So, there we were, me and about 70 or more of my fellow citizens, lined up in an orderly fashion at the Quick Trip on Briarcliff Road near Shepherd’s Lane a little after 10 a.m. today, when it seemed to me that the guy filling his small burgundy Chevy pick-up (with DeKalb County plates) had been there for a very long time and was filling his tank in a very odd fashion. He was basically squatting next to the pump away from prying eyes and I could see gas spilling in generous pools on the ground. That’s when I saw the gas cans—four or five of them. Having filled his tank, he was filling gas cans, and as he moved the nozzle from can to can without stopping the pump, generous rivers of gas were pouring onto the concrete, even as the line of cars grew. (Full article and comments)

Nobel Peace Prize winner and former president Jimmy Carter (pictured) is 84 on Oct. 1. What have you done lately?

 

The princess of perkiness , Kelly Ripa, is 38 on Oct. 2. Seriously—do you think she and Rachael Ray are the same person?

 

His lite-rock lordship Sting is 57 on Oct. 2. Loved the Police reunion—although that still doesn’t excuse “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You.”

 

Singer Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is 24 on Oct. 3—and if anything is even less interesting than her sister, if that’s possible.

 

Atlanta’s neo-soul queen India Arie, the musical equivalent of self-empowerment guru Oprah Winfrey, is 33 on Oct. 3.

 

Gwen Stefani is 39 on Oct. 3. See, girls? Start a mediocre ska-pop band, marry a third-rate grunge leftover and you, too, can be famous!

 

Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee is 46 on Oct. 3. Will he triumph over Ludacris on Planet Green’s “Battleground Earth.” Oh, the anticipation is simply too great. 

Photo: Stan Honda/AFP/Getty Images

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In answer to the all the emails this morning, here’s how I scored last night’s debate between presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama: Unfortunately for the many Americans still struggling with making a decision, it was a tie. I thought Obama performed better than McCain on the economic part of the debate and that McCain applied, in the words of an NBC commentator, “an ass-whuppin’” to Obama on foreign policy. The problem for McCain in the first part of the debate, the economic part, is that although he is, quite rightly, crusading for a clean-up of Washington’s financial practices, Obama was able to bring the economic debate to the kitchen table and that, my friends, is where presidential races are decided—through kitchen table economics. (Full article and comments)

In this week’s edition of The Sunday Paper (the “Cash Crisis” issue), we explore the Wall Street debacle. We also talk with finance experts Alexander Barinov at the University of Georgia and Ivo Welch at Brown University about the economic plans of Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his opponent, Democrat Barack Obama. Here's what they told us about the proposed $700 billion Wall Street bailout:

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The U.S. Supreme Court stepped in just two hours before Troy Davis was scheduled to be excuted yesterday and ordered a reprieve until the Court can decide if the Georgia Supreme Court did its due diligence last March when it decided against giving Davis a new trial or hearing of new evidence.   (Full article and comments)

Troy Davis, who's scheduled to be executed tomorrow night, should get a new trial. An overwhelming majority of those who testified against him when he was convicted of murdering a Savannah police officer in 1989 have since recanted or admitted they lied. To carry out an execution based on such faulty testimony places the much-maligned death penalty on even more morally wobbly footing. If you support the death penalty, the Troy Davis case should appear to you as a threat to its future.
Now, Davis' fate now rests with the US Supreme Court. This just in from the Georgia Supreme Court:
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This Saturday, Sept. 27th 12 noon to 4 p.m.in Centennial Olympic Park. Vaccinations are FREE for the whole family.
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Nicole Richie (pictured) is 27 on Sept. 21. And scientists say the chupacabra is a myth.

 

“The Boss” himself, rocker Bruce Springsteen, is 59 on Sept. 23. As nicknames go, “The Boss” is better than Mick Jagger’s: Scary Grandpa Joker.

 

 Atlanta-based hitmaker Jermaine Dupri is 36 on Sept. 23. Yo, J.D., how about that Kriss Kross reunion?

 

Newswoman Barbara Walters is 79 on Sept. 25. We’re still upset with you for creating “The View,” Babs.

 

Punkish pop pixie Avril Lavigne—recently declared too sexy to perform in Malaysia—is 24 on Sept. 27. Also too sexy for Malaysia? Carrot Top.  

 

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow is 36 on Sept. 27. We’re still shocked that we didn’t hate her in “Iron Man.”

 

Rapper Lil Wayne is 29 on Sept. 27. How old do you have to be, exactly, before you’re no longer “Lil”?

 

Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

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The Melting Pot in Atlanta invites you to the 2nd annual Paint the Town charity event at Vinings Gallery to benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.  On September 19 and 20, 2008 from 7 p.m. - 10 p.m., guests will take part in an exquisite evening while experiencing the artistic innovations of Eric Waugh and Thomas Arvid, while sampling carefully selected wines, perfectly paired with tasty gourmet fare. 

Tickets are $50 per person for one evening and $125 per person for the VIP weekend. The VIP weekend is the premiere ticket to Paint the Town as it allows guests to have all access to each evening at 6 p.m. instead of 7 p.m., presenting the opportunity for intimate conversation with the artists. VIP ticket holders are also offered special cellar selection wines to reward the palate. In addition to the wine and the artist meet and greet, Paint the Town’s VIPs are invited to a private silent auction offering the most premiere items, while, of course, benefiting the patients at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.  Tickets are going fast! To purchase tickets online, please visit www.stjude.org/paintthetown.

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The term “identity politics” has come into high vogue in the past decade, what with all the fuss in the Netherlands about Muslim migrants being out to get white Europeans and silly nativists in the United States nattering on about Latino migrants plotting to blow us all up between working shifts at our favorite restaurants—even liberals use “identity politics” pejoratively—but for under-represented minorities, nothing makes more sense than voting for someone like yourself. If you are a member of an under-represented minority, in order to get elected and work effectively once in office you must, at the very least, have the backing of your own community. That is a minimum requirement for obtaining and using political power.

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