April 28, 2008

Lincoln-Douglas Debate? No. Try TLC.

Hillary has thrown down the gantlet, challenging Obama to a Lincoln-Douglas style no-moderator debate. Obama, trying to play out the clock, says no, we've had 21 debates.

I think Hillary needs to up the ante. Forget about polite harrumping about health care and Iraq and Rev. Wright. Let's settle this once and for all with a genuine slammin' TLC match to see who claims the nomination, no holds barred.

What's TLC? you might ask. As well you should. TLC refers not to how Hillary treats overseas campaign donors, but rather Tables-Ladders-Chairs, a wrestling format in which contestants use the props to grab a championship belt suspended above the ring.

That would be political theater of the highest order and the greatest pay-per-view event ever, to see Hillary "Bill Crusher" Clinton battle Barack "The Hawaiian Weatherman" Obama in for the Democratic nomination. Let's stop playing nice and get out the heavy equipment so they can really pummel each other in glee.

Continue reading " Lincoln-Douglas Debate? No. Try TLC."

Van | 06:44 AM | 04/28/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Domestic Politics

April 25, 2008

Lena Guerrero, Remembering a Life Too Short

First came a text message, then an email: friends in Texas heard the news that Lena Guerrero had died yesterday after battling brain tumors for eight years. She was 50, and I remember her life as one of the great what-ifs of American politics. She was a member of the Texas House of Representatives at age 26, Texas Railroad Commissioner, speaker at the 1992 Democratic convention. But then . . .

First, some history.

Lena and I were classmates at Mission High School in Texas, Class of 1976. She was the student council president, I was the newspaper editor -- teen-age obsessions that immediately pegged our career arcs. She had a great political astuteness and drive from a very young age, and attended American Legion Auxiliary's Girls State and Girls Nation program, quite an honor. The photo belows shows her in action leading a Student Council meeting.

Continue reading " Lena Guerrero, Remembering a Life Too Short"

Van | 06:57 AM | 04/25/08 | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Life and how to live it

April 16, 2008

Cloverfield (The Chabad Re-Make)

Pedestrians gazed in awe Wednesday at lunch when Chabad unleashed its fearsome 770th Mechanized Cavalry on the streets of Manhattan. Dozens of Mitzvahmobiles thundered up 6th Avenue in a pavement-rattling demonstration of spiritual firepower and amplified music complete with an NYPD escort.

If only Pope Benedict XVI had been around to see it! Perhaps Chabad is planning a repeat performance to get in on the excitement already building at Park East Synagogue, where the Pope will drop by for some Abrahamic shmoozing on Friday.

Van | 11:17 PM | 04/16/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Doing Jewish

April 07, 2008

David Harris, Here's Your New Radio Ad Schedule

The radio station of the New York Times, WQXR, has refused to run an ad from the American Jewish Committee (AJC). Dealing with the rocket attacks on Sderot, the ad was read by AJC's executive director, David Harris. I listen to WQXR at work, and have heard the AJC ads.

The Times turned down the ad for various moronic reasons, which Harris explains here:

Here’s the written explanation from Tom Bartunek, president of New York Times Radio and general manager of WQXR:

”In my judgement several elements of this spot are outside our bounds of acceptability. First, the opening line— `Imagine you had fifteen seconds to find shelter from an oncoming missile’—does not make clear that the potential target of the missile is not our listening area, and as a consequence, runs the risk of raising anxiety in a misleading way. Second, the description of the missiles as arriving `day or night’ and `daily’ is also subject to challenge as being misleading, at least to the degree that reasonable people might be troubled by the absence of any acknowledgement of reciprocal Israeli military actions. Finally, in my judgement the `countdown’ device and the general tone of the message do not meet our guidelines for decorum.”

WQXR joins Ms. Magazine in the proud ranks of principled, progressive media outlets that refuse to demean themselves by accepting certain types of filthy Jewish advertising. As I wrote during the Ms. dustup in January, I'm happy to offer the AJC alternative media outlets for its thoughtful ads. If the AJC moves them to another outlet, I will be sure to offer that station (and its many fine, upscale advertisers) my support. So, David Harris, here's your new radio schedule:

Continue reading " David Harris, Here's Your New Radio Ad Schedule"

Van | 09:59 PM | 04/07/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - Antisemitism watch

April 06, 2008

Charlton Heston, Sci-Fi Visionary

When I think of Charlton Heston, who died yesterday, I think of him in his three epochal sci-fi roles: Planet of the Apes (1968), The Omega Man (1971), and Soylent Green (1973). I saw the latter two when they first appeared, Planet of the Apes as an adult. I found all three hugely entertaining and among the very few movies I have watched more than once.

'SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!!!!!"

Sorry, I just had to get that out of my system. I feel better now.

Of the three, The Omega Man had the biggest impact on me when I saw it as a 13 year old in 1971 at the venerable Border Theatre in Mission, Texas. Everything in the movie dazzled me, from the eerie, empty streets of Los Angeles to the extreme irony of Heston, as sole survivor scientist Robert Neville mouthing the words to "Woodstock" as he watches it in a theater. What really gripped my imagination? Hint: what would most appeal to a 13 year old curious about the many-splendored possibilities between a man and woman?

Continue reading " Charlton Heston, Sci-Fi Visionary"

Van | 07:43 PM | 04/06/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Sensual pleasures

April 04, 2008

Imaginary Duets: Mac and Lazarus

Last night I had the pleasure of watching Black Snake Moan with Samuel L. Jackson and Christina Ricci. Besides having the greatest poster so far in the 21st century, Black Snake Moan gives a heartfelt picture of failings and redemption in the South. It takes its religion seriously, something that I imagine made as many people uncomfortable as the movie's premise. A classic line in the film summarizes the plot: "A half-naked white girl chained in your house?"

Jackson plays the farmer Lazarus (more than a little symbolism in that name), embittered by the end of his marriage, who finally gets back to his true calling of blues musician through his friendship with trailer-park strumpet Ricci. In watching Jackson play and the plot unfold against the background of sinners trying to get right with God, I was struck by the movie's spiritual connection to Robert Duvall's Oscar winning Tender Mercies, from 1983. While Tender Mercies got great reviews and rewards, Black Snake Moan was considered exploitative dreck by some reviewers.

But it's not. I'll tell you why.

Continue reading " Imaginary Duets: Mac and Lazarus"

Van | 02:47 PM | 04/04/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Sensual pleasures

March 31, 2008

Hillary Goes Counterintuitive

I saw a re-run of Hillary Clinton's appearance on Saturday Night Live, then on Sunday morning read an eye-opening opinion piece in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. I can't improve on the beginning of the piece, by publisher Richard Scaife:

Hillary Clinton walked into a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review conference room last Tuesday to meet with some of the newspaper's editors and reporters and declared, "It was so counterintuitive, I just thought it would be fun to do."

The room erupted in laughter. Her remark defused what could have been a confrontational meeting.

More than that, it said something about the New York senator and former first lady who hopes to be America's next president.

Maybe I'll take another look at Hillary. If Scaife can, I can, too.

Van | 06:51 AM | 03/31/08 | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Categories:

March 30, 2008

McCain-Leiberman: It's a Lock

I heard Sen. Joe Lieberman on ABC's "This Week" this morning going mano-a-mano with George Stephanapoulos. Lieberman sang a stirring love aria to Senator McCain, hitting high notes such as his appeal to moderate Democrats and independents (I'm both, so I listened with both ears).

It's obvious to me: McCain is going to go for a fusion ticket with Lieberman as VP. Unless he decides to go really innovative with Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana or some other innovative choice, McCain has made his choice. Get ready for an old-fashioned White House seder with all the fixins!

Also spracht Kesher Talk.

Van | 10:38 AM | 03/30/08 | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

March 09, 2008

Raiders of the Lost Menorah

When I visited Rome in 1989, I thrilled at the site of the menorah carried by the victorious legionnaires on the Arch of Titus. It marked a Jewish defeat, to be sure, but the fact that 2,000 years later we are still around to look at it transformed the defeat into a victory. The "Am Yisroel Chai" graffiti on the arch didn't hurt, either.

Now, Meir Soloveichik has a long and riveting article in Commentary on the image and use of the menorah. He writes,

But if the menorah has indeed been returned, and if the defeat wrought by Titus has been reversed, why then do observant Jews continue to mourn what Titus brought about? Why does the ninth of Av, which embodies the twin ideas of exile and dispersion, need to be observed at all?

In answering this question we need to examine the enigmatic image of the menorah more closely, and revisit a mystery that has confounded many over the centuries.

It's well worth printing and reading.

Van | 07:09 PM | 03/09/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Doing Jewish

March 04, 2008

Rendering Unto Caesar, God and the Yankees

My camera phone came in handy as I snapped this photo of the car of a New Yorker who wants to cover all his bases in temporal and spiritual realms. Or perhaps he a true believer who is showing his allegiance to two saviors.

Van | 10:33 PM | 03/04/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

February 25, 2008

Princeton in the Nation's Political Service

The 2008 election is shaping up to a banner one for those who seek the hidden hand of Princeton University's influence on national affairs. The two factors so far: Michelle Obama '85 is getting as much ink as her husband, what's-his-name, thanks to the close textual analysis of her senior-year thesis on racial issues and her comments on finally feeling proud of America.

The second factor appeared yesterday when Ralph Nader '55 announced he was throwing his fuel-efficient hat into the ring once again.

Now if only Donald Rumsfeld '54 would get involved as an advisor to John McCain, the orange-and-black coloration would be complete . . .

Van | 07:22 AM | 02/25/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Domestic Politics

February 11, 2008

Sex Week at Yale: Jews, Jews and More Jews

Sex Week at Yale burst on to the scene last night in New Haven. It looks like a fine time. The line-up of speakers could practically form its own minyan, with Jewish heavy hitters like Dr. Ruth and that Kesher Talk favorite, the illustrious educator Ron "Hedgehog" Jeremy.

I can't definitely vouch for the religious heritage of other speakers, but some of them sure sound and look MOTish to me: Logan Levkoff, Dr. Helen Fisher, Scott Barry Kauffman, Dr. Susan Block, actor/director Paul Thomas, Dr. Judy Kuriansky and Steven Hirsch, co-founder of Vivid Entertainment, whose contract performers will be appearing at Sex Week events.

This sounds like lots of fun, worth a Kesher Talk field trip up I-95 for in-depth reporting.

Van | 06:58 AM | 02/11/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Doing Jewish

February 10, 2008

Madre de Dios, the Principal is a JEW!!

I'm surprised the Feb. 8 NY Times story "In Bronx School, Culture Shock, Then Revival," didn't get more blog comment. The story was about a Chabadnik becoming principal (the 7th in two years) at a junior high in the Bronx. Reporter Elissa Gootman laid the ethnic anxieties on thick and heavy from the beginning. The story practically writes itself:

Teachers, parents and students at the school, which is mostly Hispanic and black, were equally taken aback by the sight of their new leader: A member of the Chabad-Lubavitch sect of Hasidic Judaism with a beard, a black hat and a velvet yarmulke.

“The talk was, ‘You’re not going to believe who’s running the show,’ ” said Lisa DeBonis, now an assistant principal. . .

Mr. Waronker, 39, a former public school teacher, was in the first graduating class of the New York City Leadership Academy, which Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg created in 2003 to groom promising principal candidates. Considered one of the stars, he was among the last to get a job, as school officials deemed him “not a fit” in a city where the tensions between blacks and Hasidic Jews that erupted in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, in 1991 are not forgotten.

Think about that "not forgotten." What is that supposed to mean? Who's not forgetting, and what are the implications of memory? That blacks and Hasidic Jews are in a state of eternal warfare?

The story really gets priceless when Gootman interviews a parent:

In fact, one parent, Angie Vazquez, 37, acknowledged that her upbringing had led her to wonder: “Wow, we’re going to have a Jewish person, what’s going to happen? Are the kids going to have to pay for lunch?”

Let's deconstruct what's going on here.

Continue reading " Madre de Dios, the Principal is a JEW!!"

Van | 02:27 PM | 02/10/08 | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - Jews in odd places

February 05, 2008

Super Tuesday in NYC

UPDATE: I gave the minority voting anecdotes their own post here. Minority as in voting Republican in Manhattan.

Well, look who's blogging! Yeah, I know. I have been really burned out. I do plan to get back in the saddle eventually. Maybe even soon.

But I had to stop in and deliver a Super Tuesday report. Most of it is up at Pajamas Media (scroll down), including video from the John McCain rally this morning in Rockefeller Plaza. Part of McCain's speech, plus short interviews with several supporters.

Continue reading " Super Tuesday in NYC"

Judith | 10:46 PM | 02/05/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

The mathematics of complex voting schemes

Discussion on my email list. (I don't think anyone read Jay Cost before talking about this, but he discusses the same problems here.)

Jim:

.....But it's not as though it's in the Dems' interest to have Republicans voting in their primary--presumably the opposite is true.

Ben:

Mathematically, it would be very much in their interest, although neither side chooses to think mathematically. (mostly because to be in politics you have to get so psychologically vested in "your guy".)

THe problem is this: Republican primary voters are a subset, Democrat primary voters are a subset. Performance in a vote among a non-random subset does not predict performace in the general vote. A mathematician named Kenneth Arrow actually won a Nobel for figuring out, basically, that no election system is perfect, and all can give skewed results.

For example, let's assume an election in which all 100% of the people will vote in both elections, and in the primary, 50% will vote in the Republican Primary and 50% in the Democrat primary. Let us assume also that even though this is the case, people may switch parties and vote for the opposite in the General election, if it is a preferred candidate.

Let us assume 4 candidates:

Continue reading " The mathematics of complex voting schemes"

Judith | 06:12 PM | 02/05/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

Voting while Republican in NYC

[ UPDATE: New stories below added Tues night. And even a TV personality was subjected to the paper ballot .... um, confusion, in NYC. Ken Wheaton has a Brooklyn voting story about gross incompetence. ]

Photos and video here. from the John McCain rally in Rockefeller Center, this morning. Below, some stories from the front lines of voting booths in liberal Democratic Manhattan, on Super Tuesday:

Richard of Hiphop Republican says:

I voted in Chelsea and the guy gave me a democrat ticket even though I had Republican under my name. I then asked if this was the right ticket and he screamed OOH A Republican out loud!! I was very upset I voted at the Fashion High School on 24th street. To make things worse they gave me a bright red ticket that seemed somewhat strange. Are they allowed to shout out Republican? I felt there was no privacy at all they tried to be nice but you could tell they were shocked to see a black Republican and so young!

it seems like anyone could vote they never asked for id. Any guy with the same name could vote for another person, many people have the same name first and last and I am scratching my head trying to figure how they determine whose a voter.

Pamela says:

it's not funny.
I just hung up with the Republican County Committee and she said they have been getting calls with this very complaint all morning.
I have to vote my paper ballot because of my move and I don't doubt that my paper ballot will wind up in the garbage (also heard Republican side of machines were "locked")

Jim says:

Continue reading " Voting while Republican in NYC"

Judith | 05:13 PM | 02/05/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

February 04, 2008

Obama Gets Retail Politics Right in CT

I gave Barack Obama high marks for visibility in the Super Tuesday primary in Connecticut. I've had two mailings from him and an automated phone call and I've seen several of his ads on TV. Hillary? Who's that? The GOP is mostly invisible, although I've seen McCain signs sprout locally. I'm hoping to see some bright-eyed volunteers working the train stations tomorrow and Tuesday, a staple of local elections.

This gives Obama the edge in terms of top-of-mind awareness when I vote in the Democratic primary bright and early on Tuesday. As is my wont, I'll do what I can to be an insurgent troublemaker, as when I voted for Ned Lamont in the 2006 Democratic primary for the Senate, then voted for newly independent Joe Lieberman in the general elections. What fun that was!

I'm still holding out for a McCain-Lieberman fusion ticket, which is not far-fetched. In December, Joe endorsed John. Gay Patriot, among others, has blogged about the possibility, with a jaundiced eye, however. And Lieberman has flat-out said he would not be VP under McCain.

But you never know what might happen when a nation turns its lonely eyes to Joe, woe-woe-woe.

Only in Connecticut, kids, only in Connecticut.

Van | 10:46 PM | 02/04/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

February 03, 2008

Dallas Cowboy Vet Now Running the Rebbe's Playbook

Let me continue my Dallas Cowboys skein with a most surprising story: Alan Veingrad, an offensive lineman on the 1993 Cowboys' Super Bowl winning team, is now a Chabadnik. The NY Jewish Week tells his tale here. Veingrad retired from football after the Super Bowl season and began seeking to a fill a spiritual void. An Orthodox cousin invited him to a Shabbat dinner, then Torah classes. One thing led to another:

Slowly, he started attending classes and Shabbat meals under Chabad aegis. “I wanted to feel all the time the inspiration I felt on Friday nights,” he says. After a trip to Israel four years ago, when he started wearing a kipah and tzitzit, he and his wife and three children decided to commit themselves to an observant life. Their kitchen was kashered, the children were enrolled in Jewish day schools. Alan became Shlomo, the Hebrew name he had received at birth. “I never looked back,” Veingrad says.

The next logical step would be for these good people to park their Mitzvamobile outside Texas Stadium on Sunday game days for a kosher tailgate party.

Van | 10:37 AM | 02/03/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - Jews in odd places

January 30, 2008

Rudy's Brilliant Strategy: The Race for 2012, When Time Ends

I'm disappointed that Rudy Giuliani dropped out of the GOP race. But after intensely gazing at my navel for hours on end, I realized he has in fact run a brilliant, long-term campaign geared NOT for 2008 but for 2012.

Rudy, I am firmly convinced, is positioning himself to be the president-elect on The Day That Time Ends. Surely you've heard of it?

Days after the 2012 election, everything changes in a big way on December 21, 2012, according to interpreters of Mayan calendar. We should be thinking about who we want to be president then to usher in a new era of global consciousness and very possibly the return of the god Quetzalcoatl. Apocalypse 2012 is a good overview of the issues, nicely spooky website. The website 13 Moon gets right to the heart of the excitement:

Pacal Votan's prophetic call is alerting present-day humanity that our biological process is transforming, approaching the culmination of a 26,000 year evolutionary program. Bringing the return of universal telepathy, heightened sense capacity, and self-reflective consciousness, this is a return to the sacred domain of our inner technology. This grand cycle of evolution will culminate winter solstice, December 21, 2012 AD.

So Rudy is probably thinking Clinton or Obama will be elected in 2008 -- the tides of history are running against the GOP. He's no doubt telling himself, "As the Day of Dread approaches, panic will break out, chaos will explode, social order will break down, the Yankees will win the World Series. Who's better prepared to handle that than me? Hillary? Obama? Get real -- I've looked death and Donna Hanover in the face and survived both!"

Certainly, I always associate Rudy Giuliani with "self-reflective consciousness." If that's not enough, consider that a rare white buffalo was born in 2007 on a farm in Wisconsin. Here's the picture. Pretty freaky, isn't it? You can't discount those baby buffalos.

So be honest with yourself: Who would you want going nose to nose with the great and terrible Quetzalcoatl when he returns in his chariot drawn by flaming polar bears to embrace Mother Gaia and usher in an era of telepathic vegan planetary consciousness (not to be confused with the Age of Aquarius, the Harmonic Convergence, the Singularity or Y2K)? Do you hanker for the new man of hope, Barack Obama, to face him (with help from Oprah), or perhaps Hillary Clinton (supported by Bill, who would be pestering the Big Q about hooking up with doe-eyed virgins before they're sacrificed?)

So don't cry for Rudy. It's all part of The Plan. He'll be back in a big way in 2012 (cue ominous music) Before Time Runs Out.

Van | 11:19 PM | 01/30/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

January 28, 2008

Coincidences

Item: December 20, 2007: Gwen Kopechne, the mother of Mary Jo Kopechne, killed in an auto accident with Senator Ted Kennedy, dies in a Pennsylvania nursing home at the age of 89. She survived the death of her only child by 39 years.

Item: January 28: Senator Ted Kennedy, looking healthy and even Jack Kempesque with his white hair, endorses Barack Obama for President.

It's strange the timing worked out on this. But as a Democrat I can see the value of Sen. Kennedy's endorsement. If Obama is the nominee, I would like to see Sen. Kennedy campaign aggressively and visibly for his fellow Senator, barnstorming the nation and voicing his support.

Senator McCain might like hearing that vocal support, too.

Van | 07:48 PM | 01/28/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

January 26, 2008

Enthusiasm Builds McGreevey Run for President

Recently I wrote about why former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey should challenge Clinton and Obama for the Democratic nomination. I'm gratified that the concept of a more gay-focused candidate is getting more attention. As I noted, racial and gender tension is not enough; the Democrats need to bring a big old heapin' bowl of sexual identity tension to their primaries. THAT's what America needs now. Why, the Associated Press says so, so it must be true:

Even as they expect to support whichever Democrat gets the presidential nomination, many activists are disappointed that the three leading contenders rarely mention gay-rights topics unless responding to a question.

"They don't want to broach civil unions, marriage, equalizing benefits for same-sex couples," said Jennifer Chrisler, head of the Family Equality Council, which supports gay and lesbian families. "The vast majority of politicians don't lead, they follow."

McGreevey, who identified himself as a "Gay American," would be a great candidate to openly discuss these issues and make them part of the electoral give-and-take. He can bring a fresh perspective to the race and talk about topics that the others duck.

I'm working on some nifty campaign slogans -- does the worldwide KT audience have any suggestions?

Van | 07:42 PM | 01/26/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08

January 24, 2008

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Ease My Pain

I'm feeling slightly less bitter about my football affiliations today, thanks to the ever-dependable Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. While the football players got their tuchuses kicked by the Giants, the Cheerleaders are starring in a promotion for, are you ready? The Roto-Rooter Pimped Out Powder Room Sweepstakes.

No doubt a bright young marketer gambled that the Cowboys would be gunning for the Super Bowl now, and the promotion would have huge synergies. Well, the Cowboys went down the toilet, but the Cheerleaders are still prancing on with gusto. The Pimped Out Powder Room certainly gets my synapses firing.

Roto-Rooter has a video of them showing the pink environment to random folks in Hollywood, to cries of delight. You can see it here, along with the entry form for the sweepstakes.

Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders -- accept no substitutes.

Van | 09:43 PM | 01/24/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Life and how to live it

January 23, 2008

If You Loved Springtime for Hitler . . .

I must not be the only bitter Dallas Cowboys fan. Another follower of America's Team who reads Kesher Talk sent me a link to this screamingly amusing video. I won't give the topic away, just refer to my headline and let your imagination do the rest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJHb9m4ccmQ

Van | 08:05 PM | 01/23/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - Amazing things

January 21, 2008

Revenge is a Dish Served Very Cold

As a die-hard Dallas Cowboy fan, I collapsed in frustration when the New York Giants beat the Cowboys to go to the NFC championship game. I had been eagerly awaiting a Cowboy-Packer title game in the friendly confines of Texas Stadium, followed by a titanic Dallas-New England struggle in the Super Bowl. That won't happen.

But, the Giants' thrilling OT victory over the Packers in the Tundra Bowl yesterday proved deeply satisfying. Like many Texans, I've nursed an unquenchable boyhood grudge against Green Bay since the Packers beat the Cowboys in the Ice Bowl on December 31, 1967. Sure, the Cowboys went on to greatness under Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman, but my horror as a 10 year watching the Cowboys go down in icy flames never really faded. (I grew up in Cowboy coach Tom Landry's home town, Mission, Texas, so the loss had severe civic reverberations.)

Until yesterday. While the Giants beat the Cowboys two Sundays ago, my 50-year old self doesn't view this as a world-shattering loss. That's the breaks. But yesterday's game, which had the Giants beat the Packers on a field goal in ovetime, now THAT was a victory to savour. Given the choice of Cowboy opponents, I'd much rather see the Giants win. And they did. Right there in the frozen heart of darkness, Lambeau Field, the Giants stuck it to the Packers the same way the Packers stuck it to Don Meredith and the Cowboys a little over 40 years ago.

Justice has been served.

Van | 09:57 PM | 01/21/08 | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Life and how to live it

January 16, 2008

Democratic Race: Let's Get Jim Into the Mix

Like many Democrats, I have felt great unease at the racial and gender tensions ripping through the Democratic primaries, as HIllary and Barack and their various toadies castigate the other side for fairy-tale reasons.

The Democratic race suffers not from too much tension, but not enough. The solution that springs gazelle-like to my mind is that the race needs a third candidate, one who can be a uniter, not a divider, somebody all Democrats can rally behind as a fresh new face for the Democratic Party.

And that man, rising to the moment in the hour of the Republic's greatest need, is . . . Jim McGreevey.

As the former Governor of New Jersey during the "Camelot years" of 2002-2004 and now a student at General Theological Seminary, McGreevey combines the executive experience and religious zest of Mike Huckabee with the crisis-tested moral authority of Hillary Clinton. And, he's gay, and I think it's time for the Democrats to have a gay nominee for president, don't you?

Continue reading " Democratic Race: Let's Get Jim Into the Mix"

Van | 10:31 PM | 01/16/08 | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Categories: - GOTV '06 to '08