A repeat from 2008, but worth it. Thanks, Joe.
Showing posts with label Politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Politics. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
Monday, September 21, 2009
Referendum 71.
Last May, Washington Governor Christine Gregoire signed into law an expansion of domestic partnership rights that gave same-sex couples and others very close to equal rights regarding "traditional" same-sex married couples.
This has been challenged, and those who oppose this have petitioned and gathered enough signatures to have this put to a vote this fall. While the methods by which they gathered the required number of signatures are dubious at best, this is the law and it now goes to the popular vote.
I encourage everyone to look at both the link above to those who oppose these rights, and to the link to those who are in favor of them.
If you live - and vote - in Washington State, be advised that voting for this referendum means voting for equal rights as domestic partnerships. If you vote against this referendum, you are voting to overturn equal rights for domestic partnerships - and not just same-sex partnerships.
Think carefully. Just think. Try to put yourself in the mind of those who disagree with you - no matter which side you are currently on. Educate yourself. Hear - and listen - to both sides. Decide what you think is really, truly right. Logically, truly, really right.
If you don't live in Washington State, talk to people you know who do. If you don't know anyone who lives here, talk to people you know anyway. Have discussions, dialogue, conversations - not flag-waving, sign-toting, anger-filled deaf-eared protests (from both sides) ... honest dialogue. Listen to each other.
I'm asking a lot.
Just think. Please.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Socialism Is Not An Evil Word
This is a great video about the need for government-funded healthcare. I am 100% for this. Bash me in the comments if you feel the need.
Thanks to Kyle.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
YES. WE. DID.
After all the nail-biting of today, I'm almost crying right now.
There are people walking around, shouting and whooping it up in our neighborhood. We've thrown the windows open and are screaming out the windows ourselves - even more than we did when we first heard that Obama had won Ohio.
I can't believe that this is real ... it happened. It really happened. We could really, truly turn our country back to what it is about. And be more than a bullying, arrogant superpower to the world - to be a beacon. Again.
And, this is hope for all of us in this country, that we can take care of ourselves again ... take care of our poor, our sick, our veterans, our minorities, our elderly. Go back to the ideal of "all men are created equal" and all that. Go back to the ideal that all of us, whoever we are, wherever we live, whatever our station in life, deserve the same respect and regard as whomever is standing next to us.
Yes, we can do this ... we can. And yes - we did.
Today.
It's here. I'm excited, and nervous, and a little in awe of what's happening. This is a historic election day for so many reasons.
Scott and I will be voting after I get home from work today, so I'm going to try and leave a little early so that we can get to our polling place before 5:00. Seattle, like the rest of the country, is expecting record turnout, so I'm sure we'll be in a long line - but I don't mind. Just to be a part of it is so exciting.
So, deep breath, and patience to see what happens - and no matter what your beliefs are, VOTE.
Scott and I will be voting after I get home from work today, so I'm going to try and leave a little early so that we can get to our polling place before 5:00. Seattle, like the rest of the country, is expecting record turnout, so I'm sure we'll be in a long line - but I don't mind. Just to be a part of it is so exciting.
So, deep breath, and patience to see what happens - and no matter what your beliefs are, VOTE.
Monday, November 03, 2008
One Day More.
I know I posted this a while back, when I first found it ... but today is the perfect time to see it again. Cheesy, yes, but perfect.
Please, please, please, if you haven't already done so ...
VOTE TOMORROW.
I know that those whose political views are different than mine have very strong convictions, too. Neither side is necessarily right, or wrong - although we believe our own sides to be the right one. But I truly, with all of my heart, believe that our country has been dragged down for so long by our own leaders ... and we feel that every day. It's physical, heavy and oppressive. There is weight, and stress, and anxiety, and fear. We have become a society of fear - fear of anything and anyone and anyplace and any situation that is not who and what and how we are. But if we keep on in that direction, we'll drown. We'll collapse on ourselves. We will no longer be what, honestly, every single one of us - Democrat, Republican, Independent, every single one of us - believes and wants America, and Americans, to be.
There can be fear, or there can be hope. I choose hope.
The results of this election can change the world, far past our own country. There is so much at stake in this election.
Please, please, please, if you haven't already done so ...
VOTE TOMORROW.
I know that those whose political views are different than mine have very strong convictions, too. Neither side is necessarily right, or wrong - although we believe our own sides to be the right one. But I truly, with all of my heart, believe that our country has been dragged down for so long by our own leaders ... and we feel that every day. It's physical, heavy and oppressive. There is weight, and stress, and anxiety, and fear. We have become a society of fear - fear of anything and anyone and anyplace and any situation that is not who and what and how we are. But if we keep on in that direction, we'll drown. We'll collapse on ourselves. We will no longer be what, honestly, every single one of us - Democrat, Republican, Independent, every single one of us - believes and wants America, and Americans, to be.
There can be fear, or there can be hope. I choose hope.
The results of this election can change the world, far past our own country. There is so much at stake in this election.
"One day to a new beginning ... "
Sunday, November 02, 2008
Two More Days.
Yep. Two days. Today is November 2, which would make two days from now ... umm, November 4.
Which is, what ... a Tuesday? The first Tuesday in November? In an election year?
Oh, yeah - ELECTION DAY.
VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE ...
I don't care what your political beliefs are. Honestly. If you've read more than two posts on my blog, you probably know mine. But that doesn't matter.
BE INFORMED. VOTE. DO YOUR DUTY.
Oh - and if you live in California, you have the opportunity to make a huge difference in the history of this country, this society, this culture - and throughout the world. Please - think, clearly and deeply and truly - about your vote.
Really.
My dream is that someday, in my lifetime, the sanctity of marriage will be a legal and viable option for everyone - everyone - who believes in it. Everyone who truly wants to enter into that covenant.
(Psssst: Don't tell Scott - but I want to marry him. It's about time we're able to make honest men of each other).
Which is, what ... a Tuesday? The first Tuesday in November? In an election year?
Oh, yeah - ELECTION DAY.
VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE ...
I don't care what your political beliefs are. Honestly. If you've read more than two posts on my blog, you probably know mine. But that doesn't matter.
BE INFORMED. VOTE. DO YOUR DUTY.
Oh - and if you live in California, you have the opportunity to make a huge difference in the history of this country, this society, this culture - and throughout the world. Please - think, clearly and deeply and truly - about your vote.
Really.
My dream is that someday, in my lifetime, the sanctity of marriage will be a legal and viable option for everyone - everyone - who believes in it. Everyone who truly wants to enter into that covenant.
(Psssst: Don't tell Scott - but I want to marry him. It's about time we're able to make honest men of each other).
Monday, October 27, 2008
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
How would you feel?
A big question that we always ask ourselves where I work is, "What is the right thing to do here?"
If you are voting on this issue where you live, think about it.
Do the right thing.
(Thanks, Todd)
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Why, More Each Day, I Will Never Vote Republican.
I grew up in a very white, homogeneous, upper-middle-class suburb of Chicago.
We didn't know anyone of a different race. The few other kids in school who weren't white were ... well, different. Not bad, but not us. We always figured they had their own friends, their own activities, their own lives. Different from ours. But we weren't all that curious. They weren't the same as us.
My family, like most others there, was Republican. I didn't have the slightest idea what that meant, but I figured I was a Republican, too.
It's funny now, thinking back to racist comments my oldest brother made once, how my Mom was so angry with him. We absolutely were not raised to be racist - but, knowing nothing else, I didn't understand why she would be upset that he talked about the differences between us and, well ... them. Those other people who had their own lives far removed from us, who didn't know anything about us, either.
In my adult life, I realized that my beliefs and ideals more closely aligned with the Democratic party. And, even more so, that I agreed with liberal ideals. But it's been in the last eight years that I've realized that I could never, EVER vote Republican. Because contrary to the party that my parents believed in, the GOP has swerved away from its' core ideals to the extreme right-wing, ultra-conservative, narrow-minded stereotype of what is the complete opposite of me.
This video epitomizes why I will never, ever, EVER vote Republican ... you can say this is the fringe, the extremists, the uneducated masses, the over-the-top right wing that isn't a true measure of the GOP. But increasingly, this has become the public persona of that party, and the current administration and hopeful candidates are doing nothing to stop that. It is ignorance, and hatred, racism, and egocentricism - and just plain stupidity. This is what I will always, ALWAYS vote against:
We didn't know anyone of a different race. The few other kids in school who weren't white were ... well, different. Not bad, but not us. We always figured they had their own friends, their own activities, their own lives. Different from ours. But we weren't all that curious. They weren't the same as us.
My family, like most others there, was Republican. I didn't have the slightest idea what that meant, but I figured I was a Republican, too.
It's funny now, thinking back to racist comments my oldest brother made once, how my Mom was so angry with him. We absolutely were not raised to be racist - but, knowing nothing else, I didn't understand why she would be upset that he talked about the differences between us and, well ... them. Those other people who had their own lives far removed from us, who didn't know anything about us, either.
In my adult life, I realized that my beliefs and ideals more closely aligned with the Democratic party. And, even more so, that I agreed with liberal ideals. But it's been in the last eight years that I've realized that I could never, EVER vote Republican. Because contrary to the party that my parents believed in, the GOP has swerved away from its' core ideals to the extreme right-wing, ultra-conservative, narrow-minded stereotype of what is the complete opposite of me.
This video epitomizes why I will never, ever, EVER vote Republican ... you can say this is the fringe, the extremists, the uneducated masses, the over-the-top right wing that isn't a true measure of the GOP. But increasingly, this has become the public persona of that party, and the current administration and hopeful candidates are doing nothing to stop that. It is ignorance, and hatred, racism, and egocentricism - and just plain stupidity. This is what I will always, ALWAYS vote against:
Friday, October 17, 2008
Why I'm Voting For Obama. AKA, Why I Love Scott.
Scott wrote this response to a family-member's e-mail about the Presidential election and the candidates. Some great points to notice:
Since you asked, here are the reasons I support Barack Obama.
· Opposed the war with Iraq from the start, even when it was unpopular.
· Is committed to opening bids for military contracts and procurements rather than handing them to crony companies.
· Has promised to better the conditions of veterans. This includes:
· Allowing All Veterans Back into the VA: One of Obama's first acts will be reversing the 2003 ban on enrolling modest-income veterans, which has denied care to a million veterans.
· Fully Fund VA Medical Care: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will fully fund the VA so it has all the resources it needs to serve the veterans who need it, when they need it. Obama and Biden will establish a world-class VA Planning Division to avoid future budget shortfalls.
· Improve Mental Health Treatment: Obama has pledged he will improve mental health care at every stage of military service. They will recruit more health professionals, improve screening, offer more support to families and make PTSD benefits claims fairer.
· Eliminate Income Taxes for Seniors Making Less than $50,000
· Supports stem cell research
· Would require “Sunlight before Signing.” Obama has said he will not sign any non-emergency bill without giving the American public an opportunity to review and comment on the White House website for five days
· Obama and Biden will nullify the Bush attempts to make the timely release of presidential records more difficult.
· No political appointees in an Obama-Biden administration will be permitted to work on regulations or contracts directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years. And no political appointee will be able to lobby the executive branch after leaving government service during the remainder of the administration.
· Believes the gays and lesbian committed should be allowed the same legal rights as straight couples, even though he does not support my right to marry, he believes we should have rights as a couple.
· Would expand hate crimes to include vicious attacks against gays.
· Would Provide Universal Health Care and Lower Health Costs. Believes it should be mandatory that all children should be insured. Would not tax my employer-paid insurance as McCain would do.
· Create a Universal Mortgage Credit: The current mortgage interest deduction excludes nearly two-thirds of Americans who do not itemize their taxes. Barack Obama and Joe Biden will ensure that anyone with a mortgage, not just the well-off, can take advantage of this tax incentive for homeownership by creating a universal mortgage credit. This 10 percent credit will benefit an additional 10 million homeowners, the majority of whom earn less than $50,000 per year. Non-itemizers will be eligible for this refundable credit, which will provide the average recipient with approximately $500 per year in tax savings.
· Mandate Accurate Loan Disclosure to decrease predatory lending
· Obama has introduced and passed bipartisan legislation that would require more disclosure and transparency for special-interest earmarks.
· Obama has said he will give the Treasury Department the tools it needs to stop the abuse of tax shelters and offshore tax havens and help close the $350 billion tax gap between taxes owed and taxes paid.
· Does not make light of going to war. “Bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb Iran” is not funny.
· Obama Knows Spain is an American ally and that it is not in the same hemisphere as South America
· He Supports the Millennium Development.
· Realizes that the office of Vice President is part of the Executive branch of government.
· He has a Commitment to Fiscal Responsibility: Barack Obama will pay for his $50 - $65 billion health care reform effort by rolling back the Bush tax cuts for Americans earning more than $250,000 per year and retaining the estate tax at its 2009 level.
· Reform Corporate Bankruptcy Laws to Protect Workers, Seniors and Retirees
· Require Full Disclosure of Company Pension Investments
· Would Provide Cheaper Prescription Drugs: Our seniors pay the highest prices in the world for brand-name drugs. To lower drug costs, Obama and Biden will allow the federal government to negotiate for lower drug prices for the Medicare program, just as it does to lower prices for our veterans. They also support allowing seniors to import safe prescription drugs from overseas, and will prevent pharmaceutical companies from blocking cheap and safe generic drugs from the market.
· Restore Scientific Integrity to the White House: Good policy in Washington depends on sound advice from the nation's scientists and engineers and decision-making based on the needs of all Americans. Obama and Biden will restore the basic principle that government decisions should be based on the best-available, scientifically-valid evidence and not on the ideological predispositions of agency officials or political appointees. What President Bush has done is nothing less than disgraceful.
· Obama supports Roe V. Wade, though I don’t agree with abortion, I don’t think it should be illegal. The next president will determine how the Supreme Court tilts.
· Obama has definitely taken the high road in this campaign, not lying, making attacks against opponent’s family members, does not continue to repeat misleading or inaccurate information just because it’s a good sound bite. Why would McCain say he’s going to suspend campaigning so he could rush to Washington to announce his leadership on the bail-out bill that went bust, all-the-while, his campaign ads plaid almost as much as Sarah’s “Bridge to Nowhere” line.
· My candidate respects women and his wife. Barack would never call his wife the “C” word (how could any man call his wife this word???) or trollop because she makes a comment about his hair thinning. I have true issues with this and that he was cheating on his first wife after she waited patiently for him to return from Viet Nam. McCain even laughed when at a meeting, a supporter asked him, “How will we beat the bitch (referring to Hillary Clinton)?”
· Obama seems cool and very methodical. I trust his finger on the button and no it would only be as a last resort. I DON’T trust that McCain could keep his cool when needed. And God Forbid he should die in office, I DON’T trust Sarah with the button. I don’t even want her to know where the button is. This leads me to my last point. Biden would make a fine president, even with the things his family has done. I’m not voting for them. Sarah Palin, in my opinion (not even going into her family) would make a terrible president. I would rank her better than Cheney or Agnew, but not as naïve as Quayle. Could she be president on day 2?
· Obama is the least like George W Bush and Biden the least like Cheney. This country needs a different course. Voting with the president 90% of the time doesn’t make you a maverick…It makes you a carbon copy. Something has to change or this country won’t recover.
· What I truly fear, is that the anger stirred at the Palin’s rallies. Her saying that Obama “pals around with terrorists” is just plain ugly and is met with frightening cheers from the audience, including “KILL HIM.” Can you imagine what would happen in this country, if someone caught up in this fervor carries this out??? Don’t say I’m paranoid. The last three high profile assassinations in this country, JFK, RFK and MLK, Jr. have a lot in common with Barack Obama. Georgia Representative, John Lewis called the McCain campaign out on this fear and hate mongering. He said, “"What I am seeing reminds me of too much of another destructive period in American history," Lewis said in a statement released to FOX News.”Senator McCain and Governor Palin are sowing the seeds of hatred and division, and there is no need for this hostility in our political discourse. George Wallace never threw a bomb. He never fired a gun, but he created the climate and the conditions that encouraged vicious attacks against innocent Americans who were simply trying to exercise their constitutional rights. Because of this atmosphere of hate, four little girls were killed on Sunday morning when a church was bombed in Birmingham, Alabama." McCain was still twisting these words last night in the debate saying John Lewis was calling him a segregationalist.” Not so. I’ve read the text where he said this on Fox. Lewis is simply calling for the McCain/Palin team to stop fanning these dangerous flames.
· And lastly, Senator Obama inspires the hope I have in this country, not playing to the country’s fears as his contender and the current president has done. Watching last night’s debates, it was disturbing to see how McCain still brought up ACORN and Ayers. Obama could have brought up The Keating Five, Rick Davis’ connection to Fannie and Freddie, William Timmons’ (the Washington lobbyist who John McCain has named to head his presidential transition team, aided an influence effort on behalf of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to ease international sanctions against his regime.), Todd Palin’s membership in the Alaska Independence Party, Pastor Muthee, or even attacking McCain’s choice of VP. Obama didn’t even mention Palin’s verdict of abusing her power as governor. McCain had no trouble going after Biden.
So, there you have it. Why I am voting for Barack Obama and why I believe he will lead us in the right direction. I have hope.
Since you asked, here are the reasons I support Barack Obama.
· Opposed the war with Iraq from the start, even when it was unpopular.
· Is committed to opening bids for military contracts and procurements rather than handing them to crony companies.
· Has promised to better the conditions of veterans. This includes:
· Allowing All Veterans Back into the VA: One of Obama's first acts will be reversing the 2003 ban on enrolling modest-income veterans, which has denied care to a million veterans.
· Fully Fund VA Medical Care: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will fully fund the VA so it has all the resources it needs to serve the veterans who need it, when they need it. Obama and Biden will establish a world-class VA Planning Division to avoid future budget shortfalls.
· Improve Mental Health Treatment: Obama has pledged he will improve mental health care at every stage of military service. They will recruit more health professionals, improve screening, offer more support to families and make PTSD benefits claims fairer.
· Eliminate Income Taxes for Seniors Making Less than $50,000
· Supports stem cell research
· Would require “Sunlight before Signing.” Obama has said he will not sign any non-emergency bill without giving the American public an opportunity to review and comment on the White House website for five days
· Obama and Biden will nullify the Bush attempts to make the timely release of presidential records more difficult.
· No political appointees in an Obama-Biden administration will be permitted to work on regulations or contracts directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years. And no political appointee will be able to lobby the executive branch after leaving government service during the remainder of the administration.
· Believes the gays and lesbian committed should be allowed the same legal rights as straight couples, even though he does not support my right to marry, he believes we should have rights as a couple.
· Would expand hate crimes to include vicious attacks against gays.
· Would Provide Universal Health Care and Lower Health Costs. Believes it should be mandatory that all children should be insured. Would not tax my employer-paid insurance as McCain would do.
· Create a Universal Mortgage Credit: The current mortgage interest deduction excludes nearly two-thirds of Americans who do not itemize their taxes. Barack Obama and Joe Biden will ensure that anyone with a mortgage, not just the well-off, can take advantage of this tax incentive for homeownership by creating a universal mortgage credit. This 10 percent credit will benefit an additional 10 million homeowners, the majority of whom earn less than $50,000 per year. Non-itemizers will be eligible for this refundable credit, which will provide the average recipient with approximately $500 per year in tax savings.
· Mandate Accurate Loan Disclosure to decrease predatory lending
· Obama has introduced and passed bipartisan legislation that would require more disclosure and transparency for special-interest earmarks.
· Obama has said he will give the Treasury Department the tools it needs to stop the abuse of tax shelters and offshore tax havens and help close the $350 billion tax gap between taxes owed and taxes paid.
· Does not make light of going to war. “Bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb Iran” is not funny.
· Obama Knows Spain is an American ally and that it is not in the same hemisphere as South America
· He Supports the Millennium Development.
· Realizes that the office of Vice President is part of the Executive branch of government.
· He has a Commitment to Fiscal Responsibility: Barack Obama will pay for his $50 - $65 billion health care reform effort by rolling back the Bush tax cuts for Americans earning more than $250,000 per year and retaining the estate tax at its 2009 level.
· Reform Corporate Bankruptcy Laws to Protect Workers, Seniors and Retirees
· Require Full Disclosure of Company Pension Investments
· Would Provide Cheaper Prescription Drugs: Our seniors pay the highest prices in the world for brand-name drugs. To lower drug costs, Obama and Biden will allow the federal government to negotiate for lower drug prices for the Medicare program, just as it does to lower prices for our veterans. They also support allowing seniors to import safe prescription drugs from overseas, and will prevent pharmaceutical companies from blocking cheap and safe generic drugs from the market.
· Restore Scientific Integrity to the White House: Good policy in Washington depends on sound advice from the nation's scientists and engineers and decision-making based on the needs of all Americans. Obama and Biden will restore the basic principle that government decisions should be based on the best-available, scientifically-valid evidence and not on the ideological predispositions of agency officials or political appointees. What President Bush has done is nothing less than disgraceful.
· Obama supports Roe V. Wade, though I don’t agree with abortion, I don’t think it should be illegal. The next president will determine how the Supreme Court tilts.
· Obama has definitely taken the high road in this campaign, not lying, making attacks against opponent’s family members, does not continue to repeat misleading or inaccurate information just because it’s a good sound bite. Why would McCain say he’s going to suspend campaigning so he could rush to Washington to announce his leadership on the bail-out bill that went bust, all-the-while, his campaign ads plaid almost as much as Sarah’s “Bridge to Nowhere” line.
· My candidate respects women and his wife. Barack would never call his wife the “C” word (how could any man call his wife this word???) or trollop because she makes a comment about his hair thinning. I have true issues with this and that he was cheating on his first wife after she waited patiently for him to return from Viet Nam. McCain even laughed when at a meeting, a supporter asked him, “How will we beat the bitch (referring to Hillary Clinton)?”
· Obama seems cool and very methodical. I trust his finger on the button and no it would only be as a last resort. I DON’T trust that McCain could keep his cool when needed. And God Forbid he should die in office, I DON’T trust Sarah with the button. I don’t even want her to know where the button is. This leads me to my last point. Biden would make a fine president, even with the things his family has done. I’m not voting for them. Sarah Palin, in my opinion (not even going into her family) would make a terrible president. I would rank her better than Cheney or Agnew, but not as naïve as Quayle. Could she be president on day 2?
· Obama is the least like George W Bush and Biden the least like Cheney. This country needs a different course. Voting with the president 90% of the time doesn’t make you a maverick…It makes you a carbon copy. Something has to change or this country won’t recover.
· What I truly fear, is that the anger stirred at the Palin’s rallies. Her saying that Obama “pals around with terrorists” is just plain ugly and is met with frightening cheers from the audience, including “KILL HIM.” Can you imagine what would happen in this country, if someone caught up in this fervor carries this out??? Don’t say I’m paranoid. The last three high profile assassinations in this country, JFK, RFK and MLK, Jr. have a lot in common with Barack Obama. Georgia Representative, John Lewis called the McCain campaign out on this fear and hate mongering. He said, “"What I am seeing reminds me of too much of another destructive period in American history," Lewis said in a statement released to FOX News.”Senator McCain and Governor Palin are sowing the seeds of hatred and division, and there is no need for this hostility in our political discourse. George Wallace never threw a bomb. He never fired a gun, but he created the climate and the conditions that encouraged vicious attacks against innocent Americans who were simply trying to exercise their constitutional rights. Because of this atmosphere of hate, four little girls were killed on Sunday morning when a church was bombed in Birmingham, Alabama." McCain was still twisting these words last night in the debate saying John Lewis was calling him a segregationalist.” Not so. I’ve read the text where he said this on Fox. Lewis is simply calling for the McCain/Palin team to stop fanning these dangerous flames.
· And lastly, Senator Obama inspires the hope I have in this country, not playing to the country’s fears as his contender and the current president has done. Watching last night’s debates, it was disturbing to see how McCain still brought up ACORN and Ayers. Obama could have brought up The Keating Five, Rick Davis’ connection to Fannie and Freddie, William Timmons’ (the Washington lobbyist who John McCain has named to head his presidential transition team, aided an influence effort on behalf of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to ease international sanctions against his regime.), Todd Palin’s membership in the Alaska Independence Party, Pastor Muthee, or even attacking McCain’s choice of VP. Obama didn’t even mention Palin’s verdict of abusing her power as governor. McCain had no trouble going after Biden.
So, there you have it. Why I am voting for Barack Obama and why I believe he will lead us in the right direction. I have hope.
Touche.
Thursday, October 09, 2008
If This Is Important To Anyone, Please Stop Reading My Blog.
You have got to be fucking kidding me.
People are all panties-in-a-bunch that Sarah Palin's Newsweek cover wasn't retouched.
WHAT WHAT WHAT?????
Excuse my obvious anger and WTF-ness, but WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?!?!?!?!?!?!?
I will cut my regular long-winded rant short and simply say: If you are voting for someone based TO ANY EXTENT on their physical appearance - or how it is portrayed in a NEWS MAGAZINE - than I do not care to have any further discussions with you.
Oh, and please do not bother voting. Please.
People are all panties-in-a-bunch that Sarah Palin's Newsweek cover wasn't retouched.
WHAT WHAT WHAT?????
Excuse my obvious anger and WTF-ness, but WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?!?!?!?!?!?!?
I will cut my regular long-winded rant short and simply say: If you are voting for someone based TO ANY EXTENT on their physical appearance - or how it is portrayed in a NEWS MAGAZINE - than I do not care to have any further discussions with you.
Oh, and please do not bother voting. Please.
(And yes, I'm fully aware that I have just stomped all over my usual "I want to hear from every opinion" ideal - but this is just way over the top. Too much. My tolerance is GONE).
And everyone, be very glad that I didn't even get started on this crap.
Saturday, October 04, 2008
The Greatest Of These Is Love.
At the risk of becoming a video blogger, I give you this.
It's really quite a simple message. Very easy to grasp, I think.
I hope more people do so.
It's really quite a simple message. Very easy to grasp, I think.
I hope more people do so.
Friday, October 03, 2008
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
White Privelege
(Disclaimer: I am by no means saying that this is the one and only problem in our country. But it is a big one. Very, VERY big.)
Another hat tip, this time to Mikey:
This is Your Nation on White Privilege
By Tim Wise
For those who still can't grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are constantly looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.
White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because "every family has challenges," even as black and Latino families with similar "challenges" are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.
White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.
White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.
White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don't all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you're "untested."
White privilege is being able to say that you support the words "under God" in the pledge of allegiance because "if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it's good enough for me," and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the "under God" part wasn't added until the 1950s--while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals.
White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you.
White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto was "Alaska first," and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you're black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she's being disrespectful.
White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you're being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college--you're somehow being mean, or even sexist.
White privilege is being able to convince white women who don't even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because all of a sudden your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a "second look."
White privilege is being able to fire people who didn't support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.
White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God's punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you're just a good church-going Christian, but if you're black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you're an extremist who probably hates America.
White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a "trick question," while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O'Reilly means you're dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced.
White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism is, as Sarah Palin has referred to it a "light" burden.
And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren't sure about that whole "change" thing. Ya know, it's just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain…
White privilege is, in short, the problem.
Another hat tip, this time to Mikey:
This is Your Nation on White Privilege
By Tim Wise
For those who still can't grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are constantly looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.
White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because "every family has challenges," even as black and Latino families with similar "challenges" are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.
White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.
White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.
White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don't all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you're "untested."
White privilege is being able to say that you support the words "under God" in the pledge of allegiance because "if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it's good enough for me," and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the "under God" part wasn't added until the 1950s--while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals.
White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you.
White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto was "Alaska first," and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you're black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she's being disrespectful.
White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you're being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college--you're somehow being mean, or even sexist.
White privilege is being able to convince white women who don't even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because all of a sudden your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a "second look."
White privilege is being able to fire people who didn't support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.
White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God's punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you're just a good church-going Christian, but if you're black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you're an extremist who probably hates America.
White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a "trick question," while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O'Reilly means you're dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced.
White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism is, as Sarah Palin has referred to it a "light" burden.
And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren't sure about that whole "change" thing. Ya know, it's just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain…
White privilege is, in short, the problem.
One Day More
Hat tip to AmericaBlog:
Although I do agree with one YouTube commenter that "Do You Hear The People Sing" would be even more appropriate ... (I chose the version with the more hopeful words, although both work).
Thursday, September 18, 2008
News From My Neighborhood
From the Central District News:
As the story goes, I came upon this “intruder” at 5:30 am this morning (in the Central District!) when I went outside IN THE PITCH BLACK to walk the puppy. He didn’t say anything, just kept smiling. I grabbed the dog (boyfriend is in New York and I am puppy sitting) and went 5 blocks away to Katy’s coffee until it got light, but when I went back, the “intruder” was still there – so, I called the police. Well, luckily before they arrived, I made my way closer and with it getting light out I realized – yes, someone put a life-size, cardboard cut-out of our dear friend George Bush! See the picture – I know you’d be scared too!!
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