21 May 2006
I'm back; where I've been
I intend to pick up blogging again, starting now.
Where've I been? Well, I've been very busy making money, dealing with general life, and taking law school finals. Probably in that order. Blogging fell by the wayside in the list of priorities. In the meantime, I also recently had a birthday (I turned...old), my once-freshmen at Rice graduated (at about the same time as my birthday) meaning that I don't know anyone on campus at my alma mater anymore, and I moved out of my old house. Unfortunately, I don't have internet at my new house, which is why I haven't been blogging for the past week as I promised.
I intend to do quite a bit of blogging this summer, and there may even be a new blogging project or two in the works. My plan for the month of June is to watch soccer. Lots and lots of soccer. The World Cup spans from June 9 to July 9, and I plan to watch every game. I've never had cable during the World Cup before, and so I intend to do something I've always wanted to do: watch lots of World Cup soccer. Unfortunately, the United States received the worst possible first-round pairing and is unlikely to go through to the second round.
I'll also be doing several other things this summer: studying for the GMAT, deciding what I want to do next year, making the occasional dollar, going to friends' weddings, and lots of reading. In the past four days I've read about 7 books. It's been glorious. One of those books was Ben Barnes' memoir, and I hope to have a review up soon.
As for what I'll be doing next year, it could be one of several things (not listed in order of probability): law school, getting a job in the energy trading field (feel free to pass along contacts!), joining the Army or Marines, getting a job doing something else, getting a job in politics such as working in the 80th General Session of the Texas Legislature, starting a business that I've wanted to start for a long time (and almost started once before), or taking the year off before business school (depending on my GMAT score, but my goal would be to go to Chicago and if not, then to Texas or A&M). Many people insist that I should go back to law school, but I've never particularly desired to be an attorney, and I'm not particularly happy at the law school I've been at (eg, it's not Chicago Law). Yes, there is something alluring to me about the University of Chicago: it has a certain mystique. It's "the place where fun goes to die," after all! Actually, that's exactly why I want to go there. It's definitely not the weather, and my heart would pine for Texas for the duration.
The future is bright, if hazy. Having options is wonderful. If you have guidance, wisdom, or job offers, I'd love to listen. In the meantime, hopefully I'll have something interesting to say about politics.
Posted by Evan @ 05/21/06 11:18 PM | Comments (1)
Newest Texas Monthly
The newest Texas Monthly has a bunch of good articles.
Most germane to this blog is the long S.C. Gwynne take on Chris Bell and his chances in the gubernatorial race.
There's also a very interesting interview with GOP moneygiver Dr. James Leininger, as well as an article by Virginia Postrel on her kidney donation surgery and an Evan Smith interview with Betty Flores, the mayor of Laredo.
Posted by Evan @ 05/21/06 10:58 PM | Comments (0)
Random political notes
Dr. Whited sent along this HouChron article, and asked what I thought.
The Asian-American community, which is approaching the growth rate of Latinos in some parts of Texas, contributes to a shifting demographic landscape that may eventually return the state to Democratic control, according to a panelist discussing the group's emergence Saturday at the George R. Brown Convention Center.The article is headlined, "Asian-American growth seen as a boon for Dems."The diversity of the cultures and languages encompassed by the Census Bureau category of "Asian" makes it difficult to reliably chart voting trends, said Robert Stein, dean of the School of Social Sciences at Rice University. But he added that the group clearly resists voting Republican; a shift that is otherwise common to upwardly mobile populations.
Here's a slightly (and quickly!) edited version of what I wrote Kevin back:
Perhaps Dr. Stein makes a better case in his paper than this article. Unless anything has changed in the last few years, if you factor out Hawaii, Asians break close to 50-50 partisanship-wise. Minor caveat: it depends of course on who you count as "Asian." The exact percentage depends on how many countries you include as being part of Asia.I'm skeptical that this will be a factor in Texas' statewide elections in the next decade or two. However, I'll try to track down the article or Dr. Stein and see what his thesis really is.Obviously, it also depends what specific Asian ethnicities are represented in Texas. The Vietnamese and Chinese (particularly second half of the 20th century immigrants and their children) are historically the most GOP ethnic groups in the US. Generally, the Japanese and Koreans are the Dem-leaning ethnic groups, although how much so can also vary by state. I don't have numbers for the ethnic makeup of Asian Texans (This is not necessarily the preferred nomenclature), and I won't speculate here.
The article makes it unclear what exactly Dr. Stein was propounding.
Posted by Evan @ 05/21/06 10:53 PM | Comments (0)
11 May 2006
I'll be returning to blogging imminently
If by "imminently," I mean that I'll be blogging again sometime this weekend.
In the meantime, I've been told to link to my friend Andy's band: General Noise.
Posted by Evan @ 05/11/06 06:24 PM | Comments (0)