Felon in the Senate?

One thing that puzzles me about some politicians is how unrepentant they can be.  Even after a jury handed down a seven-count felony guilty verdict (2008 WL 4711056) the other day, Ted Stevens is still defiant.  Seriously?

The senator seems to have no respect for the law.  He lied on six Senate Financial Disclosure Forms spanning as many years.  Among the $250,000 in goodies he got from oil executive, William Allen, are a $2,700 massage chair, a $29,000 bronze fish statue on his front porch, guns, and a boxing bag.  The defense also wrongfully disclosed investigative documents during the trial (2008 WL 4656368), and even attempted to argue that the government should not be able to tell the jury that the public has an interest in the senator’s finance disclosure (2008 WL 4656353).

Yet, despite this behavior, Ted Stevens has the temerity to stay in the race.  When asked if he will drop out, he said, “Put this down: That will never happen — ever, OK?”  Ironically, this senator who unabashedly opposes civil liberties for criminal defendants declared in a press release that he will “fight this unjust verdict with every ounce of energy,” and that he hopes Alaskans will stand with him as he pursues his rights.

Fortunately, this is a case where justice will likely prevail.  Stevens is nine points down in the polls versus Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich.  Stevens won his last election with 78% of the vote, so, more importantly, he shows us that Americans can still abandon party lines when their leaders turn out to be crooks no matter how heated our red-state-blue-state culture war gets.

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Obligatory Halloween Post

The Black Angel in Iowa City's northside Oakland cemetery.

As many fundamentalist Christians eagerly point out, popular holidays such as Halloween, Christmas, and Easter combine American pop culture with the occult and paganism, and in fact, their modern incarnations are almost completely un-Christian.  It’s for this reason that some Christian sects oppose celebrating Halloween or even Christmas–at least in the modern American fashion.  Maybe, then, Halloween is one of the most interesting times of year because it’s when the mysterious becomes an overt feature of our lives without the religious overtones.

For those of us who love history, Halloween makes it fun to revisit local lore.  The best ghost stories combine the unexplained with local history to generate myths that add color to life here in Iowa.  I always think of the era when white settlers seized Iowa from Native Americans, then overran and settled it, as a much more dramatic time, a period where people relied more on luck and their own abilities to survive.  The people who built Iowa had to deal with the elements; with their own mental and physical malladies; and with each other without the benefits of modern technology or medicine to do it.  There are so many stories of Iowans building impressive monuments by hand, driving themselves to theatric suicides, or otherwise producing human accomplishments we wouldn’t consider today.

Part of what makes history so interesting is the fact that a lot of these things would just simply not happen today.  For instance, in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, where I went to college, deputized citizens and vigilantes shot and killed two people for peeping into a girls’ dorm.  That sort of thing would never happen today, but with a little imagination and evolution over time, it could turn into a terrifying ghost story.

Anyway, I’ve done some digging and turned up haunted places in Eastern Iowa that you can easily visit this Halloween season for yourself.

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The Myrtle lot already ruined my day.

Dear University of Iowa parking office:

The Myrtle parking lot is an outrage of a magnitude that…well, seems pretty typical at Iowa. ‘Let’s make it easier for students to pay by allowing payment with credit card’…oh wait that doesn’t work yet, so essentially there are two coin meters for EVERY parking space in the lot. And there is no option to pay for partial hours; so since I am only at BLB for one hour and 10 minutes for PR three days a week, I get to pay for two hours each day. Basically, highway robbery. I die a little inside with every quarter I feed those pay stations. Oh, and after charging me for two full hours when I only need an hour and ten, be sure to keep that nickel because I only have quarters.

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How Obama is Spreading Your Wealth to Me

James Surowiecki's book, Wisdom of Crowds, captures the logic underlying prediction markets.

There’s been a lot of controversy over Obama allegedly saying he wants to spread peoples’ wealth around.  Something about class warfare or whatever.  It’s all over my head.  I don’t grasp the subtleties of Obama’s tax plan (nor do most people), but I do know that I’m going to make about $80 off the backs of other hardworking Americans when Obama wins the election.  It might not be too late for you to profit from Obama’s victory too.

Intrade.com is a “prediction market” where people around the country bid real money on the likelihood that an event will happen in real life, such as the Democrats gaining 60 seats in the Senate or the Republicans being raptured into heaven on the eve of the apocalypse.  It’s similar to a futures market, except here you’re bidding on events rather than commodities.  You buy “contracts,” paying a price equivalent to how likely you think something will happen.  If the event doesn’t happen, your contract will be worth zero points, but if the event does happen then your contract is worth 100 points.  Each point is worth a dime of real money.

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Making Strides

I’ve already posted about how much I was looking forward to this month; however, since the Cubs failed in finest Cubs form, my latest Ode to October will take a different tone. As many of you are no doubt aware (through my constant reminders), October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. There are many different risk factors that may make one more likely to develop breast cancer; there are measures you can take to help prevent it; but breast cancer can affect anyone, of all ages. Genetics can take over. You can live the healthiest life possible and it can still find you. But research has come a long way. Let’s take some time to think of those who have battled, are battling, or lost the battle with breast cancer. And let’s think of how we can make a difference…

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But…he doesn’t have this piece of paper…

A preface:

Yes, it’s ridiculous that we all now have to know who Joe the Plumber is, as that’s space in my brain that could be put to other (better?) use.  I have no interest in debating whether Joe makes $250,000 or whether he should be taxed more or less if he does.  Consider Joe a jumping off point to discuss an issue basically unrelated to the election (yay!).

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Desperate Times…call for being cheap.

I fully intended to resurrect my blogging with a review of fall fashion and the like. However, since I can’t afford to purchase any wardrobe additions this year, let’s shift focus a bit. The Sweet Life has taken a hit in recent weeks. When you wake up in the morning to learn that you’ve decreased in value overnight, you hold off on that pair of shoes so you can make sure to fill your gas tank later. Plane tickets have also doubled in price. That combined with Congress taking my money to give CEOs sweet vacations is killing the 3L year I had planned–especially the part about spending my loans on the ankle boots I’ve been eyeing for months.

Except not really. Here are a few measures I’ve implemented to save money, stick it to the man, and still buy plane tickets. Follow these ideas to tighten the belt, and you can still play–and maybe literally tighten the belt:

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A Call for Leadership

Our Country is in a dire time. Economic forecasts are not promising, the job market is tightening, the educational system is failing and falling behind, the middle class is shrinking, retirement pensions and social security are endangered, and our fellow Americans are giving their lives daily at the hands of a long and costly war. Some might say that the United States itself has turned into a Sub-Prime investment.

Of course we are all looking to place the blame. Some say Wall Street and greed are at fault, others blame the political process and the President. Maybe these and other factors are a part of our current predicament, but no one factor is bigger and more prevalent than the failure of Leadership this country has seen over the past two decades.

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