 also note from the link that Ev doesn't host himself on BlogSpot..
Andrew Sullivan has an article on Bush II today that's well worth the read. Bush and I sound a lot alike in the goofy jokester department, although I'd have gone for the sushi. I've always been pretty slow-spoken. I think about what I say, I don't just repeat the sound bites I've been fed. But this leads some folks to assume that I'm not very bright. I learned long ago that being 'misunderestimated' can confer a certain advantage and I wonder if Bush II hasn't cultivated this same tactic to a degree I can only dream of.
During the presidential campaign I wondered why it was that a Harvard MBA was being billed as a dummy while the journalism major and divinity school/law school dropout was Mr. Science Guy. I wrote it off as wishful thinking and 'tell a Big Lie' tactics by fellow journalism majors at the time and still do. If Sullivan is any indication, Bush II won't be getting another bye in the brains department for the next election.
Ok, everyone who ate their corned beef and cabbage yesterday, raise your hands. Not bad as far as ethnic 'soul food' goes. My wife says 'this is to remind us that we can do much better now.' Of course, it's been on sale for the last couple weeks, but at the regular price it's right up there with New York strip, so I'm not so sure we can do much better.
Sunday, March 17, 2002- - -
The Mythical honest man has been found! The DailyPundit, Bill Quick, lists the DailyPundit among his favorite blogs.
Via Bill Quick comes this, from a Time.com article: At a recent dinner for Democratic fund raisers in Manhattan, [Al] Gore ripped into Bush's handling of the presidency. The President's philosophy is "speak loudly and carry a small stick," he said.
If that was the 'small stick,' Saddam ought to be very, very afraid.
This has been a most productive day. First I learned about "smart quotes" - although I still don't know what a smart quote is or why anyone would want one, at least I now know how to get rid of them. And now Anton Sherwood has told me how to beat the blasted disappearing archive number problem that's been plaguing me since day one. Just add a ?/ as I've done in that last link.
One thing I've learned from all this—the interconnectivity of the internet isn't quite seamless. My blog looks just fine to me, the links work and the quotation marks look like quotation marks. Apparently this isn't the case for some of the readers, however. And it's bloody impossible to fix a problem you can't see or recreate. Especially if you don't know you have a problem.
My original goal for today was to set up a hit counter. I'd been reluctant to do so. I don't know whether I'm more afraid to find out that no one reads this drivel, or that everyone reads it. But I've signed up for a hit counter through Bravenet, I think..
If my signup with Bravenet works I'll have learned three new tricks in one day. Not bad for an old 'yote.
Now I'll probably find out that my "fixes" have caused a whole slew of new problems somewhere else. Computers. Gotta love 'em. But why is it that we seem to love the things that cause us the most aggravation?
Update: Drat! I notice that getting rid of smart quotes doesn't do a thing for the "smart hyphens" or whatever is causing that little black box some of you are probably seeing right after "One thing I've learned from all this.. Tsk. If you're expecting perfection you'll have to look elsewhere. But please do let me know if you see any more problems!
Many many thanks to those who've emailed with comments and suggestions.
Update Dux: Ah! I get rid of the smart hyphens the same way I got rid of smart quotes. Of course. Now I need to know why I would want a hyphen smarter than I am..
Ask and you shall receive!
Reader Matt Harris writes: "This may seem like a simple question, but if Publisher is giving you such a hard time with smart quotes, why not turn them off? I checked the help files for MS Publisher 2000 for "smart quotes" and turning them off is fairly simple."
Cool. I've just tried it, let's see if it works..
It wo