Literally

Why Is This So Funny?

2009-01-29T11:18:00.002-05:00

Do you love teevee but not have time to watch every episode of inanity on every blessedly absurd show? Then watch The Soup on E!. It's on Friday nights at 10, but I prefer to watch it on Saturday morning at 10:00. I don't mean for this to sound like a shameless plug for the show, but it's just fabulous and Joel McHale is Ryan Seacrest's evil twin. For that reason, it's especially good during American Idol season.

Where Are You, Cate Blanchett?

2009-01-26T20:37:00.014-05:00

It's Award Season, people. This means that roughly every other Sunday from mid-January to mid-March, I am watching a parade of celebrities get dressed up in borrowed fashion and jewels, and win awards for such invaluable contributions to the world like "being in a movie" or "guest-starring on a teevee show" or "collaborating with John Mayer." I watch from the beginning of the Red Carpet coverage to the last glorious post-ceremony interview. And then for the rest of the week I scan the Best and Worst Dressed lists to see if I agree or disagree. Boyfriend really loves this time of year.

Each award show has its own merits. The Golden Globes are great because everyone gets increasingly drunk as the night goes on and say the most ridiculous things. The Grammys are fun because there are musical performances and the worst/most insane fashion can be witnessed. The Oscars are amazing because they are the most important to the film industry, plus the actresses all seriously bring their A-game to their dress choices. Sunday night was the SAG awards, which are great to watch because they are only about actors, so they cut out all the boring stuff that no one cares about (and let's face it, the ugly people), like cinematography and special effects, and writing. Bleh.

The fashion over the last two award shows has been pretty solid (the GGs were 2 weeks ago). Nothing earth-shattering, in either direction, but some pretty looks. Let's go over a few.

Evan Rachel Wood.

I want to hate you, Evan, because you supposedly broke up the marriage of the most lovely Dita Von Teese. But I think I forgive you now because a) you seem to have blossomed into an elegant dresser, much like Ms. Dita and b) Dita's ex-husband was Marilyn Manson. But yes, I really liked your looks at both the GG and SAG. See you at the Oscars.

Anne Hathaway.
I just love you. I think you are sweet and funny and a great actress. I like the way you dress and the way you smile. I think we should be friends. You should call me sometime.

Kate WinsletYou have always been gorgeous, but something about you recently just oozes beauty. You are one of those people who get more beautiful with age. Your GG dress was simple and elegant and tuxedo-y in a way. The color and neckline of your SAG dress was gorge, but there's something about your chesticle area that makes me want to push the girls up and in, and the way the fabric changes as your dress mermaids out is kind of cheap looking.

Terri HatcherI know you've made some best-dressed lists for your white "oragami" SAG gown, but I'm sorry, I immediately thought of Ariel's attempt at human clothing when she washes ashore for the first time.

Christina Applegate

I never like what you wear. You are a pretty woman who is very likeable. Please fire your stylist because she makes you look like you're trying to hard. And please lay off the red lip.

Angelina Jolie

For someone that is supposedly so interesting, you certainly don't dress like it. I know you're busy taking care of your six children and having sex with Brad Pitt so that you can have six more children and saving the world with children, or whatever, but may I remind you that you are an actress. That's your job--to look good and star in movies. So would it kill you to act like you're an actress? I don't find your lack of effort endearing, I find it snobbish.

So yeah, that's a short summary of my opinions on fashion for the last two award shows. It's not entirely passionate because I just felt like something was missing. And I've finally realized what that something (actually someone) is: Cate Blanchett. Where are you, Cate Blanchett? You are always my favorite Red Carpet staple; you're always one step ahead of the trends, but you make them work, and you always look amazing. Remember these?

You costarred with Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, so you should totally be at these shows. Where are you!? Please tell me you will be at the Oscars. I miss you. And I need someone to balance out Marisa Tomei.

[eonline.com]

The Dumbest Thing I've Seen All Day

2009-01-26T16:05:00.003-05:00

This may surprise you, but it comes from our good friends at Fox News. So Nancy Pelosi is getting a lot of heat from the right (and some hyper-sensitive media outlets) over the expansion of a family-planning program that's included in the proposed stimulus package. As TPM explains:

What's being proposed is an expansion in the number of states that can use Medicaid money, with a federal match, to help low-income women prevent unwanted pregnancies. Of the 26 states that already have Medicaid waivers for family planning, eight are led by Republican governors (AL, FL, MS, SC, CA, LA, MN and RI -- a ninth, MO, had a GOP governor until this past November).

Well a genius blogger on Fox News has made the assertion that less people (because they have been aborted) means less taxpayers:

We have already reduced the number of taxpayers by an estimated 50 million since abortion became legal in 1973. If we had 50 million more people paying taxes, would we be in our current budget malaise?

Yes, he's serious. And he probably hasn't read Freakonomics.

Read his genius commenter aptly named I Love Rush, Hannity, and Savage:

The Goverment needs to tell everyone that abortions and contraceptives are not allowed. Women who get abortions should go to jail, no exceptions. Doctors who perform abortions should have their licenses taken away. People who get caught with contraceptives should pay a big fine and/or go to jail.

Wow. Just...wow.

If You Meow'd It, Then You Shoulda Put a Brad On It

2009-01-26T15:11:00.002-05:00

In this award season, Beyonce's "Single Ladies" just barely beats out WOMANIZER WOMANIZER WOMANIZER WOMANIZER for "Song That Most Easily Gets Stuck in My Head," as well as in the category "Song That Is Fun to Sing to Friends to Make Them Laugh/Get Stuck in Their Heads, Too."

Well take the awesomeness that is Miss B and add a little Mr. B--as in Pres 44--and you have something more magical than the unicorns that serve Paula Abdul her morning cocktail.

I'm Back, Bitches

2009-01-26T15:09:00.000-05:00

Why? Because I want to.

David Cook

2008-11-18T10:00:00.001-05:00

Okay so I love American Idol. I'm not ashamed of it, I'm totally out in the open about my complete adoration of the show. I watched every season except for the one that happened when I was in Spain. But that was the Carrie Underwood season and everyone knew from the first episode that she was going to win so it was a waste of a season anyway.

This season was especially awesome for me because I had a not-so-subtle crush on one Mr. David Cook. Like, love him, want to have his babies, want him to remix Mariah Carey songs for me over and over while I flatten and then respike his hair in various fauxhawks.

So today David's album drops. I already have it (I'm not telling you how) and it's very brooding pop rock. Doesn't exactly match the rest of my ipod (except for the other David Cook downloads), but it's David, so I don't care. He's amazing.

But while looking for other reviews of his album on the interweb, I came across this awesome video from last year's Idol results show. This video made me laugh harder than anything I've seen in a long time. You don't even have to be an Idol fan to appreciate the wonders of this video:

One of those girls may one day be found in a car outside of Paula Abdul's. God, I can't wait til January.

Daily Dose

2008-11-18T09:00:00.000-05:00

MVP

2008-11-17T11:47:00.004-05:00

Today the MLB announces the NL MVP for 2008 at 2pm. Ryan Howard is a major contender and Chase Utley (so dreamy) is a darkhorse. Check out who the dudes at ESPN picked.

Update: Albert Pujols won. Well, I guess you can't win everything. Especially when you've already won the World Series.

Daily Dose

2008-11-17T10:00:00.000-05:00

Oh wow, hey, check this out. Comedy Central now posts Daily Show Weekly Recaps. So I will now post Weekly Recaps. Enjoy.

Monday Sports Update

2008-11-17T08:00:00.001-05:00

My quasi-vacation from sports continued this week as I didn't really watch either Penn State on Saturday (although it wasn't an option on DC networks) and only half-watched the Eagles on Sunday while alternately napping and reading the Sunday NYT.

Penn State beat Indiana, 34-7. Woot. Now that we're definitely not in the running for the National Championship, the team has lost a little sparkle. I still love the Nittany Lions, no doubt, but a lot of the urgency of the season has noticably dissipated over the last week. It was reported that a lot of students were selling their tickets (much to the dismay of die-hard fans and alumni who pay mucho dinero each year for their tix). Even my siblings have looked at next weekend's final regular season game as a throw-away, allowing them to come home early for Thanksgiving. We're still predicted to be in the Rose Bowl, which is still something to be proud of. But that Iowa game will haunt this team for a while. In other PSU football news, JoePa says he has no plans to retire...buuut he will probably need hip replacement surgery in the off season.

So the Eagles tied? I pose this as an interrogative because it's just bizzarre. The tie yesterday between the Eagles and Cincinnati--13-13--was the first since 2002. Like, this isn't fubol, it's football, since when do we tie? The end of the game after one overtime was a strange scene with no one celebrating, no one upset, and everyone just kind of looking confused. Even McNabb (who threw 3 pics and looked pretty terrible all game) said: "I didn't know that [there could be a tie]...I've never been part of a tie. I never even knew it was in the rule book. I was looking forward to getting the opportunity to get out there and try to drive to win the game. But unfortunately with the rules, we settled with a tie." Even though it's not technically a loss, it still feels like one to the Eagles who really needed a win this week. Yeah, sorry guys: the Eagles' season is over and quite possibly (probably, hopefully) maybe so are the careers of certain players and coaches.

Hey, did you know the Phillies won the World Series?

Best Waste of Time/Awesomest Distraction

2008-11-13T18:10:00.002-05:00

Have you met the Shiba Inus?

This site is dedicated to capturing--on video--the daily activities of 6 Shiba Inu puppies. Yes, these are puppies in streaming video.

Stream videos at Ustream

Daily Dose

2008-11-13T08:08:00.001-05:00

Also, Bill O'Reilly tonight? Yikes.

Mystery Diagnosis

2008-11-12T10:50:00.003-05:00

As I've mentioned (a few times), I really enjoy reading the Sunday NYT and, especially, the Sunday NYT Magazine. It is evidentiary support #46 of how I'm super white.

So this week I actually read the Diagnosis section. I'm not really into science much. Well, I shouldn't say that. I've read a few sciencey books and I listen to Boyfriend when he tells me about certain diseases he's read about or evolutionary science and such. But this week, I decided to give it a whirl and what I found was an incredibly interesting story. It was kind of like reading an episode of House, without the ridiculous claim that this episode is the Craziest. Case. Ever. And without Hugh Laurie's unrealistic apathy for his patients beyond their mystery medical conditions.

Anyway. This week's story is amazing. It's about this young woman who started having awful migraines that turned into psychotic hallucinations and paranoid outbursts and, eventually, caused her to fall into a coma. They discovered a teratoma tumor--the crazy scary kind that grows teeth and hair--and...well, I'll let you read it and find out what happens.

I Think I Might Use This As My New Sports Icon

2008-11-12T10:08:00.003-05:00

What do you think?

Daily Dose

2008-11-12T09:24:00.002-05:00

Also, here's my bff, Tom Friedman:

The Next Barrier

2008-11-11T15:00:00.001-05:00

[Slate]

Running List of Inane Things We Now Care About Because Obama is Not Actually President Yet

2008-11-11T13:00:00.001-05:00

1. The dog the Obamas will bring (or not bring until after they are settled, from a shelter or a breeder) to the White House

2. What school Malia and Sasha will attend in DC (ultra exclusive new age school with one campus or ultra exclusive new age school with two campuses?)

3. What hair-do Barack Obama should not adopt while in office.

Rahm Emanuel: Totally Awesome

2008-11-11T12:00:00.002-05:00

Rahm Emanuel is a paradox of a man. I learned this yesterday while leisurely researching President-elect Barack Obama's new Chief of Staff. In fact, I literally laughed out loud (sidenote: should there be like a You Can't Do That On Television sliming every time I use "literally" in this blog?) when I found out that Emanuel--ball busting, dead fish giving, curse word spewing Emanuel--is a ballet dancer. He danced in high school and was even offered a scholarship to attend a dance college, but opted for Sarah Lawrence instead, where he danced his freshman year. This guy is infinitely interesting. He's actively involved in supporting Israel. He lost half a finger in a meat-cutting incident at an Arbys. He is the inspiration for Bradley Whitford's character in the West Wing. And now, he's Obama's Chief of Staff.

Rolling Stone published a lengthy piece on him back in 2005, before he orchestrated the Democratic takeover of Congress in 2006. I haven't read it yet, but imagine it's a good one and plan on reading it in the next day or so.

And if anyone can find video of the man they call "Rahmbo" in tights executing a perfect pirouet, please send it my way.

In the meantime, you'll just have to settle for this video from 2005 of Obama roasting Emanuel:

Ha Ha That's Funny Because That's Totally Not Me....Right?

2008-11-11T11:00:00.002-05:00

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

Who Needs Paris When You Have Palin

2008-11-11T10:00:00.002-05:00

Over the past week, since Barack Obama won the election, I have been pouring over Newsweek's Special Election Project. If you're not familiar with the project (and I wasn't until last week), it operates like this: Newsweek sends a few reporters on the campaign trail with the candidates and gets lots of insider access by promising not to disclose or publish any of the information they receive or events they witness until after the election. So these reporters basically get to hang out and see the most intimate parts of these major political campaigns for weeks. They have aides coming and venting to them about what pissed them off or what crazy thing just happened. They sing karaoke with chief strategists. They see the candidates at their best and their worst. It's a really interesting depiction of the massive efforts that are going on behind the candidate, who is the only person that most of America gets to see. It's like a soap opera. Here is the entire report (it's long and will probably take you a few sittings, but is totally worth it).

Daily Dose

2008-11-11T08:00:00.003-05:00

Also, my bff at the NYT, Thomas Friedman, will be on the DS tonight.

Monday Sports Update

2008-11-10T07:52:00.004-05:00

I knew this week was too good to be true and something had to not turn out the way I wanted. Although, the bright side is the two big wins I experienced over the past 10 days really softened the blow of the sports shittiness that occurred this weekend. I was 0 for 2.

Penn State lost a close one at Iowa on Saturday. I did not watch most of the game because I was with friends in Philadelphia. I actually didn't know they lost until I received a text message from my little sister at Penn State: Oh no Penn State. My friend pulled out his cell phone with internet access and indeed confirmed that we had only lost by a point, 24-23. It's a total bummer because we all thought we had a chance at the National Championship, but with this loss, that's totally not possible. It's kind of like my senior year all over again, but for my brother. We were undefeated that year and lost one game in the last second to Michigan, in Ann Arbor. It was devastating. Granted, I honestly think that we were a better team back then (and Michigan a more formidable opponent), but I'm sure my brother and the rest of Happy Valley is just as crushed. Here's to a Rose Bowl bid, at least.

And then last night I actually watched the Eagles because they were the Sunday night game. It was a make-or-break game for the Eagles, who were playing the defending champion and NFC leading Giants. I guess we are broke because they lost 36-31. It was a pretty close game, I would say, with early scoring by the Birds. But we were undone, yet again, by terrible coaching and play-calling. Two lost challenges in the fourth quarter pretty much sealed the deal. And yeap, that's about it. Nothing really inspiring coming out of the Link recently.

Penn State hosts Indiana at noon on Saturday. The Eagles are at Cincinnati at 1 on Sunday.

If I Had Known Maureen Had Been There...

2008-11-06T15:04:00.001-05:00

...I would have said hello, at least.

This Just In

2008-11-06T12:39:00.001-05:00

Obama not actually black, just "suntanned." Thanks, Italy.

Daily Dose

2008-11-06T12:37:00.001-05:00

Well Said, Onion

2008-11-05T16:35:00.004-05:00

Here is an Onion article today that, although hilariously sarcastic in the way Onion articles always are, is poignantly (and maybe sadly) true.

It suggests that in this "current climate of everything being fucked," Americans were able to set aside their racist issues because they had real problems to think about. What? The economy/war/healthcare crisis/etc etc are more important than say, who someone marries or what color skin they have? You don't say...

Some Great Status Messages From Friends Today

2008-11-05T15:05:00.003-05:00

hope > fear

Looks like he did some pretty good community organizing.

Ecstatic about my Pres-to-be but disappointed that my country still does not believe in equal rights for all.

best.phall.ever.

Nate Silver is About to be a Millionaire

2008-11-05T12:50:00.004-05:00

So I've talked some about Nate Silver, who came up with the awesome algorithm that predicts both baseball and politics, and publishes all his predictions on his blog, fivethirtyeight.com.

Well, I'd like you to look at two maps. First, here we have Nate's final prediction on Monday:
Now, look at the electoral map as it was actually called last night:

Um, yeah, he pretty much nailed it. Someone needs to hire him immediately.

Last Night at the White House

2008-11-05T12:33:00.005-05:00

A great thing about being in DC last night was the opportunity just to take all this relief and joy and pure exhileration and aim it somewhere. Once Boyfriend and I left Tonic after the acceptance speech, we heard rumblings of what sounded like a crowd, so we naturally walked to where we thought it was. We walked up 21st, then down Pennsylvania Avenue, and we quickly realized that the sound wasn't in one specific spot; it was everywhere. Every group of people we passed were smiling and laughing and cheering. We exchanged hi-fives and shouts of "Obama!" Every car and cab that passed honked and hollered out the windows. It was an amazing release of good nature and we finally just said "to the White House!" It was the only logical place to go.

Hundreds of other people had already had the idea. It was a mob. But not a mob like the one approaching Frankenstein's castle, but more like the mob we saw in Philly last week. Indeed, it felt exactly like a town who just won a major sports championship, but instead it was for the man who we just elected President. And somehow that really felt much better.

Here is a blurry photo taken on my cell phone of the scene:

People held up balloons and sign and flags. They even held up other people on their shoulders. They were of every age and color and creed. And we all just congregated like the mosh pit of a concert. It was awesome. Some people chanted "O-ba-ma! O-ba-ma!" Others did "Obama! O-8!" Others did "8 More Years! 8 More Years!" Of course there was "Yes we can! Yes we can!" and its now popular variation of "Yes we did! Yes we did!" And there were more than one rendition of "Nah nah nah nah. Nah nah nah nah. Hey hey hey! Goodbye" The turned the second floor lights out in the White House while we were there. I think someone finally realized it was time to go to bed.

And a group of kids yelled at us from across the street: "What color is your president?!" And I proudly yelled back "He's black!"

It feels good to be an American today. I haven't felt this way in a long time.

Yes We Did

2008-11-05T02:13:00.001-05:00

"And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope."

-Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America

Watching the Returns

2008-11-04T13:20:00.003-05:00

If you have the privilege of being in the nation's capitol this Election Day (DC, today), you are welcome to join Boyfriend and me watching the returns at Tonic in Foggy Bottom on 21st and G. They have wireless and teevees up in the lounge, Magic Hat #9 on tap, and we are friends with the owners. We can all cry together, whatever the result.

THAT'S MY SCHOOL

2008-11-04T11:59:00.002-05:00

From HuffPo: 1,000 students at Penn State line up to vote at 7am.

First Story to Make Me Cry Today

2008-11-04T11:56:00.002-05:00

From a blogger on TPM:

I Didn't Vote For Obama Today

November 4, 2008, 9:37AM

I have a confession to make.

I did not vote for Barack Obama today.

I've openly supported Obama since March. But I didn't vote for him today.

I wanted to vote for Ronald Woods. He was my algebra teacher at Clark Junior High in East St. Louis, IL. He died 15 years ago when his truck skidded head-first into a utility pole. He spent many a day teaching us many things besides the Pythagorean Theorem. He taught us about Medgar Evers, Ralph Abernathy, John Lewis and many other civil rights figures who get lost in the shadow cast by Martin Luther King, Jr.

But I didn't vote for Mr. Woods.

I wanted to vote for Willie Mae Cross. She owned and operated Crossroads Preparatory Academy for almost 30 years, educating and empowering thousands of kids before her death in 2003. I was her first student. She gave me my first job, teaching chess and math concepts to kids in grades K-4 in her summer program. She was always there for advice, cheer and consolation. Ms. Cross, in her own way, taught me more about walking in faith than anyone else I ever knew.

But I didn't vote for Ms. Cross.

I wanted to vote for Arthur Mells Jackson, Sr. and Jr. Jackson Senior was a Latin professor. He has a gifted school named for him in my hometown. Jackson Junior was the pre-eminent physician in my hometown for over 30 years. He has a heliport named for him at a hospital in my hometown. They were my great-grandfather and great-uncle, respectively.

But I didn't vote for Prof. Jackson or Dr. Jackson.

I wanted to vote for A.B. Palmer. She was a leading civil rights figure in Shreveport, Louisiana, where my mother grew up and where I still have dozens of family members. She was a strong-willed woman who earned the grudging respect of the town's leaders because she never, ever backed down from anyone and always gave better than she got. She lived to the ripe old age of 99, and has a community center named for her in Shreveport.

But I didn't vote for Mrs. Palmer.

I wanted to vote for these people, who did not live to see a day where a Black man would appear on their ballots on a crisp November morning.

In the end, though, I realized that I could not vote for them any more than I could vote for Obama himself.

So who did I vote for?

No one.

I didn't vote. Not for President, anyway.

Oh, I went to the voting booth. I signed, was given my stub, and was walked over to a voting machine. I cast votes for statewide races and a state referendum on water and sewer improvements.

I stood there, and I thought about all of these people, who influenced my life so greatly. But I didn't vote for who would be the 44th President of the United States.

When my ballot was complete, except for the top line, I finally decided who I was going to vote for - and then decided to let him vote for me. I reached down, picked him up, and told him to find Obama's name on the screen and touch it.

And so it came to pass that Alexander Reed, age 5, read the voting screen, found the right candidate, touched his name, and actually cast a vote for Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Oh, the vote will be recorded as mine. But I didn't cast it.

Then again, the person who actually pressed the Obama box and the red "vote" button was the person I was really voting for all along.

It made the months of donating, phonebanking, canvassing, door hanger distributing, sign posting, blogging, arguing and persuading so much sweeter.

So, no, I didn't vote for Barack Obama. I voted for a boy who now has every reason to believe he, too, can grow up to be anything he wants...even President.

My Sticker (That today will get me free donuts, coffee, and ice cream)

2008-11-04T10:35:00.002-05:00

The Line at My Arlington Precinct at 7:30 am

2008-11-04T09:16:00.005-05:00

The line went about 50 yards up the sidewalk, into the building, and snaking around inside. I estimate there were about 250 people in front of me. The polls in VA opened at 6am. I was hearing from people in line that the line was worse at 6am on the dot. I waited in line for an hour and 15 minutes and when I walked out, the line was significantly shorter. Everyone was in good spirits and I heard some voting rights representatives from the ACLU and the DNC say that they were having a quiet and uneventful morning so far.

TOMORROW

2008-11-03T19:06:00.000-05:00

Sad, If True

2008-11-03T16:38:00.004-05:00

I'm hearing rumblings that Obama's grandmother passed away this afternoon. I can't find any stories on mainstream media about it, so I can't post anything, so please let me know if you see anything. If it's true, it's really sad, obviously not just because Obama is very close with his grandmother, but also because it's just one day before the election and she won't be able to see him potentially become the next President. Keep the Obama family in your thoughts today.

Update: It's true.

Give You One Guess...

2008-11-03T16:28:00.000-05:00

...who said this in Ohio today:

“And there must be something about San Francisco and he because it’s like I heard on Fox News today, it’s like a truth serum where when he’s there, he seems to be more candid, and remember it was there that he talked about, there you go, the bitter clingers, the cling-ons, all of us, I guess, you know holding on to religion and guns and, um, so something about he being there in San Francisco.”

[cnn]

Breaking News

2008-11-03T14:18:00.003-05:00

Matt Drudge jumped off the deep end and is totally irrelevant.

Am I Sick for Finding This Funny?

2008-11-03T13:33:00.002-05:00

My great-grandmother's would-have-been 99th birthday was the same day we won the World Series. I thought that was neat, but I never thought of doing this.

But then again I am the girl who got a Phillies tattoo on her foot yesterday.

Maureen Dowd Not My Least Favorite Columnist

2008-11-03T13:27:00.002-05:00

If you need to make yourself puke at any point today, please read Bill Kristol in the NYT.

POLLS AHHHHHH

2008-11-03T13:21:00.003-05:00

Oh my god, it feels like the interweb has been overwhelmed with polls, since today is the last day for polls (other than exit polls). I am avoiding them because I feel like they mean nothing until tomorrow and if we don't get to tomorrow quickly, my brain just may explode.

If you like being a masochist and following them, you can get them here, here, here and here.

Worst Person in the World is Not Ben Affleck

2008-11-03T00:07:00.004-05:00

You all have probably already watched the awesome sketch on SNL on Saturday in which John McCain appears and Tina Fey awkwardly throws Sarah Palin under the bus while standing right next to McCain.

You may not have heard as much about Ben Affleck's awesome impression of Keith Olbermann.

Ben Affleck, you may not be such a tool afterall.

The Case for Fuck's Sake

2008-11-02T23:50:00.007-05:00

The NYT briefly explained in Week in Review yesterday a case that the Supreme Court will hear on Tuesday, Federal Communications Commission vs. Fox Television Stations, that will determine the televised fate of your favorite word and mine: fuck. The argument for the broadcasting of material that uses the word is that not all fucking uses of fuck refer to fucking, in the sexual sense, and is therefore not subject to regulation, fuckers.

If Fox were to succeed in this argument, they would save local Philadelphia stations lots of grief from constantly having to apologize from Chase Utley's potty-mouth. HIs latest "slip" came at the victory rally on Friday:

It's okay, Chase, I'll help fix that mouth right away.

Monday Sports Update

2008-11-02T23:29:00.003-05:00

I guess I can't really use the "Tortured Philly Fan" logo anymore, can I? I'll have to find a new one.

In the meantime, I'm down to one sport this weekend: football. I didn't watch any of it. That's because Penn State had a bye week and the Eagles were not on tv in DC. The Eagles, I am happy to learn, won. They beat the Seahawks 26-7. They are now 5-3, which isn't nearly as bad as I thought they would be a few weeks ago. With half the season gone (already), we take on the Giants next week in a real test of our strength this year.

Although Penn State didn't play this weekend, they got screwed a little by the BCS. Texas Tech beat Texas on Saturday, who had previously been #1. That moved Alabama up to the #1 slot and knocked Texas down to #5. But then they put Texas Tech over Penn State at #2 and left the Lions at #3. WTF. I know we didn't play and Tech is also undefeated, but really? All of the sudden they are better for beating one team? Lame.

And since the Phillies won the World Series (did you hear?), there is no more baseball and therefore no more need for me to write about sports until Mondays now. Until college basketball starts. (Sorry, I don't really follow the NBA or NHL. Except in the event that the Sixers and the Flyers make the playoffs.)

I'm a Branded Woman

2008-11-02T19:40:00.003-05:00

The Philadelphia Phillies

2008-10-31T09:27:00.005-04:00

Now that the fog of champagne and red mystery shots has lifted, I can finally start to put together some of the emotions I've experienced over the last few days.

I have always been a Philadelphia sports fan, having grown up with a large family of Eagles and Phillies season-ticket holders and obsessive fans: aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins. Although the voice of Harry Kalas is comforting and familiar--I immediately think of hot summer nights in the Jersey Shore, falling asleep to the Phillies--there was a long period there where I fell out of interest with baseball. The Eagles were the dominant team in the earlier part of the decade and I just didn't have the energy to dedicate to such a long season. Boyfriend has always been a fan, watching at least 80% of the season every year. I remember in college making fun of him as he griped about the team after one loss or another: "What are you getting so upset over? They still have, like, 300 games to play." "162," he would say, "And every game counts."

When Boyfriend and I moved in together a few years ago, I started to realize just what he meant. Even though we were in DC, he had an mlb.com package to watch the games on his computer. And we watched what felt like every. single. game. In all honesty, it was probably about 130-some games. We watched them at home. We watched them at the bar. We watched them every night on vacation, on my birthday, on his birthday, at the stadium. And once I started watching them every night with him from April through September (and, eventually, October), I started to feel a connection to the team. Chase Utley, obviously, first (those eyes!), but then I knew every player, their strengths, their weaknesses, their quirks. I imagined what they were like in the dug-out and what they would be like to have a beer with. "I bet Joe Blanton listens to Limp Biskit," I'd say. "Brett Myers too. Or Three Doors Down." I even assigned them Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles identities:

Victorino= Michaelangelo
Utley= Leonardo
Burrell=Rafael
Ruiz= Donatello
Moyer= Master Splinter

We would go to almost every game they played against the Nationals here in DC. We even went to Mets games to boo them. Last year at the end of the season, a bunch of us went to the Phillies/Nats game at RFK, in that last stretch where we could make the playoffs if we kept winning and the Mets kept losing. We pulled out that game in the very end--the last in DC for the season--and jumped around in the parking lot, on the phone with someone's mom in New York who was watching the Mets game for us (a real sacrifice for a Yankees fan), letting us know that they were indeed blowing it and we were one step closer to the playoffs, somewhere we hadn't been since I was 9 years old.

When the Mets eventually did blow it and we made the playoffs last year, Boyfriend's father called him, saying he and his brothers were crying watching. I didn't quite understand the intense emotion of a sports team at the time. But I had never felt the thrill of victory, having been born after the last Phillies championship in 1980 and the last Philadelphia championship in 1983. I suppose once you felt that, it's that more frustrating when you can't recreate it for 25 years. We eventually blew it too, getting swept by the Rockies in the NLDS. It felt inevitable that we would fail. You felt it in the team--blank, nervous stares, timid bats, passionless running. It's a feeling I never wanted to have again. Neither did the team.

When we got to October this year, I was optimistic, but cautious. We had a really good team. And what has always impressed me about the Phillies is the emphasis on team. We have 2 MVPs in as many years--Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard--and other superstars like Chase Utley, Cole Hamels, and Brad Lidge. But every single player on that team that got out on the field made a contribution. Even when Howard wasn't hitting homers or Utley made some fielding errors, other players would step up to make big plays. Victorino had some key hits, Joe Blanton hit a home-run, Jamie Moyer was solid, Ruiz was just phenomenal. Even Pedro Feliz and Pat Burrell--who both did little all WS--had the two clutch hits in Game 5. Everyone came out and did all that I ask of professional athletes: do your job.

It was the perfect storm of players with talent, with confidence, with ambition, but with humility and a hard work ethic. And I'm happy that it was that team that won Philadelphia its first professional sports championship in 25 years.

My friend said to me yesterday that when that last strike was thrown and the 215 erupted after the biggest case of sports blue balls in history, he felt himself change forever. It's like an enormous weight being lifted, being replaced with the airy feeling of happiness, of being able to cry with joy at the end of the season because it's over and your team is the last one standing. And really, although we have little to do with the 25 guys on the roster who we see on tv, but have never met (although I did sit behind the dug-out once at RFK), we feel like what happens to them happens to us. We have watched them nearly every day for 6 months. We have spent our money on tickets, on food at the game, on merchandise, on mlb packages, on train tickets, on gas. We have laughed at them when they were funny, yelled at them when they played poorly, cried with them when unfortunate events happened in their personal lives. So ever year for 25 years when they lose, we lose. They are defeated, so we are defeated, left to seeth in envy at the Boston fans or the New York fans. And it eats at you.

But when they win, we win. And we have finally won.

Thank you Charlie. Thank you Jimmy, Jayson, Chase, Ryan, Pat, Shane, Pedro, and Carlos. Thank you Cole, Brett, Jamie, Joe, JC, Chad, J.A., Scott, Clay, Ryan, and Brad. Thank you Gregg, Geoff, Eric, Chris, So, and Matt.

Pat, please don't leave us.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T09:02:00.005-04:00

Happy Halloween everyone! I love this holiday and I feel a little bad because I haven't really been thinking about it at all since it happens to fall during this crazy week of the World Series and the Election. But I hope everyone has an excellent day and evening, whether you are going to the parade in Philadelphia or trick-or-treating or going to a costume party or what have you. Be safe, eat candy!

This is a tradition in which I have not participated in many years, but I think is so neat. Check out some of these awesome jack-o-lanterns:

First up, of course, we have Phillies themed pumpkins. I have yet to see a Phanatic pumpkin. Wouldn't the Phanatic make a great costume? Do they sell those in adult sizes? Boyfriend still needs a costume for tonight, I think...

Then, of course, we have Obama pumpkins. Obama has his own jack-o-lantern website, www.yeswecarve.com. If you hurry or already have an Obama themed pumpkin, you can submit photos of them for a contest.

Parade

2008-10-31T07:15:00.003-04:00

I regret to inform you that Boyfriend and I will not be attending the victory parade in honor of the best baseball team ever, the 2008 Philadelphia Phillies. Because of work schedules and declining health, we thought it the responsible decision to not go. This totally stinks because we love our Phillies and I want to ~~jump on~~ meet Chase Utley. But alas, this is what we get for living in DC where no one cares too much about that city up I-95 that is between Baltimore and New York, especially 96 hours before election day (hours!).

Anyway, if you go, send me pictures and I will post them here, literally.

The Phillies are the World Champions of Baseball

2008-10-30T08:54:00.003-04:00

[philly.com]

I'm going to go nurse my hangover/watch highlights forever. We'll talk later.

Watching the Game

2008-10-29T17:02:00.002-04:00

Okay, so Boyfriend and I made an executive decision and think it's impossible for us to make it up to Philly in time for the game. I know, it's a bummer and I was all ready to go, but I'd rather watch the whole thing in DC then miss some (or all) of the game trying to get to Philly. But believe me, if/when there is a parade, we will be there.

If you are in DC, we will be at Buffalo Billiards, cheering our team on to victory. Go Phillies!!!

This Just In

2008-10-29T13:22:00.000-04:00

GAME ON.

Awesome Targetted Ad of the Day

2008-10-29T12:43:00.003-04:00

I love you guys, but somehow I really doubt this.

So Ready for the Phillies

2008-10-29T09:26:00.006-04:00

That is a picture of my Go Bag. No, I'm not pregnant and ready to give birth imminently. That is my bag, ready and waiting, in case the weather looks good for this evening and we have to (you know, have to) go to Philadelphia from DC for the World Series.

That's right, I'm thinking positively. The sports news out there is pretty scathing regarding this ridiculous Game 5 that has now been in progress for 37 hours and could possibly not get completed until tomorrow night. They are already predicting that all of the unexpected complications of the series will give the Rays the edge they need to come back. The Philly fans are doomed, as always, they say.

Not me, no way. If we start whining already and blaming everyone for some doomsday scenario that hasn't even occurred, then we are short-changing the great team that we have been so passionate about for 6 months (see: above bag). We are going to do this and no punky team from Florida, Mother Nature, Bud Selig, or Fox Sports can stop us.

Whatever crazy things have happened over the last few days, a few things have not changed. We are still up 3 to 1 in the Series. We still have at least 12 outs to their 9 outs in the rest of Game 5 to let our bats make the case for us. We still will do it at home, in front of thousands of fans who are paying thousands of dollars for just 3.5 innings of play in less than ideal environmental conditions. And most importantly, we are still the most confident, hard-working team who doesn't just have one or two stars; the Phillies are a team in which everyone has their clutch days and every player can become a hero for a day.

We love you guys. Now go finish this game and don't let anything rain on our parade. Because I have a bag packed for that parade and I'm ready to go.

Update: Thank you, Phil Sheridan.

A General Sense of Impatience

2008-10-29T09:04:00.004-04:00

Oh hey, did you know there are things going on this week that aren't the World Series? I know, I forgot too. Like, oh, the election, that thing I've been obsessed with for at least a year already. Unfortunately for me and other Phillies fans, however, the general sentiment for the two most important events of my year (possibly my life) are the same: AGHHHHHH!!!!!!

Let's just do it already! Can we please just play the game already? Can everyone just vote now? I feel like a kid trying to sleep on Christmas Eve or a college-bound kid slogging through his last semester in high school. Actually, it really feels like studying for a big test like the LSAT, where you obsess yourself over it for months and know everything you can know and prepared as much as you can prepare and then you hit a wall and are like COME ON, LET'S JUST DO THIS THING. But then you have to wait for another week until you can actually just get it over with.

Larry David had a great short piece last week about this exact feeling. If you are feeling the same way I am, you will read this and say "Yes, that is my life, thank you."

Also, last night on the Daily Show, Wyatt Cenac did a bit on Election Impatience, this terrible disease that will last 6 more days, no matter what we do.

To Philly And Back (And Back Again)

2008-10-28T08:38:00.002-04:00

I feel like I'm in purgatory here, stuck in between the heavenly possibility of winning the World Series and the hellish thought of losing it. Last night the Phils and the Rays came out to play, but the rain had another idea. Boyfriend and I came out to play too. We left work early and started driving up I-95. When we started hitting traffic up towards Baltimore, we decided that it was BWI or bust. So we hopped on an Amtrak train at the BWI station and went up to Philly for what we thought may be the best baseball game of our lives. The adventure was fun--don't get me wrong--we went to the neighborhood bar of Boyfriend's college roommate, surrounded by Phils fans cheering, clapping, screaming. There are Phillies fans down here in DC, but it's not the same. But by the 6th when it was confirmed that the game would indeed be suspended, we left in the freezing rain, spent a few hours sleeping at Roommate's house, woke up at 4am, caught the 4:55 Amtrak back to DC and went right back to work. I don't know if I can do it again tonight, but I don't think they are going to play tonight. Several sports writers don't think we should have even played at all last night (Phil Sheridan: "In October, the game went on. And Major League Baseball should be ashamed for allowing its most important game of the year to deteriorate into an embarrassing mess because of slavish obedience to its pimp, the Fox Television Network.")

But that's what so frustrating and leaves me concerned: what is going to happen now? Do we start the game in Philly tonight or tomorrow from where we left off in the bottom of the 6th? Do we start the whole thing over in Philly tonight or tomorrow, meaning we've potentially blown our ace pitcher for a game that didn't count? Do we go to Tampa as scheduled and play the two games there until the weather lets up in Philly and then go back for a make-up, if necessary? Even though we can't change what has already happened, each possibility kind of sucks. I want to keep up our momentum and keep it up at home. But a 3-inning game seems...weird. And starting over, like I said, means we've wasted Cole Hamels. The whole situation is riddled with the What-Ifs that Philadelphia sports fans live with forever.

2008-10-27T15:23:00.003-04:00

From Slate: Philadelphians need to learn to adjust to being happy about sports.

I sez yous ain't kiddin.

Monday Sports Update

2008-10-27T08:28:00.004-04:00

[philly.com]

What is this thing they call "winning"? In my 25 years as a Philadelphia sports enthusiast I have experienced this phenomenon very little and I'm not quite sure what to make of this new feeling. This weekend I went 4 for glorious 4 in all of my games. Most importantly, the Phillies are just 1 game closer to winning the World Series. Winning.

I was having a lot of difficulty focusing on more than one sport at a time on Saturday night and part of me hoped that the Phillies game would be rained out so that I could dedicate my attention to the Penn State game, which would overlap the Phillies for about an hour. No such luck, but no matter. Penn State had a hugely important game on Saturday, heading into Columbus for a match-up with Ohio State, who haven't been very good this year, but still always a formidable opponent. Boyfriend and I were in the Philadelphia area for a family event and I watched the games with some family at a home with a bar and two televisions. They must have thought I was a mad woman, running back and forth between the two. Anyway, the game was close and low-scoring for most of the game heading into the fourth quarter with Ohio State up 6-3. But then a key fumble by the Buckeyes, recovered by the Lions and converted to some point ultimately put Penn State over the top, 13-6. This means that Penn State is 9-0 going into a bye week, with Iowa, Indiana and Michigan State left to face. We are still ranked #3 in the BCS and any falter by Texas or Alabama in the next 4 weeks will send us to the National Championship game in Miami (assuming we continue to win). The students up in State College already have a preview of what the craziness of a National Championship would be like, as they riotted on Beaver Ave and had a night just peppered with fun.

Luckily, my very mature and intelligent brother remained above the fray, as he holed up in his apartment to continue to watch Game 3 of the World Series. What a ridiculous game. I'll have to admit, I was worried about Jamie Moyer because he had a less than awesome start in the NLCS. But he looked great and I was so happy for him because he just seems like such an amazing guy and he deserved every second of his standing ovation in the 7th. The Phils were on the board early with an RBI ground-out by my boyfriend, Chase Utley. But--surprise!--we failed to capitalize again on runners in scoring position. The Rays tied it up in the second, but then Carlos Ruiz (game MVP in my mind) homered in the second. Utley and Howard put up back to back homers in the 6th and the Phillies looked to be cruising until the 7th when the Rays were down one and then the 8th when an error by Ruiz (I forgave him) tied up the game. And then the 9th, the crazy 9th, where the Phillies had bases loaded and won on a walk-off single by the Panamaniac, Carlos Ruiz. Whew. It was 2am and we were winning the series 2-1.

I didn't really watch the Eagles on Sunday. I was recovering from the night before and spending time eating Philadelphia food (Perkins, Wawa, Guiseppes) with my family and finding a Halloween costume (a viking). And again, why waste the energy on the Eagles when the Phillies had another game. Boyfriend and I were enjoying ourselves in Philly so much for the games that we decided to not drive back to DC until after the Phillies were over. So I spent most of the Eagles game napping for the late drive home. But hey, whaddya know, they won! They beat the Falcons 27-14. Good job.

Okay, back to the Phillies. In another instince of me being unnecessarily skeptical of the abilities of our starting pitcher, Joe Blanton looked solid in Game 4 of the World series last night. And although we had bases loaded in the bottom of the 1st, we could only score 1 run and it looked like we would be plagued again by the inability to score with runners in the scoring position. There is nothing more frustrating than having a great outing by a pitcher diminished by a poor showing by our offense. We were up 2-0 in the 3rd, but the Rays cut the lead in two with a single shot homer by Carl Crawford the 4th. But in the bottom of the 4th something happened that we had all been waiting for: Ryan Howard showed up to play and jacked a hard one into left to score 3 runs. And then to top off his first World Series start ever, Philly's newest hero of the day, Joe Blanton, scored his first major league home run ever. It was just awesome and at that point we knew this was probably the game. A few more runs from JayWerth and another from Howard and the Brad Lidge didn't even need bother come in, as the Phils romped the Rays 10-2.

And now the Phillies are ONE GAME AWAY FROM WINNING THE WORLD SERIES. The World Series! Obviously, I'm not trying to count my chickens before they hatch. But it's hard not to feel it coming on. Tonight we have Hamels on the mound at home for the most important baseball game of my life and it's hard not to be confident.

Boyfriend and I got home in DC only a few short hours ago. I think that maybe in a few more hours, we'll drive back to see if we can't experience a real first in our lives: A Philadelphia championship. Oh shit.

Update on Bgate

2008-10-24T13:36:00.002-04:00

Breaking from KDKA in Pittsburgh: "A Pittsburgh police commander says a volunteer for the McCain campaign who reported being robbed and attacked near a bank ATM in Bloomfield has confessed to making up the story. Police say charges will be filed. More details to follow."

The Story:

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ― Police sources tell KDKA that a campaign worker has now confessed to making up a story that a mugger attacked her and cut the letter "B" in her face after seeing her McCain bumper sticker.

Ashley Todd, 20, of Texas, initially told police that she was robbed at an ATM in Bloomfield and that the suspect became enraged and started beating her after seeing her GOP sticker on her car.

Police investigating the alleged attack, however, began to notice some inconsistencies in her story and administered a polygraph test.

Authorities, however, declined to release the results of that test.

Investigators did say that they received photos from the ATM machine and "the photographs were verified as not being the victim making the transaction."

This afternoon, a Pittsburgh police commander told KDKA Investigator Marty Griffin that Todd confessed to making up the story.

The commander added that Todd will face charges; but police have not commented on what those charges will be.

According to police, investigators working on the interview process detected several inconsistencies in Todd's story that differed from statements made in the original police report.

Pittsburgh Police Public Information Officer Diane Richard released a statement earlier today, saying: "Because of the inconsistencies in her statements, Ms. Todd was asked to submit to a polygraph examination which she agreed to do."

No photos of Todd are being released by Pittsburgh Police at this time.

The investigation is continuing as officials determine what charges will be filed.

I Need Some of This

2008-10-24T13:32:00.000-04:00

Whirl of Change Ice Cream

Peanut-nougat ice cream whirled with chunks of chocolate-covered peanut brittle and a caramel ribbon. An election flavor in 2008.

Fey and Ferrell Are So Fierce

2008-10-24T13:16:00.003-04:00

If you were too busy watching the Phillies last night, you should see this sketch from the SNL Weekend Update Thursday. I think the McCain campaign will be pretty pissed off. Tina Fey is really trying to make this her last appearance as Mrs. Palin.

Shocker: NYT Endorses Obama

2008-10-24T13:08:00.002-04:00

The endorsement by the NYT of Barack Obama is not as powerful as the one by the Washington Post, I don't think, but worth a read nonetheless.

"The nation’s problems are simply too grave to be reduced to slashing 'robo-calls' and negative ads. This country needs sensible leadership, compassionate leadership, honest leadership and strong leadership. Barack Obama has shown that he has all of those qualities."

The Girl Who Cried "B"

2008-10-24T09:16:00.004-04:00

Okay so there is this story that I followed all night last night (after the Phillies) that is simply and utterly ridiculous. So this girl in Pittsburgh, Ashley Todd, is a 20-year-old McCain volunteer from Texas. She went to the police on Wednesday to report what she thinks is a politically motivated attack. Here is her story: according to her Twitter account, she was "stubbornly" driving around Pittsburgh looking for a Bank of America ATM where she could withdraw money and not be charged a fee. She twitters a little while later that she thinks she is on "the wrong side" of the city. She then claims that about 9pm, after withdrawing $60 from an ATM, a black man held her at knifepoint and took her $60. He then became enraged after seeing the McCain/Palin sticker on her car and proceeded to punch and kick her and carve a "B" into her cheek with his knife, supposedly for Barack Obama.

Wow. These are some hefty accusations. Let's take a look at the photo she took of herself after the incident and then use our CSI skills (I've been watching for several years now, that gives me at least a sophomore level of knowledge here, right?) and compile some questions we have about this story.

1. Okay, so my burning question here is this: Why would the B be carved backwards? It's almost as if someone carved it while looking in a mirror...
2. That black eye looks pretty dark, but it seems to be healing miraculously fast. No swelling? We can still see her orbital. And no broken blood vessels? I guess the real question should be, which brand eyeshadow did she use? I've been trying to create a smokey eye for special occasions for some time now, I can never find a dark enough shade.
3. This guy must have really been trained in etching. That B is like, perfectly cut out. And again, perfectly healed. No skin was broken? And he didn't even get any scratches on the rest of your face, even as you struggled.
4. So you are adept enough at using your phone to Twitter while driving, but you can't use that phone to say, call a Bank of America and locate an ATM in area with which you are familiar?
5. 9pm in the Bloomfield neighborhood. I'm pretty sure this Italian section of the city is full of restaurants and shops by this ATM. And no one saw this incident occur? And none of the bank branch cameras caught it either? Or the street corner cameras?
6. Walk me through the sticker thing again, too. So he mugged you, and then somehow knew which car was yours, saw the McCain sticker, didn't ask you about it, just got so angry in a few second flat that he hit you? How did you know it was the sticker that did it?

Okay, so apparently, I'm not the only one who has some questions about the incident. The Pittsburgh police, after receiving seemingly conflicting information from Ms. Todd, have decided to give her a polygraph test.

And look, I'm not one to make fun of someone who was attacked on the street and seriously hurt. But I am convinced that this girl is lying (and, actually, so is Michelle Malkin). And this would be a stupid hoax if it weren't such a blatant "race-baiting stunt" (Fox News's words, not even mine) in an already volatile political environment. McCain campaign workers could now be concerned that they are specifically being targeted. They may even act out in what they consider self-defense to threats that aren't really there. Or some other crazy may act out in retaliation on an Obama worker. These are dangerous consequences I doubt Ms. Todd thought about before she decided to make herself an October surprise and a Republican hero.

I should probably also stress that I do not think the McCain campaign had anything to do with it. Both campaigns have responded responsibly to the story. I think this girl just acted on her own.

Ashley, your constitutional debating skills may have gotten you out of a traffic ticket. Let's see you use them in your upcoming obstruction of justice case.

2008-10-24T07:14:00.004-04:00

Alright so the Phillies lost last night, 4-2 in Tampa. We played terribly, stranding 11 runners in scoring position for the second game in a row, sometimes with only 1 out. Brett Myers did a fine job pitching--it wasn't his fault. It was the complete ineffectiveness of our offense that caused us to fall behind early, come close to evening out, just to blow each opportunity. We had the kind of game that has plagued us throughout the entire post-season: one player comes out to play while the rest just kind of phone it in. Last night it was Carlos Ruiz, who did a great job blocking the plate and went 3 for 3 with two doubles. Basically, we beat ourselves last night.

And that's all the negative stuff I'm going to say. I spent a minute after the game last night being upset and then I moved on. Because here's what's up: if that was the worst baseball we could play last night and the supposed best team in the best league only beat us 4-2 on their home turf (seriously---turf), then things can only look up from here. We took one from them in Tampa, potentially erasing their home-field advantage. And now we head home to Philly where the fans are very excited and the stadium is real (not that I'm trying to define real baseball and fake baseball--that may lose me my congressional seat).

I hope the Phillies are thinking the same way as I am. Because as obvious as it may seem, they have to play to win.

Daily Dose

2008-10-24T07:12:00.000-04:00

This Has Totally Never Been Said Before

2008-10-23T12:21:00.002-04:00

A completely original piece in Slate about Philadelphia sports fans.

2008-10-23T11:44:00.002-04:00

[Slate]

I'm Getting Weepy Over Election Stories Already

2008-10-23T10:13:00.003-04:00

You have to read this from Ben Smith on Politico:

Early voting in Evansville

Here's an early voting story from a medical student in Evansville, Ind.:

I squeaked in just before the 7pm deadline to find two very frustrated poll workers and a line of a couple dozen people, due to problems with the computerized voting system not accepting people's driver's licenses. It was taking about 7-10 minutes per person just to get the computer to accept them as valid and to print out their ballot, causing very long delays.

For me the most moving moment came when the family in front of me, comprising probably 4 generations of voters (including an 18 year old girl voting for her first time and a 90-something hunched-over grandmother), got their turn to vote. When the old woman left the voting booth she made it about halfway to the door before collapsing in a nearby chair, where she began weeping uncontrollably. When we rushed over to help we realized that she wasn't in trouble at all but she had not truly believed, until she left the booth, that she would ever live long enough to cast a vote for an African-American for president. Anyone who doesn't think that African-American turnout will absolutely SHATTER every existing record is in for a very rude surprise.

There were about 20 people in front of me but remarkably not a single person left the room without voting over the 2 hours it took to get through the line.

Daily Dose

2008-10-23T09:52:00.003-04:00

Also, since my absence, I haven't mentioned Monday's Daily Show, which was really good. It addresses what I just talked about in my post on Michelle Bachmann: this whole idea that there is a "real" American and a "fake" America--that somehow we who live in cities are not representative of America (although we certainly make up most of the population at 80%). Jason Jones's trip to Wasilla is very telling.

You can check out the whole episode here: http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes/episodeId=188632

If Michelle Bachmann Loses I Will Laugh So Hard

2008-10-23T09:19:00.003-04:00

Okay so if you're ever watching any of the 24-hour news networks and there is a brunette conservative commentator who you can't decide if she's really attractive or if she's really insane, you're probably watching Michelle Bachmann. Bachmann is the conservative Republican Congresswoman from Minnesota that makes Sarah Palin look like Bambi. Well, last week she was on Chris Matthews and said some ridiculous things. Here's the video:

Okay, so my problem is not her argument that Barack Obama has connections with shady characters. I certainly don't agree with that argument because I think it's dubious at best, but I can understand conservatives making that argument. My big problem is the idea that "leftist" and "liberal" makes one "anti-American." The fundamentalist, neoconservative movement of the last decade has defined what it means to be "American" in such narrow terms, that "liberal" has become a curseword and anyone leaning left of center is considered unpatriotic. I'm not sure what America she grew up in (although, I must admit I live in "fake Virginia," so what do I know), but I learned in Social Studies that our democracy was founded on the principles of free speech and a healthy dose of dissention. Because someone has political beliefs based on a different set of ideologies does not make them evil, it makes them different. And Bachmann may not have noticed, but our elections have been very very close in the last few cycles; a little less than half the country agrees at least in part with "leftists." Does this mean we half of Americans are all anti-American?

Look, just as liberals have a right to say what they please, so do conservatives like Bachmann. But Bachmann's assertion that we need to root out all of these "leftist anti-Americans" is something right out of an Arthur Miller play. It's a ridiculous notion. But luckily, this country isn't buying this anymore. In the days following Bachmann's tirade on Chris Matthews, the opponent for her congressional seat raised more than $1.3 million, doubling his funds. The NRCC even pulled its television advertisements in support of Bachmann in the district. Her seat that just a week ago was seen as very safe is now seriously in jeopardy.

Additionally, I hate how when some political commentator gets asked to clarify their obviously ridiculous and illogical statements, the interviewer is somehow "cornering" them, like Bachman says Matthews did to her. What? I can't just spew nonsensical, hysterical bullshit and people won't just love me for it? She's the new Ann Coulter--she just wants to say shocking shit and get on tv. But unlike Coulter, whose job it is to just be loud and dumb, Bachman has something to lose. And lose it she apparently might.

We're Not Getting Swept!

2008-10-23T00:19:00.006-04:00

[philly.com]

Okay, this is not the positive thinking I should be practicing. But seriously, Phillies win Game Numero Uno of the World Series by a score of 3-2--in Tampa no less--meaning, mostly, that we are not getting swept. So far, that's good enough for me. But dear god: if the rest of this series is going to be like this game, I will need to consult a cardiologist daily. Because, I lied, just not getting swept is not going to be enough. Now that we've won one, I want to win them all. I'm already thinking about how I will be in Philly on Sunday if we maybe--just maybe--clinch. It's unbelievable.

It certainly wasn't the prettiest game. Coley was amazing, just great. And my boyfriend, Chase Utley, hit a two-run-homer in the first that really turned out to be the key to the Phillies win. The rest of the team had a terrible time hitting. Howard looked just awful. No one could produce any situational hitting. We stranded 11 runners in scoring position, which is unacceptable. If we want to win any more games in this series, we are going to have to do way more. Coley can't pitch every game. And Lidge may be perfect to this point, but that's bound to end sometime, although I hope that some time is later rather than sooner.

So tonight I will go to bed happy and tomorrow I will obsessively read about how we won and watch highlights and interviews and feel warm and fuzzy. Until tomorrow night when the nerves start all over again.

Charlie Manuel at his post-game conference: "Cole's pretty good, man. I'm glad he's pitching for us."

Me too, Charlie. Me too.

Oh ps: I really hope they get rid of the cowbells for Game 2. That was so fucking annoying, even more so than those damn thundersticks in Milwaukee.

Internet? It's Me, Caitlar

2008-10-22T12:09:00.004-04:00

Okay so I've been noticeably absent since Friday. Boyfriend and I went to a family wedding (my godfather's daughter) in Delaware and we had a great time all around. Such a great time, in fact, that I spent all of Sunday in bed/couch once we got home. On Monday when I still felt like crap, I realized that it was probably beyond a hang-over and I was seamlessly transitioning into my change of season cold. So I've been trying to de-stress myself and lay off the internet (about which I can get somewhat obsessive). Sometimes we all need a little internet vacation. So I signed out of gchat, closed all my tabs, and let the blog sit for a few days. It's hard to jump right back into it though. Where do I start? Colin Powell's endorsement of Obama? Michelle Bachman and her interview with Chris Matthews right out of an Arthur Miller play? The fact that the Phillies are playing the Rays and not the Red Sox? Sarah Palin's $150,000 shopping spree with RNC donations?

And then I read the NYT today and I just knew what I had to do. You might want to sit down for this: Maureen Dowd wrote a really good piece today. No, seriously. And that's the thing--she wrote seriously for once and stopped trying to be, as one friend put it, "cutesy like Tina Fey doing Palin." She talks about talking to Colin Powell and his reasons for backing Obama, focusing on the growing sentiment that Muslim-Americans are not Americans. It's the same theme that the Daily Show picked up on last week, but without the sarcasm and with real people. It's definitely worth a read.

2008-10-17T13:36:00.002-04:00

[Slate]

Okay, Just One More Thought

2008-10-17T13:23:00.003-04:00

I just watched John McCain's speech from last night at the Al Smith dinner. And he pretty much nailed it. Like, if I were a Republican, I would be asking where has this John McCain been? He seems at ease, he's funny, he can make fun of himself, and he says some really nice things about Obama that actually seem sincere. I have not been a member of the camp that says that McCain's been so upset recently because he doesn't like being so mean, that his advisors are making him do it. And I still don't believe that because he is the leader of his own campaign and could control it if he wanted to. But in that speech I at least saw the glimmer of a man I could feel a little bit of sympathy for.

Friday

2008-10-17T10:02:00.003-04:00

Happy Friday! I'm not going to be posting much today because I'm getting ready to go to Delaware for the weekend for a family wedding. Fun times! But here are some things I've read this morning that are worth attention.

The Washington Post Editorial Board announced their endorsement of Barack Obama. Not entirely surprising, given that they are totally in the tank, just like the rest of the liberal media, for Obama. But in all seriousness, the actual essay outlining why they support Obama is an excellent comprehensive, yet compact, piece that seems like an even consideration of both candidates. It's a great piece of support for any Obama supporter looking for a good way to explain their choice.

There's a lot of fishy stuff going on with ACORN, the FBI, and the DOJ. TPM has been on this like white on rice for a while now, reminding us that the whole DOJ attorney firings two years ago occurred because certain attorneys were given the task of investigating voter fraud in hotly contested regions of the 2006 elections. The attorneys who did not find any evidence of wrongdoing in those regions were fired. Reminiscent of that situation, now there is word that the FBI will be investigating ACORN and their involvement in voter registration in, again, hotly contested districts for this year's election. For a good and simple explanation of the ACORN controversy, read this editorial in the NYT today.

For some laughs, watch the videos of the candidates at the Al Smith dinner last night. Good times.

This weekend, Sarah Palin will appear on SNL. Penn State plays Michigan in the homecoming game tomorrow at 4:30 at Beaver Stadium. The Eagles have a bye this weekend, which is good for Brian Westbrook to rest up. And the Phillies don't start the World Series until Wednesday. Their opponent is yet to be decided, as the Sox came back in their game against the Rays last night to bring the series to 3-2. Keep on playing you guys, we don't mind if you go to 7.

I'm also taking suggestions for what I can concentrate my brain on after Nov. 5. It's pretty soon and by then both baseball and the election will be over and everything I've cared way too much about in the last year will be gone.

Have a nice weekend everyone!

Daily Dose

2008-10-17T09:25:00.000-04:00

2008-10-16T16:54:00.002-04:00

[Slate]

More on Joe the Plumber

2008-10-16T16:34:00.002-04:00

I just saw this linked from TPM: an article from the NYT who did some basic research on America's new representative, Joe the Plumber. Turns out Joe is not a licensed plumber and owes back taxes. I sort of feel bad for Joe himself because he didn't ask for this kind of attention. But it is another example of how McCain jumps into things, like using a specific man's story, to further his scattered message without doing the research.

McCain's Debate with Women's Issues

2008-10-16T11:18:00.005-04:00

I was listening to the Diane Rehm Show on NPR this morning, on which they were discussing the debate last night. A listener, a 60-year-old man (I don't remember from where he was writing) wrote in an email about three things that John McCain said last night that really stuck out to him. I wish I could get my hands on the transcript because his email was concisely written, but this is basically what he said:

Three things McCain said last night struck him:

1) McCain championed Sarah Palin as a "role model to women and to other--to reformers all over America," even as she has been found to have grossly violated Alaskan state ethics laws;
2) McCain more or less dismissed consideration of a woman's health in the abortion exchange, calling an exemption for abortions when the health of the mother is at risk as "extreme";
3) McCain seemingly does not know the difference between Down syndrome and autism, repeatedly referring to Sarah Palin and her knowledge of autism, when her son does not have autism, but rather Down syndrome. Any parent who has a child with either of these disorders knows the difference, including Sarah Palin.

The listener then goes on to argue that John McCain has very little grasp of women's issues in this election; his views are outdated and come from a time where old, white men decided the lives of women in this country. I didn't watch the debate last night, so I can't say I also noticed these things (although the blogs I read certainly picked up on 2 and 3), but I can definitely say that I'm not surprised. McCain's attitude towards women--even in his own family--has been less than respectful. I'm curious what Palin and Puma feminists think about this.

Update: After a little bit more research, I found out that #3 may not be entirely true. What appeared to be a McCain gaffe about autism vs Down syndrome may in fact be a reference to Sarah Palin's nephew, who does have autism. I'm still waiting to see her record on actually championing the causes of autism and Down syndrome (which may actually exist, I just haven't heard about it yet). One may understand the difficulties of having a special needs child from experience, but understanding alone does not help a cause.

Help Me Find This Necklace

2008-10-16T10:59:00.002-04:00

Did anyone notice Michelle Obama's necklace from last night? It looks like a long strand of pearls with large flowers attached to it. I have a wedding to go to on Saturday and I'm wearing a simple black dress that I would like to dress up with some jewelry and I think this would be perfect for what I'm going for. If anyone can find out where I can get something like this, please let me know.

We're All Drinking the Kool-Aid

2008-10-16T09:25:00.003-04:00

Okay so other things were going on last night that didn't involve the Phillies. You may know that there was a presidential debate! I almost feel like after three dozen of these things, that everything that could be said has already been said. But oh no, there was more. You can probably guess that I did not, in fact, watch the debate because the Phillies winning the pennant trumps all other television. And really, why should I? I know who I am voting for, I'm confident in that decision, and nothing either candidate said in this painfully calculated exchange is going to change my mind. I think most people have decided the same. As Gail Collins points out today in her NYT column:

"...None of their effort during the debate was for those of us who have been with them since the beginning. At this point, they only care about the small chunk of undecided voters in swing states. That means a handful of people in Ohio who have managed to avoid noticing that Obama and McCain disagree on virtually every important issue facing the nation and continue to insist that they are torn between them.

Plus, of course, a couple of folks who got picked for a long-running television panel of undecided voters and don’t want to admit they’ve made up their minds because they’ll get thrown out.

This is one of the reasons why the last few weeks of a presidential campaign tend to be so awful. The candidates are gearing their remarks to people who have managed to completely ignore nearly two years of news about the 2008 elections. In the end, it’s always all about the ones who play hard to get. "

While occasionally flipping to the debate while watching the game last night and undoubtedly while reading and watching coverage of the debate today, the general consensus was that it was the "Joe the Plumber" debate. First of all, guys named Joe are really getting a lot of publicity this election. First we had Joe Sixpack, now Joe the Plumber, next we'll have Joe the Voter Who Stood in Line for Six Hours Only to Have His Vote Thrown Out in Colorado. Honestly though, I was kind of surprised that this Joe the Plumber guy got so much play, and especially that this play was seen as an advantage to McCain. Because before the debate last night, I actually watched Obama's conversation with Joe in his neighborhood in Ohio and I thought that he gave a really great response to Joe's concerns. Here's the video:

When I watched the video, I thought Obama's answer was honest and nuanced. He told Joe the facts of his plan, admitting that Joe's small business will be taxed higher, but explaining the necessity for taxes. The amount of time Obama spent really explaining his thought process and his plan say a lot about who he is; Obama doesn't just memorize the facts for a multiple choice test, he knows the ins and outs and analysis and reasons for his policies as if he is ready to take that long essay exam.

I don't think Joe bought Obama's response. In fact, he had an entirely different interpretation than I had watching it. He told Katie Couric last night that he thought Obama gave him a tap dance. I disagree. But I also do not believe in trickle-down economics, which Joe seems to subscribe to. It all basically comes down to people reaffirming what they already believe. We like the taste of our own Kool-Aid.

TJ Simers Eats His Words

2008-10-16T08:38:00.003-04:00

Now I'm not one to say "I told you so," but when it comes to this article by TJ Simers in the LA Times, I think we should all write him an email and give him a great big "Suck It," courtesy of the city of Philadelphia and its expatriates (like myself).

Here's a quick exerpt from the piece, published last Friday:

"It's an angry place, all right, everything old here in Philadelphia, crumbling and in ruin. Even the city's main attraction has a crack in it...Philly has always been more bark than championship bite, so why should the Dodgers give a hoot about folks who paint their faces and then have to drive home looking like sad clowns? The Dodgers have the better team, a destiny date in Boston, and while that might make the folks in Philly miserable, they don't know how to act any differently here."

Good thing it's always warm in LA, the Dodgers should have no problem scheduling their tee-times next week.

Simer's email address is t.j.simers@latimes.com.

In Case You Didn't Hear

2008-10-16T07:10:00.003-04:00

The Phillies are going to the World Series!!!!

[philly.com]

The Phillies beat the Dodgers 5-1 last night in LA to win the National League Pennant and oh how good does it feel. Jimmy Rollins led off with a solo home run in his first at bat and then the Phils kept their cool and rolled over LA. The score was only 5-1, but it really seemed like a trouncing to me. At one point in the fifth inning, after Rafael Furcal's second error, and another Philly single turned into an RBI, I texted a friend "this is almost little league." Cole Hamels pitched a great game and won him the NLCS MVP award. I don't mean to take away from Cole's amazing performances over the series, but I really think that Shane Victorino should have taken home the award. Not only did he have several clutch hits (including that game-changing 2-run homer in game 4), but his fielding was incredible last night. Two hard and long hits by the Dodgers last night could have made a big difference for LA, but Shane covered an ridiculous amount of ground with his speed to run into the center field wall and make two great catches. The team as a whole has really played great this series, with everyone contributing what they could. We're probably going to play the Rays in the World Series which will be really hard and I kind of doubt that we'll win. So I'm just enjoying this, my first Philadelphia World Series appearance since the fourth grade. And I'm thinking positively. Go Phillies!

Daily Dose

2008-10-16T07:02:00.000-04:00

Here We Go Phillies!!!

2008-10-15T17:33:00.001-04:00

Questionable Choice of Accessories

2008-10-15T16:51:00.004-04:00

I noticed this in the video from the Palin rally the other day, but I couldn't find any still shots to confirm my suspicions and promptly share them with you all. But here is Governor Sportswoman, wearing a polar bear pin, you know, the animal that is clearly dying, but she refuses belongs on the endangered species list. That's like being a member of PETA and wearing a ferret pelt, but backwards, or something.

Thanks to Crooks and Liars for finally confirming this wardrobe selection.

2008-10-15T16:41:00.002-04:00

[Slate]

Getting My Priorities Straight

2008-10-15T09:20:00.004-04:00

If you can't see it, David on TPM jokingly lists the finale of Project Runway tonight as something of import in relation to the debate. But I laughed because in all seriousness, this is a big tv night for me and I definitely need to prioritize. The Phillies I will watch first (first pitch is at 8:22pm EST). If for some reason I can't bear to watch anymore, I will turn on the debate. If that is boring and/or infuriating, I will go to Project Runway. The Phils are obviously most important because they could clinch tonight (fingers crossed). Then I suppose the debate because, even though it will be on tv and all the blogs ad nauseum for the next few days, I kind of want keep my first impressions intact without talking heads. And I can always watch PR at 11 and on the internet the next day.

Robert Reich and Living Above Our Means

2008-10-15T08:57:00.004-04:00

This morning on NPR on the Marketplace Morning Edition, I heard an excellent, brief essay by Robert Reich who just wrote a book called Supercapitalism (he will be on the Daily Show this week, too). Reich discusses the common opinion that the current financial crisis was partially caused by American families living above their means. You can listen to the essay here, but it's short enough that I have posted it below:

Robert Reich: The "living beyond our means" argument, with its thinly-veiled suggestion of moral terpitude, is technically correct. Over the last 15 years, average household debt has soared to record levels, and the typical American family has taken on more of debt than it can safely manage. That became crystal clear when the housing bubble burst and home prices fell, eliminating easy home equity loans and refinancings.

But this story leaves out one very important fact: Since the year 2000, median family income, adjusted for inflation, has been dropping. One of the main reasons the typical family has taken on more debt has been to maintain its living standards in the face of these declining real incomes.

I mean, it's not as if the typical family suddenly went on a spending binge -- buying yachts and fancy cars and taking ocean cruises. No, the typical family just tried to keep going as it had before. But with real incomes dropping, and the costs of necessities like gas, heating oil, food, health insurance, and even college tuitions all soaring, the only way to keep going as before was to borrow more. You might see this as a moral failure, but I think it's more accurate to view it as an ongoing struggle to stay afloat when the boat's sinking.

The "living beyond our means" argument suggests that the answer over the long term is for American families to become more responsible and not spend more than they earn. Well, that may be necessary, but it's hardly sufficient.

The real answer over the long term is to restore middle-class earnings so families don't have to go deep into debt to maintain what was a middle-class standard of living. And that requires, among other things, affordable health insurance, tax credits for college tuition, good schools, and an energy policy that's less dependent on oil -- the price of which is going to continue to rise as demand rises in China and India and elsewhere.

In other words, the way to make sure Americans don't live beyond their means is to give them back their means.

Daily Dose

2008-10-15T08:40:00.001-04:00

Also, you have to watch the segment that follows Jon's intro because it's something that I haven't actually heard brought up when everyone talks about McCain's violent rallies and that woman who claimed she feared Barack Obama because he is an Arab.

Dear God, Joe Biden, Please Stop Saying Literally

2008-10-14T17:00:00.002-04:00

A suggestion from Joe Biden in Delaware about the debate tomorrow:

“For this debate, for part of this next debate, do what I did for part of the last two debates. Literally, turn the sound off. I’m not being…I’m not joking now. Literally, turn the sound off. And just watch. Watch the body language of both men. You can sense it folks. You know it, when there’s a command [sic] presence. You know it when someone has the confidence and the certitude about himself and what he believes in.”

Climate of Fear

2008-10-14T15:13:00.004-04:00

Again today were are hearing about supporters at a Palin rally yelling "Kill Him!" at the mention of Barack Obama. This is just sad and scary.

I was talking the other day with my uncle about the scary state of the election and the violent vitriol coming out of the McCain rallies. He mentioned to me, because I was in elementary school at the time, how it was this same kind of fear that, in his opinion, caused the Oklahoma City bombing. When Bill Clinton won the election in 1992, the Republican party and the conservative movement went into a panic. They created an environment, with the help of rising stars like Rush Limbaugh, in which people were encouraged to mistrust and hate their government. Indeed, in 1994 when the Republicans won Congress, Newt Gingrich at times even went so far as to shut the government down. This climate of disgust, disdain, and suspicion of the federal government fed unstable personalities like Timothy McVeigh, who purposefully chose a federal building as the target of his heinous attack in 1995.

We are seeing this same kind of emotion now. The Republicans are drumming up without restraint a personal hatred for the other party, and specifically, their very popular candidate. It is no accident that many leaders who introduce McCain or Palin at their rallies talk about Barack Hussein Obama. It is no accident that my own mother is convinced that Michelle Obama hates white people and that they are friends with terrorists. And it is certainly no accident that angry shouts of "Kill Him!," although not unnoticed, are going almost unchecked at these rallies. This kind of environment is dangerous for Republicans and Democrats alike, not just because it could cost votes, but it could ultimately cost lives.

Conversation with Boyfriend About Phillies

2008-10-14T13:09:00.003-04:00

12:46 PM Boyfriend: did you happen to catch the updated BP world series odds

12:47 PM me: oh god no why is it awesome/

Boyfriend: % chance to win World Series: Phillies 37.4%, Rays 36.9% Red Sox 20.5 Dodgers 5.2

me: oh my god

shut up

12:48 PM Boyfriend: that'll probably change because the Rays are less likely to win their LCS than we are right now

being up only 2-1 instead of 3-1

me: do you think we can beat the rays? (assuming we beat the dodgers, of course)

Boyfriend: yes

12:49 PM I think we can beat the Sox too

but it will be the hardest series all season by far

and we can't afford stuff like fielding mistakes

or bullpen collapses

me: i'm heartened by the fact that each member of our team comes out to play though

like it's not just howard or utley making the big plays

it's everyone

Boyfriend: yeah

even fucking Ruiz

me: matt stairs!

Boyfriend: yeah

12:50 PM the thing is, AL team has homefield advantage if we make it

because of the stupid, stupid All Star game rule

although

I suppose they would've had it anyway if they'd done it the way most people want

since Sox and Rays both have a better record than us

12:52 PM me: brb

12:56 PM Boyfriend: best pic I've found so far: http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/06H10QR2wEgbT/610x.jpg

5 minutes

1:01 PM Boyfriend: this one is pretty funny Burrellage: http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0bgZaUmcmfcdk/610x.jpg

Burrelery, if you will

6 minutes

1:08 PM me: yeah gotta love those pics

please don't leave us pat

please please please

2008-10-14T12:47:00.003-04:00

[Slate]

The Deal with ACORN

2008-10-14T12:29:00.005-04:00

Gawker does a good job today of explaining the issues with ACORN and the so-called voter registration fraud. Most important sentence of this post: "Quite honestly the very heart of the utter bullshitness of this anti-ACORN campaign can be found in one incredibly telling quote from a spokesman for the RNC: "Cairncross accused ACORN of engaging in a 'systematic effort to undermine the election process' through its voter-registration drives." Do you see the problem with that statement?"

My question is this: Voter turnout in this, the "best" democracy in the world, is hovering around 50% during major election years. And they're worried about voter fraud? Maybe they should concentrate on actually getting the other 50% out to vote.

Update: I should clarify. This story is about voter registration fraud. Not people actually casting votes that, you know, actually count. This is about people signing up to vote. The actually voting part is a whole different story. So what if some jerk wrote Mickey Mouse on a registration card? Do you really think the Mouse is going to show up on Nov 4th, be escorted to a booth, and be allowed to pull a lever? The point is, and TPM makes an excellent connection between the ACORN story and the US Attorney firing scandal, that Republicans are trying to preemptively sow the seeds of a compromised election because they are losing.

Soap Box Moment Inspired by Bob Herbert

2008-10-14T11:22:00.005-04:00

Bob Herbert's post for the NYT today is a little apocolyptic for my taste, but, especially towards the beginning of the piece, he taps into the main reason I voted Democratic.

He quotes Sarah Rimer of the NYT: “The United States is failing to develop the math skills of both girls and boys, especially among those who could excel at the highest levels, a new study asserts, and girls who do succeed in the field are almost all immigrants or the daughters of immigrants from countries where mathematics is more highly valued," continuing that our culture does not value math and science, that "the math thing is seen as something for Asians and nerds."

I really believe that an intense skepticism of science and a general disregard for factual information of the conservative movement in the last decade--whether it be teaching creationism in schools or refuting global warming--has seriously harmed our country's ability to deal with the challenges of the next several decades. If we are teaching our children that academia is for the uppity elite, that it doesn't matter if you're smart as long as you're popular, that you don't need facts to back up your claims as long as you appeal to Joe Sixpack--then we are doing a serious disservice to future generations. In every child I believe is the potential to do great things--creatively, scientifically, technologically, socially, politically. If we don't ensure that all children--mine, yours, your neighbor's, the kid in the inner city, and the kid on the farm--get a fair shot at a decent education, then we are leaving potential great minds behind. If we don't try to make sure all of those kids remain healthy with affordable healthcare, we are diminishing that pool of thinkers even further. If we continue to turn a blind eye to the awful poverty and the enormous disparity between rich and the poor in our country and remain convinced of the impossible notion that everyone can pull themselves up by their bootstraps, then we are simply selling ourselves short. Because our kids will be the ones developing cures for our diseases, inventing clean and efficient energy technologies, negotiating with other nations for our safety, and generally taking care of our planet. Kids in places like India and China are already way ahead of us. And if people think that American individualism will last in this global community, then they deserve their new place in the world: left behind.

Just a Thought

2008-10-14T11:07:00.003-04:00

Instead of blaming the economy for their poor polling numbers, as if we should feel sorry for them or something, the McCain campaign should probably try to come up with a good plan on how to fix the economy, you know, to maybe provide their supporters with legitimate reasons to vote for them.

Daily Dose

2008-10-14T10:57:00.002-04:00

I Can't Even Believe It

2008-10-14T07:02:00.005-04:00

Okay so last night's Phillies game was really important. Yeah, we were going into the game up 2-1 in the series (if you're just catching on, I'm talking about the NLCS against the Dodgers). If we lost last night, it wouldn't be the end of the world, we wouldn't have lost the series or anything. But it was the kind of game that could change the direction of the series very quickly. If the Dodgers won, the series would have been tied. They would have an extra boost of energy to win the last game at Dodgers Stadium. And we would go back to Philly for the last two games, but just like in politics, momentum is everything and in this hypothetical situation, it would not be on our side.

For the reasons I outline above, I was sick watching the game last night. When I get stressed out watching a game, I am very quiet, very weighed-down, and I try to occupy myself with something else. What a freaking 3 hour, 44 minute long heart attack. The Phillies scored 2 runs in the first, only to be matched by 1 by the Dodgers. After a few sloppy innings of little hitting for the Phils and even sloppier fielding, we were sliding down a slippery slope to loserville. The 5th inning seemed clutch and we could sense just watching it that this inning would either make or break the game, after Joe Blanton loaded the bases and one by one the Dodgers were putting up base hits. We left the inning down 3-2, which, I thought, was not all that bad, but boy, did it feel bad. In the 6th, a wild pitch sent Ryan Howard to score, bringing it back to a 3-3 tie. But then a single shot homer by Casey Blake for the Dodgers, and then some more base hits and a fielding error by Howard made it 5-3. The only reason we got out of the inning was an unassisted double play by my boyfriend, Chase Utley. I thought, welp, thanks for coming out guys, this game is over.

So we get to the 8th. Both teams have pretty much used up all of their pitchers. Up to bat comes Shane Victorino, who almost got his head taken off with a wild pitch the previous inning, to a chorus of boos from the LA fans. And he just rips one right into the bull pen. Oh shit, the game is tied. I started to pay a little more attention, this game just got a little more interesting. So then Carlos Ruiz is up and hits a single. Dodgers bring in their closer, Broxton, and it's do or die for the Phillies. Up at Bat for the Phils is Matt Stairs, a man who is 40 years old and has played on 16 MLB teams in his career. He gets up on Broxton in the count, 3-1. Broxton has no choice but to throw him a meaty fast ball. And jesus, did Stairs rip that one, like almost out of the park rip it. Phils up 7-5. We bring in our closer, Brad Lidge, in the bottom of the eigth to face Manny. He loads up the bases just to make us squirm, but gets out of it. Phillies can't get any insurance runs in the 9th. Lidge mows down three more Dodger batters and it's over. The Phillies win, 7-5.

Seriously? We just seriously won that game? It took at good half hour for my heart rate to return to normal. And I'm just starting to realize that we are one game away from being in the World Series. I can't even believe I can write that sentence.

I Heart Nate Silver

2008-10-13T18:04:00.004-04:00

I forgot to mention this last week. I heart Nate Silver like whoa. He is geeky and adorable and totally smart. He likes baseball and politics and is a phenomenon in both fields, without ever picking up a bat or a microphone. Boyfriend has been following him for a long time now because he came up with this metric for Baseball Prospectus called PECOTA that is like, super accurate (even though he predicted the Phillies to be in third place in the NL East this year--we'll let that one go). And then he went and applied the same logic to political polling because, like baseball, elections are games driven by statistics. He has a blog that I've mentioned here before, FiveThirtyEight.com, that organizes all the polling data and feeds it into the magic statistics easy-bake-oven and then pops out predictions and graphs and stuff. The blog part of the site is very insightful as well. But because of his really cool metrics, a lot of other media have picked up on him. Gawker mentioned him today and the profile New York did on him. And he was on the Colbert Report last week. Check out his interview with Stephen and how geeky, adorable, and totally smart he is (not to mention funny). And then don't forget to go to his site, cause it's a good one.