Sunday, September 12, 2004

Yesterday, sad memories. Today, renewal. LaChanze is starring in a Broadway-bound production of The Color Purple. An article about the show, complete with a pretty picture of the star, can be found here. 6:04:01 PM    comment []

Self Portrait, by my cousin Daniel. 3:19:40 PM    comment []

Mayor vs. Editor, round 2. (Round 1 here.) Editor has weblog. Mayor does not, but should. Robinson's blog is emerging as a local must-read, and a template for other editors across the country. Semi-related: At the Bowles speech the other night, the candidate paused before addressing his soon-to-be-released healthcare plan to ask if there were any journalists in the room -- he didn't want to scoop himself. Afterwards, a Bowles staffer said to me that since I hadn't raised my hand to identify myself as a journalist, I "couldn't" write about it. Those are the old rules, which I as a professional still play by...but as I told him, I'm not the problem. You have to assume that anyone in the room could be reporting for their own blogs -- hell, Vernon Robinson was there, do you think he would show any restraint? 1:56:39 PM    comment []

Cornel West "blames cocaine, Ecstasy, oral sex and -- Weblogs" for the ''soul murder'' of American youth, according to Caleb Crain in this morning's NYT book review. I have not read the book, but I'm reminded of the old Sesame Street song, One of these things is not like the others. Well, two of them. Update: Jeff Jarvis thinks this is a great new marketing slogan: "Weblogs: as much fun as cocaine, Ecstasy, and oral sex!" 1:42:41 PM    comment []

Mike Munger: "I don't see how Kerry can win in North Carolina." 1:32:16 PM    comment []

Jay Ovittore has 9/11 memories, and says the terrorists have won: "The definition of a terrorist is, one who controls you with fear. We live in fear." Hmm. We live with fear, but I'm not sure it controls us. And when it does, it's not always the terrorists who use it as a method of control. 1:26:51 PM    comment []

Sid Sowers, a Charlotte-area candidate for NC House, is advertising on weblogs (including this one) to support his campaign. 1:20:28 PM    comment []

Juan Cole: "In order to evaluate the aftermath of September 11, we first must understand that event. What did al-Qaeda intend to achieve? Only if we understand that can we gauge their success or failure..."   "If the Muslim world can find a way to combine the sophisticated intellectuals and engineers of Damascus and Cairo with the oil wealth of the Persian Gulf, it could well emerge as a 21st century superpower." 9:54:48 AM    comment []

A Greensboro company has US rights inhalable alcohol technology.   Booze you huff instead of chug.   AWOL -- alcohol without liquid -- was introduced to America last month in New York by Kevin Morse, president of Greensboro-based Spirit Partners Inc.   Regulatory issues remain, as do challenges to the company's claims that inhaling alcohol eliminates hangovers and reduces calories and carbs. 9:53:29 AM    comment []

My newspaper column this morning, keyed to John Kerry's recent visit to Greensboro, handicaps his chances at carrying North Carolina. "On domestic issues, Kerry presented a compelling set of arguments to North Carolina voters. In any other year, that might have been enough to push the state into the Democratic column. But with seven weeks to go, his message on security still seems a bit fuzzy. Unless he can sharpen it in a hurry, I would expect the GOP to continue its generation-long hold on North Carolina's electoral votes." Read the whole thing. 9:38:03 AM    comment []