Triscribe

Re: After First Month in Office, Schwarzenegger Continues to Surprise and Dance steps and missteps: Governor Displays Unique, Brash Style

When I visited NYC this past Thanksgiving holiday, a few friends joked with me about Governor “Ah-nold” and what a joke it was to have him be California’s newest governor via special elections. I admit yes, it’s rather bizarre and it could only happen in California, uniquely (and sometimes fondly known as) the land of fruits and nuts.

On the other hand, one had to have lived in California for a little while to appreciate why this could ever happen. Knowing this history, it’s not hard to understand that this was the only possible result due to a chaotic and broken political process. Viewing it from the lense of the common citizenry, this is nothing short of a citizen’s revolt against the political establishment. Both Republicans and Democrats fully participated in these elections — the outrage, the desire for change, or whatever was palpable. This was more a testimony against the California political establishment, not a right vs. left. Many conservatives voted against Arnold because he was too “left” for their tastes. Many Democrats/liberals voted for him because Gray Davis and his Latino side-kick Bustamente were just too Establishment and the California mess was blamed on the long-time politicos and needed someone new and not beholden to the usual constituencies was going to trump anything resembling a “professional politician”.

Arnold is a centrist and my prototypical Republican candidate. I can’t wait to vote Bush out of office.

=YC

I got the latest ABA E-Journal and found myself reading the latest The Rodent column. Now, I know he’s supposed to be humorous and sometimes he is funny. He’s more like smile-funny rather than laugh-out-loud funny, with his out-takes on the law profession and how screwy it is. The latest column is no exception. His column photograph is the weirdest thing for me, though. Despite being called “The Rodent” (no doubt meaning to evoke the negative stereotype of the law profession), his “photo” is not of the weasel-like form. No, it’s of a sweet looking, fuzzy head (mouse? chinchilla? definitely not chipmunk) atop of a decent looking suit. Huh? Stereotype bent over backwards – the Rodent not trying to chew you out of hearth and home; he’s your kid’s lovable cartoon figure. Gee whiz, had the column been by The Shark, would we have had little Nemo’s head stuck on?

Ooh, the big Entertainment Weekly Special Double Issue/Year Ender! This is going to be fun to flip through!

Bill Moyer’s Now news magazine on PBS is an enjoyable, informative show. Last week’s interview was with NYS’ Attorney General Elliot Spitzer; this week was a fascinating couple of minutes with former Governor Angus King of Maine (a fierce independent, he told the interviewer that the best time he had was antagonizing both parties; a man who spent his adult years in Maine, he accepts the ribbing about not being a native Mainer with good humor). I like watching the series; it has such a Bill Moyers flavor, gentle but not without toughness. There is an unveiled liberal sense to it, from the way he criticizes big businesses and brings in stories that mainstream media wouldn’t really spend much time on (Moyers was once a member of the Lyndon B. Johnson White House, which may explain the liberal feelings; and, as a longtime news veteran, Moyers knows what the mainstream media isn’t telling us). “Now” has a pretty interesting website too.

This week’s Time magazine was good subway reading. Coverage and analysis of Saddam Hussein’s capture. Coverage and analysis of the latest Afghanistan problems. Coverage and analysis of Howard Dean/Al Gore. Commentary on the early, non-canonical Christian gospels. Pictures of the year. Good stuff. I’m making my guesses about the person of the year, but I’m sure we’ll all be surprised. Maybe.

Slate.com has some good postings: “Do Muslims and Christians worship the Same God?” , which made a lot more sense than the mouths of the politically incorrect/ignorant. Michael Kinsley discusses “the politics of mixed emotions”, wherein Kinsley examines the dilemma of politicians, when they’re not the folks to demonstrate nuanced reactions even if they do feel less than proud about a given situation.