Long days

Wednesdays are long for me, but made only longer when they are sandwiched by long Tuesdays and long Thursdays like this week. Yesterday, I taught in the morning (7:45) with my fellow law student, worked for 4 hours at the DA's office, then went to school until 7:30. After that, I played basketball from 8:30 to 9:30 (I ate dinner and changed at a Subway restaurant). I didn't get home until 10 PM.

Today, I didn't get home until 8:45 and I had been going since 9 AM. Tomorrow's schedule is just like Tuesdays. At least Friday will be light, with a mid morning class, a lunch meeting and a afternoon class. I have the opening ceremonies to watch up at my parent's house while they are away. The big screen awaits.

In other commentary, I am impressed at how quickly messages can be solidified for the Democratic party/liberals on the lefty blogostan. [For example, see the reaction to the furor over CS King's funeral] Great talking points emerge from the big blogs, and evidence to back up the ideas emerge either within the group blogs or becomes linked to the big ones. Now all Democrats need is the ability to get this honed message out to the non-blogging public.

That requires getting real air time on cable news channels, which are becoming angry conservative AM talk radio with pictures and fancy graphics, or newsprint, which is filled sniveling cowardly bootlickers like the NYTimes staff and the WaPo editorial board. Occasionally, there are some good journalists, like ex-TIME now Slate's John Dickerson. Dickerson, while still a creature of the beltway, at least has a code of ethics and knows a rat when he smells one (and isn't afraid to point out the rat).

Soon, TV and radio may die away as effective messengers to the voters/opinion shapers. Blogs like Daily Kos are growing so rapidly that soon their "circulation" numbers will trump not just big papers like NYTimes, but all papers COMBINED.

Democrats have a built in advantage as consensus builders who like to argue out crap forever, while GOPers like the unity of top down messengers like talk radio, cable news, or op-ed columnists. Democrats need to learn how to use free tools effectively, and not just spam us bloggers for money twice a week. Like I care about the LG race in Alabama.

post-super bowl heartburn edition

This is my photo of the day. I know the person who put it up there mistyped, but I think it is a Freudian slip. The media is so gutless, so willing to report smears and pathetic arguments as "both sides" instead of the truth, that this caption is partially true. Norah doesn't sell herself for sex, but she is paid to be unnecessarily deferential to the White House's arguments and the Republican-controlled congress. That makes one an informational whore, not a sexual prostitute.

I went to go see "Good Night, And Good Luck" last night.

It was pretty well done cinematography wise, it had the feel of an old
(50s) movie beyond the fact that it was in black and white. The film
made me sad because there doesn't seem to be a Murrow
(except maybe Anderson Cooper) out there to challenge the current McCarthyesque
tactics of the current administration and their lackeys in Congress.

A Patriots-free Super Bowl just isn't the same for me. As much as I was rooting for the Steelers, I still had trouble caring as much. How sad that Tom Brady tossed the official coin instead of calling heads or tails and actually playing in the Super Bowl. And weren't those ads lame? The only "good" ones were the AmeriQuest ones, the McGyver one, and the Emrald Nuts one.

I remember back in 2000 or 1999, the ads were fantastic. Like that E-Trade one with the monkey ("Well we just blew $2 million, what are you doing with your money?"). All those Christian conservatives that yelled at the networks and the NFL over Janet Jackson when she and JC plotted the scheme to attract sales to her records. If you should be mad, be mad at Mr. Jackson who beat his children into being 1) a child molester 2) drug/alcohol addicts 3) a flasher to a billion people 4) just plain crazy [LaToya] and who knows what happened to Tito. The creativity has gone out the window in favor of super bland ads.

Here is another Super Bowl that was effective: WhatistheMaxtrix.com the ad for the movie that left me confused and intregued. Wow, that was neat I thought, I wonder what that ad was for. Then people explained to me it was a film. With Kenu Reeves? Well, I did see Bill and Ted's and that Budda movie, I must be a sucker for Whooa!