Hi Liz,
Just thought I'd let you know that the title of Madonna's upcoming album was released last month: "Licorice." Here is the link to the article from the BBC:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7132227.stm

I began an attempt at an adequately snarky caption for the Keaton-Holmes photo. The longer I stared at it, though, the more I was filled with fear and loathing. I hate them. They are scum.

What Madonna did to that child's family is an outrage.

David Banda's father is on record as saying that he wanted badly to keep his son but could not afford to feed and clothe him.

If Madonna truly wanted to help this child and his family, she could have donated some fraction of her millions to them so that the family could have stayed together. She could have helped them to raise their standard of living so that their childrens needs would be met.

Instead, in order to fill her need for the latest, must-have celebrity accouterment, she takes the child away from his family and then basks in the controversy afterward, because, of course, all that press can't be a bad thing, right?

Madonna is still the "material girl," but now her grasp pulls families apart so that she can have her trophy.

For shame.

Liz - Please link to the original comments about pleated pants! I too am married to a sweet, but delusional man that insists on wearing pleated pants. Since the chat comments seemed to help another poster's husband, there may be hope for mine!

there's a lot to be said for altering someone's sense of style. you must feel a little god-like, liz. like you're watching a chrysalis open and a handsome, pleat free butterfly emerges.

I just buy the pants I want Mr. Sunnydaze to wear. Then I show him which shirts will go with - kind of like Granimals for little kids...No pleats in my house.

I, for one, look forward every day to this vapid drivel. Real news blows.

Also, as I recall, the father didn't come forward saying he wanted the little guy until after the very wealthy Madonna and all got involved. And didn't the Grandma, at some point say that the father had not been involved with the child at all - had basically abandoned him with the grandma?

So, maybe the one doing the stunt was actually the biological father. Just because a person is poor doesn't make them good and just because a person is Madonna doesn't make her evil.

btw, if Madonna starts a dole I'd like to sign up, please.

I started to type a Madonna defense, but decided not to feed the troll. Thanks, Sunnydaze for saying it better than I would have anyway.

sunnydaze, I heard that as well. Anyway, wouldn't he have had to either sign away and have his parental rights taken away before the kid could be adopted? Only Madonna knows why she wanted to adopt this little boy. Its better she adopt then spend millions trying to make her 50 year old body fertile again.

Eh - Madonna has those millions and her body is probably perfectly capable of carrying another pregnancy, and if she wants to choose that next time, she's welcome to. It would be with someone else's egg, but whatever - she wouldn't be the first or last woman to choose that option. (Um, and some would say, it wouldn't necessarily even be the first time *she* chose that option. It's just, the older you get, the harder it is to deny you used a donor egg.)

Granted I don't know David or Madonna but when placing a child in the care of a family, shouldn't the official recommend the placement with a statement more solid than clear indications.

There's a place for vapid drivel that lowers the dialogue and takes our attention away from important news! That place is here, and the time is now! (Lunchtime)

Sorry, I couldn't come up with a snappy caption, either - but I blame it on too many negative thetans.

Also, to our lizzy bennet poster and Liz and all our Janeite/Colin Firth groupies, PBS is featuring the Jane Austen collection (Masterpiece Theater, Sundays at 9 p.m.). Last night was Persuasion...very good! Don't know when P&P will be on, but it is the Colin Firth version. You'll know where to find me on Sunday nights!

aw, darn it! i missed 'persuasion'. that's the very one i wanted to see.
i figured m.piece theater was running jane eyre in two parts so i skipped last night.

congratulations, liz kelly, on helping one of your acolytes convince her man to shed a fashion style that you personally find appalling (for reasons still unexplained, other than you think the extra folds of fabric look silly).

maybe soon we'll all be aging ex-goths in all black, with ever-changing dye jobs and half-sleeves of our pets, because, hey, you're allowed to have your own style, but heaven forbid anyone else follows what you think is an annoying or hideous fashion trend. because, you know, anyone different from you should be subject to ridicule and scorn.

see folks, this is what happens when the punk/goth kids who were picked on in high school finally get their own forum -- they become the bullies.

ILNY 3 is sooo 5 minutes ago, anyone catch the new Rock of Love last nite?

I'm not sure why they don't call these "search for true love" shows what they really are:

"I'm a fugly rapper/aging B-list rockstar/overhyped wannabe who needs a TV show to help me get hot chicks/guys that I'd otherwise never be able to get near let alone pork."

Not THATS a show I wanna SEE!!

methinks, Jane Eyre did run in two parts, but it ended last Sunday. Persuasion was really good. Having never read the book (although I do have it and will get around to it), was Anne Elliot supposed to be so plain looking? Because next to Capt. Wentworth (hubba hubba), she looked rather dowdy.

Here's the PBS link for other Austen-ites
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/?campaign=pbshomefeatures_1_masterpiecetheatrebrthecompletejaneausten_2008-01-14

Speaking of Scientology, a center just opened up near my work. A few of us want to go in to get "tested" and keep asking annoying questions, like when do we get to meet Tom & Katie? and trying to arrange a playdate for my son & Suri.

Our local cable company nixed our PBS, so I missed the new "Persuasion"...darn! I love the old one...it's my favorite movie.
In the book, Anne is supposed to be plain, but with a fine mind (unlike Louisa Musgrove, who is supposed to be a little ditzy.)Cap't Wentworth is supposed to be very hot. In fact, rumor has it that Jane Austen had her own Capt. Wentworth at one point.
There were two endings to the book, the original, and then one that Jane wrote later, in a note to her nephew, I think. Which ending did the new version have?
Also, once you read "Persuasion", read "Bridget Jones, the Edge of Reason" since it is based on Persuasion.

I know we rehashed the celeb adoption mess on these boards in the past, maybe moreso with Angelina Jolie than Madonna. But I think Maggie's ideas sound pretty on the surface, but ultimately really make no sense. Why should all rich people give us poorsies money so we can live better? Blech. Thanks Sunnydaze for the good response.

When I was clerking, I worked a lot with foreign adoptions, and some were messes, especially coming out of Guatemala (and later news broke about baby-stealing there!!)...but ultimately we can all be comforted that laws and comity are being applied to these cases and conscientious judges out there are not just rubber-stamping their decisions.

gasp, i didn't even know that PBS was showing Jane Austin films! where have i been? here's another notch to add to liz's belt of why we need her: without this blog i would still be wondering what to do with my sunday nights. now i can gaze at his hotness (mr. colin firth)and enjoy british accents at the same time. oh happy day!

For all you poor souls who missed Persuasion it airs again Jan 17th 9PM on WETA.

This has been a Public Service Announcement.

We now return your regularly scheduled drivel...

"Why should all rich people give us poorsies money so we can live better? Blech."

You all missed my point.

I'm not suggesting that rich people should give money to poor people just because they have it.

I'm saying that, if Madonna really wanted to be charitable and help "homeless" kids, she could spend some of her money enhancing the places and conditions where these kids already live. Why not spend a few thousand on improving conditions so that kids can maybe stay with their families?

I think the attraction of the photo-ops was just too big a temptation for her to resist. What with Angelina Jolie getting all the press attention for building a multi-ethnic household ("and now I want to get another black child for Zahara"), Madonna must have seen terrific opportunities for getting herself back into the limelight.

And even if the urge to adopt wasn't simply a whim fired by the hunger for publicity, even if her desire to help was heartfelt and genuine, ultimately she wanted "to have" her own little adopted foreign baby. She would never have been satisfied by quietly giving financial assistance so that the boy could stay in his community.

How selfish is that? Real philanthropy doesn't require recognition and adulation. Real philanthropists "give" in order to help. They don't "take" in order to feel good about themselves.

"yeah team!" sounds very bitter. that's sad.

Oooh, Liz just got back at all of us who complained about the caption contest a few weeks ago. A bunch of us (mea culpa) said the winners were weak, and now Liz told us to go self-entertain, kind of.

I caught Persuasion, it was quite good indeed. That Capt. Wentworth (dont' know the actors'name) gave Colin a run for his money in the hubba hubba catergory.

WETA should bring back the Hercule Pirot mysteries while their at it, those would good.

Ok, proof reading is fundamental.

That's supposed to be "while they're at it.

I believe (and Lord knows I watch the show enough) that Clinton and Stacey from WNTW are also against pleated pants (etc.) for men AND women. They add bulkiness.

Captain Wentworth was a hottie indeed. But...ok, I'll admit I was only half-watching as I worked on other things around the room, but did he ever really do anything that would make a person fall in love with him? He mostly seemed to stand around looking hot and aloof.

Not that there's anything WRONG with standing around looking hot and aloof. I was just a little perplexed at the love thing.

h3, his aloofness was him not wanting to show Anne he was still in love with her, but it was soooo obvious.

I still think Madonna should adopt the Spederline kids.

While I'm sure Liz Kelly appreciates the support and defense of folks like For What It's Worth..., I humbly submit that it appears that you're missing the point.

It doesn't matter if pleated pants add bulkiness, or if a safety pin through my nose elongates my jawline, or sticking a feather duster out my rear end flatters my wide thighs.

I'm just amazed that someone who I would guess at some point in her life probably took a decent amount of guff for the way she dressed/appeared would be so willing to attempt to heap scorn on others for their style of dress, even if she thinks it's awful looking. It just strikes me as kind of hypocritical -- almost an unintentional "well they made fun of me, now that I'm the queen bee, I can make fun of someone else", without remembering that the whole point is live and let live. I mean, jeez, I went through enough of this in the 80's when some of my friends were punks and I was a t-shirt and jeans kind of person, and when I'd hang out them all these other kids with mohawks, etc. would look at me the exact same way that our parents would look at them. And they didn't get it, either.

Yeah, I know it started in snarky fun and all, but, frankly, I'm really just starting to feel that the pleated pants thing is more played out in this forum than the pony thing ever was.

See, anon@2:38pm, it's not really an issue of bitter (although I concede my earlier tone does unintentionally read that way), but it is kind of sad.

Captain Wentworth was played by Rupert Penry-Jones. he is incredibly gorgeous. Of his other work, I highly recommend the latest seasons of MI-5 (I think it's the two most recent) and Cambridge Spies (his character is unfortunately indecisive, but the sheer amount of hot British men utterly makes up for Rupert not coming across to his full potential). He's v. attractive but a total arse in Casanova (the Russell Davies script with David Tennant - yes, the Doctor Who crew - in the title role).

So much look forward to Northanger Abbey next week - JJ Feild as Henry Tilney in a script by Andrew Davies is complete and utter win.

In fashion, there is one thing on which you can depend: What is now old will become new again in the future. Witness the revival of flared and bell-bottomed pants. Flat front pants were consigned to geeks and dorks back in the 70s and 80s, while the fashionistas wore pleated pants.

So, wear what fits your style. If all the people dressed fashionably all the time, whom would be the object of our derision?

Here in the Men's Wear Department, we have a wide selected on plain and pleated pants to fit almost anyone....except Sasquatch. Sas will have to go to a Big and Tall Shop for a pair of 50x50 pants. And I think he'll be glad to find anything in his size, whether plain or pleated.

oohhh i just googled rupert penry jones and he is hot, hot, hot! i think my computer is still smoking from his sexiness. i know where i will be jan. 17. yeowza!

"yeah team!" needs a happy pill.

Not sure where you did your research, YeahTeam, but no one made fun of me (to my face, at least) and I wasn't quite a goth.

I don't like pleated pants. Sosumi!

Yeah Team:

I agree with you. Enough with the pleated pants silliness - who cares? My husband wears a uniform to work, so I'm oblivious to this issue anyway. But it is dull to read about the preference and grating to hear about how some have been forced to accept the non-pleated type - much more boring than the pony silliness - which also was annoying.

ESP. from a group of people constantly mocking Tom Cruise and Scientology for their mind control of Katie. I AGREE that Katie is being dominated, but aren't you on the blog doing the same thing by demanding adherence to a certain type of pants?

Wow, no ponies, not pleats, what's next?

Yo, the pleated pants thing is just kinda a thing we do here. It's sorta a joke (like the cute pet animal that most small children want thing was). Relax. No one trying mind control or dictating fashion. We're having fun. If you have trouble getting there, I am sure there are other blogs where you will be quite happy.

My man wears pleated pants, and I don't give a @#(&. Can I still play?

Is all this pants business for real? Liz, whenever you start the pleated pants cult, there's a good chance I could be recruited. I think I speak for regular readers when I say, "Are you f.... kidding me?"

for crying out loud...when did the readers of this blog get so sensitive?

WTF?????? Maybe its because I've been here long enough to know that the whole pleated pants/pony things is just a joke. it was all in fun. Now all these new people coming along trying to dictate how we've run this blog happily for some time. If you don't want to talk pleated pants or ponies, please find a non-pleated pants and/or non-pony blog to torment. To paraphrase Chris Crocker...LEAVE LIZ KELLY ALONE!!!!!!!!!

some people need to LIGHTEN UP!

if you don't get it, you don't get it.

Yeah, I'm not sure I was clear in my comment. I think it's totally weird people are getting huffy about the pants, not that we have a running pants joke, which is funny.

Why just the other day I saw a pony wearing pleated pants and let me asssure you all it was not a pretty sight. THPLPLT

Jeez, people really will get their panties/boxers in a wad over the strangest things, won't they. Liz doesn't like pleated pants. Liz did not say hunt down pleated pants wearers and forcibly strip and re-dress them in a way that is pleasing to Liz.

To borrow a phrase from the holier than thou that post here sometimes: With everything going on in the world somebody's dislike of pleated pants is what you go off about?

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