Tag Archives: pride and prejudice

Finally, a Hate Crime Bill Goes to the White House

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http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitol-briefing/2009/10/senate_approves_hate_crimes_me.html?referrer=email

It is great that there is a federal hate crimes bill that will protect gays and lesbians.  Unfortunately, it had to appended to a bill authorizing pay increases for our troops in order to pass.  And, there is some pork barrel spending that Obama opposes in the bill and he will get tagged with perpetuating wasteful spending.

It is sad that there couldn’t be three separate bills:  “clean” appropriations bill for our troops, a clean hate crimes bill, and a clean bill on the controversial spending item.  They have nothing in common.

It is uncomfortable sometimes to look too closely into how we are governed.  But look, we must.

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Out of the mouths of babes come truths

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At a town hall meeting, a fourth grader asked President Obama why everyone hated him.

I think we should stop wondering about the kid who was NOT aloft in a hot air balloon and we should think about what this fourth grader asked the President. It is easier to wonder about hot air balloon boy, his family’s interest in science experiments and their appearance as contestants on “Wife Swap”.  Putting this family under a microscope helps us avoid bigger and, dare I say, more important, issues.

Focusing on the fourth grader’s question requires us to look at how we behave.

We have to examine the tenor of our disagreements, the personal nature of the attacks, our fears for the future of our way of life and our desperate anxiety about not being all powerful on the international stage.

From the simplicity of his question, the following things came to mind:

1. We need to disengage from the-ends-justify-the-means view.  There is another word for “means” and that word is “barbarism” — i.e., torture, character assassination, lies, bribes, etc.

2. Passion for one’s cause not require person attacks, lies and defamation.  Passion is evident in the force of one’s argument and tireless efforts promoting the cause.

3. There is room for the loyal opposition.  When did we forget the phrase, “my country, right or wrong”?

The goal should be fair and open, vigorous and informative debate, “deciders” act for the common welfare and everyone abides by the result.  If losing means you make up lies and propaganda and continually do things disrespectful of the government, then you don’t deserve to be a citizen.    I was pretty unhappy when GW Bush was declared winner in 2000 and elected in 2004 and every time he did something with which I disagreed, I always hoped that his decisions were right.  Because if he were, the country would suffer.

4.  We must be willing to see the flaws in our own arguments.

I’ll start.  I believe that the public option insurance is necessary, but no one can predict the price tag and it really could be too costly right now.  Maybe in five years, we could afford it.

Also, Afghanistan is a quagmire with a corrupt government.  Nation-building is always a disaster.  I don’t believe that President Obama should send more troops.  In fact, we should remove our troops and seek a relationship with a fairly elected government.  But we should continue to bomb out Al-Qaeda.  (I’m feeling pretty extreme this afternoon.)

Now, let’s look at the GOP who use the slogan, “America First”.  WAIT, do you think Democrats don’t put America first?  Are you delusional?

Let’s look at the facts of the GOP’s putting America first:

  1. Under GOP leadership, manufacturing jobs went overseas in astounding numbers, and promoted the burgeoning economies of India and China.
  2. Refusal to meet with Iran (and GWB’s botching of several opportunities for some sort of freeze) only increased its determination to build nuclear weapons.
  3. The war in Iraq made us indebted to the Chinese government in an insane amount.
  4. Our armies cannot continue another war without a DRAFT.
  5. Our need for fossil fuels has made Russia a necessary player.
  6. De-regulation almost brought this mighty nation to its knees and then the small government politicians had to bailout the banks (SOCIALISM, anyone?)

Now, explain to me again why the GOP blames President Obama for having to forge new diplomatic relationships and alliances?

(Now tell me the truth.  Was I ranting?)

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Truth is the best fiction

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The majority of voters against the Iraq War live in Blue States.

Virtually all terrorist targets are in Blue States.

Most uninsured people live in Red States.

Most people who will be taxed under any Obama plan live in Blue States.

Most tea party goers won’t give up social security, medicare and — if they needed it — food stamps and welfare.  Apparently, these government entitlements aren’t “government entitlements“ government entitlements.  [Imagine the annoying hand motions depicting quotations marks.] OK, you’re not “stupid” stupid. 

Most tea party goers want to repeal the “death tax” even though statisticallyno one in their group other than the heirs of Glenn Beck and other Fox celebrities who will benefit from that tax repeal.  The idea of Glenn Beck progeny has turned this Blue Stater an awful shade of green.

If any RED STATE wishes to secede from the Union, we will throw in free Fox cable channels free for a year as a parting gift.  No, don’t thank us.  Thank YOU.

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Politics is making my head explode, so I am watching cartoons

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It doesn’t get more stupid than this:

Glenn Beck’s attempt to co-opt Yom Kippur as a national day of fasting for the health of the Republic, a large, government-paid, medical providers’ sending scary letters to disabled and senior citizens, GOP’s sending out questionnaires implying that race will have an effect on who gets health insurance, the president’s heavy handed approach with the NYS gubernatorial race (I agree with the sentiment but not how it was handled), the ACORN debacle, FOX News’ orchestration of 9/12 march on Washington, leaking the CONFIDENTIAL Afghanistan report, the ideologues on both sides of the aisle in Congress not seeing that some reform is better than no reform . . . I could go on and on and on.

But, I won’t go on and on and on and on (today). 

I will go home tonight and watch cartoons on the PBS kids.  Because in the land of PBS kids, people learn to work and play and get along with each other.

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Say it ain’t so, Joe

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Joe Wilson, GOP Congressman from South Carolina, broke protocol by yelling at the President, “you lie!” when the President was giving his address to Congress last night.  Of course, this is the same guy who supports Sarah Palin’s assertions about death panels that will decide care for elderly.  

Look, I wish some people called out Bush on the false claims of Iraq’s buying WMDs and plutoniun from Niger in his speech to Congress, so maybe protocol breaches are ok every now and then.

The problem with Wilson’s outburst is what it lays bare for all to see: 

  1. the discussion of health care reform has become an exercise in name-calling and fear mongering;
  2. there can be no debate while people are screaming to score points with constituents; and
  3. the ideologues (on either side of the issue) will not bend to acknowledge the facts and realities “on the ground”. 

Ideology without common sense (and some sinister malfeasance, thank you, Dick Cheney) got us in the guagmire known as the Iraq War, where debate was stifled by fear-mongering and name-calling (“unpatriotic” was often used) and people afraid to be unpopular with constituencies that just wanted revenge (as in “round up the usual suspects”).

Trying to bring the likes of Joe Wilson into the bipartisan tent is a fool’s errand.  Similarly, if bringing in armchair “Progressives” into the bipartisan tent means clinging onto a public option come hell or high water, then close the tent flaps to them, too. 

Actually, let’s have both sides of the extreme ideologies in an arena and let them scream at each other.  We’ll sell tickets, televise it (and get advertising revenue) and the proceeds will help pay for health care reform.  We’ll call the show “Extreme Dysfunction”.

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Post-script to “No, really, she said ‘Great White Hope’?”

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Last week, I wrote: No, really, she said “Great White Hope”? http://40andoverblog.com/?p=1148

So, it turns out that Rep. Jenkins did know EXACTLY what she was saying when she used the phrase, the “Great White Hope.”  Racism isn’t even veiled anymore.

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Dick Cheney, AGAIN?

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Dick Cheney never went to war.  Dick Cheney was never interrogated.  Dick Cheney has been a bureaucrat and desk jockey his whole life.  Dick Cheney is not a member — trained or otherwise — of the military.  In short, Dick Cheney doesn’t know anything about war, prisoners of war or interrogations, except what he has read from the Gestapo and Maoist rule books.  I bet he really likes war games.

I don’t know anything about war either.  But I know that only a sadistic fool rushes into war where young people die and lives of so many are forever destroyed.  And I believe that only a sadistic fool goes straight to torture — yes, torture, and NO, there are not “enhanced interrogation techniques” — when there is at least a preponderance of credible information and analyses that show that a person subjected to these techniques will say anything to make the torture stop.  So, the information is no more value than a coin flip.

Cheney’s unprincipled approach to all of this is appalling, but not surprising.  Under the Bush Administration, his venal attacks on the government’s readiness to safeguard our nation would make him “unpatriotic,” “unAmerican,” and might subject him or his loved ones to attack in planted articles and leaks.  (Valerie Plame comes to mind.) 

He showed his true colors when he said that Bush would not bend to Cheney’s will in the second administration and that Bush showed an independent streak.  Dick, no one elected you president.  Ever.

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No, really, she said “Great White Hope”?

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Nooooooo.  She didn’t really.  Yesssss?  Nooooooo.

A representative from Kansas, Lynn Jenkins (R) used the phrase “Great White Hope” when referring to existing and future leadership talent within the Republican party.  And Obama got skewered for saying the Cambridge police acted stupidly?

She says she wasn’t thinking about a white contender against Obama in 2012 [I accept that she wasn’t thinking; but I wondered when she exercises her gray matter].  Also, various Republicans said no offense was meant.  How nice for them to say.  Charming, really.

Rep. Jenkins, one of 535 who review and pass laws affecting our land, did not know the back story on the unfortunate turn of phrase.  Except you don’t have to know any back story to know that it can’t be a good phrase.  [That is, if one uses one’s gray matter.]

Let’s sound it out together:  Great [not bad so far] White [anyone have a plausible reason for this word other than racial reference?] Hope [as in champion].  Let’s parse it: White Hope.  Hmmmm. A champion for whites as opposed to .  .  . other races?

To review, history books are not necessary to the implications of the statement.  But I bet no one intended any offense.  Rep. Jenkins and others like her [Herr Glenn “Gestapo” Beck, par exemple] truly are afraid of losing their status as the majority and governing race in America.  And they are voicing it.  And then, they fear they may face discrimination [retribution?] for their elitism and excusivity and want all of the programs against which they fought so hard when they had the power.

They see an end to THEIR society of whites-only country clubs, privilege and access to power (and not all whites are allowed, so if you have bad dental work, live in a trailer park and wear a sheet on occasion, you don’t belong either). 

I am counting on the citizens of this great country (including “whites” like me) looking forward to having leaders and people in positions of power reflect the rich multi-cultural society that is the United States of America.   Maybe because I come from the huddled masses who achieved the American Dream.  Or maybe because skin color is an irrelevant marker for anything of value. 

So these people are really hoping for a great WHITE hope.  And, in case you are wondering, yes they’ve inbred so much that someone who can stay idiotic things can still become a Congresswoman.

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From the Associated Press —

OTTAWA, Kan. – A Kansas congresswoman says a recent comment about fellow Republicans seeking a “great white hope” was not a reference to someone who could challenge President Barack Obama‘s political agenda.

Rep. Lynn Jenkins said Thursday that she was making a comment about GOP leaders in the U.S. House. She says she was trying to reassure Republicans that there are bright leaders there.

But Jenkins says she apologizes if anyone was offended by her remarks at the Aug. 19. forum.

She says she was unaware of any negative connotation to the phrase.

The phrase stems from the early 1900s when there was a campaign to find a white boxer who could defeat heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson, who was black.

A spokesman says White House officials will give Jenkins the benefit of the doubt.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A freshman Republican congresswoman apologized Thursday for telling a gathering in her district that the GOPwas still searching for a “great white hope” to stop President Barack Obama’s political agenda.

Rep. Lynn Jenkins used the phrase during an Aug. 19 forum as she discussed the Republican Party‘s future and tried to reassure members that the GOP has promising young leaders. Someone in the crowd recorded video of the event in Hiawatha, about 65 miles northeast of Topeka, and gave it to the Kansas Democratic Party.

“She apologizes if her words have offended anyone,” Jenkins spokeswoman Mary Geiger told The Associated Press. “That was not the intent in any way, shape or form.”

At an event at University of Kansas in Lawrence, Jenkins denied she was speaking in racial terms and said she meant only that the GOP needs “a bright light.”

“I was unaware of any negative connotation, and if I offended anybody, obviously, I apologize,” Jenkins told the Lawrence Journal-World.

At the Hiawatha event, Jenkins was discussing the GOP’s future, with Democrats in control of Congress and Obama elected the nation’s first black president, in response to an audience question. Jenkins is white, as are three House colleagues she mentioned as future party leaders: Eric Cantor of Virginia; Kevin McCarthyof California and Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.

“Republicans are struggling right now to find the great white hope,” Jenkins said last week. “I suggest to any of you who are concerned about that, who are Republican, there are some great young Republican minds in Washington.”

The Democratic National Committee in Washington declined to comment Thursday.

“I saw that report,” White House spokesmanBill Burton said at a briefing on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, where Obama is vacationing. “I also saw that her spokesperson backpeddaled and said that was a poor choice of words. We obviously give congressman Jenkins the benefit of the doubt.”

The National Republican Campaign Committee in Washington didn’t immediately respond to a request for a comment.

Jenkins was not available for comment Thursday morning, but she was to hold an afternoon town hall meeting in Ottawa, about 55 miles southwest of the Kansas City metropolitan area.

The phrase “great white hope” often is associated with pre-civil rights-era racism and is widely believed to have entered usage in the U.S. when boxer Jack Johnson, who was black, captured the heavyweight title in the early 20th century. Many whites reacted to Johnson’s achievement by trying to find white fighters — or a “great white hope” — who could beat him. The boxer’s story inspired a play, then a movie, with that title, both starring James Earl Jones.

Geiger said she doubts Jenkins was aware of the phrase’s connection to the play about Johnson. Geiger said she’s never heard Jenkins use it before.

She said Jenkins simply was discussing how the GOP has faced challenges in recent years but has talented young leaders, adding, “That’s what she was saying, that was it, nothing more, nothing less.”

Tyler Longpine, a spokesman for the Kansas Democratic Party, called Jenkins’ comment “a poor choice of words” but said he doesn’t think it was anything more than that.

He said a Democratic Party supporter shot the video at Jenkins’ forum in Hiawatha and shared it with the state party.

“The thing that kind of strikes me was the partisan tone of it all,” Longpine said. “If she’d stick to talking about policy rather than politics, she could have kept her foot out of her mouth.”

Jenkins, 46, won the 2nd Congressional District seat for eastern Kansas last year by ousting Democratic incumbent Nancy Boyda. She previously served two terms as state treasurer and four years in the Kansas Legislature.

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Laughing is the best antidote

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After a fitful night’s sleep, my son wanted to pretend we were trains this morning before he scampered off to camp.  After going to Penn Station to watch all of the trains recently (like one big electric train set), he wanted me to call out the Ronkonkoma, Long Island train station, in that sing-song way that the conductors do, while stressing the Ks:   “RON KONKKK KOMA!! RON KONKKK KOMA!!”  I am half asleep and yelling “RON KONKKK KOMA!” RON KONKKK KOMA!”  It makes my head pound but my son’s delight makes it worthwhile.

No turning over and napping after this day’s version of morning cuddle.  Coffee and aspirin.  Antacids (for the burning caused by the coffee and aspirin).  Repeat until fully conscious.

Once fully conscious, I turn on the TV to have, as Jon Stewart has said, my morning cup of sadness.  Today, RAGE accompanies sadness.  I blog my rant against Glenn Beck.  I feel better.

I shower and dress.  I even pack gym clothes.  Wow, amazing what a morning’s expiation will do.

I eat lunch with an old friend with whom I have recently reconnected.  We laugh all through lunch about everything and nothing and I feel like a weight is lifted.  Laughter is the best antidote to life’s sadnesses and ills.

Drink a cup of laughter next time you have the opportunity.

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