look what Santa brought! (j/k, oh how i wish!)

The Holy Grail, slightly creased.

I got this ahead of publuication date! It's copyright 2011! :o)

Lots of fun in today's mail! I CAN'T WAIT TO DIG INTO THIS!!! And I'm not done yet!

Ah, how cute, innocent & wholesome! Still, I wonder what will happen if I open it?

I'm watching Kurosawa's "The Lower Depths," and no, it has nothing to do with where the Detroit Lions' season is headed.

Basking in the glow of victory at Ford Field. GO LIONS! ROAR!!

Video shoot at the Antonini Home!

It's moments like this when "blogging for free" really pays off!

Had anough football today, so now we're watching Howards End

achieving ESCAPE VELOCITY!

the chemical brothers rig, as yet unmanned

a peek at the rave scene here in Chicago at North Coast Music Festival!

Family portrait out in front of the Stacks of Elk, California

... and morning view to the south.

Morning view to the north...

more fashionable japanese sweeties!

just walked in on this J-Pop fashion party!

This afternoon's view from Mt. Tamalpais

This afternoon's view from atop Mt. Tamalpais

I'm sitting in a long line of people waiting to see Scott Pilgrim an hour before showtime

a situation of tranquility

beastly venus fly-traps. if you fall into one, you'll never make it out alive

a big hibiscus in the conservatory at Golden Gate Park

on the site of the old stage at Sound of Music, where the Church Police made their big break

Cubs taking BP at AT&T Park (but we're rooting for the Giants, make no mstake about that!)

Hoping for a late inning rally at Comerica Park. C'mon, Tigers, don't let your season go completely down the drain

where I'm spending this afternoon...

hey, look who dropped in at Mom's birthday party!

Throwing a big party for Mom's birthday tonight! Luau theme, lots of great food and a surprise or two...

We're at Tokyo Grill celebrating my 25th anniversary of being a dad! (actually, my daughter's 25th birthday...) :) Luv you Lys!

One hour of pitting cherries leaves its mark. If you see me tomorrow, don't assume I just voted in a Middle Eastern election.

Watching Brakhage on Bluray and playing Settlers of Catan!

Watching Brakhage on Bluray and playing

A Response to the Grand Rapids Press

I just posted this comment on the MLive.com website, host to the Grand Rapids Press, my hometown newspaper. It was in response to this article:

Voters are in red, red state (that's how it was titled in the actual newspaper, not the website)


Ted Roelofs and the Press clearly intend to win the favor of tea-baggers and generally resentful curmudgeons that they must be counting on to sustain their circulation numbers. As an editorial, I suppose this article has a place in the front section, but not as a lead article. It starts by name-checking a prominent right-wing website, then gives Paul Rhoda an above the fold quote despite the fact that his views are neither newsworthy nor any more significant than anyone else they could have asked for an opinion. The fact is, Rhoda doesn't simply "lean Republican" (what a laugh I had when I read that classic understatement!) - he is one of the more extreme (and predictable) ideologues to make a practice of writing letters to the Public Pulse as often as the Press' policy allows, and when he does, it's little more than a fulmination against liberals, either to vote them out or not elect them in the first place.

How convenient for Roelofs, Rhoda and Norman Roe (who gets not only a quote in this article but a letter defending the Arizona immigration law printed in this Sunday's Press) that none of them have to put their anti-incumbent credibility on the line here in Michigan. I'm confident that if a Republican governor, congressional rep or Senator were running for re-election, they'd probably find a way to nuance their hyperbole and argue that they deserve our vote. The fact is, incumbency is not that big an issue in our area due to term limits and the fact that both Ehlers and Hoekstra bailed out of another term in Washington DC.

This article really doesn't offer much in the way of front-page news but it does provide an informative example of how spin is employed to influence readers. The statistics implying a "grim season for Democrats" are a case in point. "Just 42 percent of state Democrats" report more enthusiasm than in 2008. More enthusiasm? It's hard to imagine a party being more enthusiastic than the Democrats were in '08, with the opportunity to win the presidency, get past the Bush years and gain majorities in both houses of Congress. So of course, with more to lose and less to gain, and with a steadily negative anti-Democrat narrative running through much of the news media, "enthusiasm" will dampen.

Likewise "fully" 40 percent of those surveyed support the Tea Party movement. Huh? That's an even smaller number than the "low" number of unenthusiastic Democrats. But it's framed to indicate some kind of robust surge of appeal that the Tea Party is generating. Basically, the Tea Party = disgruntled McCain supporters, and I really can't fathom why they get as much fawning attention in the news media as they do, except for the fuel they add to the incessant fascination they have with the horse-race element of our national politics.

I recall being interviewed by Roelofs years ago at an antiwar protest when George W. Bush was laying out his case to take us into war with Iraq. I didn't have a problem with how he quoted me but I do recall that at the end of the article (and many others he wrote about opposition to Bush's foreign policies) he gave the last word to conservative critics of the event. I didn't notice the same kind of "fair and balanced" approach in this article, but I invite Mr. Roelofs to look me up sometime if he wants to get a comment from a mainstream middle-aged white guy who "leans progressive" in his future reports.

So I hear that the Lakers & Celtics have agreed to pause their game whenever Stephen Strasburg is on the mound tonight...

I'm downtown Grand Rapids today, getting trained in Nonviolent Crisis Intervention

I'm watching Katherine Hepburn in Summertime. WOW, what a gorgeous Technicolor tour of Venice! Wonderful old film...

Perez Prado's Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White, followed by Glenn Miller Orchestra's String of Pearls

Perez

At the moment, I'm standing over a pan of chicken listening to Bert Kaempfert's Wonderland by Night. Who's got love for Bert?

I'm at Festival 2010 in Grand Rapids, listening to a band called SILENT BARK

just wrapped up another free-wheelin' episode of IGE Talks! Topic: Role of Government. Will be posted on Blip.tv soon

a sample from our garden

a sample from our garden!

Booked tickets for a 9 day trip to California in August, w/my wife and all four of our young adults (formerly known as "kids")!

Just finished facilitating a Diversity training based on Season One, Episode Two of The Office, in which MLK's dream becomes a nightmare

That Microsoft Office 2010 training was kinda cool in a "watch'n'see how wonderful it is" way but I hoped for more of a hands on experience

This morning I'm getting trained in how to use Microsoft Office 2010, so I can teach my coworkers later this summer.

Finally got new extended capacity battery for my Android G1 & I feel reconnected again, at last

Finally got new extended capacity battery for my

Ordinarily I'd be distraught that the Twins are thrashing the Tigers but Scherzer is killing my fantasy baseball opponent so I'm OK with it.

Is it too early to lock in Austin Jackson as AL Rookie of the Year?

Training staff at the downtown Grand Rapids YWCA this morning, then off to Ann Arbor, moving Derek back home for the summer.

How much would you be willing to pay for this cassette of Metal Machine Music?

Drive time sports radio in Michigan is playing "Suh Are You" (a la The Who) anticipating tonight's NFL draft!

We're at http://tinyurl.com/y76owl4 in case you're wondering...

Julie & I are doing the Art Downtown thing in Grand Rapids tonight.

Just saw Dick Beardsley's motivational speech, 1982 Boston Marathon runner-up, persevered thru adversity http://ping.fm/TnuU2

That was a fun Saturday... did my taxes, then had to scrape a malware virus off my hard drive! Today can only get better.

I had Duke winning tournament in my brackets, didn't bother watching game itself, watched baseball & 7 Samurai instead. Heard it was close.

So the NFL just had to go shove its way into the sports talk conversation this morning, huh?

Heading to Ann Arbor, bringing Derek home for the Easter weekend & fam time!

Anyone else feeling very eager for the new baseball season to start? I feel like I've waited too long already - LET'S PLAY BALL!

My wife and I are looking at quality food dehydrators - anyone have good advice for us?

Just finished my first run-thru as fantasy baseball commissioner roster police to make sure all lineups are legal

If Michigan is destined to be the Saudi Arabia of fresh water, it looks like we already have our Taliban: the Hutaree http://bit.ly/9sJsqC

Cleaning house, literally that is.

At the Partners for Racism-Free Community Forum this morning: http://www.prfc-gr.org/

@moonspinner55 Leather britches require assistance, all that pulling & tugging, gotta make it fun! As Snow White says, whistle while ya work

Now I'm just a domesticated pet! RT @moonspinner55 ff @pomoxian (former party animal)

Republicans big mistake was to try & sabotage HCR bill. They seem unable to accept a support role, just sowed more division, bad for USA :(

@iowadawg I have plenty reservations about both parties. Republicans misplayed their hand, turned serious problem into political gamble.

@moonspinner55 Yep, diehard Repubs do seem to love getting all outraged & alarmist, regardless of how childish & misguided they appear

Latest episode of IGE Talks is here: http://ping.fm/z7c3F Listen to us discuss & debate "what's the problem?"

Why is Fox News Channel showing a Lady GaGa video while President Obama is speaking live at a health care event in Ohio?

Beware!

This is interesting: http://ping.fm/dnbD2

I supported my local independent bookstore, bought Soderbegh's "Che" on Criterion bluray for just a few $ more than I could have on Amazon

lots of weather related updates today. here's another: I'm hauling out the grill to cook up some burgers!

I love the sound of melting snow.

...and if you want to know what I mean by IGE Talks here's a link to past episodes: http://ping.fm/rmsul

Tonite's IGE Talks was one of our most rambunctious ever! It'll be online soon. Link to last month's show: http://ping.fm/D85ex

Wiped out with the worst cold I've had in a long time, just got back from very snowy drive to & from Ann Arbor. Feeling: uuggghhhh...

Just got DM'd by what appears to be a nasty Twitter scam - link looks like Twitter log-in but URL is "twltter.ru" - BEWARE!

Terry Gilliam knocks Avatar's ill effect on the business side of creative cinema and I agree with him: http://bit.ly/9P5ZCM

I'm not at all sympathetic w/Kevin Smith for getting kicked off that plane based on how he's exploiting the situation. Lose weight, clown!

For my wife (pro floral designer), the day after Valentine's Day is a holiday - just having all that work over with. We had good night tho!

We were highly impressed by The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus! Visually stimulating, mentally engaging, fantastic & fun.

wondering how i'd look in one of those Finnish Olympic jackets...

Well u know how it is, we're getting ready to watch what's sure to be a ridiculously over-produced self-indulgent Olympics opening ceremony