The American Dream Deconstructed

David Simon nails it. In one paragraph he has illuminated everything that has gone wrong with America.

Simon, on the other hand, is very angry indeed. "You are sitting in the deconstruction of the American Dream," he says, indicating Baltimore. "Which is to say there was a fundamental myth that if you were willing to work hard, support your family, stay away from shit that ain't good for you, you'd do all right. You didn't have to be the smartest guy in the room. The dream wasn't that everyone could get rich. It was that everyone gets to make a living and see the game on Saturday, and maybe, with the help of a government loan or two, your kid'll go to college." His anger is wide-reaching: deprivation in Baltimore, imaginary WMDs in Iraq and Wall Street scandals are all part of the same betrayal - of capitalist institutions "selling people shit and calling it gold".

Simon doesn't respond well to the criticism that perhaps things aren't entirely bad - that his shows' unremitting pessimism distorts a world where some people do defeat the crushing force of social institutions. Last year, the journalist Mark Bowden made that charge in the Atlantic magazine, and Simon hasn't forgiven him. "This premise that The Wire wasn't real because it didn't show people having good outcomes in west Baltimore ... I don't know what to tell him. We didn't spend a series in a cul-de-sac with people barbecuing; it was the story of what's happening at the bottom rungs of an economy where capitalism has been allowed free rein. And if he's telling me it's not happening, I want to take his fucking entitled ass and drive him to west Baltimore and shove him out of the car, at Monroe and Fayette, and say, find your way back, fucker, because you've got your head up your ass at the Atlantic."

Can we get this guy another TV show already?

I Found It

I searched for this a long time. I knew I had saved it, but I couldn't find it anywhere.

Many thanks to Hank for the great night. Most people don't get to see one of their favorite artists on their 30th birthday 5 minutes from where they live.

Crystal Video in Missoula Makes NPR

Read/listen here.

I think for Valentine's Day maybe I'll go rent a movie from there.

Double Jameson on the Rocks

Is there anything better?

The Story of My Stuff

Inspired by The Story of Stuff, I've decided to pontificate on my personal situation regarding "stuff."

I'm a man of simple tastes. I don't like overly garish things. I just like things that are easy to use and durable. That's why I buy Toyota vehicles and Macintosh computers, among other things.

If there's one thing I've learned over the past 12 years being an adult, it's that there are so many useless products that we buy. Stuff that won't last. We buy things and in 6 months to 2 years, they go bad and have to be replaced. I'm not sure that in all cases it's planned obsolescence, but it sure as hell feels like it.

Since I've been over 18, I've personally bought 3 computers for myself. 1 Sony/Windows POS laptop. 2 Macintosh computers, both still working fine, just like the day I bought them. If you count my wife's laptop, that's 3 Macs, all still in perfectly good condition, one of them 5 years old. Macs last.

People complain that iPods don't last, but I disagree. I'm not saying there's some bad 'Pods out there, but I've bought 3 and only one had to be replaced and it's still in use today. My oldest one is 5 years old and it still works as good as the day I bought it. iPods last, as far as I can tell.

I've owned 3 Toyotas and while I haven't pushed them to their limits, I'm going to. I'm going to drive my Tundra until my wife's next car is paid off, which will make it until at least 2017. I have no doubts that it will make it that far with no problems as long as I keep up with maintenance. Toyotas last.

As for other things that don't last so long...

Socks. Motherfucking socks. They just don't last. They last a maximum of 6 months, and I buy good socks. Every week I lost at least 1 sock because of a hole in the heel.

Cell phones. Don't even get me started. These things are meant to die after 2 years. Why do you think most contracts are for 2 years? Come on in, sign up for another 2 years, and get a new phone! It's like a bi-annual 2nd birthday.

Cordless telephones at home...these things are just like cell phones. They aren't meant to last. They usually have proprietary batteries and the software inside the phones are shit. For instance...just tonight I bought what I consider the best cordless phones available to buy that provide 4 handsets that are under $200. I bought the Panasonic KX-TG9344. It has AAA NiMH batteries that I will be able to buy later and replace them should they start to burn out. I could have bought more batteries for the shitty Motorola phones I replaced, but by the time I do that I may as well have gotten new phones because we hated those phones. The new phones are great, but I still have some major gripes. The FIRST mobile phone I ever bought had speed dial. Is that so much to ask? Yes, it has a phone book. I call about 4 people on a regular basis on the house phone. Put a fucking speed dial on the goddamn thing. I don't want to look up a number on a shitty GUI. I've got great number memory, so I could dial the thing by the time I go through the stupid phone book. Also, why doesn't the intercom function work on all phones? Why can't I pick up a phone, hit intercom and have it call all phones. Why do I have to pick which phone to call? Or, why can't it be an option at least? And in that case, why can't I put in my own names for the phones. Why is it just a numbered system? WTF!!

You get the point. I could go on about printers, pots and pans, etc. I've replaced both in the past week.

Shit is made to break, even if it's not. At the end of the day they are gypping us.