Review of A Beacon St. Restaurant

I was looking for a new place to try on Saturday night in Brookline and came across this zealous review from Benito that I found too hilarious to not pass on:

"[1 Star of Five] The Roadhouse hurts my Eyes -

This buildings new facade was clearly designed so the venue could host the world championship of dungeons and dragons. The architect (and I use that term loosely) should have the decency to kill himself. As a humanist, i am disgusted with what has come of an otherwise beautiful tree lined street. This sort of artistic display would perhaps embelish the natural grace of route 1 in saugus, however it does not belong in the town of Brookline."

Judge for yourselves folks:

There's always room at Christmas for creepy Elves

or is this a jockey?

This statue is in the backyard of a waterfront mansion on the north shore.

State of the Onion

I have used the analogy of myself as an onion on many occasions to those willing to listen. As you peel off layers and reach another layer, you eventually run out of layers and are left with nothing. An onion…so State of the Onion. Ok, regardless, it’s December again, and it’s time to shout out my inaugural yearly address, to give my final impressions on 2008 and prepare for 2009.

A lot has changed since last December. It was the month that my most significant relationship ended, and I was a man lost for a few months thereafter. My exercise kicked into high gear during last winter, and I started feeling some effects of my efforts by March. And these effects brought with them two intangible benefits; the ladies and self-confidence.

It is fair to say that I have never been a beacon of self-confidence. In college, I actually passed off an invite to dance with a looker, because I had no desire to play tricks on my dire self-image. I could not take any further losses in that department. I was ready for neither challenges nor opportunities that would invoke any degree of self-measure. It was perhaps unfortunate to prevent myself enjoying any bliss, but it was a necessary protection from the looming pit of depression.

For stretches during my young adult age, I enjoyed confidence, women and success. The summer after Gettysburg was a summer to remember. Blasting off with a ridiculous trip to Spain, working at the lake brought me into a circle of co-worker friends that made my summer blessed with all manner of get-togethers, liaisons and pure social bliss.

This past year was similar to that summer. Although I did not take one significant trip, I did see myself in many different places; from the Boston and New York metro areas, to DC, Raleigh, Clemson and Memphis, and finally back to Florida. It wasn’t necessarily the trips that brought me joy this year, but the people that I had the pleasure of spending time with. I had another short but significant relationship, met a score of different people, played a little bit of a trampie, and by year’s end, have no more direction in my personal life than I did when I entered it.

It all started in March, teaching my company’s introductory class where I had a brief but inspiring relationship with the only female attendee. “What are you doing talking to that waitress? You are so much better looking than that!” I don’t think any words could have had better effect for my confidence.

It is a shame that the confidence index sometimes can be gauged best by what is current in my single man’s love-life, but it’s not the only thing that drive’s one’s self-esteem. I was stellar at work, was working out to no end and dropped some chub weight. I was even told I looked skinny! Not true! I read several more books than I did the previous year and got interested in a new discipline: Economics. Fitting, as the launch date is approaching. I got a raise at my job, I didn’t save any else’s life but I am pretty sure that is kind of like a once-in-a-lifetime kind of event so that category cannot be improved!

I had my 10-year reunion a few weeks ago. Besides the old faces that I bumped into, it was a real pleasure jumping out of the shell that I had pulled over myself when many of them last saw me when we were 18. I had the nerve to approach chicks I dared not before, not because of any fear of rejection, but because their shyness and disconnection with my circle would have played out as rather more awkward than intriguing.

I told my friend Nicco that I planned on shading out more in the coming months, retreating from this jetsetter lifestyle, rescinding on social obligations and taking some face-time time off. I am not sure what the end result may bring, but I need to refocus at this critical time on career and future stability. I would not want to look back at the last year and accuse myself of wasting time and money on things, notwithstanding people, and regret it fiercely. Therefore, I need to teach myself restraint; restraint from purchasing needless things, overindulging on every vice that I currently have year-ending subscriptions to, and generally cleaning it up. Smoking is top on the list.

I have come full circle from four years ago. Last March, my St Patrick’s Day bender was interrupted by inflammatory accusations of scumbaggery back in Florida to a friend of the family. I had, in fact been guilty, as I openly admitted, but I thought the accusations rang a bit false to the degree of my treachery. On an October 2005 night in Gainesville, I was supposed to rendezvous with said family friend after an entomology party. Instead I ended up in the arms [and bed – don’t worry about that, I passed out fully-clothed] of a fabulous woman that I spent the following six months passionately with and dated for more than 2 years. That being said, I think my decision to leave with her was warranted and had more bearing on my apology for negging our appointment than anything else.

Well, she came to the bar that night that all my friends and I were tearing down. After I matched my story with her case against me, I could tell she had vindicated my crimes, and although her fiery disposition did not allow her to let go, the drive back to her hotel the next morning was not nearly as hellbent as the night before. We left it amicably.
It’s funny that facebook brought us back into communication. Last weekend, I flew down to Daytona to visit her (among others), and for lack of better words to describe…had a great time.

Of course the calendar does indicate that several weeks still remain this year, and I can be sure to score with some of the same zeal that I have had since the beginning of the year. This coming weekend to DC should be heart-stopping (let’s hope not considering my recent heart struggles), and the following weekend before Christmas should be a good return to normalcy in Boston. Don’t worry, I plan to get raucous. I can only wonder what next year will bring.

The Void Space

The hardest part to deal with in any break-up is the void that’s left when each party goes their own way. There’s a tremendous amount of investment for any successful* relationship. This investment in time [and money] always depreciates and nosedives when the end nears. You can take neither back. The reverse is true for the investment in emotional energy. This investment into the relationship can appreciate in value over time and can store rewards, similarly to a credit card paid on-time each month. When the relationship runs its course, emotional investment declines until it reaches bottom. Because emotional energy is not bound by any laws of physics or mathematics and belongs solely in the realm of the conscientious, emotional lag can pull this type of investment below bottom (beneath the investment energy at the beginning of the relationship) into an allotment of negative emotional energy that is commonly called heartbreak. Heartbreak can last an undetermined amount of time. There is an unproven mathematical equation describing the time invested into a relationship and a reflecting proportionate amount of reciprocal time to relationship mourning, but considering that I already put forth that emotional energy has no basis in mathematics, there is no correct way to determine period length of heartbreak.

In some cases, it is not the heartbreak that plagues the loss of relationship. Heartbreak wanes quickly, [perhaps] because the victim can grip at his/her bitterness as a result of a shot to the ego, rather than genuine heartbreak and the emotional tie is undone. But the void space still remains. That person forged a collective identity in that relationship. They would be the first to call, to hang with, always in the thoughts and plans. When you needed advice, concern, or sympathy, they would be there. Maybe this is our biggest need as a social species. Physical intimacy is not usually a heavily time-laden constraint and that void can therefore be replaced without difficulty. It usually takes only a smile, a clean shirt, pants that don’t smell [maybe a few fingertips of hair forming cream], and an ounce of trust. But the other voids cannot be replaced with such ease. It’s funny, the things that make humans most jealous in relationships are sometimes the easiest to replace. How hard is it to get advice from someone who really cares? Who is going to listen to your plight with the same interest as the one you are romantically inclined to? Friends are the pillow to your fall, but there is no platonic friend that balances out the loss. Usually new activities and meeting new people facilitate a quick turnaround, but it only takes a moment of retrospection before these voids can activate old emotional scars.

*Relationships that can stand for a time on their own merit. Does not necessarily mean leading to marriage or permanence.

The Big Apple - November 2008

I came to the odd realization last week visiting New York City that I had yet to visit either Ground Zero or Times Square in all my time visiting in the last 7 years. I saw both this past week and neither could be farther apart in essence. Times square is the happy bustle of life while Groundzero reflects an epoch of sadness and yet they are separated by only a few score of blocks. It's easy to put that monumental day of grief behind the flashing neon signs and LCD screens and forget, but the scar in that infamous ground in Manhattan's downtown allows not a wink of that same bliss.

Blog Riotus Top Music This Week

Cath... - Death Cab for Cutie
Paper Planes - M.I.A.
Piano Concerto No. 2, Rhapsody On A Theme Of Paganini - Rachmaninoff
Being Here - The Stills
Ixtapa - Rodrigo y Gabriela
The Drunken Piper - Cookie Rankin (with Natalie MacMaster)
No Rest for the Weary - Blue Scholars
Forever - John Michael Montgomery
Mama Tried - Merle Haggard and the Strangers

My Presidential Vote for Barack Obama by S.M. Taylor

November 4, 2008

Dear all,

I deemed it necessary to share with you all a short entry I drafted yesterday after returning from the voting booth. It was a monumental day for me and it meant a lot to me as an American and as a human being. I am sure some of my statements will find themselves to be the butt of many jokes but I thought it was more important for all of you to see my personal feelings towards yesterday and beyond. For one’s ability to tell the truth can only be as strong as his ability to communicate his beliefs and ideals to a willing and listening audience.

I completely understand if people do not agree with my positions and I firmly believe that any such disagreement is the very essence of what makes our country so special.

My end goal in life is to compromise as much as possible and with each day that I grow older, this desire grows even stronger.

My Presidential Vote for Barack Obama

During this 2008 election campaign something very strange happened to me. I became encouraged and incredibly inspired by a larger than life politician. This politician’s name was Mr. Barack Obama. Not only is he is the first candidate that I have truly connected with, but he is also the first political figure that I consider to be a role model. I guess that Mr. Obama is my Bobby Kennedy. It is pretty easy to make parallels between Mr. Obama and Bobby’s late brother, the President, John F. Kennedy, but the most important of these parallels, is with the poignant, and at this current time, very relevant assertion made by the late great President: “that if a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” Unfortunately for the last eight years, this unconditional truth was lost on us all. To me, Mr. Obama offers us a second chance, the true and real possibility, that change can and will occur, and in doing so, he reintroduces the fabulous notion that hope is not an evil and imaginary word, but is instead a tangible concept that we all must embrace as guidance as we embark on our journey to help improve and better this country for all the future generations to follow. For whatever negative attributes and historical mistakes our country may cling to, and/or be responsible for, our country is still capable of so much good, especially in light of the extremism and craziness that encompasses the rest of the world. Whether or not it is politically correct to say so, America is a place where hopes and dreams can still be realized, and where we as citizens can freely disagree with one another in our personal attempts to define our individual belief systems. It has become far too popular (and far too dangerous) to look at America through the lens of a hateful Palin/McCain rally, where racial epithets and fear mongering were not only allowed to fester, but they were allowed to bloom. However, in borrowing an expression from Ms. Palin herself, that is not the “real America”. That is not my America and that should not be your America. I refuse to let anybody claim differently. Mr. Obama must help all of us Americans reclaim and embrace the symbolic meaning of our flag so it may once again represent peace, freedom, equality, independendence and democratic values for all. No longer will the flag represent hateful catch phrases, hawkish military views and culture war talking points. We should all salute the flag on our own terms. We should not be pressured into saluting some ideal or some slogan that is deemed by some talking head to be more American than another. Saluting the flag is an act that should feel sacred, it should make us feel special and most importantly it should make us reflect on our past mistakes, for it is within our storied flag where some of us might be able to find meaningful remnants of hope and powerful morsels of ideas which represent the very same ideals and beliefs that helped mold this great nation.

I have always been a proponent of taking the flag back (or at least sharing it) with the so-called super-patriots who are desperately fighting their divisive culture wars on their own terms and in their crowds. The flag should be for all of us Americans to share. It should represent what is good in our country. Regardless of what Ms. Palin would like us to believe, we are all real Americans. There is no real America, nor is there a place that is any less American. We are all equal Americas. And as a result, we should refuse to allow the strong conservative/Christian right to claim both an undivided ownership and a divine right to define the flag’s meaning. This unfortunate conflict concerning the flag and the right to have ownership of pro-America and USA chants underscores the sad and despicable effect of Rovean’s culture war politics which were popularized over the last eight years. This us versus them approach may be the exact reason why so many moderate Republicans endorsed Mr. Obama. This type of fleeing from the home base has never happened before with the Republican Party. Never. If such behavior does not represent a rebuke of the last eight years, then I do not know what does.

In closing, there is still so much work left to be done in this world and in this country, but there is no place in this world where I would rather take on these challenges than in the great US of A (USA). And there is not a person in this world, or more importantly, in this country, that I would rather have leading us from this day forward, than Mr. Barack Obama. And those are the reasons, why I, as a white man from Massachusetts, earlier this morning, proudly cast my vote for Mr. Barack Obama.

On this very momentous day, I cannot help but remember and take some solace in what the late President Kennedy so eloquently declared in his famous peace address at American University: “Our problems are manmade; therefore, they can be solved by man. And man can be as big as he wants. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings. Man's reason and spirit have often solved the seemingly unsolvable, and we believe they can do it again.”

Good night and good luck,
S.M.T.

America enters new light. Obama elected president

What Have You Done With Uncle Sam?

done by a friend

Halloween Chunks

Let's hope this is not the results of the party tonight!

Best stolen quote from a friend

...and then I realized it; I had been dating Cancers all summer long.

Best Card of the Month

rude awakening

Blog Riotus: Presidential Debate 2008 / Economy

Probably the most telling fact I witnessed from the last debate was both candidate's inability to discuss specifics concerning the financial collapse. Most Americans are looking for leadership to explain what has happened and what we can do to buoy the capsized economy. Instead we get verbal clumsiness, more uncertainty and ultimately, confusion. Neither candidate has created a job, run a budget, or more importantly, has any idea as to what market forces are at work besides using keywords such as "mortgages" or "credit." I don't pretend to know what can slow the avalanche and I venture to say that neither do many of those people educated in finance and business. There is such a complexity at play, that in order to find the string's end, we'll have to unroll the ball of string.

Middle America

When the media, pundits and the candidates mention Middle-America with the freqency that they do, you would think this concept would actually have a concept. Instead, I am becoming convinced that Middle-America is a not-so-clever synonym for uneducated America, or Americans proud of the ignorance and unaware of the idea that there is an outside world that does not revolve around their local 7-11 or church. These people are comfortable electing candidates that would seem better drinking buddies than representing diplomats. It is shameful when our presidential election becomes a beauty pageant or a fraternity popularity contest. Although it would be equally shameful on my part to patronize the votes of other Americans, I do weigh the enormity of outcomes that will have global and international implications pending the presidential election outcome and suggesting that an election with such an overwhelming bearing on the lives of billions of people, should not be decided by trivial issues is far from patronizing. We are a strong chain, as such, we can be as weak as our weakest links... and we have quite a few feeble links. When are they going to get a chance to go drinking with the president anyway?

In this election, Middle is often replaced with a handful of neutral words that rub off some of their egalitarian ambiguity. Think about this. You can use: ordinary, average, everyday, common, hard-working (my personal favorite), regular et al. I am not even sure if the concept is geographic, economic, social, racial or cultural, but the term probably has the relevance of a term such as the middle class. Imagine how someone can speak for or to the middle class? So how can a candidate speak for a demographic as diverse and emcompassing as Middle-America? These words don't give a clear meaning to what kind of America or Americans they are describing, yet being Americans, these words are inclusive to an idea of what an American should be. Obviously, our idea of a hard-working, regular-guy, dedicated, and faithful American is different from everyone else's idea, however it is the idea, the romantic notion of being inclusive to this group that makes it acceptable to use this concept and then feel good about belonging to it. After all, we want to be proud to be American so the idea of being American must also be attractive. Constantly the pundits weave this concept into their dialogue to force feed the audience with notions of this modern pastoral demogoguery, which as is real a notion as a democratic Middle-Earth. America, God bless it. There is a reason why slogans and talking points succeed in America: It has been hijacked by voting gubers.

Tortilla Espanola

Political Jargon

As a complimentary offering to some of my past presidential race thoughts, here are some of words I have heard this week that keep being thrusted into commentary, speeches and analysis.

porc barrel spending
old-boy politics
outside the belt[way]
bridge to nowhere
corruption
change (by both candidates now)
trooper-gate
Roveian campaigning
Greedy Wall St.
Corporate fundamentalists
earmarks

With all this fun fluff, still interesting... and necessarily disappointing, that real issues have not been touched on, such as positions and views on the War in Iraq/Afghanistan, Geopolitics with Russia/Iran and the broadening energy gap, national debt, trade deficit, the domestic economy and climate crisis. Most Americans would rather devote their mental resources to [American] idols than cast their vote in the stakes for the American future. Gubers

Not in the News

"Talk about the candidates...and the issues."

What issues have even been spoken about? I haven't heard about the War in serious discussion over the last month in the news besides suicide attacks in Iraqi markets and more dead GIs. I keep hearing about change from both parties yet nothing about how America is going balance budgets on a soaring national deficit.

After I scoffed at hearing of how Palin's youth and beauty would energize a "male vote", I stood corrected at the Pat's game listening to a score of young men as devoted defenders of her beauty. How pathetic our election has turned into a beauty pageant. If Sarah Palin breathes life into McCain's campaign with strong ideas, good, however, if she has fronted a pretty face for a decrepid man's brain, then this is not helping the US pick the right president.

I always have concern over families having many children. In a world where resources are being tangibly met with growing scarcity, I cannot imagine the gall (or wealth) that families declare that they are more righteous to have many children. I cannot chastise those with large families, and I will certainly won't defend my suggestion seriously, but I do find it revealing that the candidates craving the creed for "family values" also have the largest families.

It's disheartening to hear working-class voters describe particular candidates as being similar to their "upbringing." Reminiscent of Bush's "barbecue pal" appeal, I wish Americans would stop replacing their vote for political candidates with a popularity contest for who they could get along with best. They are all cold-cold men (and women) and should never be placed into some buddy-buddy contest. Just f'n silly.

Screaming Orphans at the Newport Irish Festival

I have to admit that it was the billing for the Screaming Orphans that made me commit to driving to Newport for the Irish Festival and not the advertising of “authentic” Irish food. Black 47 was also performing, and the weather dictated that it was not going to be a pleasant beach day and be it my company had never seen Newport, we crossed over Jamestown to Newport, found parking, strolled the grounds at the International Tennis Hall of Fame before settling in at Crowley’s or La Forge, or both, for mid afternoon refreshments.

While it seemed the crowds at the festival were hampered to some degree by the sticky drizzle, we entered and made our way to centre stage to hear the Screaming Orphans begin their set. They played favorite Irish drinking songs with some of their own touches and their original songs. As the set continued, the crowd... and the band, settled in. Last time I discovered this group, I thought the traditional Irish music they played was first-rate; this time, besides the few favorites they played (Finnegan’s Wake, Whiskey in a Jar), the high point must have been Liar, an original tune they either did not play back at Woodhaven House or did not remember them playing! The song was flavored with a hint of cranberry, but it was excellent. Enough so, I bought it online.

Black 47 followed suit, but by that point I was getting a little sluggish and hungry, and my party was tired of standing in the elements, so we skipped out after a few tunes. Even so, I wasn’t as impressed with B47 as I was with ScOr. And it wasn’t because they happened to be attractive and B47 decidedly not. No seriously, it wasn’t. Their lively attitude and energy seemed to challenge the crowd to get excited regardless of the crowd being mostly ambivalent to their sound at first. By the end of their set however, most of the spectators found their respective grooves and were shaking the cobwebs off of their toe-beats and patented head nod moves. There were even a few enthusiasts jigging out to the Irish tunes and hopping around for the pop selections. ScOr is a fun band meant to be experienced with a beer and met with a lively attitude. Again, a good experience!

September 1: Labor Day

Four day weekend in Narragansett, RI: Beach, Picnics, Coast Guard and Casey’s, Irish Festival in Newport, Fish Market, Beach fireworks, Sneaking down late, Living, Laughing and Loving. And here on Monday sitting in front of my computer with all the events of the past weekend over, sadness kicks in peppered with the smiles of memory.

Just so I remember how funny my dad can be, I’ve included a few quotes from others as well, with all due courtesies…

[Oblong Fag falls off the side of the copper fire pit, scorching the grass with flames. Dad reaches to pick it off the grass and throw it back on the fire pit.]
Mom: “You can’t pick that up C, you’re going to burn your hands!”
Dad [As he is grabbing the fiery stick at the end not burning]: “Yes I can…because I am Superman!”
---
“I am going to call one chapter in my book, ‘Adventures of Antboy’”
---
“Antboy. I think that could be my new name.”
“Ok. But I don’t want to be antgirl.”
---
“Sandcheek.”
---


I guess the one thing you can always take from long weekends, is that these are always the times to spend with a smile on the face, with experiences that remind you that you’re living. Those other weekends can be spent doing whatever work needs to be done around the house. But give us the long ones to enjoy. And enjoy we will.

The Big Apple

Proxy War

In the absence of the Cold War, world players still need to stand tall. The military posturing of both Russia and the United States is two bullies on either side of a playground squaring off, neither having the audacity to take that direct step towards the other. It’s a chess match using only pons, because moving a bishop or knight is geopolitically embarrassing. Russia invades Georgia. United States condemns. Poland signs missile defense agreement with United States. Russia condemns. Ukraine says it will repeal lease of port space for Russia navy in Sevastopol. Russia ignores.

In the end, governments can condemn, but it’s clear that the United States has lost any post-Cold War influence that it had on Russian diplomacy. Just as China announced its coming of age party with the Olympic opening ceremonies, Russia has also demanded world attention, albeit in a different capacity. Instead of parading athletes and peaceful pageantry, it has paraded tanks...uninvited, across Georgian sovereignty. Since Georgia is not NATO, the automatic military support from allies is not there and America has its hands tied, not only diplomatically, but also militarily.

With so much men and material invested in Afghanistan and Iraq to the southeast, the United States is in no position, literally, to contend with Russia’s exploitation even if we did in principle intend to assist in defending Georgia. However, logistics are not the cause of our handcuffed predicament in our macho posturing match with Russia. Moreover, even though our economy is suffering at the moment, it is also not a reasonable excuse either. Go so far as to spew nationalist mantra and it hits us back smack in our face. With troops spread over the globe, it would take a fool to criticize another world player for solidifying its borders. We can criticize and condemn Russia’s actions, but in that light, how does our invasion of Iraq, a country thousands of miles away from us, contrast?

Simple Pleasures

Whether it's the prickly sensation of emerging hair-stubble or the wind through your hair driving with the windows down on the highway, life abounds with the simplest diversions that make us feel alive. There are so many, I hardly can pick one to start with. But here I try:

A sobering shower to assuage the brain-freeze of a morning hangover

Strumming my 1.5 inch, one-hair boy-beard in middle school (until it was unceremoniously yanked from my chin and left me like Samson)

Speed, in all forms

The endless possibility of maps…where you’ve been and where you plan to go

Frozen lemon peels in a cup of Dell’s

Bodysurfing waves at the beach

Kinetics of human motion: athletics, in all forms

Food and sex, let’s be honest, two of the greatest pleasures known

A starched shirt, a sharp collar and a crisp tuck

The second drink of a night (when your taste receptors start their enjoyment)

A first kiss

Sitting atop the river bank in the cool shade on a hot day watching debris on the water float by on its way

The ear-splitting metal creaking of the Green Line T as each train rounds the bend in and out of Scollay Square station.

Home-grown vegetables

Accomplishment, in all forms

Helping someone else enjoy life i.e. putting smiles on faces

Fathers and sons at the ballpark

Communicating with others in a language different than your native tongue

Crossdressing…just kidding

Exploring tidal pools like a kid again

Arranging bills in the wallet

Stacking neat piles of receipts (don’t ask)

The slight ache of sore muscles

Slowing down to take that deep, paused breath

A walk in the woods

A gentle breeze

Friday afternoons

Considering the everyday plight of the mushroom

And those who know me well, knew I would not hesitate to add watching a gorgeous sunset fall from the sky

Arthur Ashe Stadium, Flushing Meadows, NY

This month in Jaquins travels

Fairfax, VA
Clarendon, VA
Arlington, VA
Washington, DC
North Brunswick, NJ
Cranbury, NJ
Manhattan, NY
Hancock, NY
Gates, NY
East Rochester, NY
Walton, NY
Binghamton, NY
Flushing, NY
Brooklyn, NY
Long Island City, NY
Garden City, NY
Newburgh, NY
Waterbury, CT
Groton, CT
Mystic, CT
Westerly, RI
Narragansett, RI
Wakefield, RI
Warwick, RI
Providence, RI
Fall River, MA
Worcester, MA
Lowell, MA
Hyannis, MA
Boston, MA
Exeter, NH

Presidential Thoughts

"The first time America will vote a senile person into the presidency."
"Elect a man with less intelligence than the current president."

If there is anything more that is going to be called tasteless and insulting by Obama or his camp, I will be convinced that he is a cook, doesn't have an inch of humor in his body, co-founded the PC movement, was one of those kids that always stopped the game and pleaded to the teacher "no fair!", complains a whole hell of alot, is pushing the limits of my patience and leading down a dangerous path to a situation where his reactions to minor embarrassment/accusations will lose the election for the democrats.

Can we all agree that this election is for the Democrats to lose? After all, for a two-term president to have a 28% approval rating is obscene, but for his party to stave off the challenging party in light of this lack of confidence would be historic. And yet with a black man running for office, if his camp or Obama himself allows the Jacksons and the Sharptons to sway his duty to represent the American people over to representing Black Americans first, then moderates will swim back over to old faithful, John McCain. All McCain needs is for his camp [not himself] to make a mildly offensive racial comment directed at Obama and just sit and watch the Black power zealots take up arms and mobilize against McCain. This militarization of the 12% minority population will certainly put a scare into a majority of Americans, who may be convinced that Obama will not represent them, but of his ilk by the color of skin. This is all it will take, and reverse reactive racism (coined by Blogriotus as "Triple R effect") will swing this election into the hands of a inept, mentally incompetent blunderer.

We will receive another four years of horrid decisions and snafu management that will set us back another twenty years when it comes to the critical environmental/energy policies that will be drawn up in the next term. And folks, I am afraid we don't have twenty more years to correct the fateful path we have already chosen. The McCain Doctrine, I can see it now. Massive drilling projects, offshore, Arctic and in ten years we will all wonder why a comprehensive plan was not enacted, but sadly, McCain will be dead and so will our national prestige and economic future.

I repeat...I am not a Obama supporter. "He has already been bought and sold"

Not a chance I would even consider the "Green Party" nonsense after hearing their twisted exposee on a NY radio station this week. After spouting ultra liberal folly about conditions in Puerto Rico...a territory that has been offered statehood but has been popularly voted down...I could not help but feel forgotten as a mainstream moderate looking for solutions to real problems. The Green Party is more interested in apologetic reforms and lesbian naming rights (in lieu of GLAD). Wasn't the point of green to represent environmental and consumer policy? When did the Green movement take flight into Puerto Rico and concern itself with removing US military bases? As far as I am concerned Puerto Rico is US soil where Puerto Ricans enjoy the same rights as US citizens. Why do we care if they don't want a military base there? I could care less. It's not whether we have a base there or not that will limit/end our endeavors into the southern hemisphere...that's simply a minor detail. For a national party to be concerned over these marginal and comparatively trivial issues makes me wonder about what goals the Greens are trying to achieve. God bless 'em, because voters won't.

I don't want our problems placated by double dealing and lying Republicans, nor by the spineless Democrats who are afraid of their own shadows. After eight years of being beat-up by the Republican machine, now at the hour of their victory, they shy away from reform because deep inside, they are afraid that their initiatives are bullshit. Atleast the GOP puts their convoluted programs into action, while DEMs pussyfoot around theirs until they even agree their legislation would solve nothing. We need change in policy, not a man spouting a message of change. Where's Ron Paul when you need a real candidate?

Mycology Adventures

Don't worry, I didn't actually taste any. Just an exercise in fungal exploration in my yard.

A timeless defence of youth

William Pitt (1708-1778) to Parliament, 1741

Sir,
The atrocious crime of being a young man, which the honorable gentleman has, with such spirit and decency, charged upon me, I shall neither attempt to palliate nor deny; but content myself with wishing that I may be one of those whose follies may cease with their youth, and not of that number who are ignorant in spite of experience. Whether youth can be imputed to any man as a reproach, I will not, sir, assume the province of determining; but surely age may become justly contemptible, if the opportunities which it brings have passed away without improvement and vice appears to prevail when the passions have subsided.
The wretch, who, after having seen the consequences of a thousand errors, continues still to blunder, and whose age has only added obstinacy to stupidity, is surely the object of either abhorrence or contempt, and deserves not that his gray hairs should secure him from insult.
Much more, sir, is he to be abhorred, who, as he has advanced in age has receded from virtue and become more wicked with less temptation—who prostitutes himself for money which he can not enjoy, and spends the remains of his life in the ruin of his country.
But youth, sir, is not my only crime. I have been accused of acting a theatrical part. A theatrical part may either imply some peculiarities of gesture, or a dissimulation of my real sentiments, and an adoption of the opinions and language of another man. In the first sense, sir, the charge is too trifling to be confuted and deserves only to be mentioned to be despised. I am at liberty like every other man to use my own language; and tho I may, perhaps, have some ambition to please this gentleman, I shall not lay myself under any restraint, nor very solicitously copy his diction or his mien, however matured by age or modeled by experience.
If any man shall, by charging me with theatrical behavior, imply that I utter any sentiments but my own, I shall treat him as a calumniator and a villain—nor shall any protection shelter him from the treatment he deserves. I shall on such an occasion without scruple trample upon all those forms with which wealth and dignity intrench themselves—nor shall anything but age restrain my resentment; age, which always brings one privilege, that of being insolent and supercilious without punishment.
But with regard, sir, to those whom I have offended, I am of opinion that if I had acted a borrowed part I should have avoided their censure. The heat that offended them is the ardor of conviction, and that zeal for the service of my country which neither hope nor fear shall influence me to suppress. I will not sit unconcerned while my liberty is invaded, nor look in silence upon public robbery. I will exert my endeavors at whatever hazard to repel the aggressor and drag the thief to justice, whoever may protect them in their villainy, and whoever may partake of their plunder. And if the honorable gentleman—
[At this point Pitt, called to order by Winnington, sat down. In the course of his protest, Winnington said:—“I do not, sir, undertake to decide the controversy between the two gentlemen, but I must be allowed to observe that no diversity of opinion can justify the violation of decency, and the use of rude and virulent expressions; expressions dictated only by resentment and uttered without regard to——” Whereupon Pitt jumped to his feet and called Winnington to order, saying:]
Sir: If this be to preserve order there is no danger of indecency from the most licentious tongue; for what calumny can be more atrocious, or what reproach more severe, than that of speaking with regard to anything but truth. Order may sometimes be broken by passion or inadvertency, but will hardly be reestablished by a monitor like this who can not govern his own passion while he is restraining the impetuosity of others. Happy, sir, would it be for mankind if everyone knew his own province; we should not then see the same man at once a criminal and a judge, nor would this gentleman assume the right of dictating to others what he has not learned himself. That I may return in some degree the favor which he intends me, I will advise him never hereafter to express himself on the subject of order, but whenever he feels inclined to speak on such occasions to remember how he has now succeeded and condemn in silence what his censures will never reform.

(This speech has said to be touched up or written by Samuel Johnson, but take the message for what it is worth)

I 'Heart' U

I was handed this scribbled note on a napkin at a bar last weekend in DC by a short, slight chick who smiled and turned away. I asked, “What the…?”
She turned back to me expectantly and answered, “Someone passed this to me. Give it to someone else.”
Then she half-laughed, half-giggled as if I were now privy to her deceit and somehow would succumb and acknowledge my part to play in the wider chain of recipients and note-passers.
“Why would I do that?” I asked, a little repulsed by what I perceived as an insulting endeavor. Why would I want to pass a note with such a brave and profound statement to another person who I did not know and would not want to bother which such emotional obscenity?
She answered, “ ‘cause it’s fun.”
“No it’s not! How is that fun to smash someone else’s confidence when all they have left after such a provocative phrase is a crumpled napkin?”

Now while our conversation lasted a few moments longer than the transcript above, I did my best to explain in my least heavy-handed way that I was not appreciative, she did insist that I keep the napkin. I tried to return it to her but this was met with stark refusal so I kept the napkin in my pocket only to discover it again as I was being full-body searched at Reagan National.

I remembered the incident and through the haze of a few afternoon Guinness, I pondered whether receiving such a disingenuous confession would lift or lower spirits. While I did not think it was convincingly amusing at the time, I can appreciate that the chick recognized me of many, and being singled out at a bar is never a bad thing regardless of the falseness of the message.

Even so, playing puppeteer with emotions of the romantic nature is certainly akin to playing with its hot and tempestuous figurative cousin, fire. And no one likes to have romantic hopes raised only to have those hopes serve as a humiliating reminder of temporary bar-room loneliness. Yes, my friend had the prospect of matching, while I stood in the cigarette pit outside, puffing smoke.

Life is Good?

Life's been good. When life is good, time is scarce to be angry. When anger is amiss, the blog is neglected. So even with my hiatus in entries, I did catch a moment this past weekend. Returning to Boston from a weekend at the Connecticut and Rhode Island shores on a gorgeous weekend, I was waiting my turn in traffic when a RI-plated Sentra loaded up with young adults began littering from literally every window. Plastic wrappers, tissues and other non-descript trash items were thrust from the car out onto the road. Not only was there no obvious concern or respect for the public space, it was their brazen offerings with no intention of discretion that upset me worst. It is this behavior that makes me sad to be American, living in a place where throwing non-degradables onto the street would ever be considered where a rationale for any ignorance of their effects could hardly be imagined.

Dewey Beach, DE

More cougars on one beach than in all of the Rocky Mountains. Although I cannot answer the question that I had when I left for Delaware last week, I can say that the number of 30s+ women in pursuit of prey was staggering. The beach was expansive, the bars were explosive and my friend and I received a crash course in the nightstyle of Delaware shore.

It doesn’t stay out late. The bars close at 1. That is quite early for party life standards. But they make up for it by starting early. On Saturday, after a quick nap and a few pounded Aluminum lights, we trekked the two or so blocks to what we affectionately labeled Cork and Pork, referring to something of our intended outcome with some of the female clientele.

When we entered, it was apparent the party started a little earlier than our arrival. There were already more than a hundred people inside. And they were dancing…already. A live band had just finished and it couldn’t have been later than 7p. I still needed a few more aluminums and shooters to even consider getting myself getting into the thick of the melee.

Bachelorette parties began to stream in wearing the matching shirts, or the elaborately dressed bachelorette complete with embroidered sash or funny hat. Closing in on these groups, a new friend of mine made short work getting in with the bachelorette and from there, into the mix with the other girls. But the predominant theme, as I watched (and did my own testing of the tepid water) was that most were attached to significants. As we were part of our own party of bachelorites, it was fun to share in their fun, however, if the goal was to score, we were kicking with the left foot.

In all, there were many opportunities, but I was not accustomed to the older woman game, and I will admit I rescinded from any advances they made. One in particular after an invitation to dance was offered later that night, I did what I haven’t done in 13 years…I chickened out with a hot, older babe. What a fool! As punishment, I got my due spending the remainder of the evening conversing with an attractive girl who happened to also be a fundamentalist Christian, walking down the beach, being saved. Maybe as it turns out I really was saved in some respects…there is a reason they call them cougars.

Money in 2008

I just looked at my online credit card statement and realized that if I didn’t go out to bars and to friends houses to partake in what we would call “social” drinking, I would probably be saving $300-400 every month. I would not even consider for an instant that I have a drinking problem or issue, but going out is very expensive. I was at bar in Waltham watching the Final Four games back a bit and saw the Burger on the menu selling for $4.75 with French fries. I took me a minute to think back to the last time I saw a burger that cheap and it was definitely before a time when I was old enough to go out and pay a restaurant tab. In high school, it was possible to get a $5 lunch. And depending on the place, it could include chips and a drink. Now that the $5 expectation has been breached, lunches at regular places approximate the $10 barrier. Perhaps the $5 limit was holding back prices for longer than they should, but all of a sudden, the $10 limit has crept into play. The same goes for the price of a pint at a bar. Because I got my start going to the Avenue where pints of Bud Light were always a dollar, I was spoiled by cheap beers. Pints of light beer for $2-3 were found at other bars, $4.75 was quoted at fancier locations and the stadium beer could be had for $5. That was back in 2001-2002. Now stadium beers are never less than $6 and can go for as high as $9. A beer costs $4.50 in every bar save one…Avenue still serves ‘em up for a buck. They’re probably watered down.

Blog Riotus Top Music This Week

More Than This - Roxy Music
Foundations - Kate Nash
A-Punk - Vampire Weekend
Just Like Honey - The Jesus and Mary Chain
Free and Easy - Dierks Bentley
Le Festin - Camille
Travelin' Soldier - Dixie Chicks
Trois Romances sans paroles, for piano, Op. 17: in A-flat major - Gabriel Faure

Slow Days of Summer

Slow days of Summer, in this old town,
Sun goes across the sky, sometimes a car goes by,
There’s one right now,
looks like a Chevy, your Chevy’s blue,
This Chevy’s white and brown. it isn’t slowing down...
Guess it’s not you,
You said you’d be here, Sunday or so,
Maybe by Saturday, if you could get away
You didn’t know

I love you darling, waiting alone,
Waiting for you to show, wishing you would call me though,
I don’t have a phone,
Visions of love appear, lovely and true,
All of my life I see passing beautifully,
Waiting for you

Waiting for love to come, always alive,
Birds sing with angel tongues, small stones like diamonds,
All down the drive
Around the corner an old dog appears,
sits in the summer sun, waiting for love to come,
wish you were here, wish you were here...

A shrug or a confrontation?

It's a decidedly awkward moment when an amiga introduces you to a friend of hers as your perfect match. That's all well and good if the friend is even mildly good looking. That situation can be handled without the slightest anxiety. When that person is over-weight and considerably unattractive, however, that introduction becomes as uncomfortable as legend. You not only have to diffuse any unfounded expectations from your introductee, but also must act falsely appreciative that your friend would think to match you with someone else. After all that, there is a lingering sense of shock (and awe) that your friend would actually not see how much of a mismatch this would be! And resentment sets in later when the logical questions linger in your head, "Is this a reflection of my friend's opinion about me? And should I be upset about this?" Then, more appropriately, you give up your depressing questions and replace them with the better question of "The fuck do I care?"

Screaming Orphans at Woodhaven House, Queens, NY

Everything happens by chance and chance met our party of three with the Screaming Orphans at a Queens dive last night. Whether it was ten beers I had already downed before I reached the bar, the dimly lit interior or noticeable absence of any real good options, but this band of sisters caught my eye as we walked into the bar. Their cover tunes were decent and besides walking by the band stand as we staked claim to a non-threatening corner of the bar next to two mildly attractive girls dancing with one of those non-attractive ones (description not necessary), I didn't really pay them mind outside their immediate good looks. I like live music probably more than the next guy does, but I don't care for exposed poppers whose coolgirl fashion imitates what's trendy today. That's what they appeared to be, and their song was a cover on something classic rock. I thought to myself, atleast with the unfavorable ratio and talent, I would have some something to keep myslef entertained outside my two buds.
Then the lead singer spoke. Her delicated brogue immediately peaked my interest. She seemed a little tentative, shy and maybe even lacking in self-assurance, which for a pretty blonde was strangely attractive. And then my peaked interest was rewarded with a few consecutive Irish songs that were played expertly, atleast to my novice ear(of Irish descent). While their American renditions were good but not great, their Irish inspired songs were excellent. The three of us left the bar soon after they finished their set, impressed with the band but more importantly, the pleasure of listening to good and live traditional Irish music. I became a fan of the Screaming Orphans.

"Where the cop is the purp, and the purp is the victim!"

(Copland)

It's not so much that these lines have been blurred beyond doubt but there is some validity to this quote as presented specifically in television in Cop-Thug shows that started with the Shield and continued with what I consider the best television series out there...The WIRE. There is no clear good guys and bad guys and the show demonstrates what's really out there...just people. Some are working behind the guise of the law and others on the corners. But in some twisted way, and certainly by direction of the writers, what side one is on, does not designate them automatically as a protagonist or antagonist...they're still just people. Sure there are the cops you like, but there is also criminals you find yourself siding...errr... empathizing with. And these criminals make you almost believe that selling crack, robbery and murder are... normal. And there lies the beauty of the show. That some things that appeared so foreign at first become commonplace later. After all, the Black ghetto is like a foreign country that happens to be in our cities.

I am a pretty friendly guy. Not a whole lot of things bother me but there are a few things that get to my last calm nerve. This is not a rant because at the point that that last nerve is reached, I usually can rein in that last nerve tight enough that I don’t explode off into a cannon made of fury. There are those rare times when the cords that hold my aggression firmly down get tasseled and I loose my cool. I will not go too far into things that may do the latter, but I am all for exposing for my awaiting audience with examples of the former.

For some reason, reckless SUV drivers don’t bother me as much as a reckless, SUV-driving women, wearing sunglasses too big for her face and actively chatting on a cell phone. The SUV itself is a net negative and the aggressive driving makes me uncomfortable, but I only lose it if it’s a woman driver (sad sexist confession, I know, I know) and there is animated cell phone chatter. It probably has something to do with the probability that she is driving her daddy’s big car and has no idea what the implications of a big bad accident would be like for someone else being hit by her car.

Another thing that just gets me, absolutely gets me, is when you meet people who are obviously trying to show themselves up in front of you and they never realize that the constant barrage of self-compliments never seem to add up with you. You try to goad them along with depreciatory questions and there is never any negative. This happened frequently at college during the early years when you meet somebody new and they would think they needed to provide a verbal resume of their spectacular life’s achievements, usually with getting chicks and kicking ass in high school sports. What usually occurs is later he was really talking about his sister’s friends and his year of JV mytho-reality. It is clearly unacceptable in the limited social contact found in the work setting. No, I don't care or believe your astonishing feats of bravery or urban ferocity. Didn't we used to brag about those things in high school?

People who don’t do what they said they would do. This is the worst of the bunch because these people are usually your friends, colleagues or people that you normally would, or want to trust. “I’ll give you a call back,” is usually the most frequent assertion and it’s not so much that you want to get that call back because 4 in 5 surveyed said that it’s just the idea that they had no intention of calling back that makes them annoyed. If these people had some integrity, instead of misleading (lying to) their “friends”, just be more accurate…”I’ll talk to you later.” Simple and no one feels annoyed/mislead.

This next case is a product of our technological advances. When someone texts you and you call them back, they don’t answer. If you just texted me, and you’re inquisitive about something that I can answer, then why not pick up the f'n phone? Obviously there are sometimes when you are indisposed to answer calls, but we’re not talking meetings here folks, these aren’t daytime calls.

Surprisingly, what do not peeve me are calls to my cell phone during work. I recognize that I am quite busy at work, as are most people working for a salary, but I enjoy a chance of a breather, albeit quick, from the monotony of the daily tasks. I see a call as a welcome reprieve as long as I am not directly busy! So that I am not annoyed by.

There's quite more upsetting things that I have left out. Don't worry, I will include these in a blog article at a later date.

Unread Books

Being invited to Goodreads.com and since, spreading the wealth to my book-reading friends forced me more acutely aware of the daunting amount of books that I have not read and conversely, so few I have. Whether it's science or fiction (or science-fiction) there is clearly too many good books to read. This website (and visual realization) arrives on the heels of a newstory last week about how 40% of Americans have not read a book since grade school and an incredible number of us who don't read ONE book in a year. I celebrate those who use their imagination by reading.

Blog Riotus has already mentioned the problem of obesity amongst urban, young Americans and what impediments are blocking the way to healthy food habits. Clearly, in the case of reading, which can be grouped together with healthy eating and exercise not by similarity, but by mental and physical health indicators, there are far fewer roadblocks. There is not the case of being able to procure healthy food options or lack of a playground/sports field/court. There is only being able to get a book. I think it safe to assume libraries exist in every school in America; now let's get our kids some motivation to pick our a book and start reading them.

Best Picture of a Sunset ever Taken Tribute

Driving through northeastern Connecticut on monday night, I experienced a setting sun so large it looked as if I would run into it if I kept driving. Over each hill and around each bend, I experienced some spectacular vistas fit only for a Canon SLR Digital Rebel, but unfortunately I only could shake out my Canon Powershot 230. It's 3.0 Megapixels, while barely adequate for stationary photos, would now have to stand in to capture grandeur. The sun's fading rays cast burnt orange across the pine swept hills and lit up the melting snow like a candle over a white table linen. Absolutely grand. As I braced for each shutter, my car swerved in and out of lanes, my mind solely occupied with finding each successive shot. As I climbed a hill that seemed to end in the outstretched rays of the sun, I held the camera firm. I aimed the camera to take the best sunset photo in the world. As soon as I tried to press the button to snap the picture, the lens went dark and I lost the shot. This article is a tribute to almost taking the best shot of a sunset in the world.

Take a ride on the MBTA

Charlie Cards, Green Line renovation and today's article in the globe still highlights a general dissatisfaction with our city's rapid transit. Complaints ranged from crowded, constant delays, and slow speed, to crabby staff and insensitive passengers, but the jury is out: The Boston "T" needs a little bump to liven its appearance to its passengers. Globe internet posts frequently cited all lines as being difficult for either one of the above reasons or another, with the Green line pulling in behind as the worst rated rapid transit line. This article underscores a bigger point, however, that with one of the oldest transit systems in use in the world, infrastructure renovations and improvements have not kept pace with the modern world and other cities, especially world cities, have left our meagre transit in the dust, literally. It is time to add, extend and augment the Boston subway system. This whole discussion started on the news that the MBTA is adding new Blue Line subway cars.

Read the responses at Boston.com here

Valentine's Day Quotes - A Few I Like

Loving is not just looking at each other, it's looking in the same direction. ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand, and Stars, 1939

I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon. ~Unknown

Trip over love, you can get up. Fall in love and you fall forever. ~Unknown

We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love. ~Unknown


Love is a game that two can play and both win. ~Eva Gabor

Anyone can be passionate, but it takes real lovers to be silly. ~Rose Franken

Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired. ~Robert Frost

Come live in my heart and pay no rent. ~Samuel Lover

Love is what you've been through with somebody. ~James Thurber, quoted in Life magazine, 1960

Love is the greatest refreshment in life. ~Pablo Picasso

The most important things are the hardest to say, because words diminish them. ~Stephen King

If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden. ~Attributed to Claudia Ghandi

How I feel about the election season

After getting into a heated debate/argument about the political future of the USA at a local bar last night with two friends...Nicco being one, I think it will be helpful to sort out my own thoughts on the current Election season.

First, a few words about the importance of this election.
It's really not all that important who wins. All three front runners [McCain, Obama, Clinton] are moderate candidates. All candidates boast significant experience and all have tasted the seat of federal government... they're all established in the U.S. Senate. While the economy beseeches the parties' primary campaigns, the focus should switch to foreign policy when we reach a nominee from both parties. This election is about fixing the poor policies of the former president. It's about finding a rational way to reach back out to foreign nations to get them on the band wagon again. It's about the best candidate to envoke a change in sentiment towards the U.S., from bully to peacemaker. There's no doubt that our reputation has suffered. From no weapons of mass destruction to Abu Ghraib et al., our image in the middle east is suffering and without a plan to improve anytime soon.

I do not consider myself a blanket Democrat although my politics lean to the liberal side. While I don't think the differences between each of these candidates is that wide, there are a few critical points that concern me.

Clinton: Bush, Clinton, Bush, Clinton? Are we becoming an empire. Let's give some fresh hearts and minds to lead America. Hillary Clinton is very intelligent. It is high time for a mindful politician to take the reigns of power after the last 8 years of cowboy diplomacy. I'd rather a shrewd leader than one pig-headed. Healthcare could be improved. It's about time for that. However, we are clinging to military campaigns by a thread now and a moment of weakness could cost us. This is not to say change is not essential in regard to foreign policy; our Iraq strategy has been a snafu since the first year's rapid victory. Clinton will remove the troops from Iraq and allow them to operate with more striking power in the region.

McCain: Initially, I really liked McCain. He seems to make his own decisions in his voting record and understands the political processes well enouth to reach across political lines. These lines have become entrenched to a depth that only a president with experience in reaching across the aisle can get bills passed and end the stalemate. But, the other two candidates from the democratic side also understand the chamber and have experience getting bills passed. McCain is a warrior who suffered for his country in a North Vietnam prison during the war. I have a lot of respect for his dedication to duty. His military service does not guarantee wise-decision making with regards to military diplomacy. He mentioned that he would stay a hundred years in Iraq if that's what it would take to secure victory. That is frightening. He admitted that he doesn't know much about how the economy functions. I don't want aides dictating economic policy behind the scenes for the world's leading economy.

Obama: He, so far, is the dark horse (no pun intended) of the election. He is great with speeches. He spews messages for Hope and Change. He intends to be a uniter in the mold of Kennedy or Reagan. I know because his campaign spin doctors have said both. What a boost America would see in the rest of the world electing a man of color to the presidency. Feelings of inferiority and despair well entrenched within the black community would be erased overnight with the election of a black man to the most powerful position in America. He has the makings of a great man, but there are a lot of questions left unanswered at the moment. I am sure that if he gets the nod from the Democratic committee, we will soon find out... at the hands of the republican political machine that will leave no stone in Obama's backyard untouched.

UMass-Boston changes name to JFK U

Wouldn't that be a good spin. I think the city of Boston and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts should rename the state university at Columbia Point to a more majestic, legendary and attractive name. UMass-Boston, the name itself, implies commuter school, second tier education, bland, and boring. A name like that suggests no frills, no excitement. Is there any rule why a state school cannot be renamed (after all, it wasn't much more than 50 years ago when UMass got its name!) with something a little more jazzy?

The city and state have a tremendous opportunity right now to take an existing institution which can boast an extraodinary campus and location with adequate but improveable facilities and turn it into one of the most prestigious state schools in the country.
Imagine: John Fitzgerald Kennedy University.
Overnight, the institution becomes attractive to students across the country as being an affordable state school with gorgeous location. All the pieces would fit together over the years and while the school could still be a prominent commuter campus for those working in and around Boston, the notoreity would attract a strong resident population.

Blog Riotus Top Music this Week

Street of Dreams - Oysterband
Lluvia de Estrellas - Terri Hendrix
Love is Just a Dream - Johnny Clegg
Pretty Girls Don't Cry - Chris Isaak
Guajiras de Lucia - Paco de Lucia
Gymnopedies [for Piano] - Erik Satie
Unaccompanied Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major - Yo Yo Ma
I've Tried Everything - Eurythmics

Patriots dethroned!

Not much to say about 18-1. Giants roughed up the Patriots and in doing so gave themselves a chance to win. It took a few plays bordering on the miraculous, but missed opportunities got the better of the Patriots and all it took the vaunted Red Zone defense was a stumble and an easy score. Ball Game.

Obviously because of the loss, but nonetheless, it gives us amateurs a chance to replay the game with hindsight as if we were coaches again. The Patriots of perfection had taken that from us with their undefeated streak. Now I can say Belichick is not a football god, he is a mortal man. And he made some mistakes in judgment last night. It's just too bad it happened in the Super Bowl.

My latest experience with overseas customer service

This issue is over the download of an $0.89 song from Amazon.com. If you did not read my last experience with overseas customer service, you can here.

01/30/08 18:11:05

INITIAL COMPLAINT:
I tried to download this song (order# D01-2221883-6829641) on my old labtop and could not download the amazon music player. When I tried to re download it to my newer computer with the amazon player, I read that once you download the file you cannot download again. Since I was never allowed to download the file in the first case, is there a way that I can do it now? I appreciate your help.

AMAZON RESPONSE:
Hello from Amazon.com. Thank you for writing about where your music purchases are stored. If you used the Amazon MP3 Downloader, the default directory to which your files are saved is named "Amazon MP3." Please search your computer for that folder, and you should be able to locate the music you downloaded. For Windows users, this folder is typically within your "My Music" folder. For Mac users, this folder is typically within your "Music" folder. Also, you can launch the Amazon MP3 Downloader on your computer and view or change the default directory by choosing File/Preferences from the application menu. Your download location is specified in the "Output Directory" section. You can also have the Downloader place music directly into Windows Media Player or iTunes by changing the "Media Library" setting. If you downloaded a song from your browser without the Amazon MP3 Downloader, your Web browser settings control the location of the download. If you search for files with the extension ".mp3," you should be able to locate your purchases. Be sure when you are downloading songs without the Downloader that you choose "Save" instead of "Open" when prompted. Please only open your downloaded files after they have been saved. I hope this information helps. If you continue to experience a problem, please contact us again. You can always find information about MP3 Music Downloader on our Help pages at the URL below. You can also contact Amazon customer service via phone or e-mail by using the Contact Us buttons on our Help pages at: http://www.amazon.com/help/amazonmp3 Thank you for shopping for MP3 Music Downloads on Amazon.com.

MY RESPONSE:
Rather than look at my customer history and recognize the accuracy of my assertions about the purchased download in question, you have instead, forced me to navigate through this red e-tape just to get a response that presupposes my technical ineptitude. I realize it was my error and the cost of the download is only $.89; if it is really too difficult to reward my situation with the RE download of the song I previously had bought two days earlier then I guess I will get the "shitty end of the stick" sort to speak. I am not looking for technical expertise, rather, for a clear answer whether my situation would dictate a refund or redownload of the purchased MP3...or neither. Thank you.

AMAZON RESPONSE (surprise):
Thanks for writing to us at Amazon.com. I'm sorry to hear that you encountered a problem. Because of the circumstances, I've restored your access to the song. So you can try the download again from Your Media Library on Amazon.com.


I can't say that I wasn't surprised (and appreciative) to see this reply by my friends over at Amazon!

Is Mocking Fanatical Hitler Antisemetic?

On my friends' daily email chain, a video ridiculing Hitler's fanaticism by subtitling his German speech with English subtitles... that were a mock of Hitler betting on the Dallas Cowboys and losing; was met with such a forceful and stern rebuke by another of my friends that left me with the question: When did mocking Hitler become grounds to claim insensitivity towards the Holocaust and its victims?

While the Holocaust (like other genocides) should not be grounds for humor, especially at the expense of those who suffered, it is appropriate, however, to use the organizers and supporters as the butt of many jokes, lest we forget. And apparently we have, otherwise the pride of nations would never influence their people into the revolting action of genocide. We have not succeeded: In Rwanda, Bosnia and now Sudan, we see genocide again.

I do not find fault with my friend's sensitivity toward the subject that caused massive systematic murder of his ancestors. All of us empathize with the Jews (and other peoples) who suffered greatly at the hands of the Nazi regime. If everyone could just see the shoes piled high in the Holocaust Museum in DC, they may understand their own empathy that much more. Unfortunately, survivors of that time are dying from old age everyday and soon there will be no longer any principal witnesses. [There are already many that deny the event ever took place. Those people should face the jokes and humiliation as Ahmajinedad faced at Columbia]

That being said, the humor many of us found in Hitler's losing bet for the Cowboys does not make us insensitive to Holocaust victims, but instead it demonstrates that the fanaticism that Hitler employed to lead the Third Reich was truly absurd (and thereby humorous). It is a good reminder, albeit at a laugh, of how fucking crazy this guy was and the lesson we have to remember. The subject is serious, the lesson doesn't have to be.

Blog Riotus: How to win the American Presidential Election

1. Promise to cut taxes.
No matter which party you belong to, promising to "put money back into the pockets of hardworking Americans, like yourselves" will work everytime. No need to mention that taxes are an essential cost for citizens to keep a well-balanced and strong infrastructure, one that in our country is eroding. (Fiscally responsible candidates will look weak and "intellectual". People don't want to be reminded of responsibility. What to do? Don't mention how incovenient wars will be financed.)

2. Repeat "America is the greatest country on earth"
Appeal to the tremendous hubris that ordinary Americans cling to with the regard to their favorite bandwagon team, the USA! Anything less than blind faith in the direction of this country, regardless of greedy profit-seeking motives that guide multinational corporations pulling the strings of government policy, should be exposed with such an incredulity, that even ambivalent voters will feel betrayed. (Bonus: Mention the legacy of Reagan and gain even more credibility as a patriot.)

3. Promise to "create" jobs.
Even though you already promised to cut taxes (see #1), people will worry about how their hard work will be compensated. Even though you have eliminated any government programs to assist homeless or mentally challenged, provide day care, afterschool programs or additional educational programs; you can always fall back on tax cuts to promote the wealthy Americans with even more money so they can buy even more unnecessary goods and services that will add additional jobs. Save less, spend more. Don't mention any additional thoughts on the economy, this will be too hard for ordinary working Americans to understand. If confused, they may seek union advice.

4. Change
If you can offer change, this is good. Actually all candidates can offer this, as there are no incumbents running this time around. Well, you may ask, what are we changing. America is already the greatest place on earth, so why do we need change? Well, don't mention these topics simultaneously and you don't need to answer that question. Of course we want change. Lowered taxes, more jobs, greater America. You can always improve great!

5. Appear tough on illegal immigration
Falling short of actually introducing any novel policies on illegal workers, strong stances on making life difficult for illegals creates a bandwagonning effect in which we can back the best team in the world over those dark skinned invaders coming from the south. Maybe even start a "USA" chant directly following your stated intention to build a Green Monster along the southern border.

6. Image is everything
Dress impeccably but don't be afraid to roll up your sleeves. Remember that crying can also sometimes guarantee the "sympathetic" vote, so don't be afraid drop a tear. (Not more than one one eye rub and no absolutely no sobbing). Wear a hard hat when talking with workers, wear a bomber jacket when speaking with military personnel.

Movie Thoughts

Somehow Ryan Reynolds is not convincing as a FBI agent. "Smoking Aces"

"The Departed" would have been better had not Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) died at the hands of Sgt. Dignan (Mark Wahlberg).

A few movies I am looking forward to seeing: "The Golden Door", "Ladron que roba a ladron", "Gone Baby Gone", "American Gangster", "The Darjeeling Limited", "There Will Be Blood", "Dan in Real Life", No Country for Old Men",

Watched "The Big Country" again and was still disappointed that we couldn't see a final rebuke seen with the Major's daughter, Patsy.

Shakespeare's plays have influenced us so completely, that in order to make a successful film about Ancient Rome, the actors must tote English accents to be "authentic".

I have watched "Serenity" now over 20 times. That may be alot but it does not come close to my three leading movies "Where's Marlowe (>60), "O Brother, Where art thou?" (~35) and "Tigerland" (~30). Other viewing estimates: "Gladiator" ~10 times, "Master and Commander" 7-8 times and the "Star War Original Trilogy" ? times.

Another famous movie star dies this week. Another young man with everything. Heath Ledger died in Manhattan tonight. This follows Brad Renfro last week. Rest in Peace dudes.

I can't help but compare two recent films on life's unfairness for Africans, "The Constant Gardener" and "Blood Diamond". Both star white protagonists and both die at the conclusion of the film. While "Blood Diamond" was a big budget Hollywood film and "The Constant Gardener" a smaller indie, both were gritty enough to depict the terrible conditions plaguing the African continent.

Is Scarlett Johanssen a good actress? Or is she just a pleasure to watch? I think it's the latter because she isn't believable in anything I have seen her in outside of "Lost in Translation". Absolutely awful in "Scoop" and unconvincing in "The Black Dahlia".

Oscar nominees feature a few for Best Picture that I definitely want to see, including "Juno" a film that may be a different take on "Knocked Up" and a continuation of "Superbad" for Michael Cera, from "Arrested Development".

I wonder when we will start seeing the action-dramas start showing up in Hollywood from the Iraq-Afghanistan conflicts a la "Black Hawk Down". David Simon is currently filming a series of the taking of Baghdad but I am sure there will be feature films to follow.

Annoying Fans - Providence vs Connecticut 1/17/08

Have you ever been at a sports contest and just by your luck there is a obnoxious fan sitting next to you? Of course. It is the bain of existence for those fans who attend contests to cheer on their team at a rational level, respecting others around them. I am not speaking about the fans that stand up for extended periods of time, or those who embarrass themselves by heckling the opposing team with rarely funny spats. No, I am speaking of the fan that says the most inane things about the game and his team that a) speaks volumes about his (lack of) knowledge as a fan, b) speaks at such a volume so that everyone for a complete section of the stands has to listen to him, and who is c) cheering for the team you're cheering for, stealing the enjoyment right from your own cheering because you don't want to be associated within a mile of his annoying rants.


I recognized these thoughts at the Connecticut - Providence men's basketball game on thursday night in Hartford. Section 217 was filled with a contingent of "Friar Fanatics" (student fans of the Friars) cheering and chanting for the surging Providence team. However, sprinkled into the mix were a few older men, who fit into the former category. Led by a nim-witted fool, the foolish comments I heard during the game were irritating and distracting. Every three point shot that was fired by PC - a team that lives and dies by the three - was met with a exasperating "No!...YES!" - when a PC player netted the shot. If I wasn't alone, and if he weren't with three other men, I was going to approach him and ask him if that ceremony was a good luck charm, "the ol' No-Yes move?"

I was relieved to see the Friars finally cap off an away victory in convincing fashion over a potential tournament team, even at the expense of listening to a leader in gametime annoyances sitting a few rows from me. The Friars won the game 77-65 behind a career high from sophomore guard Dwain Williams' 23 points. Old Reliable, Geoff McDermott slipped in a quiet double-double, scoring 12 points, pulling 11 boards and dishing 6 assists. The guy is a rock. Without Big Mac, PC has no offense. Go Friars.

Blaming the wrong hand: Illegals in this country

After a lengthy conversation with my [all adults] class today about how to resolve the immigration "problem", it seems pretty clear to me that there are really two major camps. Nativists (Entitle-ists) really hate/fear the encroachment of brown people who look and speak differently than them. On the other hand, Sympathists recognize the hard work of the common immigrant as an individual, not the strain on infrastructure that the total number encompasses. If it were really a national debate, there is undeniably a clear solution to the issue. Make harsh punishments on those businesses that employ illegal aliens and we could predict an immediate reduction of immigrants to this country and even one step further, an exodus away from the United States.

So you may ask why this hasn't been done already? Well, first off, politically, it is easier to castigate those without any voice. The illegal immigrant has absolutely no power in this country and he/she is a very easy target. Secondly, those in charge recognize that immigrants are willing to live out on a shoestring and live comparably rich than how they would live in their own country. They trade the consternation of constant harrassment and permanent instability working and living as an illegal alien in this country for this relative prosperity. In return, businesses, especially agro-business, can hire them out at half of a native-born worker's rates and they will work harder and longer, keeping products and food at dirt-cheap prices. Those-in-charge recognize that its easier to contain simmering racial ravings and rantings from nativists and keep them at bay with local immigrant busts and allowing them to march along borders with automatic weapons than come to terms with the ramifications of their proposals: A countrywide uproar over dramatic increases in costs of living. Political suicide.

And consider how difficult it is for immigrants to assimilate. In a nation that values the dollar over everything else, an immigrant trying to make money for himself and family is chastised for saving the rest of us the costs of labor. Go figure. If people are serious about immigration, it is about time we take a look at the real causes of immigration and take the [BIG] steps that are required to quell it. No? Didn't think so. My advice: Never pay attention to anyone who wields a gun to solve a domestic problem. Better yet, force them into a compound to fight to the death for their "principles" and then surround and napalm them into the ground. Wow, that was pretty angry!

Election Thoughts

Race, religion and the economy seem to be at the top of the media interests covering this campaign. And with these three issues, the media has cornered three issues that seem to warrant an opinion and garner concern from everybody. None are a science (although economists would have you believe that) and each issue has almost limitless points of view. Race has stalemated Democrat campaigns with both Obama trying to "outblack" Hillary in South Carolina (with ~50% black voters). Republican candidates are taking strong positions on religion. Romney did his best Kennedy impression passionately displaying his separation of his Mormon church and state and Huckabee has supported making constitutional changes with regard to abortion (which should be the nail in his campaign's coffin). The economy has become a central piece to the Edwards "two America's" mantra. McCain seems the likely choice for those who are afraid to support another candidate who advocates broad-reaching programs for change. Giuliani's track running on the 911 train has seemed to have reached its frontier. Whatever the case, the election is still very much up in the air.

Tag-Words that I am getting very, very tired of hearing this campaign season:
Republican in the tradition of Reagan, Hope, Change, economic stimulus (package), housing crisis*, tax cuts, faith-based _____.

Tag-Words that deal with issues we should want to hear from candidates:
Fiscal conservatives, Recession, Iraq War, National Debt, Borrowing money, Trade deficit with _____. So far, we have heard more words from the former list rather than the latter. The problem with this is that the former list contains terms that connect vaguely to real issues while the second list contains terms that connect with real issues that our country must deal with in the near future. It's time for the candidates to start dealing with the real issues and stop candy-coating the future with mere buzz-words. Enough buzz.