SNL's Weekend Update Gets Its Own Show

Image from Weblo

This is good news. For many, many years, the gauge of a good Saturday Night Live episode depended upon three things: a good "cold open," a good monologue, and a good Weekend Update segment. If they miss on one or more of those, the episode stinks, by and large.

So, expanding Weekend Update into prime time could be a real shot in the arm to the 34-year old show. Or, it could stretch the writers too far, and ensure a bad show on Saturday night. Who knows? Unfortunately, this announcement comes at a time when Amy Poehler has her own sitcom, as does Tina Fey. Seth Meyers is good as the anchor, but the format works much better as a team: Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon, Fey and Poehler, Poehler and Meyers. It always feels like Meyers is waiting for the hand off for his jokes.

Anyway, as a fan, I'll look forward to the new Weekend Update episodes. And then, as usual, I'll probably offer my savage review (and watch anyway).

[Excerpt]

NBC’s ‘Weekend Update’ to Expand

“Weekend Update,” the satirical television news segment, worked during the presidential election year, and now NBC will again try to capitalize on interest in the news by producing it as half-hour specials during its next prime-time season, as well as the usual segments in “Saturday Night Live. . .”

Read more at: New York Times

Democrats Dodging a Bullet: John Edwards

Photo from source, AOL News

In a previous post, I talked about the temptation to gloat over the tailspin that the Republican Party is in, and how we Democrats/liberals/progressives need to be careful not to get too cocky. Just imagine if the Democratic primaries had worked out differently. What if Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton flung a bit too much mud in each others' eyes, and cancelled each other out? What if John Edwards had emerged as the victor?

I was a supporter of Edwards early on, even caucusing for him in Nevada before realigning with Obama when Edwards wasn't viable. But truth be told, I liked all three of the front-runners. The Other Half and I basically flipped a coin on Obama vs. Clinton in our realignment. Then, as you know by now, we found out that there was truth behind the National Enquirer reports of Edwards having an affair (possibly even a "love child"). By then, he was already out of the race. But it really pissed me off.

I'd backed Edwards because of his seeming genuineness. And I liked his wife. They had weathered adversity (death of a child, Elizabeth Edwards' cancer), and come through it as a loving couple. We thought. When that veneer of wholesomeness was blasted off, I could no longer even see what I liked about him anymore. I guess it is sort of like being on a jury, and being briefly won over by a sleazy attorney. Plus, he's handsome, there's that too.

But, man, we Democrats should be and remain mightily pissed at Edwards. Many politicians have committed as grievous sins, and lived on politically (Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani), but Edwards deserves his political epitaph. Our best chance at recapturing the White House was nearly in his grasp, and if he had caught that brass ring, it would have blown up in his and our faces. Badly mangled metaphors aside, we are very lucky that Obama seemingly knew how to play it. That "Chill the f**k out, I got this!" Internet meme seems to be a pretty accurate message so far.

[Excerpt]

Feds Examining Finances, Edwards Says

Failed presidential candidate John Edwards, whose political action committee paid more than $100,000 to his mistress' company, acknowledged Sunday that federal investigators were looking into how he handled his campaign funds.

But the former North Carolina senator said he was confident no money was used improperly. . .

Read more at: AOL News

Conservatives Don't Know Stephen Colbert is Satire

Image from DaveAndTomas.net

Satire, like sarcasm, isn't always obvious to some people. If you have a good sense of humor, understand irony, and have a decent BS detector, you're probably a fan of satire. In my experience, many conservatives suffer from a weak sense of humor, absolutely no understanding of irony, and a BS detector that only goes off if they hear something that isn't already in their world view.

It's too much of a generalization to apply that across the board, of course. But look at examples of "conservative humor." Glenn Beck. Rush Limbaugh. Dennis Miller. An American Carol. The 1/2-Hour News Hour. Conservative humor seems to try twice as hard for half the laugh. There is often a mean-spirited undercurrent to it, not to mention an almost complete lack of subtlety. Remember those Truly Tasteless Joke Books? That would be about the level of advanced conservative humor.

Here's a litmus test for you. Ask your conservative friend/family member what they think of the movies Airplane! or The Naked Gun or Hot Shots!* If they pronounce them "stupid," instead of "hilarious," you've got yourself an irony/humor/satire-resistant conservative. Those same types of people apparently think that Stephen Colbert of Comedy Central's Colbert Report is one of them! Colbert's whole shtick is to lampoon right-wing bloviators like Bill O'Reilly. But you have to be able to see that, I guess.

*The ultimate irony is that one of the men instrumental in making those movies is David Zucker, who is also behind An American Carol. Like Dennis Miller, it seems when he became an "out" conservative, his humor evaporated. Weird, right?

GOPosaurs: A Party Going Extinct

We liberals/progressives should be careful about crowing too loudly about the disintegration of (and high comedy from) the current Republican Party. That pendulum swings back eventually, and slices right through the other side. Still, it is difficult to contain the schadenfreude, having lived through the last eight years (and even prior to that, if you count the thrashing President Clinton endured).

When Republicans had power, they wielded it like a hammer. Tom DeLay even had that as a nickname. They played like they'd have power forever. And with Karl Rove in charge of the Great Republican Noise Machine, they probably believed that. Reality crashed through the Matrix-like alternate version Rove was building, and the party blew apart like shattered glass.

Hopefully, current Democratic Party leaders will learn lessons from that. As tempting as it would be to stomp on Republicans' necks like they did when in power, I hope the Democrats continue to wield power with a little less sadistic glee than the Republicans did. At the same time, I don't want to see capitulation when there is currently no need for it. It's a tricky balance.

As a graphic artist, what drew me to this clip is the morphing of the GOP elephant into a dinosaur. I absolutely love it. The video ain't bad either. . .

Happy Cinco Tres de Mayo!

White people playing Mexican (from Igougo.com)

Today is an nearly annual event for my surrogate family out here in Las Vegas. Before moving here nearly 15 years ago, I'd only recently even heard of "Cinco de Mayo," the Mexican Independence Day. I guess we didn't cover Mexican history much in school, and immigrants from south of the border were just not very numerous in central Ohio back then.

But here in the Southwest, the holiday is fairly widespread. So we gringos take advantage of the event as an excuse to drink margaritas and cervezas! Not to mention our bastardized Ameri-Mex foods. Because of this adopted holiday, I probably won't be posting a whole lot today. So if you don't see anything new before late Monday, don't be surprised!

¡Fiesta!

Frivolity Break: WTF Pianist Performance

OK, now this is disturbing. And oddly engaging. My god, those ears!

WARNING: If you are at work, or if you have little kiddies running around, be sure to turn the sound way down, or put in your earphones!

Jack Kemp, Former VP Hopeful, Dead at 73

Image from source, LA Times

I haven't always been interested in politics. Long before I had a blog, back in 1996, I was working in San Antonio, Texas at an amusement park. I was running a laser tag/motion ride combo with a partner, Chuck, who was very politically-minded. While I was fine with President Clinton, he hated the guy. I got along great with him anyway, because though I disagreed with him, I was not entrenched enough in my political ideology to care much.

But Chuck was all excited about the Presidential race not due to Bob Dole, but because of his running mate, Jack Kemp. The fact that Chuck liked him, and that he had a full head of white hair are literally the only things I recall about Jack Kemp. So, I don't have much to add to this story other than, RIP Jack. And condolences to the family, of course.

[Excerpt]

Jack Kemp, all-star quarterback, politician, father, dead of cancer, 73

Jack Kemp, the all-star college and pro quarterback who went on to serve nine House terms, as secretary of Housing and Urban Development and as Robert Dole's VP running mate on the 1996 Republican presidential ticket, died this evening.

Kemp also ran his own unsuccessful presidential campaign in 1988 against Ronald Reagan's vice president, George H.W. Bush, who would go on to appoint Kemp as his HUD secretary.

Read more at: Los Angeles Times

Question: Is Glenn Beck Completely Nuts?

Answer: Yes, yes he is. Or at least his FOX "News"/talk radio self is nuts. Who knows if he really believes all of his crazy rants. The scary thing is though, his audience is lapping it up.

Addition to My Diet Soda Addiction: TAB!

Photo from source, Wikipedia

If artificial sweetener is truly a harmful substance, I'm in big, big trouble. They're using quite a variety of them lately, and producing a lot of very tasty diet sodas. And I'm addicted to diet soda.

I used to be a confirmed Pepsi drinker, full-sugar variety. But that was many years ago, when my metabolism allowed me to eat or drink most anything. Lucky for me, right about the time I had to start watching my weight, soda makers started making some more interesting diet versions. I used to really hate diet colas. I was so used to Pepsi, Coke and RC, and the diet versions didn't taste anything like them. Diet Sprite and Diet 7UP were ok, but kinda boring. Then came my favorite, Diet Mountain Dew.

I didn't know it at the time, but Mountain Dew has a horrible reputation in the Midwest as a hillbilly drink. And it isn't unfounded, if 20/20 is to be believed. But out here in Las Vegas, fortunately, what soda you drink doesn't define your personality. And if it did, mine would be all over the place. I have my favorites, but tend to buy what is on sale. Soda prices have gone way up for some reason, so it's good to be flexible. I'll even buy store brands, if they're tasty.

Today, I found that Coke products were on sale. So as I was digging through the stack to find Fresca Peach Citrus, I also found Tab! Tab and Fresca were both pioneers of diet sodas, dating back to the 60s. Fresca has been back on our shelves for years, with new flavors, but I haven't seen Tab in years.

I eventually warmed (cooled?) to diet colas, but they usually aren't my first choice. Even here, there are lots of options these days. My favorites are the ones with lime, or the "alternate" diet versions of Coke and Pepsi, with different sweeteners. Oh, and Tab is a pretty great diet cola too.

Anyway, for no other reason than it's a lazy weekend, here are my rankings of diet soda varieties. And remember, however "dangerous" artificial sweeteners are, I'll take the risk over high-fructose corn syrup any day.

Best: Diet Mountain Dew, Diet Mountain Dew Code Red, Fresca Peach Citrus, Coca-Cola Zero, Diet Pepsi Lime, Diet Coke Lime, Diet Cherry 7UP, Diet Sierra Mist Ruby Splash, Tab.

Good: Diet Sierra Mist, Diet Vernors, Diet Orange Crush, Diet Sunkist, Diet 7UP, Diet Sprite, Fresca Sparkling Citrus, Fresca Black Cherry, Diet Citrus Drop (Kroger), Diet Pepsi, Diet Coke, Pepsi One, Pepsi Max, Diet Rite (multiple flavors).

So-so: Any caffeine-free variety of diet cola, any Kroger (Big K) or Safeway (Vons) flavor. Cherry versions of Diet Dr. Pepper, Diet Pepsi and Diet Coke.

Yuck: Vanilla anything. Cherry/vanilla anything. Energy drinks, particularly RockStar (for its owner, Michael Weiner Savage). Store versions of Dr. Pepper.

Lazy Saturday: Angel-athon (oh, and Watch Dollhouse!)

So what have I done all day? Outside of running a few errands, not a whole heck of a lot. I did some shopping, in preparation for our "Tres de Mayo" party tomorrow. Two days before the Cinco, but whatcha gonna do?

After the food & booze acquisition, I've spent the remainder of my afternoon/evening watching season 1 of Angel DVDs. Angel, if you don't know, is the spin-off series of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, by Joss Whedon. I came late to the party with Buffy, catching a few episodes of it in the 5th or 6th season. After that, I got hooked pretty quickly. I continued to watch all the episodes as they aired, and caught up with the reruns on FX. Then, I got the whole DVD set, and have watched them all at least twice.

I know, sick right? But the odd thing is, outside of a couple of episodes, I never watched Angel. But having seen all of Buffy several times, I thought it would be fun to catch a little of the Buffyverse that I haven't seen. So, I bought season 1 of Angel, and this is my second weekend of watching. The first several episodes were watchable, establishing the noble ensouled vampire (David Boreanaz) in Los Angeles. He's joined by Buffy's snooty former classmate, Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter), and a half demon, Doyle (the late Glenn Quinn).

The earliest episodes of the series are watchable enough, but it took me quite a few to feel this was a show. At first, it seems kind of pointless, and directionless. Some of the crackling Whedon dialog is there, but it didn't quite gel at first. Oddly enough it isn't until Quinn's final episodes (the former Roseanne star apparently had a drug problem, and was fired) that it started to really work for me. I warmed to the character of Doyle, and then he's suddenly written out.

Exit Doyle, enter Wesley (Alexis Denisof), another refugee from Buffy, and the show has really started to grow on me. Also the passing of Doyle's clairvoyant "gift" to Cordelia sort of gives her character a purpose. It's still not as compelling as the parent series, but it's interesting enough to keep me watching the rest of the disks, and to check out season 2. What the experience has taught me has more to do with a different show than it does with either Buffy or Angel.

Whedon's newest show, Dollhouse, is--as they say--"on the bubble." The ratings are low, even for the low-expectations Friday night time slot. But if Whedon's past shows are any experience, they take a while to grow on people. The storylines seem to take eight or ten episodes to really start to firm up, and then stuff really starts getting good. Dollhouse started shaky, slowly got better in episodes 2-5, got really good in episode six, and have just exploded into awesomeness in the last few shows. Next week is the season finale, and the week after that, FOX-TV is announcing its fate. I just hope that "the powers that be" are wise enough to let this series grow.

Bill Maher's New Rules, May 1, 2009

From last night's Real Time with Bill Maher, this list is a little breezier than is typical. But--as usual--I really liked the last one. This time, he talks about the hypocrisy of evolution deniers who accept science when they need it. Check it out.

Blogiversary: 23 Months! 4,853 Posts!

Wow. Another month gone. What they say about life speeding up as you age is absolutely true. It feels like 2009 is still new, but we're entering month five already. And while life in America is not all lollipops and rainbows, I still think that escaping the Bush Era has given many of us new hope.

I could be wrong of course. Things could get much worse (like they did for Jimmy Carter), and Republicans could stage a comeback like they did with Ronald (now sainted) Reagan. With the cast of cartoon characters they currently have on hand, that doesn't seem likely anytime soon, but who knows?

Meanwhile, blogging has been kind of weird for me lately. I'm still enjoying it, but have had a difficult time coming up with ideas. Probably because I'm an economic doofus, with no real grasp on this stuff. I took Economics in college, but it was at 8:00 am, was taught by a drill sergeant (literally), and I mostly snoozed through it. And the readers have not been voluminous either, which is a little distressing. I mean, why log hours putting up posts if nobody reads them?

Still, every time I've gotten discouraged by a lack of readers, the hits have come roaring back, so I'll cross my fingers, and hope that people find me again. I'm still hoping to find that magic idea that puts me on the map. Perhaps a weekly comic strip or something. But I think I'll have to enlist the aid of my friend and sometime contributor Stupid Monkey Planet to pull that off. You listening, Monkey?

Anyway, for those of you who are reading, thank you. Please drop by in the comments or by email, and as always, bring your friends!

Credit Cards and the Fine Print

Before this hugely horrible financial crisis (do we have a name for it yet?), The Other Half and I used to average five or six "pre-approved" credit card applications in the mail per week. It was an obscene amount of paper and postage, and makes you wonder how it could possibly have been cost effective.

Lately, the flood of these mailers has slowed to a trickle, but we still get a couple a week. Usually, we do what we always do, tear them into bits, and throw them away (or run them through the shredder). But I decided to read some of the materials in one of them, from First Premier Bank.

The offer was for a MasterCard, with a 9.9% APR ("one of the lowest rates available"). They don't promise a credit limit any higher than $250, which doesn't exactly wow me. And some of the fees are quite confusing, or at least sound unreasonable. For instance, if your credit limit is raised, they charge you $25. Paying through the Internet costs $7 per transaction. $11 if you pay through an autodraft service they provide. And a "monthly servicing fee" of $84 billed at $7 per month. What?

To make matters worse, unless I'm reading this thing wrong (see the graphic for confirmation), if you sign up for this whopping $250 card, you will instantly owe $179, and have a credit limit of $71! Again, I could be wrong, but this doesn't sound like a compelling offer to me. Into the shredder with you!

UPDATE: In a stunning coincidence, I just received an email from--you guessed it--First Premiere Bank, offerening me a MasterCard! Sorry, but even if I didn't think there was something fishy about all these fees, I'd never sign up for a credit card from an unsolicited email. Begone with you!

UPDATE THE SECOND: I've never really paid attention before to the innumerable solicitations I get in my email box, or who they're from. But since I wrote this post (not more than 45 minutes ago), I have gotten--counting the one in the first update--nine credit card solicitations, including two more from First Premiere! I guess I see why they're not sending so many by snail mail anymore.

Rachel Maddow: 6 Years Since "Mission Accomplished"

I can't remember when the scales fell off my eyes, pertaining to the ineptitude (and other negative qualities) of George W. Bush and his administration. I didn't vote for him, and never thought much of him. But I wasn't actively opposed to him at first, and held my tongue after September 11. Lots of us did.

But by the time of the infamous "Mission Accomplished" speech/photo op, I was starting to get the creeps. Even at first, it was clear the event was stage managed, to say the least. And at that point, we didn't even know that the aircraft carrier was turned around to avoid showing the coast of California. And we didn't know that the administration would try to blame the banner on the troops. Some of us saw through Karl Rove's alternate reality making early. For others, it took a bit longer.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Daily Show: Week in Review

Oy. I'm finding blogging particularly difficult tonight. I don't know if it's just that my heart's not in it, or if there is just very little of interest going on. So, what does a blog editor do when he can't find anything to write about? One easy "go to" is Comedy Central's The Daily Show, which rarely finds itself in my position of running out of ideas.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
Recap - Week of 4/27/09
thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Economic Crisis First 100 Days

Miss California USA: How Dumb is She?

I know. Another post about a girl who's as DUMB as a post. And about as interesting. See, that's the conundrum I'm in as it pertains to Miss California, Carrie Prejean. Even though she made an anti-gay comment, I don't find pageant queens to be very newsworthy. Particularly when the news being made of her is focusing on entirely the wrong issue.

That's why the graphic displayed here (from Dan Savage, via AmericaBlog) is so perfect. It reminds us, not only is Ms. Prejean a homophobic bigot, she's a stupid homophobic bigot. The only thing that might have improved the graphic is the addition of Miss Teen South Carolina.

Friday Frivolity Break: Star Trek The LOST Generation

I'm a Star Trek fan, I'm a Lost fan, and I used to be a collector of action figures, so this very clever video was a natural for my blog. Those Lost characters are a little too creepily real though, aren't they?

Las Vegas Entertainer Danny Gans Dies

Image from LVRJ

This one is just weird. Living in Las Vegas for the past 15 years, Danny Gans has been omnipresent. He's played extended runs at Rio, Mirage and Wynn, as a singer/impressionist. Aside from the white-on-black block letters shouting "DANNY GANS" on taxicabs and billboards all over town, there was the image of the tanned and (extremely) fit Gans in a black t-shirt.

He wasn't quite as young as he looked. How could he be? He costarred with Ellen DeGeneres in an eighties sitcom, after all. But at 52, he wasn't even in the range of Elton John, Cher or Bette Midler, for goodness' sake. And he died in his sleep? I guess that's a preferred way to go. It just makes you realize, anybody's number could be up at just about any time. RIP Danny.

[Excerpt]

Legendary Vegas entertainer Gans dead at 52

Las Vegas entertainer Danny Gans, an impressionist who sold more tickets on the Strip than the Rat Pack or Elvis Presley, died early Friday, his manager said. He was 52. . .

Read more at: AFP

I Can't Wait to Read: Shatner Quake

Image from source, Topless Robot

This sounds awesome! James T. Kirk, T.J. Hooker and Denny Crane hunting down William Shatner? How could this not be great?

[Excerpt]

William Shatner? William Shatner. William Shatner!

It's the first ShatnerCon with William Shatner as the guest of honor! But after a failed terrorist attack by Campbellians, a crazy terrorist cult that worships Bruce Campbell, all of the characters ever played by William Shatner are suddenly sucked into our world. Their mission: hunt down and destroy the real William Shatner.

Source: Topless Robot

Gay Marriage Snowballing

This is all so weird. Last year, when the right to same-sex marriage was granted by the California Supreme Court, it was something of an anomaly. The only state to that point to legalize such marriages was Massachusetts. The Other Half and I decided to strike while the iron was hot, and got married in Palm Springs in June. We figured, better do it before they took the chance away.

Since then, California voted to overturn the decision, throwing the validity of our marriage into dispute. A decision by the California Supremes is still forthcoming. But in the mean time, same-sex marriage has become legal in Connecticut, Iowa and Vermont. Progress has been made in New Hampshire, Maine and New York. Washington D.C. has decided to allow marriages performed in states where it has been made legal. Hate crimes legislation is on its way to being expanded to cover gay people. There is a virtual tidal wave of change as it pertains to gay rights. It's all a little overwhelming. And California has still not come to a decision.

After all that has happened since, California's outcome may come as a bit of an anti-climax. Here's just a few of the most current developments. . .

[Excerpt]

Strange Bedfellows

. . .The cause of same-sex marriage has made big strides in recent weeks.

The Iowa Supreme Court has legalized gay marriage in the Hawkeye State. The Vermont Legislature not only approved same-sex marriage, but overrode a gubernatorial veto.
The New Hampshire Legislature has just voted to legalize same-sex marriage.

In 2004, by contrast, 21 states passed initiative or referendum measures defining marriage as between a man and a woman. . .

Read more at: Seattlepi.com

[Excerpt]

Maine Senate Backs Gay-Marriage Bill

The Maine Senate gave two nods of approval to a bill to legalize gay marriage after extended and emotional debate Thursday.

The measure now moves to the House of Representatives for consideration next week, and then back to the Senate for a third, and perhaps final, vote. . .

Read more at: Wall Street Journal

[Excerpt]

Gay marriage bill passes in N.H. Senate

The New Hampshire Senate voted yesterday to allow same-sex couples to marry, setting the state in motion to become the fifth in the country to legalize same-sex marriage. . .

Read more at: Boston.com