You know Jess, I don't have an answer, I just love that they made their Nixon/Smirky the Chimp hybrid the big bad for the year. Given the alleged political leanings of some of the folks behind the show (and last years torture-rama), I have a horrible feeling it will all end up "justified" somehow, at which point I throw things at the television and skip next year (if there is one).

OK, 24 just made me go, "Bwuh?" Because, really, where else could they go with all the this is bigger than you think, yet, it was already as close as you could get to the President, but I still didn't expect that. Also, my question is the same as Jessica's, because, why all the hocus-pocus. You're the damn President .

But, you know, it ought to be... interesting.

Yeah, my brother called me twice from different cities last year because he couldn't find a WaMu, and me on the web was somehow easier than, you know, looking it up in a phone book.

So tempting to give him bad directions.

Maybe it's a V For Vendetta situation. Or something.

But this show officially has the highest HSWTFQ on the air.

Re 24, the only thing I can think is that the president formerly known as Wimpy McIndecisive originally came up with the scheme that Walt Cummings sprung on him later (and either he didn't know about Walt or was playing a good game of Craven McFoldster). Which makes me wonder, did Walt really hang himself, or did the president lend him a chair?

But this show officially has the highest HSWTFQ on the air.

And then they top it when the President tears of his disguise and reveals he's really a polar bear out to avenge global warming.

That's maybe it - re: setting himself up a la V for Vendetta; he must not have seen the movie, though, 'cause Jack's no slouch as a parallel to V . Good point on the last question about Walt , Frank. Maybe the President talked him into taking one for the team . Yeuch. Makes my own skin crawl.

In unrelated news, British Airways and Air France have banned tinned fermented herring from their flights:

That has made producers of the surstromming choke on their fermented fish, calling the airlines' decision "culturally illiterate".

It is a myth, they say, that the tinned fish can explode.

They admit, however, that a punctured tin would emit a foul smell, and that the content might spill quite forcefully, like a punctured can of beer.

Hee! One less fuckwad....

Tom DeLay, the former House majority leader, will not seek re-election and will announce his withdrawal from his congressional race on Tuesday, MSNBC's Chris Matthews reported Monday night.

Matthews, host of MSNBC's “Hardball,” said that DeLay told him in an interview that “the polling on him in the 22nd District was going down,” as a result of his part in a campaign contribution controversy.

[link]