Matt May is my favourite OpenWeb™ advocate right now: "Stop trying to figure out how to get the horse back into the barn, and start learning to deal with the nature of the Web."#

Flash developers are paranoid about their ActionScript, guarding their new-found skills anywhere they can charge for it: in classes, books, consultancies, wherever. On the other hand, the Web, you'll remember, was built on code sharing (if not outright theft). View Source has always been, and hopefully will always be, a part of every browser. If Macromedia really wanted Flash to have caught on, they'd have made it that way in Flash early on. Every site a tool, every script a lesson.

I can see that Flash developers want to keep a hold of their intellectual property, but Jesus, man, you're not curing cancer or accurately predicting the stock market. You're making things move around and blink on a screen. Get over yourselves. Anyone who applies themselves can figure out and replicate what you do.

Jorrit Wiersma comes up with a great feature for a web browser.#

One of the things that's been bothering me lately is the way that web browsers don't really allow you to surf their caches. What I mean is this: let's say that I'm at work and I see an interesting article on the Nature website for example. Only, I don't have time to read the whole article, so I just read the abstract. Now suppose that I happen to be traveling in the train later that day and I'm looking for something to do. I remember the article and would like to read it. I know that the thing is probably still stored on my laptop because my web browser probably cached it, so what I would like to do is just, say, reenter the URL and then my browser will give me a notice that only the cached version is available (since I don't have an internet connection at the time) and I say okay and I can read my article. But to my knowledge there are no browsers that do this. Why not? It seems like a reasonable and useful feature.

The Onion's top story: "Scientists Abandon AI Project After Seeing The Matrix."#

"I saw Revolutions with my 12-year-old son Eric," Markovitch said. "He saw the look of worry on my face and said, 'Dad, don't be scared. It's only make-believe.' I had to tell him, 'No, son, it's what your father does for a living.'"

"After watching Captain Mifune blast away in his robotic battle exoskeleton as hordes of relentless Sentinels swarmed the dock screaming in battle-frenzied rage, I could no longer put my career before the future of mankind," Markovitch continued. "Those poor, brave children of Zion—their annoying tolerance of rave culture notwithstanding—did not deserve that horrible fate."

Dave Pollard on the role of bloggers in the media and how to improve it.#

The fact that leading writers and journalists know we bloggers exist, and take the time to thank us and clarify their thoughts (and ours) in correspondence with us, comes as something of a surprise to me. It is at once sobering and flattering that we even appear on their radar screens -- there are, after all, millions of us, and, at least in this corner of the blogosphere, we're not even A-listers.

I think in fact we play a much more important role in the media than we might think. That role is a result of the power of our networks, which are more dynamic, sensitive and agile than those of print journalists and book writers. We can sense quickly and effectively when there's something happening -- a shift in public consciousness or attitude, a new issue or idea gaining traction -- because of our connectedness, because of the strength of weak ties and those ties' ability to create at least small tipping points. If the mainstream media are the stomach of the media beast, its power plant, we are its antennae.

Richard makes a great point about this:

I find it interesting that the most of the items have to do with private communication. A lot of bloggers eschew private communication because either they are used to publishing their thoughts online or they have an interest—financial or otherwise—in encouraging public discussion rather than private. The really good bloggers, Pollard seems to be arguing, do leg work in and put effort into their weblog conversations privately so as to create sparks that light the fires of public conversations.

Harry Pierson writes about information overload.#

I posted yesterday that I'm reading over 200 blogs these days. Those aren't Scoble numbers (is he over 700 yet?) but there sure is a lot of noise. It reminds me of when I first joined Microsoft - there was so much information available and I wanted to read it all. So I went through several cycles of signing up for a bunch of distribution lists, getting to the point where I wasn't really reading them, then removing myself. I think I'm at that point for reading blogs.

700? Actually, Robert Scoble says he now reads "more than 1200 RSS feeds" but he can't handle it.

Al Giordano writes at the Blogging of the President about narrative and blogging:#

To paraphrase what they tell us in Day One of freshman writing classes: "Don't tell them. Show them." Kerry had moved from reciting a resume to telling a story. And I thought, finally, after 22 years of Kerry's narrative of winning elections by closing at the 11th hour, Barone has found words to explain why that happens. I said to myself, "It's the narrative, stupid!" Kerry always closes in the days when the campaign shifts from resumes to narrative.

When we confront the task of The Blogging of the President 2004, we shouldn't forget that blogging is merely another way of conducting "The Writing of the President." That's why a typewriter, and not a keypad, works really well for that blog's logo. It hearkens back to the more authentic roots than the techno-enthusiasm of today. And why I think that the blogged Campaign Notesfrom Sunday by Chris Lydon and Matt Stoller, reporting from Iowa - complete with MP3 audio files of the closing stump speeches of the two big winners, the two Johns, Kerry and Edwards - serves, to date, as my nomination for the single most important blog entry on this campaign so far.

Why? Because the blog entry stood out in that told a story: It was narrative, that gave me, the reader, a better glimpse of what was happening on the ground than any Commercial Media or other blog report.

Richard links to Danah who writes about how "safe" the blog world is and how discussion goes down.#

I continue to be reminded that blogging is not a safe space for me. There's no common understanding, common ground. Even when i build up the gall to post what's on my mind, i'm deconstructed based on what's not said. My blog is not an academic paper. I'm not reflexively positioning myself every time i post. I'm not fleshing out all of that which i feel should be assumed simply because this is MY blog, MY post. I take a lot for granted and i only wish that people would realize that these posts are constructed in the context of me. I'm not trying to be a journalist; i'm not trying to address an unknown population from an unknown position. I'm trying to share my thoughts, ideas, life from my perspective.

Joi Ito is pimping blogs and blogging at Davos. Love it.#

I explained that many of the media sites in other countries were receiving more visibility in the US and other countries from bloggers linking to them. I explained that media sites could do things like permalinks, trackbacks, ping pingers, syndication and other things to make them much more blog friendly. Being friendly with bloggers was going to be essential for them, I opined.

I think that I was generally well received and I think many of the participants will be reading blogs and looking at aggregators tonight.

Sean Bonner asks, "How bad can being possessed by Satan be?"#

My guess is not as bad as being murdered by your parents.

If your family was anything like mine, you heard a lot about the devil growing up. Things not to do because they would attract the devil's attention, things that were obviously satanic and to avoid, etc. Saying the word "Satan", listneing to "rock and roll", watching "MTV", playing D&D, staying up past my bedtime, were all things would some how give the prince of darkness some kind of evil hard on and were forbiden at one time or another. But that was all pretty harmless, the freaks were the people in the mid 80's flipping out about Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) and basically holding a witch hunt to find those nasty satanist's who were abusing and sacrificing upwards of 60,000 people people a year.

Ryan Overbey write about Falungong being hidden in France.#

The other side is that the French have a ruthlessly assimilative culture that disdains any public display of religious difference. I've mentioned this before in reference to the headscarf controversy- the issue is not about religious freedom or maintaining secularism, it's about comforting French people that yes, we're all completely French here.

I think banning the Falungong is a win-win for the French- they get to maintain their smug sense of secular Frenchness, plus they win brownie points with the "We'll be a superpower soon. No, really!" Chinese.

Ryan Overbey later refers to this as the "Fuck You, Immigrants" policy.

Aaron Swartz learns about Unintelligent Design. You should too!#

The fossil record shows dozens of animals that have died out or been improved. But evolution can't explain how such complex things were developed when their parts don't make sense alone. The "intelligent design" theory says that some clever creator made things. But then how do you explain the fossil record?

So how about a compromise: unintelligent design. Sure, there was a creator, but he obviously wasn't particularly bright.

Ryan Overbey posts a great quote from Chinese Magical Medicine:#

It would seem that a primal and obsessive fear of the Chinese male is of being devoured, or sucked dry. Apart from the snake, men feel gravely threatened by the tiger. Women born in the Year of the Tiger (1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, etc.) are deemed highly undesirable brides in Taiwan and Hong Kong today, and are often obliged to conceal or falsify their year of birth because prospective husbands dread their supposed rapacious, demonic propensities.

Michael Feldman points to a prayer against Internet pornography.#

An Israeli rabbi has invented a prayer to help Jews overcome the guilt of visiting pornographic websites.

The benediction by Shlomo Eliahu says: "Please God, help me cleanse the computer of viruses and evil photographs which disturb and ruin my work..., so that I shall be able to cleanse myself (of sin)."

Joi Ito talked to some Important People™ at a breakfast.#

An interesting point about religions in developing countries:

Religions are memories of history, rich with ritual and values. They need to create a double language, one for internal dialog and another to share ideas with others. One point I made was that many religions were designed for environments where people were still struggling to survive and the focus was on rituals and believes for such an environment. Many religions focused keeping people alive rather than providing them with a primary religious experience. For environments where the struggle to survive is not as big of an issue, it might be that religions need to help support people more with things such as their obsessions and ethics.

Joey deVilla links to Adventures of Confessions of Saint Augustine Bear.#

Sometimes Britt likes to get advice.#

it was good to talk to somebody who a. knows well that of which they speak, b. is far enough removed to be able to see fairly clearly, and c. has a really solid idea of where I'm coming from and who I am. it felt relevant and helpful, even though we didn't break any new ground. I felt good for being able to ask somebody for advice in the first place. I felt good for being honest about feeling confused, scared, and self-defeating in a way that, now that I think about it, I seldom really am. I felt really good for being able to talk to somebody I consider intellegent and mature in a fitting manner without the getting worked up or shut-down the way I often do when topics turn to my academic career.

Erin Judge posts a funny email forward.#

Five tips for a woman....

1. It is important that a man helps you around the house and has a job.
2. It is important that a man makes you laugh.
3. It is important to find a man you can count on and doesn't lie to you.
4. It is important that a man loves you and spoils you.
5. It is important that these four men don't know each other.

Michael Feldman posts a genius list of tips for women. (They're all label "1" on purpose.)#

1. Learn to work the toilet seat. You're a big girl. If it's up, put it down. We need it up, you need it down. You don't hear us complaining about you leaving it down.

1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!

1. If you won't dress like the Victoria's Secret girls, don't expect us to act like soap opera guys.

1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways, and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one.

1. If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing," we will act like nothing's wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle.

Lance Arthur writes about straight friends who ask about how or why he's gay and being gay in general. I love Lance.#

But this is the central problem at the moment with the country's mood. Everyone is mad at us for behaving like we're supposed to. All men are pigs, if you weren't already aware of that. All men like sex. Some men like sex more than others, some men like sex all the time, but all men like sex. Even Republicans.

[...]

All true, I'm afraid. Hell, I bet you're feeling more gay right now. "What? You mean I can just go have sex all the time with anyone?" "Well, sure, but they have to be the same sex as you." "Oh, that's a problem." "And you should probably be hot in some manner." "Hot?" "Yes, like hung or muscled or have a great smile and beautiful eyes. You don't expect to be humping yourself dry every day and look average, do you?" "Well, I guess..." "And also? Young. You should be young, the younger the better. Or at least look young. So spend a lot of money on clothes and the gym and toiletries, particularly facial moisturizers." "How much money?" "All of it."

Richard links to an article by Robert David Sullivan that proposes a new way to analyze political results.#

So CommonWealth decided to make a map of our own. Aiming somewhere between the reductionist red-and-blue model and the most accurate (but least useful) subdivision of the United States into infinity, we split the county into 10 regions, each with a distinct political character. Our regions are based on voting returns from both national and state elections, demographic data from the US Census, and certain geographic features such as mountain ranges and coastlines. [...] Each region represents about one-tenth of the national electorate, casting between 10.4 million and 10.8 million votes in the 2000 presidential election.

Some states fall entirely within a region, but many are split between two or more. Electoral votes follow state boundaries, but populations don't, and the social characteristics that influence politics spill over jurisdictional lines. Rural sections of adjacent states often have more in common, culturally and politically, with each other than with the urban and suburban population centers of their states. If political campaigns can translate media markets into electoral votes, why not regional identities that cross state lines? [...]

That role becomes clear in CommonWealth's analysis of recent national elections (See "Continental Divides"): No winner of a presidential election has carried fewer than five regions in at least three decades.

Duane Bickels exclaims, "Yee-Haw! My Vote Cancels Out Y'Alls!"#

Shoot, neighbor, if there's one type'a guy you don't want in charge, it's some damn weaklin' in the White House what won't kick enough ass. Bush, that guy we got now, he kicked him some ass in that old desert. And Bush's daddy? He kicked him some ass, too. Reagan? Kicked all the ass he could, and some they said he shouldn't! But Clinton? Barely no ass-kickin' at all. Just got his ol' joint tugged by a fat girl, and hell, I could do that down by the Dew Drop Inn off I-78. What's the damn use of bein' the Commander-Chief if that's all you're gonna do? Face it, bein' president is a job of work for ass-kickers, and if you say otherwise, hell, I got a vote here what totally negates yours.

So maybe you ain't a patriot like I am. Now, when I say patriot, I'm talkin' about most of our athletes, country-music stars, and guys like me what agree with them. So, say you ain't a patriot, and you're fixin' to vote up a candidate what's some limpo what'll give in to the crybaby liberals, the damn screechin' women, the commies at the United Nations, and the other America-haters. Fine by me! I got a vote here that does just as much good as yours, and mine's marked "No Limpos!"

Ryan Overbey comments:

All my New Englander friends may think this is a caricature. Ha ha, funny! But it's more than that, it's pretty damn close to the truth. Go to the Red counties of America, and you will meet people like this. They might phrase it differently, borrowing spoonfed memes from press-releases and media outlets, but it's the same sentiment exactly. There are real people out there who, when they say "strong on defense", actually mean "kick some damn ass."

ARE YOU A BAD ENOUGH DUDE TO SAVE HIM?#

Richard links to Joshua Micah Marshall's interview with George Soros.#

[SOROS:] And there is another aspect that is coming into sharper focus to me, even since I wrote the book. That is that this administration has no compunction in misleading the people. It has no respect for the truth. This, I think, is a real danger. It is the danger of an Orwellian world. It's not new, because obviously, Orwell wrote about this fifty years ago. But what he wrote in 1984, you know, the Ministry of Truth being the Propaganda Ministry, the use of words meaning the opposite of what they are meant to mean. The Fox News, "Fair and Balanced," the "Clear Skies" Act for permitting pollution, the "Leave No Child Behind" [that] provides no money for the legislation. All these things I think pose a real danger to our democracy if they succeed in misleading the electorate. And there is only one remedy: an intelligent and enlightened electorate that sees through it.

Now, I find myself in a peculiar position, because having grown up or been exposed to the Nazi regime and the communist regime, I am very sensitive to this kind of propaganda. And the American people, not having been exposed to quite the same extent, seem to be more easily misguided. And that is something that I have been trying to say. And, as a result, I have been accused of calling Bush a Nazi. And that, to me, is itself a demonstration of how this propaganda machine works. That is a real danger, and I think that we really have to somehow become more sensitive to it, and reject it. So, I focused on rejecting the Bush Doctrine. But really behind it is this conviction that we must reject Orwellian Doublespeak. And that, in a sense, was why Dean had such great appeal because, he said, 'what I say is what you get.' He's losing some of that now that he's the front runner. But this is what people are really hankering after.

Beau writes in defense of the President.#

Having said that, I get really irate at a lot of people who start going into a tirade over President Bush. Many people are spewing out words about war and economy but they don't do any research. They join their friends and borrow their opinions. It has become very popular to oppose President Bush and if I had to guess, only half of the people who have a negative word against the man have really examined their opinion of him.

The war protests over the last year seemed unfocused and disorganized. More people showed up to be on Television than had a genuine heartfelt opinion of how the President was handling the war and cared to stop it.

Yes. If you have a problem with the current policies then you have a problem with The Bush Administration. And make sure that you actually have a good reason, rather than just wanting to complain like so many others. A friend and I were talking about this last night.

John at the Movie Blog on giving a good performance versus being a good actor.#

Here's something else to keep in mind about Pacino and Deniro. They are both essentially the SAME FRIGGING GUY in almost every film they're in. They're like Kevin Costner that way. Pacino always talks the same, moves the same… he's the same frigging character with a different name in almost all his credits. Same with Deniro. Its all they can do! Granted, they both do it VERY well… but it's still all they can do.

Contrast that with someone like Robin Williams. Williams can play almost ANY role with a shocking diversity you rarely see on screen. An unassuming killer in Insomnia, a disturbed and misunderstood loner in 1 Hour Photo, A psychotic maniacal kids show host in Death to Smotchy, the professor in Dead Poets Society (Which he SHOULD have won an Oscar for), the psychologist in Good Will Hunting (which he DID win an Oscar for)… and on and on and on. Williams has never been in a film as good as The Godfather and he's never given a single performance as good as Pacino in Scarface or Deniro in Heat, but he is vastly more talented an actor when it comes to playing diverse rolls and different kinds of films. Deniro and Pacino have both shown they can't.

Camilo says that if you liked the trailer to Along Came Polly, you should probably just stick to it and not see the film.#

Last weekend went to Along came Polly, a disturbing exercise in sameness and substitution of clichés for the happy consumption of middle America, the same one that considers it ok to have some "Friends" in NY with absolutely no Black, Latino or other "ethnic" characters. This movie is rife with platitudes, underdeveloped characters, weak plot and a completely base and stupid premise.

They first present you with the ethic dilemma, should a husband repudiate the woman that is unfaithful to him in his first day of honeymoon? Mind you, there is no easy answer to this, we learn, and Debra Messing's character jumps, suddenly, from merely confused redhead wife to redhead bitch. Uh?

Steven Frank relates the demise of Disney to another industry.#

It feels like Disney is going through a bit of what the video game industry went through after the release of Wolfenstein 3D back in the day: a mad rush towards 3D because it's the hot new thing, one indistinguishable first-person shooter after another. There is still much to be done in 2D, and somewhere, cunning artists (and game developers!) are quietly honing their 2D skills for their triumphant return when the pendulum swings back again.

Janet Daley writes that Howard Dean brings back bad memories of Vietnam.#

There are ways of disagreeing with Bush's foreign policy (as, indeed, Senator John Kerry does) without giving comfort to the enemy. There are conscientious arguments to be made against Bush's handling of post-war Iraq (as there are even within the Administration) without implying that the President's motives are corrupt and self-serving. There is a legitimate debate about taxation to be had without waging class war.

The kind of national self-hatred that Dean is stoking reminds me (as I suppose it is intended to do) of the 1960s: the most bitter and tragic era in modern American politics. For some bizarre reason, later generations have come to envy that seminal decade of my youth, to regret that they were not there to share in the very heaven of our student revolution and our unambiguous loathing of our own country's actions. The Dean campaign is only the latest incarnation of that nostalgia. Well, believe me, it was not fun. At least not for more than a moment.

Mark Schmitt doesn't buy that it was Howard Dean's loss of "outside appeal" that lost him Iowa.#

Again, this is pure speculation, but I think the only thing that happened to Dean was that the intense, almost obsessive nature of his campaign was kind of a turnoff to those later voters. Thirty-five hundred identically dressed kids from places like Evergreen State College filled with messianic certainty can be cool, or it can be a nightmare in a state like Iowa. The thing that always turned me off about the Dean campaign was its self-absorbtion, the idea that the campaign itself somehow transcended ordinary politics. Joe Trippi often says that Dean is unique in that he doesn't talk about himself, doesn't say, "vote for me, and I'll do the following..." Instead, he talks about the people. It's People-Powered Howard.

That's sort of true. But it kind of reminds me of Senator Dale Bumpers, in his great defense of Bill Clinton in the impeachment trial, when he said, "When they tell you it's not about sex, it's about sex." When they tell you it's not about Me, but about The People, it's usually about Me.

Dwight Meredith on the paradox of Iowa.#

When a lawyer objects to the other side introducing a piece of damaging evidence, does he or she wish the judge to sustain or overrule the objection? Leaving aside issues of tactics, the intuitive answer is that the lawyer wishes the judge to sustain the objection. That is why the objection was made. The real answer depends entirely on whether you ask the question before or after the jury reaches a verdict.

During the trial, the objecting lawyer clearly wishes the judge to sustain it so that the jury never gets to see or hear the damaging information. Immediately upon the jury reaching a verdict, however, that changes and the objecting lawyer would prefer the judge to have overruled the objection. Regardless of the jury's verdict, the lawyer is in a better position if he lost every objection.

If the jury finds in favor of the objecting lawyer, having an objection overruled has the effect of denying the other side grounds for appeal. If the jury found against the objecting lawyer, the judge's decision overruling an objection of the losing lawyer may provide grounds for appeal.

Matt Zemek creates an Us vs. Them with regards to Dean. You see, people who like Dean actually care about the country.#

The fallout from Dean's post-Iowa speech is so fascinating and revealing, then, because it shows the split between the substance and style camps in American political life.

The substance folks see the speech as, like everything else about Howard Dean, another snapshot of a guy who simply never fails to do the right thing under the circumstances.

The style stalwarts, on the other hand (including and especially the many Deaniacs who are upset at the speech), see the speech as (further) proof of a guy who is tone-deaf, image-blind, and unelectable--UNELECTABLE PRECISELY BECAUSE OF THE REALIZATION THAT A MAJORITY OF AMERICANS HAVE A WELL-DEVELOPED IMAGE OF WHAT THEY WANT FROM A PRESIDENT, NOT IN TERMS OF ACTIONS OR POLICY STATEMENTS, BUT IN TERMS OF HOW THEY CARRY THEMSELVES IN PUBLIC, AND THAT HOWARD DEAN CLEARLY DOES NOT AND WILL NEVER FIT THIS PRE-CONCEIVED IMAGE.

Oliver Kamm writes about Democrats and other opponents of Free Trade.#

Finally, there's probably little to be gained from instructing a certain type of mind-set on the economics of trade and labour standards, but I'll do it anyway. I'm in favour of good working conditions and environmental protection, and I certainly consider no factory in the world should be without a fire escape; I object strongly to making trade agreements conditional on labour and environmental standards. The reason was well stated by 100 or so Third World intellectuals and NGOs (including incidentally the Secretary of the All-India Trade Union Congress) in a Statement Against Linkage in 1999 to coincide with the failed Seattle summit of the World Trade Organisation. (Contrary to popular mythology, the summit's failure was due not to the anti-globalisers' protests but to the insistence of the United States that trade agreements should be linked to labour and environmental standards. The conjunction of the world's richest country protesting about labour standards ought to have given even the most passionate anti-trade campaigner cause for thought, and perhaps even stirred the realisation that the demand is a transparent protectionist ruse.) The statement observed:

The WTO's design must reflect the principle of mutual-gain; it cannot be allowed to become the institution that becomes a prisoner of every developed-country lobby or group that seeks to advance its agenda at the expense of the developing countries. The game of lobbies in the developed countries seeking to advance their own interests through successive enlargement of the issues at the WTO by simply claiming, without any underlying and coherent rationale, that the issue is "trade-related", has gone too far already. It is time for us to say forcefully: Enough is enough.

Those familiar with the recent history of US labour campaigning will recognise the pattern.

Michael Totten links to the new hit single, "Jurassic Yeagh" by Howard Dean and DJ Lileks.#

Michael Hanscom writes about one good thing that came from the Bush administration.#

If this is true, I think it's an absolutely great thing. I've said for a while that the only good thing I can really attribute to the Bush administration is that it's gotten a lot more people paying attention to and willing to participate in the political process, and if we're getting record turnout for the caucuses, this could be a strong indication of just that. If people are tired enough of Bush's leadership to show up in surprisingly large numbers to be a part of the process of finding the best candidate to oust Bush from office nearly a year before the general elections, it makes me even more optimistic that come November, we'll be putting a Democrat back in office again.

Humour at The Black Saint is always the best.#

I can't wait for the next debate. It'll probably go something like this:

Clark: Look, I don't know why you punks don't just drop out of the race now. How can you expect to beat me when I have the support of...Madonna?

Everyone stares blankly.

Clark (shakes his hips): She's hot! She's one hot piece of democrassy, if you know what I'm sayin'.

Diane Sawyer: Sir, you're obviously drunk during a televised debate.

The Black Saint has more great stuff, this one about Howard Dean:#

The AP has published a snippet of Gov. Dean's speech from last night as evidence of his apparent instability.

"...with one purpose only, to point out and make public the dishonesty, the downright villainy of George Bush's political machine, now in complete control of the government of this country. I made no campaign promises, because until a few weeks ago, I had no hope of being elected. Now however, I am something more than a hope. George Bush, George Bush has something less than a chance. Every straw vote, every independent poll shows that I'll be elected. Now I can afford to make some promises. The working man, the working man and the slum child know they can expect my best efforts in their interests. The nation's ordinary citizens know that I'll do everything in my power to protect the underprivileged, the underpaid, and the underfed. [...]

Oliver Willis wonders about the near future of Howard Dean and, more importantly, his bills.#

Dean is DOA without a strong first in NH. He has the money to stick around way past that, but it could get ugly. Does anyone know where campaign cash goes when a candidate drops out? Do they just keep it, or does it traditionally go to the party?

Betsy Devine writes about Channel Dean.#

If I didn't already respect the good will and idealism of the Dean team--and of Dave Winer himself--this would make me do it.

First of all, Dave is not working "for" Dean. He's expending this effort just for the sake of improved technology for democracy. And the Dean team is welcoming this outsider into their headquarters because, to quote the Channel Dean FAQ, "We believe that a more informed electorate is more likely to support our candidate."

Think about the negative things Dave has said about Dean and his web effort. And if you really think about it, it makes their collaboration more impressive.

A Small Victory has a small joke:#

Why did Howard Dean cross the road?

To get to the other YEAAAAAAGGGGGHHHH!!!

Kevin Drum "muses" on the post-Iowa apocalypse.#

All this could change, of course, and let's face it: nobody really knows what's going on this year. Still, the primaries are scheduled so thick and fast that even with a boost from Iowa it's going to be hard for Kerry and Edwards to turn those poll numbers around in time to make a difference.

One more note: if you're a believer in conventional wisdom, here's an apropos piece: except for Bill Clinton, no Democrat in the last 30 years has won the nomination without first winning either Iowa or New Hampshire. If that holds true this year, the race is now between Kerry and whoever wins New Hampshire.

Kevin Lawver realizes he didn't like Howard Dean the candidate, he just liked the feeling of involvement.#

Doc Searls has an absolutely beautiful eulogy for the Dean campaign. I'm pretty sure he doesn't mean it that way, but that's what it feels like. Through that post, I made my way over to The Cluetrain Manifesto, and was blown away. I get it now. I get why I was so enamored with the Dean organization. It wasn't the candidate. It was the power of the people contributing to the organization. It was the way the campaign worked as a hub for ordinary people to make a difference. I was floored by the relatively small size of the average donation when compared to Bush's enormous money-making machine. The campaign, and the internet side of it is a tiny glimpse of what's possible. It is possible to take the monied corporations and special interests out of the game and win with ordinary people. I'm just not sure it's possible for Howard Dean. If Dean doesn't win, we should all thank him, Joe Trippi, and everyone who worked on the campaign for giving us a vision of the possibility that one day, it really will be a government of, for and by the people.

Michael Feldman writes about the feral roar.#

The switch went off in the Dowbrigade's mind just about when Howard Dean let loose with his primal scream, after screeching out the names of all of the states he was expecting to win. There was a fevered, ferrel gleam in his eye. At that moment, we were not sure we would want him as the coach of our kid's youth soccer team, let alone the free world. Stick a fork in him, we thought, he's done.

Philip Greenspun on how ridiculous Howard Dean is.#

Let's look at http://www.howarddean.com, for example. A quick read of the "on the issues" section is more informative than 100 hours of TV coverage. Here are some things that I noticed...

[...Old Technology, Backwards Economy, Hand Waving on Education, Strange Foreign Policy, More Backwards Economy...]

It would appear that a thoughtful voter could easily write off Howard Dean as a non-entity after spending 30 minutes at his Web site. And perhaps this process can be repeated for the other candidates. Are there any Dean supporters who would care to use the comments section to note brilliant ideas from the Howard Dean campaign that I've overlooked?

This is why the people should be involved in the policies. So that they actually make sense.

Christopher Lydon gives words of encouragement after what happened in Iowa.#

Tuesday was a hard day of reappraisal among blog fantasists. But 24 hours after the Iowa returns I am feeling better and not so humble again. Why is it that only bloggers feel expected to apologize for our bad guesses? The shrewest pollsters, pundits and opportunists in the game (including the Dean schmoozers Al Gore, Bill Bradley, Tom Harkin and Jimmy Carter!) have all given us faulty snapshots of the political rockslide we're in--and will be in for some time. Iowa was long supposed to be all Gephart and Dean. Two days before the caucuses it was said to be a four-way tie. Every guess about about this kaleidoscope is an instant absurdity.

Joe Trippi defends Howard Dean's Monday performance, oh, and asks for money.#

The Governor looked out at the room and saw 3500 people who had come from all across the country because they believed in changing their country and he wanted them to know how proud he was of them and their efforts. And he wanted them to know that we're going on no matter what.

He wasn't thinking about the cameras. It was the people right in front of him who had done so much because they believe in a better America that he was speaking to.

That the press would report on his speech for one day is understandable. But what's remarkable is that they could run it over and over for 48 hours and still call it journalism. The State of the union took place. The next day we find out that Bush plans to ask for $40 billion more for his war in Iraq. But what do they run over and over again?

Tony Pierce supports Howard Dean, apparently.#

i have found my leader. hes crazy and he knows the names of states. i dont know what he stands for but the republicans seem to fear him and thats enough for me.

is he coked up? probably. should he be? of course. is it right to elect a president for pure entertainment? isnt that why we voted for arnold?

Marc Nozell investigates the "Doubting Dean? Vote Kerry" signs.#

We'll first note I'm the first to ever use the above joke.#

Meteor Blades writes about the State of the Union.#

I'll be tempted to violate my advice above and turn on the tube. Because I'd like to see how many Democrats (and how often) give that man more than pro forma applause.

I don't mean to be too harsh. But there are times when I'd like to see them sitting on their hands. Frankly, I'd like to see them booing on occasion, but that's too much to hope for even though this will be that man's first campaign speech of 2004. Congressional Democrats should remember tonight that they are the Opposition party and that all the pomp and hoopla attending this formal affair is electioneering by that man on the taxpayers' dime.

I love it when liberals complain about taxes being spent on things that they don't care about, but don't realize that they do the same thing to Republicans.

Chai Latte on the State of the Union.#

Kinda flat. Terror, terror, terror, laundry list of domestic money spending schemes, terror, terror, terror. And steroids and athletes. S'up with that? Well, at least the camera people zoomed in on Tom Brady during that part of the speech. No more sunday stubble.

The New York Times' transcript of the State of the Union address.#

Shelley Powers has a "Citizen's Response" to the State of the Union.#

But it was a life affirming moment when I realized that I didn't have to make a reasoned response. I am not a Journalist, no not even a wannabe one. I am not an elected official or member of the goverment or candidate for office. I am a regular person, nobody of any importance, and as such I can take all that massive swirling heaving, maelstorm in my brain and literally paint this page with it -- and it's okay! Because I am a Citizen.

Our greatest responsibility is the active defense of the American people. Twenty-eight months have passed since September the 11th, 2001...

Twenty-eight months? Why stop there? Over seven years have passed since Timothy McVeigh decided to 'teach the government a lesson' and blew up a Federal building in Oklahoma. Over forty years have gone by since the Russians tried to ship nuclear missles over to Cuba. And over sixty years have passed since the Attack on Pearl Harbor.

A note: It was my understanding that the President is to protect the Constitution. The people can protect themselves, the law and the spirit of the Nation can't.

Aaron Swartz has a "shorter State of the Union" for Citizens on the Go.#

BUSH: America is good. Soldiers and law enforcement are making America safer. Tax cuts are making America stronger. We need more!

Terrorists are bad and still here. But the PATRIOT Act is good, renew it. Afghanistan is good now. Iraq is good now. There are bad people in the shadows, but they don't scare us. Libya is destroying their WMDs, we sure scared them. Now for North Korea and Iran.

Brad DeLong points to Objectionable Content who reminds us: "Words Not Heard in the President's State of the Union Address - Osama Bin Laden."#

The Binary Circumstance writes about the State of the Union with regards to Bush's proposal of protection of marriage.#

What did the sanctity of marriage do for George W. Bush? He used to be a relatively harmless, pampered, coke-snorting, alcoholic, frat boy. He marries Laura the Librarian, gets a personal relationship with Jesus and now he's a liar and a mass murderer who has killed thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians.

The Burning Bush's death toll far exceeds the number of people that Osama Bin Laden killed in the WTC attack. That's just another inconvenient bit of evidence that we would all like to ignore so that we can feel superior.

Another choice comment related to this:

If the Burning Bush really believed that each individual has dignity and value in God's sight, then it follows that God determines their value, not the Burning Bush, the courts, or mob rule, or Constitutional Amendments. But alas, this is not a rational man we're dealing with here.

Carly comments on the Democrats during the State of the Union.#

But then we got to the portion of the evening when I, literally, had to move away from throwable objects in order to avoid tossing them at the screen of our television. Most notably the money he wants to dedicate to abstinence programs, his praise of No Child Left Behind, and (URGH) the rhetoric on the sanctity of marriage.

Then they cut to a shot of Rick Santorum and I nearly lost it.

I was pretty riled up. Yelling at the screen and all. Cleared my living room of apartmentmates -- they were frightened I think by my rebuttals.

Nancy Pelosi -- I love you, but you look a little scary giving rehearsed speeches.

I think Ted Kennedy is my hero of the night, mostly because he was the one that (at least CNN) was cutting to as a figurehead of the Democratic party when they wouldn't stand for an ovation or something. I think it's awesome that he's so entrenched in his seat that he doens't have to worry quite as much about politics anymore and can say whatever he wants. He doesn't represent me, but I loved seeing Senator Kennedy down on the floor shaking his head in disbelief at some of the things that were being said. Made my evening.

David Carr links to a program to teach kids about money.#

I think it is at least plausible to propose that a vast swathe of bad ideas and damaging policies are borne on the wings not of malevolence or even stupidiy, but simply economic illiteracy: a fundemantal failure to grasp how money actually works.

If that is the case, then this kind of thing is encouraging.

Dave Pollard writes about a book on animals and what we don't understand about them.#

In his new book The Pig Who Sang to the Moon, Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson continues the critical life's work he began with the groundbreaking When Elephants Weep: The Emotional Lives of Animals. Masson understands the importance of repetition in achieving something as enormous as changing an entire culture's belief system, and he is patient and dispassionate in doing so. Like his previous books, The Pig Who Sang to the Moon is a dense and methodical mix of scientific citations and compelling anecdotes in defence of his continuing thesis: that animals are not only intelligent, but also live rich and complex emotional lives. Previous books have dealt with animals in the wild and with pets, and the subject this time is the most difficult of all: Farm animals, which Masson correctly points out should more properly be called 'farmed animals'.

I'm proud to eat a vegan diet.

Halley Suitt is amazing.#

It was wonderful to have Betsy Devine as my companion for surgery yesterday. She's the best. After the operation when you're full of anesthia, they let Betsy come in and see if I was still alive. I was. We did yuck it up and have a lot of laughs. The nurses tell you all this serious stuff about how to take your eye drops every three hours and how to wash your hands and keep them clean and how to not get any liquids in your eye, but of course I had to interrupt 100 times or so and ask if I could get semen in my eye for example, would that be okay and also if she didn't mind, might I have a pair of those great medical gloves, the kind Glove Girl makes, just as a souvenir, rather unorthodox I know and when could I go swimming and what about mastrubation, when could I resume a healthy schedule of that activity and what about adopting a child that day, I guess legally I was not supposed to do that, not that I intended on doing such a thing, but they told you don't sign any legal documents.

Chai Latte on dieting and working out.#

8. Dinner (cereal). And a little pasta. The anti-Atkins.

9. Now feel slightly sick while checking out the Web. Did Kerry win something?

10. Just now, on my way downstairs to work out - rowing machine and then sit ups. I will never ever have a six pack. 'S ok.