2003-05-19 - 2:52 p.m.
To Whomever Is Now Piloting That Sinking Ship Known as the DNC:
Quit whining about how the Republicans are trying to piggyback on 9/11 by holding their convention in New York City. Why not send your own message by convening next year in, say, Florida? Fight shallow symbolism with shallow symbolism, I say.
But no. What city have the Dems chosen as a backdrop for hammering out their 2004 platform and selecting a candidate to go up against George W. Bush? Boston. BOSTON? Jumpin' Jeebus on a pogo stick, what sort of message does that send? New York has the Yankees, Rudy Giuliani, and firefighters hoisting the American flag over Ground Zero. What has Boston given us in the way of imagery lately? Michael Dukakis and the Red Sox.
Al Gore is/was the Bill Buckner of Presidential politics. Discuss.
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Brief review of The Matrix: Reloaded:
To be honest, I really really wish I'd gotten "reloaded" before seeing this movie, IYKWIM AITYD. Some awesome cinematography, but all in all I liked the first one a lot better. The rave scene was nice to look at but a great big "Huh?" storywise. And while many of my friends have told me that Keanu Reeves has a knack for toying with the libidos of boys and girls alike, I'm just not feeling it. At least he's apparently given up on even trying to act. Watching his fitful efforts to emote onscreen has always been one of the most painful things about his movies. All he does here is kick ass and look pretty, and sometimes recognizing one's limitations is for the best.
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So I went to the Padres game yesterday and some children's choir sang a version of "The Star-Spangled Banner" that, refreshingly, didn't suck. I love my country, but if I have to sit through one more would-be American Idol contestant warbling their way through some soulless whitebread rhythm-and-blues rendition of the national anthem--complete with that pointless five-octave stretching out of the final high note that everyone has done to death--I swear, I'm going to bring a bullhorn to my next sporting event and belt out The Internationale, just to drown it out. Or The Marseillaise. Or "O Canada."
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I've never been to a Stanley Cup game, so I may try to get tickets to one of the games in Anaheim even though (1) I'm not really a Ducks fan, and (2) if they end up playing New Jersey, it's going to be hella-boring. A long time ago Blivet--bless his rarely-if-ever-updated heart--said that losing to the Devils was like losing to the debating club. Which means that watching them in the playoffs against the Ducks is going to be like watching the debating club face off with the swing choir. But hey, it's still hockey.
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