Rx for Election Anxiety Disorder

A work of public service health journalism.

How the West (And the Presidency?) Will Be Won

I have a piece in this month's American Prospect that takes a long look at demographic and political changes in the Mountain West—and what they mean for Democrats. You can read it here.

How the Party Parties

A week in Denver during the Democratic National Convention produces some odd experiences.

Some parties were just strange, and made one wonder whether the combination of perpetual boozing and Denver's high altitude was triggering some sort of psychic break. A friend of a friend reported: "It was right about the time that I was eating coconut-covered shrimp at the Denver Aquarium and watching a tiger lick up the words 'DNC 2008' written in whipped cream that I realized I had no idea what the convention was about." Why there was a tiger at the Denver Aquarium could not be answered by anyone I encountered.

Interview With a Vampire

Ten questions for Stephanie Meyer.

Who's Your Daddy?

I might be the last person in the world to review Barack Obama's Dreams from My Father and John McCain's Faith of My Fathers. But I think I'm probably the first person to review the books jointly, use the review as an opportunity to explore the candidates' father issues, and put it all under the headline Who's Your Daddy?

Moving On

My piece about finally becoming bored with the gay marriage movement, from this year's Stranger Queer Issue.

(Illustration by Justin DeGarmo)

Almost Infamous

In my new Stranger feature, I read my first autopsy report and look at the life and death of William F. Ball—the man who didn't kill Shannon Harps.

(Illustration by Maxwell Holyoke-Hirsch)

Dalai Lama to Journalists: "My Hope is That You're Also Part of Humanity"

I don't know if all of his press conferences are like this, but the early-morning media availability that the Dalai Lama held in Seattle on Sunday (I was there, randomly, as the invisible hand of AFP) ended up being quite a remarkable deviation from every other presser I've attended. The Dalai Lama opened with this:

Good morning, everybody. I have nothing to say.

He then spent about five minutes talking to the assembled journalists about the ways in which we might live more successful, happy lives—also unusual, but rather apropos given the state of our industry.

"Anger, hatred, jealousy, brings inner sense of insecurity," the Dalai Lama was saying.

I was thinking: Have you ever worked in a newsroom?

"Compassion open our heart..."

I thought: Good luck with this crowd.

He continued with his version of Journalistic Humanity 101:

In modern time, particularly in modern country, media people are very, very important. Now, in democratic country, people are the real democracy. Leadership very important—but ultimately people are the most important. Everything depend on the people.

Therefore, fuller knowledge of every event by the public is very essential. So media people have very, very important role to inform the people. For that reason, usually I make a habit of telling media people: You should have long nose, something like elephant nose, and smell everywhere—front, and side, and also behind. That’s I think very important.

For writing you should be objective and unbiased but then tell me, make clear, what’s going on—good thing or bad thing? I think that’s very important. So that the public knows: What’s going on? What’s the reality? Then the public can judge. I think that’s very important.

So my request and my hope is that you’re also part of humanity, the promotion of human values, and the promotion of harmony. I think, in these things, you also have responsibility. So, keep in your mind, that’s all.

I was stuck on his hope that media types might—just might!—also be part of humanity. I guess even the Dalai Lama wonders whether we have it in us to be human. Nice to know he's still holding out hope, though.

"Now," he said, "questions."

Death By Blogging

At long last, a story that makes me feel good about the slow pace of this blog.

Chris Crocker on South Park

It's still unclear whether the real Chris Crocker will ever have his own reality show, but the cartoon Chris Crocker got a few minutes on the recent "Canada on Strike" episode of South Park. Watch it here.

"Governor Spitzer!"

Really, what good is a blog if it can't play host to that video of your friend being lovingly assaulted (or, rather, just plain old salted) by a drag-queen-of-size at a New York brunch place over the weekend? Exactly. And there's even some political content (at the beginning). Therefore:



Confidential to the Seattle soccer boys: You're welcome.

The Sub-Prime Mess Explained by Stick Figures

Finally!

Sypmathy for the ELFers

I have a piece up on Time.com about the suspected eco-terrorism near Maltby, Washington, and the fact that the destroyed "Street of Dreams" was not exactly a cherished local landmark.

Here's a quote that I was surprised to get for my story. It comes from FBI special agent Frederick Gutt:

A lot of people in the Northwest, on the west coast, and in the U.S. and in the world today are environmentalists, have concerns about the earth and mother nature, myself included... A lot of people up here may be more sympathetic to the objective. It's a social objective many people can share.

Surprising because law enforcement officials are not always so thoughtful and personally forthcoming in their remarks about crimes such as this. Lest you think him an ELF sympathizer, however, here's what else Gutt said:

I don't think it makes the methods any more acceptable. There are ways to effect real change without resorting to crimes of violence.

Hello 'Conversation' Listeners

As you heard on today's show, I have this here personal blog in addition to my blogging over at The Slog.

For obvious reasons, I haven't had a lot of time lately to keep this personal blog churning. But since you've arrived here, and are probably looking for political content, why not click on over to the writing page and check out my political profiles and my reporting from Iowa?

Or, if that doesn't do it for you, how about a nice video of a puppy?

Hillary Clinton's Seattle Speech

Greetings Slog readers. Here's a digital audio recording of Hillary Clinton's speech at Pier 30 in Seattle this evening.

More (Real) Music for Obama

There seems to be some sort of surge in music-making for Obama lately. The Grateful Dead are reuniting to play a get-out-the-vote rally for him in San Francisco. In Seattle, a bunch of musicians just recorded this... uh... funk for Obama:



And now everyone's sending around this link to an Obama anthem produced by a member of the Black Eyed Peas. Here's the YouTube version:

Music for Obama

There's an item in The New York Post this morning saying that Barack Obama entered his Des Moines victory party to the sounds of Jay-Z's "99 Problems." As in, "I got 99 problems, but a bitch ain't one."

That would be provocative moment, if true. But I was at the Obama victory rally in Des Moines and heard no Jay-Z. My digital audio recording of his speech that night has Obama entering to U2's "City of Blinding Lights" and exiting to Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, Delivered."

Here's the audio, Part 1 and Part 2.

Left Behind

I just returned from a week in Iowa, where I rode with the John Edwards bus tour, watched Barack Obama give his history-making Iowa caucus victory speech, and then, once it was all over... Stayed put.

Des Moines is a lonely place when you're the only out-of-town writer left in town. Here's the story I wrote about the experience.

The Anxiety of Hope

As you might have guessed from the below, I've just finished a feature on Barack Obama.

Barack Obama's Seattle Speech

Welcome back, once again, Slog readers. Barack Obama was in Seattle tonight for a "Generation Obama" event. As promised...

Here's the audio of his speech.

Barack Obama's Speech in Des Moines

Hello again Slog readers. Here's my digital audio recording of Barack Obama's speech yesterday in Des Moines. It's longer than Oprah's (about 30 minutes) and, like I said, not quite as good. But if you're an Obama fanatic, or just someone who's wondering what all the fuss is about, it's really something you should check out.

Click here to listen.

Oprah Winfrey's Speech in Des Moines

Hello Slog readers. Here's my digital audio recording of this afternoon's Oprah-Obama event in Des Moines. You'll hear Michelle Obama first, giving a brief introduction for Oprah. Then you'll hear (very briefly) some reporters jockeying for the best view spot. And then you'll hear Oprah's speech. It's about 20 minutes long.

Click here to listen.

And Now, the Chris Crocker Nude Pictures "Scandal"

Perhaps it was inevitable that Chris Crocker, a young man whose exhibitionist impulses have brought him internet stardom and talk of a TV deal, would have an exhibitionist past that includes the posting of nude pictures online. Crocker certainly seems to suggest inevitability in a MySpace blog entry he just put up, writing: "I had a lot of alone time in the last half of my teen years, [I was home schooled] and when you're young self-discovery..happens."

The self-discovery to which he is referring, and which prompted tonight's mea culpa, could be found on this blog last week. (But it's not there anymore. Crocker has been trying to get people to take the pictures down, saying they're illegal to possess. He called me tonight to say: "Everybody's talking about, 'Oh I saw Chris Crocker naked.' It's nothing to brag about. I'm a minor [in those pictures]. Everyone who's saving it to computers: It's child porn.")

The full Crocker mea culpa, sure to become a document of his generation (or at least of the next 24 hours), follows:

In regards to my "nudes"..

For days now I have been bombarded with messages about the nude photo scandal. The truth is, I was young and stupid when I took those pictures. So young in fact that I was 17 at the time.

I do not condone anyone underage or OF age to post nudes, but in my own personal defense- I had a lot of alone time in the last half of my teen years, [I was home schooled] and when you're young self-discovery..happens.

I did in fact upload the nudes of myself to the internet when I was 17. Again, I do NOT condone anyone to do this. On the contrary- I encourage everyone to NOT upload nudes of themselves.

I obviously did this behind my parents backs and I am truly embarressed for myself and my family at this time, but I just wanted to clear the air and let anyone and everyone know, that has saved these pictures that it is illegal seeing as though I was 17 at the time, so when you brag that you "saw Chris Crocker naked!!!"..what you're really bragging that you saw a 17 year old me naked.

Again, I do not condone or stand by my actions at 17, nor anyone else who is underage exploring themselves in this way.

When he called me, Crocker admitted that at this point he's not going to be able make the nudes disappear. "It's obviously not like I can zap it from the internet," he told me. But, he added: "It's just not something I want out there... I just don't want people to be under the impression that it's me as an adult when it's not." Still, he seemed somewhat resigned to the pictures being viewed online. "If they want to stare at a 17-year-old cock all day, that's their damage."