skywaterblue

I was wired like a motherfucker last night, and didn't sleep until 4am. And then I did sleep, but didn't get up until noon.

All the news out of Washington DC is intensely depressing me. This Brown in MA Senate thing kicked it off pretty bad - I really supported healthcare reform long before it turned out I also desperately need it.

So that's one thing, and then the Supreme Court has to decide to get right-wing activist and throw out every campaign finance law on the books because of the misguided notion that corporations are people entitled to free speech. So we're back to massive corporate money in every election. God only knows how that'll impact Obama's chances in 2012. Part of me suspects it's some big conspiracy based on the fact that we've had one black populist President and now they'll do their damnedest to make sure other women and minorities can't possible raise the money to run.

And then late today, Air America - a radio station I admittedly don't listen to but support on principle, announced it's closing immediately.

Oh, and the liberal media office I used to work at fired one of the last co-workers I still liked who was working there last night. It's a bum deal.

It feels like we've ruined eight years of progressive political growth in less than a week.

In the meantime, once I got up I started working on a project to raise funds to buy myself some neon bending equipment. It looks pretty good. I'm waiting to hear back from the guy selling all the equipment about what kind of deposit I would need to put down tomorrow, if he decides to make a deal with me.

It's very nerve-wracking because I think this could be a really good move for me artistically, but it involves sinking a lot of my own money into it for uncertain results.

Philip Pullman, a 12 minute lecture on modernism and narrative as seen through A Bar at the Folies-Bergère.

Really fascinating. I'm glad to say that I can now put Pullman in a special category of 'interesting famous people'. If I ever met him at a cocktail party, we would have to discuss Manet. Just like I'd have to spend my time talking about The West Wing with Tennant or Tate.

Obama busting out the news about Justice Souter's retirement. Hee. The President, he rolls with the punches and makes it funny.

Slate has an interactive guide to the bandied-about names, and I quite like this Wikipedia page on the subject too.

I think the Constitution can be interpreted in so many ways. And one way is a cramped and narrow way in which the Constitution and the courts essentially become the rubber stamps of the powerful in society. And then there’s another vision of the court [sic] that says that the courts are the refuge of the powerless. Because oftentimes they can lose in the democratic back and forth. They may be locked out and prevented from fully participating in the democratic process. That’s one of the reasons I opposed Alito, you know, as well as Justice Roberts. When Roberts came up and everybody was saying, “You know, he’s very smart and he’s seems a very decent man and he loves his wife. [Laughter] You know, he’s good to his dog. [laughter] He’s so well qualified.”

I said, well look, that’s absolutely true and in most Supreme Court decis--, in the overwhelming number of Supreme Court decisions, that’s enough. Good intellect, you read the statute, you look at the case law and most of the time, the law’s pretty clear. Ninety-five percent of the time. Justice Ginsberg, Justice Thomas, Justice Scalia they’re all gonna agree on the outcome.

But it’s those five percent of the cases that really count. And in those five percent of the cases, what you’ve got to look at is—what is in the justice’s heart. What’s their broader vision of what America should be. Justice Roberts said he saw himself just as an umpire but the issues that come before the Court are not sport, they’re life and death. And we need somebody who’s got the heart—the empathy—to recognize what it’s like to be a young teenage mom. The empathy to understand what it’s like to be poor or African-American or gay or disabled or old—and that’s the criteria by which I’ll be selecting my judges. Alright?

--Barack Obama to Planned Parenthood, 2007.

Still can't get hold of the unemployment office, don't know what I'm going to do about homework for my science class. I'm only taking nine credits after all, since no one got cut off the Screenwriting class and I was third on the waitlist. (Sucks to be me.)

The budget cut protest at UNLV was quite impressive, as was the show Noelle was in. Nico didn't show up to his own gallery show, though, and that made me sad.

The Impossible Project bought the old Poloroid factory in Poland and is seeking to green-refurb it to make new poloroid film! They need your help and I think it's a quite worthy cause, so check it out.

Elizabeth Moss and Will Armistad are engaged?! Damn. I feel like this means I can't talk smack about his Barack Obama any more.

Attention all Germans on the friends list: if you like Battlestar Galactica, Bear McCreary has a Battlestar Ballet premiering in Hagen.

On the third day of Barack Obama's presidency the President gave to me: new stem cell research and an end to the global gag rule.

baked_goldfish just said she saw the 'Chris Saviano, FBI agent, stop raping my wife!' guy near the Transition offices in DC.

This amuses me waaaay too much.

The Website of the President-Elect!

Complete with job application form. I hope I get an invite to fill the rest out! I can't decide if I should read the transition book NOW or wait until after the Neil Gaiman reading tonight to dig in?

Also, all campaign stuff is half off at the Barack Obama store. Did you know I don't have any campaign swag? It's true. Because I'm poor and don't like the ladies designs and don't know what size I wear in American Apparel mens. darkblackghost, I will order some proper car stickers for you.