northbound and two weeks southbound for bridge repairs.

Said engineer Mark Panek: "These are not real showy or pricey projects, but they will create some problems this summer."

Nothing on the list looks all that bad for me personally, but I am sure that will change the next time I am caught in traffic because of them. As long as the I-94 corridor into downtown Minneapolis is clear, I'll be fine. I would hate to be late for a tapping.

Flash

Tuesday, April 06, 2004

The Reality of the Right

Ole 'Shoot from the Hip Shot in the Dark' Berg, made a comment to my review of his newborn Northern Axis Radio show. He said I was 'killing him' when I said: "Their farfetched, twisted, and mostly inaccurate take on reality is good for chuckles once in awhile."He followed up with:
you may not LIKE the reality we discuss, but there's nothing farfetched or twisted about it. It's the indisputable truth in every way, as no other show in the Twin Cities can do.
Hmmmmmm, "Indisputable truth in every way" Would this be the real truth, or the truth according to George. I don't know if we dare get into a list of the fallacies and misleading information being spewed from this administration, but I can be sure of one thing. ANYTHING said by Rove and the boys is presented as the 'Gospel according to George"

Don't get me wrong, I don't give the Shrub in waiting that much credit to have a thought of his own that he can stick to. His waffling of late is enough to make stock in Aunt Jemima skyrocket with all the syrup needed to digest his weebeling!

During this election cycle, even the Right is willing to sacrifice their own morals and beliefs to perpetuate the misleading, unforgiving tripe of their fearful leader. I hear from them all the time 'off the record'. but you won't see them post it. This Tax and borrower is driving the economy into no man's land, but that is worth it, they say, because 'Steady Leadership' is needed in 'Times of change'

They are actually willing to toss the baby out with the bath water to hold on to the last hope their candidate has, and that is the war on terror.

The admitted and documented Republican, Richard Clarke, was even drawn and quartered by the attack dogs. To coin Berg, 'They eat their own'

Rather then grocery list let's just concentrate on the two main commercials that Rove has unleashed on the airwaves:

GAS TAXES: Kerry never voted for, nor sponsored legislation proposing such a hike. There was a single answer to a single question involving deficit reduction where Kerry mentioned he could see himself supporting the possibility. However, that wouldn't be the impression you would get from The Attack Dogs. They mislead you into thinking it is part of a broad-based tax plan. That would make as much sense as 'outing' GW's chief economic advisor, N. Gregory Mankiw.

Mankiw wrote in 1999, before climbing aboard BushCo, support for a 50-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax increase. Mankiw's article was in relations to an income tax cut proposal. Kerry, who did support a 4.6-cent increase in gas taxes, was for deficit reduction.

DEFENSE: Kerry is not weak on Defense, even Republican Senators McCain and Hagel have come to Kerry's defense on that. Even with the GOP thumbscrew brigade butchering every dissenter that breaths wrong, we STILL have member so their own party calling the kettle black. The Majority of the votes to reduce defense, which BushCo touts in their commercials, are relics of the post Cold War 'peace dividend" PROPOSED BY THE GOP ADMINSTRATION. Ironically, the current Veep, Cheney, who was then Defense Secretary, was the one who proposed most of them. Kerry supported this 1991 REPUBLICAN proposed defense appropriation bill, in a show of bipartisan 'Unite not Divide' force, and now the Repubs are using it against him. Cheney even laid into the Democratically controlled Congress for not cut more weapons systems. "Congress has let me cancel a few programs. But you've squabbled and sometimes bickered and horse-traded and ended up forcing me to spend money on weapons that don't fill a vital need in these times of tight budgets and new requirements. … You've directed me to buy more M-1s, F-14s, and F-16s—all great systems … but we have enough of them."

Also, the 1.5 billion-dollar cut in Intelligence spending was simply to regain control of already appropriated funds for a non-existent Spy Satellite. In a WaPo article from a few weeks ago, we have this:
The $1.5 billion cut Kerry proposed represented about the same amount Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), then chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, told the Senate that same day he wanted cut from the intelligence spending bill based on unspent, secret funds that had been accumulated by one intelligence agency "without informing the Pentagon, CIA or Congress." The NRO, which designs, builds and operates spy satellites, had accumulated that amount of excess funds.
. . . . and people wonder why it is so hard to get things down in Washington. Even when you do the right, proper, and correct thing, it gets used against you, many years later!

Sorry Mitch, and the rest of your tribe, I am surprised you folks can figure out who's on your side.

Flash

[UPDATE] I was pointed to this NYTimes article:
"Let us rid ourselves of the fiction that low oil prices are somehow good for the United States," Cheney, 1986
read it all for the context!

Monday, April 05, 2004

The Northern Axis Radio

I've spoken of The Northern Axis Alliance Radio Network before. It is actually a good idea. The premise is to take a group of bloggers with similar mindsets, in this case Righty Tighty, and place them in a Roundtable setting to hash through the latest political events in the news.

Now 'hacks' is probably too strong a word, but you can sure tell where some of them are getting their talking points. The first week or two had a level of novelty to it, and I was willing to give them a fair shake. Lately, however, their schtick has grown tiring.

The show runs three hours, and begins with a 'Week in Review". What it is in reality is a Kerry bashing session. In the first three weeks of the show, the first hour provided absolutely NOTHING in terms of true substance. It was simply a Kerry punching bag wrapped around the latest news, nestled in a bunch of lies that they know they don’t have to worry about defending.

The middle hour is generally the best hour of the show. They have had good guests set up and I have actually enjoyed this segment. The best guest to date was State Education Commissioner designee Yecke, whom was on the hot seat for a little bit, although most of the time, the Q's are pretty cream puffy. Anyone can sit on the phone and throw softballs. This certainly is one area which the 'boys' can improve on during their show.

Finally, we roll into the last hour, which again, is just more Kerry bashing. It amazes me that this groups of relatively intelligent adults can’t find anything good to say about GW other then 'Bush is better then Kerry'. To their credit, I guess in the third week, Mitch did claim to pump up Bush without being anti-Kerry, but I missed that segment. I had already grown tired.

Most recently, on this past Saturday’s show, they lit up their switchboard (for the first time I am sure) with callers furious of their damnation of the Lady Gopher's trip to the Final Four. This group of Baseball junkies, who talk all winter long about how they can’t wait for the Season opener, had the gall to say 'Women's Basketball is Boring". Well, so is watching grass grow, and at the Metrodome, you can't even do that. That tells you how exciting things can be in that sport.

So if you are a singer in the Republican Choir, tune in to hear more of the same you heard all week from the rest of the Right Wing spin machine, and if you are a lefty, tune in for the humor. Their farfetched, twisted, and mostly inaccurate take on reality is good for chuckles once in awhile.

Flash