October 27, 2008
News judgment is a fickle subjective beast. I spent most of my adult years exercising it, for better or worse. Now I spend free moments judging others’ judgment, a cynical hobby for someone obsessed with national politics the last several years. During this time I’ve become an avid blog reader, while increasing my news consumption […]
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October 23, 2008
No presidential election has consumed my life like this one. And it will soon be over, creating an emotional and intellectual gap that I’m not sure how I’ll fill. What will I read about incessantly? What will I talk about with family and friends? All signs point to Barack Obama winning. Unless something momentous happens […]
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October 20, 2008
In five minutes and eight blocks, contrasts assault me. At busy Burnside and Sandy in Portland, a young man holds a sign as tall as he is. A photo of an aborted fetus covers most of the sign. Above the photo are the words “Obama-nation.” A few blocks later, nature offers a visual antidote: a […]
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October 15, 2008
I’m glad the presidential debates have ended. Too much anxiety watching them, though they served their purpose in educating people about both candidates. After the second debate, I read that eighty-six percent of Fox News viewers believed John McCain had won. That statistic may have been the second-most revealing element of the entire campaign. Objectively […]
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October 11, 2008
At the Portland Farmers Market, roasting chilies perfume every cool breath. Autumn has thinned the crowds but not the produce. Along with poblanos, I buy what may be the year’s last peaches, several varieties of apples, shiitake mushrooms, and more. The once-ubiquitous volunteers registering people to vote are nowhere to be seen beneath the canopy […]
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September 26, 2008
My friend Charlie and I came out of the closet last week. No, not to confess a hidden sexual orientation, but to reveal to each other our strong support for Barack Obama. We hadn’t seen each other for a decade, but when he made a comment that the upcoming election is the most important of […]
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August 21, 2008
John McCain’s inability to remember how many houses he owns is a gaffe that will prove more damaging than John Edwards getting a $400 haircut. Count on it. Especially because McCain, after consulting with his staff, said the number is at “at least four” when in fact it may be ten or more. The Jed […]
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August 20, 2008
For about the tenth time in a week, I’ve been hit up for money by the Democratic National Committee. Solitictors call me on the phone, send me emails, corner me outside the grocery — you name it. This evening, a nice but persistent young woman came to my door to ask again. When I told […]
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July 25, 2008
I’m at the gym today, listening to the Avett Brothers‘ CD Emotionalism as I pant and sweat. CNN is on the TV several feet away. I vow not to read the closed-caption transcription of John McCain’s speech and look away. But my eyes betray me. McCain excoriates Barack Obama for not supporting the surge and […]
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July 2, 2008
Fox News calls the Obamas’ playful fist bump a “terrorist†handshake. An on-air guest says half-jokingly that Barack Obama needs to be assassinated. Fox refers to Michelle Obama as a “baby mama†(euphemism for unwed black mother). Now this on the fair and balanced network: digitally altered photos of two New York Times reporters to […]
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June 23, 2008
Today comes a classic Karl Rove assault on a member of the opposition party, a churlish smear rather than criticism over issues: Even if you never met him, you know this guy. He’s the guy at the country club with the beautiful date, holding a martini and a cigarette that stands against the wall and […]
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June 22, 2008
I‘m a terrorist. No doubt about it. I didn’t want to go over to the Dark Side, but some forces are too powerful to resist. The Obama Fist Bump nailed me, or OFB as we converts call it. It happened today on a Portland pedestrian bridge over Interstate 5. I was among throngs of people […]
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June 7, 2008
My latest landscaping project, completed as Hillary Clinton endorsed Barack Obama:
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