Monday, July 30, 2012

#NBCFail

I'm going to be bold: I think the 2012 Olympics are going to be remembered as the first real Olympics of the digital age- and it'll be to NBC's ultimate detriment. NBC has been getting a world of abuse dumped on its head for it's coverage of the Olympics and a lot of it is entirely well deserved:

The drivel-filled excuse of the commentary for the Opening Ceremonies aside, NBC cut to a Ryan Seacrest interview of Michael Phelps instead of showing a moving tribute to the victims of 7/7 because and I quote 'the tribute wasn't about America.' There's nothing you can say that can justify that decision. A day after London was awarded these games, a vicious terrorist attack killed 52 people in London and injured 700. You can't ignore that. Americans may have the attention span of drugged-up hamsters most of the time but the rest of the world doesn't and the way NBC cut the Opening Ceremonies was stupid- it butchered a spectacular display with inane comments and frankly needless interviews.

Then there's the inevitable tape delay. In years past and in games past, they could get away with it. Who's going to get up at 3 in the morning and watch a water polo final live from Beijing? London is a different bag of chips. Unless you completely unplug from the World Wide Web, you're going to see results well before NBC actually broadcasts them. Maybe that's just the nature of the beast- but at the same time, the model has got to shift sometime. Why can't we see events LIVE? Why do we have to have this carefully edited, crafted and moulded Prime Time programming that includes far too many pointless interview and nowhere near enough actual events. I get that NBC has bills to pay and some kind of a Prime Time replay is inevitable but it could be a lot less bloated and a lot more comprehensive than it is now.

Which brings me to the third point: NBCOlympics.com... OK, for Live Stream, fine- make people sign in with their cable provider and jump through hoops. But after the fact, NBC should Hulu that shit. Make it FREE and without hoops to jump through. Easy access to replays means that more people are going to watch them...

NBC needs to unbunch it's panties in a major way. An intrepid British reporter took the Twitter to fillet NBC for it's terrible coverage, publishing (a bit naughtily perhaps) the email of the head of NBC that way people knew where to direct their ire and after NBC Sports whined to Twitter about it, they locked him out. (Seriously now, #epicfail for Twitter for actually doing it and NBC now look like a bunch of whiners. If they don't want people to publish emails telling people exactly where to complain, they should do a better job.)

But you know what I'm finding? I'm finding that working second shift is actually something of advantage these Olympics- I get to see lots of fun, random events (handball, kayaking, weightlifting, field hockey, soccer and archery) LIVE during the day and can actually see replays of the stuff I already know the results of in Prime Time. It's working out fairly well actually...

In the end, I think complaints are inevitable. Americans are married to Prime Time like nobody's business and that's the model that the Networks are stuck too. Every other country shows events LIVE and in their entirety and doesn't give a damn. NBC has an opportunity to find a way to harness the power of the digital age to give more coverage to the Internet generation and really change the tired, weary old model of coverage that they've been stuck in for decades now. They want NBC Sports (as a longtime fan of ESPN's Sports Nation, I do think it's nice to see Michelle Beadle behind a desk again) to challenge ESPN? It's possible, but they have to think outside the box and take a risk or two...

And that goes for the Peacock Brand in general. This very night, I heard Brian Williams warn first time visitors to London that it's 'not like the London of Mary Poppins.' Seriously? Who the fuck is going to London expecting to see suffragettes, flying nannies and dancing chimney sweeps? NBC News followed it up with a scintillating report on how multi-cultural London is. As if this was a new discovery...

That's the most damning verdict of all: what kind of coverage do we expect from the 4th place network on American television?

Bookshot #50: Rule 34


Set in the not-to-distance future of early 21st Century Scotland (now a semi-independent, partially privitazed nation of it's own) Rule 34 is the story of Inspector Liz Kavanaugh of the Edinburgh Police, head of the Innovative Crime Investigation Unit (ICIU) that's responsible for monitoring the internet, following trends to make sure people toe the line between harmless fantasies and illegal acitivies. Usually, they're just hunting down freaky and (at least by the standards of 2023) sick porn. But occasionally other patterns emerge...

Soon Kavanaugh finds herself on a bloody trail of murder as ex-cons keep getting murdered across Europe that only have one thing in common: arrests for spamming and a taste for unorthodox erotica. She has to figure out who- or what is doing the killing before the killings accelerate... and go viral.

This is one of those books you can read in one sitting if you really wanted to. It's a bit of a slow start, but once you get past the first couple of chapters, the thing really takes off on you and you find yourself turning pages at a brisk clip, eager to find out with the final resolution of this near-future thriller is going to be. (It's an interesting one, I'll give you that.)

It's been a summer of British Science Fiction thus far and although the last time I picked up an Iain M. Banks novel my brain just about melted after Chapter 1 I might be willing to try him and Alistair Reynolds again just to get a good sampling of the depth of talent out there. Stross ranks right up there with science fiction authors that you should be reading- he shoves the reader the proverbial 'ten minutes' into the future and drops you into a world that's familiar and yet totally alien- as in, you could easily see a lot of this stuff appearing right around the corner.

Most fascinating aspect of this book: describing a law enforcement agency that's totally integrated with all aspects of technology possible. Uploading reports via phone or 'police-specs', managing the work flow of information and data-mining for trends and patterns. It's all one, big wired system and it seemed a little jarring at first but not too out of whack in my book. (Getting people to embrace new technologies is an uphill battle sometimes in law enforcement, I've discovered... it'd be almost paradise if I could ahold of half of the stuff Stross describes right now.)

Interesting Factoid of this book: The title, Rule 34 is a reference to meme Rule 34 of the internet, which states 'if it exists, there is porn of it. No exceptions.'

Freakiest Thing About This Book: it's written in the second person singular- I didn't really catch on to that until about three chapter in and it wigged me out a little at first because I don't think I've ever read a book in the second person singular. I don't think it limits the story but it does feel a little impersonal from time to time. Yet despite that, it's a useful little point of view because it bring the reader in and invites them to 'walk a mile' in a character's shoes. Kind of intriguing when you think about it...

Overall: A sizzling page turner and exciting romp through the not-to-distant future. Second person weirdness aside, Stross can write and write well. Worth a read.

Friday, July 27, 2012

The Uniform Brouhaha

The brouhaha over Team USA's uniforms is just silly. It's beyond silly it's ridiculous, stupid and everything in between and Ralph Lauren was well within his rights to tell everybody to 'fuck right off.' It annoys the shit out of me when politicians a lot of whom spend their time preaching about the glories of capitalism and the glories of globalization and the glories of the free market fail to grasp how it really works and get their underwear in a bunch about things they shouldn't. Let's discuss:

We don't make clothes in America anymore. We haven't for awhile now. Looking at your clothes and hoping to find a 'MADE IN THE USA' tag? Think again. That's globalization for you. Other countries can make our clothes faster and cheaper and that's what we went with. (So, our brigade of politicians that get all aroused talking about the virtues of the free market, this is what it looks like. Get used to it.)

Second of all, let's look at the uniforms in question:


Berets? How American... well, you can tell it's Ralph Lauren what with the blazers, the berets and the 'northeastern preppy' look. They're kind of ugly, really- until you take into account what Spain has:


They're under a bit of an economic squeeze right now, so they had to go with uniforms that were free. Whatever else you can say about Team USA's uniforms, at least we can still afford to pay for ours. Wonder what our free ones would have looked like.

The $14 Billion Spectacle

The Summer Olympics are about to begin and that raises the usual question when the Olympics are about to begin: are they really worth the hassle? The Olympics have been growing in cost and hassle for decades now. They've become commercialized, corporatized and, though I hate to risk the wrath of basketball fans everywhere, after professional athletes were allowed to compete, the whole 'amateurs only' thing seems a bit faded and worn as well.

At a cost of $14 billion, you have to ask, what's in it for London? A lot of cities approach the Olympics in different ways with mixed results. Beijing still has venues it's trying to find a use for, Athens ran up a load of debt but took away improvements to it's infrastructure and it took Montreal decades to pay off it's Olympic date. (And it saddled Major League Baseball with a largely mediocre team that had the misfortune of having it's best year ever the year Major League Baseball went on strike.)

Some host cities do it for prestige but lately it seems as if a lot of host cities are using the opportunity to engage in large scale urban renewal projects- that's what London is trying to do anyway with a large chunk of East London. It's an opportunity to engage in urban renewal on a massive scale and quickly in a way that's not normally possible. London seems to have been especially sensitive to the legacy of the game, planning to move some venues to places in the country where they're needed and some venues (like Beach Volleyball) are temporary and will vanish after the games. The Stadium is set to downsized and handed over to the football club West Ham (who promptly found themselves relegated to the Championship League.) All in all, it looks like London has a good chance of bringing their lofty dreams of transformation to fruition. But at a staggering cost.

Sure, you can drench yourself in the NBC-sports clichés (cue the sappy human interesting music) and talk about how inspiring it is to bring athletes from all over the world to compete in these games. And it is inspiring, I'll give it that- I just think hosts and the Olympics need to be mindful of getting too caught up in shiny venues and lofty goals of urban renewal. Make them too expensive and you risk turning them into a showcase for the rich and powerful and undermining the spirit of what the Olympics are supposed to be about.

(Someday, the Olympics will make it back to our fair shores- Atlanta is generally hailed as one of the most commercially successful and commercialized Summer Games. It's just a question of which City will host them next... Chicago will be in the running, New York City, San Francisco always pop up as candidate cities. I've seen Houston and Philadelphia mentioned in that discussion as well. I think the Twin Cities, with it's existing sports facilities would also be a good candidate but then again, I've biased. I enjoy the Twin Cities way too much.)


Monday, July 23, 2012

The Penn State Mess, Part II

The NCAA handed down penalties today:
$60 million fine
4 year post-season ban
Reduction in scholarships
5 years of probation
All wins between 1998 and 2011 vacated.

(The B1G Ten slapped some penalties on top of that as well. Complete list here.)

I don't have a problem with any of this. I think the University wanted to tear the bandage off as quickly as possible so they could get it behind them (the potential for civil lawsuits and ongoing court cases aside) and I think the NCAA had to react after the release of the Freeh Report and it couldn't be half-assed about it. Sure, a lot of people are saying that this was unprecedented and beyond the normal purview of the NCAA but this situation is unprecedented.

What I choked a little on was the following quote from NCAA President Mark Emmert:
...In closing, let me say that this case involves tragic and tragically unnecessary circumstances. One of the grave dangers stemming from our love of sports is that the sports themselves can become "too big to fail," or even too big to challenge.

The result can be an erosion of academic values that are replaced by the value of hero worship and winning at all costs. All involved in intercollegiate athletics must be watchful that programs and individuals do not overwhelm the values of higher education.

Since when has this been the case? Really? Academics above the money making machine that is college athletics? What are they smoking? Let's be clear about this- the NCAA is to be commended for moving quickly to deal with the Penn State situation, but let's not wrap ourselves up in cotton candy and pretend this was about protecting academic values.

Hero worship and winning at all costs are embedded in our culture. Worship of athletes especially so... doesn't matter if they're pro or college or whatever... people worship athletes. Athletes and money. It's why people want to be lawyers, doctors and bankers instead of teachers, plumbers and electricians. For as much as we've heard people railing agains the infamous 1%, it doesn't change the fact that secretly, a lot of us aspire to be squarely in that 1%. It's all wrapped up in that meddlesome concept pompously known as 'the American dream.'

Again, kudos to the NCAA for not pissing about with this. But please, let's not pretend these penalties were harsh to 'protect academic values.' This is about putting college athletics in it's place. Under their thumb. And making sure the brand of college football isn't tarnished by this horror to the point were people make less money off it.

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Bookshot #49: The Star Fraction


I might be overdosing on Ken Macleod by this point in the summer but it's such a good feeling. And with The Star Fraction, you arrive at his first novel and the start of his Fall Revolution sequence. Set in a balkanized Britain of the mid-21st century, The Star Fraction tells the story of security mercenary Moh Kohn who along with scientist Janis Taine is fleeing the US/UN's technology cops. Jordan Brown is a teenage atheist in the Christian fundamentalist of Beulah City that wants out.

Macleod's 21st Century is one where the US/UN have control of space and are the arbiters of the entire planet. Britain is a broken country after the end of the Third World War, when the United Republic was overthrown, the Kingdom restored and a patchwork of free states set up across Northern London. Janis Taine is a scientist experimenting with memory enhancing drugs that accidentally releases the Artificial Intelligence that some fear and some are waiting for, The Watchmaker. And The Watchmaker has plans-- plans that will change the lives of Moh, Janis and Jordan as the betrayed revolution of the past comes back to haunt the present day.

(And for the rest, kids, you'll have to read the book to find out.)

Macleod makes a fine debut with this novel. He includes in a short introduction explaining his novels and sneaks in a money quote that underlines his entire body of work with the Fall Revolution sequence: "What is capitalism is unstable and socialism impossible?" I love this notion! I love the way Macleod explores it throughout the novel but there's a certain cynical truth to the idea when applied to the real world. Ideologies war with each other everyday, people die for ideologies and at no point do we ever wonder, what if we just said 'no more new world orders.'

The Star Fraction explores these ideas and more. The Balkanized Britain of Macleod's world is believable and exciting: a United Republic overthrown and driven back to the Highlands of Scotland to carry on the struggle against a restored Kingdom or 'Hanoverian Regime.' (I love that he refers to it that way- it dates back to the overthrow of the Stuart Monarchs in the Glorious Revolution of 1688 followed by the Hanoverian succession of 1701.) Macleod refers to the Republic as a 'radial Democratic regime' which sounds interesting and a lot nicer than usual ideas about Republicanism most of which involved aping the American model.

I would have liked to know more about the America of this world. The critical juncture of the novel sees America going on strike from coast to coast which is a nice idea to think about but one that I couldn't conceive of in today's America.

The usual concepts of the Singularity and futurism are in fine form here- and only goes to reinforce the plaudits that Macleod has duly earned. This guy is writing revolutionary, thought-provoking science fiction and if science fiction isn't your thing and books that make you think are, then you've come to the right place.

Overall: I did this all backwards but reading this series last to first saved the best for last. This is a must-read for any true devotee of science fiction and if anyone's looking for a thought-provoking dystopian read this is the best place to start.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Colorado

In the wake of yesterday's tragedy in Colorado, the best I can come up with is this:

Look, guns are complicated for me. I don't think they should be totally banned but I also don't think people should have the right to get howitzers or AR-15s without you know, going through a background check and taking a test or something. We make people take a test to drive a damn car under the logic that cars can kill people if you don't know what the fuck you're doing with them. Guns should be held to a similar standard.

At the end of the day, I believe that a free citizenry is an armed citizenry but I also believe that in order for a free society to function effectively, we need limits.

So if you read that last sentence and find a fundamental contradiction in there, forgive me. Guns, as I said are complicated for me because I find myself evolving on the issue as I grow older- though perhaps not quite as wiser as I should be.

Everybody- right, left, Democrat, Republican needs to take a DEEP breath and resist the urge to turn this into an election year issue. This was an awful, awful tragedy. Stop trying to score points of it- that's just disgusting.

People can lay off the stupid internet memes as well. This was a tragedy. Resist the urge to launch a letter-writing campaign- (Facebook's latest thing is a plea to Christian Bale to go visit the victims recovering in hospital- dressed as Batman.) This isn't like getting Betty White to host SNL.

As for me, the victims of this tragedy will be in my thoughts and prayers. You know, they say my generation was defined by 9/11. I disagree... I think we're all children of Columbine in one way or another and I long for the day when America can stop having to live through these senseless acts of violence.

I just don't think we're ever going to get there.

Friday, July 13, 2012

The Penn State Mess

The Freeh Report came out yesterday and gave ESPN some actual news to talk about. (No, I don't care about the MLB playoff picture. It's July for cryin' out loud.) The report was scathing and didn't pull any punches, faulting Penn State's President, upper administration and Joe Paterno himself for not doing enough to check Jerry Sandusky's child abuse- making the point that the school could have prevented this but in a culture where protecting the football program from damage mattered above all else, they didn't.

There's been a fresh round of calls for Penn State to either self-impose the dreaded 'Death Penalty' on the football program or having it handed down to them by the NCAA. Florida State legend Bobby Bowden thinks that Joe Pa's statue should be removed from in front of Beaver Stadium and in general, Penn State is getting beaten up (by amongst others, this guy and this guy) for it's institutional failures and to be honest, it deserves what it's getting.

So what should be done? I'm leaning towards the pro death penalty camp. I don't think the NCAA is going to hand that down because although an immense institutional failure took place, it's not clear (from what I'm seeing) that too many NCAA rules were violated. Penn State is going to get hammered by lawsuits and get in a world of trouble for violating the Clery Act (which mandates timely warnings for sexual assaults, crimes, etc) but should it shut down the football program entirely?

I don't know. I don't think that's especially fair to the players or to the community but the fact of the matter is that until a demonstrable, clean and complete break is made with the past, the specter of this horror will always haunt the University and the football program. And that's even more unfair than putting it on hiatus for a season or two. (I saw a commentator on ESPN.com asking if a columnist had called for the Catholic Church to stop worship after their scandals. Personally, I think it'd be a damn good idea. That's why I stopped going.)

After watching Jay Paterno engage in acrobatics in an attempt (laudable perhaps, after all Joe Pa was his Dad) to protect his Dad's legacy on ESPN yesterday, I think the sad truth of the matter is that he knew. They all knew. And the buck stops with the people at the top- including Joe Pa. Sorting this out is probably beyond even the wisest of people- but I think a drastic break with the past is needed by Penn State- a strong, clear and unambiguous signal that they will stop at nothing to make sure this never, ever happens again.

What that looks like, I don't know... but the sooner it happens, the better.

The Mittens Veepstakes

It's the silly season for the political press but Convention time is drawing closer and so the speculation about who Mittens will pick as his running mate is mounting and has now exploded courtesy of the Drudge Report's bombshell that former Secretary of State Condi Rice has snuck to the top of the list.

There's some indiciation that this might be wishful thinking- she's said she's not really that interested in the job but traditionally, would-be candidates for the role always say that. (And personally, I think you have to be kind of cracked in the head to want to run for President. Or be really rich. Or both. So if you don't want to do the job it's entirely likely you're going to be pretty decent at it.)

But let's say she's the one. Long term, it'd be a good move for Mittens and the GOPers because it'll get rid of the hangover from Sarah Palin in 2008. Condi Rice would be a serious candidate with serious foreign policy experience- something Mittens is a bit short on and the fact that she spent a lot of time butting heads with the neo-con cabal that dumped us to into Iraq and Afghanistan can only be seen as a plus to some people. The obvious downsides would be the lack of executive experience (she's never run for anything much less run anything) and her association with Bush The Younger. (Another hangover we're not quite recovered from as a nation.)

More plus sides, she's a woman, African-American and pro-choice- all of which could go some distance to helping Mittens get past the contraception and 'all Republicans hate women' mess that Santorum helped blow up in the primaries.

It's an interesting choice and it might be the shake-up the race needs and could be a more effective shake-up than Sarah Palin was for McCain in 2008.

Or... it could all be wishful thinking and Mittens could pick a white dude and go for the 'all vanilla, whitebread' ticket this fall. It should be interesting to watch- even though I'm not voting for the dude.

UPDATED: Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, so that part at the beginning of this post about how it's the silly season for political journalists right now. Totally true. The 'Condi Rice for VP' bubble is apparently not being well recieved in certain corners of the GOPer blogosphere.

Which brings us back to Veepage in general. By and large, you want an attack dog type that can bring more to the ticket somehow. People talk a lot about geography but that hasn't meant shit since JFK picked LBJ. People talk about picking Governors- but Romney was a Governor so he's got that covered. It's a tricky thing and it tells people a lot about what your priorities are. Which is why although Condi Rice would be interesting, I'd say budget maven Paul Ryan would be a strong pick. More vanilla picks like Tim Pawlenty and Rob Portman are possible and random dark horses like Kelly Ayotte or Brian Sandoval are also possibilities. At this point, nobody knows but Mittens.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

'The Amazing Spider-Man' --A Review


I had no idea why they were rebooting Spider-Man when I first heard about this. The more cynical commentators out there have noted that if Sony/Columbia didn't make another Spidey film, then the rights would have reverted to Disney/Marvel and given what a cash cow it's been for them, they were probably eager to get something, anything to a multiplex near you. But it still didn't make sense to me- although the 3rd of the Sam Raimi Spider-Man's was an exercise in foolishness (why have him kiss and make up with Harry Osborn? Really?) it wasn't so bad that it had tarnished the brand itself.

Then I saw a preview for this movie and was cautiously intrigued. Andrew Garfield brought a more awkward, gangly look to Peter Parker that seemed to fit the character better. And with a supporting cast of Dennis Leary (Captain Stacy), Martin Sheen and Sally Field (Uncle Ben and Aunt May respectively) as well as Rhys Ifans (Dr. Curt Connors) it seemed like they were doing their best to bring a fresh take on the Spider-Man story- and having seen the movie last night, I can say with no hesitation that they did all that and more.

The story is more or less familiar- but with a twist. Peter Parker's parents vanish and die in mysterious circumstances leaving him to be raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Dark, brooding, awkward and gangly, Peter Parker is struggling with the slings and arrows of being a teenager as well as the fact he doesn't know what happened to his parents. That mystery underlines Peter's struggle to establish an identity- and remains present for the presumably forthcoming sequel.

Peter's love interest this time should appeal to fans of the comics as they went old school and brought back Gwen Stacy, played with charm and appeal by Emma Stone. Unlike Mary Jane Watson who seemed to be portrayed as an 'out of his league' type of girl that Peter eventually gets, Gwen is more on Peter's level. Smart, science-y, she recognizes Peter's intelligence and presumably his dark brooding looks do the rest for her. Their relationship doesn't seem forced and doesn't drop back into cliché. Even though circumstances force them apart by the end of the movie (go see it- I'm not going to spoil it for you!) there's hints that even that may not keep them apart for long.

Dr. Curt Connors makes an appealing villain this time around, with The Lizard actually proving to be a formidable challenge to Spider-Man. There's an urgent sense about all their battles that makes you wonder if Spider-Man is going to get out alive and unlike a lot of super hero movies that don't show a lot of bumps and bruises for their heros, in this one, Spider-Man takes a beating. Of course, inevitably, good triumphs over evil. (I hope that's not too much of a spoiler!) But it's nice to see a dollop of realism dropped into the proceedings.

Martin Sheen and Sally Field bring a nice amount of heft to the movie as Uncle Ben and Aunt May- and although you do see Uncle Ben's death coming a mile away, it's still an emotional moment. The one quibble I had with this movie comes in Uncle Ben's soliloquy to Peter about responsibility. Every comic nerd knows the important line in that is: 'With great power comes great responsibility.' But this time, they changed it. That felt wrong to me- it's the most important line in the whole Spider-Man ethos. You just can't leave it out...

Overall: An enjoyable, exciting reboot of Spider-Man. I'm still not sure why they needed to reboot it, but after seeing this movie, I'm glad they did. I'd even go out on a limb and say this was the best Spider-Man movie yet.

Bookshot #48: Nothing But Victory


When I decided to go see a Civil War Battlefield (since it was the 150th Anniversary of the war) I wanted to try and find out where Iowans had actually fought. I was surprised to learn that, from what I could tell, none of them fought at Gettysburg and I was surprisingly OK with that. I figured that Gettysburg will be the highlight of the 150th Anniversary celebrations and everyone will want to go. So I did a little digging and found out that most Iowans had fought mainly in the Western theater, playing prominent roles in the Battle of Shiloh and the Siege of Vicksburg as part of the Army of the Tennessee. Ken Burns' amazing documentary aside, I wanted to do some more homework before actually going down there, so when Steven E. Woodworth's book Nothing But Victory caught my eye, it seemed like the perfect way to do just that.

Woodworth tells the story of the Army of the Tennessee from start to finish- from the recruitment of volunteers from all across the Midwest, including Cedar Falls and strangely enough, Upper Iowa University in Iowa City. (The Quiet Man said he was going to email Woodworth with a correction. I wonder if he's managed to do that yet.) Camp Randall outside of Madison was used to stage new Army recruits (one of the Wisconsin regiments picked up a mascot, Abe the Eagle which stayed with them throughout their service.)

The Army gathers itself, moves into Southern Illinois and then the story shifts slightly to tell the story of the emergence of Ulysses S. Grant as one of the most effective generals the Union had during the Civil War. What shocked me about this was just how political Generalships were back then. Grant was booted from command of his Army a couple of times before finally being brought back east towards the end of the war to take command and try and outfox General Lee.

But from the initial captures of Fort Donnelson in Tennessee and leading through to the Battle of Shiloh, Vicksburg, Chattanooga and Chickamauga Woodworth builds a fascinating story of how an army of rough and tumble Midwesterners became the most effective fighting force in the Union army- and their experience served them well later in the war, when they faced long odds during the battle for Atlanta and the march through South Carolina.

All in all, this book changed the way I viewed the Civil War. It's not that the Western theater gets short shrift in traditional curriculum- I remember learning about Vicksburg in school but it's engagements like Shiloh, Chickamauga and Chattanooga that helped break the Confederacy. It was Atlanta and the much maligned March To The Sea that shattered their spirits (it was actually a fairly orderly procession- not the orgy of looting and mayhem that's been inflated to legend.) While the Army of the Potomac was fighting inconclusive battles across Virginia, the Army of the Tennessee just kept winning, victory after victory and, as Woodworth amply demonstrates, they became an effective fighting force that helped break down the Confederacy for good- their story is one that is eminently worthy of telling.

Overall: I learned a ton from reading this book- if you catch the Civil War bug during the 150th Anniversary Commemorations these next couple of years, this is an incredibly detailed, rich book that illuminates a large chunk of the Civil War that I knew nothing about. For history buffs, fans of the Civil War or just people looking to learn a little more about America, this book is well worth a read.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Food Adventures #15: Orange Patron Cupcakes Take 2



They say everything's always better the second time around-- or is that the stupid 'over 50s single online dating' commercial I've been seeing on television incessantly? It may not be the case for love- but it sure was the case for these cupcakes. I think I managed to cure my frosting curse! Thanks to a pep talking and a cooking lesson from Mother Cigar I've been converted to the cause of the ganache. Mother Cigar has a long standing prejudice against cupcakes- more specifically the amount of frosting that tends to end up on them. She's very much a 'less is more' type of a person when it comes to frosting, so she suggested a ganache or a glaze.

I was dubious. I'd tried a glaze for some Cherry Chocolate Bourbon Cupcakes awhile back and it looked, well... unappetizing. (Fine... let's be honest about this, it looked like jizz. Happy now?) I wasn't a fan. But she persuaded me by having me whip up a chocolate ganache, throwing in some patron to give it a kick and told me to go home, freeze it and go from there.

The results were amazing... frosting is much better- I used less zest and there was less Patron as well so I think the flavors of chocolate and orange were more present than they were in the last batch. My batter is a little too runny though- so my thought to add dark chocolate chips while a potentially good one didn't do much overall as they all sank to the bottom.

Overall, these were the complete package. This is what I was aiming for the first time around and I hit it this time around. Good stuff.

Sunday, July 8, 2012

13: Go To A Music Festival








Yep, it was a blisteringly hot day at the 80/35 Festival up in Des Moines yesterday but the Missus and I got our money's worth, seeing Atmosphere (probably the highlight of the day- had heard a lot of buzz about them from a few peeps from the Medium White North, but in person, they're awesome.) Leslie and the Lys (was sort of sitting there for 45 minutes in stunned amazement wondering what I was looking at- imagine if your Grandma decided that the pinnacle of Western culture was reached in 1985, got a skin-tight gold track suit and started a band. That's as close to defining a band that defies definition as I can come.) And finally Death Cab For Cutie- awesome to see them live though both the Missus and I harbored a sneaking suspicion they were reaching deep into their catalogue deliberately to be as emo as possible about it.

All in all, amazing day. Can't wait until they announce who's coming next year!

The Guilt Trip

Oddly, the P-C got it right with their editorial: Branstad's guilt trip more symbol than substance What guilt trip, you ask? Well sometime last week or two weeks ago or when I just wasn't paying that much attention or giving much of a shit, Our Glorious Leader and His Chief Henchwoman decided to voluntarily begin paying up to 20% of their health care costs (a cool $224 a month for Our Glorious Leader and $153 for His Chief Henchwoman.)

The Quiet Man wondered if I would be inspired by their example and start paying again... inspired, not so much... willing to pay? Yeah, I think we will be here soon (at the next open enrollment period) and I reiterate my original thesis: I'd rather pay a little more for health insurance than have any state workers (including me) lose their jobs. But this guilt trip is a stunt and it's an irresponsible one at that. If Our Glorious Leader wishes to impress me, he could voluntarily do something to illustrate the real axe that will be grinding down state budgets for years to come: the exploding costs of pensions.

See, health insurance is small potatoes, really. Pension costs have the potential to tip at least three states I can think of (California, Illinois and Rhode Island) into bankruptcy and that's just in the next 5-10 years. 10-15 years out, when the Boomers decide to retire and my generation ends up paying for them? Well that's when it'll bite Iowa- and hard. And Our Glorious Leader knows that which is why he's curiously drawing a pension while simultaneously holding a job. (You can have my health insurance when you stop drawing a damn pension while you've got a job! No more double-dipping!)

Responsible leadership means securing a financial future for this state. Asking state workers to pay a little towards health insurance is a reasonable request. Acting aggressively to end pension abuse by public sector workers and secure pensions for future state workers? That would be leadership.

So, Our Glorious Leader and His Chief Henchwoman have a chance for real leadership. They should take that chance and impress me.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Hooch, Man #7: PB and J Vodka


It seems appropriate that a vodka named after an artist that cut off his own ear would come up with something so crazy as peanut butter and jelly vodka but that's exactly what the folks at Vincent Van Gogh Vodka have done. I've seen this stuff appearing on 'weirdest flavored alcohol' lists for months now and on a whim with the Missus and her friend Spamalotta (down from the Medium White North for the weekend) looking to have a good time, I plonked down some cashola to try the stuff for myself and see what all the big deal was about.

The results were interesting. The initial aroma is strong on the peanut butter side of things- but there's also just the faintest hint of raspberry jam. (They went slightly non-traditional and used raspberry in their PB and J.) The jam becomes more pronounced when you actually drink the stuff and overall, it took me by surprise: this stuff is actually really good. The Quiet Man was over for a bit and he even said he enjoyed it. Mother Cigar tried some last night, thought it was gross initially but turned on a dime and said she thought it'd be good in frosting and potentially creamy desserts (it would be excellent in both).

Normally, I'm not a huge vodka person-- flavored vodkas even less so. The flavoring are usually interesting but pretty one-note (see: cake, whipped cream, vanilla etc) and not worth drinking on the rocks. This one is different- there's such a complete flavor experience that you can (and I did) get a lot of enjoyment just drinking this stuff straight. But, imbiber beware: it may not be Hawkeye Vodka but if you employ a beer chaser with it, the morning after won't be that much fun. (It wasn't for me, anyway.)

Overall: A shot of childhood without the crusts that will get you a little tipsy. What's not to like?

Food Adventures #14: The Bacon Sundae


What better way to celebrate the 4th of July than to talk about one of the more twisted- yet awesome- culinary concepts to emerge this summer: Burger King's bacon sundae.

I heard about the thing about a month ago now on Huffington Post- like the Doritos Locos Taco at Taco Bell, Burger King had tried out the concept last year and it had been so wildly popular that they had decided to take the thing national where, no doubt, it's going to be a big success. And you know what the secret is? It's the bacon...

You think 'fast food' and you automatically think, 'cheap, crappy bacon' but I was pleasantly surprised to find that in this case the good people at BK have actually decided to up the quality of their bacon a bit- it's chewy. It's got some excellent flavor to it- and without the quality of the bacon, I seriously doubt that the whole sundae would be quite so good.

The combination of chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, soft serve ice cream and bacon seems like a wildly insane idea. How, you ask, can that be good? Well, it's strange to say it- but it's actually really good. I think the contrasting flavors of the sweetness of the ice cream and the essential saltiness of the bacon play off each other very nicely and create a delicious and unexpected culinary experience. Overall, I was extremely impressed...

(And as for Burger King itself, I might have to start paying attention to them a bit more... they seem to be on the verge of opening up a new front in the ever-shifting fast food wars with a renewed and potentially exciting emphasis on quality grilling and burgers. As Wendy's has reinvented their menu and it on the rise again, it's not really a surprise- it's just going to be interesting to see how and if BK can pull it off. Just wish they weren't so out of my way- them and Hardee's...)

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Mindless Self-Indulgence


When I first heard about this mural I got really excited because I thought it was going up on the side of the Court Street Ramp. Currently, there's a huge-ass vacant lot at the corner of Burlington and Clinton and that entire ramp is a huge potential canvas just waiting to be filled. I thought: awesome!

Then Mom told me where it really was and I was bummed out. I got even more bummed out when I realized that Richie Rich Marc Moen had commissioned the piece because he didn't like the view from his Penthouse in the Plaza Towers- and wanted to give customers to the Hotel Vetro something else to look at. He sold our Glorious Leaders on the notion and the painting began... and the totally lame-ass thing you see in the picture above is what resulted.

First of all, whenever I see it, I think of this. Don't ask me why.

Second of all, only in Iowa City would a mural representing 'diversity and reaching across boundaries' involve only white people.

Third of all, it's just indulgent! This is why I don't like Marc Moen sometimes. No doubt he's interested in the community and the new FilmScene Project going in where Vito's was is going to be a welcome addition to downtown but really? This thing is hidden away in the back of a tiny parking lot- not feeling a lot of love for the proletariat. It's the ultimate in elitist public art: painted on a public parking ramp for the rich to look at.

(Oh and I like Moen even less because of that ridiculous 14 story monstrosity he wanted to build smack dab on the Ped Mall- and doubly so because he wants TIF money for it. Thanks, but I'll pass...)

30 for 30: One Year In

As you can see, this is a list that I'm actually trying to stick too, 6 months later. Several of these are in progress, so, one year in, six months from now I'm hoping the number I have crossed off seems a little more impressive. I've altered a couple of goals as well. For reasons passing understanding, I seemed to have it in my head that attending the Brainerd Ice Fishing Extravaganza was a worthy goal. No longer. It's been replaced by Trekfast. Ditto my somewhat apropos of nothing desire to apparently read 'Ulysses' by James Joyce. That's been replaced with some good old-fashioned political theory/philosophy to keep my political science skills up to snuff...

February 12th, 2012: changed out number 15 today... not that I have anything against boning up on my political philosophy, but I would have to have purchased the Hayek, Guerin and the Gramsci to do it- and I just don't want to have that much philosophy lying around. The Second World War by Churchill was a 12 volume set that landed in my possession after my Granny died. Reading them, I think, is a far more personal achievement.

April 4th, 2012: Changed out number 11 today... a triathalon? What was I thinking... maybe by the time I'm forty. But a 5K by the time I'm 30- provided I get off my ass and get running this summer, that is well within reach.

May 20th, 2012: Changed out number 18 today... there's just not enough cricket on television over here for me to actually watch and while I caught some Rugby during the World Cup, Aussie Rules is mainly the province of very late nights on the ESPN family of networks. Someday, I want to GO to a cricket game. At Lord's. And get quietly plastered on Pimm's and eat cucumber sandwiches. Probably won't manage that before I'm 30 though. Instead I'm going to attempt to tackle the one science fiction classic that just eludes me: Dune. And just for a bonus- maybe I'll pull an all nighter and watch the movie- which always seems to be on from 12AM to 4AM on BBC America for some reason.


1. Finish My Novel
2. Get Another Tattoo
3. Publish My Novel (conventionally would be preferred, but I might be open to Kindle.)
4. Get Something Pierced Again... (I'm thinking labret. Thoughts anyone?)
5. Get Contacts Again (Eye appointment on Monday! Hopefully this will be done SOON.)
6. Go Skydiving
7. Go to a Twins Game
8. Road Trip It To Winnipeg for a Jets Game...
9. Visit All 50 States (or failing all 50, get to the lower 48 at least.)
10. Lose 30 to 40 pounds... (whatever gets me back down to the 190-200 range- and maintain it!)
11. Run a 5k
12. Attend Trekfest! (Something I've never done, despite being a fan of Star Trek!)
13. Go to a Music Festival... (either 80/35 or Lollapalooza? Farm Aid?)
14. Attend the Iowa Caucuses. (I've never actually done this. I did it in Minnesota, but not Iowa.)
15. Finish all 4,532 pages (and 12 volumes) of Winston Churchill's 'The Second World War'
16. Read something by Faulkner- and understand it.
17. Re-read The Catcher in the Rye and The Great Gatsby- and try and appreciate them.
18. Read 'Dune' and understand it... (or kind of enjoy it, maybe?)
19. Attend a Premier League game... (this would involve going back to the UK. Excellent!)
20. Attend a Major League Soccer game.
21. Attend a Civil War Re-Enactment/Commemorations of the 150th Anniversary of the War
22. Expand our backyard patio, put in a pergola and a fire pit
23. Finish off our bathroom, re-floor and repaint our master bedroom
24. Go back to Europe- Spain, Portugal, England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Greece and Cyprus are all on my wish list.
25. Become a father- I know this is dependent on any number of factors beyond my control, but I think trying should be a lot of fun... ;-)

26. Learn How To Make Bread from Scratch
27. Become a good amateur bartender
28. I'd like to take my wife on a real honeymoon
29. Improve my foreign language skills
30. I'd like to save up and get a subscription to The Economist. Probably the best news magazine out there.

BONUS: Finally went to the Lion's Den- any Iowa kid who's traversed the state on Interstate 80 will undoubtedly remember the signs near Baxter, Iowa for a gigantic ADULT SUPERSTORE. I must have driven past that place a million times and finally, at the ripe old age of 28, the Missus and I stopped to check it out. It's pretty much what you would expect out of a gigantic ADULT SUPERSTORE.