Bits and Pieces...
A few stray thoughts on a Sunday night...
If elections are determined by who has the most signs along public right-of-ways, then Bob Ehrlich, Michael Steele and Chris Merdon should have nothing to worry about...
I went to a party of mostly non-political people last night. Despite a nearly unanimous desire for the commercials, phone calls, mailings and door-knocking to end, all anyone could talk about were the elections. Is politics like a car accident; no one really wants to look, but you just can't help it...
Speaking of the mechanics of elections, how effective do you think mailings and phone banking are? Both seem universally despised, yet they're such a key part of every campaign. I wonder if there's anything to gain by running on an "I promise not to ever bother you" platform...
Wow! As of 6:18 pm on Sunday, we're up to 59 comments on the Vote Ken! post. For no other reason than boosting my ego, let's see if we can get it up to 100!
Since I shared my reading list earlier this and my humor is sometimes misinterpreted here, I submit to you here what I find truly funny. At the top of the list are Christopher Guest movies -- This is Spinal Tap, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, and Waiting For Guffman. But it's also safe to assume I'll laugh at just about any fart joke...
How about some football? Great wins for the Terps yesterday and the Ravens today, but what I'm mildly ashamed to admit is that I was most interested today in the Redskins game. Unlike typical Ravens fans -- who are generally insufferable when it comes to the Skins -- I'm not afraid to say I was once, and to some extent remain, a Redskins fan. Abbzug, meanwhile, is the mirror of me -- she prefers the Redskins but also roots for both.
Anyway, she went to the Redskins game (while almost everyone else I knew went to the Ravens game and I raked leaves [see below]). She takes her rooting seriously, too. Today she was adorned from head to toe in the gaudiest burgundy and gold outfit you could possibly imagine -- sparkling cape, wigs, face paint, sequined pants, etc. It took several days for her and her friend to construct the game day apparel and signs, and if all that effort went towards a loss (to Dallas!), I don't know if she would have recovered. It's fun win your main team wins, but it's much more fun when your wife's happy -- even if the floors are still littered red and gold glitter...
Finally, as a reminder, be sure to spend a few minutes playing in your leaf piles before you bag them. All work and no play is not a good way to go through life...
10 comments:
Amen to balance. The more time I spend in a leaf pile, the happier I am, too.
I find campaign signs pretentious, presuming a name, slogan, and face is sufficient for anyone to form an opinion. The only sign that'll ever appear in my yard would simply saying "Vote".
Someone this weekend plastered most of western Howard with Ehrlich and Steele signs. In the same areas where previously, a mystery person had put Corkran and Wallis signs.
These signs are, for the most part, placed in areas where property ownership is hard to determine, or where the land is leased and maintained by someone other than the owner.
I personally really enjoy all the mailers that are sent out by the candidates. We received some helpful information from Ms. Hartleb regarding wills. How useful, and why couldn't she have mailed this to us earlier than an election week?
I've received about a dozen "the real chris" mailings, and like them so much, I hang them on the fridge. I especially enjoy the picture they chose of Merdon to put on the mailings. He looks stoned.
To Anon 7:02-
Our yard sports signs for all three candidates- Wallis, Merdon, and Ulman.
We support the democratic process!
Anon 9:35- I noticed the plastering of Western Ho Co with Ehrlich and Steele signs where there were previously Wallis and Corkran signs that suddenly showed up in a similar fashion. And yes, it is interesting that these signs appear on land in which the owner is ambiguous.
I was thinking the picture of Merdon looked more like he woke up in a dumpster, but stoned is a possibility as well. What should we expect from propaganda materials? I was expecting Merdon to be shown next to a superimposed Bin Laden and holding a superimposed AK-47.
Those who watch The Wire know it's not too late for Photoshop smears.
That reminds me, Hayduke. You have a striking resemblence to a Husky in the photo with this post.
Does anyone have info on local polls?
FM: The only difference is I don't shed quite as much -- though, it's pretty close.
You always hear that people begin to resemble their dogs (or vice versa), but I wonder if there really is something to that. I wonder, for instance, if people (subconciously) choose dog breeds based on likenesses to themselves. For me, I have blue eyes and so does my dog. I have crooked teeth and so does he.
Since I wanted a Husky for as long as I could remember, I can't really say what drove my decision to choose them. Mostly, I think I liked that they looked like wolves.
Jeff: Thanks for the insider scoop. I think you're right. As much as people say they don't like the mailings and negative campaigning, they follow along. It's hard to campaign on the issues when the hot stories are those involving scandals and mud-slinging rather than fiscal, foriegn and social policies.
Jane: The only local polling that I know of has been conducted by the various campaigns. Good luck on getting any of that info out of them.
I understand that Ulman has a recent poll and that Merdon has not conducted any for a very long time. I don't know if Ulman has numbers on anything but the Executive race, though.
Yes, there is something to the belief held by some that people begin to resemble their dogs and vice versa. Not including eye color and dental alignment, it's due to each (canine and human) emulating facial expressions of their companion, resulting in similar facial musculature used for those expressions.
Emulating facial expressions is a form of communication we may not be as aware of as we should in dogs and plenty of dogs are very adept at body language communication, too. Our ignorance can sometimes best be measured by how little we understand the intelligence of others.
The Maryland Zoo provided a great article on ravens' intelligence, too, on p. 36 of the 10/16 Examiner.
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