Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader found himself in front of the TV this morning repeating to himself “Janice Rodgers Brown… Janice Rodgers Brown…” before the big announcement was made. After the announcement was made he said to himself, “Harriet who?”

Talk about dark horse candidates. Was she on anyone’s short list? Anyone’s long list?

You know, your Maximum Leader wasn’t disturbed by the Roberts nomination in the way so many were. He felt that if John Roberts had been vetted by the Reagan Administration years ago that was a good sign. (Remember, to be appointed to the Reagan Administration two questions had to be answered correctly. 1 - Was the person a conservative? 2 - Did they support Ford in 76? The correct answers were “Yes” and “No.”) So the question in your Maximum Leader’s mind for Roberts was “Has he changed in 20 odd years?” Your Maximum Leader feels as confident as one can be on these things that Roberts hadn’t.

But 30 minutes into the appointment process for Harriet Miers your Maximum Leader isn’t filled with warm tinglies.* This is not to say that your Maximum Leader thinks that only sitting (or former) judges should be appointed to the Supreme Court. He doesn’t believe that. It is to say that he doesn’t see how he is going to “get to know” Harriet Miers. She is not going to be forthcoming in her opinions on anything (as no nominee has been for about 15 years now). And one presumes at this point that she has very little in the way of a written record.

So far, your Maximum Leader is not pleased at all. Stay tuned to see if his opinion changes…

Carry on.
(more…)

I know your immediate assumption about the Minister in question is ‘Smallholder,’ but no, I intended ‘wrestles with’ to suggest an ongoing discussion, NOT the Greco-Roman intwining of sweaty male bodies which you might have first thought. That’s a different post. If anyone is still interested in this discussion business, ML and your ever humble MoP are going back and forth in the comments section of this post, concerning Mr. Bennett’s recent comments on abortion and race. Join in, if you’re so inclined. Unless your name is ‘Smallholder,’ in which case you’d best just stick with that other wrestlin’.

Believe.

Despite the temptation to spice up the sequels, no gimmicks this time. How does James Bond manage to keep it fresh and exciting with every single outing? There is also another film in this posting that I worked on, for any minions who are interested.

As before, movies are ranked by personal preference within each category.

In Theaters:
A History of Violence: penetrating
Corpse Bride: amusing
Goal!: competent
Lord of War: simplistic
Flightplan: dreadful

Viewed at home:
Mean Streets: raw
13 Conversations About One Thing: affecting
The Long Goodbye: deliberate
Millennium Actress: innovative
6ixtynin9: derivative

I’m going to be in Utah for the next two months working on a new film, somy postings may be sporadic. Will you miss me? I believe you will — unless you’re lucky enough to be both comely and in the Salt Lake City area, in which case we can meet for drinks . . . to discuss politics, movies, and amusing anecdotes about our Maximum Leader and the other ministers, naturally. My e-mail is on the left.

Believe. (Everything except the bit about James Bond being ‘fresh and exciting’ every time — that’s complete bullshit).