Buttercup Festival

Ran across this through the suggestion of a certain someone, it is my new favorite webcomic.

Buttercup Festival

On of my favorites thus far:


And another:

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More Politics.

I never thought that I would be into politics. I always kind of laughed at people that spent so much time immersed in that world.

Little did I know how much goes on outside of mainstream knowledge.

In any case, I have been reading some interesting viewpoints on Ron Paul's chances of grabbing the Republican nomination from the still shocked hands of the party leadership.

There seems to be two sides to this argument.

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the first side of the field is the side that I tend to find my self on most days; that Ron Paul would make an excellent Republican nominee, but that the best he can hope for at this point is to make his voice heard. He has been making good showings in most of the states in which he has been campaigning, and that means that regardless of how much they hate him, the MSM has to at least cover him. This has the benefit of bringing economic policy issues into the limelight, and makes a lot of the other candidates look like bumbling fools. He also has no qualms about bashing governmental entities, which is always fun. Ross Perot had a similar effect on the 1992 Election by making a balanced budget a major campaign issue.

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The second side of the field is where the folks who are actually pushing to win are located. I occupied this side early on, but the results from Iowa and New Hampshire were enough to push me off to the aforementioned area of RP support. The most current political coverage of Paul is suggesting that he is saving up his gusto for the less advertised but more influential second part of the primaries, where the vast majority of the delegates are distributed. I am interested in how well he does, and I will definitely donate again if he does well on the 5th, but I will be caucusing Democratic, if at all.

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It should be interesting at the very least, and I would be in political heaven if Paul ends up running against Obama for the presidency, since it would essentially be win-win (it's not very often that one gets to choose between two "goods" in an election). It seems more likely that it will be Obama or Hillary running against McCain or Romney, which would be much more run of the mill, and much less exciting. Especially if Hillary or Romney win, that would be downright scary.

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XKCD - Defacto ruler of the internet, has spoken.

Mr. Munroe casts his line with Mr. Obama.

I link to it here not simply because he has voiced his support of the candidate that I am currently supporting, but because he has an extremely well written (as always) account of exactly why he supports Obama.

To re-iterate my own sentiments; Obama provides an option that intellectuals need not feel wary about. We know that he is very intelligent, something that has been conspicuously absent from the White House for the past few decades. Our opportunity for an incremental change is with him.

Also, this is the most inspiring speech that I have seen from him yet.

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Obama/Gore 2008

Why didn't I think of this?

Obama/Gore 2008: 10 reasons why it could be awesome.

Jeez, that would be better than an Obama/McCain ticket. A bit more risky, to be sure, since it might catalyze the right wing against them, but it wouldn't be any worse than Hillary would do, regardless of her running mate.

I would have been in political heaven if Gore decided to run, but alas, he is smart, and decided to retain his sanity. I probably would have made the same decision were I him. I'd be pretty surprised if anyone would be able to pull him back into Washington, but you never know, maybe Obama is just charismatic enough to do it. Those two together would make a kind of Democratic Dream Team, Obama's undeniable public presence with Gore's experience and notoriety.

So many options, and for once, there are a lot of good options. I'm not gonna get my hopes up, though, since Ron Paul is clearly not the contender that we were hoping for, and Obama still has a chance to screw things up if he doesn't get serious. I guess I just better stay tuned!

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ROCKET

This is what I am doing at work right now:

http://www.rocketrosen.com/

Watch the little flash intro, those blurbs are fantastically hilarious.

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Top 5 Christmas Movies

A bit late, sure, but I felt like doing a top 5, and with X-mas just behind us, I want you all to be ready for next year. :-j

5) The Nightmare Before Christmas

Sure, this would fit into any Halloween list as well, but what is more fun during the holidays while our rampant consumer culture is making you sick, and hearing just one more X-mas song threatens your sanity?

Sometimes a bit of irreverence is a good thing, as is the case with this movie. Watching Santa get shoved around is pretty fun, since this is one of the few movies that actually adds some character to this oft-glossed over figure. A perfect remedy for X-mas overdose, if not quite up to par for a Christmas Eve party.

4) Home Alone

Marv's tarantula scream alone is enough to send me giggling every time I see this movie. It is, in my humble opinion, the best scream ever in the history of cinema. Not too long, with just the right amount of piercing shrillness.

Filled with sappy crap at the end, this is still a great X-mas flick due to the sheer cultural significance it wields. I'm sure that it might not be on other generations' Top 5s, but it is on mine because I watched this movie with unabashed glee every year growing up. The idea of being able to transform your house into a massive booby-trap for burglars is every little boy's wet dream (at least until we hit puberty).

I'm sure that I'm not the only one who drew up massive plans for home security after this movie came out. My masterpiece was a combination shovel/tack-covered Nerf arrow trap that likely would have done some pretty serious damage to anyone trying to come downstairs.

3) The Santa Clause

Another film which has a rough time (primarily because it kills Santa in the beginning of the movie), this one makes the list primarily due to how it deals with some more mature themes. Having divorced parents is something that a lot of kids have to deal with, myself included, and this movie incorporates a lot of post-modern issues not present in the more old-fashioned flicks.

Also, Tim Allen can be funny when he's not trying too hard.

2) Muppet Christmas Carol

The muppets are great at Christmas. Suprisingly adult, with stuff for tiny folks and big ones alike. That plus casting Michael Caine as Scrooge is pure genius.

1) Elf

This is simply the best Christmas movie ever made. Not only does it have Zooey Deschanel, who has possibly my favorite singing voice in the world, it allows Will Ferrel to be as insane as he wants.

I really don't have anything else to say about it, it is one of the funniest movies that I have ever seen, and it is easily the best Christmas movie ever, in my estimation.

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Pick your candidate!

Quick and dirty, but also pretty accurate candidate chooser.



Kucinich came out on top for me as usual, followed by Edwards, which was a suprise, and then Obama.

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:-C

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A good take on the Climate Change issue

I've often tried to find ways to convey the severity of the issue of climate change, and how it really doesn't matter whether it is going to happen or not. All that matters is that there is a sizable possibility that it could.

This is the best explanation of that viewpoint that I have found. It is concise, and it does not mince words.

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Rotonda Sands

I often mention that one of the things that I miss about Milwaukee is the abundance of abandonment. Here in St Paul there isn't a lot of exploring that one can do, at least not that I've seen as of yet. Sure there's plenty on tunnels underneath the Twin Cities, but there is nowhere near the amount of fascinating old structures; abandoned foundries, chemical plants, tanneries, you couldn't walk a mile without tripping over one.

Here, thus far, I have only been able to find two such massive and interesting structures, though I would never go into one, as that is clearly trespassing.

I guess that the absence of absent businesses is indicative of a solid economy, but it does tend to lead to less productive weekends, as I have to spend my time traipsing around parks and whatnot, of which there are already plenty of nice pictures.

Oh, if I were back in someplace like Florida, where the housing developments end up half finished and the wind whistles through empty domiciles, conjuring a sense of surreal extra-worldliness, allowing one to step out of the painted facade of suburban contentment.



Rotonda Sands is a picture set that I found through Wil Wheaton's blog. I am impressed, and a bit jealous. Methinks that this spring I shall endeavor anew to ferret out some new industrial husks, if only to try and keep up with this community that I have unwittingly joined.

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