Not a joke, not an imaginary story, not an Onion parody.

[yendi]

Oh dear god, Dennis Hastert has a blog.

(For those who missed it, I explained exactly what Hastert is a while ago).

Comments

[unwilly.livejournal.com]

the end times are nigh

[trochee.livejournal.com]

This line wins the award for "most obviously a focus-grouped lie":
My office has been talking a lot about some of the conversations going on in blogosphere. So I thought, hey, I should start one and give you unfiltered updates on Capitol Hill. (emph added)

And it's "Denny" Hastert. Are you sure this isn't a parody?

[zarhooie.livejournal.com]

Adam? The picture of Hastur has The Flying Spaghetti Monster in the background. I'm not even kidding.

[dustyskinandall.livejournal.com]

I don't know whether to scream or laugh.
Guess it'll have to be both.

[dustyskinandall.livejournal.com]

Denny's what his best buds call him. ;)

[cieo.livejournal.com]

Oh, dear GOD.
You must be joking.
It seems that I don't have a user icon that portrays absolute horror. Thanks for reminding me.

[shawnj.livejournal.com]

He used the word blogosphere. I think I need to vomit now.

U mention The Onion. NYT has article about White House getting funky w/them. I couldn't believe it!

[newblksusan.livejournal.com]

Since you mentioned The Onion I only assume you might be a fan. If so, perhaps this will tick u off as much as it pissed me off. Like doesn't the White House have better things to do?

Protecting the Presidential Seal. No Joke.

KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
Published: October 24, 2005
You might have thought that the White House had enough on its plate late last month, what with its search for a new Supreme Court nominee, the continuing war in Iraq and the C.I.A. leak investigation. But it found time to add another item to its agenda - stopping The Onion, the satirical newspaper, from using the presidential seal.

The newspaper regularly produces a parody of President Bush's weekly radio address on its Web site (www.theonion.com/content/node/40121), where it has a picture of President Bush and the official insignia.

"It has come to my attention that The Onion is using the presidential seal on its Web site," Grant M. Dixton, associate counsel to the president, wrote to The Onion on Sept. 28. (At the time, Mr. Dixton's office was also helping Mr. Bush find a Supreme Court nominee; days later his boss, Harriet E. Miers, was nominated.)

Citing the United States Code, Mr. Dixton wrote that the seal "is not to be used in connection with commercial ventures or products in any way that suggests presidential support or endorsement." Exceptions may be made, he noted, but The Onion had never applied for such an exception.

The Onion was amused. "I'm surprised the president deems it wise to spend taxpayer money for his lawyer to write letters to The Onion," Scott Dikkers, editor in chief, wrote to Mr. Dixton. He suggested the money be used instead for tax breaks for satirists.

More formally, The Onion's lawyers responded that the paper's readers - it prints about 500,000 copies weekly, and three million people read it online - are well aware that The Onion is a joke.

"It is inconceivable that anyone would think that, by using the seal, The Onion intends to 'convey... sponsorship or approval' by the president," wrote Rochelle H. Klaskin, the paper's lawyer, who went on to note that a headline in the current issue made the point: "Bush to Appoint Someone to Be in Charge of Country."

Moreover, she wrote