A brief description of what reconciliation actually IS. Sans the Republican histrionics.
Just finished Malcolm Gladwell’s What The Dog Saw. Read parts of it twice, they were so great. Especially loved his essay outlining the differences between artists who burst onto the scene, like Picasso, and artists who take years to cultivate their work, like Cezanne. Lovely deep thoughts surrounding fascinating info. Fave bit: Cezanne made critic Gustave Geffroy sit for a portrait 80 different times in 1895 before Cezanne, in frustration, declared the painting a failure. Tossed it aside. Wouldn’t sell the portrait to poor Geffroy. It’s now considered to be a masterpiece.
Srsly, this’s gotta rank among the funniest Daily Show bits of all time. Also, I truly and deeply love Brian Williams.
![I just finished Game Change. What an amazing book. And not just because you get to hear these folks talking like real people: McCain repeatedly yelling Fuck you at Cindy until she burst into tears, Hillary in response to Claire McCaskill’s comments that she’d like to keep her daughters away from Bill? “Fuck her.” But also because soooo much is explained: why Hillary’s message was so unclear, how Sarah Palin got picked, why McCain seemed like he didn’t really give a shit. Honestly, I haven’t had so much fun with a political book since Maureen Dowd’s Bushworld. Anyway… Here are a couple super cool bits I think are worth pointing out…SUPER COOL BIT #1: Harry Reid’s Magic Negro. Of course, I’m referring to Harry Reid’s quote to the effect that Obama was a “light-skinned” African-American “with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.” It was the first thing to be grabbed from the book and batted around on cable news. Clumsy as it was, it also seemed obviously out of context. The book makes it clear that the press had just opened the book and scanned for dirty words. Or something akin to it. The chapter where Reid makes the statement is actually a fascinating part of the book. It paints a picture of Reid, the leader of a party, calling the talented newbie senator, Obama, to his office. Godfather-like, Reid tells Obama he thinks he should go for it. He’s the first party bigwig - WAAAY ahead of anyone else - to encourage him to run. And Reid knew that the implications were huge. It was an astonishing slight to Hillary, and more importantly perhaps, to Bill. The Clinton dynasty was about to be overthrown and Reid was the one who set it all in motion. As Leader, he began a whisper campaign, setting the groundwork that would allow newer faces like Claire McKaskill and older ones like Ted Kennedy to eventually go public with their support. SUPER COOL BIT #2: John Edwards was totally deluded. Not only did everyone on his campaign know about his affair, they knew about it MONTHS before you would think they might’ve. They basically were there every step of the way. Watching Edwards scheme for the VP slot, then for the AG job, then… well, he finally gave up. But the picture of him as a total dummy and BS artist, whose wife was the brains of the operation (but who also was a megalomaniacal nightmare), was incredible. I’m now in absolute and total agreement with the TV folks who are hyper-critical of Edwards. He really did almost take down the whole party.SUPER COOL BIT #2.1: Elizabeth Edwards is a megalomaniacal nightmare. It’s tough to be too awfully critical of a cancer survivor. But, apparently she’s an insane freakshow horrorshow of rather epic proportions. The book describes her as “abusive, intrusive, paranoid, and crazy.” There’s one tale that haunts me still, where, having busted John for his affair but still careening wildly between anger and grief, she angrily tears open her shirt on an airport tarmac, screaming “Look at me!” at Edwards and a handful of horrified staff. Oh and btw, it was breast cancer.SUPER COOL BIT #3. Obama actively participated in all of the crass negative politics that were used against the Clintons. Despite all his assertions to the contrary. Some of it was actually stoked by his campaign staffers, but, he was an active participant. Particularly in painting the Clintons as racists. Or more specifically, he and his campaign stood by as the press did it. All of the Clintons’ comments cited by Obama’s campaign as part of a “disturbing pattern” were pretty easily explained. Looking back, now they seem pretty clearly misconstrued: “a roll of the dice” (Bill on Obama’s inexperience), “a fairy tale” (Bill on Obama as eternally-blooming Iraq peacenik), “…working, hard-working Americans, white Americans” (Hillary’s awkward attempt to avoid saying “white trash”), and of course the comment that “Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June” (Hillary was talking about delegate-gathering and timing). When Obama was asked for his reactions, he often would say that he was for clean, above-board politics. Then his campaign staff would run off to fan the flames. Crafty clever successful political strategy. But, still, it was pretty far off Obama’s pristine, untouchable brand.SUPER COOL BIT #4: McCain would often hold staff meeting wearing only a dress shirt and boxer shorts. Enuff said.SUPER COOL BIT #5: Ted Kennedy gave the presidency to Obama. His rebuke of Clinton changed everything. When Kennedy publicly threw his support to Obama, I knew it was over. Not consciously, perhaps. Not at the time. But looking back, it really was a huge game changer (LOL). Caroline and Maria Shriver came out for Obama, too, and Kennedy gave that huge eloquent speech. It was a magical transcendent moment. Seeing that particular old-guard liberal Dem denounce the Clintonian politics of the past, was breathtaking. And after that, it really was all downhill for Obama.
SUPER COOL BIT #6: Those debates were some utterly riveting shit. From Sarah Palin’s mincing about and calling Biden “Joe,” to the horrible gangbang on Clinton in Ohio, to the spectacle of nutty little Ron Paul savaging Bush’s war policies and getting boooooed, to Barack muttering “You’re likable enough, Hillary”… Wheee!!! What television!! I miss it. I really do. And I’m only somewhat heartened by the thought that the campaign for 2012 will probably begin, well… any day now.[Addendum: Some may note that the above super cool bits don’t include an item specific to Gov. Palin. That’s because although much of what was revealed about her in Game Change was shocking, none of it was surprising. It said she’s a dumb twat who was out of her league. I know. Try to contain your amazement.]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kxi8soSfsN1qzbpp7o1_500.png)
I just finished Game Change.
What an amazing book. And not just because you get to hear these folks talking like real people: McCain repeatedly yelling Fuck you at Cindy until she burst into tears, Hillary in response to Claire McCaskill’s comments that she’d like to keep her daughters away from Bill? “Fuck her.” But also because soooo much is explained: why Hillary’s message was so unclear, how Sarah Palin got picked, why McCain seemed like he didn’t really give a shit. Honestly, I haven’t had so much fun with a political book since Maureen Dowd’s Bushworld.
Anyway… Here are a couple super cool bits I think are worth pointing out…
SUPER COOL BIT #1: Harry Reid’s Magic Negro. Of course, I’m referring to Harry Reid’s quote to the effect that Obama was a “light-skinned” African-American “with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.” It was the first thing to be grabbed from the book and batted around on cable news. Clumsy as it was, it also seemed obviously out of context. The book makes it clear that the press had just opened the book and scanned for dirty words. Or something akin to it. The chapter where Reid makes the statement is actually a fascinating part of the book. It paints a picture of Reid, the leader of a party, calling the talented newbie senator, Obama, to his office. Godfather-like, Reid tells Obama he thinks he should go for it. He’s the first party bigwig - WAAAY ahead of anyone else - to encourage him to run. And Reid knew that the implications were huge. It was an astonishing slight to Hillary, and more importantly perhaps, to Bill. The Clinton dynasty was about to be overthrown and Reid was the one who set it all in motion. As Leader, he began a whisper campaign, setting the groundwork that would allow newer faces like Claire McKaskill and older ones like Ted Kennedy to eventually go public with their support.
SUPER COOL BIT #2: John Edwards was totally deluded. Not only did everyone on his campaign know about his affair, they knew about it MONTHS before you would think they might’ve. They basically were there every step of the way. Watching Edwards scheme for the VP slot, then for the AG job, then… well, he finally gave up. But the picture of him as a total dummy and BS artist, whose wife was the brains of the operation (but who also was a megalomaniacal nightmare), was incredible. I’m now in absolute and total agreement with the TV folks who are hyper-critical of Edwards. He really did almost take down the whole party.
SUPER COOL BIT #2.1: Elizabeth Edwards is a megalomaniacal nightmare. It’s tough to be too awfully critical of a cancer survivor. But, apparently she’s an insane freakshow horrorshow of rather epic proportions. The book describes her as “abusive, intrusive, paranoid, and crazy.” There’s one tale that haunts me still, where, having busted John for his affair but still careening wildly between anger and grief, she angrily tears open her shirt on an airport tarmac, screaming “Look at me!” at Edwards and a handful of horrified staff. Oh and btw, it was breast cancer.
SUPER COOL BIT #3. Obama actively participated in all of the crass negative politics that were used against the Clintons. Despite all his assertions to the contrary. Some of it was actually stoked by his campaign staffers, but, he was an active participant. Particularly in painting the Clintons as racists. Or more specifically, he and his campaign stood by as the press did it. All of the Clintons’ comments cited by Obama’s campaign as part of a “disturbing pattern” were pretty easily explained. Looking back, now they seem pretty clearly misconstrued: “a roll of the dice” (Bill on Obama’s inexperience), “a fairy tale” (Bill on Obama as eternally-blooming Iraq peacenik), “…working, hard-working Americans, white Americans” (Hillary’s awkward attempt to avoid saying “white trash”), and of course the comment that “Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June” (Hillary was talking about delegate-gathering and timing). When Obama was asked for his reactions, he often would say that he was for clean, above-board politics. Then his campaign staff would run off to fan the flames. Crafty clever successful political strategy. But, still, it was pretty far off Obama’s pristine, untouchable brand.
SUPER COOL BIT #4: McCain would often hold staff meeting wearing only a dress shirt and boxer shorts. Enuff said.
SUPER COOL BIT #5: Ted Kennedy gave the presidency to Obama. His rebuke of Clinton changed everything. When Kennedy publicly threw his support to Obama, I knew it was over. Not consciously, perhaps. Not at the time. But looking back, it really was a huge game changer (LOL). Caroline and Maria Shriver came out for Obama, too, and Kennedy gave that huge eloquent speech. It was a magical transcendent moment. Seeing that particular old-guard liberal Dem denounce the Clintonian politics of the past, was breathtaking. And after that, it really was all downhill for Obama.
SUPER COOL BIT #6: Those debates were some utterly riveting shit. From Sarah Palin’s mincing about and calling Biden “Joe,” to the horrible gangbang on Clinton in Ohio, to the spectacle of nutty little Ron Paul savaging Bush’s war policies and getting boooooed, to Barack muttering “You’re likable enough, Hillary”… Wheee!!! What television!! I miss it. I really do. And I’m only somewhat heartened by the thought that the campaign for 2012 will probably begin, well… any day now.
[Addendum: Some may note that the above super cool bits don’t include an item specific to Gov. Palin. That’s because although much of what was revealed about her in Game Change was shocking, none of it was surprising. It said she’s a dumb twat who was out of her league. I know. Try to contain your amazement.]
Please Allow Me a Moment to Make an Obvious Point
The US government is currently using tax dollars to pay for Medicare, a public health plan that covers most of the old people in the country. And the VA uses federal funds to support it’s socialized system that cares for wounded military personnel. And the country’s social services systems cover poor children.
In other words we, as American taxpayers, have already removed the majority of elderly people, wounded soldiers, and sickly poor children from the insurance pool. So that just leaves the middle of the field - folks 18-60 who are, statistically speaking, healthy - for the private insurance companies to cherry pick. And that strikes me as, at best, a disgusting racket; and at worst, a fascistic collusion between state and corporation.
But that’s obvious, no?
Thank god for Keith Olbermann. The tea party “movement” is not a real thing. It’s just racism. Pure and unashamed. And the media compulsively, and frustratingly, ignore and overlook this OBVIOUS fact. But not Olbermann. And here he’s as eloquent as ever. (“Where are they? … Where are they?”) Amen, brother, preach on.
This thing is silly, but srsly, I wish they all could be Utah valley girls. Check’em out. They’re truly a breed apart. And this is a rare peek into their world. I’m not sure what exactly they’re doing to give themselves that super-distinct look, but, they’re doing a very thorough job of it. I guess it’s some kind of ratio of overly-styled hair to eyeliner. No? I dunno. Oh, and I love the accents they’ve got! Whenever people ask me about a Salt Lake accent - what is it? (which is constantly, btw) - I tell them to Think Rosanne Barr w/out all the awesome sarcasm. As for the boys’ look? Think Chops, the farmboy Paris Hilton was fucking on The Simple Life. Boys in Utah come in only two flavors, gay-looking goody-twoshoes, and Chops. Check out the boys in the video. There’s one of each. Love ya, SLC.
