5 conclusions taken from the day.. so far

By Steve Pessah

1. there’s a reason why a lot of people don’t read/watch the news nowadays (myself included). today’s headlines in the new york times shows you why:

An Ultimatum for Carmakers from Obama

Auto Problems Drag Wall Street Down; Dow Falls 254 Points

Wagoner Retains His Optimism as He Bows Out

12 Killed as Gunmen Storm Police School in Pakistan

Martinsville, Va., a Potential Racing Hub, Shifts Gears

Colleges Accepting More Students Who Can Pay Full Fare

Legal Group’s Neutrality is Challenged

Google Plans to Offer Free Downloads in China (a service it does not offer anywhere else in the world.. thanks google.)

none of these headlines are positive (bold words highlight negative words in headlines). nobody wants to sit around the breakfast table, office cubicle, or their cozy couch reading news that will depress their spirits. in times like these, we should start hearing positive things in the news.

2. lids has an awesome machine in their store that embroiders letters on your hat. weird thing is, the guy used a floppy disk to exchange data… i thought floppy disks were extinct?

3. eastbound & down saved the world from the loss of summer heights high. but now that’s gone too. i’ve seen bits and pieces of the life & times of tim, and i’m very impressed. the show is produced by steve dildarian (created the “Budweiser Lizards” campaign), tom werner (that 70’s show, the cosby show), and jimmy miller (talladega nights and borat). it’s caught so much attention that hbo has renewed it for a second season. the life and times of time throws you into the life of a young, self-conscious new yorker who just can’t avoid awkward situations.

4. once you lose 3 of your final four teams and obviously can’t win (thanks pitt for blowing it, again), your love for college basketball and march madness disappears. but even worse, the pain stings for eternity.

5. there is an inhumane amount of garbage on tv. all i see is “reality” shows and cameras following the lives of people because their lives are just so crazy (husband and wife who have 8 kids, little people and tall people, run’s house). i’ve figured there are only a handful of channels you can really trust: espn – you can’t go wrong with sports 24 hours a day/7 days a week. comedy central – for some of the garbage they have, shows like the daily show, the colbert report, and south park make this a must-see station (the roasts are hilarious as well). then comes tnt, usa, and tbs. i’d say 80% of the time, they have either great movies on, or great shows like everybody loves raymond, seinfeld, or friends (yes, friends is a great show. you cannot deny it).

D’oh-Bama

By Brian Stelter
October 2, 2008
The Caucus – The New York Times Politics Blog

Even Homer Simpson is a partisan now.

In an episode scheduled to premiere on Nov. 2, two days before the presidential election, Mr. Simpson, the dim-witted star of the animated comedy “The Simpsons,” tries to vote for Barack Obama.

In the 20 years that “The Simpsons” has appeared on Fox, politics has frequently been a subject on the show. Homer Simpson has campaigned for candidates — including Ralph Wiggum, a second-grader, and his boss Mr. Burns — and has even run for elected office himself. Former presidents have even made “guest appearances.” But this is Homer’s first vote in a presidential general election.

“It’s time for a change,” the character tells an electronic voting machine. But, in a humorous take on the allegations of voter fraud that have occurred in prior elections, the machine records the vote (multiple votes, actually) for John McCain, then tries to swallow Homer when he disagrees.

“This doesn’t happen in America,” the character exclaims. “Maybe Ohio, but not in America!”

The scene emerged on the Internet this week, leading some Web sites to take it as a political endorsement. But the program said it isn’t trying to make a political statement. “We’re clowns at the fringe of the party,” Jim Brooks, an executive producer of “The Simpsons,” said at a telephone interview Thursday.

So what are viewers to make of the voting scene and the Web reaction? “Let it be a Rorschach test,” Mr. Brooks said.

Some viewers didn’t laugh at the clip. A blogger for NewsBusters, a conservative site that monitors the media, criticized the show’s attitude that only Republicans engage in “vote fraud when the Democrats perpetrate such activity on a mass scale.” (Perhaps Peter Griffin, the heavy-set star of “Family Guy,” will vote for Mr. McCain.)

“We try to satirize society,” Al Jean, a writer on the show, said. “I think there are people — not everyone — who believe that the voting process, especially with electronic voting machines, is suspect, so that’s what we’re satirizing.”

The video was posted Monday on YouTube by a user named “deebold08,” perhaps a play on the name Diebold, which was once the name of a leading provider of voting machines. Was the anonymous person who uploaded the clip trying to highlight voter fraud allegations, or perhaps trying to criticize Homer’s endorsement? Mr. Brooks doesn’t know. But, he said, “it’s not a bad promo for our Halloween show.”