...in the grove of the temple and in the shadow of the citadel I have seen the freest among you wear their freedom as a yoke and a handcuff.
--Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
Feel free to email me at JennyDC-at-AOLdotCom, but if I don't know you and you don't say otherwise, I assume that what you send is open to be quoted at this blog. :-)
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Saturday, October 11, 2003
Top Ten reasons I love Dave
posted by Jenny at 2:25 AM |
Am grateful to skippy for letting me know Letterman's latest too-cool sketch: the Bored Arnold Schwarzeneggar Supporter of the Night! (archived here) And guess what Burbank-based talk show yes man made the cut...
No folks, I have never been a fan of Jay Leno. The man has tried--unsuccessfully--to duplicate Letterman's innate wit for years, often with limited success. The fact that Johnny Carson has made nods to Letterman in recent years demonstrates that Leno's reclusive predecessor may also think as much. But it's really satisfying to see Leno showing himself for what he is, at least professionally, in conjunction with the gropenator campaign--all glitter and money, and not a hell of a lot of substance. We are very sad that while German NBC affiliates sometimes show Leno, the only thing close to Letterman we have is a watered-down, trademarked carbon copy of the Late Show brought to us by a would-be Letterman clone, Harald Schmidt. The set is nearly an exact copy, but it just doesn't compare to the real thing.
Meanwhile, skippy says that there's a great thread in response to this post by Atrios on Letterman vs. Leno. He's right. Check it out!
Update: And Friday's Top 10 is also a blast...the Top Ten Pieces of Advice Gray Davis has for Arnold Schwarzeneggar!
Thursday, October 09, 2003
President Schwarzeneggar
posted by Jenny at 1:30 PM |
Funny, I thought I posted the thingy about Orrin Hatch and Ah-nold as an update awhile back...but for those of you who didn't know about it, Tom Tomorrow just caught wind of the fact that the senator (whose fundraisers have been graced by Ah-nold's presence) wants us to consider changing the consitution to let him become commander in chief. Tom has a good rant up about it--check in at his page. Ah yes, the joys of American democracy...
Dismay and disgust, chapter II--this time a little bit closer to home.
posted by Jenny at 12:39 AM |
Wednesday, October 08, 2003
Of course, while a certain degree of blog-based activism and outrage regarding Ah-nold's election is healthy, even necessary, the media obsession with it, both at home and abroad (the German-language boulevard press in particular) only reflects that globally hegemonic narcissism characteristic of things "American"--a narcissism that only keeps us from seeing what else might be going on in the rest of the world. MotherJones suggests that we take a look at some other elections taking place on the planet, some which are much more important than the California recall:
posted by Jenny at 3:03 AM |
With American and international media attention riveted on California's recall extravaganza, two other elections, arguably more important, have been mostly ignored. In Chechnya this week a candidate hand-picked by Russia became president, while in Venezuela a recall effort is under way to yank president Hugo Chavez. In both cases what's at stake is the basic stability of entire countries.
More.
And one more choice gem on the supporters of the new Führer Kaliforniens via Body and Soul:
posted by Jenny at 2:51 AM |
Asked about her support for Schwarzenegger, she said: "I like what he stands for. I think he's going to get the power back to the people; maybe we'll get to do what we want with our money instead of the government making all of the decisions for us." Pressed for a specific Schwarzenegger policy position she likes, she said: "It would be better if you talked to my husband." -- "The Teflon groper," Salon
Dismay and disgust.
posted by Jenny at 2:12 AM |
But then again, I guess my pessimistic side was already prepared for it. And in a two-party system like ours, there is no clear option--both "sides" are rife with criminals, crooked legislation, and just plain ignorance. But...to elect a man who has spent the majority of his life groping women and emanating gutteral catch phrases from behind an Uzi, from behind a camera?
Oh wait...that would be nothing new to the United States political scene...
Update: There's absolutely no chance in hell that the absentee votes could turn out something surprising, is there?
Update, again: This little note about Arnie supporters isn't very reassuring, either.
Third time's a charm: I just found this Herbert Op-Ed on Arnold's biggest fan...it's decidedly worth your time!
Fourth and final: I don't want to take up much more posting space on this unless (until?) another big point of contention comes up...but I wanted to let you folks know that Jake of LMB has a pretty good rant up on the subject of Arnold's election here...with a teeny preview of what might be things to come...can you say President Schwarzeneggar?
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