Oh Well, It's Better Than Nothing

Earlier today Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the top military commander of the Taliban, was captured in a joint CIA-Pakistani operation outside Islamabad. While this is a major breakthrough for the American presence in southwest Asia, this still poses a troubling question: how many top-ranking Taliban military commanders are there? You'd think we'd captured 30 or 40 of them by now. Who would want a job with that much turnover? It's like on "24" when Jack Bauer et al. spend eight episodes hunting down one villain, and initially there's little to no evidence that he's in cahoots with anyone else, yet this bad guy turns out to be the scapegoat for an even larger conspiracy.

Baradar's capture is a signifigant success for President Palmer --er, I mean Obama-- whose ramping up of American troops in the region was met with apathy and trepidation by the usually hawkish GOP. Former Vice President Cheney just keeps attacking and nitpicking Obama's foreign policy, when in fact he might be exposing a repressed inter-party squabble over George W. Bush's war tactics. As Peter Beinart suggests, the biggest war liberal since JFK has been even more aggressive about fighting terrorism overseas than his two predecessors ever were. Where Obama's domestic policy has lost steam, his war chest is slowly finding its footing. Even so, at times it feels like the War on Terror is one big Whack-a-Mole machine, but Baradar's capture is a sign of progress; I don't know if this will get us any closer to hunting down Osama bin Laden, though I'd like to hear whatever intel that Baradar offers.

Other notes:

+ Apparently, a Saudi prince now has a minority share in the Fox News Channel. This lady's article has been sprouting up all over the internet, whining about a growing "Arabic influence" in the mainstream news media. Can't anyone stop to savor the irony of all this?

+ I didn't realize this until late Saturday night, but apparently Valentine's Day, Presidents' Day, Mardi Gras, and Ash Wednesday all land on consecutive days this year. Has that ever happened before?

+ I end this week's missive on a positive note: I got published again! My article on one-armed St. Louis Browns outfielder Pete Gray will be in the Spring 2010 issue of Nostalgia Digest. This is my fourth article for the magazine, following essays on Fleer Trading Cards, the 1947 Chicago Cardinals, and the man that attempted to steal the Stanley Cup. To pre-order your copy, just follow this link.

Next Week: the year in music, 1995.

It's (Still) In The Cards

As a sports card collector, I'm feeling some trepidation about the coming year. Last week, Topps began their first year since 1980 as the sole manufacturer of MLB-liscensed baseball cards. It won't be a flashy start to the year, it's merely Series 1 of their base brand release, though it's the first harbinger of all the sweeping changes that rocked the card industry last year. For those of you who don't follow trading cards anymore, here's a short recap:

In March, the Panini sticker company was granted an exclusive licensing deal by the NBA, and shortly afterward they bought out Donruss so they wouldn't have to start their trading card operations from scratch. In August, the MLBPA announced that because of the shrinking market only one company would produce baseball cards for the 2010 season; after a contested battle, Topps got the nod over Upper Deck. Three months later, the tables were turned when the NFL denied Topps' offer to produce football cards in 2010, leaving UD and the newly christened Panini America as the sole manufacturers in that category. Later this year, the NHLPA's exclusive deal with Upper Deck will expire, leading many to suggest that Topps might re-enter the hockey fold after a six-year hiatus.

While all this tightened licensing will result in fewer options on the market, I won't have as many headaches keeping track of the myriad number of brands that come out every year. Nevertheless, the jilted parties are improvising; Upper Deck may no longer have full MLB licensing, yet they're still releasing a handful of baseball products this year, albeit with no mention of team names (i.e. "Matt Kemp - Los Angeles (NL)") and obstructed logos in lieu of chintzy airbrushing (see above). In reality though, it's hard to tell who the real winners and losers are; every major company has whittled their product line down to one or two sports (to stay afloat, Topps also makes UFC trading cards). I wouldn't call it the death of a hobby, though I can't imagine anyone is benefitting from all this consolidation, either.

Other notes:

+ Very few things can make me shout "What the hell?!?!" in a public setting. This would be one of them. Luckily, I was in a crowded bar at the time, so my rare outburst barely even registered.

+ Was it a mistake to not mention the Lt. Governor's race in my Illinois Primary blog last week? I didn't vote for Scott Lee Cohen, yet I still feel blindsided by these shocking allegations. His press conference Sunday night was held in a pizzeria, evidently symbolic of the level of class and grace he showed while he tried to salvage his campaign. Good luck to the Illinois Democratic Party as they find a running mate for Governor Quinn that doesn't wear their checkered past on their sleeve.

+ Just a friendly reminder that pitchers and catchers report in one week.

My Unofficial Guide to the 2010 Illinois Primary

February 2nd is election day in Illinois, as the Land of Lincoln determines their candidates for governor, U.S. Senate, and House of Representatives, not to mention various state offices. This is not something I've been following as much as it's been thrown in my face; if you turn on nearly any local TV or radio station in Chicago, you're only a few minutes away from watching an attack ad. The candidates mentioned below have volunteered themselves to lead and represent one of the most debt-burdoned states in the nation, and each of these races have some type of national implications. For all you non-Illinoisans, let me break down this whole mess:

U.S. Senate: The seat that Barack Obama abdicated 15 months ago is up for grabs again, and sorry folks, it's no longer up for sale. The current holder of that seat, Roland Burris, did not have the money or the public support to attempt running a full term, leaving the junior senator's seat wide open come 2011. The Democratic frontrunner is state treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, a 33-year-old bachelor from Chicago. A lawyer that majored in ecomonics at Boston University, Giannoulias has been deemed an Obama carbon copy by some because of his youth, unusual last name, and yen for basketball (he played one year of pro ball in Europe in the late '90s). A hardliner on immigration, Giannoulias' status as a moderate has been hindered somewhat by being pro-choice and a supporter of same-sex marriage. He also endorses an overhaul of NAFTA and No Child Left Behind. As it stands Giannoulias has a pretty good lead in the polls, as most of his competition, including Chicago Urban League CEO/ex-Blagojevich crony Cheryle Jackson, have proven too far-left or too polarizing to gain any momentum with moderates and centrists.

Over in the GOP, Rep. Mark Kirk has a commanding lead in the latest Chicago Tribune poll, though undecideds will be a huge swing factor. Kirk has by far the most experience in Washington; he was an aide to Rep. John Porter in the mid-80s and served two years in the Bush 41 administration before being elected to five terms in the House of Representatives. Kirk's nearest competitor is Andy Martin, a conservative news pundit who has spent more time making unfounded attacks on the frontrunner than establishing his own platform. Martin has accused his opponent of being a military poseur (Kirk is a commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve) and in an infamous campaign ad, Martin implied that Kirk "pals around with gays and pedophiles." Where Kirk supports the Marriage Amendment, minor adjustments to No Child Left Behind, and more border security, Martin has no official stance on any of those issues and just keeps attacking and mudslinging.

Governor: This whole race is a logjam, as neither party has a clear favorite. Pat Quinn, the incumbent who replaced Rod Blagojevich 12 months ago, is a longtime political outsider who is clearly still adjusting to running as a mainline Democrat. Though Quinn had a sizeable lead in the polls five weeks ago, his primary opponent Dan Hynes has picked up steam after being endorsed by nearly major newspaper in the state. Both candidates seem to have the same stance on wide variety of issues, though they draw the line at gun control (Hynes is a FOID card-holder, Quinn has railed against concealed-carry handguns) and the death penalty (Hynes supports it, Quinn doesn't). Where Hynes has been on the offense, citing Quinn's reputation as a rabblerouser, the governor has largely played defense, emphasizing his platform and not stuping down to any character assassination. I can't tell which strategy is going to work, though.

If the Democrat Governor race is tight, the GOP contest is practically a free-for-all. Of the six remaining candidates --DuPage County board chairman Bob Schillerstrom dropped out of the race on January 22nd-- the three top frontrunners are within five percentage points of each other in the latest polls and none of them have 20% of their party's support. On Tuesday, this campaign will most likely come down to: Andy McKenna, the former chairman of the Illinois Republicans; State Senator Kirk Dillard; and former attorney general Jim Ryan, the man who lost to Blagojevich in the 2002 governor's race. Three weeks ago, McKenna nabbed the endorsement of the Chicago Tribune, citing his straightforward demeanor and his reputation as an idea man. Nevertheless, the Illinois GOP is still lacking focus following the George Ryan mess from nearly ten years ago. Even though they selected Ryan (no relation) as their candidate in '02 and Judy Baar Topinka in '06, neither candidate never really enamored the majority of the party.

Congress: This is arguably the most predictable arena, as Illinois is topheavy with incumbents running for reelection. My congresswoman, Rep. Judy Biggert, has represented the 13th district since 1999 and doesn't seem to be facing any serious competition from Democrats or from within the GOP. Her seat on the Congressional Committee on Education and Labor is more or less safe. Bobby Rush and Dan Lipinski, both Democrats, and Republican Pete Roskam will also likely coast to another two-year term.

Cook County Board President: I'm throwing this last one in for my own amusement, though I shouldn't downplay the fact that Cook is the most populous (and therefore, weightiest) county in the state. You may recall that a few months ago, I wrote a fairly scathing editorial about Todd Stroger, the sitting president of the board. His 4 1/2 years in charge have been marred by scandal, and he failed to live up to any of his campaign promises from 2006. If anyone in Cook County has any common sense this man will not nab the Democratic nomination, yet it still appears that he still has a sliver of a chance. I'll gladly take any of the three challengers over "The Toddler."

I don't know if Illinois is still the most corrupt state in the country, though politically it's certainly the most dysfunctional. In making their endorsements, the Tribune has called for "The Revolution of 2010," a call to arms for voters that are fed up with the greasy palms, cronyism and reckless spending that has swallowed my home state whole. This is not a Democratic or Republican issue, but a full-on assault aimed towards the career politicians in Illinois that seem to be more concerned with lining their pockets than serving their state's needs. Rep. Phil Crane, George Ryan, and Blagojevich are ancient history, with Stroger and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley likely to follow. I'll admit that none of these candidates are perfect, but this state needs an infusion of fresh blood, and fast.

That Wonderful Year in Music... 1980

Ah, 1980. This is one of those years that I genuinely wish I could travel back in time and visit and just plain savor. Obviously, it was the year following 1979 --a strong year for music and a tough act to follow-- but overall it was probably just as memorable a 12-month span, if not an extension of the trends that were blossoming in '79. Disco was finally dying out, rap was on the cusp of a breakthrough, and the do-it-yourself nihilism of punk was losing ground to the easier to swallow, yet aggressively weird aesthetic of new wave. Underground FM radio was on its last legs, as the increasingly corporate sound of mainstream rock was becoming more and more indistinguishable from "safe" Top 40 radio. While other subgenres were still finding their direction, heavy metal was already on its destined path, courtesy of Judas Priest and a new act called Iron Maiden. It was a transitional year, yet great music could be found pretty much all over the place.

I didn't intend this list to be a top 20, but it was hard to encompass everything that happened in music that year and whittle it down to ten essential albums. There were at least 25 albums that I wanted to include, but after some internal debate I whittled it down to the list that you see here. I had a similar issue with the singles; I simply didn't want to overlook anything crucial.

BEST ALBUMS:

1. Remain In Light, Talking Heads. The Heads' first three albums, all fine in their own right, were merely leading up to this. Fear of Music tracks like "I Zimbra" and "Life During Wartime" alluded to David Byrne's growing infatuation with African polyrhythms, a flirtation that he finally acts upon on Remain In Light. Each track adheres to a similar guitar-drum riff, creating a groove that's almost impossible to get out of your head. (It's also their most verbose album, though that's almost beside the point.) In short, this album is as incomparable as it is brilliant.
2. Making Movies, Dire Straits. When taking a quick jog through the Straits' oeurve, it's pretty obvious that most fans gravitate towards Brothers In Arms, their best-selling, award-nominated 1985 smash. I disagree with this (unofficial) majority opinion, largely because those people tend to emphasize Dire Straits' hits and not the substance of Mark Knopfler's songwriting. In a just world, Making Movies would be their undisputed masterpiece; it's one of those albums where you hear something new every time you listen to it. I just love this album.

3. Crazy Rhythms, The Feelies. Somewhat obscure yet highly influential, The Feelies' first LP could be argued as the missing link between Sonic Youth and the Velvet Underground. Minimalist and percussion-heavy (hence the title), the jangly guitars of frontmen Glenn Mercer and Bill Million keep this freewheeling record from descending into chaos. I saw The Feelies do a 75-minute set at Millennium Park in Chicago last summer; they played four tunes from Rhythms and dadgummit, they still hold up.

4. Closer, Joy Division
5. Back In Black, AC/DC

6. The River, Bruce Springsteen

7. Pretenders, The Pretenders

8. Los Angeles, X

9. British Steel, Judas Priest

10. Fresh Fruit for Rotten Vegetables, Dead Kennedys. Punk was all but dead in the UK by 1980, and the New York and Boston scenes had moved onto artsy experimentation (see albums #1 and 3), but the west coast did not get that memo. Where their LA-based peers X emphasized songcraft, the Bay Area outfit Dead Kennedys was often little more than a platform for the far-left ramblings of Jello Bialfa. If the Kennedys existed only to slam supply-side economics, they'd be a forgotten relic; instead, their debut long-player is a powerful fusion of surf, rockabilly, and hardcore, doused with youthful anarchy.

11. Songs The Lord Taught Us, The Cramps

12. Get Happy!!!, Elvis Costello & The Attractions

13. Kings of the Wild Frontier, Adam Ant

14. Empty Glass, Pete Townshend

15. Sound Affects, The Jam. This is the album with "That's Entertainment," "Set the House Ablaze" and "Man in the Corner Shop." Need I say more?

16. Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps), David Bowie

17. Sandinista!, The Clash

18. Double Fantasy, John Lennon and Yoko Ono

19. Crocodiles, Echo & The Bunnymen

20. Gaucho, Steely Dan. A meticulous and precise effort, Gaucho is the prim follow-up to the smooth, relaxed Aja. Where their 1977 masterwork was almost seemless, this record wear its imperfections on its sleeve. Fine-tuned tracks like "Hey Nineteen" and "Babylon Sisters" carry an album that occasionally battles a lack of focus and overtly glossy production values. All in all, a decent nightcap to The Dan's marvelous '70s output.

BEST SINGLES:

"Ace of Spades," Motorhead

"Everybody Wants Some!" Van Halen

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love," Queen

"Don't Let Him Go," REO Speedwagon

"Hell Is For Children," Pat Benetar

"Emotional Rescue," The Rolling Stones

"Working My Way Back To You," The Spinners

"Funky Town," Lipps Inc.

"The Breaks," Kurtis Blow

"Rapper's Delight," The Sugar Hill Gang

"Late In The Evening," Paul Simon

"Call Me," Blondie

"I Will Follow," U2

"Ah! Leah!" Donnie Iris

"Back of My Hand (I've Got Your Number)," Jags

"So Good To Be Back Home Again," The Tourists

"What I Like About You," The Romantics

"Do You Remember Rock n' Roll Radio?" The Ramones

"Turning Japanese," The Vapors

"Love and Loneliness," The Motors

BEST VIDEOS:

1. "Video Killed The Radio Star," The Buggles. Yes, it was first clip to air on MTV in 1981, the single was first released in 1979, but the video was shot in '80 so it counts here.

2. "Once in a Lifetime," Talking Heads. And you may ask yourself, "what's the deal with David Byrne's glasses?" And you may ask yourself, "is that from an old National Geographic special?" And you may ask yourself, "well, how can I be that limber?"

3. "Cars," Gary Numan. The ominous video from one of the greatest one-hit wonders ever. Now available in "tamborine-vision!"

4. "Comin' Up," Paul McCartney. Primitive green-screen technology enables Macca and his wife Linda to recreate an entire band, complete with a Ron Mael look-alike on keyboards and a bassist that looks like he wandered off "The Ed Sullivan Show."

5. The "Making Movies" Trilogy, Dire Straits. Rather than shoot a video for the leadoff single, Knopfler and company shot a surrealist 20-minute film encompassing Side A of their latest release. Please enjoy the trippy triptych of "Tunnel of Love," "Romeo and Juliet," and "Skateaway."

Your thoughts?

I'm Just Pacing Myself

As some of you have probably noticed, this is a fairly idiosyncratic blog. Where most of my peers will (and can) post something anytime they want, depending on the topic and focus of the blog, I update mine nearly every Tuesday. Why is that, you ask? The fact of the matter is, I'm a creature of habit; I do my best writing on a deadline, and for some reason I'm motivated to type my thoughts with a rigid schedule. When I started this blog not quite five years ago, I figured that one entry a week was enough to let my friends know what was going on in my life. Nowadays, I feel compelled to write more but my work and class schedules hinder that. What was initially a gimmick has become a necessity of sorts, a creative outlet in an increasingly left brain-dominated lifestyle.

I feel inclined to say this because January 2010 is shaping up to be a very eventful month for current events, and so far this year I've only covered two topics (health care reform and the late night wars) with any ponderosity. Though this week's blog has a "random notes" feel, I'm just playing catch-up on current events:

+ I watched news coverage of the Haiti earthquake and it kept triggering memories of Hurricane Katrina. The two disasters don't compare in terms of fatalities and destruction, yet I wish the government reacted as quickly to the earthquake as they did the hurricane. Where Haiti was purely a natural disaster, Katrina was arguably man-made. The denizens of the 9th Ward were poor, though the people of Port-au-Prince are far worse off. Sadly, the big question now is how long it will take before the historically corrupt and feckless Haitian government pockets all that Red Cross money.

+ The Democrats might be losing that super-majority a lot sooner than I thought. Today's election day in Massachusetts, and that vacent senate seat is still very much up for grabs. I'm posting this less than 12 hours before the polls close, and even I can't make an educated as to who will win. Regardless, I've always found Bay State politics to be quite alien; unlike most of us, the voters there aren't terribly concerned about the personal discretions and character flaws of their candidates. Case in point: 20 years ago, Rep. Barney Frank's boyfriend ran a prostitution ring in their garage, but he's just as powerful in Washington as ever. As long as the streets are clean and the taxes are low, in Massachusetts, who gives a hoot about their representatives' personal lives?

+ "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" --and several key elements of O'Brien's on-air persona-- are as good as gone. It's a shame it ended the way it did, and far too soon. His stint at NBC is all but over, and the network has reinforced their intellectual property rule, a policy that hindered David Letterman's leap to CBS 17 years ago. Basically, that means if O'Brien lands another talk show on a new network (*cough* Fox *cough*), "In The Year 3000" and "Celebrity Survey" won't be tagging along. Of course, there's a loophole or two; maybe the Masturbating Bear will be rechristened the Self-Pleasuring Ursine, who knows? Either way, this is the end of Conan as we truly know it, and we should savor his remaining shows for all its worth.

+ Apparently, French neo-conservatives are just as paranoid about immigrants as their American counterparts. Click here for the story.

+ Speaking of racial strife, a couple guys in the Deep South are still coming to terms with having a black president.

+ After nine ballots, Andre Dawson and his paltry .323 OBP was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on January 6th. Though "The Hawk" wasn't on my Cooperstown short list from last month, I begrudgingly accept the sportswriters' final vote. After all, Dawson was a eight-time Gold Glover and a seven-time All-Star, not to mention one of the most-feared power hitters of the 1980s. He's not as deserving as some of the players I've watched in my lifetime, but I'd rather have Dawson in Cooperstown than, say, Ron Santo. On a semi-related note, I tip my Royals cap to the one guy who voted for Kevin Appier. Yes, Kev had no chance of being inducted and his career stats are better suited for the Royals' Hall of Fame, but at least he wasn't shut out entirely like Todd Zeile or Shane Reynolds. Appier was slightly more deserving than that.

+ So what becomes of Mark McGwire? As pained and earnest as his confession might've been, it was too little, too late. Pleading the fifth and dodging the media for half a decade merely augmented the general assumption that Big Mac took steroids. His long-delayed admission had no element of surprise, though at least he complimented the MLB's current drug-testing tactics (which like McGwire, was demanded by the general public after years of dilly-dallying). There's nothing to say on this topic that I haven't articulated in past blogs; I might've waffled on McGwire's guilt on at least one occasion, but the Hall of Fame ship has long since sailed. Good luck trying to coach Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday, Mark... unless that's the point.

Next week: the year in music, 1980.

Night Flight

Last week, my parents went to Las Vegas for a four-night breather from the bitter Chicago cold. Upon returning Friday night, one of the first things my dad asked me was, "so, did you hear the latest about Jay Leno?" I knew about he was talking about, and I knew right where the conversation was going. He watched Leno's monologue almost religiously when he hosted "The Tonight Show," and he knew I'd been a Conan fan for years. He's as baffled by my taste in late night comedy and I am of his viewing choices. Obviously, I responded by defending O'Brien and stating that NBC made a mistake in backing Leno. "You only say that because you hate him," he declared. He walked out of the room before I could elaborate on what I said.

If Jay Leno is returning to 11:35/10:35c, than NBC has followed one big mistake with an even more consequential misfire. By giving "The Chin" five hours of prime time a week, NBC inadvertantly overshadowed Conan O'Brien's move to to the old Leno slot and minimized his role in the network's lineup. To move Leno's show back to its old time slot is more than rectifying a wrong, it's a concession of defeat, and above all it's a slap in the face to a tremendously funny and distinctive comedian that has been loyal to The Peacock for almost 17 years. If I were running NBC, I would simply cut bait on Leno; I wouldn't care if he jumped to another network, Letterman and Conan would soundly beat him ratings-wise night after night. Leno was a cash cow for the network, but now he's just hamburger.

Of course, I can't rant about NBC's future without acknowledging the man behind the curtain, Jeff Zucker. In the nine years since he ascended to the network's upper throes, Zucker has proven to be an ineffectual, nearsighted syncophant, and the Leno/Conan situation merely reinforces his status as an idiot in a suit. On his watch, NBC went from #1 to fourth place, from torchbearer to punchline, from record profits to being bought out by Comcast. The number of bona fide hit shows that he developed during his "reign" can be counted on one hand. In moving Leno back to 11:35/10:35c, Zucker and his peons have five hours of prime time real estate that they don't know how to fill. They may as well concede 10/9c to Shamwow and the newest Jack Lalanne juicer.

In 2005, New York magazine slammed Zucker (and rightfully so) as the embodiment of bloated self-confidence, a Hollywood outsider that tried too hard to one-up his rivals, the captain of a great ship slowly sinking in an ocean of hubris and complacency. Five years later nothing has changed, and inexplicably Zucker is almost unscathed, still large and in charge. As it stands now, the collateral damage is staggering and somebody has to clean up the mess; NBC hemorraged ad revenue with Leno in prime time, the shows that once thrived at 10/9c are barely registering in earlier time slots, and local newscasts keep losing viewers. The Peacock might be molting its feathers, but I doubt that this incomparable debacle will curb Zucker's yen for experimenting. What he'll do next is anyone's guess, though for many Hollywood insiders the reason of a doubt is long gone.