Therapy

Sick of the never-ending campaign cycle? Take a spin on this and call me in the morning.

Cliched Out

I've held my peace for too long. It's time to speak out against a troubling trend that seems to be gaining momentum.

First it was the Horse Whisperer. The man who understood and had a way with troubled horses. This was fine. It was new and kind of interesting. Next came the Dog Whisperer, who, like the Horse Whisperer, could relate to and correct the behavior of difficult animals. A play off of the original, this too was bearable. Then someone decided the Ghost Whisperer would be cute. A woman with the uncanny ability to reach beyond the veil and communicate with troubled spirits. This is where things really began to veer off-course. Clue #1: Anything involving Jennifer Love Hewitt should probably give you pause.

Now... now apparently there's the Breast Whisperer.

Who seriously thought this was a good idea? I mean, I completely empathize with how frustrating breastfeeding can be. It certainly didn't come naturally to E and Melbo. (After two weeks of trying, I became a huge Similac booster, while Melbo, bless her heart, devotedly carried on the good fight). But come on people, some word-plays just don't work. There has got to be a better name than "Breast Whisperer" (especially at $150 an hour). Lactation Wizard. Breast-Feeding Guru. Master Lactator. Lactating Queen. Pretty much anything strikes me as less cringe-worthy.

On the scale of bad derivatives though... I guess I'd have to concede, if pushed, that it's better than "nipplegate" (slightly).

Bumped Into The Pope This Morning...

True story. Right outside my office actually. Even got to sing Happy Birthday to him. (FYI: He's the little white splotch on the red dais that's just to the right of the gold dais).

Hold the balding, overweight, middle-age jokes please:

Here's a close up shot:

The President Bush is standing walking right where the blurry, shiny spot is on the red dais and Pope Benedictus is guy with a white head and shirt just up and to the right of him:

Guest Blogging at Times & Seasons

Hey all... While I haven't been exactly the most prolific blogger of late, I did start guest blogging over at the Mormon blog Times & Seasons this past week. I'll post links here to whatever I throw up over there in case you're interested:

• The Marc of the Beast
  

• Revisiting the Church Stance on Immigration
  

• Rock-Bottom Loser

• A Sample Of Mormon Donors
  

• Mormons and Evolution

• Missionary Photos

• The Secular as Sacred
  

• Confessions of a News Junkie

• The Hallmark of Monson's Presidency?
  

Word of the Day

Obamacan: A Republican who plans on voting for Barack Obama

Flip-Floppin' McCain-Style

The straight talk express broke down on the highway of political convenience today:

John McCain on torture on November 28, 2007 (CNN Youtube Debate):

[Waterboarding] is in violation of the Geneva Convention. It's in violation of existing law and... if we're going to get the high ground in this world and we're going to be the America that we have cherished and loved for more than 200 years, we're not going to torture people. We're not going to do what Pol Pot did. We're not going to do what's being done to Burmese monks as we speak. I suggest that you talk to retired military officers and active duty military officers like Colin Powell and others... how in the world anybody could think that that kind of thing could be inflicted by Americans on people who are held in our custody is absolutely beyond me.... Life is not "24" and Jack Bauer. Life is interrogation techniques which are humane and yet effective. I just came back from visiting a prison in Iraq. The Army general there said that techniques under the Army Field Manual are working and working effectively, and he didn't think they need to do anything else. [T]his is what America is all about. This is a defining issue...."

John McCain on torture on February 13, 2008 (Atlantic Monthly):

Votes against a Senate bill that prohibits the CIA from waterboarding by requiring it to abide by the Army Field Manual's limits on interrogation techniques (the same manual that McCain is praising as sufficient for our needs above).

Update: For a good primer on what's at issue with this legislation and what McCain's arguments for voting against it are, see here.

Quote of the Day

Romney, apparently taking cues from Dick Cheney:

If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign, be a part of aiding a surrender to terror.

Mitt Romney - February 7, 2008
Concession Speech at CPAC

In Memoriam

President Gordon Bitner Hinckley
Born June 23, 1910 - Died January 27, 2008

So I know video-posts are kind of a cop-out... but, regardless of your politics, you have to admit this one's pretty choice: