Can someone please explain to me the big NPR hard-on for Pinochet? The man was an undeniably brutal dictator, but they speak of him as if he were the greatest villain of the 20th century. Hitler? A bad seed. Stalin? He had issues. Pol Pot? Not a nice fellow. But Augusto Pinochet? This was the worst human being who ever lived! How is it that Pinochet is a bad guy and yet Che Guaverra is treated as the gentle champion of the people? Oh, wait, because Guaverra was a communist and violence carried out in the name of left-wing ideals is somehow inexplicably palatable to the otherwise dovish folks on the left.

And now we begin a triumvirate of birthdays, those of three lovely ladies, all between today and the 15th: (in the order that I met them, not the order of their birthdays) Mrs. Blinky (circa 1985), Skeeter (1993 or 1994), and Never Girl (2001). Happy Birthday!

Trivia Night at Conor O'Neill's last night, the team of the Not-So-Bald Mountain, Guy Zach Nie, blast from the past Chris Motel (Zach's amigo), and yours truly. Wonderment of wonderments, we finished in 2nd place, the only time we've ever placed, thus winning $20! We hit up the Fleetwood and on the way to the Back Room, to sate Chris's jones for pizza, he found another $20. Holy Toledo, Batman, talk about improbability! A good time was had by all, even David, who suffered through his first and very likely last Guinness.