Author: Tucker

>Hey we’re voting!

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>Below are amateur videos of people going to vote today, and I find them both fascinating and inspiring. I used to stand in such lines before Oregon went to an all mail-in voting system. My wife and I voted on Sunday and dropped off our ballots yesterday. Our daughter Lily watched us vote (she asked us to make sure she didn’t miss the process) and then she put the ballots in the drop box for us.

I get a bit emotional seeing these lines. In many places voting is a real chore today. Some people are standing in lines for hours. In some places there are problems with machines, registrations, and even locations being moved at the last minute. Knowing that most people are toughing it out and getting their votes in regardless of rain or long lines or general wrestling with the system makes me proud to be a citizen and participate. In fact it’s a real honor. The next step is to continue to live out the commitments we make on the ballot by living lives of genuine citizenship.

Video the Vote report from Brooklyn:

Students in Pittsburgh voting:

Long lines in Virginia:

Super long lines in Maryland:

If you haven’t voted, GO VOTE! It’s a good thing.

>vote

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The lawn art Jesus and Uncle Sam want you to vote.

>Superman Beats Up Jesus Real Bad

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>Without his permission I am posting one of my favorite cartoons by my good friend Dan.


click to enlarge

Thanks Dan.

>Happy All Saints Day

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>Halloween is a fun celebration. The kids love it of course. But we move on. Today is All Saints Day.


Painting by Fra Angelico, 15th century

Often I wish my religious background included the “religious calendar” one finds in Catholicism. Being a Protestant by birth and training, and not just a Protestant but a Baptist no less, I was frequently taught how wrong those Catholics are. Sharp lines were drawn and divisions articulated, sometimes with great emotion. Maybe those Catholics are wrong in some things, but I know too, as I have fled much of my religious roots, that those Baptists are wrong in many things as well. Now I have Catholic friends of whose faith I have no doubts. I have looked more closely at Catholic teaching and practices and I find much there that I like and wish were part of my life. My Catholic friends would say “why don’t you become Catholic then?” Not now friends. But I do think much was thrown out with the bathwater by the reformers. Some would say not enough, but I think there is a middle ground somewhere. One thing lost is a sense of history and the richness of the lives of the saints. I know that all believers are saints, but there are also those who inspire. They are like heroes. I’m not convinced that praying to the saints is Biblical, but I do think honoring them is a good thing, even if it’s merely for our own encouragement. But growing up Protestant and continuing in that tradition to some degree, I have no social context in which to do such celebrating. That is something I will continue to explore. For now I just say have a great All Saints Day and may you be encouraged.

I must say, as well, that today is my wife’s birthday. She is most definitely a saint in my book.

What is All Saints Day? Here’s the low down:

>I’m voting for comedy (and other serious matters)

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Once upon a time…

..the big talk about political campaigns was about television. Kennedy looked better than Nixon in the 1960 television debate. Of course Kennedy looked better than Nixon period, but television was now king.

Today it’s not so much about television. The candidate who wins will need to garner positive “youtube points.” But it’s more than that. It’s not so much how one looks in online video clips. Certainly many people watched recorded excerpts of the debates and various speeches, but now one also has to be extremely careful not to be recorded saying or doing anything incriminating that can then be watched over and over online. And yet, the real issue may be the comedy clips that have been springing up since the campaigns began.

Sara Palin was skewered by her interviews with Katie Couric, but it is likely everyone will remember Tina Fey’s portrayal of Palin even more. It is the comedy clips that get forwarded ad nauseum. I speculate that it is more likely that a McCain supporter will watch a clip that humorously makes fun of McCain than watch a serious clip of an Obama speech. Comedy cuts through a lot of bias. Speaking of these creative comedy clips, why is it that most are coming from the left? Is it that there is a natural link between artistic creativity and a liberal temperament?

Will these comedy clips sway the vote? Or just reaffirm already held beliefs?

And just in case you missed any of those clips, here are some of my favorite:

I would like to think there is a link between creativity and more progressive leanings. But that’s just my bias. Anyway, I’m voting for comedy.

As a final note, Nixon did finally get his day. I guess looking back this is comedy too:

And maybe a little bit of tragedy as well.

>repeat repeat repeat repeat

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>This amazing little video shows how consistently “on message” political candidates can be.

>Anand defends his title

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>In case you hadn’t heard…


photo by Torsten Behl

Viswanathan Anand successfully defended his title yesterday as the reigning World Chess Champion.


photo by Torsten Behl

I have to say it was a lot of fun to follow the championship. Anand is playing brilliantly these days and I hope he continues to do well.

In a Glass Darkly: Images of windows in Dreyer’s Vampyr

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>Kramnik still in the hunt

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>Vladimir Kramnik still has a slim chance to win back his title as World Chess Champion after taking his first win against Viswanathan Anand in game ten of the World Chess Championship. In order for Kramnik to win the whole shootin’ match he needs to win the next two games and then go on to win the tiebreak. Slim chances for sure, but he seems to have the fire finally after a mediocre start. Anand, on the other hand, has been playing wonderfully and needs only a draw to retain his title. My money in on Anand, but I would like to see it go to the tiebreak for the same reasons I want the World Series to go a full seven games.


Video from Europe Echecs

I find it interesting that chess seems to be a big deal in most of the world, but not so much in the U.S. Not that chess doesn’t have it’s appeal here, but culturally we don’t praise the intellect as much as others do. Then again, it is interesting how popular soccer (football, futball) is in the rest of the world and not so much here.