I feel kind of like The Dude at the end of The Big Lebowski. They've done it. They've finally killed my web server.

I woke up this morning to a machine I couldn't connect to. Checked on the console and it was locked hard. I had to hard reboot and lost my wonderful uptime. Within minutes of the machine coming back up it was being hammerred by comment spammers again and I had to disable comments again just to allow the machine to catch its breath.

Comments are down for now. I'm going to try some of the stuff I found here tonight and see if I can get a handle on this. Until then, comments are closed over here.

I'll also probably get around to building my new web server this weekend, too. I suppose that's not a terrible thing. That machine has the big hard drive, and maybe I'll get the radio station going again. With Bex's help, I think we could actually do a pretty good job with it this time around.

God bless the Office Mocha, my savior.

The attack continues, continually chipping away at my desire to bother keeping my web server up at all. This month I've had twice as many attempts to post comment spam as I've had hits to my front page. I swear I will give it one more month, but if things keep up at this rate I'll be spending more time trying to keep all the spam comments deleted than I do actually posting any "content" here.

I would once again like to thank all the Online Texas Holdem sites, Farm Fun websites, Payday Loan hawkers and Celebrity Nude websites for turning what used to be a fun way to kill some time into a chore.

I hate the Rams. Boy, do I ever hate the Rams.

But they're sissies. They play in a dome. They might as well be playing Flag Football.

Low of 21°. tonight. Nothing spectacularly cold, but I'm guessing enough to ice those Rams.

How is it again that revenge is best served?

I still have comments turned off as I am still getting attempts to post comment spam at the rate of about one every fifteen seconds. This has been going on since about Friday. Again I ask myself... Why do I bother running this website?

I saw that What The Bleep Do We Know? was playing at a movie theater near us. I kind of had this movie pegged as something for people who are just a little bit high and have a passing interest in quantum physics. It sounded kind of lame.

Now that I find out that the movie was produced by members of a Washington cult following a woman who claims to channel a 30,000 Atlantean warrior, I kind of want to see it. That at least is interesting.

Mr. Fad points out that some Texas A&M researchers are developing a milder habanero pepper. (Fucking Aggies...)

From an article at the A&M Student paper.

The same research center in South Texas that tamed the jalapeño pepper in the 1970s hopes to have a milder version of the fiery, orange pepper in about two years.

OK, so they ruin the Jalapeno, so we have to search the world for a pepper that still has heat in it. Now that we've found one that you have to handle with gloves to use, they're going to ruin it too? Somebody needs to stop these people, and do it now.

Nevertheless, the arms race continues.

Why have I not found KCDrinker.com before now? And how can I get involved?

Scoreboard, Texans Fans. It was a squeaker, but the good guys got the win.

I honestly wasn't nervous until that last drive. That seemed like the perfect time for a fumble or interception, but the boys pulled it out. We're still ahead of Minnesota. Bring on the damn Rams.

I heard that Hardee's had updated their Monster Burger to the Monster Thickburger. I heard that it had 1400 calories. I still didn't understand the true horror.

Just click here.

It's kind of like the old Monster Burger, but with the patties about twice the size.

Even I am afraid of this.

One more reason I like working for the new company:

We just got moved into a new wing of the building, and they're going around asking everybody how much light they want. They are even going as far as moving the fluorescent fixtures in the ceiling away from people (like me) who want it dark.

Coolest. Company. Ever.

If anybody wants a job here, let me know. I could use the referral bonus.

Let's say your party has recently enacted ethics rules which require party leaders to step down if they've been indicted for any crime which could carry a prison term of more than two years. For the sake of argument, assume that your House Majority Leader has been indicted for a crime which could carry a prison term of more than two years. What to do?

Why, change your ethics rules, of course.

How did a movie get made starring Mo Rocca, Ed Helms, Chris Elliot, and Patrick Warburton without me finding out about it? Well, I guess I have now found out about the existence of First Time Caller, but I still can't seem to find any info on when, if ever, it will get distribution. Hopefully it'll make it to DVD at least, anyway.

Temple University's school paper ran a story on the movie here, but I can't seem to find much else about it.

Lame. You can't take one of your old shows, swap out one segment and call it a new show.

Lame.

Seriously, I don't get it. A radio station pulls a prank by saying that a new law has gone into effect banning smoking in cars. People tie up 911 lines as a result of this prank and the Wacky Morning DJ is suspended as a result.

People called 911? I really don't understand what happened here, and it doesn't seem clear from reading the article.

A Lexington radio station indefinitely suspended the hosts of its morning show Thursday after a hoax "report" that people couldn't smoke in their own cars anymore.

The hoax, broadcast on FM radio station WXZZ Wednesday, prompted hundreds of people to tie up phone lines to police and health departments, City Hall and the county attorney's office.

Why the calls? Were these people calling to complain about the new ban, to get clarification of the ban, or actually calling to report people smoking in their cars?

So R. Lee Ermey is coming to Kansas City to promote his book.

Do I have to go? Of course I do.

That's two in a row that we probably didn't deserve to win. I heard one of the commentators during the game say that Green Bay has been excellent this year in third down defense. They apparently have been watching games from an alternate universe in which Green Bay is excellent in third down defense because I can't imagine how you could make that assesment if you've watched any of Green Bay's games this year in this universe.

Oh well, a win is a win. Rams next week. Back to back grudge matches. Hopefully Sharper can get healthy before this game.

Update: This is what I get for early morning posts before coffee. How could I forget about the game vs. the Texans next weeK? I look at this game as a palate cleanser. Though this should be a good game against a pretty decent Texans team, the animosity isn' t there like it is with the Rams and the Vikings.

City of Houston, WE WILL BURY YOU!

In Shawnee we got our Sunday Liquor Sales, but it looks like the KC Metro area is about to backslide, freedom-wise:

Smokers and nonsmokers went head-to-head again Monday as the Kansas City Council's Finance Committee neared the end of its debate over a proposed smoking ban.

Kansas City is considering banning smoking in all enclosed workplaces within city limits. Smoking also would be banned in restaurants, bars and casinos if enough nearby cities concur.

...

Committee Chairman Charles Eddy said he hopes the council can vote on the measure Nov. 23.

I used to think it was self-evident that you should be able to smoke in a bar, but I've long since learned that I am absolutely on the losing side of this battle. I'm sure this will pass when it comes up for a vote in a couple of weeks.

Well, maybe it'll drive some business over into Johnson County. I wouldn't mind opening up a club just outside KC city limits...

I don't know, do we really need a Fight Club video game? Apparently not:

Fight Club the game is a resounding failure. - Greg Kasavin

Doesn't it seem a bit late for that anyway?

On my morning drive I'm usually listening to either NPR's Morning Edition or The Freak Show with John Renshaw on 810 AM, one of the local sports stations. On drives home I'm usually listening to The Dog House with Jason Whitlock on 610 AM, the other sports station. Yesterday afternoon, Whitlock had "DA", 610's morning show host, on the air to do some promos. They all launched into rants about Renshaw, how he talks about ACC basketball at the expense of local teams, how he's never sober on the air, how he never shows up, and most offensively, mocking him using a lispy sort of voice. DA pretty much just stopped short of calling him a fucking fag.

Now I like Renshaw's show. It's more tongue in cheek that other sports shows, and I always found it kind of amusing. Plus, he has excellent bumper music. It was apparent that he had some sort of problem. I remember one show a while back where he admitted as much, but I couldn't tell whether it was a substance abuse problem or just some sort of mental problem.

Well, apparently something brought on the mocking of Renshaw on yesterday's afternoon show. It looks like Renshaw had some sort of meltdown on the air yesterday and was yanked:

Internet chat rooms are in a fever pitch these days with the rumor that sports talker John Renshaw, host of the "Freak Show" (6-9 a.m.) on WHB-810, had a total on-air meltdown Wednesday (11/10) morning and was promptly taken off the air. He supposedly began questioning station management and went into a full on-air rant until he was silenced.

It has been rumored for months that Renshaw had either a drug-alcohol-mental problem and his behavior has often been erratic. He reportedly has been officially terminated.

If that's the case, it really is too bad. He was definitely my favorite morning show host. If he's done on the air in Kansas City, I certainly hope he gets the help he needs.

Also, I would kill for a recording of the on-air meltdown. Is there one floating around anywhere?

Yeah, it looks like it's about over for the US. Time to leave.

Cartwheels and handstands have gotten an 11-year-old girl temporarily bounced out of her Los Angeles-area school.

Deirdre Faegre was suspended for a week after repeatedly disobeying school officials who told her not to perform gymnastic stunts during lunchtime.

"Our first concern is the safety of all children," San Jose-Edison Academy Principal Denise Patton told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. Patton said Deirdre could accidentally strike another student, or injure herself, and other children could get hurt trying to imitate Deirdre, who has been doing gymnastics for five years.

I swear to God, if I ever have kids, they will not wear bicycle helmets.

If you missed the first half of Football Outsider's Loser League, in which you try to put together the worst fantasy team you can, you can now sign up for the contest on the second half of the season.

Signups are taken until Saturday.

It's probably a good thing that I'm not too good at the smack talk. I can't even seem to find it when I'm looking for it.

Two weeks ago, I headed over to a Redskins message board looking for the smack, but all I could find was folks having a rational conversation about the upcoming game.

This week we have the Vikings, so I headed over to Purple Pride's message board. What do I find over there? A bunch of Vikings fans talking about how much the Vikings suck.

Well, far be it from me to pile on. Keep it up guys, it's probably best you not get your hopes up.

Dang, what a fucking idiot.

So you've always wanted your own automatic sentry gun for home defense? Well, wait no more.

At $33, it's a steal! I think I need one of these for my cube at work.

Big Smith is playing a show in Columbia this Saturday. That was listed on the dates section of their website, but was alone. Finally there are more dates listed, but not until January. I'm not sure if they're actually taking an extended break, or if they just haven't scheduled anything in December yet, but I think I might have to start making plans for a trip to Arkansas January 22nd.

Whew... For a bit I though they might be going on an extended hiatus.

According to Yahoo Arafat is now officially Schrodinger's Cat

Maybe it's just that I haven't been back to Texas for a while and I miss it, but I've been fascinated by belt buckles lately. I had no idea how functional they could be.

Well, here it is, boys. The Vikings have completed their choke, and next Sunday the Packers play Minnesota for first place in the division. The beginning of the season was ugly, but with some wins over some admittedly mediocre teams Green Bay has clawed their way back into contention. Now it's time to see if we can actually beat a good team.

Well, not much to talk about on a Bye week. The Chiefs apparently do suck, but things are falling right for Green Bay's comeback here. The Lions dropped one to the Redskins yesterday, so if Minnesota chokes against Indy tonight, Green Bay will be playing them for the out-and-out division lead next week. Granted, that's not saying much in the NFC North, but I just want to see the boys make the playoffs.

After that, it's Any Given Sunday and all that jazz.

Go Indy.

Thanks to Bex, I am now back to the state of the art in video gaming. I am now the proud owner of an X-Box. The X-Box came with an NCAA football game, a Tennis game, and we purchased Star Wars: Battlefront. I got through the first two levels of the campaign, but got stuck on the third imperial battle. This battle takes place shortly after Han, Luke, Obi Wan and the Droids escape from Mos Eisley in the Millenium Falcon. As Imperials, we are to capture Mos Eisley and punish it for allowing the Death Star plans to escape Tatooine. (As an aside, how cool is it that Google knows how Tatooine is spelled?)

I don't think the mission is too hard, it's just so much fun to kill Jawas that I'm having a hard time concentrating on my objectives.

I wish I could throw parties as cool as Ray's.

New Pepsi Holiday Spice limited time flavor:

Pretty darn good, almost tastes like Classic Coke. The first tolerable Pepsi product.

I was thinking about getting an Xbox, but if I can only get Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on Playstation 2, I will definitely reconsider.

I was watching some CNN last night and they had some folks on to do analysis of what Kerry's loss does to Hillary's chances to run in 2008. The main focus seemed to be that his loss hurt her chances because Kerry has finally proved that a New England Liberal can't win the presidency.

So Hillary is officially a New England Liberal now? I guess that move really did work.

Also, what the hell is up with CNN using those ridiculous Madonna microphones? We've had invisible microphone technology for decades now... Using those seems like quite a step backwards. It makes me think that CNN as a whole will eventually become The Borg.

I must say, I was thinking exactly the same thing this morning as NPR launched into their "why people voted" breakdown of the election. The exit polls weren't just wrong, they were amazingly wrong. So why exactly should we be paying attention to polls at all now?

No, I don't think we're all going to die next week. I supported Bush for three of the years he was in office, only souring on him when it seemed that he decided to pander to evangelicals through appeals to bigotry and the Iraq war seemed to prove Bush's teams incompetence at nationbuilding. Well, you got what you were asking for.

When Bush reached out to the social conservatives, I bailed. Apparently many of you stayed. Don't think folks haven't noticed, and prepare yourself for what lies down that road. I hope I'm wrong, but I think Bush and company are going to take this "moral values" mandate and run with it.

Thank god, it was all just a dream...

Looks like I got my Sunday Liquor. Looks like I'll need it.

God, why do I even go to Little Green Footballs any more? I used to only feel dirty when I read the comment threads, now it creeps me out just to see Chuck's posts.

Dang it, the election broke the internet again. Can somebody fix that?

Apparently some early unreliable exit polls are favoring Kerry in battleground states.

If you're a Kerry supporter in the mood for some sweet, sweet schadenfreude, check out National Review's "The Corner". Just start a bit down and read your way up.

Do you think the candidates saved some of their campaign money so they can run recount commercials?

God, I hope so.

Why is a free market better than government action?

This fellow counts the ways. With beer.

I made my predictions mainly on gut feeling. Looking at today's vote tracker at Slate, I picked exactly with the latest polls, with the exception of Ohio, which Slate is currently giving to Bush.

I swear, I didn't cheat.

My prediction:

Electoral Vote Tally:
Kerry 289 - Bush 249

States that swap from 2000:
Kerry takes NH, Ohio, Florida
Bush Takes Wisconsin, New Mexico, and Iowa

Popular Vote
49% Kerry - 50% Bush - 1% Other

I expect to win Matt Welch's contest much in the way that Betty in Accounting wins the office football pick 'em by choosing the prettiest uniforms.

Kerry's so dreamy.

What does getting up at 5:30 in the morning have in common with a pig's tail?

It's twirly.

So Sam Brownback is running for reelection in his Senate seat. He pretty much has it nailed up, and I don't think I've seen any advertising for him, other than a very few road signs. Now I find out he's raised over $2,000,000 for his campaign. What the hell is he spending that on? And if he doesn't spend it, what is it for? President in 2008? Just some spending cash? That's amazing.

Of course, the important political story of the weekend was Green Bay's defeat of the Washington Redskins, guaranteeing Kerry the presidency tomorrow (time frame subject to change.)

Leaving aside the electoral implications, I really didn't think that The Pack played all that well. Washington could have easily won that game if they had a quarterback. There was one receiver wide open in the end zone that Brunell overthrew, and two other receivers underthrown also wide open with nobody between them and the end zone. If Brunell makes any of those throws, the outcome of the game is changed.

Green Bay gets next week off, and then it's on to Minnesota for a game that could really turn our season around. Hopefully we'll get some of our secondary healed up. I don't think we're going to be able to count on quarterback screw ups against Minnesota.

Anyway, let's take a look at the standings here halfway through the season. All I'm looking for is Green Bay to win the NFC North. As good as Minnesota looks (well, other than this week), I still am counting on them to screw it up like they always do. I'm honestly more worried about Detroit than Minnesota. As things stand today:

Minnesota: 5-2
Detroit: 4-3
Green Bay: 4-4

Next week Green Bay has the week off. Minnesota plays Indianapolis, a game they definitely could lose. Detroit plays the Redskins, a game they should win. Regardless, there is a distinct possibililty that we could have Minnesota 5-3, Detroit 4-4 and Green Bay 4-4 going into week 10, with Green Bay at Minnesota being a game for first place in the NFC North.

All I'm looking for is a playoff berth. We'll see how things go from there, but this season suddenly isn't nearly as over as it looked a couple of weeks ago.

I was thinking over the weekend that some sort of Election Prediction Pool would be cool to particpate in. I haven't looked too hard for one, but this one over at Matt's place seems close enough. Everybody head over there and enter.

I WILL BURY YOU!