[Slate]

Okay, Just One More Thought

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

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

[Slate]

More on Joe the Plumber

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

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

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

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

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

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

Here We Go Phillies!!!

Questionable Choice of Accessories

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.

[Slate]

Getting My Priorities Straight

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

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

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

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

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

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

[Slate]

The Deal with ACORN

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

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

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

I Can't Even Believe It

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

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.

Small Town Mayor Kind of Like Community Organizer, But With More Chips Ahoy

Boyfriend showed me this video yesterday and it's just sad and hysterical. It's a professional actor reading (a la the Geico celebrity commercials) the transcripts from a Wasilla town meeting from 1996 when your favorite Tina Fey impersonator was mayor. It's just...wow.

The Arena Weighs In

I've posted about Politico's new feature, The Arena, briefly before. I've kind of forgotten about it until now, when I went over to see what they had to say. The question today, I think, is kind of ridiculous: Is Obama headed for a blowout victory? As many of the contributors to the Arena begin their responses, I think it's naive and dubious to predict a win for Obama in this crazy election cycle, much less a blowout. And I am naturally suspicious of anything that I consider a jinx (I like to knock on wood). But it is really interesting to hear what different people have to say about the election and how each person's niche factors into their answers. I get so caught up in my own reasons for voting for one candidate or another that I forget that every other person out there has their unique perspective on the issues based on their interests and experiences. Someone who works for an economic think tank focuses on Obama's tax plan; a Democratic strategist asserts Obama's dominance in the polls; professors take a very contempletive and analytical approach to the question; politicians avoid a straight answer all together.

[Slate]

In Case You Missed It

Insert comment about "what did you expect this is the same city that thew snow balls at Santa/booed Destiny's Child/threw batteries on the field at the Vet/etc etc etc." Well done, guys.

Maureen Dowd, You Are Not Only Hilarious But So Totally Smart

My favorite wacky columnist at the NYT, fiery siren, Maureen Dowd, had another insightful post yesterday. Not only does she know Latin, she translated whole works in high school. Psh, whatever Paul Krugman and your Nobel Prize, Maureen ingeniously made the connection between America and Rome because no one has thought to do that until now. Seriously, her column on Sunday was so intelligent, I don't even understand half of it because it's in Latin.

The Lesser of the State College Cafes Will Get a Celebrity Makeover Afterall

My brother told me this story a few weeks ago and I thought it was pretty funny. Up at Penn State there are many many bars. One of the bars that everyone knows, but not many people frequent is the Sports Cafe (not to be confused with my second home at Penn State, Cafe 210 West). The lack of patronage was apparent after National Penn Bank sued the owners for over $464,000 for violating a forbearance agreement and the bar closed in December. So while the owners were trying to reopen the bar and sell it, LaVar Arrington approached them about selling the bar to him so he could open an establishment of his own. Arrington is one of Penn State's most beloved alumni and a successful restaurant owner, so I'm confident that his bar would have been the most successful up in State College. So LaVar is pumping up the new place and talking to people all over town and then he goes to do the final deal at the bank in September and the owners of the Sports Cafe don't show up and cut off the deal. Arrington is furious and his quotes to the Daily Collegian are so honest and so funny. "I hope the plague falls upon the Sports Café," he said, adding "I hope it's rat infested. Frickin' roach infested."He goes on to accuse the owners of the Sports Cafe for using him for publicity and then going back on their word. I just found the whole thing so amusing.

Well this morning as I was gathering resources for my sports update, I saw that the new owners of the Sports Cafe are going to be working with Arrington to become partners on the bar. He's going to bring in some quasi-famous acts and overhaul the whole image of the bar. And I'm just very excited about the whole thing because Arrington got what he wanted and the Penn State bar scene, although not really lacking much by any means, will get a huge boost. I can't wait to visit. Seriously, if you've never been to State College, you need to go.

Monday Sports Update

Hello again! It's been a few days since I posted anything. Honestly, I think I kind of binged on blogging over the last few weeks and I came down kind of hard last week. Also, I think a lot of the news last week was seriously depressing and I was having difficulty finding humor in a lot of things. But I was accosted several times over the weekend for not aiding people's procrastination habits at work and otherwise, and I don't have to work today (hooray for a man who extinguished an entire continent of people!), so let's get this party re-started, shall we?

This weekend in Philly sports teams (that I care about) had its ups and downs and has left me, after the final game, feeling engh.

Let's start with Penn State. This is the team that gives me the least amount of angina because a) I don't go there anymore and I only care so much about college football, and b) they are doing really really well. The high rankings and great record probably have just as much to do with other teams all over the BCS--and especially in the Big Ten--just kind of sucking this year as it does with the fact that the Lions have a very good team. We trounced Wisconsin on Saturday night at Wisconsin, beating them 48-7. It was a pretty boring game, even though I watched it with my favorite Hetzel (you probably don't know what that means, but don't worry about it) at Buffalo D's, this sports bar with a terrible deejay and a wonderful hookah lounge in which this photo stared at me all night and scared the beejebus out of me. I know it's an important and famous photograph, but she sure can stare. But I digress. The Lions now hold an impressive 7-0 record and having moved up to #3 in the BCS rankings. Next week is Homecoming and the Michigan game, so I'm expecting to keep the good times to keep on rolling, at least for another week, even though I will be at a wedding and not in Happy Valley. Also, it's 10:41 and Michigan still sucks.

Okay so I wasn't expecting much from the Eagles this weekend and frankly, I really didn't care. That team is a mess and is more frustration than it's worth. Plus, with the Phillies still playing, I'm having trouble really concentrating on more than one potential collapse. We didn't get network coverage of the Eagles game anyway here in DC. Instead, we got to watch the Cardinals stick it to the Cowboys, which was glorious enough. Although Boyfriend was following the Eagles on the ticker and on the internet, I really just assumed they had lost until late last night when I asked if they lost. I was pleasantly surprised to hear that they actually won. Who knew. So yeah, the Eagles beat San Francisco 40-26. You can read about it here because I'm pretty apathetic about it.

Okay so herein lies my sports obsession at the moment: the Phightin Phillies. Thursday and Friday were amazing; we were up 2 games to 0 against the Dodgers in the NLCS, something I really didn't see coming. I really, truly assumed that we would get swept and say, welp that was nice, we did better than last year and there's always next year. And part of me still feels that way, that defensive cautiousness.

My friend's husband is a Red Sox fan. She called me on Saturday morning to see if I wanted to go to brunch and I heard her husband in the background shouting at me that when the Phillies and the Red Sox are in the World Series, we won't be friends for a week. And I was like, ha, yeah if the Phillies make the World Series. And she said, I thought they won last night? Aren't they up on the Dodgers 2-0? And I said yeah, but I never count my chickens when it comes to Phils. I really wish that I could get excited; I mean, we're certainly closer to making the World Series than we've been since I was 9 years old. But I'm not even allowing myself to go there; it's this terrible emotion that all sports fans go through--torn between hoping and trying to be realistic. Anyway, I think I was pretty justified in my skepticism yesterday as the Dodgers came out hard in LA and Jamie Moyer had just a terrible start for the Phils. Like John McCain, I'm convinced that the main stream sports media is in the tank for the Dodgers, what with the Manny story and the Joe Torre story being so compelling or whatever, so I was already pissed. And then Kuroda threw that pitch at Shane Victorino's head in retaliation for Brett Myers throwing a pitch behind Manny on Friday night. Everyone got pissed, the benches cleared, and although only words were exchanged, the tense, negative energy was really palpable. I really tried to stay away from the game, making dinner for a bunch of friends and only checking in on the game every so often. The Phillies lost 7-2 and the series tightens up a bit now. I'm not really confident about playing in LA, even though we are still leading the series. But tonight is another game and maybe, just maybe, they will give me something about which to think optimistically.