Sunshine and Songbirds

Processes and Outcomes

As I indicated in yesterday's post, I find it profoundly discouraging when the things I have believed in my entire adult life (the proper use of language, the power of logic and reasoning) turn out to mean nothing. Yesterday's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges was even worse in that regard than King v. Burwell. The majority opinion by Justice Kennedy (No concurrent opinions from the rest of the majority, on such a historic case? That is odd, to say the least...) doesn't even make a pretense of being legal analysis.

This outcome, while perhaps predictable given the current composition of the court, is heartbreaking nonetheless. For those of us who have been advocating for this outcome for many years, it is insulting to say the least to have the court suddenly tell us that we can't get solve our own problems anymore. It is especially galling since we were winning the debate! Logic and simple fairness were prevailing all over the country. There was no need for the court to step in and treat us like children, like subjects. Even people who share my approval of same-sex marriage in principle should be given pause when they read the dissents in Obergefell (they begin on page 40 of the .pdf).

I am all in favor of two people who love each being allowed to marry. Life is too short, and my default position is that we need more loving relationships in this world, not fewer. But I also believe that there will be unfortunate consequences from the court's decision to take the decision out of the hands of the people. I believe, Justice Kennedy's disclaimers notwithstanding, that this decision will be used as a weapon against those with sincere religious objections to the ruling. It is going to be a dark time for religious liberty, and I can find no comfort in that.

As I said yesterday, thanks to the court's disregard for democratic processes and the rule of law, our country is now for all intents and purposes a monarchy...

"Take it easy, Shu. The sun is shining, and we're singing to you. It'll be okay."

I hope you're right. But if the recent past is any guide, this decision is only going to exacerbate the problem, not solve it...

The Real Thing

I have already written about my two other major vices (Starbucks coffee and dark chocolate), so now is as good a time as any to mention my oldest obsession...

...in the bottle American bottlers have stopped using, damn it!

I actually grew up in a Pepsi family, but when I began high school I acquired a fondness for Coke, probably because the drive-ins and pizza restaurants my friends and I frequented all served Coke rather than Pepsi. I had to buy my own to drink at home, but the upside of that deal was that I didn't have to worry about anyone else in the house drinking my sodas...

As usually happens with me and my enthusiasms, over the years I have acquired a fair amount of Coca-Cola merchandise including shirts, serving trays, mugs, stuffed bears, glassware, etc. Some of it I bought myself, but most of it was gifts from my students over the years (they always caught on to my fondness for The Real Thing right away). Lately I have switched to drinking Coca-Cola Zero, which tastes fine and...

"...and helps keep your butt from getting huge."

Not the way I would phrase it, but yes...

Things That Make Me Happy: Revenge is Sweet Edition

Last night my beloved Kansas City Royals played the first of a three-game weekend series with the Oakland A's, at the ridiculously-named O.co Coliseum in Oakland. It was the first time the two teams had played since an early season series in Kansas City that saw benches clear in each of the three games. No fighting last night, though. The Royals won comfortably, 5-2, their third win in four games so far on this road trip.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Kendrys Morales opened the scoring with a solo home run (his 9th of the season) in the second inning...










...and Alex Gordon closed out the Royals' scoring with a solo shot of his own (also his 9th of the season) in the 6th inning.






Meanwhile, Edinson Volquez pitched seven solid innings of two-hit ball to improve his record to 8-4, 3.18 ERA.

The Royals send Chris Young (6-3, 2.83) to the mound this afternoon in Game 2 of the series. The team needs Chris to bounce back strong from his previous start, in which he got torched by the Boston Red Sox...

Funny Papers

For as long as I can remember, my taste in comic strips has always been a little...well, eccentric. I tend to gravitate toward strips that depend heavily on the audience having both a love of wordplay and an appreciation for the absurd. For instance...

That's from Gary Larson's marvelous strip The Far Side, which ran for 15 years and produced some of the funniest comics I have ever seen in or out of a newspaper. At one time, I owned a copy of every collection of his cartoons ever published, but over the years I've lost or given away all but one of them. One of these days, I'm going to get myself the boxed set of the entire strip as a gift.

The Far Side ended in January 1995, just a few months before I returned to teaching after a five-year hiatus...

Until Next Time...

Once I've shuffled off this mortal coil, someone will take possession my music collection, in all its forms (digital and CD). Whoever receives it will certainly notice not only how eclectic my taste in music was (I like just about every kind of music there is, except opera), but how many relatively obscure artists found their way into my library...

In the spring of 1997, I impulsively purchased a CD by a band named Cool for August that I had read about somewhere or other. I had never heard any of their music before, but Grand World (their first and only full-length album) was chock full of the kind of jangly guitars and powerful, distinctive vocals that usually win me over. It had three singles that charted, and got them enough attention to land a guest shot on Late Night with Conan O'Brien on August 12 of that year. But that was it...I kept hoping for more, but they turned out to be just another promising group that failed. No shortage of those in the music business, certainly. And they did produce one kick-ass album, which is more than a lot of artists are able to manage...

Today's send-off is the music video for "Don't Wanna Be Here," the group's most successful single (No. 15 on the rock charts). Yeah, music videos looked pretty silly back then, but they look pretty silly nowadays, too. Enjoy...