Last year, I wrote a post about how a lot of leading comedic male actors who thrive on energy or a wacky personality lose their box office mojo in their early 40s.   Think Mike Myers, Jim Carrey, Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams, Dan Ackroyd, etc.

Sadly, now we can add to that list Will Farrell.  Entertainment Weekly opines that Land of the Lost is the unsuprising latest entry in a string of box office flops Farrell has made since hitting the big 4-0.

Schtick, after awhile, just gets old.  So does seeing a man approaching middle-age act immaturely.  I still love Will, though.  Anchorman will never be equaled.

Kim Jong-Un and purported twin (AFP)

Multiple news sources are reporting that ailing Korean dictator, Kim Jong Il, has selected his third son, Kim Jong-Un, as his heir.  Very little is known about Jong-Un, who is about 26 years old, apart from that he was educated at a boarding school in Switzerland.  The year and date of his birth are unconfirmed.  The only picture available of the younger Kim shows him as an 11 year school child.

BBC is now reporting that Jong-Un may have a twin sibling, also educated in the West.  The Washington Post has linked the young heir to a dark, grainy black and white photo of an androgynous adult presumed to be a member of Kim Jong Il’s immediate family.  The picture is said to have been taken at a 25th birthday celebration on Korean Arbor Day in 2008.  If the individual in the picture is Jong-Un’s twin sister, or Jong-Un himself, that would place his date of birth on April 5, 1983, making him 26 years old.

Intelligence sources believe that the uncertainty stems from a disinformation program designed by North Korea to sew confusion as to the inner workings of their government.  North Korea may believe that, if the U.S. is uncertain as to the status of Kim’s government, it may be less likely to react aggressively to North Korea’s recent nuclear tests.

Update:  Newly released, undated family photo of Kim Jong-Il and his progeny fails to provide fresh evidence for or against the Jong-Un twin theory.

Like Food?  Wish you were drenched in the Tuscan sun?  Enjoy reading travel tips from insightful Amis abroad?

Then check out Madeline’s Plate.

Dice-K, the only Boston pitcher who appeared up to the task in the American League Championship Series, took the mound last night with the Sox down 3 games to 1 against the Tampa Bay Rays.  The defending World Champs looked flat, almost lifeless.  Their leadoff, Ellsbury, couldn’t buy a single.  The hero, Ortiz, a faded giant.  The Captain, Varitek, an automatic out.  After the Sox won game 1, the Rays had reeled off 3 straight:  a duel of home runs in game 2, followed by two absolute shallackings at Fenway, in which the Sox’ bullpen looked not only mortal, but shaken.  Beckett nursing an injury.  Lester, quite hittable.

Game 5 started out looking to be more of the same.  The Rays’ Upton, a surprise powerhouse in the series, cranked a two-run homer off of Dice-K in the 1st.  Pena followed suit in the 3rd.  4-0, Rays.  Fenway faithful nervous.  Evan Longoria, the rookie of the year, added another shot and the Rays led 5-0.  Rays fans could feel their first World Series Trip coming.  For the next three innings, neither team could gain traction, but then in the top of the 7th, the Rays got two more.  7-0 Rays.  Floridians got the champagne out of the fridge.

But …

In the bottom of the 7th, the little guys — Crisp, Lowrie, Pedroia — scrapped their way to base.  Pedroia brought Lowrie home.  7-1 Rays.  Up came David Ortiz, who didn’t have a single hit in almost two weeks.  He had looked lost at the plate.  Out of ammunition.  But this was different … maybe.  The Rays were 7 outs from the World Series.  Millions of eyes weren’t straining at the ponderous player at the plate, but at his reputation.  We saw 2004 and 2007.  Papi had been here before.  This is what he does. In came the pitch and … miraculously … contact.  Ortiz channeled his massive frame through the long bat and sent the ball sailing over the right field wall.  He jogged the bases, stepped on home, and gave his daps to heaven.  7-4 Rays.  The Boston crowd is back in it.  Hope, the eternal calling card of Sox Nation, is rising.  Somewhere, Dave Roberts just got the chills.  If Papi is back, anything is possible.

In the top of the 8th, down go the Rays batters, thanks to a “you can breathe now” double play.

Bottom of the 8th.  The man who replaced Manny Ramirez, Jason Bay, walks.  This brings up J.D. Drew.  Fenway is rocking, the Ray’s pitcher is nervous.  In comes the pitch and … up it goes.  Drew’s shot follows Ortiz’ over the right field wall.  Fenway explodes.  7-6 Rays.  It’s time for the bottom of the Sox’ batting order to pull its weight.  Kotsay doubles.  Coco Crisp, a man who, a year ago, couldn’t bat to save his life (or his career in Boston), singles Kotsay home.  7-7.  These guys have tied the game.  Sox Nation is absolutely losing it.

Top of the 9th.  The Sox have already used Papelbon earlier in the game (he gave up the homer in the 7th), so young Masterson is in.  Masterson, who looked so out-of-his depth earlier in the series, gets three outs.  Bottom of the 9th.  This is it.  The MVP, Dustin Pedroia, steps up.  Slaps one to the infield and is thrown out at first.  One down.  Ortiz is back.  We all expected a walk-off home run and glory.  Didn’t happen.  Two outs.  That brings up Kevin Youkilis.   Youk, with his awkward high grip and grizzled beard.  He hangs around at the plate with a couple of foul balls and then snaps a routine grounder to third.  Even before Evan Longoria fields it, we’re all thinking the about who’ll be up in the 10th.  But something quite amazing happened.  Longoria turns and throws, but he one hops it in front of the first baseman, and the ball bounces over the outstretched glove and into the stands as Youk steps on first base.  Ground rule double!

At this point, all decorum is gone.  Everyone in Sullivans at Chapel and Park absolutely lost it.  High-fives.  Debates on whether to name first-born sons Youk or Longo.  I almost knock over my Sam Adams.

Now, instead of having secured the 3rd out and heading to the plate in the top of the 10th, the Rays players are still on the field with an out to go and Youk on 2nd.  Their stomachs must be turning.  You don’t give chances like that to World Champions.  You don’t let the tiger off the chain.  Recognizing the danger they are in, the Rays pitch around Jason Bay.  Now it’s 2 outs, man on 1st and 2nd with J.D. Drew back at the plate.  His last at-bat was that 2-run shot.  The Rays pitcher is so nervous, he almost beans Drew in the head.  What happened next transpired so fast, that our shouts and jumps announced the event before it really even registered.  I can’t remember the pitch or the hit, but suddenly the ball was sailing over the head of the right fielder.  The celebration started for the hit itself, but as the ball landed, it became clear.  They can’t stop Youk from coming home.

8-7 Sox.  Game over.

The camera shifts to home plate, where Youkilis is high-fiving and hugging the other players.  Did this just happen?  Again?  If the joy of being a sportsfan is watching your team defy the odds, reward hope, and replace despair with elation, then this is an embarrassment of riches.

I am off on vacation for a couple of weeks in Canada, so forgive me if I miss Obama’s or McCain’s announcement of a running mate. I know all three of you will be disappointed not to have my snarky take. And Ted will be apoplectic if nothing comes up on his “Sarah Palin + John McCain” google search.

Keep the faith. Final guess is still Obama/Kaine vs. McCain/Romney, but here’s hoping for Biden and .. Romney.

Thursday, a military judge sentenced Salim Hamdan to five and a half years in prison for his conviction for material support of terrorism (as opposed to the life sentence prosecutors asked for). He will receive credit for at least 61 months of the six years that he has already been held at Guantanamo Bay, and his sentence could be completed as soon as December. However, because under the current system the President is the final arbiter of release, President Bush may choose to continue to hold Hamdan indefinitely, despite the adjudication. There’s a great article on the matter here.

Let me reiterate the facts: the Pentagon’s big test-case in the military tribunal system produced a conviction of essentially five months for being Osama bin Laden’s chauffeur. But the U.S. President could still hold Hamdan until he dies.

Supporters of the Military Commissions Act cite the outcome of this case as proof that the tribunals can be impartial and produce fair results. But there are huge flaws in this argument. First, just because a systemically unfair process produced a judicious result in this instance does not mean that it will do so in the future. Remember, the prosecutors asked for a life sentence here. Second, and far more importantly, Hamdan remains in indefinite detention at the whim of the administration. The judge in the case was forced to admit that, despite the sentence, he had no idea when Hamdan would ever be released.

This is untenable. If Hamdan is not released after serving his sentence, the military tribunals will lose any shred of credibility they have. But even releasing him after the completion of the sentence will not rectify the central issue; the rules must be changed so that, after a judicial determination, the executive branch can no longer hold individuals. That is one of the central premises of any civilized legal system, regardless of whether the accused is a citizen or not.

I am not arguing for the release of dangerous individuals. But the Bush administration has insisted for four years that the tribunals are necessary to determine who is a danger to Americans, whom to punish, and whom to release. If even this premise is tossed aside because it is no longer expedient, the tribunals will be rendered meaningless and the entire house of cards will devolve merely to the wishes of the American President. Of such things, despotism is made.

Respect the separation of powers, consider norms of human rights, make rules democratically, and then stick to them.

Now your two favorite posts rolled into one!

It’s the 11th hour (ok, maybe 10th) for the VP searches, and a couple of names are floating in from left field … i.e., from the House of Representatives. For weeks, Nancy Pelosi has been pushing Congressman Chet Edwards, who represents the Crawford, TX area. He has served for 18 years, his district is heavily Army, and he has a strong reputation on veteran’s issues. On the GOP side, it appears that the McCain team is vetting Rep. Eric Cantor of Richmond, Virginia. Both men are quite handsome. Other than that, it’s unclear why they should be taken seriously.

Of the two, only Cantor has an outside chance of being chosen. He’s the same age as Obama, could shore up Virginia for McCain, and is Jewish, which might help in Florida. But he doesn’t pass the Commander-in-Chief-in-Waiting test, and would risk exacerbating concerns about McCain’s age.

In other McCain news, Sarah Palin may want to invest in Alaska real-estate, because she’s not moving to DC anytime soon. Last week, she praised Obama’s energy policy as the rest of McCain’s surrogates were busy attacking it.

As for Obama, he spent a couple of days traveling around Indiana with Evan Bayh. While they praised each other to high heaven, Obama assiduously avoided dropping any VP hints.

With that, here’s versions 7.0 of Obama’s and McCain’s Veepstakes:

Obama: who he should pick

(here’s a link to the last version)

This week’s trip Bayh was interesting to watch. While Bayh is great on paper and stays on message, he’s not a good attack dog, and that might be what Obama needs more than anything else. Joe Biden would be an ace in that role. Hillary Clinton would also fit the bill, although she’s not as good as Biden at using humor to make a point, and as we learned in the primaries, she can turn people off when her attitude goes negative. I’m still not a Tim Kaine fan, and he’s not as credible on the attack as Biden or Clinton would be.

Also of note, with polls this close, Hillary has moved up my list. All the same negatives still apply, but arguably no pick would be a greater boost to Obama’s chances at this point. I still think he wins with Biden or Bayh, but I would certainly put the choice of Hillary ahead of Kaine and some of the others.

So considering Obama’s generally accepted short-list, here’s my list of who Obama should pick:

9. Chris Dodd
8. Kathleen Sebelius
7. Tim Kaine
6. Sam Nunn
5. Hillary Clinton [Moving Up]
4. Jack Reed
3. Chuck Hagel
2. Evan Bayh
1. Joe Biden [Moving Up]

McCain: who he might pick

(here’s a link to the last version)

Newt Gingrich and David Brooks both tout Rob Portman, the former director of the Office of Management and Budget and former Congressman from Ohio, as the best VP pick for McCain. Of all the possibilities with strong conservative credentials, he is as good as any to help steer the GOP towards a winning path. The problem is, of course, that he was an economic guy in the Bush administration. Does McCain want to explicitly tie himself to the Bush administration’s economic record?

The safest money, again, is on Mitt Romney. I’d still take the field vs. Romney, but right now he is the most effective attack dog McCain has. He stays on message, chomps into the meaty part of talking points and holds on, no matter how much logic is thrown at him.

11. Joe Lieberman
10. Sarah Palin [Moving Down]
9. Bobby Jindal [Moving Down]
8. Mark Sanford
7. Lindsay Graham [Moving Up]
6. Charlie Crist
5. John Thune
4. Rob Portman [Moving Up]
3. Tom Ridge
2. Tim Pawlenty
1. Mitt Romney

Click the above picture for Paris Hilton’s response to John McCain’s ad that took her image in vain. I am loathe to post something about Ms. Hilton, but this deserves to be seen for two reasons: 1) it highlights how incredibly bad John McCain’s media team is, and 2) it’s pretty funny.

If you don’t know, McCain put out an ad degrading Senator Obama by comparing his celebrity to that of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears (watch the ad here).

After accusing Obama of skipping a visit to troops in Germany because he couldn’t bring cameras (false: Obama was told by the Pentagon that it would be considered a campaign visit, and not an official one, so Obama withdrew) and airing an ad directly blaming Obama for high fuel prices (completely disregarding George Bush and the central role of the Iraq War in the plummeting value of the dollar), McCain’s people are digging for new lows. “Let’s use the image of a fallen pop princess with crippling emotional issues to disparage our opponent!” It not only wasn’t fair to Senator Obama, it was disrespectful to Britney Spears, a private citizen who has never done a damn thing to John McCain.

And it was a double jerk-move to Paris Hilton: her parents are big donors to the McCain campaign. So Paris’ response is apt and funny. McCain should personally apologize to Hilton and Spears … and fire his moronic media team.

Today, an American military panel at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, convicted Salim Hamdan of material support for terrorism. He was acquitted of conspiracy, but still faces a possible life sentence.

This was the first conviction by the controversial military tribunals and an ambiguous “victory” for the Bush Administration.  The failure to secure a conviction on the more serious of the two charges, conspiracy (i.e., actual participation in terror activities) does nothing to quell concerns about the legality and morality of the highly scrutinized military tribunals.

Hamdan was the subject of the landmark 2006 Supreme Court Case, Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, in which the Court held that the military tribunals, as then-constituted, violated both the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Conventions. In response, the Republican Congress passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006, creating the current system of military trials.

Salim Hamdan was a driver for Osama bin Laden. He was captured by local forces while trying to cross into Pakistan and turned over to the Americans. For years, Hamdan has maintained that, although he was certainly aware of who he worked for and knew of some of the activities in which they were engaged, he was never an active planner or participant. He drove the car, because he needed a job. Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the man who claims to have planned 9-11 and a top Al Qaeda operative, described Hamdan as a “primitive” Bedouin who just washed cars and changed tires.

Yet somehow, this man became the marquee prosecution in the Bush administration’s efforts to create a hybrid military/criminal court. So today’s result is not the unambiguous win the Bush Administration was surely hoping for. Despite the use of hearsay, secret evidence, and admissions produced under duress, the prosecution could not demonstrate that Hamdan was part of a criminal conspiracy.

The Bush administration may try to spin the acquital as proof that the system works. They’ll say that Hamdan got a fair trial and was convicted of major charges, even if conspiracy could not be proven. But after years of doomsday statements and millions of dollars spent on the effort, they must admit that the man held for long stretches in solitary confinement is no major international criminal and was at-best a marginal figure in Al Qaeda’s operations in Afghanistan.

The conviction for material support will surely be appealed.

Will either McCain or Obama announce his running mate this week?

** UPDATE:  Obama is taking vacation the week I suggested that he’ll announce his VP.  So, uh … maybe look for McCain to announce Aug. 11-15 **

It looks like the candidates are playing a game of VP chicken: neither one wants to announce too early, but the Olympics are lording over August, certain to suck up press coverage and dampen the announcement’s positive (or negative) impact. Given how political the games in Beijing already are and the strong possibility of some sort of large-scale civil unrest, international incident, or terrorist attack (a bombing today in western China killed 16 people), world events could literally take center stage.

So it’s either now or … next week.

The calendar is getting tricky. The Olympics start this Friday, August 8 and run until Sunday, August 24 … which is the day before the start of the Democratic National Convention. Obama and his running mate will accept the nominations on Thursday, August 28, and the Republican National Convention begins four days later, on Monday, September 1st. Yet neither Obama nor McCain has tipped his hat.

Will either presumptive nominee announce in the next three days? It’s almost too late, now. Wednesday morning is the absolute latest a candidate could announce his pick and still get in two sets of evening news and two days of morning shows before the Olympics.

If, say, Obama were to announce Tuesday afternoon, McCain wouldn’t be able to get in the door before the opening ceremonies, and Obama and his running mate would have the Sunday talk shows all to themselves. But that would afford McCain the luxury of almost a month to see how Obama’s choice is sitting with voters and to tailor his own roll-out accordingly. McCain could, of course, wait to announce until the day after the Democratic convention, as a ploy to steal Obama’s thunder. But that’s Labor Day weekend, when no one will be paying attention. Plus, if Obama announces soon, I doubt McCain would let the Obama/? ticket get a three week head-start. If McCain thinks he has trouble getting press coverage now …

So if not this week, when? The opening ceremonies will monopolize press coverage for a couple of days, but after that, the events that will capture the most attention in the United States are the finals of gymnastics, track & field, swimming (if Phelps is still in), and Basketball. All of those happen during the last week of the Olympics, in the days leading up to the Democratic Convention.

That leaves a narrow window in which either candidate could introduce his running mate after the opening ceremonies, but before America tunes-in to watch athletes draped in precious metals lip-synch the National Anthem from the medal stand. If either Obama or McCain announces early next week, the other could jump on the coverage with his own roll-out. Regardless, any announcement would have to come no later than Friday morning, early enough to catch the evening news and dominate the weekend political echo chamber.

So look for both men to make their announcements between Monday, August 11 and Friday, August 15th. Who will blink first?