There is so much news the last two days but we've been in court and drafting complex motions that are due tomorrow in one of our cases. So between that and our wrist issues, we've been down to short bursts of posts without much analysis. We hope to get back on top of it (and read the 300 plus daily comments posted to this site, and your emails) over the weekend. Thanks to those of you emailing us stuff we'd otherwise miss, and extra special thanks for those hitting our tip jar--it's much appreciated at this time of year.

Back soon.....

We've deleted a few comments that were overly long or insulting to other commenters. We also saved some of them on our computer. So, if your comment was deleted, and you'd like it back, send us an email and we'll send it right back to you.

Kevin at Calpundit went to a blogger meet last night and they discussed all kinds of things, including lefty bloggers:

Most lefty bloggers are actually pretty moderate liberals: me, Josh Marshall, Atrios, Matt Yglesias, Jeralyn Merritt, Brad DeLong, etc. (Atrios is a hardnosed partisan, but his politics are actually fairly centrist liberal. Surprise!) Most righty bloggers are actually libertarians, not conservatives.

Wampum is still accepting nominations for the 2003 Lefty Blog Awards, called the Koufax Awards. We won the award last year for best single issue blog. We hope to get nominated again this year. Lots of worthy competition, go over and check out the multitude of submissions and plug some of your own favorites.

Walter in Denver has the first Rocky Mountain Blog Roundup today. Nice.

Say hello to A Burst of Light. We found him in our comments section and like his style.

In recognition of Saddam's capture, Buzzflash is re-running it's March editorial on the real reasons Bush went to war.

New article at the Independent Institute: Uncle Sam's Guantanamo Prison: Outside the Rule of Law by Brigid O'Neil.

Howard Dean's blog has the full text of his foreign policy speech. Dave Cullen of Conclusive Evidence has thoughts on speculation that Dean is "toast." (He's not.) Skippy too has some thoughts on the demise of Dean (not) subject.

Also say hello to Battlegrounds Ballotboxes, internet political activist Kevin Thurman's new blog.

We'd like to extend a big thanks to TChris for filling in for us this weekend. He broke the news here on Saddam's capture while we were still asleep, and kept us all up to date on other issues we need to know about. We'll invite him back as often as he feels like posting, and thanks to all the readers who welcomed and responded to him in the comments. TChris, we owe you one.

Our wanderings around the bloggerhood this weekend found some good stuff:

Leaked Bush Photos from his Thanksgiving turkey-giveaway caper are making the rounds. [ Link via Atrios]

Republican Agenda Passed in the Dead of Night by Daily Kos

David Neiwert on a threat by a right wing blogger, Misha, the "Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler, to Eric Blumrich of Bushflash on the left. Tristero has more.

Bush Wars has a weekend update and a Friday report, both excellent.

Don't miss this: U.S. News has a special investigative report: The untold story of the Bush administration's penchant for secrecy. [link via Counterspin].

Pandagon has the dirty details of a disgusting anti-Howard Dean ad hitting the airwaves. You won't believe who's behind it. Shame on them. Here's more from Matthew Gross of the Dean for America blog. Calpundit weighs in as well, calling the ad "political p0rn."

Patriot Act Watch reports that 10 Democratic congresspersons are seeking hearings on the Patriot Act:

In a letter to be delivered today, Representatives Martin T. Meehan of Lowell and William D. Delahunt of Quincy, along with eight other Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee, ask chairman James Sensenbrenner Jr., Republican of Wisconsin, to hold hearings next year "on the war on terrorism's impact on civil liberties."

On a non-political note, James Capozzola of Rittenhouse Review writes more details of his mugging last week--we're glad he's not seriously hurt.

On Thanksgiving, I wrote that I had overstressed my wrist and been fitted with a cast. Well, that wasn't successful. But I have a diagnosis now, de Quervain's tenosynovitis--once called "washer woman's sprain." [ Here's more.] I just got a big painful, shot of cortisone (some new kind that supposedly doesn't cause atrophy and discoloration) and a shiny new black splint I'm only supposed to wear at night.

So, even though this condition is not caused by typing or the computer, I do have to lighten up here for a bit. Maybe just a few shorter posts a day.

This weekend, TChris, whom many of you know from his frequent, intelligent and well-expressed comments at TalkLeft, agreed to be drafted and guest blog on TalkLeft. He's an experienced, talented, dedicated criminal defense lawyer from the midwest--and although this is his first foray into blogging as other than a commenter, I know you will like him lots. Of all the regular commenters on TalkLeft, I think his views come the closest to my own. But he's not going to try and be like me--he's going to be himself, writing about what interests him in a style that's all his own.

So say hello to TChris, and make him feel welcome with plentiful comments--even when you disagree with him. I'll try to pop in a couple of times over the weekend, and I expect to be back to normal here Monday. I'm thinking positive--I have to--it's my right thumb and wrist and I'm right handed.

It's nominations time for the 2003 Koufax Blogging Awards. Last year the awards were run by Dwight Meredith of PLA (Politics, Law and Autism.) Dwight has since joined Mary Beth Williams at Wampum Blog and they will be running the awards together. You can nominate your own blog or someone else's. (TalkLeft is very proud to have won the 2002 award for "best single issue" blog.)

The purpose of the awards is to recognize and applaud the best of the left. Nominations are open now through the end of December and can be submitted by email or by commenting at their site, here. There will be 11 categories this year. The categories (links are to last year’s awards) are:

Bush Wars sums up the reactions to Gore's endorsement of Dean. The consensus seems to be that Dean has the nomination locked up. A few, like Mark Klieman and Kevin at Lean Left disagree. Josh Marshall thinks it helps Dean, but really helps Clark.

Drug War Rant has a terrific long quote from a 1996 article late Sen. Paul Simon co-wrote with Dave Koppel for the National Law Journal on the foolhardiness of mandatory minimum sentences and incarcerating non-violent offenders.

Jay and Jane of the Daily Rant have renamed their blog "Classless Warfare" and moved it here.

James Capozzola of Rittenhouse Review got mugged the other night. He's okay though.

Ezra at Pandagon reviews last night's Democratic debate and says it was the worst ever.

Off the Kuff has an interview with Richard Morrison, who may challenge Tom Delay for his Texas seat.

Billmon at Whiskey Bar gives his take on the Guardian article positing that Osama bin Laden is winning the terror war.

Sean Paul at Agonist is taking nominations for a book club he's starting.

Patriot Watch informs about a new Government project called US-Visit, which will "replace a patchwork of disparate immigration databases and paper-based files and will require that almost all visitors be digitally fingerprinted and photographed."

Behind the Homefront has a link to a Navy memo by a a Deputy Assistant JAG (Judge Advocate General) about the effect of the Patriot Act on FISA searches and surveillance procedures.

Avedon Carol at Sideshow links to this article by a disabled Vietnam-era vet who recently visited a Minneapolis V.A. hospital and discovered, when Bush came on the tv, that many fellow vets oppose the Bush administration's war in Iraq.

Oliver Willis is running a poll on who Dean will choose for his VP candidate. Easy choice for us, if we're limited to the current crop of candidates: Clark or Edwards. Graham would be a big mistake. We think an equally intriguing poll would be to name Clark's first cabinet picks for Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense and Attorney General. Now there's where we think you'll be able to trace the choices to favors owed and repaid.

OK, then, we're signing off. If we're not back tomorrow, please read the blogs above and Jeanne at Body and Soul who picked up and expanded upon our post about John Lennon's soul transfer 23 years ago and SK Bubba and Sisyphus Shrugged who were kind enough to mention the same John Lennon post and run with it.

If you need a laugh today, Atrios supplies it. The background is here. [link to background via Poor Man, who is often very funny]

We've been gone a day and a half and over 400 comments have been posted on TalkLeft. It will take us hours to read them all, and we won't get to most of them while we're still in Key West. So this is just a thanks to those of you who take the time to post your thoughts.

Again, we're on light posting duty until Monday....between the dialup connection and wanting to experience and enjoy Key West, we're going to take a break.

Gone fishin'...
We're out of here until Sunday.... Key West beckons...we're speaking at the 20th annual NORML continuing legal education seminar. We'll have our computer and will update as time permits once we get there late tonight, --till then, here's an open thread--please be nice.

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Blogads reports:

Pleased with the results from the first go-round, John Kerry's campaign has re-ordered ads on Talkingpointsmemo, Atrios, PoliticalWire and Agonist.

New ads ordered on Oliver Willis, Talkleft, Pandagon and NathanNewman.