Maybe. Just not in the Republican-friendly Ohio district he's running in.

In case you don't know, there's a special Congressional election today in Ohio, in which a war-veteran liberal named Paul Hackett is playing the John Kerry card and running on his military record while opposing the mission in Iraq. Nothing wrong with that, but it does seem to me that this elevates biography and personality over substantive positions, which the media generally scolds (see Schwarzenegger, Arnold), except when a liberal is having success with the tactic.

He'll probably lose but he does have that impressive biography so who knows. A lot of left-leaning blogs are vigorously pimping his candidacy, and the media, of course, will take a Hackett victory as proof of Bush's ills and "failure to make the case" to the American people. If he loses, well, they'll just ignore that, as usual.

Lorie from PoliPundit catches a misleading ad from Hackett, showing him "supporting the troops" and suggesting, by implication, that he also supports their mission.

She doesn't think this tactic of telling the general public one thing while telling the Democratic base the precise opposite worked out very well for Tom Daschle.

Then again, there was a lot more coverage of Daschle, so I guess we'll have to see.

And... Lorie has a bit more on Jimmy Stewart, Commie Hunter.

Again, if you haven't seen it, check out Anatomy of a Murder. My big problem with old movies is the stagey sort of acting and the generally dated feel of the writing and direction and performances. Old movie performances are marred by the broad, arch, and often ham-handed style of acting that may work when you have to project out to the upper mezzanine, but with cameras in tight close-up, it seems a bit goofy.

Anatomy of a Murder is black and white, but it feels very modern. The performances are subdued and smart, and the script is as cynical and occasionally brutal as any modern court procedural. Indeed, the cynicism is actually presented as something of a virtue, because the charming but not quite ethical Jimmy Stewart subtly suggests, without quite saying so (thus avoiding any chance of being disbarred), that his client has to lie to change his story to a claim of temporary insanity. And this is presented in a neutral fashion, even a sort of funny one.

His client is accused of murder, which he actually did commit (and there's no doubt about that). His client murdered a man who is said to have raped his wife, several hours after the actual event. The client wants to plead justification, but Stewart informs him that justification doesn't apply. Thus the need for an alternative defense... like temporary insanity. It's an interesting situation, because the guy is definitely guilty under the law, but something in us says the law is an ass in this case, and certain allowances for rough extra-judicial justice should be made.

Stewart's speech about his client's defense -- how he suggests without quite saying so that his client should lie on the stand -- is sort of famous and is cited by some trial clinicians as a perfect example of the right way to suborn perjury without actually exposing oneself to sanctions.

George C. Scott plays the hotshot state's attorney sent down from the capital to prosecute the case, while Stewart is the folksy local country lawyer. And of course Stewart seems a bit outmatched, but he's twice as clever as the arrogant Scott.

Again, as someone who's not a fan of old movies generally, I can heartily recommend this one as an old movie that seems like it could have been made in 1997.

Posted by: Ace at 09:45 AM | Comments (4)
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Karol and I have decided to take a break this week and see if we can generate some more enthusiasm as energy and direction for the show.

Rightalk will be running a repeat of last week's show with Jonah Goldberg at 4PM Eastern.

Posted by: Ace at 09:38 AM | Comments (7)
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John From Wuzzadem tries to make this all seem hilariously tedious, but really, isn't that like trying to make Catherine Zeta-Jones look good in a short skirt?

But good stuff.

Anyone know what the hell channel this abortion is on in NYC? It's gotta be on here, I figure.

Posted by: Ace at 09:28 AM | Comments (7)
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Somerby is a hack, but he's not the sort of hack who's completely drank the Kool-Ade. A good fact-checking of an over-the-top partisan diarist at Kos, in which Somerby makes the case that Robert Novak doesn't seem to be lying, his original story seems to hold up, and his first source -- first identified as "no partisan gunslinger" -- may have been a CIA agent, as he later wrote.

Thanks to The Blogometer, with more on the latest on PlameRoveWilsonNadaGate.

Posted by: Ace at 09:25 AM | Add Comment
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Achewood offers up a variant on Johnny's "when I want your opinion" taunt.

Thanks to LauraW.

Posted by: Ace at 09:14 AM | Comments (3)
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Oh Mary, Mary! I wish I could lasso the moon and pull it down to you... and by the way, I've been informing on you to the feds, you dirty subversive honey-pot whore.

Screen legend JAMES STEWART worked as a secret agent for notorious FBI leader J EDGAR HOOVER, rooting out suspected communists from Hollywood, according to a damning new biography.

Hoover knew the VERTIGO actor was a Right-wing Republican and asked him to work undercover for the FBI in 1947, because Stewart's status as a famous, decorated war hero and officer in the American Army Air Force Reserve Corps made him the perfect choice to help flush out subversives in LA, Stewart's late wife GLORIA HATRICK McLEAN recalled.

And author MICHAEL MUNN's sensational expose, JIMMY STEWART: THE TRUTH BEHIND THE LEGEND claims the star was so keen to assist Hoover, he spied on his closest friends, including CARY GRANT and director FRANK CAPRA, who directed his hit movie IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE.

Eh. Makes me dig him even more.

Thanks to NickS.

It's A Wonderful Reference-Riff Update: Monty adds--

Every time a bell rings, some dirty Commie bastard is getting his kidneys worked over with a telephone book by some thickset FBI guy.

*Sniff*. Brings a tear to the eye, it does.

Stewart Recommendations: Anatomy of a Murder kicks ass.

Posted by: Ace at 12:51 PM | Comments (54)
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I did not see this one coming.

The AK-47... the Assault Rifle of Peace. Capable of fiiring 550 rounds per minute, the Cyclical Rate of Fire of Peace. Making use of Soviet 7.62mm Ammunition, the Calibre of Peace.

Once again: I love Britain, but they've got three days (one week!) to get this loose shit straightened out.

Thanks to Andy the Squirrel.

Posted by: Ace at 12:47 PM | Comments (38)
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Kinda cool:

The petite brunette says Army service has always been in the back of her mind.

"I'm capable, I'm healthy. This is the right thing to do," said Cabanayan, who attended Cascade and Marysville-Pilchuck high schools before earning her GED. "I cannot wait for that moment of putting on a uniform. It gives you that honor."

Very few pictures are available of her, although there is this one:

Which isn't the sort of shot any of us are looking for.

Over at Fark, where this story was found, the usual suspects are wishing death on her.

But they support the troops, you know.

Thanks to Fat Kid.

Posted by: Ace at 12:42 PM | Comments (27)
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Good stuff from the man Ian Fleming once slammed as "that Scottish lorry driver." (Before coming around to think Connery was the perfect Bond, going so far as to include a bit of Scottish ancestry in his family tree.)

He's retiring, and he blames Hollywood idiots for this decision:

He said: 'I'm fed up with the idiots . . . the ever-widening gap between people who know how to make movies and the people who green-light the movies.

'I don't say they're all idiots. I'm just saying there's a lot of them that are very good at it [being idiots].

'It would almost need a Mafia-like offer I couldn't refuse to do another movie.'

Ummm, I have a feeling he'll get just such an offer.

A different article on his retirement (can't find it now) noted that Connery still feels no regrets about turning down the role as Gandalf in Lord of the Rings. He said, and I'm quoting from memory: "I don't get it. I read the book. I read the script. I saw the movie. I still don't understand it."

He had previously called the script too "tricksy," which is ironic, because that's of course one of Gollum's favorite words.

He turned down LOTR to make the assumedly-non-tricksy League of Extraodinary Gentlemen.

Is it just me is or was XGL more "tricksy" than LOTR?

Anyway, horrendous project choices aside (anyone remember The Avengers? ), he's obviously one of the greats. As Steven Spielberg said, there's only six or seven genuine movie stars in the world, and Sean Connery is one of them.

Or maybe three of them.

It's a shame, though. He blames Hollywood idiots for his retirement, but, let's face it, the man isn't exactly doing himself too many favors in his career. Compare Michael Caine's career -- a bunch of good to great movies, mixed in, of course, with all the dreck films he starred in for the paycheck (as well as the nice location-- he'll pick a film just because it's being shot in the Caribbean, for example) -- to Connery's. How many truly great films has Connery actually been in?

Not too many, unfortunately. Two or three of the Bonds, the well-done Robin & Marian, The Man Who Would Be King, a nice turn in the somewhat disappointing A Bridge Too Far, The Hunt for Red October, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and without a doubt The Untouchables.

Maybe The Rock and Highlander if we're being very, very charitable... and then a lot of real stinkers.

No one could blame him for making Zardoz in his post-Bond funk. But then he got some major heat, and he still starred in movies like The Presidio and Medicine Man and Rising Sun. (Who gives a rat's ass about Eddie Sakamoro? I sure don't.)

Come on, Sean. You're the man now, dog. There are lots of idiots in Hollywood, of course; but some people are better about avoiding them.

I suggest you un-retire and just let Kurt Russel pick what movies you'll be in. He seems to know what the hell he's doing, Escape From L.A. notwithstanding.

Thanks to the Fat Kid.

PS: Connery did Jackson a great favor by turning down the Gandalf role. It just wouldn't have worked. Connery simply has too much Captain Kirk in him, and the role is more of a Jean-Luc Picard.

PPS: Added Highlander as a grading-on-the-curve good Connery film.

Personally, I don't like the movie. Connery is always a welcome presence in any film, and he was terrific in Highlander. He's just always, well, Sean Connery.

But the film itself? C'mon. A film about swordfighting should not de-emphasize the actual, you know, sword-play in its climactic fight in favor of lots of sparks shooting here and cool reflections on a wet warehouse floor to there to jazz it up. Dance with the girl that brung ya, for crying out loud.

PPPS: Okay, more nominees for good Connery films.

Dave nominates The Wind and the Lion, which I haven't seen. Also, never saw The Great Train Robbery.

Outland is a movie people still claim is good but I've given it two chances and it's boring. And, for that matter, so was High Noon.

The Name Of the Rose? Okay, it's a classy, intellectual sort of medieval mystery, and yes, I enjoyed it. So it's a good film, but it's not great.

Although it does feature one of the few actually-sexy sex scenes in Hollywood history. Boy, do I wish I was that peasant-girl having my way with Adso...

Wait, I meant that the other way around. That's what I meant.

PPPPS: Monty reminds me of perhaps the worst Connery film ever, First Knight.

This movie is so bad it's actually good. If you have a bunch of smart-alec friends who like taking MST3K digs at a movie, invite them over and watch this piece of shit. There's just so much that's horrible about the movie-- the costumes are straight out of Deep Space Nine, Richard Gere is utterly unconvincing as a swordsman (he has some the stiffest, most awkward sword-swinging I've ever scene), and King Arthur and his Round Table do nothing in the movie except say "Let Lancelot handle it."

Pretty much every meeting of the Round Table is just King Arthur saying "Let's leave this to Lancelot. Okay, meeting over. Anyone want to order some moo goo gai pan? (thick Scottish accent) Or perhapsh shome sheshame chicken?"

BTW, when did Connery decide he wouldn't bother with any accents but his own, precisely? The man used to be able to sound vaguely British (and vaguely Irish, in Darby O'Gill and the Little People), but then decided he was too old and too rich to speak in anything but a burr.

It's a good burr, don't get me wrong. The highlight of XGL was Connery saying, "Well that wasshh naughty." But once in while maybe he might want to consider a role playing an American, where his Shhhufferin' Shhhuckatashhhh burr would be, umm, bad.

If he's wondering why he isn't offered better scripts, well... I wouldn't knock this, but he seems to be picking them according to the paycheck, and that doesn't necessarily translate to quality.

And there aren't too many scripts written for a 77 year old male romantic/action lead, and even fewer where the lead can speak in a Scottish burr and get away with it.

At some point, someone's going to want to make a disaster movie and cast Sir Sean as the President of the United States, and he's still going to insist on speaking in that thick Scottish burr. And I guess we'll all play along, because hey, it's Sean Connery, but really, the man speaks English; it's not as if he's Jean-Claude Van Damme trying to speak in a language not his own. If I can manage a passable Sir Bedevere, he can speaka de American on occasion.

Posted by: Ace at 11:40 AM | Comments (66)
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I think at this point my opinion on John Bolton is much like Will Ferrel's reaction, playing George W. Bush, to the Elian Gonzalez controversy: "I don't give a rat's ass."

But I guess this is a big enough story that I guess I'm obligated to have an opinon, so I'll borrow Roger L. Simon's, who responds, in response to partisan hacks who say Bolton's just too damn rude and intemperate: "Good." (Well, that's the gist.)

No doubt diplomacy is important, but the message from the left seems that diplomacy is chiefly making nice-nice. There is that, of course, but there's also need for the hard word. And sometimes the big stick.

The State Department is full of nice-nice pussies. I'm sure there are a lot of guys there who could really assist with planning a wedding or putting together a really cool photo-collage of Brad Pitt. And that's just swell, but once in a while you need a guy who doesn't get a weekly no-shine buff manicure.

It will be a useful corrective, I think, to have one guy as ambassador who doesn't list "fawning obsequiousness" as bullet point number one in his skill-set.

Posted by: Ace at 11:24 AM | Comments (48)
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