Political football

Well, this seems like it should be pretty easy to figure out.

Jim Quinn, a political radio talk show host in Pittsburgh, has claimed on the air that he has a "source with authority" who says that Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius made remarks about the poor response of the National Guard to the Greensburg tornado at the behest of Howard "Barbaric Yawp" Dean and top Democratic Party leadership.

The implication of course, is that the situation was dramatized and exaggerated for political gain. That in fact, the response was more than adequate.

According the source, Sebelius called Sen. Sam Brownback to apologize for her remarks, saying she was sorry and that the DNC had told her "we can't let an opportunity like this go by." The source said Sebelius was told not to ask for National Guard help, so that the situation could later be spun as a lack of response.

For his part, Brownback was (reportedly) saddened and disappointed by the Gov.'s conduct.

Of course, none of this has been confirmed. It's definitely plausible, and I wouldn't put it past Dean and the Dems to try to make political hay. Of course, I wouldn't put it past political talk show hosts to make up this sort story for the sake of politics an ratings.

It seems to me, though, that a phone call could settle this whole thing before it gets started. Get Sebelius and Brownback on the phone, have them explain the situation. Either she said that stuff, or she didn't. Either she made the call, or not (hell, you could probably just check some phone records if you don't trust the two principles involved).

Get them on the same call together and they'll have to agree on what happened. Then let the shit hit the fan or not.

UPDATE [10:18 p.m.]: J.D. is keeping it skeptical over at Evolution. No definitive "evidence" one way or the other, but it sounds like J.D. is leaning toward calling BS on this story.

tagged: Greensburg, Kansas, Kathleen Sebelius, Sam Brownback, politics, Howard Dean, opportunism

Out on a Limbaugh

The problem with being a jerk in the broad category of political discussion, is that it often has an affect opposite of said jerk's intentions.

For example, a certain cretin from Topeka (which, I won't name in this form for reasons which I have previously explained), convinces more people that he is wrong the more he speaks.

Worldwide, Muslims didn't make any new allies when they began burning embassies in response to editorial cartoons.

Likewise, the vandal who defaced a billboard of Rush Limbaugh in Baltimore only provides the media with a reason to give Limbaugh free promotion via news stories.

No doubt, the vandal (probably a liberal), gained some short-term personal satisfaction from the act of vandalism (assuming s/he feels no guilt from the criminal act). But the result is a raft of news stories, additional notoriety, a bump in blog references and possibly a spike in listenership for Limbaugh's program.

If a person can't look objectively at a situation and discuss topics rationally, it's usually a better decision to just turn the radio dial to Air America (if it's still on the air).

tagged: politics, Rush Limbaugh, liberal, vandalism, free speech

Your chance to help

We received this announcement in an email from the K-State Alumni Association.

Apparently, Pizza Huts in Kansas will donate 20 percent of purchases tomorrow to the United Way Greensburg Disaster Fund if you mention the fund when you order. This fundraiser applies to all dine-in, carry-out or delivery orders.

So if you're like me and wondering what you can do to help, here's your chance. And you could munch on some bread sticks to boot.

Here's a story on fund-raising efforts, and here's the info we received (click to embiggen):

tagged: Greensburg, Kansas, tornado, United Way, Pizza Hut, rund raiser, KSU, K-Sate, alumni

Foo bar

Remember a couple of weeks ago when it was nice on Saturday? When the sun was out, it was warm, and it didn't rain?

Yeah, those were good times.

We took advantage of that day to explore our new neighborhood a little more. We moved in last fall and spent most of the winter doing fix up projects around the house. But on that day, that glorious, sunny spring day, we headed over to Foo's Fabulous Frozen Custard in the Ranchmart Shopping Center for an afternoon refreshment.

I gotta say I was pleasantly surprised. The mom & pop shop has two locations now (the original is in Brookside). The Ranchmart location has the feel of an old-timey neighborhood ice cream parlor, but it has the look of a modern franchise, from the kewl coffee house décor to the flat-screen TV to the impressive and well-used meeting places.

What impressed me most was the traffic. There were lots of people there. Singles, couples, families and groups. Some popping in for a to-go order, others enjoying the beautiful day on the sidewalk, still others in book clubs or study groups in the back room.

It made me feel like I might be in what passes for a small town in these parts.

tagged: Foo's Fabulous frozen custard, food, Kansas City, Overland Park, Leawood, dessert, Ranchmart

Dialog with a 4-year-old about Iraq

Scene: Me and the 4-year-old daughter B. in the car returning from Dairy Queen where we have picked up a "Welcome Home" ice cream cake for the homecoming party for Uncle Nick, who is home on leave from Iraq.

B.: Daddy, does Uncle Nick have a big job?

Me: Yes, he has a very big job.

B.: In... Iraq?

Me: Yes. He has a big, important job in Iraq.

B.: Oh.

B.: Is Uncle Nick a soldier?

Me: Yes. He's a soldier in Iraq.

B.: Oh. ... Does he have to fight?

Me: Sometimes. But only when someone wants to fight him.

B.: Who wants to fight him?

Me: The bad guys.

B.: Are there lots of bad guys in Iraq?

Me: There are some bad guys. But most of the people are good guys.

B.: What do they do with the bad guys? Do they kill the bad guys?

Me: ...

Me: ...

Me: They just try to catch the bad guys. They try to make them into good guys.

B.: Oh. So the bad guys won't be bad anymore.

Me: Right.

B.: Is Uncle Nick the only soldier?

Me: No. There are lots and lots of soldiers in Iraq.

B.: Like hundreds?

Me: More like thousands.

B.: Thousands? What's a thousands?

Me: That's a lot of hundreds altogether.

B.: What are their names?

Me: I don't know all of the soldiers' names. There are so many that it would be hard to know every name.

Me: My friend Bill from high school is a soldier. But there are lots more whose names I don't know.

B.: Oh.

B.: When are we going to eat the ice cream?

And... scene.

tagged: Iraq, soldier, war, family, parenting

YouTube Tuesday: Robot Chicken skewers George Lucas

Remember the hilarity that was the Robot Chicken sketch when Evil Emperor Palpatine learns that the Death Star had been blown up? ("What the hell in an Aluminum Falcon?!?").

Well, Seth Green and Co. are planning a larger feature based on that concept, and at 3 o'clock in the Morning, we have the non-exclusive preview. The show airs June 17 on the Cartoon Network.

"Your tongues can't repel flavor of that magnitude!"


tagged: movies, YouTube, video, Star Wars, Palpatine, Robot Chicken, humor

At the very least you need a beer*

We had a lot to celebrate on Saturday. It was Cinco de Mayo, a day very important to my family's cultural heritage, and my brother-in-law Nick, recently arrived for R&R from his deployment in Iraq, was visiting.

So what better way to commemorate both occasions than to enjoy an activity so close to the Mexican culture: a tour of a local artisan brewery.

We arrived at Boulevard Brewing Co. on (fittingly) Southwest Boulevard a couple minutes early for our 10 a.m. tour. According to our schedule, we would take the tour then be finished just in time to slosh down enough free beer samples to get us through lunch.

The tour started in the Boulevard tasting room with a brief introduction by our host, Jason, about the history of beer in the U.S. According to Jason, the pilgrims stopped at Plymouth Rock not because they had arrived at their destination, but because they had run out of beer and needed to find provisions to brew more. (Presumably, after brewing more beer, they were too "chemically inconvenienced" to go any further).

Anyway, fast forward a couple hundred years during which beer became so popular that pretty much every town in the Union had a brewery or three, to prohibition in the 1920s which effectively shut down all but the biggest breweries, to 1989 when I graduated from high school and John McDonald founded Boulevard Brewing Co. (I may have left out a few details, but you can fill in the gaps for yourself when you take the tour).

We then were guided through the brewery proper. Jason showed us the original brew house that was bought from a small town in Germany. We were walked through the brewing process, from the milling of barley, making the mash, introduction of hops, fermentation, filtering and bottling.

Jason showed us the new expanded brew house that will allow Boulevard to ramp up production to meet a growing demand for their beers.

Employees at Boulevard get some great perks, including a basketball court inside the bottling plant, a workout facility and an employees-only bar where you can drink (of course) free Boulevard beer.

Finally, we ended the tour back in the tasting room where the five Boulevard brands were ours for the tasting.

I had previously tried the Unfiltered Wheat (my favorite) the Pale Ale, the Dry Stout (very smooth, not at all bitter, my second favorite) and the Bully Porter, so my first sample was of the Lunar Ale. I gotta say, it didn't speak to me. It's a wheat based beer, but it had a taste on the back of my tongue that I can only describe as "green."

So I switched to the sixth beer on tap, labeled only as "Test." Boulevard often has a test beer on tap in its tasting room and today it happened to be an India Pale Ale.

It was a great surprise for me. I'm typically not a fan of the bitterness of IPAs, but it didn't bother me in this test brew. It was so well balanced and the finish so crisp that this ended up being one of my favorites.

Boulevard would do well to add it to their brand lineup.

*10 points to the first person to name the author of this quote.

tagged: Kansas City, Boulevard Brewing Co, beer, India pale ale, stout, porter, Cinco de Mayo

Wha happa???

The astute observer will notice that there have been a few changes around here lately.

The old original Blogger template seemed to be growing a little clunky. It seemed there was a lot of neato stuff that could be done with the shiny new Blogger.

So, for the last couple of weeks I had been experimenting with a new template on a supersecret test blog. Then yesterday, I decided to go ahead and take the plunge, pull the trigger and flip the switch.

At least one astute observer (perhaps the astutest) John B. of Blog Meridian noticed immediately. He left a comment on the post previous to this one:

I like the new layout; in a couple of places I've seen hacks for the 3-column layout, and I've wondered, given all my blog's links and geegaws, if the 3-column might be helpful.
Have you lived with it long enough to know whether you like it?

Well John B., the short answer is... No, I haven't had it up long enough to know whether I like it. It seems like it might be a little too busy, that it offends my minimalist taste. Maybe I need to get rid of some of the chicklets in the side columns or something.

Actually, it occurs to me that maybe widening the gutters between the columns would help. If there are any CSS Code Ninjas out there who can help, I would be very grateful.

But I'll probably stick with this layout, out of inertia and laziness if for no other reason.

I am interested to read what everyone thinks, so please post positive reaffirming messages in the comments section.

PS -- I wanted to say a special thanks to Stavanger at Blogcrowd who put up with a lot of my dumb questions through this process. For anyone thinking of updating their template, this is a great resource.

tagged: blog, blogger, template, Minima Black, css

Gunbusters?

I'm seeing these signs at various places around the city lately.

Are they new? Are they just now popping up because of recent events?

Or have they always been there and I'm just now noticing them (because of recent events).

tagged: gun, signs, shooting, Kansas City

Friday Blogthing: My cell phone etiquette

Believe me, my cell phone manners are much better than my table manners.

Your Cell Phone Etiquette is 51% Bad, 49% Good

Your cell phone manners are simply okay. Sometimes you can be very considerate. But when you are in the middle of an important conversation, all rules go out the window!

How's Your Cell Phone Etiquette?

tagged: cell phone, mobile, etiquette, quiz, manners