COUNTING DOWN...
Over the past few hours, I've busily been tying things off for the new year: ran some errands, wrote a grant application, paid for a prostitute, stiffed said prostitute, and replaced the headlamp on my car.
I've been putting that off for months, because the unholy Mazda 626 does not make changing a headlight as easy as it should be. With my old Volvo, changing the headlight took about ten seconds. It was always aimed crooked, but it was a fast process. With the Mazda, I had to screw off the air intake valve. What the fuck is that? Anyway, I had tio perform impromptu surgery to repair one of the connections, but otherwise,mission accomplished. Bring on the new year.
This was post 999. I'm cooking up something special for the millennial posting, so keep your eyes open for it later tonight or tomorrow.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Friday, December 28, 2007
While visitng my family in South Carolina, I discovered my nephew's toy stash included a lot of my old toy stash from the 80's. He's welcome to most of it, but I just had to reclaim Darkseid here for myself, especially after Jameson broke off the left arm right in front of me. A little superglue, and it looks just fine. I'm glad to have it back -- this is one toy I thought was gone forever.
OUR MOMENT IS NOW
I don't believe I have many Iowa readers -- or any, for that matter. I was a political science major in college, a misnomer if there ever was one, since politics is more about art and speculation. And so I developed a healthy cynicism for the sausage-making of our democracy. As an anarchist, I don't even like to vote, because like WEB Dubois, I feel that taking part legitimizes an abrogation of our freedom and responsibilities. But you can bet I'm voting this year. After eight years of historic incompetence, we need to use every tool at our disposal to fix things. We need someone to fix Iraq, or whatever the word is for what needs to happen there. We need to fix the military, whose members are currently the only group subject to a draft. We need to fix our government, which has mobilized itself at best to reward waste and incompetence, and insulate the president.
In 2004, the Democrats nominated John Kerry, out of misguided theories of electability and a belief that everyone hated Bush as much as they did. In short, they nominated Bob Dole. I made that observation several times in 2004, but not on the blog, so I can't prove it. Now Hillary Clinton has the buzz as the safe choice, for reasons I can't quite understand.
Now is the time to vote without fear, or anger, or thoughts of revenge. The policy wonk in me hates to say it, but we need to vote our hopes. Any reader of this blog knows I lack respect for most on the Right -- and on the Left as well. That's all fine, because I'm not running the country. It's time for a leader for the entire country.
We don't need another president who freely sneers at the people of Massachusetts. We don't need a president who will pay back the right for Bill Clinton's impeachment. Conservatives like Obama, because he listens to them, and greets their policy differences with respect. I've had enough of a president who rolls his eyes as the opposition. The United States doesn't need payback for eight years of delusional wingnuttery. We need to repair. And we need to work together to do it. Vote Obama.
Des Moines, IA | December 27, 2007
Ten months ago, I stood on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois, and began an unlikely journey to change America.
I did not run for the presidency to fulfill some long-held ambition or because I believed it was somehow owed to me. I chose to run in this election - at this moment - because of what Dr. King called "the fierce urgency of now." Because we are at a defining moment in our history. Our nation is at war. Our planet is in peril. Our health care system is broken, our economy is out of balance, our education system fails too many of our children, and our retirement system is in tatters.
At this defining moment, we cannot wait any longer for universal health care. We cannot wait to fix our schools. We cannot wait for good jobs, and living wages, and pensions we can count on. We cannot wait to halt global warming, and we cannot wait to end this war in Iraq.
I chose to run because I believed that the size of these challenges had outgrown the capacity of our broken and divided politics to solve them; because I believed that Americans of every political stripe were hungry for a new kind of politics, a politics that focused not just on how to win but why we should, a politics that focused on those values and ideals that we held in common as Americans; a politics that favored common sense over ideology, straight talk over spin.
Most of all, I believed in the power of the American people to be the real agents of change in this country - because we are not as divided as our politics suggests; because we are a decent, generous people willing to work hard and sacrifice for future generations; and I was certain that if we could just mobilize our voices to challenge the special interests that dominate Washington and challenge ourselves to reach for something better, there was no problem we couldn't solve - no destiny we couldn't fulfill.
Ten months later, Iowa, you have vindicated that faith. You've come out in the blistering heat and the bitter cold not just to cheer, but to challenge - to ask the tough questions; to lift the hood and kick the tires; to serve as one place in America where someone who hasn't spent their life in the Washington spotlight can get a fair hearing.
You've earned the role you play in our democracy because no one takes it more seriously. And I believe that's true this year more than ever because, like me, you feel that same sense of urgency.
All across this state, you've shared with me your stories. And all too often they've been stories of struggle and hardship.
I've heard from seniors who were betrayed by CEOs who dumped their pensions while pocketing bonuses, and from those who still can't afford their prescriptions because Congress refused to negotiate with the drug companies for the cheapest available price.
I've met Maytag workers who labored all their lives only to see their jobs shipped overseas; who now compete with their teenagers for $7-an-hour jobs at Wal-Mart.
I've spoken with teachers who are working at donut shops after school just to make ends meet; who are still digging into their own pockets to pay for school supplies.
Just two weeks ago, I heard a young woman in Cedar Rapids who told me she only gets three hours of sleep because she works the night shift after a full day of college and still can't afford health care for a sister with cerebral palsy. She spoke not with self-pity but with determination, and wonders why the government isn't doing more to help her afford the education that will allow her to live out her dreams.
I've spoken to veterans who talk with pride about what they've accomplished in Afghanistan and Iraq, but who nevertheless think of those they've left behind and question the wisdom of our mission in Iraq; the mothers weeping in my arms over the memories of their sons; the disabled or homeless vets who wonder why their service has been forgotten.
And I've spoken to Americans in every corner of the state, patriots all, who wonder why we have allowed our standing in the world to decline so badly, so quickly. They know this has not made us safer. They know that we must never negotiate out of fear, but that we must never fear to negotiate with our enemies as well as our friends. They are ashamed of Abu Graib and Guantanamo and warrantless wiretaps and ambiguity on torture. They love their country and want its cherished values and ideals restored.
It is precisely because you've experience these frustrations, and seen the cost of inaction in your own lives, that you understand why we can't afford to settle for the same old politics. You know that we can't afford to allow the insurance lobbyists to kill health care reform one more time, and the oil lobbyists to keep us addicted to fossil fuels because no one stood up and took their power away when they had the chance.
You know that we can't afford four more years of the same divisive food fight in Washington that's about scoring political points instead of solving problems; that's about tearing your opponents down instead of lifting this country up.
We can't afford the same politics of fear that tells Democrats that the only way to look tough on national security is to talk, act, and vote like George Bush Republicans; that invokes 9/11 as a way to scare up votes instead of a challenge that should unite all Americans to defeat our real enemies.
We can't afford to be so worried about losing the next election that we lose the battles we owe to the next generation.
The real gamble in this election is playing the same Washington game with the same Washington players and expecting a different result. And that's a risk we can't take. Not this year. Not when the stakes are this high.
In this election, it is time to turn the page. In seven days, it is time to stand for change.
This has been our message since the beginning of this campaign. It was our message when we were down, and our message when we were up. And it must be catching on, because in these last few weeks, everyone is talking about change.
But you can't at once argue that you're the master of a broken system in Washington and offer yourself as the person to change it. You can't fall in line behind the conventional thinking on issues as profound as war and offer yourself as the leader who is best prepared to chart a new and better course for America.
The truth is, you can have the right kind of experience and the wrong kind of experience. Mine is rooted in the real lives of real people and it will bring real results if we have the courage to change. I believe deeply in those words. But they are not mine. They were Bill Clinton's in 1992, when Washington insiders questioned his readiness to lead.
My experience is rooted in the lives of the men and women on the South Side of Chicago who I fought for as an organizer when the local steel plant closed. It's rooted in the lives of the people I stood up for as a civil rights lawyer when they were denied opportunity on the job or justice at the voting booth because of what they looked like or where they came from. It's rooted in an understanding of how the world sees America that I gained from living, traveling, and having family beyond our shores - an understanding that led me to oppose this war in Iraq from the start. It's experience rooted in the real lives of real people, and it's the kind of experience Washington needs right now.
There are others in this race who say that this kind of change sounds good, but that I'm not angry or confrontational enough to get it done.
Well, let me tell you something, Iowa. I don't need any lectures on how to bring about change, because I haven't just talked about it on the campaign trail. I've fought for change all my life.
I walked away from a job on Wall Street to bring job training to the jobless and after school programs to kids on the streets of Chicago.
I turned down the big money law firms to win justice for the powerless as a civil rights lawyer.
I took on the lobbyists in Illinois and brought Democrats and Republicans together to expand health care to 150,000 people and pass the first major campaign finance reform in twenty-five years; and I did the same thing in Washington when we passed the toughest lobbying reform since Watergate. I'm the only candidate in this race who hasn't just talked about taking power away from lobbyists, I've actually done it. So if you want to know what kind of choices we'll make as President, you should take a look at the choices we made when we had the chance to bring about change that wasn't easy or convenient.
That's the kind of change that's more than just rhetoric - that's change you can believe in.
It's change that won't just come from more anger at Washington or turning up the heat on Republicans. There's no shortage of anger and bluster and bitter partisanship out there. We don't need more heat. We need more light. I've learned in my life that you can stand firm in your principles while still reaching out to those who might not always agree with you. And although the Republican operatives in Washington might not be interested in hearing what we have to say, I think Republican and independent voters outside of Washington are. That's the once-in-a-generation opportunity we have in this election.
For the first time in a long time, we have the chance to build a new majority of not just Democrats, but Independents and Republicans who've lost faith in their Washington leaders but want to believe again - who desperately want something new.
We can change the electoral math that's been all about division and make it about addition - about building a coalition for change and progress that stretches through Blue States and Red States. That's how I won some of the reddest, most Republican counties in Illinois. That's why the polls show that I do best against the Republicans running for President - because we're attracting more support from Independents and Republicans than any other candidate. That's how we'll win in November and that's how we'll change this country over the next four years.
In the end, the argument we are having between the candidates in the last seven days is not just about the meaning of change. It's about the meaning of hope. Some of my opponents appear scornful of the word; they think it speaks of naivete, passivity, and wishful thinking.
But that's not what hope is. Hope is not blind optimism. It's not ignoring the enormity of the task before us or the roadblocks that stand in our path. Yes, the lobbyists will fight us. Yes, the Republican attack dogs will go after us in the general election. Yes, the problems of poverty and climate change and failing schools will resist easy repair. I know - I've been on the streets, I've been in the courts. I've watched legislation die because the powerful held sway and good intentions weren't fortified by political will, and I've watched a nation get mislead into war because no one had the judgment or the courage to ask the hard questions before we sent our troops to fight.
But I also know this. I know that hope has been the guiding force behind the most improbable changes this country has ever made. In the face of tyranny, it's what led a band of colonists to rise up against an Empire. In the face of slavery, it's what fueled the resistance of the slave and the abolitionist, and what allowed a President to chart a treacherous course to ensure that the nation would not continue half slave and half free. In the face of war and Depression, it's what led the greatest of generations to free a continent and heal a nation. In the face of oppression, it's what led young men and women to sit at lunch counters and brave fire hoses and march through the streets of Selma and Montgomery for freedom's cause. That's the power of hope - to imagine, and then work for, what had seemed impossible before.
That's the change we seek. And that's the change you can stand for in seven days.
We've already beaten odds that the cynics said couldn't be beaten. When we started ten months ago, they said we couldn't run a different kind of campaign.
They said we couldn't compete without taking money from Washington lobbyists. But you proved them wrong when we raised more small donations from more Americans than any other campaign in history.
They said we couldn't be successful if we didn't have the full support of the establishment in Washington. But you proved them wrong when we built a grassroots movement that could forever change the face of American politics.
They said we wouldn't have a chance in this campaign unless we resorted to the same old negative attacks. But we resisted, even when we were written off, and ran a positive campaign that pointed out real differences and rejected the politics of slash and burn.
And now, in seven days, you have a chance once again to prove the cynics wrong. In seven days, what was improbable has the chance to beat what Washington said was inevitable. And that's why in these last weeks, Washington is fighting back with everything it has -- with attack ads and insults; with distractions and dishonesty; with millions of dollars from outside groups and undisclosed donors to try and block our path.
We've seen this script many times before. But I know that this time can be different.
Because I know that when the American people believe in something, it happens.
If you believe, then we can tell the lobbyists that their days of setting the agenda in Washington are over.
If you believe, then we can stop making promises to America's workers and start delivering - jobs that pay, health care that's affordable, pensions you can count on, and a tax cut for working Americans instead of the companies who send their jobs overseas .
If you believe, we can offer a world-class education to every child, and pay our teachers more, and make college dreams a reality for every American.
If you believe, we can save this planet and end our dependence on foreign oil.
If you believe, we can end this war, close Guantanamo, restore our standing, renew our diplomacy, and once again respect the Constitution of the United States of America .
That's the future within our reach. That's what hope is - that thing inside us that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that something better is waiting for us around the corner. But only if we're willing to work for it and fight for it. To shed our fears and our doubts and our cynicism. To glory in the task before us of remaking this country block by block, precinct by precinct, county by county, state by state.
There is a moment in the life of every generation when, if we are to make our mark on history, this spirit must break through
This is the moment.
This is our time.
And if you will stand with me in seven days - if you will stand for change so that our children have the same chance that somebody gave us; if you'll stand to keep the American dream alive for those who still hunger for opportunity and thirst for justice; if you're ready to stop settling for what the cynics tell you you must accept, and finally reach for what you know is possible, then we will win this caucus, we will win this election, we will change the course of history, and the real journey - to heal a nation and repair the world - will have truly begun.
Thank you.
I don't believe I have many Iowa readers -- or any, for that matter. I was a political science major in college, a misnomer if there ever was one, since politics is more about art and speculation. And so I developed a healthy cynicism for the sausage-making of our democracy. As an anarchist, I don't even like to vote, because like WEB Dubois, I feel that taking part legitimizes an abrogation of our freedom and responsibilities. But you can bet I'm voting this year. After eight years of historic incompetence, we need to use every tool at our disposal to fix things. We need someone to fix Iraq, or whatever the word is for what needs to happen there. We need to fix the military, whose members are currently the only group subject to a draft. We need to fix our government, which has mobilized itself at best to reward waste and incompetence, and insulate the president.
In 2004, the Democrats nominated John Kerry, out of misguided theories of electability and a belief that everyone hated Bush as much as they did. In short, they nominated Bob Dole. I made that observation several times in 2004, but not on the blog, so I can't prove it. Now Hillary Clinton has the buzz as the safe choice, for reasons I can't quite understand.
Now is the time to vote without fear, or anger, or thoughts of revenge. The policy wonk in me hates to say it, but we need to vote our hopes. Any reader of this blog knows I lack respect for most on the Right -- and on the Left as well. That's all fine, because I'm not running the country. It's time for a leader for the entire country.
We don't need another president who freely sneers at the people of Massachusetts. We don't need a president who will pay back the right for Bill Clinton's impeachment. Conservatives like Obama, because he listens to them, and greets their policy differences with respect. I've had enough of a president who rolls his eyes as the opposition. The United States doesn't need payback for eight years of delusional wingnuttery. We need to repair. And we need to work together to do it. Vote Obama.
Des Moines, IA | December 27, 2007
Ten months ago, I stood on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois, and began an unlikely journey to change America.
I did not run for the presidency to fulfill some long-held ambition or because I believed it was somehow owed to me. I chose to run in this election - at this moment - because of what Dr. King called "the fierce urgency of now." Because we are at a defining moment in our history. Our nation is at war. Our planet is in peril. Our health care system is broken, our economy is out of balance, our education system fails too many of our children, and our retirement system is in tatters.
At this defining moment, we cannot wait any longer for universal health care. We cannot wait to fix our schools. We cannot wait for good jobs, and living wages, and pensions we can count on. We cannot wait to halt global warming, and we cannot wait to end this war in Iraq.
I chose to run because I believed that the size of these challenges had outgrown the capacity of our broken and divided politics to solve them; because I believed that Americans of every political stripe were hungry for a new kind of politics, a politics that focused not just on how to win but why we should, a politics that focused on those values and ideals that we held in common as Americans; a politics that favored common sense over ideology, straight talk over spin.
Most of all, I believed in the power of the American people to be the real agents of change in this country - because we are not as divided as our politics suggests; because we are a decent, generous people willing to work hard and sacrifice for future generations; and I was certain that if we could just mobilize our voices to challenge the special interests that dominate Washington and challenge ourselves to reach for something better, there was no problem we couldn't solve - no destiny we couldn't fulfill.
Ten months later, Iowa, you have vindicated that faith. You've come out in the blistering heat and the bitter cold not just to cheer, but to challenge - to ask the tough questions; to lift the hood and kick the tires; to serve as one place in America where someone who hasn't spent their life in the Washington spotlight can get a fair hearing.
You've earned the role you play in our democracy because no one takes it more seriously. And I believe that's true this year more than ever because, like me, you feel that same sense of urgency.
All across this state, you've shared with me your stories. And all too often they've been stories of struggle and hardship.
I've heard from seniors who were betrayed by CEOs who dumped their pensions while pocketing bonuses, and from those who still can't afford their prescriptions because Congress refused to negotiate with the drug companies for the cheapest available price.
I've met Maytag workers who labored all their lives only to see their jobs shipped overseas; who now compete with their teenagers for $7-an-hour jobs at Wal-Mart.
I've spoken with teachers who are working at donut shops after school just to make ends meet; who are still digging into their own pockets to pay for school supplies.
Just two weeks ago, I heard a young woman in Cedar Rapids who told me she only gets three hours of sleep because she works the night shift after a full day of college and still can't afford health care for a sister with cerebral palsy. She spoke not with self-pity but with determination, and wonders why the government isn't doing more to help her afford the education that will allow her to live out her dreams.
I've spoken to veterans who talk with pride about what they've accomplished in Afghanistan and Iraq, but who nevertheless think of those they've left behind and question the wisdom of our mission in Iraq; the mothers weeping in my arms over the memories of their sons; the disabled or homeless vets who wonder why their service has been forgotten.
And I've spoken to Americans in every corner of the state, patriots all, who wonder why we have allowed our standing in the world to decline so badly, so quickly. They know this has not made us safer. They know that we must never negotiate out of fear, but that we must never fear to negotiate with our enemies as well as our friends. They are ashamed of Abu Graib and Guantanamo and warrantless wiretaps and ambiguity on torture. They love their country and want its cherished values and ideals restored.
It is precisely because you've experience these frustrations, and seen the cost of inaction in your own lives, that you understand why we can't afford to settle for the same old politics. You know that we can't afford to allow the insurance lobbyists to kill health care reform one more time, and the oil lobbyists to keep us addicted to fossil fuels because no one stood up and took their power away when they had the chance.
You know that we can't afford four more years of the same divisive food fight in Washington that's about scoring political points instead of solving problems; that's about tearing your opponents down instead of lifting this country up.
We can't afford the same politics of fear that tells Democrats that the only way to look tough on national security is to talk, act, and vote like George Bush Republicans; that invokes 9/11 as a way to scare up votes instead of a challenge that should unite all Americans to defeat our real enemies.
We can't afford to be so worried about losing the next election that we lose the battles we owe to the next generation.
The real gamble in this election is playing the same Washington game with the same Washington players and expecting a different result. And that's a risk we can't take. Not this year. Not when the stakes are this high.
In this election, it is time to turn the page. In seven days, it is time to stand for change.
This has been our message since the beginning of this campaign. It was our message when we were down, and our message when we were up. And it must be catching on, because in these last few weeks, everyone is talking about change.
But you can't at once argue that you're the master of a broken system in Washington and offer yourself as the person to change it. You can't fall in line behind the conventional thinking on issues as profound as war and offer yourself as the leader who is best prepared to chart a new and better course for America.
The truth is, you can have the right kind of experience and the wrong kind of experience. Mine is rooted in the real lives of real people and it will bring real results if we have the courage to change. I believe deeply in those words. But they are not mine. They were Bill Clinton's in 1992, when Washington insiders questioned his readiness to lead.
My experience is rooted in the lives of the men and women on the South Side of Chicago who I fought for as an organizer when the local steel plant closed. It's rooted in the lives of the people I stood up for as a civil rights lawyer when they were denied opportunity on the job or justice at the voting booth because of what they looked like or where they came from. It's rooted in an understanding of how the world sees America that I gained from living, traveling, and having family beyond our shores - an understanding that led me to oppose this war in Iraq from the start. It's experience rooted in the real lives of real people, and it's the kind of experience Washington needs right now.
There are others in this race who say that this kind of change sounds good, but that I'm not angry or confrontational enough to get it done.
Well, let me tell you something, Iowa. I don't need any lectures on how to bring about change, because I haven't just talked about it on the campaign trail. I've fought for change all my life.
I walked away from a job on Wall Street to bring job training to the jobless and after school programs to kids on the streets of Chicago.
I turned down the big money law firms to win justice for the powerless as a civil rights lawyer.
I took on the lobbyists in Illinois and brought Democrats and Republicans together to expand health care to 150,000 people and pass the first major campaign finance reform in twenty-five years; and I did the same thing in Washington when we passed the toughest lobbying reform since Watergate. I'm the only candidate in this race who hasn't just talked about taking power away from lobbyists, I've actually done it. So if you want to know what kind of choices we'll make as President, you should take a look at the choices we made when we had the chance to bring about change that wasn't easy or convenient.
That's the kind of change that's more than just rhetoric - that's change you can believe in.
It's change that won't just come from more anger at Washington or turning up the heat on Republicans. There's no shortage of anger and bluster and bitter partisanship out there. We don't need more heat. We need more light. I've learned in my life that you can stand firm in your principles while still reaching out to those who might not always agree with you. And although the Republican operatives in Washington might not be interested in hearing what we have to say, I think Republican and independent voters outside of Washington are. That's the once-in-a-generation opportunity we have in this election.
For the first time in a long time, we have the chance to build a new majority of not just Democrats, but Independents and Republicans who've lost faith in their Washington leaders but want to believe again - who desperately want something new.
We can change the electoral math that's been all about division and make it about addition - about building a coalition for change and progress that stretches through Blue States and Red States. That's how I won some of the reddest, most Republican counties in Illinois. That's why the polls show that I do best against the Republicans running for President - because we're attracting more support from Independents and Republicans than any other candidate. That's how we'll win in November and that's how we'll change this country over the next four years.
In the end, the argument we are having between the candidates in the last seven days is not just about the meaning of change. It's about the meaning of hope. Some of my opponents appear scornful of the word; they think it speaks of naivete, passivity, and wishful thinking.
But that's not what hope is. Hope is not blind optimism. It's not ignoring the enormity of the task before us or the roadblocks that stand in our path. Yes, the lobbyists will fight us. Yes, the Republican attack dogs will go after us in the general election. Yes, the problems of poverty and climate change and failing schools will resist easy repair. I know - I've been on the streets, I've been in the courts. I've watched legislation die because the powerful held sway and good intentions weren't fortified by political will, and I've watched a nation get mislead into war because no one had the judgment or the courage to ask the hard questions before we sent our troops to fight.
But I also know this. I know that hope has been the guiding force behind the most improbable changes this country has ever made. In the face of tyranny, it's what led a band of colonists to rise up against an Empire. In the face of slavery, it's what fueled the resistance of the slave and the abolitionist, and what allowed a President to chart a treacherous course to ensure that the nation would not continue half slave and half free. In the face of war and Depression, it's what led the greatest of generations to free a continent and heal a nation. In the face of oppression, it's what led young men and women to sit at lunch counters and brave fire hoses and march through the streets of Selma and Montgomery for freedom's cause. That's the power of hope - to imagine, and then work for, what had seemed impossible before.
That's the change we seek. And that's the change you can stand for in seven days.
We've already beaten odds that the cynics said couldn't be beaten. When we started ten months ago, they said we couldn't run a different kind of campaign.
They said we couldn't compete without taking money from Washington lobbyists. But you proved them wrong when we raised more small donations from more Americans than any other campaign in history.
They said we couldn't be successful if we didn't have the full support of the establishment in Washington. But you proved them wrong when we built a grassroots movement that could forever change the face of American politics.
They said we wouldn't have a chance in this campaign unless we resorted to the same old negative attacks. But we resisted, even when we were written off, and ran a positive campaign that pointed out real differences and rejected the politics of slash and burn.
And now, in seven days, you have a chance once again to prove the cynics wrong. In seven days, what was improbable has the chance to beat what Washington said was inevitable. And that's why in these last weeks, Washington is fighting back with everything it has -- with attack ads and insults; with distractions and dishonesty; with millions of dollars from outside groups and undisclosed donors to try and block our path.
We've seen this script many times before. But I know that this time can be different.
Because I know that when the American people believe in something, it happens.
If you believe, then we can tell the lobbyists that their days of setting the agenda in Washington are over.
If you believe, then we can stop making promises to America's workers and start delivering - jobs that pay, health care that's affordable, pensions you can count on, and a tax cut for working Americans instead of the companies who send their jobs overseas .
If you believe, we can offer a world-class education to every child, and pay our teachers more, and make college dreams a reality for every American.
If you believe, we can save this planet and end our dependence on foreign oil.
If you believe, we can end this war, close Guantanamo, restore our standing, renew our diplomacy, and once again respect the Constitution of the United States of America .
That's the future within our reach. That's what hope is - that thing inside us that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that something better is waiting for us around the corner. But only if we're willing to work for it and fight for it. To shed our fears and our doubts and our cynicism. To glory in the task before us of remaking this country block by block, precinct by precinct, county by county, state by state.
There is a moment in the life of every generation when, if we are to make our mark on history, this spirit must break through
This is the moment.
This is our time.
And if you will stand with me in seven days - if you will stand for change so that our children have the same chance that somebody gave us; if you'll stand to keep the American dream alive for those who still hunger for opportunity and thirst for justice; if you're ready to stop settling for what the cynics tell you you must accept, and finally reach for what you know is possible, then we will win this caucus, we will win this election, we will change the course of history, and the real journey - to heal a nation and repair the world - will have truly begun.
Thank you.
I joked to my sister yesterday that Bush's response to Benizar Bhutto's assassination would be to offer condolences and suggest Pakistan invade a random country. Turns out my prediction was pretty close, only Bill Richardson who said it, and he was advocating the US response.
HOLIDAY DOG BLOGGING
Visits with my family are complicated the by presence of a pack of dogs. My parents have three, and my little sister one. There's a total of 250 pounds of dog at their house during the holidays, more than 80% of which is taken up by the two labs. It was nice my first night there -- every time I turned around, a new dog was looking at me affectionately. I certainly felt welcome.
Angel is what could be described as a Sumatran Rat Terrier. I was never ready with a camera when she was properly ratty and pathetic. She is one unattractive dog. It's hard to capture in a photo, but she always looks soaking wet. My father attributes it to the special fur meant to guarantee a shiny coat -- he says it makes her look greasy. I disagree -- she looks wet.
My mother protests when I mock the thing, arguing that Angel is a true sweetheart. And I agree. Angel brings me joy -- I laughed with pleasure almost every time I laid eyes her. And that's okay.
Now onto the series of black dogs. Emma here is the senior pet (Angel is older, but Emma got there first). She is a mutt with a brilliant concept -- she's like a half-size lab. Loads of personality on this one. She sleeps on the back of couches, a habit she picked up from cats. She likes to growl and bark at anyone who walks by on the street. She has a deep and menacing growl. And she's little, so it's hilarious.
And here we have Tyrone, my little sister's pride and joy. Almost three years old, he arrived six months before my nephew Jameson, making him the first grandchild in some eyes. He is a pathetic mama's boy. He is full of the fear of my sister. He only visited the house -- he's an only child at home. He had a few problems getting socialized with the other big black dog (see below). Tyrone paced nervously whenever my sister prepared to go somewhere -- he was afraid he would be left behind for a month, as happens during the summer. He prefers being an only child.
Zak is the newest member of the clan, adopted in July when my father was on vacation and unable to object. He's a big dog, with a face speckled by white scars from a mis-spent youth spent kicking ass. With Tyler's passing earlier in the year, it was sure nice to have a galootish lab to hang out with. Zack has funny habits -- he followed Tyrone around when they were outside going to the bathroom, making sure to mark on Tyrone's spot. He was also demanding of attention -- I could not be in the same room with him without Zack forcing his head under my hand for a rub down.
I imagined Tyrone first meeting Zack, and wondering first: What am I doing over there?
And Zack probably thought the same thing.
Visits with my family are complicated the by presence of a pack of dogs. My parents have three, and my little sister one. There's a total of 250 pounds of dog at their house during the holidays, more than 80% of which is taken up by the two labs. It was nice my first night there -- every time I turned around, a new dog was looking at me affectionately. I certainly felt welcome.
Angel is what could be described as a Sumatran Rat Terrier. I was never ready with a camera when she was properly ratty and pathetic. She is one unattractive dog. It's hard to capture in a photo, but she always looks soaking wet. My father attributes it to the special fur meant to guarantee a shiny coat -- he says it makes her look greasy. I disagree -- she looks wet.
My mother protests when I mock the thing, arguing that Angel is a true sweetheart. And I agree. Angel brings me joy -- I laughed with pleasure almost every time I laid eyes her. And that's okay.
Now onto the series of black dogs. Emma here is the senior pet (Angel is older, but Emma got there first). She is a mutt with a brilliant concept -- she's like a half-size lab. Loads of personality on this one. She sleeps on the back of couches, a habit she picked up from cats. She likes to growl and bark at anyone who walks by on the street. She has a deep and menacing growl. And she's little, so it's hilarious.
And here we have Tyrone, my little sister's pride and joy. Almost three years old, he arrived six months before my nephew Jameson, making him the first grandchild in some eyes. He is a pathetic mama's boy. He is full of the fear of my sister. He only visited the house -- he's an only child at home. He had a few problems getting socialized with the other big black dog (see below). Tyrone paced nervously whenever my sister prepared to go somewhere -- he was afraid he would be left behind for a month, as happens during the summer. He prefers being an only child.
Zak is the newest member of the clan, adopted in July when my father was on vacation and unable to object. He's a big dog, with a face speckled by white scars from a mis-spent youth spent kicking ass. With Tyler's passing earlier in the year, it was sure nice to have a galootish lab to hang out with. Zack has funny habits -- he followed Tyrone around when they were outside going to the bathroom, making sure to mark on Tyrone's spot. He was also demanding of attention -- I could not be in the same room with him without Zack forcing his head under my hand for a rub down.
I imagined Tyrone first meeting Zack, and wondering first: What am I doing over there?
And Zack probably thought the same thing.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
And hopefully i am not
And hopefully i am not jinxing myself, but i am grateful for the delay, as it means my flight is not cancelled, which is happening a lot.
AIRPORT BLOGGING YO my flight
AIRPORT BLOGGING YO
my flight was delayed 55 minutes, but i'm counting my blessings. two expensive beers and a painkiller and i'm flying hi.
my flight was delayed 55 minutes, but i'm counting my blessings. two expensive beers and a painkiller and i'm flying hi.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
I AM BRINGING THE WRATH OF BLOG DOWN ON ATLANTIC BROADBAND
On my last night in Aiken, South Carolina, where I visited my parents for Christmas, we tried to order Knocked Up on Pay Per View. As it turns out, we could only order it for 10:30 PM on January 4th. Seriously. That's a week and a half later. Meanwhile there were more channels with porn (Teen Hitchhikers 5 -- and I thought they exhausted the plot arc back in III) and professional wrestling than actual movies. It's like they are catering to an entirely different human race than the one to which I belong.
On the bright side, our top alternative was 16 Candles, which I had been meaning to re-watch for a while. I noticed I've used at least two lines from the movie in my own films.
On my last night in Aiken, South Carolina, where I visited my parents for Christmas, we tried to order Knocked Up on Pay Per View. As it turns out, we could only order it for 10:30 PM on January 4th. Seriously. That's a week and a half later. Meanwhile there were more channels with porn (Teen Hitchhikers 5 -- and I thought they exhausted the plot arc back in III) and professional wrestling than actual movies. It's like they are catering to an entirely different human race than the one to which I belong.
On the bright side, our top alternative was 16 Candles, which I had been meaning to re-watch for a while. I noticed I've used at least two lines from the movie in my own films.
Friday, December 21, 2007
Thursday, December 20, 2007
I can't believe it only just now occurred to me to look of Wikipedia's entry on the French New Wave.
Jim Massey makes my Christmas by asking a brilliant question:
What lyric implies that he's in a drunk tank, on Christmas eve?
STOP THE PRESSES
Yaphet Koto is running for President.
From this profile of various independent candidates:
www.yaphetkotto.org
Yaphet Koto is running for President.
From this profile of various independent candidates:
Yaphet Kotto, for those of you who don't spend hours browsing IMDb, is a moderately successful actor. He played the bad guy in Live and Let Die, the Federal Agent Alonzo Mosely chasing after Robert De Niro in Midnight Run, one of the running men in Running Man and was the first guy to be killed by the full-grown alien in Alien.
He's dabbled in elections before – he supported Forbes magazine heir (and current Rudy Giuliani advisor) Steve Forbes's run for the presidency in 1996. He was also, according to his campaign, co-chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality in New York in the Sixties.
Now, if you believe the Federal Election Commission and a website called yaphetkotto.org, he's ready to follow his Running Man co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger into frontline politics.
Mr Kotto, however, is nowhere to be found. "I haven't represented him in 12 years," says his one-time agent. The Screen Actors' guild gives me a number for him that doesn't work, and his website goes down.
So why has the mysterious Mr Kotto registered to stand? "At this pivotal and dangerous time in our nation's history," says a release from his campaign, "there is a widespread, commonly held apprehension that our country is heading in the wrong direction, and the equally powerful sense that there is nothing that any one of us can do to stop it." Yes, I read it in that deep film-trailer voice too.
Few would have bet on B-movie star Ronald Reagan making it to the Oval Office, so stranger things have happened. The only thing that can stop him is, on past evidence, a determined Roger Moore as James Bond and/or an alien with acid for blood. Or, of course, fellow deep-voiced authority-figure actor Fred Thompson, who may also be running as a candidate for the Republicans.
www.yaphetkotto.org
THE ETERNAL QUESTIONS
When a man lies to his lawyer to obtain a divorce from a wife of 47 years when she is ill and does not even know and cannot defend herself, is this legal, or perjury?
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
UP TO THE CHALLENGE, I GUESS
It's now been one month since I set myself the goal of reaching my 1,000th post on this blog by December 31. I have 17 more posts to go, which is less than one and a half per day. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I think I can manage it.
I'm five posts away from beating 2003 as my second most active blog year ever (2002 remains the big winner, when we were young and the world was new; I published 248 posts in four months -- I was almost a real blogger then).
Since November 19, I'm made 90 posts over the past month, which when I put it that way, doesn't sound that impressive, and even less so at three a day. And even less impressive is the fact that 30 of those posts were "Living in the Past," which were already written, and just had to be coded and updated into the present. I don't know why I'm even bothering to congratulate myself.
Oh, right:
It's now been one month since I set myself the goal of reaching my 1,000th post on this blog by December 31. I have 17 more posts to go, which is less than one and a half per day. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I think I can manage it.
I'm five posts away from beating 2003 as my second most active blog year ever (2002 remains the big winner, when we were young and the world was new; I published 248 posts in four months -- I was almost a real blogger then).
Since November 19, I'm made 90 posts over the past month, which when I put it that way, doesn't sound that impressive, and even less so at three a day. And even less impressive is the fact that 30 of those posts were "Living in the Past," which were already written, and just had to be coded and updated into the present. I don't know why I'm even bothering to congratulate myself.
Oh, right:
SEX WITH ANIMALS
Since I'm on a Chick Bloodhound roll, I'm uploading the screenplay I dug out last night. The format is a little screwy, but I don't mind. Notice the title. I didn't succeed in pushing that one through.
Most of the dialog is mine. I worked with the plot as it was given, and made the best of the director/auteur's views of women and relationships, which are idisyncratic. But most of the dialog is mine. I've learned quite a lot since writing this, but there are still some gems, like "I'm so pretty, I need a beating!" and this exchange:
I added the now-embarrassing, then-trendy use of the word "nigger" which was inspired by Tarantino -- we all considered ourselves "niggas" back then, and deserved a slapping. When i was discussing the part with the actor, I suggested we take it out, so it isn't in the movie.
I also tried to make some of it more intelligent. Note the reference to Robert Bork's "Slouching Toward Gomorrah," which in the film ended up being to one of Rush Limbaugh's books.
I suppose I should take the time to organize my full memories of Chick Bloodhound, but that will have to wait, but in the meantime, I'll end this Chick Bloodhound Trilogy with this early screenplay, and pray it isn't held me. At the very least, now a google search for chick bloodhound miller will pull up some results with my name in them.
Since I'm on a Chick Bloodhound roll, I'm uploading the screenplay I dug out last night. The format is a little screwy, but I don't mind. Notice the title. I didn't succeed in pushing that one through.
Most of the dialog is mine. I worked with the plot as it was given, and made the best of the director/auteur's views of women and relationships, which are idisyncratic. But most of the dialog is mine. I've learned quite a lot since writing this, but there are still some gems, like "I'm so pretty, I need a beating!" and this exchange:
RANDYI don' think any of that golden dialog made it into the final cut.
I’M LIKE THE VETERINARIAN OF LOVE, ACE. DOG, MULE, HORSE, FUCKIN’ PLATYPUS, THE SPECIFICS AREN’T IMPORTANT. THE POINT IS SHE, LIKE YOU AND ME, OPERATES ON SIMPLE INSTINCT. WE ALL WANT TO SURVIVE. THE QUESTION IS WHO UNDERSTANDS THIS FACT: YOU OR HER. AND WHO IS ABLE — AND WILLING — TO ACT ON THE KNOWLEDGE.
RANDY SIPS HIS COFFEE.
CHICK
YOU REALLY THINK IT'S THAT BASIC?
RANDY
WELL, NO, BUT — I’LL BE THE FIRST TO ADMIT IF YOU LOOK AT IT TOO CLOSE, THE WHOLE ANALOGY BREAKS DOWN. I’M TALKING MORE OF A PAVLOVIAN RESPONSE, AND THE ABILITY TO RECOGNIZE ITS IMPORTANCE AND UTILIZE IT. IF WE OPERATE PURELY BY INSTINCT, MEN WOULD ROVE IN PACKS AND PICK OFF THE WEAKEST OF THE HERD. SEXUALLY SPEAKING. MORE LIKE MARLON PERKIN’S FRATERNITY KINGDOM.
I added the now-embarrassing, then-trendy use of the word "nigger" which was inspired by Tarantino -- we all considered ourselves "niggas" back then, and deserved a slapping. When i was discussing the part with the actor, I suggested we take it out, so it isn't in the movie.
I also tried to make some of it more intelligent. Note the reference to Robert Bork's "Slouching Toward Gomorrah," which in the film ended up being to one of Rush Limbaugh's books.
I suppose I should take the time to organize my full memories of Chick Bloodhound, but that will have to wait, but in the meantime, I'll end this Chick Bloodhound Trilogy with this early screenplay, and pray it isn't held me. At the very least, now a google search for chick bloodhound miller will pull up some results with my name in them.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
CHICK BLOODHOUND UPDATE
I dug out the screenplay -- amazingly, I thought it was lost forever (such is my indifference to my place in history). Now that I think about, I might well be responsible for the ending that Cal hated.
I dug out the screenplay -- amazingly, I thought it was lost forever (such is my indifference to my place in history). Now that I think about, I might well be responsible for the ending that Cal hated.
MEMORIES OF CHICK BLOODHOUND
While googling for myself, I came across this interesting blog post by a Mr. Cal Godot. Cal wrote the first few drafts of Chick Bloodhound, a short of which I wrote the subsequent drafts.
I'm not wild about Chick Bloodhound (I would provide some links, but apparently my early prayer that the film be on my resume and absolutely nowhere else has been answered.) I was ultimately credited with as writer, actor and associate producer. Directed by Paul Fraser, it was my first film.
There's a couple interesting things about Cal's post. First, his experience and mine were very similar. Cal and I apparently share a taste for Cassevetes. I too disagreed with Paul over the ending. Actually, I don't remember if I wrote the ending Cal complains about.
And there's some stuff I didn't know. As far as I remember, I never met Cal. So it was interesting to read that he was in contact with Paul throughout the production. Cal's complaint about the actors improvising should really have been directed toward me. The lead actor, Jeff Polage, was also producing (he started out as producer, before being cast). him and I were almost in insurrection against Paul during the shoot, frequently directing actors and taking control of the set to do things our way. (I would kill any writer who pulled that shit on me.)
Based on his blog post, I wonder if Cal even knew another writer was working on it, or how involved I was in the production. I don't think the lack of me in his account really changes it much in any way, though.
While googling for myself, I came across this interesting blog post by a Mr. Cal Godot. Cal wrote the first few drafts of Chick Bloodhound, a short of which I wrote the subsequent drafts.
I'm not wild about Chick Bloodhound (I would provide some links, but apparently my early prayer that the film be on my resume and absolutely nowhere else has been answered.) I was ultimately credited with as writer, actor and associate producer. Directed by Paul Fraser, it was my first film.
There's a couple interesting things about Cal's post. First, his experience and mine were very similar. Cal and I apparently share a taste for Cassevetes. I too disagreed with Paul over the ending. Actually, I don't remember if I wrote the ending Cal complains about.
And there's some stuff I didn't know. As far as I remember, I never met Cal. So it was interesting to read that he was in contact with Paul throughout the production. Cal's complaint about the actors improvising should really have been directed toward me. The lead actor, Jeff Polage, was also producing (he started out as producer, before being cast). him and I were almost in insurrection against Paul during the shoot, frequently directing actors and taking control of the set to do things our way. (I would kill any writer who pulled that shit on me.)
Based on his blog post, I wonder if Cal even knew another writer was working on it, or how involved I was in the production. I don't think the lack of me in his account really changes it much in any way, though.
AWESOME
This composite image shows the jet from a black hole at the center of a galaxy striking the edge of another galaxy, the first time such an interaction has been found. X-rays from Chandra (colored purple), optical and ultraviolet (UV) data from Hubble (red and orange), and radio emission from the Very Large Array (VLA) and MERLIN (blue) show how the jet from the main galaxy on the lower left is striking its companion galaxy to the upper right. The jet impacts the companion galaxy at its edge and is then disrupted and deflected, much like how a stream of water from a hose will splay out after hitting a wall at an angle. (Chandra X-ray Center, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
This composite image shows the jet from a black hole at the center of a galaxy striking the edge of another galaxy, the first time such an interaction has been found. X-rays from Chandra (colored purple), optical and ultraviolet (UV) data from Hubble (red and orange), and radio emission from the Very Large Array (VLA) and MERLIN (blue) show how the jet from the main galaxy on the lower left is striking its companion galaxy to the upper right. The jet impacts the companion galaxy at its edge and is then disrupted and deflected, much like how a stream of water from a hose will splay out after hitting a wall at an angle. (Chandra X-ray Center, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
