Big fat uninteresting update: Obama won the American Cup of Soul Stirring

Firstly, like all unfocused blogs, this one too must fizzle out. I think it was because I read an article 3 weeks ago which basically said...If you're thinking of starting a blog, don't. If you already have one, consider not having one. Something about how blogs used to be an amazing thing...anyone could write their opinions and anyone could read them. The blogosphere, the blogosphere!!! But unfortunately, big sites and “real” news sites have started their own blogs...and who can compete with reputable institutions?
Anyway, I think that was the gist. I don't remember and I can't look it up, because I'm in Dulles airport with no wi-fi! And hence, the big fat uninteresting update.

(*got the article!)

Things that have happened recently: duh.
Obama.

DC, voting 93% blue for the presidential race, was a crazy place to be that night. Screaming, dancing, jumping, honking, hugging, drinking and more all in the streets. I'm glad I got to experience that. It was a strange feeling though.

I definitely did not feel the raw emotion that others were experiencing; I merely fed off of their exuberance. At first I thought there was something wrong with being a democrat and not weeping, but it really just had to do with the company you keep. Or maybe I am different.

Talking to Beck last night, I was reassured that someone (namely, close high school friends and their friends) felt exactly the same way I did: Okay, Obama was the better candidate. That's cool. Damn, it got called early. I guess I'll go now. I had no desire to change my away message, facebook status, or to drive in the streets cheering. The only other time I had experienced such madness was in Germany during the World Cup. (Or perhaps when Yale finally won The Game after a drought?) Which then led me into a critical downward spiral in which I was mad at everything, and felt the need to become a rabid irrational ranting devil's advocate. Good intentions, but I may have come off a bit strong. To those in my warpath, I'm sorry. I get like this every election, and since my friends seem to all be democrats, I come off as touting conservative propaganda. I still believe that the most important Obama has done is stir interest in our generation in the power of democracy and voting, and also for gathering supporters in a manner like religion.

But that was sooooo yesterday.

Today: the US Presidential Election as sport.

Since the election is called a contest, there is no challenge in drawing this comparison with a sporting event. But as long as I'm ranting, here's why I came to this thought. I'm jealous of how deeply people are moved by his election to power, and I don't... “get” it.

My coworkers were chatting and brought up how they don't “get” sports. This does not bother me at all. I also don't get sports in that I don't get being a die hard fan. I am a general fan, and I do like watching them when they're on TV if I remotely like a team. I like sports because all you have to do is learn the rules...and then all of a sudden, all events of that type are open to your enjoyment and engrossment.

The election, to some, must've been the greatest, most easiest to understand sporting event there was. No, the issues to be dealt with were not easy to understand...but rather (for the purposes of only the presidential election after the primaries) the rules. Once the Dem and Republican nominees are set. there are no divisions, leagues, and wild card positions to keep track of, no cross referencing of teams whose offense will do great against this team's defense, and win even if they are far lower ranked. The election is a gigantic, drawn out, final championship game. A single several month-long dance off between two main competitors (and Perot, perhaps) in which you are the judge. Omgiosh. Yes. You. You know how subjective figure skating judging is? Technical score, artistic score...you choose whatever you care about (Did they stumble? Was it fluid? Was it an engaging performance? Did they do the right moves at the right times?) and you vote. There are debates to showcase some skills, but overall, it's just a feeling. Those are the rules. Go with your gut.

Once I realized that much, I realized that maybe the election just wasn't the sport for me. I like baseball and football since they're reasonably slow to multitask to without missing too many plays, basketball and hockey are good with beer. Golf is good, well, never, and tennis is good when I'm in the mood.

The presidential election wasn't it for me. And it is for other people. I guess I'll just have to remember that even the slight happiness I get when I randomly watch the underdog of any given baseball game win (so basically the Washington Nationals) is infinitely higher than those who don't enjoy it at all. And that maybe next time, I'll just chill with a beer with a few friends. Just like how I spend my favorite sporting events.

link/video/everything dump

Long overdue posts. I have drafts of text-y posts, but those aren't fun, are they? :-) Maybe some other time.

Everything I've liked, seen and rememebered, heard...

• 7th graders tell it straight. You can vote however you like. (via my officemate) I sort of wanted this election to be over, but I also want more songs like this.
  
  
  
  
• Top 10 Embarassing Halloween Costumes. Is the YPMB going to Halloween Parade this year? Or ever again?
  
  
• Gimme my Guinea! A new tumblr I made dedicated to guinea pigs. :-)
  
  
  

Other than that, my blogging equilibrium has shifted back to tumblr. Hmm!
I suspect it shall shift again. Like the seasons! Okay in a weird mood and sort of stressed about my schedule and stuff. Being out of town so much does not help with my docket! Well, helps in some ways, but not in others...the PTO production system makes no sense.

in honor of forcing myself to watch the VP debates

Guess what's gonna happen now? Diana is gonna write tangentially about politics, sound stupid, but doesn't care. YAY!

So hey guys. I am not voting Republican. I agree that Palin is not as qualified of a VP. But as usual, I get sick really easily of constant nonconstructive bashing. I don't mean the Tina Fey business since they make fun of everyone. I mean the consistent barrage of snarky comments. I know I should phase it out, and that there are people who actually are deeply, truly angered as far as they know. But a lot of people aren't. They're just kicking someone when they're down.

This opinion piece that was sent to me gave me faith that someone feels the same way that I do. I don't quite buy the "McCain is sexist" sentiment, but I do feel that we have to give Palin credit for even attempting this hard road till November.

My point is that, Sarah Palin never struck me as stupid. When she talked about not backpacking across Europe and working her whole life, beneath the dumb anti-intellectual dig, I saw a gem of truth. I wish she had have mined it, instead of trying to score a cheap point. Rambling aside, she simply isn't ready. Maybe she would be eight years from now, but she isn't ready now, any campaign worth its salt would have known this.

It's true that she could have turned down the nomination, but somehow, I get the feeling that didn't seem like an option. If I were sitting as a newly elected governor in the non-contiguous United States, and someone asked me to be his running mate, I think I would be equally as unprepared. She's been learning over the past 5 weeks what's expected of her, how she's supposed to act, how she's not supposed to say "darn right" that much, and for on the job super-stressful training, I'd say she's doing alright.

Am I the only person who thinks she's closer to a normal person than the rest of the candidates? I don't mean "most like us" or "true American"...I just mean...abnormally normal. So she sounds dumb sometimes. Maybe has strong opinions that us liberals really really really whooooa there DO NOT agree with. But that's what normal people are like! You get nervous before interviews. You don't speak as much double talk (and speak more lines that are fed to you) and you speak about the little you know about. She's not your average lifelong politician. Thus far in her career, she's in the "hey, I make a good figurehead and I'm probably smart enough to lead the population of X" phase. X is not yet America as a whole. And my point is once again, that it's not her fault. So if somehow I could get everyone to agree, could we please not take cheap shots at her public speaking? And also at her family? Since when can parents control their kids. Honestly now. Go look outside.

don't let me get you

I'm not sure if this made a splash when it came out a long while ago, but I only recently heard the song "Dear Mr. President" by P!nk (featuring Indigo Girls?)



Let me start with this statement. I hate this song. You guys know I ain't no Bush supporter. But all it does it blame Bush for all of the problems in the world, as if he's some cruel God that could instantly fix things if he wanted to, which he isn't, and thus this song isn't constructive at all. It's really accusatory on his character, and not critiquing his administration. (And given the US President's celebrity-like status, who's to say we even know what his character and personality is like? Everything is overinflated in the media.)

I just generally don't like it when things are done just to make a stir or an overdramatic statement, when it will clearly not achieve anything (but a lot of far-left Bush haters to buy her CD).

I find that the only times I ever really speak out on an issue is when people come down to the level of flashy strong comments. After Bush won the election in 2004, I saw panlists erupt in Democratic despair, where people would post comments in the vein of "lets go to canada" and "sh** why is America so retarded?" and many references to bumblef*** America. I'm sure the Republicans on those panlists weren't offended at all.

Anyway, it might just be because I'm more centrist/moderate than the average liberal, but this goes in my cheap-shot/tasteless category. Used to like you more, P!nk.

PS - speaking of tasteless, did anyone find the post women's gymnastics team final interview with Alicia Sacramone to be tasteless, cruel, and unnecessary? You know what I'm talking about if you do...

it's a joke

Prank your friends...

the telly told me so

"I go into this little restaurant with that [rich, white] demographic and a lady comes up to me and says, `You know, I want to vote for you,"' he said. "I don't know if it is a joke or that people just like to say those things. But to me, for them to say it out loud means they are thinking about it."

CNN article here.

I've actually never really got into 24. I sure hope none of the suggestions were serious. Not that I probably couldn't find and really start to believe that a Stewart-Colbert ticket would've been pretty sweet, but mostly for the campaigning and debates.

Anyway, I'm not sure if his portrayal of a president really helped the country get ready for a non-white male president, but I suppose it didn't hurt. Did I already mention Obama is black? I think we need a Denzel Washington endorsement. I hear white people like him.

to hear a pin flop

CNN article here.

"Obama has been defending his patriotism ever since the beginning of the primary season, when he was first criticized for not wearing a flag pin -- which he now does much more frequently -- and when false rumors began circulating that he did not say the Pledge of Allegiance.

A widely distributed photo also seemed to show him failing to place his hand over his heart during a rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner.""

So how many people actually believe this to be an important sign of character?

No offense. Unfortunately, I just lack opinion in general so this seems crazy. Explain please! :-)

quality, not quantity!

I like it when things are dumbed down and an easy read. :-) This is a pretty good explanation and comparison about why McCain's experience as a US Senator and Obama's experience as a state legislator are...well, not really easy to compare.

Are You Experienced?

The day to day jobs and the skill set are probably more different than you thought they were. Neither is more or less important than the other, but which do you value?

Obama is black

As we all know, Barack Obama, is not white. Not purely anyway. I personally don't really want to call him black, but for lack of a better term, he self-describes himself as such. (I don't have strong political reasons at all for not saying black, but why are asian-white half breeds endearingly called halfies, while there is no distinction for most any other race/ethnicity?)

My officemate sent me a link to this video so I could join in on the anger and annoyance she experienced when watching it. It's some independent interviewers talking to people, mostly Clinton supporters, on what they'd do if Obama were the democratic candidate. (Yeah, this post is a bit old.)



I don't what to say or even what not to say about this video. There's so much to dig into and be perturbed about. I've decided not to particularly bash these people because I have been found blissfully ignorant about things (albeit topics far less tragic, like which finger the engagement ring goes on). Fine, some people just haven't been exposed to and educated in the same way most of us have. (The way that democrats and republicans just don't understand each other and assume our respective beliefs to be pure fact is for another day.)

Was gonna tie in some stuff from the interview on Jimmy Kimmel yesterday before Game 5 of the NBA finals, but right now I should get back to work. :-) It was cute, and light-hearted, with a few moments of things that fall on the "good" side of the spectrum of racism. :-) Firstly, as my friend Mike was apt to point out that it was a black guy being interviewed about basketball before a big game. He must be an expert, right? Also a pretty sweet clip of Obama playing basketball. Also his mention that in Hawaii where he was part of a HS championship team, the people of asian descent made it easy for him to be pretty much one of the tallest in the league. Also the fist pound at the end of the interview. Woo. Here's the interview. Obama's smile has won me over.



"Do you think that if the Lakers come back that it might encourage Hilary to come back too?"

Hehe.

predestination

With primary season finally coming to a close, and a democratic nomination finally on the horizon, a question comes to mind. All I keep hearing is how Clinton has a majority of blue collar workers, and Obama owns the "college-educated" vote. Sometimes I wonder if this correlation has been overemphasized.

If you were an undecided voter, and you kept hearing about the "educated" voters choosing Obama over Clinton, what preconception would you hold? Maybe you'd want to join this league of elite and intelligent people, who must know something great about Obama that you don't. At the very least, if you "choose" Obama then you must have more in common with these college educated voters and be smart yourself.

I'm sure this has no actual bearing on the outcomes of the elections, but I feel that the intelligent college educated bandwagon crowd is probably bigger than whatever the opposite would be -- perhaps some sort of...proud to be a child of or be one of the blue collar working class group of people? It's possible.

Why I chose not to vote

Voter turnout is almost as important an issue in itself as the issues we're voting for.

And thus, welcome to possibly the most "contraversial" post of my life.

I did not vote in this year's Democratic primary.

It was not
...because I don't understand the power of the vote, how it is the easiest and in some ways only voice of a citizen that cannot be ignored, and how important it is to vote for the whole system to function.
...because I forgot.
...because I don't care about this year's election.
...because I'm lazy.
...because I did not have access to information about each candidate's stances and understand them. (I suppose that's up for debate.)

It was because I couldn't choose.

I realize I could have shown up and been uncommitted, but I was pretty sure if I went or I filled out that absentee ballot I'd choose someone. And at that point that'd just be a completely random vote, a statistical nightmare.

You're thinking:
WHAT A DUMB REASON!

You know, I'd be the first to agree with you. I'm a notoriously indecisive person and also self-proclaimed to be politically ignorant. Clearly, I don't understand the depth and intricacies of the issues. But here's another question...who really does? Nowhere on your ballot is a quiz of who supports what, and what impact taxes or medicare or Iraq will have on your lives and the lives of everyone around you and around the world. People vote because they want to, have a strong opinion however it's based (even if it's on a reggaeton song from Amigos de Obama).

I'm neither far to the left nor the right. I'm young, and therefore seemingly prone to be liberal...and I am. But I identify myself as a moderate. I took this election to be like any other bit of conflict or discussion...I choose my battles. I will let those who feel passionately about who they want as their representative in the presidential race, and not interfere. Also, somehow since it was down to 2 big runners, things were less clean cut than before. (Diversity and choice of all kinds are good!)

I agree--this is a pretty dumb thing to have to explain. And though I said the reason wasn't because I was lazy, I suppose others would at least characterize this as apathetic. I'm just trying to slant it a bit towards a more thoughtful decision. Though I don't mind being called apathetic...it's quite possible that "apathetic" is the single most descriptive adjective of my being.

Will I vote in the presidential election? Yes. Very yes.