[Guest post by DRJ]
The Austin American-Statesman blog reports that, even though Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, Barack Obama claims he won the Texas pledged delegates after today’s state conventions. The Statesman also reprinted this Obama press release:
“With more than 56 percent of the results tallied from today’s 284 Democratic district conventions across Texas, Sen. Barack Obama currently is projected to earn a 38-29 pledged delegate win in the Texas caucuses, exactly as projected on the day after the March 4th precinct caucuses. The nine delegate margin in the caucuses means Obama will gain a net margin of five pledged delegates from Texas because Senator Clinton narrowly won the Texas primary by only four delegates, 65-61.”
As well as this dig against Hillary’s campaign from an Obama spokesman:
“Despite the Clinton campaign’s widespread attempts to prevent many Texans from participating in their district convention, the voters of Texas confirmed Senator Obama’s important delegate win in the Lone Star State,” said Obama spokesman Josh Earnest. “Today’s record-shattering turnout sends a clear message that the American people are ready for change in Washington and new leadership in the White House that will stand up for working families.”
Texas Democrats have established a system where delegates can upset the popular vote and national superdelegates trump both. This is not a good situation for the Democrats.
NOTE: This Houston Chronicle article has more details regarding this afternoon’s conventions.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
UCLA won BIG over Xavier to claim the first slot in next week’s Final Four:
“Surprise, surprise. UCLA is back in the Final Four.
After flirting with trouble for two rounds, the top-seeded Bruins blitzed Xavier 76-57 Saturday to earn their third straight trip to the Final Four and record 18th overall.”
Congratulations to UCLA and Bruins fans everywhere.
UPDATE: North Carolina held off a determined Louisville 83-73 to claim the second spot. The final two spots will be determined tomorrow.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
No wonder newspapers report the economy is in dire shape. It’s dire for them:
“The newspaper industry has experienced the worst drop in advertising revenue in more than 50 years.
According to new data released by the Newspaper Association of America, total print advertising revenue in 2007 plunged 9.4% to $42 billion compared to 2006 — the most severe percent decline since the association started measuring advertising expenditures in 1950.”
However, online ad revenue showed gains of 31.4% in 2005, 31.4% in 2006, and 18.8% in 2007. Online revenue “now represents 7.5% of total newspaper ad revenue in 2007 compared to 5.7% in 2006.”
— DRJ
This was published on March 27, 2008:
McCain on Iraq: An article in Sunday’s Section A about Republican Sen. John McCain’s positions on the Iraq war said investigations, including the 9/11 Commission Report and a report this month financed by the Pentagon, found no evidence of a “collaborative relationship” between Al Qaeda and the Iraqi regime. The commission report said there was no evidence of a “collaborative operational relationship” between the two.
This correction implies that the Pentagon report included the phrase “collaborative relationship,” when in fact, it did not. So: close, but no cigar.
By the way, I explained the significance of the word “operational” in this post.
[Guest post by DRJ]
Barack Obama has likened Jeremiah Wright to an old uncle who is out of step with the times, but the parishioners at a South-side Chicago Roman Catholic church think Wright is A-OK:
“The Rev. Jeremiah Wright got a raucous standing ovation when he entered Saint Sabina church on the city’s South Side on Friday night, according to video from WBBM-TV. Members yelled “Hallelujah!” as Wright embraced The Rev. Michael Pfleger, Saint Sabina’s pastor.
The smiling Wright accepted an invitation to give the benediction at the Roman Catholic church but did not address the furor over his past sermons.”
NOTE: According to this report, it sounds like the TV station was at the church to cover Maya Angelou’s appearance at the church to celebrate her birthday. The minister invited Wright because Wright is a fan of Angelou.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
From DeadlineHollywood, the box office numbers are in and the latest Hollywood war movie has not done well:
“I’m told #7 Stop-Loss opened to only $1.6 million Friday from just 1,291 plays and should eke out $4+M. Although the drama from MTV Films was the best-reviewed movie opening this weekend, Paramount wasn’t expecting much because no Iraq war-themed movie has yet to perform at the box office. “It’s not looking good,” a studio source told me before the weekend. “No one wants to see Iraq war movies. No matter what we put out there in terms of great cast or trailers, people were completely turned off. It’s a function of the marketplace not being ready to address this conflict in a dramatic way because the war itself is something that’s unresolved yet. It’s a shame because it’s a good movie that’s just ahead of its time.”
The Miami Herald published a review of “Stop-Loss” that recounts how the heroes come home from Iraq only to engage in endless drunken brawls. One goes AWOL to protest the stop-loss policy and another abandons his girlfriend for a foxhole in his front yard where he “curls up in his underwear, cradling a bottle and a loaded handgun.” And yet, here’s the bottom line from the review:
“While obviously admiring the valor and devotion of our fighting men and women, “Stop-Loss” makes no judgment about the rightness of the war in Iraq. But it generates a good deal of contempt for a system that rewards its soldiers by betraying them. A credit at the end of the film estimates that 81,000 soldiers have been stop-lossed back to Iraq.”
I don’t care how Hollywood producers feel about the war or Bush but they should be able to realistically judge what their market wants instead of endlessly trying to tell them what to think. With judgment like this, it’s amazing to me they can make a living.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
The New York Post reports that Rudy Giuliani is considering a run for New York’s governor if there is a special election this fall:
“In the latest twist in New York politics, Rudy Giuliani is eyeing a run for governor in a special election this fall should Gov. Paterson be forced to resign, sources say.
A top adviser to the former mayor, who pulled the plug on his presidential bid in January, yesterday dangled the possibility of Giuliani’s running in a special election.”
Gov. Paterson has spent his first weeks in office disclosing bombshells about marital affairs and past drug use but the revelations don’t seem to have hurt him with the public.
It sounds like a lot of “if’s” have to occur for a special election to become a reality and it doesn’t look like they will happen. Nevertheless, it makes sense that Rudy is interested in running for NY governor. This may be his attempt to test the waters and try to scare off any GOP competition.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
Former University of Texas lecturer William Sill died recently and his obituary was published in the Austin American-Statesman. I didn’t know Dr. Sill but his obituary is fascinating; He was a real-life Indiana Jones. These are my favorite parts:
“A study in gentle contrasts, Sill was dashing yet unassuming. He tirelessly pursued adventure but was insistent upon sharing the fruits of his discoveries.
“Dad never made much money,” Bill Sill said. “He was disinterested in fame, or money, or significant scientific recognition. He very much tried to hide from the limelight. But he always had these adventurous notions.”
***
In his last years, Sill would tell his 12 grandchildren stories of his adventures, weaving in vivid stories of the flesh eaters whose bones Sill found, catalogued and studied.
“He was like Indiana Jones. There are so many stories, so many things that he did,” Bill Sill said. “It’s a hell of a thing to be his son.”
That’s a fine obituary.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
Google has a black homepage today “as a gesture to raise awareness of a worldwide energy conservation effort called Earth Hour.”
This may be a great idea but I’m changing my homepage.
— DRJ
[Guest post by DRJ]
The Elite Eight are set. Today’s match-ups are (all times EST):
6:40 PM — Xavier at UCLA
9:05 PM — Louisville at North Carolina
Tomorrow’s games will be (again, all times EST):
2:20 PM — Texas at Memphis
5:05 PM — Davidson at Kansas
Here are my picks for the Final Four: Xavier, NC, Memphis, and Kansas. However, like most of America (outside Kansas), I’m secretly cheering for Davidson.
I could go either way on the UCLA-Xavier game. I think UCLA is the better team but they’ve had trouble all year with teams that are fast on the perimeter like Xavier, so I think this is a bad match-up for UCLA. I don’t want people to think I’m a PAC-10 hater because I’ve been negative on that conference in the tournament. I really like PAC-10 football, especially the West Coast offenses, but I thought their basketball prowess was overrated this year.
Here are my picks on the Final Four, but I’ll do another post next week for those picks: Memphis at North Carolina in the final, and NC will take the championship. Basketball is a big man’s game and I think NC has the best one(s) this year.
Add your picks in the comments. Half the fun is watching the games but the other half is trying to pick’em in advance.
— DRJ