A personal blog by a Black, Gay, Caribbean, Liberal, Progressive, Moderate, Fit, Geeky, Married, College-Educated, NPR-Listening, Tennis-Playing, Feminist, Atheist, Math Professor in Los Angeles, California
World #4 Roger Federer won his 2nd title of 2011, the 68th of his majestic career, by defeating Kei Nishikori 6-1 6-3 in Basel, Switzerland. Nishikori spoiled a 3rd consecutive year of Swiss Indoor Championship final matches between Novak Djokovic and Federer when the Japanese player handed the Serbian only his 4th defeat of the year in the semifinals. Nishikori pulled off the most stunning upset of the year by coming back from a set down to beat the World's #1 player 3-6 7-6(4) 6-0, the first player from Asia to defeat a current #1 since Paradorn Srichapan defeated Lleyton Hewitt in 2001. Federer defeated his countryman Stanislas Wawrinka 7-6(5) 6-2 in the other semifinal and notched his 21st win in 23 matches against Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals. Nishikori's path to the final included Top 10 player Tomas Berdych in the first round who he beat 3-6 6-3 6-2. The tournament was struck by a shocking amount of withdrawals, including Andy Murray and Robin Soderling.
The last Masters 1000 tournament of the year starts Monday in the Bercy suburbs of Paris. It is possible that the only player from the Top 5 in the World playing it will be Federer, as Rafael Nadal announced earlier that he was withdrawing to concentrate on the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London, where he has never done very well.
Wow! For only the fourth time this year World #1 Novak Djokovic did not win an ATP Tour match after stepping on to the court. He lost to Asia's best male player, Kei Nishikori of Japan 3-6 7-6(4) 6-0. Djokovic was two points from the win receiving 4-5, 0-30 in the second set but his the speedy Japanese playerwas able to track it down and go on to win the tiebreaker; the Serbian only won 10 points in the final set, losing his only bagel set of the year.
Djokovic is likely to pull out of the Paris Masters event starting in Bercy on Monday, but should be okay for the World ATP Tour Finals in London starting November 20th.
Congratulations to Nishikori, who will be playing for his second tour title against either Federer or Stanislas Wawrinka.
I have previously read and reviewed the first three books of the now-classic fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, by George R.R. Martin, for this blog: A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, and A Storm of Swords.
A Feast for Crows is considered by some the red-headed step child of the series so far because even though it is the most critically recognized entry in the series (nominated for the Hugo, Locus and British Fantasy Society awards although notably it failed to win any of these) it is also the book in the series which is rated the lowest by actual readers. There's a definite reason for this. A Feast for Crows was first published nearly 5 years after the publication of 2000's A Storm of Swords and the expectations of Martin's burgeoning fan base were extremely high. A Feast for Crows became the first book in the series to debut as #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and be an international publishing phenomenon. This is somewhat surprising, because several of the most popular characters from the series do not make an appearance in A Feast for Crows. Martin structures his novels as series of chapters with intersecting and overlayed points-of-views from specific characters on the same series of events. Because A Feast for Crows grew so gigantic during the five years Martin spent writing it, at some point he decided to concentrate on some of the less popular (some would say more villainous) characters in A Feast for Crows and push the perspectives of the more popular characters (Arya Stark, Tyrion Lannister, Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen to name a few) into the still-to-be-written A Dance with Dragons (which despite this headstart still took an agonizing 6 years to be published).
You'd think that the 4th entry in a series which has been decreed to be no longer than 7 books long would be concentrating on reducing the scope of the story not expanding it. If you thought that you'd be wrong, because Martin introduces several new characters who of course come with their own plots and allegiances which somehow link up to the previously revealed plots and allegiances like a slowly growing intricate spider-web or moss spreading inch by inch over a stone tomb.
The theme of the book is about power, and of course we all know absolute power corrupts absolutely. The anti-heroine of the series, Cersei Lannister Barratheon is know fully ascendant at the seat of power in King's Landing, although due to the inherent sexism (some would say misogyny) of the culture she is not officially crowned and of course does not sit on The Iron Throne, as her husband and sons have. Cersei is the kind of character readers love to hate and Martin puts her in her place somewhat, saving the coup de grace for the next book, we hope.
The plots are too numerous to summarize here, but suffice it to say that the conflict which has animated the first three books, the War of the Five Kings is quickly hurtling to a conclusion and this book is about what people do after the war is over, and how the "winners" and "losers" are both affected in its aftermath.
The one good thing about Martin pushing all the story lines of the favorite characters into A Dance with Dragons is that it makes that book an even more desirable read, and one that I will try to review shortly.
Despite the slight lull that A Feast for Crows represents in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, it still points out how salient the stories and characters that Martin has created that even the secondary characters make for a compelling read, and promise that the next book should be even more so.
Think Progressreports that the profits of Big 5 oil companies (BP, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, ExxonMobil) for just the first three quarters (9 months) of 2011 has now exceeded $102 billion dollars. That's 12 figure profits, folks!
And of course these companies still receive (and most Congressional Republicans support) billions of dollars in federal tax subsidies and of course pay very little taxes on these profits.
This is just sickening. The United States House of Representatives spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of staff and Members' time to debate and pass a meaningless measure (H.R. Con. 13) to reaffirm that the national motto is "In God We Trust" and that it should be publicly displayed. The vote was a depressing 396 to 9.
More disgustingly, only 9 Congressmembers had the guts to vote against the measure, including one Republican. Interestingly, of these 9 free thinkers three of them are my heroes: Judy Chu (API LGBT champion) and Jerrold Nadler (co-sponsor of the DOMA repeal bill) and Pete Stark (only acknowledged atheist in Congress). Interestingly, a Republican, Justin Amash also voted against the measure and gave a statement as to why which Joe.My.Godhighlights today.
The full roll call list of the 9 who voted No an the 2 who voted "present" are:
VOTING NO
Ackerman
Amash
Chu
Cleaver
Honda
Johnson (GA)
NadlerScott (VA)
Stark
VOTING "PRESENT"
Ellison
Watt
It should also be noted that Mike Honda the co-sponsor of an immigration bill that would produce immigration equality for same-sex binational couples also voted against the meaningless theocratic measure. Keith Ellison is noteworthy because he is the only acknowledged Muslim member of Congress.
This vote incenses me so much that it just doubles my intention to refocus my efforts at highlighting issues of religious freedom, atheism, agnosticism (as well as the dangers of theocracy) at this blog, at least once a week, generally on Wednesdays.
Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani is gay, she said Tuesday during an interview at The Record.
Galgiani, D-Livingston, said that by coming out now, she hopes to send a positive message to young people who are struggling to come to terms with their sexual identity
"It sickens me that young people would think about taking their lives because of who they are," Galgiani said. Galgiani, 47, said it was not until well into adulthood, after she was elected to represent the 17th Assembly District in 2006, that she knew she was gay.
This story will be pretty big in the next few days. California now has 8 openly LGBT legislators, the most of any state. It is fascinating that Galgiani would come out now, when she is running in a very competitive primary next year to join the State Senate, since she is now termed out of the Assembly.
Of voters surveyed, 55 percent indicated they would uphold a Legislature-approved same-sex marriage law if it were challenged by referendum. The poll found 38 percent would oppose the law and 7 percent were undecided.
However, additional questions in the poll found that 44 percent of voters surveyed said gays and lesbians should have the same legal right as straight couples to marry; and 22 percent said they should have the same legal rights as married couples, but it should not be called marriage.
Seventeen percent said there should be no legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples. The wide-ranging poll touched on several other issues, including the state budget shortfall.
The Washington Poll surveyed 938 registered voters statewide from Oct. 10-30. It has a plus or minus 3.2 percentage points margin of error.
There are anti-gay marriage ballot measures qualified for the 2012 election in Minnesota and North Carolina.
There are likely to be pro-gay marriages ballot measures in Maine, Maryland, Washington and possibly Oregon.
I predict that there will be more Americans living under marriage equality laws at he end of 2012 than at the end of 2011.
James Guardino is very famous for his appearances in the Undergear catalog. He is one of my favorite Eye Candy models of all time; he seems to never take a bad picture, regardless of the angle he is photographed at or what ridiculous undergarment he is modeling.
I was surprised to discover recently that James had only appeared on the blog once before, December 28, 2009.
I am very happy to rectify that situation by presenting these four images of James doing what he does so well: looking good!
Ariocarpus scaphirostris, extremely rare, occurring only on the Valley of Rayones, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. It is endangered by unscrupulous collectors... and by goats, which damage their habitat. This 2-inch plant is probably at least 8 years old -- minimum flowering age.
I was in the full throes of enthusiasm when I obtained this rather costly little plant. By enthusiasm I mean the old sense of divine inspiration, ecstasy or frenzy. This frenzy -- probably a dopamine buzz -- always grips me in the sales area at cactus and succulent plant shows. To my friends, I apologize if I seem dizzy or distracted. It's because my mind is bathed in an unseen, golden haze.
It's both embarrassing and enthralling to be an enthusiast -- almost any kind of enthusiast, but particularly a plant enthusiast. Embarrassing because it's so personal, so particular, so quaint, so... geeky. Enthralling because the object of our enthusiasm brings such immediate fascination, such transfixing attention, such passion.
As soon as you reveal a passion, you make yourself vulnerable -- this is true with any declaration of love. How much moreso with plants? For one thing, the love is always unrequited. And it's such an obscure, unusual love. It's a little like loving, say, mathematics. (Guilty!) And yet it's much more humble, more homely, almost banal... literally down in the dirt. Face it, you are out on a limb -- a plant limb -- and it feels awkward.
Same plant in full bloom 3 days later. In habitat, only the tips of the leaves (and flower) would be visible above the gypsum shale scree. (And yes, I just enjoy writing gypsum shale scree.)
Like most passions in life, if you have to explain it, no words will suffice; yet to another enthusiast, no words are necessary. The beauty of the forms, the plants' names and stories, the technical details of habitat and how to care for the plants -- these crossbeams interlock to build first a frame and then a fully furnished room in the house of one's life (or at least to take over the backyard... sorry honey!).
Today's plant, Ariocarpus scaphirostris (also spelled scapharostrus for historical reasons) is an obscure beauty -- literally obscure. In nature it spends its entire life hidden underground with only the tips of its tubercles exposed (those thick protuberances). And even its tubercles when dusty blend perfectly into the landscape, looking exactly like the shards of gypsum shale which litter its habitat.
This complete camouflage is demonstrated almost miraculously in -- of all things -- a YouTube video.
Ariocarpus scaphirostris is also obscure because it lives in such a limited area, only Valle de Rayones, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. This rare plant is endangered by collectors and, it turns out, by goats which range the slopes where it lives and damage the landscape. Luckily more and more folks in Mexico (and internationally) are coming to recognize the irreplaceable resource of Nuevo Leon's native plant life, including this almost invisible geophyte (plant living mostly underground).
Azarenka won $775,000 and will end the year at a career high #3 but continues her elusive search for a major breakthrough title, never having reached a major final. She reached the final by defeating 2011 US Open championSamantha Stosur and 2011 French Open championLi Na but losing a dead-rubber 3-set battle with Marion Bartoli (who replaced Sharapova when she withdrew after losing her first two matches).
The championship match was one of the best of the year, with Kvitova starting by playing near-flawless, powerful tennis and rushing to a 5-0 lead in the first set, which she then squandered by losing the next 5 games through spraying errors and tough-minded playing by Azarenka. Kvitova was able to stop the errors and held the 11th game and was able to finally win the first set (on her 5th opportunity) 7-5. The second set was mainly not shown by ESPN, but clearly Azarenka stepped up her play and was able to squeeze out the set 6-4 on her first set point by with a backhand line-clipper winner. The first game of the third set was crucial. Kvitova served by went down 15-40, acing two breakpoints but was able to hold serve with some clutch serving and excellent movement. In the second game, Azarenka was ahead but managed to lose her serve and fell back 2-0. She never was in the position to take a lead for the rest of the match.
Wozniacki's fragile hold on the top spot should come to an end during the first quarter of 2012 as either Kvitova or Azarenka prove the superiority of "big babe" tennis.
Now U.S. Rep. Hahn has controversially decided to run in the 44th congressional district, a district specifically designed to be "majority-minority" against U.S. Rep. Laura Richardson and Assemblymember Hall, who are both African-Americans.
Richardson’s been the subject of ethics questions recently: She’s accused of forcing her staff to work for and contribute to her campaign. She’s denied the allegations, but her fundraising dropped off in the third quarter, bringing in only $72,000 with just $116,000 in the bank. Hahn, after her special election, raised $139,000. A third Democrat, Assemblyman Isadore Hall, outraised them both with $158,000.
Very interesting. In the Los Angeles area there are a number of these intra-Democrat incumbent versus incumbent battles, the most amusing being Rep. Brad Sherman versus Rep. Howard Berman (in the new CA-30), who not only have similar sounding names but basically identical voting records.
Caroline Wozniacki, #1 player in the world, failed
to make the semifinals of the WTA Tour Championships
The final tournament of the 2011 WTA season is underway in Istanbul, the WTA Tour Championships. Although Serena Williams, Kim Clijsters and Venus Williams did not even qualify, and World #2 Maria Sharapova showed up not fully recovered from an ankle injury and withdrew (from a round-robin tournament!) after losing two matches in a row.
The once and future World #1, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark clinkched the year-end #1 spot for the second consecutive year despite never having won a major title, and this year she did not even reach the final of a major.
Despite being #1, Wozniacki was dispatched relatively easily by Petra Kvitova after splitting two hard-fought 3-set matches with Agnieska Radwanska and Vera Zvonareva. The hard-hitting Kvitova came through the round-robin rounds undefeated and Zvonareva squeaked into the last semifinal spot ahead of Wozniacki when Radwanska failed to win a set against Kvitova depite being up 5-1.
In the other half of the draw Victoria Azarenka, Samantha Stosur, Li Na and Maria Sharapova (replaced by Marion Bartoli) fought it out for two spots with Stosur and Azarenka coming through to reach the semifinals.
Mariah Carey and her husband Nick Cannon released pictures of their now 6-month old twins, Monroe Cannon and Moroccan Cannon this week by creating a website called DemBabies.com. The twins are adorable and hopefully will grow up not too scarred by having the most ridiculous celebrity baby names in recent history.
Go to DemBabies.com to see even more pictures of Nick, Mariah and the twins.
It's really not fair to compare the two series. For one thing, Harry Potter consists of seven books which are on average well over 500 pages each and take the main characters from a pre-teen innocence through teen-age angst and into full adulthood.
Here is how the author, Suzanne Collins, describes the Hunger Games:
Katniss is a 16-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, “The Hunger Games.” The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When her sister is chosen by lottery, Katniss steps up to go in her place.
By definition, The Hunger Games is a much more violent series of books than the Harry Potter books. There are deaths in both, but in The Hunger Games it becomes almost routine. Also, the fact that Katniss is 16 years old when the books begin makes the possibility of sex (or at the very least romance) a very real possibility.
The story revolves around the characters, starting with Katniss Everdeen and her little sister Primrose. Katniss has been feeding her family since her medicine woman mother was greatly affected by the death of her husband and Katniss' father. The relationships which animate the main plots in The Hunger Games is the (love?) triangle between Katniss and Peeta Mellark and Gale Hawthorne. Although love triangles have been done to death in all sorts of fiction, Collins comes up with some novel ways of handling the tension, especially since life and death situations become involved.
A Wikipedia article says that the themes of The Hunger Games are "government control, 'big brother,' and personal independence." I'm not sure that I would agree, I would say that a more precise description of the main themes are "deception, independence and authoritarianism." Basically, authoritarianism includes both the "Big Brother" aspects of the Capitol and the governmental control that it encompasses throughout the 12 impoverished districts of Panem.
The plot of the first book is based around Katniss and Peeta's experience in the Hunger Games, where the rules are kill or be killed. Obviously, at least one of them survives because there are two more books. What happens is that the scope of the books expands, although they still center around the actions of Katniss, the true goal of Collins is to demonstrate not just the change to Katniss, but also to her hometown and her whole country.
Overall, all three books are well-written and Collins skillfully maintains suspense even while the reader is pretty sure any of the characters we care about will not be killed, the body count is high, and not everyone we care about survives to the end of the third book.
Title: The Hunger Games. Author: Suzanne Collins. Paperback: 384 pages. Publisher: Scholastic Press. Date: September 14, 2008.
The government is planning to propose legislation at the beginning of the year, the Copenhagen Postreports. Manu Sareen, the coalition government's church minister, said he hopes to see same-sex marriages legalized in the Church of Denmark by Spring 2012.
Currently, gay couples are allowed to join together through "registered partnerships," a civil union, theCopenhagen Post points out. Denmark was the first country to legalize civil unions in 1989, but the couples still cannot marry in the Church of Denmark.
"I look forward to the moment the first homosexual couple steps out of the church. I'll be standing out there throwing rice," Sareen told Jyllands-Posten, a Danish newspaper.
A May 2011 article in the Copenhagen Post indicates that about 75 percent of Danes support same-sex marriages through the church. Religious leaders acknowledge the public's support for gay marriage and have expressed that a compromise -- such as a "specific marriage ritual for homosexual couples" -- might be the way to go.
This is very cool but unsurprising news. Then again, the more countries that legalize marriage equality make the progressive change more and more inevitable.
Surprising news out of Africa about homosexuality. The Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Morgan Tsvangirai has reversed himself and taken a position in opposition to President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe on whether LGBT rights should be protected under law.
Mr Tsvangirai told BBC's Newsnight programme that there was a "very strong cultural feeling" against homosexuality in Zimbabwe, but he would defend gay rights if he became president.
"It's a very controversial subject in my part of the world. My attitude is that I hope the constitution will come out with freedom of sexual orientation, for as long as it does not interfere with anybody," he told Newsnight's Gavin Esler.
"To me, it's a human right," he said.
Zimbabwe's long-time leader Mr Mugabe - a practising Christian - once said gays were "worse than pigs and dogs", sparking international condemnation.
In March 2010, Mr Tsvangirai said gay rights was not up for discussion in Zimbabwe.
