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| via @DrunkOldGrad & Twitter. |
1. The Quiet Ruthlessness of the Clinton Campaign (New Yorker)
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| People love to quote Sun-Tzu, but few understand him. |
Kind of a misleading headline for an article that is ultimately about Sec. Clinton’s preparation, and to be honest, there was probably more there on sheer “ruthlessness”. For example, Clinton co-opted nearlyall of the Democratic party consultants and advisors long before the primary season typically begins, making it virtually impossible for other conventional Democrats to mount traditional campaigns. That Sanders still managed it--without any help from anyone in the Party apparatus whatsoever--should have clued the Party itself into their nominee’s deep lack of popularity.
People just don’t like her.
Clinton’s anti-Trump media blitz has been exceptionally well-timed, save that she lost the fourth quarter, and of course, the fourth quarter is the quarter that’s most important. I still think she wins the game, but good God, the country itself has suffered for her and Trump’s personal ambitions.
North Korea observers fear she could have fallen foul of her despotic husband or incurred the wrath of his equally menacing sister, Kim Yo jong.
Experts believe Yo jong is the power behind the throne and is even more deadly than her brother.
It’s a brother/sister thing, just like the Lannisters and the Targaryens, only in North Korea. A real life Game of Thrones, if you will, where if you lose, you die.
3. Maxence Cyrim: Paint It Black
We’ve been talking about the new HBO show Westworld in the office this week, and about the classic rock piano covers that the show uses as its mood music in particular. It turns out that these are all done by the same guy, Maxence Cyrim, a French piano composure. Knowing that hardly makes me an expert, but I have to say that I quite liked his cover of “Paint it Black”.
The video below is a cover from The Pixies of a song called "Where is My Mind". Like a lot of what I've loved in Westworld, it's lovely and beautiful but also eerie and haunting.
The video below is a cover from The Pixies of a song called "Where is My Mind". Like a lot of what I've loved in Westworld, it's lovely and beautiful but also eerie and haunting.
4. What if everyone’s wrong? (Politico)
“Our magnificent, historic movement has surprised the world and defied expectations at every single turn,” Trump told a crowd in Orlando this week. “And now, next Tuesday, we will have one more glorious surprise for the pundits, the politicians and the special interests when we win and return the power back to the people.”
It’s an outcome that official Washington — more consumed with potential Clinton Cabinet picks (Biden! Sandberg!), her policy agenda, the battle for the Senate — seems wholly unprepared for.
“I don’t think Washington has ever been in touch with this election,” said longtime Democratic pollster Peter Hart. “I end every speech with the Yogi Berra saying, ‘It ain’t over until it’s over’ and it ain’t over until we get the votes counted.”
One of my classmates said recently that the reason he’s voting for Trump is to give a big “Fuck You!” to Official Washington. I don’t agree, but I certainly do understand.
I’ve said many times that I think Trump is a disastrous candidate, but it’s also true that Official Washington--in the sense that it is a bunch of ass-grabbing Ivy League pseudo-intellectuals who’ve become more interested in their political doctrines and personal careers than in cooperatively moving the country forward--needs to get its ass kicked, and badly.
5. Air Force week: Coach Monker presser (Hudson Valley.Com)
“With the academy rivalries and the Commander in Chief’s trophy, the pride of saying we beat the other academies in those head-to-head games, makes it a big game,” Monken said during his press conference. “Rivalry games are fun. No matter where you play or what sport you’re involved with. There are a lot of teams on campus that are playing Air Force this weekend in competition and right now it’s the biggest game of the year for them too.
“Just the pride and playing for that is a pretty big deal. It certainly is to us. I don’t know that there is a more important goal we have than winning the Commander in Chief’s trophy and trying to bring the trophy back here. So it makes it a big game.”
— Army WP Football (@ArmyWP_Football) November 4, 2016
#ArmyFootball captain Jeremy Timpf on impact of a win over Air Force Saturday. Lots at stake in service-academy clash pic.twitter.com/SRCdfyQEui— Sal Interdonato (@salinterdonato) November 4, 2016
— Andrew King (@Chosen11s) November 3, 2016
If you're wondering, the line on this game started at Air Force (-3) but has since moved to Army (-2). Let's hope that the bettors are right and Vegas wasn't.
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That's all I've got.
Go Army! Beat Air Force!!!
The Westworld music and covers are done by Ramin Djawadi. The same composer for Game of Thrones.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the note. We talked about this in my office last week, but apparently I got some bad info.
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