Illusory matters

Chris Hedges, author of the important Empire of Illusion, spoke tonight at Labyrinth Books in Princeton, offering a somewhat dark outlook on the direction of the nation, which he views as steeped in illusion and unwilling to face the reality of what has happened and is happening.

The national meltdown -- the erosion of the working class and destruction of our manufacturing base, the gambling by the financial sector which packaged and repackaged debt, sold it and created an ugly and unstable Ponzi scheme, our decaying environment and the growth of corporate power and American empire -- has created conditions that are ripe for fascism.

The cracks in the illusion can "propel people into this level of desperation" and a "profound personal and economic despair sits at the center of fascist and totalitarian movements," he said.

Our corporate culture -- which "perpetuates a never-ending childishness, an infantilism" -- robs everything of its moral value. We have a cult of self, have lost all sense of community or shared sacrifice or understanding that we are all heading toward the same ends. Everything is commodified and, "when everything is commodified, a society commits collective suicide."

the price of fame

What's brand worth? Apparently quite a bit. The purses are on sale for $149 -- regularly $329, That's obscene.

For $150, I could get a new Blackberry or a DVD player.

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Busy day at the outlets

We're at the Coach outlet in Jackson browsing -- thanks to a coupon -- and it's packed. I know everything is on sale, but this seems crazy for a pre-Thanksgiving Saturday during a painful recession.

Job numbers released yesterday were terrible -- highest unemployment rate in nearly three decades with many, many more working, but "underemployed" (i.e., working part-time or at jobs below their qualifications because nothing else is available).

I can only assume this is a good sign, or all these people are shopping to fight depression

I think I'll cross my fingers.

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Doggie diaries: The story of Rosie and Sophie Reintroducing the Nylabone -- s

We gave the dogs Nylabones for the first time since their major fight to see how they'd react.

Sophie got hers first, while Rosie was outside. Rosie got one when she came in.

They had then for about 15 uncomfortable minutes, both looking up from their bones with what appeared to be mistrust. I kept close watch.

The experiment ended when Rosie went over to Sophie and stood over her -- a dominance/territorial move that signaled potential trouble.

That's when the bones went away. We'll try again later or tomorrow, supervised, of course.

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Doggie diary: The story of Rosie and Sophie Exercise and television

We took the dogs for a long walk earlier, which we need to do more frequently. What I've noticed is that they tend to be better on their walks when they get out more frequently. So, that's what we need to do.

Now, of course, we're watching "The Dog Whisperer," Rosie quite intently.

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Too much celebration could result in a hangover

Part of me knows that Mets fans and the Mets organization would have put together the same kind of celebration, but it was difficult to watch this morning, sitting with Annie in the waiting room while my sister-in-law had some routine tests done.

It wasn't so much the players, but the people on NBC that made the entire spectacle difficult to listen to (I was trying to read and not watch), along with some of the peripheral folks. The introduction of all players, including those like Xavier Nady and Chien Ming Wa, who spent the bulk of the year on the DL, as if they were integral parts of the journey, just prolonged it.

It is over for now, but this a well-constructed team at its core -- Sabathia and Burnett in the rotation, perhaps the best infield in baseball, some solid outfielders, though some of the cogs are aging -- so we may have to endure the same thing next year.

My only hope is that the Mets rebound, get healthy and find the missing pieces to surround David Wright, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran and Johan Santana and get back to the playoffs and make a run a world title.

It's time to move on same-sex marriage

I am sure there is a majority in both houses of the state Legislature that supports same-sex marriage, but too many have failed to step up, moderates like state Sens. Bill Baroni and Jen Beck, who have stood up for gay rights and other socially liberal positions in the past, but have remained silent on the issue until now.

Assemblyman Reed Gusciora and state Sen. Loretta Weinberg have sponsored legislation -- with 11 Assembly co-sponsors and five Senate co-sponsors -- that deserves a hearing, and soon.
(There is a competing bill in the Assembly, voiding same-sex marriages, that is unlikely to get traction.)

The bills, both called the "Freedom of Religion and Equality in Civil Marriage Act," were introduced in June 2008, but remain dormant in both Judiciary committees. Sen. Paul Sarlo, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told Tom Moran that he remains undecided.

"These are people I go to church with," he said. "I’m leaning towards not supporting it. But I’m an open-minded person."

Let's hope so. It's his ballgame for now.

Dispatches: It was all about Jersey

Dispatches is up -- on the election. The column already has generated a comment, disagreement from the right (from someone calling himself MotherRedDog).

And after all of that spin.........Obama did campaign for him often and yes the
money was big, and 25 percent of the voters said it WAS a referendum on
Obama.....spinning until you puke won't change these facts.

I am willing to admit that this is not a good thing for the Obama administration, but to think that 25 percent of voters -- not sure where the number comes from, but it's what he offers -- means much is absurd. That is fewer than voted for McCain last time.

In fact, fewer people voted for Chris Christie on Tuesday than voted for John McCain last year. The issue was turnout -- a complete lack of faith in the incumbent, mostly deserved, suppressing turnout in urban areas at a time when suburban Democrats bailed on the party.

The evidence just doesn't support the anti-Obama theory, at least not in New Jersey, where the president continues to poll well.

Define mandate

I'm not a big Mulshine fan, but this column pretty much covers it -- at least as far as Christie is concerned.

Voters held Corzine accountable; they will hold Christie accountable, too

The New Jersey electorate held Jon Corzine to his word and held him accountable for the mess the state is in, even if he was not responsible for a good portion of the mess.

That said, it will be interesting to see how Chris Christie, the new governor elect, can pull off his agenda without budget gimmicks and what might happen when it becomes obvious that we cannot lower both state and local taxes, cannot promise to cut waste and shrink government without hurting someone, without angering some constituency that he will need down the road.

Who gets hurt is the question that awaits. Who gets hurt? Because someone will get hurt. It is the only way to bridge an $8 billion gap.

Christie wins, but appears to lack coattails

AP has called it for Chris Christie and the TV news is trumpeting it, but it appears that he has few coattails. Democrats look like they are going to keep their seats in the Assembly, Republicans theirs and, of the handful of local results I've seen, only South Brunswick flipped, so we'll see.

And yet we're starting to hear the nonsense about how this shows a groundswell for the GOP, something I guess was inevitable.

Painting the Christie win as startling is startling in and of itself, given that Christie was ahead by 20 or so points early, saw the poll-lead evaporate and hung on. By rights, it shouldn't have been as close as it was.

I suspect the New Jersey vote has little to say what will happen nationally. Consider these numbers from the exit polling:

Obama made himself a major factor in the race by campaigning for Corzine twice in the final weeks of the race — including at two rallies on Sunday. The majority of voters said that their feelings about Obama were not a factor in their vote in the race for governor.

But voters' feelings about Obama were in sync with the what they did in the voting booths Tuesday. Christie voters strongly disapprove of Obama's performance; Corzine voters overwhelmingly approve of the president.

Two-thirds of Daggett voters said they approved of the president — perhaps a hint that Daggett's presence on the ballot hurt Corzine more than Christie.

The New Jersey Republican revolt of the early 1990s didn't prevent Bill Clinton from winning in New Jersey. And I suspect that the anti-Corzine revolt -- which is what this was, an anti-property tax, anti-Corzine vote -- will have little impact on the congressional races, as little as they appear to have had on the Legislature.

Results are in our hands, apparently

Patrick Murray of the Monmouth University Polling Institute offers an interesting overview, county by county, of how today's results may play out -- and it appears that Central Jersey is in the driver's seat.

Another area worth watching is the Route 1 corridor counties (Mercer, Middlesex, Union), especially Middlesex. Corzine won Middlesex by 32,000 votes in 2005. Florio only won it by 1,300 votes in 1993. Voters in this region tend to be independent minded but vote Democratic in most elections. Polling indicates that Corzine is performing nowhere near as well in this region as he did four years ago. [In the past month, both Joe Biden and Bill Clinton have held rallies in Middlesex County.] While all regions of the state have their part to play in this race, this is the one I’m keeping my eye on to tell which way the wind is blowing.

These are Democratic Counties. But, as Murray points out, the gubernatorial race has a different dynamic, due I think to the more diverse mix here -- racially, to be sure, but it also is a hodge-podge of rural, urban and suburban towns and poor, working class and rich communities.

If the turnout is large and the Democrats can convince the people not to jump ship as they move up the ballot, Chris Christie may have problems closing the deal.

On a side note, the national coverage of this race seems to have forgotten that it was just a few months ago that Christie was up by more than 20 in some polls and that Corzine was dead in the water. Shouldn't that factor into the national media's reading of the results?

Runner's diary, Tuesday

Yes, that's two days in a row at the gym, though I kept it to a mile on the treadmill again. I did hit the weights pretty hard -- leg work -- and finished with the stair climber. Now, I just have to stay consistent.

Runner's diary, Monday

I made it back to the gym after what seems like months -- I guess it's literally been months. I taught this morning, then hit the office, managed to get quite a lot done and split early to get in a work out. I've been in excuse mode for too long and could see the results around my waist and in the quantity of clothing that no longer fits. I needed to just suck it up and hit the gym.

So I did today, running a mile on the treadmill and then hitting the weights and the elliptical machine. It was a good hour-plus and I feel good. I've got the bag packed for the morning already.

Is the hope running out?

A story in today's issue of The New York Times offers a glimpse into the dangers the Obama administration faces as he attempts to move forward, as many in the nation begin to lose faith in the promise he offered.

While I believe he remains popular, his standing with the public has been in flux, dependent not only on what has been awful coverage of the political moment and the bad faith of the opposition party, but also some of his own flaws -- his cautiousness, his commitment to bipartisanship at the expense of action.

His willingness to leave the healthcare debate in the hands of Congress -- more specifically, in the hands of so-called Blue Dog Democrats and conservative Democrats like Max Baucus -- left liberals negotiating from a position of weakness, with the more progressive reforms being taken off the table before negotiations started.

We are still at war and it appears that we may soon see an escalation in Afghanistan, a move that would shatter his connection to the progressive wing of his party and those elements of the left that had signed on. Escalation also would drive away many independents, leaving his coalition in tatters and his presidency looking far too much like the last months of the Johnson administration.

There is time to turn this around, to act boldly and move the nation in a more humane direction, but he's got to act quickly. There already is a palpable sense out there that the promises he made cannot be kept.

The