ATLmalcontent

Cap of the night

More West Baltimore decay --

A friend's a friend forever

Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez was in Iran over the weekend to receive a special award from a fellow authoritairan thug. My carping about Castro's bitch is grounded in the realization that the leftist fringe has elevated him into Lance Bass territory. My condemnations aside, Cindy Sheehan's hero is best judged by the company he keeps, and the dangerous things he says:

Iran awarded Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez its highest state medal on Sunday for supporting Tehran in its nuclear standoff with the international community, while Chavez urged the world to rise up and defeat the U.S., state-run media in both countries reported.

The leftist Venezuelan leader also condemned Israel for what he called the "terrorism" and "madness" of its attacks in Lebanon, Venezuelan state television reported

"Let's save the human race, let's finish off the U.S. empire," Chavez said. "This (task) must be assumed with strength by the majority of the peoples of the world."

Exhibit A: Halftime shows

"Baseball is what we were. Football is what we have become."

-- former Washington Post columnist Mary McGrory

Noted and quoted, hero edition

Reading MTV's message boards, you'd think Lance Bass had redefined courage. Again, I'm glad he decided to come out, but it doesn't take much bravery to leave the closet when you're a D-list celeb. Sixteen-year-old Taylor disagrees:

"As an 'NSYNC fan for eight years — literally half my life — I was shocked when I heard the news, and I did cry. But even while I was crying, I knew I loved Lance all the same, just in a different way now. I support him completely, and as much as I admired him before, I respect him immeasurably now."

...You are the wind beneath my wings.

Heil Gibson!

I'm a bit of a masochist, succumbing to the likes of Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh whenever I bore of my Ween CDs. As obnoxious as the latter is, Hannity really drives me nuts. Yet I listen: "Sean, you're not just a great American, you're a fantastic American." Kill me, please.

A modest sampling of Hannity's callers today found great sympathy for Gibson -- a victim, by their accounts, of the elitist liberal media. They brought up Patrick Kennedy's recent DUI arrest as an example of press hypocrisy, but their protestations have two major holes:

1.) Kennedy's DUI arrest was reported, everywhere. How else would they know about it?

2.) Kennedy did not go on a anti-Semetic rant after being pulled over. Gibson did.

His supporters say Mel's actions were the result of a drinking problem, but, speaking as someone who's downed his share of Greyhounds over the years, I can vouch that they never inspired bigotry, just foolishness. And he only blew a .12 on the breathalyzer -- drunk, but not wasted.

Christopher Hitchens said it best in his column about the Gibson meltdown --

One does not abruptly decide, between the first and second vodka, or the ticks of the indicator of velocity, that the Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion are valid after all.

Gibson, Hitchens concludes, is an anti-Semite. I concur.

**Do yourself a favor and check out Andy's illustrated "Protocols of the Learned Mel."

Cap of the night

Urban decay, West Baltimore style --  

Dealing with the inevitable

No longer can I ignore the obvious:

1.) My beloved Braves 14-year playoff run is at its end;

2.) And the U.S. effort in Iraq has failed. Hell, we can't even secure Baghdad.

Obviously, the latter matters more, but the former stings worse. Sad, but undeniably true.

Einstein revisited

The notorious womanizer gives good quote:

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."

--Albert Einstein

Cult cola

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Perhaps, but I'm partial to Scientology fruit punch.

Commercialized nostalgia