Top Ten--Random Thoughts from this Past Week

Not the most creative of post topics, I know, but it's just some stuff, both good and bad that I need to get off my chest.

10. Is John McCain trying to save face for the sake of his party with all of this "We're going to win" talk or is he delusional or does he know something we don't know, or some combination of the above? With almost every poll imaginable slating Obama to garner over 300 electoral votes on Tuesday (more than the 270 needed to clinch the election), does John McCain really believe that he can win? I ask because I'm scared and I have a really bad feeling that some corruption is afoot. I'm working Tuesday night and if Obama loses, I will be afraid to walk to my car. People will go insane. And if McCain does win, he'd better pray it's by more than a couple of electoral votes. Americans are not going to stand for what happened in 2000. Not again.

9. So, the child abuse charges against all those Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints followers (polygamists) are dropping like flies. Here's my thoughts on the matter. Of course forcing young girls to marry old men is wrong. Of course sexual abuse of children is wrong. But that's not what the raid was about. It's about polygamy. Now, I wouldn't say I'm a Libertarian since I'm neither an idiot, nor a college freshman trying to impress someone I'm on a date with, but I just don't care about polygamy. I know there are people out there who like to get their panties in a wad about things that don't have any affect on them whatsoever, but I'm not one of them. I don't care about polygamy. I don't care if you're a polygamist. Pardon my French, but I think this would be a better place if people just minded their own shit and stayed out of everyone else's until prompted or asked to do otherwise. This goes for gay marriage, abortion, and every other one of these hot-button issues. Get over yourself, live your life and mind your own shit.

8. Okay. Anne Hathaway, Kristin Scott Thomas, Melissa Leo. Sony Pictures Classics has three possible best actress campaigns to mount, but who are they going to rally around as their MVP? I haven't seen I've Loved You For So Long, so I can't comment on Thomas's performance one way or the other. But my guess is she's going to be their go-to girl. Despite my strong predilection for both Anne Hathaway's performance and Rachel Getting Married in general, and despite the fact that Thomas's performance happens to be in a foreign-language film, she feels like the safer bet for me. She's a previous nominee and the fact that French is not her native language will definitely garner attention. Anyway, stranger things have happened than two actresses getting nominated from films with the same distributor. I just hope that SPC mounts a serious, aggressive, yet tasteful campaign for Rachel Getting Married.

7. I caught snippets of a TV One interview with Don Cheadle that my dad was watching. Isn't it amazing how some actors go from being underrated to overrated almost overnight? He is so becoming the black Philip Seymour Hoffman in that he can do no wrong. I hate how ubiquity can leave a bad taste in my mouth, even for good actors like Don Cheadle. Oh, and Don Cheadle as War Machine? Ridiculous. I'd have more to say about that if I actually cared about Iron Man (which I don't).

6. I still can't bring myself to watch the television series version of Crash. It would drum up too many bad memories of that night in 2006 when the film raped Brokeback at the Oscars. It's being almost universally panned by critics. One such critic said "There's not a whit of originality to it..." and "The show possesses less substance than a brisk Santa Ana wind." Now find me a person who makes these statement, and ends it with the words "just like the movie" and you've got an insightful critic.

5. How ridiculous/creepy are those PSAs praising High Fructose Corn Syrup? I guess I'm not opposed to them simply because I'm not an idiot who believes everything I'm told, so I don't care. But, man, I feel sorry for the poor sap who watches those ads and believes them.

4. To all those who think that Sarah Palin will become a distant memory when she and John McCain lose the election on Tuesday (knock on wood), don't be so sure. At this point, Republicans are not coming to the rallies to see him anymore. It's all about her. She's like Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty. In 2012, Palin's going to appear in front of Obama as his opponent and declare "Now shall you deal with me Obama. And all the powers of Hell!" right before she turns herself into a dragon or something. I dunno. Like Maleficent, she'll still lose, but it'll be scary nonetheless.

3. I'm glad that Obama is probably going to trounce McCain on election day (again, knock on wood) and that it may be due in large to blacks voting for him just because he's black. I don't have as much problem with that as you may think. I think that if there were nothing but blacks or other candidates of colors, there'd be a few white people voting for the one white candidate just because he's white. Hell, a lot of white Democrats are voting for John McCain just because he's white. But I've always found it peculiar that African-American, who according to most surveys, have largely socially-conservative views (at least on paper) vote Democrat to nearly the ninetieth percentile. Does that make us sheep or merely disingenuous? And what's with the recently polled 55 percent or something like that of African Americans in California who want to Vote YES on Proposition 8? Wise up, people. Don't fall into the stereotype that blacks are more homophobic and please Californians vote NO on Prop Hate.

2. Wasn't Rachel Getting Married awesome? Well, it was...

1. Let's all hope (or pray to whatever deity you choose) that Barack Obama wins this election and let's hope that John McCain's concession speech reeks of the petulance and smallness that has marked his campaign. May McCain be remembered for what he is. A war-veteran, yes, but still a slimy, dishonest (yes, more dishonest than Barack Obama), desperate sad man who always cared more about being President than he ever did about the American people.

Peace, Love and Pretension