Yucca Mountain Awesomeness, Early Morning

Dear all,

Okay, okay. I don't want to toot my own horn needlessly, but I am anyway.

So let's say you're a Congressional Representative who doesn't like having nuclear waste. And let's say you're home-state is set as a nuclear dumping site. You could try to talk about the waste issue, try or share it more equitably, or even make an impassioned plea for shutting down all nuclear power facilities--if the risks of waste are truly that high.

Or you could kill a cartoon character. As the kids say, This was 'for serious.'

In other news: Thinking of Edinburgh and Sarah D. Hmm...one day I will have to meet her personal hide away (well if you don't count the nation with her).

Side question: Is Edinburgh a "nation" of the United Kingdom, like a like super independent version of one of America's fifty states? Any tips on proper titles or description would be helpful to all (two) readers of the blog.

In other news, driving on a highway at 4 am is awesome.

Wallet Woes

Dear all,

In in a moment of profound foresight, I left my wallet on the top of my car's trunk and drove away. The wallet, predictably lacking any real integrity, pathetically fell to the ground.

Or this is my reconstruction, since I did not notice my wallet's absence until I had parked outside work.

This led to me cursing loudly, searching my car frantically, and then driving--most likely too fast--back to the gas station.

Fortunately the wallet was found, fully intact. Not that I wasn't a prime example of grace under fire.

(No not really.)

But I did learn two useful lessons: 1) periodically check for your wallet, especially after a purchase and 2) if one is a first-time beard cultivator, ready yourself for additional skepticism when trying to retrieve a wallet containing a clean-shaven ID.

Time and Keith Fly Fast

I. Back on Blogger; Keith's Back-Wash

Well, back on blogger. We'll see for how long.

I must say, it was quite unnerving/therapeutic to glance over my past entries. Same old cliche: change vs. consistency. Anyhow, working as a TV watcher is exciting.

In other news, I finally slapped together a draft of Spring 2006 Washington Society's lit presentations and debates. With Gene able to throw in his minutes, this might actually turn into a content-crammed digital repository for the WASH.

II. Thoughts on Cartoon Network's Lil' Bush.

In other news I've been thinking about this new show, Lil' Bush. Here's an over

Lil' Bush seems to have everything in order; the Iraq War initiative, how to score chicks, his opponents' underwear, and now, debut ratings. Lil' Bush: Resident of the United States is Comedy Central's latest attempt at an animated television series, again approaching the medium with an unabashed desire for poking someone in the ribs with a stick as much as possible. Debuting only weeks ago on (Wednesday) June 13th, 2007 at the precious 10:30pm timeslot, Lil' Bush managed a respectable delivery. Although this only cable network dedicated entirely to the comedic arts has produced failing original animated programming at regular intervals for a few years now, Comedy Central is hoping and praying that some groundwork is laid sooner or later for an animated programming block [recent A.I. news: "Comedy Central Animation Slated 2007-2008"].

A broad however humorously specific at times criticism of the Bush Administration and their related parties, Lil' Bush: Resident of the United States takes the liberty of calling out and criticizing every facet of politics that have gone wrong, appeared to have gone wrong or will most likely go wrong, that involves current President George W. Bush [recent A.I. news: "Comedy Central's 'Lil' Bush' Animation"].

Featuring pint-sized versions of world leaders and Bush Administration executive cabinet members, some current and some not-so-current, Lil' Bush thrives heavily on incisive irony and pulls no punches when it comes to topics of abortion, the fixing of elections and religious bias.

I am going to give the show another week. It could be a major hit for Cartoon Network, bringing in 2 million viewers. (For a cable baseline, FX's Rescue Me brought in just under 3 million.

Detect the trepidation? If this 'Resident of the United States' becomes a satrical sucess: I'm going to worry about the state humor in America.

Lil' Bush ridicules the Bush administration relentlessly: mixing historical periods, and making completely nonsensical parodies of public figures. But the show lacks an important, and missing satrical element: constructive dissent.

From The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory:

The satirist is thus a kind of self-appointed guardian of standards, ideals and turth; of moral as well as aesthetic values. He is a man (women satirists are very rare) who takes it upon himself to correct, censure and ridicule the follies and vies of society and thus to bring contempt and derision upon aberrations from a desirable and civilized norm. Thus satire is a kind of protest, a sublimation and refinement of anger and indignation. As Ian Jack has put it very adroitly: 'Satire is born of the instrict to protest; it is protest become art.' (p. 780, 4th edition)

Artistic considerations aside, protest wasn't a problem for 'Lil Bush. Protest was everywhere: Bush, Iraq, abortion were all bandied about. But in what direction? It seemed instead of sketching out a 'desirable and civilized norm', the show opted for far less: heaping blame squarely on one not-so-little Bush White House.

And, is so doing, seemed to want to audience to revel in washing their hands clean of George W. Bush, and the last six years of American policy.

The Daily Show and the Colbert Report constantly skate the line between satire and comedic nihilism. But what always kept them firmly satrical was their acknowledgement and value of certain truths: they delivered information to an woefully underinformed audience. In taking the time to deliver news, in whatever tone, the show implicitly signaled that there are truths out there, worth knowing. Why? Presumably to use that information to act.

Lil' Bush serves as a release. Watching it is a release from knowing anything. Instead it invites you to throw your knowledge on the screen, strip it of importance, plant the blame, and laugh over the inability to change anything.

And the show pains itself not to show the damage Lil' Bush causes. Let alone is there another pathway that the audience is shown. Inside we are told to laugh at our helplessness.

It seems the shows asks us all to be Lil' Condi's. Not only is she the most inteligent of the 'Lil gang, she's hopelessly in love with George W. Bush. Her unwavering belief his greatness is endearing and painful: since Lil' Laura will always beat her out.

While Condi throws her affection, the viewer throws his or her frustration. But where does that leave us?

With an unwavering excuse that everything is Bush's fault; and tuning in for yet another week Lil' Bush exploits.

III. Definately Time for a Tone Switch

Hmm...other news. Got some excellent photos from Sarah D.

Going to see Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead the weekend after next. Perhaps that will exhaust my humor receptors.