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Jul 22, 2008Why I'm Voting for the Vice President in 2008I can't recall in recent history if there has ever been a time when the Vice Presidential candidates were more important. Personally, it will mean the difference in my vote this year, here's why: The Republicans If you haven't noticed John McCain is pushing 100. He's old. Now, I'm normally not an ageist. But when it comes to my President, I get a little concerned when they start the job as an old man. If you haven't noticed, the job ages the men who attempt to lead this fine country. Take a look...       My only advice to Senator McCain, pick a very young running mate that everyone loves. It is your ONLY chance at winning this election. We all know you won't age well. Because, frankly, you can't age any more than you already have. So, choose wisely, old fella. The Democrats I never like to give The Onion credit unless I absolutely have to. But they make a valid point in this article. The scenario of an African-American President has not played out so well in our Hollywood simulations. Just be warned... that's all I'm saying. The other issue at hand for Senator Obama is guns. Ever been to a gun show in the South, or Midwest for that matter? Some of the people who have armed themselves in this country have some issues with African-American leadership. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying all gun-nuts are racist. But racists are often gun-nuts, as well as bomb-nuts and domestic-terror-nuts. So, my advice would be to double-up on the Secret Service and pick a young white man as your running mate. You may notice I didn't say "woman." Unfortunately, I would probably be giving this same piece of advice about guns to the Democratic candidate had it been Senator Clinton. So, that's it. I expect our two candidates will do a great job campaigning as we get closer to November. If I don't see a McCain ad that makes Obama out to be a terrorist sympathizer and an Obama ad that makes McCain out to be a senile old man, I will be deeply disappointed. Regardless, I hope they both pick outstanding running mates that will only have to be Vice President for the next four years. Even though, I will still be basing my vote on who they choose.
posted by Jim at 1:17 AM
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Jul 21, 2008Dave Grohl Should Love His Job
 Twisted Wife and I can never do one thing. When we plan a night of events, we aren't fucking around. We schedule as many things as humanly possible. If we have five minutes, we better be bungee jumping while doing our taxes. Granted, this is more Twisted Wife than me. She is the queen of over-booking. However, this past weekend was an exception. Not only did Saturday night include a wedding and reception, but also the Foo Fighters at the local arena. That's right. When Twisted Jim takes Twisted Wife on a date, I start with the romance and cap it with the rock!This review marks only the second time I've skipped the opening acts when I've paid over $20 for a show. But it was worth it this time. Instead, the early portion of my evening was spent at my co-worker's wedding. Since I don't talk about work on TJ.com... much, I will try not to out the culprits of the following two moments of wedding awesomeness: 1. In the church a co-worker and I were discussing the Nintendo Wii when a senior co-worker said, "Yeah, people don't want to put the strap on..." of course, we had a nice chuckle along with "(senior co-worker) said 'strap-on.'" Which was closely followed by, "That must be the Wii Adult," and so on. To which my response was, "We can't even go to a church, can we?" 2. I changed out of my suit in the public parking garage. This would have been a better moment had one of my senior co-workers been leaving while I was exposed. Sorry, maybe next time. Foo Fighters: Kemper Arena 7/19/08 If it weren't for the open bar at D Mac's wedding, TW and I would have seen a little bit of opening bands. I was actually interested to see Supergrass, who I hadn't seen for years and thought had broken up. If you haven't heard their song Late in the Day, your musical life has been unfulfilled. Instead, we walked into the second half of the Foo Fighter's The Pretender. The sheer volume as we entered the arena reminded me that I was at a ROCK show. I've been to a lot of "rock" shows this year, but Saturday was about blood, sweat, spit (which Dave Grohl does a lot) and loud-ass arena ROCK! As we found our seats (yes, seats... I'm old, you know), I noticed the stage had a long runway that ended in a smaller, circular stage. In other words, it was a giant phallus. I let it go, thinking "Oh, they'll run up and down the runway and play a few songs from the little stage, etc." I settled back in and enjoyed the heavier of the Foo repertoire as played from the far end of the arena, like any proper ROCK show. Of course, Dave stopped the show now and again to exercise his wit and rest his neck (he can headbang with the best of 'em). He reminded the folks in the upper deck to switch from dial-up to the "real deal" when purchasing tickets, and let the crowd know that the band would play as long as the crowd would stick around. And, honestly, he wasn't lying... much. Fourteen years of experience have made this band into one of the best and most charismatic bands I've ever seen. The show can be summed up in one analogy. It was masturbatory. The band started at the large end of the stage, building up steam, playing the heavier songs and stopping every now and then to catch their breath. Dave ran up and down the runway almost making it to the round stage but stopping just short. And then, during Stacked Actors, the Foos blew their load and all jumped onto the small stage for an almost-acoustic set. Like any good jerk, they didn't completely let up. The acoustic set kept the momentum going just enough to allow a second round of heavy banging at the large end of the stage, ending with Best of You. And we all drove away, sweaty and satisfied. 
posted by Jim at 11:44 PM
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Jul 10, 2008One Mo No BloI pledged to take an entire month away from blogging. And I'm proud to say... I did it! I went an entire month without a concert review, book announcement, excuse about neglecting the blog, political commentary... or whatever else I do on this site. But now that it's over, here's the important news:  Tyson and I finished a new book that will be available this August. Wait for it... ladies and gentlemen, I give you... Letters from Satan.It still hasn't been made available on Amazon and the like, yet. But I will be selling advance copies of Letters from Satan and He Kept to Himself, Mostly at the Broken Brick show Unicorns and Rainbows on August 1st at the Hilliard Gallery. And now for the details: The Broken Brick Group Presents UNICORNS and RAINBOWS at The Hilliard Gallery August 1, 2008 404 E. 18th Street Kansas City, MO 816.561.2956
posted by Jim at 7:52 PM
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