Apparently, I can take a 3 week trip that involves foreign countries, a work laptop, and flying over 15K miles with just two pieces of carry on, but for a 4 day weekend in Madison, I need to check a bag.
What is wrong with me?
I have discovered a new pet peeve that I never knew even existed until now.
People who cannot flip their brains from trees to forests — even when you explicitly ask them to think about the big picture — and continue to blithely discuss the implementation details of how instead of why deserve a face stabbing.
I can figure out how on my own. But your job is to explain why you’re experiencing your problems.
Tron BDU
Apparently Obama visited Fort Collins over the weekend but we didn’t notice because we were too busy playing in Fright Flight as the best costume evar.
Check out the rest of the Tron photos here: Fright Flight 2008
Costume champs
Sarah Palin and 2/5 kids, Budweiser Events Center
I’m sorry, I lied. I know I said I wasn’t going to blog about politics anymore, but events aligned against me, and I found myself with the (hopefully (only)) once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear Sarah Palin speak at a rally here in town. There was no possible way on this planet that I could have turned that offer down, short of me being dead.
Awaking to a dreary overcast day, I stood in front of my closet and contemplated carefully. At the time, my wardrobe for the day seemed of utmost importance. So many choices… Cowboy boots and hat? 100% denim, including jacket, shirt, and underwear? A vintage Sore/Loserman shirt from ‘00? In the end, I went with bootcut jeans, a faded navy-blue Mobil gas station t-shirt, and a brown Carhartt hoodie. Work horse all the way, ain’t no show horses ’round these parts neither.
one of Larimer county’s finest, mounted
My good buddy TDB had scored two tickets to the big show, but he wasn’t able to take a large break in the middle of his day, so I was flying without a wingman today. TDB stressed that I needed my ID and was rambled about the Secret Service. Duly impressed, I experienced yet another round of vapor-lock. My U.S. passport was proof of my citizenship; important, I thought, in case the SS didn’t like my “furriner” looks and wanted to put me on the fast track to Gitmo. On the other hand, Sarah herself had just gotten a passport a mere 18 months ago, and I didn’t want to show up a potential future veep. I hedged and stuck the passport in my back pocket, but only in case my Colorado license didn’t work during the first round of interrogation.
A quick trip down I-25 to the Loveland exit, and I immediately encountered one of the main themes for the day: traffic. TDB had mentioned getting there early, like before 10:30, but with the event scheduled to begin at noon, I’d gambled on the contrarian approach, thinking everyone else was going to get there early, so I would show up late, wait minimally, and zoom inside, soon to be enthralled by the thrilla from Wasilla. The problem with gambling is that the odds are usually stacked against you, and this case was no different. I heard a rumour later that the McCain field office had handed out twice as many tickets as the arena could actually hold, and if you asked me, the entire 2nd arena was waiting on the on-ramp, in the parking lot, and in the field outside the arena. Ugh.
The line to get in was literally several thousand people long and snaked across the field 10 or 12 times. Movement was glacial (n.b. if Sarah-cuda gets her way, your grandchildren will have no idea what that metaphor means).
It was 11:30. And freezing. But in for a penny, in for a pound, and so I just sat back and enjoyed the people watching. Therein came insight #1. Palin has been widely derided as a horrible, cynical, pandering choice. Love her or leave her though, her energizing power is undeniable. The air buzzed, folk chattered excitedly. McCain’s choice was canny. He knew no one could possibly be excited for yet another ticket featuring two aging lions looking to check off the last item on their bucket list — not against his current competition. McCain / Lieberman would have been DOA, independent of Joe’s opinion on abortion. Palin at least gives McCain a fighting chance. Not bad John, not bad at all.
sarah #1
Time ticked inexorably onward, and the crowd trudged along; a not-insignificant portion were attrited away by cold, hunger, and loss of morale. Not yours truly; I was in til the bitter end. Our lifeblood was rumour, hungry for any scrap of information from the radioed volunteers. “She’s delayed an hour.” “Two.” “She’ll speak in the overflow building.” “They’ll bring speakers and a screen out.” As well, agonizing shreds of antagonistic data: “She’s already speaking.” “She only has 20 minutes of material.” “She has to be in Grand Junction by 4.”
Entrepreneurs worked the line, but all had missed the brass ring: blankets, hot cocoa, hot cakes would have sold like… hot cakes. Live and learn, I suppose.
A conservative wave of humanity poured out the arena doors and hearts were crushed. Toasty revelers with trophy posters heckled us saps still in queue. “What are you still waiting in line for?” The response — “the bathroom” — was unfunny, even if you were there, but still we laughed because it hurt less. Faithfully, dutifully, we continued to file into the overflow building.
The Secret Service could learn the TSA a thing or two. Shoes stayed on, jackets remained. Keys, phones, wallets, watches all remained on our person as we passed through the metal detecting threshold. Bags were checked quickly but thoroughly. Real security, no theater. What a contrast to O’Hare.
Warmth. And hot dogs. Escaping the elements was splendid.
A cheer arose. Again. Again. Waves pulsed through us, the collective, and we strained for a glimpse of the pit bull. Sarah worked the crowd and of a sudden, appeared on stage. Waving, smiling, she launched over her two-minute drill talking points. “We’re not here to spread the wealth, we’re here to spread the opportunity.” A shout out to the local club hockey team, the Eagles. The mic passed to Todd who urged us to get our hunting and fishing buddies out for the vote. One of her daughters thanked us for letting them come. A few thousand frenetic clicks, billions of pixels snatched out of the air, shoved into memory cards and sticks and drives, and then it was over.
Anti-climax is the worst.
NO SOCIALISM.
What was I looking for today? Irony? Humour? Arguably I started on a high horse. Maybe I was secretly hoping to see people scream “sieg heil” or “kill him” so I could go back to the safety and comfort of my friend group, smugly confident and happy to confirm that yes, Palin fans were idiots and bigots and horrible people.
But that’s not what I saw and it’s not what I heard. Rather, I heard plenty of Joe Plumbers and Meriam Hairdressers express sophisticated concerns regarding philosophy of government. The impromptu conversations struck revolved around tax philosophy, the role of government and personal responsibility, and what sorts of social safety nets were appropriate and who was going to pay for them. Not once did anyone mention any so-called culture war issues, nor race nor sly innuendo to terrorist associations. Despite what the Daily Show crowd think, middle America is much smarter than its commonly accorded credit.
And that’s insight #2. No matter which ticket wins in November, it’s not going to be the end of the world. The American electorate can and should be trusted to do the right thing. If McCain/Palin win (and let’s be clear, I sincerely hope they do not), it won’t be due to latent racism or pro-lifers or evangelicals or any other number of possible conspiracies; it will come down to Reagan vs. Roosevelt economics, and what our electorate wants more.
And if you can’t reconcile that in your mind, please — by all means, move to Canada.
this button was definitely worth $5
chainring detail
I’ve been obsessed recently with the 100 Thing Challenge. I don’t think I’ll ever actually make it down to 100 — home ownership means you accumulate stuff like crazy — but I’m trying my damnedest.
Every time I post in the “for free” section on craigslist and watch someone come take yet another Thing away, I’m lightened and exhilarated. Truly, it’s amazing.
If you want to play along at home, you can periodically check in on my flickr set that shows what I’m giving away: alex’s for sale.
Today was a bittersweet day in my quest. I saw a beautiful fixie for sale and I couldn’t resist. The $350 asking price seemed a bit steep so I turned my creative juices on, and proposed a trade: I gave the guy 3 of my bikes + $100 cash in exchange for the new bike. The two cruisers I traded were great bikes, very unique, but surprisingly, the hardest bike to give up was a hidden gem.
Trading away my venerable Trek 7600 commuter makes me wistful. I’ve put 7,200 miles on that bike since 2001 and she’s never treated me wrong. She was the ultimate commuter, outfitted with a great light kit, rack, panniers, burly 700×35c puncture proof tires, an Alex rear wheel, SPDs with a platform on one side for sandal riding, and a corncob rear cog that was perfect for zooming around town. I’ll miss you, milady.
And now? I’ve got a new yellow fixie that’s heaps fun to ride. And a realization that a man does not need 6 bicycles. (He only needs 4.)
If you’re like me (which I assume you are, since you’re reading my blog), you’re probably fatigued from campaign overdose. It’s not just the TV or radio ads; somehow, this election is special and this year’s presidential campaign is crushingly pervasive. From technology aggregators to your friends’ facebook feeds that announce “Laura joined Fifty Trillion strong for the Messiah” you just can’t get away from it.
So my apologies in advance for adding to the noise. I’m going to write just this one leetle post regarding the presidential stuff and call it good.
Matt Taibbi is over the top in his Mad Dog Palin editorial in Rolling Stone. But, if you can separate out the wheat from the chaff, you eventually get to this good paragraph:
The great insight of the Palin VP choice is that huge chunks of American voters no longer even demand that their candidates actually have policy positions; they simply consume them as media entertainment, rooting for or against them according to the reflexive prejudices of their demographic, as they would for reality-show contestants or sitcom characters. Hicks root for hicks, moms for moms, born-agains for born-agains.
It’s an important point, and one that I agree with. Unfortunately, if you read that Taibbi piece and found yourself cheering on his vitriol, congratulations! you’ve just unwittingly committed exactly the same sort of intellectual laziness that the Palin-supporters are stereotyped for.
Suzanne Garment’s best point during her Palin-Biden debate analysis:
Palin’s voice was high, perky, earnest, naive, twangy, aw-shucks and altogether unreflective of the weariness, ironies ambiguities that we expect from a leader who has seen and understood the world.
That was what Palin’s voice sounded like to cosmopolitans. Clearly, it did not sound that way to much of the country. Lots of Americans actually talk the way Palin talks.
Indeed they do. And the inability for the “liberal elite” to understand that fact is slightly maddening to me, because the misunderstanding usually comes along with a healthy scoop of superiority as well. Ignorance and close-mindedness are equally distributed on both sides of the aisle.
John Meacham writes a nice editorial titled The Palin Problem and makes a devastating point:
Palin is on the ticket because she connects with everyday Americans. [...] But that honest explanation of the rationale for her candidacy raises an important question. Do we want leaders who are everyday folks, or do we want leaders who understand everyday folks? Therein lies an enormous difference [...]
Obviously, Meacham is saying that Palin is an everday folk. And whether she actually is or is not makes not one whit of difference because perception is reality and there is a significant portion of our country’s population that wants an everyday folk in high office.
As my political ideology matures, I’m increasingly thinking that we need to take a Just Say No! stance towards populism. Colorado has horrible constitutional amendments that are causing real budget problems because it’s so easy to cram just about anything onto a state-level ballot.
A story in Rolling Stone titled Make-Believe Maverick is a semi-hatchet job on McCain, but if you read between the lines and with a liberal dosage of salt, it does cast more than a little doubt onto the true character of the man. Which is a kinda important point, considering a large plank in his platform is his character.
I was a fan of the McCain story during the 2000 election and during the 2008 Republican primaries, when I didn’t know much about him, and he wasn’t doing crazy things like suspending his campaign to “help” solve the bailout or making cynical VP choices. The media often make references to McCain’s famous temper but never really gives any backstory to what’s going on. Dickinson’s article, clearly slanted and not to be taken as gospel, does help you get a little closer to what the true story might be, and even if it’s somewhere in the middle, the idea of McCain as CINC makes me pretty uncomfortable.
Finally, if you can’t get your fill on campaign status updates, you need to read http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/. The tagline is “electoral projections done right” and I’m inclined to agree.
Ok, that’s enough — I promise to not blog about the presidential race anymore.
[The Colorado ballot has about 10 or 12 new amendments up for vote, and I plan on spewing a bit on those. ;)]
Peter Norvig has an election FAQ. My favourite part were these two charts that place into context what McCain and Palin have been harping on.
Above are the earmarks that McCain was so angry about in the first debate.
Below is describes the offshore drilling that Palin hopes will bring energy independence to America.
Read Norvig’s FAQ and decide for yourself. There are lots more good graphs there, including a nice one on taxes.
the agony of desire, Baja Peninsula, Mexico
My blatant rip-off of Tyler’s “best sentence I read today” meme comes from Tyler himself today as he answers what will happen with the dollar?:
Bush, Bernanke, Paulson — we call them leaders. The Chinese think of them as the customer service department.
Dear Film Actor’s Guild,
Please remind me why I should listen to you, considering you are famous because you can memorize someone else’s thoughts. I will say that you are the prettiest huffaz I’ve seen.
I thought “rocking the vote” went out of vogue at the same time as “cowabunga”.