LARRY'S WORLD BEGINS TO CRACK... NO PUN INTENDED

You remember that girl who marched before the TV news cameras to swear her daddy, Rep. Larry Craig, isn't gay (not that there's anything wrong with that)? Yeah, well take that with a grain or two of salt, as her reliablity was called into question when Boise cops noted she has an an outstanding arrest warrant there, according to the Boise Guardian.
In related news, an unconfirmed report indicates Idaho lawmakers, seeking to distance themselves from Craig, have proposed changing the state's name from Idaho to Hedaho.

STANDING UP FOR JOE

The greatest avelange begins with a tiny pebble rolling downhill.
And so it also is that the most far-reaching court decisions often begin with a neighborhood cat fight.... like the Scopes trial, or the Chicago Seven trial.
And into this mix we might soon add the name Joe Albero.... Let me pause here while I shudder at the very idea the Joe might be right about anything.... okay, let's continue.
The basic facts are that Joe is a firebrand, a loose cannon, a rabble rouser, and he says things that irritate and annoy people. And, make no mistake, it not just public officials that he annoys. He irritates me as well, and I wish he's just take his lithium, take a nap and STFU. That said, however, I have to say that most of what he says about officialdom constitutes what is known as "fair comment."
That doesn't mean his histrionic comments are fair, as in "regular and even," or "free of bias or favoritism." Rather, it means that his political hyperbole largely falls within the confines of allowable political comment in the context of The First Amendment, and if the police chief, the mayor, or any other public official can't stand the criticism then they need to hike up their skirts and tippitoe back into the relative saftey of the private sector.
And every-damned-one of us needs to stand up for Joe, because if the the government is allowed to silence Joe through legal or any other kind of intimidation, then what's to stop them from silencing anyone else whose words they don't like.

HASTA LA VISTA, BABY.... GONZALES IS OUT.... NOW LET'S GET RID OF THE REST OF THE FACIST ASSWIPES

The AP is moving a story that Attorney General Gonzales has resigned.

TODAY VE TAKE IRAQ, UND TOMORROW ZE VORLD

WTF OVER.... A BLAST FROM THE PAST IN '95

"THE ARGUMENT FROM INTIMIDATION IS A CONFESSION OF INTELLECTUAL IMPOTANCE"

Well. We see where the formerally esteemed mayor of Salisbury, Barrie Whatshername, has decided to wade into the pig pen with her police chief (pardon the pun) so they can try to give Joe Albero a sound thrashing. Good. I never liked Joe, anyways. Much of his writing betrays his ignorance and, I think, suggests an....umm... emotional disturbance. Personally, I find him easy to ignore - even though he has threatened me with physical assault.
Apparently the same can not be said of Miss Barrie and her minion, yet they have less protection from maniacal rantings than I do owing to their voluntary participation as self-professed leaders of the community. There is a marked difference between the level of privacy and public commentary a private citizen, and a public figure can expect. So, while I admit I haven't kept up on Joe's public strangeness and ramblings, I have to say that most of what I read back before he opened the website constituted Fair Comment, in the context of public figures. Oh, most of it was lame, ignorant, and half-baked, to be sure. But it rarely crossed the line.
So for city officials to file suit smacks of nothing so much as intimidation.

ANOTHER REPUBLICAN GOES DOWN AND OUT.

Glenn Murphy Jr., the recently elected director of The Young Republicans National Federation resigned this week, citing another job opportunity that would prevent his involvement on politics.
But according to the Jeffersonville (IN) Evening News and Tribune, that reasons cited by Murphy may not be entirely correct. According to police sources cited there, Mr. Murphy is under investigation for allegedly performing "an unwanted sex act" on a 22-year-old man. Reportedly the victim was asleep when he was assaulted July 31.
And, it turns out, the incident may not be the first time stories have surfaced alleging Murphy attempts to purloin unguarded hot dogs. ... If only he could find a nice young man and settle down.

THIS GUY JUST KEEPS GETTING MORE HEROIC

Jeremy Hernandez, the 20-year-old Minnesota guy who saved the lives of dozens of kids last week during the bridge collapse, got two impressive reward offers this week. One he accepted, one he rejected. And it is his rejected of that offer that further elevates his status as a hero. A New York Times story yesterday said Hernandez flatly rejected a call from the White House to meet and shake hands with the President, and went fishing instead.