September 05, 2008
Wknd
First of all, thank you SO much to everyone who ponied up and threw some cash at the Stence Auxiliary. We raised over a grand in 24 hours, and that's something we can all be super proud of. By the way, the Obama campaign considers us members of their Grassroots Finance Team - got the e-mail from the campaign and everything - so on behalf of The Stencil, I'd just like to say thank you very much for doing it so big.
I'm headed north to the homeworld in an hour or so for the Bills opener on Sunday. Me, P, Dusk, Nash, Mike 40, Dommer - we're all going home to drink Canadian beer and yell real loud, and I'm real excited. I have packed:
1 Bart Simpson "Run It My Way, Man" Bills T-shirt
1 Paul "Poz" Posluszny Throwback Jersey
1 Lee Evans Home Jersey
2 2008 Pewter Limited Edition Season Ticket Pins
1 Buffalo Bills Sunglasses
1 Buffalo Bills Flag
1 Buffalo Bills Fitted Cap
So I'm ready. And with the news that fat-ass Pro Bowl LT Jason Peters is coming back where he belongs, I'm pretty goddamn excited - even though the Crow situation is fucked.
2. In the BIG non-political-non-Bills news of the week, our man Catchdubs, in direct conjunction with the aged & learned Mr. Ducker, have teamed up to create RADIO FRIENDLY UNIT SHIFTER, a 90-minute 90s tape that will own your brain. Nick & Ducker did it for the cyclopses over at Mishka, making it even better somehow. Like Flex used to say, "THIS SHIT IS FLAVOR RIGHT HERE... FLAVOR ON TOP OF FLAVOR."
Here's Nick explaining shit, cause yall know I love that:
My good friend Mr. Ducker isn't a DJ, but he always wanted to make an ultimate '90s tape, something that brought a mixshow vibe to alt nation sounds. When he asked me to get down with his dream and collaborate, we delved deep into our middle and high school record collections (and used CD bargain bins) and brainstormed new ways to present all the alternative music we grew up on. We were inspired by DJ Spinbad's impossibly fun '80s pop mixes: big hits next to unexpected favorites with lots of movie dialogue and interludes for jokes, all smashed up in a dance party megamixxx. Picking from hundreds of beloved Buzz Bin jams was easier said than done (sorry Superdrag, you'll make Vol. 2!), but with the Mishka crew's annual trip to Magic in Las Vegas giving us an actual deadline, we finally finished this badmotorfinger as a giveaway CD for their new season. Even with double digit-old tunes, Radio Friendly Unit Shifter feels right on time, connecting the dots between Sonic Youth breakbeats, weeded Lollapalooza rap, gloriously fuzzed-out one hit wonders and much more. No irony, no empty nostalgia, just a lot of music we love that shaped what we do today. They used to play King Missile on the radio! In America! Download and enjoy. - Nick Catchdubs
Suffice to say this shit is getting put on blast in the Ralph Wilson parking lot at 9 AM. I don't know if I could pay it a higher compliment. Ok: This is one of the best tapes I've heard in a long, long time. Maximum respect to Nick & Ducker. Awesome tape great job.
3. I am not going to talk about the McCain speech. It was bad; it was boring; it was his fault...
4. Ok, one thing about the McCain speech. While he was talking, the geniuses at RNC put him in front of that big ol' screen they had on stage, and kept changing the backdrop. For most of the time, they had a blue sky and a lone American flag behind him - which of course just looked like a blue screen when the cameras were zoomed in, which was most of time. But for a little while there, they reverted to a disastrous green screen backdrop reminiscent of the one they used to such disdain on the night of Obama's nomination clinch.
When zoomed out, though, the audience at home could see that the green screen was in fact a picture of a random building... a mansion, even. Many probably wondered what the hell this building was . Well, TPM solved the mystery, and it's fucking hilarious.
After reading the above link, talented ol' Alex hit me with extra zing-age:
"Hey, intern-Dave! Did you get the image of the White House we need to throw behind the Senator's speech?"
"Psssh-yeeeaaahhh! Of COURSE I did. GAAWWWW!!!"
Awesome. Have a good weekend, yall! GO BILLS!
caps at 02:29 PM
September 04, 2008
Fighting Back
Via Ambinder:
An Obama aide passes this news along:
$8 million raised since Palin's speech from over 130,000 donors - on pace to hit $10 million by the time John McCain hits the stage tonight.
The Palin pick energized Republicans... and has given a jolt to Democrats, too.
I know that our humble El Stence Auxiliary has lit up like a firecracker in the last 20 hours, jumping from around $1100 to $1900. I am amazed and my confidence is unwavering!
UPDATE: OK, you guys are really incredible. In the last hour, we cleared another $150 - AND SHATTERED OUR $2000 DOLLAR GOAL! I'm ecstatic! What an incredible display - I am filled with an abiding hope, dudes - this is OUR TIME!
caps at 04:33 PM
Best Line
Re: Rudy's speech -
"I liked it better in the original German."
LOLOLOLOL. I forget where I read it, and it's an old Molly Ivins line (RIP & we miss ya!), but it's perfectly appropriate here.
Also, did Palin flop among independents? A Detroit Free Press focus group thinks so...
caps at 11:39 AM
Morning After
Huge, huge thanks to everyone who donated last night. Because of you, and because of a good night's sleep, I'm feeling a little better this morning than I was ten hours ago.
I knew she was gonna rock this speech - how could she not? They kept her in seclusion for five days and she had a teleprompter and a crowd that wanted her to succeed in the worst way. Hard to fuck that up. We'll see what happens when she gets to a press conference, a town hall, a debate. She's more formidable than I thought, I guess, but if we can keep this on the issues, we'll win.
More later from me, but here's some early reax from beloved El Stence correspondents:
Dusk:
This repub convention is awesome at firing up the base, on the left. I'm going to start volunteering every weekend I can in Penn. These evil fucks must be stopped. ps, this is the exact same party it was in 2004, exact same convention. full of hate, fear, winks to the right, scorn for difference of opinion or anything else, the same divisiveness, lack of ideas, the same stooge democrat performing like a good monkey, the same bush speechwriter all the way down, low, low down, to "new-clear."
Jason:
A Message To You Re: Rudy
Jason from Canada, got in trouble for yelling at CNN, so I fired up the lappy and read your site.
Earlier, I watched Rudy, and all I have to say right now through a vibrating haze of alcohol and vitriol is that he is a loser. I know people who were frighteningly close to 9/11 and nobody ever mentions the mayor in their personal accounts of fright and confusion, ever. Rudy lost. He had an unprecedented teed-up tragedy to parlay into wide-spread public acceptance and bigfoot fur-lined diaper to be huge and shit himself repeatedly, yet he squandered his shot at the nomination. He lost. His opinion doesn't matter. He is trying to get a better job, and he's a snake.
Palin, more on her sober, but they should've played "I'm Your Puppet" when she came out to speak. She is a good speaker, but she is being played. No need to beat up on her, until I've re-watched the youtube of the full speech. But these CNN clips are fucking maddening.
Enough time has passed that I can go back to the TV and watch and comment without being scolded.
This shit is infuriating and fascinating.
The next Vice President of the United States:
Keep the faith.
caps at 09:41 AM
September 03, 2008
Giuliani
Jesus fuckin christ. The arrogance and mean-spiritedness is oozing through that sweaty bald forehead. Look at those cowboys cheer, look at those fat jowly white guys chant. What the fuck. Feel like I stumbled into a bad, bad scene just by turning on the channel. This dude is straight evil. Finny had to put on headphones just to drown it out; she couldn't take it.
If you're angered by this preening, sneering, smug S.O.B., give Obama some money.
I can't stand these motherfuckers.
caps at 10:25 PM
Palin: God Is What The Party Needs Him To Be
See, to me, THIS KINDA TALK should a game-ender.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told ministry students at her former church that the United States sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a "task that is from God."
In an address last June, the Republican vice presidential candidate also urged ministry students to pray for a plan to build a $30 billion natural gas pipeline in the state, calling it "God's will."
Palin asked the students to pray for the troops in Iraq, and noted that her eldest son, Track, was expected to be deployed there.
"Our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God," she said. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that plan is God's plan."
A video of the speech was posted at the Wasilla Assembly of God's Web site before finding its way on to other sites on the Internet.
Palin told graduating students of the church's School of Ministry, "What I need to do is strike a deal with you guys." As they preached the love of Jesus throughout Alaska, she said, she'd work to implement God's will from the governor's office, including creating jobs by building a pipeline to bring North Slope natural gas to North American markets.
"God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that," she said.
"I can do my job there in developing our natural resources and doing things like getting the roads paved and making sure our troopers have their cop cars and their uniforms and their guns, and making sure our public schools are funded," she added. "But really all of that stuff doesn't do any good if the people of Alaska's heart isn't right with God."
caps at 07:57 PM
Wednesday Evening
The withered old "maverick" welcomes Levi "fuckin' redneck" Johnston into the campaign.
Quick politrixxx round-up before the RomneyBot 5000 and Governor Palin take the stage:
1. Like a good attack dog, Biden sinks his teeth into Fred Thompson on the trail in Florida:
Biden, on the third day of a campaign swing targeting older white and working class voters, delighted in deepening his voice as he tried to mimic Thompson, who he referred to as "Red October."
"Fred went there up and said, 'Well, the Democrats are going to raise your taxes,'" Biden said in a low tone as the crowd laughed. "I don't know why we need to give another tax break to Exxon Mobil."
I love it.
2. Bristol Palin celeb reax: While LiLo labels the baby drama a distraction, Jamie-Lynn sends a gift.
Irrelevant, maybe, but did the McCain camp bring this on itself? Sure. I for one think Josh Marshall nails it here:
It was the McCain campaign that announced Palin's daughter's pregnancy. That alone might be understandable since it appears a supermarket tabloid was about to print the story. But it was the McCain campaign, entirely on its own, that dished up unsubstantiated claims about maternity tests and all sorts of other lurid nonsense that had never been seen in print anywhere. And now the McCain campaign has staged a ceremonial laying-on-of-hands on the tarmac in St. Paul in which Sen. McCain has given his official blessing to the young couple and embrace of Bristol's boyfriend Levi.And to go with the sad-old-man picture up top, here's the video:
Let's be clear about what's happening here. Overwhelmingly, reporters are pressing eminently reasonable questions -- her role in troopergate, her lack of experience, her connections to the AIP, her history of earmarking and lobbyists, etc. Meanwhile, the McCain campaign is going absolutely non-stop about Palin's daughter. It is unmistakable.
3. Former Reagan speechwriter and eloquent WSJ columnist Peggy Noonan and former McCain advisor Mike Murphy tell us what they really think via an MSNBC open mic. Yow.
Delicious. That damn liberal media, huh?
Finally, a plea from El Stence's Fundraising Auxiliary: If you happen to watch tonight's proceedings, and all the crazy wingnut talk has you feeling down - for example, Romneytron's forthcoming shot at Michelle is gonna make me mad as hell, I just know it - well, don't get mad, get even.
caps at 05:49 PM
Biden re: Sleepover
From ABC's Political Radar:
To Biden's surprise, his granddaughter Finnegan - "she better turn out to be smart and beautiful handling that name" - approached him and asked his permission to have a sleep-over.
"We're standing there and said, you know, she said, 'Pop, we want to have a sleepover.' And I said, 'You do?' And they said 'yeah'. And the end result of this was, we cleared out one of the rooms, took out the beds. Seriously".
"And they put down mats on the floor, and Barack's two daughters and my four granddaughters - actually my oldest one who's 15 did not. But the three youngest granddaughters and until he got a little rowdy my 3-year-old grandson, we had pizza brought in and tapes of the various shows they like to put in."
Hell yeah.
The spur-of-the-moment slumber party might have seemed minor, but it left an indelible impression on Biden.
"I didn't want to be vice president," he admitted. "But as I walked away from that, I realized what I suspect a lot of you who are dedicated to Barack becoming president feel. I walked out of there realizing why I'm in this. It sounds corny. I'm in this for my children and my grandchildren. I'm in this for the people I grew up with in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Wilmington, Delaware. I'm in this for all the people who you know, all the people who you know, who success or failure is the very measure, the very measure of whether or not the American dream still persists."
caps at 02:39 PM
Young Russert: How To Save The Bills
The view from my seat in Section 201, where I'll be posted up for home games starting Sunday. Thanks to KRW for the picture.
Taking a break from the conventions for a minute, my thoughts turn to the Bills.
As I prepare the ceremonial Genny to be lovingly tipped out in honor of the late, great Tim Russert this Sunday at the Ralph, I am reminded by my man Urban of the excellent article young Luke Russert authored a few weeks back explaining precisely how to guarantee the Bills stay in Buffalo for now and forever. Besides proving that he is undoubtedly his father's son, Russert's cogent analysis is exactly what NFL Commissioner (and Jamestown native) Roger Goodell needs to hear:
The league should man-up and give Buffalo fans a stake in the team, like in Green Bay. Under the Packers model (formed in 1923), 112,088 fans hold more than four million voting shares in the team, having paid from $5 (offered in 1923) to $200 (1998) per share. There's no owner to pocket the profits, just an advisory group of fans to make sure every penny is reinvested in the team. The benefits are huge. In financial straits and need cash? A fan-owned team can sell more shares. Need pols to approve a new stadium? Your franchise is co-owned by voters. If Buffalonians are given a stake in their team, I'll wager my 7-month-old pug, Chamberlain, that the Bills open the 2015 season in new digs on the shores of Lake Erie. Hello, revenue!
Damn right, Luke. I'm in. Let's make it happen.
caps at 01:46 PM
September 02, 2008
Laura Bush
caps (2:50:12 PM): how scary is this pic
caps (2:50:12 PM): 
shep (2:51:05 PM): SUSPICIONS ARE CONFIRMED
shep (2:51:09 PM): LAURA BUSH IS REALLY A VAMPIRE
caps at 02:56 PM
Tucker Bounds = FAIL
caps at 09:40 AM
September 01, 2008
Monday Nite
1. No comment on Bristol Palin, other than a link to Jake Tapper's hypothetical...
2. A summary of Governor Palin's very bad day. Wow. She was vetted? Really? Since the Veep pick is in many ways the first sign of how a potential President will govern, what terrifying message does this send about a McCain administration?
3. Joe Biden, staying classy in the face of Rovian bluster. As a good friend said today, why Rove is considered any type of authority given his track record is beyond me. (And I don't just mean getting Bush elected with neo-Atwater divide-and-conquer political hackery; I mean his endless proclamations of a great political realignment, etc etc etc., all of which crumbled when the truth of the leader Rove worked to elect became impossible to ignore, right around 2005.)
4. 50 people - including Democracy Now's Amy Goodman - arrested today in Minnesota? What the fuck is going on up in St. Paul? Here's the video of Goodman being arrested... Christ.
caps at 08:57 PM
August 29, 2008
Feeling Weird
Why do I feel so weird about this? At the end of the day, I should feel at least kinda like it's a good thing, right? Like Joan Walsh does? But I don't! Maybe it's because she's into creationism? The denial of man-made global warming? Because of the Buchanan thing? Because she's wrong on damn near everything - and what she isn't explicitly wrong about, SHE JUST DOESN'T HAVE A PUBLIC POSITION ON?
Fuck this is so weird.
Anyways, on the optics alone, compare and contrast:
Jesus.
Biden and Obama look like Miami Vice, except with politicians in Pennsylvania. Biden looks like he is finishing a sentence with the word "hell" in it.
But YO: there's just something weird about the McCain/Palin dynamic. Is it that they've never really talked to each other? I know my man Wittman says that it makes McCain look like a dirty old man, kinda, and all the "yo-I'd-hit-it"/cougar/VPILF commentary is seriously gross. What if she wasn't good-looking? Hypothetical: What if Palin looked like Janet Reno? Does she still get the nod here? I just don't know... And what about pictures like this? Are we seeing some weird conservative hot-for-teacher fantasy being played out here? Am I only typing that because she is a former beauty queen? What the hell is going on here!
Also: I know the announcement today, in theory and definitely later in practice, stepped on the Obama speech coverage. But you know what? At the same time, I would argue that it kinda didn't! At least in the sense that it didn't erase Obama's speech. My argument:
1) The pick didn't leak until 10:45 AM EST, and Obama had the morning news shows in a pretty big way.
2) It's Friday before a long weekend! I don't care if you're taking the biggest gamble of modern American political history, that's still a coverage hole. What Obama did last week was much different - the Veep search carried the media from Tuesday til Friday night, it wasn't a long weekend, and McCain sure as hell didn't deliver an epic speech to a packed stadium and millions of television viewers the night before. The dynamics are very different.
3) Plus - and this, to me, is EVERYTHING - again, Obama had 38 MILLION PEOPLE watching last night! And that's not counting C-SPAN and PBS, the two stations we had on. I think the speech is what sticks in the minds of the voters not paying quite the level of breathless attention to this shit that I am.
I'm sitting here trying to not think about the race but I can't get over it. This is a very, very exciting race, to say the least. Wow.
MEANWHILE: THE PALIN SCANDAL GROWS. WOOTENGATE!
Also: I was talking last night to folks who were over here about how, in a counterfactual world where Rielle Hunter doesn't exist, an Edwards convention would lack the incredible drama this one just had. It'd be another white guy - indeed, the previous veep pick - walking up, saying some shit, making a speech. But this? Hell, I'd say this was the most dramatic goddamn convention I've ever seen, and I've been watching since '88. Sounds like the only thing that could compete in recent memory for Dems is '80, and that was nearly 30 years ago now. (!!!) Anyways, point being, I'm happy with where we are. You've been reading. You all know I liked Edwards on the policies. But last night? Last night was cool, and it's something only Obama could have done.
And this time next week, I'll be in Buffalo with a duffle bag full of Bills gear and a cold fuckin Labatt's in my hand.
Ok. I'll give the NY Daily News' Dan Gerstein the last word tonight:
Is it really putting your country first to put Sarah Palin a heartbeat away from the presidency?
UPDATE: 1:01 AM EST - The above quote echoed almost exactly by National Review conservative David Frum:
But question: If it were your decision, and you were putting your country first, would you put an untested small-town mayor a heartbeat away from the presidency?
Ok, second last word: Watching Carville on CNN and he is just laughing. Just incredulous. Says: "The Republican Party has successfully branded themselves as the party of foreign policy for the past 50-60 years. Well, they just threw 50-60 years of Republican brand out the window. My daughter has more foreign policy experience than she does."
Republican operative's response: "Women are fed up with being dismissed like that."
Yow.
caps at 11:26 PM
Alex on Palin
AA's reaction:
Just got to check out your comments re: Palin on thestencil. Everything you mention &/or cite pretty much sums up every one of my reactions to the news this AM.
Funny thing is how I heard though. I went into the bathroom this morning, having just woken up, turned on the radio to hear my man, Larry Mantle (LA NPR), and I catch the very tail end of a woman giving a speech somewhere. It sounded like an excerpt of some C-lister introducing a slightly more important speaker from the DNC this past week. Then Larry starts talking to a newspaper editor from Juneau about her and how she'd become governor, etc. Seemed unremarkable. Then another woman was interviewed and she just sounded excited about a girl-next-door success story becoming governor. Again, nothing to write home about. I still didn't really know why they were talking about her other than her surprising rise to office and this whatevs ethics investigation. Yawn. Then Larry Mantle wraps things up, reiterating that this woman was indeed McCain's pick for VP. WTF!! I almost fell off the toilet. Hail Mary indeed.
caps at 04:08 PM
Line of the Day
Spotted on a rare Ambinder comment thread:
I know Hillary Clinton. I voted for Hillary Clinton. Governor, you're no Hillary Clinton.
Posted by Eric | August 29, 2008 3:30 PM
caps at 03:40 PM
More Quick Thoughts re: Palin
Like Yglesias, I think that after the novelty/shock/WTF wears off, the Palin pick will just look like a cheap political play, rather than a serious assessment of who would best serve McCain in governing.
As me and Nash were just saying:
caps (1:41:41 PM): Joe Scarborough: "I can't imagine a woman that's been a governor for a year and a half, but to debate Joe Biden on Georgia, a re-emerging Russia, an emerging China and India, on the Middle East, my God, how does she do that?"
nash (1:41:51 PM): um
nash (1:41:54 PM): that is the problem here
nash (1:42:01 PM): HOW WILL SHE POSSIBLY HANG?
caps (1:42:21 PM): yeah!
caps (1:42:44 PM): duuuuuuuuuude
nash (1:44:23 PM): I mean seriously
caps (1:44:29 PM): it's insane
caps (1:44:33 PM): the best point is:
caps (1:44:39 PM): that he is doing this entirely for POLITICAL reasons
caps (1:44:51 PM): like when Bush trotted out Harriet Miers for the Supreme Court
caps (1:45:03 PM): there is NO consideration of her actual ability to govern
caps (1:45:08 PM): and that's a joke.
caps (1:45:18 PM): The Republicans just play to win elections, NOT ACTUALLY RUN THE COUNTRY.
caps (1:45:32 PM): so when they win, they fuck up
caps (1:45:45 PM): See: Brown, Michael, former head of FEMA.
And here's Dusk's first take, staying on message:
when the focus of your attack for the past several weeks has been the question of experience then, in the most important first decision as a president candidate, you pick someone who has about as little experience as you can possible find, that shows a tremendous amount of inconsistency, then again, we've seen this before, whether it's tax cuts, immigration, or our energy policy, mccain has completely shifted, often 180 degrees, in his pursuit of the presidency, whether it's seeking the endorsement of those he once called "agents of intolerance" or whether it's adopting rovian politics and the entire team that smeared him in 2000, there isn't any road too low for mccain this time, in fact the only thing consistent about mccain these past couple years has been his embrace of bush, the policies and politics that have driven us from surplusses to deficits, from a strong economy and a rising middle class to shrinking economy and a disappearing middle class, mccain hasn't been consistent about anything but failure and now he's asking you for another four years....
Anyways, let's keep perspective here. Via Drudge:
38,379,000 Watched Obama Speech... Developing...
caps at 01:52 PM
Weirded Out
I'm weirded out by the Palin pick.
I think it muddies McCain's central thrust - Obama's inexperience - so significantly that I think the ticket will just leave voters confused. For Christ's sake, McCain is a 72-year-old cancer survivor - and he's just picked a 44-year-old political neophyte who's served 14 months as governor as his running mate? Wow.
I'm in agreement with my Senator on this one; this is a Hail Mary. Schumer: "They know they're in bad shape."
Much, much more soon.
caps at 01:06 PM
Last Night
Well, like my mom said to me just now on the phone: Obama delivered. And then some. Like John Elway in his prime, Obama did everything he needed.
I'm going to let the rest of the internets tell the story this morning - start with Halperin's A+ - while I wait for McCain's pick. Sorry for not posting up last night; me and Finny had a bunch of friends over to watch the speech (two tvs blaring CSPAN is a wonderful thing!) and I had to carefully take down all the miniature American flags and the crepe paper streamers we had posted up.
More soon!
caps at 09:36 AM
August 28, 2008
Pre-Speech: Setting the Table
1. A la Redman, Gallup's got me steppin in my Air Max.... BOUUUUUUUNCE!
PRINCETON, NJ -- Democratic candidate Barack Obama has gained ground in the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking average from Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and now leads Republican John McCain among registered voters by a 48% to 42% margin.
I got a six pack of Heineken and big Caps on the wheels... (lol).
2. Poor Michael Dukakis... apparently he apologized for the Iraq War in an interview with Katie Couric this week. Exact quote:
Look, I owe the American people an apology. If I had beaten the old man you'd of never heard of the kid and you wouldn't be in this mess. So it's all my fault and I feel that very, very strongly.
Damn!
3. Cindy McCain's forgotten, angry half-sister is voting for Obama.
4. TO BE CLEAR: JOHN McCAIN IS NOT PRO-CHOICE. TELL A FRIEND.
5. Figure out how much cash you'd save in taxes under Obama.
caps at 01:40 PM
Biden on Iraq
This invigorating display of truth v. power via the people's champs at Free Darko, in the midst of a thoroughly entertaining courtside salon held live last night through Biden's speech. (Get it? Courtside... See what I did there? THEY LIKE BASKETBALL.)
Shoals: A. just asked if Jill Biden has been shopping at the Michelle Obama store.
Dr. LIC: She looks like a person showing up to Bruce Wayne's parties.
Dr. LIC: Joe Biden's handsomeness makes Obama look a bit ill in comparison.
BR: Like sickly ill? Or like illmatic?
Dr. LIC: Like, less handsome.
Shoals: Biden's off-the-chain-ness makes Obama seem like an elder statesman.
Ziller: Did Barack just call him "salt?" Salt and pepper!
Shoals: "Salt" is street slang for someone from Scranton. They had a Negro league team. The Scranton Salts. Joe Biden built a museum about it. With his teeth!
Dr. LIC: Biden looks like he could play a serious round of golf.
Shoals: With his teeth!
The Biden speech is getting better reviews than the B+ I gave it last night; the quotes look like sharpened darts in print. Thanks to Paz for the FD link.
caps at 10:46 AM
August 27, 2008
Clinton & Kerry
The other day, in a fit of anger and frustration with the media and the polls and that deathless primary and every other damn thing Democratic and political, I wrote that my considerable nostalgic affection for Bill & Hill & the Alien Cajun was perhaps misplaced after these 20 long months.
You know what? I take it all back.
Bill's speech was pure American gold, a beautiful thing, a perfect square of politics, fantastic and precise. Mastery - once activated with the crowd's applause, a presidential Tinkerbell - well, once that happened, Elvis was in the building. He's still the same Bill he was when I argued on his behalf in front of my class in sixth grade debate, still the same Bill I saw speak at the then-new HSBC Arena in downtown Buffalo as a junior or senior in high school. That was major league heat, a once in a generation talent taking it home one more time for you. Like Bruce, Jim, Cornelius, Andre, Shane, and Thurman all could run again, taking the Bills back to the yoffs. Seriously: what a sense of historical perspective, the satisfaction born of nostalgia put to practical use.
I am very happy. Every Democrat should be very happy.
And wow... John Kerry, who may have previously best been described as the "ol Gil" of Democratic politics, just gave a stemwinder of unprecedented power (for him). I am thrilled. Little bit of the best part, cause it's worth it, especially given that the heartbreak of November '04 may be recalled with terrifying ease these days:
I have known and been friends with John McCain for almost 22 years. But every day now I learn something new about candidate McCain. To those who still believe in the myth of a maverick instead of the reality of a politician, I say, let's compare Sen. McCain to candidate McCain.
Candidate McCain now supports the wartime tax cuts that Sen. McCain once denounced as immoral. Candidate McCain criticizes Sen. McCain's own climate change bill. Candidate McCain says he would now vote against the immigration bill that Senator McCain wrote. Are you kidding? Talk about being for it before you're against it.
Let me tell you, before he ever debates Barack Obama, John McCain should finish the debate with himself. And what's more, Sen. McCain, who once railed against the smears of Karl Rove when he was the target, has morphed into candidate McCain who is using the same "Rove" tactics and the same "Rove" staff to repeat the same old politics of fear and smear. Well, not this year, not this time. The Rove-McCain tactics are old and outworn, and America will reject them in 2008.
So remember, when we choose a commander-in-chief this November, we are electing judgment and character, not years in the Senate or years on this earth. Time and again, Barack Obama has seen farther, thought harder, and listened better. And time and again, Barack Obama has been proven right.
Great night. Hope you're digging it, too. Come on, Biden. Come on, Barack. This is it. We're on track now.
Shout to Alex Aranovich, who texted me just as I was pulling out the comp: "You still feel like your affection for Bill might be misplaced after that speech?"
11:39 PM UPDATE: Biden's speech was workmanlike, vice-presidential, shoulder-to-the-wheel, let's get to work. I give it a solid B, up it to a B+ when you consider (a) he's following up Bill Clinton giving the speech of his post-presidential life and (b) the introduction from Beau Biden was outstanding and (c) his mom looked fantastic and (d) stumbles and hair plugs and all, he's authentic and garrulous and, again, a marvelous Democratic inverse of Cheney. When he got on his home turf - when he got to ripping into McCain on foreign policy - that's when it all worked. The second half of his speech took Biden home.
It was a good night. As I was just saying via phone to ol' Dusk, tonight's success makes the other nights look reasoned and logical in presentation; the procession of events - the Michelle kick-off, the choices of two Clintons on two nights - all of that looks perfectly correct in the glow of tonight and the individual successes of the three nights thus far, now combined as tripartite almost-square, ready to be completed and made solid tomorrow by the nominee.
I'm looking forward to tomorrow night. I just hung up blue & white crepe paper, bought by Finny, and we're set to host our Official Barack Obama Convention Watch Party tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.
caps at 09:44 PM
Last Night
Hillary did her thing, and it worked for me.
But Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Montana did it biggest and best. Talk about flavor country.
caps at 01:32 PM
August 26, 2008
And
For the record, this is the smartest thing I've read today. Indeed, the media critique may prove to be the smartest thing I'll read about either convention.
Jeremy McCarter, Newsweek: "Broken News: Just once during this convention, could the TV pundits get out of the way of the show?"
Quick excerpt:
"DID DEMOCRATS WASTE FIRST DAY?" blared a graphic beneath Larry King's chin. The Monday night program of the Democratic National Convention had ended a couple of hours earlier, and King wanted the assembled pundits to tell him whether the party has mishandled its big event. The question is rich with irony. Precisely because of the pundits, who can even tell what the Democrats did on their first day, much less decide how well or badly they did it?
Time after time last evening, I flipped from the wall-to-wall coverage on C-SPAN--which is viewed, I imagine, largely by shut-ins and political completists--to see how CNN or MSNBC or Fox News broadcast a speech or performance. Time and again, they weren't broadcasting it at all. Instead, talking heads were talking to other talking heads about Hillary's dead-enders, or some other overblown story, at self-parodying length. The resulting coverage had about as much connection to what happened onstage last night as NBC's Olympics coverage would have had if Bob Costas had spent two full weeks asking other sportscasters how they feel about the shot-put.
caps at 03:22 PM
Tuesday PM
1. An extraordinary collection of Obama pins for sale. Via Dusk. Speaking of Dusk, here's his take on last night:
awesome night for me. almost cried during ted speech, totally in love with the obama family. watching, reading the coverage everywhere, it's insane how obsessed i am, watched the convention on dvr on msnbc, watched all the post-coverage on msnbc and pbs, little of the republicans on larry king even, the republican spin (from what i saw on larry king etc including to a far lesser extent brooks) is: lost opportunity, no specifics, not enough about the troops, all of the fall back stuff but it really feels like blather (it didn't piss me off just made me roll my eyes so hopefully that means it's not that affective), the pundits on the left are swooning and everyone else is saying yep, that was a real great (the most emotional response i read is andrew sullivan's). finally got halperin's reaction on charlie rose: mostly positive, wait he's found something, he thinks the obamas are not FORMAL enough (ha, i'm actually glad to hear some criticism from someone other than repubs), which is quickly shot down by everyone else pointing out that the repubs are trying to paint them as elitist and they have to show that they are like clinton/gore campaign more familiar, but now halperin is defending obama on biden pick. the other downer from halperin and matthew dowd is that there is some palpable feeling that the party isn't completely united yet, there's a lack of enthusiasm, etc, and it's different convention than any they've been to (al hunt says, yo, 1980 sons, yall was just shorties then but this ain't nothing) and obviously this is the problem the dems have to solve. yawning, so late, anyway, great start, time to rest.
2. I'm with this dude. Can Bill Clinton and his former staffers kindly shut the hell up? Cause they're fucking ruining it, and this high school bullshit is tiresome. And that's coming from someone who has a (probably misplaced) good deal of affection for Bill & Hill & the Alien Cajun. And don't get me fucking started on the cable news networks. I have sworn off even MSNBC for the remainder of the convention - it's all PBS (Jim Lehrer, Mark Shields & Gwen Ifill in glorious HD!!!) and C-SPAN from here on out - because I can't fucking take the endless preoccupation with psychodrama and soap opera while John McCain's lead ticks ever upwards. That's right - in today's Gallup daily tracker, McCain has now posted his first recorded lead. Statistically insignificant, sure, national poll, sure, still early, sure, but I'm getting nervous and this shit ain't helping, goddamnit. Come on Clintons: get it together for the good of country & party. Just a hunch, but I don't think you're helping your 2012 chances any with this extended tantrum.
3. If, perchance, you were under the mistaken impression that Karl Rove had ceased being proactively evil - well, gentle reader, you were mistaken. And of course, Rove's talking points filter all the way down through the wingnut hierarchy, as documented here. Sigh. What the hell kind of country do we have now where motherfuckin KARL ROVE gets to decide who's patriotic enough??!?!
4. Biden gets teary-eyed with Delaware delegates. I'm still very happy with the pick, lack of bounce notwithstanding. This pick wasn't about excitement or bounce: rather, the effects here will be subtle and cumulative, if it works how I hope it will. How do you measure reassurance? It's not as instant as excitement. Plus, if Obama is in fact elected (a big if, I know), I strongly believe that having Joe Biden as Veep will be immensely helpful when it comes to, you know, actually governing and talking to world leaders and such. I see you, Kris, and of course those are totally valid concerns. Let's talk more about it when you get here.
5. Buffalo people & Brooklyn people, listen up. If you haven't seen this article (New York Mag: "What could possibly make someone want to leave New York and move to Buffalo?") yet, then please check it out. Personally, I've had it forwarded to me like 12-15 times already. Not mad at that at all.
6. Finally, a picture of Mark Messier and Gary Coleman. Holy hell.
caps at 02:13 PM
Take Me Home Tonight
Goddamn, Eddie Money, you made yourself a really incredible fuckin video back in 86, you know that???
Ripping the sunglasses off, that wild jacket, the thirty-five year old dude shag hair... the whole thing is fucking huge. Sax solo. Ronnie coming back in with the drums after they cut out. Wow.
I've always loved this song. That's why we put it on Bouillabaisse - me and Jones made that tape in my bedroom back in Buffalo - and I had it on a scratched-up jukebox 45.
caps at 10:29 AM
August 25, 2008
Michelle
I thought she was just terrific: real, accessible, smart, eloquent. She pulled off the kick-off speech - a real risk, frankly - with impeccable style, grace and intelligence.
Couldn't agree more with Ben Smith:
Michelle could hardly have done better in the biggest speech of her career. She's been on the trail for more than a year, but still gives the impression of being a little realer than the seasoned pols.
Her voice was richly emotional from the start, and she battled tears at the end.
The speech may or may not reshape her image, but it's hard to imagine her having done better.
Between Michelle & the inspiring Teddy Kennedy, I'm feeling pretty damn good after day one.
Wow. Yes.
And here's the Teddy Kennedy tribute - wild photos of JFK, RFK & a handsome young Edward M. - in case you missed it:
caps at 11:07 PM
Countdown to Kickoff
Thirteen days out. Just ordered the appropriate eyewear.
caps at 10:53 AM
August 24, 2008
Primary Flashback: Joe is Right
caps at 01:38 PM
August 23, 2008
TICKET!
Hey,
Want a free Obama/Biden sticker? MoveOn's giving them away totally free--even the shipping's free. I just got mine, and wanted to share the opportunity with you.
Click this link to get a free Obama/Biden sticker.
Thanks!
ALSO:
Jason writes in with the view from atop the continent in the north-left:
Yo Caps!
Jason from up north, ceo of grillingit.blahhhhh.com, here on a sunny (yes) Saturday in BC. Writing in to say how pumped I am about the Biden nod. I've been into Biden for years, as he represents much of what is good about your party/country/system etc.
It's not the death of bullshit, by any means, but the beginning of the era where the righteous walk tall through it.
As you know, Joe has said some wild shit. His comments in a variety of contexts have ranged from amazing confluence of thought and truth to plain old troubling. My take is (and I'll be repeating the shit out of this one) those with something to say and the opportunity to say it will ineveitably make mistakes. Nobody makes a large scene on a public platform without embracing the risk that they can fall off and climb back on. The mark of a real statesman is that they don't care. We need leaders who will keep trying and keep falling and keep trying again.
The time to play it safe is running out.
These are those dudes.
Obama Biden
Say it ten times slowly.
Sound like a motherfucking MANTRA.
Peace
JPQ
caps at 04:06 PM
Yeah
I was kinda excited last night!
lol @ "I'M A BUNDLER"
And now here's Peter Frampton covering "Black Hole Sun" with Stone Gossard and Mike McCready. The a/v sync is fucked, but stick around til the 4th minute, when the talkbox starts talking.
caps at 11:13 AM
OBAMA / BIDEN '08
EVERYTHING IS A GO:
WINNING CHOICE, BARACK. MORE ON THIS LATER - BUT TO MY MIND, THE VP CHOICE SHOULD BE ROUGHLY AKIN TO SELECTING THE BEST ALL-AROUND PLAYER IN PICK-UP FOOTBALL: GET SOMEONE WHO CAN HELP YOU WIN, BOTTOM LINE. GET SOMEONE SCRAPPY.
JOE BIDEN CAN HELP BARACK OBAMA WIN. AGAIN, MORE LATER - BUT HERE'S THE LAY OF THE LAND, SO TO SPEAK. HERE'S WHERE BIDEN'S COMING FROM AND THE SCOPE OF THE TASK NOW AT HAND.
BTW, LAST NIGHT EL STENCE'S AUXILIARY MET OUR ONE GRAND GOAL AND THEN SOME... BUT I'VE GOT FIFTY BUCKS RIGHT HERE THAT SAYS WE CAN DOUBLE THAT, JUST BECAUSE.
JUST BECAUSE EVERYONE READING THIS RIGHT NOW KNOWS THAT WE'RE GOING IN HEAVY AGAINST THE REPUBS THIS FALL. WE'RE GOING IN.
THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EVERYONE WHO'S DONATED THUS FAR!!!!!!
I in no way mean any disrespect to anyone by doubling our goal tonight. Believe me, I'm just thrilled to have raised a cool GRAND off the stencil thus far. Trust me that I'm sipping beers at night, walking around my apartment whispering to myself, "DAMN I'M A BUNDLER!!!" And so let me say thanks:
HOLY HELL IT IS SO APPRECIATED! I FEEL SO GRATEFUL TO EVERYONE WHO'S CHIPPED IN!!! CATCH ME IN REAL LIFE AND WATCH ME GET DEEP ABOUT IT.
AND WE NEED MORE.
AGAIN: THIS IS OUR TIME. OUR TIME.
IF WE DO OUR PART, WE WILL WAKE UP THIS JANUARY WITH THE BILLS IN THE PLAYOFFS, THE SABRES WAY ABOVE .500, AND BARACK OBAMA AND JOE BIDEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE!!!!!!!!!!11
PARDON THE ENTHUSIASM I'M CELEBRATING OVER HERE.
4:27 AM UPDATE:
One other, perhaps less appreciated, virtue of the Biden choice is what it says about Obama philosophically. Biden can be counted upon to play the role of house dissenter and septic. But he does so as somebody whose fealty to the basic values of the Democratic Party is not in doubt. On a wide range of issues, from economics to the courts to national security, Biden has compiled a record that would please the majority of progressives. His rating from Americans for Democratic Action is a perfect 100, just like Obama's. He scores well among other liberal groups, too.
Conservatives will blast this record, just as surely as liberals will (or should) celebrate it. But one of the virtues of having Biden as the vice presidential nominee is that he won't take those kinds of attacks lightly. He'll fight back. He'll remind people, rightly, that being a liberal Democrat means raising the minimum wage, making sure everybody has affordable health care, providing strong public schools, and protecting human rights. Then, he'll ask why conservative Republicans don't want the same things. That's exactly the kind of political debate this country needs. By picking Biden as a running mate, Obama has signaled that he welcomes this argument--and intends, finally, to win it.
SCRANTON, PA - STAND UP!
caps at 03:18 AM
August 22, 2008
W-E-T P-E-T-S
Via Nash. Scorpy-ons.
caps at 05:02 PM
Best Thing To Do Right Now
is send out fake text message announcements to your friends with Verizon phones. Nerdy but fun.
I'm sure there are sites like this for non-Verizon phones, but I'm too lazy to find them right now. Besides, I gotta let more people know that Obama's picked General Petraeus as his Veep.
4:13 PM EST UPDATE: Dammit, Obama camp, send me a goddamn text message.
4:15 PM EST UPDATE: Also: Wonkette totally snagged my post!
Serves me right, I guess. Next time I gotta add the Drudge-patented qualifier: EXCLUSIVE!!!! MUST CREDIT EL STENCE!!!!!
caps at 12:54 PM
August 21, 2008
Mahoney's Art
Fellow Buffalo brethren, Irish warrior and all around great American Mike 40 Oz Mahoney recently added to his already world class ink with this snarling bison. Tonawanda's finest, Mike doesn't fuck around.
Catch Mike at the season opener in a couple weeks with me and everyone else. We're gonna celebrate America.
caps at 10:18 PM
MSNBC
Damn! Keith Olbermann is fired up tonight, and it's fun to watch. He's a force when he gets going. Makes me proud to be a Democrat.
Fuck it. I'm donating ten bucks to Obama right now. Today was a good day.
Olbermann just brought up the Keating Five. I owe him a beer. Plus we're about to learn who our next Vice President is in the next 48 hours. Did I mention football starts in 16 days or so? I'm happy.
caps at 08:06 PM
Obama to McCain:
You know you fucked up, right?
1:25 PM EST UPDATE:
Fuck, yall, I'm loving this. Democrats are bringing extra attackers onto the ice and it's a shooting gallery right now. Times like right now are we memeorandum was invented; it's fun seeing everyone hit a slow fastball like this out of the park.
I was wondering yesterday how it is that you manage to spend almost $4.7 million on a condo in Phoenix, and the answer turns out to be that the McCains bought two luxury condos and combined them. The $4.66 million figure is the combined price of his cribs.... This is one reason why it's a bit unfair to tag McCain as out of touch for being unable to remember how many homes he owns. When one of your homes is really a combination of two different luxury condos the metaphysical status of your property comes into question.
This is why everybody on John McCain's staff has quit, twice: because whenever he is asked a question that cannot be answered with "War is hell, and that's why I have such a raging boner for War," he punts the question to his poor beleaguered staff, who have to figure out how to answer the question in a way that does not reveal their boss is senile or an asshole.
I've seen some [Democrats] equate McCain with Grandpa Simpson, and I've seen some equate McCain with Mr. Burns. It turns out, he's both.
Best title? That goes to TNR's Jonathan Chait for the instant classic "There's No Place Like Homes."
And finally here's John Aravosis, on the McCain camp's sputtering response:
Well, if the McCain campaign wants to play the kitchen sink game, let me add a few points:
1. Adultery is forbidden in the Bible.
2. So is bigamy.
3. How is Vicki Eiseman?
4. Keating Five.
5. Stealing medicine from poor children to feed your drug addiction, while not specifically enumerated in the Bible, is probably frowned upon.
6. I can't remember if I have five or six points to make here.
7. Oh yeah, and according to John McCain, Obama's $4m makes him "middle class."
caps at 11:43 AM
Can we talk?
Thursday morning CLASSIXX!
caps at 09:55 AM
August 20, 2008
Wednesday PM
A sunny afternoon.
1. First up, let's talk substantively about what's happening with Obama and the polls right now.
As you may have heard - god knows Drudge and Memeorandum have been screaming all morning - the new Reuters/Zogby has McCain up by five among likely voters. Scary but true, even if it is the mercurial Zogby running those numbers. Besides, Z's result corresponds with the general Obama slump we've seen for the past few weeks now; all over, the numbers have gotten increasingly tight.
So what's happening? Well, you don't need to be a talking head on Hardball to figure out that McCain's character attacks/increased message focus (hello, Steve Schmidt) have served the dual purposes of (a) reinvigorating his base (note that McCain's Republican-support numbers are higher than Obama's Democratic-support numbers) and (b) dominating the media narrative (Is Obama A Celebrity? Is Obama Playing the Race Card? Why Isn't Obama Winning Big? etc. etc.). Couple that with Barack's vacation, events in Russia, lingering Clintonite anger and the Olympics, and I think it's reasonable that McCain's numbers have risen slightly (very slightly) while Barack's have dipped more substantially.
But I'm not sweating it. Yet. Why? Bunch of reasons:
a) Still early;
b) State polls are where the action is (although those have been hurting, too);
c) While McCain & the RNC have narrowed the gap, Obama's got more money;
d) More money = best ground game ever assembled (fingers crossed);
e) Conventions & debates will reset action;
f) Media wants it close and will work the angles to ensure drama;
g) It's still a very divided country, and that's just the reality of it. It was always gonna be closer than we'd want.
So. Hang in there. Keep the faith. Reel back the Democrats-as-'91-Bills comparisons, and throw Obama some beer money.
2. Speaking of the debates, The Atlantic's James Fallows has an absolutely engrossing piece out this month, previewing the upcoming fall classics we'll see starting end of September. To write his masterpiece, Fallows watched all 47 of the primary debates, and his insights are illuminating. Very worth your time.
3. Why I Will Not Vote for John McCain, by Dr. Philip Butler, Vietnam POW alongside John McCain. Via Dusk.
4. Obama: the picture of consistency. Check out this interview with a young Barack in 1995. To paraphrase Sadat X: stages and cameras and lights don't affect him; Same on the wax as the same on the streets...
5. Finally, let's close out this little politix update with a (very) rare instance of Barack Obama/Buffalo Sabres overlap.
So a few years ago, prior to the unveiling of the Sabres' current slug logo, a graphic designer by the name of John Slabyk generated some grassroots heat for a new Sabres brand identity he had created. Alas, the team went with the slug, but Slabyk's designs had found a following.
So last night, whilst checking out the gloriously focused Icethetics ("where hockey and art face off"), I was pleased to discover new designs from Slabyk, working again with various buffalo concepts. But I was even more pleased to discover that Slabyk is the Art Director for Obama for America.
5:02 PM UPDATE:
6. Toby Keith, Democrat, praises Obama.
caps at 03:13 PM
Nice
It's like a winning slot machine + 1.
caps at 02:01 PM
August 19, 2008
Non-Veep-Related
After soaking my head in endless VP speculation all day, finding Deadspin's 2008 Bills season preview - written by the talented Yoni Brenner - just now was fantastic. Excerpt:
Yes, for those of you not held hostage by the obscure motives and delicate body-chemistry of the Bills' 89 year-old owner Ralph Wilson (A.K.A. Father Time A.K.A. Mr. Burns A.K.A. Im-hotep), the Bills have agreed to a $78 million deal to play eight games over the next five years in Toronto, including this November 30th against Miami. That's right, Miami at Buffalo, late November... climate-controlled. For shame! Ralph Wilson is rolling over in his grave. Wait! - no - false alarm.
Anyway, despite a catchy tag-line ("The 2008 Bills: Now with 13% less Buffalo!"), the whole thing makes me a little queasy. How soon before the "Shout!" song is supplanted by Gordon Lightfoot? How soon before Trent Edwards is required to call audibles in English and French? How soon before the locker room is riven by differing viewpoints on the War of 1812? It's sort of like your girlfriend announcing that she's going to spend a couple nights a week at this handsome, rich guy's bachelor pad - let's call him, I don't know, Pierre. But don't worry! It won't affect your relationship at all. In fact, as she tells it, the intermittent Pierre-boffing is actually going to make your relationship stronger.
Well, what can you do. Here's to hoping that Toronto is just the gay best friend. They can shop, and check out the latest Chihuly exhibit, but when the lights go down and passions rise and the Bills need a town to make them feel like a woman... well... uh... I'm not exactly sure where I'm going with this.
caps at 05:13 PM