Your Friday Afternoon Video #30: SNL

SNL is the only good thing about McCain Palin.

Matt Damon, My Hero

Matt Damon on the Palin pick. What so many people are afraid to say.

On the Upcoming Super-Uber-Tsunami-Whatever-You-Want-to-Call-It Tuesday

Regular chanchows know that I support Obama. Personal friends know that I don't talk about much about politics, but have my opinions. As Tuesday approaches, I have a few things I'd like to say:

1. Finally, some ads! As a California resident, it's nice to actually see some political ads on TV. Not that the candidates need to spend money vying for my opinion, but it's nice to see that the election has come to California. Because California should really matter. In my opinion, we are the future, but that's a whole different post.

2. Think about who you like. Yes, like. Whether it's Obama or Clinton or McCain or Romney or Huckabee or Paul. Stop trying to predict who's electable. Stop trying to read other voters' minds. You can't know how the faceless masses will vote. So just go with who you like. Who you can get excited for. For me, that's Obama.

3. Who can work with the other side? Each Democratic (and Republican) candidate is saying all sorts of stuff these days. But who can work with the other side to pass these policies? It's not just about what they're saying now, it's about who they can work with across the aisle to get some of that done.

4. How much does experience matter? And how do you define "experience"? I question Hillary's "35 years of experience." She's 60 years old, so essentially she's starting her clock with her graduation from law school. A good chunk of that 35 years is her "experience" as First Lady of Arkansas and of the U.S. But I'm not sure what she did as First Lady. What is she accountable for? I don't think we'll ever know, so I don't think much of that time should count. If you want to look at years as a public servant, Hillary has been an elected official since 2000. Obama has been an elected official since 1996.

5. Who is running a campaign that you think is respectable? To me, it's not only about if you get the nomination, it's how you get it. I feel like the Clintons are running as if they are entitled to this nomination. They are trying to fan the flames between Latinos and Blacks. I don't like it. I don't think that's the right way. For the party or for the future.

So for all these reasons (and more) the Chanchow says "Go Obama!"

YES!

I liked him then, and I still like him now. Here's to voting for whom you like, whom you can get excited about. Don't second or third guess yourself about who will win. The years of Bush and Clinton and so over.

UCI

It came as news to me today that UCI is setting up a law school, the first public law school in California in 40 years. The David Bren School of Law at UCI is scheduled to open its doors in Fall 2009.

But that's not why I heard about it today. UCI is in the news because its Chancellor abruptly fired the law school's Dean, Prof. Erwin Chemerinsky, because he decided Chemerinsky is too liberal. (Lawyers may remember Chemerinsky from Bar/Bri classes-- he was the constitutional law guy who lectured for hours without any notes).

Giuliani for Obama

Caroline Giuliani, that is. Rudy's daughter and soon-to-be Harvard freshwoman has a Facebook page describing herself as a liberal and a member of the "Barack Obama (One Million Strong for Barack)" group. Or rather, she had such a Facebook page, until Slate broke the story.

They're in. And They're In to Win.

Hillary and Barack. In happier times.
It's just the beginning. And I hope it doesn't get ugly.

I'm coming out early for Barack Obama. I'm excited about him. Much more excited than I ever was for Gore or Kerry or anyone else. He's smart, well spoken, telegenic and likable. Dems need someone inspiring. Someone new and fresh.

No candidate is perfect, but please let's not go with someone old and worn who nobody can get excited about and who has already let us down. (Read: Gore is not the answer. Same goes for Kerry and Edwards.)

I wonder who's the lucky duck who has signed on with Barack to follow him around and do his campaign documentary.

Note the chanchow poll to the left. Vote for your favorite candidate. This poll has been up pre-Bill Richardson, so his supporters need to vote for 'other.'

Hello Madam Speaker!

Constitutional Requirements Aside

This would be good:

Clinton - Obama
vs.
Giuiliani - Schwarzenegger

Affirmative Action for the 21st Century? Say It Ain't So

I keep hearing that it's harder to get into college now than it was, say, 10 or 15 years ago. I'm not sure exactly why that is. Perhaps there are just more applicants? Perhaps the baby boomers' kids are going to school now, so demand exceeds supply? Something else?

In addition to college being harder to get into generally, apparently it's extra hard to get in if you're female. A recent NYT op-ed piece by the Dean of Admissions at Kenyon College candidly lays it out for us:

Rest assured that admissions officers are not cavalier in making their decisions. Last week, the 10 officers at my college sat around a table, 12 hours every day, deliberating the applications of hundreds of talented young men and women. While gulping down coffee and poring over statistics, we heard about a young woman from Kentucky we were not yet ready to admit outright. She was the leader/president/editor/captain/lead actress in every activity in her school. She had taken six advanced placement courses and had been selected for a prestigious state leadership program. In her free time, this whirlwind of achievement had accumulated more than 300 hours of community service in four different organizations.

Few of us sitting around the table were as talented and as directed at age 17 as this young woman. Unfortunately, her test scores and grade point average placed her in the middle of our pool. We had to have a debate before we decided to swallow the middling scores and write "admit" next to her name.

Had she been a male applicant, there would have been little, if any, hesitation to admit. The reality is that because young men are rarer, they're more valued applicants. Today, two-thirds of colleges and universities report that they get more female than male applicants, and more than 56 percent of undergraduates nationwide are women. Demographers predict that by 2009, only 42 percent of all baccalaureate degrees awarded in the United States will be given to men.

We have told today's young women that the world is their oyster; the problem is, so many of them believed us that the standards for admission to today's most selective colleges are stiffer for women than men. How's that for an unintended consequence of the women's liberation movement?

I'm surprised that gender balance has become an issue. I never thought young men would be "underrepresented" in college. In fact, I'm not convinced that a 42/58 male/female ratio is so skewed that we need to fix it by admitting "less qualified" young men.

I haven't thought about it enough, but my first reaction is that young men shouldn't benefit from affirmative action. Affirmative action is intended to rectify past discrimation (e.g., against women and minorities) and young men haven't suffered that sort of traditional discrimination. Then again, all sorts of favorable treatment are afforded to different groups and they aren't called affirmative action (i.e., you're much more likely to get in if your dad went to a certain school or if you're one of the few applicants from Wyoming or Alaska). Do we need to add men to the list of legacies and people from the boonies?

About Hillary

As Hillary Clinton keeps amassing heaps of money for her political campaign, the concern (as we all know) is whether she can be President. Not whether she'd be a good President, but whether she can get there at all. If there are so many doubts and fears, then who's giving her all this money? The Republicans?

I have a few burning questions, so I'll just come out and ask. Do you know anyone who likes Hillary? I know a lot people who agree with her and like the "idea" of a woman President, but don't like Hillary. Next question: Do you really need to be liked to be elected President?

I was at the Pho Cafe in Silverlake recently, eavesdropping on the table next to me. They were two people talking politics-- both liberals, both disliked Hillary. Why don't you like her, the woman asked? "Well, she's always wanted to be President," the man answered. Yes, she probably has. And?

I suspect that a lot of people don't like Hillary for reasons they can't quite articulate (or perhaps would rather not articulate). Hillary's much less popular than any other woman who's previously run for President, but that might be because she's the first woman to actually have a chance of winning.

As for me, I'll admit that whenever I think of Hillary, it's inevitably of her circa 1992, with the shoulder-length hair and the headband, talking about how she isn't Tammy Wynette. That was 14 years ago and still one of the first images I think about. Why is that?

So tell me, what's your theory on why people don't like Hillary? Even if you like her and/or her politics, tell me why other people don't like her.

A UC Controversy

The University of California has offended some folks again. This time it's college applicants from religious high schools-- namely schools that don't teach evolution. Students from the Calvary Chapel Christian School near LA are not getting credit for their biology class in part because their text book, "Biology for Christian Schools" (published by Bob Jones University Press), says this:

"The people who have prepared this book have tried consistently to put the Word of God first and science second. To the best of the author's knowledge, the conclusions drawn from observable facts that are presented in this book agree with the Scriptures. If a mistake has been made (which is probable since this book was prepared by humans) and at any point God's Word is not put first, the author apologises."

UC argues that schools using this textbook as the primary teaching tool do not meet the admission standards to receive biology credit. The textbook does not "reflect knowledge generally accepted in the scientific and educational communities and with which a student at the university level should be conversant." As a result, the Association of Christian Schools Internation (ACSI), the Calvary Chapel Schools and six Calvary Chapel students are suing UC for "viewpoint discrimination." UC denies discrimination and says that if the textbooks were supplementary, rather than primary, then the classes would likely meet admission standards. UC argues that it has a right to set its own academic requirements. For more, see the recent article in The Economist.

It's not just Christian schools that don't teach evolution. Shockingly, there was a biology teacher at my public high school in Orange County who refused to teach evolution. Coincidentally, that teacher was also the advisor for the Bible Study club. He still teaches biology class and, yes, he still skips the evolution chapter. A friend whose brother just graduated from my high school says that the teacher's explanation for not teaching evolution is that he doesn't want to offend those who don't believe in it.

The recent intelligent design case in Pennsylvania has overshadowed the UC case, but I have a feeling that this case will get press soon enough. Religious issues aside, shouldn't universities (public, not just private) be able to determine what it believes are the appropriate academic standards for admission?

Fight in the 48th

California's 48th Congressional district is comprised of two of Orange County's richest beach communities, Newport and Laguna, and is a GOP stronghold. Republican Congressman Chris Cox represented the 48th in the House of Representatives for 16 years, before vacating the seat to become Chairman of the SEC this summer.

A special election to fill Cox's vacancy was held in October, but leading Republican John Campbell failed to get the majority he needed to win (he got 45.5%). As a result, there will be a runoff election this Tuesday, December 6th, in which Campbell will face the leading vote getters from four other parties. None of these four is expected to win; however, some believe that Democrat Steve Young has a chance of winning and Independent Jim Gilchrist has a slimmer chance.

Jim Gilchrist has made illegal immigration the issue of his campaign, which is not surprising since he is the founder of the Minuteman Project, an initiative in which U.S. citizens physically patrol the U.S.-Mexico border. Gilchrist is also conservative in his views on the environment ("I view global warming as an act of God, not as an act of man") and heartily supports President Bush on the war in Iraq. Some are speculating that Gilchrist could split the Republican vote, a la Ross Perot, causing Democrat Steve Young to win the seat. Such a result would be quite a feat in this very Republican of Congressional districts.

* * *
Post-Election Update: Republican John Campbell won the seat, taking 45% of the vote. Democrat Steve Young came in second with 28% and Independent Jim Gilchrist had a strong showing with 25% of the vote. Despite his loss, Gilchrist was very pleased and said, "This is just a start ... We've got a huge victory tonight because we've issued a wake-up call to America ... Our cause is not over, nor is my aspiration for my political career." Sounds like we'll be hearing more about this Minuteman in the future.

1984

After watching I Love the 80s on VH1, I've decided that 1984 is hands down the best pop culture year of the 80s. From music (Prince, Huey Lewis, Van Halen to Madonna, Wham! and Cyndi Lauper) to movies (Ghostbusters, Gremlins and Footloose) to clothes (Madonna's ripped lace Desperately Seeking Susan look to jelly shoes, Guess? and stonewash jeans) to toys (Atari, Transformers and Glo Worm), it was a huge year. Some other facts about 1984, from Wikipedia:

January 23: Hulk Hogan defeats The Iron Sheik.
January 24: The first Apple Macintosh goes on sale.
January 28: Michael Jackson's hair catches fire while shooting a Pepsi commercial.
June 22: Inaugural flight of Virgin Atlantic.
July 23: Vanessa Williams surrenders her Miss America crown.
July 28: Opening day of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Soviets boycott.
November 2: U.S. executes first woman since 1962.
December 3: Union Carbide leak in Bhopal, India kills thousands.
December 22: On the subway in The Bronx, four black youths attempt to rob Bernhard Goetz. Goetz shoots them. The event sparks a national debate about urban crime.
Unknown Date: Ethiopian famine begins.

Other Big Movies: Beverly Hills Cop, The Karate Kid, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Nightmare on Elm Street.
Big Albums: Purple Rain, Born in the U.S.A., 1984, Like a Virgin. Run DMC becomes the first rap group to have a gold record.
On TV: The Cosby Show (debuts), Punky Brewster, Miami Vice, Webster.
Deaths: Johnny Weismuller, Jackie Coogan, Francois Truffaut, Michel Foucault, Count Basie, Ansel Adams.