‘Cougar Dream' is Anthem for Hot Mamas Everywhere, was the subject of the press release. I clicked through to the song, expecting to hear a woman crooning about her conquest of some sex-toy "cub" (like what The Big Money's Chad Matlin could have been, if only he worked that room a little harder!). Turns out the cougar anthem for hot mamas is sung by a man. It's his dream. One in which a "smokin' hot granny" who's "on the prowl" rescues him on the highway and preys on his young manflesh. Well, he says it's his dream. But seems patronizing to me.

In the press release, the psychologist-turned-singer Cooper Boone explains that "'Cougar Dream' comes from hearing older women talk about feeling invisible in a youth-centered world. He says he "wanted to write an upbeat song that honors ladies out there who might not be 22 but are still out there living a full life and looking great!"

Does this seem cloying and condescending to anyone else? I'll admit that I'm terrified of fading into invisibility as I age. But I don't think I'd take much comfort from some young guy calling me a "smokin' hot granny" because he thinks that's what I need to hear to feel good about myself. Or, worse, because that's his way of "honoring" me.

Tags: cooper boone, cougar dream

What are the factors that help women win national and statewide political races? Nate Silver of 538 fame adds to the conversation on this important topic—generations of K School graduates want to know!—with his latest analysis, "The Palin Paradox: Women More Likely to be Elected in Male-Dominated Districts":

Although women are still having a relatively tough time getting elected in general—they represent just 17 percent of the members of the U.S. Congress—Congresswomen, as opposed to Congress men, are more plentiful in areas where the male-to-female ratio is higher...

Nine of the 25 most male-dominated districts (36 percent) most recently elected a woman to office, as compared with 4 of the 25 most female-dominated districts (16 percent). This alone is somewhat interesting—however, it actually conceals the strength of the relationship because female-dominated districts are more likely to vote Democratic, and Democratic-leaning districts are more likely to elect women to office regardless of their sex ratios ...

The most male-dominated from among these strongly Democratic districts elected women in 10 out of 15 instances. The 15 most female districts elected just 3 women.

Intriguing, to be sure. But as we all know, correlation is not causation. Silver, of course, also knows this and says the effect held even after he controlled for a wide variety of demographic factors. But what if the issue is not demographics, but geography? We also know that women do better in political districts that don't have strong machine-style Democratic political organizations. As Harold Meyerson observed in 2008:

When we look across the nation to ascertain which states have elected the most women to political office and which the least, it turns out that states once (or still) dominated by party machines don't create a political culture in which women can thrive. Where entry into politics depends entirely on who sent you—on winning the backing of the boy—women often end up outside the clubhouse, the legislature, and the Congress.

Looking back at Silver's analysis, it's worth noting that of the top 15 Democratic-leaning, male-dominated, woman-electing districts, only two are not in Western states, where political machines are weaker. Meanwhile, of the top 15 Democratic-leaning, female-dominated, male-electing districts, none are Western, and many are well known for having a history—and even present—of robust Democratic political machines. As between Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey and Alaska, Arizona, Texas and Colorado, the states with the more liberal political reputations also have the more entrenched associational networks for promoting individuals for public office.

Silver hints in the direction of a geography effect, writing, "Perhaps in male-dominated areas, women are more likely to violate traditional sex roles including something like running for political office, which has traditionally been a male-dominated occupation—the Sarah Palin frontierswoman caricature works well here." His commenters take it a step further, noting that women's suffrage was acheived earlier in the Western states than back East.

The frontierswoman caricature arose not because of—or not just because of—gender imbalances in frontier populations, but also becuase the demands of life in the emerging states required women to cast aside many behaviors typical of women of their day back East.

Tags: 538, congress, elections, female, frontierswomen, Nate Silver, politics, Sarah Palin, suffrage, women

Have you ever wanted to go on a road trip with David Lynch, but felt trepidatious about taking to the highway with the singular, seminal, strange director of Blue Velvet, Twin Peaks and Mulholland Drive for fear it would turn epically bizarre, necessarily lead to you fleeing, as fast as possible, from someone beyond creepy and mysterious, and give you unsettling, extremely vivid dreams likely to involve riddle-spewing dwarfs? Lucky for you, the David Lynch road trip experience is now available to be had without having to get into an automobile with Mr. Lynch and his herky-jerky, non-site specific elocution. You will probably still have freaky dreams.

Lynch's latest endeavor is Interview Project, a 121-part documentary series streaming on the web, composed of short interviews with regular Americans. Lynch's crew found the subjects while traipsing across the country, via car, and each one seems to have come straight from David Lynch's central casting—which is to say, they are stupendous reminders that the truth is stranger than fiction. A lot stranger. Only three shorts into the series (one new interview will be posted every three days for the next year), and we've met an Arizonan who is waiting to get back together with his soulmate after he finishes up probation, for burying someone without a permit, and we've met an extremely effete Native American whose sister slashed his face with a knife. He loves her anyway. It's the WPA oral history project conducted by the guy who made Eraserhead. Best road trip ever?

Tags: David Lynch, Interview Project, Web video