Extremism at the Gates

The Hutaree Militia: faces of the new extremism.

This morning, the news that shots were fired at the Pentagon broke. I want to direct towards you to my immediate reaction: “Man, that is one step closer to a cataclysmic attack by right wing extremists. Nut jobs.” Then I stopped myself. Was that really my first reaction? WHEN did we get to a point in this country that my mind instantaneously went there? It is probably part fear-mongering media. Oh, and part political sensationalism. It is possible, though, that another part of it might actually be realistic fear? Disturbingly, I think that might just be the case.

Right-wing anger and fringe extremism began its resurgent crescendo during the lead-up to the 2008 election. President Obama received Secret Service protection earlier than anyone else in history during an election cycle. That was just the beginning. Then came threats against Democratic lawmakers during Healthcare reform. Then the Huturee Militia. Then James von Brunn and the Holocaust Museum shooting. So what’s next? A shooting at the Pentagon? It really does not seem so off-kilter when you put the last two years in context. It’s really shocking. This is not what America is about. Clearly, fringe elements are creeping closer and closer to the middle of society.

If we broaden our scope (to include nonviolent extremism), that point becomes even more pointedly clear. Look no further than the candidacies Sharron Angle and Christine O’Donnell. Sharron Angle, taking on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in Nevada, has suggested agitated Americans could take up arms against the government, told Hispanic students that they “look more Asian” and lambasted the idea of mandated maternity leave and care for autistic childern. Christine O’Donnell, running against Chris Coons in Delaware, has discussed her dabbling in witchcraft, faltered at naming one  (ONE!!!) Supreme Court decision she did not agree with in the past two years and, just today, questioned the validity of the separation of church and state.

Sharron Angle leads Sen. Reid 50%-47%. Christine O’Donnell (mercifully) now trails Mr. Coons 51%-40%.*

No matter where your political allegiances lie, I hope we can all admit that the mere contention of these candidates in Senate races signifies a shift to the more polarized ends of the political spectrum. It would not have even been conceivable 10 years ago. But these candidates, and their chances, are real. The anger that has propelled them to prominence is real. What does it all mean? I am not entirely sure. But I do know this: extremism, of all kinds, is closer to the gates of our society and political system than any other time in the past 50 years.

We should all, Democrats and Republicans, be on notice.

*It is important to note that Delaware is much more consistently a “blue” state than Nevada.

Cocktails with the Captain

Ok, this post is a bit of a misnomer. I’m not Captain Adam and I do not have an encyclopedic knowledge of cocktail recipes. I do love America and Billy Preston, though, so I’m qualified to tell you that the Captain is ecstatic to be back! Out of commission this week due to a breakneck work schedule (“Tell them I had to drink beer with some very important people today.”), his syndicated column will be back, touching lives everywhere next Wednesday.

 

It's nice.

 

I don’t want to give away too much and burst the Captain’s triumphant return so I will keep this short and sweet. He’s back and funnier than ever. So don’t worry, you’ll have two recipes (or at least recommendations!) before you and your friends use Halloween as an excuse to get wasted! And dress provocatively. You know it’s going to happen.

I’ll leave you with his only words of the week:

“Cocktail Fodder, South Carolina football and craft beer… that’s what makes America great!”

Cocktails with the Captain

Now if they were only in a squirrel... Photo by Cowfish, 24 January 2010, Wikimedia Commons

Dear Readers,

It is has come to my attention that it might be time for us to have one of those important “Father to Son”/”Blogger to reader” heart to heart conversations. The first thing your mother (editor) and I would like to say… (awkward pause)… is that it’s ok to be curious. And, its ok to experiment and try different things. But, it’s important to remember that some mistakes will last a lifetime. It’s important to always consider the implications and ramifications of our actions; both good and bad.

Yes, I am obviously talking about tattoos. And pregnancy. But I am also talking about free beer for your entire life. That’s right y’all. The Scottish brewery BrewDog is offering free beer for the rest of your life (two beers a week) as long as you’re willing to get their logo tattooed onto your naked body. Keep in mind, this is the same company that is stuffing their beer bottles inside of road kill. These fuckers, (haha, take THAT editor) will do anything.

Peel the label back, I dare ya'll...

This isn’t the first company that’s into both booze and tattoos. In fact, one of my favorite rums on the market is named after a famous tattoo artist: Sailor Jerry Spiced Navy Rum. (Fun insider trick: Peel off the Sailor Jerry label for a surprise on the other side.)

“Distilled in the US Virgin Islands, this 92 proof spiced rum is based on the ‘customized’ rums that sailors used to create when they had nothing better to do. Other rums are panty-waisted, soul-less, and ball-less in comparison.” – Joe Bartender of JoeBartender.com

I realize that a lot of you are perfectly happy with Captain Morgan’s, but remember, it’s ok to be curious. A liter bottle should cost around $20 dollars and can be found at most liquor stores. You should buy some. Just remember that 92 proof liquor is going to give you a little extra courage… so get ready.

In closing, we at Cocktail Fodder would like to express our appreciation of gimmicks. Our resident wine blogger, AWC, is prepared to offer a very special prize for the best Cocktail Fodder body-art logo. That’s right, we are letting you, our readers, design our new logo. So break out the sharpies and cameras and email AWC, at foddertalk@gmail.com, a picture of your Cocktail Fodder body art (butt art is encouraged). We will announce the winner next week.

Cheers

The Birthers Just Don’t Quit

As we’ve already discussed at the Fodder, America seems to be a on a path of divergence so drastic that the gap between left and right is becoming too cavernous to bridge. This article is about the issue that perfectly epitomizes this divide…

The 2008 election brought out the worst in average Americans with polarizing ideologies; threats, hate crimes, slurs, etc. One of the more volatile and ludicrous theories, and flabbergastingly the one with the most staying power, to emerge from Election 2008 was the notion that President Obama was not born in the United States. It’s hard to pinpoint an exact reason, or reasons, for the traction that this rumor gained during the campaign. Most likely though, it was one part internet sensationalism, one part fear and one part Lou Dobbs; a good recipe for any absurdity to permeate a citizenry. Whatever the reason was, the Birther movement was born.

It's where it's supposed to be, in Honolulu.

Bizarrely, going on two years into the President’s term, the Birther movement may be getting stronger. Yesterday, the petulant Senator David Vitter, of scandalous infamy, was caught on video disgustingly backing progressing conservative lawsuits (just one example) challenging the legality of the President’s citizenship. We’re way past the stage of mincing words on this subject. When the Birther movement was in its nascent state, it was not taken seriously by the Obama campaign. As the story gained legs, the campaign released (acrimoniously?) a digitally scanned copy of the then candidate’s birth certificate. That should have been that. The Hawaiian State Department of Health confirmed, twice (TWICE!!), that the certificate was authentic. What more do people need? Are we to conclude the whole federal government and state government of Hawaii are involved in a massive conspiracy covering up the true birthplace of PRESIDENT Barack Hussein Obama II? That is over two million federal employees alone. That must have been one well-written memo getting everyone onboard the conspiracy train. Really, how is the Administration even supposed to prove to people, who believe so ardently in an illogical idea, that President Obama was born in the United Sates? Make photocopies of the birth certificate and send it to everyone who identifies as a Birther? I can hear it now, “THIS is a government fake! They made it up. He was born in Kenya! He was born in Indonesia! He was born in Russia!” As we like to say at the Fodder, “Just get better.”

The Seal of the most powerful man in the world. It MUST command respect, no matter what party or background one comes from.

In all of my political and international affairs posts, I try to keep a levelheaded, unbiased approach to reporting issues that we believe should be talked about. This, however, is a different subject. I have no use for it. Once upon a time, the Presidential seal demanded respect. When did that change? President Obama is the legally elected President of this great United States of America. That is a fact and the end of the story for me. Love it or hate it, that’s how it should be. It sadly isn’t.

What is clear is that there are right-wing, fringe nut-jobs that will not let the birthplace issue rest. They have a mission and they will go down swinging. Unfortunately, it seems that they will aided and abetted by irresponsible members of Congress. I say irresponsible because it is irresponsible. There is no upside in debating this issue. This is not a way to rigorously debate topics – the economy, unemployment, national debt, social security, two ongoing wars – that are plaguing our country in a time of crisis. It’s democratically damaging. It’s bad for the process and our national psyche. So I say, with all seriousness, shame on Senator Vitter, Rep. Trent Franks, Lou Dobbs, Fox News and all the rest of the media, politicians and demagogues that keep dragging this issue to national attention. This country does not need such nonsense.

Here’s a cute clip from Fox News. Not really putting the issue to rest are you Anne Coulter?

World Cup Recap #2: How the English failure to advance can be explained by history, if only Twitter was around in 2002, and why the United States team needs a complete reshuffling — starting with the coach.

In this week’s footie post, I will address the huge disappointments of the English and American World Cup campaigns and attempt to put them in perspective for the Cocktail Fodder reader. Everything else can take a backseat at the moment.

Jabulani

English Ineptitude:

Let’s begin with the English. Their failure to progress beyond the round of 16 is a classic example of a dysfunctional family of overpaid superstars put together and expected to perform when all signs already pointed to calamity; a shaky defense, mediocre goalkeeper options, and a genuine lack of leadership within the squad. (And this is only to name a few.) The pressure to bring home the World Cup trophy for the first time since 1966 hung heavily over the heads of the English players and they caved in. Players like Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney, superstars in the English Premier League, transformed into lamentable shells of themselves on the international stage in South Africa.

After their ignominious exit from the European Championship qualification round in 2008, the English soccer authorities thought it best to bring in a Continental coach with a fresh, more refined, less brutish version of the game for the English to play. As was we have seen, not even a well-dressed Italian tactician, Fabio Cappello, was up to the task of bringing glory to England. So whom is to blame for their exit? The English media are looking for scapegoats but they should look no further than history itself. Here is some Cocktail Fodder for you to use when talking about England’s early exit from the World Cup: In six of their eight last World Cups, England has been knocked out by either Germany or Argentina. From the infamous “Hand of God” by Maradona in 1986, to the most recent 4-1 drubbing at the hands of the Die Mannschaft, the English seem destined by history to continually lose to former wartime combatants in the World Cup. (I picked up this bit of fodder from the entertaining book Soccernomics. Definitely worthy of a read.) The English players are back in England, preparing themselves for another season in the most popular league in the world where the pressure to succeed is high but nowhere near the level associated with playing for country.

The Hand of God:

The 4-1 Drubbing:

The Great Deception

The United States failure in the round of 16 against Ghana was a major step backwards; a blunt reminder of how much work is yet to be done for the country to be taken seriously on the international stage.

Just when one thought the team had effectively turned the corner by winning their group for the first time since 1930, they were quick to revert to being uncreative, mediocre, and one-dimensional; a team unsure how to carry itself and play with confidence. Let me put it bluntly: The 2010 United States soccer team was grossly overhyped due to heightened media coverage. Social media tools, Twitter and Facebook especially, attracted large numbers of soccer converts and casual watchers to take an interest in the cup. The team’s pluck and never-say-die ethos resonated with the general public. This unfortunately imbued them with a belief that the team could actually go far. The party was rocking with high levels of patriotism (red meat anyone?), but the team was destined to fall short.

The high-water mark for the USMNT* was in 2002. In that World Cup, they actually beat a European powerhouse in Portugal and advanced all the way to the quarter-finals only to be robbed of a place in the semifinals by the opportunistic hand of a German. Does anyone even remember who played on that team? Here’s something to think about: Imagine if the 2002 World Cup of South Korea and Japan was held in Europe where there is a shorter time difference and social media tools were as pervasive as today? Would the level of participation, funding, and general excitement surrounding the beautiful game be more significant today? Hard to say, but I am inclined to say yes. What do you think?

US-Portugal:

Robbed by Germany:

What needs to change:

What needs to change in order for the United States to realize its potential? First, the American coach must be replaced by a European—preferably German or Dutch—manager who will be charged with restructuring the team to run with purpose, while conserving energy, and make the ball do the bulk of the work. An American coach should be involved as an understudy to the European to learn the game. Issues of strength, conditioning and nutrition should be kept in American hands. (We are, at least, very good at this.) Second, if the United States wants a winner, they need to take it seriously and correctly finance the program. As Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski rightly state in Soccernomics, “If only Americans took soccer seriously, the country’s fabulous wealth and enormous population would translate into dominance.” With a population of 307 million plus and large immigrant communities from such soccer crazy continents like South America and Africa, there is a surplus of potential soccer stars out there.

The underlying problem with soccer in the United States was astutely underscored by former German national team player and coach Jurgen Klinsman in the post-match segment of the USA vs Ghana matchup last week. America’s first touch–how a player receives and handles the ball when passed it—was inferior to other teams. The first touch in the rest of world is the beginning of a love affair; playing the game becomes second nature and a daily occurrence. Why is this? To keep it short, generally speaking at least, soccer is seen elsewhere in the world as a viable vehicle of social mobility from the lower to upper classes of society. If one has the potential, at least. Children in Brazil are scouted at a young age and whisked to soccer schools where they receive an education, hone their skills on the field, and become upstanding citizens. Here in the United States – football, baseball, and basketball – are the preferred vehicles of social advancement. This is highlighted by the absurd amounts of money the average player makes. As a result, youth soccer players only see the sport as a way to potentially attend a great collegiate soccer program and receive a top education for their life after sports. This is nothing to scoff at but it drastically changes the soccer culture of our country. Can we make those changes? I do not know. We should try though.

*USMNT: United States Men’s National Team