Xark!

What "Studio 60" Didn't Say

Of my many areas of interest as a teacher and researcher, I find the most fun and gratification in the courses I teach in media theory.  In such courses, in the grand Marshall McLuhan tradition, I am interested in the ways in which media-as-form (regardless of content) influences ontology and epistemology, who we are and what we know.  Like many of you here (certainly Daniel), while I want to embrace and encourage the more democratic and utopian aspects of so-called new media, I am also cautious of those who make rose-colored predictions about the changes new media are bringing about or encouraging.  Moreover, as I noted in our discussion of LonelyGirl15, I’m quite often ambivalent about some of the ways we as a culture are working through these changes.  Nonetheless, I relish those moments when I am encouraged to imagine the shape of some of these changes.  “Studio 60” helped spur such thinking last week.

Sad day

I've read the defenses, some of them from people I consider well-intentioned, but I cannot escape the overwhelming sense that yesterday was a sad, sad day for the United States. I suspect history's verdict for this short-sighted failure will be harsh on both the Administration and Congress, but far worse, I expect that American soldiers will suffer horribly for this act of retroactive political ass-covering.

...the bill immunizes U.S. officials from prosecution for cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment of detainees who the military and the CIA captured before the end of last year. It gives the president a dominant but not exclusive role in setting the rules for future interrogations of terrorism suspects.

Written largely, but not completely, on the administration's terms, with passages that give executive branch officials discretion to set details or divert from its protections, the bill is meant to provide what Bush said yesterday are "the tools" needed to handle terrorism suspects U.S. officials hope to capture.

And yes, I understand that the terrorists who oppose us are often sadistic, remorseless butchers. But the fact that our enemies commit far more heinous acts doesn't mitigate the fact that the Congress of The United States of American just authorized state use of more "humane" forms of torture.

If the cost of security is that we must become more like our enemies, then I guess I don't care that much about safety.  Honor is priceless, and these actions have sullied it. If you feel differently, that's your right, but I doubt that you'll be proud of that position five years from now. So I guess we'll just wait and see.

But today? Shame on us.

Rocks in the river

A long essay on terrorism, American policy, and whitewater canoeing...

Dog People: What the !%@!%?

Here’s a question:  Why is it that people with dogs think that leash laws don’t have to be followed?  Why is it that when you put people in a park with their dogs, and you supply them with poop bags and trash cans, they either continue to find it too difficult to clean up after themselves or think they’re being unfairly burdened?  When smokers are told that they are in a “No Smoking Zone” or when they are asked by a stranger politely to “move on,” my experience (as a non-smoker) tells me that they do it—smokers most often follow the laws of common courtesy as well as their local metro codes.  So, again, what’s up with you dog people?

Being Jackasses Together: A Brief Comment

This weekend, I went to see two films.  On Friday, I went to see Brian DePalma’s homage to film noir, The Black Dahlia and Johnny Knoxville’s homage to scatological humor and insane stunts, Jackass Number Two.  While I enjoyed the rich embrace of The Black Dahlia (especially Fiona Shaw’s odd Gloria Swanson act) and had a great time trying to keep its pieces logically together in the end, if you ask me which film were simply more fun, which film “entertained me,” it was Jackass Number Two hands down. 

I’ve spent spare moments the last few days mulling over what it is about the Jackass films that I like.  Unlike many men that I know, I somehow completely missed out on the gene that encourages one to find, what a nun at St. Joan of Arc once called, “the expulsion of gas from one’s bottom.”  I so dislike scatological humor that I don’t even like to hear the word “fart.”  Never have, never will.  And while I have some affection for watching people run into trees at high speeds, that’s not enough either.  So, again, what is there that I find so engaging, almost enchanting about these films?

To be frank, I think it’s watching these guys enjoy each other’s company.  Despite the sometimes awful stunts they pull on one another (did they really shave their pubic hair and have it put on his face as a beard? Did they really throw a snake in a cage with the snakephobic Bam?), I really get the sense that these guys like each other, that they genuinely care for each other.  Much like the feeling I get when I watch Entourage, the laughter here is indicative of a camaraderie that, I would guess, we all want to share in.  Despite a multitude of “political problems” that one might have with the boys, and despite the fact that one could (and others have) argued that mass mediated culture is already too much of a boys’ club, I’d rather celebrate these guys.  If we romanticized friendships among men in the way that we romanticize friendships among women (e.g., all those picture books about sisters, friends, etc. that I see on coffee tables everywhere), we’d have to have these guys as book covers.  So, while I’m not quite sure I’d like to hang out with this particular crew, I do rather like the idea of celebrating the crew-ness on its own terms. 

Where have all the RBs gone?

Ask anybody who has ever played fantasy football and they'll tell you that running backs are the kings of the game. This is practically an article of faith, based on decades of statistics and some simple but reliable observations about strategy.  It's the reason that most owners will draft two running backs before they address any other position. It's why an excellent wide reciever can often be had for a mediocre RB in trade.

It's also why your fantasy league has been generating some unexpected winners in 2006. Rushing touchdown production among the league's top ground-gainers is down -- way down -- over the first three weeks of the season. Compared to full-year statistics from 2005, per-game rushing touchdown production among the top 12 NFL rushers (the group fantasy players generally refer to as "No. 1 RBs") is down an eye-popping 36 percent this season.

The top 12 rushers of 2005 generated .69 rushing touchdowns per game. In 2006, that group is producing just .44 touchdowns per game. The rate drops only slightly why we look at the top 24 rushers, who are scoring .41 touchdown per game, adjusted for byes.

The downward trend is less pronounced when the comparison is applied across the league's top 24 rushers, but it doesn't go away. Among these likely starters, rushing TD production is down about 21 percent.

I don't have time to do a full analysis this morning, but look at some quick indicators and you'll spot the outline of a larger trend: After three weeks of play, NFL defenses are stuffing the run in ways that could change fantasy strategy.

• Four of the top five NFL rushers this season have yet to score a rushing touchdown.
• Five of the top 12 rushers have a yards-per-carry average below the magic 4.0 threshold. Last year only one of the top 12 held that dubious distinction.
• The No. 12 rusher in the NFL is a quarterback.
• Six of the top 24 are either backups or members of Running Back By Committee systems.

The big question: Why? Has the current arms race between offensive and defensive strategy made running the ball less effective? Has the evolution of offensive line philosophy emphasized pass protection over run production? Is there less talent? Or was 2005 the anomaly?

In the meantime, fantasy football players should be prepared to adjust their roster philosophy. If the era of the dominant Franchise RB is in decline, then the position might become more like WR, where situational matchups and waiver-wire scouting make up a big part of the game.

Week 4 NFL Power Rankings

1. Indianapolis Colts, 3-0 (Last week: No. 1): The Colts' victory over the Jaguars was a quality win with a lot at stake. Jacksonville has been building to catch Indianapolis for years, and after a huge victory over a stunned Pittsburgh Steelers team in Week 2, the Jags looked ready to contend. The Colts simply absorbed the Jaguars strongest punches and then calmly, methodically picked their division rivals to bits. It was only one game, but it was a telling game.

2. Seattle Seahawks, 3-0 (Last week, No.6): OK, so at some level, the first half of the Seahawks home game against the Giants was an anomaly. But did you see what the Seahawks can do in a single anomalous half? My God: They dismantled a playoff team in just two quarters. They did it with stifling defense, but here's the headline: They did it with passing. And they're going to have to continue throwing, because Shaun Alexander has a broken bone in his foot. Let me tell you what that feels like: It hurts. A lot. He broke his foot before he broke 100 yards in a game this year, and even when he comes back, it's going to be affecting him.

3. Chicago Bears, 3-0 (Last week, No. 3): Rex Grossman put up gaudy numbers in Week 2, but he progressed farther in Week 3, leading the Bears on two consecutive scoring drives after tossing up a stupid interception near the goal line to give the Vikings the lead. Other defenses will put up better statistics, but this Bears unit is composed of confident defensive playmakers. DT Tommie Harris' 4th-quarter fumble-causing hit on Chester Taylor was simply big-time football, as was Grossman's subsequent game-winning drive. Their win over the Vikings was ugly, but it gives these guys control over their division. Next week's matchup in Chicago against the Seahawks is huge.

4. Cincinnati Bengals, 3-0 (Last week, No. 10): Carson Palmer is on his way to being an MVP candidate and the Bengals are out to a 3-0 start despite one of the toughest schedules in the league.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars 2-1 (Last week, No. 5): I said it before: The Jags are great against physical teams, but they don't match up as well against the intellectual attack of the Indianapolis Colts. This week's loss could be demoralizing, so we'll have to see what happens, but let's give the Jaguars credit, too: They played hard against the best team in football. Most other NFL squads would have melted under the pressure these guys brought.

Sufjan Stevens II: A Psychadelic Show and a Quiet Faith

It’s remarkable that Sufjan Stevens, indie pop/folk darling of the moment, does not do psychadelic drugs. Because everything about his Wednesday night show at Atlanta’s Fox Theater was trippy. (Note: above link has sample links).

First there were the costumes: everyone on stage was wearing Day-Glo butterfly wings and feathered Mardi Gras masks. Then there was the projection screen, which showed everything from kaleidoscopes to waves to clouds to children flying kites – all of it synched to the music. Finally, there was the Fox itself, with its over-the-top Moorish castle motif and fake, glowing night sky, complete with twinkling stars and drifting clouds.

I suppose I can’t prove that Stevens isn’t on something. But as I’ve written before, one of the most interesting things about him is that he has become an indie idol as a Christian (though not as a "Christian artist"). While his lyrics suggest a mystical bent, they also belie a conventionally evangelical background of Bible studies and prayer – so, likely, no controlled substances.

Xark's latest recruiting poster

Female Fantasy

I've been playing Fantasy Football for four years now. I was a founding member of a league at work called the Ink Monkeys, mostly because DC was so into it.  I felt it was a measure of self-protection.

My first year, for which there are no records because we switched from CBS, I finished 7 of 14 or 12. I can't remember. The last two years I've finished in 11th place. At least I'm consistent.

So this year, my draft strategy was a little different. Gone were any emotional attachments. I ripped out any notions of team preference. What did it matter that I always hated Miami? When Daunte was still available in the middle of Round 4, I hesitated only a moment and then took him, forgetting how he done me wrong in 2004 with those pesky -1 point interceptions and fumbles. I must clarify that this was only a few weeks after surgery and I was on drugs.

So here I am, with The Claymores, a fine team that has scored the league high point total for 2 weeks running and my eyelid is twitching  over Daunte. Sundays are punctuated with happy dances and flying profanity. My daughter hides in her room. She says she hates football.

Sometimes I do too. But mostly, it's fun as hell.