Mike Bloomberg’s $100,000,000 self-financed mayoral campaign is probably unstoppable (leading by 12 points in the latest CNN poll). I’ve received close to a tree’s worth of fliers in the past few months from the mayor, and just yesterday I got three robo-calls from Bloomberg. But Bill Thompson, the Democratic candidate, has left me totally uninspired. The Green party candidate, Billy Talen (Reverend Billy) if nothing else is inspiring. Give the Green party some mayoral love and vote straight Democratic otherwise.
November 4th, 2008. In the area around the Army recruiting station, ABC has several large video screens and their news center. A large crowd of what was probably 99% Obama supporters spontaneously gathered to watch the election results together. I included three clips from Obama’s victory speech, dubbed over the video.
Times Square is the traditional place for New Yorkers to gather for the observance and marking of big events. I knew there would be the large video displays of the election results, that it would be bright enough there for my camera to shoot video. Around 9:30 when I could see that the results would tip soon, I took the F train to Times Square.
For the most part the crowd could not hear what was being said on the screens. I was able to hear the speeches with my trusty battery powered portable transistor radio, way out-of-sync with the various video feeds displayed around me. I’m surprised no one in that large crowd thought to bring a boombox. It was interesting being there, but there was little cohesion to the crowd. Video was flashing 360 degrees. Animated Budweiser ads displayed over the NBC feed all night. The ABC camera crane swooped over our heads, generating random screams and waves at the camera at intervals. I’m glad I was there to witness history, and get this video, but it would have been good to hear the speeches along with a crowd actually listening to the words. ABC had a sound system that boomed out over the street, but it must have been highly directional. It was only a muffled background cadence when I was a half-block away.
Marc-Antoine Audette and Sebastien Trudel, aka “The Masked Avengers” prank-call Sarah Palin, with a Pepé Le Pew accent, leading her to think she was talking to French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The best part is that they couldn’t get her to hang up before they ran out of material.
I think McCain must be a secret Obama supporter. Why else would the 72 year-old candidate choose such an obvious ditz as VP.
FNS: Well, ah, I hope for you. You know we have a lot in common because personally one of my favorite activities is to hunt too.
SP: [Giggle]o h very good, we should go hunting together.
FNS: Exactly! We could go try hunting by helicopter, like you did, I never did that.
SP: [Giggle]
FNS: Like we say in France, “on pourrait tuer des bébés phoques aussi” [Translation: We could also kill some baby seals.]
SP: [Giggle] Well I think we could have a lot of fun together as we’re getting work done, we can kill two birds with one stone that way.
FNS: I just love killing those animals. Mm, mm. Take away a life, that is so fun!
SP: [Hahahaha]
FNS: I’d really love to go as long as we don’t bring your Vice president Cheney, hahaha.
SP: No, I’ll be a careful shot, yes.
FNS: I must say, Governor Palin, I love the documentary they made on your life, you know, Hustler’s “Nailin Palin.”
SP: Oh, good, thank you. Yes.
FNS: That was really edgy.
SP: [Laughs] Well good.
