Bad Blogger

Oh hello, readers. How are you? I've been remiss in writing here, I know. But I spend most of my days blogging on Boston Daily, so if you're looking for me, that's where I am. I'd write here more, but I don't have much else going on. I get up, write stuff, then go home. Right now I've got some time, so I figured I'd drop in and give you some random thoughts.

Update: Jesus Sing-A-Long
Knock on wood, all's been quite on the neighbor front. A friend of mine pointed out to me this weekend that it was Rosh Hashanah last week, and maybe they were celebrating. But I think there was a Jesus or two in the songs, so it's probably not a Jewish thing. Whatever, at least it's quiet now.

In other frustrating apartment news, I motivated myself to go to the laundromat before the approximately eight hours of The Biggest Loser comes on, but when I attempted to leave my building, I saw that the pull handle on the lock was stuck in the out position. I tried to wiggle it, but it didn't move. I pulled on the door, and found I was locked in my building. Of course, the on-call maintenance guy said he can't fix the lock until tomorrow. Instead of risking being locked out, I'm just going to stink until I get to a laundromat next weekend.

Britney Spears
Okay, her performance at the VMAs was awful. But I would kill a puppy to be "fat" like Britney Spears is "fat." If I ever have a daughter, she's not going to see a TV or read a newspaper until she's in college.

Britney Spears is not fucking fat. Not to get all weepy about it.

Casinos
I feel like I'm always up in arms about this. A casino is not a cure-all. While Massachusetts can probably handle mega-casinos better than the already densely populated Ocean State, I personally still don't like them.

Lincoln Chafee
He's not a Republican anymore!

Former Sen. Lincoln Chafee said he has left the Republican Party because the national GOP has drifted too far from him on critical issues, including the war in Iraq, the economy and the environment.

"It's not my party anymore," Chafee, who represented Rhode Island from 1999 until 2007, told The Providence Journal in an article published Saturday.

Awesome.

This is terrifying
There really are two Americas, folks. Here is a book on why women should wait to have sex until they're married. (Guess what? It involves "Satan's Big Fat Sex Lie." And the horrifying idea that one's parents should be brought into one's sex life.) Where is the edition that encourages men to wait?

Red Sox
AIIIIIEEEE!

That is all.

Viva Las Warren

Oh come on.

State Treasurer Timothy P. Cahill's proposal to have the state auction rights to build luxury gambling resorts won some key allies yesterday, with Mayor Thomas M. Menino, several state senators, business leaders, and a financial watchdog group praising the plan.

"I've seen it work in other places," said Menino, who has been aggressively lobbying Beacon Hill for new revenue sources. "It should be able to work in Boston."

Really? Yeah, Boston can have derelicts and jammed roads too! God, is there anything Menino won't do for a buck? Has the whole world gone mad? Am I the only person who thinks setting up casinos just to get some quick cash is as dumb as the people who go to casinos with their rent money?

"The real possibility exists that the Indians will have some kind of a casino soon," Morrissey said. "Timmy [Cahill] has seen the light. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em."

But you can beat them. Rhode Island has done so twice. When did the state just start waving the white flag when it faces a challenge? Also, I'm pretty sure you can't call them "Indians" anymore. They are "Native Americans."

Stupidity all around. This is a bad idea, folks.

I Check the Odds, I Place My Bet

Dammit. (Thanks to CO for the tip.)

Gov.-elect Deval Patrick, who’s been known to pull the handle on a slot machine himself from time to time, is signaling he’s open to the possibility of casino gambling in the Bay State.

First of all, I'd like to take issue with the fact that the Herald immediately assumes that if you've played slots you support casino gambling. I've played slots down at Foxwoods (hell on earth) and Mohegan Sun (slightly better) but it doesn't mean I want to be able to gamble in my own neighborhood. It's fine once in a while, but I don't want casinos and their inherent social problems on my doorstep.

I don't quite fathom how Patrick thinks casino gambling is a good idea. Didn't somebody ask him this question while he was on the campaign trail, especially in New Bedford/Swansea which would have been impacted by a casino in Rhode Island? Maybe he slipped a mention into one of his ads that card games and slots as a means of making Massachusetts great? By the end of the campaign I was kind of tuning all the ads out. It's possible I missed that. I remembered Patrick talking about scientific research, education, and attracting businesses as a way to make Massachusetts better. I do not remember buffets being mentioned as part of the solution.

Sigh. I cannot continue being all uppity about this. It's exhausting. I do not want New England to be the new, less-glittery Las Vegas. I guess I can only hope Deval Patrick catches his snap before Harrah's sets up shop looking for another ballot question.