It was almost like the old movie cliché: the packed public meeting at which angry and emotional townspeople give passionate, eloquent speeches that convince the council to Do the Right Thing. But Monday's meeting of the Davenport school board didn't end with a dramatic tie-breaking vote and the cheers of hundreds of people.
Good morning, your honor. I represent the plaintiff in this matter, Becky Lynn Gritzke." "Very well. Proceed." "Your honor, as you may have read in the papers, we are suing the producers of Girls Gone Wild.

Gas and Oil

"Good morning, The White House." "Yeah, it's Ken Lay from Enron. Lemme talk to the president." "Who?" "Kenneth Lay. L-A-Y. I'm on a pay phone, sweetie. Chop-chop." "I'm sorry.
"All right, let's get the meeting started. As you know, the government is ready to bring this Zacarias Moussaoui fellow to trial, and it's up to all of us in the media to make sure the American people get ratings.
It was a week before Christmas - six days, to be exact. The air had a holiday feel. There were carols on the radio, snow in the forecast. The sun was low in the afternoon sky, inching toward the winter solstice.
"Okay, how about this: 'Osama bin Lager - the light beer that brings out your dark side.'" "I don't think so." "'One six-pack, and you'll be hiding in caves'?" "No." "'The brew so bold, it's against your religion .
Sometime around my 12th birthday, I was sitting in a bedroom shared by my older cousins, trying to pick up whatever teenage-boy intelligence might be available in that closed-door setting. We were half-listening to the radio, which was tuned to a station that played what entertainment insiders still referred to as "popular" music.
"Excuse me, Mr. White?" "Yes? What is it?" "Something strange is going on. I seem to be the only one who came to work at the newspaper today." "You are. Everyone else is off until January.
Look, Running Deer is coming! And he seems to be out of breath. Running Deer, what news have you brought?" "Greetings, Bald Eagle. I (cough) have just (cough, cough) come from the European visitors and (cough, cough, cough).

Prime Time

" ... so as White House chief of staff, I want to congratulate you all again on a very successful week. The country's united behind us, we're hitting our military objectives, and even that old smallpox vaccine might still be good.

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