Below are the 10 most recent journal entries recorded in SUPER ROGER von McFANTASTICISM!'s LiveJournal:

Sunday, May 24th, 2009
4:49 pm	Roger Martinez Evaluates Network Television Sitcoms of Yore... *ROGER MARTINEZ EVALUATES NETWORK TELEVISION SITCOMS OF YORE BASED ON ARTISTIC, ENTERTAINMENT AND SOCIOLOGICAL MERIT USING ONLY HIS FOND MEMORIES, AND NO OUTSIDE RESEARCH AS REFERENCE* THE GOLDEN GIRLS I dedicate this post to the late Beatrice Arthur and the late Estelle Getty, two fine comic actors on a fine show. I watched many, many a sitcom as a child, most I can't remember if I actually liked or not. But the Golden Girls, for some demographic defying reason, I ate up with a spoon. Having seen it recently, it holds up extraordinarily well. Gives dignity to elderly ladies, too. They even get to have sex lives, and what not. Or at least Blanche does. Dorothy and Sophia have a genuniely biting, sarcastic wit, too. A DHARMA AND GREG I'm pretty sure I'm not the one who came up with this, but the typical interaction between the two title characters should go something like this: GREG: Hey Dharma, where ya goin'? DHARMA: I'm going to protest the globalization you're causing, Greg! Instead, it's something like this: DHARMA AND GREG: (in unison) Isn't it so wonderful that despite the fact that we hold completely adversarial views of the world, and the fact that we got married after knowing each other for two days, we have such a functional and conflict-free marriage?!? I guess the point of the show is, "Hey, maybe your parents shouldn't get divorced, after all." The fact that the actor who plays Dharma's father is in MENSA, and the fact that Jenna Elfman is a Scientoligist are far more interesting than anything on the show itself. D+ HOME IMPROVEMENT When I used to watch Home Improvement as a boy, I felt kind of sorry for Jill. Now, when I see the show, I feel extremely sorry for Jill. For those who forget, here's a typical scenario: JILL: Tim, do you want to go the ballet? TIM: Shut up, stupid woman! I hate culture, for I am a boorish macho ape! I also consider it my duty as an alpha male to belittle your every higher aspiration! Home Improvement is also the kind of show that's supposed to make you say to yourself, "Hey... maybe my parents shouldn't get divorced, after all," but it really makes you think just the opposite. D CAROLINE IN THE CITY I admit it, I was invested in the romance between Caroline and Richard, but in retrospect it was just a methadone treatment for when I couldn't get my Niles and Daphne fix. Also, the show blew its wad pretty early on that subplot, and so America and I lost interest fast. Aside from that, the show's pretty dull. Richard is the only remotely interesting character, and that's not saying much. What have we left? Annie? Dell? That dude on rollerskates? Please! I haven't seen the show since I was a kid, but I imagine the only entertainment I would glean from it if I watched it now would be an occasional chuckle from imagining Lea Thompson's sex scene with Howard the Duck. C- ROSEANNE Here we have a winner. Double points for fully developed working class characters and depicting a semi-functional (i.e. REAL) family in a time where the market was oversaturated with the Full Houses and Growing Pains of the world. The show even had some pretty interesting gay and lesbian characters. Pretty progressive, pretty ahead of its time. And pretty fucking funny, too. A GROWING PAINS Speaking of Growing Pains, just the opening credits alone are enough to make one think, "Wow, we've sure come a long fucking way from Ozzy and Harriet, haven't we?" The show actually would have been BETTER if Kirk Cameron had gotten his way and turned the show into a vehicle for overt fundamentalist Christian propraganda, instead of what it was: a vehicle for subtle mainstream Christian propaganda. D More evaluations later, on another day when I am bored and depressed. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, November 4th, 2008
4:25 am	Vote for Barack Obama. Hey, I know no one reads this, but if anyone is, please, for the love of god, Vote for Barack Obama today. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, October 13th, 2008
7:18 pm	Why "The Bradley Effect" May Not Make a Difference in the 2008 Presidential Election Various media outlets have recently made much noise about the "Bradley Effect," and how it may negatively impact Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. For those unfamiliar, the "Bradley Effect" refers to the phenomenon of voters lying to pollsters about who they support in elections that feature black candidates in order not to appear racist. The phenomenon is named after former Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley, who lost the 1982 gubenatorial race in California despite a significant lead in polls leading up to election day. There is some concern among supporters that Obama will meet a similar fate on November 4th. I believe that though some degree of the Bradley Effect may show up in the final numbers, ultimately the phenomenon will not tip the race in John McCain's favor. This is especially true if the polling data remains the same leading up to election day as it is today. Here's why: 1.) Obama's Lead in National Polls is too Large. Many polling staticians think that if Obama has a lead of less than six points, the Bradley Effect may overtake his lead in the polls and hand the election to McCain. Though this is a vague and dubious figure, if this is true, Obama leads McCain in most national polls by at least six points, and his lead has been increasing steadily in the past couple weeks. Of course this leads to a second, more important point... 2.) National Polls are Meaningless in Comparison to Electoral College Polls. Obama's lead is more dramatic in electoral college vote polls than it is in national polls, and as we all know, the electoral college is what matters in the general election. Now, if we were to take the Bradley Effect rule and apply to statewide polls, Obama still generally leads enough states by at least six percentage points to give him 277 electoral college votes, according to www.realclearpolitics.com . So, even if every single state that has less than a six point lead for Obama goes to McCain (which as of now I find to be a highly unlikely proposition, but still possible), Obama would still win the general election with seven points to spare if the polling data are accurate. 3.) Racism is a Nuanced Thing. The most obvious way to characterize a racist mentality at the general election voting booth would be a voter who has a negative view of black people, and therefore will not vote for any black candidate, regardless of party or policy. In other words, a voter who would have voted for any Democratic candidate this year, but will not vote for Obama soley based on his race. When ashamed to admit their prejudice, this would be the kind of voter that would create a Bradley effect. This voter, I imagine, will make a very small, and possibly negligible impact on the general election results. There are many reasons Democrats could give to vote against Obama (say, for instance, Reverend Wright, flip-flopping, lack of experience etc.), even if underneath those reasons hides a latent racism. Also, many Democrats who are reluctant to vote for Obama for racial reasons may cite McCain's supposed moderate reputation as reason why they are not voting democrat this year. Thus, there is likely less of an incentive for voters to lie and say they are supporting Obama in order not to appear racist. Few people will openly admit to racial prejudice, but those who harbor it also have many "excuses" that they can hide behind when speaking to pollsters. What I mean by all of this is simply that I believe that for the most part, racism is aleady reflected in the polling data. (PLEASE NOTE. I am in no way suggesting that supporting McCain is tantamount to racism. In fact, I believe that hard line Republicans are among the safest control groups in the data, because if they would support any Republican candidate and vote against any Democratic candidate, then racism is irrelevent to their showing in the polls.) On the other hand, anyone who's ever heard someone refer to a minority as "one of the good ones" can see why there may be many voters who will support Obama even if they do harbor racial prejudice towards African Americans. And even if there are some voters who are leary about Obama's race... 4.) Americans Often Vote with Their Wallets. Obama has consistently been viewed as the candidate who is more equipped to handle economic crisis, and the polling shift in the wake of our current financial crisis certainly reflects that view. Even former Republican Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee said that it would be a mistake to demonize Obama on a personal level because in times of economic crisis people will not make decisions based on something like race. McCain is making a huge mistake by not addressing the economic crisis enough. 5.) Primary Polling Data was Highly Accurate in Most Cases. There were few surprises in the polling for the Democratic Primary. If the Bradley effect was a factor in the Primary there would be many states that polled in favor of Obama that went for Clinton instead. However, this was not the case. States that veered towards Clinton in polls typically went for Clinton, and likewise for Obama. In short, I think that the Bradley Effect is by and large a red herring in this race. There were many red herrings before, such as fears that Hillary would not throw her full support behind Obama, or fears that many non-Black minority demographics would abandon the Democratic party if Obama won, which has by and large been disproven by most polls. Many conservatives have bemoaned media bias towards Obama. I think that there may be a focus on Obama in the media, but less because of liberal bias than because he is a charismatic and, well, media friendly candidate (after all, Bill O' Reilly himself came away with a "new respect for the man" after his interview with Obama). So while there may be some bias to the left and right in media outlets, realistically, I think that most media outlets are concerned less with advancing an ideology than grabbing ratings (and, subsequently, selling advertisements.) Stories about the Bradley effect, while not completely irrelevant, I believe are mostly intended to try to keep the election a nail-biter, and to keep voters tuning in. But if this election is to become close again, the burden remains on McCain. He has 22 days. If McCain fails to turn the tide of the election on Wednesday's debate, an outcome that seems unlikely given the previous three debates, than it seems very little shy of another national disaster could possibly tip the election in McCain's favor. And it seems that the crises that have occured thus far during the course of the general election race have shown the American people that Barack Obama is better able to handle disaster. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, November 26th, 2006
4:36 pm	November 30th The Private Sea: Knitting Factory Taproom 74 Leonard St. New York NY November 30th 8pm (doors at 7:30). $8 21+ also: Adam Heldring, Ian Axel, Aiden Eve, The Brew, Word. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, October 29th, 2006
6:38 pm	show tomorrow to anyone in philly who still reads this, we're playing at sal's (12th and walnut) tomorrow. more info on our page: myspace.com/theprivatesea peace, roger (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, October 5th, 2006
10:06 pm	Reminder - The Private Sea, Sal's, 12th and Walnut TOMORROW Hey, everyone, just a reminder: The Private Sea's show at Sal's with David Karsten Daniels is TOMORROW. More details, check the previous entry in my journal. -Roger (Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 19th, 2006
8:12 pm	From the Private Sea's myspace hey, philly kids. this is pretty much taken verbatim from the private sea's myspace page. if you want to come out on october 6th, please do! ************************ Wednesday, September 06, 2006 Friday October 6th @ SAL'S with David Karsten Daniels Current mood: giddy So you all may have noticed that we haven't been making blog entries... well, ever, but this is a good place to start. For those who've noticed that things have been quiet for us recently, and those who haven't, we'd like to inform you about an excellent show that's coming up October 6th at Sal's. We're especially excited about this one for two major reasons: 1.) David Karsten Daniels, recent signee to Animal Collective's FatCat records, is coming up from Chapel Hill, North Carolina to share the bill. We're all very big fans of David's music, which ranges from bright, sunny Polyphonic Spree-esque pop, to lonely folk dirges in the vein of Bonnie Prince Billy, to Silver Mt. Zion-style post rock. DKD is a promising artist, and we're really glad to be sharing a bill with him. 2.) This will be our first show at Sal's, a new bar/venue on the corner of 12th and Walnut. Some very good friends of ours were recently put in control of the upstairs, and we and several other artists, bands, manglers, etc. are hoping to make a real multi-arts scene out of it. In addition to this, the show will feature Mountain Goats tourmates The Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers, also from Chapel Hill. We are anticipating this to be the most exciting Private Sea show this year, so please, grace us with your presence and we will make it well worth your while. Love, The Private Sea www.myspace.com/davidkarstendaniels www.myspace.com/upstairsatsals (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 12th, 2006
2:13 pm	AND THE MADCAP LAUGHED AT THE MAN AT THE BORDER Syd Barrett died on my 24th birthday. Fucking crazy. For anyone that likes my guitar playing and is interested in where it comes from, there is no better starting point than the Piper at the Gates of Dawn. My single biggest influence as guitar player. Weird. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 6th, 2005
4:40 pm	www.myspace.com/theprivatesea there will be an official site soon. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, August 7th, 2004
11:51 am	*** The day with its cares and perplexities is ended and the night is now upon us. The night should be a time of peace and tranquility, a time to relax and be calm. We have need of a soothing story to banish the disturbing thoughts of the day, to set at rest our troubled minds, and put at ease our ruffled spirits. And what sort of story shall we hear? Ah, it will be a familiar story, a story that is so very, very old, and yet it is so new. It is the old, old story of love. Two lovers sat on a park bench, with their bodies touching each other, holding hands in the moonlight. There was silence between them. So profound was their love for each other, they needed no words to express it. And so they sat in silence, on a park bench, with their bodies touching, holding hands in the moonlight. Finally she spoke. "Do you love me, John?" she asked. "You know I love you, darling," he replied. "I love you more than tongue can tell. You are the light of my life, my sun, moon and stars. You are my everything. Without you I have no reason for being." Again there was silence as the two lovers sat on a park bench, their bodies touching, holding hands in the moonlight. Once more she spoke. "How much do you love me, John?" she asked. He answered: "How much do I love you? Count the stars in the sky. Measure the waters of the oceans with a teaspoon. Number the grains of sand on the sea shore. Impossible, you say?" "Yes and it is just as impossible for me to say how much I love you. My love for you is higher than the heavens, deeper than Hades, and broader than the earth. It has no limits, no bounds. Everything must have an ending except my love for you." There was more of silence as the two lovers sat on a park bench with their bodies touching, holding hands in the moonlight. Once more her voice was heard. "Kiss me, John," she implored. And leaning over, he pressed his lips warmly to hers in fervent osculation. ... **** (Comment on this)