Are there any other kind?

Going to my first ever condo board meeting last night, I was afraid the problem would be disorganization, prima donnas and assorted drama. Those turned out not to be big factors (although Loud Angry Man did make an appearance).

Instead, I was dismayed by the sheer cluelessness on display. Not just by the attendees but by the ( Read more... )

Back in the '90s, I wrote an editorial complaining about the city's practice of putting up street cleaning signs the night before in Hyde Park giving people less than 24 hours' notice (and sometimes barely 12 hours' notice) that they had to move their vehicles or be hit with a $50 fine. There was no reason, other than collecting more fines, that ( Read more... )

I plan to move in eight days, but still can't decide where.. Any opinions are appreciated
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So the first (of many) Obama taxes kicked in today, a 62-cent per pack levy on cigarettes, the same one W. vetoed last fall. Some of the news stories pointed our that the tax is expected to cut cigarette consumption by as much as -9% (black market sales will presumably increase; do those Indian reservation cigarettes escape this tax?). That means ( Read more... )

Speaking of Obama gaffes, I won't join the chorus (not entirely of conservatives) trashing him for his I-bowl-like-Special-Olympics joke on Leno (whether a president should ever appear on late-night comedy shows is another matter altogether). it wasn't particularly funny and was certainly politically incorrect, but come on ( Read more... )

Though little reported on this side of the pond, the Brits were apparently taken back by Obama's shabby treatment of their Prime Minister on his visit to DC early in the month. Among the complaints were that Brown's symbolically-laden and historically significant gift to Obama was reciprocated by a DVD set of famous American movies, the kind one ( Read more... )

Why did Roland Burris accept -- even, according to reports, lobby for -- the appointment to Obama's Senate seat from scandal-plagued Blago?

The same reason he ran unsuccessfully for Senate, and Governor and Governor and Governor and Mayor.

The same reason he named his kids Roland, Jr. and Rolanda.

and the same reason he built this...

( Read more... )

One silver lining (via Powerlineblog.com):

"One should never say 'never' in politics. However, Barack Obama's victory almost certainly means that neither Hillary Clinton nor Al Gore will ever be president of the United States."

I have not really mentioned the election (or anything else) in a while. The prospects are so depressing even a Prince of Cairo party couldn't leaven them ( Read more... )

Via Overheard in New York:

Black guy who just walked in: Excuse me, sir, have you been waiting for the train long?

White guy reading newspaper (with an Obama sticker on his bag): Sorry, I don't have any spare change.

Black guy: What?

--1 Train