The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age
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    Burning Questions

    By DF on Fri, 11/28/2008 - 3:52pm | Potpourri

    Not to steal any of the Dead One's thunder, but I'm going to do my own thing here with some questions that are on my mind.  There won't be ten of them, but rather the exact number that are on my mind at the time.  I also don't expect any answers.  Consider them rhetorical if you wish or offer your thoughts.  It's up to you.  Here goes.

    Why can't Barack Obama close the deal?

    It's funny how Obama is already getting pilloried.  The dude hasn't even been sworn in yet and the judgement is coming down.  I have a feeling that he's going to be under a copious amount of scrutiny, which brings me to my next question.

    Is America prepared to be pragmatic?

    Obama talked a lot about hope during his campaign.  I'm sort of ambivalent when it comes to hope.  Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.  However, I do hope that the election of Obama is a signal that Americans are ready to step away from hardened ideology and toward a more pragmatic approach to problem solving.

    Is Dubya the lamest of lame ducks?

    To quote a great man, "'Nuff said."

    Can the past year's wild fluctuation in the price of crude oil really conmensurate with fluctuations in demand?

    I'm still working this one out, but it takes me back to this post that I wrote in June over at TPM.

    When Battlestar Galactica returns in January, will I still care as much as did when the season break began?  Will Ron Moore's vision have a resolution that is worthy of the expectations he's created?

    I'm thinking that it'll probably suck me right back in.  It's a great story with great characters and a ton of conflict left to resolve.  Moore has given himself plenty to work with, but unless the resolution is tight it could end up feeling like the Matrix sequels with plenty of philosophical spaghetti thrown and nothing sticking.

    Bonus question for those who follow BSG: Who (or what) is the final Cylon?

    Though I've heard plenty of amusing speculation, I've got my money on Gaius Baltar.  I wish Intrade had a prediction market open for this one.

     

    Ponder these questions in solitude or fire away with your thoughts.

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    BO: I don't think that the scrutiny of Obama is unusual, though it may be exaggerated because of the state of the economy and the historic interest in the 2008 election. But Clinton had already suffered serious fallout from some of his appointments.

    W: I give him credit for consistency.

    Oil: I don't see how speculation cannot be a factor. Is it feasible for the government to raise the capital gains tax on specific commodities to squeeze speculation? Is there any precedent for that? Or would that just exclude Americans from the the speculation?

    BSG: The question of Baltar's Cylon-ness has been too belabored for it to be him. I had originally assumed Starbuck after the eye of Jupiter thing and her disappearance, not to mention Simon's obsession with her, but since they didn't reveal it immediately, it now seems too obvious too. Still, I don't see how they can explain that stuff if she's not the Cylon. That said, I'm actually more interested in the grand plan behind the final five. It's very hard to pull off brilliant pupper master scenarios with any plausibility, and with every episode the coincidences seem ever more miraculous. So I'm expecting to be ultimately disappointed but still holding out hope.


    by Michael Wolraich on Fri, 11/28/2008 - 4:59pm

    I've pondered this a bit more.  Two things occurred to me.  One  is that it's probably a lot harder to judge whether the scrutiny is elevated here in the moment.  Also, the medium through which we're communicating right now is the source of much of that criticism and it didn't exist when Clinton was getting ready to take office in '92.

    Oil going up was a great bet.  I don't see why you'd stay away from it if you're willing to speculate on commodities.  As far as attempting to regulate speculation domestically, I don't see how this works in a global market.

    RE: Cylons, I'm still wondering about another possibility.  Could the fifth be one of the babies?


    by DF on Sun, 11/30/2008 - 1:38pm

    I'm wondering how the five managed to make it onto the right ship. Frankly, the discovery of the five has changed the nature of show for the worse. The desperate flight of a "ragtag, fugitive fleet," which was the core of the original show, has been replaced by the unfolding of some mastermind's grand plan.


    by Michael Wolraich on Sun, 11/30/2008 - 9:13pm

    If it is true that a Cylon has never "really lied" to a human then it has to be  Adm. Adama. Because Leoben told the prez he was early on. Perhaps long ago enough that we might all have forgotten about it.


    by O¿O in the crowd (not verified) on Fri, 12/12/2008 - 7:34pm

    Having not watched BSG in years, like, since the Richard Hatch version...wait, no.  I tried the new version a few years ago on SciFi but didn't like it....

    Anyway, seeing this post by the "face in the crowd" guy, and knowing that BSG had some interesting religious overtones, is it safe to say that perhaps Cylons are the equivalent of the serpent in Genesis?

    The serpent never "really lied" to a human either, no?

     


    by LisB on Fri, 12/12/2008 - 10:03pm

    I think oil was driven very high as investors sought refuge in supposedly bubble-proof commodities. Notice that even with reduction in demand, prices haven't dropped back to the $21/bbl level that had been the median (inflation-adjusted) for the past 100 years.


    by Donal on Sun, 11/30/2008 - 1:36pm

    My money has been on Gaius forever for one reason:  when the Cylons nuked New Caprica, the only thing between Gaius and the blast was the Cylon and she was killed and came back.  He wasn't - he can't be human.  If Gaius isn't the last Cylon, then they  are going to have to explain that opening scene to me, where the blast hits and she's standing there and Gaius is crouched down in front of her.

     

     


    by Tena (not verified) on Sat, 12/13/2008 - 10:46am