McCain's crazy pastor buddy

I'm sure we'll hear as much outrage in the corporate media about this guy as we did about Jeremiah Wright. Right? Anyone? Hello....?

John Hagee, the controversial evangelical leader and endorser of Sen. John McCain, argued in a late 1990s sermon that the Nazis had operated on God's behalf to chase the Jews from Europe and shepherd them to Palestine. According to the Reverend, Adolph Hitler was a "hunter," sent by God, who was tasked with expediting God's will of having the Jews re-establish a state of Israel.

Anyone care to place bets...

...on how long it will take one of those vicious right-wing commentators--Ann Coulter, perhaps?--to say how glad they are that Ted Kennedy apparently has brain cancer? I give it until the end of the day, tops.

It's interesting that the HuffPost has disabled comments on that story--obviously they know what to expect.

UPDATE: Minor-league right-wing talker Michael Savage is the winner, coming in with a tasteless comment the very same day, as I predicted. I'm disappointed in Coulter -- she's off her game this week!

Lots going on at the moment

Traveling, visiting relatives, going back to a place that I have dearly loved for nearly half my life now. Finally getting to meet the two children of a dear old friend. Imagining the fantastic photo opportunities offered when my Peanut, with her mahogany hair, golden skin and dark, dark eyes, gets together with my friend's gorgeously white-blonde, blue-eyed 3-year-old, born exactly two weeks after the Peanut. Trying to imagine the insane levels of cuteness involved here -- a 3-year-old and a 5-year-old with English accents! Just too cute for words!

Photos to come...

Peanut baffled by my musical taste

Since Air America (with the exception of Rachel Maddow, who is still great) has turned into an infotainment clownfest similar to the traditional media, I no longer listen to it in the car on our XM Radio. Lately I have gotten into XM's 80's station, which allows me to re-live my musical youth.

The other day Journey's "Hopelessly in Love" came on as the Peanut and I were driving home. I hadn't heard this song in years and I enjoyed it to an almost indecent extent. Bopping my head along to the music, I flipped down the rear-view mirror to glance at the Peanut. "Isn't this song the best? This is from when Mommy was a kid!" I said. "Don't you love it?"

"No," she responded. "I don't like it when they yell."

Evidently she doesn't appreciate the vocal stylings of Steve Perry. I can't imagine why not...


UPDATE: Here's a link to a YouTube video of Journey performing this song. Man oh man Steve Perry is an ugly dude. Enjoy the craptacular early-80s outfits and hairstyles! (I take comfort in the fact that since I was 11 years old in 1980, I can't be held responsible for whatever I wore then.) Still a great song though!

On my reading list today

To find out how we can (just maybe) pull our ailing planet back from the brink, visit here and here.

To learn about some of the many things younger than John McCain (velcro! the Golden Gate Bridge! DICK CHENEY!) go here.

And still more

My lovely Peanut.

More fun with the new digital camera

Mr. Fraulein and the Peanut and me, and Boston's Commonwealth Ave. in bloom.

Mother's Day 2008

Me and the Peanut, checking out the 100th annual Lilac Sunday at the Arnold Arboretum, and enjoying breakfast at Johnny's Luncheonette.

Two years ago tomorrow

On May 9, 2006, we said goodbye to our beloved cat, Marcus, as he lost his brave fight against cancer. He was a big, longish-haired black kitty with the sweetest disposition you can imagine. One of my favorite writers, Anne Lamott, once described one of her dogs as "Jesus in a little fur suit," and that's kind of how I think of Marcus. So meek and loving and kind. We used to call him the Mighty Panther and the King of the Jungle. I truly hope he is living it up in Kitty Heaven at this very moment. Here's my post from not long after he died.

Rest in peace, my little buddy!

Constant company

One thing anyone with small kids will tell you is that it's hard to get any alone time, even in the "potty." Our mornings are generally somewhat chaotic with trying to get ourselves and the Peanut fed, take showers, pack lunches, etc., with the goal of getting out the door sometime before, say, noon. So inevitably when I try to get in the shower, this happens:

Peanut: Hi mommy! Are you taking a shower?

Me: Yeah, I just turned the water on, so why don't you go help Daddy with your lunch and...

Peanut, slapping me on the behind as I lean over next to the bathtub: Can I play the drums on your butt? (Slapslapslapslap. Gigglegigglegigglegiggle. Slapslapslapslap.)

Me: OK, that's enough of that, I have to get into the shower now...

Peanut: Do you want a toy? I'll bring you a duckie.

Me: Sure, I'll take a duckie.

Peanut: Do you want ALL the bath toys?

Me: No, one is enough, thanks, don't throw all that stuff in here...

Peanut, with an armful of squeezy bath animals, opening the shower doors and leaning into the water spray: Here you go! Whee!

No filter

(You'll have to forgive the vagueness of this rant, but it's something I'd like to get off my chest without disclosing too many details...)

Did you ever know somebody with no filter? Someone who will just say anything--particularly if it's boastful and self-aggrandizing--regardless of the inappropriateness of the setting in which he or she is shooting off his or her mouth?

I have to spend a good chunk of my life in close contact with a person like this. As an added bonus, it is hard to have a relatively normal conversation of any kind with my No Filter person, which, for reasons I can't go into here, I need to at least TRY to do several times each week. He/she occasionally exhibits all the social skills of a small child suffering from autism--except this ain't a kid. And he/she doesn't have any kind of mental disability as far I'm aware.

So I end up sitting mutely through this person's commentary to third parties standing three feet away from me about, for example, his/her ex-flame which his/her spouse is still SO jealous of (as if I give a shit). And this person's odd criticisms of his/her own children. And his/her really unfunny jokes about current events (that situation in Austria where the father imprisoned his own daughter in the basement and forced her to bear 7 of his children--THAT was a real knee-slapper...)

They ought to give classes in social skills for adults. Except the people who need them the most, like this person, probably wouldn't go.

May Day 1990

Eighteen years ago today I was in Oxford for my college junior term abroad. Every May 1 there is a huge celebration in Oxford for May Day. The night before we said, we are definitely getting up at daybreak tomorrow to head into town for this. We have to see the bridge jumpers! Hear the singing! Have a beer at 6 a.m.!

The next morning, we didn't get up. And every May 1 since, and probably every May 1 for the rest of my life, I'm going to regret that I didn't get to see it when I had the chance.

(Photo credit MSNBC)

"Testicular fortitude"

This makes me kind of sick: the whole idea that in 2008 we are still equating "toughness" exclusively with being male. The nitwit in this video thinks he's giving Hillary Clinton the ULTIMATE compliment by saying she's so tough, she's almost like a man! Give me a break. Show me one man on this planet who wouldn't break down into hysterics if he had to go through pregnancy (especially a rough one) and childbirth (particularly unmedicated, the way most of the women in the world have done for centuries).

However you feel about Hillary--and I'm not liking her much at the moment--you have to admit that you need a special brand of boldness to put yourself out there in the public sphere the way she's done, especially post-Monica Lewinsky. Hillary has been very popular as a U.S. senator. Whether she ought to be running for the Presidency is debatable, but she's obviously tough.

She's got ovarian fortitude, if you will.