Open Thread

28 Comments

1. 

   Nancy LeTourneau on October 7, 2006 at 5:10 pm

   The big news in Minnesota is that Patty Wetterling (Dem running in MN-6 against an absolutley whako Michelle Bachman who’s only issues are anti-gay marriage and lower taxes) gave the Dems response to Bush’s radio address today. Patty’s son was abducted 17 years ago and never found. She has devoted her life since then to working to protect children.

   But even bigger news is that after trailing Bachman for months now in a VERY Repbulican district – polls show the race in a dead heat. I’m pretty excited about this because I can’t imagine anyone I would rather see out of politics that Michelle Bachman!!

2. 

   Teacher Toni on October 7, 2006 at 5:17 pm

   We’re watching some baseball game.  Our home team is winning 3-0.

3. 

   Mattes on October 7, 2006 at 5:29 pm

   After watching the opening of Battlestar Galactica…I am trying to find out where to rent Farscape.

4. 

   Arcturus on October 7, 2006 at 5:35 pm

   heading over to city college to hear Amy Goodman

   then down to SF tomorrow for the hardlystrictlybluegrass festival

   if you care, for anyone confused by phrases like “a kinder, gentler oppression”:

   “oppression designates the disadvantage and injustice some people suffer not because a tyrannical power coerces them, but because of the everyday practices of a well-intentioned liberal-society. . . . oppression also refers to systemic constraints on groups that are not necessarily the result of the intentions of a tyrant. Oppression in this sense is structural, rather than the result of a few people’s choices or policies. Its causes are embedded in unquestioned norms, habits and symbols, in the assumptions underlying institutional rules and the collective consequences of following those rules. . . . In this extended structural sense oppression refers to the vast and deep injustices some groups suffer as a consequence of often unconscious assumptions and reactions of well-meaning people in ordinary interactions, media and cultural stereotypes, and structural features of bureaucratic hierarchies and market mechanisms — in short, the normal processes of everyday life. We cannot eliminate this structural oppression by-‘ getting rid of the rulers or making some new laws, because oppressions are systematically reproduced in major economic, political, and cultural institutions.”
   Iris Marion Young,  Justice and the Politics of Difference, Princeton University Press, 1990
   “This book challenges the prevailing philosophical reduction of social justice to distributive justice. It critically analyzes basic concepts underlying most theories of justice, including impartiality, formal equality, and the unitary moral subjectivity. Starting from claims of excluded groups about decision making, cultural expression, and division of labor, Iris Young defines concepts of domination and oppression to cover issues eluding the distributive model. Democratic theorists, according to Young do not adequately address the problem of an inclusive participatory framework. By assuming a homogeneous public, they fail to consider institutional arrangements for including people not culturally identified with white European male norms of reason and respectability. Young urges that normative theory and public policy should undermine group-based oppression by affirming rather than suppressing social group difference. Basing her vision of the good society on the differentiated, culturally plural network of contemporary urban life, she argues for a principle of group representation in democratic publics and for group-differentiated policies. “This is an innovative work, an important contribution to feminist theory and political thought, and one of the most impressive statements of the relationship between postmodernist critiques of universalism and concrete thinking…. Iris Young makes the most convincing case I know of for the emancipatory implications of postmodernism.” –Seyla Benhabib, State University of New York at Stony Brook
   “With remarkable precision and clarity, Young constructs a ‘pluralized’ account of oppression, aiming to describe all the groups and all the ways they are oppressed.”–Signs
   PUP

   Constellations

5. 

   Street Kid on October 7, 2006 at 5:39 pm

   Feeling better enough to straighten up a bit–last thing I need is another battle w/pneumonia!

6. 

   americanforliberty on October 7, 2006 at 6:16 pm

   I hope the Yankees lose just to prove you can’t buy a pennat.(you see I have this birth defect that makes me a Royals fan).

7. 

   howieinseattle on October 7, 2006 at 6:17 pm

   In a few hours Atrios, Matt Stoller, Janeane Garofolo and local blogger David Goldstein (Goldy) will take the stage at Seattle’s Town Hall to discuss the media and politics. A gaggle of political junkies, wannabees and blogospherics will be in attendance, including me. Oh yeah, a guy from the Seattle Times will perform, as well.

8. 

   Steven D on October 7, 2006 at 6:36 pm

   My daughter’s a Yankees fan too.  Yankees and Patriots.  I think she’s a frontrunner, lol.

9. 

   jimstaro on October 7, 2006 at 6:39 pm

   * Bleeding Afghanistan: Washington, Warlords and the Propaganda of Silence *

   This weekend marks the fifth anniversary of the US invasion of Afghanistan.
   In recent months the Taliban has seized control of entire regions of the
   country. The security situation has worsened as suicide bombings are up 600
   percent this year. Opium and poppy cultivation are at record highs. NATO
   forces are suffering their highest casualty rate in five years. We speak
   with Sonali Kolhatkar and James Ingalls, authors of the new book, ³Bleeding
   Afghanistan: Washington, Warlords and the Propaganda of Silence.²

   Listen/Watch/Read

10. 

    Cali Scribe on October 7, 2006 at 7:38 pm

    to see the Yankees lose — if only to shut up the sports talking heads who were already engraving the World Series trophy.

    And also because I think the A’s will have an easier time against the Tigers than they would the Yankees, but that’s just my POV.

    My day will be complete if the Mets finish off the Dodgers tonight… 🙂

11. 

    Shalimar on October 7, 2006 at 7:41 pm

    Look on the bright side though: I’m a Montreal Expos fan.  You may have lost, but at least your team still exists.

    • 

      spiderleaf on October 7, 2006 at 8:55 pm

      Oh, mon pouvre petit… je suis tres desole.

      … but… Montreal’s always been a Canadiens town so it ain’t too surprising all in all. I’m more upset about the Nordiques being the Avalanche now myself.

      Meh, not really… Go Leafs Go. Let’s Go Blue Jays, let’s go! (sorry, couldn’t resist)

      • 

        supersoling on October 7, 2006 at 9:00 pm

        I was thinking about you today when I saw that the Leafs lost yesterday ;o)
        I also think about you and Cookting when I put a nice cold beer into my new Maple Leafs glass to :o)
        Hell, I think about you guys every time I see a beer now! Lol

        • 

          spiderleaf on October 7, 2006 at 9:15 pm

          …that’s the way we Canucks like it too. 😉

          We were thinking of calling you today to chat, saw your diary and wanted to talk about some ideas we had based on having met Sarah and you guys. Not that we’re experts or anything but wanted to see if we could help at all (and we’re halfway between the age ranges to boot :P)… but things got hectic and he’s engrossed in fixing his server and I’m drinking some nice Niagara on the Lake wine, and well… 🙂

          Tomorrow I’m golfing but Monday is Canadian Thanksgiving so we’re both off — are you gonna be around?

          … and yes, the Leafs suck. But I’m going to see the Tragically Hip at the Phoenix in a couple of weeks and that freakin’ rocks… me, CT, 800 cult of the Hip members, and the Hip. What a beautiful thing. Don’t even ask how much I paid on ebay for the tics… 😉

          • 

            olivia on October 7, 2006 at 9:30 pm

            … to say hiya spidey! It’s been a while. Good to hear that things are going well. And Happy Thanksgiving to you and CT. 🙂

          • 

            spiderleaf on October 7, 2006 at 9:40 pm

            Butt in any time O… hey chica, so good to ‘see’ you! 🙂

            How’re things shaking up in O-town? By your pics I see the flowers are still blooming and the bugs in full swing 🙂

            And a happy thanksgiving to you from both of us as well. I hope the weather in your neck of the wood is as beautiful as it’s been down here… tomorrow is supposed to be 21 and sunny… perfect weather to hit the links and watch the leaves change (as opposed to the Leafs change which they are quite sloppy at :P).

          • 

            olivia on October 7, 2006 at 10:00 pm

            Things are not going so well here w/ the Sens either … :/ They lost tonight to Buffalo. They won that first game against TO, but then TO came to Ottawa and kicked their asses all over the ice … LOL

            It was a gorgeous day here today — went hiking in the Gatineaus over in Quebec. Gorgeous fall colours. Nice to have such lovely weather on the long w/e. Enjoy your link day … 😉

          • 

            spiderleaf on October 7, 2006 at 10:44 pm

            Yeah, I watched that game 😉

            Hiking in the Gatineaus sounds fantastic. Now I’m jealous, I just took my dog for a walk down Queen St.

            That’s the one thing I miss about having a car, being able to pick up and go for a drive in the country or a camping trip… now it means planning and renting a car 🙁

            I’m hoping to get up to Montreal in March for a jazz long weekend tho… it’s both CT and my b-day and a trip for dinner and a show on St. Catherine St sounds about perfect 🙂

          • 

            olivia on October 7, 2006 at 10:59 pm

            You have a dog … now I’m jealous … 😉

          • 

            supersoling on October 7, 2006 at 11:39 pm

            I appreciate that!
            I won’t be around till the evening, after 7 or so. It’d be nice to hear from you and I’m all ears whenever advice is being offered.

            Happy Canuck Thansgiving…eh? ;o)

12. 

    afs on October 7, 2006 at 8:13 pm

    I’ve been a Tigers fan since 1972. When Bert Campaneris threw his bat at Detroit Tiger pitcher Lerrin LaGrow in the 72 playoffs, to be exact.

    Tigers lost that series. Tigers didn’t win anything the rest of my childhood. Had the one magic year where “Bless You Boys!” became a battlecry in 1984, and haven’t really won much of anything since. When I lived back east, I always managed to see at least a few games a year. I’ve been out west for more than a decade now. Watching the Tigers choke away the AL Central title on the last day of the season was agony. Swept by the Royals at home the last weekend? AAAAAAGH!

    It has not been easy being a Tigers fan. Beating the Yankees at home in this series makes up for some of that pain. Some of it. My main sport focus is now the Blazers. Do you see a pattern forming here?

13. 

    Bonnie on October 7, 2006 at 8:44 pm

    It’s over now.  My Dad once sent me a sympathy card when the Yankees didn’t make it to the World Series.  I could use one now.

14. 

    supersoling on October 7, 2006 at 8:54 pm

    I’ve been a Yanks fan all my life. And it sucks to see them go out early again this year. I get a little sick of all the grief they get for buying championships when they haven’t won one since 2000. They’re good at what they do, but they aren’t some mythical Darth Vader.

    You know what else I’m a fan of though? Underdogs. So with that in mind, I hope the Tigers take it all. Hey, it’s still the American League :o)

15. 

    keepinon on October 7, 2006 at 9:06 pm

    To Boo, Bonnie, Super and all other Yankee fans, I’m sorry our Tigers had to go through you to advance in the playoffs. We have suffered a long long time in and around Detroit waiting for even a decent team. If you had said 10 games over 500 at the start of the year, most folks I know around here would have taken that gladly. Our Tigers have played their butts off all year, and we really got some great pitching in this series from what had been a very tired staff the last month or so.
    Now we have to face Oakland who dispatched a very hot Twins team that came from behind to take the AL Central title from us the last day of the season. Hopefully, the Tigers will play to the best of their capabilities and make it a good series.

    Anybody ready to declare Leland manager of the year yet? I mean anyone outside of Michigan??  

    • 

      Cali Scribe on October 7, 2006 at 10:58 pm

      to the MLB playoffs should give Leyland manager of the millenium…no questions asked.

      I’m still mourning the fact that Jim Thome took Comeback Player in the AL over the A’s Frank Thomas…if Thomas doesn’t win MVP I’m calling for a Diebold investigation… lol

16. 

    alohaleezy on October 7, 2006 at 10:50 pm

    An all day sports day with another one tomorrow. Started out this morning at the grandleezy’s sccer game. They won 3-1 and our girl looked great. Off to run the Costco shuffle and then back to finish off the Padres beat St. Louis. Thank goodness. Was pretty downtrodden after attending the game here in San Diego thursday and watching them do nothing. Next….Ucla kicks Arizona’s butt but we lose our quarterback Ben Olson early on. Looks like a knee injury. Still not sure yet.

    Tomorrow, both at 10am out here in the west we have the Padres and Cardinals again. If Pads win back to San Diego on Monday to try and sew it up. Also my one and only Da Bears going strong at 4 and 0!! Go Bears! Go Padres! The the Chargers play at 5pm. Wow! I am exausted just writing about it! May all your teams win unless they are playing mine…lol.

17. 

    Arthur Gilroy on October 8, 2006 at 1:02 am

    ‘Cept for Jeter + Joe + Mariano + Bernie.

    ARod’s a closet narcissist.

    Go Mets.

    The clavé team.

    AG

18. 

    refinish69 on October 8, 2006 at 9:17 am

    I edited out most of the commentators comments which shortned the pain quite a bit. LOL  Listen to Kinky Friedman have a meltdown, Gove Goodhair lie like all repugnants and Grandma 4 names repeat her cheesy commercials. LOL  Chris Bell who is the Democratic candidate did a great job!!!!!

    2006 Texas Gubernatorial Debate