US OPEN 2010: Nadal Completes Career Slam At Age 24

Rafael Nadal completed the career slam (winning one Australian Open title,  five French Open titles, two Wimbledon titles, one US Open title) at the age of 24 by defeating Novak Djokovic 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-2.

The Spaniard's feat will spur many commentators to compare Nadal's performance to current "Greatest Of All Time" Roger Federer at the same age.

Federer vs. Nadal at the Very Same Age

	Nadal on 9/13/10	Federer on 11/18/05
Overall Record	460-98	390-119
Winning Pct.	.824	.766
Titles	42	33
Major Titles	9	6
Majors Played	26	27
Davis Cup Titles	3	0
Olympic Gold Medals	1	0
Longest Win Streak	32	34
Rank	1	1
Weeks at No. 1	60	93
Record vs. No. 1	14-6	2-3

To me (who is an unabashed Federer fan, although I also admire and respect Nadal's play and prowess) these comparisons just reflect impatience. Until someone else actually wins more Grand Slam titles than the current leader (Federer's 16), Roger Federer is the greatest of all time. It is very possible, that Nadal will be declared the Greatest of all Time at some poit in time in the future, but he will have to win at least 16 (and possibly more) in order for me to agree to bestow that title upon him.

That being said, he is clearly the World #1 player in the world right now, and probably for at least another year when he has to defend all those points. I think he has a pretty good chance (and should be considered the favorite) to win the 2011 Australian Open.

Additionally, Nadal becomes only the 7th player in history to win all four major tournaments (Rod Laver, Fred Perry, Don Budge, Roy Emerson, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer). Many, many great players, such as Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, Bjorn Borg never were able to win at every single Grand Slam venue. Nadal also becomes the first player since Rod Laver to win 3 Grand Slams in a row in a calendar year.

Tie for 2010 Hugo Award For Best Sci-fi Novel

The 2010 Hugo Awards were announced last weekend in Melbourne, Australia. As I expected, China Miéville's acclaimed novel The City & The City (see MadProfessah's B+ review) was the winner of the Hugo Award for Best Novel. That's not a surprise. What is a surprise is that there was another winner, despite the fact that the voting process used is preference voting (like the Oscar ballots, voters rank the nominees in order of their preference for what they want to win the prize).

The other Hugo Award winner for Best Novel is Paolo Bacigalulpi's The Windup Girl, which Time magazine listed as one of the Top 10 reads of 2009. I haven't read it, yet, but it is now on my Amazon wishlist.

The organizers of AussieCon4 have released statistics of the vote (pdf) in this year's Hugo awards and the Best Novel balloting is fascinating:

The City & The City by China Miéville (winner)	The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi (winner)
240	240
240	240
264	254
292	275
323	308
380	380

The two winners were tied in 3 of the 6 rounds, with Miéville having a lead in the unimportant middle rounds. The only rounds which are determinative are the 1st and last rounds, and there the two were completely tied. The last time there was a tie in the Hugo Award for Best Novel it was between two of my favorite books of all time, in 1993 Doomsday Book (read MadProfessah's A review) by Connie Willis and A Fire Upon The Deep (see MadProfessah's A review) by Vernor Vinge.

It should be noted that the only time there has ever been a tie in Oscar voting is in 1968 for Best Actress when Katharine Hepburn in The Lion in Winter and Barbara Streisand in Funny Girl tied. The Academy sadly does not release the results (ever!) of Oscar balloting.

Eye Candy: Mark Hawthorne

Mark Hawthorne is a 22-year-old model from Los Angeles who was brought to my attention by Mechadude. Check out more of his pics here and here.

US OPEN 2010: Men's Final POSTPONED

It's raining in New York so the men's final will be at 1pm PDT/4pm EDT on Monday.

US OPEN 2010: Men's Final Preview

Rafael Nadal ESP (1) vs. Novak Djokovic SRB (3). 

This unexpected final between the 24-year-old World #1 and the 23-year-old World #3 (the once and future World #2) is a harbinger of the future of tennis. It was set up by Djokovic's ability to defeat 290year-old Roger Federer for the first time at the US Open, 5-7 6-1 5-7 6-2 7-5, in one of the most tension-filled matches of the year. Much will be said about the passing of the guard at the top of the tennis heap with Federer's absence in a US Open final for the first time since 2003(!), when Andy Roddick won his sole major title. The same thing could have been (and was, by some) said last year when 21-year-old, 6'5" Juan Martin del Potro outlasted Federer last year.

But what about this year? Rafael Nadal is playing the best tennis anyone has ever seen him play on a hard court. He has held serve 79 of 81 times. He is serving regularly in the 130 mph zone, volleying impressively and possesses blistering shots on both the forehand and backhand wings. Oh, and he plays every single point like it is match point but if he loses it, he has a preternatural ability to ignore what just happened and play the next point in exactly the same way, like it's his last point on earth. And he can maintain that intensity for hours.

Who can beat him? Novak Djokovic can, and has. Although Nadal has a 14-7 edge over the Serbian in career matchups (and exactly the same 14-7 career edge over Federer), Djokovic has a 7-3 edge on hard courts. Nadal has 4-0 edge in finals (on hard, clay and grass surfaces) and 3-0 edge in grand slam matches (all played in Paris). However, although the Serbian has already lost and won a major final, he can not match Nadal's experience of having won 8 and lost 2. Although this will be Rafa's first New York final (a place I honestly never thought he would ever get to), it is Novak's second. However, it is exceedingly unlikely Novak can beat Roger Federer one day and Rafael Nadal the next day. (Who does he think he is, Juan Martin del Potro?)

MadProfessah's prediction: Nadal.

US OPEN 2010: Clijsters Wins 3rd US Open over Zvonareva

Kim Clijsters defeated Vera Zvonareva in just under an hour 6-2 6-1 to win her 3rd major title, the 2010 US Open, collecting a purse of $2.2 million. Clijsters has now won 21 consecutive matches in New York dating back to 2005 (she was injured in 2006 and retired from the WTA tour in 2007 and 2008).

US OPEN 2010: Women's Final Preview

Kim Clijsters BEL (2) vs Vera Zvonareva RUS (7). For the second consecutive major championship this summer Vera Zvonareva will be playing in a Grand Slam final which she has almost no chance of winning. At Wimbledon in London it was a final against the defending champion Serena Williams, at the US Open in New York she will be playing against the defending champion Kim Clijsters.Vera has defied expectations before, particularly taking out last year's finalist and this year's top-seeded player, Caroline Wozniacki. The Great Dane's dismissal was a surprise to some, but not to yours truly, who watched some of Vera's early matches and realized that she had the weapons to dismiss the young counter-puncher.

Clijsters leads Zvonareva head-to-head 5-2, but surprisingly the two victories by the Russian have occurred in the last two matches the two have contested, including a 3-set win at Montreal en route to the final where she had lost to Wozniacki. Clijsters played an excellent, tough-minded match (one of the best of the tournament) to defeat 2-time U.S. Open champion Venus Williams in 3-sets. Clijsters lost the first set, and was up a break in the second set, lost that lead but still managed to win the set when Venus played an awful tiebreak (4 double faults!). However, at 4-all in the third set, Clijsters played an amazing topspin lob winner on breakpoint and coolly served to hold serve and collect the W. There's not much to stop her from doing so again, and becoming the first person since Venus to defend her US Open title.

MadProfessah's prediction: Clijsters in 2 sets.

White House Responds to Federal Court DADT Decision

The White House has responded to the recent federal court ruling in Log Cabin Republicans v. United States by U.S. District Court Judge Virgina Phillips (a Clinton appointee) striking don the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy as unconstitutional.

Although other federal judges have ruled the military's anti-gay policy unconstitutional previously in individual cases of specific military officers, this was the first federal judge to strike down the policy on what is called a facial challenge.

White House spokesperson Shin Inouye said:

"The Justice Department is studying the decision, including the question of its scope and immediate effect and we expect them to announce their next steps after that review is completed. The President remains committed to legislative repeal of DADT, and he will continue to work with lawmakers to achieve that goal this fall. And he will continue to work closely with Secretary Gates, Admiral Mullen, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff on an ongoing study of how to best implement the repeal."

This lawsuit has taken years to reach this point, and if appealed will take several more years to be resolved. Some LGBT activists are insisting that the Obama Administration's Department of Justice not appeal the ruling, but to me the district court ruling has very little legal effect unless an appellate court affirms it.

The main importance of the ruling is the political impetus it gives to pending legislative repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in the United States Congress.

US OPEN 2010: Men's Semifinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the men's semifinals at the US Open for 2010. I previously correctly predicted 4 of 4 men's quarterfinals. 

Roger Federer SUI (2) vs. Novak Djokovic SRB (3). For the fourth year in a row, Roger Federer must defeat Novak Djokovic to reach the final of the US Open. Three of their four meetings have been in the semifinals in New York, and it should not be forgotten that the Serb is the last person to beat the Swiss player at this stage in a grand slam, at the 2008 Australian Open. Federer leads their career head-to-head 10-5 (8-4 on hard courts) and should be expected to win again. However, it's unlikely to be easy. Although Djokovic has only ever won set against Federer in New York and lost 12, but almost every set has been very close including 3 tiebreak sets. Djokovic will probably not be affected by a partisan New York crowd rooting for his defeat and a mouth-watering Nadal-Federer final; he beat Roger in the final of his own tournament in his hometown of Basel last year. That win was indoors, and it is very likely that the conditions will become a factor on Saturday. So far, Federr has been the player to take the most advantage of the difficult conditions of anyone in the draw. PREDICTION: Federer in 3 or 4 sets or Djokovic in 5 sets.

Rafael Nadal ESP (1) vs. Stanislas Wawrinka SUI (25) Mikhail Youzhny RUS (12). Nadal has been playing some of his best tennis, ever, in New York, especially his serve which has now improved to the point where the Spaniard is regularly reaching 130 mph. He has now become the player least likely to have their service broken. Nadal did well to dismiss Fernando Verdasco in straight sets in the quarterfinals and has yet to lose a set in the tournament. Youzhny has a lost at least one set ni every round he has played here, except for a straight set first round victory. Surprisingly, Youzhny has quite a good record against Nadal, with 4 wins to 7 losses (4 to 3 on hard courts) and has a notable victory over Nadal at the U.S. Open, having beaten the then-20-year-old Spaniard in 4-sets in the 2006 Quarterfinals. However, neither player is the same player they were four years ago, with both having improved tremendously. Nadal is now the #1 player in the world and riding a 19 grand-slam match winning streak, while Youzhny is just out of the Top 10 at #14 in the world. The Russian played a grueling 5-set match to dispose of Stanislas Wawrinka in the quarters and has demonstrated that he is not intimidated by any opponent. The question does he have the game to prevent the most anticipated match in tennis history? Doubtful.  PREDICTION: Nadal (in 4 sets). 

Celebrity Friday: Janet Jackson

Janet Jackson is starring in For Colored Girls, the new movie by Tyler Perry which is based on the classic play by Ntozake Shange titled For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf.


The movie comes out November 5th in limited release, the same weekend last year's award-winning Precious came out and eventually won 2 Oscars for Best Supporting Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay.

US OPEN 2010: Women's Semifinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's semifinals at the 2010 US Open. I previously predicted 4 of 4 women's quarterfnals correctly.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (1) vs. Vera Zvonareva RUS (7). Interestingly, these two have a tied career head-to-head (2 and 2, 1 on 1 on hard courts), with Wozniacki winning the last time these two played in the final of the Rogers Cup 6-3 6-2 in Montreal during the Dane's great run through the US Open Series this summer. They have both been in one major final (Wozniacki US Open 2009, Zvonareva Wimbledon 2010) with Zvonareva being in 3 major semifinals to Wozniacki's 2. Can Zvonareva play real big babe tennis more consistently than Maria Sharapova was able to? I say yes. There's a reason why Zvonareva is ranked #8 in the world.. Then again Wozniacki is ranked #2 in the world and is the top seed here, thanks to the absence of World #1 Serena Williams. Even though I was convinced by her performance against Sharapova that Wozniacki is "for real" I still have a feeling that Vera will not go away quietly. Regardless, I think the eventual titleholder of this year's event will not come from this semifinal. PREDICTION: Zvonareva in 3 sets.    

Venus Williams USA (3) vs.  Kim Clijsters BEL (2). Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters have played each other twelve times and their career head-to-head is tied at 6-all. However, on hard courts Clijsters leads 4-3 with Clijsters winning every hard court match the two have contested since 2005. Additionally, Clijsters has won 19 matches in a row at the US Open dating back to 2005 (she did not play the event in the years 2006 through 2008). Venus has not really been tested (despite 2010 French Open champ Francesca Schiavone's best efforts), and has somehow managed to make it to the semifinals of the US Open (for the first time since 2007, when Justine Henin took out both Serena and Venus to win the title over Svetlana Kuznetsova) without losing a set. That will almost certainly change on Friday, especially since Venus' mobility is clearly sub-optimal. These two played one of the most bizarrely lopsided matches of all time (6-0, 0-6, 6-4) won by Clijsters on the way to the title. It is very likely Clijsters will become the first player in 9 years (since her opponent did it in 2001) to defend her US Open title. PREDICTION: Clijsters in 3 sets. 

NBJC's Out on the Hill Conference

Next week the National Black Justice Coalition will be holding it's Out on the Hill conference to be held simultaneously with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's Annual legislative Conference September 15-18 in Washington, D.C.

The event will bring thought leaders, faith leaders, legislative officials, philanthropists and activists from the Black LGBT community from around the country to DC for a number of seminars, trainings, receptions and workshops, including two which will be occurring at The White House itself. Sadly, since I have a day job teaching Math and Cultural Studies at Occidental College, I can not attend but here are some people who will be there:

Confirmed elected officials include Georgia State Representative Simone Bell and Detroit City Council President Charles Pugh. Both are outstanding examples of Black LGBT leadership and activism. Also in attendance will be veteran activists like Mandy Carter, founder of NBJC and Southerners on New Ground (SONG); Donna Payne, Diversity Program Associate Director for HRC; Courtney Snowden, Senior Associate for the Raben Group; and Aisha Moodie-Mills, President of Campaign for All DC Families.

Early registration for the conference ends tomorrow, and if you want to attend the events at the White House they need specific information from you at the NBJC office by 5pm EDT Friday. For more information, call 202-319-155.

MadProfessah.com will try to have coverage of what happens at the conference next week.

BOOK REVIEW: Tana French's In The Woods

I was completely unaware of Tana French's Edgar-award winning first novel In the Woods until a friend of mine who knows I like mysteries told me I had to read it. I'm very glad of the recommendation. Having read every single one of Ian Rankin's Inspector John Rebus novels I was delighted to find a new mystery author.

The two have some similarities, in that they are both British authors who set their books in their respective countries' biggest city (Rankin in Scotland's Edinburgh and French in Ireland's Dublin). French's books are less centered around a specific main character but instead are more emotionally focussed narratives.

For example, In the Woods is the story of Rob Ryan and Cassie Maddox, two Murder Squad detectives who are investigating the horrific murder of a 12-year-old girl named Kary Devlin. The body was found in the very same woods a then-12-years-old Rob had been found 20-years before covered in blood with no memories while the two best friends he entered the woods never seen again.

In the Woods at its core is a story about the powerful bonds of friendship. The friendship between Rob and Cassie is lovingly depicted, from Rob's perspective as the narrator. The complications of a friendship between a straight man and straight woman are acknowledged and even emphasized in some ways. The other friendship that anchors the novel is the friendship between the young Rob (then called by his middle name Adam) and his two best friends, which is depicted in nostalgic flashbacks.

It becomes clearer and clearer as the novel progresses that the resolution of the recent Devlin murder involves some deep secret buried within the creepy Devlin family but that more importantly, regardless of that resolution, the lack of resolution of the old crime is weighing increasingly heavily upon Rob's psyche. In the end, Rob becomes a quintessential "unreliable narrator"  but there are other, more serious ways that Tana French breaches the contract between reader and murder-mystery author which makes In the Woods an unforgettable and thrilling read.

Author: Tana French.

Title: In the Woods

Length: 429 pages.
Publisher: Viking Adult.
Date: May 17, 2007.

OVERALL GRADE: A/A+.
PLOT: A.
IMAGERY: A+.
IMPACT: A.
WRITING: A.

CA Sup Ct Refuses To Force State To Appeal Prop 8

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to force the state of California, as represented by the Governor and Attorney General of the state, to act as defendants in the federal Proposition 8 lawsuit, Perry v. Schwarzenegger.


As I blogged about earlier in the week, the Pacific Justice Institute sued the Governor and Attorney General on Monday to attempt to force them to defend Proposition 8, but the 3rd District Court of Appeals rejected their argument. Now the state's highest court has also rejected their legal argument.

The court did not explain why it rejected the emergency petition filed by the Pacific Justice Institute. The institute had argued that the attorney general and governor were required to uphold all laws, including initiatives passed by voters.

Earlier Wednesday, lawyers for Attorney General Jerry Brown and Schwarzenegger filed letters with the court maintaining state officers have authority to choose which laws they challenge or defend in court.

"The governor, like any litigant, has complete discretion over his own litigation strategy, including whether or not to appeal an order," counsel Andrew Stroud wrote for Schwarzenegger. "Here, the governor exercised his discretion and decided not to file an appeal."

[...]

Schwarzenegger, who has been under pressure from fellow Republicans to appeal Walker's decision, has said he supports the judge's verdict. Brown, who is the Democratic nominee to succeed Schwarzenegger as governor, has said he cannot defend Proposition 8 because he agrees it is unconstitutional.

"Although it is not every day that the attorney general declines to defend a state law, the state Constitution or an initiative, he may do so because his oath requires him (to) support the United States Constitution as the supreme law of the law," Deputy Attorney General Tamar Pachter wrote on Brown's behalf Wednesday.

The coalition of conservative and religious groups that sponsored Proposition 8 has appealed Walker's ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. But doubts have been raised about whether its members have authority to do so because as ordinary citizens, they are not responsible for enforcing marriage laws.

The 9th Circuit has said that is one of the issues it will take up when it hears oral arguments in early December.

If the federal appeals court dismisses the appeal because the ban's proponents lack legal standing,  Walker's ruling would become final unless the U.S. Supreme Court agrees to take up the case.

All people interested in marriage equality will be watching the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals arguments very closely in this case. It would sort of be unfortunate f the case was decided on a relatively abstruse legal point like standing, instead of the very importantfederal constitutional issues raised in Walker's District Court opinion of August 4.

FOOD REVIEW: Ray's Hell Burgers (Arlington, VA)

There has been much discussion lately about whether Five Guys or In-n-Out has the better burger. However, as I blogged about earlier, President Obama has switched his allegiance from Five Guys to Ray's Hell Burger. My position is that Five Guys is better than In-N-Out. (You can read my review here.)

Recently I happened to be in Washington, DC for a business trip so I decided to check out Ray's Hell Burger, which also happens to be in Arlington, Virgina, a suburb of the District. It has a pretty distinctive menu with an interesting selection of quixotically named special burgers.

Pictured above is the "Soul Burger Number 1" which comes with a 10 ounce all-American beef patty, applewood smoked bacon, cognac and sherry sauteed mushrooms, grilled red onions with swiss cheese on a toasted brioche bun for $8.95. I replaced the cheese with Vermont White Cheddar. I also added small sweet potato fries for $1.75.

Although the burger is about three dollars more expensive than a Five Guys  burger and almost twice the cost of an In-N-Out burger it is well worth it. Like Five Guys, it is probably too big to eat at one sitting. The sides are incredible.The sauteed mushrooms  are amazing and the bacon and cheese were pretty incredible. Five Guys wins in the bun department (their buns are pleasantly dough-y and fresh, which I think goes better than toasting). Ray's fries are better than Five Guys but not as good as In-N-Out's.

Next time I'm in DC I will definitely check out Ray's again, but I will also grab a Five Guys burger to eat on the plane home.

Name: Ray's Hell Burger

Location: 1725 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA 22209. 

Contact: 703-841-0001.

AMBIANCE: B+.

SERVICE: B+.

VALUE: A.

FOOD: A.

OVERALL: A-.

US OPEN 2010: Men's Quarterfinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the men's quarterfinals at the US Open for 2010.

Roger Federer SUI (2) vs. Robin Soderling SWE (5). The showdown everyone has been waiting for since the draw was released is this repeat from the 2010 French Open quarterfinal where the Big Swede ended Federer's streak of 23 consecutive major semifinals on a cold, wet day in Paris. Soderling has become a legitimate Top 5 player, playing in the last two Roland Garros finals (losing both). Federer's recent disappointments at majors have all come at the hands of tall, muscular, mobile players like Soderling (French Open 2010) Berdych (Wimbledon 2010) and Juan Martin del Potro (US Open 2009). It is supremely possible that this could be another addition to that string. But, I doubt it. Federer has something to prove, and like most great players hates to lose to any player twice in a row. For Federer to win he will need to play better than he did against Jurgen Melzer in the 4th Round, and he has to hope that his felicitous luck continues. PREDICTION: Federer in 4 sets.

Gael Monfils FRA (17) vs. Novak Djokovic SRB (3). The extremely gifted French player has never beaten the Serbian champion, but a lot of their matches have actually been pretty close. The annoying aspect of Monfils' game is that despite being (in Jim Courier's words) "the most gifted athlete tennis has ever produced," the 6'4" 176-pound speedster plays a defensive, counter-punching style of tennis. Monfils did well to dismiss his even more gifted French compatriot Richard Gasquet in straight sets in the fourth round (winning the last 5 games) to reach his first ever US Open quarterfinal. Djokovic has also played well, easily dismissing American Mardy Fish in straight sets.Unless New York City gets very hot and/or Monfils (does and) starts playing the way all his coaches have been begging him to play (lights out, aggressive tennis) Djokovic will be in his fourth consecutive US Open semifinal, where he would most likely face Roger Federer for the third consecutive year.  PREDICTION: Djokovic in 4 sets. 

Andy Murray GBR (4) Sam Querrey USA (20) Stanislas Wawrinka SUI (25) vs. Mikhail Youzhny RUS (12). This is the dark horse spoiler quarter where Andy Murray went out early and loudly to the suddenly sharp other player from Switzerland. Wawrinka did very well to follow-up that big win with a strong-hearted outlasting of American Sam Querrey in 5-sets on a tough, windy day to win in just under 5 hours. Youzhny also dashed American hopes by taking out Marathon Man John Isner in the 3rd round. This will be the quiet quarter because no one expects the winner of this match to be able to win their next match and reach the 2010 US Open final. I agree, but Youzhny would be the player who could pose more questions for his future Spanish opponent. PREDICTION: Wawrinka in 3 sets or Youzhny in 4 or 5 sets.

Francisco Verdasco ESP (8) vs. Rafael Nadal ESP (1). This is a repeat of the now-legendary 2009 Australian Open Men's Semifinal where Nadal beat Verdasco in a 5-hour, 14-minute 5-sets instant classic. It's doubtful that this repeat will be as amazing as that match (very few matches in any year are). I'm sure many people would be satisfied if this match is as exciting as Verdasco's last match, where he came back from 2-sets to love down against David Ferrer and won the 5th set despite being down a service break and then 1-4 in the tie-break--winning the last 6 points of the match! Nadal is playing the best tennis I have ever seen him play, and is clearly the best player in the tournament so far (he still has not dropped serve!) but he hasn't really been tested. He has clearly had the better half of the draw and potentially will be able to reach the final of a major by only facing one Top 10 player. Verdasco has never beaten Nadal in ten attempts, but if he plays like his life depends on it, just maybe he can turn that stat around. After all, before Soderling beat Federer in France, he had lost to the Swiss player 11-times in a row. Is Verdasco how one pronounces Soderling in Spanish? PREDICTION: Nadal in 4 sets.

Watch Steve Pougnet's First TV Commercial

Watch Steve Pougnet's First TV Commercial



Steve Pougnet is the openly gay mayor of Palm Springs who is running against U.S. Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R).

I just donated to support his campaign and help them get this television ad on the air. Won't you help as well?

US OPEN 2010: Women's Quarterfinals Preview

Here are my predictions for the women's quarterfinals at the 2010 US Open.

Caroline Wozniacki DEN (1) Maria Sharapova RUS (14) vs Dominika Cibulkova SVK Svetlana Kuznetsova RUS (11). The top seed and last year's US Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki had never won a big match against a "Big Babe" like Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Venus Williams or Kim Clijsters and I doubted that she would even win 5 games against the 2006 US Open champion. But Wozniacki showed that she is not just an incredible retriever but has the consistency of a backboard. Sharapova didn't help her cause by throwing in 10 double faults. That being said, Wozniacki has made a believer out of me by dismissing Sharapova 6-3 6-4. The tall Russian was pounding away, shrieking as she pounded the ball nto the corners but almost every rally over 10 strokes was won by Wozniacki as eventually, Sharapova went for too much and committed an error to concede the point. I still believe that a "Big Babe" who is actually comfortable at the net would still be able to overpower Wozniacki, but it is doubtful that she will face someone who matches that description before the top seed reaches the final for the second consecutive year. However, I still don't see how the Danish youngster wins that final against someone with more power from the bottom half of the draw. PREDICTION: Wozniacki in 2 sets.

Vera Zvonareva (7) RUS  vs. Kaia Kanepi EST (31) Yanina Wickmayer BEL (15). It's odd how the 2010 Wimbledon finalist is silently making her way through the draw, even though she has reached the quarterfinals without dropping a set. The hard-hitting Kanepi is in her second consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal and will presumably manage the occasion better than her meltdown in London. Especially since she managed to win a match where she was down a bagel set and a break against last year's semifinalist Yanina Wickmayer. Zvonareva's birthday is Tuesday and she has been playing a more mature brand of tennis which will take her deep into the draw. PREDICTION: Zvonareva in 3 sets.  

Venus Williams USA (3) vs.  Francesca Schiavone ITA (6). Venus Williams has only lost 3 sets in the 7 matches she has played against the 2010 French Open champion, and never lost to her. However, after Schiavone became the first Italian woman to win a major title ever, she has made the phrase "Impossible is Nothing" seem like reality. Venus has not dropped a set in the tournament yet, but she should have lost one to a determined Shahar Peer in the fourth round, and if anyone can exploit what is her obviously sub-optimal mobility, it is Schiavone with her clay-court toughness and European flair. Happily, Venus' unreported injury is making her more aggressive and more likely to approach the net in order to shorten the points. That, and a decidedly gentle draw should give her a fighting chance to reach a non-Wimbledon final, her first since the 2003 Australian Open. I do think that the thought that she will not have to face her sister in order to win the tournament should give Venus some extra motivation and confidence to try to do so. PREDICTION: Williams in 3 sets.

Kim Clijsters BEL (2) vs. Samantha Stosur AUS (5). Clijsters is on an 18-match winning streak at the US Open, having last lost a match in New York in the 2003 final(!) to Justine Henin. She is absolutely devouring the draw and she has to be considered the favorite to repeat as Champion here. However, the very talented Sam Stosur, who played one of the best women's matches of the year to eliminate Elena Dementieva in the 4th round stands in the Belgian's way. Stosur has finally broke through into the top of women's tennis and is a legitimate Top 5 player. I sort of think of her as the female Robin Soderling, since none of the players ranked above her will be very pleased that they picked the short straw and have to face her in order to reach the final. That being said, Stosur till has not quite made the leap to actually winning a major title, and I suspect it will be that lack (and Clijsters' preternatural defensive skills plus her offensive artillery) that will result in Clijsters victory. It could be a scorcher of a match though, in the words of Jim Courier "a real popcorn match." PREDICTION: Clijsters in 2 sets.

CA-GOV: Jerry Brown TV Ad

CA-GOV, CA-SEN: SurveyUSA Shows Republican Leads

SurveyUSA, the automated polling outfit, has polled the California gubernatorial and senatorial races and found leads for Meg Whitman and Carly Fiorina, respectively.

California: Fiorina and Boxer Still in Tight Fight; Whitman Narrowly Atop Brown; Some Traction for Those Opposed to Legal Weed: Incumbent Democrat Barbara Boxer remains locked in a tight fight with Republican challenger Carly Fiorina, according to this latest SurveyUSA poll conducted exclusively for KABC-TV Los Angeles, KPIX-TV San Francisco, KGTV-TV San Diego, and KFSN-TV Fresno. 3 identical SurveyUSA tracking polls have shown the contest within the theoretical margin of sampling error, though, in all 3 cases, the Republican has been nominally ahead, confounding many observers and, for now, preserving the possibility of a take-away. Today, it's Fiorina 48%, Boxer 46%. There is movement, or perhaps statistical noise, among Hispanic voters.

In the contest for Governor of California, it's Republican Meg Whitman 47%, Democrat Jerry Brown 40% today. Compared to an identical SurveyUSA poll 3 weeks ago, Whitman is up 3, Brown is down 3. But, compared to a SurveyUSA poll 7 weeks ago: no change. Among men, the race has been flat since polling began in July, with Whitman at 50% in each poll, and Brown at 35% to 37%. Among women, more volatility, with Brown 13 points atop Whitman 3 weeks ago, but tied with the former eBay CEO both 7 weeks ago and today.

Opposition to Proposition 19, which would legalize marijuana and allow for its regulation and taxation, has grown. Two previous SurveyUSA polls both showed the measure passing by 10 points; today: 47% vote Yes to legalize, 43% vote No. Women, older voters, minorities, and Central Valley voters have all moved toward "No." Support remains above 50% among men, younger voters, whites, Democrats, liberals and moderates, and in the Bay Area.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, remains nominally ahead in the contest for Lieutenant Governor, where incumbent Republican Republican Abel Maldonado may have lost a couple of points compared to 3 weeks ago. Today it's Newsom 44% to Maldonado 39%. There is movement among men.

If Republicans are leading in Democrat-dominated California, progressives are in for a really, really bad NOvember.

Eye Candy: Ben Lauder-Dykes

Ben Lauder-Dykes is a 25-year-old model from England who has already been on the cover of the September 2008 Men's Health magazine. Eye-catching, wot-wot?

Sunday Succulent: Echinopsis cinnabarina

Echinopsis cinnabarina

The Other Half has always been a big fan of succulents and cacti. Recently he has become a more serious afficionado, joining the Cactus and Succulent Society of America. This has made him a more knowledgeable collector of the plants. He tells me that the above is Echinopsis cinnabarina.

Appellate Court Rejects Attempt To Force Prop 8 Appeal

Recall that earlier this week heterosexual supremacists from the Pacific Justice Institute sued the Governor and Attorney General claiming that they were trying to avoid a "constitutional crisis" by forcing these elected officials to appeal Proposition 8 in federal court, even though both men have declared their belief that the measure violates the U.S. constitution.

On Thursday came word that their lawsuit was summarily rejected. by the 3rd District Court of Appeals:

The institute said it would file an immediate appeal to the state Supreme Court in hopes of getting a reversal by Sept. 11, the deadline for state action in the Prop. 8 case.

"When the people peacefully enact a constitutional provision and the attorney general refuses to give them meaningful review in the federal judiciary, then you have a veto by the executive branch," said the institute's lawyer, Kevin Snider. "That is a constitutional crisis, usurping the power of the people."

The reason why this legal skirmish is important is that there is a very live question of who has "standing" (or legal authority) to appeal Judge Vaughn Walker's ruling declaring Proposition 8 violates the federal constitution. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals will hear the appeal the week of December 6th.

Is Koo Koo Roo Dying?

One of my favorite chains of "fast food" in Los Angeles is Koo Koo Roo chicken. I was surprised recently to find out that there are basically only three franchises of the store remaining in Los Angeles: West Hollywood, Larchmont Village and Santa Monica. Pasadena and downtown Los Angeles have closed recently. I remember there used to be one in the Miracle Mile area of Wilshire Boulevard also.

Apparently the parent company of the grilled chicken joint was bought by Luby's this summer after the parent company Magic Brands (which also owns Fuddruckers burgers) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April.

Koo Koo Roo has a prominent location in the "gay ghetto" in West Hollywood, but it seems like the gay boys have changed their allegiances to Tender Greens (which also only has 3 locations in Southern California).

Have you eaten at any of these chains? What do you think of them?

Celebrity Friday: Mariah Carey Is Pregnant

My favorite singer Mariah Carey is clearly pregnant, but since she is 40 years old, she and her husband Nick Cannon (who is 29 and phyne) have been coy about confirming the news. I think these pictures take care of that, don't you?

WATCH: Stop8.org Dismantles NOM Arguments

Watch Matt Baume of Stop8.org do an excellent job of dismantling  the arguments in a National Organization for Marriage (NOM) radio ad. Baume usess NOM's own words an explains how misleading, wrong and "catty" they are.

US OPEN 2010: Berdych(7), Roddick(9), Azarenka(10) Out

Two big seeds on the Men's side were eliminated from the draw when Andy Roddick and Tomas Berdych lost to Janko Tipsarevic  and Michael Llodra, in 4 and 3 sets, respectively.

On the women's side Victoria Azarenka collapsed after trailing 1-5 in the first set against Gisela Dulko. Apparently, she had suffered a fall and hit her head before the match started and felt worse as the match progressed. She left the court in a wheelchair.

Melanie Oudin also lost.

Venus Williams is through to the 3rd Round, where she caught a break when Wimbledon semifinalist Tsvetlana Pironkova lost to unknown Mandy Mienella of Luxembourg.

BOOK REVIEW: Alastair Reynolds' The Prefect

Despite never having heard his name before a year ago, British science fiction writer Alastair Reynolds has turned into one of my favorite authors.

In the space of about 8 months (December 2009 through July 2010), I have read five of his novels, all of which are set in his Revelation Space universe. Those books are (in the order I read them) Revelation Space, Redemption Ark, Chasm City, Absolution Gap and The Prefec.

The Revelation Space universe is at least as interesting as Peter F. Hamilton's Confederate and Commonwealth universes. The two British authors have similar ideas: humanity is flourishing hundreds of years in our future, we have met a few aliens and technology (especially in computing) has advanced in particular ways. Both universes feature a way for humans to "cheat death." In Hamilton's, a memory cell which contains the entire personality can be backed up and then inserted into a cloned copy of the original person, and people can generally select their age, sex and overall physical appearance. In Reynolds' universe a back-up of the personality can be made and then installed in either an "alpha-level" or "beta-level"simulation which runs on a computer. Alpha-level simulations are controversial, they are considered independent entities in their own right; beta-level simulations are more common and are more likely to be replications of the original human personality they were based on.

Reynolds' stories are darker, more cerebral and intricately plotted with secrets within secrets to be revealed to the reader during the execution of the plot. Hamilton stories are usually more straight-up swashbuckling military space operas, thrilling adventures that greatly entertain. Hamilton is still my favorite writer, but Reynolds gives him a run for his money!

A theme of Reynolds' work is the inclusion of complicated choices (often between multiple, equally bad scenarios) that his characters have to make and his obsession with identity and misdirection. Oftentimes a central question in the books is discovering the solution to a central mystery, and several times that mystery involves the "true" identity and motives of a central character.

The Prefect is set in a time period between the events of Revelation Space and Chasm City, set in the Glitter Band, a group of 10,000 human-made habitats set in orbit near the planet Yellowstone in the Sky's Edge star system. The title character is Tom Dreyfus, who is a member of Panoply, which is basically the police force for the 100 million people who live in the Glitter Band. Panoply officers are not allowed to carry guns, because their mission is to insure the process of democracy in the band, which occurs through nearly continuous electronic plebiscites of the populace. However, The Prefect at its core is really a standard detective novel, which I like because I am also a big fan of mysteries. It is reminiscent of Reynolds' best book to date, Chasm City, which also revolves around the work of a cop.

It is also a hard sci-fi novel. The book has profoundly altered humans known as Ultras, another group of altered humans known as Conjoiners, space battles, sentient computer programs and a possibly alien entity known as The Clockmaker.

If you like "hard" sci-fi and the work of authors like Hamilton, Reynolds and Neal Asher, you will almost definitely enjoy The Prefect. I did!

Title: The Prefect.
Author: Alastair Reynolds.
Length: 416 pages.
Publisher: Ace.
Date: June 3, 2008.

OVERALL GRADE: A.

PLOT: A+.
IMAGERY: A.
IMPACT: A-.
WRITING: A.

EQCA Has 7 LGBT-related Bills On Governor's Desk

Equality California has sponsored several bills which have made it through both houses of the California legislature this year and will be on Governor Schwarzenegger's desk, which he has to sign or veto by September 30th.

They are:

• The Mental Health Services for At-Risk Youth bill (Leno) will increase LGBT youths’ access to counseling.
• The Repeal of Discriminatory Code bill (Lowenthal) will end California’s search for a “gay cure.”
• The Civil Marriage Religious Freedom Act (Leno) will codify freedom of religion in relation to civil marriage.
• The LGBT Prisoner Safety Act (Ammiano) will reduce violence against LGBT people in the state prison system.
• The Separation Equity Act (Ma) will allow same-sex couples to dissolve their domestic partnerships and civil marriages at the same time.
• The Hate Crimes Protection Act (Saldaña) will prohibit contracts from requiring a person to waive their right to sue if they are the victim of a hate crime.
• The Unemployment Benefits Equality bill (De La Torre) will give individuals entering domestic partnerships the same rights as those getting married to obtain unemployment benefits

You can click on each bill name to take action to write the Governor and let him know what you think his position on each bill should be.

CA-SEN: Money Bomb For Boxer!

Today Democratic U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer is debating against Republican challenger Carly Fiorina. Boxer's campaign has also decided to do a netroots money bomb today, an attempt to get 10,000 individual donations.

Boxer is an unabashed progressive, supports marriage equality and is a staunch environmentalist. Fiorina is a failed CEO who got 26 million dollars in a golden parachute to leave Hewlett-Packard after laying off tens of thousands of employees. Which do you want in the United States Senate?

I gave Barbara some bucks today, won't you? Click here.

Homophobes Sue Schwarzenegger and Brown To Force Prop 8 Appeal

Word comes today that heterosexual supremacist losers in the Perry v Schwarzenegger lawsuit are seriously worried about not having standing to appeal the federal lawsuit, so they have sued the state defendants Attorney General Jerry Brown and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in state court in an attempt to force them to defend Proposition 8.

Brown has said both in legal filings and public statements that he has sworn to uphold the state and federal constitutions and therefore can not defend Proposition 8 because he thinks it is an unconstitutional violation of gay Californians' civil rights.


"The attorney general does not believe that he can be forced to prosecute an appeal of a decision with which he agrees," Brown spokeswoman Christine Gasparac said Tuesday. 

In seeking to make the state file an appeal, Pacific Justice Institute is trying to address the possibility that the case might get short-circuited before the 9th Circuit can consider if Proposition 8 passes constitutional muster.

Most experts think that it is very doubtful that a state court will attempt to compel another branch of government to defend a federal lawsuit.

Equality California's executive director Geoff Kors said:

“This is an outrageous attempt to try and force elected officials who have sworn to uphold the United States Constitution to defend a law that the Federal Court has found to be unconstitutional. It demonstrates their acknowledgement that the proponents of Proposition 8 lack standing to appeal, that the case should be dismissed and loving same-sex couples should be allowed to exercise their constitutional right to marry.”