Well, I
guess I moved this past week. At least I think I did. I'm sitting in my new
kitchen at the moment, a bit peeved that there appears to be no water hook-up
to the ice machine in the fridge. And here I had just gotten used to having a
working ice maker again.
There are
books on the shelves in the living room, the crystal is back in the china
closet, and my room is nice and tidy....just the way I like it. And since the
clothes in the closet all seem to fit me, I suppose they are mine. But there
are boxes everywhere else.
I've
not been paying too close attention to the clown cavalcade on either side. This
latest bit of collusion between Grandpa Munster and Governor Kasich to maximize
the number of delegates they can pull away from Drumpf? Good plan, guys. That
should be a real show stopper On the other side, I'm still smarting over the
Democratic descent into politik hell. I had such high hopes....but alas.
Oh,
I'm pretty sure Hillary will be the Democratic candidate, and I will vote for
her without hesitation or reservation. She will be a perfectly fine president.
She will bring a new perspective and I'm sure she will do lots of things I like
as well as lots of things I don't like. That's the beauty of democracy in action.
Democracy.
That's the thing where you get to elect your government, and then, if they
screw it up, you get to un-elect them. Right? It's the part where the people
get to live under the rule of whomever they put into national office. Right?
And it's the part where the citizens have to take a leap of faith to trust the
people they elected will do the right thing to those, the people. Right?
Not
every country gets to do what we do....listen to a bunch of crazies for
umpteen months say incredibly naive and stupid things and then pick one of 'em
to run the country. We have elected more than our fair share of addicts,
abusers, and assholes, but somehow we've managed to survive one or two terms of
idiocrasy without too much damage. It's as if this is a game show.....
Oh,
wait. It IS a game show. This does not warrant
further explanation because we already know it's true. And maybe this is
really the direct descendant of bread
and circus. Maybe it's no surprise that ROLLERBALL, HUNGER GAMES, and
SURVIVOR are all giant hits. Maybe it's because we really don't care anymore so
long as we have a lifetime supply of nachos and batteries for the remote.
Back
in the day, when the Senior Son was in 2nd grade, he decided to start his own
school newspaper. The first couple of issues were great, full of
2nd-grader-deemed-worthy news stories about the teachers, his friends,
Skeletor, you know, the usual fodder. But by the third issue, he was struggling
to come up with new stories. We talked about doing some interviews, perhaps
writing to his buddy Mr. Henson who would certainly contribute something for
his friend. But there was a deadline to meet and there wasn't much time. When
issue #3 came out, we didn't know whether to laugh or cry. But we did have a
sit-down with him about truth in journalism. Looking back, I'm thinking this
was nothing compared with some of the pro-GOP sites.
You
think I'm kidding? Here are a couple of samples. Read 'em and then tell me you
think we're not in deep and serious doo-doo: The Political
Insider, Florida Family Policy Council, and PRINTLY.
My
WTF-O-Meter went off the charts when I read the comments. The ones on
PRINTLY are mostly the spam variety I get here all the time, Hi, I found your blog
meaningfulness and want to share ideas for making millions with you because I am
liking you so much. I am
certain they are all Nigerian princes who want me to help them get their
rightful inheritances. But the ones on The PI are downright scary. They are
hateful, racist, anti-Semitic, and just plain vile. At least the ones without semi-automatic Glocks. That said, Anita Staver of FLFAMILY announced she was now going to shop at Target armed with a Glock...in case she has to go into the ladies' room. Really?
But
harmless does not matter. They are out there. And they will vote. And there is
not much anyone can or should do, other than campaign harder. If We, the People
who do pay attention to the details are serious about stopping this game show
from becoming a reality show, then not voting and not doing anything is not an option.
The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week
The first thing to do when the moving van leaves is make your bed.
Have someplace sane to lie down at the end o'the day.
+1 on "WTF-o-Meter". Winner!
ReplyDeleteI wish I had your optimism about Hillary Clinton. Because what I see ahead of us, some of it her fault, some of it not, is another 4-8 years of lunacy from the right. The things that will be her fault: a completely nonexistent sense of optics -- How Things Look. (See also: e-mail server. Did she really think that with their history, this would be ignored?) An even more hawkish foreign policy than Obama (Ground troops in Syria! What could go wrong?). A blind eye to Wall Street chicanery. "Compromise" on tax cuts for corporations and a Grand Bargain(TM) on Social Security. I'm not buying this sudden leftward shift. If Bernie Sanders weren't there, we wouldn't be hearing ANY of this. I was there in the room at the McCormick Center in Chicago in 2007 when she was asked at what was then called Yearly Kos about lobbying and her answer was "Lobbyists are Americans too."
ReplyDeleteYou already know what the things NOT her fault will be: One of them will be whatever comes out of Bill's mouth, as he sounds more and more like Grandpa Simpson on a particularly grouchy day. Another will be the watermelon-shooters: The people who are going to once again start ruminating about Vince Foster and the rest of the crap that we had in the 1990s. Add to that the level of vile misogyny that's going to greet a woman president with a (D) after her name who isn't deemed fuckable by GOP pundits. (Aside: This is what makes me nuts about the Hillbots on Facebook who are screaming misogyny every time someone disagrees with her on, say, Middle East policy. Policy differences are not misogyny.)
Oh, I'll vote for her because the alternative is unthinkable. But I will do it with no enthusiasm and even less hope, either for our party or for the country's (and the world's) future.
Amen!
DeleteI have been echoing your final sentiment for 8 years now: "not voting and not doing anything is not an option." To take a look around and see that while you were trying to live your life, the country has gone the way of Caligula is daunting. The overwhelming tendency is to run and hide, especially if your personal cocoon is a cushy one. But, that will not get us out of this mess. We all have to find the courage to again rage against the system of inequity and injustice and corruption that is today so pervasive at every level of public (and often private) life.
ReplyDeleteThe American vision of democracy is in its adolescence and it shows! We are a young country! The mature minds among us must be the adults in the room and model civility, perseverance, and the joy of having the opportunity to do so!
Please find a way to act, folks! Big or small, local, state, or federal arena, it matters not as long as each of us does something!
Heya just wanted to give you a brief heads up and let
ReplyDeleteyou know a few of the pictures aren't loading correctly.
I'm not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I've tried
it in two different web browsers and both show the same outcome.
I checked the page on several different browsers including Safari and IE. There were no issues. That said, thanks for the heads up. Much appreciated.
Delete