Butte? Are You Serious...How Desperate Are They?

Well, it's true. Presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton will be in glorious Butte, Montana today! And I'll be there to witness this historic event.
How long has it been? You know, since a democratic presidential candidate has campaigned in this state? Who knows, and frankly, who cares? All I know is that sometimes it pays to be an insider. Actually, my position in the party didn't get me shit! But, like the old saying goes, it's not what you know rather who you know that counts! I tried to get the tickets online, that was a waste of time! It seems that of the 2400 or so tickets sold, only a hand full were actually available for purchase online. The rest you ask? Well, although there was a 10 ticket max. per person, mysteriously two large blocks were purchased by...you guessed it! Clinton and Obama! So after cursing and swearing the Montana democratic party for the crappy online sale, I received a call from a friend. The friend said, "Clinton's campaign called, they have tickets available if you're a supporter." Hell yes I'm a supporter, I'll take three tickets! (A supporter of what, they'll never know!) So I have three tickets and I'm headed to Butte, Montana (the richest hill on earth) to sit in the Hillary section at the Mansfield-Metcalfe Dinner. I don't know, maybe in a way I feel a little cheap, sitting with all the Hillary cheerleaders while privately rooting for the other team. I suppose it might feel like sitting through el Classico in the Bernabeu in a white shirt. Eeww! That just gave me the chills! Does this mean I'm a political sell-out? Please no....a double agent maybe, but never a sell-out!

Truth be told, I'm not sure who I'll vote for, if I vote at all. Of the three big name candidates, I'd say Obama. But why? Aren't all three really that same wolf in different sheep's clothing...the old white ram, the young black ram, and the uh, hot little ewe? I suppose the campaign is not unlike voting for the Prom King and Queen. That's what it boils down to, right....a popularity contest! There's really not much substance, nothing radical anyway...like say an end to this out of control consumer-driven, oil-thristy, voilence-loving society we call home. It's just who you like the best and who you can stand to listen to for the next four years. In the end, will any of the three really make the changes needed to right this ship's misguided course? One can only hope....and so it goes, I'll be supporting the blaugrana in a white shirt today! Barack for Hope!?

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

This Valentine season I'd like to remind everyone to spread the love. And here is a perfect example! We all know how much love the world feels for our little Leo! Now there's proof! The feeling was so strong that this Bilbao defender just couldn't restrain himself. Now that's the Valentine spirit!

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Dancing With the Czars

Okay, this time no sports, I promise! No, today I offer much more. What I offer is an All-American solution to the public voting paradox.

I read recently that only 10% of Americans exercise their democratic rights and responsibilities granted them under the U.S. constitution; that is to engage in the political discussion, vote, and seek public office. These are the principles of Aristotle's classic democracy and something most American's avoid like the plague. Why would we Americans engage in a political discussion when we could be talking about Britney's latest crisis. I heard she's being drugged! Furthermore, why on Earth would we ourselves run for public office. Are you kidding, and risk being placed under a microscope for full examination from all. Even if you did want to be the next president of the U.S. of A, unless you have $100 million in your mattress upstairs and your name is Hillary, Chelsea, Jenna, or Jeb, you'd have a better chance of sprouting wings and flying than you would becoming our next Commander and Chief. And how about voting? Who the hell cares about that? We don't even hold popular elections for president, it's all about that electoral college, right? Democracy? What democracy? We live in the land of Czars!

Well, I've single-handedly come up with a plan to bring de'mock'racy back to this Czar Republic we call "home". What is it the American value above all else? The center of every household from Honolulu to Hanover, is it their family? Heck no! It's what the family sits around! It's their brand new 46" HD LCD flatscreen with 7.1 surround. And what do we watch? Did we spend $5000 on that baby so we could tune into PBS or "Democracy NOW". NO WAY! Why would anyone want to see Amy Goodman in HD? No, when that TV flickers to life, we want to be entertained. We want to be numbed and lulled into complacency. And it is here, in front of the blue glow, that America's most democratic process comes to life. Reality TV! We carve it. We need it. We long for it. We even TiVo it. Why? What is it that makes "American Idol" and "Dancing with the Stars" so insatiable? We, the American public, can sit back, and from the comfort of our own home, become one with Aristotle's vision. With our handy, touch tone phones we participate in a true democracy and we do it in droves. We talk about it in the workplace, on the phone, at church, and in school. And moreover, we dream about it! We secretly all long to be a star, and thousands, upon thousands actually try.

So, for the remainder of this, the 2008 election cycle, I propose a radical change. We shall have the U.S. Congress commission Mark Burnett to create the greatest television show the world has ever seen, a cross between "Survivor" and "American Idol". We shall call it "Election Island". First, we take what remains of presidential candidates, stick them on a plane, send them to a middle of nowhere island in the Indian Ocean, with no food or water, of course, and let them duke out their campaigns, immunity challenges and all, under the watchful eye of the American public. Obviously they would be divided into the Blue and Red teams. I can see it all now, a bikini-topped Hillary yelling at Barack, who is trying in vain to start a fire with two sticks. Ahhhh, and there's McCain with his belly hanging over his Bermuda's arguing with the a farmer-tanned Mitt over the "timetable" he never suggested they set for their meals. Meanwhile.....back at home, we sit...and watch...and laugh our asses off! Then, come the first Tuesday in November, there will be no need to go to the polls, all we'll need to do is pick up the phone and DIAL in our vote! Ummm, the smell of de'mock'racy, there's nothing quite like it, is there?

Nascar and Politics

Alright, for some reasons these analogies keep coming to me and for what they may lack in intellectual and philosophical depth, they makeup for in satire and writing enjoyment. Oh, and by the way, it is not my intention to pick on NASCAR, as I do find it rather entertaining. My aim is simple....politics.

NASCAR truly is an All-American sport, don't you think? I mean, there is no other sporting event, that I know of, that would allow you to park your $200,000 RV in the center of the arena, stay all weekend and get drunk on cheap beer with your buddies. And on the economic scale, there is also no other sport the exemplifies the capitalistic model better than NASCAR. NASCAR is a piece of heaven on wheels for corporate America, every square inch of the racing machine beckoning for a sponsor's logo. The driver's themselves have mastered the art of squeezing ALL their sponsors into the 30 second post-race interview. Each of these teams is a mobile billboard for everything from erectile dysfunction to snack food.

So how does this relate to politics, you might ask? Alright, picture if you will; any given Sunday, the 100,000 or so spectators gathered at the track with beer in hand, the millions of viewers tuned in on their television set, and the 45 drivers starting their engines. The fans all have their favorite drivers, some cheering for the individual drivers and some aligning themselves with the make of the vehicle. Allow me liken the drivers to political candidates and the make of vehicle to their party affiliation. The drivers take to the track, get the green flag and they're off! Then what happens? They go in circles for hours on end, bumping, drafting, and pushing on one another, only to finish right back where they started. Sound familiar? Is it just me or do our political candidates seem to go in circles, making promises for a better tomorrow, while slinging mud at their opponents and drafting off their alliances, only to end up at the same place they started. In the whirlwind, the voters never really get a true picture of where the candidates stand. It's a true spectacle to behold, but NASCAR does it with more class. Why, you ask? I'll tell you why, at least when we sit down to watch the Daytona 500 we know who we're cheering for, corporate sponsorships and all! In today's world of special interests and political action committees, candidates finance their campaigns with the help from generous contributions from such groups, but rarely speak of these donations in the pulbic eye. Hillary has received close to $100 million alone and you can't tell me that these contributions wouldn't influence her decisions once in the White House.

Well, I have the solution! I'd like to push for new legislation that would require all political candidate to wear their PAC contributors on their sleeves and post all corporate logos on those fancy tour buses they campaign in. Just like in the world of racing, wouldn't that be great! Hillary wearing a "Morgan Stanley" patch on her Valentino blazer or a "Wal-Mart" baseball cap for Mike Huckabee. How about John McCain in a "MGM Mirage" tour bus. It would be out there for all the world to see and we the voters could really know exactly who and what we're voting for. Sadly, we all know this won't happen anytime soon. In the meantime, why don't you do the next best thing, educate and inform yourself and others. Find out everything you need to know at opensecret.org, I've added it to my recommended links. One last thing, yes, these are actual contributors for the 2008 campaign and NASCAR driver's turn to the left!

The Two Party Political System as it Relates to the World of Soccer

Suppose for a moment that the current presidential race for the White House was a season in soccer and suppose that league had only two teams, let's say Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. The two team Spanish football league would only feature the giant Castillians and the brave Catalans, no other teams, a two dimensional league for the world to enjoy. Do you believe for a second that La Liga could draw the millions of viewers it does every weekend if Barca and Real played each other every weekend? At first, the idea of watching these two pillars of the game take to the pitch more than twice in a season stimulates and arouses the senses. The build-up, the hype, the history and true rivalry makes this match one of the most watched spectacles in the world. But then what? How many games would it take until the inevitable happened? The mystique washing away slowly, after watching the same 22 players week in and week out. The strengths and weaknesses of each player exposed to the world. Would the soccer fans of the world sit back and accept complacency over action. Hell no! We would be face with our next world war, rebellion of the masses. "Give us our football, with all its diversity, from the richest club to the poorest! Give us the underdog! Give us our hopes and dreams!"
While I am a Barca fan and do enjoy watching the men in white fail, the thought of these two power houses squared off every weekend diminishes the hope, dynamics and quality that is La Liga. The American bipartisan system and subsequent race to the White House is worse than the afore mentioned scenario, I would watch soccer, any soccer, before I would waste my time listening to passionless, static, and calculating politicians talk about absolutely nothing for hours. Why must we only have two parties to choose from and why must they be the riches clubs with the biggest sponsors? I choose Mallorca, the underdogs, to take on the Republican party in their home stadium. Scrappy little dogs, Mallorca, don't you think? I think it's high time we bring back some of the relegated parties from the days of yore and give all the parties an even playing field. We must speak up if we are to be heard over the droning of the politicians and pundits of this boring two party system. "Give us back our hope! Give us back our diversity! Give us back our dreams! Give us back the UNDERDOGS!"

HELLO WORLD!

I am starting a blog about things that interest me. These are just a few: soccer, politics, environment, family, education and geology.