Episode 5 Tonight of "You're Cut Off" On VH1!The Ladies Are Forced to Shed Their Makeup, & Someone Gets Her Walking Papers!

Nutshell Synopsis of Episode 5: With this week's lesson being "inner beauty," the ladies are forced to participate in photo shoots with and without makeup, leading to some major league meltdowns. Plus, for the first time, one of the bad girls of the house gets her pink slip and gets sent packing for home!

Segment 1: The episode picks up where the last one left off, with Gia out on the street crying, having ran out of the house in disgust at fellow bad girl Erica being named last week's VIP (Very Improved Princess). Noticeably, no one goes out to console her. She resolves not to quit and heads back inside the house.

The next morning, Erica (as VIP) is enjoying being able to dole out the household chores. She assigns Pam yardwork and gives her some friendly advice: "Have you ever used a lawnmower before? It's pretty complicated. Anyway, let me know if you need me to show you how to mow because it took me awhile to figure it out too." Meantime, ultimate bad girl Chrissy (who really hasn't done any work or anything positive to speak of since this series' inception) is sleeping in as usual, while Jackie works on mopping the kitchen. Jackie asks Erica, "do you think I should mop the refrigerator?" "Yeah," responds Erica and Jackies starts in wiping the mop all over the sides of the appliance. "That was a good idea; you're really going above and beyond your chores," comments Erica. Pam's out in the yard, raking leaves and debris into the neighbor's yard and trying to clean the fish pool with a mop (what's with these ladies and their mops this week?). Chrissy finally gets out of bed but refuses to do any work, telling Erica: "You're on my stage right now and I ain't entertaining you because you're just a prop."

Moderator Laura Baron then informs the ladies that his week's lesson has to do with "beauty" (not yet revealing to them that it's actually about "inner beauty"). They head off to have a photo shoot at Siren Studios in LA with a celebrity photographer. Says Erica, "I definitely consider myself an expert in the beauty industry, having growed up with a father who's a plastic surgeon." [No typo in that prior quote. And Erica's in law school!] Chrissy is excited about the shoot: "That's why I take my time doing my makeup -- We're about to do a photo shoot and these other girls look half-assin'. Oh I'm ready!" The ladies then head off to work with professional hair and makeup teams. Erica comments that it takes a few hundred thousand dollars a year for her to look as good as she looks, and Gia notes: "If this is a modeling competition, ladies be aware, I photograph very well."

The shoot begins with Jackie going first. Jackie says she thinks she looks very good, but off stage Jessica comments that "Jackie should be on the cover of Mad Magazine." Says Jessica, "looking at Jackie is like watching two dogs hump -- you don't wanna look but you have to." "Watch out bitches, here I come," proclaims bad girl Gia, as she's next up. Says Gia, "The only thing going through my mind right now is that this guy [the photographer] is definitely going to give me a call and is going to want to be putting me somewhere in his magazines because he's just loving my look."

Erica goes next, but Chrissy criticizes her for not having anything more than "one frozen look" on camera (as it does appear difficult for Erica to flash a large smile). Leanne says she "feels amazing" in front of the camera "because I was Little Miss America when I was 1, 2 and 3." Pam's also pompous, saying that "of course the other girls are jealous of me; I mean, I'm hotter than them." Amber, Jessica and Courtnee get their turns, followed by Chrissy, who doesn't care for the fan blowing in the studio: "Whew! You think we have to have it that strong, because my weave is gonna be off!" During her shoot, Chrissy comments: "I love having my picture taken because it captures my beautiful features, and it's something I can keep looking at over and over again, and I won't ever get tired of looking at it." She also tells the other ladies, "The Star is taking a picture. Please relax."

After the shoot, Laura Baron informs the ladies that the full description of this week's lesson is actually "inner beauty" -- "The real lesson starts now." Chrissy is not happy, spouting: "What the hell we gonna do now? I've learned my lesson [for the week]. I know I'm beautiful. Oh, it's time to go home, NOW!"

Segment 2: The girls are taken to the Chua Viet Nam Buddhist Temple, which has very much a temple look to it, complete with myriad Buddha statues. Pam notes: "I see little Buddhas everywhere when I get my nails done, and so I'm thinking, is this like a really big spa?" Chrissy says she has a "bad vibe" about this joint from the beginning. The ladies are then sent to an upstairs room in the temple to put on robes and sandals, which they hate. "I'm as hot as a Tijuana slut," barks Jessica, while Gia crows: "I'm not wearing no $1 sandals; I'm going to go out in my heals!"

Laura Baron then informs the girls that they are there to learn something from the Buddhist monks about valuing their inner beauty. Chrissy is just not feeling it: "Maybe some of these other girls are ugly on the inside, but not me, I'm beautiful on the inside. I don't need no lesson on damn inner beauty." The lovely, mild-mannered and leggy supermodel-type Courtnee is also skeptical: "Who cares if I have an attachment to materialistic things. Because my shoes and clothes look good. Who cares, as long as they make me look good." One of the monks talks to the ladies about Buddha and his life (with glazed-over eyes aplenty among the ladies). But Erica has trouble focusing on the substance of his message: "All I can think about is the monk's robe is cuter than my robe, and I wish I could be wearing his right now."

The ladies are then led to a room for some meditation with the monks. Jessica and Chrissy are not comfortable with the meditation room, with Chrissy stating: "I don't care if I piss off these monks. Going in that room -- I don't think that has nothing to do with inner beauty, and so I'm not gonna do it." As the monks start chanting, Chrissy is fed up. "This just don't feel right," she says as she stomps out of the room. Jessica does the same. The other 7 ladies participate in the meditation session. Afterward, bad girl Gia expresses her disappointment that Jessica and Chrissy refused to participate, but they really couldn't care less. In the car and on the way back to Siren Studios, Pam divulges that she is very close to totally blowing her stack with the "negative" ladies such as Jessica and Chrissy.

Arriving back at Siren Studios, Laura Baron breaks the shocking news to the ladies that the next part of this week's lesson will involve posing for another photo shoot, but this time without any makeup, any jewelry and any designer clothing. Chrissy immediately reacts negatively, saying: "No makeup! I'm supposed to be a Barbi and glamorous at all times, and polished. Oh, this is not gonna work for me!"

Segment 3: Laura Baron talks more about the purpose of this week's "inner beauty" lesson, saying that it's intended to get the ladies to more like whom they are on the inside so that they don't feel the need to spend so much time and money on pursuing material things. The ladies head to the makeup room and start working on removing their makeup. Gia and Chrissy start bickering. Chrissy wants Gia to take off her fake eyelashes as Chrissy did. Gia responds: "Then take off your fake ass hair!" Says Chrissy: "Bitch, that's my hair, not my face. I can take off my hair and still be as hot!" Pam is becoming irritated with this bickering, and buxom nice girl and southern belle Amber is visibly getting stressed out by the bickering. Finally, Pam can't take it any longer: "I have had enough! All you ever girls ever do is complain!" Chrissy stands up for her "right to complain," and Jessica joins in and starts shouting back at Pam as well. Jessica: "I know why you're all hot and bothered, because you like a 5o-year-old woman without your makeup!" Pam: "Really? I look better than you!"

Amber has also reached her limit with the bickering and is starting to have a panic attack. She walks out of the makeup room and explains to Laura Baron that she has a panic disorder, and that a panic attack was triggered by all the fighting by the other ladies. Laura encourages Amber to relax and breathe for awhile, which helps. Laura then stands in front of a full-length mirror with Amber -- something each of the ladies will have to do as a part of their second photo shoot. Laura wants each lady to look in the mirror and say what it is that each girl likes about herself as a person. Amber's first response to that question is, "my boobs." But then she offers a more thoughtful response, saying she prides herself in being strong and confident (and typically as a result being able to avoid panic attacks like the one today).

Back in the makeup room, the bickering continues, primarily between Pam and Jessica, with Jessica having an absolutely enraged, evil look on her face such that I thought she might actually go clinically insane right then and there. Erica is next up to look in the mirror with Laura. Erica confides that she feels very vulnerable without her makeup. Laura encourages her to try to just let go of her preoccupation with makeup, botox and jewelry, and to let others love her for her. Pam, Leanne, Jessica, Courtnee and Jackie all have their turns in front of the mirror, with each saying something positive about their inner-selves.

Gia is up next, and has big difficulties bringing herself to even look in the mirror without her makeup. But alas, the problem only seems to be partially due to the lack of makeup, as Gia says that "there's a lot of things I'm not proud about." She laments that she tends to pay her way through life and pay her way out of having to do things. She says she wants to change and says that he's proud of herself for accepting that she needs to change. Laura tells Gia that she thinks Gia's made some amazing progress this week (Hear Hear!).

And then it's Chrissy time in front of the mirror! But first a personal aside: I have never been that overly attracted to Chrissy's wild-ass, exotic look in makeup, but I was amazed to actually find her much more attractive without makeup! But I digress. In front of the mirror: "What's beautiful about you," asks Laura. "Everything," proclaims Chrissy. Things only go downhill from there. Chrissy says she's not "getting" this whole "inner beauty" concept, and she repeatedly expresses that she has a huge hangup with the fact that Laura (the moderator of the show and NOT a participant) has not also taken off her makeup! Laura sees right through this tactic and starts to become very annoyed with Chrissy, telling her that she's trying to use Laura as an excuse to avoid seriously embracing the lesson and reflecting upon what she thinks is the most beautiful thing about her as a person. (Personally, I'm a bit suspicious that Chrissy's real problem might have been that she couldn't think of a single thing that's redeemable about her personality -- I mean, the lady's just rotten). Off camera, Laura says that she can't help Chrissy if she doesn't first want to help herself.

Segment 4: The next morning at the house, Chrissy is still mad at Laura for making Chrissy take off her makeup without taking off her own. Laura shows up and tells Chrissy (through the bathroom door), "I'd like to see you in my office in 15 minutes, OK?" Says Chrissy: "I'll be ready in about 40 minutes, OK?" Laura storms off. And Chrissy is being serious: "I don't rush this beauty regimen for anyone, including Laura. She needs to wait for me. I need all the time I can get to get beautified." Gia warns Chrissy that she had better get a move on, but Chrissy starts yelling at Gia about not giving her advice.

Chrissy shows up very late to the meeting with Laura. Asks Laura: "How do you feel about your participation in this program?" Responds Chrissy: "Uh, I'm participating." And things just get worse from there, with Chrissy flashing her bad attitude, complete arrogance, and lack of respect for anyone around her as Laura confronts her about not participating in lessons and giving constant pushback to everything and everyone on this program. When Laura tells Chrissy that she needs to want to help herself, Chrissy responds: "I believe this program is low key bullshit for me." Laura has finally had it: "I will not allow one woman to take down a program that I am seeing improve all of the other girls. It's not fair to the girls or the program, and quite frankly I am disappointed." Chrissy's only response: "OK, you have have anything else to say?" Then Laura lowers the ol' boom: "Yes, pack up and be gone within an hour." Chrissy says thank you and leaves.

While I had thought that Chrissy's awful behavior throughout the series might have been intended to garner getting sent home, that apparently was not the case, as she is upset and crying back at the house concerning the fact that she must leave. Put another way, she really was so arrogant so as to think that she could get away with anything and still progress to the end of the show. As Chrissy packs her bags, the very well-endowed Erica, wearing only her bra, seems to almost gloat over Chrissy's departure, telling Chrissy: "At least your luggage is cute." The other ladies do not really seem angered or outraged by Chrissy's departure, although they do seem very shocked that this has occurred (since the goal of this reality show is for all the ladies to survive until the end).

Segment 5: Chrissy is shown taking her luggage to a care for her departure. The other ladies come out to wave goodbye. And then there were eight. Jessica confides that this event is a real eye-opener for her, since she definitely does not want to get booted from the show like Chrissy was. Then the ladies begin their regular end-of-the-week meeting with Laura Baron. They first talk about Chrissy getting the hook. Laura says that she asked Chrissy to leave because she unwilling to work on helping herself. Amber asks why Laura gave up on Chrissy. Laura says it was because Chrissy simply wasn't open to being helped: "If you are committed to yourself, then I promise you that I'll be committed to you."

Final Segment: Now it's time for Laura to reveal which ladies passed and failed this week's lesson. Not surprisingly, all 8 remaining ladies pass this week since all were willing to look in the mirror and reveal what they think about their inner-selves. The Very Improved Princess (VIP) title for this week goes to Gia, who certainly came a long way in this episode after almost leaving the show at the end of last week.

But all is not well in Spoiled Brat-Ville! Pam and Jackie are irrate that Gia won VIP. Says Pam: "Gia gets away with murder!" And then it's revealed that Pam and Jackie apparently have some sort of nefarious plan up their sleeves for radically changing the dynamics in the house: "We're about to take over this house. They'll never know what hit them!" End of episode.

Preview of Next Episode: Next week the ladies must go camping! Let the bickering begin around the ol' campfire!!!

Final Comments: While it was hilarious to see Chrissy get the boot, I'm actually very sorry to see her go. Simply put, her whole rotten personality, which incessantly put herself first before the needs and interests of everyone around her, was extremely entertaining each week! Of the show's "bad girls," she was the Ultimate Bad Girl, and I'm afraid the show won't be quite the same without her. BUT, we still have bad girls Erica, Gia and Jessica to screw stuff up (plus the mysterious above-referenced plan of Pam and Jackie), and so I think the remaining three episodes should continue to be high entertainment!

On This Independence Day, I Invite Everyone to Declare His/Her Own Independence...

Yes, declare independence: That is, independence from ties and allegiances to the two out-of-touch, extreme-controlled, corrupt and non-responsive entities known as the democrat party and the repub party -- two parties controlled by minorities of the population known as conservatives and liberals/progressives. They do not have your best interests at heart, so why have any allegiance to them? Show allegiance to yourself and to country, and think for yourself. Just declare independence, as the colonial Americans did, showing incredible courage, 234 years ago today.

And on this day, endeavor also to read the Declaration of Independence, which is a remarkably succinct document, so much unlike the legislative monstrosities that we have seen foisted upon us time and time again over the past 18 months. A link to the full text is at bottom (like I said, it's a very short document), and here are just a few excerpts, as written by the great American political philosopher, Thomas Jefferson:

"When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

The history of the present King of Great Britain [MEMO TO GENERATION Y: We declared our independence from Great Britain!] is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world . . .

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people . . .

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures . . .

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance . . .

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people . . .

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved . . . And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor."

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/

Look At These Two Clown Repubs Running for U.S. Senate in Kansas -- One of Whom I Will Have to Vote For! Talk About Kissin' Your Sister.

They are Jerry Moran and Todd Tiahrt, both staunch conservatives, who have lately been engaging in a mindless, mean-spirited and ugly TV ad battle over whom the "real conservative" is, as they battle for the GOP nomination in the Kansas U.S Senate race this year. For what it's worth (and it's worth absolutely nothing to me), the Tea Party apparently backs Tiahrt from amongst these two highly indistinguishable candidates (big surprise there -- do you really think the Tea Party would support a "Moran" after the above-pictured St. Louis tea party mullet-headed idiot went viral on the Net with his misspelled "morans" sign?).

And I'm going to have to vote for one of these two deranged right-wing freaks! But alas, I'm left with no choice. No choice whatsoever. A balance of power must be restored to DC. Never in my life do I ever want to see either of these two out-of-touch, bull$hit parties have the complete iron grip on power in DC that we've seen from Obama & The Dems over the last year and a half. The results have been, as fully expected, frightening.

And so as I said on such dark days as Black Christmas and Sunday Bloody Sunday -- and even though I haven't voted for a repub or dem since at least the mid-1990's -- I will be voting for whomever the repubs stick in front of me this fall in my local U.S. House and Senate races. Sometimes in life, you have to swallow your general principles in pursuit of a greater good. I just wish that this time, pursuing that greater good didn't make me feel like an Independence Avenue streetwalker at 4 in the morning.

http://www.gctelegram.com/news/ap-SenateRace-06-01-10

Tea Party Buzz: GOP Candidates Ducking the Birther Question, And a Prediction of the Tea Party Movement's Demise?

Politico.com today has a couple of interesting odds and ends directly and indirectly related to the tea party movement. The first item, at least it seems to me, pertains to the previous polls we've seen reporting that large percentrages of tea partiers and conservatives in general actually believe that Obama is not legitimately the president because he was born in another country (the "birthers"). I think 2010 republican candidates know full well about such polls, and therefore they won't give you a straight answer if you ask them whether they believe Obama is legitimately the president.

The latest example of this rather cowardly refusal to answer that question comes from Sharron Angle, the republican senatorial candidate in Nevada running against dem and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid for Reid's seat this fall (first link at bottom). And realize that I'm giving Angle and other repubs the benefit of the doubt when I merely call them cowardly, since the alternative is that they actually believe that Obama is not legitimately the president and want to avoid the question for that reason (as opposed to merely desiring to avoid alienating the birthers).

The second item today centers on the republican that conservatives and tea partiers everywhere love to hate -- Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Graham tells the New York Times this week (second link at bottom): "The problem with the tea party, I think, is it’s just unsustainable because they can never come up with a coherent vision for governing the country. It will die out." Graham also tells the Times that the tea party movement has driven the repub party too far to the right, such that even "Ronald Reagan would have a hard time getting elected as a Republican today." Ouch. (I think I'd avoid checking that e-mail and voice mail any time soon if I was the Senator).

As to Graham's claim that the tea party movement will "die out," I think that may just be wishful thinking on his part, at least on the short term. I think that as long as we have total far left control of the presidency and the entire Congress -- as we've had since the start of 2009 -- you're going to see Obama & The Dems running amok and doing their loony left-wing thing, with an energized tea party movement still out there in response. Funny how extremists only fan the flames of other extremists on the other side.

And that, frankly, is a damn shame. I'm on record previously in this space about the tea party. This is basically and fundamentally a conservative movement and is predominantly composed of and fueled by staunch conservatives. Graham is absolutely right about the tea party driving the republican party to the right. I think any movement that serves to drive these two BS parties any farther to the left or to the right is not a positive movement since it means that Independents (40% of the country and the deciders of elections) are represented by no one to an even greater extent than is already the case. So Senator, you say the tea party is going to die out? Fine with me, but I just don't see that occurring any time soon. And you know, Senator, you really should consider turning Independent.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0710/39315.html
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0710/39286.html

An Inconvenient EVERYTHING: Cops Reopen Investigation Into Alleged Al Gore Sexual Assault, As His Accuser Goes Public.

Bad, bad and more bad when it comes to the news this week for that esteemed inventor of the Internet, Al Gore. As ABC News reports today: "Portland, Oregon police have decided to reopen the investigation into a 54-year-old masseuse's allegations that former Vice President Al Gore sexually assaulted her in his hotel room in 2006" (I guess the MSM's "He Wasn't Charged" defense is out the window for the time being). And all of this comes after the National Enquirer hit newsstands this week with an interview they purchased from Gore's accuser, who has now gone public with her identity -- Molly Hagerty.

Now, if you thought some of those "crazed sex poodle" allegations she told the cops were bad, the lady is really ratcheting up the ol' rhethoric in her Enquirer interview: "Al Gore is a pervert and a sexual predator. He's not what people think he is - he's a sick man. I want justice served." Ouch-a-rama.

Hagerty also continues to claim that she kept pants from the alleged incident that have stains of Gore's "DNA," for lack of a more radio-friendly term. She's also claiming there is another witness, plus a hotel video surveillance tape, that will help to corroborate her story.

Also new today: Gore somewhat breaks the silence he's maintained since this story broke a week or so ago. Through a spokesperson, Gore says that he "unequivocally and emphatically denies this accusation." And in true politician spin mode, the spokesperson also claims that "further investigation into this matter will only benefit Mr. Gore." Right! The reopening of the police investigation is just want Big Al wanted all along! Please.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/al-gore-sex-abuse-case-reopened-portland/story?id=11059203
http://www.nationalenquirer.com/new_evidence_gore_sex_scandal_exclusive_interview_masseuse_/celebrity/68913

Episode 4 Tonight of "You're Cut Off" on VH1! The Spoiled Rotten Brats Must Work a Job!

(In case you're not familiar with this hot new reality series, try this primer from Episode 1: http://independentrage.blogspot.com/2010/06/episode-1-tonight-of-hot-new-vh1.html. And read more specifically about the participating Nine Ladies at this link: http://www.vh1.com/shows/youre_cut_off/cast.jhtml).

Important Program Note: "You're Cut Off" is moving to Mondays, and so my coverage will too. The next new episode airs in VH1 prime time this Monday, July 5 at 8:00 p.m. (central).

Nutshell Synopsis of Episode 4: The ladies are forced to work jobs, with Bad Girl Chrissy not even showing up for work and Bad Girl Gia quitting the job halfway through. Bad Girl Erica, who has really taken the brunt of it verbally from Gia and Jessica throughout the series, gets a measure of revenge as she's named Manager on the Ladies' job, and thus gets to boss around Gia and Jessica, who do not respond well! Ultimately, Gia storms off the entire show (will she return?). Meantime, Good Girls Courtnee and Amber actually assert themselves a bit in this episode for the first time, which was awesome to see.

Segment 1: Episode 4 starts with the Beautiful Bad Girl Erica mowing the house yard again with an old-style non-mechanic lawn mower straight outta Leave It To Beaver. Erica likes mowing, because it's exercise. She tells last week's VIP (Very Improved Princess), Leanne, "thanks for letting me mow again. Like, I think a lot of guys will marry me now because I know how to mow the lawn." Inside the house, Bad Girls Jessica and Gia both say they are looking to improve their performances from last week, with Gia actually working for once (making beds, although in a pretty rotten fashion). Ultimate Bad Girl Chrissy (who has not done one redeeming thing in the history of the series, unlike all other 8 Ladies), however, is sleeping in as usual.

Then the group meets with moderator Laura Baron. Chrissy is the only lady late to the meeting, saying that "being the last one, it's all about me, and I come first, and I'm on my own time schedule." Laura informs the ladies that this week they will have to write a resume, go on an interview, and then work a job. Says Houston Miss Priss Erica: "Do we have to type the resume? Normally my daddy's secretary does mine."

Laura informs the ladies that their interview will be with Stephen Viscusi, CEO of The Viscusi Group, a headhunting firm. Gia says that she will refuse to do a resume or go on an interview: "I don't need a job, I'm rich." Anyway, the ladies have 45 minutes to do a resume. Several of the ladies have trouble operating their computers, and Erica helps a number of them with their resumes. Gia is still refusing to partake, stating: "I refuse to use my pretty fingernails and type up a resume for somebody I could care less about." Gia then scurries off to the patio to toke on her beloved hookah.

Segment 2: The ladies head off to interview with Viscusi. First up is Erica, who says that she's going to law school (can you still believe that?) because "I really want to a Judge Judy." Viscusi tells her that Judge Judy put in a lot of time in her career before she ever got on the air. "But I'm prettier than her," spouts Erica. In law school, Erica says that "my focus is all on myself, not in a narcissistic way -- You know what I mean?" Responds Viscusi, "No, I don't, based on what you said, I'm not sure I do."

Chrissy's interview is next. Her quotes say it all: "I'm fortunate to be beautiful and hot." "They say black don't crack, so hopefully I won't have to do plastic surgery [as she gets older]." "I have the best walk ever, and it'll make ya say damn!"

In Pam's interview, she (as in Episode 1) again claims to be an investment banker whereas it's obvious she's not. She struggles to describe what she does, precisely, in such capacity. Jessica's next, and Viscusi finds her to be "lazy." Meantime, Amber struggles to recall if she's had any prior jobs and Leanna admits she hasn't really ever thought about what kind of job she might like to work. Courtnee says that she's just looking for someone to hire her for a job. Jackie breaks into song during her interview, with Viscusi reacting to her shakey voice by saying, "not to sound like Simon, but that's very good, you can sit down now." Viscusi then calls for Gia, but she's back at the house smoking her hookah.

The next morning, Laura Baron wakes up the ladies at 7:30 a.m. The ladies hate waking this early! Gia, who refused to do a resume or interview, nevertheless gets out of bed and says she's willing to try to go work. In stark contrast, fellow (and Ultimate) Bad Girl Chrissy again sleeps in, stating: "I cannot be rushed, I will get up on my own terms and on my own time." Then it's time to leave for their jobs, but Chrissy says she's not ready and still needs 50 minutes to complete her makeup and to do her hair: "Never will I walk out the door if I'm not complete. That's just tacky as hell!" The ladies (somewhat) reluctantly leave Chrissy's ass behind and take off for their jobs by car.

Segment 3: Time to Work! The ladies find out they will be working at Matisse Footwear, which makes high-end women's shoes as well as a more affordable line called Coconuts. Michael Katz, the Matisse CEO, addresses the ladies and (after having consulted with Viscusi) starts doling out the job assignments. Leanne, Courtnee and Pam, thought to be "efficient and organized," are assigned office duty. Jessica and Jackie, allegedly having "good voices," are assigned to sales. Gia and Amber are assigned to warehouse inventory duty (Chrissy was too, but she's back at the house still doing her makeup). Erica is assigned to be Manager of all the ladies: "I'm the manager. I got the best job out of everyone. I knew I deserved it because I'm in law school. There's no real competition when it comes to intelligence."

In sales, Jessica and Jackie have to make cold calls, which they HATE! In the office, Courtnee, Pam and Leanne have to work on sorting papers and stuffing envelopes. The second best line of the episode comes here, as Pam spouts, "This task is so maindune!" (In a true Archie Bunker-type misspeak, Pam obviously confused the syllables of the word, "mundane"!).

OK, so Erica obviously sees her manager role as finally being her opportunity to turn the tables on Gia and Jessica, who so often have ganged up on Erica with their verbal abuse (with the arrogant, yet timid, Erica just sitting there and taking it). Erica struts in to observe the job performance of Jessica and Jackie in sales. Jackie has taken to the task, and is doing a good job. Jessica, however, isn't doing too well on the cold calls, and Erica tells her that "maybe you should be a little bit less abrasive." Erica then forces Jessica to listen to one of Jackie's calls, telling Jessica, "listen to how it's done." Jessica is fumin'!

Out in the warehouse, Gia hates her work, which involves going and finding orders in the warehouse inventory. Erica struts out to check up on Gia's performance. Gia goes off on her: "You're not my manager, go away, get out my f*ckin face!" Then this exchange: Erica: "Ok, well, I'm just going to have to report all of this. You have a terrible attitude." Gia: "Yeah, and you have a flat ass!" Erica walks off, but again starts talking about being named manager because she's in law school. Gia has an angry meltdown: "WHO CARES YOU'RE IN LAW SCHOOL, IDIOT! I WENT TO LAW SCHOOL, I WENT TO LAW SCHOOL, I WENT TO LAW SCHOOL!" Gia also confides that she's "going to have an anxiety attack over this woman."

Erica reports to CEO Michael that Gia's not doing her job and is being "very unprofessional and is using profanities" (Memo to Erica -- the World Hates a Rat). Michael tells her that as a manager, it's her job to find ways to deal with difficult people, and he encourages her to try a different, nicer approach with Gia. Meantime back out in the warehouse, Gia is still ranting about Erica, saying: "Managers are supposed to help out, right -- they don't just sit on their fat asses and make doctors appointments for Botox!" That line actually cracked up Amber, who never gets involved in any of these silly arguments between the Bad Girls of the group. Erica strolls out again and actually seems to take CEO Michael's advice by taking a much more conciliatory tone with Gia. But Gia's havin' nothin' of it! "Just go back to your office! -- I want to hit myself with a shoe," barks Gia.

Erica, obviously having fun, then sneaks up on Jessica and listens in on one of Jessica's calls without Jessica seeing her. When Jessica hangs up the call, she's startled to find Erica behind her: "Oh My God, were you standing behind me the whole time you DEMONSEED!" Then back out in the warehouse, it's Erica and Gia in each other's face with a full-on bickering match, with all the ladies gathering to watch and Jessica joining in on Gia's side. "You're vulturing everyone," screeches Jessica at Erica. Then the funniest line of the episode, and the only one that literally and truly made my Laugh Out Loud: Erica blasts, "I feel like Gia is a Wild Animal and Jessica is a Caveman, and I don't know how to communicate with those kinds of people."

CEO Michael gets in the middle of the 3-way bickering of Erica, Gia and Jessica. Gia says that Erica is not her manager, but CEO dude confirms that she is. With that, Gia quits the job and storms out of the joint.

Segment 4: CEO Michael says that from what he just witnessed from Gia's behavior: "I can't have that here. it's counter-productive." Gia is sitting outside the building, and Jessica heads out there to hang out with her. They share their disdain for Erica.

At the end of the work day, Laura shows up and she and CEO Michael meet with the ladies, informing them that they are about to get paid for their day's work. Each lady gets 70 bucks, except for Gia, who only gets 50 since she quit early. The ladies are not happy with them wages, as they feel they should have received several hundred dollars, at least, for their efforts. Erica comments that she feels she should have gotten more than the other ladies since she's in law school and was the manager.

Back at the house, the ladies get a note from Laura Baron saying that they are being rewarded for their work today by getting to partake in a mobile spa in the backyard, although they will have to pick which services they can afford based on today's paycheck. Jessica and Gia are ecstatic to find that the mobile spa includes a spray tan station; but alas, it costs 70 bucks and Gia can't afford it with her $50! When Gia asks why she can't afford the spray tan, the typically quiet Amber again asserts herself, spouting: "Because you're a broke b*tch!" NICE!

Then Ultimate Bad Girl Chrissy, who skipped today's work session, rolls out looking to participate in the mobile spa. Only problem: She's earned no money to be able to buy any of the spa's services. Here, very hot leggy Supermodel type and Nice But Quiet Lady Courtnee starts (much like fellow Nice Lady Amber) to assert herself, stating: "Chrissy, you didn't do the work, you don't deserve the reward, Period! Point Blank!" Damn right and Good For You, Courtnee!

Even Gia, previously in major cahoots with fellow Bad Girl Chrissy, starts going off on Chrissy for blowing off today's work. Chrissy then storms off: "You're Haters! And You're Jealous! I thought you could have made some type of exception for me!" Erica, Pam and Leanne all comment that they feel good for working a job and getting paid and getting a reward (it's small progress for them, but progress nonetheless). BTW, Erica spent her $70 on a pedicure.

That Night: Erica tries to lament to friend Leanne that she (Erica) just doesn't know how to deal with hotheaded Bad Girls Gia and Jessica (since Erica never gets mad -- it's just not her thing). Of course (this show never has any authority or referees hanging around the house), Gia and Jessica get wind of Erica talking about them and march in and another 3-way bickering match ensues. Gia and Jessica accuse Erica (1) of taking advantage of her management position (true, she very much did) and (2) bullying and torturing them (that's pretty choice, however, since it's mostly been Gia and Jessica trying to bully Erica throughout this series).

Gia and Jessica storm off, but Erica clearly has about reached her limit with their antics. Erica starts to become emotional in front of her friend Leanne, saying that it's very hard for her to deal with those two: "I don't know what to do." Psssst: Erica, you should have done what Jackie has so masterfully done since Episode 1: Avoid Their Asses! But since Erica cannot help herself from flashing her high-brow, arrogant attitude at everyone around her, it's basically impossible for her to take the Jackie approach! She's simply destined to butt heads with your Gia and Jessica-type hothead divas of the world. Simple as that.

The segment ends with Laura Baron pulling Jessica aside for a one-on-one session to try to get at the heart of why Jessica keeps letting her bad temper get the best of her (frankly, why was such a session not also conducted with the rather deranged Gia?). Anyway, Jessica opens up to a decent degree in the session, confiding that she was much more easygoing prior to the premature death of her old man, and that she's become much more combative and temper-prone since his death. Laura implores Jessica to stop putting up brick walls against the world and to work on not taking out her anger on the other ladies of the house.

Segment 5: Now it's time for the end-of-episode Group Session between Laura Baron and all the ladies to see who passed for the week and who failed. Surprisingly, Gia again goes off on her former Bad Girl running mate, Chrissy, about how Chrissy always sleeps in, does no work, and blows off all the ladies' duties. Chrissy's reaction: "I'm hot, I'm fabulous, and honestly they (the other ladies) are not. They need to wait on the star." [Aside Observation: Chrissy REALLY needs to find her way into the over-the-top world of Pro Wrestling, since she would SO MUCH FIT RIGHT IN!]

Laura is "very disappointed" in Chrissy's behavior this week. Meantime, Jessica and Leanne both express that they feel good about working this week and earning money. Erica again starts spouting about law school (BTW, and I know this from personal experience: The ability to get accepted to or even graduate from Law School DOES NOT MEAN $HIT -- it really doesn't!) -- Says Erica: "I feel the fact I'm in law school means I was chosen to be Manager, and some of the girls just don't like that."

So Who Passed and Who Failed??? Courtnee again asserts herself strongly in this episode, proclaiming: "I worked, I'm going to pass -- Gia and Chrissy need to fail for not embracing the program!" You Go, Courtnee! At any rate, Courtnee, Amber, Jackie, Leanne and Pam all pass (no surprises there). Chrissy of course fails for blowing off the whole week and its lesson.

Segment 6: Next up is Jessica, who says to Laura Baron, "Can I say something before you fail me?" Laura says, "NO. Know why? Because I'm passing you this week." Third best moment of the episode right here: With the news of Jessica passing, Amber lets out this huge-ass "HEEE-YOOOOO" like one the Duke Boys flying the General Lee over a river or something! Now, Amber is from Savannah, Georgia, a mere 30 miles away from Hazzard County & Roscoe P CoalTrain, and so I guess this comes as no real surprise. But it was very funny! So I digress. Jessica passed, but Laura warns her to reign in her temper and attitude in the future. Jessica admits, "I'm aware I have a bit of a temper." ("A Bit" -- NOOO!).

Erica: She's failed every single prior week, but this week she passes! Laura was impressed that she took her manager job seriously. Gia: Gia tries to plead her case for passing, saying that she didn't even want to go to work, but yet did go and did work until she quit (with a pitch like that, who needs criticisms, right!?). Laura Baron is unimpressed: "But you quit. So you fail."

Who's VIP, Very Improved Princess? Erica actually wins this! "I'm proud of myself, and I deserve to be VIP," crows Erica. Laura Baron's rationale for this reward: Erica took the lesson and work seriously, helped others with resumes, (allegedly) showed leadership and the abililty to change (she changed her tone with Gia at CEO Michael's behest), and showed great restraint when verbally attacked by Gia (I agree with that). BUT AGAIN, Nice Gals like Courtnee and Amber are completely excluded from this Prize since it involves "improvement," and they have both been very well-behaved and contributing since Day 1! It's a very Loaded Prize, aimed to go to ladies who acted badly the prior week(s), only to get their acts together the following week. For the ladies who have ALWAYS acted positively, like Sweeties Courtnee and Amber, they are left out in the cold. Most Unfair!

As the episode ends, Gia is VERY pissed off! "Erica needs to keep her distance from me, because I'm ready to punch her or punch a wall!" As Erica and the other ladies are then shown partying it up in Erica's VIP suite, Gia is shown crying in her bedroom. Then Gia storms out of the entire house and out towards the street. "GET AWAY FROM ME", she yells at everyone! End of Episode.

Upcoming Episodes: In the next episode on Monday, the ladies get to participate in a photo shoot, which they love, but then they find out they also have to do a photo shoot without any makeup on! A meltdown of monumental proportions ensues, since many of these ladies have a HUGE PHOBIA about ever being seen without their makeup! And Chrissy's antics threaten to have her kicked out of the house! (Big Surprise!). Stay tuned...

Final Thoughts: Bad production/editing: They held out Gia storming off at the end of tonight's episode as a cliffhanger, i.e. will she return or not? Then, in the previews of upcoming episodes, it's made clear that she returned! Sorry, but the producers had a very obvious choice here: (1) Use her storming off this episode, but not at the very end as a cliffhanger finish; or (2) Do not show her in your previews of upcoming episodes! Hello!

Boehner the Boozin' "Bar Hopper"?!

The next time republican House minority leader John Boehner goes on one of his loud-mouthed rants on the House floor, someone might consider telling him to go have another drink. That's what MSNBC's Joe Scarborough is saying, leastways. Today Scarborough (a former Florida republican congressman) charged that Boehner is a bar hopper who's always bustin' out of Congress around 5 o'clock to hit the DC bar scene.

Scarborough also said that Boehner's "not a hard worker" and described Boehner as a "disengaged pol whose work ethic doesn't hold a candle to that of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich." To me, those are the real fightin' words here -- being accused of not even living up to standards of Newt Gingrich!

The response from Boehner's spokesperson was a bunch of largely incoherent drivel (perhaps the spokesperson was drinking too?) about Boehner being from a family of 12 kids and how his old man owned a bar (both, obviously, extremely relevant points to the current accusations). The spokesperson, Michael Steel, also claimed that Boehner's only "around town" in DC for fundraising purposes, i.e. basically the classic non-denial denial.

Scarborough and Boehner served together in the House from 1995 to 2001, and it sounds like the two dudes definitely have some issues between them. Maybe they could have a cage match? Just make sure it's held before 5 o'clock.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0610/39219.html

Does Obama Have a Petty Bias AgainstGreat Britain Due to Events of the Past?Sure Looks That Way. & Why Hasn't Anyone Ever Asked Him About It?!

I heard a minute today of deranged right-winger Glenn Beck's radio show, on which he was talking about how Obama's grandfather was brutally tortured for two years (circa 1949-1950) by the British in Kenya during that country's fight for independence from British colonial rule. Beck seemed to treat this story as if it is something new, which it is not, but it most certainly begs the question of why Obama has never been asked about it.

Specifically, I have never seen anyone in the media ask Obama what impact his grandfather's torture has had on Obama's British policy and his behavior towards the British. And even before his election, Obama should have been asked the impact this would have on his British policy, given that Great Britain has historically been America's most imporant ally. Did the MSM (mainstream media) simply drop the ball, or was it deliberate? Regardless, they've really screwed the pooch on this one, since it appears very clear to me that Obama's grandfather's ordeal has impacted the way Obama has dealt with Britain. Let's run through the timeline, shall we?

-December 3, 2008: From google searches, it does not appear that the information concerning the torture of Obama's grandfather came out until multiple media outlets (primarily British ones and Fox News) reported it on 12/3/08 -- a full month after Obama was already elected.

-Mid-February, 2009: Three weeks after his inauguration, Obama abruptly sends a Winston Churchill bust packing back to Britain. The bust had been in the White House on loan from Britain since after 9-11.

-First week of March, 2009: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife travel to DC. Obama tells the Brits at the last minute he wouldn't personally be attending the joint press conference that was planned upon Brown's arrival. In line with diplomatic tradition, Brown during the delegation gives Obama a pen holder made from wood of the famous British warship, the HMS Resolute, as well as the framed commission from that ship. Obama in return dispatches a staffer to Wal-Mart to pick out 25 DVD movies to give to Brown, none of which works in Eurpoean DVD players.

-Flash forward to 2010: A writer for Britain's Telegraph recently described Obama as "the most despised US president since Nixon among the British people." The Telegraph's article complained of the above-listed events as well as Obama's "boot on the throat" campaign against BP ("instead of adopting a constructive, statesmanlike approach") -- a campaign which Telegraph and apparently the British people blame for wiping out half the value of Great Britain's largest company and threatening BP's future as well as the pensions of 18 million British people. And it also hasn't gone unnoticed that just for good measure, Obama has rejected all offers of help from Great Britain (as well as those from other European countries) to help out with the oil spill.

And these are just some examples revealed from a quick google search. I'm sure that further searching would detail other gaffes, slights, and disrespects doled out by the Obama White House towards Britain. The Telegraph concludes that "we are witnessing one of the worst exercises in public diplomacy by a US government in recent memory, one that could cause significant long-term damage to the incredibly important economic and political partnership between Great Britain and the United States." And is that because of or in part due to events that occurred to an Obama ancestor 60 years ago? I think likely so. But we'll never get an answer, now will we, since the MSM -- asleep at the wheel as usual -- apparently will never ask that very relevant question.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1091499/Barack-Obamas-grandfather-tortured-British-Kenyas-Mau-Mau-rebellion.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/barackobama/4623148/Barack-Obama-sends-bust-of-Winston-Churchill-on-its-way-back-to-Britain.html
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/warner-todd-huston/2009/03/07/obamas-british-gift-gaffe-not-reported-u-s-media
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100043808/barack-obama-the-most-unpopular-man-in-britain/

Stop the Press! "Kagan Vows to Rule Impartially," Reports Politico.com

And we have confirmation from CNN, which is reporting at this hour that United States Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan, on the first day today of her Senate confirmation hearings, "pledges open mind, impartiality if confirmed to Supreme Court." Kagan's vow must come as quite the relief for her dem supporters, since it had been widely anticipated that Kagan might testify today that she intends to take to the bench committed to the principles of partiality, non-objectivity, bias, close-mindedness, and even a touch of unfairness just for good measure. But nothin' doin' on that front!

Be sure to check back here for further summaries of the hard-hitting events from this circus (errrr, hearing). As a tease, currently developing is a new update from CNN reporting that "partisanship marks Kagan hearing." Bombshell!

http://www.politico.com/politico44/perm/0610/kagans_opening_remarks_81ce5a92-b7e2-4a90-b7ca-5ab2b899d918.html
http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/06/28/senate.supreme.court/index.html?hpt=C1

"Supreme Court Strikes Down Chicago Handgun Ban," "Extends Gun Owner Rights Nationwide." Let the Left vs. Right Pissing Match Begin in Response!

Meantime, Independents everywhere yawn.

So, did everyone have a nice weekend? Hotter than a rat in a tin $hithouse in Mississippi? It sure was around here.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/28/AR2010062802134_pf.html

The Great Pornograghy Pickle: USSC Nominee Elena Kagan Is Anti-Smut, But Can Either Repubs or Dems Really Use That to Their Advantage?

With Kagan's Senate confirmation hearings to begin tomorrow, an article in this weekend's Politico.com speaks of Kagan's past writings, statements and litigation track record on the subject of restriction of pornography and other sexually explicit speech, which Kagan would reportedly very much like to restrict through the development of novel new legal strategies aimed at cracking down on that type of content. From my read of the article, a lot of what Kagan has espoused as a young lawyer and more recently as solicitor general gets back to the common theme that she believes that judges should be in the business of making judgments identifying new types of speech -- through a wide-open "balancing" of the speech's costs versus its benefits -- as "low value" or "minimal value," such that the speech could be very freely censored and restricted by the government.

One critic alleges that Kagan really only viewed pornography and obscenity law as a sort of starting point that could then be extrapolated to other forms of speech that Kagan views as being "low value." To me, this line of thinking is potentially very dangerous given what I see on a daily basis in this country from a dem and repub party controlled by their extremes, i.e. members of the far left and far right who have an outright disdain and lack of respect for anyone who disagrees with them on anything. For example, I see a huge potential for restrictions upon political speech, such as political speech coming from the right or center, which a liberal like Kagan happens to disagree with and views to be "low value." And what would likewise stop some right-wing judge from similarly trying to apply a willy-nilly "balancing test" to political opinion coming out of the left? I say we leave the ol' speech "balancing test" in the closet, thank you, ma'am. (BTW, the Supreme Court roundly rejected such a balancing test in a Kagan case in recent years). But I digress.

Back to the question of whether dems or repubs might try to use any of this during the confirmation hearings, specifically in reference to the pornography issue. Dems might well like to get into this because Kagan's anti-smut views (generally consistent with many social conservatives' viewpoints) tend to go against the far leftist label that repubs would like to try to hang on her. But Politico reports that dems will be hesitant to get into an issue that previously caused a near civil war within the American feminist movement (anti-censorship feminists versus anti-pornography ones).

On the repub side of things, many more-libertarian type republicans are sure to be concerned with Kagan's viewpoints in this entire area, while socially conservative republicans really wouldn't want to touch Kagan's anti-smut viewpoints with a ten-foot pole. My guess: You will hear very little about any of this from either side. Congressional hearings are all about face-time, grandstanding and speechmaking rather than taking any type of calculated risks, after all -- even in an area of such vital importance as the First Amendment and our free speech protections.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0610/39034_Page3.html

He Gets My Vote for Jerkwad of the Month:Joe Biden Calls Ice Cream Parlor Manager a "Smartass" After Manager Jokes About "Lowering Our Taxes."

OK, I'm not going to harp or rant about this one for too long. But suffice it to say, Joe Biden really needs to learn a thing or two about the dignity of the office of the vice presidency, because when Biden isn't dropping F-bombs or saying something incredibly stupid as if we was George W. Bush's long lost twin, then he's off acting all thin-skinned (a very distinct trait of this White House) with an ice cream parlor manager. Here's what went down this weekend, according to television station WISN in Milwaukee (link to video at bottom, which has predictably also been picked up today by Drudge Report and Real Clear Politics):

Biden, who's in Wisconsin to raise funds for dem Senator Russ Feingold, struts into a Kopps ice cream/frozen custard joint for a photo op and treats himself to some frozen custard. Biden asks the joint's manager, "What do we owe you?" The manager tells Biden, "Don't worry, it's on us," and then jokes with Biden, "Lower our taxes and we'll call it even." Biden is very clearly not amused and walks away without making any eye contact with the manager. Then, after what is described as a few minutes later, the two are seen together again, this time with Biden looking at the manager and telling him, in what I believe to be a fairly serious tone, "Why don't you say something nice instead of being a smartass all the time -- say something nice."

WISN reports that Biden would not take any questions from reporters following the ice cream parlor visit, but the reporter was able to get the manager to go on camera. The manager said he believed Biden was not happy with the "lower our taxes" comment, and also said that later Biden told him, "I'm just kidding." Now, whether the "I'm just kidding" was in reference to Biden's "smartass" blast or something else is not clear from the story.

But I think that's really a moot point. Even if Biden is claiming he was only "kidding" about the "smartass" comment, specifically, that's little more than a largely self-serving, non-credible statement given Biden's obviously serious tone in calling the dude a "smartass." But maybe Biden should be given the benefit of the doubt? After all, calling someone a "smartass" is always very fertile ground for humor and comedy -- a veritable barrel of laughs, as they say. Please. But regardless, as stated at the top, I'm not going to rant and rave about this, since there are much worse things a dude can be called than "smartass." But again, I would just implore the vice president to much more routinely start acting like a vice president instead of the result of some demented cross-breeding experiment between a drunken sailor and Dan Quayle. That's not much of a legacy.

http://www.wisn.com/video/24053410/index.html

If This Slime Was My Hero, I'd Hope Someone Would Send Me In For Shock Therapy.

Reuters reports today from Gori in the country of Georgia (first link at bottom): "Authorities removed a towering statue of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin from the central square of his hometown in the dead of the night on Friday, carting away the monument to Georgia's most famous native." Apparently it was necessary to do this under the cloak of darkness because Stalin's statue and his memory hold a certain degree of popularity in Georgia. As one local journalist is quoted: "[The statue's removal] was very unexpected. I think many people will be very angry."

But never fear, all you Stalin-adoring Georgians! You'll still be able to see this statue of your murderous former dictator and favorite native son at a Theater Near U! Specifically, the statue has merely been removed to a local Stalin museum, where it will be publicly displayed in a courtyard.

Wow. A museum, statue, and public sentiment commemorating one of the most evil men to ever walk the earth. Dude was Adolph Hitler's left-wing older brother, responsible for the murder of millions of people through political and ethnic purges (check Wiki link below). Together, Hitler and Stalin serve as important and relatively recent reminders of the absolute extremes to which far left and far right ideology, paranoia and hate can be taken. Stalin and Hitler are never to be forgotten, but they should also never be admired or memorialized.

http://alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LDE65O04Q.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_stalin

"Crazed Sex Poodle"?! Watch It There, Missy. This Man Invented the Damn Internet!

As the news has broken in the past 12 hours about allegations from a 54-year-old Oregon masseuse that Al Gore fondled and groped her in 2006, today the details of the woman's report to the police are emerging. Among them: She says that Gore was a "giggling 'crazed sex poodle' " who flashed a "come hither look before pouncing on her in a Portland hotel suite" at the Hotel Lucia.

But the masseuse didn't stop there with her Inconvenient allegations. She also portrayed Gore "as a tipsy, handsy predator who forced her to drink Grand Marnier, pinned her to a bed, and forcibly French kissed her." She also reportedly described Gore as a person "with a violent temper, as well as [an] extremely dictatorial commanding attitude besides his Mr. Smiley Global Warming concern persona." OUCH!

And that's not even the worst of it! As The Smoking Gun reports, "after fleeing Gore's suite, the woman returned home to discover, a la Lewinsky, 'stains on the front of my black slacks.' Suspecting that the stains were Gore bodily fluids, the woman mad sure not to clean them."

The masseuse is so far anonymous, but we know that's not likely to last very long. She's reportedly looking to sell her story, and so I think we'll learn her identity in pretty short order. Stay tuned...

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2010/0624101gore1.html

Episode 3 Tonight of "You're Cut Off" on VH1! The Spoiled Rotten Brats Are Forced to Go Clothing Shopping in a Thrift Shop!

(In case you're not familiar with this hot new reality series, try this primer from Episode 1: http://independentrage.blogspot.com/2010/06/episode-1-tonight-of-hot-new-vh1.html).
(And read more specifically about the participating Nine Ladies at this link: http://www.vh1.com/shows/youre_cut_off/cast.jhtml)

Nutshell Synopsis of Episode 3: The ladies are NOT happy about being forced to participate in a fashion show with only thrift shop threads in tow, as celebrity style peeps Sam Seboura, Perez Hilton and Adrianna Costa all make guest appearances as judges. Plus there is drama galore and near fisticuffs amongst the ladies as the Beautiful Erica serves as her typical lightning rod self for stirring up the emotions of the other bad girls in the group! And did you know that Erica is going to law school!? Lord Help Us All!

Segment 1: The show opens with two of the three blondes -- Erica and Leanne -- starting to strike up a real friendship. This reality series is not poorly put together, and loves the technique of foreshadowing, and we get that right here, as Erica and Leanne resolve that "no matter what, we're friends and are not gonna argue."

Jackie is the VIP (Very Important Princess) from last week and thus is tasked with doling out chores this week, and a note from Moderator Laura Baron reveals that the ladies must complete all their chores within the next 2 hours, or else they will not get their full $200 of grocery money for the week. Bad girls Gia and Chrissy, plus newly formed bad girl Jessica, all refuse to get out of bed to help out with chores.

The 4th bad girl among the 9 ladies -- Erica -- in contrast has no problem doing her chore of mowing the law, which she views as good exercise. She also notes, "No one is a bigger princess than me!" Meantime, bad girls Jess and Gia refuse their assigned chores of garbage detail and scrubbing toilets, with Gia commenting: "My hands are not for working or for anything except looking pretty and wearing diamonds." Fellow bad girl Chrissy likewise refuses her assignment of mopping, saying that such work will get in the way of her getting herself ready for the day.

Refusing to work, Gia and Jessica need something to do, so they sit down and start going off on Erica, and they start working on Leanne in a clear effort to undermine the Leanne-Erica friendship. Erica strolls by, sees that Leanne is not defending her, and gets pissed, requesting that Leanne give Erica back the princess crown that Erica had loaned to Leanne to wear that day (yes, an actual princess crown). Leanne begrudgingly agrees. Then bad girls Gia, Jessica and Chrissy follow Erica back to her bedroom, where they start up some good old fashioned ganging up and verbal bullying, telling Erica that she "needs a lobotomy" and that the bathroom should be her bedroom.

Next all the ladies are driven off to meet with Moderator Laura Baron. She introduces them to celebrity stylist Sam Saboura, who grills the ladies about how much they spend weekly and yearly on clothing, accessories and jewelry. Amber, for example, comments that she spent $70,000 on those items just last year. Bad girl Chrissy rubs Sam the wrong way from the start, ignoring him and looking incessantly into her compact. When Sam comments that he likes to advise his clients to mix up high-end clothes with thrift shop fare, Chrissy blasts, "Is that where you got that suit?" Off camera, Sam comments, "I'd like to go snatch that hair weave off her head and tell her to stop with the act, which is all full of insecurity."

Segment 2: Sam then engages the ladies in a little contest to see if they can tell the difference between an expensive item and an inexpensive one. First up are ladies dresses. Chrissy says, "I cannot be fooled," but yet she (and about half the group) erroneously picks the $50 dress over the $500 one. Then it's champagne, and most of the ladies pick the $35 bottle over the $195 one. Next it's diamond rings. Erica says, "I know my jewelry," but still she and several others choose the $15 fake ring over the $9,000 ring! E is in SHOCK and totally flabbergasted! Up next, it's a Pate tasting, and most of the ladies pick wrong again, choosing the $2 "pureed hot dog" over the $40 REAL Pate!

Now it's Thrift Shop time! The ladies must come up with three outfits at the ol' thrift shop: (1) a daytime Chic look for a lady; (2) a nightime sexy look for a lady; and (3) a hot look for a male model. They are divided into three groups of 3 ladies, each group tasked with picking out all three outfits at the thrift ship on a measly budget of $300 total. The producers strangely avoid teaming any of the bad relationships together (which would have made for great reality TV), instead assigning the rather benign groups of: (1) Team 1: Pam, Erica & Amber; (2) Team 2: Chrissy, Leanne & Jackie; and (3) Team 3: Gia, Courtnee & Jessica. All three teams hit the Crossroads Trading Company thrift shop in LA.

As Team 3 does its shopping, the most down-to-earth lady of these 9, Courtnee (who is also amongst the 2-3 hottest of the group), makes the most impressive remark of any of the ladies at the thrift shop, commenting that they were finding "great things" at the shop and that she would have absolutely no problem going back to the thrift shop in the future for more shopping. Yep, that's Courtnee, alright! Meantime, as Team 2 checks out, Leanne is completely amazed that they are able to buy so much $hit for a mere $72! She spouts, "I really never knew that you could buy shoes that don't cost at least $800!"

Fashion Show Time! It's also surprise time on the fashion runway, as it's revealed that in addition to Sam Saboura, the ladies will also have to endure the judging of fashion journalist Adrianna Costa and celebrity blogger Perez Hilton! Team 1 is first up to present, and their theme involves outfits that can be stripped down more barebones as the night progresses. Erica, however, has a bit of trouble as she tries to remove some of her outfit in accordance with the theme. As Erica struggles with the clothing take-off, Hilton tells her to watch out for laying down a "crotch flash"! But alas, Erica does not get the message, and a Crotch Flash is precisely what she then gives the judges!!!

Segment 3: Team 1 continues with their runway exhibition. The three judges seems to generally like Team 1's presentation. Team 2 then seems to bomb with the judges, despite Chrissy's predictably arrogant rant -- "I know they didn't have nothing to say but DAMN, when they seen me coming!" Like Team 1, Team 3 then comes out and seems to impress the judges.

Then it's time for the grade card from the 3 judges: Team 1 -- The reviews were mixed, with Sam commenting to Erica that "seeing your Beav all over the runway, I don't know about that, but I think the team did a great job." (Hey, I'm just quoting over here!) As could easily be predicted from earlier, Team 2 did indeed bomb, with Perez hilariously telling them, including Chrissy, that they just looked "cheap" over and over. An aside here: From much of what I have previously read from Perez Hilton, I was definitely NOT a fan. But my tune has changed after watching this episode tonight. I may disagree with him on plenty of things, but dude seems very genuine in everything he says. I was impressed. But I digress.

On to Team 3's grade: The judges really liked Team 3, and again more props to Courtnee (the very tall beauty queen from Charlotte, NC, the hometown of The Nature Boy Ric Flair -- WOOOOO!), who garnered the best compliment of the night from these judges, who commented that she walked out totally looking like a bona fide runway model! (Heck, I've been saying that since Episode 1!). So who wins? No surprise there: Team 3 (Courtnee, Gia and Jessica) win the contest, being the only Team in which all three members impressed the judges.

The ladies head back to the house, and it appears that they are gettin' all liquored up! Hello. Jessica takes a pretty bad spill in the hallway, as it looks like she's drunk. Jessica then sits down with Leanne and they continue the Erica-bashing, specifically concerning Erica's story about her dog having a bar mitzvah (you just can't make this stuff up!).

So Erica rolls by, and is again offended by her supposed friend Leanne engaging in talk about Erica behind Erica's back. Then verbal altercation! Erica: "We will never be friends again. You need botox." Leanne: "You need more botox." Erica: "You're fat too." (BTW, none of these 9 hot ladies is "fat" in the least!). Even nice gal Amber is taken aback by that "fat" blast from Erica. Leanne is visibly very upset by the "fat" blast. Then the show suddenly flashes forward a few minutes to find Leanne and Erica on the edge of fisticuffs! Leanne shouts at Erica that she is a "laughing stock in this house."

Segment 4: The next morning, Erica says she feels a bit vulnerable and scared from all the ladies verbally attacking her the previous night. "I always seem to be in the middle of drama, but I feel it's not my fault," she says. And right here, I'll offer an opinion: Most of Erica's problems have been driven by the other bad girls, i.e. Gia, Chrissy and Jessica, who do not like her and frankly are likely jealous of her incredible good looks. That has led them to try to start crap with her whenever they can, and Erica (who is NOT an alpha gal or a fighter) always reacts with her defense mechanism of commenting back with a blast on the other gal's appearance. Erica has plenty of issues, and is extremely arrogant and self-centered, but her being at the center of so many problems on this show has, in my view, been almost exclusively driven by the bad attitudes and jealousy of Gia, Chrissy and Jessica. That's just how I honestly see it.

So back to the show: It's Full Metal Jacket-style Motivation, as Laura Baron penalizes ALL the ladies for the failure of Jessica, Gia and Chrissy to do any chores at the start of the episode. The normal $200 stipend for the week's groceries has been reduced to $125 based on a $25 penalty for each of those 3 ladies refusing to work any chores. To explain this motivational technique: Penalize everyone for the breakdowns of the few in hopes that the majority will then assert a bunch of peer pressure (i.e. emotional abuse and/or physical violence) on the few so that they will get their act in line.

Frankly, having watched Full Metal Jacket several times previously, and then watching this episode, I've become convinced that this particular motivational technique is a lazy load of horse$hit. It's employed by leaders who are so lazy that they would rather task their underlings with bringing people into line rather than truly leading the group themselves. We saw that with R. Lee Ermey's pathetic character in Jacket, and we saw that tonight with Laura Baron's leadership style on this show. Leaders can do better. But again I digress.

So next, Jackie (as VIP) is required by Laura Baron to pick 2 ladies (she picks Pam and Jessica) to go grocery shopping for the week on the reduced budget of $125. It's at the grocery store where we view the hilarious site of Jackie having her first encounter with a supermarket weekly specials circular!: "This food store has, like, this book of coupons. I've never even used one before. I mean, do you have to, like, tell someone you're using it, or do they just automatically know?" Choice Moment: Jessica, who refused to do chores, resulting in the reduced budget for the group, actually complains in the grocery store that they have to purchase cheaper stuff due to their limited budget! Good grief! At the checkout counter, they are over $125 and have to throw some stuff back in order to get under their limit.

Back at the ladies' house: Make up or break up? Erica and Leanne have a sitdown on the patio. Erica says she's very sorry for calling Leanne "fat". Erica says that her reflex when she's attacked is to blast back at the appearance of the attacker. Leanne reveals that she was so sensitive to the "fat" insult because Leanne previously had an eating disorder. Erica reveals that she also previously had an eating disorder. Leanne accepts Erica's apology, and an uneasy truce ensues.

Then the ladies gather for their end-of-the-episode meeting with Laura Baron to see who will get passing grades this week, and who will fail. First, though, come Sam Saboura's opinions on the ladies: He was impressed by Leanne's progress after the thrift shop visit and felt she learned something from it. He was very UNimpressed by Chrissy's behavior of constantly looking into her compact and ignoring him, and also talking over him when she felt like it. Chrissy comments, "he's just a hater." Laura Baron disagress, and chastizes Chrissy for disrespecting Laura, Sam and the entire show through her rude behavior. Chrissy then asks if she can be "excused" from the group meeting -- yet another bit of very disrespectful behavior (although it appears that she never actually left, or at least not for very long).

Segment 5: Laura Baron then takes up with the ladies the issue of all the personal attacks that have been flying back and forth between the four "bad girls," i.e. Gia, Chrissy, Jessica and Erica. Erica remarks again that when she's attacked, she always reacts by insulting the other gal's appearance. And then, in an extremely surprising moment, the ultra-high-strung diva Gia (who had been rather quiet this episode by her standards) breaks down, becomes emotional, and says that she thinks (1) that all the ladies are not acting like they normally would because they have been cut off and stuck in a very abnormal environment, and (2) that she's very much missing her daughter, and that she may well be open to better bonding with her daughter through things like changing diapers (which Gia previously vowed NEVER to do). I actually was impressed with Gia's opening up here and think her emotional missing of her daughter was very genuine.

Bottom line: Who passed, who failed this week? Passed: As you might expect, Amber, Jackie, Courtnee, Pam, and even Leanne (whose spat with Erica was her only controversy this week). Big Surprise Passing: GIA! But as Laura Baron made clear: It was only because GIA totally opened up at this final meeting (a big first step, says Laura).

Failing: (1) OBVIOUSLY Chrissy (horrific attidude -- truth be told, she's perhaps the one person among these nine that you would LEAST ever want to know or meet in real life!); (2) also Erica Fails, which I thought was a bit unfair given that E did her chores and (as commented above) alot of the conflict she garners comes exclusively from the other bad-acting gals who do really seem to gang up on her, with Erica never starting it; and (3) Jessica Fails -- Jessica has gone in 2 weeks from being on the good side of things, to being a middle ground person, to now being a bona fide Bad Girl in this rotten house, with her awful attitude and always losing her temper (she is an "Italian firebrand," after all!).

Segment 6: VIP (Very Improved Princess) of the week goes to Leanne. I have a bit of an issue here. I think it should be Very Impressive Princess, Not Very Improved Princess. Because the criteria of "improvement" from prior bad behavior is going to forever lock Courtnee out of getting this award, since she's been on the straight and narrow from the start of this series. Put another way: She's had the best attitude and has been the best behaved lady from Day 1. And she deserves credit for that. But how the hell is she ever going to win when the touchstone is most "improved" princess? Please.

Anyway, following Leanne's award of VIP, Jessica is AGAIN BESIDE HERSELF THIS WEEK over the VIP honoree, ranting and raving outside to Chrissy. Pretty pathetic stuff right there to end the episode.

Upcoming Episodes: It appears that next week, the ladies will be forced to fill out job applications and actually work a job! That should be fun. And it's revealed that Erica is actually going to Law School! No comment.

Final Thoughts: Courtnee continues to stand out the most in this group (both behaviorally and physically), and yet gets no credit whatsoever, largely because she doesn't go around acting like a jerkwad a$$clown. She's really getting shortchanged on this show, and I'll repeat my sentiment from last week: She's about the only ONE lady on this show that I think a dude would EVER want to meet in real life. Shame on the show for not featuring her more.

U-S-A, U-S-A!!!

They sure know how to make us sweat! Today the United States' Landon Donovan scored the winning goal in the waning moments of second half stoppage time, as the U.S. national soccer team defeats Algeria 1-0 to advance to the second round of the World Cup. Bottom line: If the Americans do not score that dramatic goal, then they would have been heading home today because they would not have advanced to the second round. Talk about your high drama.

http://www.worldcup.cbssports.com/page/NewsDetail/0,,13041~2077324,00.html?tag=coverlist_active;coverlist_photo

Judge Says to Obama's Deepwater Drilling Moratorium: Chill, Baby, Chill!

Today U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman in Louisiana granted a preliminary injunction against the moratorium, effectively halting it. "We will immediately appeal," proclaimed Robert Gibbs at the White House. Said the Judge in his decision:

"The court is unable to divine or fathom a relationship between the findings [of a government report following the recent BP Deepwater Horizon rig explosion & oil spill] and the immense scope of the moratorium . . . The blanket moratorium, with no parameters, seems to assume that because one rig failed and although no one yet fully knows why, all companies and rigs drilling new wells over 500 feet also universally present an imminent danger."

Key words here: "No one yet fully knows why" the explosion occurred. Now, that's funny! I thought it was settled that BP is absolutely to blame, liable and legally responsible for the explosion and the oil spill? I mean, just ask Obama, right? (Nevermind that no such determination has yet been made by any court of law or jury -- you know, that pesky little Due Process thing in the 5th and 14th Amendments?)

After all, Obama decreed from on high that BP is fully responsible and told BP -- lest BP wanted to incur the full wrath of the White House and the Congress it controls -- that BP shall (there was no request involved) set up the $20 billion fund to be controlled by one of Obama's "czars" for payouts to persons allegedly damaged by the spill. Republicans, out of political correctness and with their eyes completely focused on polling data, have followed along with Obama -- lock, stock and barrel.

Well, I'm an Independent, and so I need not worry about polls or someone yanking a cushy committee chair from me. And a lot of what I've been watching go on with this story is rather frightening from an administration (and a complicit republican party) that seems much more focused on playing golf and rushing to judgment to blame people for the spill rather than stopping the leak and cleaning up the damn spill to begin with. As I've stated now a number of times in this space, so many of us Independents really cannot wait to see your party in November, Mr. President (and we're gonna kick some repub incumbents to the curb as well).

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-06-22/u-s-deepwater-oil-drilling-ban-lifted-today-by-new-orleans-federal-judge.html
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0610/38855.html

"Rahm, U Lie"?

That's Sarah Palin's new Twitter blast to White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, following Emanuel's statements over the weekend on ABC's This Week. After the much criticized "apology" of Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX) to the BP CEO last week (in which Barton accused dems and the White House of conducting a "shakedown" of BP), Emanuel on This Week tried to attribute that same sentiment to the republican party at large. Palin's full Twitter retort:

“RahmEmanuel= as shallow/narrowminded/political/irresponsible as they come,to falsely claim Barton's BP comment is 'GOP philosophy'Rahm,u lie.”

OK. Plenty to criticize here all the way around. First, just as I yesterday criticized that old coot in Missouri for trying to sum up democrats everywhere as "parasites," I will also criticize Emanuel for attributing Barton's sentiments (which were widely denounced by many repubs) to republicans everywhere. But does that make Emanuel a "liar" in this instance? Of course not. He's simply expressing an opinion, as misplaced as that opinion might be. So as has become fairly typical of Palin, her rhetoric here is the over-the-top and not really appropriate. (See also the third-grade-style namecalling -- "shallow/narrowminded/political/irresponsible").

And completely leaving aside its substance, what's with that Twitter message? A person who is supposed to have presidential aspirations using "u" for "you" and cramming words together just so they will fit within the 140-character limit for tweets? And an equal sign? Memo to Sarah: If your message won't fit within 140 characters, then divide it into two messages! Many people, including myself, often do precisely what she did in terms of using abbreviations and cramming words together in tweets -- but none of us are public figures of the highest order and/or potential candidates for president someday. I realize that this is the new Twitter/Facebook era of communication in America, but that doesn't mean that all rules are out the window.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/06/rahm-u-lie-palin-tweets-her-pushback-to-white-houses-emanuel-statement-on-republicans-and-bp-compens.html