Well, What's The Plan Then?

People are raging about the Downtown Survey that's circulating out there- personally, I filled it out and didn't have that big of a problem with it (I'll get to that soon)- after all, we need to do something to push back the Condo Cartel and I think there are things we can do involving yes, real live retail chains that will maintain Iowa City's distinct identity without embracing crass capitalism the way Coralville does.

But then I saw this:

Caroline Dieterle told the council she found the survey -- part of a consultant's $50,000 study analyzing downtown Iowa City's economic potential with the intention of drawing new retailers -- "offensive" and "useless."

The survey uses the names of national retailers when asking participants what types of new retail and restaurant options they would like to see downtown. Dieterle took exception to the notion of targeting national retailers, as have others since the survey began circulating.

"I truly do not believe you will add to the distinctiveness of Iowa City by inviting chain stores to come here," Dieterle said.

Consultant John Millar has said those national chains merely serve as easily recognizable examples, and their inclusion is not an indication of the specific businesses that will be courted for downtown.

The cost of the online survey component of the study is $15,000, Millar said.

OK, so what's the plan then? Von Maur is about to roll on out to Coralville, which means one less place to shop here in Iowa City. I mean, if we're good being Coralville's bitch, then fine. But I don't think we should settle for that and there is a local/retail hybrid model out there that would work well for Iowa City and has before in the past. Remember Bushnell's Turtle? Barbara's Bakery? Great Midwestern? All locally owned small businesses DOWNTOWN that are now gone. Remember Sam Goody, County Seat, Campus III Theaters? All chains- evil, eeeeeeeevil chains apparently that served Iowa City quite well- DOWNTOWN- that are now gone.

I don't want to be Coralville. It's useless to try- but Iowa City has advantages that Coralville doesn't that it is, as usual, pissing away. People don't want to truck out to Coralville to buy the basic shit they need to get through life. It's a pain in the ass and it's 20 minutes away. People want to shop here- and they don't necessarily want to shop in a huge-ass superstore to do it- and they don't want to pay for parking while they do it either.

Hmmm: free parking + stores people want to shop at = less people driving to Coralville. How is this not perfectly obvious to people?

I get that people don't want to be Coralville- neither do I. But the shiny steel and glass, let's pretend to be an upscale, gentrified, lilly white big city when we're SO not thing is not working either. So, Comrades: what then, I ask, is the plan? Instead of bitching (which is what people in this town are very good at) make productive suggestions.

All of this shouldn't be taken to mean that I'm an awesome fan of this survey. It was long and a pain in the ass to fill out- and then I discovered this interesting tidbit from the Little Village website. Apparently the 'consultant' they hired looks to be completely useless- and so we dropped gobs of money on guy who has developed nothing much of anything at all.

I find this frustrating because to me, at the end of the day, you need to give the masses a reason to go downtown and shop there. They currently have precisely no reason to do that and in this economy, I try to support local business when and where I can, but cost and convinience usually win out. As they do for everyone- protecting Iowa City's local identity is important, I agree, but size 0 jeans that cost $75 aren't serving me or a lot of other people all that well.

Something needs to be done.

Football Armageddon III: Larry Scott Saves The Day

Kids, the merry-go-round of college realignment seems to be coming to a halt- at least for now. The Pac-12 has backed off expansion saying it's good at 12 schools (reportedly after Texas didn't want to play ball on equal revenue sharing with their ridiculous Longhorn Network.) Oklahoma, (happily for the Big 12 Orphans, anyway) has made it clear it's displeased with the current state of affairs and things are done gonna have to change if they're going to stick around the Big 12.

Out east, the Big East schools met, looked each other in the eyes and apparently liked what they saw, because they're staying put- West Virginia had reportedly asked the ACC and SEC about joining and had been turned down by both, however UCONN has made it clear it's waiting for an invite to the ACC- whether that's forthcoming or not isn't clear at this point. But, the Big East announced targets for expansion- namely the service academies- Army, Navy and Air Force with Central Florida and East Carolina also on the list. (I think Air Force is more likely for the Big 12 or staying where it is- East Carolina could be interesting though.)

So the Big 12 survives- but there's trouble in the Oklahoma-Texas marriage that will have to be ironed out. It looks like Commish Dan Beebe will get the old heave-ho and Texas will probably have to make some ironclad concessions on it's ridiculous television network and happily, it looks like there's going to be an aggressive move to get the Big 12 back to 12 again, which is what should have happened last year as soon as Nebraska and Colorado left.

I think we might be good for a year now. Once the dust settles, I think the Big 12 lets A&M go to the SEC and starts shopping around- but the nagging question remains- will the SEC stay at 13 schools? They might be willing to do so for one season, but sooner or later they'll be back at it. With exit fees from the ACC now topping $20 million and a distinct disinterest in West Virginia, the logical choice for the SEC would be Mizzou. So stay tuned, I guess...

While Nobody Noticed...

Our Glorious Leader in Des Moines pulled a fast one... he dangled an appointment on the Iowa Utilities Board in front of Marion Senator Swati Dandekar which she accepted, triggering a November 8th Special Election for the now open seat.

Brilliant politics by Our Glorious Leader, I'm grudgingly forced to admit. He didn't want to sound too anti-gay crazy during the campaign and kept issuing blanket neutral statements with a head fake towards family values whenever someone pressed him on it, but he knows how to read the writing on the wall. Subtle, subtle...

But kids, pay attention because this is important: control of the entire State Senate is now up for grabs. Democrats are already suiting up for this one- and rightfully so. I'm not normally a fan of either party and Lord knows there's a long list of things about the Democratic Party that set my teeth on edge or send me into uncontrolled spasms of rage, but in this case, I'm all in. I don't want homophobia enshrined into this state's constitution. I don't want government- any level of government messing with definitions of family, love and marriage that are frankly none of their damn business.

Marion is just a short car ride away, kids. Write a letter, send some change you find in your couch cushions, go knock on some doors, volunteer- because this is now for all the marbles.

Game on.

(This would be interesting and oh so smart. Please tell me it's more than a rumor!)

(P.S. Also suspect- the quick burst and then deafening silence from the mainstream media on this. Control of the Iowa Senate is up for grabs- you'd think in this political climate, that would be a bigger deal than it is, but apparently not.)

(P.P.S: So NOT a rumor! Awesome awesome awesome! Get behind Mathis, Democrats!)

90K Carpet?

When I first heard the Iowa State was going to drop $90K on carpet for the President's house (well, I thought it was his office or the floor outside his office, actually) my first thought was: holy shit, that's a lot of money for carpet.

My second thought was: Iowa State's about to get screwed because of this conference realignment and will probably have to send the good taxpayers of Iowa a pretty hefty bill as a result. I doubt they're going to be pleased.

But some more details emerged:
It's 2,700 square feet of carpet- so it's pretty big.
The current carpet is 23 years old, so that's pretty old.
And the carpet they want is some fantastic wool-synthetic blend that's supposed to last 20 years.

All in all, I'd say 90K every 20 years isn't too bad. It averages out to about 4500 bucks a year... not too shabby.

(Potentially) Rolled By Coralville

Von Maur is going to anchor the new Iowa River Landing out in Coralville- no word yet on whether it'll affect the future of it's Sycamore Mall location in Iowa City. I'm really, really, really, really hoping NOT- as keeping Von Maur where it was is what saved Sycamore Mall to begin with. They showed the mall and the East Side of Iowa City a lot of love by staying where they were and if I move up a tax bracket overnight, I'll totally go on a spending binge there. (Seriously- I'll even buy a suit, penny loafers, whatever it takes! I'd totally go swank-wild to keep y'all on the East Side.)

Not to return once again to a point I keep making, but we need City Leaders to start being proactive about this. Am I arguing we should go all out and wallow in whorish capitalism like Coralville does? I am not- but we should try at least try and keep some retail in Iowa City. There's a hybrid model of local-chain retail that's out there for the taking that would work really well for Iowa City. We just need leadership with the vision to pursue it.

Or maybe we can just say f**k it and be the housing tract to Coralville's shopping mall. Which we'll probably end up doing anyway.

Football Armageddon Part II

Nice little bit of prognostication from the Gazette today- predicting that the Big 10 would land Kansas and Notre Dame while Iowa State would end up in a merged Big 12/East kind of thing and the SEC would snag Mizzou and the ACC would snag UCONN and West Virginia while the Pac-Enormous takes the quartet from Oklahoma and Texas.

I really like the thinking behind this article- 14 is still a crazy big number to me- but I like Kansas and I like Notre Dame as additions. I think it works... only problem I can see is that I think Kansas and K-State are sort of joined at the hip, a la Oklahoma and Oklahoma State- but in the midst of the madness, I think there's a solution to every problem.

DIY Mad Max Style

Interesting article on the DIY can-do spirit employed by the Libyan (now ex-rebels) NTC forces in their fight against Colonel Qadaffi. The level of ingenuity is pretty cool when you think about it- even though they needed a hefty dose of NATO help to get the job done. These guys looked like Mad Max on 'roids half the time and I always thought it was hilarious how random some of the vehicles they used were. I know there were a LOT of Toyota pick-ups (hence why I want one- so I too, can mount a rocket launcher on it) but I caught glimpses of all kinds of vehicles.

Good article... well worth a peek.

Revolution?

Not out of the question says this guy. I'm cautiously inclined to agree, but we've got to underscore who we're revolting against- namely the entrenched elites in this country. And no, kids, I don't mean the evil corporate hierarchy running the place. It's bigger than that. The media, the big business community, the politicians, the entertainment industry all have created a system that benefits them at the detriment to the rest of us. This isn't about Republican versus Democrat- that's how they can divide and conquer.

It's about us versus the elites/establishment of this country. The idea of a working class revolt plays right into their hands. The silent majority of people standing up and demanding the keys to the car? That's not Democratic, not Republican- but it is American. And revolutionary.

Uneasy Lies The Head That Wears The Crown

There's an old saying in politics: he who wields the knife shall never wear the crown. Note that it says 'he' and not 'she'.

With President Obama once again demonstrating spectacular leadership by leaving social security out of the equation and drawing lines in sand and threatening vetos of whatever the Super-Committee comes up with if it doesn't include a healthy dose of tax hikes the madness continues unabated in Washington.

First of all: let's work on the little problem of framing. Whenever I hear about people paying their 'fair share' it makes me grind my teeth. Who decides what constitutes a 'fair share'? Why do they get to decide what constitutes a 'fair share' for me? What gives them that right? They don't know me-- you see where this leads, kids? Nowhere good. It makes people crazy.

But how about this: currently, the majority of Americans pay no tax at all. None whatsoever- the majority of people who file income tax get refunds- so how about instead of 'fair shares' for people, how about we just say: 'our tax code is pretty effed up. How about we have one where everybody chips in something.'

That's an entirely more reasonably proposition, but you have to be able to frame it correctly, which this administration seems incapable of doing. And I'm sorry, but full-fledged entitlement reform needs to happen right now. How are Baby Boomers going to feel when you either have to cut their benefits or raise their taxes to pay for Social Security at some point in the future? I'm betting they won't be happy- it's the height of irresponsible leadership not to have a plan and proclaim it loudly, vocally and sell it to the American people.

But the administration doesn't seem interested in that either.

Yes, he who wields the knife shall never wear the crown, but when things like this sppear in the Chicago Tribune (the President's hometown newspaper), you've got to start wondering what Hillary Clinton might be thinking. And how long it might take before someone persuades her, for the good of her party to mount a challenge to the President. Unfortunately, it's highly unlikely, I think- Clinton won't run unless she can win and if she can't successfully kneecap the President, then she's done, finito, curtains, over. You can't come back from that.

(For the record, kids: I would be more than happy to support Mrs. Clinton in 2012. The Republicans are frustrating me with their hypocritical inconsistencies. You can't rail against government and then shove a syringe full of Gardasil into the ass of every 12 year old girl in the country. You can't rail against government and demand that it interfere in the basic definitions of what constitutes a family or a marriage or personal choices of any kind. Only Ron Paul has any consistency. Which is why I'll probably support him in the caucuses. But in a general? Not sure yet.)

Maphead

...totally want this book now.

I am such a map freak, it isn't even true. I went to the State Geography Bee twice, won it four times in a row during my interminable educational purgatory at the Catholic School That Shall Not Be Named (5th-8th grade bay-bee, that sucker was MINE! Someone came close in 8th Grade, but I knew the capitol of Eritrea and he didn't. Not that anyone in that school cared when I did win, but I took what I could get and owned it.)

I love maps. There's one in my parents' basement right now- the biggest National Geographic map of the world that the imagination can handle- dated 1984, I believe- so it's a historical relic. I just need to find space for it the house somewhere. I am pretty much incapable of walking past a globe without first picking it up and finding out what's wrong with it. The fact that Google Maps (up until today anyway) had yet to edit their map to include the newly independent nation of South Sudan bothered me- intensely. (They felt my telepathic rage and changed it, I know it.)

I read Eddings, McCaffery and Tolkein when I was growing up and I could draw maps of those worlds almost better than their illustrators could. (I recently saw another fantasy world map somewhere and thought 'good God, that's just like Middle Earth' but now I can't remember what book I saw it in.) I fell in love with geocaching and want my own handheld GPS so I can go do it whenever I possibly can. (Note to self: add to Christmas list and drop broad hints to Missus about Anniversary and whatever other occasions apply.)

So Ken Jennings, I totally get where you're coming from. And I really want to go buy your book now.

Football Armageddon Looms

On a weekend of exciting college football, where Iowa stormed back to beat Pitt and Iowa State improved to 3-0 against UCONN, the news about the possible disintigration of the Big 12 was suddenly overshadowed by a shocking move by two members of the Big East.

Pitt and Syracuse applied- and were accepted to join the ACC. UCONN and potentially Rutgers are not that far behind according to reports- all of which throws everything up in the air again. Not that I blame the ACC for accepting them or Pitt and Syracuse for bolting- the writing was on the wall and it's champagne and caviar for the ACC folks, because suddenly they look a lot stronger than they did last week.

So what happens now? My gut instinct is that the Pac-12 makes the next move- maybe as soon as this week and Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech all bolt to a new Pac-16. At which point I think the SEC starts looking seriously at Mizzou, Kansas and K-State to get them up to 16. (There had been rumors about them wanting to go east AND west should they go to 16, but I don't think Florida State jumps now- neither does Clemson. Louisville and West Virginia are intriguing possibilities, but the roundball power of Kansas and K-State might be too much to pass up.)

So what does the Big 10 do? My initial hunch is absolutely nothing- at first. Why should they? They've got a fantastic television deal, everybody's happy, everybody's making cash money and they're waiting for Notre Dame. But there's no question that eastern expansion for the Big 10, if there is to be any just got a lot more complicated. The ACC just shored itself up in a big way, I think and I can't see anyone wanting to bolt what's going to be the premier basketball conference in the country. And if football moves the Big 10, basketball is what drives the Big East and ACC.

There's also the academic side of the equation to consider with the Big 10. All members- with the exception of Nebraska, who was removed from the organization are part of the Association of American Universities (AAU)- Mizzou, Kansas, Iowa State and interestingly enough Rutgers are all members- but not Notre Dame or K-State. Interesting. It's hard to tell how much of a role that played- or will play in conference expansion.

However you slice and dice it, there's no question that the slow moving earthquake of re-alignment is starting to quicken pace. Stay tuned.

UPDATED: Actually, this makes more sense. Texas- pay attention and read this!

UPDATED AGAIN: I disagree Mr. Bissinger- it's not an unimportant concern you raise, but at a certain point, people like Paterno get to decide when they go- and he certainly has earned the right to do so.

Get Rid of the Damn Thing

Yes, there's shenanigans afoot in Pennsylvania- electoral college shenaningans to be precise and Mother Jones is on the case. Basically, GOP legislators in the Keystone State are proposing to give every Congressional District in Pennsylvania their own electoral vote and the 2 extra votes would go to the overall statewide winner- currently only Maine and Nebraska allocate their electoral votes this way- every other state and the District of Columbia use a winner-take-all allocation for electoral votes.

The magic number, as all the world knows is 270. Reach that and you're President- but let's back up a little first, kids.

The American electoral system, unlike every other sane and sensible country in the world doesn't actually conform to the 'one person, one vote' principle that is usually how democracy works. Instead, our Founders in their infinite wisdom decided that the mass of citizenry were too stupid and uneducated to make informed choices about who they wanted to be President AND didn't want the big states crowding out the small states in terms of influences, so they came up with the crazy idea of the electoral college.

Basically, the Electoral College is the big kahuna. You take the number of congresspeople a state has, add 2 senators and BAM, you've got the total number of electoral votes for that state. (Iowa has 5 congressmen, 2 senators and therefore 7 electoral votes- but that was in 2008. We'll be down to 6 for 2012.) As I've said already, 270 is the grand prize- and, as we saw in 2000, things get a little sticky, because it's possible to win the popular vote and lose the electoral vote from time to time and in order to be President, you need to win the electoral vote.

The debacle of the 2000 election saw a flurry of calls to abolish or reform the electoral college one of the most interesting was the National Popular Vote compact, which lobbied states to pass legislation that would guarantee their electoral votes to the winner of the popular vote- so far 11 states totally 132 electoral votes have signed on. There's also the matter of so-called 'faithless electors' or electors that refuse to vote for the candidate to whom they have been pledged- only 24 states have laws against them. Which means there's a pretty good chance that the electors you pick don't have to vote for who you vote for.

But anyway- the whole Mother Jones article got my brain twirling: would doing the electoral vote proportionally using the Congressional District plus 2 rules implemented by Nebraska and Pennsylvania have an affect on the actual outcome? So I put my political scientist cap on and dug up some data.

The results actually didn't make all that much difference in 2008- but then again, 2008 wasn't that close of an election. In a close election, applying the Nebraska-Maine rules to the electoral college nationwide could make it interesting indeed. But in the 2008 case, I found the following:

Obama- 348
McCain-179

That's including the states (California, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Washington and DC) that have signed the National Popular Vote compact pledging their slate of electors to the winner of the national popular vote. So it really wouldn't have had an impact in 2008- and it assumes that where goes your Congressional District, goeth your Presidential vote which I doubt would necessarily hold true 100% of the time.

What a Nebraska-Maine solution would do however, is make the electoral college more reflective of actual voter preferences- and as the Electoral College was designed partially because the Founders didn't trust the population and partly to keep the small states from getting shut out, these could make a lot of states that normally don't get much play in Presidential elections more influential again.

But that still leaves the question of the electoral college itself: personally, I find it antiquated, anti-democratic and hopelessly out of date. If it's purpose was to keep small states from getting swept under the rug then it's failed- as presidential elections come down to a handful of states- with large populations anyway. The big states are holding sway- which is in direct contravention to what the Founders wanted or needed.

So get rid of the damn thing already! Replace it with a popular vote- if no candidate achieves more than 50% of the vote, then the top two candidates proceed to a second round. Everybody else does it and it works just fine- let's not encourage gerrymandering and political corruption anymore than we have too.

Raise The Retirement Age Already!

President Obama has excluded Social Security reform from his deficit plan- because there's nothing like demonstrating strong leadership by completely avoiding a pressing national issue.

Kids, if I wasn't trying to fight off a cold/weather changing sinus merengue/allergy sinus death virus or whatever is making em somewhat miserable, I'd pretty much rant all out about this. If you're under the age of 50 and some politician tries to tell you that Social Security is going 'to be there for you when you retire' please, stand up for us young folks and call them the lying sacks of shit that they are.

People live longer, they should work longer. How is that not obvious to our glorious leaders?

I Concur

I'm going to chime in and give The Quiet Man two thumbs up for this- Hawk fans are getting spoiled and before Hawk Fandom starts sharpening it's knives, let's all take a breath and see how the season goes before we start calling for heads on a platter. Ferentz is a damn good coach- and let's be real here- all glory honor and respect to the almighty Norm Parker, but he's not as young as he used to be- at a certain point, I'm sure he'll saunter off into the sunset. And O'Keefe's name keeps getting whispered for the occasional coaching vacancy (like Indiana- who might be hunting for another Coach the way they're going) so I'm sure there will be a shuffle at some point in the next couple of seasons.

In the meantime, take a breath Hawk fans. I've said it before and I'll say it again: an in-state rivalry is always better when both teams are good. And besides a 3OT loss? Not too shabby in the grand scheme of things- I remember when we went up there a couple of years back and they kicked like 5 field goals to beat us. Now that was something to be annoyed about.

The defense will learn and grow and get better down the stretch- it might be a bumpy road, but I think we're going to have a good season. So stop freaking out.

Cherokee Citizenship Battle

This one is tricky- and I have to dig a little more to find out about it, but the gist of it is this: the Cherokee Nation has decided to strike 2,800 African-American descendants of slaves held by the Cherokee from their citizenship rolls.

The government is warning that the results of the upcoming elections for Principle Chief of the Cherokee Nation will not be recognized unless the 2,800 Freedmen (as they're called) are restored to the citizenship roles. The Cherokee say, not unreasonably, that they have a right to define what constitutes citizenship for their tribe (a move backed by the Tribe's Supreme Court.) The Federal Government, in a somewhat ironic turnaround is pointing out that citizenship rights for the Freedmen were guaranteed under an 1866 treaty between the Cherokee Nation and the Federal Government and accuse the tribe (again, this just drips with historical irony, doesn't it?) of breaking the treaty.

In short, the whole thing is a mess.

The timing smells a little funny to me, first off. A month before an important election and you suddenly lose 2,800 voters? That's not an insignifcant amount- especially if it could swing the election one way or the other- but again, you'd have to look at the internal politics of the Cherokee to get a feel for that one way or the other.

Second of all, being a naturalized citizen, this makes me a little uncomfortable. Granted, Native American concepts of citizenship would undoubtedly revolve around birth and tribal identity- those are complex issues which I know absolutely nothing about. But the idea that someone can, with a stroke of a pen, take away anyone's citizenship bugs me a little bit. After all, I wasn't born here. I'm not part of the 'tribe' so to speak, so what's to stop an American government from doing the same thing? It sets an ugly precedent in my opinion.

But- all of this, to me, underlines a startlingly large gap in my own education: I know next to nothing about the political arrangements or structures that govern the Native American tribes. I know that given the history, it probably wouldn't surprise me if a lot of them were fundamentally unfair, but tribal politics just don't seem to make the news a lot- probably because we don't have a large Native American presence in Iowa. But even in Minnesota, you didn't hear a lot either- and that particular chapter of American history, strangely enough tends to get glossed over when you're in a school.

This Bodes Well

There's a new poll out there that says the majority of Americans trust the military more than they do the government.

Wonderful. Just wonderful- because when people start doing that, it always ends well for all concerned. (Props to- who else? For the link.)

War Against The Young

Damn skippy it is- a parasitical generation, too self-obsessed with themselves to actually care about the state of this country or what they're leaving to their children, of course when the going gets tough then the younger generation gets screwed.

There's a rage building out there, I think and when it erupts, it's not going to be pretty- especially for the older generation. People my age are getting screwed and there's only so long you can get screwed before it starts to chafe and then it starts to hurt and then you just want to screw somebody back- twice as hard. Our future is being stolen from us- my generation is the ultimate lost generation, because I really think that for those of that do succeed, we've had to learn the hard way about life and how it works. If you were born into a solid, middle-to-working class existence outside of the suburbs, you probably got lucky- but it seems like for every well-adjusted, normal, hard working person I know in my generation there are 3 or 4 that aren't- and that's mainly due to narcissistic parenting more than anything else.

Which infuriates me- the Boomers wanted kids because kids were cute and cuddly and after all, that's what you did when you were an adult- so they had kids. But suddenly Mr. Boomer won't sacrifice his career goals for his family- and neither will Mrs. Boomer, because they've got careers, they're going places- heaven forbid they think of anyone other than themselves. Me, Me, Me... the ME Generation! They can rail against government and schools and education funding because, after all, they've already been to school, but raise the retirement age? Reform medicare? Oh HELL no, people! I read somewhere that there's a growing trend of Boomers announcing that they're not living their kids squat in the way of inheritance. Why? Because that's their cash-money and they're going to spend every damn bit of it before they die. How selfish and narcissistic can you get?

And now this? 2-tiered wages? Where are the unions on this one? Where are the precious, progressive, supposedly on the side of the young unions to be found? Nowhere- they're the ones pushing for it- because it benefits them!

Kids, I'm going to take a deep breath and step back from this topic because it really does make me very angry. I get told my generation are a bunch of lazy degenerates, but we're just doing the best we can with the hand the we were dealt- which is essentialy a gigantic pile of shit. And that's not to say that all Boomers are like that- just the ones in positions of power. Seems to me for all the caricatures of Boomers out there, they don't seem to be all that true in my experience- but for the people running things and flushing this country down the toilet.

100% real and true. And please don't hop on the comments and tell me I should vote Republican- they're just as guilty. It's generation against generation and everybody is out to grab what they can and screw everybody else.

The future is so bright, I gotta wear shades...

0-2

The Democrats lost a seat in Nevada and a seat in NYC last night in special elections. The former isn't that much of a shock, but the latter is- as it was former Congressman Wiener's seat and get this: the Dems had held it since 1923.

Another Glass Ceiling Down

Denmark looks set to end 10 years of right wing rule and get it's first female Prime Minister in elections tipped for this week...

Well, good for Denmark! The question I always ask when I read stories like this is when's America going to elect a woman? (And Iowa as well- my home state being one of 2, count 'em 2 states left that has yet to elect a woman governor or send a woman to Congress. Company we keep with Mississippi, I think.)

The answer to that question is considerably more complicated, however. The power of incumbency usually means that whomever is in the White House has a good solid lock on the place barring total incompetence or economic mismanagement- so really, you're looking at 8 years between chances most of the time. But Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin represented two very different breakthroughs for women in 2008- Hillary because she was the first viable female candidate and Palin because she's championed a whole movement of Conservative women that will be sending ripples through the Republican Party for much of the next decade at least.

Will we see it? Absolutely- maybe sooner than we think and I'm going to risk the wrath of many people by predicting that the first woman President is going to be a Republican. But it won't be Bachmann and I'm like 75% it won't be Palin either, so no worries this time around.

Iowa is a bit trickier to predict. My home state has taken the very farmer-like attitude of 'if it ain't broke, don't replace it' to it's elected officials (witness the mould covered pair of politicos we have occupying our Senate seats) and if there is turnover in our Congressional delegation, it usually comes after a census shifts boundaries. That's what we're facing in '12 and there is some potential for change out there. Christie Vilsack is running against Steve King in the new 4th District up in NW Iowa and although Miller-Meeks took a job in Branstad's new administration in Des Moines, I wouldn't rule out another whack at the 2nd District again either. But Mrs. Vilsack is going to have her work cut out for her, that's for sure- NW Iowa is about as red as you can get (I remember seeing some vote totals in some counties that had Steve King picked up 80-85% of the vote- granted there wasn't a lot of population in some of these very rural counties, but still, 80%? That's ridiculous.)

One of these days, Iowa's going to find a strong, capable woman and put her in charge of something but the prospects aren't high anytime soon, I'm afraid.

It Could Be Worse

It could be a naked camera toss- I started at the Art Museum as a student guard shortly after the dust from that particular controversy has faded, so the thought of this doesn't really phase me all that much.

But it's only for another 4 days! Might have to slip out there and see if it lives up to the hype or whether it's just limp with boredom.

Not Too Bad

I went 3-2 in the School Board election last night- with incumbent Patti Fields keeping her seat and Cook, Swesey, Holescher and McGinness joining her. Phil Hemingway got within 86 votes of taking out Fields and I'm honestly not sure where Porter came in the pecking order, so I'm cautiously happy about this.

Like I mentioned: I'm not super up on the ins and outs of the District shenanigans, but if the Missus and I are here for the long haul, I'm going to have to start paying attention. And with fights looming about further redistricting and a potential 3rd High school, there's some important stuff coming down the pipe.

One thing I am wondering about though: I might volunteer to be a poll worker one of these days, because they could sure use some fresh blood, especially after last night. There was a super long line, chaos, confusion- and they didn't exactly tell you right off the bat that you had to fill out a voter declaration form before you got a ballot- which confused the heck out of a lot of people, including the Missus and I. They figured it out- but it did get me thinking about it. We'll have to see what comes of it- I think I work this November and I'm on my ten hour days for election day next year (super ick! Might have to take the next day off- I like to drink with my election returns, lol) but I think it's something worth looking at.

Dear Michelle Bachmann,

What are you wearing? Seriously- what the hell is it? I know, I know you were tailgating in Ames and probably didn't want to offend anyone, but what kind of a message does this send to the voters? If they're looking for a leader that's going to take a strong, decisive stance on the issues, then this says (at least to me) that you're wishy-washy.

For cryin' out loud, if you're going to tailgate, at least pick a team. Don't do this 'everybody's a winner in my book' type of crap. And the worst part of all: you had the perfect out right at your disposal! You've spent months promoting your roots in Waterloo- so wear a UNI jersey! Hawkeye and Cyclone fans both might have gently mocked you for it, but they would at least respect that you're rooting for your hometown team.

Plus, it's a hideous jersey. People were beating up on Maryland's new unis and Oregon can trot out some truly hellaciously bad shades of green from time to time, but this tops 'em all.

Bad move, Michelle. Though I gotta ask: did you spring for a keg for your tailgate? Tell me you did that at least...

The Scorecard #1

High School: The weekend started out quite well with City High routing West High to keep the Boot on the East Side (Where it belongs, of course). Regina followed this up by choking Wilton. That was the headline in the Press-Citizen: Regina Chokes Wilton (As in 'Catholics gonna choke a b**h?' Seems a little strong to me. Just saying.)

College: We all know what happened- 3OTs and a loss to Iowa State. I'll be honest kids, I had a little tickle in the oxipetal about this one- this was, after all, an Iowa State team that went to Texas last year and beat them. In Austin- and I don't care how shitty Texas is, that should have served notice on us that Iowa State was better than we thought.

Plus, there was the little matter of Tropical Storm Herky that blew through last weekend. It's hard to get a readout on how good the defense looks when there's a tropical monsoon in the way. But let's not despair yet: Vandenburg has one helluva an arm, we've got experience wide recievers and Coach Ferentz seems to relish moments like this as they just demonstrate just what exactly we need to work on. Namely defense- and mobile quarterbacks... (did anyone else have bad flashbacks to the Ohio State game last year while watching Saturday? ISU may have a QB with a porn star name and he was about as slippery as one Saturday but all I could think about was that 4th and 10 at the end of the Ohio State game where all we needed was one, tiny, stop and nobody could lay a finger on Pryor.)

Fun bonuses for college football: If Gloria Steinem wasn't smiling Saturday, she should have been- because Toledo played Ohio State the full 60 minutes and came very close to upending the Buckeyes at home in Columbus.

Pros: The Vikings had a brilliant start to their 2011 season as Percy Harvin went 103 yards with the opening kickoff for a touchdown versus San Diego (in the 'We'll Be In LA Soon' Bowl). San Diego went 3 and out on their posession and pinned Minnesota back deep- and his first snap as Vikings QB, McNabb... threw an interception. It kinda went downhill from there. But the Vikings, although managing to piss away a 10 point lead at the half and lose, did not look horrible. McNabb brings a welcome sense of confidence to the QB position- and a low interception percentage to boot and Adrian Peterson means that you have to take them seriously. Unfortunately, the NFC North might be the toughest gig in football this year, so if they want to make the playoffs, they'll need to improve.

Bonus: I watched Rugby on Sunday as well. Yes, that's right kids, the Rugby World Cup is popping up here and there on American television and in their opening match against Ireland, I have to say the United State acquitted themselves fairly well. I think they're still considered a 'Tier 2' country in the world of rugby and they looked a little out matched from tme to time, but they made the Irish earn it. If people are paying attention, it could go a long way to improving the standing of the sport in the United States. And hopefully by the time this wraps up, I'll understand just exactly how rugby works. (I think I've got most of it- but those lineouts and randomly kicking the ball out of bounds? Weirdness.)

What's Wrong With This Picture

Sarah Palin reportedly said something- it's not just sensible, it's downright... I hate to say it, I really do, but downright cool. Behold the money 'graphs:

But when her throat was cleared at last, Ms. Palin had something considerably more substantive to say.

She made three interlocking points. First, that the United States is now governed by a “permanent political class,” drawn from both parties, that is increasingly cut off from the concerns of regular people. Second, that these Republicans and Democrats have allied with big business to mutual advantage to create what she called “corporate crony capitalism.” Third, that the real political divide in the United States may no longer be between friends and foes of Big Government, but between friends and foes of vast, remote, unaccountable institutions (both public and private).

In supporting her first point, about the permanent political class, she attacked both parties’ tendency to talk of spending cuts while spending more and more; to stoke public anxiety about a credit downgrade, but take a vacation anyway; to arrive in Washington of modest means and then somehow ride the gravy train to fabulous wealth. She observed that 7 of the 10 wealthiest counties in the United States happen to be suburbs of the nation’s capital.

Her second point, about money in politics, helped to explain the first. The permanent class stays in power because it positions itself between two deep troughs: the money spent by the government and the money spent by big companies to secure decisions from government that help them make more money.

“Do you want to know why nothing ever really gets done?” she said, referring to politicians. “It’s because there’s nothing in it for them. They’ve got a lot of mouths to feed — a lot of corporate lobbyists and a lot of special interests that are counting on them to keep the good times and the money rolling along.”

Because her party has agitated for the wholesale deregulation of money in politics and the unshackling of lobbyists, these will be heard in some quarters as sacrilegious words.

Ms. Palin’s third point was more striking still: in contrast to the sweeping paeans to capitalism and the free market delivered by the Republican presidential candidates whose ranks she has yet to join, she sought to make a distinction between good capitalists and bad ones. The good ones, in her telling, are those small businesses that take risks and sink and swim in the churning market; the bad ones are well-connected megacorporations that live off bailouts, dodge taxes and profit terrifically while creating no jobs.

Strangely, she was saying things that liberals might like, if not for Ms. Palin’s having said them.

Somebody please slap me if I'm dreaming or did Sarah Palin just say something that I can completely and utterly agree with? (And something that happens to be right!) Why hasn't she been trotting out gems like this for months now? And more to the point: why does she have to be such a tease about it... we need ideas like this in the race, not flirting on the outside...

As always, props to the Great Guru Instapundit!

The Orphans Revolt

Texas A&M got the formal thumbs up from the SEC today but immediately ran into an unforeseen snag: the Orphans are revolting! Although the Big 12 had assured the SEC that they'd be totally cool with the Aggies leaving and they wouldn't sue or anything, Baylor, upon further reflection, seeing the looming embrace of Conference USA in their future, revolted- withdrawing from their previous waiver of legal action against the Aggies or the SEC.

At that, the SEC balked. They'd be happy to take the Aggies, they said, but they also didn't want to get sued.

And now, there are even more wrinkles: The Orphans have banded together with Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State to add a condition of their own- they need Oklahoma to commit to the Big 12- and if the Sooners do that, then the Aggies can go. New rumor is that should this swap-a-dee-doo occur, then the Big 12 would pursue BYU as a 10th school.

This is getting ridiculous. Time to get the Big 12 back to 12. If they can keep Oklahoma on side, then let the Aggies go, go hard for BYU, Colorado State or Air Force (sneaks you back into Colorado's TV market, such as it is) and the big Kahuna: Boise State- who would accept an invitation to a BCS Conference in a heartbeat.

In the meantime, the mindless speculation will continue. After much thought, I've decided that if the super-conference apocalypse happens, then I'd be happy if the Big 10 added the following:
Notre Dame- we'll get you eventually, Catholics! You can run, but you can't hide, bwahahahahaha!

Iowa State- would be a weird little anomaly smack dab in the middle of the Giant 10's footprint. Mizzou's only natural rival within the Giant 10 would be Illinois- and I don't think their academics are up to snuff. Iowa State has history with Nebraska and Iowa- and would be more of a random afterthought than anything else.

Pitt: brings us Pittsburgh. Plus they sorta kinda play our kind of football- plus they're an instant rival for Penn State.

West Virginia: it's been awhile since I've really watched WVU football, but they've fielded good hoops teams of late and back in the day they seemed to be playing hard hitting, defensive minded Giant 10 type of FB. Plus, it's the other half of The Backyard Brawl- one of college football's storied rivalries.

Bonuses to think about: Maryland- Washington D.C. seems to be more of a football town than NYC. This Rutgers silliness people keep talking about needs to stop...

Guilty Pleasure Wednesdays #2

So, I'd tried Hapi's Wasabi peas and found them delicious, but way too spicy- even for me. These things, however, are my new crack. How do you say Sriracha? I haven't the faintest idea- but these chili garlic coated green peas are amazing. I just wish the container was a little bigger...

From The Gridiron To The Ice...

The Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg this past summer causing great excitement amongst hockey starved Winnipeggers (lol, is that even the right word?) Winnipeg had been without an NHL Franchise for sometime- since their beloved Winnipeg Jets had moved to Phoenix to become the Coyotes. There had been some rumors swirling that the new team would be called something other than the Jets, but I think the entire province of Manitoba might have risen up in revolt had that happened. And so... to follow up Maryland's unusual (and yes, I'm sticking to my guns and saying striking as well) uniforms, the new Winnipeg Jets have debuted their jerseys:

I think these look pretty sharp- they're being more well recieved than Maryland's unis were. Personally I think I could use another NHL Jersey... actually, personally I think I could use some hockey on television right about now. When does the NHL season start, anyway?

Carter's Malaise Speech

I love great speeches... the rights words said by the right people can really and truly change the world- or at least make an impact on it. So from time to time, I'll be offering my thoughts on some of history's greatest...

This pops up occasionally in the world of punditry as one of many parallels people seem to be eager to draw between President Obama and President Carter- people seem to condemn it as a depressing waste of everybody's time that generally bummed America out instead of giving America a pat on the back and telling it to 'get up off the mat.'

I wasn't alive in the late 70s, though I can't imagine it was all sunshine and daisies back then- but I was curious enough about this speech that people reference from time to time that I dug up some text online and read it.

First of all, it's long. Reallllllly long. I don't know how faster Carter spoke, but having grown up with President Clinton's never ending State of the Union Speeches and seen them give way to the more pithy speeches of George W. Bush, brevity is awesome in politicians. If Carter took his time giving this speech, people must have stopped paying attention.

Second of all, it doesn't seem to be all that shocking. Late 1970s America probably was going through a crisis of confidence and I'm willing to bet everybody at the time knew it. It's not as if this was a shocking announcement that America was depressed or anything.

Third of all, the money quote:

In a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God, too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns. But we've discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning. We've learned that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose

Telling Americans we're mindless, shallow consumers? Now that's what I call telling truth to power. Mad props for a ballsy move! Unfortunately, it's probably not what you want to tell prospective voters.

Fourth of all, money quote number 2:

Point three: To give us energy security, I am asking for the most massive peacetime commitment of funds and resources in our nation's history to develop America's own alternative sources of fuel -- from coal, from oil shale, from plant products for gasohol, from unconventional gas, from the sun.

Oil shale? Evil, evil, evil oil shale? Suuuuuurely NOT!

Overall: Surprise, surprise, not as a horrific as punditry would have us believe. President Carter seemed to be catching the mood of the country and saying what everbody knew anyway and calling on people to buckle down and git 'er done, so to speak. Unfortunately, people seemed to want to be told that America kicks ass!

Mittens Fail

Mitt Romney has released his jobs plan. It's 88 whopping pages of charts, graphs and from what I can tell, mindless blather. There's a summary PDF which gives you the highlights, but from what I can tell, despite the novel idea of having it available for download on Kindle, this is just way too damn much.

I know I don't want to read 88 pages of it- and usually this kind of thing makes me all tingly.

KU and not Mizzou?

Kids, I'm sorry- but listen, it's fast becoming my favorite thing to do, all right? Every single drop of this is mindless speculation until Texas and Oklahoma decide what to do and even then, the SEC will probably add one more team and leave it at that- but this little suggestion was floated in the Omaha World-Herald... Notre Dame, Boston College, Syracuse and Kansas to the Big 10.

I don't buy this for any number of reasons. First, as Mr. Shatel points out- the Big 10 is going to wait for Notre Dame until the end of time if needs be. Everybody knows it. I can sort of see his argument about KU doing more to bring in the Kansas City market and that's it's a definate national brand- when it comes to college hoops anyway. For sure, adding Syracuse and Kansas would make the super Big 10 the best college hoops conference in the land- but that's precisely why this would never happen. Rumor is that the Big East has offered a soft landing to the Big 12 Orphans if they need it and for Kansas and K-State, the Big East makes more sense than the Big 10. They're hoops schools, not football schools, after all.

Things could further be complicated if the BCS gives the Mountain West an automatic bid next year (I think that's when they were due to look at it, if memory serves.) Suddenly KU and the Orphans get a conference that's upping its quality (they play some good hoops and pretty decent football in the Mountain West) with every passing year- and they can be the big fish in a new conference pond or a little one in a gargantuan Big East hoops pond.

Here's where I am on this:
Texas and Oklahoma go to the PAC-16 taking Tech and Okie State with them.

The SEC takes one more to get to 14 and stays put. (My money is on Florida State)

The Big 10 does absolutely nothing.

The ACC might take one more if they lose a team to the SEC- probably from the Big East- I'm betting UCONN if they can.

So what do the Big 12 Orphans do then? I'd say they hang tough for at least this year. If the Mountain West gets added as an automatic BCS bid then I would say Iowa State and Baylor go to the Mountain West, Kansas and K-State go to the Big East and Mizzou winds up in either the SEC or the Big 10.

Either way, I'm becoming increasingly convinced that it's not going to be the mad dash to the apocalypse everyone thinks it is- and it's worth noting that if the Big 12 had a commissioner that was worth a damn, they would have added back 2 teams right off the bat last year and might not be in this mess. (And had the other schools- especially Oklahoma put pressure on Texas to expand their ridiculous Longhorn Network into a Big 12 Network, they definately would not be in this mess.)

Iowa City School Board Endorsements

Usually like 10 people vote in these elections, but I think I might mosey on over to Mercer Park September 13th and cast my vote because I think any opportunity to vote is a good one and depending on how long the Missus and I are sticking around Iowa City, keeping abreast of the state of Iowa City's schools and their plans for the future is something I should probably start paying more attention to than I have previously.

Of course, the biggest issue looming large over everything is the third high school. Do we need one, when should it be built and where should it go? I'd have to say at a certain point we probably will- though I don't know when it's going to be built, I'd imagine it'd be smack dab between Coralville and North Liberty somewhere when it does show up.

The real issue that interests me is how we're integrating technology into the classroom today. I'd like to see Iowa City make a concerted effort to break down the geographical links between schools and move towards a more open forum, internet based, diverse curriculum. If West High offers AP European History and you leave on the east side and City High offers AP Economics instead, there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to take AP European History if you want too. The biggest problem with public education today is its rigid adherence to the 19th Century educational model it was founded on. Whether through it's own voilition or through being swept along by fiscal or technological circumstance, that's going to have to change at some point. It would be nice to have leadership on the board that's at least vaguely aware of the issue and trying to do something about it.

That said- here's my endorsements. (Links to Press-Citizen Candidate Statements are included.)

For the 2 Year At Large Seat: Karla Cook (best math teacher I ever had. I didn't learn squat because I had this sneaking suspicion that when math teachers told me that quadratic equations were something I would use in everyday life they were lying to me- but she had the patience of a saint and managed to pound more math into my head than any other math teacher I had in high school, so props to her. I think her experience in the District will serve the Board well.)

For The Four At Large Seats:
Phil Hemingway- a good guy who's definately an outsider. Outside perspective is always good on these boards.

Bob Porter- a longtime District facilities guy- knows the ins and outs of the machinery that keeps the District running very well. Another perspective worth putting on the board.

Jeff McGinness- has longtime ties to the city and the school district- and he's putting his kids through the District. Shows a good level of commitment.

Sally Hoelscher- seems to be a big believer in proactive policies and long term planning. I like that.

I'm sure anyone who clicks on these links will notice that the candidate statements don't really get into the nitty-gritty of the issues all that much, they're basically a combination of fluff and summary- which is totally OK given the space alloted- but if you're looking for more in-depth coverage, try A Blog About School or John Deeth's local blog both of which look to be pretty comprehensive.

Time For A Partial Privitzation, I Think...

The Postal Service is teetering on the edge of oblivion, due to a combination of factors, not least of which is the rise of email. Basically, no one sends letters via snail mail anymore.

I'm honestly surprised the USPS has held on this long- when even the ancient and venerable Royal Mail has to be partially privitized to stay alive, it's probably inevitable that some kind of partial privitization is going to have to take place. The workers will of course get hosed through a combination of government short-sightedness (we should have been tackling this in the Clinton Administration, for cryin' out loud) and union overreaching (they fought for way more than the Postal Service can now afford to give). All of which lays bear the stark choices facing workers in America today: do you sacrifice cushy benefits so you can keep a paycheck or do you fight for every scrap and risk blowing the whole thing up and not having a job if you lose?

I'll Raise Tebbit One More: Time For An English Parliament

Scottish Conservatives north of the border are locked in a leadership battle currently- and one of their candidates, Murdo Fraser is advocating blowing up the party altogether and starting a new one that can more accurately represent Scotland without the tarnish of Thatcher's economic policies following it around (her policies hit especially hard north of the border back in the day.)

Politically, it makes sense. The Tory presence north of the border has been virtually non-existent since Labour's landslide of 1997. They need to do something to remain viable- and Conservative Grandee Norman Tebbit agrees.

But I think if they're wise, Conservatives (and the Coalition) will go a step further and take devolution to it's logical ending point- federalism. It's monumentally unfair to let Scottish and Welsh MPs vote on matters than affect England when English MPs can no longer do the reverse. It's breeding resentment and rightly so amongst English taxpayers and makes the dissolution of the Union all the more likely within the next five to ten years.

Personally, I think Britain is stronger together than it would be apart- and besides, centuries together have left the English, Scots and Welsh with an easy going contempt of each other that's almost endearing at times.

But if Cameron is serious about preserving the Union, then the Constitutional Sticky Wicket of England's weird status in the semi-devolved United Kingdom needs to be tackled- and now.

So What Happened To Civility?

Remember when Democrats threw a fit over right wing extremism and violent rhetoric in the wake of the Gabrielle Giffords shooting in Tucson?

Kids, it works both ways...

Dammit, I really want to be a Leftist sometimes. I want to be a hardcore, long haired, tofu eating, pot growing hippy, but shit like this just makes it so damn hard! Defending an indefensible status quo is just... well, it's just idiotic at this point. We're moving into a post-Industrial economy and the Left is just going to have to get with the program! Instead of defending manufacturing jobs that are going to be obsolete in 15-20 years (if not sooner) why not come up with the next generation of manufacturing jobs? Instead of fighting for benefits that are threatening to bankrupt entire states, why not ask how things like the educational system can be changed to benefit teachers, students and the taxpayers that foot the bill? Instead of fighting for the status quo of 1945 why not fight for the status quo of 2011?

Pretty, pretty please!? I'm totally with the Left when it comes to social issues- really. I'm a hardcore social libertarian- leave me the heck alone, end the war on drugs, gay marriage for all that want it, keep religion in churches where it belongs and out of policymaking- but on economic issues, I need to know that the Left cares about my generation and our future- because a lot of the rhetoric and policies that are out there seem to indicate that they care more about the future and economic security of the Boomers than me and mine.

UPDTED: Violent rhetoric for me but not for thee, huh? How about this: violent rhetoric is not cool for ANYONE to use and we should all just grow up and fix the economy? That too unreasonable kiddos?

Labor Day

Kids, what does Labor Day mean to you? Is it just another 3 day weekend? The last chance you can wear white before winter?

Although it's been and gone, if you raised a glass to the American working man, then good on you- and here's 36 reasons to thank a union if you're looking for them. (The challenge for organized labor: come up with 36 more for the 21st Century.) I'm cautiously in favor of unions. I think in the right circumstances when they're small and focused enough then can really get workers a good deal- but if, like too many in America are, they're big, corporatized nationalized organizations, then I think they're more about benefiting union bosses than actual workers- and I say screw that.

I'd be OK with being in a union in the right circumstances. When I was working security up at Mankato West in grad school (Go Scarlets, by the way!) they wanted to try and get the security people/hall monitors covered under the District union contract. As I'd stuck around for longer than most and been given maybe a dime of a raise for coming back, I thought any shot a better deal would be OK by me. I didn't stick around long enough to see any benefits, though...

Contrast that with my current two year stint working at the University covered by the warm embrace of an AFSME contract. I'm not a member of the union and I don't plan on being one anytime soon for the plain and simple reason that I don't get any tangible benefits from being a full-fledged member. To be blunt, in my experience this union protects crappy workers. If you show up and do your job, why waste money on a union card? The only use they're going to be is if you get shit-canned.

I'd like to believe in solidarity for working people out there, I really would. But I'm not willing to invest in an organization that ultimately benefits more people at some gargantuan national office than it does me and my pocketbook- not to mention the pocketbooks of other workers. If I'm presented evidence to the contrary, I'll be more than happy to be persuaded otherwise- but until then, I remain a cautious supporter of unions.

UPDTED: Hmmmm... but then there's this.

Dedicated Follower of Gridiron Fashion

Apparently Maryland is the new Oregon this college football season... at least when it comes to fashion statements. I caught a glimpse of their new uniforms while I was perusing ESPN.com and thought they looked pretty cool- they're modelled after Maryland's state flag which looks like this.

Bonus for any amatuer vexillologists out there- Maryland is the only state in the Union to have a heraldic flag- based off the arms of Lord Baltimore. Although the sports media punditry has panned the new unis, I think they look pretty bitchin' personally. And it turns out that Under Armor's CEO is a big Terps fan, so he's decided to get all Oregon about it and give them a myriad of uniform options to choose from this season. All of which, I have to say, look pretty damn bitchin'.

Props to the Terps. (And to all the haters in the sports punditry world- remember this? And the multiplicity of other weird combos Oregon uses... Just sayin- I think Maryland wins the battle of the unis.)

Bookshot #30: Things Fall Apart

Things Fall Apart tells the story of Okonkwo, a hard working prominent 'strong man' of an Ibo village in Nigeria. Okonkowo is a hard and stern man, who is determined to avoid the mistakes of his indolent father and work hards to build himself a prosperous existence and get married with children to pass on the fruits of his labor to the next generation. The first part of the book tells the story of Okonkwo's rise to prosperity and his eventual fall from grace and the second part tells of the destructive clash of cultures which occurs when European missionaries begin to arrive and change everything.

This book took a little getting used to, I have to admit, but ultimately, the story and the quality of the writing won me over. It was a slow start- especially given the liberal amount of Ibo terminology that Achebe scatters throughout the narrative. (There's actually a glossary in the back of the book, there's so many Ibo words used.) But eventually, the writing and the story of Okonkwo and his fall from grace takes over and makes the book come alive. There's something incredibly compelling about the character of Okonkwo. He may be arrogant and unfeeling at times, but he's worked hard to make sure he can have a good life for himself and his family- and it's hard not to respect that, at least.

He takes in a boy as a hostage to prevent a clan war and grows close to him, but eventually the hostage must be returned and clan leaders decree that the boy must be killed- but Okonkwo is told not to be the one who kills him. Of course, through no fault of his own, he does- and so he must wrestle with that guilt. When another accident sends him into exile, Okonkwo plots to work as hard as he possibly can so when he can return to his clan, he will lose none of the prestige he worked so hard to gain. But by then, he has to wrestle with the arrival of European missionaries, which eventually uproot the clan structures that Okonkwo has lived with his entire life and, as the book's title suggests, things eventually do fall apart.

Overall: ***1/2 out of ****: A deceptive gem of a book- it looks to be a nice, simple, easy read but the themes that Achebe explores are universal in nature and incredibly complex.

Too Much 9/11?

I say yes, EW begs to disagree- and I have to admit, it's for good reason. There is a little bit of a disconnect if people are going to bitch about too much 9/11 anniversary coverage while ignoring the oodles of frankly shit reality television programming that we drown in every other day of the week.

But I don't watch the Real Housewives of anything or Big Brother, so I still think Ken Tucker is wrong. From what I'm sure will be the nauseating amounts of news pontification and coverage in the coming days, it's just too much. Nobody who lived through that day is going to forget it anytime soon, if ever. Coverage should focus on the memorials, be solemn and respectful and then move on. It's everywhere now- from Top40 Radio (I know Demi Lovato's been through some stuff this year, but 'Skyscraper'? Come on now! And performing it in front of a flaming pile of rubble for America's Got Talent? Pretty close to being really offensive.) to every news channel, to news sites, to news everything... and some people are taking issue with it- pointing out that too much white noise diminishes the significance of the event itself.

Personally, I've decided that this will pretty much be the extent of what I'm saying about the Anniversary- and I won't be blogging on September 11th. Anything I have that's worth saying can wait at least a day, I think.

But it still leaves a question: how much is too much coverage, especially for an Anniversary like this?

Free Parking, Then What?

As our glorious leaders continue their policy of yuppification and immolation in downtown Iowa City, I wrote (and thought it was worth pointing out) that making parking more difficult in downtown Iowa City is unlikely to bring the community back downtown in droves anytime soon. The Quiet Man (as he does sometimes) took the opportunity to put in his own two cents worth and as usual, makes a couple of good points that are worth exploring and expanding on. (I'll get to that in a minute...)

But, let's say that we do get free parking- on weekends, all day everyday, whatever. What then? At this point, Iowa City can't- nor should it attempt to- be Coralville or North Liberty. But plainly the situation downtown isn't working anymore. (It probably is working quite well for the Development Cartel that is erecting glass and steel condos by the bucketloads, but not really for anyone else.)

So what to do? Free parking may be a big juicy incentive to get people back downtown, but they won't stay that long if there's nothing much for them to do there. Although The Quiet Man tends to sneer at Coralville's sometimes crass, unapologetic capitalism and it's over abundance of 'Big Box Retail' my own personal failing is that I tend to favor pragmatism over ideology in all things. I could give a damn where I shop at, as long as it's cheap and has what I need- which is essentially the attitude of pretty much every other person in the world. Nobody is going to trade in their deep-fried lard for vegan veggie goo anytime soon and neither are they going to spend ludicrous amounts of money on hand-stiched hemp woven t-shirts when they could spend $10 and have a perfectly serviceable t-shirt from Wal-Mart. So, apologies to The Quiet Man, but 'Big Box Retail' is here to stay.

But will it work in Iowa City? Here The Quiet Man raises some good points. Coralville got the Mall, cleaned up the Strip and has the luxury and the space to plot residential and further commercial growth around those two zones. Iowa City doesn't have that luxury- and at this point, the 'Big Box' battle is over and Coralville has won. You can't slap a Dress Barn, a Target or a Kohl's smack in the middle of downtown Iowa City- it just won't work anymore. Parking would be too much of a pain in the ass. Property taxes would be too high. Coralville was essentially the garden shed Iowa City kept in it's huge-ass back yard- it had- and continues to have space to put the 'Big Boxes' in whereever it wants.

However, I'm not willing to give up the ghost on getting some retail back to downtown Iowa City yet. Leave the 'Big Boxes' out in Coralville- but let's take a hard look at the demographics of downtown: college students, assorted yuppies and nearby- the run of the mill whitebread, middle class members of Iowa City that currently do all their shopping in Coralville. I'm not going to argue that we should bulldoze Van Allen Hall and build a shopping mall downtown. But with some careful incentives the right chains downtown could be successful. Which is pretty much all downtown needs. If Mama Middle Class out on Green Mountain Drive can park for free on Saturdays and nip down to an Old Navy downtown to get Little Johnny some cheap-ass jeans I'd bet she'd rather do that than drive her ass out to Coralville. The Quiet Man says he misses being able to 'get things on the East side'- clothes might not be what he had in mind and we shouldn't confine ourselves to clothing retail, but I'm sure someone in Iowa City would appreciate a clothing option or two downtown. (And for the record, The Quiet Man totally underestimates the appeal of jeggings- of any size!)

But this debate is about more than just downtown. For all the fuss and bother about 'the future of downtown' our glorious leaders tend to forget that there are other places which could be developed in Iowa City. If the Development Cartel wants to yuppify downtown, let it. (Has Moen sold all the condos in the Plaza Towers?) It's better to cede that Territory than to start messing around with property taxes and risk them invoking, as The Quiet Man rightly points out- the grand American tradition of bitching about how high taxes are.

So what, concievably can Iowa City do the spur development elsewhere? What made this place great back in the day was a nice balance between retail you could use, restaurants/bars, small local business and community attractions (including not one, but two theaters downtown- and Aladdin's Castle. That placed kicked ass.) That kind of a diverse wide range of smaller shopping options closer to home could provide a counter-weight to the 'Big Box' mentality of Coralville. But the City Council would have to hold the line against further yuppification (a dim prospect) and think about areas other than downtown (an equally dim prospect.)

It's not all bleak though: Towncrest is set to get a gradual facelift to make the place look a little nicer. 1st Avenue on the east side is finally going to get that rail underpass which should solve a lot of traffic problems- but why stop there? Instead of merely trotting out the 'once in a decade' plan for south of Burlington, why not actually implement it? Stop pissing around with passenger rail (Megabus is too cheap and a top speed of 80mph is not high speed, so let's stop pretending that it is) and start developing that green space around the old water plant. Give Gilbert Street a facelift. Give Highway 6 a facelift- add better sidewalks, more lighting and make that end of town look nice for once. It's well within the City Council's purview to do so- and the more of Iowa City looks nice, the more likely people are going to want to open a business here.

Do I think a fresh coat of asphalt and some fancy streetlights are going to be the answer to all our woes- such as they are? No, of course not- but a few facelifts around the place would be a big help- and might encourage economic growth to occur all by itself- which would be the best possible outcome I think. (The development and growth in the Northside Neighborhood is a great example of this.) Make some places look nice, hold the line against yuppification and we'll get closer to that ideal of a wide, diverse range of shopping options in Iowa City- which is an identity I believe our community would happily embrace (the smaller, locally owned alternative to Coralville) and could prove to be a key component in the further economic development in the wider metro area in Johnson County.

Albums2010 #48: By The Throat

As a onetime inhabitant of the Medium White North, I frequent the Star Tribune website quite a bit, which is where I first heard of the hip-hop artist Eyedea- unfortunately on the occasion of his death, but there were hints of an extensive hip-hop/rap scene in the Cities that, once I had secured Spotify I felt was worth exploring a bit.

Happily, it's a journey well worth taking. Eyedea's album By The Throat starts with a growl and doesn't let up- there's a hard edge undercutting his rhythms that seems a trifle unusual at first but quickly endears itself to the listener as the depth of Eyedea's talent at the microphone becomes clear. His gift for lyrics are on fine display with tracks such as 'This Story' which grabs your attention immediately with the opening stanza of 'When I was young I was a single celled amoeba/then I learned how to go to war over ideas/now I'm stripping Mother Earth of her resources/waiting for the day when today is considered prehistoric.' Another track- one of the first ones that immediately grabbed my attention was 'Burn Fetish' with it's refrain of 'Empathy is a poor man's cocaine/and love is just a chemical by any other name/I like the way your pheromones make me sleepy/this far this far away I still smell you inside me.'

His overall sounds carries a touch electronia to it that reminds me a little of Beck- but his lyrics and his, well, I guess you would call it 'flow' are scorching. If there is such a thing as mid-20s, Millenial apathy and cynicism, Eyedea managed to capture it perfectly. That hard, cynical edge that underpins this album makes it work and actually shows a full range of talent that Eyedea puts on fine display. Unlike his more commercial contempories such as Eminem who seems to have had two modes toilet humor and boiling rage (now adding a third, pissed off redeemed ex-addict) in his repetoire, Eyedea manages to communicate the complexity involved not only in life, but in some of these emotions as well which is a rare feat indeed.

All in all, this album showcases Eyedea's massive talent- his range (which Eminem doesn't really have) his lack of ego (which Kanye has too much of) and his music blends a touch of Beck style electronica with hard-edged rap beats and flows all of which makes for an interesting and ultimately unique album.

Overall: I'm sorry if I didn't have anything too profound to say, but this album was awesome- Eyedea had mad skills, talent and a gift for crafting interesting and thought provoking lyrics. I'd say ***.5 out of ****- this is one hip-hop album that left me wanting to hear more- and it's a shame that with his tragic death at the young age of 28, the world didn't get to hear more of him.

Star Trek: Voyager-- A Review

This is going to be a tough review. I mean, how do you encompass seven years of a television show into one review? And more to the point how do you place it into the context of a decades-long storied science fiction franchise? Hence, the difficulties of trying to review Star Trek: Voyager. Happily, I can safely say that this was the last of the 'good' Star Trek television shows- the excruciating follow up 'prequel' series Enterprise pretty much- no, not pretty much, it actually did kill the television franchise- but it too will get it's review in the proper time. I want to concentrate on Voyager.

Launched in 1995 as one of the anchor series of the new UPN network launched by Paramount, this show was the first incarnation of Star Trek to premier on a television network since the original flavor debuted in 1966 and it was the first Star Trek show to feature a female captain- Kathryn Janeway (ably played with just a touch of Katharine Hepburn by Kate Mulgrew). The show follows the adventures of the Starship Voyager, flung 70,000 light years across the galaxy with no way home. This being television, our protagonists manage to find a way to shorten what's expected to be a 70 year journey into 7, picking up 10,000 light years here, 300 light years there during certain pivotal moments of the series. They encounter new dangers, face old (at least by Star Trek standards) enemies and capture a touch of the panache and derring-do of the original series by exploring the unknown realms of the final frontier.

As with all television shows, it takes a couple of seasons to really find its feet. By this point in the Star Trek television franchise, everything was starting to feel a little worn and weary- the aesthetic of the show hadn't changed and up until Season 3 when Voyager joined the trend of CGI special effects, the show still used the traditional Star Trek methods of miniatures and camera tricks to make a lot of special effects shots. Aesthetics and technology aside, the formula for the franchise was also getting a bit worn around the edges. Although Deep Space Nine had pushed that formula into refreshing and rewarding new directions, Voyager initially seemed like a return to the same old mission of the week formula that The Next Generation had done for seven seasons and the Original Series had done for three before that.

But by Season 3, Voyager started to get its sea legs- thanks to the appearance of a tried and true nemesis, The Borg. They were big, bad and ready to assimilate everyone in sight and once their local guide Neelix (Ethan Phillips) ventured into territory that even he didn't know suddenly Voyager felt like it was really exploring the unknown. No offense to the 'new' bad guys the Kazon that dogged Voyager during Seasons 1 and 2, but they almost but not quite pushed themselves into iconic bad guy status. Various subplots with the shipboard traitor/spy Seska (played with delicious villainy by Martha Hackett in various guest appearances) and the Kazon provide some of the most intriguing moments in the first couple of seasons. Neelix's one time girlfriend, another Delta Quadrant native by the name of Kes (Jennifer Lien) shoves Voyager 10 years closer to home and past the majority of Borg space at the start of Season 4 when she is replaced by ex-Borg Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan)- who, of course, is very well endowed and wears very form-fitting uniforms, thus becoming a nerd pin-up icon in the space of about an episode. Eventually through some technological magic, Voyager makes contact with Starfleet Command back home and continues getting closer and closer until one final showdown with the Borg that's a classic piece of space opera- even if it does rely on the tiresome old trick of time travel bring Voyager home with it's satisfying series finale of 'Endgame.'

There are a few interesting sub-plots that run throughout the course of the show. First Officer Commander Chakotay's (Robert Beltran) Native American heritage and mysticism is explored several times, as is the holographic Doctor's (Robert Picardo) quest to become more human and 'expand his program'- his journey provides some of the most thought provoking moments of the series as his sentience and humanity are debated several times. He is after all, a hologram. Helmsman Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeil) and Chief Engineer the half Klingon B'Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawnson) fall in love, get married and get pregnant- though the first cast wedding in Star Trek history gets short shrift- we don't even get to see the ceremony! The show failed to take Ensign Harry Kim (Garrett Wang) anywhere much, keeping him fresh faced young and kind of naive throughout the show, which is a shame and Lieutenant Tuvok (Tim Russ) provides the usual Vulcan antics which also don't go anywhere too groundbreaking- even for Star Trek.

Because this is a Star Trek show, we're going to have to give it not one, but 2 grades. First we've got to rate its place in the Star Trek franchise and second we've got to rate it in the context of television as a whole. In terms of Star Trek I'd rate Voyager second behind Deep Space Nine- though I haven't explored The Next Generation or the Original Series with any depth as of yet.

Overall- *** out of ****: A solid B+ of a science fiction show- had longtime producer Rick Berman shaken things up in terms of tweaking a very tried and true formula and aesthetic, Voyager could have been a truly iconic piece of television. That said, it's a solid, entertaining piece of television- even if it does seem a bit pedestrian every now and again.

The Coming Football Apocalypse...

I hate to beat a dead horse about this topic, but it's so damn interesting- the permutations could keep me busy for hours on end but this endless cycle of conference re-alignment just doesn't seem to end. The latest: Texas A&M is out- probably to the SEC. Some are predicting that Oklahoma will pull the trigger and jump to a gargantuan Pac-16 along with Oklahoma State, Texas and Texas Tech. The rage-inducing (at least for Aggie fans) Longhorn Network gets folded into the existing regional networks already in place in the Pac-12 and presumably, the SEC and Big 10 respond by kicking their own expansion into high gear.

So... if: Oklahoma Oklahoma State Texas Texas Tech all go to a Pac-16, who's left...

Texas A&M is going to the SEC.

Mizzou, Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor and Iowa State are left out in the cold. If the SEC wants geographic balance, then they'll snap up Mizzou along with Texas A&M and snag I'm betting Florida State and Virginia Tech from the ACC.

So what do the rest of the orphans do? I'm betting Kansas and Kansas State want to go to the Big East. Iowa State will be hoping desperately that it's place snuggled in the Big 10's geographic footprint will be good enough to score an invite and Baylor? I'm not sure where Baylor will go- probably Conference USA with Houston, SMU and the other nearby Texas schools, but I think there's an argument that they've got some basketball heft that the Big East might consider them. As for the Big 10, well, we all know what the Big 10 wants. We want Notre Dame. The other three schools that would get us to 16 are yet to be determined.

Huisentruit-Police Link?

Well, this is interesting... a recently fired Mason City Police Officer has suggested a police link behind missing Mason City Anchorwoman Jodi Huisentruit. Whether it's a disgruntled former employee running her mouth to cause trouble or whether there's something actually to her allegations, it's still an interesting wrinkle in an unsolved case that's been kicking around Iowa for nearly two decades now.

Wild Spring Break

This sure isn't Cancun... wow. I'm kind of jealous- but unfortunately, I'm no longer foot loose and fancy free. But good on this kid! Way to experience the world...

I Give Up

Apparently, I need to go to med school and become rich enough to afford one of these silly condos they keep trying to build. What happened to this town? (The question becomes even more relevant when you see this...)

Just Give The Damn Speech Already

That mysterious jobs plan the President has been promising everyone for a month now? Well you won't believe this: first, he wanted to do next week on the 7th. Big no-no. The Republican Presidential Debate is that night and predictably, they threw a fit. So then the President decided to give me a birthday present and do it on my birthday, the 8th.

Which also happens to be the opening day of the NFL season- with the Saints playing the Packers in prime time.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest a couple of things: first, don't do it on the 7th or the 8th- let the Republicans throw a hissy fit. And really, do you want to piss off every NFL fan in the country? Not a good idea.

First, the President needs to remember that he is the President. If he gives a speech. there's gonna be cameras there and someone will watch. Second of all, why do it in Washington? And why do it in front of Congress? The only bunch of people more unpopular than the President right now are Congress- why put yourself in the same room as them and remind the American people of that?

Knock some socks off and show some panache. I'd say hop on Air Force One and head down to Texas- say Austin perhaps or be even more cheeky and stop by Rick Perry's hometown of Paint Creek and tell America on Labor Day just exactly how you're going to get us laboring again.

P.S. Knocking socks off and showing panache does not involve parroting the same talking points you've been reading off of for the past six months. Do something radical- get specific. Raise the retirement age on social security! Abolish the payroll tax! Get rid of useless regulation but remind industry that if they don't play by the rules, then the guv'mint is watching! Combine Commerce and Labor! Get rid of a government department! (Homeland Security for instance, since it's such a pit of bureaucratic doom.)