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]