We’re already a month deep into 2012. How time flies

I am planning on posting a review at the end of each month. I’ll touch on some of the biggest events from the month mostly focusing on news/current events, sports, and pop culture at least for the time being. I expect to write an update on the election in each post as well. Please weigh in on any of the events from the month and/or anything I may not have included.

Thanks and I hope you enjoy.

2012 Election – January

January signaled the first real votes to be cast in deciding the 2012 Presidential election as the caucus in Iowa and primaries in New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Florida were held. After votes were officially counted Rick Santorum finished on top with 34 more votes than Mitt Romney in the Iowa caucus. Mitt Romney won the New Hampshire primary while Newt Gingrich was victorious in South Carolina. The Florida primary takes place today, the last day of the month (UPDATE: Mitt Romney won with 46% of the vote). Along the way Rep. Michelle Bachmann, former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, and Gov. Rick Perry suspended their respective campaigns. Former speaker Newt Gingrich, Rep. Ron Paul, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former Senator Rick Santorum remain in the field. As January comes to a close four states have weighed in (and some people want to anoint a Republican nominee quickly). It feels like this election has gone on for years (because it has) and we are still only at the beginning. November is a long way away.

News Stories of January 2012

• 2012 Election

 It’s in full effect. See above.

• Syria

Violence in opposition of Syria’s government continued and appears to be heightening. The United Nations last month estimated more than 5,000 deaths since last March. Activist groups estimate more than 7,000 deaths. A lack of media in the region makes it difficult to know what is happening. This is obviously a situation that needs to be monitored closely. The UN may step in and ask Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.

• Obama administration announces new military strategy

Regarding the new strategy Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta stated, “The military will be smaller and leaner, but it will be agile, flexible, rapidly deployable and technologically advanced. It will be a cutting-edge force.” While the announcement was met with criticism mostly from Republicans, it cuts spending increases over the next 10 years. The budget still grows under this plan.

My two cents: I support this decision (I wish it went further). Looking at the U.S. financial situation and the amount of money we spend on defense, cutting defense/military spending is necessary. The U.S. is still going to outspend every other country in military spending by a ridiculous amount. I’m no military strategist, but it seems to make a lot of sense to move our military in the direction Defense Secretary Panetta outlined with an emphasis on quick responses and special forces rather then a massive presence. Hopefully the cuts will be properly allocated and have the desired effect (I’d say I’m less than optimistic about that). Again, just my two cents – feel free to give your own thoughts.

• Costa Concordia crash

On January 13th the Costa Concordia cruise ship crashed after the Captain veered off course. Seventeen people have been confirmed dead and 16 are declared missing. In late January it was estimated that it would take 10 months to remove the ship from Italy’s coast. More than 4,200 people were on board at the time of the crash.

Top 5 Sports Stories of January 2012

1. NFL Playoffs – Giants and Patriots advance to Super Bowl

The NFL playoffs have been extremely entertaining and full of great moments. The Wild Card round featured Tim Tebow to Demaryius Thomas for an 80-yard touchdown on the first play of OT. The second week had the crazy last three minutes of the Saints/49ers game. Both Conference Championship games went down to the wire (both should have went to overtime). Now we get a rematch from four years ago as New England will meet New York. I expect the entertainment to continue through the Super Bowl.

2. Novak Djokovic wins the Australian Open in the longest singles Grand Slam final in history – January 29th

No. 1 (Novak Djokovic) vs. No. 2 (Rafael Nadal), 5 hours, 53 minutes, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (5), 7-5 Djokovic. I can’t imagine the physical and mental toll a match like that takes. These are two of the greatest ever for a reason.

3. BCS Championship – Alabama destroys LSU in the most boring fashion imaginable – January 9th

Field goals, horrid offense, punts, good defense and finally a touchdown. This game had nothing. The BCS Championship will go down on the short list of the most boring sporting events I have ever seen, especially given the stakes. Alabama dominated the game completely and yet somehow was still only up two scores with five minutes remaining in the game. LSU finished with five first downs and 92 total yards. Ugh.

4. Joe Paterno dies – January 22nd

Long-time Penn State football coach Joe Paterno died of lung cancer at the age of 85. Paterno was the head coach at Penn State for 46 years and won more games than any other head coach in college football history including two National Championships. Paterno was fired in late 2011 when the child sex abuse scandal involving his former assistant Jerry Sandusky broke. It was revealed the Paterno had knowledge of what occurred. It was later decided that he did not do enough in response.

5. Prince Fielder signs with the Detroit Tigers – January 25th

One of two top prizes in MLB free agency agreed to an 8-year, $214 million contract with the Detroit Tigers. Fielder’s contract became the fourth largest in baseball history. Many in baseball wondered if Prince Fielder and his agent Scott Boras had overplayed their hand. Apparently not.

Top 5 Television Episodes of January 2012

1. The Comeback Kid – “Parks and Recreation” (Original air date: January 12th)

If you have been reading my posts you know how highly I think of “Parks and Recreation.” The level it’s at is so high it gets hard to pick out individually great episodes. The Comeback Kid was one such episode though. Leslie’s campaign takes shape with the Parks Department as her campaign team. Everything falls apart with all the cringe and hilarity you would expect. Ben, after losing his job, tries to find himself and creates a less than great claymation video.

2. Bowling for Votes – “Parks and Recreation” (Original air date: January 26th)

The competitive Leslie takes to the bowling alley for a campaign event where she hopes to show her “regular joe” credentials. Leslie’s competitiveness comes out against a critical focus group member. Though the C-story, the Ron, Tom, and Ann stuff produced the funniest moments of the episode. I would have put ‘Parks’ other episode from this month (“Campaign Ad”) on the list too, but variety is needed. 

“When I eat, it is the food that is scared.” -Ron Swanson

3. The Gunfighter – “Justified” (Original air date: January 17th)

The season three premiere filled me with optimism. I expect a lot of the beginning of the season to be setup for what’s to come later on and here it was effectively done. The Gunfighter introduced Neil McDonough as one of the new villains in the series and gave Jere Burns’ Wynn Duffy more time in the forefront. Raylan’s foe of the week went by the name “Icepick.” Need I say more? The season premiere left me excited for what’s to come.

4. Pilot – “Luck” (Original air date: December 11/January 29th)

This is a tough one to judge (and including it is a bit of a cheat – it first aired on 12/11/11 as a sneak preview. The official premiere was this past Sunday). “Luck,” the new HBO series from David Milch, directed by Michael Mann and starring Dustin Hoffman is centered on the world of horse racing. The pilot introduces and builds up this world. The performances and the atmosphere are spectacular but the material is dense. I liked the pilot and I’m interested to see where the remaining eight episodes go but it’s going to take me some time to connect all the dots.

5. People Are Idiots Two! – “30 Rock” (Original air date: January 19th)

Thank goodness “30 Rock” is back. Four episodes into the sixth seasons and it hasn’t missed a beat after the long layoff. The first four episodes were all really close in quality, but People Are Idiots Two! gets the slight edge because it showcased what the show does best. In short, that would be great work from Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin and memorable jokes within a ridiculous plot. The incorporation of a fantastic guest performance, in this case Kelsey Grammer, doesn’t hurt either.

Worst Television Episode of January 2012 (and most likely all of 2012 (and beyond))

January 2012 may go down as having the worst collection of pilots…possibly of all time. This month “Work It,” “Are you there, Chelsea?” and “¡Rob!” all premiered.

Each show in 10 words or less:

“Work It” – unemployed men resort to cross-dressing to land a job

“Are you there, Chelsea?” – Laura Prepon as Chelsea Handler delivering crude dialogue

“¡Rob!” – Rob Schneider stars as…

What did they all have in common? Shallow premise, bad writing, poor setup, no laughs, and unnatural. Each pilot featured all the ingredients that make a terrible sitcom.

Which was worst? Answer: all of them

What do you have to say about January 2012?