Ana Marie Cox

The Inside Story: Now with 100 Percent More Demon Sheep (UPDATED)

UPDATE: So, uhm, yeah, I figured out how to post the audio to MY OWN BLOG and will thus stop directing traffic to box.net and CAP, though they are both fantastic organizations that I could not do the podcast without.

The Inside Story:

The Inside Story, with guests Christina Bellantoni and Rick Klein

DEMONSHEEP:

Demon Sheep: A Real-Time Narration

What with the snow day and all, you have time on your hands, yes? Time on your hands and, OBVIOUSLY, an internet connection, a combination that lends itself quite well to the listening of podcasts. So I have made one -- actually two -- for you.

The first is the inaugural edition of the newly independent Inside Story. You may recognize it from such networks as Air America... or, er, you may not. You may listen to it here. Guests this week (and yes, that does imply a "next week!" Fingers crossed!) are Christina Bellantoni, senior reporter for Talking Points Memo, and Rick Klein, senior reporter for ABC News. We discuss the Daily Kos poll of Republicans (the answers in the "not sure" category are the truly, truly terrifying data points), the Senate Hearings on Don't Ask, Don't Tell, and wonder if Republicans really know what it means to "steal" an election. (They have had enough practice...)

The second 'cast is a little different. Christina and Rick stay in the studio, but rather than discuss politics, we attempt to recreate, in audio form, the experience of watching THE DEMON SHEEP AD. I am not sure if we were successful, but it was very, very fun to make the effort. You can listen the experiment here . And if you haven't seen THE DEMON SHEEP AD, well, you must. You absolutely must. Here it is now.

UPDATE: Oh this is awesome: THERE WILL BE MORE DEMON SHEEP.

McCain's Pensacola Speech

About half way through my second McCain speech of the day. It's about service, and, it's true, it's as noble a speech as I've ever heard that contains -- admittedly oblique -- references to fucking pretty girls. Specifically:

I came to Pensacola to become an aviator, and, eventually, an instrument of war for my country... my interests then were focused more on cultivating the image of a naval aviator that strongly appealed to my vanity...I wanted to live the life of a daring, brash, fun-loving flyer, indifferent to the hazards of his profession, calm and stoic when the adrenalin flowed, fatalistic about life and death situations, and determined to live every non dangerous moment of his life to the fullest.

I thought that image, which I doubt I ever quite perfected, would prove irresistible to everyone I knew, and especially so to girls whose attention I sought.

Of course, this vagueness about past skirt-chasing is laid out only to underscore how he wound up being a hero... in addition to chasing skirts.

All that said: His appeal -- to sacrifice -- is difficult to fault. But it's also easier resist than Obama's heady promises.

Drinks on Him

Spent two hours "bloggingheads" with Glenn Greenwald. God, that sounds like it would be so much more fun than it actually it is.

Nice enough guy though he claims he can never be my friend, lest he second-guess his decision to find me an utter fraud.

Also, he told me how to behave. I'm sure the audience reading this can appreciate the degree to which I appreciated that.

Anyway:

John Kerry on "This Week"

"The important thing is to focus on fighting John McCain." Or make him our running mate. One of the two. He's very handsome, you know...

Ed Rendell also just referred to the "Kerry campaign," then apologized, over Kerry's protestation: "That's okay, Ed! That's okay!"

More Words I Never Thought I'd See in the Same Sentence

"[McCain] repeats the more temperate phrases used by his aide, Mark Salter."

TV Makes You Stupid

When you go on it, not when you watch it. Did "Reliable Sources" this morning, can tell you now the Media Matters headline: "Time's Cox Admits 'Time with McCain' Makes Reporters Inclined to 'Forgive' Mistakes, Likes His BBQ."

Okay, it probably won't be that long. We talked about the dumb Bumiller incident from Friday, about which there is little new to say, if there was anything in the first place. Jake posited that Bumiller had, in fact, caught McCain in a lie, which Media Matters will love. I'm not so sure it was a lie -- if it was, it's one he was so unconcerned about that he pretty much stopped lying about it in every other interview afterwards. I could go on but if I spend any more time thinking about the completely pointless exchange (I mean, seriously, yeah, Kerry wanted him to be his Veep! Breaking!) I'll become even dumber than I feel right now.

Also, I think Samantha Power got hosed.