Fantastic

Well, That Was Fun

More later but I'm still trying to wrap my head around the outcome of the Election. Hooray Obama! Did I just write that...? I'm still reeling....

My Name is Andrew, and I Voted

It took an alarm clock and a tremendous amount of will power but I got up at 6, got dressed and walked outside and across the street to the high school to vote. The place was crowded and there were lines but I only waited a few minutes, pretty marginal compared to what some folks in the country (and in the city) are going through. It actually took me longer to get out of bed and get dressed (30 minutes) than it did to go and vote (total time of trip from my doorstep back to my doorstep: 20 minutes).

Now... I'll wait along with everyone else..... and muddle through The Longest Day Ever.

Make a Wish, Count To Three

Well, we made it. We’re finally here. Tomorrow we vote.

But the Election has been such an intense circus for so long that it’s inevitable that on Wednesday there’ll be one part of the country cheering and the other part of the country will be depressed, or, worse, angry.

If I was near a fountain, I’d toss a penny (about the only thing I have left of my investments, oh joy) into it and wish that we could all be universally happy and eager to work whether it’s “my” guy or “your” guy.

But, being unable to work ‘across the aisle’ is where we’re at as human beings right now so the best that we might be able to aim for is civility when the results come out. Not only for the “losing” side, but for the “winning” side as well.

I can’t imagine anyone here at Thirteen not voting tomorrow and hopefully everyone reading this has figured out when they’re going to vote as well. Take a magazine, your iPod or go with a friend. It might be a wait. But this might be a good thing.

Wouldn’t it be really cool (like they’re saying in the Starbucks ad going round the web) if 100% of registered voters came out to vote?

This Election is already historic, a higher than ever turnout would add one more history making element to it.

Now why voting isn’t on a Saturday when people don't have to miss work in order to cast their ballot is beyond me. It would seem to me to be a no brainer but then they haven’t put me in charge of these things. Yet.

Delicious Anticipation

After weddings and anniversaries of things dominated the past few weeks, it's nice to have a relatively quiet week even if said week does lead up to what is promising to be the Most Stressful Day Ever For Anyone Who Cares About America.

I think either way it goes, there'll be some post partum depression. You're not involved in something (in this case, the election) for so long (what's it been, like two years since this cycle began?) and simply move on immediately. November 5th will not be pretty for the part of the country that sees it's candidate lose. I'd venture to say that there'll even be a 'victory hangover' for the party that wins, again, because of the long gestation of this event. If recent politics are any indication (and I think they are), either side will certainly be howling for days to come afterwards..

On the other hand, like in any good story, I invite you to enjoy the delicious anticipation of whatever the next few days and the next few weeks bring. It's agonizing, it's stressful, but there is a sort of perverse pleasure in riding this roller coaster. It'll be over soon enough and then we'll have real work to do, all of us.

Another Day More Hate Speech

I'm sure many Americans are astonished by the hate speech being thrown around at McPalin rallies around the country but honestly, I'm not. It's clear that people who are surprised by this kind of talk have never had invective thrown at them for being something other than a straight white male.

The only thing I am surprised at in this election is that no one in the crowds has used the N word for Obama yet. Maybe that's progress. Of course we still have 12 days to go and my expectations of my fellow Americans is at their lowest ebb ever.

What I find even worse, however, is the ugly return of McCarthyism to the forefront of political drivel. When Americans like Minnesotan Michelle Bachman start saying that liberals are anti-American, well, for me it's like a sign of the end of days. This divisiveness is disgusting and that McPalin are encouraging it (much like the Bush league has done the past 8 years) tells me everything I need to know about their ability to lead, govern and make policy.

For me in this election, it's come down not to who has the better plan for health care or the economy or who is going to drill where or what someone's wearing or where their from... but it's come down to - which of these men exemplifies the qualities of a President, the kind of President that I grew up thinking existed.. but in our Nixon, Reagan, Clinton (sorry, Bill), Bush parade of losers, I'd given that dream up.

Neither candidate is perfect and both have made mistakes and have their drawbacks, but when I put them side by side and look at which one is whipping crowds up into a frenzy of energetic viterol and which one is preaching peace and inclusiveness and speaks of fair mindedness and calm, well, I know which one I'll be voting for on November 4th.

Up and At 'Em

Woke up early and I've already been for a bike ride, had breakfast and cleaned the apartment and it's only 10:20..that shows you what a decent night's sleep will get you!

Off today for a rehearsal lunch for two friends, Norman and Guy, who are getting married tomorrow here in New York City.

Haven't been to any weddings in ages and suddenly two in the span of a month. One was for a couple that have been together for 11 years and tomorrow's is for a couple that have been together for 25 years. New York hasn't legalized marriage yet but they do accept marriages done in other states.

It kind of astounds me when one of the reasons that opponents of gay marriage use in refusing to support it is that gay (and lesbian) couples are unstable. Seems like couples that have been together 11 and 25 years are pretty stable. I know a lot of hetero marriages that lasted a LOT shorter than that. I'm just sayin.

On the political front, kudos to McCain for FINALLY saying something to his wing-nut supporters (I feel sorry for the poor woman who got all choked up - while she called Obama an Arab) about their crazy behaviour this past week.

But really, McCain has no one to blame but his own team which includes his crazy wife who with an icy cold rant accused Obama of voting against supporting the troops (not true but it makes a good sound bite) and Palin who is, well, just an idiot (and hopefully the findings that she acted unlawfully will change her standing in the political community).

And thanks to Lynn for the comment she posted to the previous post... you are correct... everything the Republican populace is saying against Obama ("terrorist" "Arab" etc) at these rallys is all code for "I don't want a black man in the White House".

Maybe these people don't even know what they're saying - I'm not sure which is worse though, delusional people who think that Obama really is a terrorist because he stood in a room with a terrorist 20 years ago (or whatever the hell they're grasping at straws about) or that people are still so narrow that the bigotry overrides everything else in their brain.

Either way it makes for some scary people on the loose out there in the world. It makes New York City look positively normal. And that's saying a lot. :)

Strangers on a Plane or Airport: 88

Last night I had an early evening committment and so I ran late for the second Debate.

I think I turned it on at about the moment when they were tusseling about the economy. It didn't take me long to get disgusted by both sides' verbal wrangling although when McCain pulled out his 'nailing Jello to the wall' comment I had a choice: throw the tv out the window or turn the channel. I love my tv so I simply turned on one of the many things that I've DVRed recently.

In the last election the GOP railroaded Kerry with their Swift Boat lies and before that they attacked Gore by slamming him with Clinton's infidelities (which, sadly, were not lies at all although it had nothing to do with Gore).

When some people don't get their way, rather than accepting it, their answer is simply punch the other person out. Those people are called bullys .. and I know very well how they operate because I grew up related to a master bully. They rule through fear of being punched or teased and one's only way of dealing with it is to run and hide, stand up and be knocked down, or, as I did, destroy yourself from within believing that what the bully says is true and that you deserve to be beaten on a daily basis.

So, I know bullys.

If McCain/Palin thought they could win on their own merits, there would be no need to put Obama/Biden down. Simple as that. Bullys know their own inadequacy makes them inferior to the one they're bullying and they seek to goad the other person into being as 'little' as they are.

It's sad enough when children do it to each other, sadder still when adults do it.

Thankfully, this morning I tripped over this story that gave me the simple lift that I needed:

http://leishacamden.blogspot.com/2008/10/not-that-it-matters.html

You can call it sappy or ridiculous but I don't care, it resonated with me and some of that verbal vomit that spewed forth from my tv is now washed away. At least a little bit.

On a Lighter Note from Yesterday's Rant

So I got this link forwarded to me today ... and I think it's brilliant. Go to the site, print up the cards and play Palin Bingo www.palinbingo.com with your family and friends ... there are three choices (it shows four choices but number four is a duplicate of number one as of this afternoon) plus you can make up your own card from a list of possibilities. Enjoy!!

I know the BF and I will be playing on Thursday night at 9pm while watching Thirteen/WNET's coverage of the debate moderated by PBS's Gwen Ifil.

Political Rant. Proceed at your own risk.

I wish I could say that I was doing better.. but today I am feeling anxious and stressed, irritated and annoyed by a bunch of trying things in our country:

I'm annoyed and irritated that I was supposed to somehow be responsible for Wall Street with my 'in kind' donation to the tune of nearly $4,000 and yet I wouldn't get anything in return for this. OK I'll make you a deal - I'll put my share into the bailout if I don't have to pay my credit card bill. Let's just call it even, OK?

I'm annoyed and irritated that when the bailout didn't happen that the Repubs didn't agree to it because the Dem's Nancy Pelosi spoke to them sharply. Or something like that. What morons.

I'm irritated that both sides are now at each others' throats acting like 'he said, she said' 8 year olds rather than mature intelligent adults.

When I was growing up, they said "in America, anyone can grow up to be President" and apparently that's true... because certainly 'just anyone' is a VP pick. Yes, I'm annoyed and irritated at the stupidity of the pick of Governor Palin for VP. I see her and am reminded of the women who used to be at the checkout counter at the Piggly Wiggly in Mosinee. This does not fill me with confidence. Not that a woman can't handle the job (there are several women in politics that have the ability) but this woman specifically seems like she can kick back with a kegger and be a lot of fun at a party. But I don't know that I feel she's the best choice to be one heartbeat away from the Presidency.

I woke up all annoyed and irritated and it didn't help to turn on my tv this morning and see the grinning gargoyle aka our President suggest that it would be better if he could just make this decision himself - if you don't believe me, Google the press conference and see for yourself.. he virtually suggested that he alone can make the right choice for the country while not acknowledging that his own party didn't follow him.. take SOME responsibility George!!

Honest to God, will someone impeach the man already?? (Of course that'd leave Cheney as President and there is nothing more terrifying than THAT!!)

I realize that I'm older and maybe I'm seeing things as they really have been all along, but the country feels different than the one I grew up in. I know there has always been differing of opinions.. that's what makes America great... but acting like school yard bullies towards each other?? A note to the people in Washington: GROW UP!!!

OK rant over. I feel at least a little better.

Diversionary Tactics

So I’ll admit that the Friday night debate wasn’t as riveting as I’d hoped it would be. To be frank, neither candidate came off particularly well although I now hold moderator Jim Lehrer in an even higher regard than I did before as he tried (somewhat in vain) to keep both men on topic and get them to talk to… each other rather than to mommy, I mean to him.


I have a funny feeling that Jim has already made up his mind and it’s the viewers that should have been the ones that needed convincing (although I doubt that there’s much that either of them could have said that would have made anyone change their mind and certainly, neither of them made that great of an impression on me. Obama’s stop/start speech pattern made me like him a little less than I did before although he’s a whole lot more preferable to McSame who is so hungry to get into the White House that he’s playing the Wilford Brimley role of the kindly grandfather to the hilt. I almost expected him to offer Lehrer a bowl of Quaker Oats.)


And then over the weekend I got one of those internet pass along things, you know the kind; where the little girl is dying and if you just send one dollar she’ll make an amazing recovery or those emails where you have to forward it on to everyone from your kindergarten class or else everyone in Topeka will simultaneously implode.


But this one was different, it was a suggestion that instead of bailing out a bunch of people that made a bunch of big bad mistakes, that the government give the 700 billion to us the citizens of America to pay off our own debt, mortgages, student loans and such. By the emails’ reckoning, 700 billion spread out over approximately 200 million adults after taxes comes out to about $250k. I tell you, any candidate that managed to get that through would have my vote hands down. It’ll never happen of course but over the weekend I had pleasant thoughts of getting caught up in my bills and having way more than I would need to buy a little home out in the country or simply take some time off and write. Ah well back to the lotto.


So with all these things tying my stomach in knots I spent part of the weekend escaping the world by rearranging the furniture in my apartment and throwing out clothes that don’t fit any longer. I realize this isn’t a real exciting way to spend a weekend but sometimes in the midst of chaos, I for one, feel the need to straighten out my own home. It is at the moment immaculate.


I also took Saturday afternoon and went off to the upper east side to get a really great massage by a friend of mine who directed a show I was in last year. It was really relaxing and afterwards I took my time getting back home. I wandered through shops and stopped and read a magazine over cheap Chinese food, walked through the Park at dusk. SNL's parody of Palin and the debate was spot on and hilarious. It's amazing to me that I've been watching SNL since I was 12. That's a really long time.


Sunday I spent the evening watching General Hospital from last week and the new episodes of Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters. Both were pretty good although maybe it's because I'm so embroiled in real world politics, both seemed even more shallow and out of touch with reality than they usually do. I mean, most tv shows exist in another universe but specifically for Brothers and Sisters which has always prided itself on being political, for them to be so nutered is a little sad. It's kind of devolving into Dynasty bit by bit rather than be a 21st century 30-something which is what it started out to be.


But it was a pretty good bit of diversion at a time when I sure needed it.

Tip of the Iceberg

"You can't suspend the democratic process because we're having problems. At what point do we think then - 'maybe we should suspend the election? we'll just have the election later'.... Some people have done that before. Castro did it. Napolean did it. Julius Ceasar did it. You can't do that!" - Craig Fergusen, Late Late Show September 24th, 2008

7 Thoughts on a Thursday

1. It was a strange summer filled with learning new technology (my roommates flat screen, this new blog, my new phone) and frustrated by dealing with the old (various computer problems, Time Warner internet failures at home, losing my iPod Shuffle and having to buy a new one.. grr) ... wasn't technology supposed to make our lives easier, not harder?


2. I've let go of a few things in my life and by no small miracle, my back pain decreased significantly. Going to a chiropractor 9 times in three weeks helped also. As did learning to sit differently while on the computer. And stretching. And bike riding.


3. Saturday August 30th was one of the best days in my life.

I spent five hours riding the bike from W. 102nd down along the river to South Ferry, boarding a boat to Governor's Island, riding a lap there, and then resuming the ride along the southern edge of Manhattan and up along the lower east side until I got to E. 34th St when the bike path ended. Oh sure I could have ridden through city streets but I was a little over it.


Then, after getting home via subway, and two chicken empanadas later followed by a long hot shower, I spent the evening with my two best friends: the BF and Matt who was in for the weekend from San Francisco. Best. Day. In a long time!! (I was just sorry that the BF was ill all weekend..... :( :( :( :( )


4. I am in love with my bike. In addition to the bike ride I took initially in mid August, I also rode last Saturday the equivalent of about 15 miles and then on Labor Day rode up from where I live on W. 102nd Street up to 190th where the Cloisters are located (to have a picnic lunch with Jim, his boyfriend Bill and some of their friends).

The short term goal of riding the bike: to ride the entire perimeter of Manhattan (30 miles)... the long term goal: to ride the 100 miles from Jamaica Queens to Montauk (at the very end of Long Island). The ten miles from the town of Montauk to the lighthouse (which I've been to and is gorgeous) is pretty hilly... I don't know that I have the kind of bike to make those hills but I do want to do the 100 miles ... don't know if it'll be this autumn or next summer..... but I'll do it!


5. Both the DNC and RNC have worn me out on politics. Yeah she's got a nice rack. Yeah, he speaks eloquently. Yup he's a wonderful family man and sure, he's got military experience up the wazoo. But they're all liars, thieves and corrupt. Worst of all, none of 'em is worth a dime if all they can do is bitch about each other. Unfortunately we're stuck listening to them for the next 60 days and worse, we have to listen to all the crybaby reporters and commentators from all sides of the political spectrum whine and lie and bitch and moan about how this and that person isn't being fair. Honestly, it's like listening to four year old cry about graham crackers. At least you can put a four year old down for a nap. What are we supposed to do with grown men and women who express with relish the defeat and humiliation of another human being when they are supposed to be journalists who are reporting the news?

I wish they'd all just shut up and find another job. Thank God for the 'off' button on the television set.



6. On a brighter note, Laura Spencer is back on General Hospital and the scenes are watchable. Imagine. Material on GH that's actually interesting, plays to history, isn't focused on the mob and compels me to tune in every day... shocking!! Naturally the whole question of "is Lulu imagining that Laura is well or is Laura really recovering?" is a really great way to play with her return. Bravo!




7. I caught a few shows that I normally would not watch... and found some truly bizarre (and funny) stuff: The Girls Next Door (about three Playboy bunnies in Hef's mansion), Chelsea Lately (a smart talk show run by a female comic addressing issues of the day... a female Jon Stewart.. wish she filmed in NYC), and .. yes, I admit it, I watched the return of 90210 the other night.. yes it was somewhat watchable.

Dream a Little Dream

I should say here that I'm a Hillary supporter but feel that she really handed over the reigns this week at the convention and that I'm a little less reluctant about voting for Obama than I was. Granted, I could not would not vote for McCain but at least I feel a little better about my vote now than I did.


Tonight, as he accepts the nomination on the 45th anniversary of the "I Have A Dream" speech, the eyes of everyone in the world will be on him.. the fulfillment of that Dream.

I was but a fetus in my mother's womb at the time of the great I Have a Dream speech made on August 28th, 1963 but naturally I have heard bits and pieces of it throughout my life...

The first time I heard it was in what we now weirdly refer to as a 'mash up' wherein some smart cookie took the speeches of John and Bobby Kennedy, added in MLK's speech as well as news reports of their assasinations and wrapped a recording of "What the World Needs Now, Is Love Sweet Love". It touched me as a child and thinking of it touches me now.

Then, more recently, in 2001.... I kept hearing a song in the clubs that seemed to sample the speech but it wasn't until I visited a friend who worked in a mail boxes place in West Hollywood that I really "heard" it - a group called Moodswings sampled the speech throughout their popular dance hit. Powerful and emotional, the mix worked to make me well up. I asked my friend the name of the piece and the group so that I could go out that afternoon and buy it and he turned to the stereo system and ejected the cd out and put it into it's case and gave it to me. I had been having a kind of hard summer and that simple act of kindness really moved me.

However much it's moved me, I have to embarrassingly admit that I've never read the entire speech.. until today. It's moved me to waterworks again.

So, if you haven't read it, take a few minutes to look it over.. it might just restore your faith in what's possible as well.






Martin Luther King Speeches
I Have a Dream - Address at March on Washington
August 28, 1963. Washington, D.C.


I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation. [Applause]
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity.

But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize an appalling condition.

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations.

Some of you have come fresh from narrow cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into a situation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California!

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

The Big Picture

I’ll admit it. I’m a channel-changer. While I’m not the type that has to constantly scroll through all the channels in order to find a thirty second bit that he likes before moving on to the next channel, when it comes to big news events like this weeks Democratic National Convention, I channel change a lot in order to try to get a variety of viewpoints (usually the motivation for a new channel is when my blood starts boiling at some inept analysis).


So it happened that last night I ended up toggling between Thirteen’s (where I work during the day) coverage and MSNBC. On my cable system, they’re right next to each other and so it made it easy. I was enjoying watching and listening to Keith Olberman and Chris Matthews and the adjacent commentary by a panel of people that included an newly easy going Pat Buchanen who got admonished by his colleagues when he attempted to turn the discussion decidedly anti Obama. It was then, though, that I noticed that they were talking so much that they were talking over a pre-taped segment covering Michelle Obama’s history. Toggling back to Thirteen I got the whole video (and through the magic of DVR, I was able to ‘rewind’ to the beginning).. and that’s when I noticed it.


The screen looked less cluttered on PBS and I could see a full picture.


It’s funny how we get used to something. On the other stations (not just MSNBC) the news crawl at the bottom of the screen has become a part of the television news landscape since 9/11’s scattered news stories demanded a Wall Street ticker-like bombardment of updates to a chaotic swarm of concurrent events. But over the past few years it’s become ubiquitous and used unecessarily out of crisis.


Do Angelina Jolie’s children really need a news crawl? I swear I saw that on one a couple weeks ago.


Worse, though is how over the past few years the intrusion of too many graphics (most of the time they’re ads for products and other in-network shows) has gotten to be so bad that at times it’s hard to see the actual show behind all those dazzling, moving, colorful ads. They fly in and twirl and people now move about along the bottom of my television set, but I just want to see the actual show I’m watching. I get enough commercials. Yes, I’m aware of your show, but bombarding me with more ads while I’m trying to watch something else won’t get me to watch.. it’ll get me to turn the set off (which is ironically what people are doing .. and then the network guys sit in an office in Hollywood and scratch their heads wondering why people aren’t watching.. well, DUH!).


But anyway, back to the DNC coverage. As the graphics on MSNBC were covering up nearly a half of the screen, all I could think about was


1. how some poor camera guy and producer are sitting in the control booth trying to make sure that the framing is right so that what’s actually important gets seen, in this case, Michelle Obama


2. and. that I see now why there’s been a push towards larger TVs – not for that movie theatre ambience, but more importantly, so that there’s more screen to see the picture of, you know, the actual thing they’re showing.


I didn’t even realize how much of my screen was taken up by the logos and the ads of MSNCBC until I went to Thirteen and suddenly the picture area was huge. It’s like the 8 foot guy who’s sitting in front of me in the movie theatre finally got up to go to the bathroom and I can at last see what I want to see without having to look around someone’s head. That’s frustrating enough in a movie theatre but intolerable at home.


Anyway, I ended up staying put on Thirteen for the rest of the evening even though the sound quality was a little less than the other stations and even though a couple of the commentators on the post convention talk about really should have no future in news reporting or politics. One in particular I was aghast had little to no grasp of either how to speak on camera or solid political opinions. How do these people get these jobs anyway?


Tonight, Hillary Clinton speaks in what is sure to be the most talked about evening of television tomorrow and possible for some time to come. I’m pretty sure that I’ll just turn to Thirteen to begin with but you never know. The allure of that remote is sometimes too good to pass up.


This piece was originally posted on the Thirteen Facebook page, re-written slightly and then posted on www.ExtraCriticum.com in this, it's final form.

Today, June 16th, California starts issuing marriage licenses for same sex couples. An extremely good article outlining everything one would need to know about the subject is in this article from the L.A. Times. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/cal/la-me-marriageqa,0,1091535.story (Thanks Dennis for sending it!)


Disturbingly Wisconsin (my home state) prohibits gay marriage and even would fine people for being in a committed relationship.......


If I don't live in California, can I come to California and get married?


Yes, you do not have to live in California to marry here, and Massachusetts and New York state will recognize the marriages. Other states may not recognize the marriages, and some, including Wisconsin and Delaware, impose criminal penalties on its residents "if they enter a marriage outside the state that would have been prohibited in the state," such as gay marriage, according to a fact sheet posted on Lambda Legal's website.


The law in Wisconsin, for example, permits authorities to punish offenders with a fine of up to $10,000 and nine months imprisonment.


and another question that I loved... I don't think I realized just how many other places offered gay couples the right to marry until I saw this laid out:


My partner and I were married in Spain two years ago. Can we apply somehow to have our marriage recognized by the state? -- Chris


There is no need to register out-of-state or foreign marriages with California authorities. As of 5:01 p.m. June 16, California will automatically recognize same-sex marriages performed legally elsewhere. Massachusetts, Canada, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and South Africa grant gay marriages.

Bill Moyers hands out beat downs and lollipops, but whoops all out of lollipops!!

"Bill Moyers gave the keynote address at the National Conference for Media Reform this past weekend in Minneapolis, where more than 3500 participants gathered to discuss ways to bring more democracy to American media. "Democracy without honest information creates the illusion of popular consent while enhancing the power of the state and the privileged interests protected by it. Democracy without accountability creates the illusion of popular control while offering ordinary Americans only cheap tickets to the balcony, too far away to see that the public stage has become just a reality TV set," Moyers said. "Nothing more characterizes corporate media today, mainstream and partisan, than disdain toward the fragile nature of modern life and indifference toward the complex social debate required of a free and self-governing people." Among other speakers at the conference were Dan Rather and Arianna Huffington. At the conference, Moyers was confronted by a producer from the Fox News program, The O'Reilly Factor with Bill O’Reilly, who has long been antagonistic to both Moyers and public broadcasting. In a widely circulated video clip, Moyers is seen handling the ambush with humor and class."


See the original clip at http://www.thirteen.org/newsandpublicaffairs/moyers-on-the-media and then commentary at http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/06/08/fox-news-producer-ambushes-bill-moyers-gets-taste-of-his-own-medicine/