Uncivil Servants

Two of the ugliest races of Decision 2012 is not garnering national attention, but it's making Chicago and the outlying area feel emotionally spent. As a result of redistricting, seven-term incumbent Judy Biggert (R) is running the closest race of her political career against former congressman Bill Foster (D). Biggert's old turf was decidedly suburban and overwhelmingly Republican, now it's about 50/50 yet only slightly more urban. Considering that Judy is a grandmother in her mid-70s, there's also the question of whether she'll serve in Congress for much longer if she wins in two weeks.

Where Biggert and Foster are fighting for their political lives, another local race has turned into a barrage of name-calling and character assassination. Over in the redrawn 8th District, local war hero Tammi Duckworth (D) is running against Tea Party incumbent Joe Walsh. This race has become less about the issues than the candidates themselves; a recent debate was particularly personal and decidedly ugly. Walsh accused Duckworth of relying too much on her military background to evoke sympathy (she's a double amputee), while Duckworth has fingered Walsh as a misogynist and a woman-hater. Yeesh.

Granted, at this point the outcome of the election is all but set, and anyone expecting widespread turnover or any semblance of change will be disappointed. The GOP will keep the House, the Democrats will still (barely) control the Senate, and it appears Barack Obama will defeat Mitt Romney by a hairsbreadth. Not to be a negative nellie, but... enjoy four more years of gridlock.

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Debate Talk

Sorry for the delay, everyone:

Whether you love, hate, or have no general opinion of Vice President Biden you have to admit that he made for some exciting television last week. Where the second banana debate is just that, this meeting of the minds was somewhat compelling.  However, where Biden was animated Paul Ryan was direct and caustic. Even though conservative pundits praised Ryan for keeping his cool, his lack of specificity in explaining the campaign's economic platform made me very wary.

As for the second presidential debate, I found President Obama's performance to be much stronger than it was the first time around, and the incumbent and challenger almost fought to a draw. Gov. Romney's "binder full of women" remark was pretty awkward, and it probably would've blown by if women's rights weren't a crucial issue in this year's election. My only question is, was this narrow victory too little too late for our 44th president? At least one guy thought so.

One last, completely unrelated note: the weekend before last, I made my annual sojourn to Normal, IL for homecoming. Since I graduated nearly five years ago the area has changed dramatically; the "Uptown" area east of ISU's campus is almost unrecognizable from six or seven years ago. While having a beer with my ex-roommate at one of the new restaurants in town, I stepped away to use the restroom. As I waited to use one of the stalls, I watched six or seven guys in a row walk up the urinal, do their business, than walk out without washing their hands. After I did my business, another guy at the urinal threw a beer bottle on the floor and threatened to fight me. I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same.

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Random Notes, October 2012

There's been a lot on my mind lately:

+ I will concede that Mitt Romney won the first debate last week. It was not, however the KO that most in the media have described. Where Romney was more polished in his delivery than President Obama, he was also vague at times and much more incendiary. Where President Obama looked unfocused and tired, his responses to Jim Lehrer's questions were more specific in detail. Regardless, I don't think too many people were swayed by the overall effort, and there are two more debates to go.

+ They put an avowed creationist on the congressional science committee? Huh?

+ For the fourth year in a row, I won a fantasy baseball title. In what will probably be the last year of the TV.com league at Yahoo, I barely edged out Dolph Rudager to take first in the six-man league. My "other" team finished third despite being in first much of the year, and a team I inherited in midseason (thank you, LesNessman) finished seventh out of ten in a kinda sorta "keeper" league.

+ Over on the Chicago improv scene, I am now using my talents for a noble cause. About six weeks ago I auditioned for a non-profit organization called Funny Bones Improv. The primary cause of the group is to perform game-oriented improv to sick children in hospitals. After making the cut, I observed an FBI show at a hospital in the north Chicago suburbs; it was staggering how much the kids' morale was boosted by our wacky shenanigans. I don't have my first show for a few more weeks, but I can't put into words how humbled and honored I am to be part of this organization.

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Musical Odds and Ends

As most of you know by now, I've almost run of years to cover in my monthly music blog. My four-year is almost at an end, though I may revise and revisit some lists in the distant future. Even though I've written about the sound and substance of these great musical works, I have barely covered the artistic effort and assorted intangibles of these albums.

With that said, please enjoy these arbitrary lists:


Five Great Albums with Terrible Covers
Magical Mystery Tour, The Beatles (1967)
Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out! (live), The Rolling Stones (1970)
If I Could Only Remember My Name, David Crosby (1971)
Dirty Mind, Prince (1980)
Boys and Girls in America, The Hold Steady (2006)

Five Terrible Albums with Great Covers
Relayer, Yes (1974)
Chicago XIV, Chicago (1979)
Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants, Stevie Wonder (1980)
KooKoo, Debbie Harry (1981)
Falling Into Infinity, Dream Theater (1997)

The Six Greatest Sixth Albums of All Time
1. Rubber Soul, The Beatles (1965)
2. Highway 61 Revisited, Bob Dylan (1965)
3. Quadrophenia, The Who (1973)
4. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Wilco (2002)
5. Green, R.E.M. (1988)
6. Physical Graffiti, Led Zeppelin (1975)

The Ten Best Albums with a Naked Woman on the Cover
Blind Faith, Blind Faith (1969)
Abraxas, Santana (1970)
Electric Ladyland (original version), Jimi Hendrix (1970)
Country Life, Roxy Music (1974)
Cut, The Slits (1979)
Candy-O, The Cars (1979)
Mother's Milk, Red Hot Chili Peppers (1989)
Ritual De Lo Habitual, Jane's Addiction (1990)
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West (2010)
The Haunted Man, Bat for Lashes (2012)

Three Albums with Semi-Legible, Handwritten Liner Notes by the Artists
After the Gold Rush, Neil Young (1970)
Live/1975-85, Bruce Springsteen (1986)
The Idler Wheel is Wiser Than..., Fiona Apple (2012)

Your thoughts?

The 47% Solution

Until a few weeks ago, this was probably the first president election in a generation where there was no clear front-runner or underdog.  In the wake of several blunders by the Romney campaign, however it seems like Barack Obama will be reelected almost by default. This is exactly what I forecasted two months ago: the 2012 election is 2004 in reverse. The more the rich, out of touch challenger trips on himself, the more momentum the middling incumbent gains.

What might have been Romney's Mondale moment occured at a private GOP fundraiser several months ago. Whether it was intended for the public or not, to suggest that 47% of the U.S. population lives on government handouts was thickheaded and irrational. In short, Romney mixed up three disparate groups: the roughly half the country that will inevitably support President Barack Obama, the half that doesn’t pay federal income taxes, and the half that receives government benefits. Sadly, this is congruent with the GOP's way of thinking; they assume that anyone who receives any money from the government, whether it's deserved or not, is a lazy bum.

Other notes:

+ Speaking of races that are all but over... really?

+ I can't complain about the Emmy winners in the drama categories, though the comedy winners were an absolute mess. Jon Cryer won Best Lead Actor for endurance, not on the merit of his performance. Even though "Modern Family" deserved to win in 2010 and 2011, the Best Comedy Series three-peat was wholly unnecessary; though "Treehouse" and "After the Fire" were both fine episodes, season 3 was staggeringly uneven.

+ Apparently, owning a black-and-white striped shirt is enough to make you an NFL replacement referee. This lockout needs to end ASAP.

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Courting Infamy: A Homecoming Memoir

When I wrote my "2002 in music" blog a few months back, I alluded to a humdinger of a personal story. I was going to save it for the actual anniversary later this week, but with the Chicago teachers' strike still on my mind I decided to share my yarn a little early. Here goes:

When it came to homecoming court --at least as far as the DGN Class of 2003 was concerned-- there was little debating who would get nominated. For the underclassmen, three nominees of each gender were chosen, and for the first three years of high school it was the same two boys and a third "wild card" pick that was a mere afterthought. The same football player, the same basketball player, and some red-shirted lieutenant. The seniors picked six nominees apiece for king and queen; it was more inclusive yet a seemingly greater honor.

Somewhere around Homecoming 2001 (my junior year) a guy in my second period chemistry class suggested my name for nomination. He was half-joking; I was the antithesis of anyone that would contend for court, but that was also the point. As the school year dragged on, I occasionally brought up the topic and noticed a growing desire amongst my peers to shake up the status quo. Without blantantly campaigning, I proposed myself as the alternative. The school radio station, populated by a motley mix of geeks, hipsters, stoners, and metalheads made up the core of my support.

Early on in my senior year at Downers Grove North, my district went on strike. There had been a long-brewing debate about retirement benefits or lack thereof, and when 11th hour negotiations bottomed out, the District 99 faculty headed to the picket line Monday morning. School had only been in session for 3 1/2 weeks; being the dutiful student I had finished my homework for the previous Friday that weekend, than found myself bored out of my skull. I spent much of the week either reading, renting movies, or power-napping.

To remedy my lethergy, my dad suggested going to a White Sox game that Thursday night. The Royals were in town, and tickets were discounted for Fan Appreciation Night. As an autograph hound and a self-deluded KC fan, I jumped on the opportunity; my collection had plenty of gaps from the 2002 Royals' roster. That evening I had what was a record haul; I nabbed autos from eight Royals and five White Sox players. Even Todd Ritchie, a 15-game loser that year and easily the Sox' least-liked player, was signing generously and liberally, grinning as if he was about to be paroled from prison.

Strangely, that wasn't the most memorable aspect of that game. It was the top of the 9th inning. My father and I were sitting in the fourth row of New Comiskey's lower deck, just beyond third base. I was nursing the last drops of an overpriced Pepsi when all of a sudden, there was a commotion over at first. The Royals' bench had cleared, and there was a dogpile of players in the distance. There was a mix of grumbling, booing, and cheering all over the park. My dad was attentively watching, but even he didn't know what was going on. The jumbotron in center went black. A minute or so passed, and two shirtless men were escorted off were escorted away by security. The PA announcer made a generic annoucement about trepassing and public safety. Ten minutes after the melee, the game resumed.

Driving home from the game (a 2-1 Royals win, by the way) we turned on the Cubs-Mets game on WGN, when Pat Hughes interrupted play-to-play to explain what happened in Chicago that evening. A weird as the incident was, Hughes read the bulletin as if he was Walter Kronkite reporting JFK's death. Well, almost.

Without having heard any other news, I went to bed thinking the strike had wiped out the whole school week. To my surprise, I woke up at 8 AM that morning to discover the teachers' union and District 99 had reached an agreement, and classes were back in session. I woke up my mom, and she frantically drove me to school. (I didn't own my first car for another year.) I arrived late in the first period, than made a beeline to second period gym class.

The vote for homecoming court was held the Thursday before the strike began, and there was no mention of nominees on the first day back. It wasn't until I arrived home that afternoon fate struck again. One of the ladies in the front office called the house, asking specifically to speak with me. I gingerly picked up the receiver, and the secretary informed me that I was nominated for senior court. I accepted my honor and thanked her, than hung up and started jumping up and down. I broke the system.

After that whirlwind 24-hour period, the next week was a . All six contenders for Homecoming King were first-time nominees, and three were varsity athletes. I attended and made nice at several tie-in events, including a photo shoot and a nominees' banquet. A false sense of entitlement crept in. Getting nominated was one thing but winning was a whole different animal; the voting blocs were almost unilaterally seperated by clique, especially the team sports. Persuading underclassmen that didn't know me proved difficult, but not totally futile.

In the end, I was third place in a two-man race; the winner edged out the runner-up by only two votes, and together they combined for almost 75% of the ballot. Another football player got the edge. I went home with 10% of the vote, somewhat disappointed at first but reveling in the respect of my peers and placated by my moral victory. I felt weird mentioning my nomination, and I seldom brought it up unless somebody asked or alluded to that year's court. Beside a little extra attention, everything went back to normal in a matter of weeks.

Ten years later, these two disparate events are permenantly fastened together in my memory. My homecoming nomination proved to be, if nothing else, a nice embellishment on my resume. The 2002 Homecoming King is now the assistant manager of a Cheesecake Factory, and the Queen did some modeling before becoming a stay-at-home mom. I have led my adult life in mostly mortal anonymity, yet for a brief period in September 2002 I was almost king.

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