The White Working Class.
Lost in all the coverage last night about how shocking it is that 33% of Hillary’s supporters in Kentucky would support John McCain in the Fall instead of Obama is the fact that, in 2004, 42% of white working class Democrats voted for George Bush over John Kerry. Same thing in 2000, give or take a point. Not only is the percentage basically the same as it always is (these are folks who are generally registered as Democrats for a lot of reasons, but then go on to vote Republican in the general election, largely over cultural issues) but if the percentage willing to vote for Obama actually did vote for him, he’d do better than Gore or Kerry. Norah O’Donnell I thank you! And this all assumes that people will do in November what they say right now to pollsters in a total vacuum that ignores the fact that there are going to be five months of campaigning between now and then.
I’ve never MET a working-class white male, of course, except for that one time at the Bike Stop in Philly (rawr. And thank you!) but if I see one somewhere and he’s on a lunch break I’ll make sure I ask him what he thinks. Also as Stirling pointed out, Oregon is full of dumb ass crackers. Dude. You are white hard working white class people! You were supposed to vote for the white person!
Best Comment Ever
A few months ago I wrote a post about the awesome and heavily hair-ironed band Tokio Hotel. Much to my surprise it probably remains the most trafficked Pinko post ever, largely because many thousands of excited fans have Google Alerts set for “Tokio Hotel,” which I am glad to “ping,” as they say. I’ve actually given up on writing about politics and instead am devoting all of my free time from this day forward to somehow snapping some fleshy photos of Bill and Tom (of “Tokio Hotel”) in a shower and/or dressing room and/or locker room, since clearly it would be a web-traffic gold mine. It would also land me in jail. I should really stop blogging now.
ANYWAY, in the interests of rewarding our readers I think sometimes we should surface amazing comments; as such, I wanted to shout out to Alison Kaulitz for her awesome defense of her band and of teenage girls everywhere, who I never meant to stereotype. Accordingly, if this post leads to 20 Tokio Hotel fans signing up for our email list (upper right corner … yep … right up there!) I promise I’ll blog about Tokio Hotel once a month, and we’ll add an inexplicable yet respectful Tokio Hotel Watch to our categories. Go!
[Editors note: While we're on the subject of shamelessly generating web traffic .... RON PAUL. Ron Paul. Ron Paul's favorite band is Tokio Hotel. Ron Paul for President. RON F-ING PAUL.]
Oh: Alison’s awesome comment, after the jump:
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BREAKING: John Cusack’s War Inc. Premiere Marred by Racist Looting!
So last night was an advance screening at the New York Film Academy of John Cusack’s new film on Blackwater war privatization and profiteering, War Inc., starring fucking Hillary Duff HOW GREAT IS THAT!? Anyway, things were going smoothly for maybe like, a minute when the sound stopped synching up with the film, followed by 8 minutes of intermittent silence. Realizing that the fucked up projection and random silence weren’t part of Cusack’s vision, some NYFA bigwigs and War Inc’s publicist confronted the flummoxed projectionist, when apparently all hell broke loose.
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You got fries with that shake?
Zen Burger
465 Lexington Ave,
New York, NY
(212) 834-4640
This years Veggie Pride Parade had anthropomorphic broccoli, anthropomorphic peas and carrots, and anthropomorphic farm animals. It even had a giant meat eater’s colon on sticks. Giving voice to the voiceless and all that…
One particular stand out, the one that had me schlepping all the way to Lexington Avenue during my lunch hour, was the anthropomorphic burger and it’s promise of vegetarian junk food. On the whole, it was worth the trip.
Zen Burger is a vegetarian fast food restaurant with everything that implies. The burger I had was good, but the fries and golden peach iced tea were the real stars. Oh, and they’ve got vegan soft-serve. I know. Crazy.
My biggest complaint was that the burger I got was the only vegan sandwich option. They’re all vegetarian, but only the “ZenHarvest Burger” gets the big V. I enjoyed it, but I couldn’t help craving the chipotle sauce and crispy onion rings of the “Southwestern ZenBeef Burger”. Still, if you get a big mac attack, but you don’t want a big heart attack, you might want to check Zen Burger out
Pinko Recommends: The vegan soft-serve (What? I know!)
Ideal for: Eastside veggie and veggie-curious lunchers, anthropomorphic hungry people, vegetarians raised on turnpike faire
Did they report your graffiti binge? Ask Everyblock.
It’s a pretty understandable urge: You move, and once you’re settled in you want to know everything there is to know about your new block. Were there killings? Were those killings carnal and/or grisly? Is there a sure-sign-of-gentrification-beer-garden opening on the corner? Were there killings (grisly or carnal) AT the beer garden on the corner? Is the beer garden infested with rats and/or locusts, and if so is that property currently for sale?
About a month ago I moved to a new apartment in Prospect Heights in Brooklyn (11238) and since then I’ve been obsessed with Everyblock, a site that aggregates a range of seemingly disparate news (restaurant reviews, building permit violations, crime reports, cycling events) into one concise email, site visit or RSS feed. Right now it’s only up and running for Chicago, San Francisco and New York, but the basic idea is fantastic. From the Everyblock site:
“What’s happening in my neighborhood?” For a long time, that’s been a tough question to answer… the number of daily media reports, government proceedings and local Internet conversations is staggering. Every day, a wealth of local information is created — officials inspect restaurants, journalists cover fires and Web users post photographs — but who has time to sort through all of that? Our mission at EveryBlock is to solve that problem. We aim to collect all of the news and civic goings-on that have happened recently in your city, and make it simple for you to keep track of news in particular areas. We’re a geographic filter — a “news feed” for your neighborhood.
My friend Paul is one of the innovators behind Everyblock, and he told me that they are particularly proud of the fact that the site (currently) feeds in 29 different data types directly from government sources, most of which wasn’t previously available online. In my feed today I learned some depressing stuff: 9 grand auto larcenies last week within 8 blocks of my house. (Yikes!) But I also learned that Lil’ Miss Muffin serves a hot hot lemon poppyseed (oh my god does she ever) AND that there is a reward for a lost yorkie (okay that’s depressing too) AND that the cycling hours in Prospect Park have changed for the Spring AND that there is a raging debate over porn in libraries. (The debate being “more vs. lots more,” I hope.) Also, all of Park Slope is apparently freaking out about new parking rules. They should park within 8 square blocks of my house; that would solve it right quick.
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Odd Headline of the Day
The stuff of Bob Hope to be auctioned in October (AP) - 1 hour ago
No Fatties, Please
So the NAAFA people have finally been revealed for the evil geniuses they are. We at last have an answer to that age old question: Are fat people causing global warming? A new report says so. The letter, which ran in The Lancet, claims that fat people consume more (18% more calories than non-fatties), drive more, and push up the cost of food and gas to maintain their fatness. So the poor can’t eat and fuel costs surge. The rising middle class in China and India is creating an epidemic of obesity across Asia, which will put the world’s obese population at 700 million by 2015. The Fat Activist Task Forces have been with us all this time: living, working, and sweating beside us in line at IHOP, plotting our undoing.
There is hope, though! Aside from mandatory Wii Fit sessions, urban planning that promotes walking and cycling will reduce fuel consumption, cut greenhouse gases, and slim down those waddling heifers of our doom.
Toads Predicted China Earthquake
A China buff lamented yesterday that the nation’s technological prowess had devolved. “Why, if the Chinese had come to know so much about earthquakes so early on in their immensely long history, were they never able to minimize the[ir] effects?” Why couldn’t they predict even a humongous earthquake like this one?
Maybe they could. Or, at least, their toads could. The buzz in the Chinese blogosphere is that two days before the quake, toads invaded a Sichuan Province town called Mianzhu. The mass migration was seen as an ill omen. Residents were scared, but officials dismissed it as completely normal toad behavior.
Toads weren’t the only creatures to outdo Chinese authorities in forecasting the earthquake. Cows flung themselves into fences, zebras banged their heads into doors, elephants threatened to bruise unwitting humans with their flailing trunks, lions and tigers paced, and peacocks screeched.
When certain seismologists did predict a quake, higher-ups prevented them from making the news public. One Chinese Internet user who claimed to have a relative working in the Provincial Seismological Bureau wrote: “My uncle called me some time ago and told me about the earthquake warning signs, but the Bureau didn’t allow them to release the information and stressed the need to ensure stability before the Olympics.” Right, I forgot, an impending disaster would totally hamper the hoped for turnout at the summer Olympics.
Vegetarians in Greenwich Village (What? I Know!)
Don’t you hate it when vegetarians run around like “Hey! I’m a vegetarian! Look at me!”?
No? You love that? Me too! Have I got an event for you!
The First Veggie Pride Parade in America will take place in Greenwich Village Tomorrow (Sunday, May 18th). The procession will begin at Noon and go from the intersection of 9th Ave., Gansevoort St., Greenwich St., and Little West 12th St. (gotta love the village) and end in Washington Square Park.
Starting at 1pm, following the parade, there will be a festival with live music, speakers, and exhibitions. Local restaurants and vegetarian groups will be representing and generally kicking it veg-style. Pinko Magazine will be there in full force (as observers) and we’ll be reporting back on all the days events.
For more info, check out veggieprideparade.org.
Today was NYC Bike To Work Day.
And the heavens rained down.
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