My Out-of-the-Ordinary Memory of Walter Cronkite

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Sunday July 19, 2009 · 1:46 PM PDT

2009/07/19 · 13:46

On Friday, the world lost one of it's greatest voices in journalism. Walter Cronkite helped make television a respectable news medium. He broke the news of President Kennedy's death, watched along with the country as a human being stepped onto the moon, denounced the Vietnam War, and walked us through the tangled web of the Watergate scandal.

Unfortunately, I was born a few years after he retired from anchoring the CBS evening news. Yet I have a vivid memory of Walter Cronkite. He had a profound impact on my life in an unusual way. Few may remember this, but Cronkite was the narrator for the Spaceship Earth ride at Epcot Center in Walt Disney World. In case you're not familiar with it, Spaceship Earth is a ride through Western history with an emphasis on how communication has developed. As a young child, the ride always gave me a sense of wonder and optimism. It was Walter Cronkite's voice that guided me through it.

Androsko

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Monday July 13, 2009 · 6:53 PM PDT

2009/07/13 · 18:53

For the most part, I read DailyKos through my Google Reader. It's easier to read, share, note things for later, etc. Usually, at the bottom of the posts, there'll be an ad of some kind. Being from New Jersey, I've been getting a lot of ads about our upcoming gubernatorial election. Most of them have been the usual fare: "He said this. "Well he said this." "You're stupid." "No you're stupid." I haven't given them much thought, but this one caught my eye. These are screen grabs from a Flash ad. See if you can catch what's off:

I clearly remember when sales taxes went up. The rate increased from 6% to 7%. In other words we pay one penny more per dollar. So I was left scratching my head at the claim of a "16% sales tax hike". Then I had a revelation, and some quick math quickly confirmed my suspicion.

Androsko

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Wednesday July 08, 2009 · 2:13 PM PDT

2009/07/08 · 14:13

I bet that in the recent wave of scandals, resignations, trips to Argentina, and fighting-quitters from Alaska, a lot of people had put old Rod Blagojevich out of their mind. Considering his insatiable appetite for national attention, I'm sure Blago was pretty bummed. But even he probably doesn't want this kind of attention. His old chief of staff is telling tales to prosecutors as part of a plea deal. From Reuters:

The former chief of staff for ousted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich pleaded guilty on Wednesday and agreed to testify about attempts to cash in on the governor's power to fill a vacant U.S. Senate post.

John Harris, 47, became the first of six defendants indicted in the corruption case against Blagojevich to reach a plea agreement with prosecutors.

And from what Harris' attorney is saying, there's lots of meat these bones.

Androsko

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Monday July 06, 2009 · 4:36 PM PDT

2009/07/06 · 16:36

If there's one GOP talking point against the public health care option that seems to stick, it's the 'Washington bureaucrats will make your health care decisions' myth. From the recent GOP letter to President Obama about a public health care plan:

"The end result would be a federal government takeover of our healthcare system, taking decisions out of the hands of doctors and patients and placing them in the hands of a Washington bureaucracy..."

Then I read this on Think Progress a minute ago:

As Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) prepares to unveil the Senate Finance Committee’s bipartisan health care reform legislation later this week, several blogs are reporting that Republicans on the Committee are pushing legislation that would require insurers operating within the new Exchange to to [sic] deny coverage for abortion services.

You might say that Republicans are "taking decisions out of the hands of doctors and patients and placing them in the hands of a Washington bureaucracy".

Androsko

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Friday May 29, 2009 · 9:40 AM PDT

2009/05/29 · 09:40

Yesterday I was out with a friend taking photos of the Hess oil refinery in Port Reading, NJ. We're working on a sketch comedy pilot, and one of the scripts calls for an oil refinery as a background. We found a bridge near the refinery that had a fantastic, unobstructed view and proceeded to snap a few quick photos. We were standing on a public sidewalk on the bridge, we weren't obstructing traffic, and we parked our car legally at a public park right next to the bridge. As I turned around to leave, a police cruiser from the Woodbridge Township Police Department pulled up to where we stood (Port Reading is part of Woodbridge Township). The officer asked us what we were doing, and we explained that we were taking photos of the refinery for a sketch comedy project. Immediately, he told us that we weren't allowed to take photos of the refinery, and that we had to delete all the photos in the camera.

Androsko

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Monday January 12, 2009 · 2:34 PM PST

2009/01/12 · 14:34

I was a little bored today, so I whipped this up to commemorate the end of an era. George W. Bush has been president my entire adult life, and it's a little weird to think that he'll be gone soon. Of course it feels fantastic, but still a little weird. Is Barack Obama really about to be President? Is it ok to feel good about the executive branch again?

By the way, if anyone read my last diary entry (from some months ago), the reason I never followed up on it was because blogging was prohibited while working on the campaign. Pretty lame, but I didn't want to cause trouble. I do want to write down my campaign stories at some point, so keep an eye out.

Poll

21 votes Show Results

Would you wear "Deciders"?

21 votes Vote Now!

Would you wear "Deciders"?

Yes

3 votes

I did, but I threw them

10 votes

I'm the decider!

5 votes

NJ in OH: Tales of a Transplant Volunteer

Androsko

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Saturday October 18, 2008 · 10:15 AM PDT

2008/10/18 · 10:15

With the campaign in its final weeks, I decided it was time to get involved above and beyond what I normally do. I had gotten an e-mail from the Obama campaign asking volunteers to travel to battleground states, and it sounded like a great idea. Being from New Jersey, we were mostly pitched on trips to Pennsylvania. I had other plans. PA definitely needs help, but there was another state that called to me. It was the state that crushed my hopes in 2004, and it's shaping up to be a prime swing state again in 2008. I was dead set on going to Ohio.

There were some practical consideration, too. My cousin moved to Cleveland a few months ago and had some extra room. I have a car at my disposal, and the drive was manageable. Also, I've been unemployed for four months, and my job prospects are looking pretty slim. So with loads of free time, a set of wheels, and a nice play to stay, OH just made sense. And let's not forget the 20 electoral votes.

So I packed my things, threw caution to the wind, and set out for a place that I had only briefly visited once in my life. Aside from my cousin, I didn't know anyone in OH. I had no idea what was waiting for me. I was jumping into the deep end of the pool on a cold day.

Androsko

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Tuesday September 16, 2008 · 9:50 AM PDT

2008/09/16 · 09:50

As some of you may know, I made an attack ad the other day and I was pretty happy with how it turned out. According to the poll results, it was split about 50/50 between those who thought that the tone was good and those who thought it was a little weak. So I just made another one called "Surrender" that's a little more of a gut punch.

As with last time, I need someone to read the narration for me (I don't have the voice for it). If you can do it, get the script for the new ad here and send an audio file to narration@androsko.com. Also I put the script in the video as yellow subtitles. They're just temporary until I get someone to do the narration. Give it a watch, and let me what you think in the poll and comments.

I swear, my next ad is going to be happy.

Poll

22 votes Show Results

Does my attack ad have the tone that the Obama campaign should be fighting back with?

22 votes Vote Now!

Does my attack ad have the tone that the Obama campaign should be fighting back with?

It's too aggressive, tone it down.

1 vote

Spot on, just the right balance of aggression and substance.

12 votes

Not aggresive enough, we need to turn the heat up to 11.

8 votes

There is a distinct lack of wolves in your ad.

1 vote

I Made an Attack Ad and I Need Some Help

Androsko

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday September 12, 2008 · 9:41 AM PDT

2008/09/12 · 09:41

Please read the whole post before you vote.

Amidst the "lipstick" coverage over the past couple days, I find myself metaphorically beating my head into a table. This is news? The news media is allowing this to be news? To vent my frustration, I made an attack ad based on the theme that John McCain wants to talk about "lipstick" instead of the issues (coded to mean "the economy"). Here's the video, complete with overly dramatic, brooding music. There're no narration right now so you'll have to read along with the script, which you can get here:

http://www.androsko.com/...

I don't have a good voice for it, so could someone help me out and read the narration? Just let me know in the comments if you're interested, and we'll work something out.

Poll

25 votes Show Results

Does my attack ad have the tone that the Obama campaign should be fighting back with?

25 votes Vote Now!

Does my attack ad have the tone that the Obama campaign should be fighting back with?

It's too aggressive, tone it down.

1 vote

Spot on, just the right balance of aggression and substance.

12 votes

Not aggresive enough, we need to turn the heat up to 11.

10 votes

There is a distinct lack of wolves in your ad.

2 votes

Why Did McCain Even Give That Speech?

Androsko

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday June 06, 2008 · 1:53 PM PDT

2008/06/06 · 13:53

The press hasn't held back their criticism of John McCain’s Tuesday night speech. With headlines like "Worst. Speech. Ever.", it wasn't hard to see that it went over like a lead balloon. And of course the pundits compared the speech to Obama's rousing display later in the night. You can get a good survey of the responses here. It's the worst speech McCain has given in this campaign, both for its timing and its content. It may even be the worst speech he's given in his career.

So for all these reasons and more, I have to ask, "Why?" Why did the McCain camp think this was a good idea? They had to know it would turn out that way. Going up against an historic moment like this after so many months of agonizing campaigning, they couldn't have honestly thought that they would preempt the Clinton and Obama speeches. And they had to know that they were inviting the inevitable comparison to Obama, who has an enviable command of crowds. If they knew that this would happen, it almost seems like they wanted it to happen. Then I had a realization. Maybe they did want this to happen.

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Another Day, Another Ad

I Made an Attack Ad and I Need Some Help

Why Did McCain Even Give That Speech?