Not sure how this was done (de-tracking software usually doesn’t work this well), but someone managed to isolate tracks of The Beatle’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Did he have access to the masters?
New Hampshire Update
No exit poll leaks, folks. (Here’s why)
But it looks like turnout in New Hampshire is likely to be at record-setting levels.
More importantly:
I’m watching MSNBC now and have heard already a couple of times that there are precincts that are requesting extra Democratic ballots from the Secretary of State as turnout is exceeding predictions. I do not know if this suggests that turnout could top Gardner’s projections or not, but it’s certainly not a bad sign for the vitality of the Democratic Party for precincts to be needing more and more ballots to meet a growing demand by voters hoping to vote in the Democratic primary today.
Also, it looks like the requests for Democratic ballots are coming from Republican and Independent heavy counties.
Obama In Concord
Amateur video:
Says Ezra Klein:
The line began forming three hours prior to the event, in 30 degree weather. The journalists covering the speech kept pulling out their personal cameras to snap photos: Somehow, this run of his, these crowds of his, feel historic The words "Bobbie Kennedy" float up dozens of times a night.
Again, Rudy Invokes 9/11
On MSNBC today, he was asked about Clinton’s "holding back the tears". So naturally, he responds with:
The reality is, if you look at me, September 11 — the funerals, the memorial services — there were times in which it was impossible not to feel the emotion.
Jon Stewart was right: Rudy has "9/11 Tourette’s".
UPDATE — the video:
Our First Woman President
Bill Clinton was called "our first black president".
Now they’re gearing up to call Obama "our first woman president".
Seriously, political analysis sucks these days…
What Does Seven-Of-Nine (Jeri Ryan) Have To Do With Obama?
Some say, if it weren’t for her, we wouldn’t have Obama:
Back in 2004, Barack Obama was an Illinois state senator with some modest accomplishments on his resume. He spearheaded welfare reform in the Illinois statehouse, and took the lead in passing a law that required interrogations in murder cases to be videotaped.
After unsuccessfully challenging strong Democratic incumbent Bobby Rush in a Congressional primary in 2000, Obama returned in 2004 to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Republican Senator Peter Fitzgerald. Obama emerged from a crowded Democratic primary that included multi-millionaire Blair Hull, who spent $29 million of his own money in the primary alone (including paying homeowners $75 a day to keep his signs in their yards). In an 8-candidate race, Obama garnered 53% of the vote, routing his opponents.
Yet despite running away with the primary, Obama still had a formidable challenge in Republican Jack Ryan. Ryan was an impressive candidate – attractive and wealthy, with law and business degrees from Harvard. After making a fortune at Goldman Sachs, Ryan left to teach in an inner city school.
Yet Ryan had a problem – during the campaign, he was going through a messy divorce from actress Jeri Ryan, of “Star Trek: Voyager” fame. Details of Jeri Ryan’s testimony contained lurid details about Ryan forcing his wife to go to sex clubs in Paris. These details were toxic to Jack Ryan’s campaign, and he saw his poll numbers plummet – eventually, Republican leaders pressed Ryan to quit the race, fearing he was toxic to the statewide ticket.
Eventually, Ryan bowed out, leaving the Illinois Republican Party to find a candidate to run against Obama. This led to the national embarrassment of Alan Keyes moving to Illinois to run. Naturally, Obama won 70%-27%, buoyed by his keynote speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention.
The rest is history.
Lame excuse to post a picture of Jeri Ryan?
I ain’t tellin’….
Godcam Up And Running
Click here to talk with God.
Things I Didn’t Know
Men are apparently having abortions now, too.
I actually have more to say on the issue, but perhaps some other time. Suffice it to say, I see much of this whining by men, sincere though it may be, as part of a calculated effort to re-exert control over a woman’s uterus. It’s a cold and calculated move by the anti-choice crowd. Or, as the article says:
But the activists leading the men’s movement make clear they’re not relying on statistics to make their case. They’re counting on the power of men’s tears.
Yup.
Our Supreme Court
Justice Antonin Scalia said states have been careful to adopt procedures that do not seek to inflict pain and should not be barred from carrying out executions even if prison officials sometimes make mistakes in administering drugs. "There is no painless requirement" in the Constitution, Scalia said. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito also indicated their support for the states’ procedures.
Who knew?
Amendment VIII
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
This idea that if the Constitution doesn’t spell something out verbatim is silly. It’s playground stuff.
Ashamed Of My Gender
SALEM, N.H. — Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton was about to deliver a line that has become a centerpiece of her campaign since her loss in Iowa.
“Everybody in this race is talking about change. But what does that mean?”
“Iron my shirt!” yelled a man, who stood up in the middle of a jammed and stuffy auditorium at a high school in Salem, N.H., and held up a yellow sign with the same text. He repeated it over and over.
Mrs. Clinton asked for the lights to be turned on, and the shirt man was removed along with another man who had stood up too.
“Oh, the remnants of sexism are alive and well,” Mrs. Clinton said.
When everyone had settled down a bit, she said, “As I think has just been abundantly demonstrated, I am also running to break through the highest and hardest glass ceiling.”
Her words were drowned out by a cheering, now-standing crowd.
“That’s one of the things I love about it,” she said. “It’s never predictable.”
To be totally honest, I don’t know what "Iron my shirt" is supposed to mean. I guess it means that women are supposed to do household chores and not run for President. But you have to wonder about a guy who holds a sign like that. Doesn’t that say more about him than about any candidate? What? He can’t iron a shirt himself?
I’d like to meet him, but more than that, I’d like to meet his wife/girlfriend. Oh, right. Probably don’t exist.
UPDATE: A radio show prank?
From Our New Hampshire Correspondent
At last the big day is here! Obama is going to have a BIG victory but the question there is whether or not Edwards can beat out Clinton (probably not but it could happen). The interesting development is that a lot of the independent voters who were going to vote for McCain now are jumping on the Obama bandwagon so McCain is no longer a clear winner. And Huckabee could finish 3rd which would be a "win" for him. It has been a zoo around here the past few days with busloads of young people on the streets with signs and chants – we’ll be glad to see things get back to normal but this has been fun.
[Other stuff]
Okay, I’m off to the polls.
Love you,
Mom
As "our correspondent" suggests, the number to watch when all is said and done is where independent voters ended up. If they went Democratic (Obama or whoever), that’s very very bad news for Republicans in the long run. Independents are going to be the key factor in the general election next November.
[She also reports that the Concord Community Players is doing "The Full Monty", which is great for them]Masters Of The Obvious
More scholarly research tells us what we already know: College Drinking Games Lead to Higher Blood Alcohol Levels
Really? You think?
“Well It Does Seem A Waste”
What’s the sound of the world out there? It’s man devouring man girlfriend, my dear, and who are we to deny it in here?
Bill Gates’ Retirement
Funny video of Bill Gates contemplating his retirement and what he’s going to do. Cameos by Bono, Jon Stewart, Geroge Clooney and many others.
Best part: Bill Gates playing Guitar Hero and then calling Bono saying he’s ready to join U2.
Voices Of The Past
It’s an odd feeling for me to hop in my car here in Winston-Salem, turn on NPR, and hear voices from my childhood days. Old neighbors, friends of the family, etc. — they’re all being interviewed. "Oh, I remember her," I say to myself. "She still alive? I guess so."
And then you hear about the places. Obama at my alma mater, Concord High School. (Did he come down School Street or Warren Street to get there? What about parking?). Clinton at a familiar resturant (did she sit in my favorite booth?).
Truthfully, this happens every four years, and I don’t know why it continues to surprise me. It’s not hard to get interviewed in Concord New Hampshire when the primaries come around. It’s a small town — about half the size of Winston-Salem, and there are literally thousands of reporters around there.
Still, it’s not like the old days. There was a greater period of time between Iowa and New Hampshire, and the candidates would be around for weeks. They would be in your living room. Or walking about and down your snowy streets, going door to door. Now though, it’s all "events" and "town hall meetings". You still get to see them and hear them, but you can’t actually talk to them as much.
It’s like the old joke about a typical New Hampshire voter: "How can I vote for him? I’ve only met him twice!"
Anyway, that lunacy ends today. New Hampshirites go to the polls. When I talked to Mom at Christmas, she was still undecided. If she could cast a vote against Hillary, that’s what she would do. But unfortunately for her, you have to affirmatively pick someone, rather than vote against someone. My guess is she’ll vote for McCain, but she’ll probably hold her nose.
Dixville Notch voted. They went with Obama and McCain. I suspect that’s how it will be throughout New Hampshire all day. In fact, I’ll make a prediction: Obama over Clinton by 9 points; McCain over Romney by 6 points.
Pictured above: Edwards, Obama and Clinton in their younger days (H/T: Tbogg)
FOR SHITS AND GRINS: Ken Clinton —
Do your own here.