Rich Perry--or Governor Goodhair, as Molly Ivins called him--is a living, walking, breathing example of the Peter Principal. As an Austin resident, I hope that not everyone judges the worth of Texas as a state, or Texans individually, by the prancing, brainless jackass that managed to get elected governor. Please remember that the state is becoming more purple all the time, we had a state prosecutor who indicted Tom Delay, and we not just send morons to Congress, but also have folks like Rep. Doggett.

Put aside what Perry is doing and remind yourself: the Lt. Governor has more power in Texas than the Governor.

1) While I certainly resent it every time I have to work on the weekends, look at the bright side: when I have to work weekends, it's usually because I'm on some horrific project deadline, and am working like a maniac to complete. By comparison, spending a Sunday afternoon at a base P/X isn't that bad.

2) Get an iPhone, or some other portable media device. I travel from my home in Austin to the SF Bay Area every other weekend, and if I didn't have hundreds of books, dozens of games, a round dozen TV shows, and 4-5 movies available in my hand, I would go nuts. It's worth the money if you get stuck with pool duty.

3) However boring pool duty is, I was glad to read your post about it. Why? For those of us who complain about the beltway press--myself included--the glimpse inside how you spend your days is valuable. I would be interested in other gritty details, even to what kind of transport you get stuck on (with or without A/C in the brutal D.C. summers?), how often you are on pool duty, what you do on days when it's not "boring," why there are multiple press folks on pool duty instead of just one (in the Computer Biz, we call that "duplication of effort"), how early you have to report for it, and so on.

Just a few thoughts.

First, I am spectacularly tired of Republicans continuing the old canard about a "liberal press." I give points to Greener for not using that shop-worn phrase, but even so, the talk about the "love" the press had for Obama, without acknowledging the (quite literal) "tire swinging" swooning coverage the press gave to McCain--until he did things so observably absurd that they couldn't refrain from comment, like during the "suspended campaign" debacle--shows that he still holds to this exploded myth.

Secondly, if Greener thinks that the Senators performing for the cameras during the Sotomayor hearings were "respectful," I would suggest he watch the videos again and reconsider. Mr. Greener, they called her a racist; they concentrated to an absurd degree on one remark and ignored her multiple hundreds of cases; Lindsay Graham was so hypocritical--castigating Sotomayor for the very same thing that he told Alito to not worry about--that it should have been embarrassing to you. These were no "tough questions"; they were questions designed to do exactly what you described when speaking of the immigration issue: appeal to the rabid base of the party.

In the end, though, Mr. Greener is largely right: Republicans do need to have a reasonable, intelligent debate on what to do about expanding their party beyond the rabid base. But if even an obviously intelligent, thoughtful man like Greener continues to believe that the press is "liberal," and that the Republican Senators approach to Sotomayor during the confirmation hearings--when they basically called her a racist--was respectful, then the first job he and his fellow party members have to do is explode some self-made myths. Otherwise, Greener and Co. are in for a long, long dry spell.

Well, gee, the Flat-earth society doesn't get coverage in the mainstream media; maybe CNN ought to cover *that*. Or the events of the Lawnmower racing circuit. (As Dave Barry would say, I am not making this up!) Or Omaha City Council meetings. Or the activities of that fascinating, interesting bunch, the Moran family. How about CNN cover them?

I've seen some lame excuses given by putative news organizations in defense of keeping something lame on the air for ratings purposes and no other reason, but this really takes the biscuit. Why don't they just go all-in and admit, "We keep Dobbs because he gets ratings; we know he's a loon." (And Campbell Brown: you are no longer allowed to claim that your network is the only one covering "real news.")

And they wonder why their audience is fleeing, but the audience for online info is skyrocketing. Get a grip or go the way of buggy whips, kids.

Actually, I never owned--or was even tempted to own--a pair of crocs. Years ago I gave my allegiance to a different brand of comfortable-but-ugly shoes: Birkenstock. They are leather rather than plastic, and very comfortable, and ugly as sin. But I've been wearing 'em since College, and I'm not about to stop now. (And they don't come in bright colors with flair attached. So far as I know.)

Never bought any for the kids, either. Hey, I'm trend-backward kind of guy; what can I say?

It doesn't help his cause that he's a loon, either, I'm sure.

I am ordinarily more eloquent than this, but I'm afraid my outrage-o-meter has been pegged at "steam coming out of ears."

Over 70% of the public wants a public option. Hell, even 50% of Republicans want a public option. How often is there that level of overwhelming support for anything, let alone a piece of public policy?

So with regard to the "blue dogs," let me just say: fuck them. Banish them to the outer darkness. Deny them support in primaries and re-elections. Push them off committees. Deny them chair positions. Fuck them. They have demonstrated that they are only interested in a) publicity, or b) supporting the insurance industry. So they can go to hell.