You know there are so many cliches one can use when your having a surreal week. You know, one of those weeks where multiple things are happening at once and your psyche starts feeling like brain-colored taffy being stretched across an increasingly empty chasm in your skull. Where some events out weigh others in personal importance but you cannot allow any single "current event" take priority. So, that is a reason I like to blog; helps me sort some of the stuff out and by typing out some of my thoughts it can, sort of, relieve the pressure...so to speak. In a way, blogging, writing a journal, whatever you want to call it really is kind of like the Pensieve in the Harry Potter books with exception that no amount of writing will truly release the thoughts.
Anyhow...Let me start with the usual, easy stuff:
Politics.
I know many are growing tired of the election-a-palooza and in some ways, so am I. Not enough to stop thinking about it, writing about it and so forth but enough to say that once the election is over it will be a nice break and I can get back to caring about other shit. That said, I have never watched a more exciting election!!! I have been paying fairly close attention to "politics" (with some exceptions) for the better part of 8 years so I have a hard time codifying just how glad I am to see an end to the Bush administration. So much so that I can hardly believe it. Last night I watch Barack's late night political rally in Florida with Big Bubba Clinton and by the end of Barack's speech I was, once again, inspired. I have never, ever been inspired by a politician ever in my life. I really like this guy and assuming he doesn't end up un-masking himself as a loon once he wins I truly, actually have hope for our future. This whole unite vs. divide theme he is closing his campaign on is brilliant. He is tired of the derision, divisiveness, the us vs. them, the fear, the manipulation and he is right on when he says we need to unify and solve our problems. We need to come together (right now, over me) because we are all Americans. No fake Americans, no unpatriotic Americans...We are all Americans.
How refreshing is that?
I know I have been derisive and nasty myself over the years and in the last few posts, though much of that is sarcasm, in truth Barack inspires me. I have never felt so good about a candidate and the dude has personally answered my e-mails over the year something no other senator has ever done for me. Could it be, despite these clearly dark times, there really is cause for hope? Perhaps.
Other stuff
Work has been BUSY lately as we are gearing up for our big fall open house and I have been visiting conferences, college fairs and more day in and day out as fall tends to be one of my busy seasons and I have another post brewing about much of my conference experiences as there are few organized events as surreal and stupid as conferences. That's another day as I am just noting that as yet another taffy-puller in my stretched psyche analogy I mentioned at the top of this post because...
I have an uncle.
I don't talk much about my family as, you know, it's personal but essentially my uncle, as far as my immediate family knew, disappeared a little while after my grandmother passed in 2002. Didn't know where he was, what happened to him and for the most part had written him off and generally never expected to see or hear from him again. Thought he might be living in Arizona, where his mom died, or perhaps took to the road and started his life a new, or something.
Out of the Blue this past Sunday evening my mom got a call from a very distant relative in the area explaining that he is, in fact, in the area and apparently on his death bed in a hospital a mere five minutes away from my apartment. There's some complicated, bad-blood-like, issues where he and my family were concerned that I don't need to go into here but I will say that it was a bit of a shock for all of us and the question of what to do lingered. My family has a history of not being super close with relatives outside the nuclear structure; when my Aunt passed a few years ago there to was some bad blood and while we all went to the funeral only I went and saw her before she passed. So, I decided that I should do the same now. Thus, I got the phone number from the a fore mentioned distant relative and began the process of, as I delicately put it, find out "what the fuck has been going on?!" Tuesday morning I saw my uncle for the first time since somewhere in the late 1990's in ICU in a hospital near my home. Tubes running in and out of him everywhere as he is suffering from a series of post surgical infections. He cried, he was so happy that I came and saw him and I inadvertently committed a really good deed. I am hoping he makes it (I believe he will) and I am hoping that my actions were the first step in repairing a long ago made family rift. The next day I saw him again and brought him a family photo collage I made in PS and it clearly made him feel so good.
I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I feel lifted that I have this chance to fix something that was broken that all parties assumed would never be fixed. I am glad I finally have answers to the question, "What ever happened to my uncle?" But I am worried as I have zero experience with someone in ICU. The only other part of a hospital that is weirder to visit would be the morgue. The moaning, the tubes, the pain from all the surrounding patients. The pain my uncle is in, the infections, the fear, and the unknowns...It's mind bending. This could be one of the greatest things I have ever done in family terms...but what if...? What if he doesn't make it? Is my positive outlook simply naive? My mother and sister, who in the past were very angry with him, have agreed to come and see him...I think this is a new beginning...A chance to finally let that water flow under that bridge and for the first time in ages I can say, with no doubt, "I have an Uncle again." And that's good!
But the worry, the questions, compounded with a very heavy, six-day work week with our major special event at the end and loads of prep work and responsibility to be done to get there. This election is creating in myself, and many others I know, a palpable tension and excitement. The crazy ass dreams I have been having AND there are some other things that I want to mention that I will have to save for the next post as I am out of time (another part of this wunder-week, more stuff than time to stuff it) ...Well, it hasn't been easy. All the same, I am keeping that chin up and am hoping for the best. But...MY BRAIN HURTS!!! *wearing Gumby diaper on head*
Happy Halloween, by the way, all of this other shit has entirely voided the holiday in my head.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
An Endorsement
Before I get going on my "endorsement" I wanted to take a moment to follow up on my previous, ranty, lowered-to-their-level, post regarding the hate crime and racial stupidity...It turns out that big hate crime at my employer? Bogus. The Muslim girl made it up...Or so say the local police. So, the college, the community and myself were all BAMBOOZLED! Obviously, her little ploy touched a nerve with me as I tend to be extra-sensitive when it comes to prejudice and I would give her some credit in choosing an interesting time to make up shit like that. After all, it's not as if someone wasn't harassing her already...Assuming she wasn't the one to put swastikas in her own locker and so on and didn't get static when she was at an anti-Guantanamo rally a few weeks before that. Point being, she had reason, sort of, to do what she did as opposed to simply perpetrating a stunt. Sadly, it was a stunt and now she is arrested and is being charged with a felony that could result in at least a year in jail. Bad call, kid. Bad call.
At any rate, my previous post was written to incite this imagined attacker and with that in mind I offer the following in sarcastic, tongue in cheek, playing to my weaknesses tone...Enjoy:
This stupid blog officially endorses Barack Obama for President of The United States!
I know all of my reader(s?) were waiting to decide who to vote for once they saw who this blog was going to vote for so you need not wait any longer for, I am sure, this huge surprise! In all seriousness, I do believe Barack to be a cool headed leader, smart, charming, and most obviously capable of leading this country hopefully out of the shitter and back into an America that isn't teetering on the abyss. I have always liked Barack and aside from his ridiculous support of the obliteration of the fourth amendment and ethanol I just think he's the bee's knees. Now none of the above offers any real, specific reasons to vote for Obama so allow me to offer more specifics supporting this cause.
* If Barack Obama wins the Presidency all the blacks will take over! That's right, in your office, your school and your community black people will suddenly become "in charge." White folk who make over $250k will not only have to pay income crippling taxes but also drive their personal fleet of vehicles to their nearest economically disadvantaged, minority neighborhood and hand over their SUVs and other luxury automobiles directly to the poor blacks and then they will have to use public transportation to get to their new lower-income jobs. In fact, those new lower-income jobs will be derived from a socialist, spread-the-wealth, government that empowers the blacks and reduces the White's income almost 50% and will then on become referred to as "white slavery."
* With white slavery in place and the higher income whites having commenced reparation with their luxury vehicles a number of other initiatives will occur for the black taking over of America: All fast-food restaurants will become either KFC or Popeyes, all soda choices will now be grape, orange or fruit punch, a number of other well known foodstuffs will be entirely replaced by numerous other "stereotyped" snacks such as flaming hot Cheetos and, of course, watermelon. Ebonics (pronounced, "Eee-BAHNics") will be named the official language of America.
* Free abortions! That's right, if you are not pro-life then you are definitely pro-abortion so, despite anything anyone says while claiming to be "pro-choice," they are clearly into killing babies. So, once Barack becomes President every American woman of age will be forced to have an abortion and if there's enough unwed mothers with the preggers then the government will sponsor a new television network called, "Abortion TV." No one will ever pay for an abortion again...Which leads to...
* Mandatory Government Health care. That's correct, the profit-driven, capitalistic health and medicine industries in America will be replaced over night by underfunded, poorly managed, government run health clinics with barely qualified medical "practitioners" who are actually paid less than the employees of your local Popeyes. 90% of these government funded clinics will actually run on gas powered generators that never operate to full capacity so even the lighting will be dim in these de facto, abortion factories. You will need to accurately predict if and when you will be ill or require medical service so that you can get on line at your local clinic (which will be located in America's worst, poorest, crime-ridden neighborhoods) at least 7 to 10 weeks before you can expect any attention. Surgeries, both minor and major, will also have a wait list that will be a minimum of three years. Unless you're getting an abortion, you will probably never really get any help and die long before you even see the door of the government clinic (which will be called U.S. Welfare Clinics). Basically, your grandmother will die in your arms waiting in the emergency room while that screaming, black baby will get in to get some grape flavored, cough syrup.
* America's young, attractive, white daughters will be forced to have sex with black men in front of their fathers. They will bring them home, listen to the rap music, and release their exploits in online sex tapes that all the neighbors will see. They will be forced to abort the first two but the third, fourth and fifth illegitimate children will be raised in broken homes.
* When Obama becomes President the second day of his Administration will be when he collects all the guns. Not from criminals and maniacs in the "streets" but from all the registered, gun lovers who are in the rolls of the NRA. In fact, he will personally go to the NRA headquarters and run the Access report that has all NRA members and go door to door all across the country and collect all the guns. He will take away all the guns, assault rifles, bullets, orange hunting gear and redistribute them to non-registered, minority, immigrants and poor people who have been recently released from prison because...
* All drugs will be legalized and all black people in the prisons will be pardoned and released as part of the SUV/Wealth redistribution-reparation plan to make America blacker. Crack, Marijuana, and 40's will become available in vending machines at schools and everyone will be forced to get high and eat wings. any remaining white communities will not be permitted to have healthy lawns and all their vehicles will be required to have expensive rims and sub-woofers installed.
* The terrorists will win! When Obama wins he will go to Iraq and hold a Mid-East peace summit at a kitchen table where he will literally waive a white flag and surrender to Al Queada, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea, China and anyone else interested in sitting at the table (with no pre-conditions) thus giving each country or terrorist organization a full, ownership stake in the U.S. The Fed will grant each conquering enemy significant percentages of the Federal reserve and every major American company will grant 90% ownership shares as well. Bill Ayres will also be appointed as Secretary of Homeland Security and he will promptly appoint Osama Bin Laden to head FEMA which helps...
* The Muslims will complete their secret plan to take over America! The entire religion of Islam answers to Bill Ayres and Osama bin Laden and their super-secret, Muslim spy Barack HUSSEIN Obama and with his victory in 2008 will completely take over America! Everyone will be forced to pray to Allah, buy prayer rugs and pray 4 times a day to the east. Mandatory pilgrimages to Mecca will not be reimbursed by the government and all American women (shortly after being forced to have abortions and sex with blacks) will then have to wear head-to-toe burkas and have all of their rights stripped away. Significant geography of America will become desert and the turban will become the national, mandatory head wear and Saudi Arabia will become known as the world's sole super power.
* The economy will collapse and become socialist and Russia will show up and take it over and make us all Islamic communists. No one will ever profit and no one will eat anything but the moldy bread and cheese they get from government welfare centers after waiting for three weeks in the rain. And no one will ever be able to do anything about it because they are all paralyzed with fear and the government, health care system will completely collapse and everyone will suffer and die all the while the government wont care because none of them are ever at work before noon anyhow and all of our children will be mixed breed, Muslims who only want to blow themselves up at public locations and events...
PHEW!
Did I cover everything?
This list was inspired by many different fear-mongering assholes of which I have heard from in recent months. Some in person and much from various online sources. None of the above is really my point of view and this is supposed to be taken as a pure mockery. The sad truth is there are A LOT of people in this country who really believe this shit. Rush Limbaugh listeners, poor, scared white folk...My favorite, as noted above, is how many of these folks seem to be under the impression that "they're" going to "take over" all the god damn time. "They're going to take away all my guns!" All "the blacks" are going to think they are the shit now! The Muslims are going to win! And what is sadder still, is that many, many of these fine folks seem to believe that "the Muslims" are the "bad guys."
Never mind that the real terrorists (Al Queada and so forth) represent Islam in the same way that the KKK represents Christians...That is far too nuanced and complicated for our Randian-ish, everything is either black or white, this or that, winners and losers, there's no such thing as "shades of gray," fueled ultimately by ignorance and hate crowd to grasp. These last few weeks, particularly at the Palin rallies, has very nicely illustrated that population hasn't it? Kind of segmented and isolated them so the TV news crews can come and poke and prod them and show them for what they really are.
Naturally, this is not all Republicans and I do happen to know plenty of sane, actual conservatives who do not deserved to be ranked along side these assclowns I am picking on in my blog. The assclowns, at the very least, provide an endless source of entertainment and assuming that the other fear-mongering notion I keep hearing about doesn't come true (best identified by, "they're going to kill him and then they're going to riot!") we might just be in for a great presidency! I mean, at the end of the day, this is the first time in my life where I actually really like the candidate, and assuming he wins, will hopefully really like my president! Imagine that? I am so used to hating the president with every fiber of my being that I can only imagine what it might be like to have one that I am proud of, intellectually stimulates me, and the rest of the planet is pretty cool with too?!
At any rate, my previous post was written to incite this imagined attacker and with that in mind I offer the following in sarcastic, tongue in cheek, playing to my weaknesses tone...Enjoy:
This stupid blog officially endorses Barack Obama for President of The United States!
I know all of my reader(s?) were waiting to decide who to vote for once they saw who this blog was going to vote for so you need not wait any longer for, I am sure, this huge surprise! In all seriousness, I do believe Barack to be a cool headed leader, smart, charming, and most obviously capable of leading this country hopefully out of the shitter and back into an America that isn't teetering on the abyss. I have always liked Barack and aside from his ridiculous support of the obliteration of the fourth amendment and ethanol I just think he's the bee's knees. Now none of the above offers any real, specific reasons to vote for Obama so allow me to offer more specifics supporting this cause.
* If Barack Obama wins the Presidency all the blacks will take over! That's right, in your office, your school and your community black people will suddenly become "in charge." White folk who make over $250k will not only have to pay income crippling taxes but also drive their personal fleet of vehicles to their nearest economically disadvantaged, minority neighborhood and hand over their SUVs and other luxury automobiles directly to the poor blacks and then they will have to use public transportation to get to their new lower-income jobs. In fact, those new lower-income jobs will be derived from a socialist, spread-the-wealth, government that empowers the blacks and reduces the White's income almost 50% and will then on become referred to as "white slavery."
* With white slavery in place and the higher income whites having commenced reparation with their luxury vehicles a number of other initiatives will occur for the black taking over of America: All fast-food restaurants will become either KFC or Popeyes, all soda choices will now be grape, orange or fruit punch, a number of other well known foodstuffs will be entirely replaced by numerous other "stereotyped" snacks such as flaming hot Cheetos and, of course, watermelon. Ebonics (pronounced, "Eee-BAHNics") will be named the official language of America.
* Free abortions! That's right, if you are not pro-life then you are definitely pro-abortion so, despite anything anyone says while claiming to be "pro-choice," they are clearly into killing babies. So, once Barack becomes President every American woman of age will be forced to have an abortion and if there's enough unwed mothers with the preggers then the government will sponsor a new television network called, "Abortion TV." No one will ever pay for an abortion again...Which leads to...
* Mandatory Government Health care. That's correct, the profit-driven, capitalistic health and medicine industries in America will be replaced over night by underfunded, poorly managed, government run health clinics with barely qualified medical "practitioners" who are actually paid less than the employees of your local Popeyes. 90% of these government funded clinics will actually run on gas powered generators that never operate to full capacity so even the lighting will be dim in these de facto, abortion factories. You will need to accurately predict if and when you will be ill or require medical service so that you can get on line at your local clinic (which will be located in America's worst, poorest, crime-ridden neighborhoods) at least 7 to 10 weeks before you can expect any attention. Surgeries, both minor and major, will also have a wait list that will be a minimum of three years. Unless you're getting an abortion, you will probably never really get any help and die long before you even see the door of the government clinic (which will be called U.S. Welfare Clinics). Basically, your grandmother will die in your arms waiting in the emergency room while that screaming, black baby will get in to get some grape flavored, cough syrup.
* America's young, attractive, white daughters will be forced to have sex with black men in front of their fathers. They will bring them home, listen to the rap music, and release their exploits in online sex tapes that all the neighbors will see. They will be forced to abort the first two but the third, fourth and fifth illegitimate children will be raised in broken homes.
* When Obama becomes President the second day of his Administration will be when he collects all the guns. Not from criminals and maniacs in the "streets" but from all the registered, gun lovers who are in the rolls of the NRA. In fact, he will personally go to the NRA headquarters and run the Access report that has all NRA members and go door to door all across the country and collect all the guns. He will take away all the guns, assault rifles, bullets, orange hunting gear and redistribute them to non-registered, minority, immigrants and poor people who have been recently released from prison because...
* All drugs will be legalized and all black people in the prisons will be pardoned and released as part of the SUV/Wealth redistribution-reparation plan to make America blacker. Crack, Marijuana, and 40's will become available in vending machines at schools and everyone will be forced to get high and eat wings. any remaining white communities will not be permitted to have healthy lawns and all their vehicles will be required to have expensive rims and sub-woofers installed.
* The terrorists will win! When Obama wins he will go to Iraq and hold a Mid-East peace summit at a kitchen table where he will literally waive a white flag and surrender to Al Queada, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea, China and anyone else interested in sitting at the table (with no pre-conditions) thus giving each country or terrorist organization a full, ownership stake in the U.S. The Fed will grant each conquering enemy significant percentages of the Federal reserve and every major American company will grant 90% ownership shares as well. Bill Ayres will also be appointed as Secretary of Homeland Security and he will promptly appoint Osama Bin Laden to head FEMA which helps...
* The Muslims will complete their secret plan to take over America! The entire religion of Islam answers to Bill Ayres and Osama bin Laden and their super-secret, Muslim spy Barack HUSSEIN Obama and with his victory in 2008 will completely take over America! Everyone will be forced to pray to Allah, buy prayer rugs and pray 4 times a day to the east. Mandatory pilgrimages to Mecca will not be reimbursed by the government and all American women (shortly after being forced to have abortions and sex with blacks) will then have to wear head-to-toe burkas and have all of their rights stripped away. Significant geography of America will become desert and the turban will become the national, mandatory head wear and Saudi Arabia will become known as the world's sole super power.
* The economy will collapse and become socialist and Russia will show up and take it over and make us all Islamic communists. No one will ever profit and no one will eat anything but the moldy bread and cheese they get from government welfare centers after waiting for three weeks in the rain. And no one will ever be able to do anything about it because they are all paralyzed with fear and the government, health care system will completely collapse and everyone will suffer and die all the while the government wont care because none of them are ever at work before noon anyhow and all of our children will be mixed breed, Muslims who only want to blow themselves up at public locations and events...
PHEW!
Did I cover everything?
This list was inspired by many different fear-mongering assholes of which I have heard from in recent months. Some in person and much from various online sources. None of the above is really my point of view and this is supposed to be taken as a pure mockery. The sad truth is there are A LOT of people in this country who really believe this shit. Rush Limbaugh listeners, poor, scared white folk...My favorite, as noted above, is how many of these folks seem to be under the impression that "they're" going to "take over" all the god damn time. "They're going to take away all my guns!" All "the blacks" are going to think they are the shit now! The Muslims are going to win! And what is sadder still, is that many, many of these fine folks seem to believe that "the Muslims" are the "bad guys."
Never mind that the real terrorists (Al Queada and so forth) represent Islam in the same way that the KKK represents Christians...That is far too nuanced and complicated for our Randian-ish, everything is either black or white, this or that, winners and losers, there's no such thing as "shades of gray," fueled ultimately by ignorance and hate crowd to grasp. These last few weeks, particularly at the Palin rallies, has very nicely illustrated that population hasn't it? Kind of segmented and isolated them so the TV news crews can come and poke and prod them and show them for what they really are.
Naturally, this is not all Republicans and I do happen to know plenty of sane, actual conservatives who do not deserved to be ranked along side these assclowns I am picking on in my blog. The assclowns, at the very least, provide an endless source of entertainment and assuming that the other fear-mongering notion I keep hearing about doesn't come true (best identified by, "they're going to kill him and then they're going to riot!") we might just be in for a great presidency! I mean, at the end of the day, this is the first time in my life where I actually really like the candidate, and assuming he wins, will hopefully really like my president! Imagine that? I am so used to hating the president with every fiber of my being that I can only imagine what it might be like to have one that I am proud of, intellectually stimulates me, and the rest of the planet is pretty cool with too?!
Friday, October 10, 2008
Hate Crime?!?!
Man.
Fuck!
I mean seriously, FUCK. My employer is not a place of hate. There has nary been a heated argument at the joint. We are small and we are green and we are a peaceful institution. This person who instigated this mental, cowardly bathroom "attack" apparently put his ignorant, uninformed, allegedly anti-Islamic self ahead of every single other person that has anything to do with that college. All it's students and employees, alumni, community members and on and on. Assuming this incident (and the graffiti and so forth that preceded it) was, in fact, perpetrated by someone whose motivations are truly hatred of Muslims then one wonders who taught that guy about Islam? I am not the world's greatest theologian by any stretch of any imagination but I know enough to know that hating any Muslims over anything oriented with our wars, our 9/11's is equivalent to hating all Christians because of the Oklahoma bomber and the KKK. It is misguided, poorly executed and rather than striking some blow to the local Islamic community with fear and aggression this person merely caused the local spotlight to fall on our college and heat it up. This will lead to increased security measures, the perception of an unsafe environment, and piss off the other 3,299 students.
Why? Why is this important for you to do right now? Jerking off to the media coverage are ya? Are you one of those ass-clowns who think Barack Obama is a "secret Muslim" who is going to "take over America with Islam?" Are you another mentally incompetent right-winger who thinks we need to WIN and run the world? Do you listen to Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh and post your paranoid stupidity on Craig's List? Are you afraid? Were you the one who put a swastika in the victim's locker? Seriously? Do you actually know anything about history? Were ya picked on a lot when you were younger? Do you think you are bigger than you are? A lot of guys like you tend to be repressed homosexuals, they'll never admit it but deep down they need the cock, that you?
You, whoever you fucking are, have accomplished nothing other than making the other 3, 299 students, staff and faculty of a perfectly content, little, liberal arts college feel they have to do something. The local TV are running around collecting local quotes about how they suddenly are afraid to walk around the campus at night...Did that make ya hard? Maybe they will lock more buildings, close more doors, have more cops on campus...Hell, let's put up a fence and have a bunch of rednecks ride around it on four-wheelers day and night...You ignorant, self-immersed, sanctimonious, prick!
Why is live and let live so god damn difficult to do?
This incident, in my opinion, is very likely fueled by the current socio-political culture...It is born in the same territory as those at all of Sarah Palin's hate rallies where they spend time emphasising Barack Obama's middle name and talking about his terrorist connections..."And what do we really know about Barack Obama?" This is why McCain is currently losing this election...Do you idiot, simple-minded, racist fucktards understand that the rest of us have moved out of the 20th century already? Did you miss the memo? Couldn't open the e-mail perhaps? still haven't discovered attachments yet?
Alright, I am surely speculating on the above as all the facts are not in yet on my local incident to prove out that it had anything to do with the larger political noise machine that coincidentally is echoing all around the land lately. Maybe it's the collapsing economy? Perhaps this is a tiny beginning of the Mad Max like ending we appear to be heading for? Just questions and jumped-to conclusions people; don't panic.
Going back to my friends at the hate rallies for a moment (and my friend from work, with his gun and his ski mask, you might want to read this too) doesn't all the rage make you tired? The fear? The fear of people different from you? Believe different beliefs, have different skin colors, speak languages that don't sound familiar...They scare you so bad? They make you hate? Do you feel like you are losing? Do you tire of having to re-interpret everything that happens and has happened to fit your narrow view of the world? Doesn't that take more work then living and let living? And why the ski mask? If you are so tough and so filled with hate...Why hide? Oh, I forget, we are all brainwashed and liberal right? We are all "drinking the kool-aid" on Obama so he can secretly make America a Muslim country and then the terrorists and hope for fucking insano-shit like this and constantly screaming shit like this all the way. I have grown oh so weary of your empty-headed, racially motivated, fear mongering right wingers. The sad part is that all this noise is merely the beginning.
And say, not directly related but yet another folly of our current administration de awesome...Remember when they basically repealed the 4th Amendment a few months ago and they kept saying shit like, "We need the NSA wiretapping to listen to the terrorists!" Well, guess what?
Fuck!
I mean seriously, FUCK. My employer is not a place of hate. There has nary been a heated argument at the joint. We are small and we are green and we are a peaceful institution. This person who instigated this mental, cowardly bathroom "attack" apparently put his ignorant, uninformed, allegedly anti-Islamic self ahead of every single other person that has anything to do with that college. All it's students and employees, alumni, community members and on and on. Assuming this incident (and the graffiti and so forth that preceded it) was, in fact, perpetrated by someone whose motivations are truly hatred of Muslims then one wonders who taught that guy about Islam? I am not the world's greatest theologian by any stretch of any imagination but I know enough to know that hating any Muslims over anything oriented with our wars, our 9/11's is equivalent to hating all Christians because of the Oklahoma bomber and the KKK. It is misguided, poorly executed and rather than striking some blow to the local Islamic community with fear and aggression this person merely caused the local spotlight to fall on our college and heat it up. This will lead to increased security measures, the perception of an unsafe environment, and piss off the other 3,299 students.
Why? Why is this important for you to do right now? Jerking off to the media coverage are ya? Are you one of those ass-clowns who think Barack Obama is a "secret Muslim" who is going to "take over America with Islam?" Are you another mentally incompetent right-winger who thinks we need to WIN and run the world? Do you listen to Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh and post your paranoid stupidity on Craig's List? Are you afraid? Were you the one who put a swastika in the victim's locker? Seriously? Do you actually know anything about history? Were ya picked on a lot when you were younger? Do you think you are bigger than you are? A lot of guys like you tend to be repressed homosexuals, they'll never admit it but deep down they need the cock, that you?
You, whoever you fucking are, have accomplished nothing other than making the other 3, 299 students, staff and faculty of a perfectly content, little, liberal arts college feel they have to do something. The local TV are running around collecting local quotes about how they suddenly are afraid to walk around the campus at night...Did that make ya hard? Maybe they will lock more buildings, close more doors, have more cops on campus...Hell, let's put up a fence and have a bunch of rednecks ride around it on four-wheelers day and night...You ignorant, self-immersed, sanctimonious, prick!
Why is live and let live so god damn difficult to do?
This incident, in my opinion, is very likely fueled by the current socio-political culture...It is born in the same territory as those at all of Sarah Palin's hate rallies where they spend time emphasising Barack Obama's middle name and talking about his terrorist connections..."And what do we really know about Barack Obama?" This is why McCain is currently losing this election...Do you idiot, simple-minded, racist fucktards understand that the rest of us have moved out of the 20th century already? Did you miss the memo? Couldn't open the e-mail perhaps? still haven't discovered attachments yet?
Alright, I am surely speculating on the above as all the facts are not in yet on my local incident to prove out that it had anything to do with the larger political noise machine that coincidentally is echoing all around the land lately. Maybe it's the collapsing economy? Perhaps this is a tiny beginning of the Mad Max like ending we appear to be heading for? Just questions and jumped-to conclusions people; don't panic.
Going back to my friends at the hate rallies for a moment (and my friend from work, with his gun and his ski mask, you might want to read this too) doesn't all the rage make you tired? The fear? The fear of people different from you? Believe different beliefs, have different skin colors, speak languages that don't sound familiar...They scare you so bad? They make you hate? Do you feel like you are losing? Do you tire of having to re-interpret everything that happens and has happened to fit your narrow view of the world? Doesn't that take more work then living and let living? And why the ski mask? If you are so tough and so filled with hate...Why hide? Oh, I forget, we are all brainwashed and liberal right? We are all "drinking the kool-aid" on Obama so he can secretly make America a Muslim country and then the terrorists and hope for fucking insano-shit like this and constantly screaming shit like this all the way. I have grown oh so weary of your empty-headed, racially motivated, fear mongering right wingers. The sad part is that all this noise is merely the beginning.
And say, not directly related but yet another folly of our current administration de awesome...Remember when they basically repealed the 4th Amendment a few months ago and they kept saying shit like, "We need the NSA wiretapping to listen to the terrorists!" Well, guess what?
Why should anyone listen to any of you any more? Take your Republicanisms, your "wholesome 'merican Values," your hatred, your fear, your definitional ignorance and roll it all up and shove it your fucking ass AND SHUT THE FUCK UP! You people have lost your credibility and clearly are not very bright so go hide in your bunkers, have some freeze-dried ice cream and shiver yourself to sleep think about Barack Obama's middle name. Maybe you can masturbate to 'Red Dawn' again when the scary enemy was easier to contemplate. Fools. Ignorant, racist fools.When Ross showed Kinne a video excerpt of George Bush insisting to the nation that only those with links to Al Qaeda were eavesdropped on as part of his illegal spying program, the following exchange occurred:
ROSS: Kinne says she listened to hundreds of Americans simply calling their families …
KINNE: Personal, private things with Americans who are not in any way, shape or form associated with anything having anything to do with terrorism. It was just personal conversations that nobody else should have been listening to.
ROSS: President Bush has reassured Americans again and again:
GEORGE BUSH: It’s phone calls of known Al Qaeda suspects making a phone call into the United States.
KINNE: I would say that that is completely a lie — I would call it a lie — because we were definitely listening to Americans who had nothing to do with terrorism…
ROSS: Kinne says she intercepted, recorded, and transcribed conversations with the military, journalists, and Red Cross and aid workers."
Thursday, October 02, 2008
A grab bag...
You know, you hear this and that about people you knew in college now and again. So and so said that so and so is doing this show in Texas, and I heard that Bobbie Joe opened a tavern in Kentucky, etc. I remember a friend mentioning to me several years ago that a mutual acquaintance from college had re-enlisted in the service several times over to fight in the current wars. It was surprising in the first place as that guy signed up after going college for theater and near as I can recall was not in ROTC or seemed militarily oriented in any way. I remember being surprised that he was going to enlist. The last thing I heard from the friend I mentioned above was that Gary, the theater major turned military guy, was going for Ranger training and was hoping to get to the special forces. I had not heard anything about Gary since and it's weird how you can separate two things in your head that are actually connected. What I mean to say is, I am well aware of our wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and I am aware that a college friend is enlisted with special forces dreams. Yet, never had I done the simple math that my very real college friend and this very real war(s) I see on TV and the Internet might just interconnect in real life. So, here I sit on this fine Thursday afternoon trying to work and I can't help but keep thinking that someone I knew, worked with in theater a little, just died in Afghanistan.
I don't know what else to say about that other than my thoughts to Gary and his family and to the rest of ISU alums who knew him and I assume also feeling it.
Outside of this, I have been quite busy with works and so forth. An interesting coincidence that also has slightly morbid implications happened last Friday afternoon here at my lovely office. My employer is currently hosting a guest lecturer to talk about film on campus and they gave the guest lecturer an office to use during his several week stay in our office. That guest lecturer is none other that old-time, MGM producer, assistant director Hank Moonjean!
The gals in my office are quite excited to have access to this little bit of Hollywood so they planned a lovely pizza party lunch where we had a mini Q&A session with Hank. He had some lovely stories about several good friends such as Bette Davis, Elizabeth Taylor, and weirdly enough Paul Newman(Hank Asst. Directed 'Cool Hand Luke" and hosted a screening on campus last week). Only weird because Mr. Newman passed the next day in a vaguely bizarre coincidence. Hank is a funny guy but sadly he and I have wildly different tastes in movies. For instance, he started the lunch stating that he hates non-realistic pictures, super-hero movies are dumb, he walked out of Star Wars, he insisted that he thought Heath Ledger appeared "really stoned" throughout The Dark Knight. He overall thought that all contemporary movies ("with that Wes Farrell and Adam Sandlers") were poorly written and had no stories just special effects. I asked him what about Martin Scorsese and he said he had never seen any of his flicks because he doesn't like Martin. Older flicks, however, clearly have a space in his heart. One of my colleagues is quite an old movie aficionado so she had many questions about the great films of back when. Hank and I finally were able to connect over Alfred Hitchcock movies so all and all an interesting lunch to be sure.
I wanted to do a little political crap as I had watched the first great debate this past Friday. It was a wee bit disappointing as I really would have preferred someone to stand out as a clear winner. It wasn't bad as I though each candidate came off well to their respective parties. But neither came off as particularly superior and naturally each side claimed that their candidate clearly won the debate. McCain came off fairly angry and impatient and started telling Barack shit like my dad does sometimes, "You're just too young, you don't understand" and blah blah blah. It's funny to note that it seems every week McCain adds a new slogan to his phony platform and it's always something similar to what Barack's campaign has said already. For example, McCain's campaign (upon the addition of Palin) magically became the campaign of CHANGE! Which, if you recall, was the entire theme of the DNC just a month ago. At the debate, McCain often told Barack that Barack "just doesn't get it" which is something Barack has been saying about McCain for months already too. I have an inside source that tells me that next week the McCain campaign's slogan will be, "I know you are but what am I?!"
It's a little unsettling to watch this wildly entertaining campaign and realize that seeing just how bad we can get it with the past 8 years that this election (according to most polls I see) is still close. I do believe that we are seeing a statistical manifestation of that hard-to-pin-down, not clearly exampled, nuanced, passive-aggressive racism that we white folk have gotten so god damn good at lately. Is that all this election is and will be about? of course not, but I can say from experience and my own gut feeling that it certainly is playing a role. One that is not easily definable or visible in a specific instance...It is just there. Why else would McCain appoint Palin to the VP spot if not because she gives the folks on the right who would like to feel and appear progressive but maybe don't feel ultimately comfortable voting for a black guy a way out; "I am voting for a woman to be in the White House instead!" Perhaps they thought they would draw in all those disgruntled Hillary voters simply by having a vagina owner on the ticket? Which is hilarious all by itself. In fact, there is so much hilarious-ness when it comes to Palin that I don't even know where to start...Although, I am also (as is the "media") tiring of her, her name, her whiny voice, hearing anything about her. Or perhaps better said, that Palin balloon has now popped so lets get back into some sort of "real" debate. Too bad it takes a nearly collapsing economy to drive them back on task.
All the same, somewhere out there is my beloved, imaginary, typical red-state, American Value, Life-long Republican, voter standing on his front porch, over looking his ranch property. It's sunset and he's wearing his white cowboy hat with his left hand looped into one of his belt loops and his right absently fingering his brand new Smith & Wesson Model 60 (which can only be removed when pried from his cold, dead hands). He spits, smiles and then winks at his 'Merican flag hanging near by and thinks to himself, "Country First." He thinks about how we need to close them damn borders and kill all the drug runners, we gotta win in Iraq and get Iran in line without ever talking to them so we can get all our oil out from under them aaa-rabs. He also wonders when the guv-ern-ment will stop taking all his money and giving it to poor minorities who are lazy, good for nothing, reefer smoking, not working, food stamp users all the damn time on his dime. Small government, deregulation, no taxes and lots of dead brown people is what he wants. Then he thinks about Sarah Palin shooting that assault rifle in that nice T-shirt...Mmmm, yeahboy...Those big titties swinging all around (to the right). Perhaps later he will stroll into the pasture and shoot him a rabbit and then rub one out, thinking about his new favorite Alaskan. Mmmm, maybe he'll lube up with his gun oil...
Ah yes. I shall stop there as I clearly have thought too much about this. Point being, I am really looking forward to the big VP debate tonight. Not the world's biggest Biden fan but I sure hope he aids in her intellectual depantsing. Also worth noting in unrelated news; This week has seen the Cubs begin the playoffs, the Sox make and begin the playoffs and the Bears miracled their ass over the Eagles. All against, at least, my expectations and is helping make Chicago seem a little extra special this fall!
I don't know what else to say about that other than my thoughts to Gary and his family and to the rest of ISU alums who knew him and I assume also feeling it.
Outside of this, I have been quite busy with works and so forth. An interesting coincidence that also has slightly morbid implications happened last Friday afternoon here at my lovely office. My employer is currently hosting a guest lecturer to talk about film on campus and they gave the guest lecturer an office to use during his several week stay in our office. That guest lecturer is none other that old-time, MGM producer, assistant director Hank Moonjean!
The gals in my office are quite excited to have access to this little bit of Hollywood so they planned a lovely pizza party lunch where we had a mini Q&A session with Hank. He had some lovely stories about several good friends such as Bette Davis, Elizabeth Taylor, and weirdly enough Paul Newman(Hank Asst. Directed 'Cool Hand Luke" and hosted a screening on campus last week). Only weird because Mr. Newman passed the next day in a vaguely bizarre coincidence. Hank is a funny guy but sadly he and I have wildly different tastes in movies. For instance, he started the lunch stating that he hates non-realistic pictures, super-hero movies are dumb, he walked out of Star Wars, he insisted that he thought Heath Ledger appeared "really stoned" throughout The Dark Knight. He overall thought that all contemporary movies ("with that Wes Farrell and Adam Sandlers") were poorly written and had no stories just special effects. I asked him what about Martin Scorsese and he said he had never seen any of his flicks because he doesn't like Martin. Older flicks, however, clearly have a space in his heart. One of my colleagues is quite an old movie aficionado so she had many questions about the great films of back when. Hank and I finally were able to connect over Alfred Hitchcock movies so all and all an interesting lunch to be sure.
I wanted to do a little political crap as I had watched the first great debate this past Friday. It was a wee bit disappointing as I really would have preferred someone to stand out as a clear winner. It wasn't bad as I though each candidate came off well to their respective parties. But neither came off as particularly superior and naturally each side claimed that their candidate clearly won the debate. McCain came off fairly angry and impatient and started telling Barack shit like my dad does sometimes, "You're just too young, you don't understand" and blah blah blah. It's funny to note that it seems every week McCain adds a new slogan to his phony platform and it's always something similar to what Barack's campaign has said already. For example, McCain's campaign (upon the addition of Palin) magically became the campaign of CHANGE! Which, if you recall, was the entire theme of the DNC just a month ago. At the debate, McCain often told Barack that Barack "just doesn't get it" which is something Barack has been saying about McCain for months already too. I have an inside source that tells me that next week the McCain campaign's slogan will be, "I know you are but what am I?!"
It's a little unsettling to watch this wildly entertaining campaign and realize that seeing just how bad we can get it with the past 8 years that this election (according to most polls I see) is still close. I do believe that we are seeing a statistical manifestation of that hard-to-pin-down, not clearly exampled, nuanced, passive-aggressive racism that we white folk have gotten so god damn good at lately. Is that all this election is and will be about? of course not, but I can say from experience and my own gut feeling that it certainly is playing a role. One that is not easily definable or visible in a specific instance...It is just there. Why else would McCain appoint Palin to the VP spot if not because she gives the folks on the right who would like to feel and appear progressive but maybe don't feel ultimately comfortable voting for a black guy a way out; "I am voting for a woman to be in the White House instead!" Perhaps they thought they would draw in all those disgruntled Hillary voters simply by having a vagina owner on the ticket? Which is hilarious all by itself. In fact, there is so much hilarious-ness when it comes to Palin that I don't even know where to start...Although, I am also (as is the "media") tiring of her, her name, her whiny voice, hearing anything about her. Or perhaps better said, that Palin balloon has now popped so lets get back into some sort of "real" debate. Too bad it takes a nearly collapsing economy to drive them back on task.
All the same, somewhere out there is my beloved, imaginary, typical red-state, American Value, Life-long Republican, voter standing on his front porch, over looking his ranch property. It's sunset and he's wearing his white cowboy hat with his left hand looped into one of his belt loops and his right absently fingering his brand new Smith & Wesson Model 60 (which can only be removed when pried from his cold, dead hands). He spits, smiles and then winks at his 'Merican flag hanging near by and thinks to himself, "Country First." He thinks about how we need to close them damn borders and kill all the drug runners, we gotta win in Iraq and get Iran in line without ever talking to them so we can get all our oil out from under them aaa-rabs. He also wonders when the guv-ern-ment will stop taking all his money and giving it to poor minorities who are lazy, good for nothing, reefer smoking, not working, food stamp users all the damn time on his dime. Small government, deregulation, no taxes and lots of dead brown people is what he wants. Then he thinks about Sarah Palin shooting that assault rifle in that nice T-shirt...Mmmm, yeahboy...Those big titties swinging all around (to the right). Perhaps later he will stroll into the pasture and shoot him a rabbit and then rub one out, thinking about his new favorite Alaskan. Mmmm, maybe he'll lube up with his gun oil...
Ah yes. I shall stop there as I clearly have thought too much about this. Point being, I am really looking forward to the big VP debate tonight. Not the world's biggest Biden fan but I sure hope he aids in her intellectual depantsing. Also worth noting in unrelated news; This week has seen the Cubs begin the playoffs, the Sox make and begin the playoffs and the Bears miracled their ass over the Eagles. All against, at least, my expectations and is helping make Chicago seem a little extra special this fall!
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