I get pulled back in

Feeling the need to craw in a hole and not come out. Instead, at the end of work, I'm off to Pittsburg for Confluence. No rest for the wicked. And on top of it all, I'm behind in my reading for the class (that's not going to get done before Monday), and I have one and a half more stories to get through for the Hamster critique on Sunday. The plus is that Confluence isn't really a party Con. Considering that one of the pillars of the community passed away this year and much of the first night is devoted to a memorial, I'm guessing it'll be even less this year. And in the "it's good news, but bad news too" category, most of the people I hang out with won't be here this year. So I'll have some more time, but will miss them and will be feeling out new connections. And while at other cons the bar is the good place to hang, Confluence is also different in that context.

And, lastly, some others thoughts on Breitbart, from language log, some more thought's from John Scalzi, and finally an interesting twist to what this might have been about. As I've said in the comments, he isn't stupid. Although he's trying that as a defense. No, I'm pretty sure Breitbart did the full political calculation before releasing the edited video.

(the gods but I keep from trying to be political, and then I run across something like this) Dear Mr. Gingrinch, for your desire to bring Saudi Arabia style bigotry here to the US, please, sir, (expletive deleted) and die. As someone who is an elite (say, how many years did you teach college?) you have few stones to throw. Also, since you are a student of history, know full well the Christians also converted Mosques to Churches in the areas they conquered during various crusades. Such activity (the conversion and reconvertion of holy sites were very common in history). You've adopted the stance of "I must leave, there go my people and I must lead them." We, the USA, are not Saudi Arabia, and your desire to remake us into the Christian version of that land can not be tolerated. You political calculations, desire to run for national office again, and lateness to this issue show you to be the opportunist bottom-feeder you are. Please, sir, return to your private home and lecture your fourth wife on the virtues of Family Values and leave the rest of us humans alone. Your return to the vitriol farms you cultivated in the 1994 "Republican Revolution" is neither needed or warranted. You are a smart person, stop behaving like an idiot. And please take your admonishment of "No self deception" to heart. Because, frankly, you've refined it to an art form.