By Debbie Schlussel
Sometimes I feel like I am a Jetson equpped as a Flintstone (or is that, Flintstonowitz?) in a Jetsons’ world. An example: Even though I’m very good at video games and have excellent hand-eye coordination, I do not have any Wii stuff or other similar gamer software or equipment.
That said, I still keep up with it all. And the hottest gift–stores can’t keep it on the shelves–is supposed to be the Nintendo Wii console. If you’re looking for one, WiiTracker and WiiChat have the tips and info.

Wii Console
Customers are reportedly waiting early in the morning outside stores a lot these days for the new shipments, which are sold out by early morning. It’s like every day is Black Friday. More on the craze here.
Also, a surprise to Nintendo: Wii is hugely popular with the senior citizen set. The Erickson senior living centers have more Wiis than I do. New Schlussel phrase: Wiitirement Community. Uh-oh. You know what that means. When your mom (not mine–no way) starts listening to Eminem, he’s out. So, multiply that uncool factor by ten–or a cool hundy–for your grandma.
Of course, I don’t think that way. I like being partially equipped like a Flintstone in the Jetsons’ world. Or rather, being a Jetson, equipped partially like a Flintstone in the Jetsons’ world. That way I get to watch and comment. And I don’t have the corresponding hole in my wallet.
***
In related news, Detroit-based ’80s cheese-band, The Romantics, is suing Activision, the makers of Guitar Hero, for using its music in a “sound-alike” recording of “What I Like About You,” without compensation in “Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the ’80s”. My friend, Detroit Free Press music critic Brian McCollum (the only conservative rock critic in the country) broke the story. I went to high school with the younger bro of one of the Romantics (yup–a Jewish guy; Muslims, yet another group for you to boycott).
The suit sounds kind of stupid, though. The Romantics admit that they licensed the use of a cover of the song to Activision. Now, they’re mad that the imitation sounds so much–they say too much–like the actual Romantics:

“It’s a very good imitation, and that’s our objection,” said Troy attorney William Horton. “Even the guys in the band said, ‘Wow, that’s not us, but it sure sounds like us.'”

Sounds like a frivolous lawsuit to me. If I were Activision, I’d countersue and ask for sanctions. But, hey, The Romantics only had two hits from the ’80s–pretty close to a one-hit wonder–and they must be hard up for money now. They’ve filed another lawsuit, which seems more valid–for all the times their music was licensed for commercials and they didn’t get paid.
I am sure there will be some gamers commenting and maybe setting me straight or proving me wrong about something I’ve written here. But, hey, I’m not a well-equipped gamer, as I noted.

By Debbie Schlussel
What’s racism? Well, I think a great example of it is what Director Marc Forster found when he was in Pakistan scouting locations for his movie, “The Kite Runner.” Out at the end of December, I loved this very powerful movie. (He is also directing the next James Bond flick.)
He has the guts to say the un-PC stuff about the Pakistanis (that’s “Pakis” to you, my friends at the Nazi-funded Media Matters for America) and their hatred for us. I think this sums it up about why President Bush is idiotic for ordering free elections in this outpost of Greater Barbaria:

Director Marc Forster

I fly in to Islamabad, and we drive up to Peshawar. We have three cars. I’m in the middle car, and I have seven security guards — all Special Forces. So I ask, ‘What’s up?’ They say: ‘Oh, this is going to be a whole different thing. It will be much more dangerous. There aren’t many Westerners up north in that part of Pakistan. So we will wear traditional clothing and drive in these (pock-marked) cars, so as not to draw any attention.’ So we’re driving up there. I have two security guys with me in the back and two sitting in the front, plus the driver. We get there, and we go into the hotel, and they check the hotel and tell me where the escape route is — how to get out in case something happens. Then we go out on the street and people realize that I’m white and a Westerner, and they just looked at me like they wanted me to die. Like ‘You are the enemy, and you are evil.’ It just freaked me out. It was beyond racism. It was pure hatred against the West.”

The thing is, given the script and story behind “The Kite Runner” and what we know goes on there, this shouldn’t have “freaked [him] out” in the least. Still, a glimmer of sanity that a Hollywood bigwig recognizes their utter hatred of us.
Sadly, Forster isn’t 100% on target. As I’ve noted, he’s making an absurd movie whitewashing Islamic terrorist and deportable alien Ibrahim Parlak in one of his next flicks.
Maybe he’ll learn. Here’s hoping his experience in Pakistan was enlightening. But since he’s making the Parlak film, I doubt it.

By Debbie Schlussel
Would we let Israel decide America’s national security matters? We wouldn’t (though in some cases–TSA?–that might work better). We recognize that a country is entitled to its own sovereignty. Or do we?
Carl in Jerusalem points out that while the BS Annapolis “Peace” Conference is only just beginning, the U.S. has already decided, in writing, that it will decide whether or not each side has lived up to its commitments to “The Road Map”–the plan to carve up Israel in exchange for “peace”. The U.S. will be judge, jury, and executioner and is already lauding the Palestinians for keeping those commitments (like stopping terror and recognizing Israel), which it hasn’t kept. Instead, it’s laying the blame on Israel.

Sorry, but would you want people like Madeleine Albright, Jimmy Carter, and Condi Clueless to decide Israel’s national security? I wouldn’t want Ehud Olmert and Tzipi Livni (his very vapid deputy) deciding ours (or our country would be gone).
Read Carl’s very important analysis of the Annapolis Conference and these heavy-handed measures in favor of America’s Islamist enemies. (Ignore the parts from WorldNutDaily, as the “reporter” who wrote it, is a plagiarist and has reported info in the past that has proven entirely fabricated.)

By Debbie Schlussel
Remember the Steven Spielberg (“Abu Spielberg“) movie “AI: Artificial Intelligence”? Probably not, since it bombed at the box office. A main theme of the movie was that humans were prejudiced against artificial humans.
Well, as with “Munich“, real life yet again proves Steven Spielberg completely wrong.
In fact, humans are developing feelings for their “Roombas,” the robotic disc-shaped vacuums that spin around cleaning up. It’s ridiculous, but true. These people are called “Roomba-attached individuals.” Yes, it does sound like a mental illness.

Dressing Your Roomba in Costume:
A Symptom of Roomba Love Disorder
AP reports that people are giving them nicknames, worry when they signal malfunctions, and treat them like a trusted pet. People are dressing their Roombas up in costumes, and there are absurd websites (My Room Bud and Roomba Romance) devoted to Roomba worship. I kid you not. I’m waiting for the founding of the North American Man Roomba Love Association (NAMRLA).
This is too funny. I think it’s time to bring Blade Runner Rick Deckard out of retirement:

They give them nicknames, worry when they signal for help and sometimes even treat them like a trusted pet.
A new study shows how deeply some Roomba owners become attached to the robotic vacuum and suggests there’s a measure of public readiness to accept robots in the house – even flawed ones.
“They’re more willing to work with a robot that does have issues because they really, really like it,” said Beki Grinter, an associate professor at Georgia Tech’s College of Computing. “It sort of begins to address more concerns: If we can design things that are somewhat emotionally engaging, it doesn’t have to be as reliable.”
Grinter decided to study the devices after she saw online pictures of people dressing up their Roombas, the disc-shaped, self-directed vacuums made by Burlington, Mass-based iRobot Corp.
“This sort of notion that someone would dress a vacuum cleaner seemed strange,” she said. “A lot more was going on.”
She enlisted Ph.D. student Ja Young Sung, who studies “emotional design” – the theory that certain types of design can influence consumers to become emotionally attached.
The Roomba seems to have earned quite a following. More than 2 million of the robots have been sold . . . .
The first phase of the project, which involved monitoring an online forum devoted to the site, revealed people who named their Roombas, traveled with them and one owner who introduced the machine to his parents.
Others reported their efforts to “Roomba-ize” their homes so the robot can roam the floors more easily. Some bought new rugs, pre-cleaned the floors to clear the robot’s route and purchased new refrigerators with a higher clearance so the machines can clean under them easier. [DS: Incredible. These people are buying clean carpets to make it easier for their robotic carpet cleaner?!]
“I was blown away,” said Young Sung. “Some Roombas break a lot, they still have functional problems. But people are willing to make that effort because they love their robot enough.”
The next part, which studied 30 committed Roomba users, revealed 21 of them gave their robots names. And another 16 talked about the robot as a “he,” arbitrarily assigning the robot a gender.
The third phase of the study, presented last week at the Ubiquitous Computing Conference in Austria, focused on more traditional users. Polling 379 U.S. users, it found that some would pre-clean their homes before using the machine, and that it seemed to make males more excited about the chore of vacuuming.
“The female of the house says, ‘You take care of it – it’s your toy,'” said Young Sung.

Gosh, even with a robot to do the work, some women are still complaining about doing housework. Go figure.
Forget about gay marriage. Pretty soon, people will be demanding Roomba marriage.

By Debbie Schlussel
The story of what happened at the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives) Headquarters in Washington, DC, is a textbook example of why moving your business to the inner city to spur economic development isn’t always the safest choice. It’s also a textbook example of how federal law enforcement agencies tasked to keep you safe, can’t even keep themselves safe:

HOME-FRONT SECURITY: Agents at Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives monitor headquarters to protect employees after co-worker’s mugging at new ATF location. The new site was selected as spur to economic development in struggling Washington neighborhood.

I’ve already written about how this new headquarters–which cost taxpayers $150 million–has a basement that doubles as the set for “Waterworld.” Now, it’s a mugger’s delight, too.
Splendid.

By Debbie Schlussel
Not sure if this story is true, but TMZ and The Daily Star reported it over the weekend. Regardless of its veracity, it’s right on target about pan-Islamist Angelina Jolie and her wife, Brad Pitt and their coronated supreme baby of the universe:
Supposedly, Jamie Oliver a/k/a “The Naked Chef” called Angelina Jolie in an effort to promote his cooking and new book to her. He asked how her daughter, Shiloh Pitt, er . . . Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, was doing. Except that he mixed the name up and asked her how Piloh Shitt was doing. And he apparently did it on purpose.
Yup, I’d say that name is even more appropriate for her skanky, pro-terrorist mommy than for the heretofore innocent baby who didn’t have a say in picking her parents. But, in time, with them as parents, odds are that she will indeed fit the Naked Chef’s malapropist moniker.

“Naked Chef” Jamie Oliver Has Naked Truth on Jolie-Pitt Clan

By Debbie Schlussel
**** IMPORTANT UPDATE, 11/28/07: I was remiss in not giving proper credit to KGS of Tundra Tabloids–a great, must-read site–for originally posting this video. He is the first on many important and insightful stories. ****
I haven’t written much about this week’s Annapolis Mid-East “Peace” Conference because I’ve written, time and again, the same thing about (Insert Name of City Here) Mid-East “Peace” Conference. Yup, every such meeting is about one thing–cutting Israel into smaller pieces yet. Pieces. Not Peace.
And while these Muslims and Arabs can’t even get along with themselves, the Jews are expected to give it up to these barbarians. Check out this video of HAMAS v. Fatah executions sent by reader Zalmi. It’s posted on MySpace TV under the category, “Animals.” Yup, that’s about right:

Our Peace Partners

Add to My Profile | More Videos
“Allahu Akbar“
As Zalmi says:

This is how our peace partners deal with their own people.
Just imagine how they will co-exist with the Jews ….

Yup, I’ve been saying that and saying that. Sadly, the powers that be have the hubris to think they will change this centuries-long dynamic.
And I’m not even sure why this rushed conference is happening. Here’s the main reason: A failed, unpopular, lame duck President (Bush) who wants to be remembered and get a Yasser/Jimmy (Un)Nobel Peace Prize and a failed, unpopular, lame duck Prime Minister (Ehud Olmert) who wants to be remembered and get a Yasser/Jimmy (Un)Nobel Peace Prize are rushing to dhimmi it down in an international session of the Limbo Dance, whose consequences will be far worse than a tequila hangover and a one-night stand.
Oh, and by the way, the Prime Minister’s son is a draft-dodger, his daughter is a lesbian activist who harasses Israeli soldiers at checkpoints, and his hag wife joins her in doing the harassing. If you like Hillary, you’ll LOOOOVE Mrs. Olmert. You can tell a lot about a person by the company they keep, and this is the Olmert company. Not the kinda guy you want at a post-Thanksgiving turkey carving, where Israel is the turkey.
And then there’s who isn’t there–not that we’d want Israel (or the U.S.) to ever sit down at a table with them: Iran, it’s proxy Hezbollah, and HAMAS–the real power in the “Palestinian” territories. They will never make peace with Israel, so why should Israel give away the store to the also-rans who have zero power over them (and when they do, won’t exercise it)?
It’s like doing business with Fredo Corleone when Don Michael Corleone is openly boycotting the deal. You get offed. (With apologies to the Corleone family for comparing them to HAMAS, etc.)

By Debbie Schlussel
It’s about time (actually well past it) that firefighters around the country are receiving intelligence training on how to spot terrorist activity. We know that Al-Qaeda, Fatah/PLO, and HAMAS have all committed arson as a method of terrorism. And firefighters are in a unique position to spot things–such as dangerous chemicals and bombmaking materials–that others may not. This isn’t about people snooping. It’s about firefighters getting intelligence info on what to look for in relation to what’s going on overseas.
But the ACLU and the usual suspects are upset about it. And that–not the good aspects of the training and how useful it is–is the topic of an AP story by Eileen Sullivan.
Not in Detroitistan. It might offend Muslims . . .

World Trade Center, Post 9/11 Attack, 2001
But don’t worry. The same AP story tells us that the City of Detroit a/k/a “D-Mecca” will NOT train firemen on how to spot terrorists or dangerous activity because the city does not want to offend Arabs (the story says Arabs, but what they really mean is Muslims). Says Detroit Deputy Fire Commissioner Seth Doyle:

That’s a touchy area. I don’t want our folks to be put in a position where they’re reporting something that creates a situation where there was really no real problem in the first place.

Ri-i-ight. Like Muslim Arab guys taking flying lessons and not wanting to learn how to take off or land. No real prob. And we wouldn’t want to uncover it.
And, um, how is telling your people to look out for suspicious behavior and substances “touchy” to Arabs? I thought Arabs “aren’t terrorists.” I thought they were “loyal Americans who are against terrorism.” (I mean Kiefer Sutherland told us that about Muslims, so it must be true.) If these were truly the case, why would they be irked by firefighters noticing that Ahmed has an illegal accelerant peaking out of his garage next to the Holy Land Foundation poster.
Also, this dhimmiwit, Doyle, says that he doesn’t want to give his men and women this training because it “might not be enough”:

A structural diagram of the Ambassador Bridge, which links Detroit to Canada, materials and literature to make a bomb and a bomb prototype are things firefighters should pay attention to, Doyle said. But the bridge diagram by itself might not be enough.

What an Einstein! Don’t give them any training in this aspect of saving lives because it might not be maximum training (ie., training that will offend Muslims).
Oh, and by the way, here’s what they will not receive in Detroit, that New York and DC firefighters WILL receive:

Because firefighters are on the front lines, the fire service needs to know about intelligence that could somehow affect what they do, said Gregory Cade, who as head of the U.S. Fire Administration is the nation’s top fire chief.
If, for example, Washington is hosting an International Monetary Fund meeting where there will be a large group of protesters and a truckload of gasoline has been stolen in Baltimore, firefighters need to know about intelligence from overseas that terrorists are trying to make explosive devices out of gasoline, Schultz said.
“Getting appropriate, actionable intelligence is important for a fire chief in deciding what to do and how to allocate resources and to know what’s going on,” Cade said. “No one is expecting us to be the analyst person who is sitting down, trying to connect all of this stuff together and determining, ‘Oh, yes, this looks like a terrorist plot.’ ”
But Cade said that until recently, there’s been no mechanism for fire departments to share what they learn with law enforcement and intelligence analysts who could use it.

Yup, we can’t have this logical training and information in Detroitistan because it might offend Muslims.
I remember the photo of heroic firefighters raising the flag at Ground Zero on the day of the 9/11 attacks. And I think: Not in Detroit. It might offend Islam.

By Debbie Schlussel
I’ve written this or a similar message for a few years, but I can’t improve upon it:
To my readers and friends, who wished me a Happy Thanksgiving, I regret I cannot respond to each of you personally, but Right Back At Ya! A joyous, delicious, fun Thanksgiving to you!
On this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for you who regularly read my words. I will remember all of those who gave their lives so we can enjoy our turkey in freedom and without wearing a niqab; so that we can enjoy our lives as we wish and live freely. While left-wing self-hating Americans want us to recall their phony version of history–ie., that we are the oppressors, don’t forget that the real oppression is going on elsewhere . . . all over the world today. A large part of it is under Islamic totalitarian rule, some of it under Communists and “former” Communists.
And, finally, on Thanksgiving, I will also be thankful for the turkey and other animal products that I will happily consume. Remember: Thanksgiving . . . it’s not for vegetarians (or tofurkeys).

Enjoy that Turducken. And HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
***
Over the years, many people have asked me how, as a Jew, my Thanksgiving might differ from yours. Well, first, it doesn’t differ at all. We are all Americans, and I am as thankful as anyone to be able to live and practice my religion freely in our great country. I eat turkey and most of the same “fixin’s” as you do, with the exceptions noted below.
But there are differences in the meal:
1) My turkey is kosher. That means it’s slightly more expensive (most kosher meat and poultry usually is because you are paying for the kosher slaughter, a rabbi’s supervision of it, etc.). That means the turkey was slaughtered in captivity, pursuant to kosher slaughter rules (of which the Muslim Halal is a complete rip-off). The live animal is inspected to make sure there are no defects, missing parts, blemishes, etc. If none, then it is slaughtered with almost a guillotine like beheading. The idea is that, even though we are not animal rights/PETA freaks, we want the bird to feel as little pain as possible and die instantly. Also, we don’t need to brine the turkey, because kosher poultry is always slightly salty, anyway. Kosher meat/poultry is salted to get rid of the blood.
2) If you keep kosher, as I do, then we don’t have any dairy ingredients with our meal or up to six hours afterward. So, no buttering the turkey, a non-dairy pumpkin pie at dessert, etc. That’s, again, because of the kosher/Jewish idea of humane treatment of animals. We eat the animal, but we don’t want it to suffer. And in the Bible, it says, “Thou shalt not cook a goat in its mother’s milk.” In those days with small, self-sufficient family farms, if you cooked a goat in milk, it probably was its mother’s milk. We believe that it’s enough that we killed the animal and are eating it, but to cook it in its own mother’s milk would be to embarrass it/make it suffer more. So we never eat meat/poultry ingredients with dairy ones and wait up to six hours in between for the two not to mix in the digestion process.
3) I noticed that most gentiles I know start their thanksgiving in the very early afternoon. Most of my many non-Jewish friends are done with their Thanksgiving dinner much before we’ve even started ours. Most Jewish people I know don’t start our Thanksgiving dinner until the early evening/regular dinner time. That’s anecdotal, of course. I don’t know every one of my 5.2 million American fellow co-religionists. But this is my observation. As I write this, it’s mid-afternoon, and no Thanksgiving dinner eating has begun for me. Not for a while.
Other than that, my Thanksgiving is pretty much the same as yours. Enjoy. And give thanks.

By Debbie Schlussel
To my friends and readers, I wish you a joyous, delicious, and thanks-filled Thanksgiving holiday and weekend. I spent every Thanksgiving with my father, and this is the first year without him, so it won’t be the same. Still, I have plenty to be thankful and grateful for.
Yes, things are more expensive this Thanksgiving for all Americans. Today’s Wall Street Journal reports that The Turkey Index–the average price of a Thanksgiving meal–is up three times more than the average. This year, the average total cost of a Thanksgiving meal in America is $42.3, up 10.9% over last year’s $38.1. That includes turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls, peas, cranberries, relish tray, pumpkin pie mix, pie shells, whipping cream, milk, and “miscellaneous items.”
Still, unlike in many, many lands, most Americans can still afford the cost of such a lavish meal (yes, too many cannot), and we have so much to appreciate and give thanks for. Number one of those, we are still free.

I give thanks that I am healthy, alive, and with food, heat, water, and a roof over my head. I also give thanks that I have you, dear readers, continuing to read and patronize this site. Thank you so much for continuing to come back again and again, reading, commenting, and e-mailing comments and information,etc.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all. And enjoy your Turkey. (This is a Tofurkey-Free Zone.)