Tag: politics

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Asking for a little accountability

Among the variety of things in my RSS reader is Robert Reich’s blog, and today he has an excellent set of observations about the coming socialism in America corporate welfare salvation of the world economy: What Wall Street Should Be Required to Do, to Get A Blank Check From Taxpayers

Why should Wall Street get bailed out by me when I’m getting screwed?

So if you are a member of Congress, you just might be in a position to demand from Wall Street certain conditions in return for the blank check.

(Send a letter to your elected officials about subjects that concern you.)

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White Privilege

I don’t know this author, nor am I familiar with the website, but this is a wonderful rundown of what white privilege looks like in the U.S. presidential campaign: White Privilege, White Entitlement and the 2008 Election | BuzzFlash.org

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.

(tip of the hat to CoyoteAngel Dimsum)

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RNC demonstrations

First-person reflections on the Republican National Convention in St. Paul over at Showers of Blessings

But I was appalled at the disproportionality of the display of force throughout the week. It started with forcible entries to four or five homes Saturday morning to arrest RNC WC members and to execute search warrants. Police reportedly used battering rams to break open unlocked doors and came in with drawn guns, despite there being no reason to suspect that the residents posed any threat of violent resistance. There were also many reports of harassment of journalists prior to and throughout the week.

At the march, hundreds of police were dressed head-to-toe in armor and battle gear, far exceeding any danger they may have reasonably anticipated, especially from the 10,000 peaceful marchers. The display seemed clearly intended to frighten and intimidate others by creating a false aura of danger, creating fear and uncertainty in the public mind. I cannot escape the conclusion that the police let themselves be used as part of a larger propaganda and public relations effort to delegitimize the protesters.

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Deeply weird

There’s a little graphic and such, but here’s the central, weird finding of a Pew study reported in The Climate Change Attitude Mystery | Wired Science from Wired.com

The confounding part: among college-educated poll respondents, 19 percent of Republicans believe that human activities are causing global warming, compared to 75 percent of Democrats. But take that college education away and Republican believers rise to 31 percent while Democrats drop to 52 percent.

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“Let’s just saddle up and have an argument”?

I just saw footage of former president Bill Clinton saying that politics is a body sport and you have to be willing to get beat up. OK, you fucking adulterer, I want to see your income tax returns, now. And I want to see evidence that your wife, the one who is the putative candidate, can actually keep you on a leash. And why she says she “misspoke” when in fact she told several whopping, flat-out lies. And how on earth she can justify the race-baiting tactics of her campaign. And why she voted to send to Iraq 4,000 American men and women who would be alive now had she not wanted to show she has big balls—not to mention the much larger number of injuries of American servicemen and ‑women and the untold numbers of Iraqi lives lost or damaged beyond repair.

And while we’re at it, can you explain how you or she can ask for gay and lesbian support when you sold us down the river as president?

And when Hillary claims she has thirty years of experience, could she be more specific? Thirty years of experience as what, exactly? A political wife?  A failed, unelected policy wonk? A dirty street fighter? Please.

All I can say is, I am no longer willing to vote for just any Democratic candidate. If Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic nomination, I will not vote for her. How’s that for an argument, Bill?

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Showing up hatred

“The Westboro Baptist Church, of Topeka, Kansas, is a hate group masquerading as a Christian church.” Thus the Kansas-based organizers of The Million Fag March describe one of America’s most notorious hate mongers.

What you need to know

Date: March 30, 2008
Time: 11:00 AM

Where: Westboro Baptist Church, Topeka, KS

Requirements: This is not a “gay-only” event. Just come with the ability to send a message to the WBC and Fred Phelps that intolerance is unacceptable.