One of the foulest MAGAts in Congress, Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee, lost his primary last week. His victorious opponent, dairy farmer Charlie Hatcher, is also a pro-Trump conservative, though with any luck he’s nowhere near the gaping asshole Ogles is. Besides, it’s always pleasing to see one of these fuckwits get the shaft, especially because Trump endorsed him in vain.
Analysts looking for the cause of Ogles’ demise could point to the district’s new borders, changed when Tennessee redrew its Congressional districts for Trump, if they don’t want to blame the loss on Shitfinger’s endorsement. But it seems there was another force at work: The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition, a Super PAC formed by solar industry executives, spent $2 million attacking Ogles and boosting Hatcher, more money than either candidate spent.
Ogles was the third candidate this cycle the PAC has targeted who went down to defeat. Texas Rep. Chip Roy lost his bid for attorney general and South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman failed in his quest for the GOP gubernatorial nomination. All three pushed extra-hard to eliminate renewable energy incentives in Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill, and were eliminated in turn by vengeful solar entrepreneurs.
Though they support solar energy, these aren’t good people – the PAC’s main backer is a crypto-industry asshole, and their obvious goal is to keep sucking down taxpayer money. No matter. Getting the assholes to whack each other works for the rest of us.
Texan Tim DeLaughter formed the Polyphonic Spree in 2000, three years after his previous band, Tripping Daisy, broke up when guitarist Wes Berggren died of a drug overdose. Inspired by the example of the Electric Light OrchestraHe assembled a dozen musicians – the usual rock lineup augmented by brass and strings – then added a dozen more and dressed them all in choir robes.
The demo tape they recorded in 2000 to help them book live shows was released in 2002 as their first album, “The Beginning Stages of … the Polyphonic Spree.” It sold so poorly their record label dropped them.
“Light and Day” failed to chart in the U.S. when it was released as a single in 2003 and just barely made the Top 40 in the UK. But the next year Volkswagen used “Light and Day” in a commercial. Soon after it turned up in the film “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and on “Scrubs,” and directors have used it ever since. It’s been used in films as disparate as “The Lorax” and “The Big Short” – whenever they need something soaring and uplifting it might pop up.
“Scrubs” didn’t just use the song – the whole group appeared in scene set in the hospital room of a patient who’s supposed to be a member of the group.
