DC Week (8 of 8): Afternoon Tweets__The Shutdown May End By Sunrise????

From what we gather, and we don't have PBS talk show hosts Gwen Ifill and Charlie Rose to verify this, the federal government shutdown may end by late tonight. We put a strong emphasis on the word MAY.

So, we decided to post tweets about this crucial issue du jour instead of posting an entry about the new play "Love in Afghanistan" being produced by Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. or the fact that Ford's Theatre can now perform its play "The Laramie Project" at the Ford's Theatre instead of an alternate venue.

But, we are hoping to find some time for those entries by the weekend, in the mean time, here are the links:

http://www.arenastage.org/

http://www.fordstheatre.org/



We also learned today that the term 'tea bag' is a dirty slang word, we won't say what it means, but you can find out what it means in the Urban Dictionary:.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/

Here are the tweets which mention New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (pictured top) and right-wing talk show host Rush Limbaugh (pictured bottom):

1. David Wolman (with "Wired): I guess bipartisan agreement is now what House Republicans say they've kneeled before Zod." (this is an apparent reference to the antagonist in "Superman II.")

2. The Fix: RT Omar Villa France_ "I'm curious to know who gets the Worst Week in Washington crown this week. And it's only Wednesday."

3. The Onion: "Blood-soaked Mayor Michael Bloomberg Announces Homelessness No Longer a Problem in New York City." ("The Onion" is a faux news publication)

4. Slate: "Ted Cruz is now basically the Sarah Palin of the Senate."

5. Mark Harris ("Entertainment Weekly"): "I assume the next step for the Tea Party is to start referring to the shutdown on 'The Noble Cause' and staging cosplay repleacements." (Cosplay is a type of Halloween costume).

6. Cong. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.): "Should have happened weeks ago. Sen. Reid announces deal to debt limit; reopen government."

7. Cong. Steve Pearce (R-Pa.): "Former White House official calls Obamacare roll-out 'excruciatingly embarrassing.'"

8. Politico: "Rush Limbaugh says GOP created 'one of the greatest political disasters I've seen in my life."

http://www.theonion.com

http://www.politico.com

Sunday Night Tweets_ Remembering George

Here are some tweets from the 20:00/8:00 p.m. New York time hour; we should point out that the figure in the middle is Cam the Ram, the mascot of Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., and the judge beneath him is far-right Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. You will understand the reasons for these images as you read our tweet log. We also want to mention the passing of the great George McGovern (1922-2012) and we hope to have a full tribute to the man who lost the 1972 presidential election to Richard Nixon later in the week.

Gunaydin to those of you in Istanbul, Turkey, where it is not 9:30 a.m., and good morning to those of you in Dubai  where it is now 10:30 a.m., Monday morning.

Here are the tweets:

1) @PeterBeinart (Peter Beinart, a columnist for "The Daily Beast"): "George McGovern was a lousy pres candidate but not only was he right to oppose Vietnam, he was right to oppose to global containment itself.

2) @MarkKnoller (Mark Knoller is the CBS News, White House correspondent): "Moving statement from Nixon daughters, Tricia Nixon Cox and Julie Nixon Eisenhower on the death of George."

3) @denverpost ("The Denver Post"): "Presidential campaigns hit Colorado hard this week" (yes, that is our reason for Cam the Ram).

4) @HuffPostPol (Huffington Post Politics): "Michael Bloomberg invokes 'socialism' in criticism of Elizabeth Warren," in reference to the progressive Democrat running for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts.

5) @thenation ("The Nation," a liberal magazine): "More than 1 in 3 Americans live on less than $46,042 for a family of four."

6) @CatalinaByrd (Catalina Byrd, a blogger in Baltimore): "I'm so sick of Black GOPs acting like they are victims, they things that are racist and insulting to Blacks supporting Obama" (yes, that is our reason for the image of Clarence Thomas).

7) @SarahkSilverman (Sarah Silverman, a provocative comedian/actress): "I could die of a broken heart from worrying if someone I pass on the street  is lonely."

Quote of the Day/Week- Nelson Rockefeller

Today, on our two respective blogs ("Politics, Culture and Other Wastes of Time" being the other blog) we are quoting two former American vice presidents who would both be celebrating their respective 104th birthdays if they were alive today within the next few months.

Nelson Rockefeller (1908-1979) was actually just six weeks older than other subject Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973) who unlike Rockefeller went on to become president due to the tragic assassination of John F. Kennedy. Rockefeller served as vice president under Gerald Ford from 1974-77. But, he decided not to join the ballot in Ford's failed re-election effort of 1976, and Bob Dole was chosen as Rockefeller's replacement.

Rockefeller was considered a moderate Republican, and the term "Rockefeller Republican" which refers to active politicians, such as Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), who are known for having either more centrist positions than the likes of far-right Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) or more progressive views on social issues, such as abortion and gay marriage, is in reference to Rockefeller.

Ironically, Rockefeller's own great nephew Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WVa) is a high-ranking member of the Democratic delegation in the current U.S. Senate.

Rockefeller was known to prefer problem-solving as opposed to sticking to a political ideology, in a way that reminds one of current New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, who was elected mayor as a Republican, but has since become independent (some years prior to his election, Bloomberg was a Democrat).

Both Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan who were right-wing ideologues, though Goldwater might ironically be considered a Rockefeller Republican today since he was pro-choice, were strongly opposed to Rockefeller.

Aside form politics, Rockefeller was known for giving the middle finger to protestors at a rally in Binghamton, NY, which thus lead to the term 'the Rockefeller salute.' According to mentalfloss.com, Rockefeller is also alleged to have died of a heart attack at age 70 while in the company of his assistant Meghan Marshack.

Here is Rockefeller's quote, which actually sounds like something one might connect with liberal folk singer Joan Baez:

"Never forget the most powerful force on earth is love."