change has come

On November 5, 2008, the NY Times used 96-point font across the front page, declaring one simple word: "OBAMA". The paper has used the large font size only three times before - for Nixon's resignation, for the first man on the moon, and for the attacks on September 11th.

I have been finding it very challenging to just wrap my head around this moment. It's inspiring, daunting, and surreal to even try to take in the ramifications of this historic time. The simple headline decision by the Times reflects the weight this will have in the history books - this is a true landmark moment in our country's history.

Oprah had a good show yesterday, interviewing prominent political and media figures and getting their take on this new America we live in. Gloria Steinem said that in the 60's, so many people felt that true democracy was so close. Then when they killed two Kennedys, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr, it was "as if the future died, and now I feel as if our future has come back in an even better form." You can watch the clip here.

Obama: the Casting Director's Pick

I'm no political blogger, but I think Obama is going to win the presidency. Know why? Because it's good casting.

Okay, that sounds naiive. But think about it - if you were auditioning for the role of the American President, who would be the most compelling in the role? This exercise isn't about policy, politics, experience, or who is "best" for the job. But sheerly in terms of who you would cast in the role of Great American President, admit it - it's Obama. Edwards is too pretty, too soft, not grounded and solid enough. Clinton isn't quite right - she's powerful, but doesn't inspire the right kind of confidence. You might want to love her, but it's not easy or natural. The republicans all look like washed up jerks, not inspiring leaders. If the presidency was a casting project, Obama would get the first offer.

The thing is, policy, issues, experience, of course they matter. But I think that Americans look at politics through the prism of the entertainment industry, and American Idol is where we live now. And as optimistic as I'd like to be about the American public, I think the judgement of who to vote for is a lot more about that first snap judgement (the casting decision) than we'd like to believe. Do I trust this person? Do they seem ready to lead? I'm betting these questions have waaay more weight in the rest of the country than we oh-so-informed New Yorkers want to believe.

Not to mention, the guy's got Oprah on his side, and that really never fails.

For the record,

Fuck Jonathan Frazen. Even if he hated the Spring Awakening musical, why does he have to publish his senseless vitriol in the introduction to his own new adaptation? As the Post hints, the desire to publish a new adaptation is pretty obviously rooted in the musical's massive success. I think the whole thing is really embarassing for Frazen, and some of his comments seem to indicate that he just doesn't get the theatrical medium at all. For example:

The hand-wringing young Moritz Steifel, whom Wedekind had kill himself over a bad report card, is transformed, in the musical version, into a punk rocker of such talent and charisma that it's unimaginable that a report card could depress him.

Umm... looks like Frazen missed the memo about Spring Awakening's songs being metaphorical expressions of the characters' inner emotions. It's not like Moritz was debating, "hmm, should I kill myself, or follow this punk rock thing and join a band??" What a douchey imbecile.

Also, doesn't he kinda look like director Jonathan Silverstein's evil twin?



And if there's any doubt about dude's douchetasticness, read a bit of what he had to say about turning down Oprah's book club.