Secretary Of Looking Out The Window

Hilbot 9000 will go around begging other countries to attack the US, so she can campaign against Obama’s weakness in defense in 2012. Bill will appear on the front pages of international newspapers running down hotel hallways with his pants around his ankles.

@FlyingChainSaw: Bill will also rake in billions from foreign nations which don’t realize that Kankles despises Bill and who bribe him in an effort to get to her.

So I guess this means that the grabbyhands thing wasn’t the reason for his failure to get SoS. Which begs the question: WTF?

Let me see if I have this straight: the ball busting broad is top diplomat, Senator Judas from New England retains his chairmanship, and the Mexican guy gets the position that has something to do with how we spend our non-existent money.

Change we can believe in, you betcha!

From TPM:

Not Change We Can Believe In
Can we make it a condition that Richardson can only become Commerce Secretary if he agrees to grow back his beard?

I’m going the Full Pollyanna on all this: Everything rides on how well Barry manages his team of misfits.

Barry tapped picked Tim Geithner for Treasury.

Bye bye Hank Paulson. Don’t let the door hit you in the Goldman Sachs on the way out.

From what I’ve read, Geithner was one of the few who expressed serious concern over the subprime bomb and what was happening on Wall St. Shockingly, no one really listened to him.

@ManchuCandidate: the market went way up on the news, but i’m not sure what to make of that since the Dow has been moving like a cat in an earthquake lately.

I dumped all of my stocks yesterday. It makes no sense to hang on when the Dow’s headed for sub-6000 territory on account of nervous nellies. I mean, the GDP .3% FAIL in the third quarter is a generous estimate — the final number will be much worse. And 4Q GDP is going to blow hard.

My feeling is that I can put all my money into an electronic mattress until, say, February. If things are looking like they are stabilizing at that point (for example, weekly jobless claims decreasing to less than, say, 400,000) that’s when I jump in. But if they are still shaky, then I can hold off for another quarter.

@chicago bureau: Well, at least money-market funds never lose— oh.

@nojo: I’m as corny as Kansas in August.
I’m as normal as blueberry pie! (as if)
And you will note
There’s a lump in my throat
I have found me a wonderful guy!

Such as.

@Benedick:

How weird is that? That song the soundtrack to one of the video games I am playing lately.

@Benedick: My parents didn’t own the South Pacific soundtrack, so that one’s beyond my cultural DNA. My corn is as high as an elephant’s eye.

Soundtrack??? SOUNDTRACK!!! It’s a fucking original cast recording, people. With the original cast. Recording. It.

I have to go watch Judge Judy.

Speaking of original cast recordings has anyone heard from baked?

@Benedick: If the hammock is a-rockin’, don’t come a-knockin’.

@Benedick: Last I heard from baked was a few threads back, and she wasn’t sounding entirely happy with the situation. But I haven’t been paying close attention, so I may have missed further updates.

@Benedick: If my parents own it, it’s a soundtrack.

@Benedick:

Nonono, this is the soundtrack for the video game. I am well versed in the difference between the two, and as this is a collection of music that was “recorded” to play while you shoot mutants in the head it is a soundtrack.

Oddly, I was in an off-broadway gay play years ago that had about a 3-minute monologue about the difference between the two. Benedick and I are caught in a web of coincidence today….

@Jamie Sommers: That is a Stipulation I Can Believe In. Rawrl.

@Benedick: She checked in on the “Suck on this” thread, appropriately enough, and seemed pretty upset. I may have to fly to T&C and kick some ratbastard butt. Who’s in?

Commerce? For the guy who forced the New Mexico state legislature back into a special session this summer for an arm twisting and draining of the political capital account for a shit ass $50 low income rebate only to have the state go into an executive branch hiring freeze, 5 percent across the board budget cuts and 15 percent capital outlay cuts? That guy?

Commerce? For the guy who stomped on a legislator for telling the state school districts the truth about how declining state severance tax revenues were going to mean hard times? That guy? The one who sunk part of a $29 million state investment into the now on the ropes Eclipse Aviation?

OK. Whatevs. The word here is that Mrs Governor told him to take anything – even D.C. dogcatcher – to get them the fuck out of Santa Fe.

@redmanlaw: Why one would want to leave Santa Fe for DC is beyond me. Has she been there in summer?

@redmanlaw: On the one hand, you are telling me he fights a never ending battle against a horde of troglodytes, but on the other hand, you suggest he picks the wrong battles and then loses them, trades his queen for a pawn, so to speak? On the other hand, that could make him a good member of the executive branch, the legislature, well, he’s not king and can’t make them to his bidding, as a secretary of anything, its good to know he will fight to get what he wants and is attentive to detail. What is the takeaway, this cycles buzzword, in 02, when I worked the campaign, it was “At the end of the day,” I grew to hate that phrase.

Off Topic Plea for advice, HELP, stinkers, I have just on a whim decided I want to take my family to DC Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving, I want to show the boy the Constitution, and the spit and piss Bush has deposited on it, and I want to show him the aerospace museum, its out of town, to see a B-29 and the SR-71, and the Lincoln Memorial and such.

Anyone who knows DC who knows decent hotels, logistic, travel advice, please tell.

@Promnight:

How old is this kid? Because it’s a shame to go to DC and not see the Holocaust Museum.

@Tommmcatt Yet Again: He’s 8, I think I would wait on that, we have not approached that topic yet. I think he’s ready for a civil rights exhibit, though.

Are you driving or taking the train? If you’re driving, I would stay in the burbs and take the Metro. Driving in DC is nothing short of hell on earth. Because most of my trips to DC were Patent Office related, I usually stayed in Crystal City (lots of chain hotels there) or Alexandria. No night life there, but maybe not an issue on a family vacay.

i’m here !
just came back from my favorite restaurant where they were having a special wine tasting thing. i have had a crush on the owners son since we moved to the island. he knew what happened, (i told the whole island).
he gave me an extra special kiss on both cheeks and whispered in my ear, “i would love the chance to make you feel better” he’s in his 20’s and HOT. oh dear god, let it be late 20’s.
as if that wasn’t enough, a gorgeous charming guy i used to date 10 years ago here scuba diving before rat, who has become rats bff, showed up and right in front of rat, gave me a full on tongue make out kiss, and told rat he would be happy to take me home if he wanted to leave. i was actually full on making out with him in front of rat. best kiss i ever got.
but that was tonight. we are having a very rough time. i hate him.
i get up very early, so i’ve been checking his email every a.m. and deleting HER messages AND writing to her telling her how sorry i am for her that he used her, and i quote, “did you think he came back to get me because he wants YOU? have you noticed he isn’t answering you? (cause i delete her mail. hehe). i’m trading wits with an unarmed woman. real moron.
i’m not in good shape. this is the most painful thing i ever experienced.
but you are all in my heart and mind. and i fervently hope i’ll be back hanging with my peeps very soon. love, baked

@Promnight:

Yeah, 8 is on the young side for that. Let him think the world is kind for a bit longer…

He’s just dealing with the idea that I have to help Santa Claus. Actually, whats so very sweet, its why we love them no matter how difficult they can be, I know he knows Santa is not real, but he doesn’t want to disillusion me by admitting it, he is caring for my feelings, protecting me from the knowledge that he knows. So sweet. So far I think I am raising a good little guy. I want to take him away on a trip for him before I go away to the bahamas in December, so he has a trip with me too. He has said why can’t I ever go with you on trips, and he will so love seeing the historical artifacts, he was so excited to know he could stand in front of the White House, where Obama will soon live. He’s a huge Obama fan.

@baked:

Holy eff, you’re the Marquise de Merteuil of T & C!

I’ll humbly accept the chance to console your waitstaff cast off should you choose not to indulge, btw.

Also, a relationship that causes you this much pain is not worth it, imho.

@baked: Your stinquers worry. Take care of yourself, and keep in touch.

@Promnight: Don’t act crazy in front of the kid. The Hotel Harrington is incredibly reasonable and across the street from the metro. Cheap breakfast downstairs in the morning. A DC institution. And the bar on the ground floor. Looks like a canteen at a migrant labor camp.

@Promnight: DLC, ’03, “New Democrat”, tax cuts, streamline government, does stuff to build a record and to build bona fides (the whole hunting, horseback riding and concealed carry handgun permit thing), but he’s my gov and I’m glad for his successes and opportunities. Means my gal Diane Denish gets to move up per the plan since the day she told me she was going to run for lt gov.

@Original Andrew: I agree. Boot him.

@redmanlaw: Also formerly on NRDC’s Board of Directors.

@nojo: Yes!

@Promnight: I’ve never been to the Air and Space annex, but my relatives all rave about it — lots of big, shiny toys for the little ones to gape at. So long as you’re visiting the Archives, you should also check out the Building Museum. They have a green building exhibit up at the moment, and the whole place is very kid-friendly. Oftentimes you’ll see families with picnics spread out in the interior courtyard. If you make it to the National Gallery, you might check to see whether the skating rink in the Sculpture Garden is open yet. It’s tiny, but cheap, and the setting, of course, is lovely. I second Cynica’s vote on staying in Alexandria, though I’m curious about this place FCS keeps recommending. (Seriously, FCS, do they pay you a finder’s fee or something?)

@Promnight: Also, the Lincoln Memorial is open 24/7, and is, I think, far more beautiful and poignant at night, so don’t waste daylight trying to cram it in.

@Promnight: God’s sake do the Lincoln Memorial, ditto Washington. The city is magical on that level. Do the Smithsonian. The Mall. The Phillip’s Museum is peerless though he might be too young. But the new wing at the National is so astonishing. But just to walk around the city is a thrill. Have a wonderful time.

@Promnight: But do the Lincoln memorial right: the point of it (it’s really very brilliant) is to get up to where Lincoln is and look out on the city. See what the statue sees. That is the memorial: the city he saved. It’s so very moving and inspiring.

@Promnight: Definitely go to the Lincoln Memorial at night, and it’s worth it to pay for the nightime bus trip around to the sites – seeing them all lit up is cool. The Air & Space Museum is perfect for an 8 year old boy, as is the National Zoo if he likes animals.

The best Lebanese food I’ve ever had is at Lebanese Taverna, right near the zoo. there are some good hole in the wall Bs&Bs in Glover Park, near Georgetown, or Adams Morgan/Dupont Circle. Also over by Capitol Hill.

You can also stay at the hotel above the Brickskellar, which is the best bar ever. Thousands of beers, and excellent spicy chicken wings. They have a British-style hotel above the bar, and it’s two blocks to Dupont Circle and the Metro, and a block from the embassies on Massachusetts Ave.

If you’re driving, you can always stay in the MD suburbs and take metro in. But it’s fun to stay in the city and take Amtrak in to Union Station. It is so amazing to come out of the train station and see the Capitol right in front of you.

@nojo: I noticed that joke. Oklahoma! loomed large in my childhood, the lyrics, alas, shaped my understanding of human relationgyps.

Prom, I just had my 8 y.o. down there last weekend, too bad he didn’t have a cohort. He loves the A&S museum, that’s a must, and we took in the natural history museum this time as well although it was too hot and crowded.

We walked all the way around the WH, and compared the lack of protesters with the last time we were there in 06,where he posed with a sign in mandarin that loosely translated said “fuck Bush”. I’ll upload that to the stream.

Sadly we’ve missed the Lincoln both times, a huge regret as both the boy and I are huge Lincoln and Obama fans. I want him to see the huge majesty of that man from Springfield, and as the DCists have said, the brilliant spectacle of the town he saved laid out at his feet.

No tips on where to stay, we drive in and out in a day (mistake). Chevy Chase is a good burb with family hotels including pools (always a plus with the aquatic jr Nabiscos) and right on the metro. My kids love the metro, from buying tickets to putting them in the turnstile then boarding and holding on to the railings. Fact is, I love it too.

I forgot to put in a word for the Museum of the American Indian, which has cool exhibits, stunning architecture, and maybe my favorite museum cafe ever, where they serve foods native to tribes in different areas of the country.
And if you make it to the zoo, don’t forget to say hi to Butterstick, mascot of original Wonkette. I made a special pilgrimage out to see him when I was there last.

baked: I feel for you, and I hope things improve, but you’ve got to get yourself out of this one. Kick him out. Don’t read his emails, he’s not worth the effort at this point. Do you really want to be that person?

You have the support of your community, you have our support, and the rat needs to leave, sooner rather than later. This is probably the moment to gather his shit and pile it on the T&C equivalent of the front lawn.

Do not go to Israel (with him), do not pass go, do not give him the time of day. And keep your self-respect, or you’ll be just as miserable after he leaves as you are now. We’re rooting for you.

Back to Bill Richardson, let’s see if anyone picks up on him possibly being the only (potential) cabinet member with a concealed carry handgun permit. His press guy would not tell us what kind of heat the Gov owns for such purposes.

http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Bill_Richardson_Gun_Control.htm

If Bill Richardson becomes Secretary of Commerce then he’ll be over the Census Bureau which means I’ll be working for him, just way way down the chain of command. All Hail Secretary Richardson and may you avoid the fate of poor Ron Brown.

@Promnight: Don’t know if I’m too late for DC advice, but there is a chain hotel (Hyatt? Holiday Inn?) behind the Air and Space Museum that I stayed at about 2-3 years ago during Xmas. It was nice, cheap and right across the street from a metro station. I can’t remember the name though and my home computer is acting up. Let me know if you’re still looking and I’ll check at work tomorrow.

As I read all the comments on travel to DC, I thought about how I structured my job to avoid travel. I don’t have anything to offer on that, but I can think of several places I’ve been recently that I’ve seen elk and deer sign that helped me evaluate some places for purchase of left over cow elk permits from Game and Fish. Unfortunately I was talking to one of my partners when the online sale went live and I missed it (that, and I had to email them to get my password to log into the sale site. Oh, well . . . )