Pre-inauguration thoughts

- On the subject of Senate appointments: Roland Burris has every right to be seated as the Senator from Illinois. When he was appointed, Gov. Rod Blagojevich had not been impeached and still had all legal authority as governor. The fact that he was a sleazeball arrested on charges of corruption are legally irrelevant. That said, Senate Democrats totally wussed out of their ultimatum. Originally they had said that they would not seat anyone appointed by Blagojevich, apparently hoping it would deter him from making an appointment. Well, it turns out Blago has bigger, uh, hair, than Harry Reid. Not terribly surprising.

As for Caroline Kennedy, much has been made of her qualifications -- or lack thereof -- to be Senator of New York. Personally, I think Caroline Kennedy has exactly the same qualifications to be a New York Senator as Hillary Clinton did. Which is to say, well, none whatsoever. Hillary Clinton was born in Illinois, served as First Lady of Arkansas and then First Lady of the U.S. She didn't even live in New York until a little more than a year before the election. What part of that qualifies her to be Senator of New York? Caroline Kennedy at least has the advantage of being born in the state she wants to represent. Granted, given the whole Elliot Spitzer debacle, Charlie Rangel's tax problems, and Chuck Schumer's general douchebaggery, it doesn't seem the voters of New York particularly care about the qualifications of their representatives. They get what they deserve, as far as I'm concerned.

There's also the whole idea that Barack Obama's seat must be filled by a black man, and that Clinton's seat must be filled by a woman. Now, I know that identity politics is a staple of liberal ideology, but come on. Isn't that a little silly? When the voters of Illinois elected Barack Obama, were they voting for Barack Obama or "the black guy?" Likewise, with Hillary Clinton, were voters voting for Hillary Clinton, or the white woman with the last name of a former president?

- I wonder what the Daily Show is going to be like Post-Bush. They've spent the last eight years doing Bush-is-dumb, Cheney-is-evil jokes. I'm curious to see what angle they take on Obama, and if they can stop fellating him long enough to crack a joke.

- Why is it that when President Bush has a $40 million inauguration, the media decries it as a tasteless indulgence during wartime; but when Barack Obama has a $170 inauguration during an economic recession, they're so giddy because, OMG Beyonce!!!!1!11!

- I hope Republicans/conservatives give more respect to Barack Obama than liberals gave to President Bush. I didn't vote for Barack Obama, but I'm not going to claim he's not my president. I'll support him when I agree with him, and I want his administration to be a successful one. Unfortunately, my definition of success includes lower taxes, smaller government, a strong national defense, sound fiscal policy and in general a more responsible government. Given that Obama's talking of trillion-dollar deficits, having diplomatic talks with Iran and Venezuela, bailing out the auto industry, etc., he's not off to a good start.

- Speaking of the auto bailout, the idea of it infuriates me. If I wanted GM and Chrysler to have my money, I would've bought a car from GM or Chrysler. To have the government take my tax dollars and give it to a failing business is mind-boggling.

- On a totally unrelated note, I'm looking forward to Conan being on an hour earlier in a couple of months. I just hope he doesn't screw with the show too much. I also have to wonder if he'll keep the Max Weinberg 7. And if he does, what will Kevin Eubanks do with his band?

- I'm already counting down to the next football season. Luckily, spring training starts soon. That'll give me something to do to pass the time.

- So apparently there's a possibility that there's life on Mars. I've never understood the belief that Earth is the only planet in the universe that supports life. If the entire universe is subject to the same laws of physics, it doesn't make sense to me that there WOULDN'T be life on other planets. That's like life existing in California, and then being surprised to find that there is also life in New York. But that's just my non-scientist opinion.

- Is it too early to start campaigning for Bobby Jindal in 2012?