Which book and heroine, Robin, if you don't mind sharing? Now you've got me curious. ;-)

Maher also has a nasty streak that makes me cringe.

Good points, Don. I never listen to Limbaugh on purpose, since anything I've ever heard the guy say in excerpts or quotes in the news makes me wanna gnash my teeth and do the berserkr bop in a triple tailspin. Silly me. But if he is indeed also a satirist and entertainer, or whatever, wouldn't it be fun to see him in a comedic "Crossfire"-type show with Bill Maher? I think the latter is every bit as arrogant and jerky, if not more so. I just agree with his opinions much of the time, and I've never agreed with anything I've heard Limbaugh say. Yeah, unfortunately Rush is entitled to free speech as well as Bill, although "flirting" with defamation or slander in certain instances is more licentious than liberty-upholding. I'm glad Obama told him off about the "slut" thing.

The debate that I thought would be fun, and yes, they did tour around the country debating was Timothy Leary and G. Gordon Liddy.

Talk about polarization!

The debate that I thought would be fun, and yes, they did tour around the country debating was Timothy Leary and G. Gordon Liddy.

Talk about polarization!

Laurie, the girl whose name I called out in the middle of the night and whose tragic story gave me excruciating pain was Marguerite Gautier, from "The Lady of the Camellias", by Alexandre Dumas, fils.

She may be an unlikely heroine to some, but for me, this girl who sacrificed true love for the good of an innocent young girl, breaks my heart.

For years afterwards I would go ballistic whenever I heard slurs against prostitutes and loose women. I felt driven to help as many women as I could to get out of that life, but, I didn't know where to begin, and my husband reminded me that I did not have the emotional stamina to get involved in that whole scene. Instead, I became involved with an advocacy group for battered women.

I can never forget a memorable character no matter how hard I try. I read "The Brothers Karamazov" when I was 10 years old and was traumatized by the character Fyodor Pavlovich Karamazov because he reminded me so much of my father.

I need to get out more.

Yes, you probably do need to get out more, my dear, and I hope you make sufficient time in your life for the frivolous and fun, but your devotion to your fave literary characters is touching. I read those books in my early to mid-teens. The Dumas one to me was particularly vivid. (Russian Lit has much brilliance, but is often so dense and ponderous as to be crushingly depressing.) My parents were both big readers, and Dad was an English teacher... we always had plenty of classics and popular novels around, both at our house and at Mom's family farm an hour's drive away. I also haunted libraries and bookstores growing up, and was always given tons of books for birthdays and Christmases, particularly by a NYC academic librarian auntie. Bookworm that I've always been, I'm a wiggly one, though, ha. I'm just too physically restless to spend most of my time with my nose in a book! It's a good thing I'm a fast reader! ;-) So, who are some of your other fave characters? I especially love "tomboy" scribbler Jo March from *Little Women*, Nancy Drew (the original '30s & '40s version-- today's is altogether different, and has just plain lost the magic), Peter Pan (my all-time hero!), Sherlock Holmes (what's a little misogyny with a fabulous brain like that?), resourceful freespirit Anne of Green Gables, Jerusha Abbott (the college girl with a mysterious benefactor in *Daddy Long-Legs*), Mary Jemison, aka "Corn Tassel" (from Lois Lenski's *Indian Captive*, based on a real 18th-century heroine), and Hel's belle-on-wheels, Scarlett O'Hara, to name but a wee and diverse handful. Yeah, Miz Scahlett is a spoiled and selfish b*tch, to be sure, but an exceptionally well-drawn and compelling one, I find. I first read *GWTW* on a summer car trip back east at age 13. Let's just say I was glued to the pages mile after mile by Scarlett's cunning, conniving, spunk, and survival skills. Yet will-of-steel force of nature Mammy is just as vivid in her own way. A black friend of mine recently commented on this character as Scarlett's real mother in many respects.

I do go salsa dancing 4 times a week but reading and listening to music at home have always been among my greatest pleasures in life. My favorite fictional character of all time is Huck Finn.

Laurie, I just thought of another example to illustrate my inability to separate fiction from reality back in the day -- "Gone with the Wind" opens with the Tarlington boys vying for Scarlett's attention. I was indignant beyond reason. Although I knew I was being ridiculous, I couldn't help thinking that if those Tarlington boys knew me, they would not give Scarlett another thought. I clearly remember thinking that this was proof positive that there was something really wrong with me.

I loved Scarlett and I used her as inspiration to try to overcome some of my whimpy ways. I love the way Mammy lectured Scarlett yet helped her to facilitate her plans. Excellent woman!

Huck Finn-- interesting choice! I LOVE Mark Twain, and I enjoy his essays, travel commentaries, and autobio stuff just as much as his novels, my fave two of which are *A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court* and *The Prince and the Pauper*. Also love his book about Joan of Arc, whom he admired intensely. My fave fictional characters of all time are Peter Pan and Jo March. Holmes is right up there, too. They all make me want to put quote marks around the word "fictional"!

Holy Hallucinations, Batman, what a show that woulda been, LOL! How about Madelyn Murray O'Hare vs. Jimmy Swaggart? Giggle. Except the once-vast televangelist empire of this smarmy, sanctimonious first cousin of Jerry Lee Lewis obviously crumbled after that prostitute scandal, whereas O'Hare was apparently abducted with one of her sons, and is thought to have been the victim of extortion, then bumped off and her body hidden. Saw some of a documentary about that on the tube the other day, but missed the ending, which was to tell if the famous atheist's remains were ever recovered. I'd seen her talk at a local college campus back in the '70s, then gotten into a little impromptu discussion circle with her and several other people afterwards. She was entitled to her opinions, but was just so horrid and scornful in her demeanor, I could understand why so many couldn't stand her. Noticing how red in the face she got as she spoke, I remember thinking she'd probably die of a stroke one day. Seems someone beat her apparent high blood pressure in delivering her to her fate. Not to condone her murder, but I can't say I'm surprised.

As somebody who can remember Rush back to his days with a local radio show in Sacramento, CA, I wouldn't count Rush out over this latest bombastic mispeak. He has done this type of thing repeatedly throughout his career and seems to come out smelling like a rose.

Case in point, Rush was chased off local radio in Sacramento for referring to a city councilman as a "Chinaman" - only to land a national show.

Rush comes up smelling like a rose because there are so many people who think the same way he does. Scary to me, but normal to them.

I don't count Rush out. As Robin says there are too many people who think like he does....but I am hoping that one of the results of his hateful tirade will be that some of his like minded politicians will be voted out. There are a lot more women who vote in America than there are Chinese Americans.

307,217,980 Chinese live in the USA.


Peace,
DLM

Rush's job is to be an @sshole on the radio. People listen, like, and keep listening. Others listen, dislike, and don't listen, or make a stink. It's political theater..................
the only time I hear about him is on the newsclips, uh I mean commentary clips

Hi Toni, I suspect that that the fallout from the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation fiasco/faux pas rekindled an awareness and the Rush thing cemented it. These incidents coming so close together are a wakeup call to women that we are sleeping on our power and we will have only ourselves to blame if we don't stand up and use it.

Hey DLM, I rarely pay attention to anything Rush or his type say, because I just don't want or need that BS in my life. But, he does have influence. For those of us who think Rush's ideas are potentially harmful to women, it is frightening to see him up to his antics once again.

My mother and one of my sisters were foaming-at-the-mouth Rush supporters and it made me extremely ill to listen to those two regurgitate his words and ideas as if they were in a cult.

It isn't just entertainment to them and to his die-hard followers. My mother and sister dedicated their lives to spewing hatred against "liberals" with every waking breath. My mother passed thinking that Obama is a Muslim Communist who is determined to ruin America and only Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck can stop him.

Frightening and sickening.

That would be hard. As of the last census, the entire population of the USA is 311,591,917 ...and 50.8% of them are women.

But you're right, he's a shock jock and it's his job to be an *******. But I think he went too far this time, and while it won't sink him, it IS helping to empower women.

the batteries on my abacus must be weak.
how about 2.9 million of Chinese ancestry?

50.8% of 311,591,917 are women?

And I can't find one worth keeping?

Peace,
DLM

DLM, you can't find one woman worth keeping? You are looking in the wrong places, my friend.

We women are delightful creatures.

Ha ha, a battery-operated abacus. Love the imagery! But as to not yet finding a woman "worth keeping"... maybe Robin's right, and you've looked in the wrong places, or maybe it's bad luck, or maybe even the need for a shift in attitude and perspective? Most of us can do with that every so often. After all, most relationships are hard work, and many of them fail no matter what the people in them are "worth". Obviously I don't know your situation. But I do know there are an awful lot of good women out there, 'cos I've come across so many of 'em through the years as friends and associates. Platonic guy friends always say the same thing about all the good men in the world, too, whenever my girlfriends and I start in with the "I'm swearing off men forever" routine. Sometimes I've thought I would do just that. I'm rethinking that attitude currently, however, after a bit of a hiatus. I often have problems with men as a group, as they've tended to run the world, but there are certain individual men I will always love wholeheartedly. Do I really want the old roller-coaster ride all over again?? Sigh. Decisions, decisions. ;-)

Laurie, I hope the answer to your question is----Yes, Yes, Yes, a thousand times, Yes.

Love is a joyful and miraculous gift and we turn our backs on it to our detriment. Take this from a woman who has been alone for 10 years and has said "no" far too many times. I am even thinking of taking my own advice at the next opportunity.

Toni, the Maher comparison would hold water except that Maher IS a entertainer, "Lumbar", as Al Sharpton calls him, professes himself as a purveyor of truth. One is deadly serious, the other is Bill Maher. Limbaugh thinks decorum is injectibile oxycontin.

Love itself is wonderful, Robin, but at this point in my life, after a series of passionate, time-consuming, and exhausting relationships through the decades, I've needed more "me" time. There are certain things I still want to accomplish before leaving the planet. Perhaps I can do so without turning into a Pagan nun, however. Recently saw an "old" flame (who's actually younger than I am) and realized I could definitely reignite. ;-)

I'd say Maher holds himself, in his heart of hearts, to be a purveyor of truth no less than Limbaugh. Underneath the bad-boy drolerie, he's dead serious about his views. If he weren't, he would never be so arrogant, nasty, or consistently mocking. He's just more sophisticated intellectually than Limbaugh, and I suspect therefore too devious to let himself come off as a gung-ho crusader. Far better to play Mr. Cool and make fun of those who do. BTW, I was watching an old episode of "Murder, She Wrote" yesterday while relaxing with some knitting (wow, does THAT sound deceptively staid, ha), and who should be playing one of the suspects but-- yup, Bill Maher! I crowed. He's actually a pretty good actor. The scene where he gets taken away in handcuffs was particularly amusing. :-)

Mr. Maher just wrote a $1,000,000.oo check to Obama's election fund.


Peace,
DLM

He wrote that check to a SuperPac, not to the election campaign itself...and I love the reason he said he did so. Maher explained that a million dollars is a lot to him, but that he made that large a contribution to encourage liberal entertainers to pony up. He said that while he is sometimes critical of the President, “you listen to these people (Republicans) talking about vaginal probes and Satan and zero percent taxes on capital gains and the rest of this nonsense, you run back into the arms of Barack Obama.” I agree.

Great post, DLM....but I wonder, you don't think it's that they don't think you're worth keeping, do you?

I hope the SuperPacs become illegal too...and I hope you find a woman who lets you roam a bit!

Hi Laurie. I envy you in a way. To have had so many passionate love affairs that you prefer to experience other things must be very nice. I have only had one relationship in my entire life. It was a once-in-a-lifetime romance and I feel honored to have experienced it.

I have had 10 years of high-quality alone time and I do feel that it is a luxury I appreciate with all my heart.

Younger men are wonderful. I am fortunate to have a lovely selection of men at my salsa dancing club to date if I choose to. It is hard to always say "no" but my problem is that I am scared to death to say "yes".

Funny how life is.

Citizen's United, Rep. Supreme Court, and a 6-1 advantage on AM radio. Maher is on cable. You have to pay to see and hear him. Limbaugh, Beck, Coulter, Larson, Malkin, Savage, etc... free. Oh wait, there's that lefty Ed Schultz, who when he used only one of those offensive words, took himself off the air and TV for a week. Without pay! After apologizing! I don't look too harshly on Maher and Schultz considering how hopelessly outnumbered they are. As Rodney said in Caddyshack, " keep it fair, keep it fair ". Fair?? You think?

Agreed. My first thought in all of this was that if a liberal host said anything close to the filth that came out of Rush's mouth, he'd be gone.

just once, I'd like to hear the social liberals condemn one of their own BEFORE the so called right wing consipiracy brings it out in public.

Case in point Al Sharpton, one of the biggest bigots on the planet.



Peace,
DLM


Oh yeah, I've been with the same chick for 7 years since my divorce in 2004. I'm still not certain this is a lifetime commitment.

No argument there, no one can mangle a TelePrompTer like Al. But as far as rushing in, have you seen/heard O'Reilly, Hannity, and the rest of that happy family called Fox News? Funny, MSNBC and Current are premium channels, but FOX news is basic. I'm sure I'm overreacting; only a degenerate and bigot would think there's a double standard.

Hey DLM, I guess I am a liberal, even though I consider myself to be a centrist.

I don't mind ragging on the left. For instance, I once subscribed to "The Nation" but after the first issue I threw the rest of them in the trash. The left-wing nastiness was as much of a turn-off to me as the right-wing nastiness. Yuch.

A bird without both left and right wing will fly i circles. Same goes for people.

I used to feel that way about Sharpton, but I've actually come to be a little bit of a fan of his MSNBC show....I dunno what happened, maybe I just loved that blueberry pie promo too much.

I love that blueberry pie anecdote of Al's too, Toni! I LOVE it! I cheered and clapped when I first saw it. I still chortle with glee every time it comes on! Love the mental image of Repubs with pie all over their faces, denying they've been into it! :-) I don't see Sharpton as a bigot, as Dave does ...would be curious to read some substantiation or rationale for that. I rather like him. He's kind of hypervigilant about some issues, but hey, I can't say it's without reason. I watch Ed Schultz' show too sometimes. I like the way he calls a spade a spade! I miss Keith Olbermann and his mock-melodramatic "Worst Person in the World" segment, with its stereotyped horror-movie Bach organ excerpt in the background, ha. Sean Hannity is someone I literally can't stand. Everything coming out of his mouth makes me wanna yell most uncivilly at his sickeningly smug image on the screen-- all in all, a fruitless undertaking. Aaagh! And then there's Ann Coulter. I often wonder which planet she infiltrated us from. I'd looove to debate her nasal drone with my own dulcet tones (ahem) on international TV--but I'd settle for watching Bill Maher debate her. Heh heh heh. They must surely have squared off against each other at SOME point?! Jerky though Maher can sometimes be, it's usually in a good cause. I have to say I like more than dislike him. I certainly agree with him much more often than I do with Coulter, Hannity, and Limbaugh, which is never in a million years!!

Ann Coulter --- I am going to have nightmares tonight for sure.

Laurie, where on this little green/blue orb did you come to the conclusion that I'm a bigot? One of my problems is that I think that everyone can tell when I'm being sarcastic. Sarcastic, yes, bigot, not so much. I liked Sharpton's interview/debate with a MS. Republican state senator about a voter suppression bill. The senator, of course, didn't see it that way, citing "rampant voter fraud". When Al asked him how rampant, he replied, "3 cases in the last 3 elections". Al's respone /dismantling of the guy was very funny, and good for the soul. I would ask you, Laurie, to re-read what I originally wrote. As I said a couple of weeks ago, discussing Politics and Religion are death to a friendship. Guess I'm on life support.

Dave, I miswrote your name instead of Dale's, with its one-letter difference, when citing his reference in this thread to *Sharpton* as a bigot-- sorry!! But if *you* reread what *I* wrote, I never called Dale, you, or anyone on the board a bigot! Ever. Nor would I. D*mn, I just got up, but I suddenly feel weary and discouraged. Admittedly I like to stir the cauldron around here with my ideas and opinions, but I always strive to do so with reason and clarity, if also with my native forthrightness, and sometimes with good-natured if provocative humor. I'm really not the Wicked Witch of the Midwest, guys!

Speaking of Religion and of Sharpton.... anyone who is interested might enjoy the 2007 debate between Christopher Hitchens and Rev. Al Sharpton re “Is God great?”. It is easy to find online.

Hope all is okay and Dave has been taken off life support and is now breathing on his own again. It's just conversation guys, and we've been doing a great job of it, I think. A little misunderstanding every so often is survivable, right? Right????

Yes, of course, Toni! Misunderstandings are part of the human condition and are entirely survivable, as far as I'm concerned. Compared to the periodic ferocious flame wars I've seen in the past and heard about still occurring in some online communities, such as those specializing in religious debates, this board is heaven online! :-) Besides, if I get discouraged or bent about anything, it's not usually for long. Life's way too short! In this case, I miswrote something and Dave misread something. Sh*t happens. People get tired or have headaches or eyestrain or distractions. Upwards and onwards into the wild bluest blue yonder! :-)