Note: This may be a short diary depending on what's covered and how tired I am. Wishing Coach the best at the Zen retreat she's heading this weekend!
Well, only one "This day in History" for this diary, and it's a fun one! On this day in 1994, we got one of the first Gen-X TV shows that was truly "must see".
So don't be afraid--how many of you followed the Ross/Rachel saga religiously every Thursday?
As far as Birthdays, today, there are many, but only ONE of significance. Today, September 22, is the Birthday of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins. In honor of that, may I present Mr Spock:
Now that I've given you some earworms, on with TRMS!
Like I said, if there's a lot of Troy Davis/Death Penalty stuff, I'll mention it, but I won't go into detail. Coach has her Michael Moore thing, I have this issue. So apologies in advance.
NOTE Part Deux: Tonight is another RepubliKoch car wreck tonight, so in honor of that, may I present the greatest car wreck of all time:
Contrast that to the President's speech today.
"Hello, I must be going"--The UN is in session and world leaders are all over the place. It's the annual "Running of the Diplomats"--the mass exodus that happens whenever Mahmoud Achmadidjaknowimcrazy speaks. We have video highlights. Rachel really loves this kind of theater. It's the diplomatic equivalent of flipping the bird. Rachel also showed video of the epic 2009 walkout in Geneva, where the diplomat stopped 3 feet from the podium to take a picture. President Obama was in New York also, and after he spoke, he had many meetings, including with Bibi Netenyahu and Mahmoud Abbas.
"Americans With Prosperity"--Meanwhile, at the same time, Forbes released it's 400 richest Americans. Topping the list is Billgatus of Borg, as usual. Some of these individuals have more money than entire countries. Warren Buffet topped out at 39 billion, and the Kochtopus had a joint wealth of up to 50 billion. And here's a LONG list of countries that don't have as much money as the Kochtopus. In 5 years, their money has grown a LOT. But, they're cutting jobs left and right. Rachel points out that as corporate profits soar, more and more people are getting laid off. And yet RepubliKochs call the rich "job creators"??? Regarding the Buffet Rule, polls are consistently showing that 70-80% of the people SUPPORT the rule. The President, in his speech, said he was a "warrior for the middle class". Here's the Elizabeth Warren video! Wow, she's so good! Right wing websites are passing this video around as much as they can. I don't think it means what they think it means. It may just backfire on them. Warren Buffet is going to campaign for the President. The Kochtopus has a LOT more money than Warren Buffet. Game on.
"That's just a coincidence"--Ronald Reagan said "Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall". Today in Ohio, the President said "Mr Boehner and Mr McConnell, rebuild this bridge". Talk about a barnburner of a speech by the President. He really had the crowd going. The pundits are shocked--shocked I say, to see the President so "combative". But doesn't the President look like he's enjoying himself now? Lamb Chop is here to talk Presidential politics and speechifying. Congrats on his new show! I guess Rachel had a REAL good time Saturday night before her appearance REALLY EARLY in the morning on his show. He makes a good point--The pundits get sucked up in all the Obama bashing what with the polls, the Susskind book, and the like, and they forget what a skilled politician he is. Lamb Chop doesn't know why the President didn't use his "superpowers" sooner, but he's using them now, especially since it's been made clear that nothing is going to pass, and the Democrats seem to be united--for now. He's worried about the Landrieus and the Nelsons of the world.
"Lifelong repercussions"--This segment opens up with a 2005 clip of Senator McCain talking about how torture does NOT work. Which led into DICK Cheney talking about condoning torture and how it's "not really torture because we were torturing terrorists". Which leads us to the death penalty. While the SCOTUS was deliberating whether to stay the execution of Troy Davis, Texas was busy executing the man who dragged James Byrd to his death. Alabama executed Derrick Mason today, and Georgia has set the date of its next execution. There is no question about the guilt of these last three men. But there is a debate on the death penalty as a whole. The drug companies who make the drugs used in executions have all said that those drugs shouldn't be used for that purpose. One is sodium pentathol, the other is the drug used to put pets down. Dr Allen Ault is here to talk about the prison workers who have to do the executions. He was a former chief of corrections for GA among others. He says every state has its own execution book, and that every meticulous detail is laid out in the books and they are rehearsed constantly. This does have a debilitating effect on those who have to perform these tasks. Especially with new ways of confirming guilt or innocence, there is a lot of doubt that creeps in. Sometimes the workers aren't sure if the prisoner is guilty. He has also talked to families of victims after executions. Many say they were expecting some sort of closure, but they haven't found it after the execution, and many families argue in court against the death penalty for their family member's killer.
"The land is starting to rejoice"--Awww, a puppy was rescued. It was stuck for over 40 minutes in a crack in the earth caused by the Texas drought. This leads to the bat$hit brigade in Texas and elsewhere. Cindy Jacobs is one crazy Christian lady who was at Governor Secession's great big prayer meeting a while ago. She is saying it worked wonderfully. Hmm. Since the prayer fest, Texas has caught fire, and the drought hasn't stopped. If that's working, I don't want to be anywhere near "not working". I mean, they have to rescue FISH from the rivers, for crying out loud!
"The Best New Thing"--Rachel's girlfriend Susan is in studio! She loved the puppy rescue. We have ACTING!!--Rachel played a portion of the re-enactment of the Prop 8 trial. Now a judge has ruled, pending appeal, that the REAL video must be released to the public!