Duck Dynasty, Morality, and the Truth

Some days ago Right Wing Watch posted a clip of a speech that had been made by a certain Duck Dynasty star on atheists and morality.  For those that haven't heard the speech itself was outrageous and more akin to a revenge fantasy than a philosophical argument.  If you care to listen to it, it is here.  He set up a hypothetical scenario where an atheist's family is raped and murdered in front of him while the murderer asserts that because of his (and presumably the murderer's) atheist beliefs there can be no objective determination that what he was doing was wrong in a moral sense.  

This is an argument, though crudely put in this case, I've never had a good answer to.  There have been countless attempts in history to define some sort of morality that is not based on a man in the sky telling us what is right and wrong.  Jesus is some people's man in the sky, but he made famous the rather durable code ("do unto others as you would have done unto you") that doesn't seem to require a divine sanction to make sense.  Kant referenced a categorical imperative that seems to my crude philosophical mind to be a generalized case of Jesus' Golden Rule: "do as you would have others in your position do."  Most recently, Sam Harris played the semantic trick of re-defining good as that which benefits the welfare of conscious creatures, with the Kantian caveat that conscious creatures should be seen as ends and not means to an end.  

The efforts of Jesus, Kant, and Harris all seem to make sense to me.  But where these systems all seem to fail as moralities is that, without any objective creature to tell us so, these moralities still rest on the preferences and intuitions of the hearer, giving them a rather circular quality.  In other words, if I choose one of these moralities upon hearing it but later run up against circumstances that change my sense of the greater good, should I trust these old moral laws or my new intuition? Always choosing ones' intuition seems a kind of solipsism while always choosing a received moral system seems a kind of fanaticism.  

Moreover, all these secular values seem descriptive of how a good human citizen acts in a society we'd all like to live in rather than a description of an objective truth outside our collective experience.  This may seem like splitting hairs, but what do we do when we encounter secular moral systems that don't make sense to us? Imagine a person who held that scientific advancement was more important than furthering of the welfare of conscious creatures.  How do we weigh this system against Sam Harris', except to say "I like the implications of one but I don't like the implications of the other?" I haven't found a way around that question either.

Theists may chortle at this existential quandary atheists find themselves in, but the problem is no better for theists.  After all, why should a god's commands be moral? The way the Judeo-Christian God is able to prove his edicts to be moral to us is that the moral go to Heaven while the immoral go to Hell.  In modern sophisticated religions, Hell has been defined down from a visceral place of tortures to an eternal cutting off from the bliss of being with God or simply to Nothing.  Nevertheless it still boils down to a principle of "be good or you'll feel it in the end." Under the old tribal God, might makes right.  Under the modern God, morality is like a healthy diet.  What's striking is that we're still relying on utilitarian principles and rational self interest, albeit with the scales weighted by fantastical stories of the afterlife.  

A lifetime of thinking on my part adds up to this: there is no such thing as morality.  Even if there were a God there would be no such thing as morality.  If a person has a belief about the right thing to do when she is in possession of all the right facts, there is no "proving" that person wrong.  We can appeal to the intuitions of others and hope everyone else agrees with our informed intuition, but there's nothing we can reference outside of the effects of the principles we are espousing.  

This is not to say that all beliefs are created equal.  When Christians say that they oppose homosexuality or divorce based on God-derived principles, I can appeal to the truth, as I see it, that there is no personal God whose thoughts they could possibly know.  Now, it is true that the truth is always up for debate, but there at least we are appealing to something outside ourselves.  We do not have to take the path of what is commonly referred to as "moral relativism" where nonsensical barbarity is excused because we can't judge other cultures.  We can judge beliefs not just based on our own intuitions, but on our evaluation of the basic truths that underly those beliefs.  This means that not everyone's belief is equal if we assume that there is an objective reality.  (I realize that some people dispute this, but I'm less troubled by that assumption.) The propagandist thinks that truth has a debt to pay to morality, but it is the opposite.  Any so- called morality we espouse must be relative, but the truth is absolute.  

I guess, then, we don't really have a universal answer for the hypothetical killer rapist in the Duck Dynasty story.  Whether we believe in God in not, we'll still have to express an assertion based on our own view of the world.  That might not be satisfying to those that would like the perfect retort to all the madness in the world, but it's all we have, and it is the truth.    

RuPaul's Drag Race Power Rankings (Week 4)

Well folks, that was a pretty good week 4.  This is the last week of the preliminary rounds, "the end of the beginning" as Winston Churchill might have said after we revived him with smelling salts.  Next week comes The Snatch Game, which is when things start to get really interesting.  So it's a good time to take stock. The first thing to note about the first four weeks is how deep a field we have this year.  Last year at this time we still had Gia Gunn, and Laganja Estranja to eliminate.  By the time the dust had settled, Joslyn Fox would sleepwalk into 6th place .  I think everyone in these Power Rankings, including the eliminated Trixie Mattell is better than the Terrible Two.  And all but one or two of them are better than Joslyn.

The depth of the field means we can't be too critical of a queen going up for elimination.  A lot of the decisions at the bottom end are on a razor's edge.  There were actually no truly weak runway outfits this week, and the judges had to resort to criticizing Kandy Ho for not being original enough.  That's harsh when it seems like the bottom queens in past seasons were struggling to put together basic outfits at this stage.  Anyway, on to the rankings!

11.) Trixie Mattel (-1) (OUT)- Speaking of harsh, it turns out Ru liked Trixie even less than I did! Still her judgement was basically sound.  Trixie's whole raison d'etre was comedy and she wasn't very funny on the show.  I'm sure she is funny in real life but it wasn't working for her here, and that just killed her. When Courtney Act wasn't funny, she could cruise on looks and glamour.  Even Bianca had her authority and basic competence to fall back on.  Trixie had no net.  She's like one of those relief pitchers whose one killer pitch stops working.  All of a sudden, they're not only not an All-Star talent, but people begin wondering how they even made it to the highest level of competition in the first place.

10.) Kandy Ho (-1)- Boy, Kandy has looked like a dead queen walking for a few weeks now.  One almost feels like she should have been the one wearing a Marie Antoinette outfit this week.  But she escapes the National Razor once again.  It surprises me that Ru didn't throw Kandy up as the sacrificial lamb against either Trixie or Pearl.  There's at least a ghost of a chance that we could have seen something out of Trixie in the next few weeks, but I feel like we've seen all we're going to get from Kandy.

9.) Mrs.  Kasha Davis (-1)- I'm not a huge fan of Kasha, but she's quietly put up a few good weeks in a row which can't be ignored.  I was surprised the judges went for the money dress, which was not terrible, but was my least favorite among the excellent crop of runway looks this week.  The problem with Mrs. Kasha is that she seems very old.  She's only a few years older than Darienne Lake or even Bianca, but her age and experience seems to have ossified her rather than giving her confidence and vitality.  I don't get excited by the prospect of seeing her perform, and she doesn't seem to have the capacity to surprise.

8.) Jadyn Diore Fierce (+3)- Jadyn had a good week this week, and did an uncannily good impression of Bianca Del Rio for someone who does not have a similar style at all.  However, I thought her runway look was one of the weaker ones, and it seems to be of a type with the other outfits she stole from Janet Jackson in the Fat Elvis phase we all somehow missed.  Still, she seems like the most improved queen of the first few weeks, and might be someone to watch if she continues to move forward.

7.) Miss Fame (-2)- Pretty ain't gonna be enough this year.

6.) Pearl (-3)- Spare us the crocodile tears, Pearl.  (Or actually I guess they were snake tears.) You tried to pin the Tan With You parody on Trixie when you thought it was a loser.

It was a bad week, and the 2nd week in a row being low for Pearl, which isn't a great sign.  I think the lip synch showed us what Pearl could be if he ever got going, however.  He had the intense eyes of a silent movie star.  The dress was incredible and the performance was genuinely compelling.  More of that, please!

5.) Katya(+2)- Here comes Katya...Her lead performance in the Tan With You video was excellent, and she seems to be one of the funnier queens of the bunch.  She recalls Alaska without all the bullshit and self-importance.  I'm genuinely intrigued by what we'll see in Snatch Game from her.  I'm guessing we'll finally get to see an Eastern Bloc character.  She's wisely kept that powder dry, and a convincing performance could vault her into the top competitors.

4.) Violet Chachki (No Change)-  Violet had an excellent performance as Adore Delano, and had a daring runway look.  (But stop relying on that body!) Still, I can't help but think Violet's petulant attitude will hold her back in this competition.  It's hard to believe, but she and Max are the same age.  Max a vision for the parody, took control, and accepted responsibility.  Violet again externalized and seemed like a bratty little child.  It's this lack of maturity that, for now, is keeping her out of the top three.

3.) Kennedy Davenport (+3)- Kennedy won the challenge and was beautiful on the runway.  It was nice to see her back in the saddle.

2.) Max (-1)- Again, it's striking that Max to immediate control of the project for his group even when there were no assigned leaders.  He gave himself the hardest part, and, despite the judges' criticisms, I thought he did a good job with his Courtney Act impression.  (On the whole, it was the most successful of the parodies.)  I'm not sure we've ever seen anyone do "artistic" drag really successfully on the program, but if Max can pull off the high wire act for the whole season, he'll be a tough out.

1.) Ginger Minj (+1)- The Minj is relentless, though.  She hasn't looked close to placing in the Bottom 2 at any point this season, and she made me laugh out loud twice in this episode.  Where Max is a molecular gastronomic delight, Ginger is steak frites with a glass or two of Cote Du Rhone.  The former has the potential to be transcendent, but the latter will never let you down.  It should be an interesting season.

Ru Paul Drag Race Power Rankings (Week 3)

Sorry for the late entry here, friends, but there were extenuating circumstances, I promise.  Next Monday I will make it up to you by getting it up as soon as possible.  Anyway, I found this one difficult to write soon after watching the episode, as it was one of the more poorly executed challenges in the show's herstory.

12.) Jasmine Masters (-3)(OUT)- This was my biggest Drag Race disappointment since the shocking episode last year when Ben DeLaCreme was ousted before reaching the final four.  Jasmine screwed up the diction, didn't memorize her lines well enough, and probably deserved to go.  I knew it was curtains for her when she matched up with Kennedy in the final two.  But Jasmine had real personality and heart.  She was funny, quick witted, and served as an amusing counterpoint to the young bitchy queens that seem poised to dominate this season. Hopefully Ru allows a comeback this year rather than saving two queens in an episode as she has done the past few years.  Jasmine, I will miss you!

11.) Jadyn Diore Fierce (+1)- THERE'S NO CRYING IN DRAG RACE! Or at least there's no crying until Episode 7 when you are up for elimination.  Seriously, what a meltdown for someone that should be used to performing onstage! She didn't even have a tragic story.  At least have a murdered parent that left you at the bus stop or something! I am still not optimistic.

10.) Trixie Mattel (+1)- I am so sick of Trixie: not pretty enough to be glamorous not funny enough to be a comedy queen, and sickeningly trying to align herself with the Miss Fame-Violet Axis.  However, I was curious and checked Twitter...amazingly she is solidly in the middle in terms of Twitter followers among the girls. Am I missing something? These first few weeks have been so topsy turvy that I barely trust my own instincts anymore.  I suppose that Greek God(ess) dress was pretty good this week...

9.) Kandy Ho (+2)- A game performance, I suppose, on Team Kennedy's sinking ship.  I feel like Kandy could do a halfway decent Sarah Palin if ever called upon.  We shall see if that comes up in Snatch Game.  Also, that drag beard was tremendous, as was the boxed hairdo.  Worthy of a bump up.

8.)  Kasha Davis (No Change)- Meh.  A decent performance as Lady Capulet (?) in that Romeo and Juliet parody.  Nothing special on the runway.  I feel she is the dividing line between the girls in danger and the girls who could be contenders.

7.) Katya (No Change)- Katya is the dark horse girl among the contenders, but I think she's done well, and we haven't even seen the Russian character schtick that made her famous.  The Abe Lincoln dress was great and her Shakequeer contribution was OK.  I always enjoy Katya's contributions, and I think she will shine given the opportunity.

6.) Kennedy Davenport (-4) Oof, rough week.  I am starting to doubt my initial impression of Kennedy as the favorite.  That theatrical troupe was extremely poorly managed.  I actually agreed with Kennedy's instincts in making Violet and Jasmine go against type(she had to be thinking of the famous Rue McClanahan/Betty White swap for Golden Girls).  But alas, neither Violet nor Jasmine had the talent of those sitcom divas.  I also thought Kennedy's instinct to be a background player was a very bad sign.  Jasmine at least grabbed for a big part, swung, and miss.  Kennedy seemed content to drop some potion into cauldron.  The dress and beard were also really terrible.  Kennedy was, by any objective standard, the worst one on this episode.  Only my (fading) estimation of her talent keeps her this high.

5.) Miss Fame (+1)- Miss Fame was just treading water this week.  Nothing special in either the play or the runway.  I wasn't crazy about the dress choice either, but the relative strength of the past few weeks keep Miss Fame up with the contenders.

4.) Violet Chachki (No Change)- I know Violet has her supporters, chiefly herself, but I am not a huge fan. She has performed decently well the first few weeks, and the dream-in-pink runway look was outstanding, but she is significantly weaker than the three girls at the top.  First, Violet was absolutely terrible in the challenge.  Even with the bad teammate performances, she should have nailed that role if she really is a top queen.  Also, the attitude is a huge problem.  The difference between Pearl and Violet is that Pearl knows when he's terrible, and is more likely to change course on things that are a problem.  Violet externalizes problems and doesn't take responsibility for failures.  I think we'll see Violet gradually drop back in the pack as the show goes on.

3.) Pearl (No Change)- A bad performance in the play but that runway look was so outstanding that all is pretty much forgiven.  It is the best look of the season so far, and reminded me of a Final Fantasy villain, which is a high compliment if you can't tell.

2.) Ginger Minj (-1)- Ginger didn't do anything wrong in this challenge and continues to be the most amusing of the bunch.  Ginger will be dangerous because she doesn't appear to screw up and is consistently able to ham up any situation.  That will take you a long way in Drag Race.  I'd say her floor is Ben DeLaCreme and her ceiling is Jinx or Bianca.  That is, I think she has a chance to be the obvious favorite for the final show.  This week however, she was completely outshone by....

1.) Max (+4)- Max turned in a great performance on a very weak episode.  He was the only one to nail all three elements.  His old woman was the only standout in the mini-challenge.  She actually had believable and an original personality.  It felt like we were visiting one of the Cabaret girls from Weimar-era Berlin in a nursing home.  Her theater troupe was well-managed and she was a star in the leading part.  Finally, the runway look was fantastic and showed that Max has a deep aesthetic reservoir upon which to draw.  I like a queen that can reference the 20s and Salvador Dali! I like Max this week as the favorite.

Dennis Re-Does the Oscars-Part 1: Best Original Songs of the 1930s

Friends, there are very few injustices that can be cured by blog but I think the Oscars is one of them. In this ongoing many-part series I will re-do the Oscars such that the appropriate people are recognized for their categories.  You might ask me, why? Well, good question, but excuse me if I ask you a question: why not? EH? 

Anyway, I was inspired to begin with the Best Original Song category because I happened upon the Wikipedia page for that award and was struck by a number of injustices over the years, and, well, it's an easy one to begin with since songs are about 1/50th as long as a feature film.  So I can knock a whole decade of nominees off in a single evening, which is what I've done for the 1930s.  

I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed going through this selection of music.  Everything is charming in an old timey sort of way and there was only one song that was so awful that I just couldn't get through it.  There is a certain sameness to it all, but that makes listening to them all sort of engrossing.  The songs generate an atmosphere and your computer slowly morphs to to one of those old antique radios.  It helps that almost all are of a very high quality; there was clearly love and sweat that went into these things.  Unlike today, when the Best Original Song nominee is usually played over the closing credits as an afterthought, these were the centerpieces of movies.  Often it seems like they served to ennoble cookie cutter fare that was pumped out of the studio system in those days.  That's not so bad though, I wish we had something to make our trash a little shinier. 

Let's get to it:

1934 

Nominees: "The Continental" from The Gay Divorcee, "Caricoa" from Flying Down to Rio,  "Love in Bloom" from She Loves Me Not.

Winner: "The Continental"

Who Should Have Won: It's an odd little bunch of nominees from the first year they gave out the award. "The Continental" is a peppy swinging number that Ginger Rogers sings to Fred Astaire.  "Caricoa" is a sort of atmospheric piece from another Rodgers and Astaire movie: Flying Down to Rio (SPOILER ALERT: They get there.) "Love in Bloom" is treacly nonsense from Bing Crosby that sounds like an old Looney Toons parody of a crooner singing.  

This one isn't even close.  The Academy got it right.  On it's own "The Continental" is a charming song that makes you want to dance in one of those old fancy night clubs while FDR fixes you a martini.  But the way it's deployed in the movie is simply charming.  I mean try not to smile through this scene between Rodgers and Astaire.  

1935

Nominees: "Lullaby of Broadway" from Gold Diggers of 1935, "Lovely to Look at" from Roberta, "Cheek to Cheek" from Top Hat.

Winner: "Lullaby of Broadway"

Who Should Have Won: Three nominees and two of them are sung by Fred Astaire! If these Oscars were held today, he'd be a very busy man  and would have to duck several poorly written jokes from Neil Patrick Harris.  Luckily it was 1935 so the Oscars were held in Clark Gable's suite at the Los Angeles Hilton and nobody was yet tired of Herbert Hoover wisecracks.

As for the songs, "Lovely to Look at" is a quiet, nice, but sort of bland song from Astaire, so we can set it aside.  "Lullaby of Broadway," the winner from that year, has stood the test of time.  You'll find it in the 1980s musical about the 1930s, 42nd Street and many other places.  In its 1930s context, it's featured in an extremely wonderful and bizarre scene in Gold Diggers of 1935 that almost makes me want to give it the retrospective Oscar.

But "Cheek to Cheek" is an all time classic.  If you distilled Old Time Hollywood down to a single musical number you would probably get the concentrated essence that is "Cheek to Cheek." Woody Allen just stuck it in Purple Rose of Cairo to establish "THIS IS WHY MIA FARROW'S CHARACTER LIKES MOVIES."  The lyrics to "Cheek to Cheek" are sweet without being sickly and are delivered so elegantly by Astaire.  The warm glow present in the scene in Top Hat is unlike anything we currently have in movies.  Today we'd have to load that scene up with layers of irony and humor to get the audience to accept a genuinely beautiful moment like the one between Rodgers and Astaire here (think "A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow"), but somehow, in the long vanished Hollywood of the Great Depression musicals, it just works.  Marvelous.

1936

Nominees: "The Way You Look Tonight" from Swing Time, "I've Got You Under My Skin" from Born to Dance,"Pennies from Heaven" from Pennies from Heaven, "When Did You Leave Heaven" from Sing, Baby, Sing "Did I Remember" from Suzy, "A Melody from the Sky" from The Trail of the Lonesome Pine.

Winner: "The Way You Look Tonight"

Who Should Have Won: This was a really strong year.  Of course there's "I've Got You Under My Skin" which became so famous as a Sinatra standard, here featured in  the Jimmy Stewart musical, Born to Dance.  And then there's "Pennies from Heaven" a nice Bing Crosby song about the sweet things in life needing some sadness to accentuate their flavor, a relevant message during the Depression.  "When Did You Leave Heaven" and "A Melody from the Sky" are fine songs as well if nothing truly special.

"Did I Remember" may be my favorite discovery so far in doing this review (or whatever I'm doing).  The recorded version I was able to find was from Billie Holliday, and it is a fantastic jazzy number that has an ever so slightly sardonic tone, lending a dose of irony to the relatively straightforward romantic lyrics.  The portion of the film version in Suzy I was able to find online looks like it's broadly similar to the Holiday recording, and, even better, it features a very cute interaction between Jean Harlow and a young Cary Grant.

All that said, and as good as all of those songs are, "The Way You Look Tonight" absolutely deserved to win this Oscar. It is obviously a very familiar song, but it actually stunned me when I heard it again.  It is a beautiful, haunting, and ever so slightly mournful in its acknowledgement of impermanence of a desirable present.  It's even more poignant heard across the many eventful years since 1937 where Rodgers and Astaire grew old and died and became plaster legends.   The scene in Swing Time is just as satisfying and sweet, and brought tears to my eyes.

1937

Nominees: "Sweet Leilani" from Waikiki Wedding, "Whispers in the Dark" from Artists and Models, "Remember Me" from Mr. Dodd Takes the Air,"They Can't Take That Away from Me" from Shall We Dance ,"That Old Feeling" from Vogues of 1938 .

Winner: "Sweet Leilani"

Who Should Have Won: Well, certainly not "Sweet Leilani." I might just not be a huge Bing Crosby fan, but this one is terrible.  Plodding and maudlin, it's actually difficult to get through.  And the scene where it's featured is awkward Hawaiiansploitation complete with grass skirts, hammocks, and leis.  This is a weak year though and I'm struggling to find a song that's not Fred Astaire singing to Ginger Rodgers like the last 2 I've picked.  "Whispers in the Dark," "That Old Feeling," and "Remember Me" are all forgettable and of a type with many of the songs nominated during the 30s.  There is a long intriguing long big band introduction, followed by a crooner belting for about 10 seconds, followed a few more minutes of big band action.  It's hard to separate them!  At least "Sweet Leilani" is something different, which may have been why it was picked for this year.  They, like me, didn't want to give everything to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers.

But I really can't help it. While it's not as good as "The Way You Look Tonight" and "Cheek to Cheek," "They Can't Take that Away from Me" is a lovely George and Ira Gershwin number performed beautifully by Fred Astaire. Of the crop here, it's the best and so it should get my alternate universe Oscar.  I don't like to give all these prizes to the Astaire and Rodgers musicals, but I can console myself with the fact that I'm giving George Gershwin his only Oscar by making the switch.  He was posthumously nominated at the time, so I guess this is a double posthumous fake award.  Congratulations(?), Mr. Gershwin.

1938

Nominees: "Thanks for the Memory"from The Big Broadcast of 1938, "Always and Always" from Mannequin, "Change Partners" from Carefree, "The Cowboy and the Lady" from The Cowboy and the Lady, "Dust" from Under Western Stars, "Jeepers Creepers" from Going Places, "Merrily We Live" from Merrily We Live, "A Mist over the Moon" from The Lady Objects, "My Own" from That Certain Age, "Now It Can Be Told" from Alexander's Ragtime Band.

Winner: "Thanks for the Memory"

Who Should Have Won: The most nominees ever! And this will start a trend that will go through the Forties of extremely bloated nomination lists until they got the category under control after the War.  Irving Berlin makes it on the list twice here for two very different songs. "Change Partners" is a very sweet, quiet song sung by Fred Astaire in his penultimate film with Ginger Rodgers. It's the kind of song that would be sung by a lonely piano-man near closing time, or by Rowlf the Dog, for that matter.  It seems of a piece with Berlin's earlier nominated work, the lovely "Cheek to Cheek." That's why it's so surprising that this is the same songwriter who gave us the puffed up "Now It Can Be Told" about the self-proclaimed "great love story" that can now be talked about (show, don't tell, Irving).  Of course, this Berlin would go on to give us the hideous "God Bless America" in the 40s.  I wish the Berlin of "Cheek to Cheek" and "Change Partners" had written the patriotic song so that good Americans attending baseball games would not be subjected to so much horror in the 7th inning.

"Jeepers Creepers" is a great song from the horse racing film, Going Places.  That film is mostly notable for being a B-movie with two icons of the 20th century (Ronald Reagan and Louis Armstrong) in supporting roles.  Armstrong's name isn't even on the movie posters for the film, and he  performs "Jeepers Creepers as a racially stereotyped trainer singing to a horse.  I'm not kidding.  It's pretty awkward to watch from the 21st century.  Despite all that, though, it's a very nice song, and it's the runner up, in my mind, to the Academy's correct choice of "Thanks for the Memory."

"Thanks for the Memory" is sung by Bob Hope in the variety musical movie Big Broadcast of 1938, which also starred WC Fields.  Incidentally, the plot of the movie is insane.  Here, read it.   I've tried to do it justice in a sentence or two but I just keep failing.   The song itself  is about the lost relationship between Hope and one of the ex-wives that sent him to "alimony jail."  (Seriously, read the plot.)  Despite it's presence in a zany cash-grab variety musical, it actually feels very true and sad.  The lyrics are clever and beautiful, and it makes for a magical movie moment.  I can see now why it became Hope's signature song for the rest of his life.

1939

Nominees: "Over the Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz, "Faithful Forever" from Gulliver's Travels, "I Poured My Heart into a Song" from Second Fiddle, "Wishing" from Love Affair.

Winner: "Over the Rainbow"

Who Should Have Won: "Over the Rainbow."  With apologies to the other nominated songs, not only is "Over the Rainbow" clearly the best original song of the epochal movie year of 1939, but it lays a strong claim to being the greatest movie song of all time.  There are a number of reasons for this. First, is the high quality of the song itself.  Ostensibly about a 16 year old girl from Kansas' daydreams, the combination of Judy Garland's haunting voice and the symbolic, archetype-laden lyrics lend the song a transcendent quality that has made it meaningful to every generation that's heard it.  Second, is the song's presence in the most beloved, iconic film in American history.  If this song had been in Gold Diggers of 1939, it would have still been a well known song, and probably Garland's signature (as "Thanks for the Memory" was to Bob Hope).  But it's "Over the Rainbow's" presence in the Wizard of Oz that made it one of the touchstones of American culture.

These two characteristics have helped "Over the Rainbow" age very well; it's only become more poignant as the years have passed.  The sad, hopeful song became synonymous with the tragic life of Judy Garland, whose time on the planet seemed one long hopeless search for the place she sang about in her youth.  It is the deep sadness in Garland that made the song great.  One could imagine a less talented or less troubled performer making the place over the rainbow sound like something that would be almost inevitably be found, rather than something that would always be slightly out of reach.  (In fact, you don't have to imagine it....here it is)  That interpretation isn't true to life, even if it is literally true for Dorothy.  It's the sadness that makes the song so deeply true.

It's also the sadness that lent the song it's other major place in history: the unofficial anthem of Gay America.  It's true that this is a cliche.  For me, and perhaps for every gay man, the song began as a cliche.  But if you've lived the unique sadness of being young and gay, the song stops being a joke and turns into a strange hopeful lament.  Gays, as a rule, are among the most cynical members of the population, because even the most spoiled among us has had a little bit of emotional hardship to toughen us up.  But when "Over the Rainbow" is played on the piano or sung by a Karaoke singer or blasted over a loudspeaker, it is listened to with great sincerity.  At particular pregnant moments, you may see a tear pass down the face of someone that was just bragging about their threesome in graphic detail.  That, my friends, is a song.

Ru Paul's Drag Race Power Rankings (Week 2)

Well, it's nice to see them follow up a rather lackluster first episode with a really good one this week.  We got to see a lot more of all of the queens, and I am a lot more excited for this season than I was a week ago.  First of all, does anyone have a time machine so I can show 1979 Olivia Newton John a tape of this episode? "First, Olivia, the bad news, when people watch Grease in the future, they will mostly not be talking about your amazing voice or tremendous looks, but the ugly weird gay man that ate John Travolta and now ruins every Oscar ceremony.  But the good news is that in 2015 there will be a long running show about drag queens on television, and you will still be beloved enough to be invited on as a guest judge.  Your favorite will be the one named after a spiced vagina.  Here, let's watch."

Second, I'm so happy with the way Carson is working out as a guest judge.  He is so much better than Mumbles Santino, whose comedy repertoire consisted of a few bad puns.  And was it me or was his outfit coordinated to the lighting scheme?  I wouldn't put it past the Fashion Gay.  Question: When all the Queer Eye guys put their rings together, who would they have summoned? Has to be Ru Paul, right? Has to be.  Anyway, on to the rankings:

13) Sasha Belle (OUT)-  The funniest part of her brief career on Drag Race was her statement at the end "I went for the win." That was going for the win? It looked like he stole his runway outfit from a Kristen Wiig character, and his performance in the flight attendant skit made it look like he was playing one.  This was an easy call.  Did anyone think Katya was going down to Sasha in Lip Sync For Your Life?  Vegas had taken that one off the board.  Good riddance.

12.) Kandy Ho-We didn't see much of anything from her this week and I have to think that's a bad sign.  I would think they'd want to build her up a bit after a rough week, as it is, she's kind of bitchy and I wouldn't mind seeing the back of her, and not in a good way.

11.) Jadyn Diore Fierce (-2 from last week)  Ginger Minj didn't seem to be a fan and now we know she's playing with a gimpy knee.  The runway look was pretty terrible as well. I am not optimistic.

10.) Trixie Mattel (+1) I'm still not sold on Trixie, who seems a little blah for a comedy queen, and it astounds me how it looks like she just got hit by a truck when she's in drag.  I know there may be a comedy angle to it, but it doesn't play as comedy on the stage, it plays as sloppy.  Also, Ginger Minj was right about his choice of queens for the skit.  Did he think it was Triumph of the Will week on Drag Race? I can't imagine either Ben Delacreme or Jinx Monsoon,  his comedy queen predecessors, making such a mistake.  And I think he paid for it with a lackluster wooden performance by the models.

He also might have a thing for Miss Fame, he got very touchy feely when he started to lay out his family photos.  YOU'RE NOT HERE TO MAKE FRIENDS, TRIXIE.

9.) Jasmine Masters (-1) Reluctantly moving Jasmine down a peg here because of Kasha Davis' good performance this week, but I still think Jasmine could move up in a hurry for all the reasons I expressed last week.

8.) Kasha Davis (+1) I'm moving her up but I don't have a ton of confidence.  That performance in the skit was pretty good, but I wasn't inspired by the runway. I'm happy to be proven wrong, but I think this is her high water mark.

7.) Katya (-1) I may be giving Katya too much credit here but the thing for which he was put up for elimination seems to be a one time deal: he forgot the words.  It happens.  He happened to nail both the outfit and the lip synch, which are much more indicative of his overall talent according to my metrics.

6.) Miss Fame (-3) Rough week for Miss Fame, who seemed to be a prime competitor in the Season 7 opener, but this week he revealed himself to be an airhead and performance averse.  Also, way too early to bring up murdered father! Roxxy Andrews showed us the right way to bring up childhood traumas, right before you're about to be eliminated as the heat is turned on.

By the way, Miss Fame, thank you SO MUCH for igniting the great "Is Drag more about performance or looks?" debate which is a long running dispute back through the drag centuries.  On it's face it sounds like a very simple question, but it's actually more like asking whether grapes or time are more important for wine or whether Jesus is more human or divine?  The latter question sunk into the brains of the poor old Byzantines until they collectively went insane, came up with something called monothelitism, and had riots in Constantinople over whether Jesus had two persons and one nature or one nature and two persons.

So, Ru, if you're listening, my point is that I think after this season you need to call an ecumenical drag council like the Christian Emperors of old to sort this question out before we go through another season of pointless esoteric debate.

5.) Max (-1) Max didn't do much this episode but had a good runway look, so he treads water in the rankings this week.

4.) Violet Chachki (-2) It's very fluid at the top and while Violet is a strong contender, I do not think he's near the top in terms of talent.  In fact he may find that his lane (bitchy skinny street-smart queen) is being taken by Pearl.

3.) Pearl (+1) Speaking of which Pearl had a great week this week.  He showed my earlier diagnosis of "no personality" to be incorrect, he is bitchy and he doesn't take anyone's guff.  Did you see him smack down Violet in rehearsals?  Also he appears to be an early favorite of the community because he is the most attractive queen on the show since I have been watching.

2.) Kennedy Davenport (-1) Kennedy had a quiet week this week but I still think there a lot there. She had the 2nd best outfit (behind Katya) on the runway and she was solid, if not spectacular in the skit.

1.) Ginger Minj (+6) Ginger Minj had an absolute tour de force week, which earned him possibly the biggest jump in the rankings ever.  I constantly found myself laughing at his comments and agreeing with his assessment of the progress of events.  And his performance in the airline skit....if there is ever an all-drag Hairspray, he would be a more than serviceable as Tracy Turnblatt.  He's not a watered down Darien Lake, has just has all of Darien's cutting wit with none of his insecure ugliness.

RuPaul Drag Race Power Rankings (Week 1)

Hi all, I'm excited to be back to be your personal chronicler of Drag Race.  I'm like a gay basic cable version of Venerable Bede or whoever it was that was writing Theophilus.  I don't know that I've ever done a week one power ranking, but since we're on a new platform (welcome back to those of you who followed World of Dennis in the early aughts) I thought I'd show my determination to get out there early.

I thought the first episode was slightly flat, which explains the dearth of excitement I saw on twitter and Facebook for the first episode.  In terms of personality, it does not seem like there is a Bianca Del Rio or Jinx Monsoon in the bunch to grab our attention. And the first challenge was an over-promise.  I know we don't necessarily want to see some of the girls naked in drag, but enough of them were pretty that it would have been a positive  What was totally deflating were the weird George Costanza bodysuits most of them were wearing.  Don't promise me naked and bring me Body Suit Man! DENNIS IS GETTING UPSET!

I am, however, happy with the new blood in the judge's booth.  Carson is great and the real life Only Gay in the Village  will bring more excitement than Santino has.  (Frankly, I thought Santino was a little dull.)

Anyway on to the rankings:

14.) (OUT) Tempest DuJour-  Tempest, we barely knew ye, and maybe it was for the best.  He had a weird Tory Spelling thing going on when he was in drag and if he ever got anywhere on the show there would be a semi-infuriating think piece on Salon.com about how his weight loss constitutes fat shaming and is actually an attack.  I know we can't live our lives trying to avoid infuriating Salon think pieces but at least this puts this one out of bounds....

INFURIATING SALON THINK PIECE: ONCE AGAIN THE FIRST PERSON OFF RU PAUL'S DRAG RACE IS NOT YOUNG WHITE AND ATTRACTIVE....WHEN WILL RU PAUL BE PUT ON TRIAL FOR NOT COMBATTING PRIVILEGE

God Dammit!

13.) Sasha Belle- I was actually confused during Sasha's runway walk as she seemed to be wearing a sports bra of some sort.  First of all, why do you need a sports bra?!? You're a boy! Second, how was it not clear that you had to come out naked on the runway? They actually went through the trouble of bringing out a naked Pit Crew to demonstrate that this was a naked challenge.  My only explanation was that this was a strategic play to set up her tearful confession that she is a never-nude when she is on the verge of elimination a few weeks from now.

12.) Kandy Ho- Kandy jumps Sasha here because of that actually-not-bad Lipsync.  Otherwise it was a train wreck.  She seems extremely catty and has a terrible attitude.

11.) Trixie Mattel: If Ben Delacreme was a poor man's Jinx Monsoon, then Trixie is a homeless man's Ben Delacreme.  What happens if you're supposed to be the comedy queen and nobody laughs? Believe me, I've been there and it's not pretty.  Also, I may bring a jaundiced eye to Ru Paul's drag race, but I am pretty sure that that boyfriend story was made up.  It all seemed very generic.

9.) (tie) Jaidynn Diore Fierce-  I don't really remember much good or bad about Jaidynn.  Pencil her in for a week 5-6 exit once they've eliminated the above.

9.) (tie) Kasha Davis- Ditto.

8.) Jasmine Masters- Jasmine was near the bottom this week but my experienced Ru Paul eye senses some upside with her.  First, she has a great attitude and a distinctive personality, so it will be difficult to eliminate her. This is an underrated quality in life, you should at least make it hard for people to throw you overboard.  It might not save you in the end but you will make it out ahead of the sourpusses and boring people.  Second, I think she showed some imagination and creativity in her runway look, even if it wasn't totally successful.  It was a failure but a good one, which is why Ru didn't make her sweat.

7.) Ginger Minj- As it stands she seems like a bland version of Darienne Lake.  She didn't do anything to hurt herself in the first episode, though.

6.) Katya- This wasn't really Katya's week to shine.  I, of course, loved the Soviet Union opening outfit and the highly developed Russian schtick.  Also how could I hate a Boston girl?! I expect she'll be moving up in the rankings once she gets some screen time as she actually gave some hints that she could be funny.

5.) Pearl- Pearl had some very interesting looks and could be a strong contender.  The only drawback seems to be personality, but I do think she'll threaten for the final show in a Courtney Act-esque boring way.

4.) Max- Is it me or is Max kind of interesting? His personality is hard to pin down and I find his aesthetic to be unlike anything we've seen on the show thus far.  The choice to come out as a Polio victim on week one was daring and I really like it.  However, if there's anyone in this top 5 that could be eliminated before the two boring queens tied for 9th, it's probably Max.

3.) Miss Fame- Like Katya, she had a strong opening volley with that purple supervillain costume in the opening.  Otherwise she had strong looks and managed to get in the top three.

2.) Violet Chachki- I really wish Props Eric had been around when I saw her transform in that fall look to a Plaid Archangel of Death.  I feel like there would have there would have been a full five minutes of shouting followed by the proclamation: "PLAID IS IN, HONEY!"  That was really fantastic, and it was the most memorable thing about the first episode.  Also, I really appreciated the nerve to go naked on national television your first time out.  That shows....guts.

1.) Kennedy Davenport- First impressions are always imperfect, but my instinct is that Kennedy is the person to beat.  The way she banged out all the elements effortlessly is a tell as to how much talent she has, as is the way Jasmine reacted when she entered the competition.  Jasmine seemed star-struck, so clearly this is someone with some juice in real life.  Last year Courtney was that person, and Kennedy seems more interesting than that finalist.  So I'll declare Kennedy our week one FAVORITE.