Monday, April 30, 2007

Mission still not accomplished

Four years ago Tuesday, George W. Bush stood proudly aboard an aircraft carrier in the Gulf for a taxpayer-funded photo-op, where he puffed himself up like a toad and croaked the words "mission accomplished".

Guess what, Georgie-boy?

Not only is the mission still not accomplished, but things in Iraq are even worse now than before you impetuously invaded the sovereign country on a slew of bogus justifications. And there's little chance that the situation will improve so long as we continue our occupation there.

Normally I'd take a bit of pleasure in seeing an idiot like Bush being proven wrong, but there is no joy in the knowledge that over 3,000 Americans and countless Iraqis are now dead because of the Boy Chimp's blatant stupidity. And the prospects of many more needlessly dying will be ensured when Bush vetoes the funding bill that has a deadline for withdrawal attached.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has a .PDF file (click here) that examines Bush's hollow words that day.

And The Raw Story (photo credit above) covers the demonstration above with more photos from in front of the White House.

May Day is traditionally a day to celebrate life, renewal, and the wondrous cycles of nature.

But for the past four years, it only serves to remind us of George Bush's tragic failure of leadership.

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Reminder: Blog Wars screening this Wednesday!

(This may be your LAST CHANCE to view "Blog Wars" on a giant screen!)

There will be a screening of the mega-smash-hit BBC/Sundance documentary “Blog Wars” a week from tomorrow at Tunxis Community College.

Featured guests include Spazeboy and CT Bob (Beau Anderson and Bob Adams respectively).

Where: Tunxis Community College (click for map), Whit’s Place (Cafeteria)
When: May 2nd, 6:30pm (Film at 7:15)

If you’re interested, please RSVP to spaze@spazeboy.net with “Blog Wars Screening” in the subject.

Or you can email me (CT Bob) at blogwars@yahoo.com

Or just show up. You won't be turned away. Trust me.

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Black47 tonight at Fairfield U.

Joyce and I went to this free outdoor concert with Black47. After the Bridgeport Town Meeting with Chris Shays, Maura, Caffeinated Geek Girl, Tessa and Mike Brown joined us.

It was great hearing them again; I first saw them at the "Knock & Rock" event during the Lamont campaign, and it was nice not having to run home to edit video after only three songs because I had other campaign events to attend.

We got to hear their whole set tonight.

Here's a little 90-second video I shot with my Fuji digital camera. I recorded Black47 doing "Downtown Baghdad Blues" and cut it into a faux "2-camera shoot", which you'll see during the chorus.

I'm SO clever!

(And the Mets won in the 12th tonight, so I'm happy, too!)

Every child should be a wanted child

(Reposted from MyLeftNutmeg by Tessa)

(Small donations can make a big difference in lives of real women in crisis here in Connecticut. Please help if you can!)

From the Things we should know about the outside world Dept.

Put yourself in the place of a girl or woman facing an unintended pregnancy. Perhaps she already has several children and is struggling to feed and care for all of them (over 60% of abortions are among women who already have at least one child). Perhaps she will not be able to work during a pregnancy, or keep her job with a baby to take care of. Perhaps it will mean that she has to drop out of school, and thus face an uncertain financial future. Whatever the reasons, she has decided to terminate the pregnancy.

Odds are, she's already struggling to make ends meet.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, the abortion rate among women living below the federal poverty level ($9,570 for a single woman with no children) is more than four times that of women above 300% of the poverty level.


The average cost for a first trimester abortion in Connecticut is $600.  In many cases a woman choosing abortion is uninsured and has no other money to pay for services.

In these circumstances, in Connecticut, an organization called The Rosie Fund steps in to help cover the costs.

Rosie Fund

This Fund may become the only hope for an impoverished woman or girl.

In 2005, 77 women received Rosie grants.  In 2006, that number doubled, with 145 women requesting funding assistance.  And the need continues to increase. In just two months (December 2006 through January 2007), 44 women asked for over $7000 in donations.
I am posting this diary because I want readers of My Left Nutmeg, and other onliine information resources in Connecticut, to know about The Rosie Fund.  In order to keep providing this necessary service, the Rosie Fund needs our help.

Perhaps some readers of this diary will be able to help the women who need the Rosie Fund financially, or know someone who can donate a few bills.

As an aside: Certainly we need to do a better job of teaching pregnancy avoidance for those not truly wanting a child. Certainly we need to promote responsible sexual practices among youth. But, just as certainly, we need to help those women and girls who are in trouble now.

Even the smallest donation to the Rosie Fund can help alleviate some of the suffering and allow poor women to continue with uninterrupted lives.

Thank you for reading this. Thank you for caring.

You can help...
Please send a check right away - today - to

"The Rosie Fund" PO Box 6205, Hamden, CT 06517


or donate online at

Network for Good
.

Recommended amounts for your tax-deductible* donation are:


  • $1000 Rose Garden
  • $500 - Rose Bouquet
  • $100 - Red Rose
  • $50 - Pink Rose

    Or, if you're a student, can you consider a Rosebud gift of $25?

(CTBob here:...or, if you're allergic to roses, you may donate ANY amount! Even $10, $5 helps!)

(*The Rosie Fund is a 501c3 non-profit organization and your donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.)

The Rosie Fund was started by a small group of concerned Connecticut residents in 2003.  It is the only private abortion fund in Connecticut.  The members of the Rosie Fund believe that the right to choose abortion is meaningless without access to abortion services.  Restrictions on abortion services and funding are discriminatory because they especially burden poor women, young women, women of color, and rural women.  The purpose of the Rosie Fund is to remove financial barriers that Connecticut women face in accessing abortion services.
For more information, please contact the Rosie Fund via email (rosie@nnaf.org) or visit the temporary Rosie Fund website.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Do not "test my will" on Iraq

Spoken like the truly impetutous man-child with enormous daddy issues that we know all too well!

(Via The Raw Story):
"And if the Congress wants to test my will as to whether or not I'll accept the timetable for withdrawal, I won't accept one," he told a news conference at his retreat in Camp David, Maryland...
Of course, Baby Prez, of course...because this whole issue is all about YOU!

Jesus, when will it become apparent to all those fence-sitting Republican senators that Bush doesn't give two shits about how the war progresses, as long as he gets his way. One way or another, he'll be gone in 20 months or less, and as long as he's in charge, dammit, nobody but nobody's gonna tell him what to do with his war!!!

The way I see it, two things may happen:

1) Congress will keep sending funding resolutions to W's desk with an exit deadline, and after enough vetos those 16 or so more Senators will have had enough and change their votes to override Cubby's veto, or

2) Congress will cave to the Prez and send a new bill with no deadline...

...and should that second possibility occur, I'll officially give up all hope for my party's ability to do anything useful ever again!

This is going to be THE defining moment for this Congress. They can choose to stand up to a criminally inept administration and stop this war, or they can meekly submit to George's will and walk dumbly in line like sheep to the slaughter.

I'm willing to believe that the odds are about 50-50 right now...but we'll have to see how the Dems spin it after W vetos the current bill.

I predict that things will probably be very different by this time next week.

The real reason why Bush will veto the bill

(from HalliburtonWatch.Org - click on image to enlarge)

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Slow blogging day

Not because of any lack of news or interesting political developments, but due to the fuzzy-headed effects of the cold medicine on my brain.

I'd like to post a carefully crafted article about yesterday's vote on the Compassionate Care bill up in Hartford, but I can't seem to string two coherent sentences together.

The Kucinich push to begin impeachment hearings on Dick Cheney deserve a close look, simply to examine the implications of even discussing the idea, but I currently lack the focus to tie together my would-be brilliant argument in an astounding manner.

And there's other stuff going on, but I'm out of energy to even list them now.

So I'm watching Court TV's coverage of the Phil Spector trial. Because, you don't really need a fully functioning brain to appreciate the amusing grimaces and funny looks that Spector loves to make (in full view of the camera). CourtTV.com

And I'm loving former John Gotti-defense attorney Bruce Cutler's opening statement. He's faced with a difficult case and he's just bulling his way through his statement. The Prosecutor is continually objecting to Cutler's use of argument in the opening statement. And it's kind of weird to hear the defendent referred to as "Philip" rather than Phil.

Now it's time for more Day-Quil. I don't care what they say, it DOES make you feel a little muzzy.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Four more interviews from the JJB Dinner

This makes a total of EIGHT videos I've uploaded from the JJB dinner, making it the single most prolific event I've been to.

Hmmm...can an event be "prolific"? I don't know. Probably not. "People" are prolific, I think. My grammar usually stinks. Please don't chime in with agreement, I already know it.

Anyway, even though I only shot about 48 minutes of video total, the sheer volume of awesome people who agreed to talk to me on camera made it a very productive evening.

(And I know for a fact that "evenings" can be productive!)

Here's the final four interviews, presented in alphabetical order:

Rep. Jason Bartlett (D-Bethel, Danbury, Redding); I asked him to give a special shout-out at the end of the video that CT Blogger will get a kick out of.


Rep. Tom Drew (D-Fairfield)


Rep. Andy Fleischmann (D-West Hartford)


Senator Andrew McDonald (D-Stamford)


I'm very grateful to Ned Lamont and Kim Hynes for making it possible for me to be there that night. Even though I "worked" most of the night, I managed to have fun and meet a lot of interesting people.

Blog Wars Screening at Tunxis Community College May 2nd

(This may be your LAST CHANCE to view "Blog Wars" on a giant screen! This is crossposted from Spazeboy.net)

There will be a screening of the mega-smash-hit BBC/Sundance documentary “Blog Wars” a week from tomorrow at Tunxis Community College.



Featured guests include Spazeboy and CT Bob (Beau Anderson and Bob Adams respectively).

Yes, I’m a featured guest at my own event.
Here are the pertinent details:

Where: Tunxis Community College (click for map), Whit’s Place (Cafeteria)
When: May 2nd, 6:30pm (Film at 7:15)

If you’re interested, please RSVP to spaze@spazeboy.net with “Blog Wars Screening” in the subject.

Or you can email me (CT Bob) at blogwars@yahoo.com

Monday, April 23, 2007

Friendly faces at the JJB

I've got four more video interviews on deck for tomorrow. Reps. Jason Bartlett, Tom Drew and Andy Fleischmann, and Sen. Andrew McDonald took some time to talk to me about the issues.

And along with them, U.S. House Speaker Pelosi, Congressman Joe Courtney, Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz, and candidate for 4th CD Jim Himes wish the readers of "Connecticut Bob" all the best.

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Video impressions of the JJB dinner

Lots of folks who were at the dinner will recognize themselves in this video. I didn't bother with captioning it because you all know who you are!

There's probably another three or four interviews I've still got to edit and upload, so if I interviewed you Friday night, don't despair; it'll be online within the next several days.

Meet Jim Himes

I'm not sure, but this may be the very first video interview with Jim Himes since he announced his candidacy for Congress late last week. Taped immediately before the JJB dinner on Friday at the Connecticut Convention Center.

BTW, to anyone who's been there...isn't that a wonderful facility? Kudos to Hartford for building such a great center.



For more info, please visit HimesForCongress.Com

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Nancy and me

Yes, we shared a moment last night.

Just me and Nancy...Pelosi...

...and about 1,500 various Democrats, security people, bloggers, media goofs and hangers-on.

It was special.



Video of Congressional Candidate Jim Himes and many others coming Sunday and Monday (I had to work today; and I took my darling wife out to dinner tonight, so I'm a bit behind in the editings...don't worry, it'll be worth the wait!)

More JJB photos

Me with my camera. Boy, that thing does look a bit intimidating!

Dave and Dr. Stephen W. Hawking (or maybe it's Sal; I'm always getting those two confused!)

Kim and Aldon Hynes with Tessa Marquis. Kim made up those nice Virginia Tech ribbons that everyone's wearing.

CGG pins one of those ribbons to Dan Malloy.

Ned visits our table. It turned out that he did see me pack up my camera and leave while he was speaking at UConn last Sunday! I felt awful having to do that, but I was with the Kucinich people, and after Dennis finished speaking, they had to go right away. I didn't have any choice, so I packed up and left right in the middle of Ned's opening remarks!

Of course he noticed it (how could he have NOT? I was smack in the middle of the seats with my stupid camera and tripod, six rows back!), and he mentioned it to me last night. Ugh, was that awkward!

Ned received the longest and loudest ovation of the night; more even than Sen. Dodd. I kind of get the impression that the State Central people STILL don't fully appreciate how much real affection there exists for Ned within the party. For instance, Lieberman's name was STILL on the official program for the evening. I only wish they acted more decisively in condemning turncoat Joe Lieberman for betraying the Democratic party starting the day after the Primary. We might have had Senator Ned on the stage last night, instead of him sitting at a rather good table in the crowd.

Oh well, that's all water under the bridge. Joe Lieberman slept well last night I'm sure.

Friday, April 20, 2007

Early photos from Prom Night...err, I mean the JJB

It kinda felt like prom night...everyone was dressed so nice! Here's some early pictures from the event:

Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy and your favorite blogger.

I have to say, by the end of the evening I was starting to feel a little insulted by so many people telling me how "nicely you clean up!" Like I look like a frickin' bum most of the time...

Well, they may be right...

CGG, Genghis Conn, Kim Hynes, CT Blogger and Gabe representing CTLP and MLN quite nicely.

Himes & Hynes (4th CD candidate Jim Himes, Kim Hynes)

Nattily dressed Branford Boy and glamorous Maura look like they're attending the Academy Awards rather than the JJB dinner.

Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz and me. I had to bend my knees to be in the frame with her.

Late tomorrow I'll have some of my many video interviews online, including a quick moment between U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and myself (hint: she knows who I am now).

Rep. Jack Murtha attacks the pencil pushers

Bravo to Jack Murtha (D-PA), the bravest man in the House of Representatives. He'd finally had enough of all those chicken-hawk politicians who endlessly repeat how "we are fighting the war" in Iraq.

Note to Congress: "WE" aren't "fighting" this war! It's the courageous men and woman of the U.S. Armed Forces who are fighting and paying the price for those cowardly politicians in DC.

George Bush claimed the "mission accomplished" over 3,000 American lives ago...isn't it about frickin' time we declare victory and bring our soldiers HOME?



As an aside, I guess the air conditioning in the House is very nice. The Congressman seems to think it worthy of a couple of mentions! I wonder if they have a Kelvinator?

(h/t to The Raw Story)

Thursday, April 19, 2007

JJB Dinner Menu

On the menu for the big Democratic dinner -

Appetizers: U.S. Reps. Larson, Courtney, DeLauro, and Murphy
Salad: State Party Charwoman Nancy DiNardo
Entree: U.S. Senator and Presidential Candidate Chris Dodd
Dessert: U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

It looks like it'll be an interesting night. I'm bringing my video camera to annoy the party big-wigs (and little wigs, too). And I'll be interviewing as many people as I can.

That is, until they open the bar...then all bets are off.

In case anyone doubted what McCain is all about...

Any politician who would joke like this is dangerous and psychotic.

One Year Today


114 Videos
949 Posts
265,000 Visits


...and...

...a HELL of a lot of fun!


Happy Birthday to ME!

I'm One Year Old Today!


THANKS FOR VISITING!

signed,
ConnecticutBob.Com



PS - Here's some cake for you!

Kucinich speaks in Litchfield

Some more video from the meet & greet at the home of Matt & Audrey Blondin, in Litchfield, CT. You can see the nor'easter raging outside while Dennis speaks.

Jim Himes challenges Chris Shays in the 4th CD

Democrat Jim Himes announced his candidacy today for Congress in the 4th Congressional District. The 4th is currently occupied by Republican Chris Shays.

Jim's website is HimesForCongress. Go there for more info. Jim will also be live-blogging on My Left Nutmeg today from 1:30-2:30PM.

I'm hoping to have a video of Jim Himes posted here by this weekend. Stay tuned!

Meanwhile, Scarce reminded me of the Ned Lamont video where he discusses Jim:

UConn Q&A

The 2nd part of the UConn event with Dennis Kucinich, showing the Q&A portion. The audience was somewhat hostile, which may have been because of a large showing of college Republicans there to support a popular professor, but Kucinich handled it well.

The audio of the questions was very low, so I included paraphrased subtitles where I could hear them. You can get the basic point of the questions even if I'm not 100% accurate.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Kucinich at UConn

I know this is starting to look like Kucinich Tube, but the fact is, the candidate has visited Connecticut twice recently, I've been given unprecedented access to him, and he's been very forthcoming in his interviews. I'd be happy to give any other presidential candidates equal time should he or she be willing to give me the same access.

(Somehow, I doubt Hillary or Barack will be knocking down my door begging for an interview!)

Plus, I happen to think we can do a hell of a lot worse than having Dennis be sworn in on that special day in January, 2009.

Dennis spoke at scheduled Iraq debate panel up at UConn last Sunday; he was running late, so he simply spoke briefly and answered questions after. Here's the speech:

Kucinich to propose Cheney impeachment

Even though he's a longshot candidate for president, Dennis Kucinich remains a dedicated congressman who works tirelessly to bring balance back to government. Kucinich has become the conscience of the Democratic party, and indeed, the House of Representatives.

From an article in NewsMax.Com:
Rep. Dennis Kucinich – the darkest horse in the race for the Democratic nomination for president in 2008 – said he will file articles of impeachment against Vice President Dick Cheney.

The Ohio congressman sent a letter to his Democratic House colleagues on Tuesday declaring his plans to file, according to the Washington Post’s blog The Sleuth.

Kucinich’s office had no comment on the letter or what the focus of the articles of impeachment would be.

The letter read in part: "This week I intend to introduce Articles of Impeachment with respect to the conduct of Vice President Cheney. Please have your staff contact my office . . . if you would like to receive a confidential copy of the document prior to its introduction in the House.”
The public announcement of this action has been postponed in the aftermath of the Virginia Tech tragedy, but is expected possibly early next week.

Monday, April 16, 2007

Dennis Kucinich in Litchfield

Yesterday the Congressman had a busy schedule, driving down from New Hampshire to UConn/Storrs for an Iraq discussion, then on to Litchfield for a house party/meet & greet, and then on to NYC for a 10PM CNN appearance. All during a record-breaking nor'easter!

The first video explores the 2004 Iowa Caucus, when Kucinich didn't meet the minimum number, so he threw his delegates to John Edwards. This upset quite a few Howard Dean supporters, so David Stevenson asked Dennis about it.



Ken Krayeske discusses his arrest with Dennis and talks about the excesses of the Patriot Act. The Congressman offered to look into the matter and then spoke on the subject.



More video in the next day or two.

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Chasing Dennis

I spent the entire day with Dave and Sal driving from one end of the state to the other in pursuit of Dennis Kucinich.

In the rain.

We caught up with him at UConn briefly (after spending an hour in the rain waiting for someone to open the doors to the auditorium) and then drove to the Northwest Corner to Litchfield for a meet & greet at Audrey Blondin's lovely home.

Then we drove home. In the rain.

I shot a lot of video, which I hope to edit and get online soon; some tomorrow and hopefully the rest on Tuesday.

Stay tuned. And stay dry.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Wilton High School kids get to perform their play

In New York City, at The Public Theater and The Culture Project, this June.

In this article in the Stamford Advocate:
WILTON - The controversial play about the Iraq war created by Wilton High School students and canceled by the school's principal is making an off-Broadway leap.

After receiving national media attention and receiving offers from several local venues, the students will perform "Voices in Conflict" in June at The Public Theater and The Culture Project in New York City.

The play, a collection of readings that students in an advanced theater class assembled from interviews, letters and blogs from veterans, was canceled by Principal Timothy Canty after a student whose brother is serving in Iraq complained about a lack of balance.

[...]

Details are still being worked out, but the play will be performed June 15 at the theater in New York City's East Village.

Batten down the hatches

Apparently there is a king-hell sized Nor'easter headed this way.

Tonight.

This looks serious.

Tomorrow I'm riding up to UConn/Storrs for the Iraq discussion, and then across the entire frickin' state to Litchfield, before heading home. (See previous post for details)

We're gonna get hammered tomorrow, weather-wise. I'm not looking forward to it. But I'll still do it.

And tonight I'm watching "The Day After Tomorrow". I'm sure this is what I'll be dreaming about tonight:

You know what? Screw "The Day After Tomorrow"....I'm more worried about The Day After Today!

Stay dry.


"We didn't LISTEN!"

(From the South Park episode on global warming, titled "Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow")

Friday, April 13, 2007

Sunday in the country with Kucinich

Come meet Dennis Kucinich this Sunday at the house party in Litchfield, or see him discuss Iraq with Ned Lamont in Storrs. Details below.

And here's a video that shows why Dennis is the kind of person we need in the White House. We're "not going to settle for anything less than changing the world".



UConn Storrs College Democrats
Start: 15 Apr 2007 - 2:00 PM
End: 15 Apr 2007 - 4:00 PM

Dennis will meet with the College Democrats of the University of Connecticut at Storrs. Please come out and join us for this event! Contact Christina Kraich-Rogers at christina@kucinich.us for more information.

-----------------------------------------------------

Litchfield House Party
Start: 15 Apr 2007 - 5:30 PM
End: 15 Apr 2007 - 8:00 PM

Please come to the house of Audrey Blondin for an evening with Dennis Kucinich. Bring a vegan dish to share. Everyone is invited to attend. This event is hosted by the Northwest Corner Democrats and Audrey Blondin, Myrna Watanabe, and Sharon Sherman.

66 Tallmadge Lane
Litchfield, CT

For more information or to RSVP, contact Audrey Blondin at audbl@aol.com or 860-489-8997.

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Imus is gone!

(AP Photo) Breaking news! CBS radio has just announced the firing of veteran big-mouth Don Imus.

CBS dropped Imus only a day after MSNBC fired him.

Wow. I'm actually a bit stunned here. I think Imus didn't help his cause by defiantly announcing that he had "apologized enough" and the only people he wanted to talk to now were the Rutgers players.

(Hmmm...I wonder if those ladies are still going to get their apology?)

If he just kept up the mea culpa act a bit longer, he might have kept the CBS gig. But then again, I think CBS's hands were tied, especially after MSNBC dumped him, and leaders like Al Sharpton were still calling for his firing. CBS lost most of the major advertisers to the show, which pretty much left them with no choice.

I have to be honest here...I feel a tiny bit sorry for that dried-up wrinkled old ass. In a sort of "Jimmy the Greek" way, like someone who was raised in another era, and those old habits just wouldn't go completely away. But Imus's big problem was more the result of his trying to be a political talk show rather than a comedy show, which is what he was before Howard Stern knocked him off his throne about 20 years ago.

When you hold court and regularly speak to Presidential candidates, politicians, and heads of state on your show, you can't arbitrarily regress to your racist and sexist former self and not expect to be called on it. And in this age of instant communication and endless repetition, you WILL be called on it!

Basically, Imus was another sad old obsolete relic from days gone by. And like former Senator George "Macaca" Allen, he realized far too late that one careless phrase, no matter how sincerely he regretted it, was enough to do him in.

Then again, I watched FoxNews for a while today, before word of the CBS firing came down. They seemed to think that he's being unfairly persecuted. I wonder if they'll rally to his aid and give him a new home on FoxNews?

Yeah, right. Those guys at Fox might be rightwing nut-jobs, but they ain't crazy!

And now, we get the sublime pleasure of hearing Joe Lieberman spin the news and try to defend his defense of Imus. Boy, Joe seems to have really lost his bearings lately. He used to be a shrewd political operator; now he just squawks like a goose lost in the fog. It would almost be funny if it wasn't so sad for our nation.

"Yeah, I have a timetable, it's called now"

Presidential candidates Dennis Kucinich and John Edwards had some tough words for Barack Obama in a Tuesday night candidate's forum hosted by MoveOn.org.

Obama has said that even though he voted to authorize the war, he was against it from the beginning. And he continues to support funding the war, even though he claims to be against it. From USA Today:
"Given that Bush is determined to veto a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, Congress has little realistic choice but to approve money for the war," Obama said.

"I think that nobody wants to play chicken with our troops on the ground," said Obama. "I do think a majority of the Senate has now expressed the belief that we need to change course in Iraq.
So, Obama is essentially repeating the Republican talking point that implies if we cut funding, we'll be leaving our brave soldiers to die in a lonely desert because they can't afford bullets. Of course, if it came to it, I'm sure we could easily raise enough money through private donations to transport every single American soldier back home. The American people are so fed up about this war, I'm sure we'd reach the required goal within a month.

John Edwards called Senator Obama on his words. From The Raw Story:
"This is not the time for political calculation, this is the time for political courage," said former Senator John Edwards in at the forum.

Edwards, who is generally seen to be in third place in the campaign, made it clear with a subsequent comment that he was referring to Obama.

"This is not a game of Chicken. This is not about making friends or keeping Joe Lieberman happy. This is about life and death," he added.
And Rep. Kucinich also had some plain talk for the Senator:
The reaction of one of his challengers to this position showed that some Democrats will continue criticizing Senator Obama as failing to take a strong enough stance against the war.

"That's not a surprise, the degree to which people are surprised is the degree to which they've been sleeping," said Rep. Dennis Kucinich, who voted against authorizing the Iraq War in 2002 and is running for president for the second time. "He's voted to fund the war at least ten times, each time, it's like reauthorizing it all over again. If they keep voting to fund the war, it's not credible to say they are for peace."

Kucinich also questioned Obama's approach of proposing a timeline for withdrawal.

"Yeah, I have a timetable, it's called now," he quipped. "There's no reason why Democrats should give the president any money, they have the power to end the war now."
It's past time for the rest of our legislators to adopt the plain talk and honesty of Dennis Kucinich. Rather than making a big show of passing a bill the President will veto, and then turning around and giving him all the money he wants.

Because people are finally seeing through that bullshit. And we're calling you on it.

LW: Stop "harassing" us, maaannnn!

Lieberman Watch: On the very morning that the Iraqi Parliment (in the heart of the "Green Zone") was successfully bombed by insurgents killing at least eight Iraqis, Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) went on his favorite news network, Fox News, to continue his insane rhetoric on how we are making "progress" in what has now become America's quagmire for the 21st century. Sounding much like a petulant child.

From The Raw Story:
Lieberman: Critics Of Bush’s Iraq Policy Are Engaging ‘In A Kind of Harassment’

This morning on Fox and Friends, Sen. Joe Lieberman declared, “I’m with McCain. I think that we are making progress over there” in Iraq. He went on to blast the majority of his Senate colleagues who have voted to begin a phased withdrawal from Iraq. Lieberman said, “I say to them…you ought to be fighting to cut the funding off instead of entering into a kind of harassment that’s involved now.” He concluded by arguing Bush’s escalation plan ought to go forward “without us back biting from here.”

Watch it here, courtesy of MyLeftNutmegger on Youtube:

Looking for something to do this Sunday?

Go see Dennis Kucinich in Litchfield or at UConn/Storrs!

Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich will return to Connecticut a week from Sunday to attend a panel discussion at UConn (Storrs) which will also feature Ned Lamont, and Dennis will also appear at a house party in Litchfield.

UConn Storrs College Democrats
Start: 15 Apr 2007 - 2:00 PM
End: 15 Apr 2007 - 4:00 PM

Dennis will meet with the College Democrats of the University of Connecticut at Storrs. Please come out and join us for this event! Contact Christina Kraich-Rogers at christina@kucinich.us for more information.

-----------------------------------------------------

Litchfield House Party
Start: 15 Apr 2007 - 5:30 PM
End: 15 Apr 2007 - 8:00 PM

Please come to the house of Audrey Blondin for an evening with Dennis Kucinich. Bring a vegan dish to share. Everyone is invited to attend. This event is hosted by the Northwest Corner Democrats and Audrey Blondin, Myrna Watanabe, and Sharon Sherman.

66 Tallmadge Lane
Litchfield, CT

For more information or to RSVP, contact Audrey Blondin at audbl@aol.com or 860-489-8997.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Ford hoax exposed

I hate it when I get taken in.

And it was Ford who did it!

In this article entitled "We were THIS close to President Pelosi", I wrote about the news story describing how George Bush nearly blew himself up while mistakenly trying to plug an electrical line into the hydrogen tank of an experimental car.

Turns out it was just a stupid joke!

From Reuters (trust the Brits to get the story right!):
...(Ford) apologized after Mulally said his claim that he had intervened to prevent U.S. President George W. Bush from plugging an electrical cord into the hydrogen tank of an experimental Ford vehicle had been meant as a joke.
Oh, that's nice. You're a real joker, aren't you Mulally? What next, an engagement at the Improv?

Fine, I was duped. The guys who made up the entire story must be crazy.

Or, maybe...crazy like a FOX!

I was wondering about the situation, and found out a sordid truth. There were darker forces at work here. I did a little research into the news cycle of this story and by using obscure forensic internet techniques, I've discovered the true genesis of this story:

It was FOX NEWS!!!

Yep, it turns out that Fox News planted and nurtured this fabrication in an effort to discredit the entire leftist blogosphere! They knew that every progressive blogger with any hint of a sense of humor would be all over this story, and in one fell swoop Fox accomplished a miracle...they've managed to pull the wool over ALL our eyes.

Sneaky bastards!

Well, you win this round, Fox News!

Senate Passes Plan B By Voice Vote

From Connecticut News Junkie, by Christine Stuart:
Senate Democrats and Senate Republicans may have struck a back door deal in order to get Plan B for rape victims passed Wednesday.

Instead of calling for a roll call vote, which would have required each senator’s mind to be tested on the bill, the Democratic Majority gave their colleagues a pass. When the voice vote was called the “Ayes” were audible, but the “Nays” remained silent.

But that’s not to say the legislation didn’t have bipartisan support. Sen. John Kissel, R-Enfield, called the bill “abundantly fair” and applauded proponents of the legislation who have gone a long way to find a compromise with the Catholic Community.

Senate Minority Leader Louis DeLuca, R-Woodbury, seemed far less sympathetic to proponents. DeLuca said he listened to the hearings on the bill over the last two years and he heard a lot of reasons in favor of the legislation, but “we haven’t heard of anyone being harmed.” He said we just hear about “how it has to be done to protect people.” Then he digressed into a rant on how he thought the numbers an advocate of the legislation gave him about the number of rape victims was wrong based on his knowledge of how many rape victims were treated at St. Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury.

Senate President Donald Williams, D-Brooklyn, who spoke after DeLuca said every woman whose the victim of rape deserves the best standard of care.

The bill was referred to the Public Health Committee where it will be discussed further.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Plan B vote scheduled for tomorrow

The state Senate will be voting on the "Plan B" issue requiring all publicly-funded hospitals, including the four Catholic hospitals in Connecticut, to proved emergency contraception to sexual assault victims with no strings attached.

The Senate will possibly include an amendment to the bill allowing the hospitals to contract with an outside health care provider if they are still worried about the sketchy gray area (saying that Plan B may cause an abortion, although there are no credible studies that support it) they're trying to use as an excuse to not offer the treatment. The important thing is that assault victims are informed of their treatment options and given the opportunity to use Plan B to prevent an unintended pregnancy.

The bill is expected to pass easily. Additional details are in this article in the Hartford Courant.

Monday, April 09, 2007

By Popular Demand

Per TrueBlueCT's dare over on CT Local Politics, I've created the perfect place for Neocons, Wingnuts and sane Republicans to gather and discuss the issues they hold dearly; it's the conservative answer to My Left Nutmeg.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to present...

My Right Douchebag

I've instituted an open commenting policy there, and if anyone wants front-page posting privilages, just email me with a request and I'll be happy to grant you access. This is my gift to you.

Here's your forum...now go and have some fun!

Sunday, April 08, 2007

The Sunday Night Music Club III

Beck Hansen broke through with his 1994 album "Mellow Gold". The video for "Loser" mixed media such as Super 8 film and low-res video, and included retro tricks like live action animation and negative images to give it a distinctly non-professional look.

VIDEO REMOVED: Those uptight suckwads at Youtube have pinched the Beck video. Simply search on "Beck Loser" and I'm sure Google will cough up a copy that you can view. (You know, the same fucking thing you USED to be able to see FOR FREE on piece of shit MTV!!!)

I dig Beck's lyrics, which create a sort of music simply by themselves. Just read the first verse to see what I mean:
In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey
Butane in my veins and I’m out to cut the junkie
With the plastic eyeballs, spray-paint the vegetables
Dog food stalls with the beefcake pantyhose
Kill the headlights and put it in neutral
Stock car flamin’ with a loser and the cruise control
Baby’s in Reno with the Vitamin D
Got a couple of couches, sleep on the love-seat
Someone came in sayin’ I’m insane to complain
About a shotgun wedding and a stain on my shirt
Don’t believe everything that you breathe
You get a parking violation and a maggot on your sleeve
So shave your face with some mace in the dark
Savin’ all your food stamps and burnin’ down the trailer park

Yo. cut it.

Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?

We were THIS close to "President Pelosi"

Is that Dick Cheney standing behind the President? Via The Raw Story:
Credit Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally with saving the leader of the free world from self-immolation.

Mulally told journalists at the New York auto show that he intervened to prevent President Bush from plugging an electrical cord into the hydrogen tank (!) of Ford's hydrogen-electric plug-in hybrid at the White House last week. Ford wanted to give the Commander-in-Chief an actual demonstration of the innovative vehicle, so the automaker arranged for an electrical outlet to be installed on the South Lawn and ran a charging cord to the hybrid. However, as Mulally followed Bush out to the car, he noticed someone had left the cord lying at the rear of the vehicle, near the fuel tank.

"I just thought, 'Oh my goodness!' So, I started walking faster, and the President walked faster and he got to the cord before I did. I violated all the protocols. I touched the President. I grabbed his arm and I moved him up to the front," Mulally said. "I wanted the president to make sure he plugged into the electricity, not into the hydrogen This is all off the record, right?"
For the record, I'm not in favor of the President or anyone else in the Bush Administration blowing themselves up. I want them to live long, miserable lives (in prison) so they can reflect on their crimes.

Front loading the Primaries

Connecticut is going to join the mad rush to move its primary up to February 5th, from the first week of March. This supposedly is to help us have a say in the primary process.

This rational is flawed, because it seems that EVERYBODY is moving their primary up to early February. The national Democratic and Republican parties are trying to limit how early each state may schedule their primaries, threatening them with losing delegates at the national conventions if they move to January. But for the most part, the first week in February is allowed.

What we have now for the Democrats is as follows, from Wikipedia (not necessarily the best source, but the easiest to find):
Phase One: January

Under party rules, no state may hold their primaries or caucuses before February 5 with the following exceptions:

* January 14, 2008 - Iowa (caucus)
* January 19, 2008 - Nevada (caucus)
* January 22, 2008 - New Hampshire (primary)
* January 29, 2008 - South Carolina

Florida is considering moving its primary to January 29, violating party rules. Michigan is considering moving its primary to this date if other states do so as well.

Phase Two: Hyper-Tuesday, or the National Primary.

Since the beginning of 2007, many states have moved, or are discussing plans to move, the dates of their primaries or caucuses up to February 5th. The nation's first quasi-"National Primary" may very well take place on that day. This has also been dubbed "Super Duper Tuesday, "Giga Tuesday," "Mega-Tuesday," and the "Powerball Primary."

* February 5, 2008 - Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Idaho, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Utah.

Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas are also considering moving their primaries or causcuses to this date.
So that leaves Connecticut's influence likely lost in the excitement of states like California, Texas, New York, Illinois, Florida, and New Jersey among many others.

Enough delagate votes will be decided on February 5th to easily send a candidate to the convention as a sure winner, and make all later primaries unnecessary.

This doesn't bode well for the primary process, and more importantly, for the voters.

The primary process was designed to allow the voters to get to know their candidates. By schedule no more than a few primaries each week between January and June, the candidates had time to visit most states, giving the voters a chance to see and hear each candidate.

The process tended to weed out the lesser qualified and allow the most gifted to rise up to the lead. If the 1992 race were structured like next year's, there's no way in hell the public would have even HEARD of Bill Clinton, let alone having him win it.

The way things are now, the best funded and most well-known candidate will win early, and the 2nd tier and dark horse candidates will drop out. We won't get to know the candidates through the primary process.

So, what can we do about this?

There have been suggestions about how to change this. Probably the scheme that makes the most sense is to have the smaller states primary first, then the middle-sized states follow, and finish with the big states like California, New York, Texas and Illinois. This will give all the candidates time to build and for the voters to get to know them. Susan Bysiewicz discusses this in this article in the New Haven Register by George Hladky.

But that can't possibly be implemented in time for the 2008 election. So we're stuck with grassroots tools, like blogging and working to host personal appearances by the candidates. We can make an effort to bolster the lesser known candidates by publicizing their issues and opening a dialogue with them. We have to get involved to help prevent the biggest and best-funded candidates from overwhelming the democratic process.

Otherwise, it's all gonna be just Obama and Hillary. There are plenty more candidates with plenty more to say. We deserve to hear it.

The political landscape is changing rapidly, and we shouldn't sit by and just watch it happen. All of us, as a group, have the means and the ability to adapt and shape the process to best serve the voters.

It's up to all of us to ensure that we are provided with the best choices for our leadership.

"Kill Bunny"

This is my last Easter-related posting, I promise.

I enjoyed "Kill Bill".

...and "Passion of the Christ".

This Robot Chicken parody contains elements of both:

Happy Easter!

Saturday, April 07, 2007

An Easter Story

Easter Season, 1978.

I was a stockboy at the Woolco in Orange. Woolco was the low-rent version of Woolworth's, I think. Back then we were considered number 3 in the Big Three of discount stores: Caldor's, Bradlee's and Woolco.

We had a real a-hole as an assistant manager, but he was the guy in charge of us kids, and we basically got away with murder when he wasn't watching.

Working in a discount store wasn't very interesting, but we had fun. My buddy Rich was a real troublemaker, who for some reason never got fired for anything he did.

Which was a lot.

For instance, whenever he got yelled at by the boss, he got even by sneaking into the Pet Department and opening all the bird and hamster cages. You can always tell when Rich was pissed, because there'd be birds chirping up in the flourescent light fixtures, and you'd hear the occasional scream from an innocent female shopper who came face to face with a terrified gerbil.

The big shipment of Easter candy would usually arrive right after Christmas, and we'd have to store the confections until it was time to put them on display. That's where I first learned about Peeps. Those awful little marshmellow chicks. Occasionally we'd grab a case of them and bite all their heads off. I still don't know why we did it, except it would make us guffaw like lunatics.

Woolco had a locked storage room, basically a chicken wire cage, where they stored the regular stock of candy; to prevent us from eating ourselves into a diabetic coma, I think. But there was so much Easter candy that we had to store them out in the back hallway. The assistant manager, Mr. Maligudi, told us to put them there.

I noticed the hall was heated by these huge industrial gas heaters that would click on and blow superheated air down the entire length. I mentioned that to Mr. Maligudi, but of course he refused to listen to a lowly stockboy, so we stacked up case after case of chocolate bunnys in the hallway. As ordered.

Then we went and bit the heads off more Peeps.

A month or so later it was time to open the cases and put the bunnies on display. We started at the far end of the hall. They were fine. As we progessed towards the middle of the hall, I noticed some of the bunnies looking distinctly unwell in their little cardboard and cellophane boxes. The bunny ears drooped a little bit and the yellow and blue candy mint eyes hung a bit low in their faces. Rich and I looked at each other and grinned.

Continuing along the hall, we found more bunnies that were seriously hurting. Ears and heads melted down into their hollow torsos; mint eyes and carrots fallen off; a puddle of melted chocolate was forming at the bottom of the bunny's tomb. We began laughing hysterically. So much so that Mr. Maligudi heard us and stormed into the hallway, wanting to know what was so damned funny.

We showed him the deformed bunnies. His face fell. We grinned. He tore open a new case, this one only about ten feet from the heater. When he pulled out a box it contained nothing but a congealed puddle of milk chocolate about 1/2" deep, with two candy eyes looking up at him.

We died laughing. I know it's bad form to laugh hysterically at the boss, but it was too funny to contain. Everybody in the store came back there to see the dead bunnies. Mr. Maligudi was extremely pissed but couldn't fire us, because I reminded him that I mentioned the heaters back in January. He stormed out to a chorus of laughter.

Then me and Rich killed us some more Peeps.

So, to this day, I can't walk down the candy aisle of a department store in March without a grin.

That's my Easter story.

I miss Woolco.

Friday, April 06, 2007

I can't believe it's only been a year


Yesterday was April 5th, the one year anniversary of Ned's Naples Pizza speech.

I was aware of Ned Lamont via Jane Hamsher's writing at Fire Dog Lake, and he sounded like a viable candidate. So Joyce and I decided to see what he had to say. It was the first time I'd heard Lamont speak, in the back room of a little pizza place. The event was sponsored by the New Haven DFA Link.

The room was jammed, and we got there early enough to get a table and have a pizza before the speech. That night I met CT Blogger, Spazeboy, Branford Boy, and a few others who I came to know well over the last year. Afterwards, Joyce commented that Ned seemed like he possessed many of the qualities that are lacking in our current leadership.

CT Blogger shot video that night, which is below. Within two weeks I started "Connecticut Bob" and began an amazing journey of political video blogging the likes of which I hadn't ever dreamed I'd become involved in. With CT Blogger's help, I learned how to shoot videos off-the-cuff and get them up on Youtube. By the end of the month I was posting my own videos on my blog.

It's been an interesting year.



Thursday, April 05, 2007

CNN can't get it right...repeatedly

Nancy Pelosi is going to be here in two weeks as the keynote speaker for the Jefferson Jackson Bailey Dinner, so this is a good opportunity to set the record straight.

From Jane Hamsher's article at Fire Dog Lake:
For much of the past week, CNN and its White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux have offered a steady stream of inaccurate and incomplete coverage of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) trip to the Middle East and her April 3 meeting with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad.

Please join Media Matters for America in demanding that CNN and Malveaux stop misinforming viewers about Pelosi's trip and present all the facts. CNN's contact information can be found in our "Take Action!" sidebar on the right.

Since April 2, Malveaux has wrongly and repeatedly claimed that Pelosi had no "standing" and was not acting in an "official capacity," has attacked the trip as "political theater" and a "political stunt," and has parroted the Bush administration's attacks on Pelosi for going to Syria while ignoring the fact that a Republican-led delegation met with Assad on April 1. Most recently, Malveaux asked whether Pelosi's trip was a "big wet kiss to President Al-Assad."

Other CNN personalities have joined in as well. Lou Dobbs devoted an entire segment to "Pelosi's bad trip," while the April 3 edition of Anderson Cooper 360 featured a segment on Pelosi's trip titled "Talking to Terrorists."

After several days of inaccurate, one-sided coverage, it's time to tell CNN enough is enough. It's time to take action.

Contact CNN, Malveaux, and Dobbs — and be sure to tell your friends. Take Action!

Contact information:

CNN
CNN
One CNN Center, Box 105366, Atlanta, GA 30303-5366
Phone: 404-827-1500
Fax: 404-827-1906

When contacting the media, please be polite and professional. Express your specific concerns regarding that particular news report or commentary, and be sure to indicate exactly what you would like the media outlet to do differently in the future.

I wonder if this will upset Bill Donohue?

If you haven't seen last night's episode of "South Park", this is a photo of "Pope" Bill Donohue getting sliced in half by a martial arts star thrown by a re-resurrected Jesus Christ.

From the Catholic League website:
“I have no idea why ‘South Park’ creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker caricature me as a heartless thug. In any event, I stand convicted and have no defense. Now I have to get back to business—I hear someone just took some liberties with the Easter Bunny.”
I gotta give him credit; Donohue remains an insufferable ass when it comes to people's rights, but he does get off a funny line every now and again.

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Joe Lieberman keeps hurting America

Senator Lieberman got his wish today when his dear personal friend and Republican sock puppet Sam Fox was appointed by President Bush using the "recess loophole" when the Senate took a week off. When are these dummies in the Senate going to learn that it's not safe to take a leak without leaving a quorum in the chamber to prevent Bush from pulling shit like this? You guys had better forget taking a day off until January 20th, 2009!



Bush withdrew Fox's name from nomination when it became apparent that he wouldn't win approval, and then he turned around and gave him the job without the say of the Senate.

We have truly lost the "Great Battle for Democracy" if this kind of thing is allowed to continue. If there are ANY patriots left in the Senate besides Chris Dodd, they had better speak up RIGHT NOW!

Chris Dodd today:
"It is outrageous that the President has sought to stealthily appoint Sam Fox to the position of ambassador to Belgium when the President formally requested that the Fox nomination be withdrawn from the Senate because it was facing certain defeat in the Foreign Relations Committee last week. I seriously question the legality of the President's use of the recess appointment authority in this instance. I intend to seek an opinion on the legality of this appointment from the General Accountability Office and invite other Senators to join with me in that request. This is underhanded and an abuse of Executive authority — sadly this behavior has become the hallmark of this administration."
Thank you, Senator Dodd! Now it's up to the rest of the good Americans who occupy the Senate to nut up and DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS!

...and I secretly wish that Sam Fox chokes on a golfball-sized hunk of brie at the Embassy Ball in Brussels.

NYC Blog Wars screening

I'm thinking that I might go, but only because it's free (and there's a "happy hour"!)

An open invitation to a fun, free screening that Matt Browner Hamlin and the Blogging Liberally crew have been talking about for a little while...it's happening...come check out Blog Wars!

Join us for a FREE screening of: BLOG WARS
hosted by Blogging Liberally
Wednesday, April 11th
Happy Hour from 6:30 on; Screening at 7:00
The Tank @ C:U - 279 Church Street
btw Franklin & White, below Canal
www.thetanknyc.org

See the documentary on the Lamont-Lieberman race
through the eyes of the rising netroots activists,
and enjoy a drink & discussion about the film.

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Dennis Kucinich to return to CT

Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich will return to Connecticut a week from Sunday to attend a panel discussion at UConn (Storrs) which will also feature Ned Lamont, and Dennis will also appear at a house party in Litchfield.

UConn Storrs College Democrats
(Detailed address info coming soon, or contact Christina below)
Start: 15 Apr 2007 - 2:00 PM
End: 15 Apr 2007 - 3:00 PM

Please come out and join us for this event! Contact Christina Kraich-Rogers at christina@kucinich.us for more information.

-----------------------------------------------------

Litchfield House Party
Start: 15 Apr 2007 - 5:30 PM
End: 15 Apr 2007 - 8:00 PM

Please come to the house of Audrey Blondin for an evening with Dennis Kucinich. Bring a vegan dish to share. Everyone is invited to attend. This event is hosted by the Northwest Corner Democrats ad Audrey Blondin, Myrna Watanabe, and Sharon Sherman.

66 Tallmadge Lane
Litchfield, CT

For more information or to RSVP, contact Audry Blondin at audbl@aol.com or 860-489-8997.

Here's a quick video of Dennis answering a question about justice for those responsible for getting us into a wrongful war:

Monday, April 02, 2007

A missed opportunity

I totally forgot that yesterday was April Fool's Day, until I read Matt Browner-Hamlin's post over at MLN titled "BREAKING: Shays Attempts Party Switch, Denied By Pelosi".

The funny thing about it is that nothing that Chris Shays might do would surprise anyone these days. It sounded completely plausible at first!

And then I thought about April Fool's Day, and realized it would have been the perfect time to announce my intention to challenge Jim Amann for his House seat!

I'm sure I would have gotten a few friends to fall for it. There would have been a flurry of emails and phone calls, and I probably could have gotten some mileage out of the prank. I'd have a good chuckle and then forget about it.

But then I started thinking about the implications of a joke like that. An overly enthusiastic supporter might have felt that it was necessary to contact the media, to get the story out immediately. I can only imagine the crap I'd have to deal with if an article appeared in the Hartford Courant this morning discussing my intention to run for office. My wife might have heard about it from somebody at work this morning and quite possibly have killed me.

Then the joke would truly be on me!

Ah, maybe it wouldn't be that good of a joke after all.

But at least I got to write a blog article about it. So in retrospect, I think I actually did take advantage of the opportunity, by not making a prank announcement and simply writing about how I could have done it!

Tee-hee!

Sunday, April 01, 2007

The Sunday Night Music Club II

I know there's been a lot written about Johnny Cash since his passing, and I feel he deserves the recognition. I remember listening to my parent's Johnny Cash records as a child - all those songs about freight trains and prisons, longing and loss, hope and despair. I instinctively knew even then that the man had lived the lyrics of his songs. The sincerity and honesty of his music was something I recognized at that young age.

So when I heard that Cash had recorded a cover of the Nine Inch Nails song "Hurt" quite late in his life, I couldn't wait to hear it. I'd enjoyed the NIN version, but somehow I just couldn't resonate with Trent Reznor's supposed angst; he was far too popular and successful to be the tortured soul that he was pretending to be in that song. I just didn't buy it.

Johnny Cash, on the other hand, had definitely lived that song, even though he didn't write it. It fit him so perfectly that it made complete sense for him to cover the song. There's something so incredibly sad about the way Cash sings it that still, forty-some years after I first became acquainted with his music, makes me believe him.