Couple of fun things for you today-

Paintings of people swimming with their head above water.

Guess the Amazon rating based on the book cover.

Presidential Debate Drinking Game.

Thanks to the people at metafilter.

It…It…It…It was the 80’s.

This is one of my favorite blog posts ever.  I giggle every time I read it. 

I bought a friend of mine the Live Aid DVD a few years ago for Christmas, and I had to include a printout of this post.  What’s funny is that I think my friend was kind of “meh” about the gift, but now we tend to plug it in often, and it really is amazing how good the DVD is.  I was a little young for Live Aid, so it’s fun to see the performances (and the clothing!!).

It is WAY too freaking early for this shit.

In the past two weeks, I have seen Christmas-themed movies on tv three times.

IT’S FLIPPING SEPTEMBER.

And people wonder why I hate Christmas so much.  Soon, I’ll be hearing Christmas carols, and that will really piss me off.

What are the issues? How do I know who to vote for?

I can’t keep up with all the political issues and what each candidate believes.  I would need to watch TV ten hours a day and surf the internet the rest of the time to be fully up to speed on everything I should be to cast an educated vote.  Of course, I know who I like better, but I would feel better voting if I can back it up with more than, “I really dislike the other guy.”

I found a pretty good site today, where you can learn about the issues and each candidates view on these issues.  They also have a great quiz which simply asks you what your views are on the issues, and tells you how much you match each of the candidates.  This works for the presidential and VP election, the Senate race, and points to your political philosophy.  This negates any preconceived notions you might have about a candidate, so that you really are voting on the issues important to you, rather than who you think looks better in a suit. 

The quiz also breaks down the issues so you know what each means.  Some are easy – we all know how we feel about this question: (“Support” to the far left, “Oppose” to the far right, “No Opinion” in the middle)

Abortion is a woman’s right   o   o   o   o   o  

Less clear:

Allow churches to provide welfare services   o   o   o   o   o

Well, what does this mean to me?  You can click on the issue and it breaks it down – if you strongly support it, then you believe this.  If you oppose it, then you believe this.  Then, if you’re still not sure, it tells you that you might also support other statements (such as, “Faith-based organizations can provide services better than the government can.”)

We have 49 days left to Election Day.  I can’t wait until it’s over – I’m sick of the ads, I’m sick of the mud-slinging, I’m sick of hearing the advisers on both sides twist things into something bad.  (Although, I can continue to watch Fey-as-Palin – it’s the one bright spot during election season.)

Wake me when it’s over.

I love Get Fuzzy

No, really - this comic strip is so incredibly funny.  Darby Conley can get so political, as in Friday’s comic strip.

Saturday’s follow up is pretty good, too.  “Nobody expects the Alaskan Politician!”

Learn Something About…Franz Ferdinand

Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria became heir to the Austrian throne after his cousin committed suicide in 1889.  In 1895 he met Sophie Chotek, a lady in waiting (and, incidentally, a descendant of one of those defenestrated in Prague).  They kept their relationship a secret for two years, as Sophie was not eligible to marry into the royal family.  However, in 1900 they were allowed to marry, but none of their descendants could succeed to the throne.  Sophie could not appear with him in public, taking other means of transportation and sitting in a different area during events.

There was a loophole:  When Franz was acting in military duty, his wife could share his rank and they could appear together in public.  In June 1914, they were in Sarajevo en route to a town hall reception when their motorcade was bombed in an assassination attempt.  Franz and Sophie were uninjured, but 20 others were not so lucky.  After the reception, they decided to visit the wounded in the hospital, but their motorcade took a wrong turn.  In the confusion, one of the assassins, who happened to be grabbing a sandwich nearby after the earlier failed assassination attempt, saw the motorcade and approached the car, shooting and killing both Franz and Sophie.

And thus began World War I.  Austria-Hungary (of the Central Powers) declared war on Serbia (of the Triple Entente Powers), the allied countries on each side declared war on each other, and the rest of that story is better known than the catalyst.

An interesting note:  the man who threw the first bomb took a cyanide pill and jumped into the nearby river.  However, the cyanide was old, so all it did was make him throw up, and the river he jumped into was only four inches deep.  Bad planning on his part - he was severely beaten by the crowd before being taken into custody.

Who needs to know?

Elizabeth Edwards is being criticized for not telling anyone about her husband’s affair, for standing by him and choosing to stay in their 30 year marriage.

Am I the only one going, “…What?!”

Regardless of how you feel about what John Edwards did, this is still, at the root, a private matter.  He violated hertrust, much more than he violated anyone else’s.  If this were the CEO of Widgets, Inc and his wife, no one would give a shit.  The employees wouldn’t wonder if they could trust him, the stockholders wouldn’t sell off their shares because they don’t trust him.  His wife, and his wife alone, would be the only one able to forgive him his misdeed.  The only person’s trust he violated was hers, the only contract he violated was the one he had with her.

Yes, you can argue that Edwards violated The People’s trust in him as a representative of them and as a leader.  But that is something he did, not something she did.  Did she violate The People’s trust?  Absolutely not.  You can argue that he (and she) hid it from the public in order to avoid losing all political aspirations.  But consider yourself.  If your husband confided that he had an affair, and you discussed it and decided to forgive him, who would you tell?  Maybe your kids, if they were of an age that they could be told.  Maybe a few close friends, to discuss it.  A therapist, certainly.  But would you tell your husbands boss?  Or the people he manages?  Do you tell strangers on the street?  Do you take out an ad on a bulletin board to make sure the whole world knows?