What would John Adams do?

Tonight I turned off the Yankees/Red Sox game to watch a few episodes of "John Adams," HBO's epic, excellent 2008 miniseries.

I needed to believe again, methinks. After watching the CBS Evening News, I was reminded of just how much of a joke our current government has become.

It seems President Obama and the Republicans in Congress are arguing over when, or whether, to hold a joint session of Congress the president has requested to talk about his jobs plan. The president wants to hold it next Wednesday night. Republicans don't like that because that's the night of the NBC GOP presidential candidates' debate. Speaker of the House John Boehner suggested the president wait until the following night. Some don't like that because it will conflict with -- I'm not making this up -- an NFL football game.

I first gained a greater appreciation for Adams after reading David McCullough's biography 10 years ago. His intelligence, his sacrifice, his steadfast morality -- if Jefferson was the river of independence, Adams was its rock.

If you haven't yet seen the HBO miniseries, get it on DVD and savor it. This is television at its finest -- smart, grand, beautifully shot and wonderfully acted.

It gives you such an appreciation for the sacrifices the Founding Fathers (and Mothers) underwent to make the American experiment a reality. It highlights the stirring love and abiding bond between John and Abigail Adams.

And, in its way, it's a reminder of just how petty -- and pathetic -- American politics has become.

(Oh, by the way, I peeked -- the Red Sox are winning 9-5.)

'Ford to City: Drop Dead!'

So I'm whiling away the free moments at work tonight in between editing pages by reading "Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx is Burning," Jonathan Mahler's engaging, well-written book about 1977 New York City. Picked it up at the library today.

The book centers around the mayoral campaign that year, a face off between two newcomers -- Ed Koch and Mario Cuomo -- as well as the New York Yankees' tumultuous chase for the World Series championship.

Everybody in the Big Apple, it seems, was fighting. (Koch v. Cuomo, Billy v. Reggie, New York v. The World). A murderer (the so-called "Son of Sam") was on the loose). The city was broke.

A couple of years earlier, President Gerald Ford had famously refused to bail the city out of debt, leading to this classic headline in the Daily News:

Anyway, it's a good read. And if you haven't heard, ESPN is airing a miniseries beginning Monday, July 9, 10 p.m. (EDT) after the Home Run Derby.

OK, back to compo to see how much longer till I can get out of here. Y'all have a good weekend.