VBVW for May 25, 2007:
McBest and McWorst

• The Very Best

British prosecutors believe they’ve identified the man responsible for the poisoning death of KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko six months ago, and are seeking extradition of another spy, Andrei Lugovi. But good luck getting Lugovi out of Russia, bobbies. You stand a better chance getting giggles out of Dostoevsky.

In the same week that presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich made an hour-long speech on the House floor about oil as the root cause for war with Iraq, the press was flooded with images of the Ohio senator and his startlingly lithe British wife. Not much hope for Americans on the oil front, but beings across Middle Earth now believe that hobbits really can marry elves.

Somebody’s putting big money into redeveloping the Gulf after the Katrina devastation . . . but it isn’t the federal government. Harrah’s Entertainment is building a $1 billion casino and resort in Biloxi, Mississippi. Partnering with Jimmy Buffett, they’re calling the place Margaritaville, and it will be the single largest investment in the region since 2005. And yes, it will be okay–metaphorically speaking–to get wasted away again there.

• The Very Worst

Just when the Oxford English Dictionary was showing signs of moving all the way up to the 18th century, the language authority now has Ronald McDonald on its case. McDonald’s wants the OED to change its definition of a McJob, currently defined as “an unstimulating low-paid job with few prospects.” In the future, that definition will be used exclusively for the position of U.S. Attorney General.

The producers of the Australlian version of reality show Big Brother have opted not to tell a contestant that her father died a week ago. Claiming it would violate the rules of the game, the girl’s family agrees with the producers.

The Senate and House both caved on setting a deadline for troop withdrawl in Iraq. So much for the Democratic Party’s revolution on Capitol Hill. We can’t wait to see how they manage to snatch other defeats from the jaws of victory.