Filed November 10, 2004 at November 10, 2004 @ 7:10 pm under A pirates life and Geek speak/Website crap by rusty
Given the troubles of Bloghosts, the company which hosts this website, a decision had to be made about how much longer I wanted to continue my blog under this format. Rather than let it wither on the vine until it rotted and fell off, the timing seemed right to move on to something new. So, when Bloghosts dies in January, so will this blog.
An experience I had at a recent Halloween party was in part the inspiration for my decision. Everyone except me and a couple of others dressed for the occasion. It’s not that I wouldn’t have, it’s that I simply forgot. There was a distinct Rocky Horror Picture Show vibe in the room that night. We were shooting saki, the elixir of choice for angry Japanese men. My friend Aaron was looking pretty queer as some sort of vampire syth lord thing, topped off with dark lipstick and no fangs. A large bearded man who was a friend of a friend showed up wearing a red dress, looking like Little Orphan Annie injected with a lethal dose of testosterone and the growth hormones used in chicken feed. The absurdity of the moment hit me when he and I were standing on the porch having a serious discussion about… something. It doesn’t really matter what, and I don’t remember.
That, my friends, is this blog in a nutshell: a serious discussion with a large bearded man in a dress.
On that note, I hope ya’ll will continue to read the crap I’ve got on my mind over at Radical Georgia Moderate, my new site.
As for loose ends….
This round of NCAA picks will be seen through to the league championship games in early December, assuming Bloghost’s service holds up that long. I’ll likely have a separate bowl games contest on my new site. I lied. The new thread for week 11 is here.
I’ve got to move Reggie’s site somewhere else. I’ll update this post with the new URL once that’s done. Reggie’s new home is at http://lazybeerbum.blogspot.com
UPDATE: All comments should be closed on this site now. Selah.
Filed November 8, 2004 at November 8, 2004 @ 3:08 pm under For love of the shame/2004 NCAA Football Picks and For love of the shame by rusty
Well, three players (two of whom are still competitive in this contest) forgot to submit picks last week. Most weeks, that would mean getting spotted points from a last place finish. Last week wasn’t most weeks, however, and given my disastrous finish, that would destroy the aforementioned two players’ chances of remaining competitive. That doesn’t seem fair under the circumstances (umm, presidential election if I have to remind you).
Here’s my solution. Of the seven players who submitted their picks, four players finished with 14 points, one finished with 13 points, one with 12, and one with 11. The median average score of that lot is 13.142857143. So, I’m going to spot the three players who forgot to submit their picks 13 points, and give the two players who came in below that mark a score of 13 as well. And yes, I obviously benefit from that. It’s not perfect, but it’s the best I can come up with to keep the contest interesting in the top half of the standings.
Oh, keep in mind there’s a Wednesday game this week, so picks will need to be in early.
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Filed November 7, 2004 at November 7, 2004 @ 1:46 pm under A pirates life/Jawwja and Masturbation without representation by rusty
Wow, our pal Sid raises an incredible point.
Rushing to court and having amendment #1 declared unconstitutional (because of the multi-topic issue that does make it unconstitutional under Georgia law in my opinion), could help, as noted in the title to my 10-28-04 post, Sonny Boy to lose the battle (in court) and win the war (a second term as Governor).
While my local readers are generally going to agree Amendment 1 (define marriage as between man and a woman) is stupid and wrong, it’s not as if it will cause much to change around here anytime soon (Coca Cola already said it won’t drop its same sex partner benefits, etc.). What would the Republicans do if we just let this one float for now and it wasn’t a campaign issue in 2006? Without these divisive social wedge issues to run on, the Republicans here have no record to speak of. Besides, as Sid wrote, there’s no statute of limitations to have an amendment declared unconstitutional. So we can fix it later.
Instead of fighting against Republican issues, it’s long past time to start fighting for Democratic issues. Put them on the defensive.
Filed November 5, 2004 at November 5, 2004 @ 1:32 pm under A pirates life/Jawwja and Masturbation without representation by rusty
First of all, David and some of the other local Georgia bloggers are going to start a political action committee which will focus on raising money and awareness for 10 Georgia House races.
…what we need is a new PAC that will focus on retaking the Georgia house in 2006 by selecting “Ten House Seats” that are all close and seeking 200 [supporters], “asking each to donate $200 and 20 hours. That would mean $40,000, or enough to donate the maximum $2,000 per candidate in both the primary and general elections, for a total of $4,000 for each candidate.”
I plan to help with the group’s website, in addition to committing time and money. Taking back the state House should absolutely be the primary focus for 2006 because it’s an attainable goal. Also, Governor Purdue is vulnerable in 2006, though he will be stronger then than he is now.
Remember, Georgia voted for Clinton in both 1992 and 1996. With strong candidates and a honed message we can make this a two-party state again. That means, to filch a phrase from the vapid mainstream media, going on offense. Saying “this is the wrong course of action” isn’t good enough. Our candidates will have to start finishing their sentences. “This is the wrong course of action, and this is the alternate solution I/we am offering.” Even at the cost of sacrificing an election or two, a consistent and modern long-term platform needs to be formulated and aggressively promoted. We need to completely reevaluate what’s important and why we want to promote it, because living on the legacy of FDR and LBJ’s ideas from decades ago has been a recipe for failure.
At the same time, while we can’t ever lose sight of the metro Atlanta area, appeals must, MUST be made to rural Georgians, who have all but abandoned the Democratic Party. That means finding out what’s important to them — something I believe the current leadership has lost sight of. For instance, I was off the mark with my rant against the Religious Right yesterday. Our course of action should be the opposite of what I said. We have to convince Georgia Christians that progressive values are more in line with the teachings of Jesus than conservative values are. And guess what? We don’t have to lie to do that.
This is only a start. In light of my hosting troubles, I’m thinking of killing my pirate blog and starting a more “serious” blog. I’ve lost all sense of humor when it comes to politics. Political blogs are a dime a dozen these days, but most are focused nationally. There’s still room for those with a state-centric focus.
We’ve been sitting in a two-back zone defense for too long. It’s time to stack eight on the line and strip the ball from their grubby little palms. Oskie!
“Always Remember that Goliath was a 40-point favorite over little David.”
- Shug Jordan, Auburn Tigers football coach 1951-1975
Filed November 4, 2004 at November 4, 2004 @ 9:30 pm under For love of the shame by
This Louisville-Memphis game is absurd. 28-27 with almost five minutes left=
in the half.
Filed at November 4, 2004 @ 4:46 pm under Geek speak/Website crap by rusty
Finally, an explanation from Bloghosts for why my service has sucked lately.
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Filed at November 4, 2004 @ 12:49 pm under A pirates life/Jawwja and Masturbation without representation by rusty
The results of this election put an exclamation point on what, to date, has been a miserable year for me. But it’s not the reason for my miserable year. Brass tacks is it’s time for me to get over my own bullshit. I reserve the right to wallow in despondency for the rest of this week, but that won’t be reflected here.
Next week will be time to stick a tampon in and keep moving. We need to decide on a better way to bring the fight to these motherfuckers. The motherfuckers in question are the Religious Right and anyone who would attempt to impose moral standards on the rest of the country through legislation; and on those who are unwilling to honor the principles of democracy. Right now, that includes most Republicans (excluding, for instance, people like state Rep. Jill Chambers, who is a sincere conservative and a fine representative of the loyal opposition this country would be better-served with in its politicians). Mark over at Voices in My Head wrote a better call-to-arms than I’d be able to right now:
I declare war on the Religious Right and all of those who believe they have the right to legislate the behavior of others. I repudiate your sanctimonious world view and your seething hatred of all that is different. I see you as ignorant, slobbering thugs, whose hearts are filled with [prejudice] and arrogance. More of you than of us voted in this recent election, but that doesn’t mean I have to concede my daughter’s future happiness and free choice to your ignorant, pulpit-based policies.
I intend to fight you. I choose to believe that America can be saved and I intend to free this great nation from your cold, dead hands, even if I have to saw through your fingers to do it.
Actually, there are a lot of other motherfuckers who need targets on their backs as well. And in the coming weeks we’ll narrow it down to which motherfuckers need to be fought the most along with the Religious Right, and aim our wrath at them. House needs to be cleaned within both the local and national Democratic Party. Current leadership has failed us. That means Terry McCullough. That means Bobby Kahn. Popular mandate took care of Tom Daschle. That will be a start, but not anywhere near the end.
On that note, I don’t give a fuck whether this war is waged under the flag of the Democratic Party, the Whigs, the Torries, the Bull Mooses, or whatever bullshit label we need to come up with. And make no mistake, we need labels and slogans and, generally, an organized campaign of propaganda. Give the Republicans their due for being much better at that than we have been.
There can be no uncertainty about what we stand for and why it’s right. There can be no more pandering and waffling. The people we put up there have to be sincere and tough and ready to get their hands dirty to scrap with these motherfuckers. They need backbone, and they need to be ruthless. No more political correctness. No more euphemisms.
Here’s some good news. The self-righteous law and order element of the Baby Boomers that elected George W. Bush are yucking it up right now, but they’re going to die sooner or later. Then the country will be left in our hands. Their wedge issues and religious indoctrination and name-calling mean nothing to us. The next 15 or 20 years may be theirs for all I know, but we’ll repeal their legacy when the time is right. Then they’ll be nothing but a historical footnote, like Senator McCarthy and the idiots who pushed alcohol prohibition. Your days are numbered, you bastards.
There is room for both conservative and liberal viewpoints in this country, as well as for a million other viewpoints that could be labeled a million different ways. The strength of this country has always been the ability of one group of yahoos to keep the other group of yahoos in check. But make no mistake: if we’re going to restore that order, we’ll have to do so by picking sides for the foreseeable future.
Filed November 3, 2004 at November 3, 2004 @ 7:31 am under A pirates life and A pirates life/Jawwja and Masturbation without representation by rusty
I met a couple of local bloggers, so I guess the night wasn’t a total wash. Regardless of how the final count comes out — and it doesn’t look good for my guy, though fuck CNN for pushing Andy Card standing up there and claiming victory when the totals aren’t in — the last two years have been like slowly driving a nail into my head. Every day brought me closer to a full lobotomy. I only hope my more cynical friends are right not to take this stuff seriously, because there are a lot of scary scenarios playing in my head right now. I was a pill to be around tonight because of my paranoia, and for that I apologize.
Lush was right that with a better candidate this should have been a walk. I’m not sure anybody from the primaries was that better candidate though. It’s not like the Republicans had a good candidate either, but they did have an effective one. People bought into that horseshit Christian cowboy image hook, line, and sinker.
I’m turning my television, cell phone, and computer off for most of the day today. I think it’s probably time to think of something better to preoccupy myself with than politics, and not just this afternoon.
Then again, I might be talking out of my ass. It’s the best action around, and after removing myself from it for a few weeks or months I might feel different. And, hey, if one party government is inevitable, at least those loose Republican gun laws will let me stock up an arsenal for the revolution that will surely follow.
Shit, maybe this whole election was orchestrated by the gun industry to boost sales.
Filed November 2, 2004 at November 2, 2004 @ 5:08 pm under A pirates life/Jawwja and Masturbation without representation and A pirates life/Phone camera zaniness by rusty
…but post yet another photo of my dog Sophie, who rules:
Oh, and get blitzed with a bunch of Dems downtown as the election results come in.
Filed at November 2, 2004 @ 1:57 pm under A pirates life/Phone camera zaniness by rusty
Maybe this sign will give you a feel for the prevailing attitudes in my neck of the woods:
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