As a solution to this issue, I've resolved to try to put myself in places that make me a bit uncomfortable, or at least in places where people with different worldviews are likely to show up. For example, I went to Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday, looking for Nazis. I'm told I was a few weeks late, though I did see a lot of white folks. And Malcolm Brogdon. I also ate at a Chick-fil-a. I'm going to run the Army Ten-Miler in October, surrounded by flag-waving and troop-saluting, something I'm told liberals don't do. That might surprise my Dad.
The point is, I'm trying**.
In fact, I found and event in my local area that promises to put me in the middle of a demographic dogpile that's beyond my normal boundaries, with the bonus virtue of supporting a friend and fraternity brother. The Tribe's own Kevin Reynolds has traded in the constricting world of Capitol Hill for the freedom of professional wrestling management, as you can see below:
Seriously, though, that dude (the one getting an asswash from a fat 'Scottish' guy) was the Chief of Staff for a U.S. Congressman as recently as two months ago. 2017, man.
Given the sketchy circumstances surrounding that match, the principals have agreed to a rematch during Ultimate Championship Wrestling (UCW) Defiance on September 23 in Sterling, VA. Tickets are available here. I'll be there with bells on***.Because, as I said, I'm trying****.
* I haven't really been doing that much self-examination. I feel like I'm mostly right and we're being led by a bunch of fucking buffoons elected by morons and halfwits*****. And Russians. But I am trying to be a little bit nicer on Twitter.
** I'm really not. I probably should be. But I'm not. Still mostly pissed.
*** I won't, but only because I have a commitment with my daughter's soccer team. I've reached out to Mr. Reynolds in an effort to ascertain if/when the UCW may come back this area. I'll be at that one. Unless I get a better offer. But hit me up if you want to go.
**** As noted previously, not really.
***** That's really not fair. But we do need to come to terms as a body politic with the reality that one of the most distinct lines of demarcation in the 2016 Presidential election was whether a voter had a college degree. The increasing disdain by a large number of Americans for expertise is dangerous shit, and not at all what I came here to blog about.
He was my only friend in the house.
ReplyDeleteBoth football games last night were highly entertaining affairs. Hoping for a Tennessee loss tonight. Think I'll indulge in a few afternoon beers prior to that though.
ReplyDeleteExpanding the horizons and expanding the parameters
ReplyDeleteExpanding the rhymes of sucker MC amateurs
whit you said what i was thinking.
ReplyDeleteand look at rob, saying he's pushing his boundaries, while going all kind of david foster wallace with the end notes. that's some kind of mixed message.
not only that, but liberals are typically more open to experience than conservatives and so more likely to try this kind of experiment:
http://www.nature.com/neuro/journal/v10/n10/full/nn1979.html?foxtrotcallback=true
you might as well try to grow a few inches while you're at it . . .
pretty cool of dave to link to something that's behind a paywall and costs $4.99 to 'rent'.
ReplyDeleteThe Thiem-Del Porto match is highly entertaining. Great atmosphere as well. Argentinians bringing it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a comeback but Del Potro. What a match.
ReplyDeleteyeah, that was awesome. the forehand del potro hit to win the 4th set was sick.
ReplyDeletefloridian gheorghies, we're thinking about you guys and your families. be safe.
ReplyDeleteI watched the video above. Holy yuck. Is that Reynolds' penance for being part of the political machine? Or is he displaying literally what it felt like figuratively in that role?
ReplyDeleteAnd it was decidedly Socrates, not Plato who said, "The unexamined life is not worth living."
ReplyDeleteAs quoted in The Guardian, "It does, indeed, come from Plato's Apology, which is a recollection of the speech Socrates gave at his trial."
Those "scholars" who give Rob's man Plato credit for it would thereby also attribute "government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth" to Carl Sandburg.
there's a lot to quibble with in this post. you chose the thing that cements your status as most pedantic gheorghie. huzzah. with dave in our number, that's some accomplishment.
ReplyDeleteOver a decade ago I won a bet with you about this very quote. It seemed in your prelude herein that you were attempting to add an asterisk to the result and diminish my victory. (Even though you bet on Thoreau, not Plato.)
ReplyDeleteLook, any philosopher whose utterances netted me two cases of premium beer will always have my dedication.
Dust. Wind. Dude.
what counted as premium that long ago?
ReplyDeleteGood question. Sam Adams?
ReplyDeletepete's wicked ale? r.i.p.
ReplyDeleteWow. Haven't even thought about Pete's Wicked Ale in eons. What the hell happened to it? That was early days micro like Anchor Steam or Sierra Nevada or Sam. Poor Pete.
ReplyDeleteIcehouse? Red Dog?
ReplyDeleteI've said & displayed many times that I don't get too worked up about hurricanes but Irma is a fucking monster.
ReplyDeleteI'll reiterate best wishes and hopeful thoughts for those among us (and otherwise) who might be in Irma's path. Lordy.
ReplyDeleteYes, Irma looks more worrisome than most. Are those of you in Florida going to ride it out?!
ReplyDeleteI haven't made any sort of decision yet. Will be paying close attention to the update and forecasts over the next day or so.
ReplyDeleteWhat Mark said. Will probably be a Thursday morning decision. She is monstrous and mean though. Pain in the ass too. The wife went to the grocery store today and the water is already gone and the shelves are near bare. The community is going bonkers.
ReplyDeleteI don't want to wish ill-will, but Irma sailing over Cuba and parking there for a bit wouldn't be a bad thing for us. Cuba not so much.
Storms can take whatever path they want. I'll vote for hard-right turn and off into the Atlantic.
ReplyDeleteAny and all Floridians are welcome to stay in zhome to wait out the storm. In return I expect reciprocal lodging when it gets cold up here.
ReplyDeleteI'm always more of a hurricane doubter than most but I've even done some basic prep. Also think there's a real chance the storm is on the west side of the state by the time it moves north. In that case, we'd get lots of heavy rain and wind but I believe it'd be manageable for us in the opposite side of the state.
ReplyDeletePost-Labor Day (post partem) mellow evening. Then find out an old friend's in town as it's the one year anniversary of his little brother's passing. Both great friends of mine from a million years ago. To me, there is but one choice, though some disagree... gotta go out and tell him how much I miss his bro and tell 100 old stories. And have some cold yellow American beers. Such is life, friends.
ReplyDeleteDanimal and Mark--I don't want to see you guys on CNN later this week.
ReplyDeleteGet yourselves + your family and pets somewhere safe
Stuff can be replaced, but you and your families cannot
This Ezekiel Elliott case got weirder. NFL policing is a mess, but this is a hell of a lot of hullabaloo and grandstanding by Elliott's lawyers just for a guy to dodge trouble for beating up females.
ReplyDeleteThe GTB Floridiots, um, Floridians have an excuse for their quietude. Rest of us should be discussing the wonderful state of the world.
ReplyDeletehi gheorghies
That was for Dave.
Alrighty then.
ReplyDeleteFrom Rolling Stone:
Holger Czukay, the bassist and co-founder of seminal German krautrock pioneers Can, died Tuesday.
Probably not of much interest to you, as krautrock doesn't get much comment fodder here. But here's a piece of trivia that the article doesn't mention but I happen to know:
What band named itself after a Can song?
we did "the unexamined life is not worth living" today in philosophy class . . . full circle. plato wrote it down, socrates said it. socrates refused to write stuff down because he believed in live dialogue and discussion and thought once things were written down they became pedantic and lifeless. so he went around talking and talking and asking questions and stuff until they killed him.
ReplyDeleteshoulda made that a post, whitney. sad.
ReplyDeleteand i never would've guessed the correct answer to the band name question.
In other sad rock news (not news about sad rock), Charles Bradley's stomach cancer has now spread to his liver. He cancelled 37 dates. Not good.
ReplyDeleteSo see your bands before bad things befall them. Go back to the post with the table of concerts and find one. I recently made Adam Ant in Richmond 100%. Stand and deliver, people.
"so he went around talking and talking and asking questions and stuff until they killed him."
ReplyDeleteThis nearly happened to Dave in Pi Lam about 200 times.
Charles Bradley was the subject of my first GTB post.
ReplyDeleteShallow. And pedantic. Shallow. And pedantic.
ReplyDeleteZ,
ReplyDeleteLeSean McCoy as #5 pick in FFL... whaddayathink? Need an answer like right now. Sorry.
Z came through. Best Brother 1996.
ReplyDeletei hope he told you it was a terrible idea.
ReplyDeleteMcCoy's myriad offensive touches were too much for Whit to pass up.
ReplyDeleteTrump left wresting for politics while Weenie left politics for wrestling.