Donetsk Don't Tell

The Soccer Aspect of this Post
Arsenal continue their amazing run in the Champions League yesterday by beating Shaktar Donetsk 5-1 in London which brings their goal tally in the competition to 14 in three games. Awesome! Not only did they score 5, but they were scored by 5 different people: Song, Nasri, Fabregas, Wilshire, & Chamakh. The goal they conceded, 8 minutes from the end, was scored by Eduardo. He had played for Arsenal for the last few years before leaving this past summer. He suffered a nasty multiple fracture that kept him out of the squad for over a year, so seeing him get goal was nice too.

The Politics Aspect of this Post
In other news, Don't Ask Don't Tell has been in the news lately, & it seems to finally be on its last legs. Dan Choi has re-enlisted & the courts seem to have done their job. We'll see. Of course, the real reason I'm discussing it is because it fit so nicely into the title. And because it will work as a happy transition into a little fun talk about the election. With all of the ballot proposals coming up next month, I thought you might enjoy this little link: Ballotopedia. It's a little wiki that can keep us all up to date on them, including Califoria's attempt to decriminalize weed & Oklahoma's attempt to make English the state's official language, as the elction gets closer. Enjoy... & dn't say I never gave you nuthin'.

Archie Comics

Who's the real king in queen Archie's world? Hooper X suggested that it is Jughead, but it may not be Jughead for long. In the September issue of Veronica, Veronica #202, Kevin Keller moves to Riverdale. He is apparently Riverdale's 1st openly gay resident. Considering the population of Riverdale, that seems hard to believe, but I guess the possibility of gay people Riverdale never occurred to the gang. On breaks @ Nicola's, I've read a few Archie books, but I hadn't noticed this new one. I hope there are still a few left on Friday when I go in there again.In this issue, Veronica has a thing for the new kid in school, Kevin, but he obviously isn't interested in her. Jughead, out of jealousy (& maybe homosexual panic) develops a plan to get revenge on veronica for liking a gay guy more than she likes Jughead. The plan involves not letting her in on Kevin's homosexuality in order to see how long they can go laughing behind her back. Nice work, guys. "Ha ha ha... she likes a fag and doesn't know it!" Real classy. Of course, by the end it all works out & they all become friends as we learn that we should all tolerate the gays in out community too (and not a moment too late). But only if we really, really have to, right Arch? Here's a fun little story about it from Talk of the Nation.

Jon Stewart IS Glenn Beck!

Here's a fun little clip from The Daily Show the other night... enjoy. Apparently Glenn Beck's medical problems are part of a much bigger conspiracy.

Andre's Belated Reflections on the Inauguration

I know by now these things have been covered ad nauseam on the Internet, but not in the Visions of Ypsi style, & as I haven't had time to post over the last few days, here it goes.

The Dog & The Dress: I'm glad it's over so we can stop focusing on Michelle Obama's dress & actually start talking about real issues again. On Monday morning, some fashion jockey on The Today Show actually said that the entire nation has a vested interest in the dress. I understand that the fashion industry does, but the entire nation? Give me a fucking break! The other issue that has finally run its course is the White House Dog. "Holy Shit!!! What kind of dog will they get???" You all know how I feel about dogs, but even dog lovers should have been getting a bit sick of the constant concern everyone seemed to have about this fucking dog. I had neither a vested interest in the dress nor in the dog. There are a few things I have been interested in though so here we go.

Aretha's Hat: The Free Press seems to have overstated people's love for it as I've not heard anyone actually support it. I liked it though. It seems that when a woman reaches a certain age, she's allowed to wear ridiculous hats & it certainly fits the bill. Furthermore, it was Detroit-Made which is always good for everyone in the area. Also, it only cost $179, not that I've ever spent that much on a hat, but I would have thought it was a lot more than that. I imagine people performing in that sort of venue have spent thousands on hats.

Audi: I don't know about the television feeds, but on-line all the feeds were sponsored by a German based auto company. I know the market demands the sale of sponsorship goes to the highest bidder, but considering the economy & the state of the Big 3, 1 would think that we'd get an American (union) company sponsoring the Inauguration.

The Crowd: I haven't paid this much attention to an Inauguration in quite a long time, but I don't recall them ever being like this before. There were a shit-ton of people paying attention to it. Not just the crowd, but the TV audience too. Even my students watched it.

Cheney's Wheelchair: Even the London Telegraph seemed a bit unclear about this issue. Supposedly, he pulled a muscle in his back while moving into his new home... really? The 67 year old 4-time heart attack victim who was also still the VP @ the time was moving his own boxes? Even to the Telegraph, it seemed more likely that he suffered from something more serious but wanted to keep it quiet... which is obviously his M.O. I like that even w/ 10 minutes to go in office, he may have kept on lying to us. Way to go Mr. VP... Biden will have to go some to match your sneakiness.

The Speech: It was fantastic, but @ times a bit creepy. The Daily Show commentary pointed out something I noticed & jokingly dealt w/ it the same way I did. When Bush talks about hunting people down & fighting an endless war, it's scary & imperialistic... but when Obama does it, I kind of assume he's just going through the motions... I sure hope that's all it is... & w/ his immediate changes in Git/Mo that seems to be the case.

The Tears: I'd be lien if I didn't admit that I squeezed out a few over the course of the hour or so I was able to watch. I told myself I would stay distant & critical of the administration, but as soon as they walked out I got a little misty. In fact, even before they walked out, when Bill Clinton & George H. W. Bush hugged, I teared up a bit. What can I saw, it was an emotional time.

The Oath: Obviously too much has been made of the stumbling over The Oath, & if anything, Obama should have come out of it looking good since he was aware of the problem & stopped. The vagueness of the Article 2 & the 20th Amendment have made people a bit too worried about the way the Oath was taken the other day.

Either way though, it's done now & we can finally celebrate a new president. But stay vigilant because he's, above all else, a politician so our optimism must remain cautious & we need to ensure he does good things in his 1st term before we start looking towards his 2nd.

So Long, George W. Bush!

For those of you who are like me & have to work today, here are a few links you can use to catch the inaugural stuff on-line:

Presidential Inaugural Committee 2009: This is the official site, but the stream seams problematic.

C-SPAN: They have a lot of streams, which is a mixed blessing... it's hard to decide which one to watch. I'll stick w/ the main 1 as long as it stops breaking up.

Terra: for our Spanish speaking friends... our our non-Spanish speaking friends who would prefer to watch it in Spanish... Solstice used to do this all the time w/ kids shows & is much more prolific w/ Spanish than I'll ever be.

CNN: The CNN feed has some weird partnership w/ Facebook so I suppose you can poke people while you watch... or throw things @ them or play Wordscraper or....

Words Part Deux

You may recall Visions of Ypsi's pledge to bring new & exciting words to the English language this year in the run-up to April 29, the day The Global Language Monitor claims English will gain its 1 millionth word. You got "Chimilicious" on Dec. 21, so now, nearly a month later, I'm ready to break out another 1. This term was actually coined by Solstice & seems fitting for Inauguration week... a week that has suddenly gained some sort of Mardi Grasesque status. I'm sure people are walking around topless & throwing beads @ each other in DC which suggests that even if that is the only change Obama brings about, we can call his presidency a success. That said, I gotta say I'm pretty sick of the overt racism associated w/ the waves of Obama-love that are sweeping the country. A guy I work w/ said his in-laws wanted to go to a Black Church to celebrate the election. That's fucked up! I saw a tribute to Yo, MTv Raps on which Flava Flav & Snoop Dog suggested that we'll all be eating collards & neck-bones, which was funny, but people have taken that idea much too seriously. He's just a politician... we can't all lose out shit over him; we must remember the 11th Commandment as explained by Mr. Weinberg, my 10th grade history teacher: Thou Shalt Get Re-Elected! His Blackness is tertiary in relation to his politics. So before you go assuming you'll see George Clinton & Kanye West on stage w/ the President tomorrow, remember you'll actually see Yo Yo Ma & Itzhak Perlman playing the music of John Williams. Along w/ Obama, we'll have the 3 whitest non-white people in the history of white non-white people on stage together... if they can find a way to get Will Smith up there they'll create some sort of whiteness wormhole which could possibly unmake creation.With this in mind, & w/o further ado, I give you the new word (from Solstice) which takes us all 1 step closer to our 1 millionth word: "Barack-a-lack-a-boom." The pseudo-blackness taken on by white people who are loving Obama to the point of enacting racial stereotypes about dancing, food, or religion. It can also relate to the racial swagger people assume Obama has while he rarely actually displays this. Remember, as we learned in Annie Hall, a racist for the left is still a racist!

Just when you thought election fever was over: Obama's Cabinet

With all of the rumors flying around about who his picks will be, & after my successful endorsements leading up to the election, I thought I'd give a brief overview of the main people I'd like to see get the nods. Following each of my picks is a quick list of the other people whose names have been thrown into the ring lately.

State: Hillary Clinton
She'd be a nice pairing for Obama's Mick Jaggeresque rock star street cred... bringing a bit of the Tina Turner sensibility to Obama's top advisers. Besides, Mick & Tina did a great job together at Live Aid I say give 'em another shot. Besides, she's still really well liked around the world.
Bill Richardson, Richard Lugar, Greg Craig, John Kerry, & Sam Nunn

Defense: Jack Reed
Though less likely than some of the other possibilities, he's a member of Senate Armed Services Committee & a good New England Democrat. Some left of center ideas running the military would be a fantastic change of pace.
Chuck Hagel, Robert Gates, & Richard Danzig

Homeland Security: Susan Collins
Though I've always liked Gary Hart, Collins chaired the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs from 2003 to 2007 & is considered 1 of the most liberal Republicans in the Senate. She has the experience & would be a great "across the aisle" pick.
Lee Hamilton, Tony Lake, Richard Clarke, Tim Roemer, Gary Hart

Treasury: Sheila C. Bair
The chair of the FDIC has worked in both the Clinton & GWB administrations & worked as a chief advisor to Dole during the GHWB administration. Though a little fiscally conservative, she seems to know her shit; she'd make a nice "across the aisle" pick. However, Laura Tyson would also be pretty good if he actually plans to load the Cabinet w/ East Coast lefties. Ideologically, I'm all in favor of that, but it doesn't seem practical.

Education: Colin Powell
When he endorsed Obama a month ago, I assumed he was jockeying for a Cabinet post & this seems to be the one for him. He's made education one of his major causes since he finished his tenure as Sec. of State, & his political experience can't be overlooked. It's hard to tell if this would really be another "across the aisle" pick," but it'd make a lot of people happy. (Not to be confused w/ the former winger for Charlton Athletic.)
George Miller, Tim Kaine, Linda Darling-Hammond, Joel Klein, Tom Kean, Inez Tenenbaum

Agriculture: Bill Richardson
As far as I can tell, he's only been named as a possibility for Sec. of State, but if that goes to Clinton, he'll get a spot somewhere else, & I think this is the place for him. Though oddly central in Lewinskygate, he's a former UN Ambassador, Sec. of Energy & Governor of New Mexico. Plus, he just seems like an all around good guy.
Colin Peterson, Tom Daschle, Jim Leach, Tom Vilsack

Energy: Tom Vilsack
He's been working to replace the Dept. of Energy w/ a new Dept. of Energy Security focused on reducing our dependence on foreign oil & increasing the search for non-fossil fuel options. He's been short-listed for Agriculture, but Energy is where I think he belongs.
Brian Schweitzer, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jeff Bingaman, Kathleen Sebelius

Labor: David Bonior
A strong Union guy for years. He's worked closely w/ the auto industry & he's a good Michigander. We won't hold the fact that he went to Notre Dame High School, a rival of CC, against him.
Dick Gephardt, Dan Tarullo, Linda Chavez-Thompson

Commerce: Kathleen Sebelius
Like Bonior, she too is originally from Michigan. She's the Governor of Kansas & Chair-Emerita of the Democratic Governors' Association, & she would be a great pick.
Ed Rendell, Penny Pritzker, Olympia Snowe

Interior: Lincoln Chafee
Often refered to as the most liberal Republican in the Senate, he became an Independant a couple years ago & to look @ his record, you've never guess he aligned himself w/ the GOP. Again, he might be an "across the aisle" pick, but he's no Dirk Kempthorne. As a side-note, John Emmett would most certainly cream his jeans for this one.
Christine Gregoire, Brian Schweitzer, RFK Jr.

Transportation: James Oberstar
Hailing from MN, he's been in Congress since 1974, which gives him mountains of experience. He's the current chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, & he's also a member of the Bike Caucus & the Grate Lakes Task Force.
Ed Rendell, Earl Blumenauer, R.T. Rybak

Attorney General: Artur Davis
A centrist Alabama African American Democrat. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1990 and received his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School. He's known for his public speaking abilities & he was the 1st Congressperson outside of IL to endorse Obama. Of course, Hillary Clinton would be pretty good here too if Richardson gets Sec. of State.
Janet Napolitano, Eric Holder, Hillary Clinton

EPA Director: Kathleen McGinty
She's the former head of the Pennsylvania EPA, & she's known for her strong advocacy of Environmental protection. A pro-environment person in this job will be a nice change of pace after the last 8 years.
Ed Markey, Mary Nichols, Lincoln Chafee

Director of Veterans' Affairs: Tammy Duckworth
She is an Iraq War Veteran & the current Director of Illinois Veterans' Affairs. A double amputee, she seems to agree completely w/ Obama's claims about Iraq & Afghanistan, believing we should focus more on Bin Laden & begin the withdrawal from Iraq.
Chet Edwards, Max Cleland, Patrick Murphy

Ambassador to the UN: Caroline Kennedy
A strong supporter of Obama & extremely well versed in both national & international issues. Not to mention that any president who is trying to bring about a 2nd Camelot probably needs a Kennedy.
Susan Rice & Lee Hamilton

Election Day

I just got back from voting @ Adams Elementary School which is @ the end of my street. Solstice & Aiden came w/ me, & we had a great time. I love bringing them w/ me so as to get them used to the process so by the time they're 18 it will be 2nd nature & they'll look forward to it. I remember registering to vote on my 18th b-day back in the summer of 1992. I was so excited that after years of following politics, I'd finally get to participate in the democratic process. I may be a nerd, but I'm a nerd for the left. This morning, there was absolutely no line which kind of freaked me out ("Where is everybody?" I asked myself, "Is on one getting out to vote?"), but they said there'd been a huge line earlier between 7:00 & 8:30... we got there about 9:00. Overall, the process went smoothly w/ no hanging chads & the volunteers were friendly as usual. We were even able to document the entire process w/ the trusty old camera. As you can see, we had a beautiful morning for an election. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen a General Election Day as nice as this one. As for my fashion choice, I went w/ the new tweed slacks, a white shirt, & a McPherson Hunting tie. The entire ensemble has now been brought together nicely w/ my "I Voted" sticker. For this evening, we've gotten a bottle of Cider, a couple cans of Guinness, some nice Triple Cream Brie and some fig spread to top off the cheese. My friend from Plum is going to be @ Aubree's for an election night party so I might go up there for a bit too... & I imagine there'll be something happening @ the Corner Brewery too.
Obama/Biden Home Page
Statewide Ballot Proposals
NPR Election Map
Election Results from CBS
BBC Election Night Guide Before we went in
Aiden in the midst of the signage
Getting my Ballot
W/ Solstice
W/ Aiden

Music and Politics

Last night, the Allman Brothers & the Dead played an Obama rally @ Penn state. From most accounts, the music was sub-par, but I'm about 1/3 of the way through the stream right now, & overall I'm diggin' it. The video-taped Obama speech was good & he name-dropped a few dead songs. Bobby fucked up the "Truckin'" opener, but that is to be expected. Phil's vocals on "US Blues" are much better than expected though... making a boring song tolerable. The playing on "Help on the Way" is fantastic, but Bob's vocals leave something to be desired. "Slipknot" is fun & jazzy as always. Phil's vocals on "Franklin's Tower" are great as is the music., & I usually prefer "Help" to "Frank," but not this time. "Playin in the Band" has a great slow jam that goes for about 10 minutes. It's nice & even Bobby's guitar is high enough in the mix to hear. Possibly the shortest, most boring "Dark Star" of all time though... as if getting to "St. Stephen" was their main priority. it's understandable though as getting to "St. Stephen" is 1 of my main priorities too... & so far it's been well worth it: definitely a highlight. "Unbroken Chain" is also a highlight of the show w/ some amazing jamming. Many of the fan-based reviews claimed there wasn't much impovisiation last night, & while "Dark star" left a shit-load to be desired, "Unbroken Chain" more than makes up for it. That's as far as I am @ the moment, but I'm in hurry to get to the end... it's fun, the intro to "The Other One" sounds good so far & from what I understand, the ABB set streams after the Dead set. This should keep me busy all day while I'm reading Quicksand. I'm excited for the ABB set too because there are a couple songs I'm not familiar w/: "Who's Been talkin'" & "Anyday' are new to me. Revival
Statesboro Blues
Who's Been Talking
Midnight Rider
One Way Out
And It Stoned Me
Dreams
Don't Think Twice
Anyday
Melissa
Trouble No More
Ain't Wastin' Time No More
Jessica
E- Whipping Post

Obama Speech Video
Truckin >
US Blues
Help on the Way >Slipknot >
Franklin's Tower
Playin in the Band>
Dark Star>
St. Stephen>
Unbroken Chain >
Other One >
Throwin Stones >
Playin reprise

E-Phil rap >
Bobby rap >
Touch of Grey>
Not Fade Away

While Jerry Garcia rolls over in his grave upon hearing Bobby's vocals, in other musical news, we can assume Hank Williams Sr. is also rolling over as Hank Williams Jr played a McCain/Palin rally yesterday, debuting his reworked version of "Family Tradition," "McCain/Palin Tradition." He does a nice job of getting all of last week's Palin talking points in there including Obama is a terrorist, but I wonder if he wrote it himself or if her people did it for him. I'm sure they @ least fed him some basic ideas. He even goes so fr as to blame Bill Clinton for this month's economic problems. Talk about poetic licence. I don't know Hank III's politics, but I can't imagine he'll be stumpin' for the GOP anytime soon. In actuality, I don't know much about Hank Sr.'s political views either, but he seems like he would have been an active New deal Democrat... when he could stand up anyways. What ever happened to drinking & smoking pot being the family tradition...

Searchin' for the ghost of Tom Joad

I went out on my lunch break today to score a couple tix for the Springsteen/Obama rally @ Oestrike Stadium this afternoon w/ John, the dairy buyer. We were only allowed 2 apiece, but his wife couldn't go so he gave me his extra which in turn meant both of my kids could get in. (As it turns out, they had extras outside so it would have been fine anyway.) We went straight from their school to the stadium & walked in while Kitty Donahoe was playing. Apparently, we missed Dick Siegle... I dig him, but it was not to be. After she finished & the sound dudes screwed around for a few minutes, some local minister said a prayer & then an ROTC guy led the Pledge. After that, the EMU Gospel Choir did an amazing rendition of The Star Spangled Banner... they are fantastic! Debbie Dingle spoke next... & not so coherently I might add, but then John Dingle topped her awkwardness w/ some strange claims about defense attorneys. Solstice & Aiden found some friends so they were running around in the outfield while everyone was talking. Next up was Diane HAthawy, a canidate for State Supreem Court. She seems super cool, so I'm going to take this moment to put up another Visions of Ypsi Endoresment... Vote for Diane Hathaway! By the time The Boss came out, I was checking my watch because Aiden's team had practice @ 5:30 We got to see a few songs though as I hooked up w/ more friends from work. There was even a nice scent of pot in the air. The set-list was fun, but Aiden refused to believe a guy w/ a harmonica & an acoustic guitar was playing Rock & Roll. He might be right, but even if he is an over the hill folkie, he's doing a damn good job getting people revved up... of course, between 5 & 7 students in each of my classes hadn't heard of him. Here's the Detroit News recap, which is basically just like my recap but quicker because Susan Whitall presumably didn't have to coach a soccer practice right afterwards. The practice was good though & I think these kids will become a good group of players if they stick w/ it. Which is kind of how I feel about Springsteen's songwriting... he shows promise, but the jury is still out.

The Boss @ EMU

I've never been a huge fan of Bruce Springsteen, but he's playing a free 1/2 hour Obama rally @ EMU's baseball stadium tomorrow afternoon so I think I'll drag the kids up there after I pick them up from school. I don't have tickets & doors open 45 minutes before I can get there, but I think we might @ least be able to stand outside the fence & hear him. He played Philly yesterday & here's the speech he gave before his acoustic performance:
"Hello Philly,

"I am glad to be here today for this voter registration drive and for Barack Obama, the next President of the United States.

"I've spent 35 years writing about America, its people, and the meaning of the American Promise. The Promise that was handed down to us, right here in this city from our founding fathers, with one instruction: Do your best to make these things real. Opportunity, equality, social and economic justice, a fair shake for all of our citizens, the American idea, as a positive influence, around the world for a more just and peaceful existence. These are the things that give our lives hope, shape, and meaning. They are the ties that bind us together and give us faith in our contract with one another.

"I've spent most of my creative life measuring the distance between that American promise and American reality. For many Americans, who are today losing their jobs, their homes, seeing their retirement funds disappear, who have no healthcare, or who have been abandoned in our inner cities. The distance between that promise and that reality has never been greater or more painful.

"I believe Senator Obama has taken the measure of that distance in his own life and in his work. I believe he understands, in his heart, the cost of that distance, in blood and suffering, in the lives of everyday Americans. I believe as president, he would work to restore that promise to so many of our fellow citizens who have justifiably lost faith in its meaning. After the disastrous administration of the past 8 years, we need someone to lead us in an American reclamation project. In my job, I travel the world, and occasionally play big stadiums, just like Senator Obama. I've continued to find, wherever I go, America remains a repository of people's hopes, possibilities, and desires, and that despite the terrible erosion to our standing around the world, accomplished by our recent administration, we remain, for many, a house of dreams. One thousand George Bushes and one thousand Dick Cheneys will never be able to tear that house down.

"They will, however, be leaving office, dropping the national tragedies of Katrina, Iraq, and our financial crisis in our laps. Our sacred house of dreams has been abused, looted, and left in a terrible state of disrepair. It needs care; it needs saving, it needs defending against those who would sell it down the river for power or a quick buck. It needs strong arms, hearts, and minds. It needs someone with Senator Obama's understanding, temperateness, deliberativeness, maturity, compassion, toughness, and faith, to help us rebuild our house once again. But most importantly, it needs us. You and me. To build that house with the generosity that is at the heart of the American spirit. A house that is truer and big enough to contain the hopes and dreams of all of our fellow citizens. That is where our future lies. We will rise or fall as a people by our ability to accomplish this task. Now I don't know about you, but I want that dream back, I want my America back, I want my country back.

"So now is the time to stand with Barack Obama and Joe Biden, roll up our sleeves, and come on up for the rising."

The setlist yesterday was as follows:
The Promised Land (not the Chuck Berry song)
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Thunder Road
No Surrender
Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street
The Rising
This Land is Your Land

Pregame: The Horror

Claire Kahane, among others, has claimed that Kurtz's "The horror,the horror" should be seen as homonymic of "The whore,the whore." I don't want to dwell on that thought too much, but it's an interesting quote to use introducing this montage of Palin quotes. Of course, if Marlowe misunderstood Kurtz's dying words, my interpretation differs slightly from Kahane's who suggests Kurtz is blaming women for his fall & the fall of mankind in general. He's too complex for that. When Marlowe asks him if there is a message to deliver to his fiance, the possibility that Kurtz refers to her as a whore suggests, to me anyway, his acknowledgement that she is whoring out her religious beliefs as well as her naivety in an attempt to cover up the major problems of colonialism. If anything, he is the pimp to her whore, using the Occidental perceptions of the non-European world to accomplish his own goals.Regardless, I didn't mean to log in today to discuss "Heart of Darkness," you've all read it; the mini-analysis isn't necessary. I logged in to hype up tonight's debate. I was a bit underwhelmed by Friday's Obama v McCain, but tonight should be something special. On Friday, I felt like I so often felt while seeing Dead back in the day. I didn't want to look away because of the possibility that some sweet, sweet moment might be just around the corner. As w/ the live music, it wasn't often the case the other night. Tonight, though, as Biden & Palin enter the metaphorical octagon, we may be in for greatness. I mean, "Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy" greatness. Unfortunately, while the polls are suggesting a spike in Obama's popularity this week, we can't forget that Benson's remark to Quayle didn't help Dukakis win the election. It should be fun, but let's not count our bridges to nowhere before they're built. When she loses tonight, there will inevitably be some misplaced sympathy for her. when people feel she's "just like them, unable to withstand the assaults of a Washington insider," some will certainly want to support her more. These are the people we call the douchebags, & when this happens & McCain wins in 5 weeks, we will have to deal w/ a horror the likes of which Kurtz could never have imagined.

3 Mavericks

The word "maverick" has been thrown around so often lately in reference to the GOP's rather unmaverick like maverick, John McCain, people are actually starting to believe it. If voting w/ GWB 90% of the time is a mavericky thing to do, I suppose that makes GWB a maverick too so if being a maverick means towing the standard GOP party line, I guess he's done a good job of that, but to vote for him because he claims he's gonna shake things up is ridiculous. Yet, I'm getting more & more afraid his "maverick" claims will work making him the next President & Palin the next VP. I also don't think the Obama attacks on Palin's ignorance of the Bush Doctrine will work as most people say things like "I don't don't know what that is either so she's just like me." I, for one, don't actually want a President (or VP) "just like me." I want my leaders to be smarter & better versed in the issues... JFK won a Pulitzer, Carter has written more books than Toni Morrison, Clinton was a Rhodes' Scholar... W is the guy we want to drink a beer w/ & McCain is the guy to go bowling w/... Absurd! After 8 years of this, an intellectual in the oval office would be a nice change of pace. Speaking of Palins, check out the Michael Palin for President site!

I didn't actually log in to talk about the presidential race though. I've been DVRing old Maverick episodes on Encore Western. What an awesome show! It has everything my love for Rockford has but 15 years earlier, w/ 19th century gamblers & in B/W. If you've never seen the show, you should definitely check it out. The writing is fantastic, the sarcasm is great, & the plots are just plain weird.

I didn't actually log in to talk about that either though. What I really want to discuss is Pete Michell, Top Gun's Maverick. We watched the end of the film the other night, & while his ability to go supersonic & be there in 30 seconds is pretty sweet, I noticed something I've never thought about before. It's possible this issue goes back to the basic claims of homoeroticism in the film, but I think it's quite possible that Maverick is simply an ass-hat. Goose's death isn't directly related to Mav's hot-shot flying, but it's claimed over & over again that everything he does in the air is in relation to the chip on his shoulder so @ least indirectly Maverick is responsible for Goose's death. That said, @ some point, he's going to have to talk to Goose's wife & kid about everything, & the conversation will go like this.
Mav: Because I'm a hotshot & left my wing man in order to win a stupid contest & prove a point, your father is dead.
Goose's kid: Could you have avoided this & spared my father's life?
Mav: Of course.
GK: Maybe the Lord will be able to forgive you, but I never will (this is the same thing Tom Cruise's character is told in Born on the Fourth of July when he has to explain how he is responsible for an American death.)
Mav: I'm really, really, really sorry... w/ sugar on top.
GK: Were they able to recover his dog tags?
Mav: Yep, I held his body in the water until the rescue helicopter got there.
GK: Could you give them to me so I have something to remember my father who died in the service to our fair country?
Mav: Nah, I took it upon myself to throw them into the Indian Ocean. I'm sure the Defense Department will be happy to make you a replica set though. They're pretty cheap & easy to make.

We're going to skip the obligatory "thumbs up" soccer reference & go w/ the more obvious though less common "just prior ot anal insertion" reference

The Well Organized Vast Coalition of Leftist Bloggers

Cleta Mitchell was on the Diane Rhem Show today & suggested that this coalition has joined together in an organized front to smear Palin (the Governor of Alaska, not the Monty Python cast member). Having missed the organizing meetings, I'm perhaps a couple days behind on this one (I had to let Landon have his say). That said, I'm not certain that it really takes a "vast coalition" to find fault w/ her. Mitchell's claims were about the attention on Bristol (the 17 year old daughter, not the city in England) & Palin's alleged attempts to get books banned from the Wasilla, Alaska Public Library. First off, I absolutely agree w/ Obama's stance that the families should be off limits & therefore we shouldn't attack her because of her daughter. However, when she & the GOP put her eldest son on a pedestal for joining the military & attempt to win our sympathies based on her youngest child, it seems like she's trying to have it both ways (which I'm also sure she's done before... not that there's anything wrong w/ that either). If we are all supposed to look @ 2 of her kids, all should be fair game. As far as the book banning goes, the only "proof" so far that this happened has come from a 1996 article in The Frontiersman, the Wasilla newspaper, where she discussed it a little bit. Of course, it's not completely out of the question; the mid-nineties were full of library book-banning movements. Remember the dude in Ohio who shat in a children's' book about gay parents? Those were the good ol' days of book-banning (well, not as good as Nazi Germany, but pretty good none-the-less). Mitchell's response to the book-burning question was "I'm not commenting on that. She is the target of a smear campaign and I don't know if that even ever really happened, but remember, many parents have been upset by the books their children are forced to read." This is fantastic: what she means here is this: "I'm not talking about it, it might not have happened, if it did it's justified anyway." In her defense, she is right that parents are often upset by what their children are forced to read... Huck Finn, Harry Potter, Slaughter House 5... but that is an issue to be settled between the parent, the student, & the teacher. No one in the public library system is "forcing" people to read books. I don't know though, maybe in Alaska, librarians carry guns... Librarianators... Biblio-enforcers... pistol packin' Athenaeumians... they get archival on our asses... perhaps these are the brain police Frank Zappa warned us about. Maybe I spent too long discussing the book-banning issue, but I'm not in the camp that says this is a personal issue. Her support of censorship may actually be an important thing to know about before we cast our votes.

Anyway, it seems to me that these aren't even the issues people are really talking about. The only times I hear about them is when the GOP think-tank people don't want to discuss the real issues they keep saying we need to discuss. In fact, McCain's appearance on Larry King was canceled after one of these alleged "personal attacks" by the media when Campbell Brown asked Tucker Bounds to discuss Palin's Foreign Policy qualifications. She pressed him to answer the question he tried to deflect in the way any good journalist is expected to & they say she was "attacking" Palin's personal life. Before you watch the interview, I want to say that I keep hearing people say their Republican friends are scared by this VP pick... 1 heart beat away from being the PILF... the hottest VP since Mondale... yet all I see is GOP support. I don't really know any Republicans though, so I'd love to hear from some & get a reaction to these issues. Now, enjoy the CNN clip (& then a little Daily Show fun w/ soundbites), & don't forget, the next meeting for the Well Organized Vast Coalition of Leftist Bloggers will take place in my living room next week... bring beer:

2 Parties

The Democratic Party:
While Laura had the awesome opportunity to attend the Democratic Convention in Denver this week, I settled for the TV coverage. When I was younger, I'd have been glued to the set all week. I watched the '88 & '92 Conventions every night (& even @ 10 years old I watched a bunch of the '84)... this time I only caught a couple hours. We watched Obama's speech last night & Dick Durbin's speech before that & a bunch of random people talking about why they're voting Democratic this fall. Before I comment on them though, it's important to mention that I was impressed by the fact that they were willing to speak @ all. They're nervousness was obvious, but we're talking about people w/ assumedly little public speaking experience addressing a football stadium full of people (Not to mention the national television audience). That said, some had a bit of the douchebag in them. "I'm a lifelong Republican. I voted for Nixon, Ford, Reagan, GHW Bush, & GW Bush, but I just can't do it this time. Now that I've lost my job & my house, I feel that we need a different direction." Part of me says, "Great, better late than never," but this change of heart is pretty selfish & self-serving. What they're also saying is, "I didn't care about the millions of people who were effected by the GOP policies before, but now that I'm the one getting fucked, I suppose I should be a little more compassionate." Don't get me wrong, I'd rather have them on our side than in the McCain/Palin camp, but perhaps had all these people the DNC is parading around made the switch, oh I don't know, 8 years ago, we wouldn't have gotten in this mess to begin w/. I'm glad they're w/ us, but a little mention of their previous errors would have been nice, yet there was never any acknowledgement of "Oops, I fucked up in the past & I'm sorry." All I'm saying is that would have been nice. Here he is letting his winger know the cross was good but he just couldn't quite connect & find the back of the netThe Big Ass Summer Party:
Tomorrow is the big party for those of you who have forgotten (or those of you who didn't know to begin w/). The music has been arranged, the lights have been hung & we've been cleaning. I even chopped wood yesterday for the little suburban yuppie "I can't actually commit to a fire pit" fire pit thing. In doing so, I of course broke my old industrial sized yard clippers, but the ax & the saw made it through unscathed. If you're coming (& y'all better be coming), remember to bring lawn chairs & food or drinks if you'd like. Oh, & an instrument or 2 to join in the music w/ Jim, Gerry & Warren.

RIP: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Late last night, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, @ 89 1/2 years young, died of heart failure @ his home near Moscow. The fact that I edged 1 point closer to Jason in the death pool takes a back seat to this guy's legacy: Gulag survivor, cancer survivor, Nobel Laureate, novelist, revealer of the truth concerning Stalin's violent prison system, man of peace & philosophy.

Long Awaited Answers to Previously Posed Questions

Layin' Pipe in Washtenaw County
Considering I've backed up more than my fair share of drains, the issue of Drain Commissioner is 1 that is close to my heart. After checking out the web-sites of 2 of the 3 candidates (Richard Deitering doesn't even have a site & there's no way in Hell I'd endorse anyone who isn't using the grassroots campaign strategies of Howard Dean), I've decided that while Douglas A. Egeler's service in the Marine Corps & his 31 years in the plumbing industry are strong factors, Visions of Ypsi is proud to announce that we are endorsing Janis Bobrin for Washtenaw County Drain Commissioner. She has served the county in this role for nearly 20 years & has a spanking picture of Atchison Drain on her main page. She's also been endorsed by Alma Wheeler Smith, the UAW, & the Sierra Club, but I imagine it is this endorsement which will really kick-start her re-election campaign. Check out her web-site & get listed as an supporter or get yourself a yard sign! Power to the people!

Little House - Big WorldThe next issue I promised I would tackle involves the Tiny Houses. Steve posted a link to this a few years ago, but there was a story on Weekend Edition about this so I wanted to check it out again... it's hilarious (but pretty great if you live by yourself, don't have any pets, & have Agoraphobia. In all honesty, they're great for the environment, but would be a bit difficult w/ a family. The woman interviewed on the radio said she powers her house w/ a solar panel & 9 bucks worth of propane every month.

This Portion of the Post is not about Face Glaze
While @ work this weekend, I was made aware of a fascinating new product called Batter Blaster. Of course, all the obligatory dick jokes were made (& a few that were rather uncalled for), but it actually seems like it might be a decent thing to get for a camping trip. Other than that, it just seems nasty. It is organic though, so @ least there's that. For those of you who didn't follow the link, Batter Blaster is pancake batter that comes in a sort of Ready Whip style canister. Sounds Delicious.

If Only He Really was a Terrorist: The Presidential EndorsementThis weeks has been spent w/ diapers & walking & bouncing & all things baby so I didn't have a chance to comment on the New Yorker cover, but I couldn't let it slip by unnoticed. I think it's a whole lot funnier than the media made it out to be. Obviously, it's not an attack on the Obamas but on the people who have been making the rather dubious claims about his allegiances. That said, I would definitely like Michelle Obama more if she came w/ a dash of Angela Davis (rather than Angela Lansbury). Oh well, I'll take what I can get, so Visions of Ypsi is proud to announce that we are officially endorsing Barack Obama. After all, Angela Lansbury was pretty good in the 1979 remake of The Lady Vanishes.