Concerned that ignorant Americans know little about the great state of Delaware, Dave Letterman has decided to air a nightly segment introducing us to the state represented by Vice Presidential nominee Joe Biden.
Now, as you can tell, the clip continues on the plagiarism past of Biden. And at the end, McCain “approves” his message.
Jokes about McCain’s age are entirely cliche nowadays. They’re way too overdone. But every now and then, one works. It’s got to be creative, witty and non-repetitive. And I think Dave’s does it Tuesday…
According to my blog stats, most people are obsessed with Vince DeMentri.
Forget Larry having an “improper relationship” with Alycia. Yeah, people cared about that, but overall, not as much as they do about DeMentri.
I discovered with help that DeMentri’s bio had been yanked from the Web site. Station management refuses to admit he’s gone. But he more than likely is.
The interest in DeMentri seems to be dwindling. Philly.com hasn’t posted much of anything lately, other than a report by Dan Gross of DeMentri being spotted in Rittenhouse Square with a “brunette babe.”
Based on the sole gravity of the situation, I’d think the Larry and Alycia saga would be much more noteworthy and of interest to more people. And though the posting of Mendte’s statement garnered me the most hits ever (for which I’m grateful), collectively, more people are interested in DeMentri. Weird.
Perhaps it’s because no one else really cares enough to write about DeMentri. Maybe it’s because there are so many people around the world writing about Larry and Alycia. Maybe I’m just looking too deeply.
But whatever the case, the obsession with DeMentri continues to exist today, with posts regarding him in higher demand than those of Mendte or Lane.
I saw this for the first time a few days ago. I thought it was hilarious.
And then, I thought about it. And I was in utter disbelief that McCain would actually “approve” — in those now infamous words — “this message.”
My guess — Sen. McCain probably thinks this is more funny than it is accurate. But instead, this creates a preview of the disgusting, annoying and tiring attack-ad campaigns that are to come.
So thank you, Sen. McCain. Not only for your low blow on the Democrats (cut them a little slack), but for instigating an attack worse than Sock’em Boppers to the head.
I’ve been a big fan of Jeff Deck after seeing a report about him on ABC News. TEAL, or the Typo Eradication Advancement League, has been under controversy lately. As you might infer, that link isn’t what the Web site looks like normally.
Deck and his team literally go around America to copy edit everything — menus, business signs, highway signs — everything. So then they touched the pictured sign — a hand-painted sign at Grand Canyon National Park.
The National Park Service didn’t like this, so they fined TEAL $3,035 to repair the sign. They’re also banned from all national parks for one year (pity, I know).
This just proves — grammar is more than words. It’s a crime.
Maybe I haven’t been following the TV Squad as religiously as I should be. Instead, I got it from CNN.com.
But apparently, there’s a permanent new judge on American Idol.
This seems like a mistake. Although, I’m probably wrong.
Adding another judge will crowd the panel. It’s like saying that Paula Abdul isn’t doing enough (well…). It’s like balancing the panel because of peer pressure. (Not really sure who the peers are, though.)
However, it’s going to change things up. But American Idol is always pressed with time as it is, and now they’re just adding one other person’s comments to the already crammed show.
I guess I should mention her name — Kara DioGuardi. Apparently, she has credentials. But that’s all I know. I suppose no one knew Simon before AI.
TSG President Nadine Mompremier prepares for the upcoming semester. Motivation and action are two of her biggest goals. (Tim Bennett/TTN)
At first, it wasn’t for her.
Before getting involved in campus activities, Temple Student Government President Nadine Mompremier planned to graduate in three years. College seemed more of a necessity than an interest.
“I originally did not like school,” Mompremier said. “My involvement [in TSG] and my friends are what kept me here at Temple.”
Last year, Temple students elected the Owl V.O.I.C.E.S. slate as the 2008-2009 leaders of TSG, led by the soft-spoken Mompremier.
What began as a stint on the homecoming committee in 2006 led to her role as last year’s vice president of student affairs, and now as president of the student body.
“I’ve been watching and learning since freshman year,” the senior law and business major said.
One main goal of TSG this year is to involve more students in the legislative process, Mompremier said. It’s important to get students’ voices heard to initiate change, she said.
“Our whole goal is to get more of the student input and student voice into the TSG meetings,” she said.
A notable change to TSG this year is the inaugural Senate, a group of 32 representatives from Temple’s nine schools and colleges. Non-members can bring up concerns to the Senate, who will follow up on the issue and even pass a bill to be presented to Temple administration.
“TSG is definitely going to be the voice of the students,” Mompremier said. “We came in with a vision, and we knew what we wanted to do. And now we’re leaving it up to the students to tell us what to do from here on out.”
Mompremier is joined on the executive board by Vice President of External Affairs Nexus Cook and Vice President of Services Farzad Firoz.
Cook, a senior psychology major, will be focusing on TSG’s commitment to the community and what the organization can do to expand itself.
Firoz, a senior finance major, will be responsible for researching special projects that could potentially be brought to Temple, Mompremier said.
“It’s definitely exciting to work with both of them,” she said. “The three of us together – I feel like we make a really great team.”
What Mompremier hopes will make them a great team is their dedication and willingness to interact with students. She quit her job so she can focus more of her attention toward the issues of Temple students.
“I’m available,” she said. “Just talk to me.”
Hailing from Brooklyn, Mompremier has embraced her home in North Philadelphia, which is why she wants to accomplish so much for Temple students.
“Since I came to Temple, I’ve fallen in love with the school,” she said. “I’m definitely passionate and I definitely know we can do more.”
Mompremier speaks like she’ll be the people’s president, promising to support student organizations by attending various events and “being the best me I can be.”
“One thing that has been instilled in the TSG environment … is helping to build future student leaders,” she said. She said she had been inspired by past presidents Raysean Hogan and Juan Galeano.
The decision of whether to run for student body president was difficult for Mompremier, but she has the confidence to represent the university’s 19,000 undergraduates.
“When I came to Temple, I did not plan to be the president,” she said, smiling. “For me, it was knowing that I could do more [by] learning from everyone else.”
Now sporting sentiments opposite those she had in her freshman year, Mompremier has some simple advice for incoming students.
“Don’t be afraid to open yourself up and learn something new every day,” she said. “Get it from Gandhi – be the change you want to see at Temple.”
Mompremier’s positive attitude toward the upcoming academic year is evident when she speaks, but she’s humble about her role in TSG.
“I’m definitely trying to leave a legacy, but it’s not my main goal,” she said. “It’s to reach those one or two students who said, ‘I could never do something.’ If I can just motivate those one or two students, that’d be a great accomplishment.”
After cramming what managers called “six months of work” into 18 weeks, the newly renovated Johnson & Hardwick cafeteria is ready for business.
The Louis J. Esposito dining court will operate full service beginning this afternoon, general manager David Tolbert said.
Food stations are placed throughout the larger, new space. A permanent vegetarian and vegan display is the first station diners see upon entering, and it will be equipped with a daily vegetarian cooking display.
As the semester gets underway, Tolbert said new menu options under the Balanced Way program will begin to help students get healthy if they so choose. The program is being driven by a group of professors from Drexel University and Sodexo.
The newly renovated Johnson & Hardwick cafeteria will be fully operational by this afternoon. (Chris Stover/TTN)
“There’s way more that we can offer than we could before,” Tolbert said, emphasizing that students had previously expressed a desire for healthier fare through comment cards.
Old favorites such as the deli station, fast food station and salad bar have been revamped but will still be offering student favorites. In order to meet the most recent Philadelphia health codes, the deli and fast food stations will no longer be self-service.
Sandwiches will be made to order and hot dogs and hamburgers will be preassembled for students. Tolbert said the salad bar will now be double-sided so lines won’t be as long.
“We really tried to address all of the line issues we had before,” he said, “Everywhere we had a backup, we changed the lineup.”
To deal with flow issues, three beverage stations are spaced throughout the dining area.
The popular “sizzling salad” station has been expanded and is a permanent fixture to the dinner menu. The wrap station has also been expanded to include two extra sandwich choices and an extra salad option.
Returning students will hardly recognize the space, which has greatly increased its seating capacity from 454 to 708 seats. A building expansion of 20 feet increased seating capabilities. The dining area has booths and tables that can accommodate groups of varying sizes.
“We lost that old grade-school seating where all of the tables were lined up and the same size,” Tolbert said.
Hoping to throw away as little as possible, management gathered the old tables that were in the best condition and sent them to the Ambler Campus and the Diamond Club in Mitten Hall. Tables and chairs were also donated to local churches.
“We tried not to throw anything away that people could use,” Tolbert said.
The Valaida S. Walker Food Court in the Student Center acted as a pseudo-J&H during the summer months.
“It was an awkward setup because we were doing resident dining in a place that wasn’t built for it,” Tolbert said.
The last upgrade to the J&H cafeteria occurred while school was in session in 1993. Over more than eight months, construction crews worked to complete renovations.
“We were setting up tables in the back as people were coming in the front,” Tolbert said. “[The current project] is an amazing feat to get done in 18 weeks.”
New laminate flooring and carpet complete the modern look of J&H. Instead of one main walkway in the dining area, the laminate flooring is shaped into paths leading to all seating areas. All paths lead to the tray return, which now has sound barriers so the noise of clanging dishes no longer resonates throughout the dining hall.
“It’s like following the Yellow Brick Road in and out of the dining room,” Tolbert said.
This video, courtesy of philly.com, is an 8:15 minute speech by Larry Mendte.
In it, he acknowledges that the entire situation that has been publicized for more than eight months began five years ago when Alycia Lane arrived in Philadelphia.
Mendte admits having an “improper relationship” with Lane — long dinners, late nights — and that his wife discovered it early in 2005, which is when it apparently ended. But the “mutually self-destructing feud” did not.
Mendte apologized to his wife, his family, the viewers and Alycia Lane in his statement below.
Supported by a dozen family members inside court, including his wife, Fox29 anchor Dawn Stensland, Mendte was quiet as he left the courthouse. Stensland did have one thing to say:
I love my husband, and he’s a good man.
Though Mendte could face up to six months in jail, federal prosecutors agreed not to discuss sentencing at today’s brief hearing.
After hearing an assistant U.S. attorney recount the government evidence of his hacking into Lane’s account more than 500 times, Mendte verbally acknowledged the evidence.
From the Inqy:
Mendte told the judge that he was “a little nervous, your honor, but I feel okay” as she sought to make sure that Mendte wanted to plead guilty and was legally competent to do so.
Apparently, he also acknowledged he’s been seeing a therapist since the entire scandal erupted.
Sentencing is scheduled to take place in November. A press conference by Mendte’s attorney is scheduled for later this afternoon. CBS3.com is your place for the up-to-the minute details…and of course, I’ll blog about them later.
You should watch the WAHU FOX27 News to see a very happy anchor and sports anchor. @CarterJohnson @kfulk3 I tweeted this 9 hours ago
Anyone else think it was mediocre halftime show? I tweeted this 11 hours ago
So true. RT @brelow: It's nights like these when I appreciate people I follow on Twitter. Everyone comes out firing with their best material I tweeted this 11 hours ago
Two days away from the George Huguely murder trial, and the media frenzy officially begins on Twitter. I tweeted this 1 day ago
I have an odd craving to go to IKEA. I tweeted this 1 day ago
Tell me. I appreciate all criticism. I respond to every name in the book. Pass it on to your friends. Your family. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll feel so many emotions that you'll have to give someone a hug. Preferably not me.
