Preview of the State of the Union

No idea, really. I suppose the President's going to talk about jobs, improving the economy, the Tucson shootings (with representatives from the shooting to stand to be applauded), civility (reflected in the mixed seating of members of Congress), and how he plans to work with Republicans to get "the peoples'" business done. The president will not strike out against big business. Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito will not be present to disagree with whatever the President might say about the Supreme Court.

There will be two rebuttals instead of the usual one. Representative Paul Ryan will give the official response of the Republican Party, in which he will blame the President and the Democrats for reckless spending, "job-killing" legislation (including the Affordable Care Act), and the need to reduce the budget deficit. Speaking on behalf of the Tea Party, Representative Michelle Bachmann will say many of the same things as Rep. Ryan, only a lot less intelligently. She will also talk about returning our country to the Constitution. whatever the hell that means, and protecting freedom (except for immigrants).

Since I already know what everyone's going to say, I won't be watching the show this evening. Instead, I'll be watching the rebroadcast of today's Carling Cup match between Arsenal and Ipswich, which I cannot watch live because of class.

UPDATE: I don't know about the State of the Union, but the Arsenal match was excellent. They won 3-0 to advance to the finals of the Carling Cup. They will face either Birmingham City or West Ham. We Gooners have been waiting a long time for some silverware, and it seems like the breakthrough with this maturing team is finally near.