Midwest Beer Belly Despair Blog

I am so freaking excited for the GOP debate hosted by Donald Trump. When Herman Cain dropped out of the race I figured the absurdist quality of the GOP race would go down. There would still be crazy mind you, but Cain added an element of comedy that made the whole thing watchable. He quoted the Pokemon Movie in his speech announcing his suspended campaign. We’re never going to see anybody with that kind of oblivious moxie for a while. At least I thought so. Until Trump jumped back into the spotlight. I’m not interested in what the candidates have to say. I’m much more excited for the adversarial nature of Trump against the candidates. The ones who show up anyway. It’s interesting to see how this is splitting the Republicans. Romney, Huntsman, and Paul have all declined to appear in the debate, probably noticing that it is being moderated by an insane egomaniac. Palin really seems keen on the idea. In her usual eloquent self, she even talks about going if she were a candidate. The split seems to be with candidates who take a more traditional route to the presidency (Romney and company) and candidates who are in it for the attention (everyone else). Will the traditional route work though? Who knows. I do have more respect for the candidates not appearing but I wish they would. The amount of quotable insanity that comes out of this debate should be legendary. Don’t disappoint me Mr. Trump. This campaign has been the best/weirdest/saddest one I’ve ever seen and I don’t want to see that go away anytime soon.

Herman Cain is the Rocky Balboa of the GOP right now. He keeps getting slammed but no matter how hard he gets hit, no matter how many times he has to get his eyebrow cut, he staggers back up. It’s really impressive for the sheer amount of perseverance involved. I don’t know if Herman Cain had an affair with Ms. White but I wouldn’t be surprised if he had. If you’re the CEO of a company named Godfather’s, you could be operating a heroin smuggling ring out of the back and I wouldn’t be surprised. What’s really interesting about this story, is the spin and second guessing of the media. The comparison to a zombie was my favorite pundit comment. They’ve smelled blood and they are swarming like sharks. They want Herman Cain to flare out in a blaze of shame and moral judgement. But I don’t know if he will. This has been a really weird campaign for Republicans and I don’t know if the rules apply anymore. Pundits screamed the death of Gingrich’s campaign earlier this year and now he’s surging in the polls. (This is also very funny as Gingrich had two affairs, whereas Cain only had one) It will be a sad if Black Walnut cracks. I fear it will just cause the other crazy people in the race to drop out and make the GOP nominations so much more boring.

Today marks the two month anniversary of the start of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Already, the clashes between police and protestors are occurring. I don’t know why Bloomberg didn’t realize that by ejecting the protestors out of Zucotti Park he would reinvigorate the movement. The movement was already splitting into factions (the Daily Show had a pretty funny piece on that here) and the onset of winter would have likely driven the protestors out on it’s own. Instead Bloomberg used force and gave the movement a new focal point. When people have a clear enemy, they react more effectively and boldly. Now the protestors need to reclaim lost ground and are willing to fight (so to speak) for it. It will cause more skirmishes and more photos and videos of police beating and arresting unarmed Americans. Somebody just tossed a canister of gasoline on the Occupy Wall Street fire and now the media is swarming in. It will be interesting to see whether the Occupiers will be able to keep up the impetus of being kicked out of their home base. Or how long and far police are willing to go trying to suppress the movement.

Making sure Audacity works.

Science StoryA udio

Fresh from the recent Las Vegas Republican Presidential Debate, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney visited Morningside Campus on Thursday morning to gather support for his bid to be nominated the Republican Presidential candidate.  Romney spoke to students and Sioux City residents in the Yockey room of the Olsen Student Center, answering questions and laying out his campaign promises.

“I want strong values, strong economy, and a military second to none,” Romney told the hundred or so audience members. Romney outlined his plans for jump-starting the economy. If elected, he plans to make tax rates globally competitive for employers, modernize regulations, expand and open global markets for American goods, funding “human capital” by improving schools, American infrastructure, and reforming immigration; and to cut spending and balance the budget.

Romney’s plans are not significantly different from other GOP hopefuls, but he sells his message with more pizzazz than any other candidate that has visited Morningside. Upon entering the Yockey room, he specifically reached out to students, and seemed more interested in reaching them than the older voters in the room. When asked what he considered the areas the Republican Party should improve on, Romney mentioned the GOP’s inability to effectively communicate their message to younger voters. He clearly tried to remedy that flaw during his appearance, even mentioning that he hoped students were receiving credit for coming and listening to him.

Romney is an experienced statesman, a fact that is readily apparent to anyone watching him speak. He is able to inject humor and warmth into his speeches and actually seems dedicated to the idea of free and open debate about issues. He is banking on this to carry him through the nomination. Romney points to his previous experience of being a Republican Governor in very liberal Massachusetts as one way he is a better candidate than Obama. Romney doesn’t believe in the current President’s ability to lead and compromise in Washington and promises, “If I am President, I will use everything in my power to make people work together for America.”

Shortly after an hour of speaking and answering questions, Romney left Morningside, leaving behind a slew of national and local reporters in his wake. The former Governor was off to the next campaign stop, to convince more voters that he is the right choice for president. He has his work cut out for him. Unlike when former Speaker of the House Newt Gingerich and Representative Michelle Bachmann visited, there was no hardcore Mitt Romney voter base at the meeting. Romney is reaching for the middle ground and, in doing so, risking his claim to the GOP nomination. Romney can stand in the middle ground all he wants, but it means nothing if he isn’t able to face off against Obama after the primaries.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-15382273

This is messed up. I understand that humans have a tendency to not get involved with problems, but it is so much more visceral watching it than reading about it. The story reminds me of the case in New York, where a woman was raped, in front of dozens of witnesses, but nobody lifted a finger because everyone thought that some one else would call the police. I guess the main differences are that the Chinese were literally walking right next to a bleeding, comatose CHILD. I don’t really know how this is news, other than it shows how cold humans can be and the fact that it shocks the shit out of me. Every time I watch this, I hurt. Here’s a link to a slightly less edited version of the video. Notice that at a certain point the kid reaches for a cyclist, who doesn’t even notice.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-1528405

More proof that if it bleeds it leads. Unfortunately the article doesn’t tell what day this happened, but I’m assuming it was yesterday, as otherwise the crime will happen in the future, at least by the time of this posting. The article isn’t actually that good, as it seems to be riding on the fact that eight people were killed (as a side note: eight people? this guy is a good shot). There is no date for when this happened, no explanation of what actually went on during the shooting, and a very bare boned motive. Why would this guy come into a salon and shoot the hell out of it? That’s the million dollar question and what will keep interest in this story alive. The motive that they give is really sad. Apparently nobody told the alleged shooter that if he goes to jail, he’ll never really be able to see his boy again. But maybe that isn’t the reason. It’s pure speculation at this point. I see two things coming of this. Either it will be quickly swept away by the other news, like what occurred with the IHOP shooting, or it will cause a furor among the media, as what occurred during the Giffords shooting earlier this year. However, since this doesn’t seem to be politically motivated or involving any elected persons, it will probably be soon forgot by the world at large, especially if the police can get a confession within the next 48 hours.

The Morningside Activities Council provides a much needed release valve for students attending Morningside College. The Morningside Activities Council (MAC) brings in various entertainers and shows for students, giving them a much needed distraction from their busy class schedules. Booking everything from comedians to bands to former stars of “The Real World”, MAC is constantly enriching the atmosphere of Morningside. MAC does more than just bring in entertainers though. They also work with other campus groups to give students more actively engaging activities, such as the Fantasy Casino, set up in conjunction with the Morningside Wellness “Live for Life” Program.
Planning activities for Morningside Campus is not an easy job. Every year, MAC sends ten student representatives to a conference held by the National Association for College Activities, where, in a flurry of three days, the representatives are shown acts and courted by agencies. Eight of the representative spots are reserved for the executives of MAC, four for outgoing officers and four for incoming officers. Students who attend MAC meetings and apply to go to the conference fill the last two spots, and any leftover from overlap of officers. During these hectic three days the majority of the acts MAC brings in are decided, but there is some leeway in the system. MAC can also pick up individual acts as they see fit throughout the year, but the Council makes sure to only pick acts from agencies with which they have worked before.
While many students attend the events, MAC members are constantly looking for ways to bring in more students. “We are never completely satisfied because we would always like to reach more students,” says Anthony Henriks, MAC Vice President. A main issue for the council is advertising. Henriks continues, “We have had some ideas that we want to work on this year, like doing an SMS text service that sends out daily reminders to students.” While trying new ways to use technology to help get the word out to students, the tried and true method of placing posters around campus is still the best. According to Henriks, “[The] most effective thing I’ve seen is placing the posters in the right places within a week of the event.”
Unfortunately for MAC, their greatest problem with attracting students is the realities of collegiate life. Kendra Salter, a Morningside nursing student, says she hasn’t attended a MAC activity since last year. “ I haven’t gone this year because I’ve been too busy,” she remarked, gesturing toward a thick textbook. Marcie Ponder, an English major, has a similar problem. “I don’t go [to the activities] because of my schedule.” Ponder is a non-traditional student at Morningside and she has no draw to go to the activities, as they are geared toward younger students during the evenings.
MAC, while not actively booking events for non-traditional students, would be more than willing to listen to any idea a student might bring. The best time to voice an idea is during MAC meetings, held every Wednesday in the Student Government Office at 6 p.m. According to Henriks, “We always open up to ideas from other students… if anyone has an idea we look into it and see if we can make it work.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/06/obama-jobs-plan_n_998010.html

I actually saw a little of this speech earlier today. I didn’t catch the part about raising taxes, though I’m glad we are, but I did see Obama issue a challenge of sorts. He asked the media to go to he Republicans, ask them for a jobs bill and have it vetted by the same economists that vetted his bill. He wanted the two plans scored to see which the economists thought was better. While a nice sentiment, it’s far too logical a move for America. The populace votes on feelings, not on logic. Look at the fiasco of Hank Williams Jr. At least Obama is trying to do something, even if it is the government creating jobs. The Republicans idea seems to try to get corporations to hire Americans but the only way to do that is by giving away what made the jobs good in the first place. I’m frustrated with Obama (Gitmo is still fucking open) but it’s nice to see him showing some balls for the first time since he took office.

So despite my objections on going on a scavenger hunt in COLLEGE, I set out into Morningside campus looking for a Post-It note with a doodle on it. My first thought was to head to Eppley. It’s the refuge of the arts here on campus (except for the theatre folk, who, like the velociraptors in Jurassic Park, must be kept separate) and I figure if there was anybody anal retentive enough  to draw on a 2×2 inch piece of paper they would be there.

Unfortunately there doesn’t seem to be anybody in Eppley at 2:40 in the afternoon. The only people in the building where Claire, Judith, myself, and some kids in an art class who gave me the stink-eye for being in the hall. After making a few circuits of Eppley looking lost, I decided to head to greener pastures. The only place I could think of that would have people around who wouldn’t be in class was Lewis. So I headed there.

I made a beeline toward the admissions office, since I’ve met just about everyone else in Lewis by this point. I surged through the door gaining weird looks from a man and the secretary. I hastily introduced myself to cover the awkward and explained why I was there, looking for a doodled upon Post-It note. The man exited rather quickly but the secretary, Diane Hay, looked around her desk for me, shooting sideways glances at me the entire time. She asked if I wanted her to draw one for me, and while I answered that it would be improper for me to suggest anything to her, I elevated and lowered my head vigorously.

After chuckling for a few minutes, Diane sketched an oddly shaped money sign, with some circles at the end of each line. It was done in red ink on 3M yellow Post-It note. While I personally thought it looks more like a u with a railroad through it, I wasn’t going to fight with the artist, especially after she had been so kind as to doodle for me. I thanked Diane Hay most profusely, and luckily she seemed amused by the whole exchange. I made a quick getaway, thanking my lucky stars that I had met someone as easy going as Ms. Hay to doodle for me.