63 Questions Top Obama Official Have to Answer

I’ve always wondered about the application process and the background check people high up in a presidential administration goes through.  For the most part, I think these people are sought out, so they don’t need to fill out an application and all that mess.  But the ABC News political blog provides us with a glimpse of that process for the folks that want to be top ranking officials in the Obama administration.

“If you have ever sent an electronic communication, including but not limited to an email, text message or instant message, that could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family, or the President-elect if it were made public, please describe.”

So asks question 13 of the questionnaire for potential top-ranking Obama Administration officials.

The mind reels.

The seven-page, 63 question intrusive and extensive list of queries, first obtained by the New York Times and confirmed as legitimate by the Obama Transition Team, offers a revealing glimpse into both the Obama team’s determination not to repeat the mistakes of its predecessors (Any nanny issues? Any discriminatory club memberships?) as well as the new era on which Obama will lead (“Please provide the URL address of any websites that feature you in either a personal or professional capacity (e.g. Facebook, My Space, etc.”).

Applicants are asked if they or any immediate family members own a gun, if they have ever been charged with sexual harassment or malpractice, if they have ever had any alimony or child support issues, “any writs of garnishment,” or any bankruptcy problems.

Link

NYTimes Article

Posted in Interesting, Political | 1 Comment

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

As George Bush prepares to move out of the White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, and Barack Obama prepares to move in, I thought I’d take a virtual trip around the country and see what’s going on at other locations with the same address.

Ironic Sans

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Fun with the Google Street View Car

On May 3rd 2008, artists Robin Hewlett and Ben Kinsley invited the Google Inc. Street View team and residents of Pittsburgh’s Northside to collaborate on a series of tableaux along Sampsonia Way. Neighbors, and other participants from around the city, staged scenes ranging from a parade and a marathon, to a garage band practice, a seventeenth century sword fight, a heroic rescue and much more…

Street View technicians captured 360-degree photographs of the street with the scenes in action and integrated the images into the Street View mapping platform. This first-ever artistic intervention in Google Street View made its debut on the web in November of 2008.

Click here to learn more about the event and view the interactive embedded Google Map.

And who can’t love a giant chicken on a street corner.

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The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time

This list is from Rolling Stone magazine and under each singer are ten songs you can listen to with a summary written by a fellow big time singer.

Link

Here’s the top ten:

  1. Aretha Franklin
  2. Ray Charles
  3. Elvis Presley
  4. Sam Cooke
  5. John Lennon
  6. Marvin Gaye
  7. Bob Dylan
  8. Otis Redding
  9. Stevie Wonder
  10. James Brown

Bono writes about Bob Dylan, and Bono comes in at 32 which I think is a little high.  As much of a fan I am of him, I don’t know how I feel about him making the top third.  I think maybe he’s in the middle or lower end.  Heck, Sting didn’t even make the list.  But I have to admit that Billie Joe Armstrong’s write up did catch my attention:

I would describe Bono’s singing as 50 percent Guinness, 10 percent cigarettes — and the rest is religion. He’s a physical singer, like the leader of a gospel choir, and he gets lost in the melodic moment. He goes to a place outside himself, especially in front of an audience, when he hits those high notes.

Too bad Eva Cassidy didn’t live long enough, she would have definately made the list.

Posted in Interesting, Pop Culture, U2 | 3 Comments