Cheney Redux

Why in the world are people still listening to Dick(head) Cheney? We had 8 years of his bullshit, & it just about led us to the brink of doom. Of course, it's the media that's trying to shove him down our throats again, but apparently we're letting that happen. I guess electing President Obama was such a momentous feat, the American people have become too exhausted to actually follow through & tell the right-wing nutcases & Jesus freaks that their day is over. Or is it, really? Even some progressives have bitched about the president not doing enough to advance their agenda. Are they freaking kidding? Do they honestly think that 8 years of fucking everything up can be rectified in 4 months? Not even 4 years would be enough to right all the wrongs the Republicans subjected us to. The guy's not Superman (close, but not quite). If the Republicans still want Dick Cheney (who, in a more just world, would be in prison), to be their spokesman, that is beyond sad. It's insane.

President Obama has done more good in the short time he's been in office than probably any other president in recent history. One of the reasons is that he's a grown-up, & a very pragmatic one , at that. He talks to us as if we're on his intellectual level, even though very few of us actually are. The economic mess he inherited was caused by people (both Republicans & Democrats) who had no vision, no compassion, & no regard for history. Greed was all they understood, & as long as they got theirs, they could have given a crap about the rest of us. And to make things even worse, they governed (if you want to call it that) through fear, & Cheney was the embodiment of that. Actually, he was & is the embodiment of everything that is wrong with this country. So why does the media even give him the time of day? Since they haven't been doing their jobs of exposing all the bullshit during the last 8 years, I guess they're trying to gloss that over by riling things up & creating controversy where there is none. Cheney's policies & his methods of implementing them have been rebuffed & discredited, yet here he still is. Why won't they let them die the grisly death they deserve? Maybe President Obama hasn't done everything right, but he sure as hell hasn't done everything wrong like the previous administration. Bush was just a boob, a borderline-retarded moron with a mean streak- Cheney's puppet. Do some people just never learn? We should not be implicit in this campaign to resuscitate Cheney. Maybe Bush is smarter than we thought. At least he's keeping his mouth shut.

The Terrorization of "American Idol"

I guess the American people were ready for a black president, but not for a gay "American Idol". Man, they apparently can only accept so much. All those Jesus freaks with their pudgy little fingers voting for the "not gay" guy. Sure, Kris is cute & can sing pretty well, but he's sort of like a generic brand of cheese: bland, smooth, & easy to swallow. Adam Lambert was the most original & talented contestant ever on the show. This guy has star power just radiating out of him. His vocal range, his sometimes flamboyant costumes & makeup, & his stage presence were all unprecedented on this show. He can literally sing anything & make it sound original & interesting. Oh, I just found out he's Jewish, too, so that's another strike against him when it comes to the Holy Roller crowd. Notwithstanding the presidential election, the American people can apparently still act like morons when they want to.

The most interesting thing about the vote was that Adam was clearly not surprised by it. So, on top of all his other stellar qualities, he's also pretty bright & pragmatic (not unlike our new president). He's clearly going to be a star, so all he needed was some exposure to get the ball rolling. I just wonder why he waited so long to get on the show. Maybe he had some kind of personal deadline. Whatever the reason, I'm very happy he shared his talents with the American people, ignorant though they may be. So, despite a few exceptions (Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, maybe David Cook), America voted for mediocrity again. The judges are so fond of saying that it's a singing competition, but it's clearly not. It's a popularity contest for the most unthreatening person who can carry a tune, who also has the right "values", which apparently do not include tolerance or acceptance.

Amen

We (America & particularly Ohio) didn't fuck it up this time. We finally got it right. Amen. Who didn't cry when they heard/ saw those words "Barack Obama has been elected President of the United States"? I still can barely believe it. What a transformative time to be alive. It's equal parts hope, pride & relief. Whether or not our new first lady was misquoted or misunderstood or whatever, I can also now finally say that I'm proud of our country & really, really proud of our incoming president. I've been so ashamed the last 8 years that the rest of the world, who really want to look up to America, have been unable to because we had the most ignorant, incompetant & completely clueless "leader" in our nation's history. I don't want a "C" student (& I'm being charitable here) as president. I want somebody smarter than me, someone brilliant, charismatic, intuitive, knowledgible & self-assured. We now have that, & more, in President-elect Obama. And what a role-model Michelle will be, a combination of Eleanor Roosevelt & Jackie Kennedy. So President Obama & his beautiful family will be
the face of America for the next 4, & hopefully 8 years. What a blessing for America & for the world.

Meet the Flintstones

I just read a report that Sarah Palin told a music teacher in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska in 1997 (shortly after being elected mayor of Wasilla) that she believes that humans & dinosaurs lived together on earth 6,000 years ago. She told Philip Munger, who teaches music at the University of Alaska, that she had "seen human footprints inside the tracks" of dinosaur fossils/tracks. This was after Palin had given a commencement address & Mr. Mauger had just conducted a college band, & they had struck up a conversation. I honest to God don't know what to say about this. Maybe- isn't it really scary that there's even a slim possibility that this woman would someday have access to the nuclear codes? Gee, thanks, McCain, I guess she's another example of you putting country first. Oh, by the way, what's going to happen on Thursday to prevent her from showing up at the VP debate?

Personal Experience

I've just found out first-hand that there are those in the hierarchy of the Catholic church who are very, very displeased with Sen. Joe Biden's position on reproductive rights (imagine that!), to the point that even buttons advocating the Obama/Biden ticket are being banned from being worn by employees of the church on church property. Sen. Biden is both a practicing Catholic & a pro-choice proponent, which I would guess is extremely common today. The ability to be both is a choice that at least some Catholic bishops are not willing to give Catholics; I guess the "don't ask, don't tell" policy started in the military regarding sexual identity has unfortunately trickled down to everyone who actually thinks for themselves in this area, also, especially those of us who work in any capacity for the church.

Nobody but a moron is "pro-abortion". Abortion is almost always the very last choice for the vast majority of women. I just wish everyone would get the language straight: it's "pro-choice" & "anti-choice", NOT "pro-abortion" & "pro-life". Everyone is "pro-life", & I resent that the phrase has been appropriated by the religious right. You can certainly be both morally opposed to abortion & still be pro-choice. It simply means that everyone can make up their own minds about the matter, without laws either prohibiting or advocating abortion. Why is that so difficult for people, especially the religious right, to understand? There are lots of things that are sins without being crimes. Apparently some people would prefer that we throw out the Constitution & replace it with the Ten Commandments. These are the same ignorant people who obviously are unaware that our country owes its very existence to the concept of separation of church & state.

So for those of us who are in the position of needing our jobs but are denied freedom of speech, I guess we just bite our tongues & resent the shit out of the authorities who deny it to us, & hope that this November we finally elect candidates who will give us a government that is genuinely responsive to & actually cares about all people, which has been so sorely lacking the last eight years. I, like Michelle Obama so rightly said (in spite of being forced to back down), would like to have a government & a country I can be proud of again, & a president who really represents the better angels of our natures that I can look up to, instead of being ashamed of. I mean, do you really want to be smarter than the leader of the free world? That's both sad & scary, & I hope never to experience it again in my lifetime. It all IS really up to us, & we can change the history of the world forever this November.

Move Over, Lynne & Dina

Lynne Spears & Dina Lohan have got nothing over Sarah Palin. While the former have exploited their daughters for (mostly) money, Ms. Palin has done the exact same thing for her own political purposes. At least Britney & Lindsay were already in the public eye; poor Bristol Palin has had all this publicity thrust upon her & her problems simply because her selfish mother got the unbelieveable chance of a lifetime to run for national office, & put her ambitions before her daughter's welfare, not to mention the welfare of her 4 month old special needs baby. Simply having 5 kids doesn't make someone a good mother; anyone can HAVE kids, it's the raising part that's hard, & this woman has failed that test, as far as I'm concerned. I'm a mother, & absolutely nothing would come before the needs & welfare of my child, even though she's now grown. Do people not get this? Sometimes you just CAN'T have it all, especially if your family has problems like the Palins do. Something has to come first in your life; everything can't have the same priority, no matter how much of a feminist you claim to be (do prominent Republican women, especially the hard-core evangelicals, even claim to be feminists? I really don't know the answer to that one). What a sad, sad example for our young people this misguided choice for VP is turning out to be. John McCain should be especially ashamed of himself for this, not to mention all the other shit he either does or doesn't stand for (who can keep his positions straight? Even he doesn't remember them most of the time). I hope that Hillary comes out swinging on this one; she raised an exemplary daughter the right way while being in the public eye practically all of her adult life, & it couldn't have been easy. I'm kind of sorry I've been so hard on Hillary; she looks like Mother Teresa next to this Palin broad. I sure as hell hope that this poor child doesn't have any problems with her pregnancy, cause her mother is going to make sure she sees it through no matter what, right? And what the hell is it with all those kids' weird names, anyway?

The X X Factor

John McCain's pick for vice president is an insult to all women, & especially to supporters of Hillary Clinton. Does he really think that just because Sarah Palin has breasts & a vagina, she is interchangeable with Hillary? For all her faults, Hillary is on the right side of most of the issues confronting our country today, especially those of particular concern to women. Considering the verbal slurs he aimed at his wife in the past, McCain obviously has a low regard for women. As Barack said about him in his magnificient speech on Thursday, McCain just "doesn't get it". But I'm not as charitable about it as Barack; I don't think McCain cares, in fact I think he honestly doesn't give a shit about ordinary Americans, & the reason he doesn't "get it" might have something to do with the fact that he graduated almost at the bottom of his class at Annapolis. That kind of makes him & George Bush "twins" in more ways than one, I guess. What a cynical, pandering asshole he is. As Dubya used to say, "bring it on", Republicans; I can't wait for Obama & Biden to kick your asses back to the Stone Age you belong in.

True Genius

I was very sad to hear about George Carlin's death. I know he suffered with heart problems for a pretty long time, but 71 really isn't very old. The word "genius" is thrown around a lot, but in my estimation the only true geniuses of comedy have been Richard Pryor & George Carlin. Chris Rock will eventually join that illustrious list, also, I think. I was fortunate enough to have seen George Carlin in person, & it was an unforgettable experience. I also read his books, & for someone who dropped out of school in the 9th grade, he really put the lie to the need for higher education. But I guess when you're a genius to start with, & also have such an enquiring mind & quick wit, learning is a life-long pleasure, actually. RIP, George. You made us laugh, & you made us think. We will miss you & your ability to slash through all the bullshit to get to the truth.

Thank You

It may have taken her four days, but I have to hand it to her: Hillary Clinton today gave a beautiful, honest, gracious, heartfelt & brilliant speech, the speech of her life. It was masterful, & maybe if she had spoken like that throughout the campaign, the outcome would have been very different. Perhaps she couldn't have given that speech on Tuesday night because the wounds were too raw; I think I've been a little too hard on her, & I apologize for that. But today (or I guess it's actually yesterday now) she said everything right, & that speech was as close to perfect as anything I've ever heard. It helped to restore a lot of the faith that I, & perhaps a lot of others ,once had in her. It will live in history. Thank you, Hillary.

Making History

Well, he did it. Barack Obama, a progressive, first-term senator few people even knew not that long ago, has defeated the most famous woman in the world to become the (presumptive) presidential nominee of the Democratic party. It was Hillary's nomination to lose, & by God, she did, with her typical grace & style (right!). It's a stunning, obviously historic achievement for Sen. Obama, & even so, Hillary didn't have the class & humanity to let him have the moment all to himself. As is typical with the Clintons, her speech was all about her. Yes, her campaign was also historic, but I think she set the women's movement back with her combative, aggressive manner. It shouldn't have been about beating the boys at their own game, but about actually changing the way we play the game. As much as I would have loved to vote for a woman for president, she was just the wrong woman at the wrong time. Congratulations, Sen. Obama, it was a stunning victory & possibly the most well-run campaign in American political history, & you deserved to have your shining moment all to yourself. Please don't pander to the Clintons & offer the vice-presidency to Hillary. You were so much more gracious in your remarks about her than she was; I think that's enough. Godspeed, & God bless the Secret Service.