Happy 27th Birthday, Jessica!!!

My tenure as Class Notes correspondant for Vassar's Alumni Magazine has officially come to an end. I know this because I got a very nice hand-written thank you note from the Assistant Editor. Actually, the note was written in one person's handwriting, and the signature is signed in a distinctly different handwriting. Which leads me to wonder - huh? Is it that much of an effort for the Assistant Editor to do it themselves? Or do they have a whole staff of people writing the notes because there's just so many? Something to keep in mind when you get married and have hundreds of thank you notes to write.

I haven't talked about politics much these past few days but there's a couple of things I wanted to touch on as August comes to a close. The first is the attacks on John Kerry's war record by "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth." It's reminiscient of how the Bush campaign used surrogates to attack John McCain's record during the 2000 South Carolina Primary. Bush claims that he would never slander Kerry's war record, yet he simultaneously refuses to denounce the ads. Trying to have it both ways. Yesterday, the editor of the Chicago Tribune spoke out that he was a Swift Boat captain and witnessed the incidents himself. He verified that Kerry earned his medals and that the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" have it all wrong. Hopefully this smear campaign will subside soon enough.

The second thing I wanted to mention is the upcoming protests against the Republican Convention in NYC. The organization "United for Peace and Justice" has been trying for months to obtain a permit to protest in Central Park. The City has denied them, claiming that the crowds would damage the renovated lawns, and has offered the West Side Highway instead. But now the organization has filed a lawsuit insisting that they be able to use Central Park. I'm concerned that they're going to try entering the park, permit or no permit. If that happens, I just hope that calm and order is preserved by both the police and the protesters. Any confrontation will just play into the G.O.P.'s hands. More on this as details become available.

Olympic notes : The Iraqi soccer team keeps winning! The U.S. basketball team keeps losing! Gymnastics judges mess up and deprive Korean of the gold that went to Paul Hamm! Marathons are being run in 103 degree heat! Female judo wrestlers are lacking in the looks department!