But, let's go back to 1994. Newt Gingrich was going to get a $4.5 million advance for his book, but the Dems in Washington went apes**t that this present a conflict of interest because the publisher was owned by Rupert Murdoch, who had ongoing business in a Congress. Newt ended up having to turn down the advance and the House then instituted an ethics law stating that no member of the body would be permitted to accept any advances for book deals, and could only keep royalties.
Back to the present; Hillary's publisher, Simon and Schuster, is owned by Viacom, which owns the CBS television network and is fighting a federal regulation that prohibits one company from owning stations that reach more than 35 percent of U.S. households.
Hmmm, why do I not see the media picking up on the conflict of interests regarding Hillary's deal? Hmmmm...wonder if any of those same Dems that through a hissyfit over Newt will say anything? Hmmm...I wonder?
America's newly minted sweetheart Senator, Hillary Clinton, auctioned off the rights to her upcoming book for $8 million. I say good for her, I'm all for taking advantage of the capitalist system, even if you're a limousine liberal who decried the 80s as the decade of greed. Nice to see she's joining the side of those who feel success should be rewarded.
2. The Atlanta Braves play the Boston Red Sox in the 2001 World Series. And the Red Sox win. Hey, I said I wanted it, not that it'd come true. Even Santa can't pull some things out of his bag.
3. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" to finally the recognition it deserves, meaning a nomination for an Emmy.
4. The entertainment media to stop wasting my time by reporting on what spoiled Hollywood actors are doing and who's dating whom.
5. Peace on earth and goodwill towards man. *snicker* Yeah, whatever. I want to make a six-figure salary with a terrific wife, living in a big house and being able to retire at age 45 to spend my time traveling and spending time with my two soccer-playing kids. Okay, so it won't all happen this year, but I'm working on it.
Think the 2000 election was close? In 1880, Democrat Winfield Hancock lost to Republican James Garfield by just 1,898 votes NATIONWIDE, or only 0.02% of the total vote. In the disputed election of 1876, Republican Rutherford Hayes beat Democrat Samuel Tilden by one electoral vote. Hayes got 185 electoral votes, the bare minimum necessary to win, and Tilden got 184 electoral votes. What about Florida? The 537-vote lead that Katherine Harris certified pales in comparison to the 1832 election in Maryland, when Andrew Jackson beat Henry Clay by just 4 votes.
In the end, there were no "faithless electors" (which would be a good name for a rock band) for Bush, but very pleasingly (at least for me) one did take away from Gore. A D.C. official did not cast her ballot as a protest that the district should be given statehood, thus leaving the total Bush 271, Gore 266.
What we needed in Florida was for Rain Man to count the votes. Just drop them all on the floor and he would have the totals in ten seconds! "Yeah, Bush had 2,971,250. Yeah. And Gore's not wearing any underwear."
When Kathy Tedder returned to her Stockbridge, Ga, home last week, she found a "dazed deer" standing in her house. Besides scaring "the bejeebers" out of Kathy, it did a lot of damage to her home before breaking a leg jumping over her car and slicing its other leg on the window. Presumably the deer was upset over Gore's loss and the coming environmental doom that is sure to follow with a Bush presidency. The deer became the first sacrifice, "put out of her misery" by Tedder's fascist gun-toting son-in-law.
Let's face it, Americans know as much about the laws that were tossed around as they know about one-hour Martinizing.
There was nothing unusual, much less unique, about the election in Florida. It was like elections all over the country, year after year. There are always ballots which cannot be counted for one reason or another -- millions of them nationwide. There were more of them in Republican counties in Florida than in the Democratic counties where so much noise, so much spin and so much litigation has been unleashed.
Sadly, Billy Crystal will not host the Academy Awards in March, with Steve Martin taking over the reins instead. Deep down, though, I still pray that Gallagher will be given his chance. All winner will have to climb up on the big couch to accept the award, and watch out orchestra, here comes the watermelon!
Hit game show "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" will up its prize money next year, so that a winner will earn $1.71 million. The show won't change its title, however. In case you're wondering, yes the U.S. is still No. 15 in the world in math.
Pete Sampras needs a reality check about the state of professional tennis today. In an interview with ESPN radio, he said that the women's game is "exciting from the quarterfinals on," and that "up until that point it's like watching the WNBA." I've got news for Petey, I haven't watched a men's match in years but will always stop to see a women's match, where the players are much more interesting and have names I actually recognize. Quick, besides Sampras or Agassi, name another men's player.
In an interview with Esquire magazine, Clinton said he thinks that Republicans should apologize for impeaching him. Sorry Willie, but just as Tiberius changed Roman law to marry his cousin and Henry VIII left the Catholic Church to get a divorce, so will Clinton be remembered for his blatant disregard of the American judicial system over sexual deviance. The Dems are going to try real hard, though, to pretend his scandals never happened and try to make you forget them as well in the history books.
A Vent from the AJC sums up Clinton's legacy:
There once was a lame duck named Bill,
Who struggled with Capitol Hill.
The office, besmirched,
His legacy, searched
His promises? Still unfulfilled.
2. Free pass to see the re-release of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.
3. A job in a Dot Com company.
4. Trip to Israel's scenic Gaza Strip.
5. 1998 Ford Explorer with Firestone tires.
Random site: Am I Hot or Not? -- the newest rage among bored web surfers.