Feathery Neighbors Pt. 2

Pale Male and Lola will be allowed to restore their nest on Fifth Avenue! Read the AP story here. The question now is whether or not the hawks will choose to rebuild at the same site.

Filed in: Culture

Recount in Ohio

A recount is taking place in Ohio. Apparently the ACLU also challenged the punch-card voting system, but a federal judge in Ohio ruled today that "voting rights are not denied to those who use punch-card ballots," according to the AP. Read the full AP report here.

The Daily Kos looks in-depth into the brouhaha in Ohio.

Filed in: Politics

A Year Later Cont.

On a related note, John McCain expressed yesterday his lack of confidence in Donald Rumsfeld. The AP report on it can be seen here.

Filed in: Politics

A Year Later

A year ago Saddam Hussein was captured. It's hard to believe that a year has gone by since then. I still remember waking up to the news on the radio, it was either a Saturday or Sunday. When I heard Saddam had been captured, I got out of bed and turned on the TV to CNN. They were showing footage of him with his mouth open, being examined by a doctor. It seemed significant then, and I still think his capture was important. I don't have a journal entry from that day, but I wish I knew whether or not I thought the war would end soon after.

In other news, an NPR reporter interviewed a soldier who had been court-martialed and then dishonorably discharged for "using abandoned vehicles to accomplish a support mission in Kuwait in 2003." It's worth a listen, especially if you heard about Rumsfeld being questioned by a soldier about a lack of proper equipment.

I know those of us who work have probably experienced what it's like to not get support from a supervisor while trying to do our jobs. It angers me that soldiers are risking their lives in Iraq, and the government cannot even provide them with the tools to lower somewhat the risks they have to take. Let's not pretend that their lives are completely disposable.

Filed in: Politics

Celebrating Hanukkah on the Road

In the past, I'd seen at least two cars with large menorahs on the roofs. Both times I thought, OK, those people have just bought a large menorah, which won't fit in their car, so they have it strapped to their roof. Or as one columnist wrote: "Once again, it's that most wonderful time of the year. Jews all around the world go to their local Menorah groves, pick their favorite fresh menorah, tie it to the roof of the car, and bring it home to decorate for the holidays."

While waiting for the bus today, I saw a car drive by with a menorah on its roof, and the menorah was lit (though not with real candles, which would have made quite a sight). So I guess this is a trend of some kind.

Filed in: Culture Oddities

Feathery Neighbors

Pale Male and Lola have been evicted from their Fifth Avenue home! Read about it at Reuters.

I've known about Pale Male since seeing a PBS documentary about him. It's too bad the notion of private property has to trump consideration for others. I can understand why residents of that building might be upset by people constantly watching their building and the refuse the hawks might create, but it seems a shame that they refuse to share their space with nature. Sure Central Park is across the street from their building and it's lovely to look at, but God forbid if they actually have to come into contact with anything so unsanitary.

Filed in: Culture

Awake Late

I just added a copy of my first zine, Awake Late #1, onto my Web site. Check it out here by clicking on the "Zine" link and read about my first cigarette! Issue #2 will go up soon.

Filed in: Portfolio

Travis Morrison Solo Shows

For those who used to follow the D.C. post-punk band The Dismemberment Plan -- and I know there are plenty of you out there because you always blocked my view when the Plan played at the Metro -- note that Travis Morrison is playing two shows in Brooklyn next week on Dec. 14. Should be interesting.

Filed in: Happenings

Robert's Snow

Check out Robert's Snow, the Web site for my friend Alice's sister's online charity auction. The auction is for snowflakes decorated by a number of popular children's book authors and illustrators, including Chris Van Allsburg (author of The Polar Express) and Ian Falconer (creator of Olivia). Proceeds from the auction will go toward the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in honor of Robert, Alice's brother-in-law, who is a cancer survivor. The auction ends in three days.

Filed in: Happenings

The First Post

This is where my blog will be until I figure out how to insert it on my Web site. I think the problems are stemming from the fact that my Web site is hosted on my school's server, and I don't think blogger can get through the firewalls.

Jeff Jarvis, a former TV critic, had this to say about visiting my Media Ethics class. More on this later.

OK, I've just got to add this gratuitous animal story about Red, the canine Houdini. This is exactly the kind of story you'd see in the last minute of a local news broadcast.

Filed in: Media