Machete (Rating: C+)

1.) The same design as the iPhone 4. No more rounded-back crap.

2.) 3G support (hey, if the iPad can have it…)

3.) Digital Camera.  I don’t care about it having Facetime, but every gadget blog is saying it will have it.  If there’s only a front-facing camera, I will flip my shit.

4.) $100 cheaper.  This one is about as unlikely at the 3G support, but it’s a wish list.

UPDATE:  Eh, 1 out of 4.  Oh well, the device looks nice even though I think it should have had the same sleek design as the iPhone 4.

UPDATE 2: I didn’t realize that the camera was shit, so knock it down to 0.5 out of 4.  I went into an Apple store today and the current line of iPod Touches are plenty thin already.  I wish they’d knock the price down on the current line, but it’s Apple so of course they won’t.

I will not be inviting former House Majority Leader-cum-lobbyist Dick Armey to my home any time soon.  Armey appeared on last night’s The Daily Show and obviously there were going to be disagreements between him and Jon Stewart.  However, Stewart has shown that he is perfectly happy to have on guests who disagree with him.  Bill Kristol, Mike Huckabee, and (before he sold-out every belief he had), John McCain have all been repeat guests on the show.  The problem comes if there’s a guest who doesn’t respect the forum or Stewart.  The brilliant and gifted comedian does not abide rudeness.

Dick Armey wasted no time in getting there.  While he brought Stewart a nice hat, Armey–not even one minute into the interview–said that the hat would make Stewart smarter.  He followed up that gem by telling Stewart, “When I’m here saying ‘You’re all horse and no cattle,’ at least I know you’ll got the hat.”  So in less than two minutes, Armey has insulted the intelligence of his host twice.  It’s one thing to go in preparing for a war of words.  It’s another to treat your opponent like he doesn’t have a chance of winning.

And Stewart manages to keep his calm for almost a good 12 minutes of the 20-minute interview.  And then he not only takes down Armey’s “tyranny” argument with a couple sentences, and then calls Armey on his opportunistic bullshit.  Jon Stewart knows his stuff.  Armey should have known that before he stepped into Stewart’s house.  Watch the full interview below.

This is a strong special comment except for two things:

1) The rhetorical shortcut of using Pastor Martin Niemoller’s famous quote.

2) Not criticizing Obama for his back-peddling on the issue.  Obama first came out and made a strong stance supporting the cultural center.  Then, realizing he had made a strong stance, instantly retreated to a middling position and questioned the wisdom of building the center “near” Ground Zero.  And I would take the Obama Administration’s advice on wisdom like I would take driving tips from Stevie Wonder.

The Expendables (Rating: D)