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Slog
News & ArtsSaturday, January 28, 2012
News Saturday Morning News
Posted by Riya Bhattacharjee on Sat, Jan 28, 2012 at 8:34 AM
Hot-headed and undisciplined: Newt Gingrich
Goldman Sucks: Largest source of Mitt Romney's campaign contributions.
Syria: The Arab League will be suspending its monitorng mission in Syria due to a surge in violence. It is estimated that about 200 people were killed since the mission was renewed for a second month Tuesday.
A drug of last resort: State warns that prescription opioid methadone is "unpredictable and poses a high risk of accidental death." A Seattle Times investigation in December reported that at least 2,173 people in Washington have died since 2003 after accidentally overdosing on it.
Sentenced: The Barefoot Bandit gets 6 1/2 years for committing at least 67 crimes, including eight burglaries, nine car thefts, and three airplane thefts; says remorse is "heartfelt."
Might close: The Volunteer Park Conservatory. If the city can't find the funds to keep it open, they might close it by next year. The 100-year-old conservatory brings in a revenue of $25,000 and costs $450,000 to run.
Overbilled: DOT has discovered that some drivers were overbilled in 520 tolls by an extra 25 cents. The agency announced late Friday that it will waive the fee on ALL trips made Jan. 17 to 25.
Shot!: Eight sea lions were found with bullet wounds in the Puget Sound region recently. Their deaths are being investigated. (Whoever did this should rot in hell).
TRAFFIC ALERT!: I-5 off-ramps at Mercer closed until 9 a.m. Saturday. I-5 on-ramps will be closed until 7 p.m. Sunday. More details here.
"Oomph": That's the word missing from the U.S. economy.
And finally, it's Saturday, let's learn how to fake French:
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Friday, January 27, 2012
TV Friday Afternoon Quicky
Posted by Cienna Madrid on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 4:51 PM
If you've seen the Sherlock Holmes series on BBC (and you should because it's created by Steven Moffat, which is code for excellent), then you'll enjoy this music video, which perfectly syncs up shots from Sherlock with a SNL perennial favorite. And if you haven't seen the series, watch anyway. Seriously, this editing job is magical.
NSFAnywhere at top volume:
In other news, it's total bullshit that I have to wait until 2013 to see the follow-up to The Reichenbach Fall.
Thanks for making my day, Slog tipper Renee!
Film Short Film Fridays
Posted by Charles Mudede on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 4:33 PM
The short for this week is Gretchen Burger’s “Cover.” What Burger has to say about it: “This is a short non-fiction video I made with Cap Kotz of Cappy's Boxing Gym that explores what it means for a boxer to find and maintain cover.” The short is simple, crisp, and elegantly edited. Once again we discover the whole human universe in a tiny corner of our culture.
Speaking of short films, beginning tonight (and ending on February 2), "Howard From Ohio"...
2012 / Housekeeping The Stranger Bomb Squad Opens Possible Santorum-Based Hate Mail Object
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 4:29 PM
Today, we received a suspicious package in the mail. It was a bumpy letter that was returned to us for additional postage.
- Click to big.
The letter was addressed to "Frothy Mix" at "1680 Fruitville Rd" in Sarasota, Florida, but it came to The Stranger because our return address—with no name—was in the upper lefthand corner. Confusing! First of all: We have our own stationary. Second of all: Nobody who works here has that kind of loopy, teenage girl handwriting. Third of all: We use a postage machine, so the pine cone postage stamp—while a welcome reminder of the official flower of my home state—probably didn't come from our offices, either. All those suspicions amounted to one thing: Time to call in The Stranger Bomb Squad.
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Books Call Me Cottonelle
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 3:27 PM
If you have no weekend plans, may I suggest retyping the entirety of Moby Dick onto five or so rolls of toilet paper? Or, if you don't have a weekend to spare, you can just buy someone else's toilet-paper Moby Dick for two hundred bucks.
2012 Gingrich Ad Tries to Clean Up Gingrich's Debate Mess
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 2:26 PM
This ad is notable because if Newt Gingrich had managed to do his job in last night's debate, it wouldn't exist. Instead, it's a decent bit of damage control that probably won't make a difference in the Florida elections:
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Olympia Senator Haugen Is Under Attack
Posted by Dominic Holden on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 2:06 PM
Anti-gay national organizations are inundating state senator Mary Margaret Haugen with nasty phone calls, trying to intimidate her into retracting plans to cast the key 25th vote in the state senate for marriage equality.
"However, I have no respect for the tactics of these national special-interest groups, who have no stake in our district or our state, and who have recruited out-of-state callers to phone my office and to be intentionally rude to my staff," Haugen writes in a message on her web page apologizing to constituents who can't get through.
As I mention this week, the Christian right's rude tactics aren't working. Read Haugen's whole message here.
Film Things To Know About the Movie Red Tails
Posted by Jen Graves on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 1:36 PM
- Yay! Boo! Yay! Boo! Nice jackets.
2. And yet, opinion is mixed on whether "He's Jar Jar Binked us again." While representation is great—it's great simply to see so many black actors in a giant Hollywood picture; there are something like 15 airmen roles—they're still stuck holding down a crappy movie.
3. On the other hand, Lucas has said that if Red Tails does well enough, he'll give Tuskegee Airmen the Star Wars treatment and turn it into a series. (The condescension here is palpable, yes.) The airmen will return home and rediscover the racism they've flown their way out of in the friendly skies of World War II, where they win even racist hearts with their exceptional heroism. (Note: All Germans are still Nazi pigs, with Nazi pig hearts that are not won over.) Could the homecoming story be a better movie?
4. A Seattle designer, Good Wear Leather, created 18 of the bomber jackets that appear in the movie—14 for actors and two for stuntmen, then two for actual pilots flying the planes, Good Wear's John Chapman told Worn Out columnist Marti Jonjak. Good for Good Wear, which specializes in re-creations of historical jackets: "1942 in a box."
2012 "The blind trust is an age-old ruse."
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 1:29 PM
That's what Massachusetts senatorial candidate Mitt Romney said to Ted Kennedy back in 1994, according to Wonkette. Here's video* of their debate:
That's a far cry from the Mitt Romney of last night who said his Fannie and Freddie investments were in a blind trust and out of his control. (Which was a lie, anyway.) This is further proof that Mitt Romney has firmly planted himself on both sides of every single issue on God's green earth.
* Also: Can we talk for a moment about how depressing it is that video from 1994 looks so ancient? That debate may as well have been recorded in hieroglyphics. I remember 1994 in vibrant HD, dammit.
Music Happy Birthday, Vera!
Posted by Megan Seling on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 1:29 PM
The Vera Project turns 11 today! Which has caused me to fall under a nostalgia-filled daze while I recall some of the best shows I've seen there over the last decade and one year. What have been some of your favorite Vera Project memories? Share them here.
Election Pot Legalization Qualifies for WA Ballot
Posted by Dominic Holden on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 1:04 PM
It's certified by the state elections division: Washington State voters will decide this fall whether they will approve Initiative 502 to legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana.
"A signature-check by the State Elections Division, using a random sample, determined that sponsors had nearly 278,000 valid signatures," writes Secretary of State's office spokesman David Ammons, "well in excess of the 241,153 required."
This is going to be a huge national issue. The NYT has a new profile of a similar measure likely headed to voters in Colorado. With at least two states going to the polls, this will be national lightning rod—possibly more than California's Prop 19 was in 2010—that attracts presidential-race debate and national news cycles, to say nothing of the saturation it will have with local mainstream media.
Chow Thousands of Tacos Visited Upon Racist-y Mayor
Posted by Bethany Jean Clement on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 1:01 PM
That mayor who said that racist-y thing—when asked about his support for Latino rights, he responded he “might have some tacos” for dinner—has gotten more than 2000 tacos delivered to his office in protest. (Doesn't that seem like more of a reward than a punishment?) Another report notes:
The taco onslaught has only just begun: activists have pledged to send one more for each person who texts the word “taco” to 69866.
Not sure how that works—text the word "taco" at your own risk. Here the mayor fumblingly expands upon the apology he issued:
What do we have to say to get a tanker of poutine over here?
City Pioneer Square, Mid-Vitalization
Posted by Cienna Madrid on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 12:44 PM
As we all know, Pioneer Square has been suffering from a nonfatal brain injury (or something) for years. But Mayor Mike McGinn would like you to know that city officials are busy nursing it back to health. Take it way, Mike:
Yesterday we met with the Pioneer Square Revitalization Committee and community members to report back on our progress so far and discuss ongoing challenges. We reported on recent accomplishments and projects launched in Pioneer Square:
North Lot Project: Introducing more market rate housing to Pioneer Square has been a priority in the community for decades. The long-planned North Lot redevelopment project will produce 513 units of housing, just in the first phase. Our Office of Economic Development (OED) is investing $1.7 million in equity and $7.2 million in low-cost debt financing via New Market Tax Credits to help move the project forward.
First Hill Streetcar: Access to high-capacity transit has long been a neighborhood priority as well. Recently the City confirmed that the new First Hill Streetcar will serve Pioneer Square with a stop at South Jackson and 2nd Avenue South. Construction begins later this year.
King Street Station: ...Three construction phases have been completed, including: station roof replacement and clock tower repair; Jackson Plaza rebuilt; and renovations to Amtrak’s new operations and administration areas. Next up is building and clock tower seismic retrofit, mechanical/electrical/plumbing systems distribution, and select interior and exterior restoration including the restoration of the ornamental plaster in the main waiting room. Construction began in March 2011 and will be completed in spring of 2013.
More on how Pioneer Square's gettin' healthy over here.
Visual Art Press Release of the Day
Posted by Jen Graves on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 12:42 PM
Dear whomever this may concern,
Tomorrow starts the first day of a full month of Erotica Art in LaConner, WA.
There will be a peaking point, February 24th...where thee Jezebel Rebels will be performing, also live music and an artist's reception. See attached
Please let me know if you have any questions at all~
Sincerely,
Lucy Mae
Homo Let's File an Initiative to Vote on Rob McKenna's Marriage
Posted by Dominic Holden on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 12:41 PM
Do we have a lawyer in the house? We need your help. Attorney General Rob McKenna has finally admitted that he opposes same-sex marriage but that if loving couples want marriage equality, he thinks everyone should get to vote on them.
If McKenna believes that he—and everyone else—deserves the right to vote on our marriages, we should all get the right to vote on his marriage, right? Fair's fair.
This requires an filing an initiative to the people. Rob and Marilyn McKenna have been married for 25 years and their love is up to them, true, but what if the legal recognition of their bond could be permitted or revoked at the will of voters? What would voters choose?
So we need an attorney's pro bono help. Our task for you, lawyers: Send us the text for an initiative to annul the marriage of Rob and Marilyn McKenna, as legally binding as such a measure can possibly be, and I'll see that it's properly filed with the state and printed on petitions. Send your submissions here. We'll even send Rob a copy of the petition for his signature. Considering that he believes marriage is a matter everyone should vote on, he can't possibly refuse, right?
Video of the Day Lunchtime Quickie: Today In Savage Beasts
Posted by Kelly O on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 12:30 PM
h/t Scary Tyler Moore
2012 Associates Say Ron Paul Signed Off on His Racist Newsletters
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 12:30 PM
Well, here's a shocker: You know those racist newsletters published under Ron Paul's name, sometimes with Ron Paul's byline, which were frequently used to promote Ron Paul's political career? Turns out, Ron Paul had a strong editorial hand in them:
The Republican presidential candidate has denied writing inflammatory passages in the pamphlets from the 1990s and said recently that he did not read them at the time or for years afterward. Numerous colleagues said he does not hold racist views.
But people close to Paul’s operations said he was deeply involved in the company that produced the newsletters, Ron Paul & Associates, and closely monitored its operations, signing off on articles and speaking to staff members virtually every day.
Let's just say it outright: If you're a Ron Paul fan and you're ignoring these newsletters, you're a fool. You can believe Ron Paul has changed his opinion, or you can own the fact that your candidate is a big ol' racist and conspiracy-minded loon, but you can't pretend that he didn't know about them anymore.
Sports Happy NHL All Star Weekend!
Posted by Megan Seling on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 12:15 PM
This weekend some of the NHL's best players* will be in Ottawa for the 2012 All-Star weekend.
The Skill Competitions (speed skating, accuracy shooting, hardest shot, etc.) are tomorrow at 4 pm PST, and the all-star game is Sunday at 1 pm PST. I will be watching both while eating a giant plate of nachos.
I'll be rooting for Predators' Shea Weber, Ryan Suter, and Craig Smith (Tootoo and Rinne were robbed!). Surely Weber will be one to watch in the hardest shot competition. Did you know that during the 2010 Winter Olympics Weber shot a puck so hard that it WENT THROUGH THE NET? Dude.
As for the all-star game, the roster was announced yesterday. It's Team Chara vs. Team Alfredsson. Alfredsson has the Sedins (gross), Scotty Hartnell, Shea Weber, and Henrik Lundqvist while Team Chara has Patrick Kane, Corey Perry, Ryan Suter, Evgeni Malkin, and goalie Timmy Thomas. (See the full line-ups here.)
It's tough to predict who'll win. Timmy Thomas is incredible, but the Sedins, Hartnell, and Weber will be hard to beat. I'm going to say Team Alfredsson. But just barely. Where do you stand, hockey fans? Let's find out with a Slog poll!
*Except for Ovechkin, who's not playing very well this season anyway.
Visual Art Currently Hanging: This Incredible Picture
Posted by Jen Graves on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 11:38 AM
- Courtesy G. Gibson Gallery
- Bill Brandt, Northumbrian Miner At His Evening Meal, 1937, gelatin silver print, signed, 11 by 14 inches
This is one of those pictures that doesn't need any commentary. Just look at it.
It's part of an exhibition of classic 20th-century photography at G. Gibson Gallery through February 18.
What may need explaining about this photograph is not what you see, but just how collecting it would work. How many prints of it are out there? How does the print that's for sale in Pioneer Square relate to the one that hangs on the walls at the Museum of Modern Art?
Tomorrow at 2 pm at the gallery, Michelle Dunn Marsh will give a free talk on the fascinating business of collecting photography.
Dunn Marsh is a longtime editor of Aperture magazine who happens to be based in Seattle as well as New York, and she's also a collector herself, mainly of black-and-white 20th-century photography. (She is also a straight shooter and just an interesting woman.) To get a sense of her ideas about photography and collecting, check out the Q&A Peggy Roalf did with her here. For instance,
PR: The 2012 exhibition season has launched with the announcement of dozens of exhibitions of black-and-white photography, from coast to coast, from vintage mid-20th century prints to contemporary work. It’s inevitable that there would be a black-and-white backlash, but have you had any thoughts on why, right now?
MDM: I’m so glad you asked that. I think the industry decline of many aspects of traditional photography has brought the scarcity and preciousness of black-and-white to the forefront. The travails of brands like Kodak and Polaroid speak to the masses—but photographers have been grappling with these changes for some time.
I think that many collectors are now responding to the craft of the print, in our increasingly digital age. We’ve finally accepted the photograph as object again, not just an image. Where once darkroom work was perceived as mechanical compared to the artistry of painting, now the “wet” darkroom is seen as a place of alchemy, and digital printing is deemed, by many, as rote (but it is no easier to get a consistent digital print than it is to get a consistent darkroom print. Finesse is required in either process).
I find a richness and a depth that is seductive in a silver or platinum print. I take respite primarily in black-and-white images because I experience the world each day in color, so the graphic quality of a tonal range from light to dark, free of chroma and without a light source burning into my eyes, transports me. That said, I recently bought a William Christenberry print because his green warehouse is the exact shade of the barn I grew up with.
With the general state of the world feeling a bit fragile these days, I think that many people are turning away from the physically monumental to the wonder that can exist within an environment the eye can absorb in a glance, and then revisit slowly, over time.
2012 / LGBTQITSLFA Teabaggy New Jersey Governor Thinks Civil Rights Should've Been a Referendum
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 11:32 AM
New Jersey governor Chris Christie has promised to veto any gay marriage law that crosses his desk. Remember, this guy is on every shortlist for Republican vice presidential material:
See, as part of his push to have New Jersey voters vote on gay marriage in a referendum (so that he doesn't have to be on the record vetoing or not vetoing gay marriage) Christie said: "The fact of the matter is, I think people would have been happy to have a referendum on civil rights rather than fighting and dying in the streets in the South." But would they have?
Newark mayor Cory Booker, to name just one of a chorus of Christie critics, certainly didn't agree with the sentiment. "I shudder to think what would have happened if the civil rights gains, heroically established by courageous lawmakers in the 1960s, were instead conveniently left up to popular votes in our 50 states," he said.
But Christie isn't backing down...
This is a remarkable statement. Usually, when you tie gay marriage to the civil rights movement, Republicans run in the other direction, diminishing marriage into something smaller and more specific than a right. But Christie is running headlong into the argument, saying that we did civil rights wrong in the first place. (Can you imagine? They'd probably still be trying to pass a civil rights referendum in Mississippi.) It shouldn't be surprising at this point, but it is. Somehow, Christie manages to say what every Republican is thinking, and he gets away with it every time. The worst part is that Christie emboldens other Republicans to repeat what he says as a fact; I'm willing to bet that other conservatives will soon pick up this "Civil rights should have been a state's rights issue" idea and run wild with it.
(Thanks to Slog tipper Rob.)
Life / Teh Internets Voice Mail of the Day
Posted by David Schmader on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 10:58 AM
Left on my voicemail by Karen from San Diego:
I'm calling because I wanted to make sure that you are aware that someone hacked a site that your company is responsible for, or they may have co-opted some of your bandwidth to broadcast an anti-Santorum website. It's called Spreading Santorum. If you a responsible for this, and I would trust that nobody there would be stupid enough to do something like this, or I would have thought you would have at least hidden that you run this site. If you're not actually doing this, I suggest you look into it and ask whoever is doing this to remove it. This is sickening. It's going to lose you business, or at least I'm going to make sure it does lose you business if you don't do something about this.
Thank you for the heads-up, Karen.
2012 Jon Stewart on Gingrich's Space Plans
Posted by Christopher Frizzelle on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 10:48 AM
Sorry, this is the third Daily Show clip in three days—but it can't be helped. His best Gingrich joke yet is at the end of this clip.
2012 Brett O'Donnell Won the Republican Debate Last Night
Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 10:30 AM
Who's Brett O'Donnell, you ask? The New York Times explains the story behind the Romney's campaign's new debate coach:
Mr. O’Donnell is a veteran of presidential debates, having served as a top debate coach to Senator John McCain of Arizona during the 2008 campaign. In that role, he helped prepare Mr. McCain for debates against Mr. Romney and brings those insights to the current sessions.
Mr. O’Donnell helped coach Mrs. Bachmann during her debates as well, but also became a senior strategist for her campaign, likely helping to shape some of the congresswoman’s sharpest attacks, including ones against Mr. Romney.
Last night's debate was brutal for Newt Gingrich, because he wasn't prepared for Romney to change his debate strategy. O'Donnell discovered the flaws in Romney's debate performance and eliminated them. Further, he gave Romney a specific strategy for that one debate, which is something Romney apparently never had before—at every other debate, his strategy seemed to be "run like you're already the nominee, and then let the clock run out." Romney's outrage still felt phony, and he's still clunky on a human level, but he brought just enough of a change to his style and delivery to crush Gingrich.
We're at that weird time in primary season when the leading candidate Frankensteins a team together out of the successful bits of all the other campaigns. Sometimes this strategy works. Other times, it fails gloriously—that's when we get the really juicy gossip from inside campaigns, usually. O'Donnell, with his experience prodding at Romney's prior debate performances, proved to be a great addition to the team. Gingrich is looking a hell of a lot more unelectable now.
Animals Middle School on Lockdown for Dog Attack
Posted by Dominic Holden on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 10:27 AM
In Northeast Seattle this morning, staff at Eckstein Middle School had to distract two dogs to stop them from attacking a bus driver on school grounds, principal Kim Whitworth explained in voice message left with parents. Listen to her message here:
.
The driver "suffered puncture wounds to his hands," Whitworth said, and school officials called police to catch the dogs. Meanwhile, the school was placed on lockdown. "Lockdown means all students and staff remain in their classrooms," she continued. I've placed a call to the school but haven't heard back.
Slog tipper I Got Nuthin' asks, "Anyone want to take a guess at what breed of dogs these were?"
Celeb Why Do So Many Women Have a Seemingly Irrational Hatred of Zooey Deschanel?
Posted by Grant Brissey on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 10:24 AM
"Dear Mr. Scorsese: This Is What They Did to Your Movie Last Night."
Posted by David Schmader at 8:52 AM in Film
Your Weekend Weather Forecast
Posted by Bethany Jean Clement at 8:35 AM in The Weather
NOM Poll Skews Results with Loaded Questions
Posted by Dominic Holden at 8:20 AM in Homo
The Dream of the '90s Is Alive in Comics
Posted by Paul Constant at 8:09 AM in Books / Nerd
Morning News: Gatorade will Cure Your Gay (But Not Your Cat Hoarding)
Posted by Cienna Madrid at 8:07 AM in News
Lowering the Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees: Yes or No?
Posted by Dominic Holden at 7:43 AM in Olympia
Thursday, January 26, 2012
First Take from the First 1st Congressional District Candidate Forum
Posted by Goldy at 11:20 PM in 2012 / Election
United Nations Cocaine Party Foiled By Meddling Security
Posted by Grant Brissey at 10:23 PM in Drugs / International
More Like Floridon't, Amirite? The 2nd Florida Republican Debate Liveslog!
Posted by Christopher Frizzelle at 7:54 PM in 2012
Stand for Marriage Washington Can't Stand Comments, Can't Spell "Marriage"
Posted by Dominic Holden at 4:56 PM in Homo
How Amazon Beat Publishing at Its Own Game
Posted by Paul Constant at 4:27 PM in Books
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