Neutrality

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I love Stephen Colbert. He manages to get to the heart of things with ease.

True.

(Thanks to The Daily Slab.)

That's, 'Mr. President,' to you.

It's Over!

Yes, We Did.

Denial...

As you can see in my last blog entry, I'm predicting a big Obama victory. Even those who are hallucinating a McCain victory have to anticipate tremendous gains by Democrats in the House and Senate. They might not get to 60 votes in the Senate, but they'll be close.

I've already started hearing the psychological defense mechanisms from conservative Republicans. The talking point of choice: "America is a center-right country." Usage: The Democrats won't be able to really pursue their agenda because America is a center-right country. I was reading an article on the candidates' environmental policies and Newt Gingrich used that line with regard to Obama's policies. "Obama's plan won't work because America is a center-right country." I heard a clip of another Republican talking head say that this morning.

This, my friends, is what's called "denial." While I don't see the US suddenly becoming Sweden politically, it's hard to envision that some intrinsic "center-rightness" will magically counteract what is clearly a movement leftward. Should the Democrats learn their lessons from the last 8 years and avoid governing from the fringe of the party as opposed to the center? Of course. Despite all the Fox News talking points that Obama is a radical, it's hard to imagine that he's going to up and nationalize the healthcare system or pursue anything far out. From all accounts, Obama's politics are on the left, but he's demonstrated (if you bother to listen) that he isn't particularly ideological. But to imagine that the voters are going to elect him as well as a large majority in the Congress but not really expect that they're not going to govern in a different way is just pure fantasy.

Keep in mind, I'm not a registered Democrat -- I'm an independent and I understand and expect that the Democratic Party can exhibit the same sort of excesses that we've seen from the Bush Administration. That said, these past 8 years and the Rove "Permanent Republican Majority" strategy has fucked the Republican Party for many years to come. There won't be a way to put the pieces back together they way they were, especially because what's left of the base is hell bent on branding as traitors anyone who doesn't subscribe to orthodoxy. That's not a recipe for building a new coalition.

So, sit back and enjoy the show!

Prediction

Here's my Electoral College prediction...

Fear and Hope

For me, one of the best things about this election is that it's given me tremendous insight into my own internal processes regarding my life. In many ways, this election has really mirrored much of what has been going on in my head regarding my life. From my vantage point, this is the fundamental issue of this election: Change vs. Fear.

Whether it's the country as a whole or certain aspects of my life, there's the general feeling that we're on the wrong track and something needs to change. Things could be, perhaps SHOULD be better. But as we all know, that doesn't happen unless we do something differently. And so, the opportunity for change presents itself.

Yet, we're confronted with opposition to the change we seek -- the mainstay of McCain's campaign has been the call of fear. At it's core the message is: Change is scary. It will be worse than it is now. The McCain campaign has used a variety of narratives to accomplish this -- because Obama looks different, he's secretly a radical/Muslim (ie terrorist)/America-hater. He's a Socialist! He's going to raise your taxes and the economy will collapse! Terrorists will attack the moment he's elected! He wants government to control every aspect of your life!

The easy answer is to point at these people as nutcases and just push forward. For the record, on a political level, DO I think these people are nutcases (this means YOU, Kevin & Patrick... just kidding!)? I certainly think most/all of the the conservative memes about Obama are neither credible nor compelling. At the same time, to dismiss these things out of hand misses the point.

If you believe that these things are true, that somehow Obama is some sort of Islamic Manchurian Candidate, then suddenly the case against change is quite a rational thing. If you believe that no despite how bad things are, the only possible alternative is catastrophic, then keeping things as they are is the logical choice. At that point -- you pull the lever to "reform" the current path and just do a better job, despite the evidence that what you've been doing before just isn't working.

I'll say this again -- I don't believe any of that on a political level, but on a personal level it really becomes enlightening because it highlights what I haven't been wanting to see about myself. In one of my previous entries that detailed one of my requests of the Universe, Alex responded, "Be careful what you ask for..." While I know his comments were in jest, the truth of it is, for every desire and hope for the future of my life, I fear each of them as much if not more than I desire them.

And like those conservatives out there who fear that somehow terrorists will strike the US again if Obama is elected, I have the events in my past that make the fear seem quite reasonable. Maybe these things will take me in a direction I don't want to go, maybe I won't be able to handle them, maybe I'll get my heart broken again. Maybe I'll repeat the mistakes of my past. Legitimate concerns, all of them.

I can't predict the future, I don't know exactly what is to come. I don't know the answers to questions that haven't been asked. In fact, sometimes I have trouble with answering the questions that HAVE been asked. So, it's no longer a mystery why I've been resisting the changes I've wanted for so long.

The one thing I DO know is that while I can't change the past, I am not the same person I was back then. I may not know what is to come, but I do know that I am much more now than I have ever been. I can feel the differences between who and where I was and who and where I am now. Even if things look the same on the outside, I know they're not.

Perhaps that seems like a flimsy reason to hope that things can be better. At the same time, I know what's changed, I know the work I've done. I also know that I'll never reach a point where everything is perfect, or where I won't make mistakes. I'm learning to be okay with that. I don't expect everything to change overnight, but I know the issues I need to confront. I'm not afraid to look at the fears that I've left hidden. Maybe that's not everything I need to get me where I want to go, but at least it's enough to let me take a step forward.

Happy Halloween?

I hope everybody had a good Halloween. Mine was uneventful, for the most part. The highlight of the evening was finding out some kids decided that tearing up our Obama sign would be a good Halloween trick. Fear not, I managed to tape the sign up and put it back out later that night.

That said, it sounds like the grumpy McCain supports are taking this election to the extreme... via Halloween tactics. Maybe this was the "October Surprise" they were talking about: According to an AP Press report, a woman in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan decided that she was only giving out candy to kids whose parents supported John McCain. I shit you not.

According to TV station WJPK, Shirley Nagel posted a sign outside her house that read: "No handouts for Obama supporters, liars, tricksters or kids of supporters." Apparently, it wasn't just an empty threat. Asked about turning away two kids, driven to tears, she explained, "Oh well. Everybody has a choice."

Wow. Sometimes the stereotypes prove themselves.

H-E-Double Hockey Sticks

It's official. I'm going to Hell. So sayeth The Worldnet Daily - one of those whacked out "news" sites for conservative Christians. You simply cannot support Barack Obama and be a "Good Christian:" "Obama will use your tax dollars to kill innocent children, and then he'll take your paycheck and use it to 'spread the wealth around.'"

Sound familiar? It's almost like reading the McCain campaign's talking points. It's not just coming from The Worldnet Daily -- the Catholic Church has also thrown it's hat into the ring with the logic that abortion is the sine non qua for being a "Good Christian." Never mind that there are other issues out there -- like torture and the occupation of Iraq. Never mind that the economy is in the shitter and that people are tired of sending tax money to bail out giant corporations.

None of that matters. "To those who think that God's grace gives them license to willfully disobey Him without consequences – think again... Then obey Him in the voting booth and out of it." It's so painfully clear: OBEY. You MUST obey! Do what we say or you will be punished... if you think it's bad now, wait until your father gets home. Yesiree, I'll give you something to cry about!

It's been around 2000 year since Christ, or so we're told, and despite all of his divine goodness, the church of the day is still telling the people to obey and fear, rather than to love and trust. Give me that old time religion, indeed.

True.

(Thanks to Scott at Bill in Exile for this!)

My Eyes... THEY BURN!

Okay, I applaud Ron Howard for what he's trying to do and all... but let me tell you, Ron Howard has not aged well. He's in Nicholas Cage territory now. While they're both balding and resemble the Crypt Keeper, there's one horrific difference... that this video made abundantly clear -- HOLYFUCKINGSHIT I just got subjected to seeing Ron Howard shirtless. The sound you're hearing right now is the baby Jebus weeping.

One Crazy Bitch...

I refer, of course to the power-abusing Sarah Palin. Betty White, on the other hand, is amazing.
(From AmericaBlog.)

The Gloves Are Off

I know I've already voted, but the campaign isn't over. In the wake of McCain's flagging poll numbers, the McCain campaign has decided that his last tactic is to smear Obama. Teddy RuxpinSarah Palin has already started the smears. The Obama campaign has finally decided to take the gloves off and hit back with the one issue that we haven't heard about at all this campaign -- John McCain's involvement with Charlie Keating & the S&L disaster. The Obama campaign just released this new, 13 minute video about the Keating scandal and has even launched a new website - KeatingEconomics.com. Look for much more about the Keating 5 scandal in the next month.

Yeah, a maverick and reformer. You asked for this, John.

VP Debate Reaction

I was chatting with my friend Mikey today about the VP debate. He thought Biden was a little off his game. I explained that Biden had to really tone his usual shtick down because Palin has a vagina. That's a little too harsh because it wasn't just that Palin has a vajayjay, it's that she has a vajayjay and is completely unqualified. So that means we have to be super nice.

Because of that, Biden had to take a different tone -- show that he was intelligent, knowledgable and in touch with voters' concerns. He also did a great job hitting at John McCain and tying him to the Bush Administration. From what I've read and seen about reactions from undecided voters, they responded to him well.

Palin did a much better job than expected. She didn't make a complete ass of herself and as a human being, I have to admit that I was relieved. Beyond the underlying train wreck factor, Palin demonstrated that she's every bit as good as a Teddy Ruxpin. She can say anything you tell her to say and by golly, the eyes and mouth move along with the recording! It became painfully apparent that she was either not willing or not capable to do anything beyond that -- the most illustrative point on that was when Biden got choked up talking about knowing what it's like being a single parent worrying that one his sons wouldn't make it... Given Biden's family history, the human response would be to acknowledge that and show some compassion. Instead TeddyPalin immediately launched into how John McCain is a maverick.

By golly, the eyes and mouth move along with the recording!

Time to Choose

Arizona has already started sending out early voting ballots. In fact, mine just arrived in the mail today. I just filled mine out, although I haven't mailed it back yet. (It's only been here 15 min or so, not like I'm stalling, here.) In any event, I'm glad to be able to finally put my two cents in officially, even if I don't expect Arizona to end up in the Obama column.

While I'll enjoy watching the last few weeks of this drama play itself out, regardless of what happens (by that I mean, regardless of the margin of Obama's win), it's time to quit agonizing over the choices and just choose. Choose something and take a step in that direction. That's something I've needed in my life -- less contemplation about what direction I should go and more confidence in the notion that movement in whatever direction I've chosen will yield rewards. And while this particular choice is important, both for the country and those personal choices in my own life, the truth is that they're not the only choices I or we will ever make.

I guess that's the trick -- no matter how good a decision is, or how poor it is, there is always an opportunity to choose again. Sometimes I lose sight of that... sometimes I forget and think that the choices of the past bind me, when in truth I've always had the ability to go in whatever direction that really inspires me.

"Yes, there are two paths that you can go by,
but in the long run,
there's still time to change the road you're on."
- "Stairway to Heaven", Led Zepplin

I Can't Believe It's Not Palin!

For those of you who watched Sarah Palin's disastrous interview with Katie Couric and just can't get enough of Palin's garbled nonsense, there's hope! A new website will generate Palin-speak for you on the fly. A sample:

Q: What is the role of the US in Iraq and Afghanistan?

A: Afghanistan will lead to war and it doesn't have to lead, as I said, to a position like we are today with so much collapse on Wall Street. That's to blame. And that is what America and American troops are providing in his country. But no, the Pakistani people also, they want freedom. They want democratic values and tolerance and freedom. I see the collapse that we're on, reform of this state that I do bring to this table, and that's with the energy source that is the foundation of our best interests to fight against a regime, especially Iran, who would seek to protect the good guys in this, the leaders of Israel and her friends, her allies, including us, all of these countries, especially Russia.

Yes, computer generated Pailin. Brilliant! Check it out: InterviewPalin.

So Say We All!

I was talking with my friend Mikey today -- he's still having some heartburn about the election... While he can't stand McCain, he's not not sold on Obama and he's looking for another choice. Fortunately, I stumbled on someone that I think will appeal to many out there:

That's right, for those of you who need a President with military experience, Admiral William Adama has what it takes to lead the people to the promised land... even if it turns out that this promised land got nuked.

Doublespeak

Badass

Many thanks to another badass: Scott at Bill In Exile.

ED Got You Down?

Ok, I've really tried to step away from politics both on this blog and in life in general. That said, sometimes something comes up that is just too good to pass up.

Oooh, sharp as a tack, that wily Maverick of ours.
(Thanks, Towleroad!)