Back when we were in high school, the most controversial t-shirt that featured H.A. Rey’s cartoon monkey Curious George was the one where the little guy passes out after sniffing ether.

But, a bar owner in Georgia has lowered the discourse even further by placing the monkey’s image on a shirt that reads “Obama in ‘08.” Now the Boston-based publisher that owns the rights to the series of books is considering suing the redneck businessman.

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You know you’re going to have a rough day when the Globe has so much coverage about you that they can run it under one headline. House Speaker Sal DiMasi gets the treatment this morning as the broadsheet reports on the continuing saga of Richard Vitale’s lobbying work and reveals that the Speaker was receiving death threats during the heated casino debate.

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Mayor Tom Menino isn’t the only politician in the city who’s excited for Bay State Bike Week. Our MySpace friend and Boston City Councilor Mike Ross is also participating by leaving his car in the garage and commuting by bike from Mission Hill to City Hall. He gave us his thoughts on how many hazards bikers face, the unforeseen issues that came up, and tricks to keep your suit looking nice in your backpack.

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We love when newspapers try to one-up each other for video/pictures of pols doing ridiculous things.

Earlier today, the Herald gave us video of Mayor Tom Menino biking around Boston in a totally fetch blue tracksuit. Not to be outdone, our friends at the Cambridge Chronicle deliver a clip of Gov. Deval Patrick playing ping-pong at the new Google offices this afternoon.

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Our philosophy in life is to not dignify idle gossip with a response. It’s better to walk with your head held high than to get into a sniping match with those who are trying to take you down.

But there is a point where you have to step forward and tell the haters your version of events. After a weeks of bad press, House Speaker Sal DiMasi has reached that threshold, and he has written a letter to legislators about his rapidly deteriorating reputation.

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There is no worse feeling than filing your taxes and seeing how much of your income has gone to the state. Thousands of dollars you could have used for myriad other purposes disappear into the state coffers, never to be seen again.

That money is supposed to do things like fix roads and bridges. But, there are only so many huge potholes you can hit before you start to wonder if it’s really worth it. The state government knows this, and is preparing to battle a referendum that would eliminate Massachusetts’ income tax.

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If you’re anything like us, the most complex task you can handle at 3 p.m. on a Friday afternoon is figuring out which bar will have the shortest wait for a table after work. People involved in scandals tend to exploit this weakness and make news late in the day when few people will notice.

House Speaker Sal DiMasi’s pal Richard Vitale is the latest to take advantage of our late-day distraction. DiMasi’s former treasurer and personal banker registered as a lobbyist today.

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After Tuesday’s primaries in North Carolina and Indiana, we said that the only thing that will get our attention back on the presidential race is if John McCain announces that Mitt Romney will be his running mate.

But the Globe pulls us right back in with a story about the tenacity of Ron Paul supporters who may make the Republican National Convention more contentious than the never-ending race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

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It’s a dark day around Boston Daily HQ. The male staffers have started listening to breakup songs, and although he thinks I can’t hear him, Flannery is quietly crying into his keyboard.

Harvard professor and former Barack Obama campaign adviser Samantha Power is engaged.

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We’ve got to confess that we kind of love Jim Ogonowski. The former farmer lost his congressional bid to someone with the last name Tsongas, and instead of going out to pasture, he decided to attempt to unseat the actual John Kerry from his position in the senate. Kerry’s people didn’t seem too concerned.

They don’t sound too concerned now that his campaign has started to run ads, either.

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