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From the caption:
"Early morning shoppers at K-Mart in Philadelphia reach their arms out for video games, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2003. Several department stores and other retailers are offering enticing consumer discounts this Thanksgiving."
Desperation is never pretty. Celebrate annual Buy Nothing Day.
Pull up the hot cocoa and the Dolly Madison cakes--it's time for holiday TV. Sure, you could buy all these favorites on DVD with the special features and the behind-the-scenes interviews. Or you can see them for free, like you did when you were 6 and your parents let you stay up late just this once. (Check your local listings for exact times.)
You'll notice I left off some shows, such as the Scooby-Doo Christmas Special, Celine Dion's Christmas Travesty in Vegas, and that American Idol Yowl-Along. However, if you really want to inflict pain, I think this will be your best bet. Tori Spelling as Scrooge--the mind boggles. And I say this as someone who recently sat through "Ebbie," a modern adaptation of A Christmas Carol featuring Susan Lucci as the Scrooge character. When it comes to the Lifetime Movie Network, I have no shame, as The Boyfriend often reminds me.
For a more complete list of shows airing this season, go here.
The Can't-Miss Trinity:
''A Charlie Brown Christmas,'' 8 p.m., Dec. 2, ABC. Still as much fun as it was in 1965. You know you love it. Loo-loo-loo...
'How the Grinch Stole Christmas,'' 8 p.m., Dec. 18, WB. TBS may run this also. Worth watching, and not least because you'll be scoring a moral victory against the Jim Carrey movie.
''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,'' 8 p.m., Dec. 9, CBS. The old one, with Burl Ives. Yes, I know it makes no sense, what with the elf who wants to be a dentist, the Island of Misfit Toys, and the Abominable Snowman. But considering the starting premise is a flying reindeer with a glowing nose, you can't get too picky.
Some Others:
''Miracle on 34th Street,'' 2 P.M., Nov. 27, NBC. The original, not the remake. He is, he IS Santa Claus.
"A Christmas Story," 8 P.M., Nov. 27, TBS. If I remember correctly, TBS also runs a 24-hour marathon of this one, usually on Christmas Day. Just in case you need another viewing of the frozen pole incident (aaugh) or that leg-lamp. Say it with me--ra-jeel-ay...
Rankin Bass Marathon, 2 P.M.-1 A.M., Dec. 6; 3 P.M.-Midnight, Dec. 21, ABC Family. This sounds like torture to me, but to each his own. Maybe now my brother-in-law can hear that Heat Miser song he likes.
Sigh.
I should have known. I should have remembered her defense of OJ, and our arguments over the Elian Gonzales case. I should have assumed that my mother would take a view absolutely opposite mine. Still, I was caught off-guard yesterday when I discovered she believes Michael Jackson is being framed. It's hard enough to watch his apologists on TV, but to have one in your own family... Maddening, because her logic rests on three shaky pillars: "He hasn't hurt anyone; they should just leave him alone," "Someone's just looking for a payday," and, "That DA is just out to get him." Gah.
My personal view: I think he did it, but I don't think this case will go the way everyone expects. I'm not even certain he'll be found guilty. I don't think the DA will go for a plea bargain this time. But, if the accuser is really Gavin Arvizo (as the U.S. press has been hinting and as the foreign press has stated outright), I think he'll be a terrible prosecution witness. Even I've seen the footage of him and his mother talking about how wonderfully innocent the sleepovers were. In addition, his parents are currently in an acrimonious divorce/custody battle, which may have been a factor in bringing the case. Thus, the defense could have a field day. I think the DA is going to have to rely heavily on other evidence--the rumored "love letters" (ick ick ICKY), videotape, etc. I hope it's enough.
I'm really not looking forward to watching the defense team make mincemeat out of a 13-year-old witness. On the other hand, some analysts have been suggesting that we could see a "cleaned-up" Michael at the time of trial--i.e., no makeup, no faux military insignia, etc. That, I want to see.
A few clips from yesterday's Jackson-fest.
From the Washington Post, a woman who probably shouldn't be a child-care worker:
At Neverland Ranch, the gates to the compound were closed Thursday. The mansion and grounds are not visible from the roadside. Danielle Lara, a 19-year-old child care worker, drove to the scene in a car plastered with pictures of Jackson.
"I feel in my heart he's innocent," Lara said. "I was crying when I saw him in handcuffs. I watched it all day on TV." Lara said she couldn't believe Jackson would harm a child. "He's spent countless dollars on kids," she said. "He loves kids to death."
Logic lessons courtesy of The Lawyer and That One Brother, No That Other One:
While Jackson was being booked, his attorney, Mark Geragos, stood before a phalanx of TV cameras and said: "Michael is here. He came back specifically to confront these charges head-on. He is greatly outraged by the bringing of these charges. He considers this to be a big lie. If these charges were true, I assure you Michael would be the first to be outraged."
So, if he did it, he would be outraged that he had done it? Whaaa?
And from Jermaine:
"He is innocent," Jermaine Jackson told CNN. "We are sick and tired of people speaking on my brother's behalf who do not know us."
"My brother is not eccentric. We had an incredible and wonderful childhood," he said.
Of course, it wouldn't officially be a spectacle without Jesse Jackson:
Los Angeles - US civil rights leader Jesse Jackson said on Thursday he had "grave concerns" over prosecutors' handling of Michael Jackson's child abuse case, branding a huge raid on his home as "overkill."
And from the L.A. Times, proof that the January arraignment is a long way away:
Outside Neverland Ranch on Thursday, news crews grew increasingly hungry for some kind of action. When a tarantula skittered across the asphalt of Figueroa Mountain Road, news crews surrounded it with lights and cameras.
A very loooong way away.
Best comment I've heard on the whole Michael Jackson mess:
"I guess this answers 'Who's Bad?'" -- Teri at Blue Tattoo
The next question: When they take his belt and shoelaces, will they also confiscate the tip of his nose?
I don't like Eminem. At all. I think his views, attitudes and behavior are vile. I wouldn't take one of his CDs for free, much less actually buy one. But I'm not too keen on hypocrisy either. Thus, this article in Newsday caught my eye.
Magazine: Eminem's Low NotePlays '93 recording of rapper disparaging black women
The ongoing battle between Eminem and The Source magazine escalated to the next level yesterday, as the magazine called a news conference to play an untitled song that features the Detroit rapper using a racial slur and disparaging black women.
Eminem doesn't dispute the tape's authenticity, which sounds like a freestyle rap.
...However, Kim Osorio, the magazine's editor, said, "These are racist remarks by someone who has the ability to influence millions of minds."
The magazine plans to devote its February issue to the tape and plans to include a CD of the song in the issue so fans can hear it. "This is something we can't turn a blind eye to," said Mays, the magazine's publisher. "This is the key unlocking a much bigger picture."
Wow. Props to The Source for taking the moral high ground here. It sure is a good thing the magazine is busy ferreting out sexists and racists in rap, seeing as how they're so well hidden. And it's also good to know The Source has never profited from such purveyors or promoted them. Because that would be downright hypocritical.
Just for a lark, let's check out a recent cover of the magazine. Hmm...Ludacris. OK. Not a rap fan myself, I'm thinking that would be the same Ludacris who wrote the touching songs, "Ho," "Move Bitch," and "Freaky Thangs," where he shows the depths of his senstivity with lines like:
"I love them chicks that be thick as a loaf of bread
Long as I can still grab her legs, and push 'em up by her head"
Nice. I'm sure NOW will be sending him flowers any day.
Or, you can go two-for-one on insensitivity to African Americans AND women with "Hoes in my Room." Everybody sing along:
"Now it was five B.A.P hoes and they look like trash
But one was midget, so we'll just say four and a half."
Surely The Source will do an equally in-depth investigation of Ludacris next month. They won't even have to dig up an old tape for the press conference; they can just play one of his CDs. These won't be hard to find, given that Mr. L's sales make him, "someone who has the ability to influence millions of minds." Failure to follow up this way would make the magazine’s publishers look like little more than hypocrites with a vendetta.
Perish the thought.
14-Year-Old Signs Contract With Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer, competing against some of the top clubs in the world, has signed the teenage soccer star Freddy Adu to a six-year contract. Adu, 14, will play next season for D.C. United, becoming the youngest player in league history. He plans to live at home with his family in Potomac, Md.
Well, I would hope so, considering he's not old enough to rent an apartment or drive a car. Or do much of anything, really. His parents, although old enough to know better, clearly need a lesson in Finding the Appropriate Environment for Your Child.
They've started the party a day early in the U.K., as evidenced by the following story in the Guardian.
This evening a protester was arrested by police after scaling the gates of Buckingham Palace. Lindis Percy, an experienced political activist, climbed the gates at 4pm and hung up a banner - an upside-down Stars and Stripes - enscribed with slogans protesting against Mr Bush's visit. She sat on top of the gates for over two hours [emphasis mine] before climbing down and being taken into police custody.
I just have to wonder: 14,000 policemen in London and they couldn't get her down for more than two hours?
In other news, Buckingham Palace has erected this...thing to welcome the Bushes.
It's supposed to be like a medieval jousting tent. No, really, it is. It's not too popular with everyone else, including one anonymous policeman who would only say, "I wouldn't have it in my front room."
Haven't bought your Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Solstice/Non-Denominational Winter Festival cards yet?
Do a little good with your money this year. All the organizations below are selling cards to raise funds. They could use the cash.
And if you know an organization that should be on this list, post it in the Comments.
General
UNICEF
Amnesty International
Children's Defense Fund
Animals
American Humane Association
Audubon Society
Humane Society of the U.S.
Marine Mammal Center
Health
St. Jude's (They'll also take your old cards and make them into new ones--cool!)
Children's Healthcare of Atlanta's AFLAC Cancer Center
Muscular Dystrophy Association
Courage Center (Provides rehabiliation services, programs, and activities for the disabled)
Hunger/Home
Connecticut Food Bank
Greater Chicago Food Depository
Second Harvest
Project Bread
Meals on Wheels: This one or this one
Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless
Peace/Anti-War
Syracuse Cultural Workers
Sound Nonviolent Opponents of War
At Tony Blair's suggestion, George Bush sat for an exclusive interview with Britain's Sun newspaper. The Sun is a tabloid and chiefly known as the home of the Page 3 Girl. Full text here.
The best line: “I want your readers to know the military is my LAST choice, not first choice.”
That was pretty much his attitude in the late 1960s, wasn't it?
