I'm impressed

Several things have impressed me this week:

• Ron Paul, or rather, his legions of fans, have raised over $4 million in one day online. More impressive still, that money came from about 35,000 contributors, which averages out to about $115 per contribution. It's like Howard Dean all over again, except this time the candidate really is outside his party's mainstream. Not that that's a bad thing.
• For some reason, I'm rather captivated by the Writers Guild strike in Hollywood. It's kind of interesting to watch a strike play out in an industry that isn't critical to the day-to-day lives of most Americans. Which is not to say that the writers don't have good cause for the strike, and that its not important to them. I think they've got a right to royalties from the booming distribution of telivision and movies via the Internets. So I hope they win. But soon, because I'll be really pissed off if this strike messes with my TV watching. (Actually, the real threat of this strike to us viewers is a greater proliferation of shitty unscripted American reality television.)
• I'm impressed by some of the Ecospot entries, but I already said that. Now I've said it again.
• Al Franken and Mike Cirisi, the two Democrats running against Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN), each recently polled in a statistical dead heat with the incumbent. I'm impressed with both candidates, but moreso with Minnesotans who appear to be wising up to Coleman. I'm sure Paul Wellstone is smiling from his grave.