Come on, people...it's a really stupid thing to do. Seriously, keep it at home, especially if you work for the government. You might think we don't see you, or you might think we won't catch you, but we will.
In the words of Nancy Reagan, just say no.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
I Have No Analogue For This
Heidi and I were surfing the other night and we found this lady named Lisa Faulkner. She's an English actress and apparently quite well-known over in the UK. Of course, since we're not up on our English actresses (unless they're someone like Liz Hurley or Kristin Scott-Thomas), we looked her up. And this is what we found on Wikipedia:
"At the age of 16 she was approached by a modeling scout while she was playing her banjo in a tube station."
Doing what in a what?? I suppose this is the English version of the American "He was discovered while gassing up cars at a filling station" or "she was discovered while working as a waitress in a Des Moines bistro". Hmmmmmm....
Thanks for reading along.
"At the age of 16 she was approached by a modeling scout while she was playing her banjo in a tube station."
Doing what in a what?? I suppose this is the English version of the American "He was discovered while gassing up cars at a filling station" or "she was discovered while working as a waitress in a Des Moines bistro". Hmmmmmm....
Thanks for reading along.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
I'm Afraid
They say it takes a big man to admit he's afraid. Well, count me in that number because I'm afraid today. Once, while I was at work about two weeks ago, I had a strange thing happen to my right eye. It was like I had looked at a really bright light; I had that afterimage hanging in front of my eye. Only I hadn't looked at any light or any kind of sight that might have caused such an effect. And worse, unlike the usual kind, this one didn't go away in a few minutes. It took a couple of hours before it was gone.
This past weekend, I had a very similar issue. Sunday afternoon, while I was essentially redoing the fuel tank and fuel lines on the Ramcharger, I noticed that issue again. It was worse this time, covering a larger area. Also, while similar, it was slightly different this time in that it was a lot blurrier, and a larger area was actually somewhat blind. The spots looked like clouds, gray empty spots that I couldn't see through. "Well," I thought, "maybe it's like last time and it will go away in an hour or so." Not this time, though. These spots stuck around for the rest of the day while I worked on the truck. I thought at first that maybe I had gotten something in my eye, dirt, stray rust, or even (worse) gasoline or some other chemical. I had certainly been around a ton of all of those while crawling around under the truck. I thought that maybe I just hadn't noticed it before. I still held out hope that it would go away after a while, though. So I went to sleep Sunday night expecting that all would be well the next day.
Morning came and the blind spots were still there. They weren't terrible; I could still see (sort of) around them, and my left eye made up the difference (only my right eye was affected by this). So I could still drive and get around and do things. In fact, I spent most of the day Monday taking care of the remaining issues of getting the fuel leak fixed, rechecking the fuel lines, and getting the beast running again. But the spots didn't go away or even seem to get better. By about 2:00pm I was done and getting seriously worried. I'd had the spots for nearly 24 hours with no noticeable change. I called some doctors to see if they could get me in that afternoon, but no luck. So I finished up the day, went to class, gave a lecture for another instructor, then headed home.
Once home, Heidi did her usual great job of pampering me. The weekend was a rough one for us (I won't go into it all right now, but it might actually have an indirect effect on my vision situation). I was physically exhausted from removing the fuel tank not once, but twice, and also straining against frozen nuts and bolts, lifting the heavy tank and pushing it around, and beating the snot out of my hands (a normal condition for any mechanic, professional or otherwise...see Rule #2 about 2/3 of the way down in this post). To have all that AND not be able to see very well made it doubly difficult. Thinking I might have just had something in my eye, I did some eye washes both Sunday night and Monday night. It helped a little bit each time, but it didn't completely resolve the problem.
So today I was finally able to get in to see the doctor. She is not certain what I have that is causing this, though she did show me shots of my retina (I'd never seen it before, honestly, and it's rather cool and beautiful, in it's own way). She did say I have a very, very minor congenital cataract in my left eye, shaped very much like the flux capacitor from Back to the Future. But I digress. She said that I appear to have a vitreous detachment. This is actually quite normal, except it's more common in older folks and somewhat rare for people my age and younger. She saw that the condition appear to be a bit more widespread, though, in one quadrant of my right eye. This made her wonder if it represented something more systemic, because she could easily see from my retinal arteries and veins that I have high blood pressure. One of her assistants mentioned off-hand that she had a similar issue with her eyes right after her dad died. "That's apparently how my body dealt with the stress," she said.
This is where my fear comes in. I have a lot of stress lately, and thanks to family history, I have a propensity for high blood pressure. So I'm beginning to feel some fear about my lifestyle and my health. I'm not a partier or a drinker, and I've never touched drugs of any kind. I am beginning to feel troubled, though, that my very-high-stress life is affecting my health. I've run down the list of things for you before, but just as a reminder:
1. I have lots of debt, which translates into me needing to hold two good jobs to keep up with payments and keep my obligations under control. I am working on keeping expenses down (see the new truck, for example), but it's a long slog and I'm not much closer to being able to quit teaching yet. Finances are still somewhat touch-and-go, and this makes it worse. I'm not sure when this will be back under control, though I hope it is SOON.
2. My jobs are not exactly low-stress. First, my day job as a security analyst actually has a lot of pressure. I get paid well for doing it, but there's a lot that goes along with that. Second, to keep my teaching job I have to get a Masters degree, meaning I'm working my two jobs AND taking Masters-level courses in college.
3. I have a good-sized family, four kids, and one of those is an infant. They require lots of time and help from me.
4. I have my position on the Board of Directors at the boys' school. This is a fair amount of responsibility and does take some additional time.
5. There's always something happening with the divorce, fallout from the divorce, or side issues around the divorce (like my ex-wife and my current wife jockeying for position against each other in various areas).
5. While the FJ Cruiser was new and thus highly dependable, I'm still working out the kinks on the Ramcharger, and it has been a little difficult so far. For example, after all of this weekend's work, I didn't think I'd have her running to actually get me to class last night and to work today. Fortunately, I got her going just under the wire, but that's a little bit of excitement I really don't need.
6. I still have to find time for the usual housework assistance and other sundry stuff to keep life going smoothly.
As you can see, I have just a little bit going on. It might not be killing me, but it's certainly not helping. i'm very worried that I might end up losing my sight, or running myself into a very early grave. I know I'm young and relatively healthy, but how much longer is that going to hold up? In fact, tonight I even considered packing up as soon as it's feasible and moving back to Oklahoma. I'd have a pretty good support network there, and I could get working with my dad. That would probably be a lot lower-stress job than I currently have to maintain. I know it's probably not possible unless I really just have no other choice, because I need to be around for Katie and Connor for as long as I can. But if it will be better for me to be alive in Oklahoma than it would be for me to hold out as long as possible here and die early...I think I know what my choice would be. I am getting very concerned about my life and health, but unfortunately, I'm really not sure when this will get resolved. I guess it's another question of faith; can I trust that Jesus will get me through this and take me to a good place again?
Thanks for reading along.
This past weekend, I had a very similar issue. Sunday afternoon, while I was essentially redoing the fuel tank and fuel lines on the Ramcharger, I noticed that issue again. It was worse this time, covering a larger area. Also, while similar, it was slightly different this time in that it was a lot blurrier, and a larger area was actually somewhat blind. The spots looked like clouds, gray empty spots that I couldn't see through. "Well," I thought, "maybe it's like last time and it will go away in an hour or so." Not this time, though. These spots stuck around for the rest of the day while I worked on the truck. I thought at first that maybe I had gotten something in my eye, dirt, stray rust, or even (worse) gasoline or some other chemical. I had certainly been around a ton of all of those while crawling around under the truck. I thought that maybe I just hadn't noticed it before. I still held out hope that it would go away after a while, though. So I went to sleep Sunday night expecting that all would be well the next day.
Morning came and the blind spots were still there. They weren't terrible; I could still see (sort of) around them, and my left eye made up the difference (only my right eye was affected by this). So I could still drive and get around and do things. In fact, I spent most of the day Monday taking care of the remaining issues of getting the fuel leak fixed, rechecking the fuel lines, and getting the beast running again. But the spots didn't go away or even seem to get better. By about 2:00pm I was done and getting seriously worried. I'd had the spots for nearly 24 hours with no noticeable change. I called some doctors to see if they could get me in that afternoon, but no luck. So I finished up the day, went to class, gave a lecture for another instructor, then headed home.
Once home, Heidi did her usual great job of pampering me. The weekend was a rough one for us (I won't go into it all right now, but it might actually have an indirect effect on my vision situation). I was physically exhausted from removing the fuel tank not once, but twice, and also straining against frozen nuts and bolts, lifting the heavy tank and pushing it around, and beating the snot out of my hands (a normal condition for any mechanic, professional or otherwise...see Rule #2 about 2/3 of the way down in this post). To have all that AND not be able to see very well made it doubly difficult. Thinking I might have just had something in my eye, I did some eye washes both Sunday night and Monday night. It helped a little bit each time, but it didn't completely resolve the problem.
So today I was finally able to get in to see the doctor. She is not certain what I have that is causing this, though she did show me shots of my retina (I'd never seen it before, honestly, and it's rather cool and beautiful, in it's own way). She did say I have a very, very minor congenital cataract in my left eye, shaped very much like the flux capacitor from Back to the Future. But I digress. She said that I appear to have a vitreous detachment. This is actually quite normal, except it's more common in older folks and somewhat rare for people my age and younger. She saw that the condition appear to be a bit more widespread, though, in one quadrant of my right eye. This made her wonder if it represented something more systemic, because she could easily see from my retinal arteries and veins that I have high blood pressure. One of her assistants mentioned off-hand that she had a similar issue with her eyes right after her dad died. "That's apparently how my body dealt with the stress," she said.
This is where my fear comes in. I have a lot of stress lately, and thanks to family history, I have a propensity for high blood pressure. So I'm beginning to feel some fear about my lifestyle and my health. I'm not a partier or a drinker, and I've never touched drugs of any kind. I am beginning to feel troubled, though, that my very-high-stress life is affecting my health. I've run down the list of things for you before, but just as a reminder:
1. I have lots of debt, which translates into me needing to hold two good jobs to keep up with payments and keep my obligations under control. I am working on keeping expenses down (see the new truck, for example), but it's a long slog and I'm not much closer to being able to quit teaching yet. Finances are still somewhat touch-and-go, and this makes it worse. I'm not sure when this will be back under control, though I hope it is SOON.
2. My jobs are not exactly low-stress. First, my day job as a security analyst actually has a lot of pressure. I get paid well for doing it, but there's a lot that goes along with that. Second, to keep my teaching job I have to get a Masters degree, meaning I'm working my two jobs AND taking Masters-level courses in college.
3. I have a good-sized family, four kids, and one of those is an infant. They require lots of time and help from me.
4. I have my position on the Board of Directors at the boys' school. This is a fair amount of responsibility and does take some additional time.
5. There's always something happening with the divorce, fallout from the divorce, or side issues around the divorce (like my ex-wife and my current wife jockeying for position against each other in various areas).
5. While the FJ Cruiser was new and thus highly dependable, I'm still working out the kinks on the Ramcharger, and it has been a little difficult so far. For example, after all of this weekend's work, I didn't think I'd have her running to actually get me to class last night and to work today. Fortunately, I got her going just under the wire, but that's a little bit of excitement I really don't need.
6. I still have to find time for the usual housework assistance and other sundry stuff to keep life going smoothly.
As you can see, I have just a little bit going on. It might not be killing me, but it's certainly not helping. i'm very worried that I might end up losing my sight, or running myself into a very early grave. I know I'm young and relatively healthy, but how much longer is that going to hold up? In fact, tonight I even considered packing up as soon as it's feasible and moving back to Oklahoma. I'd have a pretty good support network there, and I could get working with my dad. That would probably be a lot lower-stress job than I currently have to maintain. I know it's probably not possible unless I really just have no other choice, because I need to be around for Katie and Connor for as long as I can. But if it will be better for me to be alive in Oklahoma than it would be for me to hold out as long as possible here and die early...I think I know what my choice would be. I am getting very concerned about my life and health, but unfortunately, I'm really not sure when this will get resolved. I guess it's another question of faith; can I trust that Jesus will get me through this and take me to a good place again?
Thanks for reading along.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Geeking Out On Film
So I saw a couple of movie trailers today that really brought out my inner geek. Much like the Transformers movie last summer, these movies resonate on my geek frequency in such a way that I become a Galloping Gertie of geekiness when it's least expected.
First, there's the new Star Trek movie. It's scheduled to come out this Christmas, and even though it's only a teaser trailer (i.e., doesn't have much substance from the actual movie), it looks awesome.
Then, I saw...
SPEED RACER!!!!!
That put me over the edge. It comes out this May, and it is written and directed by none other than the Wachowski Brothers!! That's right, they of Matrix fame. If you're an old-school geek like me, watch the trailer and tell me you're not totally stoked to see it now.
Thanks for reading along.
First, there's the new Star Trek movie. It's scheduled to come out this Christmas, and even though it's only a teaser trailer (i.e., doesn't have much substance from the actual movie), it looks awesome.
Then, I saw...
SPEED RACER!!!!!
That put me over the edge. It comes out this May, and it is written and directed by none other than the Wachowski Brothers!! That's right, they of Matrix fame. If you're an old-school geek like me, watch the trailer and tell me you're not totally stoked to see it now.
Thanks for reading along.
Leave It To My Wonderful Wife
My amazing wife Heidi has done it again. She found a really cool feature through Photobucket, where you can put in a bunch of photos and make an old-timey-looking slideshow out of them. She put together a great slideshow of Owen's first year, so why don't you head on over and take a look? It's priceless!
Thanks for reading along.
Thanks for reading along.
Saturday, February 09, 2008
A Difficult Decision...Well, Maybe Not So Difficult
Do any of you remember reading several posts back about some hard choices I have to make? Well, I made one a couple of weeks ago and it's pretty much done now. That choice was to get rid of the FJ. It was a very difficult decision, but we're a lot better off financially without it. There are some drawbacks to that decision, but honestly, I'm not worried about that. I actually felt better after I had made the decision. It was one of those weight-lifted-off-the-shoulders moments.
So, not having a daily driver, I hunted around for a mid-80s model full-size Ford Bronco or Chevy Blazer, something both with four-wheel drive and big enough to haul the kids around, should I need to do so. After much searching, I ended up buying a 1977 Dodge Ramcharger. VERY used, as you might imagine. In fact, here's a pic of her:
She's not too bad. She actually runs pretty well, all things considered. I'm still working on getting her tuned right. Someone had actually wired the choke wide open. I don't know if you know anything about cars, but the choke exists on carbureted engines to help start the engine when the engine and/or air temperature is cold. Basic chemistry says that it's more difficult to mix more atomized fuel into cold air. Without enough fuel, the engine obviously can't run. Enter the choke; this is basically a plate over the carburetor throat will close when the temperature is cold, thus allowing less air into the engine. This makes the air-fuel mixture richer (i.e., higher proportion of fuel to air in the mix) and helps the engine get going. Now, this is NOT the most efficient way for the engine to run; a rich mixture wastes fuel and increases emissions. So as the engine warms up, the choke is designed to slowly open wider and wider, until the choke plate gets to its normal, wide-open position. If the choke is wired open so that it can never close, as someone had done before I got the truck, it makes it VERY difficult to start when cold. So I removed the wires and repaired the choke. Then I did some basic tuning, checked the timing, reset the fast-idle speed (a higher RPM idle that is used when the choke is operating; the higher speed helps the engine warm up faster) and the curb idle (normal RPM idle speed), and reset the idle mixture on the carburetor. I think I've got it right, but I won't know for sure until I spend a little more time driving her. Over the next few days, I'll be able to know if she likes the settings. If not, it will be time for some more tuning. I also still need to check the spark plugs and make sure they're OK. New spark plug wires wouldn't hurt, either, but I can do that later.
This is also all very important because I have to get the emissions checked before I can register the truck. Colorado gives you temporary plates for 60 days to get this done, so I'm not in a huge rush. However, there might be some more work/parts/money involved in getting her in shape to pass. I'm hoping not much, but you know how bureaucrats are, especially when coupled with mechanics.
There is a great deal of good news from this decision. First, I got the truck for a mere $1300. Second, I can get a license plate that's good for 5 years (FIVE YEARS!!) and pay the sales tax, all for about $270. That's right; five years' registration on this vehicle is half the cost of one year's registration on the FJ. Not a bad trade. Even insurance is cheaper, as I'll be saving about $23 a month. The only drawback, in fact, is gas. No 31-year-old engine will ever beat a brand-new one in terms of efficiency, and this case is no different. I don't have any hard data yet, but I can tell I'll be using more gas. The Ramcharger's tank is about 30 gallons (compared to the FJ's 19 gallons) and I know I'm using it a little quicker. Hopefully, I can do all the tuning and everything properly so that it won't be so bad. But an older, bigger, carbureted engine in a heavier car always translates to lower mileage. Eh....trade-offs.
It's a ton of fun to work on, because the engine and drivetrain are relatively simple. Also, since it's an old truck, it's one of the truly old-school design where you can open the hood, crawl inside the engine compartment along with the engine, then close the hood and still sit comfortably while you tinker. Yes, it really is that big. While working on the choke and adjusting the carburetor, I sat on the fender and rested my feet on the wheel-well and engine mounts with the engine running while I made the necessary adjustments. The Haynes manual doesn't fail, as usual; it provides nearly everything a weekend mechanic needs to do most repair jobs successfully.
Anyway, she's a good girl and has done splendidly for me to this point. I don't treat her roughly and probably won't have any need to, so I'm hoping she'll do well for me for quite some time to come.
Oh, and the absolute best part; like all Broncos/Blazers/Ramchargers of the late-70s-through-80s era, the top comes off. The Ramcharger goes a little further, though; while the Bronco and Blazer only removed the rear top, leaving the cockpit area completely covered, the Ramcharger removes the entire top and adds in a full roll bar for protection. So you get the full convertible experience, whether you're in the front seat or the back. See the top-left pic, the red and white Ramcharger towing the boat, to get the idea:
Click on the above pic to see a larger version, by the way. That pic is straight from the Dodge marketing brochure for the 1977 Ramcharger. If you have any doubts, check out both the fashion of the girl and the fabric of the rear bench seat she's sitting on, in the bottom-righthand picture on the same page. Ugh.
Thanks for reading along.
So, not having a daily driver, I hunted around for a mid-80s model full-size Ford Bronco or Chevy Blazer, something both with four-wheel drive and big enough to haul the kids around, should I need to do so. After much searching, I ended up buying a 1977 Dodge Ramcharger. VERY used, as you might imagine. In fact, here's a pic of her:
She's not too bad. She actually runs pretty well, all things considered. I'm still working on getting her tuned right. Someone had actually wired the choke wide open. I don't know if you know anything about cars, but the choke exists on carbureted engines to help start the engine when the engine and/or air temperature is cold. Basic chemistry says that it's more difficult to mix more atomized fuel into cold air. Without enough fuel, the engine obviously can't run. Enter the choke; this is basically a plate over the carburetor throat will close when the temperature is cold, thus allowing less air into the engine. This makes the air-fuel mixture richer (i.e., higher proportion of fuel to air in the mix) and helps the engine get going. Now, this is NOT the most efficient way for the engine to run; a rich mixture wastes fuel and increases emissions. So as the engine warms up, the choke is designed to slowly open wider and wider, until the choke plate gets to its normal, wide-open position. If the choke is wired open so that it can never close, as someone had done before I got the truck, it makes it VERY difficult to start when cold. So I removed the wires and repaired the choke. Then I did some basic tuning, checked the timing, reset the fast-idle speed (a higher RPM idle that is used when the choke is operating; the higher speed helps the engine warm up faster) and the curb idle (normal RPM idle speed), and reset the idle mixture on the carburetor. I think I've got it right, but I won't know for sure until I spend a little more time driving her. Over the next few days, I'll be able to know if she likes the settings. If not, it will be time for some more tuning. I also still need to check the spark plugs and make sure they're OK. New spark plug wires wouldn't hurt, either, but I can do that later.
This is also all very important because I have to get the emissions checked before I can register the truck. Colorado gives you temporary plates for 60 days to get this done, so I'm not in a huge rush. However, there might be some more work/parts/money involved in getting her in shape to pass. I'm hoping not much, but you know how bureaucrats are, especially when coupled with mechanics.
There is a great deal of good news from this decision. First, I got the truck for a mere $1300. Second, I can get a license plate that's good for 5 years (FIVE YEARS!!) and pay the sales tax, all for about $270. That's right; five years' registration on this vehicle is half the cost of one year's registration on the FJ. Not a bad trade. Even insurance is cheaper, as I'll be saving about $23 a month. The only drawback, in fact, is gas. No 31-year-old engine will ever beat a brand-new one in terms of efficiency, and this case is no different. I don't have any hard data yet, but I can tell I'll be using more gas. The Ramcharger's tank is about 30 gallons (compared to the FJ's 19 gallons) and I know I'm using it a little quicker. Hopefully, I can do all the tuning and everything properly so that it won't be so bad. But an older, bigger, carbureted engine in a heavier car always translates to lower mileage. Eh....trade-offs.
It's a ton of fun to work on, because the engine and drivetrain are relatively simple. Also, since it's an old truck, it's one of the truly old-school design where you can open the hood, crawl inside the engine compartment along with the engine, then close the hood and still sit comfortably while you tinker. Yes, it really is that big. While working on the choke and adjusting the carburetor, I sat on the fender and rested my feet on the wheel-well and engine mounts with the engine running while I made the necessary adjustments. The Haynes manual doesn't fail, as usual; it provides nearly everything a weekend mechanic needs to do most repair jobs successfully.
Anyway, she's a good girl and has done splendidly for me to this point. I don't treat her roughly and probably won't have any need to, so I'm hoping she'll do well for me for quite some time to come.
Oh, and the absolute best part; like all Broncos/Blazers/Ramchargers of the late-70s-through-80s era, the top comes off. The Ramcharger goes a little further, though; while the Bronco and Blazer only removed the rear top, leaving the cockpit area completely covered, the Ramcharger removes the entire top and adds in a full roll bar for protection. So you get the full convertible experience, whether you're in the front seat or the back. See the top-left pic, the red and white Ramcharger towing the boat, to get the idea:
Click on the above pic to see a larger version, by the way. That pic is straight from the Dodge marketing brochure for the 1977 Ramcharger. If you have any doubts, check out both the fashion of the girl and the fabric of the rear bench seat she's sitting on, in the bottom-righthand picture on the same page. Ugh.
Thanks for reading along.
Friday, February 08, 2008
Why I Don't Agree With Democrats
Yes, it's official, Romney's given up, too. We conservatives are just no match for pundits and the party's cognoscenti, all of whom obviously know better than I do what's best for me. Short of a full-blown revolt within the Republican Party that ends up with a brokered convention, I will be going into this presidential election with the thought that there is really no good choice and struggling mightily with how I should handle my vote for president. That is a first for me; even in '96 when it was Clinton vs. Dole, I had no compunction about voting for Dole, and he was pretty badly flawed. So this is going to be my last purely political post for a while, and I want to go out with a bang.
First, to all of you pundits talking about why this "move" by the Republican Party is so "necessary to the continued life of the party," GO SOAK YOUR HEAD. The Republican base doesn't want to "move;" we feel pretty good right where we are, thank you very much. You insult us for resisting this change, as though we're a bunch of idiots. I don't see why standing up for your principles, regardless of what other people think, is a bad thing. In fact, for the greater part of American history, a person who stood up for their principles was admired, even revered, and often went down as a hero in American history. There have even been good Democrats in the past, and yes, there have been bad Republicans. Why do you think George H. W. Bush has always been so routinely lambasted for his flip-flop on taxes? He didn't stand by his principles, and that has become his legacy. He was loved for his bold actions in the first Gulf War, but by giving up his principles, he has become one of the most notorious Republican presidents of recent history. His son has been mostly very consistent, even on unpopular issues such as immigration, but he has gotten himself in the most hot water with so many of his own supporters because he turned away from his principles. He has become one of the biggest-spending Republican presidents of all time, and we all know the Republican Party LOATHES big spending government-types. So many Republicans don't like John McCain because in many areas he does NOT represent the traditional principles of the Republican Party, principles that many consider traditional American values. In truth, what I feel are traditional Republican values actually DO represent those American values quite well: success from hard work is good, individual rights AND individual responsibility are good, individual freedom is good, lower taxes and smaller government are good, self-determination is good, free markets are good, competition is good, accountability is good, and America is good. Can any of you honestly claim that those items don't represent traditional American values? HONESTLY???
Second, Romney went out with class. Whether you agreed with him or not, he did the classy thing, said exactly what he needed to say, and will be long remembered by Republicans.
Third, I also think many believe that McCain isn't much different from Hillary Clinton: in other words, he'll say and do anything he needs to do to get elected. He's been a Republican maverick for years, and has spurned invitations from the annual CPAC for years, and yet THIS year he wants to come and speak. What's his record? Let's look, shall we? He has for years been in favor of loose immigration and amnesty, but NOW he thinks that was a mistake (i.e., he flip-flopped). He wants Guantanamo shut down (but "supports the troops strongly"). He supports research from stem-cells harvested from human embryos. He believes in man-made global warming. And he carries a great deal of that contempt and anger for those who question him and for those who don't agree with him. He has something of a temper, and he has spoken about conservatives (and even to conservatives) in some very unsavory terms. Most members of the mainstream media love him. Sound familiar? It doesn't surprise me that many conservatives (including Ann Coulter) have said they'd rather just vote for Hillary, since it seems a vote for McCain is just about the same damn thing.
Finally, the following is a brief manifesto of why I do not agree with Democrats. I've actually been thinking about this for a while. There's a lot of talk these days about political polarization in the U.S., and it got me to wondering why that is. So I started coming up with reasons why I don't like and don't trust Democrats with politics. It's going to be something like a loose list format, and we'll just go from there.
I do not agree with Democrats because...
...there is no problem a Democrat can't solve, if only s/he had more of your money.
...American history to a Democrat really began in 1963, with the death of John F. Kennedy. Before that event, which really ushered in America's "Great Enlightening" (read that, "the death of 200 years of true American spirit"), America was a horrible, racist, oppressive, warmongering, imperialist nation. Only with the advent of LSD, free love, rampant divorce and abortion, and a heavy enforcement of Democrat-sanctioned "individual rights" coupled with a lack of individual responsibility has the country realized the error of its ways.
...a Democrat has no ethical or moral problem with deriding the military, cutting its funding, and spitting on its soldiers. (See the previous entry for the reasoning.)
...to a Democrat, only violence by minorities against majorities is acceptable.
...Democrats believe personal success, financial or otherwise, makes you evil. Democrats believe this so strongly that they would rather remove any incentive to success than accept that success.
...a Democrat will tell you how broken government is, how messed up the justice system is, how misguided the government's efforts in the War on Terror are, yet still ask you to trust the government with something of critical importance, like healthcare or your retirement.
...a Democrat ALWAYS believe s/he knows better than you, on anything, period, and if you just accepted and acknowledged that fact, the world would be a much better place.
...Democrats never have anything nice to say, and can always find something to complain about. (The war for "justice" never ends for a Democrat; you can give him/her everything they ask for, and it still wouldn't be enough.)
...individual rights are highly valued by Democrats, unless they're YOUR rights.
...Democrats don't believe in borders, nations, or sovereignty. There are only those who agree with Democrats and those who don't. Along the same lines, there is no America to a Democrat; there are only those who vote for Democrats and those who don't. This is why Democrats are so happy to welcome in anyone who will vote Democrat, regardless of how many people they want to blow up or how many American jobs they want to take or how much government dole they want to steal, all the while bad-mouthing America and even raising the flag of whatever country they came from. (Remember, there are no countries to a Democrat, so that flag is meaningless, anyway.)
...to a Democrat, every stance on every issue is arbitrary and every position is relative. Call it "Clinton's Law of Political Relativity," if you like, after the Democrat family that discovered it. In physics, there are very few constants (e.g., the speed of light in a vacuum), and even then, physicists have discovered that those can be relative based on certain conditions (e.g., the speed of light is different in different media; light moves through water at a different speed than it does through air). Political Relativity also has few constants (e.g., minority "victim" status), which can be relative based on conditions (e.g., Clinton the white woman vs. Obama the black man). Finally, just like in physics, some of these constants and laws cannot be reconciled through any sort of calculations; Democrat "politicists" are starting to realize they live in the world of Political Quantum Mechanics.
...Democrats believe that rights made up from crazy inferences by judges out of vague terms of the Constitution are COMPLETELY undeniable and must be acknowledged by all, like the right to abortion (derived from some inferred "right to privacy,"...read the actual Roe v. Wade decision and you'll see what I mean) or the right of homosexuals to marry. Explicitly spelled out rights, however, like the right of the people to keep and bear arms, or the right of the states to handle their own affairs that are not specifically governed by the Constitution, are TOTALLY open to interpretation and can/should be invalidated at will.
...a Democrat will scream until s/he's blue in the face that marriage between two homosexuals is OK, but can't explain why marriage between a man and two women, or a woman and two men, would still be morally indefensible.
...to a Democrat, America is almost always in the wrong, even today, and we should just accept blame for every evil on the planet. Global warming, world hunger, homelessness, genocidal wars in Africa, the sex trade, slavery, violence in the Middle East, ALL are America's fault. Confess your sins and spend the rest of your life self-flagellating, America.
That's my list, and I'm sticking to it. I won't provide examples; Democrats provide a plethora of examples daily. If you find this post, you're new to my blog, and you agree, welcome and feel free to look around for a while. If you find this, you're new to my blog, and you disagree, welcome to you, too, you can still look around all you like, but understand that this is MY blog, not yours. Go ahead and hide behind the anonymity 99.9% of you will take, post your sarcastic comment, and move along to "bigger and better" things.
First, to all of you pundits talking about why this "move" by the Republican Party is so "necessary to the continued life of the party," GO SOAK YOUR HEAD. The Republican base doesn't want to "move;" we feel pretty good right where we are, thank you very much. You insult us for resisting this change, as though we're a bunch of idiots. I don't see why standing up for your principles, regardless of what other people think, is a bad thing. In fact, for the greater part of American history, a person who stood up for their principles was admired, even revered, and often went down as a hero in American history. There have even been good Democrats in the past, and yes, there have been bad Republicans. Why do you think George H. W. Bush has always been so routinely lambasted for his flip-flop on taxes? He didn't stand by his principles, and that has become his legacy. He was loved for his bold actions in the first Gulf War, but by giving up his principles, he has become one of the most notorious Republican presidents of recent history. His son has been mostly very consistent, even on unpopular issues such as immigration, but he has gotten himself in the most hot water with so many of his own supporters because he turned away from his principles. He has become one of the biggest-spending Republican presidents of all time, and we all know the Republican Party LOATHES big spending government-types. So many Republicans don't like John McCain because in many areas he does NOT represent the traditional principles of the Republican Party, principles that many consider traditional American values. In truth, what I feel are traditional Republican values actually DO represent those American values quite well: success from hard work is good, individual rights AND individual responsibility are good, individual freedom is good, lower taxes and smaller government are good, self-determination is good, free markets are good, competition is good, accountability is good, and America is good. Can any of you honestly claim that those items don't represent traditional American values? HONESTLY???
Second, Romney went out with class. Whether you agreed with him or not, he did the classy thing, said exactly what he needed to say, and will be long remembered by Republicans.
Third, I also think many believe that McCain isn't much different from Hillary Clinton: in other words, he'll say and do anything he needs to do to get elected. He's been a Republican maverick for years, and has spurned invitations from the annual CPAC for years, and yet THIS year he wants to come and speak. What's his record? Let's look, shall we? He has for years been in favor of loose immigration and amnesty, but NOW he thinks that was a mistake (i.e., he flip-flopped). He wants Guantanamo shut down (but "supports the troops strongly"). He supports research from stem-cells harvested from human embryos. He believes in man-made global warming. And he carries a great deal of that contempt and anger for those who question him and for those who don't agree with him. He has something of a temper, and he has spoken about conservatives (and even to conservatives) in some very unsavory terms. Most members of the mainstream media love him. Sound familiar? It doesn't surprise me that many conservatives (including Ann Coulter) have said they'd rather just vote for Hillary, since it seems a vote for McCain is just about the same damn thing.
Finally, the following is a brief manifesto of why I do not agree with Democrats. I've actually been thinking about this for a while. There's a lot of talk these days about political polarization in the U.S., and it got me to wondering why that is. So I started coming up with reasons why I don't like and don't trust Democrats with politics. It's going to be something like a loose list format, and we'll just go from there.
I do not agree with Democrats because...
...there is no problem a Democrat can't solve, if only s/he had more of your money.
...American history to a Democrat really began in 1963, with the death of John F. Kennedy. Before that event, which really ushered in America's "Great Enlightening" (read that, "the death of 200 years of true American spirit"), America was a horrible, racist, oppressive, warmongering, imperialist nation. Only with the advent of LSD, free love, rampant divorce and abortion, and a heavy enforcement of Democrat-sanctioned "individual rights" coupled with a lack of individual responsibility has the country realized the error of its ways.
...a Democrat has no ethical or moral problem with deriding the military, cutting its funding, and spitting on its soldiers. (See the previous entry for the reasoning.)
...to a Democrat, only violence by minorities against majorities is acceptable.
...Democrats believe personal success, financial or otherwise, makes you evil. Democrats believe this so strongly that they would rather remove any incentive to success than accept that success.
...a Democrat will tell you how broken government is, how messed up the justice system is, how misguided the government's efforts in the War on Terror are, yet still ask you to trust the government with something of critical importance, like healthcare or your retirement.
...a Democrat ALWAYS believe s/he knows better than you, on anything, period, and if you just accepted and acknowledged that fact, the world would be a much better place.
...Democrats never have anything nice to say, and can always find something to complain about. (The war for "justice" never ends for a Democrat; you can give him/her everything they ask for, and it still wouldn't be enough.)
...individual rights are highly valued by Democrats, unless they're YOUR rights.
...Democrats don't believe in borders, nations, or sovereignty. There are only those who agree with Democrats and those who don't. Along the same lines, there is no America to a Democrat; there are only those who vote for Democrats and those who don't. This is why Democrats are so happy to welcome in anyone who will vote Democrat, regardless of how many people they want to blow up or how many American jobs they want to take or how much government dole they want to steal, all the while bad-mouthing America and even raising the flag of whatever country they came from. (Remember, there are no countries to a Democrat, so that flag is meaningless, anyway.)
...to a Democrat, every stance on every issue is arbitrary and every position is relative. Call it "Clinton's Law of Political Relativity," if you like, after the Democrat family that discovered it. In physics, there are very few constants (e.g., the speed of light in a vacuum), and even then, physicists have discovered that those can be relative based on certain conditions (e.g., the speed of light is different in different media; light moves through water at a different speed than it does through air). Political Relativity also has few constants (e.g., minority "victim" status), which can be relative based on conditions (e.g., Clinton the white woman vs. Obama the black man). Finally, just like in physics, some of these constants and laws cannot be reconciled through any sort of calculations; Democrat "politicists" are starting to realize they live in the world of Political Quantum Mechanics.
...Democrats believe that rights made up from crazy inferences by judges out of vague terms of the Constitution are COMPLETELY undeniable and must be acknowledged by all, like the right to abortion (derived from some inferred "right to privacy,"...read the actual Roe v. Wade decision and you'll see what I mean) or the right of homosexuals to marry. Explicitly spelled out rights, however, like the right of the people to keep and bear arms, or the right of the states to handle their own affairs that are not specifically governed by the Constitution, are TOTALLY open to interpretation and can/should be invalidated at will.
...a Democrat will scream until s/he's blue in the face that marriage between two homosexuals is OK, but can't explain why marriage between a man and two women, or a woman and two men, would still be morally indefensible.
...to a Democrat, America is almost always in the wrong, even today, and we should just accept blame for every evil on the planet. Global warming, world hunger, homelessness, genocidal wars in Africa, the sex trade, slavery, violence in the Middle East, ALL are America's fault. Confess your sins and spend the rest of your life self-flagellating, America.
That's my list, and I'm sticking to it. I won't provide examples; Democrats provide a plethora of examples daily. If you find this post, you're new to my blog, and you agree, welcome and feel free to look around for a while. If you find this, you're new to my blog, and you disagree, welcome to you, too, you can still look around all you like, but understand that this is MY blog, not yours. Go ahead and hide behind the anonymity 99.9% of you will take, post your sarcastic comment, and move along to "bigger and better" things.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
A (Rare) Shame
It's not often that I'm ashamed to be an Oklahoman. In fact, I don't know if I've ever been ashamed to be from Oklahoma, SERIOUSLY ashamed.
That is, before tonight.
My fellow Okies not only saw fit to pick Hillary on the Democrat side, but they picked McCain on the Republican side. Romney came in THIRD. Where are all those idiots complaining about what a backward, conservative hellhole of a state Oklahoma is? Well, you got what you wanted tonight, apparently...Oklahoma picked the most liberal candidate that each side had to offer. I guess that'll learn yuh.
My state has embarrased and horrified me tonight. It's not often that you have to face your roots and question who and what you are. I have lived my life believing that Oklahoma is a wonderful place with wonderful people. But if this is the best that the collective mind of Oklahoma can do, that's a position I'll have to reconsider. My only hope now is that, once they get their wish and one of these two horrible candidates ruins our country and destroys our way of life, they'll see the error of their ways and return to the one true path.
Thanks for reading along.
That is, before tonight.
My fellow Okies not only saw fit to pick Hillary on the Democrat side, but they picked McCain on the Republican side. Romney came in THIRD. Where are all those idiots complaining about what a backward, conservative hellhole of a state Oklahoma is? Well, you got what you wanted tonight, apparently...Oklahoma picked the most liberal candidate that each side had to offer. I guess that'll learn yuh.
My state has embarrased and horrified me tonight. It's not often that you have to face your roots and question who and what you are. I have lived my life believing that Oklahoma is a wonderful place with wonderful people. But if this is the best that the collective mind of Oklahoma can do, that's a position I'll have to reconsider. My only hope now is that, once they get their wish and one of these two horrible candidates ruins our country and destroys our way of life, they'll see the error of their ways and return to the one true path.
Thanks for reading along.
Monday, February 04, 2008
Caucuses Suck, Primaries Are Better
I was all fired up to go cast my vote tomorrow. I was ready, I was planning my schedule, because surely Colorado is intelligent enough to not do that stupid caucus BS like those weirdos in Iowa.
WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!!!
For those of you who don't appreciate the distinction, in a primary, you have an entire day, just like normal; you go to a polling place, just like normal; and you cast your vote, just like normal. In a caucus, you go to a "neighborhood meeting," as though the political process is some community-based thing like PTA, going to church, or boozing it up with friends at the local pub. (This whole caucus thing is great for me because, you know, I spend a lot of time hanging out with our local party hacks, and hobnobbing with Republican bigwigs.) You have to schedule your time to go to your caucus, rather than being able to find time in your own busy schedule to cast your vote, like you do with a primary. In other words, caucuses disenfranchise many voters who already have a full plate of crap in their life and don't need to try to shoehorn in yet another event, and who don't necessarily want to go argue with people in their own party about who should represent whom (don't we already argue enough with the other party?). I would further argue that this not only discourages regular, average citizens from participating, both in its format and in its timeslot, but it actually makes a caucus less representative of the wishes of those within a particular state's party. My caucus isn't even at the same polling place! Our listed polling place for voting in a regular election is City Park Rec Center, but our "neighborhood meeting" is at Mandalay Middle School, yet another confusing impediment to actually discovering the will of the people. Primaries let you vote when you can, no excuses; if you can't find 15 minutes in a 10-hour polling day to vote at the same place you do in every election, it's your own fault. I like being able to go, cast my vote, and get the hell out, without having to yak with a bunch of people about it.
So to make a long story short, Colorado has a caucus. This means I will not be getting to vote tomorrow, because I have to teach class, and even if I didn't, I have children who have activities. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. There are lots of things that Colorado and its citizenry haven't yet grasped, like inexpensive license plates for cars, or understanding the importance of keeping your hard-earned cash rather than ignorantly handing more of it over to an inept, corrupt, inefficient Democrat-run state government just because they ask you. Message to Colorado and all those other caucus states: get a real electoral process. Switch to a primary so that everyone gets a chance to do their thing, on their terms, not yours. In Colorado these days, it's snow and caucuses. Life is good, no?
Thanks for reading along.
WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!!!
For those of you who don't appreciate the distinction, in a primary, you have an entire day, just like normal; you go to a polling place, just like normal; and you cast your vote, just like normal. In a caucus, you go to a "neighborhood meeting," as though the political process is some community-based thing like PTA, going to church, or boozing it up with friends at the local pub. (This whole caucus thing is great for me because, you know, I spend a lot of time hanging out with our local party hacks, and hobnobbing with Republican bigwigs.) You have to schedule your time to go to your caucus, rather than being able to find time in your own busy schedule to cast your vote, like you do with a primary. In other words, caucuses disenfranchise many voters who already have a full plate of crap in their life and don't need to try to shoehorn in yet another event, and who don't necessarily want to go argue with people in their own party about who should represent whom (don't we already argue enough with the other party?). I would further argue that this not only discourages regular, average citizens from participating, both in its format and in its timeslot, but it actually makes a caucus less representative of the wishes of those within a particular state's party. My caucus isn't even at the same polling place! Our listed polling place for voting in a regular election is City Park Rec Center, but our "neighborhood meeting" is at Mandalay Middle School, yet another confusing impediment to actually discovering the will of the people. Primaries let you vote when you can, no excuses; if you can't find 15 minutes in a 10-hour polling day to vote at the same place you do in every election, it's your own fault. I like being able to go, cast my vote, and get the hell out, without having to yak with a bunch of people about it.
So to make a long story short, Colorado has a caucus. This means I will not be getting to vote tomorrow, because I have to teach class, and even if I didn't, I have children who have activities. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. There are lots of things that Colorado and its citizenry haven't yet grasped, like inexpensive license plates for cars, or understanding the importance of keeping your hard-earned cash rather than ignorantly handing more of it over to an inept, corrupt, inefficient Democrat-run state government just because they ask you. Message to Colorado and all those other caucus states: get a real electoral process. Switch to a primary so that everyone gets a chance to do their thing, on their terms, not yours. In Colorado these days, it's snow and caucuses. Life is good, no?
Thanks for reading along.
Friday, February 01, 2008
A Picture's Worth...What?
I've been noticing lately how prevalent stereotypes are. I'm not talking about the standard ones concerning race or gender or religion or the like. I'm talking about the more common, marketing-oriented ones. These are much more hilarious (and in some ways, much more telling about how the human race will NEVER get past stereotyping/profiling, EVER). Let's explore just a few, shall we?
First, let's talk radio. Listen to your typical "smooth jazz" station. You typically get a breathy-talking baritone who sounds slightly African-American, whether he is or not. Now turn over to your local NPR/public radio/classical music station. You're probably hearing a white guy or gal, perhaps talking with a faint Boston or even British accent. If it's a guy he's probably also a baritone or even a deep, rich bass. Now let's ease on over to your local adult contemporary/easy-listening station. You probably are hearing a soft-spoken woman who is striving to sound easy-going and whose day is made by a wonderful, heartfelt dedication by a man to his loving wife. If you have Delilah After Dark (a syndicated show I know is played both here in Denver and also back home in Tulsa), you know exactly what I'm talking about. Then, head over to your classic rock station and see what you get. A gravelly-voiced man (or woman) who talks with great fervor about the Dead, the Eagles, Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, and The Who, but still in a very low-key kind of way. They probably also sound like someone you'd like to party with. Every radio format has it. I love driving through eastern Kansas on my way to/from Oklahoma and hearing the farm reports. The voices always sound the same, a standard Midwestern farmer voice, sometimes with a slight twang.
At this point you're all saying, "Chris, you're HORRIBLE!! It's not always like that!" Oh really? Try it. Just once. I've lived in and visited many media markets, both large and small. And in every market, these sounds hold true. Let's look at some others.
1. Mug shots -- I know these are never on the subject's best day, so this might be a little unfair. However, you always see these on the news, and the subject is always, ALWAYS affecting one of two looks: a) "I'm drunk/stoned out of my mind," or b) "I'm an ultra bad-a** and don't you forget it". It's exceedingly rare that you don't see one of these looks in a mugshot.
2. Journalist's byline photos -- These might all be really nice folks and excellent journalists, or they might be opinionated dirtbag rabble-rousers, but the pics are almost always the same. You typically get the subject trying his/her best to look like a street-smart wise-a**, usually with a slight smirk. It's the "I seen everything and done it twice, and I'm here to tell you your opinion." Doesn't care what area the journalist covers: politics, gossip, sports, local specialties, food, business...the look in the pic is almost always the same. For a good example of this, check out Randy Hill over at Fox Sports. I enjoy his stuff but his pic always stands out as a prime example of this.
(I find this one even more humorous when I look at the pic attached above to my blog profile. I'm not trying to look like anything, really; it was the best picture of me alone that I had at the time. I don't take a lot of pictures of myself, you see.)
3. Celebrity media photos -- You zimply MUST look vun of two vays, darlink...like you are zoooo zexy in your cute outfit zat everyvun vants you, or zat you are simply bored to tears by ze entire affair. Increasingly common is the "I care more about the person I'm yakking on the cell phone with than I care about any of you" that we get with the younger, hipper Britney/Paris/Nicole crowd. This whole category isn't quite as prevalent as some of the others I mention, but these looks still appear with regularity. Go check out some of the red carpet pics over at IMDB to see what I'm talking about.This
4. Football profile photos -- You know the ones, the pictures they show at the beginning of the game when they're introducing the starters at each position. These are always very similar to the b) type of mugshot above. There are two other variants, though: the ones who look like they hate cameras and would rather never have their picture taken, and the ones who show that their momma taught 'em right and they ALWAYS smile big for the picture. I like those last ones best, because it makes them seem real. I say this because in media photos, it's exceedingly rare just to see someone look into the camera and smile, like we were always taught to do as kids.
These pictures and voices always strike me, because they prove that appearances are still very important. They also prove that we as media consumers always have expectations of what we get. We expect to see journalists as street-smart wise-a**es. We expect our football players to be ultra bad-a**es. We expect the guy talking Mozart on our local NPR station to sound British. Put Delilah in his place and you'd probably be laughing, or at least know something was up. Have Eva Longoria put on her best "I'm an ultra bad-a**" look for a red-carpet shot at next year's Emmys, and watch the local photogs (and the rest of us, via People's assuredly hilarious caption) crack up.
I know there are other examples. Can you think of any more? Thanks for reading along.
First, let's talk radio. Listen to your typical "smooth jazz" station. You typically get a breathy-talking baritone who sounds slightly African-American, whether he is or not. Now turn over to your local NPR/public radio/classical music station. You're probably hearing a white guy or gal, perhaps talking with a faint Boston or even British accent. If it's a guy he's probably also a baritone or even a deep, rich bass. Now let's ease on over to your local adult contemporary/easy-listening station. You probably are hearing a soft-spoken woman who is striving to sound easy-going and whose day is made by a wonderful, heartfelt dedication by a man to his loving wife. If you have Delilah After Dark (a syndicated show I know is played both here in Denver and also back home in Tulsa), you know exactly what I'm talking about. Then, head over to your classic rock station and see what you get. A gravelly-voiced man (or woman) who talks with great fervor about the Dead, the Eagles, Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, and The Who, but still in a very low-key kind of way. They probably also sound like someone you'd like to party with. Every radio format has it. I love driving through eastern Kansas on my way to/from Oklahoma and hearing the farm reports. The voices always sound the same, a standard Midwestern farmer voice, sometimes with a slight twang.
At this point you're all saying, "Chris, you're HORRIBLE!! It's not always like that!" Oh really? Try it. Just once. I've lived in and visited many media markets, both large and small. And in every market, these sounds hold true. Let's look at some others.
1. Mug shots -- I know these are never on the subject's best day, so this might be a little unfair. However, you always see these on the news, and the subject is always, ALWAYS affecting one of two looks: a) "I'm drunk/stoned out of my mind," or b) "I'm an ultra bad-a** and don't you forget it". It's exceedingly rare that you don't see one of these looks in a mugshot.
2. Journalist's byline photos -- These might all be really nice folks and excellent journalists, or they might be opinionated dirtbag rabble-rousers, but the pics are almost always the same. You typically get the subject trying his/her best to look like a street-smart wise-a**, usually with a slight smirk. It's the "I seen everything and done it twice, and I'm here to tell you your opinion." Doesn't care what area the journalist covers: politics, gossip, sports, local specialties, food, business...the look in the pic is almost always the same. For a good example of this, check out Randy Hill over at Fox Sports. I enjoy his stuff but his pic always stands out as a prime example of this.
(I find this one even more humorous when I look at the pic attached above to my blog profile. I'm not trying to look like anything, really; it was the best picture of me alone that I had at the time. I don't take a lot of pictures of myself, you see.)
3. Celebrity media photos -- You zimply MUST look vun of two vays, darlink...like you are zoooo zexy in your cute outfit zat everyvun vants you, or zat you are simply bored to tears by ze entire affair. Increasingly common is the "I care more about the person I'm yakking on the cell phone with than I care about any of you" that we get with the younger, hipper Britney/Paris/Nicole crowd. This whole category isn't quite as prevalent as some of the others I mention, but these looks still appear with regularity. Go check out some of the red carpet pics over at IMDB to see what I'm talking about.This
4. Football profile photos -- You know the ones, the pictures they show at the beginning of the game when they're introducing the starters at each position. These are always very similar to the b) type of mugshot above. There are two other variants, though: the ones who look like they hate cameras and would rather never have their picture taken, and the ones who show that their momma taught 'em right and they ALWAYS smile big for the picture. I like those last ones best, because it makes them seem real. I say this because in media photos, it's exceedingly rare just to see someone look into the camera and smile, like we were always taught to do as kids.
These pictures and voices always strike me, because they prove that appearances are still very important. They also prove that we as media consumers always have expectations of what we get. We expect to see journalists as street-smart wise-a**es. We expect our football players to be ultra bad-a**es. We expect the guy talking Mozart on our local NPR station to sound British. Put Delilah in his place and you'd probably be laughing, or at least know something was up. Have Eva Longoria put on her best "I'm an ultra bad-a**" look for a red-carpet shot at next year's Emmys, and watch the local photogs (and the rest of us, via People's assuredly hilarious caption) crack up.
I know there are other examples. Can you think of any more? Thanks for reading along.
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