Seems we left a few things behind at the old-old joint when we evacuated last year, but we still have a fair claim to Cocktober and Butterstick. And we retain a passing interest in Adam Kokesh, who appears to be running for Congress on the Paultard ticket, right down to the moneybomb.

But what Ralphie is doing in Adam’s Flickr feed is beyond us. Did the parrot die?

Kokesh for Congress

• Official Tax Day TEA Party, July 4th, 2009
• The Official Online HQ of the April 15th Tax Day “Tea Parties”
• Tea Party Patriots: Official Home of the American Tea Party Movement
• Official Site of the Tea Party Express
• Official Nationwide Tea Party Store
• Official 4th of July Tea Party T-Shirts
• The Official Tea Party Protest Song
• Official Historical Record Of The 2009 Tea Party
• The Tea Party (Official website of the Canadian rock band DVD)

Photo: Miss Ellie celebrates her win in the World’s Ugliest Dog Contest’s pedigree class at the Sonoma-Marin Fair on Friday, June 26 [AP/LAT]

Title: “The Love Dare”

Authors: Stephen Kendrick and Alex Kendrick

Rank: 42

Blurb: “Too many marriages end when someone says ‘I’ve fallen out of love with you’ or ‘I don’t love you anymore.’ The Love Dare discusses how these statements reveal a lack of understanding about the fundamental nature of true love.”

Review: “Now the book itself also consists of a 40-day list of dares. For each day, there’s about a page and a half or so of advice, followed by a specific dare and some space for you to write down your personal reflections. Dares range from things such as practicing patience to writing out a renewal of your vows.”

Customers Also Bought: “Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God,” by Francis Chan

Footnote: We’re incorrigible.

The Love Dare [Amazon]

Buy or Die [Stinque@Amazon kickback link]

Michael Calderone, Politico: “Barack Obama hasn’t yet made a statement on the death of Michael Jackson, which was confirmed around 7 p.m. last night.”

Susan Davis, WSJ: “Obama, a music aficionado, has not released a written statement since news of Michael Jackson’s death broke late Thursday afternoon.”

Katie Connolly, Newsweek: “And he was black, so it seemed reasonable to expect the first black president to have a few heartfelt words.”

Jocelyn Vena, MTV: “Although President Obama held a press conference on Friday (June 26), no one asked him for his reaction to the news of Michael Jackson’s death on Thursday in Los Angeles.”

Read more »

Russia’s energy giant Gazprom has signed a $2.5bn (£1.53bn) deal with Nigeria’s state operated NNPC, to invest in a new joint venture.

The new firm, to be called Nigaz, is set to build refineries, pipelines and gas power stations in Nigeria.

We don’t dare.

Gazprom seals $2.5bn Nigeria deal [BBC, via TPM]

Title: “The Trust Committed to Me”

Author: Mark Sanford

Rank: 160,247

Blurb: None. Published in 2000 by the U.S. Term Limits Foundation.

Review: “Unlike the lack of trust committed to my wife and children as I scamper off to Argentina in the dark of night to be with my other family I truly love.”

Customers Also Bought: “Conscience of a Conservative,” by Barry Goldwater

Footnote: Makes a great read on those long international flights!

Bonus: Meet the ghostwriter!

The Trust Committed to Me [Amazon]

Buy or Die [Stinque@Amazon kickback link]

In two hours, Geraldo Rivera Abuna Pauolos, patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia, will reveal the location of the Ark of the Covenant, fabled container of Steven Spielberg’s bank account the Ten Commandments.

The Ark has been stored in a nondescript government warehouse Ethiopia for millennia, says Pauolos. Many duplicates were made to milk the franchise protect the secret location of the real Ark, but now a museum is being built to suck tourist dollars from the gullible display the holy treasure.

Nothing good can come of this. Least of all, another Raiders sequel.

Update: The Patiarch Vanishes.

‘Ark of the Covenant’ about to be unveiled? [WorldNetDaily]