Come for the politics, stay for the snark.
Take it away, TaMara…
Tonight we have a guest menu from my friend Alton Gunn, who had provided us with several good recipes. It’s delicious, I’ve been lucky enough to have it several times (good are the friends who feed you). And can I just say: TEQUILA!
On the board tonight:
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1. Carne en su Jugo
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2. Pico de Gallo
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3. Tortillas
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4. Margarita Melon Salad
Recipes and shopping list, as ever, at the link.
I’m tired of Sarah Palin — I doubt she’ll be the Republican nominee and if she is, she’ll be crushed in the general election. These numbers on how voters feel about a Palin endorsement are stunning: 37% are “very uncomfortable with this attribute”, while only 7% are “enthusiastic about this attribute”. So it’s really no surprise that, despite all the media starbursts, no one actually watched her “Mama Grizzly” video:
In the week since it was first posted on Palin’s Facebook page, which boasts over 1.8 million backers, the video has drawn 368,000 views. Yet despite her large following, only 33,000 people watched the video via Facebook, according to YouTube statistics. That means only one out of ten viewers found “Mama Grizzlies” through Palin’s social network—and under 2 percent of her Facebook community watched the video. So who did watch “Mama Grizzlies”?
Mostly traditional news readers and Palin detractors.
Almost a third of all views came through an article on Yahoo! News, for example, while ratings for the video ran almost two-to-one for “dislike” over “like.” “The bulk of the views seem to come after it had been covered in the mainstream media,” observes Pete Warden, a social media analyst who has studied Palin’s Facebook strategy. “
To put that in perspective, this video of some kid imitating Ian McKellen reciting the lyrics to the theme to Fresh Prince of Bel-Air has drawn 624,000 views (personally, I prefer his rendition of Saved By the Bell, but that only has 75K views). Who’s the real genius here?
This image is so creepy I can’t even think of a good caption, but maybe you can.
One of those moods. For some reason, just been low energy and crabbier than normal.
Watching last night’s White Collar on demand, then I have no clue. Might just go to bed early. Might just spend some time pricing fencing, as I am planning on building a privacy fence to keep the varmints out and the ladies and Tunch in, but I just get so frustrated. Everything inexpensive looks so damned tacky, and cedar is so expensive, and I don’t want to have to paint every year, and blah blah blah. See what I mean about crabby?
On the upside, we got slashdotted and did not crash. Those of you who were here two-three years ago should appreciate that.
I only really know him from the movie American Splendor and his David Letterman appearances, but I agree that he was a working-class hero:
Pekar used his few minutes of fame to bring national attention to striking stage hands and abuses of NBC’s parent company, GE, to light. He was truly heroic because he did not think of himself. He could have went on being an amusing character for Letterman, he could have gotten his own TV show (maybe). All he had to do is not speak out. But he didn’t keep silent, maybe he couldn’t. Instead he took a principled stand for all to see.
Pekar’s characters, much like himself, were the ordinary people, working people, of Cleveland who struggled so hard just to get by. Unlike them, Pekar used his talents as a writer and creator to make visible these struggles, therefore turning art into politics. He will be missed.
