Leave Sarah Alone! Sniff.

I don't have too much to say about today's CNN opinion piece by Matthew Continetti, "We'll be hearing from Palin for a long time."

I made the same prediction a while back, but I've never seen such a sniveling outburst in defense of a diva. Oh wait. Yes I have.

Time Out

I'm retiring this blog for now. I post occasionally at Marketing Treads. I'm also @GradyT on twitter. In progress: my real-deal blog. Topics will inevitably include writing, politics, philosophy, ethics, random shit and social media. Much love.

My response to Jindal's response: Are you kidding?

He doesn't seem to be kidding. In CNN's article on the topic, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal said a couple of things that make me shake my head in disbelief... even more when I consider that some people probably take him seriously AND want him to run for president in 2012

"Democratic leaders say their legislation will grow the economy," Jindal said. "What it will do is grow the government, increase our taxes down the line, and saddle future generations with debt."

Does he realize which party has done most of the saddling? Future generations are already saddled, and I doubt that 12 trillion dollars will be repaid if only we "restrain spending in Washington, to empower individuals and small businesses..."

But you just gotta love his Hurricane Katrina Reference:

"Today in Washington, some are promising that [big government] will rescue us from the economic storms raging all around us. Those of us who lived through Hurricane Katrina -- we have our doubts."

Does he realize which big government failed to rescue New Orleans??? This guy... well, he had nice little caper to prominence, but I think Democrats will actually be in a good position of the Republicans nominate Jindal. Yay Jindal!

Never the Same Normal

When gas prices went up last fall, enough people complained and the price went back down.

I wonder how many people are in the same mindset about the economy right now - how long will they pretend that things will go back to normal? Sorry, things are different now, and they will not go back.

Definitely Memories

I wondered if I'll have time to create all the memories I want to have.

It was sunny the other day, and I have my answer: Yes.

A Blogging Anniversary

Three days have passed since the 4th-year anniversary of my first blog post, and I'd like to take a bloggy stroll down memory lane.

The first was a simple poem I posted on Myspace on January 15, 2005, and it was followed by a series of 33 more between that date and August 8, 2007.

On Facebook, I've posted 34 notes between December 14, 2006 and December 7, 2008.

On a different personal blog, I made 39 posts between June 11, 2007 and March 5, 2008

This is my 24th post on this blog, which started in June of last year.

Not counting my contributions to other blogs, that is 131 posts, which I consider a fine accomplishment for someone who does other things with his life. Soon, my blogging will take on a more professional - albeit still whimsical - approach.

Here Lies Christmas Past...

With my Google alerts primed for any mention of business ethics and bailouts, I caught this amusing article today: Santa Claus Demands Massive Bailout.

Christmas seems different this year. Claus appears to be as murderous as he is demanding. Christmas is seen as a warzone. Don't we have enough warzones already? If enough people call something a battle, I guess that makes it easier to sway diehards to their cause.

I wonder how we will remember this holiday 2008 in years to come - will it be regarded as the death knell for consumerism as we once knew it? Is it the eulogy for the retail dream of the past decade? It's tough to see the resiliency of the American spirit shining through when Americans are so anxious to divide themselves over such basic issues as the right to social equality.

It seems to me, based on the cultural climate, that we're off the beaten path for good.