2009 Election Recap

There were three pivotal races being decided last night: VA governor, NJ governor, and a special election in NY-23.

In both governor races, Republicans ousted Democratic administrations. I don't think the outcome of either of these races says anything about how the citizens of those states feel about the president. In Virginia, Creigh Deeds ran an awful campaign, Virginia has a famous history of electing the opposite party of the president who is currently in office, and Bob McDonnell did not run against the president. In fact, many of his commercials by the end of the campaign ran on the same message of change. He ran a very positive campaign and voters turned out for that. Virginia is a toss-up state, in any election, and this one showed that once again.

In New Jersey, politics is its own dirty animal. Corzine was tremendously unpopular and even in a mostly blue state, Democratic voters voted for the other guy. Also here, Christie ran on the message of change. Exit polls in both states showed that folks didn't vote to send a message to Obama, but that their reasons were local.

NY-23 is slightly different. This is one race which can potentially tell a story for 2010. In short, you had a three-way race until the weekend, when the Republican candidate dropped out. What happened? The right-wing conservative nut faction of the Republican party thought it a good idea to import their own candidate, because they weren't happy with some of the views of Dede Scozzafava, the candidate who was chosen by the district to be Republican nominee. Now, if you know anything about NY Republicans, you know that the majority of them are not right-wing conservative. But in this race, in this district that hasn't gone Democrat since the 1800s, conservative Republicans took it upon themselves to make a statement and push moderates out of their party. But the tactic backfired on them and the Bill Owens, the Democratic candidate, won.

Now this can be painted in many ways. My personal view is that all moderates- Democrat and Republican- should be feel threatened by what the conservative right did in NY-23. They imported their own guy who didn't live in the district and worse yet, didn't know a thing about local issues. Make no mistake about it-- the Republican party is fighting for it's future here and it's not going to be pretty.

So if you want to look at any outcome of last night's election as a bellwether for what the fight will be like going into 2010, look no further than NY-23. The big fights will be moderate vs. extreme, for both parties. But it's certainly more pronounced, and can potentially be more ugly, for the Republican party.

Paris: Days 4 & 5

Shabbat in Paris was fun-- we didn't do much, at all, which was exactly the point. Friday night dinner and Shabbat lunch were both at the same restaurant and the amount of food we got was huge. I was so full, I couldn't really eat dessert, which is truly a rarity (who doesn't have room for dessert?? Well, I guess my husband doesn't, but that's another story).

On Saturday morning we had every intention of making it to synagogue, but then Andrew kept on falling asleep, so we never made it. We left the hotel room at around 12:15, ate lunch, returned at 2:30pm, and read. We read all day. And didn't leave again until after havdalah, at 9:15pm, when we left for a nighttime cruise down the Seine River. The cruise was fun-- it was the first time we got up close to the Eiffel Tower at night, which was beautiful, and seeing Paris from the water offered a different perspective on the architecture, geography, and general sites. The cruise lasted around one hour and then we headed back to our hotel and found a surprise on the way back-- the pizza joint around the corner from our hotel was open! So we had a midnight pizza and were both quite happy.

On Sunday, we woke up early to pack our bags, pick up food, pick up the rental car, and head to Versailles. The plan was to spend the day in Versailles, grab dinner, and then drive to Chatres for the night.

Versailles, in one word, is gorgeous. French King Louis XIV basically turned Versailles into the beautiful place it is today-- he transformed it into the seat of government, re-made the castle, and built the amazing gardens. The chateau itself is huge-- we got a free audioguide with the pass that we bought, which was a good deal, and walked slowly around the palace. The history of each room was nice, but we were both pretty disappointed that the narration neglected to mention the modern-day historical significance of the Hall of Mirrors, which is where World War I ended. In general, to me at least, the palace is more wonderful from the outside than from in. And the gardens-- just wow. There are around two miles worth of gardens and various sized fountains, with lots of walking paths and two large canals of water in the middle. It's just immense and beautiful. The place was packed with tourists, as it always is on the weekends, since that's when they turn on the fountains during the day and play classical music in the background. We walked. And walked. And walked. We brought a picnic lunch which we ate in the gardens and just took in the beauty of it all. Lucky for us, the weather was terrific.

We left the palace grounds at 5pm, both tired and exhausted from a full day outdoors in the sun, looking forward to dinner and the 1.5 hour drive to Chatres for the evening.

Paris: Day 3- a Tale of Opposites

Friday brought us to the Musee d'Orsay. In general, art just doesn't do it for me. I can appreciate a drawing or painting only up to a point. Sitting and staring at it for 15 minutes won't make it any better or worse for me, I just move on. I guess I do art like I shop: I scan and scan very well and fast. Once I see it, I either like it or I don't like it, and most of the time, I don't need to try it on, because my eye can tell me quite quickly whether it's for me or not.

In any case, the Orsay is another one of those "must sees" in Paris, but thankfully, is quite different from the Louvre. I quickly fell in love with the place. The museum is housed in an old train station and the architecture is amazing. It is home to arguably the best collection of impressionist masterpieces and even though the museum was quite busy, I enjoyed myself immensely. I think it was one of the most enjoyable experiences I have ever had in an art museum. It's definitely one I would visit again.

After the Orsay, we walked across the Siene to the East Bank over one of its many bridges. As we descended to the path that runs under the highway, we were approached by a man with a gold ring. I immediately recognized the scene straight out of the introduction to the Paris book we had brought with us-- it's one of the very familiar ways that tourists get scammed. Basically a guy has a ring, asks if you lost it, then offers to sell it to you for a very cheap price. I chuckled and just walked away from the man.

The walk across the Seine to the 1 Metro line took us through a bunch of gardens. Paris has many gardens and the best part is that there are random chairs located throughout. So you can eat lunch, read a book, relax, take a nap, do whatever you want, and still be comfortable.

We took the 1 line to the Jewish Quarter in the Marais for lunch. By the time we got out of the metro, it was drizzling. By the time we got down the street, it was full on pouring. Lucky for us American tourists, we had ponchos. Yes, bright yellow and orange ponchos. While everyone else either had an umbrella or got soaked, we wore ponchos. Wearing these bright yellow and orange ponchos, we fit. right. in. But at least we didn't get wet...

The rain stopped for a bit and after lunch, we walked to the Centre Pompidou- a huge building that sticks out like a sore thumb and house modern art. The building is huge but most of the art is spread out on the top two floors. Let's not mince words- this was is no Orsay. The first floor we visited was dedicated to an exhibit on modern feminist art, which seemed more like a real bad attempt at a political statement instead of a bad attempt at art. There was some ok stuff on the next floor but all in all, the visit kinda sucked.

After the Pompidou, we slowly made our way back to the hotel, to relax and get ready for Shabbat. Of course, that involved falling asleep for an hour or so. Our dinner reservations were for 8pm, so we had time to spare.

Paris: Days 1 & 2

It's Friday afternoon, almost 6pm, and we have taken a break from all the site seeing to relax before shabbat. It's been a fun 3 days so far!

All in all, I have yet to fall in love, like many said I would, but there's still time I guess. :-) Perhaps some of it has to do with the incredible pain I find myself in after hours of being on my feet. Paris is definitely the city of walking and stairs...lots and lots of walking and stair-climbing. Our baby will be lucky to be blessed with Andrew's feet, as flat as they are, and not mine.

We arrived on Wednesday morning, and after getting to Paris from the airport, checking in to the hotel, walking around the area to learn more about the 9th Arr (9th district), we headed to grand boulevard of Champs Elysees, detouring near the Louvre to walk through the gardens. Our first stop was the Orangerie Museum, where Monet's masterpiece, the Water Lilies, hang. It's a small museum and the Water Lilies are the focal point (we'll be driving to Giverny, Monet's home and gardens on Monday).

Afterward, we took the metro 3 stops to the top of the Champs Elysees, which features the Arc de Triomphe, France's war memorial. There is a tomb of the unknown soldier at the bottom and beautiful city views at the top. Mind you, the top is 250 stairs up a spiraling staircase. So I huffed and buffed and made it up, but not without losing my breath a few times! As we climbed back down, a re-lighting of the flame ceremony had just started. Apparently, they re-light the flame near the tomb of the unknown soldier every day at 6:30pm. And it's not just re-lighting of the flame. It's a whole ceremony with French veterans, flags, shaking hands, a band, etc. It's weird to me that they do this every single day with all the pomp and circumstance, but hey, it's France. They have all of the pre-20th century war fighting to be proud of!

We walked a bit down the Champs Elysees, but besides for a grand boulevard with lots and lots of high-end shopping, there's really not much to see. So we metroed back to our hotel for a break and dinner. We ended up just eating at a small place near our hotel at around 9pm, since I fell asleep as soon as we got back (and not to mention my foot pain...). I would estimate that we walked a total of approximately 5 miles all day. For some of you, perhaps not so much; for me, it's a tiring hike worthy of a damn good drink at the end...but alas, no drinking for me. :-(

Thursday was our first real full day here. We started it off by sleeping until past 9am...we only had around 3 hours of sleep on the plane Tuesday night, so we deserved it. We grabbed some yogurt and headed for the Louvre. When in Paris, everyone goes to the Louvre, but I think more so because of what it represents (largest museum in the world, formerly king's palaces, etc) and because of what it holds (Mona Lisa and a handful of other famous pieces of art), then because they actually really enjoy the experience. The Louvre is immense. Plain and simple. We hit the highlights and just that took us around 2 hours because of it's sheer size (and don't forget all the stair climbing!). We had a real good book that guided us through, so we had an idea of where we were going. Doubtful I'd go again if I'm ever in Paris in the future.

After the Louvre, we took the metro to the 4th Arr, the Jewish Quarter, to get some lunch. We ate at a dairy joint called Pitzman and had some fantastic pizza. After, we walked across the Siene River to start the Historic Paris Walk, which took us into the Notre Dame, through the Latin Quarter, to the Cluny Museum, and finally the Sainte Chapelle. Because of the winds, the top of the Notre Dame tower was closed, but there was still a long line to climb the tower anyway. We skipped this (I decided it was best not for me to try to climb 400 steps if I wouldn't be rewarded with a good view at least) and instead sat in the square outside of the historic Notre Dame church to take in the view and read about its history. We then toured the inside of the church and then walked through it's gardens towards the Left Bank (Paris is split by the Siene River, so you have the Right Bank and Left Bank, with Notre Dame on an island in the middle). In the Left Bank, we walked through the Latin Quarter, had coffee at a small cafe, and toured the Cluny Museum. We then walked to the Sainte Chapelle, which is a church that was built in 5 years basically to be the home of the Crown of Thorns. The church has beautiful stained glass window panes. We got lucky to get in-- little did we know, but the church sometimes closes early to prepare for evening concerts. This was one of those evenings. But because we had bought a 4-day Museum Pass, we didn't have to buy tickets so they let us in. By the time we finished at the Saint Chapelle, it was after 6pm, so we went back to the hotel, rested a bit, then headed out for dinner at a kosher Indian restaurant.

It's getting late, so I will end here. For shabbat, there's a restaurant 2 blocks from our hotel that takes reservations and serves dinner and lunch, so we reserved for both. There is also the grand Rothschild Synagogue not too far from here, so we should make it there tomorrow for shabbat services. After that, we'll see. The problem is there is no eruv, so while we can walk to our hearts (and feet!) content, I can't carry any water with me (nor can we carry our passports, which we've been doing. So we'll see...shabbat ends at 9:10pm, so we have a long afternoon on our hands.

The Last Lion

Ted Kennedy died yesterday. With him died old school politics and the last standing genuine fighter for liberal ideals. Sure, there are other liberals in Congress, in State houses, in governorships. But when Ted spoke, people listened. Not just Democrats like himself. But Republicans too. While he fought hard for liberal ideals, he did not hesitate to reach across the aisle and forge real, workable partnerships. I can't help but think about how different the discourse on the healthcare debate would be if he were alive and healthy and able to participate fully. How different these town hall meetings would be if he were standing up there. Sure, there would still be a debate, as there should be, but can you imagine someone standing up in there calling Ted Kennedy a Nazi? Doubtful.

Kennedy had his many flaws, as all of us do. But he achieved more in his life as a senator for the common good of all Americans than almost anyone. Who will fill his shoes?

hCG

Manny got busted for using a drug that women produce normally once becoming pregnant.

As has been reported, it is also used by men to restart their body's normal production of testosterone after a steroid cycle.

One thing that is not being reported, though, is that at times men get hCG injections for fertility treatments.

So, Manny could legitimately have fertility issues. But, think about it: if you know you have fertility issues, you've already gone thru sessions with doctors to learn about the choices you have. And you become an expert in all of the options, especially including the drug(s) that your doctor is recommending you take for it.

So if Manny really did take hCG to help him with fertility, then he would have known about hCG and what it does AND that it is considered a banned substance by MLB. If he really wanted to use it, he would have contacted MLB to get approval or to let them know about it. And he would have looked into other options.

Oh, and if you know about Manny, you know that he already has 3 children.

Judge for yourself...

Miss California

I finally saw the video of Miss California, Carrie Prejean, answering the question of whether she supports gay marriage.

My reaction: who cares? While I disagree with her opinion, I actually give her credit for stating up front that we live in a country where you can (now) choose (though I never heard the term"opposite marriage" before), but she was raised with certain ideals and that's what she believes. So what? But now, because of all the fuss people made about her stating her opinion, she's become a spokesperson for the National Organization for Marriage. Does anyone out there think that she would have thought one extra second about it if no one made a big deal about her opinion? OK, I understand. She could have been crowned "Miss America." But seriously, folks, did anyone reading this actually remember that that contest was still around, and if you did, does it actually mean anything to most people?

The gay rights movement has a lot going for it right now but still a lot to fight against moving forward. Miss America didn't really have to be one of them.