About Obama's speech, Patrick J. Buchanan opines:

Fair enough. But this time, it has to be a two-way conversation. White America needs to be heard from, not just lectured to.

This time, the Silent Majority needs to have its convictions, grievances and demands heard. And among them are these:

First, America has been the best country on earth for black folks. It was here that 600,000 black people, brought from Africa in slave ships, grew into a community of 40 million, were introduced to Christian salvation, and reached the greatest levels of freedom and prosperity blacks have ever known.

Wright ought to go down on his knees and thank God he is an American.

Second, no people anywhere has done more to lift up blacks than white Americans. Untold trillions have been spent since the ’60s on welfare, food stamps, rent supplements, Section 8 housing, Pell grants, student loans, legal services, Medicaid, Earned Income Tax Credits and poverty programs designed to bring the African-American community into the mainstream.

So, slavery was a net win for blacks, therefore white people deserve, what, praise? And white people don't use welfare, only black people use welfare ... ?

Should I feel uncomfortable when Leon Redbone's version of The Sheik Of Araby comes on the iPod ?

Well I'm the Sheik of Araby
Your love belongs to me
Well at night when you're asleep
Into your tent I'll creep

The stars that shine above
Will light our way to love
You rule this world with me
I'm the Sheik of Araby

... x2, in a roughly middle-eastern accent, followed by a minute or so of him making these crazy lip-flapping, grunting, mumbling, chortling noises. I can't help but picture this guy:

You can hear it on Rhapsody - couldn't find his version on YouTube anywhere. Give it a listen.

Is it borderline racist, or clearly racist ? Or am I finding racism where none exists ? Such heavy questions for such a silly song.

But, it's an old standard, done by everyone from Rudolph Valentino to The Beatles to Django Reinhardt to Jo Ann Castle (on the Lawrence Welk show). The Valentino version has a couple of verses about Winston Churchill getting beaten by Germany's planes... WTF ?

I can has go home early ?

Pineapple Dreams

PZ Myers, his name and face apparently on a List of Forbidden People, is expelled, from the anti-evolution movie, "Expelled!" (which is about the way the evil evolution establishment shuts-out opposing viewpoints, b.t.w.) And yet his completely unknown guest is allowed in, along with Myers' family.

Stupid fucking creationists.

Contractors fired over Obama passport breach ? Impossible. The government would never try to use your passport information for political reasons - especially when the President's last name is Bush.

I mean, be serious, people. We're at war!

And furthermore, there's no reason to worry about the government having access to every email and phone call you make. What you say or write will never end up in the hands of people who would use it for any reason besides catching The Terrorists™. I know this because the party of small government and skepticism over government power tells me so. And they are honorable men. Honorable. Men.

This is probably a liberal hoax designed to embolden The Terrorists™.

There's a weed shortage on campus:

Tulane underclassmen have recently reported a shortage of quality marijuana available on-campus. A drug bust two weeks ago purportedly influenced campus supply, and subsequent developments have further limited resources.

Maybe we can get the Fed to step in and help out ?

Happy ((19*t u-w-(u-(u 8)25) 1)3) 15)mod30) (32 2*x 2*y-(19*t u-w- (u-(u 8)25) 1)3)15)mod30)-z)mod7)-7*(t 11*(19*t u-w(u- (u 8)25) 1)3) 15)mod30) 22*(32 2*x 2*y-(19*t u-w-(u-(u 8)25) 1)3) 15)mod30)-g)mod7) 114)31 !

!!!

Latke or Hamantash?

PZ talks about genes and yolks:

We don't have any fossilized placentas, but we know that there was an important transition in the mammalian lineage: we had to have shifted from producing eggs in which yolk was the primary source of embryonic nutrition to a state where the embryo acquired its nutrition from a direct interface with maternal circulation, the placenta. We modern mammals don't need yolk at all … but could there be vestiges of yolk proteins still left buried in our genome?

Go read. Be smart. Prosper.

From WSJ, the Obama campaign says about McCain:

We wish the McCain campaign well as they try to figure out the difference between Iran and al Qaeda,