For what it's worth, I really do think that the series of town hall meetings that were proposed by McCain would have been infinitely more enlightening for exactly this reason. They would both have to be off-script and say how they really feel about the issues and what they would really do to solve them.
A couple of other things: Here's a great article by Michelle Malkin called "Snapshots of the Tank." In it she details her favorite media-bias moments from this election cycle. Pretty telling.
This is a really interesting account by a former Democratic speech writer (who wrote for Obama, among others) who recently decided to leave the Democratic party. She talks about why she felt she had to leave, and about how difficult it was for her.
Finally, here's Bill Richardson explaining the nuance of the Obama tax plan - now middle class has dropped from $250,000 down to $200,000, then $150,000, now all the way down to $120,000? Even if he just misspoke, the fact remains that we've heard four different numbers over the past few weeks - nobody knows the real answer, it would seem.
First things first, a disclaimer - this will probably end up being a predominately political post. But, perservere, for there are other goodies too (or just skip to the bottom - we aim to please here at 'Rock). With that said, here's an interesting, article by Orson Scott Card, a sci-fi author, and well-known Democrat. Basically, he talks a bit about the economic crisis as a means to his main end, which is to call out the liberal media for doing such a terrible job. He gets pretty harsh, talking about the double-standard (he often asks how the media would have acted if there were actual evidence that the Republicans actually were completely to blame) and the total lack of journalistic integrity. Worth reading, and it's pretty short.
Here's a great article by George Will, again focusing on the truth behind the economic crisis, and how it's not as bleak as some want us to believe (yet).
Here's a shocker - turns out the Ohio official who ok'd the (illegal) records search on "Joe the Plumber," director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, Helen Jones-Kelly, is not only an Obama supporter, but a maxed-out donor. It's that new-style politics, baby.
File this one under "In Case You Missed It" : Here's a nice synopsis of the journalistic-integrity free LA Times' decision not to release the tapes of Obama speaking at Khalidi's going away party. Just to be clear, Ayers was there, as were many, many, anti-Isreal types.
Finally, a very in-depth analysis called The Comprehensive Argument Against Barack Obama. You can probably guess what it's about. It was written by Guy Benson and Mary Katherine Ham, with input from Ed Morrissey, and posted on Hotair.com. Lots of really thought-provoking, scary stuff that we all should know about him, but don't because the main-stream media is too busy talking about Sarah Palin's shoes. Give it a read, or don't.
As promised, something different. Here's a great interview with Christopher Nolan, director of such films as Memento, Batman Begins. It's a really interesting analysis of one of the most pivotal scenes from The Dark Knight, the interrogation scene between the Batman and the Joker. Very much worth reading, if you're a film buff. Or especially if you're in the buff.
Lastly, another in case you missed it. Awesome, especially considering he played linebacker for Kentucky. I must have watched this 50 times to watch every part of the official's body just to be sure it was intentional; the fact remains - he had plenty of opportunity to avoid contact as he shuffled along (actually, pursued the running back inside-out, just like the teach linebackers to do [believe me, I know; I played linebacker in highschool; years ago]).
As it turns out, I don't really have all that many vices. But there is one thing that I simply cannot refuse; one thing that poses a significant risk to my god-like body - Stacy's Baked Pita Chips. Especially the "simply naked" variety, seasoned with nothing but sea-salt and shame. There just aren't that many things out there that I really worry about literally eating a whole bag of, but this is one of them. I (stupidly) often eat them while I'm doing something else, like reading or... eating lunch (which still qualifies as "something else" because my brain seems to be able to focus 100% of its processing power on eating pita chips, if given the chance). This is a terrible idea, because it can take me several minutes before I realize that I'm shoving them in my mouth as fast as I can. With both hands. I often joke that they're laced with crack, but given the way I jones for them when there aren't any around, it's not that funny anymore. I can't think of anything else. I start to think of ridiculous, risky ways to get quick cash to get my fix. Sure, I've done some things I'm not proud of, but it's not my fault. I'm sick, man. So, if you haven't ever had them, give them a shot. Maybe just try one. Oh, have you seen those crystal meth PSA's? I think I just came up with a new ad campaign for Stacy's: Pita Chips - The High is a Lie.
I thought that a nice diversion from all the crap that's been going on lately would be to post some pictures of the puppy. He's growing at an astounding rate, and, more importantly, my mom just got him a new toy. I mean bed. For the record, I am aware that this would be better served by using Flickr! or the like, but I don't really do that. Without further ado, Behold! He is Magnus.
I believe the words you're looking for are "Ridiculously Adorable."
Last night, my parents and I had the pleasure of going to see Joseph Alessi in concert with the Brass in Blue. I was looking forward to hearing the band play, as I'm a big fan of the brass band style, but as a trombonist, it was pretty amazing to see one of the best in the world. Alessi played some pretty great repertoire, including Blue Bells of Scotland (the link takes you to Jorgen Van Rigen playing Blue Bells, plus a whole lot of schtick), an old standard that I've played in the past (though not anywhere near the level I saw last night). The show was great all around; all of the musicianship was of very high quality, and now I can say that I've seen one of the greatest ever, live in concert. Here's a short clip of Alessi playing the solo from Bolero (which is fiendishly difficult to play well), followed by a clip of him playing one of my favorite short solos, Malcolm's Fantasy. Both were performed at masterclasses, so they aren't really indicative of just how dominant a player he is, but they're fun clips. I'm still a nerd.
note: I stole the above image from somewhere out there in the intertubes.
So, if you're anything like me, you're already sick to death of election politics, and have been for months. But really, I'm just getting sick of being lied to. You can't even turn on the TV without hearing some sort of "spin" (which of course actually means "carefully worded lies") - maybe I'm alone on this, but the fact that the media actually refer to their holding pen at debates and other big events from which they report each night as the "spin room" is pretty unbelievable. Actually, it's offensive and insulting. They are actually telling us straight up, "this is where we go to warp the politicians' words to suit our own agenda." Great. But even that wouldn't really be that big of a deal if the media would just cover both sides equally - anyone who says that the vast majority of the mainstream media isn't in the tank for Obama... is entitled to their own opinion, but I'd like to hear them support it. Oddly, the only person these days who really seems to be saying what he thinks and meaning what he says - Joe Biden. The fact that he has said the things that he's said, predicting that the world would see President Obama as unready for the office, and want to test him (which people are calling a "gaffe" - I don't buy it, he knew exactly what he was saying), and that America will need to "gird it's loins" to get through one of the several global crises he envisions. It's pretty unbelievable. Even more unbelievable is that virtually none of the mainstream media even covered it - and the fact that everyone seems to have forgotten that Biden himself said that there was no room in the Presidency for "on the job training " (read: he's not ready) during the primaries. Mr. Obama swept this most recent one under the rug by calling it a "rhetorical flourish," but you just know he clenches his teeth (or perhaps girds his loins) whenever Biden opens his mouth.
I don't want to belabor the point, but for everyone out there who has jumped on the "Blame the Republicans" bandwagon, read this. At the very least, this gets the ball rolling to get to the bottom of the economic crisis - and it shows that there's plenty of blame to go around. For my money (not that I have any), Barney Frank should be thrown in jail for his role in all of this, and for all of the money he's made from Fannie and Freddie. One last note - apparently this actually does exist, in spite of the fact that the Obama campaign has stated numerous times that it doesn't. This is the kind of lie that is just ridiculous - it's so easy to prove that it's not true that it's just offensive that they would try it.
This is hilarious - brought to you by The Soup, enjoy this clip (after Al Roker gets hammered on fruity drinks) of Willard Scott molesting Ann Curry on the Today Show. Maybe the most awkward thing since... well, probably this. Or maybe this. Or perhaps this.
Well, it's been several weeks since the last post (and even that one was kind of lame) but get off my back, I've been busy. Here's a partial list of the things I've been doing, in no particular order:
I had an interview at KU Med: I felt like it went pretty well. I pretty much told them how stupid it would be not to immediately accept me, then I got up and strutted out of the room. I did this because I read somewhere that "confidence is key," and since I'm such a sucker for alliteration, I was sold.
I got accepted to KU Med: Pretty happy about this one. Now that I'm finally done waiting to see if I got into medical school, I can finally start waiting to start medical school in July. I did the early decision program, which means that since I was accepted, I'm locked in at KU. That's great because KU is where I really want to go, but now recruiting letters are starting to come in from other schools who've seen my MCAT scores and GPA. Mostly this just makes me glad that the whole application process is finally over.
I'm taking Anatomy and Physiology: It's been good so far - I really dig the material, and I'm doing really well so far. Also, there's a cute girl in the class - some might say that her complete and utter lack of interest in me is due to a complete and utter lack of interest in me, but I prefer to believe that she's playing hard to get. You know how girls like to be wooed, wined and dined, stalked, etc.
My folks got a new iMac: It's nice to be able to use a computer that turns on when you ask it to.
My folks got a puppy: His name is Magnus, he's an 8 week old Chocolate Lab, and he's sleeping right now, so please read quietly. He's more of a handful every day as he gets more and more comfortable in his new home (we've had him for about 6 days). Since both of my parents work and I'm kind of a bum right now, I've been spending a lot of time with him, and my back is pretty sore from stooping to grab stuff out of his mouth. In fact, I hear him whining right now, so I will cut this truly fascinating post short. Enjoy the puppy pictures.
