Top 5 — People You Shouldn’t Hug

1. An Iowa City Police Officer.
2. U.S. Treasury Sec. Henry M. Paulson Jr. (He’ll swipe your wallet and slip your dough to the CEO of Goldman Sachs)
3. A Cedar Rapids city-paid consultant. (Hugs cost $125 each)
4. A Hawkeye kick/punt returner (You will be fumbled to the Wildcats)
5. Fannie Mae (Freddie Mac gets super jealous)

Debate Drinking Games

Some folks will spend this Friday night imbibing, while some will be glued to their TVs watching Barack Obama and John McCain duke it out in the first presidential debate.
And some will do both. For them, there are several Web sites out there featuring debate-themed drinking games. No, I’m not kidding. Here are three:
Comedy Central has [...]

Sleepy and Famous

After hearing about Mayor Kay Halloran’s much-chronicled sleep apnea diagnosis this week, I wondered whether any famous people had the same problem.
A Web search on apnea came up empty, but I did find a Wikipedia list of noteworthy people with narcolepsy, another disorder that causes people to nod off at inopportune moments, like at City [...]

What Else Would $700 Billion Buy?

Network World has the answer, and a slideshow.
I can’t decide between the jewel-encrusted bras or the pair of Denmarks. Tough choice.

Today’s Big Idea — Health Casinos

I’ve figured out how to forge a compromise between bickering casinos, gambling expansionists and health  advocates — create “Health Casino.”
Please, hold your applause until the end.
Casinos want to keep their hard-fought smoking ban exemption, which allows smoking on gaming floors. But health advocates want that loophole filled, pronto.
Gambling expansionists want more casinos in places such as Tama [...]

Grub — Beef O’Brady’s

A month or two ago, while driving north on Edgewood Road approaching Blair’s Ferry, I first saw a sign for Beef O’Brady’s. It made me laugh. No offense, but it sounded made up, likes something from an SNL sketch.
Turns out it’s a real place, the latest addition to the area’s lengthy list of strip mall [...]

Extended Forecast — No “Perfect Storm”

I wish “perfect storm” would blow, or dissipate or move harmlessly out to sea.
There it was again this morning, tucked into the investigation of the University of Iowa’s handling of a sexual assault report last fall. An investigator cited a “perfect storm” of miscommunication.
Now, I’m not passing judgment on my journalistic pals. I’ve used it [...]

Friday Time-Eater: Campaign Ads 1952-2008

The Museum of the Moving Image has a very cool site where you can view dozens of presidential campaign television advertisements from the last 56 years.
One thing you notice right away from even the earliest spots is that  attack ads have been around since the very advent of television. One difference is that candidates used [...]

Palin says Cedar Rapids is Grand

So what if Sarah Palin called us “Grand Rapids?” I, for one, am big enough to cut her some slack. I’m also afraid that Todd Palin will run me over with a snow machine if I don’t.
Palin just spoke at a town hall meeting in Grand Rapids, Mich., last night. You can’t expect a candidate to know which [...]

McCain Flood Tour?

Veep nominee Sarah Palin says during her CR remarks at this hour that the GOP team is going to look at flood damage after all.