BEDA Day 8

I think I'll make this one short. I got a new book today which I'm super excited about.

Presidential Leadership in Political Time: Reprise and Reappraisal by Stephen Skowronek.

In my Modern Presidency class, we read Skowronek's article by the same title and his analytical framework really stood out when I took the class and has continued to stuck with me since the class ended. Simply put, Skowronek's framework shifts the study of the presidency from the typical linear, sequential, chronological pattern into what can be described as a life cycle of a political regime or coalition. For example, Skowronek's original article compared the Jacksonian and New Deal regimes.

Presidents Jackson and Roosevelt are the beginnings of their respective regimes who came to power as a result of the American public rejecting and displacing of a long-standing regime (Jeffersonian for Jackson and the Prosperity/Do-Nothing Republicans of the 1920s for FDR). In the middle, Skowronek compares Presidents Polk and Kennedy as those charged with maintaining extending their regimes. Finally, Presidents Pierce and Carter are compared as the two presidents who saw the their respective regimes come to an end as the coalitions fractured to a point where they could no longer govern and gave way to a new regime (the Jacksonian regime pretty much ended but could have possibly been replaced by a Lincoln regime had his presidency not been cut short and the Reagan regime replaced the New Deal Coalition).

This is a book of six essays that spell out Skrownek's main thesis of presidential leadership in political time. I've only read his initial article that compared the presidents above which as I mentioned, made a huge impression on me. I'm really excited to learn more about how recent presidents are placed in the political time model.

BEDA Day 3: Crushes

Crushes...where to begin on this one. I do have to say that crushes is a tougher topic to write about than I thought it would be. When I hear the word crush, I think of the middle school relationship type where student A is crushing on student B. If that were the the case, there's a long list of ladies (celebrity or not) who I have crushed on over the years. That said, I am glad that "crushes" is not limited to celebrity-type crushes because I'm not sure I want to blog about why I think Natalie Portman is hot (short answer: I think she is and that's about all the reason I really have).

Since I've stared at this paragraph for ten minutes and still have not been able to narrow it down to a single thing, I think I'll approach it in the Academy Award's way, multiple categories (The Naties?):

Sports: Joe Mauer, Catcher, Minnesota Twins. Dude can flat out play ball and he seems humble to boot. My Midwestern sensibilities can appreciate someone who just goes out and does their job.

Author: J.K. Rowling. While I don't know about her other writing, the Harry Potter series, is in my opinion, one of the greatest series out there. Not only are they incredibly written in their own right, but the universe she created is second only to probably Tolkien's Middle Earth in scope, depth, and detail.

Fictional Character: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars. I'll take the calm, level-headed Obi-Wan over any other Jedi in the Star Wars universe.

Musician: Billie Joe Armstrong. You must be doing something right if your 90's punk band is now an international sensation and still going strong almost 20 years later.

Actor, Female: Natalie Portman...see above

Actor, Male: Denzel Washington. This guy can flat out act.

Intellectual: Dr. D. Hoffman a political science professor who I had for a couple of classes. Her research interests in the presidency and U.S. elections closely match mine and I hope that maybe someday we can collaborate on a future political science/history project.

Political: President Barack Obama. Like many, his 2004 convention speech caught my eye to where I walked into work the following day and said to a die-hard Democrat I worked with that he'll be president some day. After reading Dreams from My Father, I really started admire and respect him and hoped that my prediction would come true.