Up In Smoke?

I'm not sure how many of you have been keeping track of this, but the latest scandal regards photos published of Michael Phelps sparking it up at a party at the University of South Carolina. There was a resulting furor that the 23-year old Phelps is acting, well, like a 23 year old. Some have opined that this is just horrible and shocking and that this somehow erases all of Phelps's accomplishments and spells the end of his career. Phelps recently released a statement acknowledging the truth of the photo and expressing his regret over his "bad judgment" and "regrettable" behavior and swears never to do it again. Mea culpa, mea culpa.

How insane is this? Phelps should have released a statement explaining that all he does is eat, sleep and swim and if he decides he wants to spark up a bowl and act like a normal college-aged student, then congratulations for trying to have some semblance of a normal life. Yes, it sounds like he was a bit out of control but that's what happens when you spend your life trying to be superhuman and miss all the things that make life enjoyable. These outraged moralizers need to get a life and mind their own damn business.

I Survived Light Rail

Yesterday was the grand opening for Valley Metro's new light rail service here in the Valley. It's a project that's been years in the making. My dad and I decided to head to downtown Phoenix to catch an exhibit at the Arizona Science Center and we figured that it would be a great opportunity to check out the new light rail system. We headed down to the Apache & Dorsey station because it was designated as a "Park & Ride" stop. We were greeted with a carnival-like atmosphere as there were a number of celebrations going on at several stations.

While I anticipated that people would come out on the first day, I hadn't realized that turnout would be as heavy as it was. While I heard reports of 2.5 hour waits, we managed to get the first train that stopped. That said, we were greeted with a train that was absolutely packed. It was a very un-Phoenix-like experience. Still, the riders seemed to be in good spirits -- the conductor would announce that he was closing the doors and would count down from 5 to 1 and the riders began counting down with him. The high point was crossing Tempe Town Lake and hearing the oohs and ahs as we glided over the water. Once we crossed into Phoenix, it became an actual clown car experience, as a clown made her way onto our already overcrowded car. I overheard a few passengers around me wishing physical violence on the wayward clown.

The trip back was a little more trying. I had hoped that perhaps things would settle down later in the day. I miscalculated. We headed for the 1st Avenue and Washington station after lunch. There were many more people than at the Apache & Dorsey station. The first train came and was full, I overheard some riders saying that they had seen several trains come and go and hadn't been able to get on. Officials at the station said that there was another train following in 5 or 10 minutes, but it ended up being around 20 minutes to the next train. Valley Metro was also running special buses along the light rail route for those who didn't want to wait, but as we saw those buses pass us by, they seemed as crowded as the light rail cars.

Fortunately, we were able to get on the second train, as I was determined to push my way on and make the trip back home. The trip back was less comfortable than the first -- the cars were more crowded on the way back, it seemed like everyone was tired and ready to get back home. I remember someone remarking that we were being herded like cattle, but I reminded him that because of a recent initiative passed, farm animals are required to have much more space for them to move.

Overall, I was very pleased with the experience. I'm glad they had so many people come out in support and I hope that people use it. I'm interested in seeing what the ridership is like once regular service starts. I'm also hoping they come to their senses and extend service on Friday and Saturday nights for people who want to hit the bars. I'm also interested in seeing how the areas around the line develop -- I'd have to believe that the land use around it is going to change quite a bit. It was a great start and I'm looking forward to seeing how things come together.

Nothing Important Happened Today

I ended up having a slight change in plans and ended up going to see X-Files: I Want to Believe with Alex. While I was never a hard core X-Files fan, I generally liked the series -- personally, I enjoy the premise of the true believer and the skeptic trying to uncover the unexplained. I liked the experience of challenging the types of things that we'd like to ignore or deny. It was entertaining to believe that there really was much more out there than we see in our day to day existence...

...and the sexual tension between Mulder and Scully was off the charts.

Flash forward to the present movie. The original series is best summed up with the iconic phrase, "The truth is out there." Sadly, the latest film is best described by one of the episode titles in season 9 (for the record, I looked it up) -- "Nothing important happened today." I won't go into the plot -- perhaps some of you might actually go see it... not that there's much to spoil.

I didn't have any expectations going into the film, so you'd think it I wouldn't be disappointed... but I was. Why? Because by the end of the film you realize, it was all hopeless. Mulder is still tortured that he hasn't found his sister, the abducted sister that even HE admits is dead. Scully is still tortured and raging against God. This time, there's no conspiracy, at least nothing out of the ordinary. Just tortured people chasing more tortured people... and that's the saddest part: the realization that there's nothing left of Mulder & Scully, only their withered shells that STILL. CAN'T. LET. GO. What's worse is hearing them go back and forth about how they just can't be together because neither of them can do much more than not let go. It was like the final episode of Seinfeld where the writers make it clear that at the end of things that everyone is exactly who they were when they started. It was all for nothing.

It's really surprising how many people I heard expressing their disappointment in things as the credits started. Why? Because by the end of the film the only thing that happened was that Mulder & Scully decide they'll go back to being miserable together. Great. Back to where you started. SO glad we went through that. Nothing important happened today.

Welcome Phoenix's Newest Gay Resident

Phoenix may not have a "gayborhood" like Philly's newly designated district, but we're a magnet for the gays nonetheless. Case in point, Ted Haggard, formerly of Colorado Springs, has recently made the move to the city. You may or may not remember but there was a little bit of a buzz about some meth and a gay escort. Sounds like he'll be hanging out over at Crusing on 7th, if that's his crowd. Then again, if he's coming from Colorado Springs, I suspect he'll be more inclined toward Charlie's.

Bishops to Gays: 'Shut Up and Stay in the Closet!'

I know its hardly news that the Catholic Church isn't the most gay friendly of organizations. The country's Bishops are doing their best to reinforce that image. A recent story describes the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' 194-37 vote to adopt new guidelines to "support gay parishoners." Their advice: Stay celibate and don't make "general public self-disclosures" about your sexual orientation in Church. Boy, that's helpful -- you'd think that they'd mention some helpful redecorating tips to make your closet feel more comfortable, as they'd like you to stay in there.

It seems as if the Church is doing everything it can to make itself even less relevant. For example, American Catholics reportedly ignore the Church's teaching on birth control -- only 4% of Catholics in this country reportedly adhere to "natural" birth control. Apparently, the Church wants to alienate any remaining gay parishoners -- perhaps they'll be able to duplicate the 4% level with gays.

Clearly, the Church prefers to ratchet up its attempts at social control above all else. Bishop William Skylstad, leader of the U.S. Conference, describes the atmosphere in the Church these days -- "The point seems to be not to seek the truth or to build up the Body of Christ, but to strive for a sort of victory by overcoming others, preferably by crushing those who disagree." I think the Church might as well quit fucking around and bring back the Inquisition.