Political Movies
Get out the videos: So after months of "he's stupid" and "he's annoying" do you find yourself less than pumped for the November 7th election? Save the nine bucks you would have spent at The Contender. To get you all revved up for election day, here are some of the better movies made about American politics. [11-02-00]


Halloweenie Filmfest
The Good, the Bad and the Funny: For any Halloween frightfest, there are some standards - the Friday the 13th series, the Halloweens, the Nightmare on Elm Streets, the Poltergeists etc. Here are some suggestions for a few deviations from the standard Freddy/Jason cannon. [10-26-00]

satire
One vote at a time, if need be: As the campaign winds down, the presidential candidates are beginning to focus on narrow constituencies to get out the vote. A few days ago, Democrat and Presidential loser Bill "tall candidate" Bradley visited Manchester to stump for Al Gore and Joe Lieberman. In this time of dividing voters by gender, race, age and income, Bradley went a little further. [10-24-00]

Pumpkin problems
Yes, pumpkins can make you nuts: I love Keene. I was born there, grew up there and went to school there. And I work there every day. Truly, I love the Elm City...even though there are no elms left standing. Any-hoo, years ago, ten I believe, a little community group decided to have a Pumpkin Festival and display some carved jack-o-lanterns. It wasn't any big deal. I remember that it was on a Friday night at first, and there were just some old milk crates set up on the median strips for pumpkin displays. The first year, there were 500 pumpkins. The second year, there were 1500. Then all hell broke loose. [10-24-00]

Coaxial Showdown: This past Tuesday saw the first in a series of showdowns between two worthy competitors: one a known quantity and one a newcomer to the scene. Throughout the month of October they will fight it out to see who comes out on top in November. [10-05-00]

Sydney Olympics, a Gold medal in frustration: Frustration wins. Forget gold, silver and bronze - just color me green. That's the shade I see in the mirror, the color of money, after two excruciating weeks of that every-four-years spectacle: the Olympic summer games, Sydney Y2K edition. [10-05-00]

Let me drink my stinkin' coffee: NRA cold calls. This was the second time my morning coffee had been interrupted by a call from the NRA. The first time, the woman on the phone butchered my last name and proceeded to offer me the opportunity to listen to a two-minute taped message from NRA president Charlton Heston. No thanks, I'm busy driving nails into my head. [10-05-00]

If the old lady crossing the street is a lesbian, can the Scouts still help her across?: The harmful stuff in this whole Boy Scout mess is suggesting that some people aren't entitled to the same rights as others because of their sexual orientation and, I might add, their belief in God. I just don't understand what that has to do with forging trails in the woods and having campouts. [09-28-00]

No fanboys, just Archie Bunker at book singing: John Fladd is surprised, then embarassed, about how mainstream fans of Terri Goodkind's new fantasy novel, "The Faith of the Fallen," are. [09-14-00]

Revenge of the nerds: Al Gore has declared his nerdiness. He has taken ownership of his wonky tendencies. In his acceptance speech last week at the Democratic National Convention, Gore did not try to look warm or animated or electrifying. He stood before his party faithful and said, essentially, "Here I am, in all my teacher's pet glory. I may not be the guy you want to party with, but I'm the guy you want making sure we survive the next four years." [08-24-00]

With every hour so precious why waste it watching "Survivor"?: Charles Darwin would have a field day with “Survivor”, NBC’s popular Reality TV game show, where contestants voluntarily strand themselves on an island to see who can hold out the longest for $1 million bucks. Perhaps Darwin would wonder about evolution, about how his TV audience progeny can be so ape-like as to find this kind of show enjoyable. "Survivor" may be fit enough to make the producers cut, but the whole hoopla about the reality TV program gives me fits. [08-24-00]

GOP-TV: Television is never more epic or less compelling than when it covers a modern political convention. In the interest of keeping television watchable, I offer some advice for Republicans (who, no doubt, are planning the 2004 convention at this very minute) and Democrats (who still have time to fix the many, many problems I'm sure their convention has) on how to catch and keep a television audience. [08-10-00]

Letter from GOP-soaked Philadelphia: The Republican National Convention is like an Amway seminar without the spontaneity. Philadelphia, an 18th century city with a staunchly Democratic populace, is hosting the first Republican National Convention of the 21st century. Philadelphians themselves, though, are concerned mostly about traffic delays, heat, humidity and getting a break on the price of souvenirs. [08-03-00]

Getting screwed by the politics of education:I suspect I've made a tragic error as soon as I pull the cow mask out of my knapsack. "I'm glad you asked that," I tell the grim-faced panel sitting around the conference table. "I thought I might be addressing that particular issue, so I brought a prop." Is this the way to get a teaching job? [08-03-00]

“Do you know where I can buy a dildo?”: A true story about a young woman accosting a young man about a very delicate subject for apparently no reason. [07-27-00]

A fart along the way: Call it camaraderie, for lack of a better word. That, if nothing else, found me at the foot of Mt. Monadnock, at 3 a.m. on a chilly April morning, in my underwear. But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

I do not live in New Hampshire. I (in picture to left) was born in upstate New York and have settled in Philadelphia with my wife. Until recently, my only recollection of New Hampshire was an annual thanksgiving trip my family would make to Nashua, my brothers and I fighting in the back seat for four hundred miles. [07-20-00]

Two part series in the life of a census worker
Don't hate me; I just want to know how many people live in your house, man: The problem with working for the Census is not one of REAL danger. In spite of the stories that have been going around about census workers like myself having guns pulled on them or being torn apart by angry dogs, the actual threat of real, physical peril is almost nonexistent. People are generally pretty polite about being interviewed for the national census; they just don't like it very much. [07-13-00]

Who saves whom? A man and a woman tell their tale of almost dying on Mt. Washington: Like many climbers who get in trouble on Mt. Washington Dan Szczesny and Lisa Pane thought they were just out of an enjoyable hike. That's not what happened. This is an account of two versions of reality. Both valid, both the truth. Go to his version | Go to her version [07-06-00]

The road to the Boston Marathon ends: What you know about the Boston Marathon - what you read about the front runners in the papers or in Sports Illustrated or see on TV - is nothing; a tiny, microscopic, almost irrelevant sliver of what the race is all about. I had the privilege of attending this year’s race and having my eyes opened a little bit. I can't tell you anything about what it's like to RUN the Boston Marathon, but I can share my limited insight on what it's like to be there. By John Fladd [07-06-00]

Just another rental story: A young girl of maybe six or seven met me at the door holding a toddler. "I'm here to see Wayne about the room," I said. It was early September, but Nashua was still sticky with summer weather. Wayne, a stocky man in his late 30s, welcomed me with a pleasant handshake. By Jody Reese [06-29-00]

Where have all the good barbers gone?: Keene - I have a talent that occasionally rises to the level of genius for finding drunk barbers. By John Fladd [05-10-00]

Does that say Live Free or Die?: Writer Jennifer D. Jordan can't quite believe she's in New Hampshire, but oddly has begun to like it. By Jennifer D. Jordan [04-17-00]

Oh boy, I'm here: Trading her sandles for snow boots, Amy Diaz meets famous elected folks running for President of United States. By Amy Diaz [04-10-00]