O'Bama!

It's a bit long, but who cares. I might be related to the next President!

Vote Early, Vote Often

The above quote is one of my dad's favorite lines. I always assumed it was attributed to Richard J. Daley, mayor of Chicago from 1955 until his death in 1976, and father of our current mayor. Turns out, however, that the more likely source is an earlier mayor, one that we don't really hear much about these days: William Hale Thompson.

Thompson served as mayor from 1915 to 1923, and again from 1927 to 1931. His second stint came about in large part thanks to the support of Al Capone. In a classic example of Republican irony, his campaign centered around a promise to clean up the crime in Chicago. Thompson was mayor during the Chicago Race Riots of 1919, and the St. Valentine's Day Massacre.

In a twist I find comparable to our current Presidential election, Thompson's popularity was at an all-time low during his bid for re-election in 1931, and he resorted to mocking the foreign-sounding name of his Democratic opponent, Anton Cermak. Unhappy with its reputation as a center of organized crime, the city elected Cermak as the first in an as-yet-unbroken streak of Democratic mayors.

I found the following quote in Wikipedia. After Thompson's loss, the Chicago Tribune had this to say about him:

For Chicago Thompson has meant filth, corruption, obscenity, idiocy and bankruptcy.... He has given the city an international reputation for moronic buffoonery, barbaric crime, triumphant hoodlumism, unchecked graft, and a dejected citizenship. He nearly ruined the property and completely destroyed the pride of the city. He made Chicago a byword for the collapse of American civilization. In his attempt to continue this he excelled himself as a liar and defamer of character.

Now take out "Chicago" and replace it with "America," and take out "Thompson" and replace it with "Bush." See how easily it fits.

Mandy and I voted yesterday. I am on pins and needles waiting to see how it turns out. Are any of you planning on heading down to Grant Park on election night?

Four Years! (and a day)

Yesterday was Mandy's and my fourth anniversary! I intended to post something, but never got the chance. Today is a bit more mellow, so I'm getting to it now.

Huzzah!

McNosferatu

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

[Part of me feels bad for picking on an old man. But most of me thinks a guy who acts like this shouldn't be president. Also, I think it's hilarious.]

The Gentleman Rogues!

How's this for a big bucket of Awesome Sauce? Next Saturday, October 18th, my good friend Dan Telfer will host an evening of dork-related shenanigans called Atomic Nerdery. The show starts at midnight at the Playground Theater at 3209 North Halsted, right by Belmont. The evening will feature stand-up, sketch comedy, live music, puppets, and the debut of the Gentleman Rogues, a new stage combat/comedy duo featuring myself and Ryan Zarecki.

In truth, Ryan and I whipped up this thing just for Atomic Nerdery, but so far we're having so much fun that we thought we'd give ourselves a cool name just in case we were inclined to continue it elsewhere.

Admission is five bucks. There will be a second show on Saturday, November 8th, but who plans that far in advance? If you're interested, you can get more info at the Atomic Nerdery MySpace page.