Live from American University over the airwaves...my friend Graham and his friend Nick now have a political news and opinion podcast: The AU EagleCast.
From the website:
"Join Nick Troiano and Graham Vyse for an inside the Beltway perspective on U.S. politics and current events."
First episode is now online...hopefully more to come soon! :-)
Friday, October 26, 2007
Chris Golden: Reflection on Jimmy Carter
Below is the text of a response written for a class assignment by my friend Chris Golden, who had the opportunity to go hear from former President Jimmy Carter about the crisis in Darfur and other topics. Unfortunately I was unable to attend, but I enjoyed reading Chris's thoughts on the event and so thought I would post them here.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Dr. Cornelius Kerwin, President of American University, said in his introduction, “the opportunity to hear from a former President of the United States on any topic is uncommon.” It was with the awe and respect for the office of President and the former officeholder that Nicole and I attended an address by Former US President James Earl Carter, Jr. on Wednesday October 24th. The topic was Darfur and specifically President Carter’s work with The Elder’s Group, a group of what he called “political has-beens” who have been established to solve some of the world’s most complex issues. Carter outlined the four areas of The Elder’s work: stopping the violence and renewing attempts at democracy in Burma, democratization in Zimbabwe, a comprehensive plan to bring peace to the Middle East, and the Crisis in Sudan including the Darfur genocide.
The CEO of the Elder’s Group is Dr. Robert Pastor, a Vice President at American University. In his flattering introduction, Pastor declared that Carter is “the best ex-president the US has ever seen,” which is the tag line that has come to signify Jimmy Carter. Indeed in his opening words, President Carter repeated the familiar joke of a young child saying to his father, “Daddy, when I grow up, I want to be a former president.” In his introduction, Pastor cited many of Carter’s foreign policy and diplomatic successes during his administration, many of which I have seen as lost or blurred with other presidents in the hindsight of American history. “President Carter normalized relations with China including spiritual relations with Taiwan,” Pastor said indicating that this normalization had a greater effect than President Nixon’s famous trip to China. “Because he negotiated the Panama Canal Treaty,” Pastor said, “the Canal is still open and doing better.” Pastor said that in the first three years of his Presidency, President Carter accomplished more in terms of foreign policy than any other United States President except for FDR & LBJ. “He is one of our greatest Presidents and one of our best past-Presidents,” he said.
This introduction made me think more about the Carter presidency, which is often cited as unsuccessful because of the Iran Hostage Crisis, the Iranian Oil Embargo, and the national climate of malaise which persisted during his four years in the White House. Pastor made no mention of these challenges in his introduction and I would argue that when the Carter Presidency is studied with the advantage of independent historical thought (i.e. historians who were not alive during the Carter Presidency), the challenging and difficult aspects of the Carter Years will have more prevalence. However, I was also thinking during the introduction that when the Former President passes away (he remains vigorously active and in excellent health, however), that the successes of his Administration will again be considered by the nation as a whole.
President Carter gave a brief but understandably detailed account of the Crisis in Sudan, the division between the North and South, and the ethnic cleansing (as a technical point, Carter does not go as far as to use the term “genocide”) in Darfur. Carter said that he has visited Sudan at least once a year since 1988 and has been actively involved with negotiations between leaders within the country and with neighboring nations. Carter directly criticized the attention that Darfur has received in both the Clinton and Bush Administrations and openly chastised both leaders. However, Carter stopped short of offering specific policy changes that he would urge the US Government to impact immediately—he always phrased them as occurring in the future, meaning the next administration. It is common for former Presidents to try, as much as possible, to not criticize the current administration or answer questions like “If I were in office, I would do this…” because it can limit the effectiveness of decisions made by the Current Chief Executive. If one follows the news, however, they will find that of late Carter has had problems with keeping his personal and partisan views out of the public limelight, as when he said recently that Vice President Dick Cheney has been “a disaster for our country.”
One of the most interesting moments during the President’s hour-long talk was when he put himself in the shoes of the next President of the United States and offered suggestions as to what should be said in his/her inaugural address. “I hope that the next President will be a Democrat,” Carter said, “and then there will be an all-out effort to support peace,” specifically referring to peace in the Middle East. President Carter said that the 44th President should immediately abdicate the “new policy of pre-emptive war,” assure that the United States would “never again torture a person and adhere to all International agreements on torture,” work towards a permanent comprehensive peace plan in the Middle East (“I hope that the next President will announce at the initiation of their term an effort for comprehensive peace,” he said”), lead an effort to protect the environment and combat global warming, and insist that “we will raise high the banner of human rights” again.
It was an honor and a privilege to hear from President Jimmy Carter. Carter is the feature of a new documentary called Jimmy Carter: Man from Plains, and I will undoubtedly think about my front-row vantage point to his thoughts about the state of the world today, its troubles, its tribulations, and its future. Jimmy Carter may be a former President but he is forever an Ambassador of the United States.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Dr. Cornelius Kerwin, President of American University, said in his introduction, “the opportunity to hear from a former President of the United States on any topic is uncommon.” It was with the awe and respect for the office of President and the former officeholder that Nicole and I attended an address by Former US President James Earl Carter, Jr. on Wednesday October 24th. The topic was Darfur and specifically President Carter’s work with The Elder’s Group, a group of what he called “political has-beens” who have been established to solve some of the world’s most complex issues. Carter outlined the four areas of The Elder’s work: stopping the violence and renewing attempts at democracy in Burma, democratization in Zimbabwe, a comprehensive plan to bring peace to the Middle East, and the Crisis in Sudan including the Darfur genocide.
The CEO of the Elder’s Group is Dr. Robert Pastor, a Vice President at American University. In his flattering introduction, Pastor declared that Carter is “the best ex-president the US has ever seen,” which is the tag line that has come to signify Jimmy Carter. Indeed in his opening words, President Carter repeated the familiar joke of a young child saying to his father, “Daddy, when I grow up, I want to be a former president.” In his introduction, Pastor cited many of Carter’s foreign policy and diplomatic successes during his administration, many of which I have seen as lost or blurred with other presidents in the hindsight of American history. “President Carter normalized relations with China including spiritual relations with Taiwan,” Pastor said indicating that this normalization had a greater effect than President Nixon’s famous trip to China. “Because he negotiated the Panama Canal Treaty,” Pastor said, “the Canal is still open and doing better.” Pastor said that in the first three years of his Presidency, President Carter accomplished more in terms of foreign policy than any other United States President except for FDR & LBJ. “He is one of our greatest Presidents and one of our best past-Presidents,” he said.
This introduction made me think more about the Carter presidency, which is often cited as unsuccessful because of the Iran Hostage Crisis, the Iranian Oil Embargo, and the national climate of malaise which persisted during his four years in the White House. Pastor made no mention of these challenges in his introduction and I would argue that when the Carter Presidency is studied with the advantage of independent historical thought (i.e. historians who were not alive during the Carter Presidency), the challenging and difficult aspects of the Carter Years will have more prevalence. However, I was also thinking during the introduction that when the Former President passes away (he remains vigorously active and in excellent health, however), that the successes of his Administration will again be considered by the nation as a whole.
President Carter gave a brief but understandably detailed account of the Crisis in Sudan, the division between the North and South, and the ethnic cleansing (as a technical point, Carter does not go as far as to use the term “genocide”) in Darfur. Carter said that he has visited Sudan at least once a year since 1988 and has been actively involved with negotiations between leaders within the country and with neighboring nations. Carter directly criticized the attention that Darfur has received in both the Clinton and Bush Administrations and openly chastised both leaders. However, Carter stopped short of offering specific policy changes that he would urge the US Government to impact immediately—he always phrased them as occurring in the future, meaning the next administration. It is common for former Presidents to try, as much as possible, to not criticize the current administration or answer questions like “If I were in office, I would do this…” because it can limit the effectiveness of decisions made by the Current Chief Executive. If one follows the news, however, they will find that of late Carter has had problems with keeping his personal and partisan views out of the public limelight, as when he said recently that Vice President Dick Cheney has been “a disaster for our country.”
One of the most interesting moments during the President’s hour-long talk was when he put himself in the shoes of the next President of the United States and offered suggestions as to what should be said in his/her inaugural address. “I hope that the next President will be a Democrat,” Carter said, “and then there will be an all-out effort to support peace,” specifically referring to peace in the Middle East. President Carter said that the 44th President should immediately abdicate the “new policy of pre-emptive war,” assure that the United States would “never again torture a person and adhere to all International agreements on torture,” work towards a permanent comprehensive peace plan in the Middle East (“I hope that the next President will announce at the initiation of their term an effort for comprehensive peace,” he said”), lead an effort to protect the environment and combat global warming, and insist that “we will raise high the banner of human rights” again.
It was an honor and a privilege to hear from President Jimmy Carter. Carter is the feature of a new documentary called Jimmy Carter: Man from Plains, and I will undoubtedly think about my front-row vantage point to his thoughts about the state of the world today, its troubles, its tribulations, and its future. Jimmy Carter may be a former President but he is forever an Ambassador of the United States.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Notes: Brookings Institution Visit
Speaker: Dr. Pietro Nivola, Vice President and Director of Governance Studies program
October 24, 2007
On the Brookings Institution
-Independent organization designed to influence government policy and inform the public debate through (somewhat biased) research.
-In terms of slant, Brookings is just left of center overall, but is one of the most centrist think tanks
-Oldest institution of its kind in the world, one of the biggest and most renowned
-Founded by St. Louis businessman Robert Brookings in 1916 or 1917 (about the time the U.S. entered WWI) because he and others saw that the government needed to develop a better planning and administration apparatus for management and budget especially
-Oldest department is Governance Studies; since then, it has branched out and formed different departments and centers for study
-Unlike university centers, Brookings exists not just to do academic studies, but to impact governmental policy. The amount of impact they have depends on the issue and on who is in power at the time.
-More right-of-center sister institute: American Enterprise Institute
-Brookings studies have impacted tax reform bills, the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Act, and the Intelligence Reform Act, among others.
About Dr. Nivola
-Has worked at the Brookings Institute for 20 years
-Has worked on energy policy, trade policy, urban policy, and federalism
-Currently is working on a project about partisan polarization with the Hoover Institution at Stanford
Questions and Answers
-What impact does polarization have on foreign policy?
-Polarization is not always bad, but in conducting foreign policy (which is more long-term strategic concerns) it can have very negative effects.
-Without bipartisanship, foreign policy gets very messy
-Regarding the UN: John Bolton was your typical partisan posterboy, but there is precedent for having similarly U.S.-sovereignty-focused ambassadors from both parties (Daniel Patrick Moynihan would be an example)
-In what ways is partisanship not so bad?
-Without ideological differences, there is little to no debate, which makes politics very boring. This leads to low voter turnout and interest in the system, because differences inspire interest.
-People used to complain that the parties were too "mushy." No one knew what the platforms of the party were, because people shifted around their positions too much. Discipline in a party (voting along party lines) gets stuff done, for better or worse. This would be a majoritarian parliamentary-esque system.
-Do candidates utilize the Brookings Institute for their campaigns?
-Brookings is not allowed to line up as an institute with any one campaign. Certain individuals will work on an individual level with campaigns, but they are not representing Brookings.
-Opportunity '08 project- attempt to engage candidates in policy dialogues. Most candidates stay pretty vague on policy throughout the campaign, but once they get elected, they want to know what next, and that's where think tanks like Brookings can step in.
-If partisanship is so prevalent, how come the frontrunners in the 2008 presidential campaign are the moderates?
-The problem with primaries:
-Graham: Candidates need to cater to their specific parties, then reposition themselves for the general election to appeal to centrists
-Jenny: Yes- primaries are all about fundraising, and the money comes from the passionate people who are usually more fringe- the frontrunner is usually the best fundraiser
-When the party bosses picked candidates, they were looking for someone electable, close to the bulk of the voters. Today, only the committed passionate voters are the ones who vote in primaries, and they pick different kinds of candidates: either ones who are more extremists or virtual unknowns (like Jimmy Carter) with no paper trail and lots of time to campaign
-Hillary Clinton had to run a more centrist campaign to compensate for the ultra-liberal stigma that the conservatives are painting her with. She also has a big Rolodex of supporters thanks to her husband, so she doesn't need to pander to the Democratic base as much. Additionally, the Democratic party as a whole simply wants to win the election, so they'll probably bite their lips and vote for the person who has the best chance of winning.
-Rudy Giuliani may or may not prove to be the real Republican frontrunner. He's hard to characterize, a "weird duck," a social liberal trying to offset that image with a very hard line on foreign policy
-Don't write off Mitt Romney, although he could be easily painted as a flip-flopper- governed MA in a very moderate way but running now as a stern conservative- again, you have to paint yourself in one certain way to win the primary and then another way to win the general election.
-On federalism
-currently, the federal government will always override the states in disagreements, no matter which party is in power
-Abortion: could let the states decide- laws would vary state to state based on the opinions of the citizens of that state- would depolarize the issue
-Abortion and gay marriage- should one, both, or neither be left up to the states?
-Moving one state to another, gays could become unmarried but the abortion would still have happened
-Some issues can't be left to the states-- slavery was left up to the states, and that led to the Civil War.
-Advantage of federalism: responsibility for a lot of things is given to the states, leaving a more manageable agenda and costs for the federal government
-People think the federal government should be helping them. How do you reconcile having a manageable federal agenda with what the people expect?
-People do have a notion that the feds should take care of everything. Concurrently, the politicians view their role as doing something (of a local importance) for their constituents.
-Huge momentum towards centralization
-What are some smaller-issue examples of returning powers to state governments?
-Welfare reform- has been in some cases successfully given back to the states
-Transportation infrastructure- federal Highway Act- has created a tight web of highways, but now it's created and therer are other priorities. Local governments can take care of improvements- for instance, Boston should have taken care of the Big Dig instead of having the federal government pay for it.
-Has political polarization manifested itself in think tanks like Brookings?
-Yes- parties listen to their echo chambers. The Republican party listens to right-leaning think tanks, and Democrats listen to left-leaning think tanks.
-Although there's a considerable amount of partisan alignment in think tanks, the opinions in think tanks are not totally along party lines- for instance, two left-leaning Brookings scholars went to Iraq at Gen. Petraeus' invitation, toured, came back, and reported that we can't write off the surge just yet. The right-leaning Cato Institute has criticized the Bush administration for many of its policies. There is a certain amount of independence and internal splits within think tanks.
-What are some of the thoughts within Brookings about pulling out of Iraq?
-very divided thoughts person-to-person within the institute
-Some align closely with the Democrats, saying that we need to withdraw from Iraq immediately and let the Iraqi government take control of their policies.
-Some are more inclined toward a different point of view, saying that if we withdraw too fast Iran will come in and fill the military vacuum, leading to genocide on a huge scale.
-Kenneth Pollock (Brookings scholar)- have to be careful about how we withdraw, because creating a vacuum would be a bad idea.
-It's hard to know in politics if when a candidate is elected they will hold on to their campaign promises-- when they get hit with the reality of the situation in Iraq, they may not be as apt to run away from the situation.
-There are even dangers in drawing back the number of troops, because having too few troops would again create a vacuum that Iran would fill, posing a real threat
-If Clinton wasn't so far ahead in the polls already, she'd have to be running her campaign differently regarding Iraq, perhaps even having apologized for her war vote
-Iowa runs a different sort of primary- it's a much more ideologue-oriented state
-What is the relationship between Brookings policy makers in helping them make educated decisions?
-It's harder for House members to risk doing the right thing- while most have very safe seats, their terms are very short so they have to listen to their base
-Brookings tends to appeal to independents and moderates
-Members of Congress from swing states and districts might be more interested (i.e. Chuck Hagel, John McCain, Congressman Davis, Joe Lieberman) - non-extremists
-Some issues with bipartisan appeal (NCLB) will be more inclined to listen to think tanks
-Issues with more splits (tax reductions) - the GOP will not pay attention to what Brookings has to say (and Brookings won't pay attention to the GOP)
-How does polarization affect and blur the three branches of government and the checks and balances system?
-Polarization can upset the checks and balances. For instance, when the GOP was in charge of both the White House and the Congress, they were disciplined enough that there were virtually no checks-- oversight and vetoes just didn't happen.
-In the judiciary: polarization can result in radical appointees because the president needs to appeal to his base > pitched battles with opposition
-Still some checks, with respect to appointments-- Senate confirmation process-- filibusters cannot be stopped without 60-vote cloture.
October 24, 2007
On the Brookings Institution
-Independent organization designed to influence government policy and inform the public debate through (somewhat biased) research.
-In terms of slant, Brookings is just left of center overall, but is one of the most centrist think tanks
-Oldest institution of its kind in the world, one of the biggest and most renowned
-Founded by St. Louis businessman Robert Brookings in 1916 or 1917 (about the time the U.S. entered WWI) because he and others saw that the government needed to develop a better planning and administration apparatus for management and budget especially
-Oldest department is Governance Studies; since then, it has branched out and formed different departments and centers for study
-Unlike university centers, Brookings exists not just to do academic studies, but to impact governmental policy. The amount of impact they have depends on the issue and on who is in power at the time.
-More right-of-center sister institute: American Enterprise Institute
-Brookings studies have impacted tax reform bills, the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Act, and the Intelligence Reform Act, among others.
About Dr. Nivola
-Has worked at the Brookings Institute for 20 years
-Has worked on energy policy, trade policy, urban policy, and federalism
-Currently is working on a project about partisan polarization with the Hoover Institution at Stanford
Questions and Answers
-What impact does polarization have on foreign policy?
-Polarization is not always bad, but in conducting foreign policy (which is more long-term strategic concerns) it can have very negative effects.
-Without bipartisanship, foreign policy gets very messy
-Regarding the UN: John Bolton was your typical partisan posterboy, but there is precedent for having similarly U.S.-sovereignty-focused ambassadors from both parties (Daniel Patrick Moynihan would be an example)
-In what ways is partisanship not so bad?
-Without ideological differences, there is little to no debate, which makes politics very boring. This leads to low voter turnout and interest in the system, because differences inspire interest.
-People used to complain that the parties were too "mushy." No one knew what the platforms of the party were, because people shifted around their positions too much. Discipline in a party (voting along party lines) gets stuff done, for better or worse. This would be a majoritarian parliamentary-esque system.
-Do candidates utilize the Brookings Institute for their campaigns?
-Brookings is not allowed to line up as an institute with any one campaign. Certain individuals will work on an individual level with campaigns, but they are not representing Brookings.
-Opportunity '08 project- attempt to engage candidates in policy dialogues. Most candidates stay pretty vague on policy throughout the campaign, but once they get elected, they want to know what next, and that's where think tanks like Brookings can step in.
-If partisanship is so prevalent, how come the frontrunners in the 2008 presidential campaign are the moderates?
-The problem with primaries:
-Graham: Candidates need to cater to their specific parties, then reposition themselves for the general election to appeal to centrists
-Jenny: Yes- primaries are all about fundraising, and the money comes from the passionate people who are usually more fringe- the frontrunner is usually the best fundraiser
-When the party bosses picked candidates, they were looking for someone electable, close to the bulk of the voters. Today, only the committed passionate voters are the ones who vote in primaries, and they pick different kinds of candidates: either ones who are more extremists or virtual unknowns (like Jimmy Carter) with no paper trail and lots of time to campaign
-Hillary Clinton had to run a more centrist campaign to compensate for the ultra-liberal stigma that the conservatives are painting her with. She also has a big Rolodex of supporters thanks to her husband, so she doesn't need to pander to the Democratic base as much. Additionally, the Democratic party as a whole simply wants to win the election, so they'll probably bite their lips and vote for the person who has the best chance of winning.
-Rudy Giuliani may or may not prove to be the real Republican frontrunner. He's hard to characterize, a "weird duck," a social liberal trying to offset that image with a very hard line on foreign policy
-Don't write off Mitt Romney, although he could be easily painted as a flip-flopper- governed MA in a very moderate way but running now as a stern conservative- again, you have to paint yourself in one certain way to win the primary and then another way to win the general election.
-On federalism
-currently, the federal government will always override the states in disagreements, no matter which party is in power
-Abortion: could let the states decide- laws would vary state to state based on the opinions of the citizens of that state- would depolarize the issue
-Abortion and gay marriage- should one, both, or neither be left up to the states?
-Moving one state to another, gays could become unmarried but the abortion would still have happened
-Some issues can't be left to the states-- slavery was left up to the states, and that led to the Civil War.
-Advantage of federalism: responsibility for a lot of things is given to the states, leaving a more manageable agenda and costs for the federal government
-People think the federal government should be helping them. How do you reconcile having a manageable federal agenda with what the people expect?
-People do have a notion that the feds should take care of everything. Concurrently, the politicians view their role as doing something (of a local importance) for their constituents.
-Huge momentum towards centralization
-What are some smaller-issue examples of returning powers to state governments?
-Welfare reform- has been in some cases successfully given back to the states
-Transportation infrastructure- federal Highway Act- has created a tight web of highways, but now it's created and therer are other priorities. Local governments can take care of improvements- for instance, Boston should have taken care of the Big Dig instead of having the federal government pay for it.
-Has political polarization manifested itself in think tanks like Brookings?
-Yes- parties listen to their echo chambers. The Republican party listens to right-leaning think tanks, and Democrats listen to left-leaning think tanks.
-Although there's a considerable amount of partisan alignment in think tanks, the opinions in think tanks are not totally along party lines- for instance, two left-leaning Brookings scholars went to Iraq at Gen. Petraeus' invitation, toured, came back, and reported that we can't write off the surge just yet. The right-leaning Cato Institute has criticized the Bush administration for many of its policies. There is a certain amount of independence and internal splits within think tanks.
-What are some of the thoughts within Brookings about pulling out of Iraq?
-very divided thoughts person-to-person within the institute
-Some align closely with the Democrats, saying that we need to withdraw from Iraq immediately and let the Iraqi government take control of their policies.
-Some are more inclined toward a different point of view, saying that if we withdraw too fast Iran will come in and fill the military vacuum, leading to genocide on a huge scale.
-Kenneth Pollock (Brookings scholar)- have to be careful about how we withdraw, because creating a vacuum would be a bad idea.
-It's hard to know in politics if when a candidate is elected they will hold on to their campaign promises-- when they get hit with the reality of the situation in Iraq, they may not be as apt to run away from the situation.
-There are even dangers in drawing back the number of troops, because having too few troops would again create a vacuum that Iran would fill, posing a real threat
-If Clinton wasn't so far ahead in the polls already, she'd have to be running her campaign differently regarding Iraq, perhaps even having apologized for her war vote
-Iowa runs a different sort of primary- it's a much more ideologue-oriented state
-What is the relationship between Brookings policy makers in helping them make educated decisions?
-It's harder for House members to risk doing the right thing- while most have very safe seats, their terms are very short so they have to listen to their base
-Brookings tends to appeal to independents and moderates
-Members of Congress from swing states and districts might be more interested (i.e. Chuck Hagel, John McCain, Congressman Davis, Joe Lieberman) - non-extremists
-Some issues with bipartisan appeal (NCLB) will be more inclined to listen to think tanks
-Issues with more splits (tax reductions) - the GOP will not pay attention to what Brookings has to say (and Brookings won't pay attention to the GOP)
-How does polarization affect and blur the three branches of government and the checks and balances system?
-Polarization can upset the checks and balances. For instance, when the GOP was in charge of both the White House and the Congress, they were disciplined enough that there were virtually no checks-- oversight and vetoes just didn't happen.
-In the judiciary: polarization can result in radical appointees because the president needs to appeal to his base > pitched battles with opposition
-Still some checks, with respect to appointments-- Senate confirmation process-- filibusters cannot be stopped without 60-vote cloture.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Problem Food
When I'm having problems, if I'm not turning directly to God or friends or family, I turn to food for comfort. That is, if they're not so serious that I just don't want to eat.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not a compulsive problem-eater. But there are just certain foods that fit certain problems.
So, just for kicks and giggles, I have compiled a list of food that I turn to frequently- my favorite comfort food, if you will. There is more, but these are the top five:
1. ICE CREAM- next to item #5, ice cream may be the best comfort food in existence. This is especially the case for relationship problems. Seriously, who do most girls turn to when they're having issues with friends or especially boyfriends? You got it: Ben and Jerry. I sometimes call them "the two dates of the dateless." One sugar rush and consequently mood change, coming right up. Best when combined with sympathetic and/or silly friends.
2. JELLY BEANS- they're just such a naturally happy candy. For minor bad moods (a bad class, bad test grade, annoying people, something like that) they can be very helpful. Have a silly conversation while eating for best results.
3. MACARONI AND CHEESE- perhaps the #3 best comfort food in existence. Warm, cheesy...just a good mood in a box. Expect inexplicable cravings once you get onto it, whether you're in a bad mood or not. Top kinds: homemade is obviously number one, closely followed by Annie's Pasta and Kraft Mac-and-Cheese or Easy Mac (or ghetto mac, if you prefer :-p)
4. SALT AND VINEGAR CHIPS- OK, so I know not everyone's as much of a fan of salt and vinegar chips as me. But when you're me, being in a minor bad mood is often frequently solved by curling up in front of the TV with a sitcom or romantic comedy and a bag of salt-and-vinegar chips.
5. CHOCOLATE- THE INDISPUTABLE BEST PROBLEM FOOD IN EXISTENCE. More girls turn to chocolate during PMS than to Midol or any other drug. It doesn't matter what kind you prefer. Chocolate solves (or at least helps with) ALL problems.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not a compulsive problem-eater. But there are just certain foods that fit certain problems.
So, just for kicks and giggles, I have compiled a list of food that I turn to frequently- my favorite comfort food, if you will. There is more, but these are the top five:
1. ICE CREAM- next to item #5, ice cream may be the best comfort food in existence. This is especially the case for relationship problems. Seriously, who do most girls turn to when they're having issues with friends or especially boyfriends? You got it: Ben and Jerry. I sometimes call them "the two dates of the dateless." One sugar rush and consequently mood change, coming right up. Best when combined with sympathetic and/or silly friends.
2. JELLY BEANS- they're just such a naturally happy candy. For minor bad moods (a bad class, bad test grade, annoying people, something like that) they can be very helpful. Have a silly conversation while eating for best results.
3. MACARONI AND CHEESE- perhaps the #3 best comfort food in existence. Warm, cheesy...just a good mood in a box. Expect inexplicable cravings once you get onto it, whether you're in a bad mood or not. Top kinds: homemade is obviously number one, closely followed by Annie's Pasta and Kraft Mac-and-Cheese or Easy Mac (or ghetto mac, if you prefer :-p)
4. SALT AND VINEGAR CHIPS- OK, so I know not everyone's as much of a fan of salt and vinegar chips as me. But when you're me, being in a minor bad mood is often frequently solved by curling up in front of the TV with a sitcom or romantic comedy and a bag of salt-and-vinegar chips.
5. CHOCOLATE- THE INDISPUTABLE BEST PROBLEM FOOD IN EXISTENCE. More girls turn to chocolate during PMS than to Midol or any other drug. It doesn't matter what kind you prefer. Chocolate solves (or at least helps with) ALL problems.
Friday, September 07, 2007
Cool blog
The Hip Tranquil Chick...very neat blog. Check it out:
http://hiptranquilchick.com/
Here's a link to the yoga studio she runs in D.C.:
http://www.tranquilspace.com/
http://hiptranquilchick.com/
Here's a link to the yoga studio she runs in D.C.:
http://www.tranquilspace.com/
Sunday, September 02, 2007
To grab a city by the tail...
Going to school in Washington, D.C. does not just mean merely going to class here. There are a plethora of opportunities to be seized, places to explore, people to meet. Here's a list of place I want to go visit- to be revised multiple times, no doubt.
National Zoo- yes, again. I didn't see nearly enough the first time.
U.S. Botanical Gardens
Einstein Memorial
the Canadian Embassy- okay, so this one MIGHT be unique to me...
the Old Post Office Pavilion
the International Spy Museum
Ford's Theater
the National Cathedral
National Gallery of Art- never gets old
National Portrait Gallery
Library of Congress- I can get a reading card there as a D.C. resident since I go to school here! YESS!!!
National Museum of the American Indian
Newseum- once it opens
Rock Creek Park
Carnegie Library
National Archives
Kennedy Center performance
National Book Festival
Eastern Market
Hirshorn Art Gallery
Arlington National Cemetary
Chinatown
U Street- want to go back and explore when I am in a state of mind to appreciate the history. IE not in pain.
Congressional Cemetery
D.C. United soccer game
Waterfront
Dupont Circle
MetroCenter area
FDR Memorial- haven't been back this trip. Reallyreallyreally want to go.
Friendship Heights
Holocaust Museum
National Museum of Women in the Arts
Folger Shakespeare Library
Outside D.C.:
Bethesda- hello...Tastee Diner!!
Alexandria, VA
Williamsburg, VA
Mount Vernon, VA
Baltimore, MD
Annapolis, MD
To be continued, likely...
P.S. Don't underestimate the value of NOT taking the subway wherever you're going, and just walking instead. You see so much more when you're not underground.
National Zoo- yes, again. I didn't see nearly enough the first time.
U.S. Botanical Gardens
Einstein Memorial
the Canadian Embassy- okay, so this one MIGHT be unique to me...
the Old Post Office Pavilion
the International Spy Museum
Ford's Theater
the National Cathedral
National Gallery of Art- never gets old
National Portrait Gallery
Library of Congress- I can get a reading card there as a D.C. resident since I go to school here! YESS!!!
National Museum of the American Indian
Newseum- once it opens
Rock Creek Park
Carnegie Library
National Archives
Kennedy Center performance
National Book Festival
Eastern Market
Hirshorn Art Gallery
Arlington National Cemetary
Chinatown
U Street- want to go back and explore when I am in a state of mind to appreciate the history. IE not in pain.
Congressional Cemetery
D.C. United soccer game
Waterfront
Dupont Circle
MetroCenter area
FDR Memorial- haven't been back this trip. Reallyreallyreally want to go.
Friendship Heights
Holocaust Museum
National Museum of Women in the Arts
Folger Shakespeare Library
Outside D.C.:
Bethesda- hello...Tastee Diner!!
Alexandria, VA
Williamsburg, VA
Mount Vernon, VA
Baltimore, MD
Annapolis, MD
To be continued, likely...
P.S. Don't underestimate the value of NOT taking the subway wherever you're going, and just walking instead. You see so much more when you're not underground.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Locksley Hall
by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892)
COMRADES, leave me here a little, while as yet ’tis early morn:
Leave me here, and when you want me, sound upon the bugle horn.
’Tis the place, and all around it, as of old, the curlews call,
Dreary gleams about the moorland flying over Locksley Hall;
Locksley Hall, that in the distance overlooks the sandy tracts,
And the hollow ocean-ridges roaring into cataracts.
Many a night from yonder ivied casement, ere I went to rest,
Did I look on great Orion sloping slowly to the West.
Many a night I saw the Pleiads, rising thro’ the mellow shade,
Glitter like a swarm of fire-flies tangled in a silver braid.
Here about the beach I wander’d, nourishing a youth sublime
With the fairy tales of science, and the long result of Time;
When the centuries behind me like a fruitful land reposed;
When I clung to all the present for the promise that it closed:
When I dipt into the future far as human eye could see;
Saw the Vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be.—
In the Spring a fuller crimson comes upon the robin’s breast;
In the Spring the wanton lapwing gets himself another crest;
In the Spring a livelier iris changes on the burnish’d dove;
In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.
Then her cheek was pale and thinner than should be for one so young,
And her eyes on all my motions with a mute observance hung.
And I said, “My cousin Amy, speak, and speak the truth to me,
Trust me, cousin, all the current of my being sets to thee.”
On her pallid cheek and forehead came a colour and a light,
As I have seen the rosy red flushing in the northern night.
And she turn’d—her bosom shaken with a sudden storm of sighs—
All the spirit deeply dawning in the dark of hazel eyes—
Saying, “I have hid my feelings, fearing they should do me wrong;”
Saying, “Dost thou love me, cousin?” weeping, “I have loved thee long.”
Love took up the glass of Time, and turn’d it in his glowing hands;
Every moment, lightly shaken, ran itself in golden sands.
Love took up the harp of Life, and smote on all the chords with might;
Smote the chord of Self, that, trembling, pass’d in music out of sight.
...............
Cursed be the social wants that sin against the strength of youth!
Cursed be the social lies that warp us from the living truth!
Cursed be the sickly forms that err from honest Nature’s rule!
Cursed be the gold that gilds the straiten’d forehead of the fool!
Well—’tis well that I should bluster!—Hadst thou less unworthy proved—
Would to God—for I had loved thee more than ever wife was loved.
Am I mad, that I should cherish that which bears but bitter fruit?
I will pluck it from my bosom, tho’ my heart be at the root.
Never, tho’ my mortal summers to such length of years should come
As the many-winter’d crow that leads the clanging rookery home.
Where is comfort? in division of the records of the mind?
Can I part her from herself, and love her, as I knew her, kind?
I remember one that perish’d: sweetly did she speak and move:
Such a one do I remember, whom to look at was to love.
Can I think of her as dead, and love her for the love she bore?
No—she never loved me truly: love is love for evermore.
Comfort? comfort scorn’d of devils! this is truth the poet sings,
That a sorrow’s crown of sorrow is remembering happier things.
Drug thy memories, lest thou learn it, lest thy heart be put to proof,
In the dead unhappy night, and when the rain is on the roof.
....................
“They were dangerous guides the feelings—she herself was not exempt—
Truly, she herself had suffer’d”—Perish in thy self-contempt!
Overlive it—lower yet—be happy! wherefore should I care?
I myself must mix with action, lest I wither by despair.
What is that which I should turn to, lighting upon days like these?
Every door is barr’d with gold, and opens but to golden keys.
Every gate is throng’d with suitors, all the markets overflow.
I have but an angry fancy: what is that which I should do?
I had been content to perish, falling on the foeman’s ground,
When the ranks are roll’d in vapour, and the winds are laid with sound.
But the jingling of the guinea helps the hurt that Honour feels,
And the nations do but murmur, snarling at each other’s heels.
Can I but relive in sadness? I will turn that earlier page.
Hide me from my deep emotion, O thou wondrous Mother-Age!
Make me feel the wild pulsation that I felt before the strife,
When I heard my days before me, and the tumult of my life;
Yearning for the large excitement that the coming years would yield,
Eager-hearted as a boy when first he leaves his father’s field,
And at night along the dusky highway near and nearer drawn,
Sees in heaven the light of London flaring like a dreary dawn;
And his spirit leaps within him to be gone before him then,
Underneath the light he looks at, in among the throngs of men:
Men, my brothers, men the workers, ever reaping something new:
That which they have done but earnest of the things that they shall do:
For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see,
Saw the Vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be;
Saw the heavens fill with commerce, argosies of magic sails,
Pilots of the purple twilight, dropping down with costly bales;
Heard the heavens fill with shouting, and there rain’d a ghastly dew
From the nations’ airy navies grappling in the central blue;
Far along the world-wide whisper of the south-wind rushing warm,
With the standards of the peoples plunging thro’ the thunder-storm;
Till the war-drum throbb’d no longer, and the battle-flags were furl’d
In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world.
There the common sense of most shall hold a fretful realm in awe,
And the kindly earth shall slumber, lapt in universal law.
So I triumph’d ere my passion sweeping thro’ me left me dry,
Left me with the palsied heart, and left me with the jaundiced eye;
Eye, to which all order festers, all things here are out of joint,
Science moves, but slowly slowly, creeping on from point to point:
Slowly comes a hungry people, as a lion creeping nigher,
Glares at one that nods and winks behind a slowly-dying fire.
Yet I doubt not thro’ the ages one increasing purpose runs,
And the thoughts of men are widen’d with the process of the suns.
What is that to him that reaps not harvest of his youthful joys,
Tho’ the deep heart of existence beat for ever like a boy’s?
Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers, and I linger on the shore,
And the individual withers, and the world is more and more.
Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers, and he bears a laden breast,
Full of sad experience, moving toward the stillness of his rest.
Hark, my merry comrades call me, sounding on the bugle-horn,
They to whom my foolish passion were a target for their scorn:
Shall it not be scorn to me to harp on such a moulder’d string?
I am shamed thro’ all my nature to have loved so slight a thing.
............
Here at least, where nature sickens, nothing. Ah, for some retreat
Deep in yonder shining Orient, where my life began to beat;
Where in wild Mahratta-battle fell my father evil-starr’d;
I was left a trampled orphan, and a selfish uncle’s ward.
Or to burst all links of habit—there to wander far away,
On from island unto island at the gateways of the day.
Larger constellations burning, mellow moons and happy skies,
Breadths of tropic shade and palms in cluster, knots of Paradise.
........................
Not in vain the distance beacons. Forward, forward let us range.
Let the great world spin for ever down the ringing grooves of change.
Thro’ the shadow of the globe we sweep into the younger day:
Better fifty years of Europe than a cycle of Cathay.
Mother-Age (for mine I knew not) help me as when life begun:
Rift the hills, and roll the waters, flash the lightnings, weigh the Sun—
O, I see the crescent promise of my spirit hath not set.
Ancient founts of inspiration well thro’ all my fancy yet.
Howsoever these things be, a long farewell to Locksley Hall!
Now for me the woods may wither, now for me the roof-tree fall.
Comes a vapour from the margin, blackening over heath and holt,
Cramming all the blast before it, in its breast a thunderbolt.
Let it fall on Locksley Hall, with rain or hail, or fire or snow;
For the mighty wind arises, roaring seaward, and I go.
COMRADES, leave me here a little, while as yet ’tis early morn:
Leave me here, and when you want me, sound upon the bugle horn.
’Tis the place, and all around it, as of old, the curlews call,
Dreary gleams about the moorland flying over Locksley Hall;
Locksley Hall, that in the distance overlooks the sandy tracts,
And the hollow ocean-ridges roaring into cataracts.
Many a night from yonder ivied casement, ere I went to rest,
Did I look on great Orion sloping slowly to the West.
Many a night I saw the Pleiads, rising thro’ the mellow shade,
Glitter like a swarm of fire-flies tangled in a silver braid.
Here about the beach I wander’d, nourishing a youth sublime
With the fairy tales of science, and the long result of Time;
When the centuries behind me like a fruitful land reposed;
When I clung to all the present for the promise that it closed:
When I dipt into the future far as human eye could see;
Saw the Vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be.—
In the Spring a fuller crimson comes upon the robin’s breast;
In the Spring the wanton lapwing gets himself another crest;
In the Spring a livelier iris changes on the burnish’d dove;
In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.
Then her cheek was pale and thinner than should be for one so young,
And her eyes on all my motions with a mute observance hung.
And I said, “My cousin Amy, speak, and speak the truth to me,
Trust me, cousin, all the current of my being sets to thee.”
On her pallid cheek and forehead came a colour and a light,
As I have seen the rosy red flushing in the northern night.
And she turn’d—her bosom shaken with a sudden storm of sighs—
All the spirit deeply dawning in the dark of hazel eyes—
Saying, “I have hid my feelings, fearing they should do me wrong;”
Saying, “Dost thou love me, cousin?” weeping, “I have loved thee long.”
Love took up the glass of Time, and turn’d it in his glowing hands;
Every moment, lightly shaken, ran itself in golden sands.
Love took up the harp of Life, and smote on all the chords with might;
Smote the chord of Self, that, trembling, pass’d in music out of sight.
...............
Cursed be the social wants that sin against the strength of youth!
Cursed be the social lies that warp us from the living truth!
Cursed be the sickly forms that err from honest Nature’s rule!
Cursed be the gold that gilds the straiten’d forehead of the fool!
Well—’tis well that I should bluster!—Hadst thou less unworthy proved—
Would to God—for I had loved thee more than ever wife was loved.
Am I mad, that I should cherish that which bears but bitter fruit?
I will pluck it from my bosom, tho’ my heart be at the root.
Never, tho’ my mortal summers to such length of years should come
As the many-winter’d crow that leads the clanging rookery home.
Where is comfort? in division of the records of the mind?
Can I part her from herself, and love her, as I knew her, kind?
I remember one that perish’d: sweetly did she speak and move:
Such a one do I remember, whom to look at was to love.
Can I think of her as dead, and love her for the love she bore?
No—she never loved me truly: love is love for evermore.
Comfort? comfort scorn’d of devils! this is truth the poet sings,
That a sorrow’s crown of sorrow is remembering happier things.
Drug thy memories, lest thou learn it, lest thy heart be put to proof,
In the dead unhappy night, and when the rain is on the roof.
....................
“They were dangerous guides the feelings—she herself was not exempt—
Truly, she herself had suffer’d”—Perish in thy self-contempt!
Overlive it—lower yet—be happy! wherefore should I care?
I myself must mix with action, lest I wither by despair.
What is that which I should turn to, lighting upon days like these?
Every door is barr’d with gold, and opens but to golden keys.
Every gate is throng’d with suitors, all the markets overflow.
I have but an angry fancy: what is that which I should do?
I had been content to perish, falling on the foeman’s ground,
When the ranks are roll’d in vapour, and the winds are laid with sound.
But the jingling of the guinea helps the hurt that Honour feels,
And the nations do but murmur, snarling at each other’s heels.
Can I but relive in sadness? I will turn that earlier page.
Hide me from my deep emotion, O thou wondrous Mother-Age!
Make me feel the wild pulsation that I felt before the strife,
When I heard my days before me, and the tumult of my life;
Yearning for the large excitement that the coming years would yield,
Eager-hearted as a boy when first he leaves his father’s field,
And at night along the dusky highway near and nearer drawn,
Sees in heaven the light of London flaring like a dreary dawn;
And his spirit leaps within him to be gone before him then,
Underneath the light he looks at, in among the throngs of men:
Men, my brothers, men the workers, ever reaping something new:
That which they have done but earnest of the things that they shall do:
For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see,
Saw the Vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be;
Saw the heavens fill with commerce, argosies of magic sails,
Pilots of the purple twilight, dropping down with costly bales;
Heard the heavens fill with shouting, and there rain’d a ghastly dew
From the nations’ airy navies grappling in the central blue;
Far along the world-wide whisper of the south-wind rushing warm,
With the standards of the peoples plunging thro’ the thunder-storm;
Till the war-drum throbb’d no longer, and the battle-flags were furl’d
In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world.
There the common sense of most shall hold a fretful realm in awe,
And the kindly earth shall slumber, lapt in universal law.
So I triumph’d ere my passion sweeping thro’ me left me dry,
Left me with the palsied heart, and left me with the jaundiced eye;
Eye, to which all order festers, all things here are out of joint,
Science moves, but slowly slowly, creeping on from point to point:
Slowly comes a hungry people, as a lion creeping nigher,
Glares at one that nods and winks behind a slowly-dying fire.
Yet I doubt not thro’ the ages one increasing purpose runs,
And the thoughts of men are widen’d with the process of the suns.
What is that to him that reaps not harvest of his youthful joys,
Tho’ the deep heart of existence beat for ever like a boy’s?
Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers, and I linger on the shore,
And the individual withers, and the world is more and more.
Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers, and he bears a laden breast,
Full of sad experience, moving toward the stillness of his rest.
Hark, my merry comrades call me, sounding on the bugle-horn,
They to whom my foolish passion were a target for their scorn:
Shall it not be scorn to me to harp on such a moulder’d string?
I am shamed thro’ all my nature to have loved so slight a thing.
............
Here at least, where nature sickens, nothing. Ah, for some retreat
Deep in yonder shining Orient, where my life began to beat;
Where in wild Mahratta-battle fell my father evil-starr’d;
I was left a trampled orphan, and a selfish uncle’s ward.
Or to burst all links of habit—there to wander far away,
On from island unto island at the gateways of the day.
Larger constellations burning, mellow moons and happy skies,
Breadths of tropic shade and palms in cluster, knots of Paradise.
........................
Not in vain the distance beacons. Forward, forward let us range.
Let the great world spin for ever down the ringing grooves of change.
Thro’ the shadow of the globe we sweep into the younger day:
Better fifty years of Europe than a cycle of Cathay.
Mother-Age (for mine I knew not) help me as when life begun:
Rift the hills, and roll the waters, flash the lightnings, weigh the Sun—
O, I see the crescent promise of my spirit hath not set.
Ancient founts of inspiration well thro’ all my fancy yet.
Howsoever these things be, a long farewell to Locksley Hall!
Now for me the woods may wither, now for me the roof-tree fall.
Comes a vapour from the margin, blackening over heath and holt,
Cramming all the blast before it, in its breast a thunderbolt.
Let it fall on Locksley Hall, with rain or hail, or fire or snow;
For the mighty wind arises, roaring seaward, and I go.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Vacation (?) Reading
I'm one of those people who's notorious for having at least three books going at once. Here's what I'm reading right now:
Beka Cooper: Terrier by Tamora Pierce
Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship by Jon Meacham
Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
Next Door Saviour by Max Lucado
The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis
An Ancient Strife by Michael Phillips
Celtic Myths and Legends by Peter Berresford Ellis
Beka Cooper: Terrier by Tamora Pierce
Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship by Jon Meacham
Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
Next Door Saviour by Max Lucado
The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis
An Ancient Strife by Michael Phillips
Celtic Myths and Legends by Peter Berresford Ellis
Moby Dick
Possibly the greatest opening in all of literature:
"Call me Ishmael. Some years ago- never mind how long precisely- having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen, and regulating the circulation. Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people's hats off- then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can. This is my substitute for pistol and ball. With a philosophical flourish Cato throws himself upon his sword; I quietly take to the ship. There is nothing surprising in this. If they but knew it, almost all men in their degree, sometime or other, cherish very nearly the same feelings toward the ocean with me."
Herman Melville, Moby Dick
I love that passage, the part in bold being my favorite of Melville's poetic flourishes in it. It perfectly describes the way I feel sometimes. There are days when I feel that "damp, drizzly November in my soul" and I want nothing more than to get outside for a walk or something like that. I love the ocean, but for me spending a little time by a river or taking a walk in the cemetary near my house does just fine for "driving off the spleen, and regulating the circulation." Walking in a cemetary is a little morbid, I admit, but it really is beautiful and peaceful in there. Good place to think and get things in perspective.
"Call me Ishmael. Some years ago- never mind how long precisely- having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen, and regulating the circulation. Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people's hats off- then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can. This is my substitute for pistol and ball. With a philosophical flourish Cato throws himself upon his sword; I quietly take to the ship. There is nothing surprising in this. If they but knew it, almost all men in their degree, sometime or other, cherish very nearly the same feelings toward the ocean with me."
Herman Melville, Moby Dick
I love that passage, the part in bold being my favorite of Melville's poetic flourishes in it. It perfectly describes the way I feel sometimes. There are days when I feel that "damp, drizzly November in my soul" and I want nothing more than to get outside for a walk or something like that. I love the ocean, but for me spending a little time by a river or taking a walk in the cemetary near my house does just fine for "driving off the spleen, and regulating the circulation." Walking in a cemetary is a little morbid, I admit, but it really is beautiful and peaceful in there. Good place to think and get things in perspective.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Ukulele Gently Weeps
| Jake Shimabukuro performs his version of While My Guitar Gently Weeps by George Harrison using a ukulele. I'm just starting to learn the ukulele. This guy is a master. The video and the song are pretty much amazing. | |
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