Back to Normal

Last week, my kids came down with a flu that lasted an entire 7 days! Fever, congestion, caughing and worst of all, totally lethargic. Even doped up on Motrin and Tylenol their fevers never totally broke and neither of them were back to their usual selves. There's a feeling of frustration and worry when your kids are sick like that which just knaws at you until they get better. Towards the end, they started to play a bit and we started to hear them fighting. Normally a parent's first reaction is to break it up and get them to make friends but to us it was a hint that they were finally getting back to their old selves.

Daddy's Consequences

I meant to blog about this at the time but the caricatures took precidence. Well, my daughter Sydney will do just about anything to get out of doing any chores whatsoever. Every single day she complains that she doesn't know how to make her bed, despite the fact that she makes it every single day... eventually. Well Sydney is quite the cuddle bug and Wendi and I both like to cuddle with her so on one particular occasion, she used this against us... or at least tried to. I told her that was just fine and she eventually made her bed anyway... by herself. Did I mention she's just four years old? I thought this kind of psycological warfare didn't begin until adolescence. Boy, am I in for it!

Maverick

Yesterday, John McCain won the New Hampshire Primary which gave him a boost in the arm. Michael Medved made a point that with all the hype of an Obama victory, all the independents decided to give McCain a boost in the arm. New Hampshire allows independents to pick from republican or democratic (or any other party theoretically) ballots.

John McCain is known as being a maverick. He does things his way and doesn't care if it goes against the party line. He is for the war and a staunch supporter of the surge but he was extremely critical of the way the war was being waged under Rumsfeld. There is a freshness to this kind of position taking in that he bucks the trend, even if it makes him unpopular... and it has indeed, at least among republicans. He's supported several bills which are thought to be much more in line with the democrats with regards to campaign funding and immigration so he's kind of a mixed bag for conservatives. Being moderate though may mean he could have a chance in the general election if he makes it. He's a no nonsense kind of guy and that may end up giving him an edge in the end.

His age will definately be a factor at 71 but he doesn't act old at least. Definately an honorable man and I wouldn't hesitate pulling the lever for him if it came down to it.

FOX News Poll: McCain Takes the Lead in South Carolina GOP Primary

UPDATE 1/15/08: McCain Moves Into Lead

In His Sights

Mike Huckabee is one of those candidates you probably would have thought nothing of in the early, and even summer debates, one of the nobodies running for president. He may still have very slim chances at winning the nomination but I don't think anybody could call him a nobody now. With relatively little money, he is giving the guy who's outspent all the republicans, Mitt Romney a run for his.

WSJ:
Populist Message Gets Louder
As Iowa Caucuses Kick Off Race

"A decisive loss for Mr. Romney or Sen. Clinton in Iowa could reshuffle the preferences of voters elsewhere, and upend both candidates' strategies of riding to the nomination on the energy of early victories."

He has a populist message which resonates with many these days. He's also the guy who put the "Fair Tax" out there, which is a national sales tax to replace the IRS and Income tax system. He's much more moderate on Fiscal issues and perhaps his folksy demeanor will be an asset if he does end up with the nomination and is up against Hillary. Perhaps his most important asset is one of his endorsements:

Treading Water

Updated: Didn't have any time for commentary before so here goes. Well things look much different since my post about Obama. It seems that was about the turning point of his campaign and now he's giving Clinton a run for her money. Hey, that's politics. I actually think that Hillary would not be the landslide that the media has predicted. She has a lot of baggage and if I were her republican rival, I'd honestly rather be up against her than Obama. I actually think both can be beaten if the right republican is chosen and his campaign plays it right. She will constantly be in the shadow of her husband, who ironically is the only reason she has a chance at running.

She's actually not bad on national security issues, though pre-primary she's been rather elusive, if not inconsistent about her positions and the right will try and point this out until November. I think the left gives her too much credit.

The primaries are almost here and it's gonna be close for both parties:

No Words

Well if anyone doesn't know and has been living in a cave, there is a strike among writers in the television and movie industry right now. On Nov 1, the contract between the WGA (Writer's Guild of America) and the Sudios expired. The following week, the WGA went on strike. So, what's all the fuss? Well, currently, writers recieve a residual payment whenever a show or movie they wrote is shown in syndication (reruns) or purchased as a DVD. They do not, however, recieve a dime for any of their work which is streamed or downloaded off the internet. This is the central issue for which the writers are striking. They also want a higher DVD rate and they want to bring the Reality TV writers... (yes they do have "writers" for reality) and animation writers, who are currently covered by a different union, into the WGA juristiction. I believe these are relatively minor issues though and if a "good" internet deal was made, they'd have less support from their members to continue the strike.

So, why do I care? Well, some of you may know that I work in the entertainment industry and so this affects me directly so, I care. On December 10, I finished my last bit of work and have been out of work since. Up until then I had been working frantically to make as much money as I can to last as long as it can and hence, my blog has suffered. So, as I can attest, this strike affects many more than just the writers. Without writers, there is literally no work to be done at all. If anything it shows the value of writers in the television and film industries.

So, why start a strike right before Christmas? The DGA (Directors Guild of America) and SAG (Screen Actors Guild) have contracts which expire in June '08. The DGA tends to negotiate their contracts early to avoid work stoppages like these and they are much more diplomatic (meaning they'll settle for less than ideal) than the other two guilds. The WGA wanted to get a jump on them because the first deal struck will be the standard for the rest of the unions. If the DGA got a deal which was not as good as what the WGA wanted, it would be that much harder to negotiate.

The downside has been that the entire industry has been shut down and thousands of people are out of work, most of whom do not work as writers. The AMPTP (the collective negotiating arm of the Studios) appear to be ready to sacrifice the rest of the season to the reality hell of reality programming and the DGA may get to the table first anyway. This thing could last a while.

Deadline Hollywood Daily - Nikki Finke's blog. The most accurate accounting of the facts. She's definately on the side of the writers but she's the first to report insider strike information and it's always turned out to be legit.

As WGA strike continues, writers form online co-ops and some earn millions - This, in my opinion would be the best move for the writers to do. Take the market before the studios have a chance. "Some, ventures, such as Will Ferrell's FunnyorDie.com has seen one no-budget short top 50 million views. At the touted advertising rate of $60 per 1000 views for professional quality video, this would have earned the producers up to $3m, with no notable initial outlay." Yikes!

Featherweight

I actually like Barak Obama. I probably disagree with everything he stands for politically so I couldn't vote for him for president but I think he has heart, which is admirable. He has an idealism which feels fresh at least and he doesn't seem, well, scary. He's been compared to Ronald Reagan in his skill for connecting with people and when he talks and it really does sound like he knows what he's talking about, even if you disagree. His campaign has been focussed around being a uniter and not a divider. He says he wants to change Washington and I agree that it needs changing...

...but, can he win? Does he even have a chance? Edwards practically called Obama a featherweight in this campaign, though he is not one to talk IMO. Right now the heavyweight, Hillary (and no that's not a comment on her actual weight, in case that needs explaining), has built up a nice lead and is pummelling everyone else in the polls. Obama may just be in the wrong league against Hillary Clinton, whose drive to win as well as political skill seem to be rather effective. Still, that didn't stop her contenders from getting a few jabs in lately by pointing out her double talk on issues and general vagueness on where she actually stands.

It may be too little too late but then again, you never know with politics. You can be on top one day and the next, dead in the water; case in point, Howard Dean. I think if Barak Obama can wear her down a bit more with these kinds of jabs, then perhaps he'll have a shot... but then will he have thrown his idealistic view of "changing the atmosphere of Washington" out the window or does it simply mean he's moved up a weight class? Realistically, I think Hillary will adapt and learn to block those jabs, but that's for another article...