Up the list

Was it supposed to snow this much?  I thought we were expecting only flurries, and I can only imagine what actual heavy snow would be if they think these are flurries...

Did some cleaning today -- should actually go and clean a closet, but that seems awfully work-intensive, so I will probably not.  I watched a film yesterday and one today... yesterday was "The Strong Man," a silent comic film starring Harry Langdon (I suspect its inclusion on the list was to get a Langdon film on it) which was fairly humorous, at times... today I watched "Stark Love," a most interesting one -- silent, 1927 -- and I will let the reader check it out (or at least the Wikipedia entry) to see for themselves, but it was... well, I am not exactly sure who the audience for the film was, which might have explained why it wasn't a success.  In the meantime, we are now up to 608 (I think) which is always nice.

I think my plow guy hit my garage door today...I am more amused by this more than anything, aside from the fact that last year, I had two plows total, and I have had three this month....alas, alack.

Most of the leftovers from Xmas are now gone -- one cookie left -- and once the NYE/NYD feasting is done, it will be time to eat healthy and ideally drop a few pounds...I do not think I have put weight on, but it sure feels like I have...

Hmmm

Crossed another film off the list yesterday -- possibly #600 by the old standard -- "Stand and Deliver," the 80s film about the Latino teacher who pushes his students to take and ace the AP Calculus exam (this is the point where ALL of my high school friends would remind everyone which Math God took said exam and received a 2 and said recipient would tell them to suck a dick...preferably his.  But I digress.)  Anyways, I was poking around the 'Net, and there was certainly some pushback to the idea of this film meriting inclusion.  I sort of get it -- not terribly compelling, we know what happens, crappy 80s music, sort of trite and over the top.  On the other hand, while it is not "Citizen Kane," nor is it "Gigli," either.  It does have star power -- Olmos, Lou Diamond Phillips, Andy Garcia with a bit role -- and with 90% of the cast being Latino, I can see how it had cultural relevance...

https://www.vox.com/conversations/2016/12/27/14038406/donald-trump-frankfurt-school-brexit-critical-theory

I got a kick out of this, mainly because...well, with the media dominated by the left and Trumpian critics...well, it's sort of hard to present the type of cultural critique as presented by the Frankfurt school, isn't it?  I would argue that the Trumpians, if you will, repsonded to his message in spite of the media (and this cultural/media framework has continued to this day).  I don't really care, of course -- I mean, I expect the media always to be against us -- but one would think they would; yes the WaPo and the NYT are doing well, but everywhere else, of course, newspapers are not... I would think in some part this is due to the fact that the people on the right are voting with their feet and elsewhere, off the coasts, there are simply not enough people to keep them afloat...  which leaves only the coastal bastions to promulgate the news, which continues the cycle....

Listing

Well, Christmas came and went... it was odd; I had one fewer godchild to visit, so I actually had time to be home by myself...started by listening to the CDs I got and reading one of the books I got -- SPQR by Mary Jacobs, which is quite interesting and thus enjoyable.

One thing I have noticed is that I sort of have a cold, and my body is not used to the diet of ham, kielbasa, and other goodies that I have been eating, because...well, let's just say I am putting the newly installed toilet to work.  Mom and I agreed to buy slightly less, so there are fewer leftovers than usual, which is good... but I think for another couple of days it will not be a happy fun time.  Delicious but..phew.

I watched "Sky High" yesterday -- silent film from the 20s starring Tom Mix... I liked it; I mean, it was both interesting that his character was an "Immigration Inspector" along the Grand Canyon and well, interesting that he was charged with preventing "Chinamen" from entering the US.  Ok, I wasn't surprised by this, of course, but nowadays...the shit would hit the fan.  Anyways, the film was good -- the plot was a little much but the action scenes were exciting on their own (I believe he did most/all of his stunts, which was impressive).  I am up to 599 or 605 on the list, because...

https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-17-178/
I've seen six of them -- "Ace in the Hole," (an interesting choice with the debate about the role of the media; that said, Douglas steals the show here) "Die Hard,""Field of Dreams," "Gentleman's Agreement," (Peck's character is pretty interesting, and the time and subject is...well, remarkable), and "Spartacus."  I have seen, I think, enough of "Titanic" to merit a checkoff, but I have not seen it all the way through; given its glowing review on Vox, I think that is indicative...

Links

Funny; my Mom was complaining about Duke beating the living snot out of Evansville, scheduling such a team, yadda, yadda...  and then Wofford goes and beats UNC at the Deandome... I joked at work that the Wofford coach should have gone to the locker room and told UNC what a good team they were...

https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/12/20/16797400/why-wont-matt-damon-stop-talking-sexual-harassment

This amused me -- for one, all I could think while reading it was the Matt Damon character from "Team America:  World Police" which seems appropriate now.  Given the large number of Hollywood and media types who grope/molest women, I am not sure that it isn't a bad idea to reward the ones who don't -- Hollywood loves awards shows, you know!

https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/12/18/16635910/opioid-epidemic-lessons

For one, you'd think liberals would love it; all these people paying into Social Security and not getting it sounds like a way to extend it.  :)  More to the point... this could be me, but...if you really think you're going to improve your life by shooting up with heroin, you really deserve whatever comes your way...

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/12/conservatism-is-what-conservatives-think-say-and-do/548738/

I'm not sure I agree with this; for one thing, in most cases, I would say, people make these voting booth compromises all the time; I mean, much like Catholics Come Home, so do Ds and Rs, because, well, the alternatives, as my father would say, are worse and worser.  I certainly do not denigrate my fellow GOPers who didn't vote for Trump, because, well, it was a mouthful of cock for me at times, too.  But... anyone who says HRC would have been a better choice is a giant bag of dicks, to put it mildly...  I am not happy with a lot of what has been done, but I am pleased with a bunch of things.  But Cooke is right in denigrating Rubin and others who object to Trump because Trump....  It seems to be common these days... but...let's face it, GOP voters chose Trump because he articulated GOP positions and, dare I say, enacted them?  GOP voters don't like immigration; Trump has worked to cut it.  Tax cuts that hose liberals?  Done.  

Hell -- and this is something we discussed at work today -- that while a lot of what is going on, economically, is the fruits of Obama... business confidence is sky high, homes are being built, and the stock market and my 401k...  this didn't happen because of shits and giggles; a lot of this has come from Trump, and I think -- as evinced by holiday bonuses -- that eventually the economy be an asset to GOP voters.  Will it be enough to affect the 2018 elections... I don't know; I wonder if the infrastructure bill will do so as it will placate the Trump blue-collar constituencies...

Upgrades

So, the Tribe -- maybe -- has signed Yonder Alonso for 2/$18.  My thought was first, of course, meh, followed by... he's shitty with the glove.  (Especially after Santana's departure.)  On the other hand...he had a spike year last year in power while playing in places where fly balls go to die, sort of.  So, even a regression to the mean at the P would not be awful.  More to the point, he is a lot less meh than the internal options, so...

We discussed this at work:
https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-indians-should-trade-for-manny-machado/

I sort of like it, aside from the fact he would command a king's ransom; I could see Clevinger, Allen, and say, McKenzie/Mejia for him.  For a year.  (I astutely pointed out the only idiots interested in Danny Salazar are the Tribe, which brought chuckles.)  Also, that $20 mil hike in salary might be a bit much to swallow for ownership, especially if they don't win the World Series.  On the other hand, it would, on paper, solve many Tribe issues -- 3B, 2B, LF -- all at once, and bump up the defense.  No, it doesn't solve the bullpen issue, but his bat in the lineup would be a thump, to say the least.

So, in other news... I was looking for some news on my favorite recreational activity, and while I got it..well, it was what I expected, but not what I wanted, which was very much a "roll up the map of Europe" kind of day.  Funny, because I think I glimpsed some light at the end of the tunnel with my current project and I was all Beast Mode at the gym, always a good thing.  Then, it turned...not sure why, but my stomach has felt like crap tonight...ok, it was prolly the combo of leftovers swimming through, but...

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/meryl-steep-sheknew-posters-allege-weinstein-complicity-article-1.3709943

Hmm... I wonder; I mean, it's one thing to hear whispers, and another to know...and, let's face it, the people at the top are often the last to know; what was common gossip among those in the secretarial pool seldom made it upstairs, I suspect....  I also wonder how much she/anyone discounted as "buyer's remorse" from those sleeping their way up the ladder... not saying this makes it right, of course, but there is a difference, and I suspect even Hollywood can make that distinction...

Deserted

Cool shit today -- Sylvia Hatchell won her 1,000th game as a head coach today...and then a few hours later, so did Geno at UConn...and no one knows about it.  I mean, I know it is women's college basketball, which has 12 raucous fans, but... two coaches in one day getting there?  Good luck finding the games...this could be me, but I would have thought ESPN2 could have been bothered to show one, if not both...or some other channel aside from the regional ones; I mean, God knows I didn't need to see Akron get blown out of the water, not all of it, at least.

https://deadspin.com/how-to-stay-updated-on-the-big-game-when-life-gets-in-t-1818970866

This is pretty cool, and I hope it works out; I mean, he was once good, and if he can at least be tolerable... I bet he could help some teams.  Hell, the Tribe could use a relief arm, not that Lincecum, I think, wants to go there.

http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2017/12/political-incorrect-paper-day-food-deserts.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

I've noticed this, too; I mean, I really don't see any food deserts in, say, where I got to church, but...  I mean, at the food pantry, people do take produce, but I would argue that it is not an even distribution, and even then, I wonder how much is actually eaten and how much gets sent to the landfill.  My own suspicion is that people eat some, and toss the rest (it is free, you know)... some of it is lack of familiarity, some of it is laziness, and some of it is people don't care..

Departures

I host Xmas today for my dad's side of the family...which is why I have been silent, running around, trying to get things done.  I am done, pretty much, now...just have to get the snacks and the food laid out in a bit, and put out the plates and such, but other than that...  I do sort of feel like von Moltke in 1870, reading Lady Audley's Secret while the invasion of France proceeded afoot...  of course, still more to do and lots of time for things to go wrong.  Plenty of worries for me, just what I need...

http://freebeacon.com/politics/tom-carper-admitted-to-hitting-his-wife-in-1998-interview/

I wonder what will come of this... oh wait, that's right...NOTHING!  I mean, he did hit his wife (a la Sherrod Brown) and of course he has lied about it for all this time..  but I am sure the party of women and diversity and such will be sure to demand that he, too, resign... uh-huh.

I am halfway through The Republic For Which it Stands; it is fairly good, and long, and informative, but it is clearly of the "The US is bad country that has done many bad things" persuasion, which is fine, but...well, we've also done many good things and we did not get to be where we are by doing nothing; in some ways, I think, balance is appropriate... I also note that while he discusses the role of racism in rolling back the civil rights progress of Reconstruction, he fails to note that it was Democrats who did this... for all the talk of Democrats winning a Senate seat in AL, let;s not forget that it was not that long ago that the Democrats of 1870 were the same as those of 1970...

Like a lot of people, I am concerned about the Tribe; losing Smith and Shaw is big, though I suspect that 1) Shaw wasn't quite as good as the Tribe brass thought he was and 2) going to Colorado might be not the best, as his stuff -- when off -- tends to be flat -- and things that get hit hard fly faster and farther out there....  The Santana deal also hurts.  I for one think the solution is to move Edwin to 1B and find a real OF who can play everyday, like it or not...  no one, save for the Ivy Leaguers in the front office, actually believes that Brantley will be out there in May...

Counting

Sitting here watching the AL Senate results... it's pretty fascinating.  On the one hand, of course, how can anyone, especially a GOPer, vote for Roy Moore; on the other, of course, how can you not if you are a GOPer... I mean, it's hard enough to get things done now with a majority, and with less of one...   On the other hand, it's one thing to vote for a crazy guy who puts up statues of the Ten Commandments, but another -- in this day and age -- to vote for a groper.  At the very least... well, watching people try to predict a race where polling is... well, inexperienced...this is theater in and of itself.  For the record, I had Moore winning by 4 last week, but, as we discussed at work... no one would put any money on that bet or any other.  And my own sneaking suspicion is that many GOPers decided to sit on their hands.

I am also amused by the reaction of the Stanton trade.  This could be me, but if the object was to get rid of his contract, well, Mission Accomplished!  The Yankees are picking up $265 million of it, which is pretty nifty.  They also added a bat and got rid of Starlin Castro, who didn't quite seem to fit in.  One of my coworkers complained about how this oppresses Marlins fans, which is true, save for the fact they don't really have any... sort of like being a Browns fan, I guess.  More seriously... does anyone think they would be selling if Jose Fernandez is alive?  I mean, he would be the ace, and you could build around that...instead, yet another tear down...

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/12/grandparents-raiding-grandchildren/548117/

Yet another reason why I believe in the complete privatization of Social Security... did I mention immediate?

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/12/wisconsin-drug-testing-food-stamp-program-walker/547997/

I go both ways on this.... I mean, it is good politics and thus good policy, but let's face it, the drug testing really doesn't catch anyone, save for those dumb enough to get caught.  The work requirements, though, I think are wise... My own sneaking suspicion, based on years of social justice work, is that plenty of people can work, but not too due to a combo of laziness and economic calculation that it is better not to and collect the benefits... so removing the benefits pushes people into doing something semi-productive...

Links

I am off today -- the plumber is coming to finish snaking and then I am off with Mom to get some Christmas goodies.  Rah.  Pub Quiz was Wednesday, we can in second due to disputed bonus points, so Team XI was not exactly the bastion of holiday cheer.  Alas.

https://www.vox.com/the-big-idea/2017/3/31/15132730/pence-women-alone-rule-graham-discrimination

This could be me, but....I think for a lot of men the fear of a false accusation is what is driving this; just better to avoid it altogether.  (Never mind the notion of a man submitting to his wife's request.)  The fact that the people driving are those who covered up for Bill Clinton and smeared his accusers a generation ago...well, the irony is more than a little rich, if you ask me.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/brent-musburger-defends-violence-and-sex-appeal-in-nfl/ar-BBGhTrf?li=BBnbfcL

I don't think the man is wrong; this might not be the best time or place to make this argument with Ryan Shazier in the hospital, but... it IS a violent game and THAT is why people watch.  No one ever says they watch to see them explode a gap in the seam or how they cover a punt (aside from Jim Tressel, maybe); the NFL may downplay hits and stuff, but you can be damn sure the bar goes crazy when someone gets leveled.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/weinstein%e2%80%99s-complicity-machine/ar-BBGhvM9?li=BBnb7Kz

You know, if Republicans had any actual brains, they'd be off running a committee to investigate this, dragging everyone under the sun beneath the camera and giving them shit...the fact that these people are all Democrat operatives and fundraisers, well....that is soo much more gravy, if you ask me.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-12-05/-death-to-democrats-how-the-gop-tax-bill-whacks-liberal-tenets

Again, I don't see the problem with this; if Hope and Changers want to pay more taxes, we should let them.  If no one around here has any sense to see that the Hope and Changers and the government they have wrought is the problem...

Moderate interest across the board

Up to 595 on the film list; watched two  more full-length films.  One was "The Wedding March," a von Strotheim silent from 1927, and the other was "War of the Worlds." The first was ok; not sure it is quite as good as the critics said, but you could clearly feel the paean lost world in the film (the musical accompaniment was the Kaiserhymme, of all things), which I did like (of course).  The second was sort of cool, aside from the cheesy 50s plot twists; the special effects were quite neat. 

Started cleaning the house for Xmas today; dusted the basement, swept, that sort of thing. Not that it that was all that messy, not that I expect a lot of people down there, but... I figured now was as good a time as any to start, and some low-leverage stuff could be first.  I still need to figure other important Christmas-hosting details, like what to feed people...

Looks like weather and snow are finally upon us... rah. 

I am amused by all of the FBI investigation brouhaha; I don't really think there is all that much to it -- aside from more than general suspicion -- but I am a little troubled by the fact that given all of the GOP paranoia about this, no one seemed to think that this may surface and call the whole thing into question.  The House GOP is miffed, Mueller (it appears) is going to turn everything over, and the people who want to believe the worst -- on either end -- will do so, and nothing is going to turn out very well.

Weekend

Up to 593 on the Film List by watching two shorts; one was more modern -- "The Lunch Date" -- and the other from the late 20s, "Black and Tan."  I liked both, albeit not terribly...the first one was ironically humorous; the latter, a short with Duke Ellington playing composition and acting -- unique because, let's face it, this was in 1929...

https://www.vox.com/2017/11/29/16716000/christian-bad-reputation-matt-carter-podcast-interview

This is sort of interesting, albeit only at times, but... one thing I was amused at was how they were surprised by the politicization of religion, because, well, religion has ALWAYS been used by Group X as a cudgel against Group Y (and vice versa).  I mean, I don't even really think I like it, but I think someone is missing something if they thing this is a new thing and that you should be exceptionally surprised by it.

The other thing is the point about the intolerance of Christians; I get that, to an extent, but, let's face it, Christians are supposed to be intolerant of certain things -- like sin -- and of course, well, when people are unwilling to change, or even admit that they are sinful... well, there is a problem and a conflict there -- the Civil War buff in me would say an "irrepressible conflict."  I mean, the point of Christianity is that we have an agenda to bring people to Christ and live a life with as less sin as possible....oi.

I wonder if we will see changes to the college playoff next year; I myself have no problem with OSU not making it, but I am not sure two teams from the same conference should go... I mean, one could argue that USC or UCF had as much of a right to be there as Alabama, in that they you know, won a conference...  I guess I think the best solution would be to invite ALL of the conference winners and two wild cards to a playoff, but, of course, some day some MAC team will beat an SEC team or something of the sort, and no one will really want that...