Tomorrow is September 1. And it's been three weeks since I've posted. Things change in three weeks. I read a lot, as usual. The Tigers haven't exactly been playing their best. I finally hooked up the battery backup to the PC at home. The weather's cooler. Not like 65 degrees or anything, but it's only supposed to be 85 today. Now that's progress.

Two big news conferences will be held by US Senators today, and I guess I have opinions on both.

The first is Larry Craig. While this one isn't 100 percent certain to even happen today, he's going to resign. He has no choice at this point. I am not famous. If I hid an arrest and guilty plea from Mrs Original, my mailing address would quickly change and I probably wouldn't see her or the youth for several years. And that leaves the type of arrest totally out of the equation. It is bizarre to me that Senator Craig thinks the problem here is that people think he's gay. I would guess that a majority of Americans, even in Idaho, which people seem to think of as some radically Conservative bubble, care more that he lied to them. As the arresting officer told him, "People vote for you." We pay his salary. He's accountable to Americans, specifically those living in Idaho. Conservatives LOVE the story about the $91 nail. Even though it's about 25 years old, it gets dragged out a lot as an example of the irresponsibility of the federal government. Guess what? There's a new nail in town.

The second news conference will be held by John Warner, and this one seems pretty likely. And I think he'll announce his retirement. Which means my intrepid Representative Tom Davis will run for the seat. And his wife will probably run for the House seat. And suddenly I regret not getting involved with the Fairfax Democratic Party when I was 22 and starting the climb up the ladder. I could be the 11th District Representative! Or at least receive a few thousand votes! Seriously, Warner is one of the most respected members of the Senate, and although I don't always agree with his views, generally feel that he has done a good job representing me and my state in the Senate.

These press conferences are national news. America should take the time to watch them and carefully think about our country. Senior citizens are an important demographic in America, but not five-sixths of the country. Why are our lawmakers largely elderly? Is this a good idea? They may have the experience needed to lead, but in terms of American culture, they're somewhat irrelevant. I don't want my grandparents deciding whether to lay new fiber optic lines between North America and Asia. It helps that they often have younger staffers, but ultimately, decisions rest in the hands of the Members of Congress. People who probably have pill trays labeled with the day of the week on the outside. As our life expectancy increases, it will be socially acceptable for older and older Americans to run for office. John McCain is 71. 50 years ago, he would have likely been near death. Today, he can run for President.

The Larry Craig situation is bizarre, and everything you can possibly say about it has been said. I leave you with what I think is the clear and decisive winner of FishbowlDC's Craig-inspired T-shirt design contest:


Um, yeah.
Proceed to laugh hysterically.


2pm update: Warner's not gonna run again.