Politics

Seems like a lot of white people don’t know how to have a productive conversation with black people about racism. secondcitynetwork.com/discussing-rac…

Finally found a good crash course on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in these two pieces: vox.com/2014/7/17/5902… and davidbyrne.com/gaza-and-the-l…

Having a morbid fascination with whacko conspiracy theorists, it stings when I see someone I admire among them. radio.com/2014/05/28/80s…

“Perhaps one reason Americans have come to begrudge the wealthy is a resentment of their culture of impunity.” nytimes.com/2014/05/04/mag…

PA may finally privatize liquor stores. A union who’d face competition as a result made this divinely inept scare ad. youtu.be/kOHKD84NpiA

Someone make a news thing that aggregates gunman rampages and sorts cases by significance. It’s impossible to keep up with them all anymore.

House of Cards, Season 2: A smart ode to the long con, a functional indictment of a broken democracy, but still too lumpy as entertainment.

House of Cards, S02E13: Finale as microcosm of season: the pulp isn’t pulpy enough, and all else (even Frank’s biggest moment yet) is bland.

“Bundy’s 14 children and 52 grandchildren are all bunkered down at his house waiting for the BLM to arrive.” washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/…

House of Cards, S02E12: The season opener was farcical, but Frank’s endgame is looking pretty dry. Fingers crossed for a cartoon finale.

House of Cards, S02E11: Meechum’s… self-actualization is an anachronistic grab for water cooler talk in a post-broadcast-schedule world.

House of Cards, S02E10: All the elements of the impending boiling point are pretty boring, so I predict a seriously wacko twist just ahead.

“Home Depot™ Presents the Police!® Nobody move unless you want to!” newyorker.com/online/blogs/s…

House of Cards, S02E09: So they developed all these innocent characters just to be collateral damage in a presidential brove triangle?

House of Cards, S02E08: Do all lobbyists have mad P.I. skills like Remy? Also, I want to make a fanfic lifestyle magazine called Plutocrat.

House of Cards, S02E07: Claire’s marital destabilization tactics are at the pioneering intersection of US foreign policy and Heathers.

House of Cards, S02E06: Tusk is playing hardball, eh? Clever, if a bit on-the-nose. I’m kinda bummed Doug is finally cracking. He’s my rock.

House of Cards, S02E05: So many Civil War LARPers, and they’re not even the ones chewing the scenery. Feng, Gavin, and FBI guy are hackwork.

House of Cards, S02E04: Claire’s big interview is straight-up pornography for real-life CNN execs. Frank’s pseudo bottle episode is filler.

House of Cards, S02E03: Hieronymus Bot! Lucas’s wacky deep web adventures are fun for now, but the minute I see a Guy Fawkes mask, I’m out.

“If you’re poor, stop being poor.” Wow. thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-marc…

House of Cards, S02E02: Will Frank also undermine Major Dad’s sway over Walker’s Netflix queue? “I suggest ‘Usual Suspects,’ Mr. President.”

Politicians accusing politicians of acting like politicians.

House of Cards, S02E01: The WTF plot sucker punch actually made me grin without irony. Maybe I warmed up to the show between seasons.

Didn’t expect much from a Daily Show guest who wrote a book about Rob Ford, but it was a fascinating interview. thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-febr…

“…self-esteem, not achievement, is the ultimate human value, and it’s making us all dumber by the day.” thefederalist.com/2014/01/17/the…

“…it’s pretty sad that a child is dead because some fat, dumb slob decided to buy a gun and play police officer.” nytimes.com/2013/07/15/us/…

Parents who can get bent: 1. Allow games/movies on mobile devices in public sans headphones. 2. Allow firearms before literacy.

House of Cards, Season 1: Good, but too problematic to be great. Several fresh conflicts primed for Season 2, but I’m not sure I’ll be back.

House of Cards, Ep. 13: The cat-and-mouse thing seems prosaic, and the church soliloquy was ridiculous, but this was a hardworking finale.

House of Cards, Ep. 12: I wonder if Palin would have happened if McCain was pals with Major Dad.

House of Cards, Ep. 11: Boundaries are what make a game engaging. Now I know Frank’s game has none. I’ll finish as a completist, not a fan.

House of Cards, Ep. 10: Decent cliffhanger. I’m curious to see Frank deal with serious fallout for once. Claire’s Rumspringa, not so much.

House of Cards, Ep. 9: Kill Bill, Vol. 3: Menopause. Leftover from Ep. 8: “Russo 2014: He’s better than nothing!” I’m losing interest.

House of Cards, Ep. 8: Frank’s past is boring. Is anyone not trying to get in Claire’s pants? And: A Philly accent isn’t that difficult.

House of Cards, Ep. 7: Still don’t see what boning Zoe gets Frank. Glad we’re finally digging into Doug. I dig Doug. When does he sleep?

House of Cards, Ep. 6: Have to admit, the reminder that Claire is stone-cold landed pretty hard. But Frank’s win struck me as inelegant.

House of Cards, Ep. 5: Extramarital logistics. Old media dying. Lobbyist slap fight. Russo, sympathetic minus s-y-m. Busywork episode.

House of Cards, Ep. 4: Those are some of the ugliest uglies ever to bump. Who will play Gozer?

House of Cards Ep. 3: Frank is more compelling on defense than offense. I’m skeptical that Russo’s redemptive struggle will be affecting.

House of Cards Ep. 2: Real-life cable news clowns play themselves as the vulturous shitheels they are. Meta-cynicism!

House of Cards Ep. 1: Spacey and Wright’s unified smugness is pretty off-putting, as are Spacey’s fourth wall shenanigans. We’ll see.

Given how Netflix presents TV shows, it’s odd they chose to name House of Cards episodes as chapter numbers. “Season 1: Ep. 1 Chapter 1.”

The GOP believes in nature to the exclusion of nurture.

Wayne LaPierre and his pals should form a band called Hypothetical Doomsday and the Adolescent Power Fantasies.

Can anyone point me toward a good crash course on the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Book, article, documentary?

While we’re talking constitutional amendments, can I get one to keep these dipshits on a mission from God from ringing my doorbell?

During a recent discussion about karaoke, I confessed that one of my favorite songs to sing when it’s available (which is more often than you’d think) is “Too Drunk to Fuck” by the San Francisco Bay Area punk legends Dead Kennedys. Virtually no one is expecting to hear it, and it elicits precisely the sort of slack-jawed amusement and/or horror I like to see in a karaoke audience.

My friend Tyler, who was a Bay… See more →

The Man Nobody Knew: In Search of My Father CIA Spymaster William Colby has put me to sleep twice now. Shit is bone dry. I give up.

“More guns. No questions.”