The Average Man

Sunday, August 17, 2008

W's PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

Some Monday fun (sent to me by a friend) ...

PLANS FOR GEORGE W. BUSH PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY ON CAMPUS OF SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY

The Bush Library - Next time you are in Texas, plan to visit! The George W Bush Presidential Library is now in the planning stages. The Library will include:

The Hurricane Katrina Room, which is still under construction.

The Alberto Gonzales Room, where you won't be able to remember anything.

The Texas Air National Guard Room, where you don't even have to show up.

The Walter Reed Hospital Room, where they don't let you in.

The Guantanamo Bay Room, where they don't let you out.

The Weapons of Mass Destruction Room, which no one has been able to find.

The National Debt room which is huge and has no ceiling.

The 'Tax Cut' Room with entry only to the wealthy.

The 'Economy Room' which is in the toilet.

The Iraq War Room. After you complete your first tour, they make you to go back for a second, third, fourth, and sometimes fifth tour.

The Dick Cheney Room, in the famous undisclosed location, complete with shotgun gallery.

The Environmental Conservation Room, still empty.

The Supremes Gift Shop, where you can buy an election.

The Airport Men's Room, where you can meet some of your favorite Republican Senators.

The 'Decider Room' complete with dart board , magic 8-ball, Ouija board, dice, coins, and straws.

The museum will have an electron microscope to help you locate the President's accomplishments.

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Sunday, August 10, 2008

HOLY COMPARISONS, BATMAN!

So, there I was; quietly enjoying a cup of Stone's Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, when my buddy, Patrick, decides he wants to throw down ... "Just saw THE DARK KNIGHT," he says, "and I think Batman is George Bush." WHAT!? I couldn't have heard that correctly. "In fact," he goes on, "that whole movie is just a Republican wet dream." I'm literally too stunned to speak. I don't think he really understands what he's saying. I mean, telling me that Bush is under that cape and cowl is like telling a little kid that Elmo is really the Bogeyman; I simply refuse to be bated into this discussion.

But Patrick is persistent. He goes on to -- I'll reluctantly admit -- make a strong case: Bruce Wayne is just a rich, white guy who will do whatever it takes to catch the evil-doer terrorist killer (that would be the Joker). And to get the job done, he will even break a few laws if necessary. For example, using cell phone technology to spy on every citizen of Gotham is perfectly acceptable behavior for Mr. Wayne, and utilizing a little bit of torture to extract information from your enemy is just a necessary means to an end. Sound familiar?

Okay, okay, stop; I can't take it anymore! My tiny mind just can't wrap itself around this argument. I've been a loyal fan of Batman since as long as I can remember. I know Batman, and you, Mr. Bush, are no Batman. Yes, it's true that Batman is what they call an "antihero;" unlike boy scouts like Superman, he constantly walks a fine line between right and wrong. And quite frankly, I'm happy that this movie tackles the kinds of issues relevant to our society. Good movies do that. I also think it's a good thing that Batman faces moral dilemmas and is pushed to do bad things. That's what makes him -- and all of us -- interesting people. But is he Bush? Let's discuss ...

Here's the thing: Bruce Wayne becomes Batman because his parents were killed by a thug. As a result of this traumatic experience from his childhood, he chooses to devote his life to fighting crime. Unlike certain presidents, however, he has a strict moral code that he always follows. First, he never uses a gun (no shooting your friends in the face for this guy). Second, he never kills under any circumstances. Can Captain Death Penalty say that?

You want to compare the Joker to Osama. Fine, let's do that ... When the Joker kills hundreds of people for no reason, Batman doesn't try to convince Gotham that the Penguin actually did it. But that is exactly what Bush did when he duped this country into believing that Iraq was responsible for 9/11. For those who STILL don't believe Mr. Bush actually wanted to do that, then maybe you should read Pulitzer prize winning journalist Ron Suskind's new book "The Way of the World." Here's a part of what Mr. Suskind wrote for The Huffington Post ...

The Iraq Intelligence Chief, Tahir Jalil Habbush -- a man still carrying a $1 million reward for capture, the Jack of Diamonds in Bush's famous deck of wanted men -- has been America's secret source on Iraq. Starting in January of 2003, with Blair and Bush watching, his secret reports began to flow to officials on both sides of the Atlantic, saying that there were no WMD and that Hussein was acting so odd because of fear that the Iranians would find out he was a toothless tiger. The U.S. deep-sixed the intelligence report in February, "resettled" Habbush to a safe house in Jordan during the invasion and then paid him $5 million in what could only be considered hush money.

In the fall of 2003, after the world learned there were no WMD -- as Habbush had foretold -- the White House ordered the CIA to carry out a deception. The mission: create a handwritten letter, dated July, 2001, from Habbush to Saddam saying that Atta trained in Iraq before the attacks and the Saddam was buying yellow cake for Niger with help from a "small team from the al Qaeda organization."

Hmm, very un-Batman-like behavior if you ask me. See, unlike Bush, Batman doesn't want to manipulate the public for his own questionable ends; he just wants to catch the actual bad guys. What, on the other hand, motivates W.: money, power, oil, greed? Hard to say. And as for the spying thing, we all know that Batman blows up the surveillance equipment at the end of the movie, because even he understands that it is "too much power for one person." Does anyone believe for a second that Bush would ever come to that same conclusion?

So, Batman and Bush are the same? No, Batman is the man in black who's devoted his life to the betterment of society. He fights for the downtrodden and struggles against corrupt government and corporate officials. He has no selfish motive other than to try and make the world a better place for all of us. Yes, Virginia, there is a Batman ... and his name is Obama.

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Monday, August 04, 2008

TRAVIS QUITTING?

I heard a rumor from Travis Armstrong's dog walker's mother's cousin's friend that he is thinking of resigning from the Santa Barbara News-Press. Apparently, his soul is so tortured by his complete and utter failure as the News-Press Opinion Editor that he can't find the inner strength to continue on with the position. According to my super-secret contact (who remains with Dick Cheney in an undisclosed location), Travis has been pondering this move for some time: "Ever since the News-Press meltdown a couple years back," says my contact, "Travis has been increasingly troubled by his declining professionalism in dealing with the Santa Barbara community. After particularly nasty editorials regarding the city council, he's even been known to look in the mirror and say '@#$% you, Travis' over and over. The situation is pretty bad."

When I pressed my contact on the specifics of Mr. Armstrong's recent tumble into depression, he (or she?) thinks that his obsession with Marty Blum is really starting to wear on his conscience. During one particularly down state, Travis was overheard saying, "Man, I blame her for everything from gang violence to gas prices. Heck, I even follow her around now and take pictures for no particular reason. What's wrong with me!?" Travis is so upset about his treatment of Mrs. Blum in recent months that he's even considering printing her response to his next unsubstantiated false allegation ... maybe.

As if these revelations weren't big enough, a friend of a friend of a friend told me that Travis even called Brian Barnwell at home last week to chat about the decision to leave the NP. According to this even more top secret contact, Travis said to Barnwell that he doesn't understand where his fascination with the former city council member comes from. "Even though you're out of office, I can't stop writing about you. " said Armstrong, "I just don't find any of the new people very interesting, you know? I'm sure I will hate one of them eventually, but for now, I get more joy out of writing about how your recent vacation to Disneyland is destroying our community."

Anyway, I'm sure Mr. Armstrong has good reasons to want to leave the News-Press, and we wish him the best of luck. Maybe San Jose will take him back. I hear their mayor is an easy target.

[Editor's Note: Nothing in this blog post is remotely true.]

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