I Miss Beer

Right now, I could really go for a thick-headed Guinness. Or maybe a Goose Island Nut Brown Ale. If I dream about drinking (and even liking) Budweiser, does that mean I have a problem? The spin starts here.

Run for the hills! Gas prices are skyrocketting! (Of course, minorities and women are hit hardest.) Will people pay $3.00 a gallon? What about $4.00? Of course they will. Tia Nelson is absolutely right: "[I]f we paid what Europeans paid, we wouldn't be driving vehicles that got 12 miles to a gallon." Now, I'm no environmentalist wacko, but a dependence on a single source for fuel is not healthy - not only for our environment, but for foreign policy and the economy. Watch out for kneejerk legislation and congressional hearings founded on pure emotion and grab for political gain.

I finished reading Fast Food Nation. It really was a decent read. My interest was kept and I learned a lot. You really wouldn't believe what's in your food. The gore and details still won't keep me from eating fast food. Although, at one point when reading and eating lunch, I had to take a second to disassociate myself with the book. The author even had solutions for the problem with globalization and low wages for teens. They all included a bigger government, which was good for a laugh. I'm actually looking forward to Schlosser's upcoming movie of the same title and other book about the drug world, Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market. 3.5/5 stars.

My new read is On Combat by LTC Dave Grossman. It's a follow-up to On Killing and is already and enthralling trip.

Rick Santorum is the least-liked member in the Senate, as rated by his own constituents. Funny enough, he's still beating out Bush with a 39% approval rating (over Bush's 33%) and 53% disapproval (under Bush's 57%). I'm a fan of Santorum, but if you speak your mind and never waiver, you're doomed when it comes to a second term in a swing state. (Though, in Bush's case, the low ratings are not due to holding steady on all policy positions.) Pandering is key.

Ben & Jerry's decided to apologize for a new ice cream flavor that has offended people in Great Britain. The name - "Black & Tan". Yeah, like the beer. (But I'm sure it doesn't taste as good.) The ice cream made available only in the U.S. has a few people whining because "Black and Tan" is a nickname of old violent militia known for it's anti-British sentiments. Truly, I hope no one would be offended if I drank a "lobster-back" smoothie.

I'm drooling over the new 17" MacBook Pro. 5x faster. 36% brighter.

I was with W. Thomas Smith in his new piece about the difference between sedition and dissent until he proclaimed that he couldn't "say for sure if such rhetoric [against the war and president]is spewed to deliberately encourage terrorists...". What a loon. Nearly all "rhetoric [that] is spewed" is not intended to rally the enemy in the War on Terrorism, it is merely a horrible secondary effect. However, these guys are quite blatant about it and provide an exception to the rule.

Prince Harry is a true patriot.