Original Stranger

  • Favorite Album of 2018

    Favorite Album of 2018

    2018 was an interesting year.

    In terms of music, it was a year I went to more concerts than the last couple of years, but it was also a year that I was less enthused about the releases that occurred. Taking a step back and looking at the most played songs and albums in 2016, 2017, and 2018, I can say with some confidence I preferred the previous years.

    With that said, there was some great music this year. When Mt. Joy’s self-titled album dropped, I knew it was going to be my favorite. It was something that I so clearly and fully enjoyed that I listed it with past year’s favorites by July, knowing full well that it would be what I featured in this post. I moved on to others, including a lot of Caamp, throughout the year but Mt. Joy was the standalone option as the favorite album of the year so I highlight it for posterity here.

    The other album that I really have to highlight is The 1975’s A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships. It was a late year doozy.

    Past favorite albums of the year include:

    • I Love You Like a Brother by Alex Lahey (2017)
    • Painting of a Panic Attack by Frightened Rabbit (2016)
    • The Positions by Gang of Youths (2015)
    • Islands by Bear’s Den (2014)
    • White Lighter by Typhoon (2013)
    • Lonesome Dreams by Lord Huron (2012)
    • The Year of Hibernation by Youth Lagoon (2011)
    • Passive Me, Aggressive You by The Naked and Famous (2010)
  • Favorite Album of 2017

    Favorite Album of 2017

    Between her debut album and catching her American tour, Alex Lahey reinvigorated my love of music late in 2017. Her album stands out as my favorite for that reason and for the sheer quality that comes through after a series of awesome singles. I Love You Like a Brother is a debut that serves as a great introduction to a rising indie rocker. I have no doubt that we will see her popularity rise in 2018.

    Other albums that I kept in mind through out the year as potential favorites were American Teen by Khalid, Melodrama by Lorde, and Go Farther in Lightness by Gang of Youths. Each was a favorite at some point of the year.

    I Love You Like a Brother ultimately joins past favorite albums of the year including:

    • Painting of a Panic Attack by Frightened Rabbit (2016)
    • The Positions by Gang of Youths (2015)
    • Islands by Bear’s Den (2014)
    • White Lighter by Typhoon (2013)
    • Lonesome Dreams by Lord Huron (2012)
    • The Year of Hibernation by Youth Lagoon (2011)
    • Passive Me, Aggressive You by The Naked and Famous (2010)
  • Neil Gorsuch: Great Jurist or Greatest Jurist?

    Neil Gorsuch: Great Jurist or Greatest Jurist?

    Neil Gorsuch is the greatest thing since sliced bread and what makes him so very unique is that he is a white-haired white dude that Republicans like.

    He is, after all, the one that is the “guardian of the Constitution” and conservatives can find solace in muttering his name to reassure themselves about a flailing presidency. Yet, conservatives want to spew bullshit and let’s be honest, we’re all tired of it.

    They have started to say that filibustering Neil Gorsuch is an unprecedented break in Senate tradition. They forget to mention that their treatment of Merrick Garland was an unprecedented break in Senate tradition. They have practically deleted Merrick Garland from history because they know their story is a lie of omission but like a con man (or now President apparently), you never back away from your story. No matter how tall a tale, no matter how big a lie, you just keep saying it.

    Conservatives keep repeating bullshit and we’ve had enough.

    When a conservative says Neil Gorsuch is qualified, there’s a problem–he is less qualified than Merrick Garland, the chief judge of the nation’s 2nd most important court and the previous nominee for the vacancy.

    When a conservative says that Neil Gorsuch is mainstream, we know that he is not. For example, he has favored corporate interests over citizens repeatedly. His dissent in TransAm Trucking v. Department of Labor displays a stunning lack of empathy that is practically Trumpian but certainly not American: you should be fired for not willing to freeze to death for your company. His far right ideology is out of step with the country at-large and is being whitewashed through a multi-million dollar charm offensive paid for by dark money. His inability and unwillingness to denounce the erosive effects of this dark money on our democracy should be disqualifying for a lifetime appointment to our nation’s highest court.

    When a conservative says Neil Gorsuch has overwhelming appeal, we point out that he will not be confirmed without elected Republicans changing the rules of the Senate to force his nomination through–the first time ever and another break with Senate tradition that elected Republicans seem to be okay with.

    When a conservative says that he is not an activist judge, we know he is. His ruling in Hobby Lobby illustrates his radical interpretation of the Constitution and his willingness to subvert our laws as written to further his personal policy preferences.

    Neil Gorsuch is unfit for our Supreme Court, but he is also emblematic of the conservative bullshit problem.

    When conservatives crow about paid protesters and voter fraud, we know that they paid tea party protesters and they have engaged in voter fraud. For elected Republicans, political norms are not above reproach, the rules are not sacrosanct, and the teachings of Jesus lose to the Pharisees in the “Moral Majority” every time.

    Liberals could claim that the situation with Neil Gorsuch is that of a second-choice, second-rate nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy who is an out-of-the-mainstream activist judge or as conservatives say: is Neil Gorsuch a great jurist or the greatest?

  • A Couple of Ways Colorado Democrats Can Fight Back

    A Couple of Ways Colorado Democrats Can Fight Back

    When elected Republicans take power, they prioritize political and economic suppression, including voter suppression, gerrymandering, and union-busting (Wisconsin). Then they destroy the capacity of government to work for and help workers and their families (Michigan). Finally, they turn the government into an ATM for the wealthy, including tax cuts and corporate welfare (Kansas). There is a clear procession of Republican outcomes and each aforementioned state is at different in the process of redistributing money from the poor, working, and middle classes to the wealthy.

    When elected Republicans lose power, they attempt to move the goal posts and dilute the power of incoming Democrats (North Carolina). The antics in North Carolina pulled back the curtain for those that did not fully appreciate the electeds of the modern Republican Party–they practice politics at all costs and then pursue policy. That’s how you end up with Donald Trump as a nominee. National Democrats have failed to adapt to the the political landscape in a number of ways and have clung to old norms and priorities.

    In order to win, Democrats must do the exact opposite of elected Republicans in Wisconsin, Michigan, Kansas, and North Carolina.

    Voting rights must be prioritized, policies must strengthen the ability of working people to organize, mobilize, and unionize, government services to help all citizens must be bolstered (“Make the Post Office Great Again”), and our government must actively pursue policy to prevent a landed gentry and American aristocracy. Colorado offers the opportunity to be a template for the rest of the country.

    In Colorado, two ways Democrats can combat Donald Trump-led Republicans:

    1. Strengthen participatory democracy by automatic voter registration and
    2. Providing postage-paid mail ballots

    There are many priorities for different constituencies and they are important to advocate and fight for, but these two things strengthen our democracy, especially in the face of forced erosion measures by anti-democratic Republicans officials, and they must be a common purpose and high priority for Democrats across the country. Colorado Democrats have the opportunity to fight for these and once again be an example for the country.