J.M. Spalding, Writer

According to a CNN report at http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/20/congresswoman.dies/index.html, Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones is in critical condition after suffering a brain aneurysm while driving.  MSNBC’s headline reads “BREAKING NEWS: Doctors say Rep. Tubbs Jones in critical condition, contradicting reports she has died”

•A unnamed television station had reported that Tubbs Jones was on the plane that crashed in Spain.  Media outlets are, however, in solidarity in that Tubbs Jones was driving in Cleveland when the aneurysm occurred.

From CNN:

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Citing his record while a member of the New York City Council, The New York Times has endorsed Staten Island City Councilman Mike McMahon in the Democratic primary for New York’s 13th Congressional District.  The Times had faint praise for McMahon’s lone obstacle in his bid to replace the retiring incumbant Vito Fossella, saying that Brooklyn attorney Steve Harrison, had demonstrated an “admirable passion for public service.”  However, their overall belief is that McMahon is the strongest candidate for the conservative leaning district.

Councilman McMahon will face-off against Steve Harrison on September 9th.

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According to CNN, the buzz surrounding Obama’s choice for VP is indicating Joe Biden.  An anonymous source tells me Obama is leaning towards Biden, though more pragmatic elements inside the campaign believe that Bayh is probably the safest and best choice.  Take it at face value, folks. Until it’s announced, it’s a guessing game.

Again: I think it’s going to be Evan Bayh because Bayh is the safest choice.  Of course, Joe Biden would be more interesting.

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Every so often I walk down Beach 116th Street in Rock Park and notice the above sign in the window of a salon. I feel like I am not ‘in’ on the joke here.  Who the heck is Jill?  Using my powers of non-confrontation, I have developed some theories:

1. Jill is a shadowy renegade criminal holed-up inside the salon, and the sign in the windows is to let the police know that indeed, Jill may be apprehended on the premises.
2. Jill is not really even a person, but a state of mind, or metaphor.  Meaning what?  I just don’t know.
3. Jill is an ancient deity: the goddess of discount hair grooming?
4. Perhaps this is Jill Carroll?
5. There is no Jill. This is all a ruse concocted by the owner to incite some sort of unwarranted attention.  “Ah, ‘Jill is here‘”, one might think, “she must be a great barber.”
6. Jill is everyone.  I have not quite developed this theory yet, but it seems extraordinary.

I have run out of ideas here and feel that I am owed some sort of explanation.

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In his latest column, Paul Krugman raises the question as to whether the current events in Georgia represent an “omen” of things to come.  In doing so, Krugman recalls British economist John Maynard Keynes from 1919:

“The inhabitant of London could order by telephone, sipping his morning tea in bed, the various products of the whole earth … he could at the same moment and by the same means adventure his wealth in the natural resources and new enterprises of any quarter of the world.”

As Krugman points out, and as we all know, the next three decades were rife with conflict and economic depression.  Keynes remarks were on the precipice of global conflict, and these comments seem akin to alot of the talk we hear now.

The difference now with the Russian aggression in Georgia, is that we are no longer the military superpower that could dissolve such a conflict.  For Krugman, it marks the “end of the Pax Americana.”  Indeed it may be so, for what could we do if China “were to forcibly assert its claim to Taiwan?”  Indeed, such an event could prove economically harmful, not to mention deadly for many Taiwanese.

Our policy success or failure in the current situation will have repercussions for decades.  Putin and Russia have decided to assert themselves one again, but instead of having JFK and his ‘best and brightest’ manning the store, we have W. and his band of neo-cons (the very reason for my departure from the Republican party).

Let us hope that history is not repeating itself yet again.

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Pictured: Senator Joseph Biden and Senator Evan Bayh

With the selection of Mark Warner as the keynote speaker the Democratic convention later this month in Denver, and with the supposedly glum looks Virginia Governor Tim Kaine is flashing, there is some speculation that Barack Obama may be moving toward naming Senator Joe Biden of Delaware as his running mate.

Biden, as you may recall (and if not, watch the YouTube video below), famously nailed Rudy Giuliani (who was not present) during a Democratic party presidential debate.  He and Evan Bayh appear to be the most likely finalists in the veepstakes.

Opinion:

I think Joe Biden is the best and most exciting pick Obama can make, and for reasons discussed elsewhere, Biden would add a great deal of experience to the ticket in November.  On the other hand, Biden shoots from the hip and would seem to be a greater risk than Evan Bayh as regards verbal mistakes.

Being the cynic that I am, and until proven otherwise, I still believe that Obama will pick Evan Bayh.  Bayh is a safe pick.

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From NPR - “U.S. Posts $102 Billion Deficit For July”

The federal budget deficit soared to $102.77 billion for July, pushed upward by economic stimulus payments and federal deposit insurance payouts related to bank failures, the government said Tuesday

From Chicago Sun-Times via The Atlantic Monthly - The Audacity of Hopelessness

”I cannot imagine America electing a president [Barack Obama] during a time of war who is not at his center fundamentally American in his thinking and in his values,” Mark Penn … in a March 2007 memo to [New York Senator and former presidential candidate Hillary] Clinton.

From The Washington Post - The Electoral Map [note: they seem to consider Iowa a toss-up.  Unlikely McCain will prevail there, though.]

Full state-by-state coverage of presidential, senatorial and gubernatorial races, including candidate profiles, past election results, demographics, campaign ads and the latest headlines.

From CNN.com - When teachers and students become friends on Facebook

[S]tate legislator Jane Cunningham is sponsoring a bill in the Missouri House of Representatives that would ban elementary school teachers from having social-networking friendships with their students.

My opinion:

The deficit is now officially out of control because congress failed to enact suitable regulatory policy in the 1990’s (with regard to the mortgage industry) and is now attempting to stimulate the economy by handing out checks.  Brilliant plan guys.  Only problem is you created another tenth of a trillion dollars of debt.

Secondly, a state lawmaker in Missouri is probably trying to posture a bit by sponsoring a piece of legislation that pretends to solve the problem of inappropriate relationships between adults and minors by messing with Facebook.  No matter how you look at it, it’s a silly bill because it shifts focus away from causality, and instead focuses on the absurd.  A law forbidding any sort of platonic friendship is a frightening and unjust thing.  Let us hope that Missouri lawmakers defeat this measure.

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The Duo Project performing at Union Square. I spoke to the percussionist briefly after they finished a set.  His website is at http://www.lukenotary.com.

I grabbed a quick lunch on the steps at Union Square before heading to two meetings back-to-back.  It was a nice day.  Look how happy I am in the photo below.

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Those of you familiar with 20th Century American poetry have certainly heard of Mark Van Doren at some point or other, even if only in passing.  I personally only recall a line or two of his—”when lamp and rug were one and warm” is the one that stands out for some reason.  At any rate, his son (Charles) gained a great deal of notoriety for appearing on a quiz show in the 1950’s.  A subsequent film by Robert Redford in the 1990’s rekindled that notoriety.

Now Charles Van Doren is 82 and still has a few things to say about the events of 52 years ago when he was recruited to become a contestant on the game show “21.”  The unsympathetic (read ‘ethnic’) Herbert Stemple had been dominating the show winning week-after-week until finally the show sponsers and hence, the show runners, decided that something had to be done.  Enter Van Doren.
With some ‘help,’ Stemple took a ‘dive’ and Van Doren became the quiz show champion, until he too took a dive some time later.

Now, nearly five decades later, Van Doren speaks out in a piece published by the New Yorker in late July.  In it, he recounts the events but offers little about why.  As I am sympathetic to Van Doren, I am willing to let it go because, in the end, does it really matter?

It is not the quest for objective truth (if such a thing exists) that compels the narrative forward once again.  Rather, it is our interest in Van Doren, a tainted figure cut from the finest American cloth: an educated, well-spoken, handsome All-American man who seemed to capture our attention for appearing in something as trivial as an entertainment program.  His subsequent vanquishing and expressions of dignity serve to remind us that those whom we admire do not just bleed, they sometimes lie for money.

Thus, Van Doren really is ‘like the rest of us’ in that last respect.  He did what many of us might have done were we in his place, and have done, in our own unique narratives—whether it’s the well-intentioned boss who fudges a few numbers to save an employee’s job, or the college instructor who realizes the arbitrariness of television game shows.  In sensing a greater truth, he lied.

We continue to like Charles Van Doren.

• From The New Yorker: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/28/080728fa_fact_vandoren

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According to CNN, Obama will release news of his choice of VP via text message and email.  John Kerry did this in 2004 when he shocked the political world by choosing John Edwards–okay, it wasn’t shocking.

So, for king and country, I am going to announce my prediction.

Current vice presidential contenders include:

• Evan Bayh
• Tim Kaine
• Hillary Clinton
• Chuck Hagel
• John Edwards
• Kathleen Sebelius
• Chet Edwards
• Wesley Clark
• Joe Biden
• Chris Dodd

Obama will pick Evan Bayh, the senator from Indiana.  The reason is that Bayh will likely bring on a lot of the reluctant Hillary voters, in addition to following the sacred credo of every vice presidential candidate: do no harm.  Bayh is also a very popular figure in his home state–which also happens to be a “red” state–which he will help put in play in the general election.  Bayh is the most sensible choice Obama can make.

Obama might also choose Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel, but I think this is a less likely scenario given the fact that Hagel is a Republican.  Joe Biden is perhaps the best choice after Bayh.  With his foreign policy credentials and years of service in the Senate, Biden would balance the ticket.

John Edwards is probably out because of the recent scandals surrounding his private life.  Rep. Chet Edwards is also probably not going to get the nod, nor will Chris Dodd or Wesley Clark.

Kathleen Sebelius is also a long shot since it appears that she has not been vetted for the position, nor would it seem likely that Obama would name a woman other than Hillary Clinton as his running mate, and actually still manage to carry enough Clinton constituents.

Tim Kaine will get the nod if Bayh does not.  He supported Obama before Bayh did and he’s from a state that is trending towards the Democratic Party.  However, his lack of foreign policy credentials along with the fact that he has not served a full term as Govenor of Virginia make him an easy target for scrunity.

So, there you have it.  Evan Bayh will get the nod.

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Interestingly enough, McCain said he would make his own announcement by having storks carry news of his choice.

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