You make the call
Two quotes...one topic...two Tylenol...

"I think we should just trust our President in every decision that he makes and we should just support that." —Britney Spears

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." —President Theodore Roosevelt

Hmmmm...which advice to follow...
posted at 04:09 AM | link-

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Forever in peace may you wave
[ Happy Fourth of July! ]

posted at 06:37 AM | link-

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Iraq the casbah

A quick follow-up to this photo. Never let it be said that Sooners don't represent!
posted at 11:06 PM | link-

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Ain't that America, somethin' to see baby
Some people look at a flag, swaying in the breeze of the White House and say, "That's America." Whenever I see an American flag hung in a window of a basement apartment by guys who have better things to do with their money than buy curtains, I say, "That's America, to me."

In America, there are fifty-one states. Or maybe it's eighty by now. Does England count? I'm not quite sure. The one thing I am sure of is, if I'm standing in a warehouse beside a timeclock, and a guy is punching in his best friend who's too hungover to get out of bed, I'm standing in America. The makeover capital of the world. The place where every young man has to answer in his heart the question: What do you love more, your girlfriend, or your car? Where that young man can buy a beat-up car for three hundred dollars, but have to spend a thousand to insure it. The land where even a paperboy can option the film rights to a book.

America. In America, a woman on an assembly line works out her overtime in her head to infinity, and at the exact same moment, her husband gets into a car crash because he was looking at a girl in a tube top.

America. A land where spelling doesn't count, but people's pets do. Where else can you get a job riding a whale at Marineland? The land where a guy's girlfriend breaks up with him over the phone, so he takes a gun, and kills the principal. Everyone's sad until they get the day off. Next week, another guy, another gal, another, "We can still be friends" phone call. Whuh-oh! The assistant principal gets killed. And everyone is sad because they don't get the day off. Because he was only the assistant principal.

America. A land of opportunity. Yes, that great lumbering beast that journeys tirelessly and stops only to eat a clubhouse sandwich, pick its teeth with a matchbook cover, and falls asleep with the TV on.

America. A place for Americans.

Credit: Kids in the Hall, "That's America"
posted at 02:09 PM | link-

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There's no place like home
Now this is the kinda news I like waking up to on Sunday! Let's hope it sets the tone of this week on a much more positive note than last week started on...
posted at 01:13 PM | link-

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I need a few good men
My new "support the troops" t-shirt from The Replacements radio show arrived today. Ahhhh, it'sah vehhry niiice.
posted at 12:41 AM | link-

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Final thoughts...
Just a couple of quotes from the several articles out there on David Bloom:

"I'd often think, 'oh, to be that young again,'" says Tom Brokaw. "And then I’d think, if I were that young again, I’d have to compete against David and don’t think I’d want to do that." [link]

On the Monday after the war started, Bloom delivered live reports at 2:22 a.m. ET for MSNBC, at 6:55, 7:09 and 8:04 for "Today", at 10:43 for NBC, 10:47 for MSNBC, 11:12 for NBC, 12:31 p.m. for NBC, 12:36 and 2:33 for MSNBC, at 6:37 for NBC’s "Nightly News", and at 8:07 and 9:35 again for MSNBC, according to The Washington Post. [link]

If you'd like to send a note to the Bloom family, you can do so here...
posted at 02:26 AM | link-

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No. More. Words.
Ouch, baby. Very ouch.* (*Please note the preceding comment was lifted from Austin Powers.)

I guess this would also be a good time to quote Stacy and say, "I just work here."

UPDATE: Here's the MeFi discussion for this topic, linked from the Wired News article above.
posted at 03:33 PM | link-

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So. Freakin'. Sad.
We didn't go to bed until 6 a.m. so I'm just getting up today. I guess you all know the news. I'm in too much shock to cry. I adored him. Pre-Iraq reporting even. Yeah, his hair was goofy. But he was smart. He knew his stuff. And he didn't come across like a pompous ass either. He was a damn fine reporter. And he was young. So young.

Out of respect for David and his family, I've yanked all of my entries about him. But I wanted to leave the comments up that I woke up to. Now I have to go sit in shock for awhile...

I combed the NBC site looking for a photo to jog my memory today and found nothing. This is the first photo I've seen of him all day. You'd think NBC would at least say, "We miss you."

¤ ¤ credit: eden | 04.06.03 at 08:13 AM | link--this ¤ ¤

NBC announced that David past away from a blood clot. He is survied by his wife and 3 daughters. My prayers go out to his family.

http://apnews1.iwon.com//article/20030406/D7Q828VG0.html?PG=home&SEC=news

¤ ¤ credit: Sean | 04.06.03 at 08:39 AM | link--this ¤ ¤

was just going to reiterate what Sean posted. It just seem so surreal, one morning we are talking about his studliness, and the next he is gone. [sorry, Robyn,I hope this doesn't come off sounding bad, I am just taken by complete shock...]

¤ ¤ credit: munin | 04.06.03 at 09:01 AM | link--this ¤ ¤

I had just read your entry last night and so when I read the news this was the first place I came.

News blurb here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/nation/nationalsecurity/abroad/iraq/dispatches/

Bizarre and tragic way to go. At least it was a quick way to go....but no less jarring for his family and those that followed his reports. :(

¤ ¤ credit: Schnee | 04.06.03 at 10:08 AM | link--this ¤ ¤

Robyn, I'm really sorry about David. You were actually the first thing I thought of when I saw the report. :(

¤ ¤ credit: Kimmie | 04.06.03 at 10:50 AM | link--this ¤ ¤

Sad to think David is no longer with us. I've watched him for years on NBC. I pray for his wife and 3 young daughters.

¤ ¤ credit: ursula | 04.06.03 at 11:57 AM | link--this ¤ ¤

posted at 12:11 PM | link-

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Y'know I feel glad when you're glad
This is your feel-good story of the day.

And this is your moment of zen.

Any questions?
posted at 02:27 PM | link-

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More blogs in the press
Just after midnight last night, CNN ran a segment on "NewsNight with Aaron Brown" about warblogging. My husband and Michele apparently made some kind of super-secret deal, forcing me to screen-capture the highlights. So in case you missed it live, go here. Glenn Reynolds of InstaPundit.com, a site that Stacy designed, was interviewed live. They also zoomed in on the author of BuzzMachine using Movable Type.

UPDATE: "Just Say Julie" reviewed the CNN segment here.
posted at 03:18 PM | link-

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1 down...
Fuckin'-A. She's coming home.
posted at 07:33 PM | link-

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Make blog, not war
I believe it's your duty in a free society, especially in time of war, is to stay informed. That's why you have "The Command Post" on one side of the coin -- and the brand new, just-launched "Blogs Against War" on the other. (Click here for instructions on how to post to the new "Blogs Against War" site.)
posted at 02:11 PM | link-

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Lies, lies, lies, yeah - they won't forget you!

In the April 5 issue of TV Guide, [Peter] Arnett said he felt he had found redemption reporting on the current war.

"I was furious with (CNN founder) Ted Turner and (then-CNN chairman) Tom Johnson when they threw me to the wolves after I made them billions risking my life to cover the first Gulf War," Arnett told TV Guide.

"Now (Turner and Johnson) are gone, the Iraqis have thrown the CNN crew out of Baghdad, and I'm still here," he said. "Any satisfaction in that? Ha, ha, ha, ha." (Read full articles at FOXNews.com and National Geographic.)

Famous last words for $200, Alex. Don't let the scud hit you on the way out...
posted at 04:23 PM | link-

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Teenage suicide -- don't do it!
So if you're a suicide bomber who decides to blow yourself in front of a group of soldiers, and you only end up injuring 30 -- just killing yourself -- do you still get the 10 young virgins in the after-life? Or are you reduced to something like 10 chain-smoking skanks with the clap from New Jersey*?

* Please note no one from New Jersey was actually targeted or harmed during the making of this entry. Sorry Tennessee.
posted at 01:58 PM | link-

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"He thought he knew better"
From the FARK forums -- they always know just how to cut right to the chase:

"...'hungry troops' says it all....if the bush presidency were a dukes of hazzard episode, this would be the point where uncle jesse says, 'well, bush and his pals have got themselves in quite a pickle now'." [link]

For more background on this FARK comment, please read this Washington Post article.
posted at 03:26 AM | link-

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God bless America

posted at 08:58 PM | link-

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We are living in a material world and I am a material girl
Madonna on war (from Entertainment Tonight): "We have to stop. We have to heal ourselves. We have to heal the world."

Well I'm so glad we got that straight. I know I'll sleep better tonight.
posted at 07:07 PM | link-

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I'm gonna be on tel-e-vision

Will of "Weblog Central" just e-mailed me the following:

Hey guys, wanted to make sure you saw that the Nightly News from last night is viewable online. It's the 7th clip.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/NIGHTLYTB_Front.asp

I'm not sure how to give you a clean link to the video itself. This opens the video but sizes it wrong.

http://www.msnbc.com/m/mw/mw.asp.....cover&opt=0

The link will disappear from the Nightly News page in a day probably, but the video should be viewable for a lot longer than that.

So there you go...fifteen more minutes of fame in case you missed it last night! Thanks Will!

posted at 04:15 PM | link-

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Look 'ma, I'm on TV (well, sort of)

It's not every day a girl gets to see her work on the NBC Nightly News -- one of the sites I designed (as mentioned last night) made it on the air this evening. One of the sites Stacy designed made it on as well. I'd have to say it was a good day...for Sekimori Design!
posted at 07:23 PM | link-

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PSA
Just a quick note that there's a good chance one of the sites I've designed, The Agonist, is going to be on the NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw this evening. I'll update if I see the site or its owner Sean Paul Kelley, on-air.

UPDATE: Or maybe not... Our local news said it would be a special hour-long Nightly News before it aired, but it only ran for 30 minutes here -- and no warblogging segment. (Here's the official reason why.) So stay tuned tomorrow!
posted at 06:19 PM | link-

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There's fifty-seven channels and nuthin' on
"If you've got people after four and a half days saying they've had enough of the war, think of the magnitude of that statement," [Robert Thompson, professor of media and popular culture at Syracuse University] said. "World War II took four years." (Full article at CNN.com.)

This quote really hit home with me. I got to the point Monday with Todd home all day where I couldn't stop crying. You may have noticed my lack of blogging. I was the same way after 9/11. The news-addict in me wants to stay informed, but the "bleeding-heart" in me just can't absorb all the pain that quickly. After such a bloody Sunday with one bad news story after the next, I guess I hit my limit. And we haven't even got to the most gruesome and bloody of the battles yet. I decided that I had to take a step back for awhile, and I'm trying to limit myself as best I can (unless of course something major develops). To be honest, I don't know how the warbloggers do it. All day. Every day.

But WWII didn't have 24/7 coverage in living color, and they certainly didn't have as many (radio) networks and spin-off networks as we do today. Most war updates came in the form of black and white newsreels and cartoons before feature films, which were hardly instantaneous updates. Now we know the second sirens wail in Kuwait and see everyone grab their gas masks live. We see the bombs as they fall over Baghdad. We know the names of the fallen almost the instant men in uniforms appear at their family's doors. Gone are the days of Western Union telegrams. It's now, now, now -- get it on the air! Get the exclusive interview with the mom! Which only succeeds in making me start crying all over again...

And although I'd hardly compare what we're going through now with what our nation faced during WWI and WWII, we are getting it faster -- we are getting it much more in your face -- and depending on the size and price of your TV, the battle scenes are so real and lifesize / lifelike they almost seem to be occurring right there live in your very own living room. That, to me, is magnitude.

Footnote: After reading the whole CNN.com article mentioned above, I hope I never run into David White of Indianapolis. Because I'll spit in his face:

"I'd much rather watch the [NCAA] tournament because I can make money on it," said David White, 30. "There's no war pool."
posted at 03:20 AM | link-

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Duct (tape) and cover
Ok, I've already mocked celebrities once today -- but this is just 'tawded enough to warrant its own entry. Some celebrities apparently will be wearing swatches of duct tape tomorrow evening at the Academy Awards ceremony. According to Yahoo! News, "that bit of anti-fashion is a sly reference to the government's suggestion several weeks ago that citizens buy duct tape to seal their windows from airborne poisons".

Ok, I can understand the dove peace pins. If the celebrity wearing it doesn't grab the mic and turn the awards ceremony into their own 10-minute political platform, fine. Wear the pin. Make your quiet statement. But just what message is the duct tape sending, other than "I'm a moron"? If you spot any celebrity wearing duct tape, snag a pic for me. I'll make them their very own Special Olympics ribbon to wear to next year's Oscar ceremony. At least then they'll be supporting the mentally handicapped on their red carpet duds, instead of becoming one themselves.

UPDATE: Perhaps Oscar attendees could get fashion tips here instead?
posted at 06:10 PM | link-

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Uhh, Breaker 1-9, this here's the Rubber Duck

posted at 11:29 PM | link-

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Surprise and marvel
I swear to all that's holy...if I hear the words "shock and awe" one more time tonight... Here, please allow me to help. There are other words in the English language. Seriously.
posted at 07:28 PM | link-

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It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah

"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we
should thank God that such men lived."

- General George S. Patton

posted at 03:03 PM | link-

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Unlimited a power can belong only to God

I'm taking tomorrow off to follow the world events, how they effect our
country, and to pray for our service men and women. Please do the same,
if only for a short while. -Robyn
posted at 10:10 PM | link-

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Bill of Rights

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."

- President Theodore Roosevelt

posted at 06:26 PM | link-

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Highway to the danger zone

I rarely talk about my exes here, because well...I'm happily married, have been for years, and I married the right man in my life... But today my thoughts are drifting across the world to a man I once loved and still care very deeply about (even though we haven't spoken since the evening I called to tell him I was engaged). We dated -- and were friends -- for two years when I was at OU. During which time he started Naval flight school (in Pensacola, FL), was promoted in rank to Lieutenant, and was accepted into jet training (in Meridian, MS).

The last I heard, he was also happily married and stationed in Spain. I think of his wife on a day like today and think "what if". Was I really prepared to be a military wife if my life had taken another path and it had ultimately come to that? I don't think so. I wouldn't want to be in her shoes for all of the money in the world. That would be the hardest 'goodbye kiss' you could ever give. But even though I haven't spoken to this man in seven years now, I still think of him -- and his wife -- and pray for his safety.

When I say I support our troops it's because I do. It's not just liberal talk to keep the conservatives from jumping on me. I very much loved one of them once upon a time. I once laughed, and danced, and soaked up the sun.....with several of the pilots who could be dropping bombs and flying rescue missions tonight. I know that, politics aside, they have a job to do whether it was one they would have asked for or not. They signed up because they believe in -- and love -- this country as much as I do.

And they're willing to die for it.
posted at 02:20 PM | link-

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Tick tock tick tock

I mentioned this over at Solonor's yesterday, and it still applies. Right now I have that uneasy / queasy feeling you get after waking up from a bad dream. You know the one. You wake up thinking you've forgotten to attend a class all semester long, and suddenly it's the day of the final and you're late for it -- and of course, haven't studied a single chapter of the book. Once you check yourself and realize that you are, in fact, 30 years old and haven't even been enrolled in a college course since 1995 -- you still can't shake that "did I turn off the oven, forget my keys, leave the iron on" feeling all day. The pit of my stomach is kicking my ass right now. Sometimes it's really hard to ask God to bless America after the way we act.

Wishing strength, safety, courage and peace for all of those who defend us and their families... Thank you for doing so. Hurry home!

UPDATE: I've now been critcized publicly for stating, "Sometimes it's really hard to ask God to bless America after the way we act."

"...I just don't understand people, and as of now I've officially given up on trying." [link]

You can find my direct reply in the comments of the link above. But please raise your hand and tell me if you believe that we, as a nation, have always acted in a global manner that we can be proud of. Ultimately we are governed by human beings. And human beings have faults and make mistakes. I would be forced to surrender my degree in History if I tried to claim all of our actions in the name of the United States of America over the years are beyond reproach.

You know how your mom would say, "I love you. But I don't really like you right now..." Well that's how I feel. And because I'm an American citizen, I have every right to feel that way. It doesn't make me less patriotic. It doesn't mean I love my country any less than you do. It does mean that the Constitution gives me the right to question my leaders and their actions.

Don't try to understand people. Try to understand democratic life in a Republic instead.
posted at 09:18 AM | link-

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Will Photoshop for food

Create your own clip-art protest sign here...
posted at 02:28 PM | link-

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Salted or unsalted?

U.S. citizens have turned on French fries and toast to vent their frustration at France's anti-war stance on Iraq. Now the French have joined in the food war -- with pretzels. A French Web site is urging people to send pretzels to U.S. President, who fainted and fell off a sofa in January 2002 after gagging on the salty snack.

"We think that to oppose war is not to be against the American people, but simply against the politics of the Bush administration." (Read more at the official site and CNN.com.)
posted at 11:14 PM | link-

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As the French say, that certain "I don't know what"
Good on them -- New Orleans refuses to remove "French" from the French Quarter! (CNN.com article includes a photo from my favorite Vieux Carre pit stop, The Napoleon House.) Don't get me wrong. I like making fun of the French just as much as the next red-white-and-blue blooded American, because quite frankly they most-often deserve it... But I think it's utter nonsense to go around slapping the word "Freedom" over every instance of the word "French" in this country. If you've just gotta change the name, at least be bold about it. "I'll have some American Fuckin'-A-Man Fries and a large Coke to go, please!"
posted at 03:33 AM | link-

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Left is right - right is wrong
That old male-earring adage pretty much describes my political leanings. That's all you really need to know. I voted for Clinton. Twice. I'd do it again in a heartbeat if I could. I'm a liberal. I oppose the war with Iraq until the second it begins because I don't believe in it, and that's my right as an American -- but I'll be our military and Commander in Chief's biggest supporter in the event it starts, because I believe that's my duty as an American. Nothing I tell you is going to change your views on the matter. I could discuss my opinions 'til I'm blue in the face and link every news article and editorial I could find -- but all it would result in is half of my readers saying "hell yeah!", and the other half quoting stats and figures in disagreement that I don't -- or won't -- necessarily believe in. So I just don't "go there".

It doesn't mean I have my head in the sand or that I'm neglecting the current events going on around me. I just don't have the time, or the patience, for the comment and cross-blog wars that would result. My husband does, and more power to him. I do admire and respect people who are on both sides of these often heated discussions. But if you'll please excuse me...I'm happy, for now, right over here on the observation deck.
posted at 06:28 PM | link-

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