New Seinfeld Show? Not bloody likely . . .

Considering that Friday is April 1st, this "contest" being run by a local Seattle station has all of the markings of an April Fool's Day hoax.

The premise of this contest is that Jerry Seinfeld is back at NBC and casting a new show that has been called both a sitcom and a reality show during the on-the-air promotion of the contest. The show is "looking for new talent to cast in the show & they have partnered with [the radio station] to find 5 of Seattle's 'best' to audition for Jerry this Saturday at an undisclosed hotel . . . . Jerry will pick his favorite 5 of all the people that come in to audition." The contest appears to have the cooperation of Jerry Seinfeld.

Here are some markers that this a hoax:

1. Has anyone read about or heard about this show other than on this station? Wouldn't Seinfeld's return to TV, and his return with Larry David to NBC in particular (as "Casting director Michael Dunlop" let "slip" on the air on Tuesday morning), be among the biggest entertainment news of the day? If you run a Internet search, you will find no information about this project.

2. The project is apparently secret, yet it is being broadcast over the radio and on the Internet at the morning host's website (note that the station's website does not mention the contest at all).

3. The name of the show is "Jerry," which just happens to be the name of the show that the Jerry and George characters created for NBC on the Seinfeld show.

4. The date that the aspiring performers are to line up at the radio station's studios for their auditions is Friday, April 1st.

Seems pretty obvious to me.

UPDATE
Andy Savage, the morning host running the contest on the station in question (Seattle's KRQI-FM, 96.5 K-Rock) had Seinfeld on the air talking about the contest, which indicates, as stated above, that Seinfeld is in on the hoax.

Back after a long absence

Lots to catch up on, but for now, I'll start with a fun item . . . .

Boxer: 60 Votes to Approve Federal Judges

Power Line and others have noted Senator Boxer's comments regarding her proposed standard for approving federal judges:

So we're saying we think you ought to get nine votes over the 51 required. That isn't too much to ask for such a super important position. There ought to be a super vote.

Power Line, however, makes one error. It states Senator Boxer "is widely regarded as the least intellectually gifted member of the Senate." With all due respect to Power Line, that title has been held by the pride and joy of Washington state, Sen. Patty Murray, since 1993 (see here, here and here). According to The New Republic, Senator Murray "made Washingtonian's 2000 'Best and Worst' list, as both the Senate's number-one dimmest bulb and its number-three 'weakest spine.'" Senator Boxer will have to work a little harder to earn that title.

At least One Cuban Is Benefiting From Castro's Reign: Castro

According to Forbes, Fidel Castro ranks among the richest people in the world. The Forbes list has been greeted with outrage by Castro:

"Once again, they have committed the infamy of speaking about Castro's fortune, placing me almost above the queen of England," Castro said in a speech on Thursday to top officials of Cuba's ruling Communist Party, military and police.

Note that the infamy, according to Castro, is "speaking about Castro's fortune." For many in and out of Cuba, the infamy is that Castro has a fortune to be spoken about. Castro is apparently considering suing Forbes. I wonder where he will get the money for the legal fees.

Seeing Red

I suspect that many people in Seattle could identify with this story ("Bush-Cheney sticker touches off Fla. road rage"). Unfortunately, most of them would identify with the road-raged, moonbat driver. Here is the best part of the story:

Fernandez [the driver who was chased and harassed because of her Bush-Cheney bumper sticker] also said that she is a registered Democrat who voted for President Bush in the 2004 election.

We must learn to tolerate our diverse views . . . .

Discussion Thread on Affirmative Action

Interesting thread on affirmative action at Discriminations, instigated by a report on another affirmative action bake sale, this time countered by an unwittingly self-revealing counter-sale by campus Democrats.

My take on it is that there may be entirely good reasons for AA today, such as to repair actual, identified harms to individuals (as opposed to entire groups). King's statement seems to be a recognition that blacks as a group at that time were substantially disadvantaged and unable to compete with whites (at the very least, this was almost universally true in the South).

Nonetheless, supporters of group AA, however well-intentioned they may be, have to acknowledge that the underpinning of their position is that blacks and latinos are unable to compete academically with whites and Asians today. Set aside for now the debate on why; this is the essential underpinning (it is in fact the premise of Dr. King's statement quoted above). It is not a remedy to address slavery because if it is, the inclusion of latinos is inexplicable. If it is a remedy to address past discrimination, then the exclusion of other minority groups that suffered past discrimination in the U.S., including Asians and Jews, is equally inexplicable. Once this is acknowledged, the debate on why begins, but it still starts off with a rather odious premise.

Those who disagree with the concept of group AA, including this commenter, reject this premise today and instead believe that to the extent the "why" debate points to factors such as poverty or lack of access, etc., then AA programs could be targeted to individuals for whom these factors apply without the reference to race. This would likely be acceptable to many persons opposed to AA, but likely not to those invested in the notion of AA as a group right.

Diversity, As Redefined by the Left

Opinion Journal points us to another definition of diversity, right here in the Pacific NW. From the home page of Ocean Haven lodge: "WE WELCOME DIVERSITY. Respecting the interdependence & diversity of all life." This welcome is accompanied by a un-welcome mat for some diverse people:

FOR REASONS OF HEALTH & SAFETY
OCEAN HAVEN CANNOT ACCOMMODATE SMOKERS,
PETS, FOLKS TRAVELING IN A HUMMER, OR
FOLKS WHO VOTED FOR BUSH & HIS NATURE DESTRUCTIVE POLICIES

Take that Bush voters! You cannot stay at out lame lodge, eat our Instant Organic Oatmeal for breakfast or buy our Maggie's Organic Tie Dyed Socks to warm your cold feet. You will just have to give your money to someone else.

Is this really a "scoop"?

Chris Matthews reports that Al Gore will NOT be running for president in 2008, just as he did NOT run in 2004. Tomorrow's big scoop from Matthews will likely be an update on Francisco Franco's continuing death.

Here is the reason for the scoop:

I've been given this scoop from a perfect source who informed me that the purpose of this disclosure at this time is to end speculation about a campaign that will never occur.

Where has this speculation been so heated that it required this leak by the Gore team? My guess is within the elite media cocoon and nowhere else.

GOP Jewish Group?

From an AP story:

A pair of Jewish groups accused Sen. Robert Byrd on Wednesday of making an outrageous and reprehensible comparison between Adolf Hitler's Nazis and a Senate GOP plan to block Democrats from filibustering. A GOP senator called for Byrd to retract his remarks.

Among the pair of Jewish groups is the Anti-Defamation League, which is, as far as I know, an independent, nonpartisan group. The headline over this story?: GOP Jewish Group criticizes Byrd's Remarks. That's right: the ADL and a Republican Jewish group criticize Sen. Byrd (D-WV/KKK), and the headline chosen by the AP is one meant to imply only partisan criticism of Byrd.