Andrea: Do you honestly think we’ll ever have universal healthcare (nevermind before the year ends) and why? How much coffee is too much coffee? And your favorite autumn food?

i do think that we will have universal heathcare. the majority of americans overwhelmingly have voted for democrats over the last six years. theres now a super majority in congress and a president who believes that healthcare as it is currently needs to change. so guess what, theres going to be change with healthcare. the president is trying to be nice and let the minority have a say in exactly what that change will consist of, but it doesnt sound like the minority wants to do much but defend the status quo and the insurance companies that help finance their political campaigns.

but when push comes to shove, guys like glenn beck know that something has to give, theyre just embarrassed that its going to be them. something tells me that once healthcare passes they’ll find something else to get all weird about like clean air and water, better schools, and greener grass. and that super majority will become a superdooper majority.

Keira-Anne: Tony, when you were a little boy, what did you want to be when you grew up?

taller.

King: Do you think the Patriots will beat the Jets this week or does Rex Ryan have them ready?

there are very few athletes that i hate more than tom brady. and at this point with all his rings, including the most valuable one being his golden ring given to him by Giselle, i dont know why hes still playing football. unfortunately the ryans are very nice men, but theyre not bellichek-level cheaters, i mean, winners. brady will get a hangnail and sanchez will get a run in his stockings. pattys by 35.

Wally: Are you going to run off to CNN with your old boss?

i heart meredith with all my heart. but LA is my lady and i have some pretty huge goals i have yet to accomplish at the Times before i even consider anything new. and people thought i was kidding a few years ago when i made the move over here when i said, “i like the underdog”. but i do, and cnn.com is the furthest thing from the underdog. theyre the top dog of u.s. online news. although the times are tops in LA, cali, and the west, we still have a few other icons to surprise and id like to be around when that happens.

alecia: if you lived under the sea what type of creature would you want to be?

shark would be nice, but i hear theyre pretty dumb. im a little too used to that. dolphins are cute but i hear they have mighty large libidos. cough. whales are huge and have biblical dudes living in their bellies. and salmon swim upstream to get it on. none of those things seems appealing. bottom dwellers dont see fun. squid are all crazy weird. marlin get caught by crazy fat rich dudes. and goldfish have the brains of a flea. so i guess my answer would be a chilean sea bass because at least once i got caught id be a delicious meal for some lucky sap who wouldnt appreciate me.

Toad: I heard they caught that escapee bank robber carjacker pretty close to your house. Have anything to do with that?

of course not. the illinois police, the fbi, and that mysterious car that crashed in to him deserve all the credit in the world. plus im on vacation.

pete: do you think america took a turn for the meaner this summer, or is all that just a figment of the media’s imagination?

other than for a few select channels who are clearly only in it for the ratings, the “media” really is just a reflection of whats happening in the world. but i dont think americas gotten meaner, i think they’ve become more partisan. the left definitely have reason to complain that the folks who they elected aren’t doing what they promised theyd do, and the right seem to want to complain about anything that the left wants to do now that its their turn to take the wheel. and since im a staunch independent who thinks being blindly loyal to any party is silly, id say that america has taken a turn for the dumb this sumber.

timmay!!!!! when will the wars in iraq and afghanistan end? why is the left suddenly so quiet about each?

the wars will end when obama realizes that he’s not getting any cred from the right for staying the course. i cant get into his head, but my belief is he doesnt want to come across as the ultra left lefty that hes being painted out to be, so hes continuing to do some things that bush co. would have done if they had gotten a third term. i think thats a big mistake because people werent crying from joy last november when he won by a huge margin because they thought that this would be more of the same. they were ecstatic because that poster over their bed said Change. the left is suddenly quiet because they are starting to realize that they didnt hire a messiah or an agent for change or a bff, they hired a politician when, if they really wanted to get out of this war, they should have hired ron paul.

Mike: what’s wrong with the cubs? white sox? bears?

theres nothing wrong with the cubs. other than that terrible curse theyre cursed with. theres nothing wrong with the sox except for the fact that they play in that ridiculous league and have no heart. and the only thing wrong with the bears is their qb has more cockiness than confidence and hes probably too young to know the difference. two of those teams will be champs in a few years but not the one that plays a glorified version of slow pitch softball on the south side.

zona: You have to throw three bands, or individuals, OUT of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and replace them with three who you think deserve it more. Talk to me. And check this van out.

out: blondie, the pretenders, traffic. in: beastie boys, sonic youth, weird al yankovic.

reasons: blondie only had a few hits that will last forever, same with the pretenders, and traffic was no more revolutionary than a hundred other blues bands most of whom werent white. however the beasties totally changed the rap game for whites, sonic youth took punk to a much higher level, and weird al is a completely underrated genius.

g/d: you know where I can get a a blueprint a plan a schematic a scheme/scream for a dream?

i believe you’ll find what youre searching for in the basement of the alamo.

Aaron: Plans to watch Cutler in person? What record do you see da Bears with at the end of the season?

im sure i will see cutler in person, just not today. too many people who want to charge far too much money for a game that will end in a bears defeat. i see da bears finishing up with a 9-7 record, which will be good enough to win the division and, like peter king predicted, will get the monsters of the midway into the superbowl because the nfc is filled with a bunch of romos, old packers, and dog fighters who are out of shape.