Tonight is Debate #2 of Bush vs. Kerry. This time it’s in St. Louis at Washington University, and the town-hall format should favor the President and disable Kerry’s master-debating skills. Since I’m not at work tonight I plan on watching this one...I’ll blog my reaction later. But this is only one big story happening:

AUSTRALIA VOTES: Australian blogger Mike Jericho writes about their election on Saturday. My friends, please PRAY FOR AUSTRALIA that their electorate will return Prime Minister John Howard to another term so he and his government (and the Australian People) can strengthen and preserve our friends Down Under in the War on Terror.

UPDATE: (2010 MST) I just got back from watching the debate at the Arizona Republican Party HQ. Numerous times Kerry said “I have a plan” but he NEVER spelled out what it is. Except of course for the “tax rollback” (read: tax INCREASE). Numerous times Kerry replied “I deeply respect your opinion, BUT (Ignore what I said before I said BUT) here what I really think.”
In his closing statement, Kerry called himself “an optimist” yet with every answer he had displayed just the opposite: pessimism, which is something we sure don’t need at his point in our history!
President Bush opened up on Kerry’s Senate voting record (or lack thereof when he didn’t bother to show up) and his lack of major accomplishments in 20 years. He also opened up on Kerry’s choice of Edwards as his running mate, clearly showing how the trial lawyers are bottling up progress in the Senate on critical legislation.
But the funniest line of the night clearly belonged to the President, when Kerry “revealed” that Bush owned (get this!) a lumber company: “Need some wood?” Obviously for a 2x4 to whack Kerry upside the head.
BUSH KICKED KERRY’S ASS!

Justice Michael Eakin of the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court writes a dissenting opinion regarding a ruling overturning two drunk driving convictions which did not involve motor vehicles. You’ll recognize the tune when you see it!

Supporters of the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project propose to put President Reagan’s face on the $10 bill, replacing Alexander Hamilton, who’s been on it since at least 1929. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has already said that he’ll sponsor a bill to do just that when the time is right.
Accordingly, opponents of the effort include admirers of Hamilton, who was a founding father of our country and was fatally shot in a duel 200 years ago by Vice President Aaron Burr.
Let’s review portraits which either currently appear, or have appeared, on the modern currency notes and coins:

While the list appears to me to be quite balanced, the $2 bill, the $1 coin, and the 50-cent coin are no longer being minted...and they should be. I can understand why Reagan supporters believe Hamilton should be replaced. After all, neither Hamilton nor Franklin ever served as President.
So in this instance, I ask you to draw your own conclusions.

So sayeth Don King, the boxing promoter whose hair constantly looks like it was electrocuted, when he publicly comes out in support of President Bush!
I am totally surprised by the support coming from this guy. I do not like how he’s turned boxing into a joke. My respect for him has gone way up at least on this issue. Not only does he support the President, he slams the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the same time:

“People understand that George Walker Bush is the man with the plan to make America better. Sometimes, just sometimes, it ain’t too bad to be in the Bushes.”

What a WICKED way to smack down the guy who warned his black constituency to “stay out of the Bushes” four years ago!

I hope not. I’m glad I don’t live in a state with SBC as my local phone company. At least, not anymore. When I was in Michigan I thought their service sucked. The only phone company worse than SBC was GTE...until they were bought out by Verizon.
Anyway, 100,000 CWA unionized workers went out on a four-day walkout to protest SBC’s latest contract offer. SBC has told the union they will withdraw said offer if it is not accepted by 11:59 PM on Monday...two minutes before this walkout is supposed to end...and start negotiations over from scratch.
So I feel bad for all my friends in the SBC states until then. Service will suck even more, so hang in there.

Excuse me for a moment while I go into RANT mode....
I am so GLAD this paragon of frigidity got busted by the government for LYING about a stock transaction. I want to eventually get into the stock market to improve my financial standing...and we need to get out of the way anyone who places themselves above the law like Martha Stewart did. Her obsession with perfection bit her in the ass, that’s for sure!
It’s pretty clear she’s gonna end up doing time at Club Fed. But it’ll be interesting to see how she brightens up that place!
OK, I’m done ranting now....

Seems Ken forgot to make it home one night. You know what you are seeing simply can’t be right. Looks like love’s bark is worse than it’s bite!

Mark Mothersbaugh, eat your heart out...your lyrics have finally come to pass!

I regret to inform some of my friends who read this blog (you know who you are) that I rarely talk about sex in my blog. Not that I don’t like the idea...hey! I’m as red-blooded as any other American male out there!...but I don’t know whether to laugh or shake my head on this one....
NUTSHELL: An NYU student wants to include graphic sexual depictions for a video. Her prof said OK, but check with NYU first. NYU says no graphic depiction (registration required) but R-rated (not so graphic) sex is OK.
And I thought they would have allowed this kind of stuff....

LBJ supported the initial space race because, it is said, he did not want to sleep “under the light of a Communist moon.” Well, at least we can say that the light of the Moon won’t be Islamofascist any time soon.
Anyway, word is getting out that President Bush, on the centennial anniversary of the Wright Brothers’ Kitty Hawk flight, may call on the nation to return to the moon in light of the October 15 Chinese taikonaut. China has made it clear they want to be on the moon by 2020. Wouldn’t it be better for the Chinese to be welcomed to the moon...by American astronauts at a permanent American moon base?
Those who would oppose this effort say that the money would be better spent at home. Lest we forget, we wouldn’t have MRI’s, fuel cells, PDA’s, desktop computers more powerful than NASA’s entire efforts back then, etc., if we didn’t push ourselves to beat the Soviets to the moon.
Our space shuttles are too old and we’ve already lost two of them, so are Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft. Both are based on 30-year-old technology and we have to retire them if we’re going to go. Not only that, I stated back in October that NASA needs a good kick in the ass. Now they’ve received it.
So what are we waiting for? Let’s go back!

Michael Jackson’s legal team is encouraging him to cut a deal with the Santa Barbara County prosecutors and plead insanity that could result in his institutionalization instead of being thrown in the pen.

ANOTHER FINDING...John Hinckley is not the only person institutionalized by the United States government after acquittal by reason of insanity for an attempted assassination of a President or Presidential candidate.

We’ll find out when this sick puppy gets arrested. That is...IF he turns himself in. Michael Jackson hired prominent attorney Mark Geragos, the guy who defended Winona Ryder when she was tried for (and convicted of) shoplifting. Geragos, who currently represents Scott Peterson, is supposedly negotiating for a surrender to Santa Barbara County (California) authorities.
I personally think that if Jackson flees the country, he’ll end up in France alongside Roman Polanski. Stay tuned.

This is an interesting read from the Saddam LA Times (registration required). The man who shot President Reagan and James Brady on March 30, 1981 applies for unsupervised visitation once again. While he may have made a lot of progress with his mental health issues, the judge deciding whether to grant John W. Hinckley, Jr. unsupervised visits from his parents must also take into account the societal anger which still exists because Hinckley would be perceived as going free after more than twenty years of treatment.

“It’s even more disturbing in society that a 12-year-old youngster is cognizant of such activity.” Such are the words from a spokesman from the Dallas school district.
As if society isn’t already disturbed? Gee, he must have forgotten about Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. Yeah, that must be it.

Retiring U.S. Senator Zell Miller (D-GA) has endorsed President Bush for re-election. It’s too bad there aren’t more Democrats in the vein of the late Henry “Scoop” Jackson from Washington State. I’m glad to know that he knows what to put ahead of his party...and that’s his country!
Thanks Zell! I think you’ll soon be chairing Democrats For Bush 2004 if you haven’t already been tapped for it.

Hey, if the Russians can do it, so can the Iraqis! The Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq has enacted a Flat-rate Income Tax in Iraq of 15%.
Can you imagine this here in the USA? Don’t I wish....