General Update Stuff

1) I’m sick. Apparently, the non-stop go-go-go of “Trip to Maine/Then GenCon/Then Take Kid To College” finally slammed into me like a ton of bricks, direct to my immune system. Bleah.

2) Started feeling off during visit to KCRF yesterday. Aside from that, the afternoon was enjoyable — got to see a lot of people that I’ve missed, which was nice, even if the Festival itself is growing more and more pathetic with each passing year.

3) A quick note for fellow progressive/liberal types. Don’t freak out. The mainstream media will be crowing about the fact that one polling group has McCain ahead of Obama in post-convention national polling. Take a deep breath, and read this calm analysis of the state-by-state polling, showing the electoral map. Don’t freak out — but don’t get complacent, either.

Ghostbusters 3!

Variety is reporting that Columbia has assigned the executive producers of “The Office” (Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky) to write a script for a film that would reunite the original cast.

Here’s hoping…..

A couple of political nuggets…..

Some things which haven’t yet gotten a lot of national exposure, that I thought you might find interesting:

First up: earlier this week the McCain campaign threatened to sue The National Enquirer, because the tabloid printed a teaser alleging that Gov. Sarah Palin has had an extramarital affair with her husband’s business partner. The Enquirer has also promised a larger report next week.

In the sad state of our nation’s journalism, it’s fallen to the tabloids to do actual reporting — the corporate media has abdicated any investigative responsibility, and rags like The Enquirer are getting an air of almost-respectability because they’re breaking stories that the mainstream media is then forced to scramble over. (The Edwards thing, for example.)

It would be all too easy to dismiss this as tabloid crap, and a cheap smear….except that today, Todd Palin’s former business partner has filed an emergency motion in an Alaska court to have his divorce papers sealed. Ruh-roh, Raggy!

Second bit of oddness: McCain’s speech last night featured what looked like the same sickly green background he used in earlier addresses for the first part of the speech. However, the unseen wide shot shows that it wasn’t the awful background — it was an image:

What’s the image? Why, Walter Reed of course.

You know, as in “Walter Reed VA Medical Center.” Very important image to show, related to health care, the troops, etc…..

Except that’s not it.

That’s the Walter Reed Middle School in North Hollywood, California. The McCain camp, naturally, are refusing to comment.

There’s this thing, y’see, called the internet — it lets you do research. You might have used it when prepping the most important speech of your campaign….or y’know, when you were supposedly vetting your Dominionist VP.

Ouch.