Monday, January 26, 2009

Random.

Sorry for not being around, I've been distracted lately but I promise I'll have some good stuff up soon! For now, I just wanted to post this comment I made on my Canadian Political Science class blog.

It's totally dorky but this is the original post:

Where did all the charisma go?

Many Canadians in the past year have watched CCN with envy, admiring the fiery political ambition and expressive, powerful speeches of Barack Obama. Our own Canadian election failed to inspire much love for politics. Obamania was cool. Hapermania didn’t exist. It seems that Canadian politicians lack the charisma which Obama seems to embody. So who were Canada’s charismatic leaders?
In “Obama, Trudeau, and the consequences of charisma,” Sibley compares two great leaders – one who has already created his legacy in Canada, and another who has a future to shape in the United States. http://communities.canada.com/ottawacitizen/blogs/ideas/archive/2008/07/26/obama-trudeau-and-the-consequences-of-charisma.aspx
Max Weber defined charisma as “a certain quality in an individual personality by virtue of which he is set apart from ordinary men and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities.” Canada’s leaders arguably lack charisma. Why is there a lack of charismatic leadership? Is it the fault of Canadians, who are afraid to take a risk and elect someone exciting? Are there any rising political stars who signal an end to the era of dull politicians?
- Laura Munn-Rivard

And this is my reply:

The lack of charismatic candidates isn't the fault of the Canadian populous; it is the fault of the party members who elect the person to lead their party. Canadians get to know this person but in the end, many feel there may have been a better candidate somewhere in the party’s arsenal.

The reason why American politics have been getting the attention of the entire world is partly due to the infighting and the displaying of the candidate who wants ‘it’ (being the presidency) most. Of course, America did have a young, inexperienced, half African-American, junior senator from Illinois Barack Obama running against a familiar name and wife of a then-popular president, Hillary Clinton (her husband being the 42nd POTUS, President Bill Clinton). Obama being the ‘underdog’ was a huge understatement, but as our neighbors to the south say, “Only in America.”

I don’t know of any ‘rising stars’ in Canadian politics but I’m sure there’s a handful out there. If Canadians had a choice to pick the leader of their party out of all possible candidates, election season just might be a tad more interesting. And it helps if our media had people such as Anderson Cooper of CNN or Keith Olbermann of MSNBC – now that would catch the attention of the Canadian people (if not them, then me anyway).

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I'll promise to be back soon! Ciao!

- Franny.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

A New Chapter Begins.

(Apologies for not having this post completed yet, I will have it up as soon as possible!)

(Real) Breaking News

Senator Ted Kennedy was taken out of the Luncheon on a gurney to receive medical attention.

UPDATE:

Sen. Kennedy had a seizure during the Luncheon but, according to a fellow senator, he appeared to look better before heading into the ambulance. Sen. Dodd spoke to reporters and said he (Kennedy) will be "fine".

Sen. Byrd also had a medical emergency prior to Sen. Kennedy's seizure. He appeared to those at his table "pale" and "uncomfortable" so they called for medical attention. Sen. Byrd is fine and was not taken to a hospital.

ANOTHER UPDATE:

So now those close to Sen. Byrd is saying that Byrd was indeed not ill and had left the Luncheon because he was "disturbed" by Sen. Kennedy's sudden seizures, meaning Sen. Kennedy's situation preceded that of Sen. Byrd's situation. It doesn't matter now, he's fine.

And Washington Hospital has reported that Sen. Kennedy is speaking and answering questions and that President Obama did call to check on his condition.

HOPEFULLY LAST UPDATE:

Sen. Ted Kennedy has been moved from the E.R. to a private room and is said to be in good spirits even laughing and joking with others and apparently a bit embarrassed he caused so much commotion at the luncheon. He is expected to leave the hospital tomorrow.

Yes We Did.

(EDITED! GO TO END OF POST)

Greetings! Today is finally January 20th, 2009 and the 44th President of the United States is Barack H. Obama. There are many thoughts going through my head, some I may not be able to put into coherent language, but I am sorting through it all as I type this. I will make another post later today about my thoughts and opinions and I hope those of you who are reading this will comment about your own experience.

This is a 'summary' of the important events that occurred during the Inaugural Ceremony. It's pretty in depth if I do say so myself =P It's in broken english of course because it was early and I had to do things quickly. All times are in Eastern Time. (Also, there may be random bits from MSNBC and bits about Rahm because I adore him so deal with it =P).

10:45am (EST)
- Jill Biden and Lynn Cheney enter limo from W.H. to Capitol

- Michelle Obama and Laura Bush enter limo from W.H. to Capitol

- Chris Dodd enters; John McCain follows and is almost unmentioned

- Joe Biden and Dick Cheney (in wheelchair) enter limo from W.H. to Capitol

10:48
- Barack Obama and George W. Bush enter limo from W.H. to Capitol

10:59
- Motorcade arrival at Capitol

11:01
- Rahm Emanuel enters Capitol closely behind Obama
Chris: "We just saw Rahm Emanuel - a very powerful man."
Keith: "ON THE PHONE!? WAS HE ON THE PHONE!?"

- Supreme Court Justice John G. Roberts – still wearing his robe

11:11
- Ex-VPs Mondale, Quayle, and Gore are introduced

11:13
- 41st George H.W. Bush and 39th Jimmy Carter about to be seated

11:15
- 42nd Bill Clinton and Sec. of State Hillary Clinton arrive to be seated
Panel swoons at his arrival

11:17
- Andrea Mitchell speaks about interview with Jon Favreau and writing

11:19
- Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter introduced

11:20
- George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush introduced

11:22
- Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton introduced (get ovation from crowd)

- Lincoln Bible arrives

11:26
- Sasha and Malia introduced

11:27
- Chris Matthews asks about those things that grow and Keith Olbermann incredulously answers “Chia Pets!?”

11:32
- Michelle Obama and Jill Biden introduced

11:35
- George W. Bush and Dick Cheney introduced

11:39
- Joe Biden introduced

11:42
- Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi introduced

11:43
- President-elect Barack H. Obama introduced

11:44
- Rahm Emanuel has to stand beside Al Gore

11:45
- Dianne Feinstein speaks

11:48
- Rick Warren provides invocation “Let us pray, Almighty God…” and ends with "Amen."

11:53
- Aretha Franklin sings

11:57
- Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens give oath to office to Joe Biden (Jill holding a huge ass bible)

12:00pm
- YoYo Ma performs along with others a John Williams piece

12:04
- Chief Justice John G. Roberts give oath of office to Barack Obama (Michelle holding the Lincoln bible)

12:07
- President Obama gives Inaugural Speech
- Not nervous at all during speech

12:21
“We are willing to extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist”

12:26
- Speech concludes.

12:28
- Elizabeth Alexander gives poem

12:32
- Rev. Joseph E. Lowery delivers benediction

12:38
- Star Spangled Banner

12:40
- Fmr. President Bush leaves with President Obama

12:50
- Bush leaves Washington for Texas in Executive One (not Marine One – only called that for President)

1:02
- President Obama signing what seems to be an endless amount of ‘important’ paper

Luncheon Time!

1:13
- Rahm Emanuel not on the phone

1:28
- Vice President Joe Biden and wife enter Luncheon Hall

1:29
- President Barack H. Obama and wife enter Luncheon Hall
- Hail to the Chief played for the first time for the 44th POTUS

(I will not chronicle the Luncheon because the press can't even be present when the food comes, totally sucks).
--------------------------------------
Some side info:

MSNBC was talking about how quickly the White House website changed once Obama became president. But what they didn't notice is that if you google whitehouse.gov (when I did it anyway) it still says:


“Whitehouse.gov is the official web site for the White House and President George W. Bush, the 43rd President of the United States”


So they didn't cover all grounds, tsk tsk.
--------------------------------------
I promise I will be back with my own opinion of it all before the night ends (unless someone flies me to DC to attend one of the balls *hint hint*)

Ciao for now!

- Franny.

(EDIT: Apologies to President Obama. When he took the Oath of Office, he didn't pause because he was too nervous and forgot the words. It was the fault of Chief Justice Roberts who read the words in the incorrect order. Sorry for doubting you calm demeanor Mr. President!)

Friday, January 16, 2009

First Look At The Air Jordan XX4's

Yes the Air Jordan XX4's really are coming out, the XX3's were not the last ones, and we here at Arbitrary Opinions have found a vid with a closer look into the XX4's. I'm a big sneakerhead and have owned many Jordan's in my lifetime and I gotta say the XX4's are nice but they aren't as nice as the XX3's or even the XX1's but they do look better than the XX2's. Without further ado here are the vids:

Air Jordan XX4's with designer Jason Mayden (thank you to Freshness Mag)



TV Spot for the XX4's (not the best Jordan spot from Nike)



Just for fun here are some old MJ commercials (way better than the XX4's)





Thursday, January 15, 2009

Birds Fly High In The NFL Playoffs

Yes three of the four teams that have advanced to the conference championships in the NFL have mascots that are birds the Arizona Cardinals, Baltimore Ravens, and Philadelphia Eagles. The other team to have advanced is the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The playoffs have brought us some pretty funny stories this season. When the New York Giants played the Philadelphia Eagles the mayors of the respected cities bet cheesecakes to cheese steaks on their teams winning and since Philly won, mayor Bloomberg of New York is sending a giant New York style cheesecake to the mayor of Philly, Michael Nutter. That’s nothing compared to what the mayor of Pittsburgh is planning on doing, he’s going to change his name after the AFC Championship game in which his beloved Steelers play the Ravens. That’s right Luke Ravenstahl is going to get rid of the ‘Raven’ in his name and change it to ‘Steelerstahl’ now that’s a fanatic, coincidentally ‘Stahl’ is German for the word Steel so literally his name will be ‘Steelersteel’ and he is the mayor of the “Steel City” ironic huh.

As for the playoffs themselves I would love to see any match up with the Eagles in the Super Bowl I don’t care if the Steelers or the Ravens win ‘cause they’re both exciting teams and obviously the two best defensive teams in the NFL. The Steelers have a bit more offensive firepower but the Ravens might have the best defensive squad ever with two guys who could possibly be the best defensive players ever in Ed Reed and Ray Lewis. If the Steelers win and play the Eagles; Pennsylvania is going to go crazy with the in-state rivalry.

In other news, the Golden Globes were held on January 11th and there were a lot of repetitive winners and the show itself was boring. Notable winners included: Slumdog Millionaire which captured 4 awards including best screenplay, best motion picture (drama), best director, and best original score. Heath Ledger won Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture. 30 Rock won Best TV Series (Musical or Comedy) while Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey each took home Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a TV Series (Musical or Comedy). Click here for the complete list of winners.

Edgar, Allen, and Poe the best mascots in the NFL and named after the great poet/author and B'more resident



‘Til next time,
Peace and Much Love To Ya

Inauguration Fever

5 DAYS FOLKS! Put on your Washington Wigs and Lincoln Hats NOW to get a 'head' start! You think that sounded ridiculous and a bit mental-institution worthy? Well clearly you haven't been freaked out by everyone else yet. I actually wanted to wear red, white, and blue to school but then I remembered I'm not going to school on that day because I am watching the INAUGURATION! I just wanted to bring the crazy here and let you all know about what's going on with this year's Inauguration. But I'll start off with what President-in-5-days will be reciting:

"I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of the President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Reading that brought a slight tear to my eye. Well, so did Bush's farewell speech but knowing you liberal bloggers I probably shouldn't go into depth =P

Crazy Item #1: Eli's Cheesecake

This year, Eli's Cheesecake has been offered the job to make a cheesecake for the Commander-In-Chief Inaugural Ball. The famous shop from Chicago is making a 500 lb apple-centered cheesecake consisting of:

-100 pounds of cream cheese
-30 pounds of sugar
-25 pounds of sour cream
-50 pounds of powdered sugar
-126 eggs
-15 pounds of flour
-50 pounds of Michigan apples
-30 pounds of butter
-4 cups of Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla
-5 pounds of brown sugar
-12 tablespoons of cinnamon from the Chicago Spice House

This truly patriotic cheesecake is expected to feed about 3000 Purple Heart Veterans and will have leftovers which will be donated to the DC food bank. I'm actually trying to get my hands on some Eli's Cheesecake, wish me luck! (Yes, it will be flown over from Chicago).

Crazy Item #2: Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream

Ben & Jerry's has created a special flavor of ice cream specifically for this Inauguration. It is appropriately titled, "Yes, Pecan!" and is described as "An Inspirational Blend! Amber Waves of Buttery Ice Cream With Roasted Non-Partisan Pecans."

Here's the website

This is partnered with the Common Cause Education Fund and for every $1 donated by you the ice cream gormandizers, Ben & Jerry's will match your $1 in donations. So if you manage to get your hands on some, donate! And let me know! Better yet, get me some =)

Crazy Item #3: POTUS with Class?

President-elect Obama and his family will begin their journey to the White House from Philadelphia. Why not Chicago or just stay put in their hotel in DC, you ask? I've been wondering that as well but he hasn't texted me back, sorry folks.

The trip will start on January 17th (we have perfected WMDs yet it takes 3 days for a train to get the president across the tiny state of Maryland? Amazing) in Philly and will stop at Wilmington, Delaware to pick up Vice President Biden and his family where from there they will travel to Baltimore (to greet an angry group of Ravens fans because he was in an enemy state before theirs), stop for awhile I assume, and then schlep to Washington, DC.

He has Air Force One, yet he wishes to take the train. There's supposed to be a theme but I don't get it. I don't want my president to be like me, I want him to have super powers and even with the ability to fly, I want him to take his flying apartment to travel to events such as the Inauguration. But that's just me.


An item that was cut from my list was the attempt by the world of Spiderman to capture the awesomeness of the Inauguration in a comic. Nice try, but many of us are still upset about the Stephen Colbert fiasco (I cannot believe Marvel put him through what Gore went through! Gosh!).

As promised, I will have full coverage of the Inauguration that, I assure you, will make competing blogs wipe the dirty tears off their faces with their own book that only gets advertisements in Spanish and German magazines equivalent to the National Enquirer. In other words, I will make Perez Hilton eat his own book so he can have a chance to learn how to spell. Sorry, Mario, in American, it's "Paris". Pez is a candy dispenser and if that was what you were going for, you spelled that wrong as well.

Enjoy the wonderful posts we have for you today and see you in roughly 5 days! (Unless something huge happens in the next few days). Ciao!

- Franny.

(Note: Any spelling errors in this article was for effect and was fully intentional.)

Stimulus to the Rescue!

I was listening to Paul Krugman on the radio (or some left-wing blog podcast, I don’t know what the kids call it today). The host of the show asked ridiculously penetrating questions (for being left leaning and all) and Paul Krugman gave his usual establishment answers. For this wonderful post, I’ll include my gentlemanly rebuttals.

1) Paul, isn’t the US national debt already so huge, and the budget deficit so big, that borrowing more money would be like throwing fuel on the fire?

Paul: It’s not something to worry about (btw, he sounds like a little girl on the radio), as during all national crises the government must borrow huge sums of money without worrying about deficits of debt. Furthermore, the US government is looking for short term financing and will scale back spending after they have healed us through their benevolent spending orgy.

Erik: It’s always something to worry about. Pretending to be dyslexic with numbers is as stupid in the real world as it is on Pennsylvania Avenue. If governments can borrow lots in bad times to make the economy better, then why can’t they borrow during good times? Hells if it feels good why not do it all the time? The reason is because political spending is volatile, unreliable, and not even based on elementary school finance. Bush ran the largest peacetime budget deficit in US history (as a % of GDP), during mainly prosperous years. It’s common knowledge that spending is a lot easier than saving.

Paul: Government spending is the only way to close the output gap and Keynesian Nobel prize winning economists like me have decided to put this fundamental law of the universe along side with gravity.

Erik: Government spending feels like magic, but the grownups know it’s not real. The US government owns literally NO PRODUCTIVE ENTERPRISES! and therefore nearly every penny spent has to come from either taking the money from taxpayers, or draining the capital markets through government borrowing. When the government borrows money, a new dollar isn’t pulled out of Krugman’s magic money pot, instead it means that someone in the private sector won’t spend it, and some pencil-scribbling bureaucrat will.

Dr. Krugman: But building infrastructure will make the US economy strong in the long run with better healthcare, roads, and utilities.

Erik: Of course it will Paul. Having better of anything always leads to better results. But wait! You have to pay for it! Of course we would all love a cheap futuristic transportation network, but if you can’t afford it, you’re simply draining the economy from one place, to prop up a bridge in the other place (where most likely no one will ride over it as it sits in the middle of Maine [where no one lives]).

The idea violates common sense. You could look to a poor country for proof. If I really believed that deficit financing could cause miraculous growth through infrastructure spending, then why doesn’t’ the Congo, Cambodia, or Zambia become a first world country through infrastructure spending? It’s because wealth comes first, then luxuries come later. You need to have the excess capital in the first place to build infrastructure, not the other way around.

Or again, look at it from the perspective of an unemployed auto worker. If he goes to his financial advisor and asks what to do (assuming Krugman is a personal finance advisor), Paul would tell him to remodel his kitchen, buy a new TV, get a new mortgage, and this will help stimulate his personal economy.

2) If the US government is broke, where is it getting all this money to finance bailouts, asset guarantees, interest rate swaps, nationalizations, and stimuli?

Paul: The US government has the best credit on the planet. Our treasuries sell for lower than any corporate security or bond, and we even pay lower interest rates than European or Canadian government debt.

Erik: I completely agree! The US government does actually pay the lowest cost of debt on the face of the planet. This is factually undeniable. But I seem to remember another sector of the economy that did that once. Interest only loans, 0% down payment, teaser rates and adjustable rate debt. Oh the US mortgage industry! Well that went down well. In my next article I’ll explain why the US is temporarily paying low rates, why this is, and why it will change.

Paul: Also, the US government has the whole US economy to tax, which means we can pay back our creditors at any time.

Erik: True enough Paul. If you start ransacking cities, stealing hay and corn, the US government could collect on its debts. But the citizens of America won’t let their hard earned income and assets be looted to pay foreigners so that politicians could bail out failing banks.

Viva la stimulus!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Breaking News.

No one wants to know what Sasha and Malia (Obama's kids) are having for lunch!! [/rage]

Now back to your regular programming:

This is just a tiny update on how things are going. I apologize for not having updated in so long, I'll try to do a real post in the coming few days. More bad news is that I've given up on the Israel-Gaze conflict article because all I have to really say (I'm sifting through the bullshit for you) is that I support the actions of Israel and condemn the Hamas for not letting up their rocket fire to save their own people. The Palestinian deceased list is quite long and it really is, ultimately, the fault of the Hamas. If you disagree, which I'm sure many out there do, feel free to leave an angry comment and I will get back to you!

To conclude on a happier note, a vote to impeach embattled Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich ended with a total of 114 who wants him impeached and 1 who doesn't. Who is this lone star on Blago's side? Rep. Milt Patterson of Illinois' 32nd district said he "didn't feel it was his job to vote to impeach the governor." Fair enough. But I do have something interesting for you to chew on. You remember Roland Burris, the man who is set to fill Obama's previous senate seat and he'll do it whether or not Harry Reid is racist...Well he's been an avid defender of himself and, in ways, Blago...and he's African-American. Rep. Patterson is also African-American. Coincidence? I don't even know what I'm trying to get at so if you came to a conclusion, let me know =P

With that, I bid yee farewell and I hope to return soon! I can definitely promise something before the Inauguration (an event which I will cover like hair on a bear). Ciao!

- Franny.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Tidbits.

Greetings to those of you who’ve made it to 2009! To those still in 2008, your train should be arriving shortly. In keeping to my resolution, I am blogging a short, but lovely, post composing of random pieces of news. I am actually working on an epic piece, but it’s taking longer than usual so I ask for you news whores to wait patiently. In the meantime, let’s begin this post of tidbits.

Governor Bill Richardson has resigned his nomination to be Obama’s Commerce Secretary because of a grand-jury investigation into New Mexico’s own “pay to play” scheme. I’m actually quite shocked because someone so huggable should not be dragged into these sorts of schemes. I think he jinxed himself by shaving off his beard. But now that the position is open and so close to Inauguration Day, who’s going to fill it? If the Obama team were smart, they would choose Mitt Romney. It would show bipartisanship and prevent the GOP from having a good nominee in 2012. I’m, of course, not 100% for that because I want a President Romney, but it’d be interesting for sure.

Speaking of President-elect Barack Obama…he has officially moved out of Chicago and into Washington DC today, awaiting Inauguration Day. When asked about his move, he replied, “I choked up a little bit leaving my house today.” AWHH!! A sensitive president! That was not sarcastic by the way. He’s moving so early because he wants his kids to start school with everyone else. Usually, incoming presidents stay in a part of the White House called the Blair House. But Bush said he has planned events up to 5 days prior to the Inauguration so the Obamas’ can’t stay there. Oh snap, rejected! It doesn’t matter; they’re staying at some super awesome hotel instead.

In Hollywood news, tragedy has struck a famous family. Jett Travolta, the 16 year old son of John Travolta and Kelly Preston, died during the family’s trip to the Bahamas. According to various news outlets, he had a seizure during a shower and hit his head. Multiple attempts to resuscitate him failed. I hope the media is respectful and will allow the Travolta family to grieve in peace.

In other political news (yes, I had to make it a political sandwich), funnyman Al Franken has officially won the senate seat in Minnesota after a grueling recount between him and incumbent Norm Coleman. Franken won by 225 votes. In other senate news yet, Roland Burris, the replacement for Obama’s Chicago senate seat chosen by scandal-ridden Gov. Rod Blagojevich, will attend Tuesday’s House acceptance thingy (that is the official name) even though Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has repeatedly said he will be blocked and prevented from taking the seat. I’m with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell with this one. Just hold a special election! The reason Reid and other Democrats like Sen. Dick Durbin of Chicago are against this idea is because if there’s an election, there’s a chance a Republican can win. A Republican taking President-elect Barack Obama’s seat –are you kidding me?

That’s all from me for now. I will return in the next few days with the promised epic piece. I will hint that it’s a topic that I’m very passionate about but was reluctant to post about because of my bias. But this is a blog so I can post whatever position I feel should be taken. Stay tuned! Ciao!

- Franny.