Be Don Draper: "Mad Men" Has Arrived

Friends and family of yours truly will tell you that I am a bit of a snob when it comes to most television and movies. I am not the 'typical' American who really likes the summer blockbusters; in fact, that may be the time I'm least likely to be there. I like my story lines (no matter if small or big screen) to be complex, to have multi-dimensional characters, to blur the 'wrong' from the 'right'. Don't telegraph me the plot, but give me something instead I can wrap my head around and work out, maybe question even. Don't provide me a canned laugh track, but instead present me something witty and well-written so that I will voluntarily laugh out loud. Make me cry when I least expect it, make me smile when it's a tragedy. Don't give me what I've seen so many times before, but rather give me something totally unexpected, or something old taken completely in a new direction. All I ask (and here's the hard part) is that you please don't waste my time and money.

Sadly so much of what is on television and in the movie theatres now can't even give me half of that above list. No wonder I'm searching out more classic movies, or discovering the wonders that are the BBC®, BBC America® and Ovation® cable channels, or just simply reading more. I don't want to kill my television, nor do I want to boycott my cinema, but I would like something that challenges me once in awhile. I think it's a simple request, really.

For example, I adored "Homicide: Life on the Street" for so many of these things, but led mainly by the powerful acting dynamics between Andre Braugher and Kyle Secor. The show was not easy to digest some nights, as it was depressing, questioning, and provoking as the scripts frequently challenged viewers to examine topics as diverse as religion, justice, race, sexuality, and death. But, to those like myself who were as crazed with it, each episode left us wanting more...a tall order as cast members shuffled in and out in a semi-steady pace. Still, in my opinion, "Homicide" is one of the very best, if not the best, dramas to ever be serialized...and it still has not received the high praise it so richly deserves.

Lord knows, you learn to appreciate the gems and miss them greatly when they leave. And then you pray another such find happens across your path.

That said, my latest addiction is "Mad Men", over on AMC. Stunningly done and stylized to explore the personal and professional relationships of a group of advertising professionals in the early 1960s, this show is simply an undiscovered beauty. Complex story lines, three-dimensional characters, subjective conclusions...this is absolutely not the spoon-fed drama we Americans have become all too accustomed to seeing. Instead, this is Drama with a capital 'D'...and served with a constantly lit cigarette and half-full G&T, just for good measure. This is the show you always hoped you could find and support; this is the show you always knew could be made somehow. Thank God someone now is.

I'm far from being the only one in my praise, though. In just its second season, "Mad Men" has won 2 Golden Globe awards, and 6 Emmys (including the last one for Outstanding Drama Series, the first time such an award has been given to an American basic cable program). It's so good, in fact, that parodies and jokes about the show's coolness are popping up everywhere...I can only hope all the attention is bringing more and more viewers as a result. Even the good kids over at "Saturday Night Live" (who all of the sudden have decided to become smart again), have caught on to the rush of '60s ad cool and decided to run with it.

Ladies and gents, let me introduce you to "Mad Men"'s main character, advertising executive Don Draper (actor Jon Hamm). He's a war veteran with a past, makes the great money but has an unhappy trophy wife, two squabbling kids, and a loyal dog...yet he's a serial womanizer and deceiver, known for saying much with his eyes and far less with his words. (If "Mad Men" has perfected anything, it's the ability to have the entire cast use silence as dialogue and still make it look natural...something I thought "The Sopranos" never consistently pulled off. Enjoy the silence, indeed.)

Mr. Hamm, thankfully, can and does pull off the absurd side of his own meal ticket here, as the video clip below from "SNL" clearly demonstrates. Enjoy Don/Jon in all of his glory...

"Be Don Draper" skit from "Saturday Night Live", featuring actor Jon Hamm. Video embed from Hulu.

My Three Kilts at Tir Na Nog

A quick post this morning, as I'm trying to force my lazy arse into gear and actually get something done today...

The Wise Ricky and your (semi)faithful blogger took in the My Three Kilts show last night at Tir Na Nog over in Raleigh. Last seen as the opening band for Albannach on Kilt Night there back on October 8th, MTK came into last night's performance very loose, very jovial, and as their typically enthusiastic selves. (Oh, if other bands I've seen over the years would try just as hard to take themselves less seriously...) And luckily for all...especially considering the rainy weather, the North Carolina State Fair going on, and the economic worries...the lads were met with an equally fun-loving, joy-to-be-had, 'let's have a few beers and celebrate life' audience. Hell, we even had a newlyweds in attendance last night, is that not reason enough to have faith in the positive?

I've always thought that words can never do music of any sort justice...sometimes what is unspoken is far more memorable and lasting than the notes or lyrics themselves. That applies to serious material...Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit" comes immediately to mind...but it also applies to off the cuff, totally 'fun for fun's sake' performances that you'll only best experience in a public venue with live music. This certainly holds true with last night's show, as evidenced by the video clip below.

The beloved newlyweds are the couple dancing to the left; My Three Kilts...left to right, Scott, Rob, and Shane...are on the right hamming it up to U2's "With or Without You". © 2008.

Struggling for Air in a Mudbath

It's fourteen days. Fourteen, ever-so-long, can't-it-end-already, God-make-it-stop, days. Hi, I'm The Marquise and I live in the political battleground state of North Carolina. And I am under siege. Please help me.

Normally we do not have such issues to contend with. While I live in a notoriously liberal part of the Old North State, it is arguably the only liberal part of the state. We are surrounded by conservatives on all sides, and generally the conservatives win, although we do sometimes sneak in an occasional Democrat in one of those outliers just to keep things interesting. But for many years, well really as long as I've been here since the college days, those of us with a liberal/Democrat/Libertarian/third party bent always knew, and somewhat accepted, we would be in the minority here.

But things have drastically changed this election. North Carolina presents a strange set of variables to both parties this year: still economically growing (if only just a bit) given this national recession, still experiencing a steady influx of new citizens from other parts of the country, still greatly utilizing (and I'm being especially kind when I use that word) illegal labor from Mexico, and still basing a large military population who are growing weary of being on their whatever number tour away from home (and in the Middle East mostly). Not to mention, a large segment of our population...the black vote...has been actively and aggressively targeted this election by both parties, but in new ways. Not only are they courted to register and actually vote, mind you, but also targeted with campaign messages that actually include them as members of the 'working professional' voter group. Considering what nonsense the late long-term Senator Jesse Helms put out (and, disturbingly, got away with), that last part of recognizing black professionals and intellectuals in this election is a huge step forward here.

The end result: a state that once was a given to be a 'red', Republican, and/or conservative in the electoral process is now fighting to keep its place there; and we citizens, who forever have been ignored and never really courted on a national stage, get our chance to finally hear and talk about the major issues of the day. It's like looking in on a fancy, lively, and stimulating dinner party for ages...and then someone comes up and gives you your own invitation.

What I don't think we were anticipating, though, was all the negative hubris that goes with being a 'battleground' state. The increasingly negative ads, from both sides, is steady now on all media outlets...and yet, we are still so new to this, you'll find us at bars, restaurants, etc., still looking at them whenever the ads show up on TV. Not so much for any new information (because they really never give us any), but rather at the total amazement of it all happening here. Suddenly we don't envy Florida, or Iowa, or Missouri anymore with this political mudbathing. Now we're so damn in the thick of it all we can't move without being reminded of it...flyers every day in the mailbox, commercials at every waking hour on any kind of outlet, constant pep rallies and speeches somewhere in state. We're beyond suffering from overkill, we're on the verge of being driven comatose.

The last 'big push' to keep each politician's name out there has been with the roadside campaign signs. Campaign signs are nothing new here (we're not that backward), but normally they are not more populous than the number of fallen leaves. Never has so many printers here been so busy, nor has so many followers been so determined in staking (and re-staking) said signs into any available piece of public property. And, as a final indication we've become overheated with this whole process, neighbour has pulled up contrarian signs of neighbour. It is not uncommon to see this kind of situation playing out on the road to my farm now:


One road, two houses, two very differing neighbours, just off a road littered...left and right, hill and valley...with one or the other candidate's supporters' signs as well. The above picture was taken on my way home from work last Tuesday. By Friday, the McCain sign had been bent in significantly more than pictured, crumpled so badly that it sagged in the center. By Saturday, the McCain sign had either been replaced with a shiny more erect one or the older one lovingly repaired...but the Obama one has gone missing entirely. As have about 10 other Obama ones along that road. I'm thrilled there is so much interest in the election this year, but I am beyond saddened some members of both sides can't accept differing points of view.

When this gets done...and I'm counting down now until the day it will be over...this will only end in heartbreak for somebody and a helluva lot of his supporters. But it's gotta end, and when it does, we need as a nation to move forward no matter the victor. This rampant polarization from both sides does the vast middle not a damn bit of good at all. I'm all for passion in politics, but sometime very soon that passion will need to be redirected to solving our many, many problems...and quickly. But, until then, it's going to get ugly in some places...and it's far from over here and in other battleground states, to be sure. I've dug in and am preparing for the worst.

This last home stretch is upon us now, and it's none too damn soon. But the day after? The day after I'll meet you on the road and we can start recycling all of these signs...no matter who wins the elections. We need to work...finally...together if we have any hopes of surviving as a nation at all.

Yesterday's Wisdom, Tomorrow's Outlook: "Everybody Knows"

Sorry, folks, work has been a bit...much...lately. Three unfinished posts for here are still three unfinished posts, no matter how much I hate it. Additionally, I've also started another writing project with the end goal of maybe getting back into the writing I did in my yesteryear (which, frankly, seems like an eternity ago now). I will try and get more back with the program here these next few days, as a couple of distractions have finally left town for a few days and things settled.

---

Like a lot of you, I have not been feeling terribly optimistic about things, and probably less so about where they're headed in the immediate future. Dubya & Co's antics have finally put me in a depressive state about my beloved land. So, as some sort of non-alcoholic consolation quest, I went to my albums (yes, those things, some of us still have them) and looked for something that perhaps would lighten my mental load. And while I did find some charmers (especially those during the WWII era), I also found a classic that encapsulates exactly what is going on now: Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows" (click on title for lyrics).

And then I went to YouTube to find a video for this wonder and found Rufus Wainwright's swinging version. Double martini with your melancholy, anyone??

YouTube video featuring Rufus Wainwright's version of Leonard Cohen's totally fantastic "Everybody Knows". Still dead-on after all these years.
Enjoy Survive as best you can, folks. We shall overcome, but we're facing one hell of a ride, I fear, before we actually do.

Saturday Sighs: Lowe's Motor Speedway (Not)

I should be in Charlotte tonight, I really should. I'm sitting here, doing laundry and the occasional half-hearted attempt at housekeeping, wishing I was there. I am watching the race on TV, but my heart's not in it. I am sad, and sadder still because I am only here because I'm being safe, being practical, counting pennies. Feeling badly that I gave into Adulthood and its responsibilities.

I have not been to a NASCAR® race all this season and it's starting to frustrate me. It must be a sign that I'm getting older or something, because I actually (and it kills me to admit this) have weighed the pros and the cons of going versus my budget. Gasoline prices what they are, and Charlotte still having the shortages they are, I made a conscious decision to not go this weekend. Even though it would be the very last time I would see Smoke (Tony Stewart) drive in the #20 car at Charlotte. Even though it would be the last time I would see Smoke and the simply wonderful Zippy (his long-time crew chief and friend) team up together for this October classic at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Even though...well, hell, even though I've not been racing yet this season. Like I could be any more selfish.

I'm sitting, here, though, writing this and hating that I was practical. Hating that I didn't throw $200 at this weekend excursion of mine (and that's hoping I can find a decent rate per gallon somewhere) and, with it, throw caution to the wind. It is not every year, or every weekend, for that matter when the chances are this good for a lively and competitive race. And while my long-time fave Mark Martin is not competitive this year, and most likely Tony and the Home Depot team won't settle their differences in time to likely be champs this their final run, there is also the camaraderie that exists between us NASCAR® fans, too. A spirit that frankly cannot be replicated at home, watching from a television set. But that is where you'll find me tonight. Finding me hoping I'll be able to go in May next year, instead...really hoping.

So, with a hardened eye at my wallet and a wary eye of the unknown, I decided to not go. The decision, sadly, was not the hardest of ones to make from a purely economical standpoint: Lowe's, despite having plenty of seats available even as late as yesterday, still did not have a fire sale to get the stands filled and instead held their ground for the inflated ticket prices (at least in any areas where you won't risk losing your hearing). Hotel and/or motel rooms still were about as high as they usually are...translation: jacked up some because it's 'race weekend'...and let's not even talk about the gas shortages in and around western North Carolina right now that's pushing fuel prices up to about the $4/gallon range (some help is on the way, though). I know economically we're all having it rough and in most likelihood it's going to get rougher, but apply some common sense NASCAR® (and vendors): sell things for a little less profit margin and get people to come out and be thankful. Or, you can do what you did with me and some others I know and make a difficult financial decision that much easier to rationalize. You help us, we help you.

I'm going to put away my wallet and all of my crib sheets that helped influence me in this decision and try and concentrate on the race instead. Damn, I wish I could be there. Damn, I wish I could try (yet again) to see Zippy at work, getting ready and then stressing and maybe even hear him give Smoke a taste of his own medicine on the radio. Damn, I can almost smell the overpriced beer and tough-as-nails 'soft' pretzels. Earlier this week during qualifying I peeked on the television and saw (approximately) the great seat I had for both races last year. Maybe I can swing the near Martinsville race, maybe that would satisfy my cravings for overblown commercialism, extremely tight jeans (both men's and women's, with both good and bad outcomes), choruses of 'hell ya' and 'JUNIOR!', and also some weird need to see my beloved boys in orange try to take it home one more time. Lord knows it's not been an easy year for me as a fan, but it's been much harder for them (or so it seems, anyway) as a team. I hate to see it end this badly...or at least see it end this badly only through the lens and spin of television.

Honestly, as I write this, I don't know where my loyalties will be next year after the Home Depot team as I've known for so long breaks apart... either supporting Tony or supporting Zippy, as supporting both doesn't look viable at present...but I'm so on the fence it's a bit worrisome right now. In a sport where fan allegiance is everything, I wonder if it's acceptable to jump ship from a fave driver to a fave crew chief?? A wild boy racer called Tony Stewart 'brought me to' Greg (Zippy) Zipadelli oh so many races ago, but it's been Zippy's actions as a man and leader that have kept me a loyal fan when Smoke's actions were unacceptable. I admit I've watched them both with equal emotion over the years, and have been proud to call them 'my' team (although Smoke has not made that easy at times). It weighs on me that a Championship appears nearly out of reach already. I'm heartsick at the prospect of this dynamic duo going their separate ways, and it's not even next year yet.

Nor is it the end of this race, but it is the commercial break. Maybe if I find something else I can flip back and forth with on the telly, I won't be this 'racesick' as the night rolls on...

Kilt Night at Tir Na Nog: Double Header with My Three Kilts and Albannach

Quick post this morning, as I'm off for a full day's activities...

A fantastic card on hand for tonight's Kilt Night at Tir Na Nog over in Raleigh. Not only is Annie et al setting up a buffet and Scotch tasting (highly advised to buy tickets and get there early), but two of our fave bands will be taking the stage.


©My Three Kilts, 2008

The first, My Three Kilts, down from the local Goldsboro, NC, way, are the fun-loving and enthusiastic chaps whom WR and I had the pleasure of spending a great time with this past July at the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. We were supposed to meet up with them again this past weekend at the Williamsburg (VA) Scottish Festival, but various schedules and commitments had us miss one another. Rob, Scott, and Shane always do a fabulous job...and provide plenty of jokes and funny banter between songs...so it will be great to see them in person playing it up again.


©Albannach, 2008

The second band, and headliner, of the night is none other than long-time fave Albannach. The Scottish dynamos are not new to Tir Na Nog...in fact, that's where WR and I first saw them and left out of there gobsmacked...nor to Raleigh, but they are best-known now for touring the many Scottish festival circuits. The cult that is the Albannach fan base has grown tremendously, and for good reason: the band has simply gotten better and better with their audience (love of Heineken beer notwithstanding). I've lost count how many times I've seen them in just the short time I've known about them...I think WR and I "guess-estimated" about 8-9...but they were simply unstoppable Saturday night at Rockahock Campgrounds (where the Williamsburg Scottish Festival was held this year, and it's fabulous venue for such an event).

Albannach from the 2008 Williamsburg (VA) Scottish Festival.
I've been blown away by Albannach in some past shows, and I've also experienced a couple where I thought all the traveling had temporarily gotten the best of them (and their legendary energy levels). With the exception of perhaps that virginal introduction to them at the Nog some ages ago now, I must say this past Saturday night's performance by them was the best I've ever witnessed. Hopes are high they'll repeat that level of performance tonight, and, if they do, we'll probably all leave there gobsmacked once again. Sometimes words can't do them justice.

My Three Kilts start about 7(ish?), with Albannach scheduled to take up the sticks at about 9pm. Come early to get good seats and get tickets! $10 per person...hopefully I'll see you there.

The Wrong Cure: Bailing Out the Panic

If you're wondering what that howling noise is every time you turn on your television, radio, or read your news outlet of choice, let me break the bad news: it's now a full-on financial hurricane that few of us could ever have anticipated in scope, and even fewer of us know how to collectively 'circle the wagons' about even now. If you're wondering where your hard-earned money that you invested is, get in line and be prepared to wait a good while...you might also want to consider taking up prayer. If you're wondering if your money really buys anything, or hell if it even exists in this 'illiquid' market, welcome to the club. If you feel you've been duped by Wall Street greed and lax regulations on banks, you have been, as we all have. If you can't sleep at night because you're worried about the economy and your personal stake in it, the only thing I can offer right now is a hug, a smile, one of my home brew lagers, and a positive word of encouragement. We're in this now, folks, and we're in it all the way...best to get hunkered down.

What started as a trickle in late 2006 in the occasional financial blog about the housing markets cooling as people were overextended credit-wise has become a tsunami of constant battering from all sides: employment decreasing, investment and savings institutions evaporating almost every weekend, increasing inflation, the shortage of basic goods, on and on. Not to mention the entire mortgage mess of buying far more than what we could reasonably afford, and the entire personal savings mess of holding back next to nothing 'for a rainy day'. It's the stuff that people like Barry Ritholtz in his The Big Picture blog, J.D. Roth in his blog Get Rich Slowly, and Ron Lieber in his "Your Money" column in The New York Times have been warning us about for well, years, now. I've been reading their sage words for some time now, but kept hoping we'd somehow scrape through this mess relatively intact. But like many of you recently, I've been watching this financial meltdown...and let's call it what it is, an implosion...with an increasingly troubled eye as the chances of any escape disappear into the ether.

Personally, I am very lucky as I still rent, am still employed, and I implemented a debt-free plan some time ago that has worked amazingly well...but only after I faced some very dire circumstances. But no matter as I am involved in one of the most asinine panic runs on fuel I could have ever imagined. North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, all up and down corridors along the Southeast now have gas shortages because our refinery pipelines were shut down and/or destroyed when Hurricane Ike came ashore. For those of you who can readily find gas and pay in the mid $3/gallon range here in the States...I salute you. For those like myself who have found gas stations repeatedly without any product, prices near the $4/gallon mark, and long lines to get the maximum of 5 gallons...I truly do feel your pain. Last week, I could only find 3 stations in the entire town with any kind of gas, each with lengthy lines around the block, and all with a hefty price per gallon just to make things amusing for my wallet. In theory, this gasoline shortage is temporary...that in short order an influx of a new supply will come flooding in, the system will be forever repaired, we'll all return to our former ways of driving and spending, and this 'minor' setback will all but be forgotten. (Sound a bit familiar? Yeah, me, too.) Thirty minutes and five all-too-quickly pumped gallons later, I sadly accepted we've finally entered the Panic Era. And it's not just gas, or milk, or credit...it's everything related to what money does for us.

There is a fine line between totally going off the deep end in a financial denial versus taking a long, deep breath, reassessing a bad situation and then making a workable plan. Trust me, people, I've done both at one time or another and I am the product of families who have done both more than they should have in hind sight. Mistakes are made, checks expected that did not come, items bought that really should have been left behind...it happens and none of us, and especially all of us collectively, are immune. For better and for worse, we Americans live in one of the most materialistically driven societies ever to see the light of day: if we have it and like it, we want more; if it's new we must be the first to try it out; if we have it and others don't yet covet ours, we will do anything on Earth to make them jealous. It hasn't been about keeping up with the mythical Jones' for ages now: instead, it's about being better and having more stuff than The Jones' and rubbing it in their faces at the same time. (Watch the 1960s advertising-based drama "Mad Men" if you need further proof as to how this has been ingrained into our psyche and spending habits.) I am convinced, sadly, that those supposedly leading us into this Bailout of the Century have long since jumped...and want to take the rest of us with them.

And while we're laying out all our cards on the table, let's toss out another one from the Honest Dealer: we are a nation with an elected leadership that will not lead if it means playing well with others from the opposing party, a President and Administration that has so over-embellished 'facts' on so many other affairs that we can no longer take them seriously now, and a Presidential campaign that seemingly has went on longer than most Roman conquests. I can't speak for everyone, of course, but for the last few months I've just been praying Dubya would quietly go off into his Crawford sunset and not start another war (or really just stay the hell off the global stage for once) before he did so. Unfortunately, bad decisions and horrible decision-makers can't be outrun forever, so in these past few days I've had to endure Dubya try on numerous occasions to teach me about a global economics situation he doesn't know a damn thing about, either. Welcome to the Reckoning. Or the Rapture. (Your choice.)

In many ways, it is a battle between Wall Street and Main Street ('the haves' and 'the have nots' if you want to go all socialist on me) now, because no one else has a set (or the legal power, yet) to settle this nonsense. In short, someday we're gonna have to suck it up and take some really nasty medicine if we have any hopes of getting any better for the long run. Instead of doing that, we're heading straight into a blossoming class warfare. The Main Street kids are looking at the Wall Street kids and want to rumble over the latter's market manipulation and greed, while the Walls want to fight the Mains because most of us don't know a damn thing about building investment portfolios, if we save anything at all. Sadly, neither camp seems to know anything for certain about the future of money or the markets and it's practically the blind leading the blind right now. Forget about the banks seizing up credit because they don't trust one another's balance sheet anymore...long term, Main Streeters don't trust Wall Street nor their Government anymore, and the Mains are the much bigger gang to worry about. I didn't vote for Dubya either of the last two elections, but I respect that a great number obviously did. Problem is, I'm pretty sure none of us voted for Hank Paulson and His Great Agenda. Even the wonderful folks at Minyanville are grappling with their bearings after Hank's recent proclamations, and that site is about as close a union of the Streets as we can ever reasonably hope. Dylan Ratigan and the Gang over on my beloved "Fast Money" have been working overtime to explain this meltdown to the average viewer, night in and night out, but with only a limited success...because even the fundamentals are no longer constant.

If what we all were taught...smart and dumb, rich and poor, city and farm, male and female, black and white and everything else in between...about how money works and circulates in this economy ceases to exist, how the hell do we fix anything going forward?

Honestly, until we fall hard and 'hit bottom', I'm not sure we can. (Hitting that financial hell was the only thing that truly worked for me, truth be told. When you have to face your problems at that level, you learn from them and are far less likely to repeat them. ) Additionally, I'm not sure we should even be considering a bailout as the be-all and end-all of this crisis. Pete DeFazio and some other leaders have actually come up with an alternative plan that makes much more sense to me, or at least gets us going on a less 'slash and burn' through the Treasury path, and it could perhaps calm some of the frenzy that's pervading so much of everyday conversation. But only the Paulson suggested $700+ billion bailout will save us from all these bad debts, the mass media say. I disagree, as evidenced by what is still included in said bailout: to lure lawmakers to vote yes on the 'rescue plan', we're also giving tax breaks left and right, covering everything from wooden practice arrows for children, to Puerto Rican rum, to auto racing track facilities. (Note to NASCAR®: you've bled your fans dry enough with the ticket prices and such, take some of those profits and help racing facilities, yours and others, maintain their own damn tracks and stop seeking right-offs.) So, we're essentially bailing ourselves out by cutting our future revenues coming in and still playing political games...yep, that outta work, look at the successful track record for it so far.

Further still, I'm not sure we even deserve a bailout until we adjust our priorities. It will be painful, but it's long, long overdue. We are addicted to living beyond our means and then creating whole segments of the economy to help us get ourselves in debt for just that purpose. Our grandparents, our great-grandparents for some of you, survived the Great Depression and it forever etched memories of thriftiness and hard work within that generation...where did those ideals go, anyway?? Just as you don't give money to a drug addict knowing it's going to be spent on something that will only fuel the addiction, giving a bailout to a society that has no idea where all of its trillions are going as it is...and who amongst us knows where our tax dollars are spent? Anyone?? Anyone?? Bueller??...you only place a band-aid over a gaping gunshot wound. The bad blood will still seep out somewhere, folks, and with this Panic-driven bailout all you've done is just moved the exit site. And I already dread the size of the mess that we'll all have to clean up.

My Little Heaven: Hillsborough and Carrboro