For your viewing pleasure someone has posted a clip of Senator Zell’s appearance on Hardball with Chris Mathews.

A clerk at a Pennsylvania store accepted a $200 bill which had a photo of a young Dubya, was signed by Ronald Regan, and included the serial number DUBYA4U2001.

I don’t know whats scarier, the idea of Shrub on a bill or a person who accepts it…

This is different…

Will Frances be upgraded to a Category 5 Hurricane when the 5:00 AM EDT advisory comes out in less than two hours? I’m no meteorologist, but it certainly looks like it’s rapidly intensifying.

Hurricane Frances, 11:45 PM

Hurricane Frances, 2:45 AM

The 2:00 AM advisory already increased Frances’s wind speed from 140 to 145 mph, but it looks like Frances has strengthened significantly since then. (UPDATE: It looks even stronger in the 3:15 AM satellite image.)

I bet Frances will have at least 155 mph sustained winds in the next advisory. Up that by one mile-per-hour, and we’ve got ourselves a Cat. 5.

UPDATE: Nope. Still 145 mph, still Category 4. The discussion does say, “Satellite imagery indicates cooling of the cloud tops since [2am],” but data from the hurricane hunter reconnaisance planes indicates no substantial strengthening. However:

The intensity of Frances continues to be controlled by concentric eyewall cycles. Since these are difficult to forecast…the intensity forecast will call for [145 mph] intensity until landfall. Given the current cloud top cooling…Frances could reach [150-155 mph] intensity on the up side of the current cycle.

The forecast track has been shifted slightly southward.

Hurricane Warnings will be issued at 11:00 AM.

As of 2:00 AM, Frances is now as strong as Charley was when it made landfall. Sustained winds: 145 miles per hour.

I wonder: is this the start of a strengthening trend? Frances is now just 11 mph away from attaining Category Five status.

Check out blogger Michael Totten’s awesome cross-country road-trip photos.

Brendan by email invited the Guestbloggers:

If anybody is watching Cheney’s speech, I encourage you to guest-blog your thoughts, reactions, memorable quotes, etc. I’m at the library reading Torts, and will not be watching dear old Dick.

Ask, and ye shall receive More than ye asked:

1) Predictably, in his modulated low-key style, complete with his everpresent crooked little Halliburton smile :), the Comeback Dick was really quite good. He is a worthy Neocon Icon; and it is probably true, as his principal has so snappily said, that “Dick Cheney can be President.” (It is probably also true that he already is President, de facto; but never mind about that now. :)

BUT — as the Geico commercials say — there’s some Good News.

2) Thank God, thank all the Saints, for the Republicans’ official Convention Keynote Speaker, Senator Zell Miller, “D” - GA — and a real Peach if ever there was one. :) There is no joy in Crawford but they are dancing in the little island lanes of Nantucket tonight: for mighty Karl Rove has, at last, screwed up. / “Zig Zag” Zell — who began his political career as a big booster of arch-segregationist GA D Gov. Lester “Ax Handle” Maddox back in the ’60’s, & progressed to become a huge fan of his Senate colleague John Kerry’s war-herosim only a few years ago — came full circle Wednesday night, with a Republican keynote speech that made Pat Buchanan’s “culture wars” one in ‘92 seem positively Sensitive by comparison.

I can’t figure out how to Link to the Video of Zell’s astounding performance — you’ve really got to See & Hear, not just Read, it — but, you can find it, I’m sure.

See? Even the secularistical Democrats’ prayers can be answered! / All things being relative, even Howard Dean can be seen as the Poster Boy for the promise of Anger Management. / “Hope is on the Way!” GO ZELL! :)

UPDATE FROM THE WEBMASTER: Here’s a link to the video. If that doesn’t work, just go to C-SPAN’s RNC page and look around for “Zell Miller.”