Telling Truth To The Powerless

My man, Chris Hedges.
"It is not our role to take power, it is our role to make the powerful afraid of us."
Only the first 27 minutes, so not all that long.

Project Runway

A fun, catty rehash for those who can't get enough.
I'm one of those who can't get enough. I think Project Runway and Mad Men should be on 52/12.
No, wait, did I mean 365/52?
How about every night? There, fixed.

Defense Budget

Barney goes there.

"There's a big debate right now about where 3,000 Marines in Okinawa should go. My suggestion is Nebraska," he said.

Website O' Teh Day

The Lowden Chicken Calculator.
Nothing on heart transplants, though. Looks like a lotta Republicans are outta luck.

Obama 'Dramatically Effective'

Of course, Sully's been in love with him from Day 1. But I tend to agree. He lists the reasons why. Now counter it. Give me your reasons why not, you curmudgeon.

Obama's Supreme Court List

is beginning to look like a proposed Honorary Contrariennes List. America is a wonderful country.

Before she became a lawyer, Williams was a music and third-grade teacher in the Detroit public schools. She spent nine years as an assistant U.S attorney in Chicago, trying major felony cases and ultimately becoming chief of the Organized Drug Enforcement Task Force for a five-state region. President Reagan first appointed her to the federal bench in 1985, making her the first African American woman to serve as a district judge in the 7th Circuit. President Clinton elevated her to the appellate court.

Satire O' Teh Day

You begin to get it when she says Eyjafjallajokull.

It's Not Easy Being Green

I guess you have to use math to figure embodied energy, but on the other hand, I hardly ever fly.

You Know New York

You know you know New York. You've been seeing parts of The City since you started watching TV and movies. You may even have read a little about it. Like every day, or at least every week if you're any kind of reader.
But the thing about The City is that you can never know enough.
The local public TV station is trying to change that with some Web-only short sketches about the people and the places in The City you may not know about.
I love New York.

Supreme Court: And Then There's Diane Wood

Greenwald — and his links — tell you what you need to know.
Still, I kinda like a woman nicknamed Shorty. What's Wood's nickname?

How To Survive The Apocalypse:An Entertainment

Don't want to grow radishes and ride a bicycle?
The always wicked Jason Linkins has some better ideas than the Tea Party crowd.
Hint: You'll need lots of pockets, of course.

Open Invitation To Esperanza Spalding

There is a place reserved for you among the honored Contrariennes Emerita.

Hunter S. Thompson Lives

It just dawned on me that Matt Taibbi, who's been lashing Goldman Sachs for months in Rolling Stone, writes things like "“The great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity” all the time.
I kinda like that. Especially today. GS goin' down? Who can say.

The Fun Begins

"Ms. Kagan, are you now or have you ever been a member of the Lesbianist Party?"

Just In Case You Hadn't Noticed

Commenter Hussein over at TPM sums up:

wow - what a couple of weeks - Obama negotiates a nuclear agreement with Russia, gets China to join sanctions on Iran, and the Justice Dept. indicts BOTH Goldman Sachs and Blackwater!

Word O' Teh Day: Phallophanies

Say it with me — phallophanies!

Guess What?

According to Stat Counter, the Rethinking Elena Kagan got a visit from the Executive Office of the President. I am stunned. Administrator of the Courts, too. Of course, they're searching for anything with Kagan's name and probably nobody read Contrarienne, but still. I love the intertubes.

Friviality Friday

The iPad is just a very pricey cat toy. Who knew? Dogs know.

Dog Sledding

River and Trout in Sugarbush, Vermont

Eww O' Teh Day

Oh goody, a new leech.

The creature lives in the remote parts of the Upper Amazon and has a "particularly unpleasant habit of infesting humans", the scientists say.
Studies also revealed that it had "a preference for living up noses".