Obviously Hillary Clinton wants to neutralize attacks against her (or even questions about her) by her Democratic rivals. Duh. She's the front-runner and wants to keep it that way.

She also knows Republicans are going to try to tear her limb from limb in the general election. She'd like an easier go of it now. Is it laziness, arrogance, or a smart fighter resting up before The Big Rumble? All of the above?

For what it's worthy, I agree with Bill Clinton about the media setting Hillary Clinton up (I wouldn't call it a prelude to Swift Boating, though).

For months, the media has been talking about Hillary Clinton's flawless campaign. But with this last debate, they smelled blood in the water, and that makes for a more interesting story. The media isn't supposed to have a dog in this fight (talk about your mixed metaphors!) but I think some of them are really looking for their own "Gotcha, Hillary!" moments. It's almost personal.

Company executives (all close, personal friends of Rudy) involved in ethics and legal scandals. Secrecy regarding company clients, earnings and even what the company actually does.

It sounds like a Secret Cabal of Evil. Halliburton on crack.

The Washington Post has a fantastic database on all of this: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/giuliani/partners.html

I think we'll hear more about some shady doings at Giuliani & Partners if Giuliani become the Republican nominee. And Giuliani will be up to it to his eyeballs. He is the company. "No client is ever approved or worked on without a full discussion with Rudy," says Michael D. Hess, a senior partner at the firm.

We won't hear much, of course. Too secret for that. But enough to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. The question is, will Republicans care? Giuliani (a.k.a., Satan's Little Helper) just got the endorsement of Religious Right poster boy Pat Robertson.

Two days after September 11, 2001, Pat Robertson invited Jerry Falwell onto The 700 Club and they had this exchange:

JERRY FALWELL: And, I know that I'll hear from them for this. But, throwing God out successfully with the help of the federal court system, throwing God out of the public square, out of the schools. The abortionists have got to bear some burden for this because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million little innocent babies, we make God mad. I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen'.

PAT ROBERTSON: Well, I totally concur, and the problem is we have adopted that agenda at the highest levels of our government. And so we're responsible as a free society for what the top people do. And, the top people, of course, is the court system.

http://www.commondreams.org/news2001/0917-03.htm

Of course, this didn't stop Giuliani from praising Robertson at Robertson's school Regent University, where Giuliani was a guest speaker for their Executive Leadership series. Giuliani says of Robertson and Regent "the amount of influence that you have is really, really terrific."

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/06/26/giuliani-regent/

So of course Giuliani will use Robertson's influence to his advantage. Just like he's used 9/11. The Giuliani-Robertson marriage is twisted and grotesque. But Giuliani's got a little experience with twisted marriages.

But I wonder how much business New York was losing in that department to Craigslist. They might have decided this was a graceful way to get out of a fading revenue source.

Supposedly, New York Magazine was getting $10,000 a month from those ads. And they still had two pages per issue of those ads (and magazines don't discount stripper classified ads the way they do regular run-of-book ads). The ads were still pretty easy money, even though the internet has definitely hit classified advertising hard.

However, nowhere have I read yet that New York Magazine is also going to stop carrying these ads online at nymag.com.

Aside: Often the ad execs at the magazines themselves aren't comfortable working with these advertisers--they'd rather be working on ads for small businesses.

The Broadsheet article says New York got "$10,000 a month in ad revenue."

Women's Wear Daily says $10,000 a week.

http://www.wwd.com/memopad/article/120084?page=1

New York is a weekly and this is a big difference. Which is it?

BRING MACE.

Dubya gets handsy.

Yet 75% of Republicans still approve of George W. Bush (33% moderately and 42% strongly).

64% of Republicans would still approve of George W. Bush if he ripped a fetus from the womb and ate it over dinner with Osama Bin Laden. [Okay, I made that one up.]

Dana Runs, according to a 1997 Gallup Poll, only 4% of people believed Elvis was still alive. 93% were certain he was dead. 3% were unsure. I don't know which group bothers me more: the 4% who think he's alive or the 3% who aren't sure.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/2638/August-23rd-Anniversary-Elvis-Death-Americans-Still-Conside.aspx

Other fun facts: 16% of people believe evolution (described as the "idea that human beings developed over millions of years from less advanced forms of life") is probably false. 28% say it's definitely false.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/21814/Evolution-Creationism-Intelligent-Design.aspx

I figured it was the inevitable result of using a

1) private army 2) trained to shoot first and ask questions later 3) accountable to neither the U.S. military nor Iraqi law 4) to referee sectarian conflict 5) in a region marked by centuries of tribal and religious alliances 6) for an undeclared war 7) without a clear mission 8) marked by the use of improvised explosive devices and suicide bombers such that the enemy lurks behind every corner 9) where the U.S. is viewed as an occupying entity 10) bent on destroying the Muslim world.

Is that everything?