The Las Vegas Metaphor

David Sirota is the latest essayist to employ Las Vegas as a metaphor. He is right that Las Vegas is a mirror. As a community, it reflects the both the best and worst of our our nation. However, Sirota does no better than most who have come before him in understanding the city and why, as he puts it, "we all live in Las Vegas now." Vegas simply cannot be absorbed in three days and explained in 500 words.


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One can read Sirota's essay and surmise his visit to "Sin City." One of his flights came to or from the east in the daytime because he saw Lake Mead and its ever-growing bathtub ring, caused by the Colorado River's mineral-laden hard water. Given his complaints about the lighting, his room must have faced The Strip. He did not visit the buffets or showrooms, but did walk a few casino floors. He must not be getting press releases anymore, because Vegas abandoned the family-friendly, Disneyland marketing plan nearly 10 years ago. (Most of MGM's theme park is now condominium towers.)

Fundamentally, Sirota doesn't understand that the energy that runs Las Vegas comes not from coal or Hoover Dam, but imagination. Vegas allows its inhabitants -- both residents and visitors -- to pursue their dreams, desires, hopes, fears. However, Sirota begins to articulate the questions many wonder about Las Vegas. Can hoped-for dreams become sustainable realities? Can we reconcile our individual desires with collective goods?

Las Vegas embodies the paradox of the traditional American narrative. Sin City rebukes the Puritan values of hard work, moral conduct, and conservation in favor of leisure, hedonism, and decadence. Sirota notes that excess is not unique to Las Vegas, though he fails to see the problem of a well-lit Times Square. Even as we enter an Age of the Finite (as Sirota says), perhaps the solution is to repent: not from Sin City, but from beliving in the dichotomy. Together we must find the Golden Mean and live in moderation.

Ice formations

Two great links today.

NHL has a live webcam at Wrigley Field, host of the Winter Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks. Watch ice (and a hockey rink) grow!

Earlier this week, the Columbus Dispatch had a great article about how ice is made and what makes it so...icy.

Finally, here's a timelapse of the ice being made at Nationwide Arena, home of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

2008: Year in Review

Smileycue wrote this for our annual holiday letter. Since we don't have everyone's address, we're posting it here. Enjoy!



Hello! Merry Christmas! We are always looking for unique Christmas letter ideas. This year we decided to keep a journal of events as they happened to us. Here are some of the more interesting things.

Friday, December 28, 2007…We are worried about Pakistan. Our international student, Ahsan, flew home over break, and their prime minister, Benazir Bhutto has just been shot. Hopefully Ahsan makes it back to Grinnell okay.

Thursday, January 3, 2008…We experienced our first caucus. We registered, went into a school gym, found our group and waited to be counted. Our group was not viable so we moved to a new group, and got new stickers. Dan signed up to be a delegate to the county convention.

Sunday, January 13…Last night Dan had an alumni event in Kansas City and Sara got to go along. The hotel where we are staying is hosting a Highland bagpipe/drum convention. On the way to breakfast this morning we passed by “Bagpiping 101.” Sara thinks she should go. Imagine a Dutch girl using an Irish name to play with Scots. “Got Kilt?”

Thursday, January 17…We are poor gerbil sitters. We were watching Miss Ian, a student’s gerbil, over the semester break. Yesterday when Sara left for school, Miss Ian was sleeping in a very cute position. When Sara got home the gerbil was still sleeping that way. Together, we determined that she died. We called the student and Sara made a casket for Miss Ian, which is now in our freezer awaiting Spring so we can bury the gerbil. In other news, we have a tenant in our condo in Vegas!

Saturday, February 23…Sara drove Jim the truck to school on Valentine’s Day while Dan was on week two of “Thesis Vacation” trying to finish up his thesis so he can graduate. Sara went in the ditch on the way home, and when she called Dan to see what she should do, he said, “I’ll see you at home.” So, she caught a ride with someone who stopped to see if she was okay. Lesson learned: don’t interrupt Dan when he is almost finished with his thesis.

Sunday, March 16…Sara finally got an email this week telling her that she will be offered a contract at Pella Christian Grade School for next year, but Sara won’t be teaching all of the bands. Given all that’s happened, she’ll turn in her resignation Thursday morning.

Tuesday, April 15…Dan’s thesis has been approved! Sara wishes we could go to graduation but we are going to Orange City with her marching band instead. He will receive a Masters in Journalism and Media Studies (talking a lot) from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Monday, April 28…Sara had two coffees before 8:30 this morning! Last Saturday Dan and Sara’s mom built a shed for our bikes. It looks like a zamboni.

Tuesday, May 6…Pella Tulip Time is over. Sara was in four parades. The band looked and sounded good, and it was nice to see family and people from our church in Grinnell there offering support. It is finally nice enough to go biking, and yesterday we even got a round of disc golf in.

Wednesday, May 21…We’ve almost recovered from Orange City. The kids did a great job, and got 2nd place and People’s Choice. The band got several compliments. It was fun having Joe and Katie Hoksbergen (thanks cousin and wife!) chaperone. Now Sara can give her Dutch costume back. Monday we went to the Grinnell’s commencement exercises to watch Jose, our international student from Paraguay, graduate.

Monday, June 9…We’ve survived! School and reunion are over, and we are catching up on the sleep we lost due to work and watching the Stanley Cup playoffs. We headed to Galena, Illinois for our 4th anniversary. A Grinnell alumnus invited us to visit, luring us with an offer to boat on the Mississippi. At one point during our boat ride we stopped on the Galena River. Dan decided to get off of the boat, and sunk to his knees in mud. We threw a rope so he could be pulled out of the mud, and he had to dig his shoes out. We were not thrilled with cleaning the mud out of everything.

Sunday, June 16…We’ve gotten several calls from friends around the country to make sure we aren’t in the midst of the flooding they see on TV. We assure them we are high and dry. We have been glued to the flood coverage by channel 9 out of Cedar Rapids, and have become fans of anchor Beth Malicki, who says whatever is on her mind, even if it lacks the gravitas of TV news. Iowa City looks like a war zone.

Monday, July 14…We had a great week at camp. Last year was very emotional and this year was more joyous. Sara slept all day Saturday when we got back.

Thursday, July 17…It turns our Sara is pregnant. Babycue is due on St. Patrick’s Day.

Tuesday, August 5…We just got back from meeting our friends Dan and Jenn in St. Louis for the weekend. We went to a Cardinals game and watched the Phillies win, and we toured Anheuser-Busch. It turns out Sara is allergic to prenatal vitamins because they are made with soy and soy makes her violently ill. Soy is in everything, and sometimes it uses different names, like mono and diglycerides, Vitamin E, or lecithin, making it harder to identify.

Monday, August 11…Our goal this week is to clean the house before Dan gets crazy busy with alumni events. But between exhaustion, nausea, and the Olympics, we aren’t getting much done. The Olympics are addicting. Sara got a job teaching music at a daycare one day a week. The pay is great, and Sara only has to do 7 classes in 4 hours, babies through preschool. Sara has also picked up several piano students.

Tuesday, August 26…Last week we met Aanchal, our international student from India. We did some serious new student shopping with her and her mom. Aanchal is very sweet.

Friday, September 12…The best part about the baby’s heartbeat is the ostinato it makes with Sara’s! In other news, Sara is a milk fiend, drinking two to three gallons a week now. Dan is officiating his first football game in Iowa tonight, and then flying to Indianapolis tomorrow to watch motorcycle races with his dad and brother. Happy Birthday Dan!

Saturday, September 27…Miss Ian, the gerbil, has been buried.

Thursday, October 23…Today we saw Babycue on the ultrasound, and it stuck its tongue out at us.

Thursday, November 6…Monday night we made cookies and took some to both the local Republican and Democrat headquarters. It was interesting to see how they reacted to us.

Tuesday, November 18…We played with the Grinnell Symphony Orchestra; Dan on cello and Sara loved playing bass drum! Babycue loves Verdi.

Tuesday, December 2…Sara was offered a job teaching music at Central Iowa Christian School today. It adds three more mornings to her week, but she’s excited to do it. We had a great Thanksgiving with an eclectic group. This week the college students will come over and do our Christmas decorations.

May your Christmas season be blessed, as well as your 2009.

Rivalries, scheduling, and fantasy sports

Nice write-up about NY-NJ rivalry games by Puck the Media.

The post reminds me of a second reason why football/baseball may have traction where hockey does not. Fantasy sports. Perhaps it’s the way each sport allows its fans to participate in the game through fantasy sports. Both football and baseball have a relatively clear schedule. The NFL is on Sundays. And Mondays. And Thursdays. Major League Baseball is played every day, except for the occasional Monday and Thursday. The NHL? Well…you see…

What if the NHL adopted a three night system, say Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday? An 82 game schedule could be played in 27 weeks. Toss in a few extra gamedays (New Year’s Day, Canadian Thanksgiving), and the schedule would fit within the current October-early April season. Game promotion would be more straightforward and fantasy leagues would not be subject to the occasional weeklong lull.

This idea needs some fleshing out, of course, but what are your thoughts? What are your thoughts about "NHL days?"

Proposition 8: the Musical

Before watching the movie, here's a little context:

In California, Proposition 8 passed during the election last month. A state constitutional amendment, according to the Secretary of State's website, Proposition 8:

• Changes the California Constitution to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry in California.
• Provides that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.

Regardless of your personal feelings about the proposition and its passage, I hope you find humor in the video below:

"Prop 8 - The Musical" starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, and many more... by Jack Black

2008 list of lists

Fimoculous offers a list of 2008 end-of-year lists. Fantastic!

(h/t to Will Leitch.)

Pop music explained

Marc Haynes summarizes 50 years of pop music with variations on a theme: "I want to do it."

Election Day coverage, in two minutes

I hope this will be the final election day post for Dannation.

Coming attractions: more interesting videos, articles, and other tidbits; satire; hockey; and anything else that merits mention.

Get the latest news satire and funny videos at 236.com.

(h/t to Paul Lukas at UniWatch for the tip.)

Wait until he learns the wave...

Jean-Claude Van Damme has a sense of humor

This summer brought the funny satire Tropic Thunder. Now, Jean-Claude Van Damme shows his lighter side in JCVD. I wonder how NPH feels about this.

Fun with maps!

Election maps, of course. The New York Times has an interactive map, while Mark Newman plays with cartograms, a map redrawn with both population and geography in mind.

(h/t to Andrew Sullivan and Matthew Yglesias for the tips.)

Yes, newspapers are still relevant...

...both here and abroad.

(Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the tip.)

Election night news highlights

Fox News' Shep Smith - aka anchor David Bowie - interviews Ralph Nader. I am not making this up.



Also, the correspondents of The Daily Show worry that they have nothing left to report:

The Morning After

This still doesn't seem real. Barack Obama will be our president. Read that aloud. My heart still flutters. My eyes still get misty. Wow.

Last night, Mrs. Nation and I watched the election returns with our friends, Dave and Julie. It was an impromptu party spurred by moving in new, stylish couches. After watching the concession and acceptance speeches, Dave and I got to business. As we carried one of the old couches to our truck (thanks again, Dave and Julie!), we could hear celebration. Sure enough, Grinnell College students were cheering, even setting off fireworks. We decided to drive downtown (God bless Main Street) and found a group of 15 people literally dancing in the streets. Once was dancing with his baby. We also drove by the Democratic headquarters, which was dark. Good for them. They earned the night off.

Throughout the day and evening, I checked status updates on Facebook. (Facebook for Mobile: So good. I think I need another fix.) All but one update out of dozens mentioned voting. Last night, most of my friends were elated -- and proud. My first-year roommate from college, however, wanted to move to Mexico.

Once Mrs. Nation and I got into bed, I decided that our unborn child, BabyCue, needed to know. So, I told it the news. I was worried about bringing a child into this world filled with dissention and hate. Now, I feel better.

My sense of hope and joy is tempered by one fear: an Obama assassination. As I started to believe that yes, this could happen, I read a postcard on PostSecret that voiced the deep fear I had. This morning, several co-workers and I revealed our shared fear. Remember that in May 2007, he first received Secret Service protection. Barack, I pray for you, your family, and our country that it does not happen.

PS: Dina Titus won the 3rd Congressional district in Nevada. Congrats, Dina!

Election Day, Post #9

Just watched McCain's concession speech. He showed a dignity and grace that was missing, at times, from his campaign. He has accepted his defeat and will do well being McCain again. I'll write a better explanation of this later this week.

I'll post the text when it becomes available. The only link I could find is this. Oh, snap.

Election Day, Post #8

Barack Hussein Obama will be the 44th president of the United States of America.

That. Just. Happened.

Election Day, Post #7

Only Anderson Cooper would go Star Trek, speaking with the Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am via in-studio hologram. Will.I.Am was at the Obama rally in Chicago, but agreed to be beamed into the studio.

In a related story, Cooper will appear in a remake of T.J Hooker.

Election Day, Post #6

Taking a cue from Star Wars, CNN has a 3-D map of the Capitol with a color-coded senate floor overhead. Red team and Gold team have been dispatched.

Election Day, Post #4

News highlights:

Wow. Lots 'o people in Chicago's Grant Park for Obama.

I love NBC's conversion of the 30 Rock ice rink into a hand-painted electoral map. (NHL, please take note.)

The head anchor of Fox's coverage looks like David Bowie. His eyebrows give him a look of surprise.

More to come.

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device from U.S. Cellular

Election Post #5 (written by Mrs. Nation)

Hello! I am Mrs. Nation. I was asked to write about my voting experiences today. I don't think they were especially unique, but maybe I can shed light on the increase in voter turnout.

About a month ago a nice young lady from the Democratic office stopped by to sign us up for absentee ballots. So we did. The ballots came, and they went into the pile of mail we will look at later, and that was that. But then two weeks ago, another person from the office stopped by and left a note on the door reminding us to fill those out. Dan was also reminded at church by someone who was volunteering to remind people. Dan filled his out. I wanted to push the buttons on the machine, so I did not.

On Saturday, someone stopped by to remind us again to fill those out and send them. Dan said he did and would remind me. On Monday, someone stopped by to remind to me to send in my ballot, and I said I was going to the polling place because I wanted to push the buttons and he didn't need to worry about me. This afternoon, seconds after I got home from work and was heating up lunch, someone stopped by, and I told them I was going to vote after my doctor appointment, and that I knew I had to take my absentee ballot with me and surrender it so I could vote.

So, that is was I did. I had to sign the ballot and write "Spoiled" on it. Then I filled out a form, and got ready to press the buttons, when I was told there were no buttons. There were only paper ballots, and I had to take my ballot to a station, use the felt tip marker, and fill in the dots. I was so disappointed. No buttons?!? So I filled in the dots with the marker, and took it to the scantron lady, who wouldn't even touch the ballot. She made me run it through the scantron.

Later this afternoon I was teaching a piano lesson when yet another person knocked on the door to remind me to vote. I told her I did an hour ago, and she was content with that and left.

I called my mom to tell her how disappointed I was about the scantron and she said the same thing happened to her, but she didn't get to scan her own, and was sad that she had to hand it to someone to scan for her. By the way, there were only about 10 people voting when I was there, and 3 in line, and my mom said at her polling station she was the only person.

At least I got to vote, right? Too bad they didn't have "I voted" stickers.

Election Day, post #3

Do you know when your polls close?

(h/t to Andrew Sullivan.)

Election Day post #2

Free stuff. For voting!

Google is tracking this, too. "free stuff for voting" is on fire.

Election eve

The night before the election, Mrs. Nation and I decided to be good neighbors. We baked cookies and delivered them to the local Republican and Democratic headquarters. We packaged up two plates of cookies and walked downtown. We visited the Republicans first, about 9 p.m. In a lot illuminated only by the office lights, we saw three vehicles – two pickup trucks and a sedan. Inside, three campaign workers greeted us with a degree of surprise – and a cardboard cutout of Ronald Reagan.



They seemed to be craving an audience and we spent the next thirty minutes politely listening and answering questions. Mrs. Nation fielded the always dangerous abortion question, while I addressed questions about immigration, taxes, and socialism. The tenor of our dialogue was America is Changing, and that is Bad. With the Fox News Channel playing in the background, we had become a sounding board for their frustrations about an impending electoral loss.

While we discussed Obama and Palin, McCain’s name never came up. One worker, adorned in a “Read my lips – elect Palin” t-shirt, asked what I thought about Palin. “She has charisma,” I answered. “She’s personality-plus.” The worker then read notes from a Subway napkin about Palin’s experience versus Obama’s. (Did you know that Sarah Palin has a higher security clearance than Barack Obama?) Palin was clearly the draw for these staffers: they had met Palin and had a sign she had autographed hanging in the middle of the back wall of the main room.

After taking a few pictures, we parted company with the Republicans and headed to the Democrats’ office. The room exuded a cool confidence: we found a relaxed, focused group of campaign workers (at least 10) and a table full of Obama materials. They greeted us with a little skepticism – after all, we had just come from the Republican office – but were excited about the cookies. Some campaign workers continued to work in back rooms, two workers stepped out for a smoke break and two others relaxed on a well-worn, dated sectional couch. Three different workers recognized us: one was a colleague from my office, another had met me at the district convention, and the third had just visited our house earlier in the day, reminding us to vote.

Conclusions? In this Jewel of the Prairie, in a little gem of a state (as Molly from Bittersweet likes to say), Obama can take a victory lap. Yes, he can. The local Republican campaign workers are rightly worried about Democratic control of the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives. However, the Democrats would be foolish to interpret their victories as a mandate. The past two elections have served as de facto referenda of poor leadership in our federal government. Before those about to assume power begin to act on any perceived mandate, they must begin to restore the checks and balances that have made our government the envy of the world. Let us hope and pray that our leaders can institute solutions that will begin to heal our nation’s wounds.

I sent in my ballot Thursday. Some people have complained about the cost of elections and the amount of work it takes. To them, I say: it is the cost of freedom, the dues for democracy.

One final thought: I find it interesting that people - including me - have taken pictures of their ballots. Why is this? Perhaps we want to document our votes for posterity?

ANNOUNCEMENT: Election night live blog tomorrow!

Dannation will blog about the election tomorrow.

Here are some quick election observations and thoughts:

- While it's no surprise that Andrew Sullivan has endorsed Obama, he has eloquently interpreted the political situation that makes Obama better suited to be president. The next four years will likely be difficult for our nation - wars, foreign policy, restoring the Constitution at home, restoring our reputation abroad.

Part of the reason why Obama is better suited is expressed by hilzoy. Obama has demonstrated composure and restraint in comparison to McCain's reactionary moves. Our nation has been well-served by acting with the long-term in mind, and we need a leader who acts with our future in mind. As Sullivan states:

The truth is: we are in a war for the future of human civilization. We are fighting for a world in which destructive technology need not collide with fierce religious fundamentalism to annihilate us all; for a world in which dialogue across cultures and religions and regions (even within America) is essential if we are to survive. We need to win the argument in the developing world; we need to reach out and persuade the Muslim middle - especially the next generation in Iran and Iraq and Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and Turkey and Western Europe - about the virtues of democracy and constitutionalism. We cannot do that if we trash our own values ourselves. It is self-defeating. We cannot be a beacon to the world until we have reformed ourselves.

- Self-effacing McCain is better than Attack McCain. On Saturday Night Live, His mock QVC informercial with Sarah Palin impersonator Tina Fey was even more hilarious than Amy Poehler's Palin rap. James Fallows interprets McCain's SNL appearance as a sign of McCain's electoral concession. Here are the clips:

Informercial:


Palin rap:


- Sullivan's analysis of Obama from December 2007 is also worth reading.

- 538: Best. Election. Analysis. Someone buy those boys a round, please.

- Saying things with periods: Biggest. Cliche. Ever.

Peanut Butter Cups

Friends of Dannation know our feelings about the marriage of chocolate and peanut butter. (Hint: Mmmm.) Naturally, for Hallowe'en I handed out Reese's Peanut Butter Cups - the regular-sized ones. I may have checked a few for quality assurance. Today, I realized the packaging changed. While the deliciousness remains in the familiar brown cup, the packaging has changed. Gone is the white cardboard square and the sealed wrapper, in favor of the tear-on-the-side plastic. (I had to eat several to notice the change.)

It is a good change because there is less waste, but the experience of opening a Reese's has changed. Part of enjoying a Reese's was peeling the wrapper of the bottom, akin to opening a package. Oh, the anticipation. Imagine the experience of a Tootsie Roll with out untwisting the wrapper? Or a Dum-Dum lollipop without a stick?

I need something to comfort me as I recover from the shock. I think I'll have another Reese's.

Opie, Andy, Richie, and the Fonz want you to vote, too.

Brilliant, but Ron Howard is far too cavalier with his toupees.

World Exclusive: Dannation election endorsements

My grandfather once said that the most important elections are for judges, because they are the ones who will interpret the law. As I sat down with my early ballot this week, I tried to find information about my judges here in Iowa and found nothing on the websites of the Des Moines Register, Iowa City Press-Citizen, or The Cedar Rapids Gazette. Nothing. Was there anything out there on these officials?

As it turns out, I have a co-worker who is also on the county democratic party. He suggested visiting the Iowa Bar Association for their recommendations. Success! The Iowa Judicial Branch also provides a voter guide about the judical candidates.

One other idea: in Nevada, Clark County would send out sample ballots prior to each election with the candidates up for each elected office, plus the propositions and tax levies up for vote. Simple. Brilliant. Iowa, can we do this?

On to other election news...

So, what is the Dannation endorsement? Dannation endorses...voting. Making your voice heard. Engaging in the process. Our nation is a body, democracy is work, and each of us are muscles - please flex November 4, if you haven't already. Your fellow Americans cannot bear your inaction any longer. Your nation needs your participation.

"Throw the Blackberry away and enjoy life"

So what happens when you cash your chips in on Wall Street? You write a letter announcing that you and your winnings are leaving town.

Andrew Ladhe, who had an 870 percent gain in 2007 (according to New York magazine), has retired from the capital management business. In these uncertain times, it's nice to have perspective:

Moreover, I will let others try to amass nine, ten or eleven figure net worths. Meanwhile, their lives suck. Appointments back to back, booked solid for the next three months, they look forward to their two week vacation in January during which they will likely be glued to their Blackberries or other such devices. What is the point? They will all be forgotten in fifty years anyway. Steve Balmer, Steven Cohen, and Larry Ellison will all be forgotten. I do not understand the legacy thing. Nearly everyone will be forgotten. Give up on leaving your mark. Throw the Blackberry away and enjoy life.

Ladhe also suggests more philosophy and reintroducing hemp as a commodity.

Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the tip.

Big news

Visit here for the details.

Metablog

Andrew Sullivan attempts to define blogging as a medium:

But a blog, unlike a diary, is instantly public. It transforms this most personal and retrospective of forms into a painfully public and immediate one. It combines the confessional genre with the log form and exposes the author in a manner no author has ever been exposed before.

True. Blogs are instant, but not immediate. They are revelatory, but not always relevant. They allow for communication, but not dialogue. Allow me to explain.

A blog allows anyone with access to a computer and internet connection to post anything about anything, but that post is mediated: that is, the post is communicated through the medium of the blog. In a sense, the post waits for its audience to read it. Some audience members may respond through other media (comments, email, etc.) to react by communicating with others or responding to the author of the post. All of that communication is mediated; the blog allows anyone to track what is communicated within the blog.

The blogosphere may, in fact, be the least veiled of any forum in which a writer dares to express himself. Even the most careful and self-aware blogger will reveal more about himself than he wants to in a few unguarded sentences and publish them before he has the sense to hit Delete. The wise panic that can paralyze a writer—the fear that he will be exposed, undone, humiliated—is not available to a blogger. You can’t have blogger’s block. You have to express yourself now, while your emotions roil, while your temper flares, while your humor lasts. You can try to hide yourself from real scrutiny, and the exposure it demands, but it’s hard. And that’s what makes blogging as a form stand out: it is rich in personality. The faux intimacy of the Web experience, the closeness of the e-mail and the instant message, seeps through.

A blogger continually reveals in one's blog. The revelations are often responses to experiences, feelings, observations, ideas about what the blogger has sensed or thought. Often, these revelations, while important for the blogger, are not always important for the blogger's audience. They may create a faux sense of connectedness by mediating what is sensed or thought.

To blog is therefore to let go of your writing in a way, to hold it at arm’s length, open it to scrutiny, allow it to float in the ether for a while, and to let others, as Montaigne did, pivot you toward relative truth. A blogger will notice this almost immediately upon starting. Some e-mailers, unsurprisingly, know more about a subject than the blogger does. They will send links, stories, and facts, challenging the blogger’s view of the world, sometimes outright refuting it, but more frequently adding context and nuance and complexity to an idea. The role of a blogger is not to defend against this but to embrace it. He is similar in this way to the host of a dinner party. He can provoke discussion or take a position, even passionately, but he also must create an atmosphere in which others want to participate.

Finally, while bloggers communicate, they do not engage in dialogue through their blog. Meaning is imparted, ideas are shared, but the dialogue of the dinner party does not take place. Where is the eye contact? Where is the intentional silence? As Sullivan writes, "the key to understanding a blog is to realize that it’s a broadcast, not a publication." Bloggers and their audiences are, in a sense, talking past each other.

The instanaity of blogging and social networking comes up often in my work. Our constituents are passionate, vocal, and honest. Between blogging, Facebook, and other online communication, we can hear what people are saying. Not all of it is pleasant, and that troubles some of my colleagues. I believe that we must look deeper than words or even meaning to understand "what" our constituents are saying. For example a complaint about the food at an event is not really a complaint the food at that event. Really, the complainer is saying, "This matters to me." Before blogs, the person may have said their complaint, but the barriers to communication were too high to broadcast it. Now, this person can broadcast their complaint on a blog, Twitter, or Facebook, and we can hear it. This is a fantastic step forward in building relationships with our constituents.

The human unit is not a single person. We crave immediate interaction. Let us accept that blogging is a facsimile for authetic, immediate communication.

Political polls, explained

Nate at 538 has explained the merits of the various political polls.

Smashing Pumpkins

October Math: 2 giant pumpkins + crane + abandoned Ford Probe = awesome.



(Thanks to Dave Barry for the tip and Billy Corgan for the title. Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage.)

Diagramming Palinisms

Kitty Burns Florey at Slate diagrams Sarah Palin soundbites. Rather, Kitty tries to diagram.

I remember diagramming sentences in Mrs. Barnard's 8th grade English class. For a whole-thinking person like me, diagramming a sentence was a great way for me to understand the mechanics of language.

Reading comprehension has always been (and continues to be) a challenge for me. I struggle to find what is being said, focusing instead on the style - wordplay and linguistic tricks. Alliteration and juxtaposition are the shiny objects that distract me from the meaning imparted by a memo.

Recently, I attended a dinner party with guests from several lands who spoke several tongues. The guest of honor, Linda Klepinger Keenan, had given a reading of a memoir she had translated, Beyond Loyalty: The Story of a Kibei, by Minoru Kiyota. Fluent in both Japanese and English, Kiyota wrote in Japanese about his experiences in internment camps during World War II. He asked Keenan to translate his work into English. Other guests had also been published in multiple languages but did not translate their own works.

Other than assignments in Latin class, I had only written in English. I asked them why they did not translate their own works. They explained that each language is unique in how meaning is constructed and imparted. For example, at a Chinese academic conference, a speaker may tell an anecdote and share information leading to a conclusion, a why-this-is-important. Here in the United States, academics expect to hear that why-this-is-important very close to the beginning.

My fascination with wordplay instead of meaning has probably cost me a few A grades, 100 points on the SAT and GRE, and some career advancement. It also gave me a thesis on satire and a sharp wit. Still, I wonder if I am a linguistic foreigner, a naturalized citizen of the English language who has yet to find his mother tongue?

(Thanks to Heather Mac Donald for the tip.)

Nice "handshake"

Video from the end of the 2nd Presidential debate:



I guess this means the Obamas shouldn't expect a Christmas card from the McCains?

(Thanks to Deadspin for the tip.)

Understanding the economy

Here are links to a good listen and good read. NY Times' David Leonhardt explains why we should watch the Standard & Poors 500, not the Dow Jones Industrial Average. He also references a 2003 post by Daniel Gross on the same topic. Basically, the S&P is more representative and accurate in measuring activity than the Dow.

The fabulous radio show This American Life presents "Another Frightening Show about the Economy." Alex Blumberg and NPR's Adam Davidson try to unwrap the current economic situation from the credit crisis to the $700 billion bailout. They speak with businesses, financial and policy analysts, and physicists. This follows another economy explainer from May 10, 2008, "Giant Pool of Money," which talked about the bursting of the real estate bubble and subprime lending. Blumberg and Davidson have also started a daily podcast Planet Money.

(Thanks to Andrew Sullivan and Smileycue for the tips.)

Our next vice president?

Ladies and gentlemen, Alaska governor Sarah Palin.

Part 1:



Part 2:




Click on Part 1 or Part 2 to read the transcript of Katie Couric's interview with Palin.

Also, SNL parodied the interview:



Tina Fey's portrayal of Palin is spot on. The piece is more reenactment than parody until Palin asks for a lifeline. Amy Poehler, as Couric, asks Palin why, "when cornered, you get increasingly adorable."

Good question. I guess we'll find out Thursday.

Hockey Moms for Truth

The real Sarah Palin?



We report. You decide.

PS: You want to know the difference between icing and offsides? Lipstick. Just kidding, it has to do with line color, player position, and the puck. Icing occurs when the puck crosses two red lines. Offsides occurs when an offensive player enters the offensive zone before the puck. You can read the NHL rulebook for the details.

Fake chocolate = mockolate?!

What?!

Hershey's is apparently following the evolutionary steps of the Tootsie Roll, by becoming "chocolate."

Key quote in an article by Laura T. Coffey of NBC's TODAY show:

The removal of cocoa butter violates the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s definition of milk chocolate, so subtle changes have appeared on the labels of the Hershey’s products with altered recipes. Products once labeled “milk chocolate” now say “chocolate candy,” “made with chocolate” or “chocolatey.”

(Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the tip.)

Dirty Sestina

Dirty Sestina would be a great band name. It references the poetic form sestina which features sestets and repeating words. The poem ends with a three line tercet. University of Northern Iowa professor Vince Gotera offers a brief explanation and example of the sestina on his website.

PS: The picture is Sestina flatware, by Oneida.

Training Camp

At long last, the Blue Jackets (and the 29 other teams in the NHL) have begun training camp. Rick Nash will wear the captain's "C" for the CBJ as they head into their eighth season of competition. Thus far, the playoffs have eluded the Blue Jackets. Their shortcomings can be attributed to lack of talent, lack of leadership, and lack of identity. Since the long-overdue firing of deposed president/general manager/coach/dictator-for-life Doug MacLean, new GM Scott Howson and coach Ken Hitchcock have worked to find identity, leadership, and talent for the team.

One subtle area I would like to see the Blue Jackets address is defending their ice in warm-ups. I believe that if the Blue Jackets are to have success this season, they must take pride in their ice. The Blue Jackets must not let the opposition cross Center Ice in warm-ups (a serious affront to The Code). The Blue Jackets must be the last players to leave the ice in warm-ups, especially at home. While this may seem frivolous, defending one's ice and being the last person off the ice speaks to the tenacity of the team.

All summer, I've waited to hear the sounds of skate blades on ice, the clean crack of a stick passing a frozen puck. The puck drops in 18 days. Go Jackets.

NFL Marching Songs

WFMU's Beware of the Blog discovered a record of 13 NFL marching songs. It transferred them to .mp3 format so they can be enjoyed by all on the Interweb. Why 13? That was the number of teams in the NFL in 1960, when the album was produced. It includes my personal favorite, "Hi-O, Hi-O for Cleveland," though who knew that there was a "Football Polka"?

(Thanks to UniWatch for the tip.)

Things I'd like to see made on How It's Made

Binders.
Fireworks.
Hockey pucks.
Baseballs.
Golf balls.
Traffic lights.
Trophies.
Bike helmets.
Flower pots.
Shoelaces.
Shoes.
Reflectors (bikes or highways).
Bungee cords.
Rubber bands.
Condoms.
Socks.
Pantyhose.
Balloons. (But where do they make balloons?)

How It's Made. Best. Show. Ever.

PS: You can share your suggestions for things you'd like to see, too.

Watching ice form, watching paint dry

The University of Michigan has also posted a time-lapse of making the ice at Yost Ice Arena. While Dannation has family and friends who have attended U of M, Dannation bleeds scarlet and gray.

We could post many snide remarks about Michigan here, but Dannation is above name-calling. For example, we would never say, "Ann Arbor is a whore," but it is our duty to point out that the punk rock band The Dead Schembechlers did say just that. (Warning: link has Bad Words suggesting that Michiganders perform certain sexual acts.) We'd also not make a joke asking how many Michigan students it takes to paint the letter M. That's mean spirited, and not what this blog is about.

Election 2008: How not to vote

Stephen Colbert once said that appearing smart is more important that actually be smart. The Onion News Network gives tips on how to pretend that you care about the election:


Today Now!: How To Pretend You [Care] About The Election

(Courtesy of Dave Barry.)

...and that's how ice is made!

AMAZING timelapse of the new ice at Nationwide Arena, home of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

When does the puck drop?

(Tip courtesy of Paul Lukas at UniWatch.)

Will it Blend?

Brilliant. These YouTube videos are the love child of The Late Show's "Will It Float?" and Discovery Channel's How It's Made. The blender makes quick work of hockey pucks, pens, light bulbs, Spam, lighters, and glowsticks. But can it blend Chuck Norris?

Reasons to avoid taxis in Beijing

1. They don't know where they are going. (Dave Barry)
   
2. They think you work for the New York Times and want you to meet their sister. (suggested by Bryce Miller)
   
3. They give you the opportunity to experience Grand Theft Auto in real life:

The Orland Kurtenblog has also collected a series of taxi experiences.

Olympic observations

Mrs. Dannation and I have lost sleep watching the Olympics. NBC has mostly gotten the coverage right. They've hit a good balance with live coverage, tape delay, and human interest stories. The commentators still...well they comment too much. Silence and atmosphere can reveal more insight than stating the obvious.

Other observations:

• Beach volleyball: So the women wear bikinis, and the men don't. No complaints here, but Mrs. Dannation would like to see the men in banana hammocks.
  
• Third member of the broadcast team: This needs to stop. Now. Really, what did Heather Cox "report" courtside? Andrea Kremer has cribbed notes from Jim Gray. Way to make U.S. diver Haley Ishamoto cry. (Links for video of this? I can't seem to search the NBC Olympics site for video clips to see if it's out there.)
• Boxing: Head gear good. Concussions bad.
• Dressage: Riding a horse while wearing a top hat is not a sport. Sorry.
• Gymnastics: Mrs. Dannation is impressed by the gymnasts' buffness. Shawn Johnson will kick your ass, but she may need the assistance of a stepstool.
• Match game: Some athletes fit their ethnic stereotypes. Some do not.
• Bela Karolyi: Big ones, my friend. I refer, of course, to your boots. (Screen shot, anyone?)

Finally, Karolyi had suggested that, perhaps, some Chinese gymnasts were younger than their passports might suggest. The enterprising work of blogger Stryde Hax has revealed that public documents, archived on Google and other web indexing services, have disappeared. The IOC is investigating the matter. (Thanks to Deadspin for the tip.)

For what it's worth, He Kexin's gold medal-winning routine deserves all the superlatives and the medal. However, rules are rules. Sixteen means sixteen, even if you are He Kexin. (The IOC raised the age to 16 in 1997 to combat physical and mental stresses from competition, according to George Johnson.)

Barack: is that a snorkel in your hand, or are you just happy to see me?

We report. You decide.

(Courtesy of Wonkette. Thanks to Dave Barry for the tip.)

Iowa State Fair

U gotta love it when the Iowa State Fair, animals (a snake), and live television (KCCI) collide. In this clip, KCCI weatherman Curtis Gertz is a funny man and a good sport. (sorry, no video embed. Please enjoy a picture of the butter cow instead.)

(Thanks to Dave Barry for the tip.)

Ban August

This is a brilliant idea. August, you bore me. You are a placeholder between the endless sunshine of summer and the perfection that is autumn. You are February with shorts, sweat, sunscreen, and no Federal holidays.

(Thanks to Will Leitch at Deadspin for the suggestion.)

Design-Your-Own Mask

The Vancouver Canucks are inviting their fans to design a mask for their new backup goaltender, veteran Curtis Sanford. (The design page is all flash-driven, hence no cool embed here.) They're opening up the vault on this, giving fans the opportunity to download the goalie mask template and the team logos and colors. Will the winning mask look like this, this, or this?

Thanks to Puck Daddy and Mirtle for revealing this.

The downside of all-nighters.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Chase Sampson of Nashville, Tenn. A bright, handsome college student, Chase hasn't slept a wink since arriving in New York for a taping of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Apparently, not Chase. Skip to the 56-second mark, right after he says "Final answer:"

We here at Dannation empathize. We gave up $10,000 on national television because we were confident that John Hancock was the last signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was not. Chase, I feel your pain. Let's go eat some Pringles.

PS: There's surprisingly little online about NBC's revival of Twenty-One. (Actually, given its short run, I guess it's not that surprising.) LA Business Journal wrote an article in January 2000 and Wikipedia has an accurate, brief outline of the rules.

Iowa flooding update

A friend had emailed, "You are on my mind every time I hear an Iowa flood/tornado story. Are you all right?" I've gotten at least a call about the Iowa flooding everyday. Here's my reply:

We are safe and sound, high and dry here in Grinnell. (The Grinnell townsite was chosen because it is a high point between Davenport and Des Moines.) Our thoughts are with our fellow Iowans along the Iowa, Cedar, Des Moines, and now Mississippi rivers.

Des Moines fared well - one levee breach flooded a neighborhood and some downtown businesses had minor flooding because of storm sewer backups. Increased protection after the 1993 floods spared Des Moines a direct hit.

Cedar Rapids did not fare as well. Cedar Rapids' flood stage is 12', their record was '20, and the forecast crest last week was 24'. The Cedar River crested just under 32'. Most of the business district and many neighborhoods were affected. The news coverage by KCRG ch. 9 was mesmerizing, especially as the water came within a block of their building. Waterloo and Cedar Falls, also on the Cedar, experienced record flooding. Waterloo had a few feet of water in its downtown. Sandbagging in Cedar Falls kept the river from topping the levee protecting downtown.

The Iowa River flows through U of I's campus in Iowa City. The flooding forced closures of 16 buildings on campus including the library, memorial union, and the journalism building. The river crested 9' above flood stage and 3' higher than the 1993 record. Because of the river's path in Iowa City, it will take time for the waters to recede there. Now, as the rivers recede, all of this water is heading downstream. Cities along the Mississippi are experiencing the swell of water.

On father's day, Sara and I drove to see the flooding first hand. The Des Moines River has cut off her family's access to Oskaloosa - a 15 mile drive is now a 40 mile drive because the road they normally drive is under the Des Moines. We took pictures which are online:



[I hope to write more on this blog, too.]

Though the rivers are receding, we're not in the clear. It will take weeks - maybe months - for rivers to stay in their banks and for fields to dry out. Some farmers may not be able to replant this year. We could use a dry summer. Many families and businesses need to clean out homes and offices of floodwater-ruined documents, furniture, and memories. Already, there are websites with info for relief efforts:

http://www.corridorrecovery.org/ (Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Waterloo, Cedar Falls)
http://www.flood2008.iowa.gov/ (Statewide site)

Again, thanks for thinking of me. Keep us - and other Iowans - in your thoughts and prayers. Organize a relief group and come to Iowa!

Iowa flooding

Thanks for the calls and emails. We're fine here in Grinnell, which is a high point between Des Moines and Davenport. (City founder J. B. Grinnell was a wise man.) The situation is more serious in other communities across central and eastern Iowa. Much of the flooding occurred in the three largest watersheds in Iowa - the Des Moines, Iowa, and Cedar. Des Moines, Iowa City, and Cedar Rapids are experiencing 500-year floods, which means that there's a 1-in-500 (0.2%) chance of a flood of this severity. People living within a 100-year floodplain are required to have flood insurance; those living within the 500-year floodplain are not.

Lots of links:
rivergages.com - shows the levels at different points along the rivers and tributaries of Des Moines, Iowa, and Cedar rivers.
National Weather Service, Des Moines office - Shows both current river levels and forecasts. At this time, all three rivers - Des Moines, Iowa, and Cedar - are forecasted to stay above flood stage for the next seven days.
USGS - More river data. Make your own tables and graphs!
Iowa Department of Transportation - Road closures. There are many roads and bridges that have been washed out or remain underwater. They're also posting photos.

The coverage of the flooding by Iowa news media has been mesmerizing. Check out these websites for photos and stories:

Des Moines Register
Waterloo Courier
The Gazette (Cedar Rapids)
Iowa City Press Citizen
KCRG (Cedar Rapids)
KCCI (Des Moines)

Cities have also been posting good information:
City of Des Moines
City of Iowa City
City of Cedar Rapids

Later this week I'll post entries about watching and reading the coverage and other personal experiences with this flooding. In the meantime, here's a photo album of the Des Moines and South Skunk rivers.

Studs Terkel

Studs Terkel turned 96 last month. Fellow Chicagoan Roger Ebert blogged in his honor. It's a good post with many book suggestions and advice for interviewing and conversations, but I liked it most for how Ebert articulates Terkel's philosophy of life:

Life might have taken me in many other directions, but this is the one given me, and if I stop following it, I will have lost my way. [...] The lesson Studs teaches me every day is that to live is to live is to live.

As an aside, this post also explains why Ebert has not returned to his show with Richard Roeper.

Parkersburg, Iowa Tornado

Amazing video of the destructive EF-5 tornado that hit Parkersburg, Iowa on May 25, 2008.

Multiple cameras inside a bank:


An external bank camera on a house across the street: