A couple of folks have written to ask if I ever resolved the problems with my Time-Warner digital phones. The answer is yes. Someone high in that company, it turns out, is a reader of my weblog. He read what I wrote and contacted the right people, causing technicians to come dashing over here to undo all the damage that the previous installers had done. Now, not only does everything work fine but an average of once a day, someone from Time-Warner Cable calls to make sure everything is functioning properly…which it is. I am a satisfied customer — at the moment.

It's only 34 days until the Comic-Con International convenes in San Diego. Tickets are going fast and it's about time for my annual joke about how if you want to get a parking space, you'd better leave now.

Around 120,000 people will attend the convention over its 4 days (4.5 if you count Preview Night) and many more would but that's about all the convention center can hold.

Every so often, someone suggests that the whole shebang be moved to Las Vegas, where there are larger convention centers with more being built. I am convinced this will not happen for any number of reasons but this one will suffice…

Found this on the website of my pal Paul Harris. It's a piece by James Randi about myths of gambling. I've pretty much given up my one interest in that area, which was Blackjack, but during the years I did a lot of that, I came to a number of conclusions and one was that it helped to be as realistic about it as Mr. Randi is in that article. I mean, you can believe the myths and still win via dumb luck but it's not something I'd want to count on. Steve Wynn is worth zillions because people believe the myths.

The other things I found out is that you have to really, really learn the game(s) you're playing; that you have to only play when you're alert and able to pay good attention; that even when you do everything right, you can lose; and that you have to master the hardest part…which is to quit when you're ahead. Despite understandable temptations to the contrary, I gave up Blackjack when I was and if I don't get stupid, I will remain that way for the rest of my life. If I go back to it, I will at some point be behind again. Ahead is a better place to be.

Every time I post something even vaguely political here, I get angry rebuttals and insults from a couple of folks, often the same couple of folks. A regular is someone named Hank Cox, and the following is quite typical of how it goes…

I am not surprised that you linked to electoral-vote.com since that's another socialist (i.e., liberal) website run by another one of your Anti-American defeatists. I wouldn't trust a comma on that Obama Osama loving site. If you are as fair minded as some claim, why did not you link to election projection, which is run by a good, God-fearing American who also lists and analyzes the polls? Could it be that you do not live in the reality-based community of your mind and think you can trick Republicans into the same kind of defeatist mindset you favor for Iraq, making us believe we cannot win?

Actually, election projection is another decent tracker of electoral votes. At this moment, they figure Barack Obama with 349 electoral votes and John McCain with 189. The "socialist" site you abhor has Obama at 317 and McCain at 194.

The BBC is running a three-part interview with Miriam Marx entitled "Groucho Was My Father." You should be able to listen to Part One at this link. If it doesn't work, try looking around on this page for a link that will play through your browser.

Part Two airs this Sunday and shortly after it does, Part One may disappear from the website and be replaced by Part Two. I'll link to Part Two once I know it's up but in the meantime, you might want to listen to Part One before it goes away. And yes, that's our pal Frank Ferrante doing the Groucho impression. Who better?

Hey, guess what I did last evening! Along with my friends Earl and Denise, I went to see Lewis Black discuss and sign his new book, Me of Little Faith. There was a long interview that proved once again that Mr. Black is very funny and very perceptive…and nowhere near as angry as some think. The discussion was conducted by Time Magazine columnist Joel Stein, who was a very good foil for Black, setting 'em up so Lew could knock 'em down, and occasionally convulsing the interviewee.

The chat was primarily about theology, which is the subject of Black's book. In it, he criticizes some of the more eccentric and/or destructive practices of all the major religions except Islam. As Black explained, he didn't want to spend the rest of his life in hiding. Otherwise, it's a series of short essays by a man who says he could never get any of the faiths to work for him but learned to live a happy, moral life without them. I'll write more about it as soon as I finish reading it.

Here's a link to the Amazon page where you can order the book. And even if you don't want to, you should go there because they have three short promotional videos up that you'll want to watch.

Wanna read a spirited debate about the rights of the detainees in Guantanamo and the recent Supreme Court decision about those rights? Okay, start by reading this.

Then read this.

Then read this.

Then, finally for now, read this. There may be more chapters to follow but that should be about as much as anyone can handle.

A lot of people have come to believe that this is what the Iraq War has all been about…helping Big Oil make bigger profits. I don't believe that's the only thing it's been about but America oughta be angrier than it is that it's even been about that at all.

Oh, well. At least we got the guys who were responsible for 9/11 and we improved America's moral standing in the world.

On April 24 on this blog, I posted the following…

I don't understand it. My car isn't running any better with the $4.00 gas in it than it did with the $3.00 gas in it.

Maybe I'll have better luck in June with the $5.00 gas.

Sure enough…it's June, I'm paying more than $5.00 a gallon for gas…and my car isn't running any better.

Why are we getting so fat as a people? Well, one reason is that our food is becoming most available to us in huge portion sizes.

The new issue of Written By, the magazine of the Writers Guild of America, is out now and it's devoted largely to the writing of cartoons. There are in-depth pieces on Matt Groening (who did the cover), Brad Bird, Seth MacFarlane, strikes and troubles of the past…and even an introductory overview article by me. A few excerpts from the issue, not including my piece, are on the magazine's website. Look for it at your local newsstand.