Blog category: Misc

Stephen Colbert on Our Chicago Congressional District | February 13th, 2010

Stephen Colbert profiled the Illinois 5th Congressional District the other night, including an interview with our Congressional Representative here in the LP, Rep. Mike Quigley. The interview doesn’t seem to be online — if I find it, I’ll update this — but I did appreciate the props to the Wiener’s Circle.

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-05 | February 5th, 2010

• The Jihadist Next Door – homegrown terrorists http://nyti.ms/buhG3D #
• Excess Reigns at Super Bowl and That’s No Ballyhoo – http://nyti.ms/bsoVCp #
• Liking the promotion of nuclear power – Homer Simpson approves – http://nyti.ms/chEL4i #

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Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-01-29 | January 29th, 2010

• RT http://onion.com/a9twzi via @The_AV_Club – Fun look at fake computer screens from movies #
• RT @The_AV_Club – A fun look at fake computer screens from movies #
• SOTU's a wrap; time for Great Lakes beer and Fallout 3. #
• Here's NY Times link to GOP rebuttal, which I pieced together by a "View Source" when they made error on "The Caucus": http://bit.ly/9YHX2z #
• Overall, I thought SOTU was really good. Obama did a good job toning down the political volume, if only for one night. #
• Repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell – we heard that one a year ago, too, but here we are #
• Interesting when people don't applaud end of Iraq fighting – "Sorry, I prefer my wars without an end." #
• Love the line about "Just saying no to everything is not good leadership." #
• Earmark-publicizing idea seems reasonable – only problem is, everybody hates earmarks until they go to their hometown #
• Also no more overhead shots of the chamber – I just got vertigo from that one #
• Would like to hear something about how Iraq/Afghanistan was first time U.S. cut taxes during a war – it's better criticism of Bush tax cuts #
• Puzzled that the line about getting HCR done got bipartisan applause – where was this from GOP during the actual voting? #
• Alright, I lied, I'm watching it online after all. #
• Text of the SOTU, which as mentioned is how I'm consuming it: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/us/politics/28obama.text.html #
• Missing the State of the Union, but I'll read it later. Frankly that sounds better than hearing the endless "Nov. Election! Panic!" analysis #
• Tired already of the Apple-Tablet-as-media-savior stories, but this from @TechCrunch is a good analysis http://bit.ly/bEnPt3 #
• Bucktown/Wicker Park tries to return to edginess – pretty sure it's long gone, but I appreciate the effort http://bit.ly/dk70u1 #
• Thomas Jefferson and the curse on Haiti (note: he doesn't come off looking good at all) http://bit.ly/4X5ufw #
• New web icon displays online-privacy info to consumers – http://nyti.ms/9FNAxK #
• Ticketmaster and LiveNation merger approved – I can't wait to pay even more for tickets! http://bit.ly/boWxX5 #
• @plattitude Awesomely put. in reply to plattitude #
• WSJ.com – The Scales Can Lie: Hidden Fat http://on.wsj.com/7HFVcR #
• Just the side-by-side photo on this magazine name-change story is hilarious – http://nyti.ms/5bhvN7 #
• Toyota Halts Sales of Eight U.S. Models After Recall – http://nyti.ms/9Ti3vp #
• Slate Magazine – The Campaign-Finance Floodgates Were Already Open – http://www.slate.com//id/2242558 #
• RT @clickz Why media buyers avoid certain publishers http://bit.ly/6Ww1sB #
• James O'Keefe, ACORN Foe, Arrested for New Stunt: http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/01/26/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry6144293.shtml #
• Also, law-firm compensation sucks for staying awake. #
• I can't remember the last time I went to bed up here before 1 a.m. #
• O’Brien Undone by His Media-Hopping Fans – http://nyti.ms/4nc6F6 #
• Freezing social programs but not defense budgets – and the country is going off a liberal cliff how, exactly? http://nyti.ms/8JMVmi #
• Let's Geaux Saints #
• That national anthem rendition was awful. Cool trained bald eagle, though. #afcchampionship #
• Do any of these "keep safer with our extra-bright headlights" cos. realize they are endangering the other drivers who are now blinded? #
• McLaughlin Group is a lot of shouting, but it's still a welcome, reasoned relief from any of the blogs, particularly after this week. #
• @plattitude Many people prefer Olive Garden to local Italian place, so maybe mega-corporations represent comforting familiarity in govt too? in reply to plattitude #
• Obama Calls Team From 2008 for Races in Fall – http://nyti.ms/6ylobK #
• This is baffling: http://www.gallup.com/poll/125333/Public-Agrees-Court-Campaign-Money-Free-Speech.aspx?CSTS=alert #
• Staten Island – the most mocked borough http://www.slate.com/id/2241950?obref=obinsite Admittedly I did hate the summer I lived there. #
• Good for Hillary: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8473546.stm #

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Ross Follies Time Crunch | January 25th, 2010

With Follies 2010 coming up in a few weeks, I have mad video editing to do. In the meantime, here’s a quality Ross video from 2008:

New Look, New Code | December 21st, 2009

Got the new design mostly up, though it still needs some work. I consider it a Christmas present to myself.

Time Again to Redesign | December 1st, 2009

Hey readaz.

So as happens most years, I’ve gotten a little tired of the current design of my site, and I’m planning to redo it sometime soon when I can find the time. (Basically February 2019 or so.) This time I’m looking for some input into it, so I’m asking for some links to quality personal sites / blogs that yinz all think look really cool. Ideally I want my future design to do the following:

1. Keep my professional stuff front and center, but still have room for a blog to keep the site worth visiting on a regular basis
2. Look really clean and minimalist but still have cool art, probably as a background image
3. Have a somewhat downbeat design – black and white or something like that. I’m a serious-thinking dude, after all
4. Room for logos and promo badges – widgets and whatnot

Links welcome in the comments. Thanks much.

Jimmy Carter, Moon Landing, Milwaukee, Le Peep, iPod | July 19th, 2009

I’m back from Indianapolis. Let’s go:

• So Wednesday was the 30th anniversary of President Jimmy Carter’s “malaise” speech. I’ve heard about this speech before as a turning point in his presidency, so I went ahead and read the full text. To sum it up in a phrase, I don’t understand why this speech was so hated upon — it seems to me to be right on the money.

  I haven’t watched the video — though I posted it below, so I should probably get on that — so a lot is missing in terms of the substance vs. delivery view. But in reading it, it’s striking for sure how much of the national debate is stuck exactly where it was in 1979. Here’s President Carter talking about energy independence, new forms of energy, and the corrupting influence of consumerism. Last I checked, it’s 2009 and we’re still talking about every one of those things. The historical verdict seems to be that conservatives’ favorite punching bag scored a lot of points immediately after the speech, but then fired most of his Cabinet and made himself look yet again like an ineffective leader. The guy was definitely lacking in a lot of his Presidency, but I think the speech hateration — “unprecedented disaster”? — is off the mark.

• This NY Times opinion piece is Tom Wolfe at his most annoying — exclamation! points! lots of emdashes … with ellipses! — but I think somewhere in there he made a good point about the philosophical aspects of the space program that don’t get touted.
• I’m noticing that there’s all Rust Belt downtowns have a part that always conforms to the same standard. Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Milwaukee — you will always find a part of downtown that has a well-trafficked bus stop with the usual cast of characters, a run-down Dunkin Donuts, a parking garage and a near-total lack of office workers in the business-casual sense. (In Detroit, this encompasses everything within the city limits.) All of these elements will inevitably be present. This should probably get a name, so visitors know to look for it. Brownbagville? The Dunkin District?

  For real, that could be anywhere between Minnesota and Upstate New York.

• To all my NU readaz: did you know Le Peep is a franchise? I had no idea of this until I ate at one in Indianapolis this morning. Maybe I could have learned this if Le Peep were open other than 8 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. (I would like to thank Paul for that joke from the year 1999.)
• Anybody ever dealt with Apple service before? My iPod is pissed at me and I need to know how helpful I can expect them to be. Thanks, yo.

Later.

Braddock on Colbert | March 27th, 2009

It’s a month old, but check out the roughneck mayor of Tha Docc on the Colbert Report:

… and on the NewsHour from a year ago.

It’s awesome that a brilliant dude like this is willing to come to Woodland Hills and work so hard to turn it around, and it’s equally interesting to me that he was able to find a community that was essentially a blank canvas to implement his public-policy ideals. Did he go through a search process of some sort? The whole thing makes most of our efforts seem puny in comparison, and he seems to be having some success.

And as my friend Todd pointed out, “I also know that I would not fight the Braddock mayor or challenge him in a Billy Madison style IQ test.”