Banksy.

I’m not the biggest visual art afficianado, but I’m always impressed by Banksy.

He’s apparently in the US right now, moving through the South.  He put some stuff up in New Orleans a few days ago…some of which must be looking pretty eery right now.

Check out more here.

And this is all I’ll say about that.

Go here for some good Alaska insight on the Sarah Palin experience — I’ve obviously got nothing I can add on any substantial front about who she is or why she’s been selected.  That post does a pretty good job of explaining it all, I think.  While you’re at it, check out what the very smart Miss Erica (fellow Liam Tancock hater) has to say too.

But here’s all I’ll say about it: the big story of the last few days was, and still is, that speech.  In fact, it was the whole convention.  Democrats–and a lot of them–are excited about our candidate in a huge way.  In fact, Democrats–and a lot of them–are excited about the entire party in a huge way that I wouldn’t have imagined possible four years ago.  80+ grand packed into that stadium and heard Obama clearly delineate his agenda, speak powerfully and eloquently, and call for the kind of common ground decision-making that is mandatory for effectively running any kind of organization that calls for consensus.  It was a historic moment, and it deserves to be remembered and built upon.

This is not a time to be reactive, folks.

If you’re excited about what you saw at the convention, be excited.  If you believe in Obama, support him.  If you believe in Biden, support him.  If you believe in any of the folks who believe in Obama/Biden and have implored you to stand behind them, support them.  Don’t hedge your bets out of fear of what could go wrong.  Don’t complain about the timing of the GOP VP announcement–that’s politics.  Don’t let the small details and difficulties and fears make this decision for you.

Yes, Obama is a politician.  So is everyone else involved in all this.  The fact that he’s good at the politics aspect of this biz shouldn’t work against him.  Nor should his popularity.  If you’re excited about what you’ve seen, be excited.

Don’t be reactive.  Don’t get bogged down in what you might perceive as pandering to the female vote.  Don’t get hung up what you dislike; rock with what you like.  And if you like what you’ve seen, like it.  Love it.  Embrace it.  The rest is distraction.  In ‘04, the work was all anti-Bush, not pro-Kerry.  But folks: we can be pro-Obama here.

And look.  If you dislike stuff about what you see, dislike it.  Question it.  Hold his feet to the flames.  The promises are large and perhaps unrealistic.  But, for me at least, they are infinitely better than the alternative, which means…I’m not concerned with the alternative at all.  I’m excited.

I feel like I might be a little rambly and unclear here, but I’m sure I’ll revisit this a ton.  The basic premise is pretty straightforward though: welcome to the race, Ms. Palin.  It’ll be interesting to see what you’ve got to say.

But I’ve already got something about which to be excited.

If You’re Excited About Tonight, Be Excited.

That’s all I ask.

You don’t have to order the free buttons or bumper stickers from Move On.  You don’t have to buy a t-shirt with McCain on the receiving end of some John Starks action.  You don’t have to suddenly mobilize, take the election into your own hands, and register your entire neighborhood.

Just be excited.

All I ask of you, and I rarely ask you for much, is to be joyful about this if you’re joyful, to believe in it if you’re finding yourself inspired to believe.  I’m asking you not to be afraid of this historical moment, not to be concerned about all the ways that this could go wrong, all the promises that seem to pile high on all the other promises.  Don’t be afraid of the words sounding too right, the rhetoric being too polished, the fireworks and the confetti and the chanting being all too much.

And yes, it was maybe all a little too much.

But folks…be excited about this.

The text I received from the arena tonight read “I am the luckiest person I know.”  I never thought someone would send me that message from a political convention.  I never thought I’d agree.

And folks…please do not focus on the minor stumbles in the phrasing, or on Joe Biden’s awkward point to the crowd, or on the kids being up on stage (although they are damn cute kids).  Don’t focus on the nonstop cheering at the top of the speech or in the middle of the speech or after the speech, or the country song that felt so out of place but was a clear political move.  And please don’t focus on Born in the USA for that matter, although politicians should have learned their lessons from Reagan on that one.

Folks.  My generation has never gotten a speech like that before.

Except maybe the Race speech.  Or maybe the 2004 speech.  But even those, they were different.

I’m not going to do an analysis.  You can get those all over the place.

I’m just going to ask this favor.

Please.

Be excited.  Be invested.  Believe in this.  Don’t be afraid to take a chance on what could happen here.

And I know, I know, there are so many things that could go wrong, so many things that likely will go wrong, and at the end of four years, we could be devastated and look back and wonder why we ever cared so much in the first place.  Hell, in two months we could be sitting, lost and wondering what happened (in other words, 2004 all over again) and struggling to figure out how the hell we come back from this one.  And yes, I know there are nothing but precedents for us losing leaders like this, watching them fall, watching them taken from us through tragedy or poor decisions.  I know this.  I think about it constantly.

And yet, I am excited.

I believe.

I wholeheartedly believe.

And the best thing I can do with that belief, with that excitement, is show it to you in its pure form, to share it with you, to present it, matter of factly, as something that inspires me.

You, in turn, can do with it what you will.

But please, if you too are inspired, excited, hopeful, joyful, if you too believe in what you saw tonight, wish you were there in that stadium, if you too are full of hope for change and find yourself suddenly unafraid to use those words without irony–if only for this tiny historical moment–please, my friends, I ask you, I beg you: wear all that proudly.

Be excited.

Be inspired.

It’s infectious.

Tonight’s Schedule.

http://inspamity.blogspot.com/2008/08/schedule-for-main-events-tonight.html

Denver looks like the place to be.  I’ve got a source on the inside.  I’ll see what I can find out in advance.

Another source says Obama’s speech is pretty amazing.  That’s not exactly insider info, but it’s what I got.

Probably no running diary tonight, but expect some kind of something from me tomorrow.

Happy Obama Day.

Watch the speech tonight.

Hillary.

i’m listening to her speech for the first time right now.  Here are thoughts as I have them:

*”No way, no how, no McCain.” — Gangster.  And here’s the thing: she can be just as gangster and just as important to the Democratic Party without being the Presidential nominee or even the VP nom.  Obama can stay somewhat above the fray–because that’s kind of who he is–and folks like gangster Hillary can keep doing the important work that they do for the party.  I like the way this works.

*PUERTO RICO!  HOO!

*”Sisterhood of the Traveling Pantsuits” — slightly less gangster, but the idea is a good one.

*The more I listen to her, the more pleased I am with the way things worked out.  I think she’s powerful and important.  She speaks well, she’s smart, she’s got moxie (and I debated long and hard before using that word, because I don’t mean it condescendingly), she’s a vital part of the Democratic Party.  But I think she’s going to do better things for this country outside of the White House than she would have from the inside.

*They’re going hard at gay rights this convention–good for the Dems.  Kennedy mentioned it, Hillary’s all over it–good stuff.

*She is doing such a good job of the “and that is why I am supporting Barack Obama for President.”

*”Were you in it just for me?” — DO YOUR THING, HILLARY!  This is exactly what I want Barack to ask to, especially Barack, to ask all of us who are standing behind him to make sure that we’re not just standing behind him, but standing together for the ideals that he and Hillary (and everybody including crazy ass awesome Kucinich) stand for.

*She is the striker, folks.  She’s got no restrictions, and is saying all the attack type stuff on McCain and Bush–again, she’s opening the door for Barack to be what he needs to be–cool, calm, above the fray.

*The woman voting stuff is so fundamental and important, and now it’s a part of the discourse for the years to come.  It’s a goddamn great thing to hear.

*HARRIET TUBMAN!  Hillary’s greatest moment is Harriet Tubman!  She’s suddenly turned into a preacher, and I effing love it.

Great speech.  Here it is.

The Role of The Critic (link)

Stumbled across this article today as I did my homework (yes, it’s that time of year already), and thought it was something to share with you all.  I like this guy’s (stated) attitude and approach towards his criticism.  It’s a tricky business, I know.  I spend a nice little chunk of my year dramaturing and/or adjucating plays that are being considered for various competitions and awards, and even that becomes a delicate balance of what one says versus what one keeps close.

Daddy Yankee Endorses…McCain?!?

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/08/25/mccains-yankee-doodle-daddy/

I’m going to need more information on this before I comment on it.  This speaks to something deep and potentially unsettling.  But quickly: I find it odd that Daddy Yankee is somehow the celebrity spokesman for McCain’s handling of “the immigration issue,” seeing as how he’s, you know, Puerto Rican, and a US citizen.

There is also a troubling undercurrent that I’m hoping Daddy Yankee isn’t buying into (and as a Reggaton artist who does a lot of hip-hop-related work, I can’t imagine he would be): that of Latinos reacting against the idea of a Black president, as if a strengthening of Black political power mandates a weakening of Latino political power.  But again, I feel like this election is less about race and ethnicity than about age and generational divides–and it’s puzzling to see a major young urban artist, regardless of background, ally himself with McCain.

In related news…last night was pretty fun.

This Blog is Popular for One Reason.

WordPress keeps track of the words people use to stumble across my blog.  I’d like to show you what my list of words looks like right now.

Search	Views
sergio ramos	18
atreyu never ending	1

Yesterday

Search	Views
sergio ramos	16
atreyu neverending	2
ramos	2
atreyu never ending story	1
spain soccer sergio	1
zdjecia sergio ramos	1
sergio ramos euro 2008	1

Air Broadway

That’s a dumb title for this post.  I was thinking of making some kind of “Defying Gravity” reference in this post, mainly so I could mention the name Idina Menzel and get a ton of hits as a result, but I’m way such cheap ploys.

Ahem.

So the real thing we’re talking about today (only took 47 words to get to it this time around) is this news article from playbill.com. If you’re too lazy to skip over to the link, here’s the nutshell version: Starting as soon as next month, passengers on American Airlines flights to New York City will be able to buy Broadway tickets right there on the flight.  Only four shows are involved in the pilot (ha!) program so far, and they’re big shows–Chicago, Phantom, Mamma Mia!, and Spamalot–the kind of shows that out-of-towners are certainly going to see as events.  And I guess that people must like to spend money in the air, as evidenced by Skymall’s continued success selling stuff like this that travelers seem to feel urgent needs for while en route.  So there is certainly potential for some sales there.

I think the greater (and ultimately unmeasurable) impact of something like this is that it’s yet another chance for these shows to get in front of the eyes of the target Broadway consumer: the out-of-towner with disposable income and an as-yet-unformed itinerary.  And it’s obviously a way for the airline to wring a few extra bucks out a passenger here and there (they’ll take a fee for each ticket purchased).  But is there really a value for the consumer?  They could get the same seats (probably better seats) for the same cost (probably cheaper) if they wait until they hit the ground.

It’ll be interesting to follow this one.

(In other news…I am back in NYC.  School starts Wednesday.  I’ve got lots to do before then.  I do anticipate being back at the blog full-time though.  Lots of socks to post, draft to finish, Chicago recap stuff…and of course, that Obama guy.)