Saturday, February 26, 2005

Best Alex Rodriguez Nicknames

He calls himself A-Rod, but here in Boston we call him

A-Fraud
F-Rod
Slappy McBlueLips (credit to Joy of Sox blog)
A-Lot
Pay-Rod
A-Wad
K-Rod

ICR: One of my favorites. Here's the explanation:

ICR
From Baseball Think Factory Wiki, the free encyclopedia.

ICR is one of the many nicknames given out by Yankee fans in Game Chatters, this one coined by sjohnny. ICR is short for "Inanimate Carbon Rod", and is the nickname given to Alex Rodriguez in lieu of "A-Rod". The reason for the nickname was A-Rod's poor performance in 2004 with runners in scoring position. Many sent ICR to the nickname graveyard after his game-tying double in the 2004 ALDS Game 2.

The phrase "Inanimate Carbon Rod" comes from a Simpsons episode where an inanimate carbon rod is named Employee of the Week at the power plant instead of Homer. This insult leads Homer to become an astronaut, where he averts a catastrophe (after starting it) on a shuttle mission using an inanimate carbon rod, which receives much more acclaim than Homer does.

What I'm reading today

And you were expecting a list of books? Here are the top five blogs I visit daily:

1) Eschaton
http://atrios.blogspot.com/
Duncan Black is an economist in Philadelphia. I don't always understand his economic analyses, but his rapier wit always makes me laugh. Updated constantly. This has been at the top of my bloglist ever since I first heard the term "blog".

2) DailyKos
http://www.dailykos.com/
Markos Zuniga runs this political community weblog. Many regular posters with different talents. Right now SusanG and NYBri are hot on the trail of the Presstitute, but you can find stories on everything that's hot on the left side of the aisle.

3) Steve Gilliard's News Blog
http://stevegilliard.blogspot.com/
I just discovered this blog a few months ago. It's a spin-off from the Kos blog (Kos lists him as a "site alumni"). Black New Yorker, always edgy take on the news.

4) Talking Points Memo
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/
Joshua Micah Marshall. Very smart guy. Currently obsessed with defeating Bush's crazy destroy Social Security scheme. Has adopted the phrases "Conscience Caucus" and "Fainthearted Faction" to label supporters & opponents of the scheme, but I can't keep those cutesy little terms straight. So it's a bit of an insider's club these days.

5) Women's Hoops Blog
http://www.womenshoops.blogspot.com/

Formerly known as Sara & Ted's Women's Hoops blog. Keeps me up with women's basketball (since it is so rarely on TV I rely on the internets to keep me up to date.) Follows the games & the issues. This is where I learned about the Rick Lopez case in Colorado. Ewww.

That's my top five. This month I've also been reading AmericaBlog (http://www.americablog.org/) for its coverage of the Presstitute, and as spring training is in full swing, The Joy of Sox (http://www.joyofsox.blogspot.com/)

Friday, February 25, 2005

Jeff Gannon, Presstitute

I have dubbed Jim/Jeff Guckert/Gannon "The Presstitute".

For obvious reasons, as his occupation immediately preceding his tenure in the White House briefing room was prostitute.

You say prostitute, I say presstitute, let's call the whole thing off!

Kind of like Bill O'Reilly & his falafel.

What is it with those wingnuts anyway?

Powerfully Hobbled

Condoleezza Rice's Commanding Clothes

Yes, today the Washington Post tells us that wearing stiletto heels is powerful.

Rice's coat and boots speak of sex and power -- such a volatile combination, and one that in political circles rarely leads to anything but scandal. When looking at the image of Rice in Wiesbaden, the mind searches for ways to put it all into context. It turns to fiction, to caricature. To shadowy daydreams. Dominatrix! It is as though sex and power can only co-exist in a fantasy. When a woman combines them in the real world, stubborn stereotypes have her power devolving into a form that is purely sexual.

Hogwash. Perching your body atop two thin pegs just makes it impossible for a woman to run. The body's weight is concentrated on the balls of the feet, and the heel is taken out of a woman's walk. If you can't put down your heel, you can't use the long muscles in your legs. If all your weight is on the balls of your feet, they hurt unmercifully. A woman in stiletto heels is hobbled.

The Post thinks she's more powerful because those heels are so sexy:

Countless essays and books have been written about the erotic nature of high heels. There is no need to reiterate in detail the reasons why so many women swear by uncomfortable three-inch heels and why so many men are happy that they do. Heels change the way a woman walks, forcing her hips to sway. They alter her posture in myriad enticing ways, all of which are politically incorrect to discuss.

"There is not need to reiterate in detail the reasons why so many women swear by uncomfortable three-inch heels....." Well, maybe there is such a reason. If heels were so great, wouldn't men wear them? They've taken up manicures, moisturizers, and face lifts. But men have never taken to heels, and certainly not to heels which are smaller than the foot that sits above them. Maybe the reason "why so many men are happy that they do" has more to do with the hobbling effect.

I'm going out for a walk. In my flat bottomed shoes.