b l o g o s

random bullets of novelty

My goodness, but this winter is dragging on. JM and I have done a pretty good job of late kicking up the new around here in an attempt to patch ourselves through to some warmer weather, and for my part, to make the most of this here radical sabbatical. To wit:

• On Saturday we rode to Indy with our friends to taste some beer and eat some yummy food at a place we've never been before. Heck, we never go to Indianapolis, only through it. So that in itself was new.

• Last week I ordered some xc skis via ebay and they came the day before we got a few inches of snow so that my (sweaty!) workout that day was swishing all around the neighborhood on my new skis, just to figure things out. My arms were sore for a few days after that, but yeah, this place was made for cross country skiing.

• I've been trying out some new Indian and Thai recipes. Last week was chicken with chilis and onions served with curried cauliflower as a side (both from an Indian cookbook given to us by E!), and tonight I made spicy Thai chicken with rice.

• Over the weekend, I ordered a new pair of stripy spring pants in anticipation of wearing something besides wool or fleece someday. We'll see about that.

• Cheeky prof's query about feed aggregators led me to finally set up google reader. I know I'm late to this game, but damn, it does make a difference.

• I've also been reading for that new article and thinking about starting to read stuff for another new (and bigger) study. But having put that Burke book to bed (or at least down for a nap), I'm definitely more interested in alternative forms of the new at the moment.

• After listening to a PRI story Josh recommended about voice in politics that features extensive commentary by a vocal trainer, I looked into vocal trainers in Chicago and I think I'm going to make an appointment to learn some vocal techniques. I don't really care about developing a better voice--though I'm sure I could stand to--but I am totally interested in the teaching techniques and the way a good portion of the body must get involved.

So yeah, go new!

    

here's why.

Okay, people. I don't think I'm going to influence anyone, because most readers of this blog have already primaried and caucused, with the exception of one or two Pennsylvania readers.  But after taking part in and hearing about a lot of conversations of late in which Obama supporters seem to be getting dismissed as lame or silly or naive (the "obamaniac" moniker is driving me bananas), I wanted to clarify to myself (and others) why I chose to support Obama after quite a bit of thought. And of course none of these arguments are new, but these are the top reasons for my decision, and they are why I will continue to give money to Obama's campaign.

1. International reputation. We all know that this country has a miserable reputation overseas. And it didn't start with George W. Bush, nor will it likely end there, but having a president with transnational heritage could go a long way toward mending our international relations. When I was in Greece in 2000, I saw so much anti-(Bill) Clinton graffiti, including a burning effigy of him. If we elect Hillary Clinton, I think that we'll look a lot like we have some sort of secret revolving monarchy, with the Bushes and the Clintons taking turns. And this is not just about perception of the U.S., but it's also about our leaders' perception of the country and its place in the world. I don't think an Obama administration would begin from a place of exceptionalism, not on the world stage at least. And that stage, my friends, matters a great deal.

2. Oratory. I've said this here before, but this is the first time in a generation that we have had the chance to elect a real orator. And I'm not talking about a Ronald Reagan or Bill Clinton-style orator who were masterful in their own ways (in fact, Hillary Clinton is not bad herself and would be great on the heels of Bush), but I’m talking about a Kennedy-level orator. This is not just because I like pretty speeches. This point is actually bound very tightly with #1 on diplomacy. And I buy every response that Obama borrowed from Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick about how important rhetorical skill is in mobilizing groups of people and in getting things done. I don't tend to use the term rhetoric to mean veneer, and so for me it is bound with action and with values.

 
3. This stupid, immoral, illegal war. This is the single biggest reason why I think Obama—and expressly not Hillary Clinton and DEFINITELY not John McCain—would be a better president. When congress voted to go to war in Iraq, we were here marching against it. And it’s not just because we’re hippie peaceniks, but because it was happening too fast, and as Robert Byrd pointed out in an impassioned speech right before the vote, that vote itself was unconstitutional because the president ought not be granted the power to declare war. Both Clinton and McCain voted yes. In response to questions from college students about this vote, Chelsea Clinton called those college students "clairvoyant" for being able to see that the war was waged on bad information. But it didn't take clairvoyance to see that the war was a bad idea, especially granting the president that sort of power. Obama saw that too, and he gave a speech about how we ought instead to fight to wean ourselves off of mideast oil and not rush headlong into what he called "a dumb war." If that was clairvoyance, then I'll take a clairvoyant leader any day.

4. Anti-establishmentarianism. Just trying to make the longest noun possible. All this talk about Obama's lack of experience, as my colleague points out, discounts Obama's experience in lots of levels of government as well as--and even more importantly, I'd argue--his experience as a community organizer in Chicago and other cities. This is the focus of his first book. Such experience kept him close to people for whom he now works, and makes for a more varied vitae. People talk about Obama as if he is a teenager, and I find that infantalizing and have a hard time not hearing it as just a little bit racist. Moreover, Obama has not been moving in the same circles for decades and decades, and so his administration might well be less susceptible to behind-the-scenes deals. Relatedly, he is committed to making the economy better but is not beholden to giant corporations and his proposal for what I like to call a New Green Deal is music--that's right! music--to my ears.

So, no, my support is not about blind hope, nor is it about popularity, nor even is it based on likability.

prairie snow walk

sabbatical FAQs: a midterm checkin

I'm learning that sabbatical brings with it a number of frequently asked questions, and I'm listing some of them here, with my frequently given answers.

Q: Are you doing anything fun on your sabbatical?

A: Yes, I'm going to Ireland and Portugal in April. And I got a nice long visit with my family in Tennessee. And I have some talk engagements that I'm planning to combine with fun stuff like baby visits and bike rides and hikes. And I'm cooking a lot and hanging around the house a lot. And I'm doing a lot of leisure reading and have started watching shows like Desperate Housewives. These I consider fun things. This afternoon I'm taking the dogs for a snow hike. Maybe I'll post some pictures.

Q: (This one comes with a suspicious 'but I know you' look): Are you really managing to stay away?

A: Weeeellllll, I could do better on this front, I'll admit. I am very strict about not going into the office during normal business hours, and I'm ever-grateful for K, who is managing my mail and keeping me out of my office. That said, I have had two days of "unsabbatical" so far, one involving an important review, and another an important interview. And then last week in an attempt to avoid grad recruiting, I called a prospective grad student from one of my departments. That backfired, though, because I liked him so much and wanted him to come so badly that I immediately signed up for the recruitment lunch. And then today I heard from a prospective in my other department and couldn't resist meeting with her either. But one for each department: that's my limit. For others I'll happily call--my days being recruited in high school taught me a thing or two about phone recruiting--but my travel schedule is picking up, so there won't be any more meetings.

Q: What do you do about your current graduate students?

A: They're being patient. And they're doing a great job giving advance notice for fellowship letters and whatnot, just like I asked them to. And the calendar idea that Caraf gave me was genius.  I may not be meeting them face to face, but I'm reading things they send, and they're getting a lot of good writing done. Hooray! Rumor has it that they think I'm being too quick to reply on email, so I think I need to work on that. But if I let things slide up the inbox, I would definitely forget.

Q: What are you saying when journal editors ask you to do reviews?

A: I'm saying yes. I'd rather reserve the right to say no when I'm so busy that I can't possibly do it.

Q: What's the one thing that is impossible to avoid?

A: Why, email of course. Lots of people do those auto-replies, but after having gotten like 15 of those from one person this year, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I'll put one up when I'm traveling, though. And I would try checking email once every other day or something, but things would just pile up and make me crazy. So I don't know what is to be done about that. It's a rather intractable situation.

Q: Are you getting a lot of writing done?

A: Ahhh. The time to write and develop projects is quite lovely. The best thing about sabbatical.

Q: Do you ever take a break?

A: Believe me, this is a break. Now, the sun is out so I'm going hiking. 

round em up

The turned-up volume on the democratic primaries may well have drowned out this little item: two Vermont towns voted to have Bush or Cheney arrested if they ever show up in town. You know, kind of like the Seinfeld finale sans the shenanigans.

In other election news, Joshie caucuses in Austin while Oratorical Animal revolts.

this is no longer fair

This morning's New York Times reports that Clinton and Obama have pulled out all the stops. The campaigning in Texas and Ohio is so intense and demanding that they have deployed a number of what the paper calls "surrogates" to help get out the vote. Pictured below is each campaign's leading surrogate: Dick Gephardt, left, and The Arcade Fire, right. I'll give you one guess who goes with whom.

I'm a little embarrassed about how predictably I fall into the Obama demographic, but Arcade Fire has come far closer to making me lose consciousness than has Obama.

making it

There are so many measures of academic success: publications, awards, promotions, raises, etc. But in writing a book that inspires an indie rock song, Phaedra Pezzullo has introduced a new measure. Caraf, when Phaedra gives her talk here next month, can we play this song for her entrance?

Download hollanddutch-03.m3u

Oh, and here's the Atlanta band whose song it is.

This is so exciting, Phaedra!! (Thanks to Meta-S for the tip.)

 

springtime travel

The final details for my upcoming trips are falling into place, and I'm excited! Starting at the end of this month, they (or rather, I) go in the following order:

College Park, MD
New Orleans
Columbia, MO
Dublin
Lisbon and Porto (Portugal)
Elizabethtown, IL
Seattle

Looks like I'll spend the next few weeks getting my talk ducks in a row and dreaming about warmer weather.