When a wanna-be meets a never-was

I'm watching a documentary on the JFK assassination. Aside from the fact that everyone smoked so much in the 1960s that I want to wash the stench from my hair, the feeling I'm left with is frustration over the futility and waste of the events of November, 1963. Prior to 9/11, this was the biggest event of my lifetime, and in many ways our country is still scarred by it. And yet, if you accept the premise put forth by The History Channel, it was an accident of fate. A convergence of losers. The iconic leader who, as author Robert Dallek ends as his biography, spoke to "our better angels" was taken from us by a skinny loner who felt he had to do something huge, just to justify his existence on the planet. And then that assassin was silenced by a faux mobster/pimp with a bad temper.

During the first few months of 1963, Lee Harvey Oswald decided to become famous as a political assassin. His chosen target was Texas politico and segregationist Edwin Walker. Oswald spent time photographing Walker's home, plotting entrance and escape routes, monitoring Walker's schedule, etc. In April, while Walker was sitting in front of a window in his home, Oswald took a shot, using a soon-to-be world-famous mail-order rifle. The bullet was stopped by the (presumably bullet-proof) glass. This was yet another thing Oswald had failed at, and in plunged him into depression. As his grip on reality loosened, Oswald chose JFK as his next target. Ironic, since Walker hated the Kennedy brothers and everything they stood for. Clearly there was no ideology in Oswald's actions.

After firing the shot shown in this photo, Jack Ruby told the police -- many of whom hung out at his Carousel Club -- that now he was a "hero." A failed mobster who left Chicago and went to Dallas to manage a strip club, Ruby felt that he had served justice. He had killed the smug little bastard who had killed his President. He had saved Jackie from having to testify at Oswald's trial. He apparently thought the public would be grateful. Of course, because there was no trial, conspiracy theories have flourished for more than 40 years.

And from this came Viet Nam and Watergate. It pisses me off.

The simple joy of retail

An old boyfriend used to rib me about my "nun watch." Timex, black band, 12 black numbers on a white face. OK, so it was so plain it probably subtracted from my style quotient. Yet I loved it.

I began experimenting with my timepieces. Green Fossil watch, blue Liz Claiborne watch with the silver band, bold and oversized Nine West. While I appreciate how they look, I missed the simplicity and dependability of my old "nun watch."
GOD BLESS YOU, OVERSTOCK.COM! I am completed delighted by my new acquisition. Form meets fashion with my new millennium "nun watch." Austere black and white face, but dressed up with a lovely, lovely purple band! Best of all, more than 25% off!

Would it be weird to sleep in it?

Look at the face and remember his name

This is Bernard McGuirk. When you hear the now infamous "nappy-headed hos" dialog from the Imus show, this is the producer who started the conversation with the phrase, "hard-core hos."

I watched the Imus show occasionally on MSNBC and can honestly say I never heard Imus say anything offensive. Of course, when I watched he would be talking to Tim Russert or Senator Kerry and was on his best behavior. Bernard, or "Bernie," didn't mind being toxic in front of higher profile guests. I never heard him say anything that wasn't hateful or spiteful or angrily superior. (Nor funny, now that I think of it.) Whereas Imus does do a lot of work for kids with cancer and has championed the plight of veterans, all I ever heard Bernard do is be hateful.

I realize the name of the show was Imus in the Morning, and therefore Imus is/was responsible for all the content. He must have been amused by Bernard or Bernard wouldn't be there. However, if the old guy's career is now over, it's only fair that this "gentleman" also pay a public price for his hate language. I don't begrudge him the opportunity to make a living -- I just begrudge him the opportunity to do it on public airwaves.

So take a good and careful look. And remember the name Bernard McGuirk. If he ever again emanates from your TV or your radio, please reach for the dial.