Just because...

I spent most of my early years watching the 1986 classic, Rad, on a loop. I was living in Virginia back then, and little did I know that residing in the very town I was born in, the town I would later call home, was one of the stunt bikers from my beloved movie's opening credits.

Anyway, enjoy my fellow Waseca dweller and a couple other bicycle ARTISTS while they rock some moves. And if you have the means, check out Rad. You won't regret it.

Stormy's A-Brewin'

I read on Politico that Baton Rouge-native Stormy Daniels is considering challenging Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana (R) in his re-election bid next year. This is the same David Vitter who preached family values while secretly having sex with prostitutes. The same guy whose wife looked like she wanted to (and should have) punched him in the face at his come-clean, apology, BS presser a couple years ago.

Stormy Daniels has her own history, though not scandal, when it comes to sex. She's a porn star. An award-winning porn star/director, to be fair. At www.draftstormy.com, thus-far-anonymous grassroots supporters have been building buzz around Daniels' potential as a candidate for U.S. Senate.

Think about it! Could Sen. Vitter really argue the moral high ground in an election with Stormy Daniels? Who is corrupting our culture more: naked people on film, or lawmakers and role models committing infidelity while breaking the law?

Next month, she'll be thirty. Like it or leave it, as much a beauty as she remains, that makes her a senior in her industry. Maybe a career change is in order. There would be all kinds of potential embarrassment for the Democratic Party if she looks for their support. Also for Gov. Jindal (R), speculation says he might be eyeing a White House bid. He'd be stuck between supporting his idiot Senator, a porn star, or a Democrat (if Stormy were to run independent or with a third-party). There could even be embarrassment for President Obama if it looked like for one second that his party was the Party of Porn.

Obviously, what's most likely is that Daniels is having fun, getting free press, enjoying taking swipes at a Senator she does not respect one bit. She doesn't know exactly who is even trying to "draft" her, but as a successful star, she's knows that any publicity is good publicity.

Is it thoroughly predictable that I, as a 23 year-old man, would find this awesome? Sure. Also, I come from a state that elected a wrestler governor and may or may not have Senator Comedian on his way to Washington D.C. some time this spring. And I like both of those guys. Still, if the worst thing that happens is Stormy Daniels sells more videos and David Vitter gets made a fool of, then it's not a bad day.

P.S. Check this out... and everything else David Brooks writes. My favorite conservative, except maybe Peggy Noonan.

P.P.S. Minnesota's Mr. Right Jason Lewis is going national. This is the hyperventilating blowhard on the airwaves during drive-time who is a hardcore economic conservative. I like to listen to him when I deliver pizza (and shout at the radio a lot). I saw him in St. Paul and shook his hand once, too. It. Was. So amazing. Anyway, we get to share him with the rest of the country now. I'll miss his musings on local and state politics -- as he'll now be playing to a national audience -- but I won't miss his show. Tune in!

I'm in the Bathroom Right Now So I Won't Wake My Girlfriend.

'nuff said.

Maybe not, sounds like I could be up to something less than proper. At any rate, I hate Alton Brown -- that idiot from Good Eats on the Food Network. He's smug, and annoying, and never funny.

What I do like is the TV show Life. It's my guilty pleasure. I have to watch it online because I always work when it's on. It's basically got the same formula as most Law & Order episodes. But that show is (those shows are?) the greatest.

4 Years Later

Not a lot in my life is the same as it was four years ago. Back then, I was living in St. Paul. I was unhappy at music college, George Bush was president. I spent every night burning the midnight oil, writing songs for my band. Blink-182 was a band at the height of their career -- and my own fate seemed tied to theirs, as they were the group that inspired me to pursue music professionally.

Today, I'm living in Mankato, going to Minnesota State. Next year I'll be finishing my degree in political science. Barack Obama is president. My family has endured a share of tragedy and blessings. Through all these changes, the companion that was there for me all through puberty was missing.

But this week, blink-182 announced an end to a near four year hiatus, which began in March 2005. It's a good day.

Why I'm Boycotting 'The Reader'

Remember that critically-acclaimed, star-studded summer blockbuster about a man in a cape? You know, the second-highest grossing film of all time; starring the late, great Heath Ledger; the sequel to 2005's brilliant reinvention Batman Begins...

If you're an Academy voter, apparently, you forgot all about The Dark Knight. You'll have to forgive me for chiming in over a week after nominations were announced -- I've been recuperating. Yes, I'm a lifelong Batman fan. I grew up collecting the action figures and comic books, sleeping under Batman blankets and watching Batman movies (at least the Tim Burton ones). But I don't think it's my inner-nerd that needs appeasing. I wasn't born when Star Wars lost to Annie Hall, so that's not my fight, and I saw The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King sweep every award -- including Best Picture -- that it was nominated for. My inner-nerd is at peace.

Instead, I say that as a movie a buff, The Dark Knight didn't just deserve a Best Picture nod -- it deserved to win. Every actor in the film just plain brings it. Director Chris Nolan's vision for his Batman story is complex and brilliant. I would review further, but I'm out of practice. Haven't done movie reviews since my junior high newspaper...

Alas, The Reader, the dark horse that beat The Dark Knight, is boycotted by ME. Sorry, Kate Winslet. Consider this solidarity for Revolutionary Road as well, which also deserved more nominations than it got. So yeah. I chose it pretty arbitrarily, but someone's got to take the fall.

My rankings:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button -- B+

Frost/Nixon -- B+

Milk -- A

The Reader -- BOYCOTTED

Slumdog Millionaire -- I'm seeing it next weekend...

P.S. Claire McCaskill is kicking some CEO A-S-S!

Happy Inauguration Day!

Richard Schiff was on MSNBC earlier tonight, talking about how he was originally a Biden supporter (like me!) and how he likes what he sees in terms of Obama's bipartisan approach, as we've seen it demonstrated all throughout the transition.

This got me thinking about something: The West Wing. I had known about the show for years before finally seeing it during my senior year in high school. Mr. Hanson screened a couple episodes as a sort reward/civics lesson to our American government class. I immediately thought it was the greatest thing ever, and during the following 4.5 years of President Bush that were still to follow, it provided a necessary escape. Richard Schiff's communications director Toby Ziegler and his band of idealist, progressive go-getters represented, to me, exactly what the executive branch was missing under George Walker Bush.

Now, with Obama, with his team of smart people like David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett, it's no longer fantasy. I won't need to resort to scripted drama in order to witness the kind of leadership I can believe in. West Wing, you will be missed, for at least the next four years -- and hopefully the next eight.

Vice President-elect Biden, President-elect Obama. I'm so proud, so relieved, so excited, that in about 12 hours, those titles will be relieved of their cumbersome suffixes, and that the United States of America may embark on a new, more hopeful, more successful, simply greater era.

What could be Hillary Clinton's greatest liability? Any shady relationships that could prevent her from being confirmed?

I know of one such relationship...

(that's me.)