Merry Christmas to All!

From all the folks at the Country Store:

(Hat tip: various places around the web)

I know why Kofi Annan is so shy about his Mercedes!

It's no so much that Kofi got a really great deal on his Mercedes, it's that he doesn't want folks to know how he pimped his ride:

What, no flame job?

Today's Photo Hoot!

Check it out. I'm still waiting for someone to explain why Valerie Plame is wearing her jammies in the original and this is as good an explanation as any. Ole lying Joe always looks half bagged anyhow, although the weepy look is a nice touch.

I guess they call it servicing the customer

Engadget (Via Michelle Malkin):

Canadian telecom service provider Rogers Communications has been the victim of numerous number-cloning operations by the terrorist group Hezbollah — in which even the phone number of CEO Ted Rogers was “borrowed” — but steadfastly refused to address consumer complaints about the problem, insisting that customers were liable for outsized bills.

The best part is that law professor Susan Drummond ("who was stuck with a bill for over $10,000 for calls to countries such as Libya, Pakistan, Russia and Syria") nailed Rogers in court. Maybe they should just put a Hezbollah surcharge on all the bills?

What's more fun than New Jersey?

Tourist slogan search bars sarcasm:

New Jersey, trying to overcome its reputation for corruption, traffic and toxic waste dumps, has rejected dozens of sardonic and sarcastic entries in a contest for a new tourist slogan.

A list of five possible slogans released on Wednesday leaves out "New Jersey: We can always use another relative on the payroll," and "Come to New Jersey: It's not as bad as it smells."

So much for truth in advertising.

Voters get to pick the winner in the competition launched after Gov. Richard Codey nixed "New Jersey: We'll Win You Over," created by a consultant who was paid $260,000.

They could have flipped me a couple of Franklins and I would have done better than that! And better than the list the benighted citizens get to choose from:

The five finalists are: "New Jersey: Expect the Unexpected," "New Jersey: Love at First Sight," "New Jersey: Come See for Yourself," "New Jersey: The Real Deal" and "New Jersey: The Best Kept Secret."

It's a joke, right?

Today's Hoot!

Bono gets Time to forgive subscriber debt:

Bono, the rock singer named as one of Time magazine’s Persons of the Year for his success at getting the developed world to give up on collecting billions in third-world debt, today said he had pressured Time’s parent company into forgiving the debts of its magazine and cable subscribers, as well as those who have purchased anything with “just three easy payments.”
...
Bono said he’s still negotiating with Time Warner’s major shareholders in an effort to get them to forgive company executives for the disastrous merger with AOL.

It's ScrappleFace, but is "Bono" a tool or what? And while we're on the subject, author Paul Theroux had some fun with the poseur last Thursday in the NY Times - The Rock Star's Burden:

There are probably more annoying things than being hectored about African development by a wealthy Irish rock star in a cowboy hat, but I can't think of one at the moment. If Christmas, season of sob stories, has turned me into Scrooge, I recognize the Dickensian counterpart of Paul Hewson - who calls himself "Bono" - as Mrs. Jellyby in "Bleak House." Harping incessantly on her adopted village of Borrioboola-Gha "on the left bank of the River Niger," Mrs. Jellyby tries to save the Africans by financing them in coffee growing and encouraging schemes "to turn pianoforte legs and establish an export trade," all the while badgering people for money.

It seems to have been Africa's fate to become a theater of empty talk and public gestures. But the impression that Africa is fatally troubled and can be saved only by outside help - not to mention celebrities and charity concerts - is a destructive and misleading conceit. Those of us who committed ourselves to being Peace Corps teachers in rural Malawi more than 40 years ago are dismayed by what we see on our return visits and by all the news that has been reported recently from that unlucky, drought-stricken country. But we are more appalled by most of the proposed solutions.
...
When Malawi's minister of education was accused of stealing millions of dollars from the education budget in 2000, and the Zambian president was charged with stealing from the treasury, and Nigeria squandered its oil wealth, what happened? The simplifiers of Africa's problems kept calling for debt relief and more aid. I got a dusty reception lecturing at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation when I pointed out the successes of responsible policies in Botswana, compared with the kleptomania of its neighbors. Donors enable embezzlement by turning a blind eye to bad governance, rigged elections and the deeper reasons these countries are failing.

Much more by following the link. You can see why the three amigos would appeal to the crapweasels at Time for "Man of the Year."

A heartwarming Christmas tale for movie fans!

It's a Wonderful Internet! Al Gore even makes a brief appearance.

Where do old media whores go?

On the road, of course! Cindy Sheehan got her Stalinist booking agents to set her up with a European tour to revitalize her flagging career in media whoring. So far, not so good:

Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan led a small protest Saturday outside the U.S. Embassy to denounce the war in Iraq.

About 100 protesters carried banners criticizing President Bush.

Sheesh, it was just the local party comrades and not very many of them. Of course, it's how many presstitutes show up that counts. And by the way, Cindy, when they book you in Tijuana - be very wary of "animal acts." Or not, as your tastes dictate.