The New York Times recently redesigned nytimes.com and I absolutely love it. The look is far more elegant and inviting. I find myself wanting to read things that I would have skimmed in the past. The mark of a good design is that you want to spend more time with it. I have to say, though, that if you aren't reading it on a Mac, you would be amazed at just how good it can look.
Today, there are two great articles worth reading. Condoleezza Rice on Piano is a wonderful story about the Secretary of State's chamber music group that regularly meets and plays in her Watergate apartment. Rice is a classically trained pianist. Her diversity of knowledge and skills is inspiring for someone in public life.
Ben is actually playing Beethoven's For Elise as I write this. He is now in his third year of piano lessons, and though his progress has been amazing, like any 10-year old, it's not his favorite thing. I want to share this story with him so he can see what the ability to make music can be mean in your life.
And yes, I am old enough to remember the famous "Is it live, or is it Memorex?" commercial, which makes this moment even more wonderful.
The second article is a more traditional one, but the type I love: McCain Emphasizing His Conservative Bona Fides. There can be no doubt that McCain is running in 2008, which should make things very entertaining. I was an enthusiastic McCain supporter in 2000.
As long as you're reading about McCain and Rice, here's an interesting game to play. What Democratic ticket would be the best match for a McCain/Rice combination in 2008? I expect both 2006 and 2008 to be heavily Democratic elections, but this pairing presents a number of unique advantages - conservative enough to keep the Republican base enthusiastic, but diverse in thought as well as (obviously) gender and race to attract independent voters.
Quite honestly I think the reason Bush's approval ratings are so low is because he's not acting as conservatively as he should. Not because he isn't liberal enough. With McCain on the ticket we're heading more toward the left than Bush.
The polling numbers don't show what people think of the Democrats. People assume that since people don't approve of Bush, they approve of Democrats. This is not necessarily true. There are many things that Bush has done that I don't approve of, but I approve of the Democrats far less.
As far as I'm concerned McCain is a Democrat pretending to be a Republican. Would I vote for him over Hillary? Yes. But let's hope I don't have to.
Oh, and don't read the Times. It's a front for the leftist propaganda machine.
Posted by: Brian Glass | April 10, 2006 at 09:40 AM
Brian - your 10 year old playing Fur Elise by Beethoven strikes a cord with me! My young son is also taking piano lessons and his "goal" is to play Beethovan. I think it's HORRIBLE that public schools are not paying for and encouraging music. I'm trying to do something about it ... I've positioned myself on the board of a local philharmonic and am trying to persuade where extra $$ are spent. Guess where ... I'm pushing $$$ to be spent on classical musical programming for the public schools in Florida. We've had tremendous reception from the schools!
Let me know your thoughts
Posted by: Leslie | April 11, 2006 at 10:07 PM
Brian: Obviously I disagree with you on McCain, but that's o.k. I find it hard to believe that people who wanted a "true conservative" in 2000 are very happy with what they got. McCain is fair to those who disagree with him and doesn't demonize them. He's open to working with different people to accomplish a larger goal. And he's willing to admit a mistake, fix it, and move on.
I love the NYT and will happily keep reading it. I value quality and different perspectives.
Leslie: That's great to hear...way to go! I hope you're successful in bringing more classical music into your schools.
Posted by: Brian | April 13, 2006 at 08:14 AM