Spitzer

I have been a critic. (See here.) But the last month has convinced me that he is the best that cable TV has to offer. He always seems to ask the right, hard question. Therefore, he is probably doomed to TV failure.

The "Scott" phenomenen (cont'd)

A secretary who I have worked with for 10 years just called me Scott. This has gone far beyond weird coincidences; I have had at least 30 incidents. For more, see this prior post.

The end is near

We should not forget that some of the revolution in Eastern Europe in 1989 was violent. Romania's communist leader Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife were summarily executed. After today's "speech" by Gaddafi , I expect a picture like this of him within days.

Libya

More history, and there is now a report that Gaddafi has fled Tripoli. This one really has to scare the bastards in Tehran because Gaddafi employed brutal force, killing hundreds, apparently to no avail.

Middle East - a wave

By now, every rationally thinking autocrat in the Middle East has gone from pissing his pants to crapping his pants.

The unrest shaking the Middle East showed no signs of calming Friday as leaders proved again unable to stem the fervor of protesters determined to overthrow governments and remake a region plagued by corruption, poverty and decades of limited political freedoms.

Protests that only months ago would have been unheard of have engulfed a region desperate to duplicate the toppling of regimes in Tunisia and Egypt.

If people were not dying in their fights for freedom, I would be able to enjoy this more.

Twins tickets

We received confirmation today that we got in for tickets for a 20 game pack for next season. The choice was 2, 3, or 5 tickets (obviously, they can't market a single seat season ticket, so 4 in a spot with 5 seats available was not an option). My wife voted for 5, and I didn't object. It isn't like there won't be a market if we can't use them.

Here is the view from our seats. And we have these or better seats for life. Sweet.

Egypt

Today, the lives of 80 million people changed forever. Amazing stuff to watch.

"Egypt's Mubarak to step down "

Link.

Witnessing history is fascinating.

Stupid person of the year

What can you say about this?

The puppy that almost ended up in the U.S. mail will stay at an animal shelter for at least another week after an administrative hearing officer ruled Monday that it should not be returned to its owner.

On Monday, city administrative hearing officer Fabian Hoffner ruled against returning the dog to owner Stacey Champion, 39, of Minneapolis, calling what she did "disgraceful."

The 4-month-old Schnauzer-poodle mix was nearly sent in a cardboard box to Georgia last month before it was intercepted by alarmed postal workers. Postal authorities said it almost certainly would have suffocated or died of exposure in the unpressurized belly of a cargo plane.

Champion admitted at the hearing that she put Guess in a box without food on Jan. 25, saying it was supposed to be a birthday gift for her son in Atlanta.

Because delivery was halted, Champion said, "I was deprived of my son not receiving his gift for his birthday. I felt really, really bad as a mom."

The case was so unusual that Postal Service employees weren't sure at first if the shipment was illegal, according to Postal Inspector Jesse Swanson. He said at Monday's hearing that on the day the dog was discovered, he got a call from the Loring Post Office station manager asking if Postal Service rules prohibited the mailing of puppies. He had to check the rules himself before learning that it was not permissible.

"This was somewhat uncharted territory for us," he said.

Suspicions about the shipment first arose when employees at the Loring Station post office in downtown Minneapolis saw the box move on its own and heard breathing inside. Champion had told clerks that the box contained a toy robot, according to Swanson. . .

Middle East

If you have 10 minutes, read this instant history of what is happening. It helps put everything into a broader perspective.

Let's watch Saudi Arabia. There are no signs of instability there yet, but 25% of the world's oil supply. . .

Money to burn

Since I started this blog, I have refrained from any commentary on Matt Entenza because he was my predecessor judicial law clerk and he was someone who participated in my interview for the job. But in that job I had heard alot about him from people I respected (and long before he ever became a public figure), and I developed some definite impressions.

I have now decided that 20 years is the statute of limitations on expressing an opinion on a former colleague. So, I hereby express an opinion that anyone who spends $5,000,000 of his own (i.e., wife's) money to try to buy a public office is, by definition, too irresponsible to be in public office. (Unfortunately, Mark Dayton was successful in buying the same office for only $4,000,000 of his own money.)

I understand that the First Amendment makes reform in this area virtually impossible. But it still makes me sick.