A few miscellaneous observations

Is George “bowtie” F. “vitiated” Will really calling Barack elitist?  How’s the silver-spoon everyman we have in there now working out for you?

I don’t know if it’ll be there tomorrow, but the roasted garlic on the salad bar at Whole Foods tonight rocked.  Get it when you can… by the pound.

Speaking of WFM, tonight I ran into Troy Andrews and Deacon John there.  I love seeing greatness at my store.

For the record, I’ve liked Chris Rose more than most bloggers, but I thought his tribute to Ashley was really good.

Speaking of Ashley, is it just me, or does the “Remember Ashley Morris” picture (and I need someone to help me put that up) look like he should be posthumously dubbed thus.

Michelle Obama will be the perfect first lady, in my view.  (Note the legs comment down toward the end)

The perfect response to Obama’s “bitter” controversy:

Artie Jefferson,
Tour Guide
“Hillary knew a young, inexperienced Obama would slip up sooner or later and be honest with people.”

I’ve often said that the racism in NO would dissipate a lot of people would just come onto Xavier’s campus and eavesdrop on students’ conversations.  Yeah, there’s plenty of banality going around, but today was the first day of our Festival of Scholars, and there’s some damn fine work going on.

Today when I got home a poller from Tulane & Kaiser interviewed me on my life since K.  I noted that although I said my life is overall very good, I ended up answering that I’m dissatisfied with a lot of things.  It’s a bit like something in psyc we call “false uniqueness.”

Ashley’s in the book.  I’ve added a bit from Ashley’s obituary to the chapter from E’s & my Psychology of Disasters book that deals with the rally effect.  I know most of us were rabid pro-NOLA people before the storm, but I know that we’ve gotten more defensive and vehement since, much like the flag pins that emerged after 9/11.  I hope it’s a good bit of subtle tribute.

In solidarity with Tibet, I am refusing to compete in the China olympics.  You’re welcome.

Deadly Rice

Within a couple of days of each other, I’ve read two columns on something so obvious I feel like an idiot for not thinking of it before:  John McCain should Pick Condoleezza Rice as his running mate.

I’ll let them make the case, but Cokie & Steven Roberts do a good job, as does Hendrik Hertzberg.

Frankly, I don’t think the GOP establishment will let him do it, but it scares me, so it may be a good idea.

Stewart on Obama-Wright

And so, at 11:00 am on a Tuesday, a prominent politician spoke to Americans about race as though they were adults.

Not his funniest bit, but he shows that we have a potential philosopher king, and the bit is still worth a look.

“Was”??? WTF?

Check out the headline.  And I’m going to personally throttle anyone who refers to “treasure” as a stake of war.  I do think that we should consider money in making such decisions (we could sure use some of that treasure here), but the euphemism is nauseating, and McCain is the most frequent utterer.  Ugh.

Stuff I’ve been meaning to post…

Dilbert & Religion:

Thank you for taking time out from feeding the poor to complain about comic strips. I know Jesus would have played it the same way.

–Scott Adams (Dilbert)

I don’t typically read Scott Adams’s blog, but this post is great.

Obama & McCain: I’m really bummed I didn’t get around to ordering a green O’Bama shirt in time for St. Pat’s (maybe they’ll be cheaper now), but his speech today, I believe, will be remembered long after he’s gone. Folks, this could be a real turning point in the nation’s dealings with race. It may lose him the election by causing subtly racist moderates to finally have their reason to jump ship, but it’ll force a bunch of folks to face some ugly truths.

Incidentally, if you weren’t scared enough of McCain before (I’ve been guilty as considering him a relatively minor threat, but I thought the same about W way back when, so I’m guilty), consider that he actively solicited the support of John Hagee, who said this:

All hurricanes are acts of God because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God and they were recipients of the judgment of God for that.

In that interview, he goes on to say that there was to be a parade with homosexual sex at unprecedented levels. The lack of rationality that goes into these kinds of statements (like, what about Rita? No storm hits a god-fearing region?) just blows me away, so to speak. What a prick.

HomeStretch: Like some respected not-really-lent-type others, I’ve been on the wagon for Lent. E did this a few years ago, but I decided to join her this time. It sucks, but I’ve learned some things. More on that later. Believe me, this level of masochism deserves its own post. If you see someone puking on Chris Owens Sunday, that’ll be me.

T-Mac Watch: Tomorrow E and I are going to watch the Hornets kick the Rockets’ asses and end that streak and take over 1st in the West. Big prize to anyone who helps me incorporate my hatred of McGrady into a concise sign. Remember these words:

If I don’t feel like it’s going to be safe, if I’m on that team, I will think about not going.

That was the first thing I thought about [regarding the game being held in New Orleans next season]. I thought about how much safety and security there’s going to be for the players. I don’t think it’s the right city right now. Safety has to come first.

BTW, I’ve never personally seen a player take over a game the way Chris Paul did last night. G & I thought we were toast, and we were already lamenting how we gave away a game to a mediocre team (even if 2 KU players are on the team), when Paul became superman and decided he WOULD NOT LET US LOSE. So tomorrow we play to end the streak and take over 1st in the West and in the division. I’m drooling.

BTW2, I’ve been elated to see JuJu come alive and get some game, becoming a crowd favorite in the process. I think he’s going to be an impact player, and I hope we can keep him. Also, props to Bonzi, who I’d been critical of before last night. Jeez, I love the Hornets. Keep supporting them folks! I need them here for my fix!

Super-Duper Sunday: Man, was the weather great, and our “dead city” showed its unique spirit and a great time. Too many pix here.

Family: How old do you get before your family starts giving guilt trips about your personal weaknesses? Just wondering.

More later.

Update:  I didn’t realize Houston played Boston tonight.  Not sure if I should root against Houston (I guess I will, for NO’s sake and for KU’s Paul Pierce), or for Houston (have I mentioned I hate Tracy McGrady) so we can end their streak instead of Beantown.

Odd San Dends

My sports teams are in free-fall.  Three straight losses by the Hornets, and two by the Jayhawks.  Come on, fellas, turn it around!  I’ll be there tomorrow to see if NO can right the ship against the Suns, but I’m pessimistic, given how badly Tyson was beat up by Brendan Haywood last night.  Even a washed-up Shaq should be a juggernaut.

And you thought Clinton and Obama were mad at each other!

Maybe it’s because you were being bitches!

This if funniest if you took Intro Psyc.

Adrastos has a nice take on the Oscars, nice because I agree with it.  One thing E and I observed was how many winners were not American.  I’m sure both right-wingers in Hollywood will try to use it to close the borders to Hollywood, but it does make me wonder if we’re seeing the effects of shitty arts funding.

With Dodd and Emmitt, Barack can’t lose!

Although I don’t always find them funny, I enjoyed this back-&-forth between Sarah Silverman and Jimmy Kimmel.

I hate FoxNews more than you do

I know that’s just what they want, but I can’t help playing into their hands.  Now it’s this.  I probably give celebrities more credit than they deserve for things, but I really can’t take people like this being so callous.  Even if I agreed with their politics, there are so many people with these jobs who just make me wonder how they could be employed at anything, let alone making real money.  Pricks.

The Onion on Piyush

This is great. I wonder what diverse, multicultural elements he’ll bring to systemic corruption?

Check out a couple more American Voices.

Decision 2008, which seems to have started about a decade ago

Everyone’s weighing in on the primaries, and I’ve babbled to enough people in person with my thoughts that I gotta get them out here.

First, a TMI anecdote: Around a decade ago when we were at a conference in Chicago, E & I had a “scare” and bought fetus detectors for the only time for either of us. We had gotten worked up into a true sense of panic, and then when the rabbit didn’t die or whatever, we felt complete relief. That reaction was telling. Neither of us, although married and relatively stable, had any ambivalence in our reaction. No sense of “Well, we’re glad, but it would have been exciting.” It was 100% relief; even though we agree on the perspective, it’s for somewhat different reasons. So we continued to discuss and analyze the situation for a year or so, and then took action.

What does this have to do with the election? Well, sometimes we don’t know what we’ll do in a situation until we’re there. I’ve known I liked Obama for years. One of my few “I was there” moments (the other being seeing REM at Hoch Auditorium in Lawrence, KS, with my brother in 1984, drunk on Everclear and Crystal Light–Stipe never looked at the audience, but I’ve bragged about my musical edginess ever since) was when I was reading a lot of political blogs and told people, “A guy named Barack Obama from Illinois is going to be the first Black president.” It was quite a while before it was announced that he’d give the address at the Dem convention, and everyone saw how wise I was.

Back to the scare. I’ve felt, and continue to feel, that I’ll gladly and enthusiastically support any of the Dem candidates (I don’t know enough about Gravel to say that, but you get my point). I’ll take Clinton, but I still really like Obama. But I couldn’t have predicted my level of disappointment in her win in NH, just like I couldn’t have predicted my reaction to pending offspring until I was forced to face it. Not that I don’t like her now, but it made me defensive of BO. Her victory motivated me to finally put my money where my mouth is and make a donation to his campaign.

My main reservation with him isn’t experience, which I guess will be his Achilles heel in the debates if he wins the nom, but I want to see the Repubs justify their support for W. No one had less experience than W, but that’s not what makes him a shitty president. No, my main reservation is with myself. Frankly, for as much as I try to pay attention, I can’t tell you all the things that separate him from his rivals. It’s more of a gut, and that sucks because it makes me sounds like W (”I looked into his soul…”). But the thing is, I don’t know when I’ve heard him say something that I really don’t like. I just think he’s great, and I think he’s sincere, and I think he’s brilliant, and he sure as hell wouldn’t embarrass me. I’m sure I’ll get pissed when he has to compromise, but I can overlook some of that for pragmatics. I defended Bill Clinton for Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, even though it’s stupid, because it was at least a step in the right direction. I defended Hillary’s healthcare proposal, though clearly flawed, because it was really the first time anyone had tried something like that (to my knowledge). I guess I’m a sellout (hell, I probably agree with Kucinich on more issues, but I can’t quite vote for him), but I only take my principles so far. But damn, it sure would be nice to get a 3rd party really moving, just not at the expense of my vote. I’m a flip-flopper.

A few quick takes on the primaries:

• If a Repub wins the general election, I sure hope it’s McCain. For all his flaws (like the war), I don’t think he’s quite as full of shit as the rest of them, and he at least has a history of attempting some bipartisan action.
• I’m disappointed that Bill Richardson is apparently dropping out. He’s really impressed me in the debates, and I think he elevated the discussion. Aside from the too-white teeth, I think he’s genuine and really capable.
• Kerry just endorsed Obama, which is nice I guess. I would have taken any one of the folks running now over Kerry in 2004. This is a really good crop, if you ask me. I’ll be proud to pull for them.
• I know it’s a tired cliche, but I really hate the negative stuff (another reason I like Obama is I think he’s really reluctant to go there). They agree on more than they disagree on, and one of them will probably end up recruiting another one of them as a running mate, so all that slamming crap is dumb. Keep it to on the Repubs and respectfully disagree with each other.
• I think Hillary’s crying was fake. Who the hell gets that emotional about something like this? Like I said, I’ll still support her if she gets it, but I don’t think she does anything that isn’t calculated.
• Even the Repubs are a breath of fresh air compared to W. I hate them, but at least they can put a sentence together and don’t sound like nouveau cowboys.
• Finally, I really respect what Ashley and others have said in their support for Edwards, and of course I’ll gladly back him if he gets the nom, but even though NO is my passion, it’s not my only issue, and I have a harder time getting behind him. I don’t care about the hair or the mansion or the trial lawyer crap he gets, but again, I don’t have as much confidence in him as I’d like to have. I hope he keeps pushing the Katrina issues though and makes them remember.

Cartoon from Handelsman

Until I can finish writing a couple long pending posts… Random

I think a great band name would be Various Artists.  Or Self-Titled LP.

This just got to me, and it’s hilarious.  Katrina reference a minute or so in on the Barbara Bush 10 gallon coin!

I think if Hillary weren’t running, Bill would be on stage with Obama every time BO’s handlers would let him.

I already sent this to B, but this picture made my day.

If you don’t make a point of reading McSweeney’s regularly, you’re missing out.   I especially enjoy Lists, which suits my attention span, but just tell me these aren’t brilliant.