My dad tells the story of my mother and her parents going to visit Gettysburg when he and mom were engaged.  My grandfather was a Civil War and Lincoln buff.  They’re standing on a hill overlooking the battlefield, and Dad says, “What a tragic waste of lives.” My grandfather looks at him and says, “What makes you think they were wasted?” I bring this story up because of something that

Joe Queenan sums up the Academy Awards in Sunday’s L.A. Times: It’s not so much a case of the industry presenting itself the way it would like to be seen; it’s the night when the industry gets tanked up and forgets what it does for a living. But that’s one of the nicer things he wrote, so you’ll want to RTWT.

third glass of Glenkinchie:  “No offense, but I think your boy Al’s ‘concern’ can probably be traced back to something relatively unremarkable, like, say, a high-wattage bulb in a low-wattage lamp, or maybe a busted water hose in his freezer.  Because me?  I’ve got plenty of ice.  And there’s lots more where this came from, too, believe you me…” **** update:  “Hell, I’m practically swimming in the stuff!”

What my latest dustup with Broome Community College’s Dr Andrew Haggerty and NPR’s David Ferguson has showcased, I believe, are some of the growing pains of the new media, which, given its virtual nature, makes it easy for anyone wishing to do so to obscure his or her personal identity online. This ability to create a controlling persona— to write from the position of near-absolute freedom that comes with shedding

When the pop tarts first came up, I paid about as much attention to Christina Aguilera as I did to the rest of them, which is to say zero.  I’ve been listening to her more over the last year or so, cuz it turns out that she’s the only one who has any talent.  Who knew?  Check out this video, courtesy of TUA over at Sondra’s.  It’s produced and co-written

I received this excellent email from an avid PW reader, who wishes to remain anonymous:

Good Sunday morning!  The mystery of the historical Jesus has been solved by Hollywood director James Cameron, because he’s a friggin’ genius. I am not the King of This World! Britain’s Channel 4 will dutifully shill for this dreck with a documentary. The Goracle. Sunday morning NYT op-ed, suitable for framing.  A classic. The gift that keeps on giving.

In response to Glenn Greenwald’s accusation of administration neglect inflicted on soldiers belying its interest in their welfare, Dan Collins posted this. As Themistocles points out in the comments, the account of problems at Walter Reed detailed in the Dana Priest/Anne Hull series distinguishes the problems found in Building 18 from the well-maintained facility as a whole (all cites from this WaPo piece unless otherwise noted): While the hospital is

Six syllables maximum. Sinister piffle!

American illegals flooding 10 meters into Mexico. Father Ted Festival At Power Line’s new AOL site, more comparison and contrast between Sandy Berger and Scooter Libby–including just how close Berger came to having his theft and destruction of property belonging to the American people swept under the rug completely. Only 13% of Sarasota voters too stupid to read a ballot. Kiss of death. Gates orders review of Walter Reed.  I