William Jennings Bryan prosecuted the Scopes Monkey Trial, shortly before he passed away.

For the first time ever, the Chicago Tribune endorses a Democrat for president: [link]

eta:

This endorsement makes some history for the Chicago Tribune. This is the first time the newspaper has endorsed the Democratic Party's nominee for president.

The Tribune in its earliest days took up the abolition of slavery and linked itself to a powerful force for that cause--the Republican Party. The Tribune's first great leader, Joseph Medill, was a founder of the GOP. The editorial page has been a proponent of conservative principles. It believes that government has to serve people honestly and efficiently.

With that in mind, in 1872 we endorsed Horace Greeley, who ran as an independent against the corrupt administration of Republican President Ulysses S. Grant. (Greeley was later endorsed by the Democrats.) In 1912 we endorsed Theodore Roosevelt, who ran as the Progressive Party candidate against Republican President William Howard Taft.

The Tribune's decisions then were driven by outrage at inept and corrupt business and political leaders.

We see parallels today.

Goddamn that Evolution.

Czolgosz, who was more a wanna-be anarchist who just happened to be able to get close enough to McKinley to shoot him.

Czolgosz, working man, born in the middle of Michigan, woke with a thought and away he ran to the Pan-American exposition in Buffalo!

I dreamed I saw Joe Hill last night

I got this really great gun. No, it's really great. Wait! Anyway, it's just a .38, but, it's a gun. Even when you fail, it tells them who you are, where you stand...this one was on sale! It, no not the shoe, well, actually, the shoe was, too.

The workers said to Casey, 'Won't you help us win this strike?'
But Casey said, 'Let me alone, you'd better take a hike!'
Then someone threw a bunch of railroad ties across the track
And Casey hit the river with and awful smack

I just had a random thought - that I should take violin lessons. I've had this random thought before.

Hmmm.... where can one rent a violin, and for how much?

eta: Ooh. On eBay they have cheap "student" violins for $49....

eta²: Oh, student ones are smaller. But there are regular ones that are cheap too...

The Tribune's decisions then were driven by outrage at inept and corrupt business and political leaders.

Dang. That's a hell of a lot stronger than the Post's "but we still kinda like you anyway, John McCain!"

Loved the zoo baby pictures. I think - unusually enough - that the grown-up red pandas are cuter than the babies ... at least until they have their eyes open.

That's probably for the best, as adult red pandas rival samoyed puppies in cuteness... if the babies were cuter the sight of them might kill the zookeepers that are supposed to be feeding them.