from The Commercial Appeal (Memphis)

Huzzah, Barak Obama. Good luck, Prez.

Also...Moonlight comes out on dvd today. A shame that CBS canceled the show; sometimes networks just don't get it.

More? Make your own Obamicon here.

  Mean Streets, Jim Butcher et al.
file under: celebration , politics Posted by Jen at 9:56 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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With Neil Patrick Harris, Allison Janney, that chick from SNL, and Jack Black as Jesus.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 11:29 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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I left work early and only had to wait for about 15 minutes. I did my homework on the and went through pretty fast.

Normally there are less than 300 voters at my polling place. I was somewhere in in the 1100s. Holy cow.

Did you get your sticker?

I'll be watching for the results.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 5:21 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Please go out and vote, people. It's important. Don't forget about the propositions. Do your homework and make the best choice for you.

I hope you don't have to wait in line too long. I'm a little worried because the Secretary of State website lists me as being NOT registered, even though I voted in this year's primary and my parents have the postcard listing registered voters in the household, and I'm on it. Hopefully there won't be any problems.

Exercise your rights and vote!

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 5:43 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Sometimes I wonder why I take quizzes that tell me what I already knew, but it's nice to be validated, I guess. Borrowed from Scott's blog.

You are a Social Moderate (43% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (25% permissive) You are best described as a: Democrat Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also : The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

NaNo kickoff this Saturday. Holy cow. Where did October go? Sheesh. At least I have an idea. Not a plot, mind you. An idea. But the plot will come. Oh yes, it will.

  Babylon, David Gray

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 12:53 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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I'm terminally behind in my reading of Newsweek to which my mother's friend Debbie so thoughtfully subscribed me. So if you read that mag, you might recognize this quote from the Last Word essay of the Aug 18/25 issue:

If people make assumptions about you simply on the basis of your appearance all your life, assumptions ranging from criminality to sloth to unearned opportunity, it can make you bitter and hard and cynical. That none of those things is part of the Obama character means that he has turned his particular version of the race card into an ace and is using it to play with the full deck. That is not a deficit. It is an advantage.

(source: Anna Quindlen's "The Caucasian Card")

It just resonated with me. Earlier in the article she talks about how Obama's race is indivisible from his campaign. He *is* black, he can't help mentioning his experiences from that circumstance. But he isn't a stereotype, thank goodness.

I don't like getting too political in public. I think it's probably obvious that I'm a liberal. Honestly, if someone feels differently and can articulate it, then more power to them. But please, please think first before you make a decision.

  Perfect Time of Day, Howie Day
  Ysabel, Guy Gavriel Kay
file under: muses , politics Posted by Jen at 9:15 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Joyeux Mardi Gras. Laissez les bons temps roulez!

Don't forget to vote, for all of you in states with primaries today. I'm still a little unsure of who I'll vote for, but I know I'll be declaring as a Democrat.

  Fable, Robert Miles

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 12:14 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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I really need to figure this out. This quiz, while nice for quantifying my stance on the issues, really just points out that the three democratic candidates that I already liked are at the top.

87% Barack Obama
86% John Edwards
84% Hillary Clinton
83% Bill Richardson
79% Chris Dodd
75% Joe Biden
70% Mike Gravel
69% Dennis Kucinich
51% Rudy Giuliani
43% John McCain
39% Mitt Romney
34% Mike Huckabee
34% Tom Tancredo
24% Fred Thompson
19% Ron Paul

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

  Carnival, Elizabeth Bear
file under: politics Posted by Jen at 11:46 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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I can't believe that more than half the country wants Bush in office again. He's just...inept, and silly, and doesn't seem to have his own opinions. His advisors do, perhaps they should have been the ones running. "Didn't make any mistakes in the last four years" my foot.

I still hope and pray that Kerry can pull ahead, but I have to be realistic and say that it doesn't look like he will. And then I think of how awful it will be under four years of full Republican control. Here's where I fall into the trap of not being very good at articulating my political feelings. I can't enumerate exactly what it is I don't like about the GOP, other than everything seems to get just a little more expensive, a little more unfriendly. The thing is, if they control everything, if there are any problems, they can't blame 'partisan politics,' it will be their own fault.

This was such a nasty election year. It makes me sad that in a way, even though I cast my vote like I should have, in a state that was swinging at one point, but in both the presidential elections I've voted in, it seems like it didn't count. I guess I helped the Carnahan family, who sends a congressman and a secretary of state into office for Missouri. But if you look at the map, you see the cities, with their typically better educated constituents, voting Kerry, and the rural areas voting Bush. We didn't really have a chance. Bah.

It's just depressing to think that whoever is elected is going to have half of the country hate him right off the bat.

Oy. Civic duty is good and all that, but it would be nice if I could vote for the Democratic candidate that I like and have him (or her, as in the race for governor) win, without trouble.

I have to say yay for Illinois, with Barack Obama winning the senate seat...I wish I could have voted for him. He sounds like a great guy and I think he'll go far.

Katie Couric asked her guest this morning, a former Clinton aide, if Hillary was going to run in 2008. The lady said, "We haven't even picked this term's president and you're talking about 2008?" She's the front runner though. And I'm pretty sure that no one will like the Republicans in four years.

*last minute shout-out to Dems*

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 10:06 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Please please get out there and vote today. This is going to be a close one and every vote will count.

I'd like to say I don't care who you vote for as long as you get out there, but that's not wholly true. I do want you to get out, even if you are voting Republican, but I'd really rather you vote for Kerry Good luck to both men. It's going to be a crazy night. Let's hope that we have a president by the end of it. Go Dems!

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 9:54 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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I hate living in a swing state that's not really swinging anymore.

All hail the presidential debate taking place tonight on the campus of my alma mater, Washington University. Please please let Kerry 'win.' I don't think I could stand it if we were subjected to another four years of dubya. erg. I can't believe my grandparents are republican. Then there's the irony that all three of their children are/were democrats. Sigh.

Did you register to vote?

(x-posted at my LJ because I'm lazy.)

  Vanessa Carlton: A Thousand Miles

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 1:22 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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...to register to vote in Missouri, anyway. Ganked from stlouis LJ.

Reminder: Today is the last day for Missourians to register to vote in the November elections! Register by 5 pm so you can cast your vote for president.

Saint Louis city voting info

Saint Louis county voting info

Make your vote count!

And since I forgot to mention it earlier...GOOOO CARDS! Yahoo! They won the first game in the playoffs. Only 11 more games (hopefully fewer) and we'll be in the World Series again...Yay for hometown baseball! I hope they win. That would make me happy.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 2:02 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Think you're registered to vote? Be sure. Please make sure you get out there and make your voice heard. And please let's get Bush out of office. Some stats from moveonpac.org:

We know this election will be incredibly close. The numbers from the 2000 election tell the story:

Official Bush margin in Florida 537 votes
Gore margin in New Mexico 365 votes
Margin of victory in IA, NH, OR and WI Fewer than 8,000 votes in each
Eligible 18-24 year olds who didn't vote 15.2 million
Total eligible voters who didn't vote 56.8 million

Sheesh. Exercise your rights. Vote.

And off the soapbox, the St. Louis Cardinals are now the Central Division champs, so it'll be a little crazy here as we prepare for the playoffs. Yay Cards! I have to make sure I watch none of the games so they WILL win. I'm sure you've heard how if I watch a game or pay any sort of attention to a radio broadcast, the team I'm rooting for loses. So I'll just root from the (far-away) sidelines and cross my fingers that the Cards do great things. Yahoo! Go Redbirds!

I can't believe I have an orgo exam on monday. I'm going to die. I still have all the actual homework problems from chapter 2 and I haven't even started on the ones from ch 3, which I'm not done reading yet. Argh! I hate this class.

But I might learn how to knit on saturday morning. After I go into work, of course. *grumble*

Alright, alright. I'm going home to do homework. And watch Father of the Bride.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 6:10 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Can you believe it's exactly two months until the 2004 Presidential election? Please please please don't let Bush be reelected. He just doesn't deserve it. He's done so many bad things to the country. And we need a more balanced voice in our government. I don't think Bush is capable of leading.
Here's what Kerry had to say about the 'misleading' shots leveled against him so far in the campaign...(from an email from http://www.moveonpac.org)

After one of the ugliest and most hate-filled conventions in recent history, John Kerry didn't waste a moment in answering President Bush's speech last night. He was on the air minutes after the President finished, delivering one of his boldest speeches to date to a midnight crowd in Springfield, OH.

"Let me tell you what I think makes someone unfit for duty," he said. "Misleading our nation into war in Iraq makes you unfit to lead this nation. Doing nothing while this nation loses millions of jobs makes you unfit to lead this nation. Letting 45 million Americans go without health care makes you unfit to lead this nation. Letting the Saudi royal family control our energy costs makes you unfit to lead this nation. Handing out billions of government contracts to Halliburton while you're still on their payroll makes you unfit. That's the record of George Bush and Dick Cheney. And it's not going to change. I believe it's time to move America in a new direction; I believe it's time to set a new course for America."

Doesn't that sound like a breath of fresh air?

On the other side of life, orgo sucks. Major wind. I don't know how any of those crazy med school students got through it while taking other classes. Over the course of the weekend I spent abotu ten hours doing homework, which may not sound like a lot, but that's how long it took me to get through one chapter...and I don't understand it that well. I can only hope that the teacher goes through some more stuff at the end. The sad thing is that most of this is review...I had it all before, oh, six years ago. Ah well. I honestly can't find any way to be optimistic about it. The book is pretty, I guess...but that's the only redeeming quality. Anyone know how to rank compounds in order of acidity? Yuck.

file under: education , politics Posted by Jen at 10:38 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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MoveOn PAC
Here's the schedule for those concerts I told you about yesterday, and St. Louis is on a few of the stops. I don't know if I'd go to any or not, but I thought that I would throw them out there.

I hate it when I get drawn into the web of surfing. I thought I would randomly look up some LJ sites with interest in Missouri (see previous entry for why I need friends) and now have about 15 windows open that I need to look through. Guh. And I'm supposed to do a data set today. And I have to do isolation tomorrow which means I have to come in on Saturday. Bleh. Just gotta time it right I guess. Phooey.

This place looks like it rocks. Too bad I'm being a tightfisted miser and saving money for things it seems I'll never get because of stupid rent and loan and car insurance payments. Yeah. Those are much more important than new scents. Yeah.

Wow, I just said a lot of crap. Lunchtime?

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 12:58 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Bands Gather to Stump Against Bush
Just heard this on the Today show this morning as well. Should be pretty cool. I guess they're hoping that some of their republican fans will come and be converted. I'd probably go just because it looks like there's gonna be some good bands, like DMB and Dixie Chicks and James Taylor.

But on the bad side of politics...most of the people/things I voted for/against last night didn't make it/pass. Suckage. McCaskill overturned Holden for the gubernatorial primary (Holden's wife was a strong supporter of the arts, and who knows what will happen with McCaskill, who seems a bit of a witch with a b). Gephardt's congress seat was still up in the air last night but it wasn't between who I voted for and someone else, which is a shame. He was a WU teacher, too. Meh.

But the big sad sorry deal is that while Amendment 1 (the casino for Rockaway Beach) did not pass, Amendment 2, which would put A SINGLE LINE in the MO constitution saying marriage is between a man and a woman, passed. I think this is terribly silly, why do you need to put that line on paper when it's already illegal for gay marriage in MO anyway? I just don't think it's right that the people in the capitol can say who you can call your partner. But I guess it's the people's choice: it passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 70-something percent. Guh. Stupid conservative people. I hate it when MO is a trendsetter in these ways. I love my state, I love being here, but man, some of the things that happen just make me want to leave. Don't know where I'd go though...meh.

I'd love to get a paid LJ. I just don't want to pay for it. yeah. I did get sorted into Ravenclaw, btw. Like it was a surprise. Now they've got to just let me into the common room...

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 10:36 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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In LKH's Blog she talks about the amendment against gay marriage, which I think is a stupid idea in the first place...how can the government (or even just the representative of the people, as Ross put it) regulate WHO WE LOVE???? Anyway, LKH puts it better than I can. Me of the not so strong opinions. All I know is that if the Republicans or similar conservatives take control in the next election there will be no chance of me being able to work with stem cells because they'll just flat out ban it. And not that I have very many gay friends but they won't be happy if it passes and that makes me sad. And maybe it overgeneralizes things a bit, but stupid republicans. I don't like them. Normally. I keep seeming to find guys that tend toward that side though. Alas.

I still haven't decided if I'm going to vote tomorrow...I guess I will, it's relatively important what with choosing a governor and the silly 'misleading' Amendment 1 to put a casino down south in Rockaway Beach...and the lovely Amendment 2:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended so that to be valid and recognized in this state, a marriage shall exist only between a man and a woman?

Seems so simple, doesn't it? But so pervasive. Ugh. I should vote. Why oh why do they think this is right? I guess my democratic colors are showing.

I'll shut up now. I love it when I sound like I have an opinion, but I'm terribly uncomfortable talking about it. Blah. Go vote. Tomorrow. Here's a list of the Missouri ballot issues. Be informed, lord knows I'm not.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 9:52 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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So the big news today is that John Kerry chose John Edwards for his running mate. Remember when I said that would be a good idea? I think it's a good choice. And obviously I know who I'm voting for come November. Now the Missouri congressional seat...that's a conundrum.

And here's another shoutout to the gotta-love-st-louis-weather...it's been crazy weather the last few days. Alternately hot and torrentially rainy, what a pain to get ready in the morning! And last night it was pretty horrible: in the middle of watching True Lies with the 'rents the power went out. When we called Ameren UE about an hour after the power was out the message said 93,000 people were without power...gaaah. And for those of you keeping watch on papershew.com, my mom's got another show this weekend, the one at St. Mark's, which is always a fun show...but the week leading up to a show, any show, is always horrendously busy for her, and this week even more so because she just got done with the daylily show and has to replenish her stock. So you can see how a power outage is not a good thing to happen this week. It was supposed to come on sometime in the night, but as of around 11 am it still wasn't on, and now they're saying not until 9 tonight! Agggh. Poor Mommy. Thank goodness the power didn't go out at the apartment, but it sure was weird driving down Lindell with no streetlights. All those million-dollar homes along there had no electricity...feel almost really bad for them. Slightly less because of that stupid rich daylily guy who wanted to come by my parents' at 6 am on July 4th. Gaah!

So yay Kerry!Edwards and booo power outage and random rich people who think everyone is up at insane hours on weekends/holidays.

Random question: why does no one visit the aspire exchange? I made it all pretty and then no one came. meh.

  Dashboard Confessional: Vindicated (Spider-man 2 sdtk)

file under: politics , rants Posted by Jen at 2:41 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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So Bush is backing the amendment to ban gay marriages. Why does he think that's right? Just because two people happen to be the same gender they should be denied the right to have a legally recognized union? That sounds silly to me. I know a few gay people and they're nice folks...and I want them to be happy.

We were talking at work the other day about how the religious right would most definitely not be so in control of the country if Bush wasn't in office. I believe that. Though I wonder, with Kerry the Democratic front-runner being a Catholic if he'd be the same way. Eh. I'm still out in the cold with the stem cell issue. I guess I should just move to Europe and people won't be mad at me.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 5:40 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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ACLU and California Library Association Launches Campaign to Take Action Against the Patriot Act and Restore Constitutional Rights

This is why I don't like Bush. The stupid man was grinning during his State of the Union address like he knew he was getting away with something, which he has. I didn't know too much about the patriot act before but if this ad is true then SAFE is the way to go. PLEASE don't vote for Dubya. As my mother put it, she would vote for a monkey over Bush and be happy with her choice.

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 4:25 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Two days! Two days! Eek! I'm excited, can you tell? lol. Tomorrow at 10 we'll be standing in the cold, waiting for the doors to open...hopefully this year we won't have to crane our necks from sitting too close to the screen...hopefully we'll get good seats. RotK here we come! Expect an hourly countdown tomorrow

I meant to mention this last night when I was waiting for Survivor to finish, but thank goodness they finally captured Saddam Hussein. I do hope he gets what he deserves. Now if they could only catch Osama bin Laden and get the hell out of Iraq I'd be happy. Why does Bush think that spending money and troops so lavishly and continuously (still!) that the place is going to get any better? Eh. I hate politics.

btw, the Spiderman 2 teaser trailer is online. I saw it off a link on yahoo.com but I'm sure that it's several other places on the web. Whee!

file under: lordoftherings , politics Posted by Jen at 11:08 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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I don't know if any of you noticed it at all, but there's a little button off there on the sidebar that says no war. I don't want to be at war. And now that we are, I still don't want to be there. Since our president failed at diplomacy, we have to go to war, I think was what Dashle said...boy am I glad I didn't join the military. Not that I have nothing but respect for our troops. I just don't think I'd be able to stomach going over there on orders from a president I don't support. And this is going to sound really petty, but I'm already sick of the television news breaks and continuous coverage of the non-existent "shock-and-awe" campaign. Just let me watch my shows in peace, thank you very much. As my mom said, if you cry wolf, no one's going to notice when they really do start to do something.

For the record: I think Saddam is evil and the world would be better off without him. But what about Osama bin Laden? Kim Jong Il? I just think it would be better to get the former who actually did attack us, and the latter who is mentally unstable. I think they're the bigger threat. Now, maybe I don't have all the information, which is easily true, but from what I've heard, those are the conclusions I've come to. Perhaps it's from being a Democrat, perhaps from the liberalness of those around me. Maybe I just plain don't like Dubya. I don't know. And now that I've made my political statement for the year, I can just say, good luck to you troops out there. I'm sorry you have to go through this, I appreciate what you're doing to keep the country free. I hope you get out alive, and soon.

on a highly happy and total non sequiteur note, the TTT theatrical release has been mentioned for August 26th...a day before my 23rd birthday. I know what I'm getting, eh?

file under: politics Posted by Jen at 1:08 AM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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Please remember to vote (Democrat) if you live in the USA! Every vote counts. And I don't just mean in the general elections Please remember to vote for my site, too. You make me really happy

So yesterday this comp wasn't connecting. And it wasn't connecting this morning. But then Phillip reset the router (?) and it works. Thank God for techie men.

No comments on Chapter four? It's not that long... please let me know what you think. Ivana thinks I should have more descriptive passages. And I know I need to go back over some of the old stuff. I'm always looking for fb.

file under: politics , writings Posted by Jen at 1:29 PM | Permalink MTIfCommentsActive>|

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