Tom McClintock may be a freako wingnut, but I can't say he's not good for smart soundbites, such as this gem in the San Francisco Chronicle : "If Schwarzenegger's campaign spent a fraction of the time studying the issues as they have trying to muscle me out of the race, they'd be in better shape today," McClintock said.

Indeed.

Good article, once again in the Guardian (UK), on yesterday's protest at the San Diego/Tijuana border (which I acted as a National Lawyer's Guild legal observer for.)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-3144254,00.html
Why, again, is the only good coverage through foreign sources? (Since the domestic articles are, in a word, terrible:
www.nbcsandiego.com/news/2482162/detail.html ; and
www.kfmb.com/topstory18075.html [confidential to KFMB: Camino De La Plaza Road is redundant, and incorrect: 'Camino' means 'Road')

Finally! A nastygram which yields a quick and good response. Well, it really wasn't a nasty nastygram at all. Maybe that has something to do with it? Nah...

From: "curt [at] SelectSmart.com"
To: "dan gr"
Subject: Re: california recall selector
Date: Thu, 11 Sep 2003 18:05:25 -0700

Dan,
We think you're right. We made some adjustments to the page. Namely, we disabled the priority function which seemed to the problem in your scores.
Geez...We'd hate to be responsible for putting Gary Coleman in office.
Curt
SelectSmart.com

BTW, no comment on whether I'm voting yes or no on the recall itself: I've gotta keep you in some suspense to make you come back here, right?

hmmmmm. SmartSelect.com's California Governor Recall Candidate Selector seems to suck. Below is the e-mail I just sent them; we'll see if they respond.

Incidentally, I'm going to vote for Peter Camejo . Hold your concerns about Camejo being a potential spoiler (ala Nader 2000); I don't vote for people who kill people -- ever. Therefore Cruz Bustamante simply cannot have my vote -- ever. Not only does he support state-sponsored murder, he also has godtalk prattle on his website, www.noonrecallyesonbustamante.com : "An opportunity for every person to make the most of their God-given talents."

Ironic domain name, that, since he's basically abandoned the "No on the recall" position. How about: www.whateveronrecallyesonmurder.com? I bet nobody has registered it yet -- move quick, Cruz!

Date: Thu, 11 Sep 2003 13:56:33
From: [dangr]
Subject: Fwd: california recall selector
To: Manager {at} SelectSmart.com

Hello,

I just tried your recall candidate selector, and am pretty doubtful about the results it returned. Almost every single position Peter Camejo has, I support; almost every position Gary Coleman states, I oppose, yet Camejo is scored at 10%, and Coleman at 15%.

For example, I listed the death penalty as something my ideal candidate would fully oppose, and an issue of high importance for me;
yet, all the people who your system scored above 11% for me except Arianna Huffington support the death penalty.

I also disagree with almost everything Arnold Schwarzenegger says, and agree with almost everything Arianna Huffington says, yet they both rate 26%?

Below I've pasted in the results your system returned for me. I'd be happy to tell you how I answered the questions if you like. I'm
curious about why this came up like this, and would love a response.
Thanks!

-Dan

1. Gray Davis (41%) Click here for info
2. Cruz Bustamante (36%) Click here for info
3. Arianna Huffington (26%) Click here for info
4. Audie Bock (13%) Click here for info
5. Peter Camejo (10%) Click here for info
6. Peter Ueberroth (dropped out) (36%) Click here for info
7. Arnold Schwarzenegger (26%) Click here for info
8. Gary Coleman (15%) Click here for info
9. Mary Carey (10%) Click here for info
10. Bill Simon (dropped out) (9%) Click here for info
11. Tom McClintock (5%) Click here for info
12. Larry Flynt (3%) Click here for info
13. Angelyne (0%) Click here for info

WTO meetings update:
speaking of European newspapers, when was the last time you saw an American newspaper print a headline like this: "EU reneges on pledge to third world", an article like this, or a first paragraph like this?

The European commission was last night secretly preparing to sabotage plans to help poor countries trade their way out of poverty, as backstairs wrangling dominated the opening day of the World Trade Organisation's talks in Cancun, Mexico.

I've had no responses to the various nastygrams contained in previous posts here until today, when, almost a month after my message, I got this wholly inadequate response from United. (Reminder: I complained about their ending their partnership with Delta, thus limiting people's options in accrual and renewal of miles.) My favorite part is the nearly incomprehensible line "The mutual agreement to end the partnership was due to the respective alliance relationships both United and Delta have formed." (I provided the bolding.) Huh? What the hell does that mean?

My second favorite part is the "PRIVATE and CONFIDENTIAL" part which directs me that "If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination of this communication is strictly prohibited. ..."
Fortunately for you and me, kind reader, I was indeed the intended recipient, and so my dissemination of it here is just peachy with Laura Marshall (and the legal department at United.)

And incidentally, my Mileage Plus number, which I did, indeed, provide to them, was sufficient to indicate that I am a "Premier" flyer for 2003, which, if you would've though it would result in a faster response than the one I got, well, we were both wrong. Without any further ado, then, here is the peice of crap they sent:

From: CustomerVoice@ual.com
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2003 15:53:49 -0500
Subject: RE: ending partnership with Delta
To: me@yahoo.com

Dear _________,

Thank you for contacting us about the discontinuation of the Delta partnership. I'm sorry that you were disappointed with the email
announcement. The mutual agreement to end the partnership was due to the respective alliance relationships both United and Delta have formed.

If you should have any additional questions about the partnership, you may contact our Mileage Plus Service Center staff directly by calling 1-800-421-4655. Or, you may email them from our Home Page under the ABOUT UNITED heading. Click "Contact United", "Email" and then "Mileage Plus" (found under the UNITED PRODUCTS and SERVICES heading). Please include your Mileage Plus membership number.

Your business is important to United and we look forward to the continued privilege of serving you.

Best Regards,

Laura Marshall
Customer Relations
United Airlines

**********************************************************************************************************
This message is intended only for the use of the Addressee and may contain information that is PRIVATE and CONFIDENTIAL. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please erase all copies of the message and its attachments and notify the sender immediately. Thank you.
**********************************************************************************************************

Been a while -- been busy. Really.
Today's quote, thinking about the WTO meetings in Cancun: "The world we want is one where many worlds fit ..." -Subcomandante Marcos. See the Sup's communique in the Guardian (UK):
http://www.guardian.co.uk/wto/article/0,2763,1039754,00.html
Now, why do ya suppose I couldn't find this republished in an American newspaper? And at that, certainly not the detailed coverage on the WTO meetings that the Guardian provides.
Another quote, from the communique: "We hope the death train of the World Trade Organisation will be derailed in Cancun and everywhere else."
Just in case that link above expires, you'll probably be able to find it on this Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional (EZLN) page , although it may only be in Spanish.