Apparently, John McCain will pick Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. You may recall I named her as a person he should not pick. It does show, however, that McCain and his campaign decided they had to do something extraordinary, and not make a safe choice. If they really thought they had a 50/50 shot at winning this election, they would not have chosen someone who two years ago was mayor of a town of 8,000 people and for less than two years has been governor of one of our smallest states. Rather, they decided that in order to win they need to peel off people who supported Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary.
I do not want to sound crass when I write this, but it is the simple truth: actuarially speaking, whomever the candidates actually chose, John McCain's VP was always more likely to become president than Barack Obama's. This person's readiness should be a major issue on the minds of voters. I think it is fairly hard to argue Barack Obama is not ready to be president when your VP has so thin a resume.
Palin brings some significant advantages: an attractive mother of 5 (the youngest has Down's Syndrome), she was elected governor as a reformer, and will be a popular pick among conservatives. That reputation is tarnished somewhat by allegations she used her influence to try to fire a state trooper who was her ex-brother-in-law (UPDATE: as well as firing the head of the state police).
It is a high risk for McCain that is either brilliant or will seriously hurt his candidacy. It theoretically will bring excitement in the form of an outside-the-Beltway female conservative that bolsters McCain's "maverick" credential. If, however, Democrats can define her in the next 48 hours as unprepared to be a heartbeat away from the presidency (and maybe ethically compromised), then she may have a difficult task ahead.
(Sept. 2 UPDATE). I have been away for the last few days and not following the story closely, but it seems to me that her daughter's pregnancy should be a non-issue. Rather, her connections to the Alaskan Independence Party (which calls for a secession vote for Alaska and the takeover of federal land) and her original support for the Bridge to Nowhere should be the two most serious problems she faces. If the media does its job and focuses on them instead of her family issues, this should dominate the news coverage. Just imagine if Sen. Obama once expressed the slightest bit of support for Hawaiian independence (or did any of a myriad of other things the media has not yet sufficiently called McCain on)? Rush Limbaugh could run on auto-pilot.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
CSI: Paris
A co-worker of mine had his home in a very nice exurb of Paris burglarized last week. I guess the criminal element here does not take a vacation in August. Computers and electronic equipment were stolen. Thankfully, no one was home when it happened.
In breaking a window to enter the home, the thief left some blood at the scene of the crime. A great clue, right? Well, the police said that the prosecutor will have to decide if it is worth the 500 € expense ($750) to perform a simple DNA test to see if there is a match in the database of criminals (and, for that matter, to put this DNA on file). Needless to say, it was fairly shocking to me -- and to the victim -- that there is even a question whether or not to perform this test.
While Sarkozy was running for president, his son's scooter was stolen. With help from fingerprints and DNA tests, the culprits were found. It was a mini-scandal for the campaign that Sarkozy's son got such special treatment, and now I have a better understanding why.
In breaking a window to enter the home, the thief left some blood at the scene of the crime. A great clue, right? Well, the police said that the prosecutor will have to decide if it is worth the 500 € expense ($750) to perform a simple DNA test to see if there is a match in the database of criminals (and, for that matter, to put this DNA on file). Needless to say, it was fairly shocking to me -- and to the victim -- that there is even a question whether or not to perform this test.
While Sarkozy was running for president, his son's scooter was stolen. With help from fingerprints and DNA tests, the culprits were found. It was a mini-scandal for the campaign that Sarkozy's son got such special treatment, and now I have a better understanding why.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
It's Biden
There are plenty of predictions I've gotten wrong over the years, but this is my blog, so I will point out the rare occasion when I actually called it. You won't see me re-posting my "Kerry Will Win" prediction or my "Drake Bulldogs to the Sweet 16" prediction here. (But this one was pretty close.)
Picking Biden means there may be 1 or 2 days during the campaign where he says something off-script. And he won't deliver a state. But he doesn't need to be introduced to the American people and he reassures older voters, particularly Catholics and non-urbanites in the belt from Scranton to Dubuque.
I don't consider the fact that Sen. Obama has been in the Senate for less than a full term a problem; obviously, his judgment has been proven right time and again -- particularly in foreign affairs. But the word "inexperience" has become the all-purpose crutch for those unwilling to support Obama for non-ideological reasons, whether they are upset Hillary lost, are scared of change, believe whatever their second cousin e-mails them, or whatever else. Like the other VP candidates with long resumes (Nunn or Daschle), Biden provides an answer to that on paper. More than those other guys, though, Biden will respond with a flourish. Ultimately, as an Obama supporter, I think he's the right choice because over the last week, it's become apparent that Obama needs a counter-puncher who is more comfortable on the attack than Obama himself. As a political junkie, I'm thinking that after the shallowness of recent weeks, this campaign could actually get rather fun.
Picking Biden means there may be 1 or 2 days during the campaign where he says something off-script. And he won't deliver a state. But he doesn't need to be introduced to the American people and he reassures older voters, particularly Catholics and non-urbanites in the belt from Scranton to Dubuque.
I don't consider the fact that Sen. Obama has been in the Senate for less than a full term a problem; obviously, his judgment has been proven right time and again -- particularly in foreign affairs. But the word "inexperience" has become the all-purpose crutch for those unwilling to support Obama for non-ideological reasons, whether they are upset Hillary lost, are scared of change, believe whatever their second cousin e-mails them, or whatever else. Like the other VP candidates with long resumes (Nunn or Daschle), Biden provides an answer to that on paper. More than those other guys, though, Biden will respond with a flourish. Ultimately, as an Obama supporter, I think he's the right choice because over the last week, it's become apparent that Obama needs a counter-puncher who is more comfortable on the attack than Obama himself. As a political junkie, I'm thinking that after the shallowness of recent weeks, this campaign could actually get rather fun.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
The Business Lunch
On my first day as a summer associate at my law firm in 1999, my mentor took me out to lunch and we each had a beer. Apart from some celebratory lunches following cases that had been won in the morning (and no work was expected in the afternoon), that was the last time I had alcohol at lunch on a work day until I arrived in France.
On my first day at the office here, I immediately noticed that the client's cafeteria serves beer and wine at lunch. I rarely see anyone drinking there at lunch, but if you are out at a restaurant on a business lunch, it is de rigueur. This is what usually happens when my client and I are out to lunch before an afternoon meeting outside the office:
Him (to the waiter): "2 glasses of champagne, please."
Me (internal monologue): Champagne? Why are we celebrating? We haven't had the meeting yet.
Him (to me): "Do you want wine?"
Me: "This is going to be an important meeting, but, OK, I can have a glass."
Him (to the waiter): "We will have a bottle of ..."
It doesn't matter where we are -- recently we were at a pub in London and to celebrate a positive development, he ordered champagne.
Once, I committed a faux pas by turning down the champagne before lunch, already knowing that we would be splitting a bottle of wine during the meal and thinking of all that had to be accomplished that afternoon.
I have to admit, though, that nothing terrible has yet happened after one of these lunches, but I do not think this is a custom I will bring home with me.
On my first day at the office here, I immediately noticed that the client's cafeteria serves beer and wine at lunch. I rarely see anyone drinking there at lunch, but if you are out at a restaurant on a business lunch, it is de rigueur. This is what usually happens when my client and I are out to lunch before an afternoon meeting outside the office:
Him (to the waiter): "2 glasses of champagne, please."
Me (internal monologue): Champagne? Why are we celebrating? We haven't had the meeting yet.
Him (to me): "Do you want wine?"
Me: "This is going to be an important meeting, but, OK, I can have a glass."
Him (to the waiter): "We will have a bottle of ..."
It doesn't matter where we are -- recently we were at a pub in London and to celebrate a positive development, he ordered champagne.
Once, I committed a faux pas by turning down the champagne before lunch, already knowing that we would be splitting a bottle of wine during the meal and thinking of all that had to be accomplished that afternoon.
I have to admit, though, that nothing terrible has yet happened after one of these lunches, but I do not think this is a custom I will bring home with me.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Chamonix & How to Be a Conspicuous Tourist
This was a 3-day weekend in France and I used the opportunity to take my 5th weekend trip away from Paris (but first since I started blogging) to the town of Chamonix at the foot of Mont Blanc at the border with Switzerland and Italy. Chamonix was the home of the first Winter Olympics and is known both for its skiing and the opportunities for various daredevil sports. At the risk of annoying you with vacation itineraries, here is what happened.
The trip takes 6 hours and 3 different trains, which is probably good preparation for The Amazing Race. The final leg is on the "Mont Blanc Express" which is quite the misnomer. It seemed to stop wherever there were more than 5 buildings and went so slowly I think you could have walked along the track, flagged it down, and it would have stopped for you.
Chamonix is a great place, though. I'm not a skiier (which is why I was visiting in August), but it seemed to be a ski town that was accommodating to both the student traveller/backpacker types and to the wealthy, not to mention those in between.
The highlight of the trip was taking the suspended cable car "flying" up from the town (elevation 3,500 feet) to an elevation of 12,600 feet for a close-up view of Mont Blanc. The ride up there was not harrowing and it was fairly amazing, but when our ascent stopped for about 5 seconds, everyone on that car had to be wondering if we were about to start sliding back down the cable and if the ticket sellers had put a few too many people on that trip. For all I know, the pause was probably just done for effect.
After going to all the various look-out spots and taking pictures, I took the cable car half-way back to town, down to about 7,500 feet. At that point, I took a 2.5 hour mostly horizontal hike from just above the tree line to just below it. This is called the "Grand Balcon du Nord" trail. It is fairly wide in most spots, and it is not that difficult a hike, as evidenced by the fact that I did it, but there are no rails or ropes to hang on to. The most difficult part is a 20-minute optional portion where you go up at least 600 feet, but it is worth it for the feeling of accomplishment. At the end of the 2.5 hour hike, you can either descend to town on foot or by train, and I was ready for a nap, so I took the train.
On the 3rd and final leg of my train trip back to Paris today, on the high-speed train from Lyon, I was seated with a 60-something American couple and their English relatives touring France. I wasn't going to say anything, but when the lady asked her husband if the train was non-stop and he didn't know, she pointed to me, and said "Ask him," assuming I was French. While it could have been very funny to wait for this man to try to ask me in French, and then for me to see how long I could impersonate a French person, he looked mortified to ask me, so I told her myself in English. They were all very nice people, but they kept correcting themselves to speak more quietly. It reminded me of when I was in Paris as a tourist in 2001 and immediately after arriving, I met a friend and we were on the Metro when he told me I was talking too loud, and I'm sure I was. It is never a good idea to be too conspicuous as a tourist, if no other reason than it is very hard to explain why your T-shirt says "Tennessee Volunteers" to someone in France -- it doesn't translate easily to those unfamiliar with the mascots of the Southeastern Conference. Anyway, at some point one person in that party asked if Michael Phelps had won his 8th gold, and when told that he had, this person shouted "Yay, USA" so everyone on board could hear. Probably not a shining moment in Franco-American relations.
The 3 attached photos show the cable car, a view from the top looking down on some skiiers, and a picture taken during my hike.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Watching the Olympics
France won its first gold medal (but 11th overall) of the Games today in wrestling, which was about the last sport for which I imagined the French could win a medal, along with baseball and table tennis.
I don't offer this as a criticism, but I had noticed over the years that you never see a medal ceremony broadcast on American TV unless the Americans won the gold medal. Obviously, I don't know if it's the same this year, but every 4 years, this has meant missing out on great national anthems, like Finland's. (Just kidding, I have never heard the Finnish national anthem before, probably because they don't play it on American TV during the Olympics.)
Well, I can report that the French don't show any medal ceremonies until they win the gold medal either. They do have a good anthem, though.
The main difference between the French and US broadcasts is what sports are emphasized. I have seen a lot of fencing this week, some kayaking, and a fair bit of judo. No gymnastics or basketball, but a lot of swimming, as Michael Phelps' stardom has made its way over here. It is nice to see some of the lesser-known events get their moment in the spotlight, if only because those happen to be the sports where the French are winning some medals.
I don't offer this as a criticism, but I had noticed over the years that you never see a medal ceremony broadcast on American TV unless the Americans won the gold medal. Obviously, I don't know if it's the same this year, but every 4 years, this has meant missing out on great national anthems, like Finland's. (Just kidding, I have never heard the Finnish national anthem before, probably because they don't play it on American TV during the Olympics.)
Well, I can report that the French don't show any medal ceremonies until they win the gold medal either. They do have a good anthem, though.
The main difference between the French and US broadcasts is what sports are emphasized. I have seen a lot of fencing this week, some kayaking, and a fair bit of judo. No gymnastics or basketball, but a lot of swimming, as Michael Phelps' stardom has made its way over here. It is nice to see some of the lesser-known events get their moment in the spotlight, if only because those happen to be the sports where the French are winning some medals.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
A Blogging Statistic That Will Only Interest Me
I subscribe to a neat free service that tells me if anyone visits my blog via a search engine. In the last month, I've had over 120 hits (it's probably just one person who keeps hitting "refresh" only to see I only post something 2 or 3 times a week), but only one via a search engine. So what term did a stranger type into Google to find this little corner of the Web?
Chicken Shack.
Yes, Chicken Shack. Careful readers will recall I referred to the haute cuisine of Hyde Park, Harold's Chicken Shack, in my post on the Monsieur Lapin restaurant. A few days ago, someone in Moscow -- yes, that is correct -- typed "Chicken Shack" into Google and found that posting, which I doubt was of much assistance. So to my Russian reader, I say приветствовать. (Welcome.)
Chicken Shack.
Yes, Chicken Shack. Careful readers will recall I referred to the haute cuisine of Hyde Park, Harold's Chicken Shack, in my post on the Monsieur Lapin restaurant. A few days ago, someone in Moscow -- yes, that is correct -- typed "Chicken Shack" into Google and found that posting, which I doubt was of much assistance. So to my Russian reader, I say приветствовать. (Welcome.)
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