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boston area events of note:


thursday, january 8th

forest henderson

the new collisions

the lights out

sir q

@ great scott


saturday, january 10th

head automatica

radio 4

@ great scott


sunday, january 11th

whistlejacket

voxhaul broadcast

local natives

the union line

@ tt the bears


monday, january 12th

varsity drag

the rationales

nate rogers (ex-scamper)

@ tt the bears


thursday, january 15th

illinois

@ great scott


thursday, january 15th

the raveonettes

@ the paradise


friday, january 16th

dear leader

hallelujah the hills

faces on film

@ the paradise


saturday, january 17th

the rosebuds

the love language

the fatal flaw

@ the middle east downstairs


sunday, january 18th

frightened rabbit

@ great scott


sunday, january 18th

department of eagles

@ the brattle theatre


saturday, january 24th

longwave

wheat

bon savants

@ great scott


saturday, january 24th

arts at the armory benefit

mission of burma

the neighborhoods

@ the somerville theatre


saturday, january 24th

vic chesnutt

elf power

@ the middle east


tuesday, january 27th

annuals

jessica lee mayfield

what laura says

@ the paradise


friday, january 30th

andrew bird

loney dear

@ the orpheum


wednesday, february 4th

the pretenders

@ the orpheum


thursday, february 5th

illinois

mean creek

you can be a wesley (cd release)

@ great scott


wednesday, february 11th

the godfathers

@ the middle east down


friday, february 13th

los campesinos!

@ the paradise


saturday, february 14th

animal hospital

travels (cd release!)

arms & sleepers

mary page

@ pa's lounge


sunday, february 15th

the pains of being pure at heart

pants yell!

the depreciation guild

@ the middle east upstairs


sunday, february 15th

fujiya & miyagi

@ the paradise


wednesday, february 18th

m. ward

@ the somerville theatre


saturday, february 21st

norm macdonald

@ the wilbur theatre


tuesday, february 24th

ben kweller

the watson twins

@ the somerville theatre


tuesday, february 24th

tapes 'n tapes

wild light

@ the paradise


wednesday, february 25th

comedian eugene mirman

'the will to whatevs' book tour

@ the brookline booksmith


thursday, february 26th

jimmy eat world

'clarity 10th anniversary tour'

@ the new house of blues


thursday, february 26th

blizten trapper

alela diane

@ the paradise


saturday, february 28th

swirlies!

gregory & the hawk

@ the middle east up


saturday, february 28th

fountains of wayne (acoustic)

everyday visuals (acoustic)

@ the paradise


saturday, march 7th

airborne toxic event

alberta cross

henry clay people

@ the paradise


wednesday, march 11th

fleetwood mac

@ the garden


saturday, march 14th

throwing muses

screaming females

50 foot wave

@ the middle east downstairs


saturday, march 14th

a.c. newman (new pornographers)

with dent may & his

magnificent ukulele

@ the paradise


sunday, march 29th

morrissey

@ the house of blues


visit tourfilter for more shows




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Blog Directory - Blogged

Friday, July 30, 2004

Done DNC

The party's party is over, delegates are waking up from hope-filled hangovers, ready to flee Boston on a hot, hazy Friday morning. The imposed exile from my downtown office has ended as well, so I'm back in cube-land after too work-from-home days. Felt good to wake up early, shave off my WFH-DNC beard, and head back into the city for a dose of the normal routine.

As a Boston-based (and fairly politically-inclined) blogger, I had an opportunity to offer up my running take on the goings on during this surreal week... but I felt oddly ambivalent towards the whole big show. Besides, there was so much ridiculous hype about convention-blogging that it had no appeal to me whatsoever. I was happy to sit back, check the rss feeds, and stay outta the fray, even shying away from a couple of DNC-related events I had invites to. Things I normally would have loved to check out.

I think the whole weeding out process got to me, my initial enthusiasm built up and peaked during my full-on support of the Dean campaign, and disappeared with his chances. Even before the scream heard 'round the land, I was becoming disillusioned not just with a couple of his stances on certain issues, but with the systematic picking-apart of his candidacy by opponents and fellow party-members alike. While no candidate will likely match all my opinions on every policy, I initially thought Dean came closer than Kerry, and could offer up real change. I started believing this less and less as time went on, and as a pragmatist, began seeing his chances fade as the primaries approached. Time proved it to be true, and even though I'm firmly in the "anybody but Bush" camp, it's tough to get truly excited about someone I'm not completely behind.

That said, I refuse to waste my vote. In less desperate times, I wouldn't compromise myself by voting for someone I didn't wholeheartedly believe in. But times simply cannot get more desperate than they are now. We must not use this election to make statements that will not be heard, like so many small trees in too many endless forests. Maybe that time will come, perhaps in four years if Kerry does not live up to the words of last night's defining speech.

Before that, though, we must rid ourselves of Bush, relegate him to the history books, and voting for Nader, or one of the lesser-known candidates, especially a write-in, will not help accomplish that. It's an idealistic choice that in any other time I might admire, but no longer. The last election taught us the reality of such decisions, and we cannot forget the lessons we've learned, the tragic results of a presidency given to the wrong man at the wrong time. It's time to right that wrong, and if John Kerry is the man to do it, I'm in.

His speech last night makes it easier to do so. He's obviously come a long way over this long campaign, and his words actually fanned the political flames that Barak Obama's DNC-defining speech ignited in me. Obama sparked hope I hadn't felt since Dean's flame-out, made me sit up and pay closer attention during the second half of the convention. I can't wait to see where this guy's political road takes him.

The cynical side of me wanted to dismiss this whole pol-apalooza as a waste of money, resources, and time... a serious inconvenience to Boston residents and businesses alike, contrived fakery designed to clean-up a fragmented party like the fresh pavement, flowers, and coats of paint that magically appeared all over our city last week. To make things seem that much prettier to those looking in.

In the end, the optimist in me returned. I finish this week with a renewed sense of hope... a positive, if still fairly guarded, outlook on the months ahead. I know the dirty stuff is imminent... the right-wing ambushes loom, the behind-closed-doors scheming is in progress. I say let 'em come, let the cornered attack dogs do their worst before we put them down. Three more months. Just three short months before we move on.





random mp3s of the moment
week of december 29th, 2008

dirty on purpose
live at the middle east
in cambridge, ma
on october 11th, 2008

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