Can she really be serious?

Now, I know Ann Coulter is not meant to be taken literally. No one can really be that crazy. She has a great shtick that earns her big bucks. What scares me is that too many people actually take her seriously. Reading her column naming Sarah Palin as Human Events Conservative of the Year makes me cautiously optimistic the conservative in it's current form is dead.

In the wake of 2004, it appeared that Rove's dream of a permanent Republican majority was becoming a reality. The Democrats had been completely eviscerated of the defining issue of the day, the "War on Terror," and were confused and emasculated by an angry and vicious right wing. But how quickly things can change. As the Republicans had no actual policy proposals or competent appointments from Bush, the Republican party soon collapsed in on itself. The politics of hate got them elected, but they couldn't actually govern and this quickly became obvious to the voters who handed them two crushing defeats in a row.

So, the voters have clearly rejected the demagoguery of the right (whether they were accepting the policy proposals of the left is open to debate) because it became clear they were more driven by ideology that practical governing. So, with that in mind who do they choose to lionize as "conservative of the year"? The woman who emobodied that very characteristic and was more instrumental in McCain's lose than they dare acknowledge. In this time of panic the last thing an unemployed father is looking to hear is how Obama is a terrorist, they want to hear about what the government can and will do to fix the situation. As usual, the right throws out tax cuts, but as that is the exact same thing we've always heard from the right, they're not convincing anyone they have a real idea about how to fix the problem. As long as they were sticking to what they know, they decided to call Obama socalist terrorist, no substantive critique just pure mud.

Go ahead dig your heels in and pray that Obama is a terrible president, don't actually provide substantive policy proposals and be vocal about how wrong Obama is. If they double down on Obama's failure and he succeeds, the Republican Party as we know it will no longer exist.

*fingers crossed*

Snow Day Ramble

Let's all welcome Gregory!!! YAY GREG!!! As he is actually employed as a writer his writing will continually put mine to shame, so I should be worried about him making a fool of me. Now I just need to convince him to sign up for Twitter.

We had another week of the sky is falling news. You know we're in big trouble when Drudge seems excited to post that Ford doesn't need a Federal bailout. Call me crazy, but I feel like that should be the norm.

But, let's ignore that for the time being and since everyone else who cares has already made a list, let me put together my top albums of 2008. I kind of slacked this year and didn't listen to as much new music. I finally started listening to classical and that took up much of music listening this year. This year did have many great albums, but lacked a dominant trend leaving me with a very scattershot list, but here we go.

5.Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago - Best "guy and his acoustic guitar" album since Pink Moon
4.TV on the Radio - Dear Science - Peter Gabriel is proud
3.Shearwater - Rook - Best Talk Talk album since Laughing Stock
2.Fleet Foxes - S/T and Sun Giant EP - CSN(Y) for the non-hippie generation
1.No Age - Nouns - The most noise I've ever heard just two people make.

The numbers are arbitrary so pay little attention, but everyone should go buy those right now.

I Promise All My Posts Won't Be This Long

Well, this is it. I'm jumping head first into the blogosphere.

I came home from Christmas shopping tonight to find a postcard from none other than my good friends Barry and Meesh. It was a nice little note, thanking me for my support. (I'm kind of interested as to who the campaign sent these out to. Volunteers? Contributors? Its entire listserve? So this is where all that extra money went after the election.) In all seriousness though, I thought it was a nice gesture. Reading it over, and looking at the photo on the front of the Obamas and the Bidens celebrating together on stage in Grant Park... man. Not to get overly sentimental here, but it brought me back a little. Back to the campaign, the speeches, the feeling that this guy really was different, that he wasn't just another politician, that he could effect real change. To exchanging high-fives and terrorist fist jabs in a cozy little house in Millbrook, New York. It was a place I realized I hadn't been in at least a few weeks, probably a month. It got me pumped again, viscerally pumped, for Obama's presidency, and what it could mean for this country.

Then I fired up the ol' IBM ThinkPad (support your local economy!) and saw this. And this. And, amusingly, this.

Look, I always knew that, despite John McCain's claims to the contrary, Barack Obama wasn't "The One." One, he's a politician. He's not Jesus. He's flip-flopped on occasion for reasons of political expediency, and yes, he does lack experience in Washington, experience I think would have served him well over the next six months. Two, this country is in a pretty (pur-itty, pur-itty) bad spot, and even in the best of circumstances Obama couldn't implement his ideal agenda. And three, Obama cannot singlehandedly change the culture in Washington. He cannot disarm the Republican smear-and-stall campaign, or even give his own party a backbone. Barack, and those of us who support him, have got a steep, steep hill to climb, people.

So that's where I begin my journey into Bloggity Blog-Blog Land. Optimistic about Obama as a person, a politician, and a leader, but unsure about the degree to which he can overcome everything he's up against.

In short, I have no idea what the hell's going to happen. I just hope Brandon doesn't make a fool of me here. After all, this is a politics-and-music blog, and I lack both his political science know-how AND his musical prowess (approximately 96 percent of the music-related comments that come out of his mouth go right over my head). Now, if this blog was about time travel...

Failing Economy...Whaaa?

So if you bother actually read the news the past few days (many people I talk to can't handle the news so they don't bother) you would forget the the sky is actually falling. Apparently the most important thing going on is some douchebag governor in Illinois tried to extract political favors to fill a vacant Senate seat.

First of all, am I supposed to be surprised that a governor wants political favors for a big appointment like that? Second, will they please stop trying to tie Obama into every single story about it (and using pictures of him shaking his hand or the like). No one around him is accused of any wrong doing (maybe Rahm, but that looks like a BIG stretch...I hope). He should be focused on making sure we still have an economy next year, which I find quite a bit more important.

And as an aside...The Day the Earth Stood Still....hilarious...

Addendum

I forgot another reason that Minnesota failed me miserably.

My Home State Fails Me

While most of my childhood was actually spent in various parts of VA and my entire teenage years spent in NY I still consider myself a Minnesota boy. I will root for any team that is the Minnesota "somethings" and I have a soft spot in my heart for any band from MN. Were Tapes N' Tapes really that good? No, but damnit they were from Minnesota! (that and they gave us Clell Tickle) But man have they really failed us all and they are going to need to give us another Replacements to make up for this year's Senate race.

How was Al Franken the best the DFL could come up with!? In a year where Republicans were dropping like flies it should have been easy for the only state to vote for Walter Mondale to replace their fluke tool of Senator, Norm Coleman. Instead the DFL somehow nominates a comedian who only moved back to MN to run for Senate. No one in Minnesota seemed too thrilled about either of the major party candidates and in true Jesse Ventura fashion a third party candidate throws his hat in. This race was so bad that people were voting instead for the lizard people and really who could blame them? I think Minnesotans hated both of them so much that they attempted to get an exact tie between Franken and Coleman so that they could get a do-over.

Anyways, all this rambling brings me to my main question here, in a race where nearly 3 million votes were cast and a winner is decided by less than 200 with only 40% of the vote, did anyone really win? If "none of the above" was an option (and no Barkley doesn't count because he is crazy too) I think Minnesota would be in the middle of special election pitting Prince against Walte Mondale and I would vote for the Lizard People.

Another Reason Joe Satriani Sucks

First off, who the hell actually listens to Joe Satriani? Second, if Coldplay is stealing from anyone it's Creaky Boards, but let's let the good people at Radio Exile explain it in way more snarky fashion

Another Kennedy...

As I live in New York I am being inundated with speculative articles regarding who Gov. Paterson should appoint to fill Hillary's seat when (not if, the Constitutional question of her appointment is extrememly weak, all the Senate needs to do is lower the salary to what is was before it was increased and SCOTUS won't step in) she is confirmed for SoS. The biggest, and therefore most frequent name mentioned is Caroline Kennedy.

Normally, I would be against a pick like this. Why not let an actual politician with some strong NY roots take the seat? The problem with that type of pick lies in who is being replaced. It's not merely a politician who is known within the state. She is the former First Lady and one time next POTUS. Clinton made the seat into a national platform and at the same time NY the center of the national political stage. If NY wants to have that same swing we will need another big name. Also, in a chamber that is ruled by seniority, if Paterson appoints a well known NY pol they will have no clout at all and NY will lose out, but if our new Senator has a famous uncle (even if he is a murderer) she would have more clout than she should as an incoming Senator.

NY is going to face some serious financial problems next year and we will be more likely to get federal aid with a big marquee name Senator than without it. Paterson should be thinking as big a name as possible for this pick.

And Here I Am...

I've been pestered by many people (well...really just one) that I should start writing blog instead of just ranting at random strangers. After months of agreeing and one false start later, here is my first post.

First, I'll explain the title as the few people to whom I mentioned it didn't get it. Moderator Chair is in reference mostly to Meet the Press, but really any political debate. Chair Missing refers to one of my favorite albums of all time, Chairs Missing by Wire. I felt it cleverly referenced what will be my two main topics, politics and music, but is will mostly like remain lost on most of the people who stumble upon this blog.

With the election season over, none of my friends are willing (or care enough) to discuss politics, so I needed another outlet and hopefully this one works out well.