Everybody Loves Abraham

Prior to November, the only known photo of President Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg was one that was literally stumbled upon by a National Archives employee in the early 1950s. Now, Civil War hobbyist John Richter has discovered what might be two additional stereographs of Lincoln in a similar happenstance fashion. Pouring over recently digitized Library of Congress pictures of out sheer geeky, boyhood interest in the event, he noticed a procession that should have included Lincoln. Sure enough, upon receiving higher resolution images, he located what he believes to be our 16th President on horseback en route to the stage where he would deliver his timeless Address. Officially, the jury is still out. But after a bit of initial skepticism, I do believe we finally have two additional images of Lincoln on the defining day of his Presidency.



So yes, when I was first alerted to the images’ existence by Bessie Stone's Cricket Dilemma, I doubted that it was actually Honest Abe. Reasons ranged from the laborious nature of the still relatively rare technology in 1863 to the reservations a history major such as myself has with labeling any other tall man that happened to be wearing a stovepipe hat that day a Commander-in-Chief. But when I finally saw the authentic digitized images in their entirety, and not just versions cropped to only include the shadowy Lincoln figure, it became markedly clear that it was Abe. Technically, this is because although somewhat obstructed, it’s plain to see that the tall figure in question is participating in some sort of ceremonial convoy, which obviously makes it far more likely that it’s actually the President. But on a more subconscious level, the complete image captures a moment which Verlyn Klinckenborg of the New York Times adeptly describes as an ephemeral moment in their present... The procession, Lincoln, and the events of the day are relatively unimportant – Those in the foreground seem much more interested in the "newfangled contraption" that is the photographer’s instrument than the history unfolding behind them. Beyond that, this whole event is just a respite in that little civil disagreement that still needs to worked out. Lincoln is a polarizing figure even in the North, and the office no longer holds the same infallibility it did in its early years. Additionally, it's still a highly accessible position - Anybody can walk up to the front door of the unfenced White House and pester Lincoln for jobs or handouts. All of this definitely lends these images an air of unrivaled authenticity - Stuff like this cannot be fabricated.

So every history professor I've ever had - from Mr. Greenburg to the divine Miss Caroline Sherman - was absolutely right when pleading with us to always look at the big picture for proper context. It's only fitting that such a literal example is what it takes to hammer that idea home permanently.

But getting back to Lincoln, the Gettysburg Address is truly remarkable, and the fact that an ill Lincoln thought it bombed makes it even more special. Gore Vidal and other legitimate historians, after shooting down the popular myth that Lincoln penned the Address on the back of an envelope on the train ride up from D.C., recently validated a persistent legend in which Lincoln is said to have dejectedly plopped down after an audience stunned by the brevity of his remarks withheld applause, turned to a friend, and said the Address fell on them like a "wet blanket."

It could be the Address's conciseness that speaks to you – in just 10 sentences and 272 words Lincoln was able to capture the essence of what was then the bloodiest conflict in human history and certainly this nation’s darkest hour. It could be the inspired Biblical allusions. Or it could even be the brutally honest tone of the whole thing – Whereas many contemporary leaders go out of their way to paint an artificially rosy picture of any given situation, Lincoln acknowledges both the soul-crushing carnage of the conflict and the gravity of what is at stake – the very survival of the United States of America and its unique government "of the people, by the people, and for the people." He honors those who had lost their lives on the sprawling battlefields, and masterfully motivates the war-weary survivors in both the military and civilian ranks by calling on them to make those deaths and all the work our Founding Fathers had done "four score and seven years ago" true sacrifices; not in vain. It practically reads like a script from a Rocky movie... "It’s about how hard you can get hit; how much you can take and keep moving forward..."

Keeping with the cheesy movie theme... Although it's probably passe to lift a quote from a critically reviled Disney popcorn franchise, the Nick Cage character in the National Treasure sequel sums up the Gettysburg legacy perfectly - "Before Lincoln, it was 'The United States are...' Since Lincoln, it's always been 'The United States is.'" But you know what? Screw it. Unlike certain contributors to this blog, I don't always cast a scornful eye towards the heartland. There's a reason why the nation (and, just in case you've forgotten in this divisive age, that word encompasses all kinds of towns from Boise and Billings to liberal Xanadus like Boulder and Burlington) has made these two movies so immensely popular - Americans are still fiercely proud of their past and secretly hope contemporary leaders are capable of finding guidance and inspiration from the lives those great men and women that have gone before. I believe this is why these two blurry photographs have been the subject of so much fascinated discussion. And perhaps I shop at the Watergate so much because I find it oddly comforting to know that this actually happened at 4:00am on May 9, 1970.

Beyond "Dick Nixon," look no further than the March on Washington and MLK's "I Have a Dream" Speech. Or the groundbreaking Marian Anderson concert that some claim sparked the Civil Rights movement in earnest. Or even Forrest and Jenny's fictional embrace in the Reflecting Pool. It's just one of those quintessentially American views. And it's all because everybody loves Abraham. Or, at the very least, the hope and equality his legend has come to embody.

On that note, D.C. being what it is, I think the first thing I'll do after making my way back down I-95 is take a little walk over to our nation’s perpetually stirring shrine to the man and read the Address under his watchful eye...That's the thing about this City - As great as the myriad, inspired cultural offerings can be, it's almost expected of a major metropolitan area, especially one with such an inescapable international presence and reach. Our uniqueness stems from being able to take advantage of the pleasant historical surprises that would otherwise be overlooked by locals caught up in the grind of work, school, poverty, or even that flourishing bar scene.

I guess it’s also pretty 'unique' to be jolted out of a deep sleep on a regular basis by Cheney’s motorcade gunning it down Virginia Ave. at 6:45am, but that’s a different issue altogether.

road trip

Hi. I'm driving across the country. The reason is not really important, but rather this gives me a chance to see the country. Unfortunately, the nature of my trip precludes me from spending time sightseeing, but I get to see everything within sight from route 80 and whatever else crosses my path. I've made it from DC, out west about 2100 miles in 5 days, with stops in CT, the Pitts, Ohio, Chicago, the Iowa/Nebraska border, and Colorado. And now after resting a few days for Christmas, I'll be heading out tomorrow morning. Hopefully, ahead of a snowstorm. This, after I spent about half of the drive from Chicago through Iowa in the snow storm that plastered the midwest. Luckily for me, it passed north of me, but I still felt some of the effects.



So, I neglected to stop at a gas station before I left Chicago on the 23rd, and almost ran out of gas until I found this gas station in western Illinois. It was 16 degrees F, low visibility, windy, and ridiculously rural. Due to the storm, for about 100 miles west of Chicago, there was an average of 5 cars per mile that had skidded off the road and were stuck and abandoned in the snow.

Nice sunset though.




I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays, Awesomeville!

I'm on to New Mexico tomorrow, and Las Vegas the next day. Some more pics, as I see interesting things. No lawn gnome, but maybe I'll photoshop one in.

Merry Christmas From Eye Street!

And from our favorite neighbor*

*That is, after the presumably lovely, hip, and needlessly lonely Swedish Embassy intern/Shibu subletter Jo, of course.

Mitchell Report

Here is something to take your mind off the Mitchell Report, at least for a few minutes:

One Application of the Shotgun Method

Hi. Trying to get into blogging. Trying not to use pronouns.

But seriously. Among other things, I hate the following: puppy dogs, ice cream, and apple pie (strangely enough I like apple pie a la mode).

Over the past month, I've thought of possible subjects for blog entries. I've thought, what kind of entry will be thought-provoking and show my thoughtfulness on important thought-provoking subjects? This didn't get me far, because, well, I haven't written an entry since my introduction post. Therefore, I've decided to cast a wide net. To use the shotgun approach, so to speak. The idea is to write a bunch of entries, and maybe a few of them will be of a quality I had set out to produce, and the rest will be residue of the process. I'll learn a few things, and maybe the reader will gain some insights along the way. We can't all be Matt Drudge.

But more seriously...there's been an idea floating around that upsets me. This idea may or may not be inherent in human beings as a species, but it doesn't mean that it's the way to go about things. It is based on the assumption that one's beliefs are always correct, and that to see another side or change one's beliefs is weak or wishy-washy. Self preservation seems like a motivation here. One's existence has its foundation from one's own belief system and therefore, one will fight like hell to keep it in tact. However, it does become ridiculous when one starts to distort reality, facts, etc. in order to preserve that belief system. That's delusional. But we all are delusional to some extent.

All I ask is that people be open-minded, think logically, and try to be as objective as possible when considering arguments that conflict with one's belief system.

And, no offense to the redhead that a certain contributor on this blog likes to post pics of, but I don't get it. I'll try to see his side, but I see the facts, and they don't add up for me. I think I'm more of an





















guy.

Over-rated! (Clap, Clap, Clap-Clap-Clap)

Because it’s not a true blog until one of its contributors starts acting like a cranky old codger and because a few finals this week would have distracted me from my quota – Remember quotas, Mustachioed Hostelkeeper?

Keith Olbermann - Entertainment is probably the best way to categorize these ridiculous "Special Comments" that litter the liberal blog rolls every month or so. I don’t understand how simply holding a certain point of view excuses the bombastic, juvenile, and downright nauseating manner in which he presents it. Isn't this the type of thing he gets on his perceived "rival" for? Seriously Keith, put down the thesaurus, take a Xanax, and shut the fuck up. You’re not carrying on the legacy of Edward R. Murrow. You’re only dragging the level of political discourse in the country down even further. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that he broadcasts out of New York City - I’m proud that most Beltway insiders couldn’t give two shits about him and that the American viewing audience continues to tune him out on a consistent basis.

Nevertheless, it’s good to see him doing sports highlights again – they’re probably the only bright spot of an otherwise redundant and increasingly pointless Football Night in America.

The WGA Strike – Letterman’s regrettable absence notwithstanding, I’m reading and writing more, catching up on the Netflix queue, getting a good 7 hours of sleep every night, and have even become borderline competitive at Wii golf. I don’t know about you, but I’m in no rush to see unbearably schmaltzy monologues from Meredith Grey return to my life in the form of countless away messages and Facebook quotes. Nor am I particularly eager to see what new and creative ways writers on The Office come up with to destroy whatever real-life associations and empathy viewers had with the Michael Scott character. I’ll concede that I’ll probably be singing a different tune come February when the best sports option is an Antonio Daniels led Washington Wizards team and that rumored D.C. season of 24 is postponed until next autumn.

Speaking of Antonio Daniels (I guarantee that you’ll never hear those words ever spoken/written again)…

Gilbertology- Coined by Coach Eddie Johnson, this term has basically come to embody Gilbert Arenas’s diverse, often confusing but generally entertaining antics for basketball fans in the Washington area. While I’m not decrying the practice of taking halftime showers in full uniform and eschewing team outings on road trips in favor of sitting in your hotel room and ordering colon cleansers off of infomercials (and by no means would I ever criticize someone for blogging), after checking out these Gil TV clips, I think something is lost when he’s not gracing us with his presence on a daily basis. We need those clutch shots and surreal post-game interviews to back it all up. With Gil in street clothes, he goes from being one of the few truly unique and fascinating athletes in professional sports to someone who probably just needs professional help. I’m no hater Agent Zero, I just want your swag to be perpetually phenomenal.

Boston, Massachusetts – Obviously Washington, D.C. is a City that is literally teeming with young professionals and graduate students. Many of them completed their undergraduate careers at one of Boston’s fine 30-something institutions of higher education. What has always interested me is not the lukewarm way they characterize their time in that City, but the simple fact that they’re reminiscing about it from someplace far away – Boston has a piss-poor undergraduate retention rate. Personally, I don’t know any Boston undergrad that stayed there for more than a few months after graduation, and a quick Facebook (Yes, if you haven’t gathered already I’m back onboard) search reveals that all my high school classmates who ventured up there have since moved on.

I’m not sure why Boston enjoys such a squeaky-clean reputation, but I honestly think some it is racism – Just because Sully and Tommy O’Malley are white doesn’t mean that there aren’t parts of "Southie" that are just as dangerous as any part of D.C. east of the Anacostia River…SE simply hasn’t had the benefit of a wildly popular feel-good flick to romanticize it. The same goes for The Departed, which did the same exact thing for the rampant, perpetual corruption that infuses every level of intra-City politics; the same corruption that nullifies the intellectual arrogance these "chowdah-heads" so often have.

Culturally, you’d be hard-pressed to find anything in Boston that you can’t in any other major US city.

And at the end of the day, its primary identity for a century was an underachieving baseball team. Isn’t that just a tad disconcerting?

Listen, Boston is a great place to visit and probably a great place to spend 4 years toiling away in academia. But at the end of the day, Minneapolis does the whole "Boston thing" a lot better than you actually do.

And while on the topic of US cities…

Detroit’s Resurgence – Is it alright to make fun of Detroit again now that it didn’t pan out? Michiganders can be so damn annoying. As sports fans, they’re arguably worse than Philly fans. And these insufferable pricks got together before Super Bowl XL and decided it would be "insensitive" for anybody to rip on their bombed-out mess. After all, what’s so funny about poverty, the decline of the American auto industry, and the plight of poor minorities after the 1968 riots? The thing is, I’ve never met or heard of anybody from Michigan affording the same luxuries to cities like Newark, Oakland, and Cleveland. As a New Jersey native, I understand the insecurities that come with living in a punch-line, but these assholes go out of their way to pass the buck, so to speak. Your city was a shit-hole long before the Steelers and Seahawks rolled in, has been since, and will continue to be going forward.

Small Batch Bourbon – Knob Creek, Basil Haden’s, Bookers, etc…Unless I’ve had an absolutely awful day that was capped with some of those infamous "residual delays" on the Metro, it’s eventually going to be mixed with something after a few sips. Sure, my palate just might not be refined enough to taste through the burn to those rumored hints of toffee, overripe peaches, and honey. But I’ll save the extra $10-$20, stick with the cheaper stuff if I’m going to cut it, and take tenuous comfort in the fact I don’t drink enough to be able to appreciate the "subtleties" of 100 proof liquor on a nightly basis.


Fantasy Football – Yes, I say something similar every year, but still…Compared to the other sports, it’s so hopelessly finicky and luck-driven. If not for a handful of Patriots and Cowboys, I’m pretty sure every team in every league this season would have finished close to .500. The real world rewards stamina and stick-to-itiveness and the NBA and MLB have seasons that resemble marathons, not sprints. Fantasy managers who update their rosters on a daily basis and know enough about the intricacies of the sport to snag the next Francisco Liriano or Josh Smith should be rewarded, not forced to endure the cruel and unusual punishment that is losing in the 1st round of FFL playoffs to an oblivious office secretary because your QB happened to come up lame early in the first half of an otherwise meaningless Week 17 game.


PS – You know who is not overrated in any way? Eye Street’s own Erica Jenkins!




Action Shot: Our EJ laughing at QB Aaron Rodgers’s Grizzly Adams impersonation during last week’s Green Bay v. Dallas game not unlike the way my friends humor me when I do my patented Donald Trump or Matthew McConaughey.


PPS – Just because I pride myself on not being an overly negative person and because I was always a fan of how the end credits of the old James Bond and Superman movies would usually feature a tantalizing promise of a sequel down the road…


Stay tuned, loyal readers! 2007 may be getting on in days but will still feature entries on what Red Line to Awesomeville – Pop: Me deems to be underrated, Christmas in D.C. and that recently unearthed ‘Lincoln at Gettysburg’ photo! Good night, and good luck.

Missing David Letterman

"Deadline Hollywood is reporting that David Letterman will pay the entire staff of the Late Show with his own money while the show is shut down during the writers strike. CBS stopped paying the staff when the show halted production last week. NBC is trying the same tactic to put pressure on the writers, and has threatened to lay off the entire staff of "the Tonight Show" unless the writers come back to work. Deadline says Letterman has committed to pay them at least through the end of the year."

I’m really not surprised that this story has flown under the radar – David Letterman is a devastatingly private man. But for a network television star and iconic comedian, he provides a stark, refreshing contrast to the charitable lives of George Clooney, Angelina Jolie, et al., which are incessantly covered by both the mainstream and Hollywood media to the point where the line is blurred between compassion and self-interest/promotion. I’m also not surprised that Jay Leno is doing something similar, but only after he received a tremendous amount of bad press for staying silent for over a week after NBC laid his non-writing staffers off.

Few people know that Letterman and various Late Show personalities have devoted their Christmases to the troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, that Mr. Letterman supports at least three major scholarships at his alma matter in Indiana that reward creativity over grade point average, or even that his money and critical eye nurtured Everybody Loves Raymond and NBC's Ed.

But when you take a closer look at the man, can all of this really come as a surprise? From his charitable streak to the genuine respect and gratitude he continues to show to his late mentor and predecessor Johnny Carson, to the personal demons he has overcome – be it alcoholism, struggles as a confused college student at Ball State, divorce, or the whole unfortunate 'Uma/Oprah' debacle - he really does seem to be a legitimate role model.

I think his exceptional character is easiest to see in the great lengths he goes to return a favor. Take American TV icon and Eye Street hero Regis Philbin as an example… As loyal Late Show viewers probably know, Regis is a true friend to the program. Not only is he a classic fill-in guest and a man comfortable enough in his celebrity to appear in seemingly random and unimportant comedy bits, but he can always be found across from Dave on important nights such as his return to the airwaves after open-heart surgery and his famous first broadcast after 9/11. But Letterman never takes their relationship for granted; between the laughs he’s always thanking Philbin for what he’s contributed to the medium over the decades and sure enough, when Philbin went under the knife for a similar procedure earlier this year, Letterman made an extremely rare guest appearance to welcome him back to Live with Regis and Kelly. A similar example can be found in his appearance on Oprah after the two buried the hatchet during a highly publicized 2005 Late Show (The 'Super Bowl of Love'). Ditto for when Dan Rather was a guest on the 9/17/01 show and the stoic journalist, paid to maintain his composure and objectivity during any and all situations, was overcome with grief and emotion at numerous points during the interview. Letterman knew he was asking a lot out of someone who obviously had not had the time or means to digest the gravity of the attacks, and was absolutely sure to give Rather all the consolation and commercial breaks he needed. And of course, there was the humorous and moving tribute to the doctors, nurses, and even medical technicians who "saved his life" in 2000.

I think that too often, gratitude and respect are misconstrued with a mindless and hollow repetition of the words 'thank you.' It holds so much more weight, meaning, and personal enrichment for both sides when there are actions to supplement those words. Just look at how appreciative Letterman’s guests are… From Ryan Adams dedicating an album to him and the Foo Fighters flying back from Africa mid-tour to play his favorite song upon his recovery from the aforementioned surgery to the simple but powerful guest hosts’ refusal to sit at the man’s desk … Letterman is adored by those who 'get it;' celebrities who don’t change their personalities because of their bank account, zip code, and number of US Weekly covers. Fittingly, I think his biggest fan might have been the man who he idolized – It was revealed that right up until his death, Johnny Carson forwarded Dave jokes which were used in Late Show monologues with a special characteristic Carson golf swing after each one in tribute. Wow. Be it Brett Favre and the young Green Bay diaper babies trying to prove to each other that they can cut it in today’s NFL to President Bush when he speaks in front of our men and women in uniform, mutual respect like that is always a pleasure to watch.

And then there’s just the admirable way he handles his perennial 2nd place ratings. It’s common knowledge that Letterman was Carson’s hand-picked successor for the Tonight Show when he retired in 1992 and that Letterman was bitterly disappointed when NBC executives chose Jay Leno for the gig. And while there were definitely years when the whole controversy and subsequent rivalry was taboo, Letterman eventually turned the whole thing into a consistent, valuable punch-line. Obviously perpetual residency in second place is much easier to take when despite what the corn-fed masses punch into their Nielsen boxes every night, you consistently garner praise from critics and industry insiders alike. The self-deprecation this allows for is one of the show’s bright spots, and whereas similar attempts by Conan O’Brien simply come off as shtick on par with his string dance and famous unkempt hair, it’s more much appealing coming from Letterman because you can tell it stems from his down-to-earth attitude; his refusal to take himself too seriously.

But there seems to be a certain pride there as well… Letterman seems perfectly content with where the Late Show has taken him and the audience it’s built over the last 13 years. And our loyalty is rewarded with a playful but stubborn refusal to compromise his values and pander to potential viewers. Many of the comedy bits can be brutally abstract unless seen on a nightly basis. While it is sometimes said that Letterman is a rough, abrasive, or even rude interviewer, it’s usually simply a case of an outsider being surprised at how equally he treats each and every one of his guests. He steadfastly refuses to allow anyone to use the show as a vehicle for unadulterated BS, and examples in the past year alone range from Bill O’Rielly to Paris Hilton.

So yeah, despite the extra hour two of sleep I’m getting Monday through Thursday now with the WGA strike, I definitely miss the guy. And when I think about what a great role model he could be for a generation of kids that too often equate being a man to acting like an ungrateful, disinterested dick to everyone else, including friends, I miss what he brings to the table even more.

PS - "Pretending to be courageous is just as good as the real thing."