The video clips on the C-Span site do not play well on any of my computers but I managed to figure out a way to view Bill Clinton's speech today in Florida. (If you want to try, here's a link.) Clinton has been criticized lately because his pro-Obama remarks have seemed half-hearted, perfunctory and less than enthusiastic. Today's speech was pretty good, though. Without saying anything against McCain, apart from the fact that he thinks Obama would be a lot better, Clinton fired up the crowd for the Democratic ticket. Even when I disagree with Bill Clinton, which I do on a great many issues, I marvel at his ability to talk to an audience. There's a reason he's done as well as he has.
I haven't gotten a copy for myself but I notice that Amazon is selling this 2-CD set called The Greatest Comedy of All Time. It's a bunch of old tracks, mostly from radio shows, of W.C. Fields and Bob Hope and Abbott & Costello and people like that.
You can order a copy here if you like...but me, I'm a little skeptical about this thing. I get the feeling whoever put this together doesn't know that much about great comedians. You see that photo of Groucho on the cover? That's not an old photo of Groucho. It's a new photo of our friend, Groucho impersonator Frank Ferrante.
Here's the first Presidential Debate chopped down to a minute. You don't lose that much...
As I mentioned here that night, I didn't think either guy landed any serious punches. I'm amazed that all the major polls scored it as a decisive win for Obama and that it seems to have given him a nice boost in his electoral prospects. Quinnipiac, which is usually a good one, now has him above 50% in Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Those numbers are a bit higher than other polls but he certainly isn't doing badly in any of those states.
The Quinnipiac people note that "No one has been elected President since 1960 without taking two of these three largest swing states in the Electoral College" but as I read the electoral map, Obama could win easily even if he lost Florida and Ohio. John Kerry lost both and wound up with 251 votes. The only state Kerry won that currently looks marginal (and only in some polls) for Obama is New Hampshire. That's four electoral votes...but Obama is comfortably ahead in Iowa, a state whose seven electoral votes didnt go to Kerry last time. If Obama lost New Hampshire and won Iowa, he'd be at 254. That would mean he'd need 16 votes to get to 270 and win the presidency.
Bush carried Colorado (9 votes) and New Mexico (5) and Obama is presently ahead in both. Winning both would get Obama to 268. He's currently leading in Virginia, which Bush won and which has 13 votes. He's tied in North Carolina, another state Bush won, which has 15 votes, and some polls show him within a point or two in Indiana and Missouri, each of which have eleven.
If he holds onto all of Kerry's states or even if he loses New Hampshire, there are many combinations that could result in 270+ electoral votes without Florida or Ohio...or he could just win either of those two. McCain could still take it but he obviously has a rougher time of it. He probably does have to win both Florida and Ohio...and even that may not do it for him.
In other news, the ABC News/Washington Post poll now has George W. Bush at a record 70% disapproval rating, the lowest ever. That's two points lower than rectal itch and a statistical tie with cholera.
I know no one comes to this site for advice on appliances but, hey, when something works for me, I can't shut up about it. I recently pitched my old Black and Decker toaster...the one that somehow managed to burn crusts into black styrofoam while leaving the center of my bread rawer than when it came out of the loaf. Its replacement in my kitchen, the Oster model 6335, is everything I ever wanted in a toaster. It's sturdy, it's easy to clean and it toasts whatever I want to toast to perfection. Most often, this means bagels...and it even has a special button for bagels (I think it only toasts one side of each half) and it has suitably wide slots. Better still, it has a "frozen" button which figures into the timing, the fact that the inserted item is frozen. So you can slap a frozen bagel into the thing, walk away and come back to a perfectly defrosted/toasted delight.
I've had mine about three weeks and have yet to be undelighted. Here's a link if you want to order one through Amazon but I'll warn you that prices on it seem to vary a lot. That link will let you buy one for $31.90 plus shipping but if you search the 'net, you may find it for a few bucks cheaper. You'll also notice a lot of places offering it for as much as double that. Apparently, when Consumer Reports recommends something (as was the case here), a number of merchants hike the price, figuring there will be those who will buy on that endorsement and without comparison shopping. Caveat, as they say, emptor.
The Broadway show Xanadu closed last Sunday, two weeks before its announced end date. A national tour kicks off in La Jolla in November with new leads. It goes from there to Chicago for what is planned as an extended stay...and may eventually make its way to your city. I don't know how good this production will be but if it's anywhere near what I saw in New York last year, go see it.
Two weeks ago, the cast performed a number from the show at the annual Broadway on Broadway concert in Times Square. The NBC station in New York used to tape this event and broadcast it but they gave it up for some reason probably having to do with ratings and money. Here's a clip that someone with a camcorder shot there...and they didn't do a bad job of it.
October 2, 2008
