Beltmann

I was thinking of you during the game. Glad that you were able to be there!

It's not what I'd pick to protect my indie cred, but if I'm being totally honest, I have to go with James' Hey Ma. Love it.

After my careful explanation of why I was jumping up and down, my daughter shrugged and said, "So, did the Packers win today?" She lost her ticket right there.

I tried to explain the magnitude of this to my 4-year-old daughter, but you have to endure 26 years of futility to fully appreciate it. We have 4 tickets to Saturday's game, which is game 3 of the series. I'm still in shock--playoff games in Milwaukee!!!--and a little hoarse.

Got mine today! (I've been waiting 26 years to say that. Still have my fingers crossed for it to be real.)

"Hate It Here" might work.

I just tried tonight, and my link was emailed within five minutes. Try again, perhaps?

Yeah, I read Newt's post at The National Review yesterday and thought to myself, "Dude is making sense."

That's how I approached my thesis defense, and it ended up being a very pleasant experience. Good luck, Cortez!

I thought so, too. Then again, I was at the movies today and when I returned, my wife told me that Kael had been singing a song about "coming home in pieces." When asked where she heard that song, she replied, "Oh, that's just one of Dad's songs."

I have hazy recollections of really diggin' Jimmy Cliff's "I Can See Clearly Now" while zoning in and out in a recovery room.

I believe the enduring power of art, and the human need to create and connect with art, is evidence that there is more to life and truth than empirical reality.

I love the part where the kids use makeup to convince a substitute that they slaughtered a bunch of Muslims.

The local record shop had one copy. My initial reaction to the album was one of relief: James still sounds like James. I'm diggin' it. Also, yesterday I bought tickets to catch them in Milwaukee next Friday. Side story: Earlier in the week I was playing some older James records, and later that afternoon I overheard my four-year-old daughter singing quietly to herself, "What I need... what I need.... what I need... what I need... is you."

I agree, but I don't understand why there is distrust in the first place. If God does indeed exist, then science is not His enemy; all science will ever do is help illuminate God's creation and workings. Perhaps a distrust of science is a manifestation of insecurity about their faith?

After 9/11, our state passed legislation requiring students to regularly recite the pledge. (At our high school, that means every morning.) A few teachers came down hard on those students who chose to remain silent; those teachers had to be reminded that one of the great things about America is that we have the right to not pledge allegiance upon command.

FYI: Kings of Leon will appear on SNL this Saturday, September 20.

I thought about going to this game with my brother-in-law, who is a Cubs fanatic, but chose instead to be lazy. Perhaps my one chance at seeing one in person... I'll be kicking myself for a long time.

The Counterfeiters / Stefan Ruzowitzky / Germany / 2007 Based on a true story, this Holocaust drama tells of a Jewish counterfeiter sent to the camps and given special treatment in exchange for designing world-class forgeries of the British pound and American dollar. It's a unique and sophisticated story, concerned less with atrocity than with the peculiar, ambiguous morality of this man's circumstances and decisions.

I loved the last album but I'm uncertain about this new one, mostly because I prefer their old CA pop over their new '80s vibe. Still, I can't get "Got It Bad" out of my head... it's been spinning in my brain all week.

It's fair to say that Nader's presence in 2000 gave an assist to Bush, but I think it's unfair to say that his supporters should be held responsible for that. Truth is, if the Democrats had wanted those votes, they should have fielded a candidate who spoke to those voters; no party is entitled to anyone's vote.

Not voting is cynical; voting third-party is optimistic. Let me recycle some things I've said before: The two major parties are mostly interested in maintaining power, and the nefarious part is that, with the media as their accomplice, they have designed and perpetuated a system that essentially ensures there can be no serious challenge to their power. I very much favor a dismantling of that system. Still, I don't get the "let's not vote" movement. I understand the idea of making a statement, but how will that message actually be received? Since it won

I swear, if the Brewers continue to choke and miss the playoffs, I am going to wait behind a bush at Miller Park and, at first opportunity, attack Ned Yost with nunchucks. Later I will decapitate Eric Gagne, but only for sport.