- Two new estate tax bills; Last months Conference on the Supreme Court
Posted November 30, 2009, 10:53 am
A discussion of preserving internet materials cited in opinions at the Federal Evidence Blog.
- An inconceivably bad monument.
Posted November 29, 2009, 1:09 pm by Ann Althouse
We are entering Empire State Plaza, that heinous monument to government waste and stupidity: Just around that corner is the expensive toilet displayed in the previous post. But continue on a few steps, and you will arrive at something beyond comprehension. This is what the state of New York has in its capital as a memorial to the victims of the 9/11 attacks: I hate to shock you over this, but I must insist that you take a few steps back and gaze with horror at the larger view:
- Expensive toilet.
Posted November 29, 2009, 12:58 pm by Ann Althouse
An all-too-inviting corner of the atrocity that is Empire State Plaza.
- "I don’t want to put you on the spot, but you sure deliver that song like a true believer."
Posted November 29, 2009, 12:44 pm by Ann Althouse
"Well, I am a true believer." Bob Dylan answers a question that was inspired by his singing of "O Little Town of Bethlehem" on his recently released Christmas album. Some critics don't seem to know what to make of this record. Bloomberg news said, "Some of the songs sound ironic. Does he really mean have yourself a Merry Little Christmas?" Is there any ironic content in these songs? No not at all. Critics like that are on the outside looking in....
- "There are surprisingly few hours in the middle of the night, if you get up at say 1am and start working on something."
Posted November 29, 2009, 12:36 pm by Ann Althouse
Said rhhardin, in the comments to the last post, the one about stopping at the welcome center in Pennsylvania. It's a sound observation, and it got me thinking about insomnia and whether it's worse in the winter when the nights are longer. If you're not going to sleep at all, don't you think it's easier in the summer when the night is over quickly?
- Stopping at the Pennsylvania welcome center at the New York end of I-90.
Posted November 29, 2009, 11:57 am by Ann Althouse
It's eerie late at night... At the foot of the "Pennsylvania Wineries" column, lies inebriated Santa: But don't worry.... "You can't make a wrong turn in Pennsylvania." IN THE COMMENTS: Palladian yells: "FROSTY THE SNOWMAN NOT SANTA." Oh, yeah! Good point. Ha ha. I need to get my American iconography straight.
- "If you don't fuck too hard, your painting will be all the spunkier for it."
Posted November 29, 2009, 11:34 am by Ann Althouse
Advice from Vincent Van Gogh: "I already told you last spring. Eat well, do your military drill well, don't fuck too hard; if you don't fuck too hard, your painting will be all the spunkier for it." It's your choice. Do you want spunky paintings or not?
- At the Stairwell Café...
Posted November 29, 2009, 5:55 am by Ann Althouse
... you can get down and dirty.
- "I am a local artist, who has created sculptings made up Duct-Tape.. 100% no wires, or fillers."
Posted November 29, 2009, 5:52 am by Ann Althouse
Dennis Gervasio has "created the illusion of pewter." His opposition to "fillers" may explain his shortening of the term "outsider art" to "outside art" and his penchant for the 2-dot ellipsis. His sign appears in the window of the Albany café called The Daily Grind - a locale also pictured in "Man in green sneakers reads Sartre. Dog arrives." The sculptings look like this, seen from inside the restaurant... ... and this, seen through window static...
- "I think it's funny that I, a black man, would never have considered the possible racial implications of that gargoyle."
Posted November 29, 2009, 4:55 am by Ann Althouse
The Crack Emcee said. Hell, I wouldn't have even cared - while two white folks are all concerned and ready to point the finger at,...who? What? History? Spare me. I, too, am joining everyone else in voting for Jimmy Carter - not because I actually saw him, but because I live in the here and now, and not somebody else's past. Give it a try. (By the way, Crack has a great blog.)
- Are we "still supposed to believe that his wife, Elin Nordegren, somehow turned one of Tiger's Nike SQ drivers into the Jaws of Life"?
Posted November 29, 2009, 4:23 am by Ann Althouse
"Woods was driving a Cadillac Escalade out of his own driveway, which is the same as driving a tank. He wasn't going fast enough to deploy his air bags. But we're supposed to believe that in a rescue worthy of the new series, 'Trauma,' his wife had to bust a back window to pull her husband to safety after he ran over a fire hydrant and into a tree." Mike Lupica tells Tiger Woods to get his story out - whatever it is. AND, from the comments of Fridays's Tiger Woods post: a poem, by David (with...
- "OMG, can you believe Obama changed his mind about going to Copenhagen after all this stuff came out? It's like sprinting to board your ship at the last minute, and it's the Titanic."
Posted November 29, 2009, 4:15 am by Ann Althouse
"You're the Titanic. You are." Jim Treacher has a dialogue with the global warming evangelist who lives in his head.
- "Michaele Salahi (far r.) poses with 'American Idol' judge Randy Jackson (l.), Fergie and other members of the Black Eyed Peas, Micheale's husband Tareq, and, of course, President Obama."
Posted November 29, 2009, 3:57 am by Ann Althouse
I'm sorry. I want to hate these people. But there's such a silliness to it all. It's so pop culture. And Obama is part of pop culture. It's like that picture I took on the Santa Monica Pier in the summer of '08... (Enlarge.) ... come to life. ADDED: "Everyone needs to stop being so mean. Why aren't our White House Party Crashers being toasted? These guys are awesome... for America."
- We left Albany at about 1:30 pm (Eastern Time) yesterday, and we pulled into the driveway here in Madison at 2:30 am (Central Time).
Posted November 29, 2009, 3:14 am by Ann Althouse
Not easy, but we had 2 drivers, and we're both good at napping in the passenger's seat, and it's not fun to stop in a just-off-the-interstate motel around midnight and go through the tedious routine of getting stuff out of the car, checking in, getting a few hours sleep, checking out, getting stuff back in the car, when you could be rolling along and end up in your own bed, with the next morning free to luxuriate in the glorious routine of breakfast and blogging in the Meadhouse dining room....
- "I like old lady glamour."
Posted November 29, 2009, 3:02 am by Ann Althouse
Says a 25-year-old guy in an LA Times slideshow about street fashion in Silver Lake. *** Note: I did some street photography in Silver Lake (back in 2008).
- Improvising with the bear.
Posted November 29, 2009, 2:37 am by Ann Althouse
TJ Miller really wanted the part of Ranger Smith in the Yogi Bear movie. After 2 failed auditions, desperate, he made this video: He got the part. Actually, I'm a little suspicious. Maybe first he got the part and then this clip was made. A smarter-than-the-average studio effort at viral video... and I'm the carrier.
- The proposal to ban new minarets in Switzerland.
Posted November 29, 2009, 2:10 am by Ann Althouse
BBC reports: Partial results from the poll which closed at 1100 GMT indicated that the German-speaking canton of Lucerne accepted the ban, while French-speaking cantons Geneva and Vaud voted against.... What is it about minarets specifically? There are unofficial Muslim prayer rooms, and planning applications for new minarets are almost always refused. The BBC could be clearer here. Is a Muslim place of worship "unofficial" if it lacks a minaret? Regulation of buildings can be neutral toward...
- At the Faithful Dog Café....
Posted November 28, 2009, 2:05 am by Ann Althouse
... you can keep up the conversation while M and I do I-90 miles. UPDATE: Home, at 3 a.m. We drove about 980 miles, nearly all on Route 90. We'd turned the heat off for the long weekend, and it was down to 48° indoors. Bracing!
- The atrocity that is Empire State Plaza.
Posted November 28, 2009, 12:45 am by Ann Althouse
You're walking in a neighborhood of 19th century townhouses... ... and you run smack into this: New York spent $2 billion to demolish 98 acres of 19th century buildings, displacing 9,000 human beings, in order to build a sickeningly ugly collection of government buildings. Is there a worse architectural crime in the history of the world? I'm sure there must be, but... ... it destroyed a neighborhood, isolated downtown from Center Square and created a stark mall that is lightly used and...
- "I dare you to comb through an entire issue and find a single word between those covers..."
Posted November 27, 2009, 6:48 am by Ann Althouse
"... that doesn't leave you reeling with delight or nodding vigorously at the gobsmacking truth sparking like a Texas thunder storm just behind it." The 20 best magazines of the last decade. The quote refers to the magazine in second place.