I'm disappointed that Heather doesn't get it. I was looking forward to her (positive) take on it.

JFC is fascinating to watch, and I can't remember the last time I was this enthusiastic about something on television.

Olbermann's piece seems overly dramatic to me. Resign? For this? There have been some pretty disturbing things done during Bush's terms, but what he did was legal, and no one's going to die because of it.

The History Channel just aired some episodes of its series "The Presidents", and I was stuck by how many losers we've elected. Some really horrible things have been done by our leaders, and yet we're still here. I don't know what to make of that, except to think that we will get past the Bush years, and eventually we'll be due another really great leader.

Too bad Jones didn't hit Elson.

I'm not a fan of "playoffs basketball" to begin with, but with the suspensions of Stoudemire and Diaw, I think I've had enough.

So your guy Charley Rosen doesn't think Stoudemire is that great, and neither do you. Good for you. If you think that quoting the guy a bunch of times, including something so detailed (and thus authoritative) as his ability to change direction is "putting together an argument," then good for you there too.

I've actually watched Phoenix play, and I disagree with you.

He's a substantially better player than he was two years ago. I find it strange to even defend him, as it should be pretty obvious if you've watched Phoenix play at all.

Not all Democrats are anti-gun, and it's annoying when you hear so condescendingly that you have to be utterly stupid to not support banning guns. It's also not a very smart way of getting people to agree with you or to vote for your candidate. Most people are ok with some restrictions on ownership, like waiting periods and background checks, but the gun-control nuts immediately leap to unrealistic policy ideas that are unconstitutional.

Many liberals, when criticizing the Patriot Act, paraphrase Franklin: a society willing to trade freedom for security deserves neither. Yet the same argument applies to the 2nd amendment as to the others. All our liberties have costs, but we accept those costs because we value our freedoms more. Believing in the right to own a gun does not mean that you're in favor of killing children, no more than opposing wire-tapping mean that you're in league with terrorists.

This is yet another article about Salon's letter-writers. I realize the weekend is coming, but as someone who is truly on the fence about continuing my subscription, I really would prefer more thoughtful, investigative pieces from this site.

But regarding the piece, the Kathy Sierra situation is not remotely the same as what's gone on here, and it does a disservice to her and to Salon letter writers for Walsh to coopt it for her own agenda.

And pardon my cynicism, but I can't help but wonder if this issue isn't perpetuated merely to court controversy, increase page views, and make Salon seem edgy, (in the blog world, not the journalistic one, unfortunately). And just hours away from the end of the quarter...

I think some people are getting caught up in the same romanticism that the LW is wallowing in. The important points are that

1. LW hasn't done anything yet. Hardly the action of someone "dying" to be a musician. Why hasn't he? Probably because it's more rewarding (easier) to daydream about how cool it would be to be a musician than to actually do something about it.

2. LW admits he wants to be part of a musician crowd, another clue that this is more about how the LW wants to perceive himself and be perceived by others than about music.

3. LW says he doesn't care about fame, but in my experience, people who volunteer that actually do care about fame.

Bottom line, this is a nice fantasy, and there's nothing wrong with indulging in it. The LW is not going to be a musician though.

There are those people who gaze up at the mountain tops imagining the view, and then there are those other people who buy the shoes, start at the trail head, and put one foot in front of the other.

I'd like to see the primaries held in all states at the same time. So long as Iowa and New Hampshire are first, then those states will be the ones to choose, regardless of when the other states hold theirs. I realize that it's more expensive to campaign nationally, but we're already busting the bank this cycle-- could it get any worse?

In previous elections I've felt like someone who has a favorite tv show get cancelled because I'm not a damn Nielsen family...

This is somewhat offtopic, but I'm wondering if any of you are using devices like the Sony Reader to read these books. I own way too many books, and my library has long wait-lists for popular titles, so I tend to read less than I would otherwise.

After reading this article and the other end-of-year reviews, I'm encouraged to either buy (or wait for) a bunch of books, or get them electronically. Any success? The online reviews of Sony's product are poor to mediocre. (And the thing is expensive!)

So the gist of the article is that the author was conflicted about buying a diamond, but he bought one anyway, with the rationalization that, "we can only take care of one thing at a time."

Suppose this hybrid-driving author had a friend who bought a Hummer, despite his concern for the environment, because the only thing he could think about at that time is how cool he'd look driving a Hummer. I suppose that if the author should find himself in this situation, he can nod and smile at his friend in understanding and sympathy.

The other Daily Show folks are ok, but none as hysterical as those two.

---michelle