Showing posts with label Best of 2008. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Best of 2008. Show all posts

Thursday, December 11, 2008

"If the Pope is right, we are seriously fucked": Understanding Polution as Sin

On March 10th, M uncovered the Vatican's new list of sins, which includes pollution. Megs follows with a post about prescription drugs in our drinking water.

Drawing her first premise from M's post, Megs constructs a frightening argument.

Premise #1: The Pope says Pollution is a Sin.
Premise #2: Pharmaceuticals Pollute Our Water.
Conclusion: Therefore, We Are Seriously Fucked.

Enjoy hell, everyone!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

To Descend is Honorable

I don't know how I overlooked this beauty of a post from February 12th. It is probably one of my top five for the year.

The post was initiated by Harrogate. But today's retrospective honors Megs for her profound comment to that post. It is a comment that forced me to do much soul searching. In the end, I knew that she had tapped into a deep and powerful truth: it is honorable to descend on Saturday, but praiseworthy every day.

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

A White Lie and a Pedagogical Lesson; Wherein the Shit Hits the Fan

4 March 2008:

Texas TRS bloggers do the Two-Step. They cast their primary votes during the day and return to their polling station later that evening to caucus.

5 March 2008:

TRS bloggers share their experiences: M reports that her experience was anti-climatic and criticizes the entire process as anti-democratic; I admit that my caucus was anything but sexy, Harrogate claims that his experience was boring, although his retelling of the story suggest otherwise, as he found himself "in the middle of things"; and Paperweight reveals that his caucus was "a waste of FUCKING time" [emphasis his].

Following these less-than-stellar reviews of the Texas caucus, Megs reminds Situationers that their suffering was worthwhile and calls for a joint ticket. Solon quickly offers arguments against a joint ticket.

Meanwhile...

Harrogate, Sarah, and I convene in Harrogate's office. We further discuss the caucus. Even though our experiences fell short of expectation, Harrogate notes that Solon probably wishes that he was still in Texas so that he could caucus. The reason: the idea of deliberative democracy in action makes him "cream his jeans." Sarah and I laugh at this expression, as neither of us have heard it since middle school. Admid our laughter over creamed jeans, a very bad idea emerged: let's fool Solon. Yes, let's see how excited he gets knowing that one of us is a delegate. With hesitation, Sarah consents. I sit in the corner, still laughing over the expression.

Sarah makes the fateful statement in the comments section of Megs's post:
I just wanted to let you all know that I hung around for the end of the caucus and was chosen as a delegate.

Four minutes later, Solon replies:
I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO jealous...


But the conspiracy was short-lived, for Sarah could not live with the lie. She could not continue to toy with Solon's emotions, and so she revealed the entire plot on TRS.

Harrogate back-pedals and claims that the conspiracy against Solon was a pedagogical lesson designed to show "what voters in Florida and Michigan must have felt, on learning that they would not, in fact, get to have a say [in the democratic primary], because of sealed agreements made by removed forces." He then quickly changed the topic back to the joint ticket. But, alas, it was to late. Things were headed downhill. Quickly.

Solon is obviously hurt, as he does not respond for some time.

But Megs fights the good fight, closing the day with a post that identifies "an actual delegate." Stab. Ouch.

6 March 2008:

Harrogate begins the day with a post on the "Michigan and Florida Clusterfuck." Solon replies to said post, addressing Harrogate with a new epithet, "Oh Wise Harrogate, supporter of Senator Clinton and, hence, possessor of the truth; teacher of pedagogical lessons." Much like Romney after Huckabee's win in West Virginia, it seems that Solon is pissed.

The aggression against Harrogate continues. And he feels it. He calls Oxymoron, upset that the seemingly innocent "delegate" joke has backfired and made things very, very bad.

Then Paperweight fuels the fire, publishing a post that asks Obama supporters to tell him why he, like many of them, should hate Clinton. I try to neutralize some of the antagonism in the post--and some of the tension on TRS, in general--by commenting on his use of "fucking" throughout his post. But my efforts fall short, as Megs feels that she and Solon are being attacked by PW. More fun ensues.

Eventually, M calls for everyone to take a breather, to focus our energy towards our dissertations. She is more successful in this attempt to steer us away from heated political discussion than in her previous attempt.

Things come full circle when Megs asks Reverend Todd to comment on the current issues being discussed the Rhetorical Situation. I inform Megs that the Good Reverend hasn't been following our discussions because he is busy studying his delegate's packet. Ha!

Friday, December 05, 2008

Harrogate's Favorite of All the Videos He, To Date, Has Posted This Year



While getting the ball rolling on the current Retrospective Festival taking place on TRS, oxymoron indicated here that at times, it seemed as though Harrogate preferred Ron Paul to all other Presidential candidates. Reading Oxy's comment, Harrogate was moved to take introspective pause. How much substance, in the end, was there to the claim? It was certainly the case that Harrogate's Award-Winning sequence, "Why Some People Like Ron Paul," included some of the clearest, most passionate prose Harrogate ever placed on these Boards.

But at the same time, while this writing intentionally implied much admiration for the good Dr. Paul, much of it was after all quite hostile, with Harrogate wearing anti-Libertarian bias on his sleeve for all to behold. In the end, the truth is that the thing about Paul that moved Harrogate the most was the incredible response his Call for Liberty evoked in citizens across the country. Paul, unlike every other candidate this season, did not at all come across as having tailored his Rhetoric to Focus Groups. Indeed, he neither hemmed nor hawed. There was never any doubt as to the sincerity of his position, no confusing for anything else his intellectually-grounded Love for the United States of America.

Do many of Paul's convictions nauseate Harrogate? Indeed they do. But one both can and should live with that in the arena of ideas. And the rejection of many of Paul's ideas, by Harrogate, did not thereby insinuate a questioning of his patriotic motives, his Constitutional breadth of knowledge, or his Political Bravery.

Some, by the way, have said that Situationers post too many videos. But Harrogate disagrees. The videos, musical, or political or otherwise, accomplish many important Rhetorical goals, not the least of which is the kind of community-building work that Oxymoron has recently identified with Feminine Sociolinguistics. But the Videos are also expressions of what move each indiviual blogger, and chance to put out into the Blogosphere "stuff {insert name} likes."

The Above Video Homage to Ron Paul, Harrogate posted on two separate occasions in this Year 2008. Now he has posted it for the third and final time. It takes one of our Nation's greatest Musical Pop Anthems, and uses it persuasively on Paul's behalf. This video is all about America, about ideological substance, and it is beautiful.

And so here is another chance for Readers to check it out.

"No politics, please!"; Wherein new board member M unsuccessfully attempts to steer the direction of TRS, and Solon pushes back

Yesterday M honored Solon for his post on playground etiquette. The reason his post is worthy of accolade, she explains, is that it "got us away from the election, if only briefly."

While I never wrote too much about the election (and rarely write about politics at all) on our blog, I always appreciate the political perspectives offered here, as they often inform and influence my own thinking. In this regard, TRS is not just an opportunity for me to have fun with friends online, but also and always a chance to learn something new, whether that subject be politics, music, pandas, or stout penes.

It therefore surprised me when our beloved M called for a one-day moratorium on political waxation [coined!]. This was mid-February, right in the heap of primary season, where so much can happen in a single 24-hour period. I mean, just think back to that fateful day when Huckabee won West Virginia. Amid a moratorium, we might never had learned the extent to which Romney was pissed. We might also have missed out on Pot's statement about Kettle.

So, again, M's request was a bit surprising. But what was not surprising was the reaction of TRS bloggers. While no one forthrightly commented on her post, we nevertheless responded in very predictable ways--along gender lines.

Sociolinguistic research tells us that women often use language to build and maintain relationships, while men are usually only concerned with delivering information. What's more, women strive to achieve a communal balance during conversation, whereas men use a more aggressive style that establishes or perpetuates hierarchies.

Following M's call for a momentary change in direction on our Award-winning blog, Solon immediately and aggressively exerted his power to blog about whatever his heart desired. A mere sixteen minutes after M's request, Solon issued to her a giant "fuck you, bitch," publishing a post about Karl Rove and censorship. Luckily, Megs came to the rescue in a womanly way, which is to say that she attempted to maintain relationships and rapport on the blog. She published two back-to-back posts, neither of which was overtly political.

But Solon retaliated against Megs feel-good attempts to foster an egalitarian community on the blog. "No one will tell me what not to write about," his next few posts tacitly screamed. That's right, he continued to deliver the political news and commentary for which he is known across the blogosphere, publishing three more posts on political topics. Yes, you heard right: he delivered three more giant "Fuck You"s.

I chose not to smoke any blog that day, for I was internally conflicted. As man I wanted to be like Solon; I wanted to tell the world that I'm not here to give hugs and affirm the worth of those with whom I converse. On the other hand, as a then stay-at-home dad (with testicles only somewhat intact), I wanted to do my part to build a sense of community on our blog, where everyone's input is valued.

Best Inaugural Post

If I may, I would like to nominate my own first contribution to the Situation as the [see post title] of 2008. Who doesn't love a pantsuit? Or Barbie? Or Supa?

Thursday, December 04, 2008

Because Girls Blog Here, Too

Hi everyone. Megs here. Frequent reader, first-time poster. I'd like to nominate Supa's Mr. Noodle post. Because, well, it's not only gratifying to think about Harrogate's anger toward Mr. Noodle. It's also important to introduce the phrase "Mr. Noodle" into the dialogue.

A Clarification for Solon's Benefit, but which will Perhaps benefit others as well: Where Sexual Harassment Panda Came From

Solon waxes parental

In a year when Solon regaled us with his vast knowledge of all things political, he occasionally waxed parental. In what is one of my favorite posts of 2008, Playground Etiquette, Solon contemplated how to teach Sweet Toddler J about sharing at the playground. I rank this among my favorites because it got us away from the election, if only briefly, to an issue that is, while mundane, pivotal to most of us who blog regularly at the Situation. And, frankly, who among us hasn't gotten annoyed because someone has spent too much time on the swings?

Celebrating Cunt, Revising Gump

As Harrogate pointed out yesterday, February of '08 was an "effusive" month on the Rhetorical Situation. The month gave us a number of excellent posts, many of which centered on the Clintonian pantsuit and fashion in general; it gave us memorable phrases, such as "Romney is pissed" and "Fuck you, Tim Gunn"; and it also introduced us to Paperweight and to the Wisdom of Reverend John Todd [see comments section].

But this particular retrospective is not about those great moments in our Award-winning blog; this post is about the word Cunt. As many of you remember, February is the month that the C-Word officially entered the lexicon of TRS. It first appeared in celebration of Jane Fonda's use of the word on the Today Show, shortly followed by a transcript of Brooke Shields defending Fonda on the O'Reilly Factor. It also appeared in censored form here, where CUNT was the abbreviated name of the anti-Hillary group Citizens United Not Timid (to whose name Solon replied, "Seriously? This doesn't even make sense.").

But perhaps the most exciting use of the C-Word on TRS appeared on February 26 when Harrogate posted a photo from Feministing. Such an overt celebration of Cunt was uncomfortable for some in our blogging community, especially the most conservative and then newest member of our board, Reverend John Todd. The Good Reverend was so bothered by the four women with C-U-N-T written across their bodies that he was moved to revise the photo in a manner that reflected more accurately his traditional values. But, alas!, his efforts were futile, as he soon learned [see his comments] that the offensiveness of the photo could not be circumvented by elementary photoshop skills.

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Remember Those Posts You Really Loved But Somehow Never Commented On?

Harrogate has had a few of those.

One that stands out is this one by Solon. In which the Awesome Musical Intro to Hitchhiker's Guide was featured. When Harrogate and Supadiscomama went to see the movie, Harrogate remembers expressing to her afterwards that while he thought the film itself a bit better than okay, he thought that the Dolphin Montage deserved an Academy Award nomination. He was not kidding. And he still thinks that highly of it, because it really, really captured the essence of what is to be loved about Douglas Adams, even as it did its own wonderful thing. Harrogate watched that clip like six times when Solon posted it, and yet somehow, he never wound up writing anything in the comments box.

This, Harrogate suspects, has happened a lot among Readers & Contributors in our brief history as an Award-Winning Blog. The writing, the videos, the pics all get pored over with interest, but sometimes, the comment box is left unvisited. (Although, as ye can see, the particular Post by Solon in question did not go uncommented. Oxymoron came through with his typical penache. All Posts should be so lucky, as to get such feedback).

And verily, another Word about that Post by Solon. Readers, how awesome was it to discover that Sweet Toddler J loves "Once in a Lifetime" by the Talking Heads? That discovery caused a Talking Head Renaissance for Harrogate. Even as he types this, in truth, Harrogate is listening to "Take Me to the River (Drop Me in the Water)."

When Solon Noted, "Romney is Pissed"

As We are already beginning to see, February 2008 was one of this Blog's most effusive months. Southpaw's great jibe at Harrogate's homelife notwithstanding, there were moments when it seemed all the Irony had been drained out of the Situation, leaving only successions of straightforward, impassioned political argument.

But even in the thick of things, there were non-doctrinal gestures of humor that would appear at surprising moments, and which in a very real sense Stood as a Towering Marker of the great friendships on which this Blog has been Built.

And one of the most memorable Posts of that Crazy Season was this one by Solon. The title of the post, "Let the Games Begin," obliterated the line between Cliche and Poignantness. But when Solon wrote:

"Huckabee wins West Virginia. Romney is pissed...."

Actual Art had been achieved.

For months after, Harrogate would think about that sentence in its entirety. And the slight suggestion of a grin that must have played across Solon's mouth as he wrote it: his knowledge that it would delight Harrogate even as it captured the essence of the new Internicine GOP to come.

Solon, ye were on fire this year. Your Constitutional Passion, your Patriotism, and your steady support for Obama all did this Blog a great credit. And through it all, you never allowed yourself to lose your sense of humor.

Harrogate tips his Hat to you, friend.

Southpaw Shows Harrogate at Home

For this third day of our countdown to the new year, we celebrate a post by Southpaw. Because of post like this one, where he offers an exclusive look into Harrogate's homelife, Southpaw will always be valued member of this blog, even if we've already heard his last word.

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Top Five Labels

I'll admit it: one of the reasons why I find a lot of enjoyment on the blog concerns the labels. They are too damn funny. SO to start my year-end review, here I my top five labels from 2008:

5. Oxymoron's Listening Room: It's a cult classic.

4. Breaking News!!!: It reminds me of my October visit to Texas and the absurdity of the MSM.

3. Can't Sleep-- Clowns Will Eat Me: It makes me laugh, every time. Honorable mention goes to Kick Me in the Balls just because.

2. Sexual Harassment Panda: I'll be honest, I still have no idea what this means and that's why it finished at Number 2.

1. Annoying M. Well, you know.

Solon Lightens Mood, Borrows Joke from Playground

Solon always has a finger on the pulse of the Rhetorical Situation. February 14 of this year was no exception.

America was amidst a tough Democratic primary race, and our board members were divided in their choice of candidate: many Situationers liked Hillary Clinton; a few of them supported Barack Obama; and it occasionally seemed that Harrogate was pulling for Ron Paul.

Things would soon get very heated. And I suspect that Solon knew this, for he urged us not to take ourselves too seriously. To help relieve stress on the Situation, Solon offered a funny joke.

Monday, December 01, 2008

Old Lions and New Blood: A Rhetorical Renaissance; Wherein Harrogate Credits Solon with Change, and Solon is Portrayed

The first post to be honored in our countdown to '09 was penned by Harrogate. It demonstrates that quality is not always accompanied by comments. In the post, Harrogate welcomes new voices to the Situation. Moreover, he credits Solon for bringing our blog back to life and perhaps more movingly honors him with a photo.

From January 17, "The Rhetorical Situation: A Makeover."