weekend roundup

Susan Jacoby, author of Freethinkers, has a new book coming out about the dumbing down of America. You may recall the moment Miss South Carolina earned her fifteen minutes of fame awhile back, but you'll be blown away Kellie Pickler's bright and shining moment on Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader if you haven't seen it already. What seems most disturbing to me is not the stupidity, per se, but these girls' utter lack of curiosity about the world in which they live. Kind of reminds me of a certain resident in the White House who can't be bothered to read the newspapers himself because he has people to tell him what they say. And who really enjoyed reading The Stranger a year or two ago. Not that The Stranger isn't an amazing book, but it's a book most of us read when we were fifteen, for Christ's sake.

Mom & Paul joined the insanity that comprises a caucus last weekend out in Washington State and were pleased that the vast majority in their location went on to support Obama. I still can't quite wrap my head around this whole caucus notion, though, and Gail Collin's recent piece describing the process really didn't do much to convince me that it works. At all. Not to mention friend Maia's experience at the Democratic caucus in Anchorage, Alaska last week. Democracy in action, indeed.

A therapist was murdered earlier this week here in Manhattan, on the Upper East Side. I am left with this image of thousands of Manhattanites neurotically obsessing over this with their own therapists in the coming weeks. I got it out of my system on Thursday during my session with Sarah, was reassured that especially at night she always checks the door before buzzing anyone into the suite. But it does make me wonder about the lives of professionals who interact daily with unstable, depressed, needy, sometimes desperate people.

The tale of a Texas mayor 'rustling' a dog made it into the Times this week. I really don't know about Texas. Can we change our minds, let it be its own country after all?

As the CNN lead put it, this is a case that melts in your mouth. Take that as you will.

I posted a rather mocking link about the Saudi Arabian government the other day, and its antipathy towards Valentine's Day. But unfortunately the Saudi government continues to demonstrate its unabated antipathy towards women. Most recently, the story of Fawza Falih's upcoming execution for being a witch is enough to make your blood curdle.

On the homefront, Senator Joe Lieberman declared this week that waterboarding isn't really torture because it's only psychological. And besides, according to Lieberman logic, we're at war, so even if it is torture, which of course it isn't, it would still be okay! I can't believe I voted for this guy, even if only for VP, back in November of 2004. Maybe he should go read this article, an interesting take on the American waterboarding controversy from a British perspective. Or even better, he should absolutely read this piece by Malcolm Nance, a "20-year veteran of the US intelligence community's Combating Terrorism program."