it's all one thing

I've tried it a few times, with wildly varying res...

2009-11-08T11:03:47.348-08:00

I've tried it a few times, with wildly varying results.

Both. I think it makes a difference if people hear...

2009-11-06T15:22:37.851-08:00

Both. I think it makes a difference if people hear that a gay soldier was killed in service, or did something heroic, or just did what everyone else does. "Don't ask, don't tell" makes gay folks invisible, and to marry, they have to be prominent in the same way everyone else is. For all that I'm a pacifist, if we have a military, LGBT folks should clearly be in it, too, serving as proudly as anyone can.

Why do you think winning the military battle would...

2009-11-06T13:43:13.553-08:00

Why do you think winning the military battle would shift the public perception? Is it because on a personal level if those in the military (who I assume are more conservative) serve side by side with LGBT, they will bring that informed opinion home with them and have a trickle down effect? Or is it more general, that because we as a culture value military service that highly, it would skew public opinion?

I know that ME had a 50% and above turnout of their registered voters which is really good for an off year, though you're right it's still 1/2 the amount that came out in the 2008 GE. Not sure on the racial/class turnout...I'll keep my eye out for some stats.

filmnikita, you're right, but it's complicated. I ...

2009-11-06T12:51:21.572-08:00

filmnikita, you're right, but it's complicated. I think if folks win the gays in the military battle first, the public perception of LGBTers will automatically go up. Second, I wish I knew what the people's preference really was. What elections tell us is the preference of people who vote, a group that's disproportionately older and richer, which means they're doubly conservative. It's especially bad when the elections aren't for president, when working class people are more likely to stay home or at work.

I was under the impression that the state legislat...

2009-11-06T09:40:45.609-08:00

I was under the impression that the state legislators are trying to make executive decisions, but it's been the people's veto power that's thwarting their efforts:

ME House rejected proposal to let voters decide the issue:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=7509001

ME 2nd state to legalize through legislation and not judicial means, but people have veto referendum power:
http://epgn.com/pages/full_story?article-Maine%20OKs%20marriage%20=&page_label=home&id=2515341-Maine+OKs+marriage&widget=push&instance=top_story&open=&

WA's Referendum 71 was also a protest to WA's changing legislation:
http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Washington_Referendum_71_(2009)

And of course Prop 8 was an opposition to changed legislation.

Sadly, it's been the people's veto power (and the diligent work of anti gay marriage groups, though scarily significantly less in ME) keeping change from happening.

At least this day is improved by WA's voters approving partnership rights!

RAB, I think it could've worked if some high-profi...

2009-11-06T06:58:58.440-08:00

RAB, I think it could've worked if some high-profile politicians had been willing to stand up. But that's not realpolitiks.

Bill, I hadn't known about Meeks, but you're very right. The LGBT folks should've gotten behind Edwards:

http://johnedwards.com/issues/lgbt/

Go back to the Chicago Sun Times interview with Ob...

2009-11-06T03:08:00.568-08:00

Go back to the Chicago Sun Times interview with Obama and you'll read he claimed three spiritual mentors including Louis Farrahkan and Illinois State Sen. Rev. James Meeks....both violently homophobic men. That should tell you something.

Yeah…though I wouldn't recommend anyone hold their...

2009-11-06T00:57:54.924-08:00

Yeah…though I wouldn't recommend anyone hold their breath waiting for this President to do it, I'd really like to see more people asking him why he hasn't.

I get why gay rights activists felt the need to pursue this via ballot initiatives, but it was never likely to turn out well. Has there ever been a time when any group in this country received their due civil rights because of a popular vote? It happens by executive order, in legislation, or in the courts; not in a voting booth. But what else would one expect? The whole *point* of civil rights is to protect the minority from the majority.

"Their souls make his tummy happy." That is one o...

2009-11-05T09:05:54.896-08:00

"Their souls make his tummy happy."

That is one of the most twisted lines ever but it totally cracked me up!

It's not only racism when you favor your race. It'...

2009-11-04T10:28:35.325-08:00

It's not only racism when you favor your race. It's racism when you have a prejudice against any race. 75 to 80% of whites and Asians have an implicit prejudice against blacks. Racism is prejudice against or for any race, regardless of what Critical Race Theorists maintain.

I have an implicit prejudice against whites, and I'm perfectly comfortable calling that racism. But I would like to point out in my defense that some of my best friends are white.

I don't understand your statistics. If it's racis...

2009-11-04T10:13:57.378-08:00

I don't understand your statistics. If it's racist to prefer any race to any other, then that statistic is only a minimum (maybe another 15% have a different racial preference). If if it's racist only when you prefer your own race, that says nothing about racism in Asians. (In any case it says nothing about racism among those who do not self-identify as White or Asian.)

Thanks, Pamela! I dunno whether to assure you that...

2009-11-03T20:10:18.582-08:00

Thanks, Pamela! I dunno whether to assure you that the book would not properly be categorized as horror or not--you gotta bail where you gotta bail. I am looking at that first chapter again.

I have read further, and there is still a "confida...

2009-11-02T17:38:06.704-08:00

I have read further, and there is still a "confidant" that should be "confident." Chapter 3, I believe.

I am afraid that I had to bail out during the birthday celebration, as I am not doing well with things that close to horror at the moment. I was reading right along with enjoyment, though.

One more comment, though it may not be useful. The opening conversation between Tarika and Cat seems a little more stilted and mannered than their later ones. I honestly don't know whether I just got used to this particular version of teen-speak, or whether you got the hang of it and it became more natural-sounding.

P.

Lovely image. The mind is a prison without a door...

2009-10-31T16:49:45.789-07:00

Lovely image.

The mind is a prison without a door,
yet I've a key, so what's it for?
I am pulled as the tides by the restless moon,
and the silvery sound of the cry of the loon,
to dance with the dead (and they'll be here soon)
on the Night Before November.

Happy haunting...

Dan, total agreement that greed and hierarchy are ...

2009-10-30T17:54:30.070-07:00

Dan, total agreement that greed and hierarchy are a problem under all systems. I'm making the mental note about your recommendation now.

Will, You might start here: http://is.gd/4IEfc (...

2009-10-30T17:15:40.984-07:00

Will,

You might start here: http://is.gd/4IEfc

(Please forgive the "shortened" URL. I can't paste in the comment box, and no way was I typing that huge Amazon link).

Additionally, I'm not sure that I follow the implication that the economic ills you describe are peculiar to capitalism. Economic inequality seems to pervade most societies, does it not?

Psst, Brent...Hate to play the Etymology Cop here,...

2009-10-28T08:50:06.947-07:00

Psst, Brent...Hate to play the Etymology Cop here, but "envy" would be someone saying "Jay Leno has a 100 cars, so I want a hundred cars.", not "Why should Jay Leno have a hundred cars, when millions more have none?" After all, you can only drive one at a time.

But yeah, look at the New Testament again. If you can find Jesus forgiving sins for money, or saying "Blessed are the wealthy.", then you deserve 100 cars.

Now, I REALLY have to get back to dragging Harry. ;-)

I don’t know, Will. A lot of creating something i...

2009-10-28T06:51:58.826-07:00

I don’t know, Will. A lot of creating something is “Hit the ball and drag Harry”, at least it is for me. The internet can be a time suck, true, when I need to drag Harry, but it helps me hit the ball.

Since it’s Halloween, I was thinking of what scared me most. I remembered Elvis singing “Burning Love”, and being terrified he was going to burst into flames. (Yeah, I was a literal minded little kid, OK?)

So I looked up “Spontaneous Human Combustion: Causes” on wiki; hmmm....we have methane gas in our systems, which might cause it. Need a spark though...like electricity?..thought runs on electric impulses...maybe strong emotion sets it off. Why one and not everyone?

Look up “Elvis”. Hmmm...Elvis had a twin, who died. Didn’t know that. What if his twin combusted and Elvis saw it? No, twin was stillborn. What if older? Can’t be love, or he’d combust too early. Maybe hate? Envy? Or rage? It’d have to be strong, and later in life, like teens or something.

Maybe envy would do it. What if the twin stayed a truck driver while Elvis went on to fame and fortune? No, Col. Parker would’ve loved to sign up Elvis’s identical twin.

What if the twin was uglier, and/or less talented? But he’d have a lifetime to get used to being in Elvis’s shadow, and Elvis would been generous enough to share house, cars, etc. with his twin.

Suppose it was something they couldn’t share, like a woman’s love?

No, most women would choose Elvis.

But what if the obscure twin was uglier, but kinder? And what if it was the woman who was the great singer, and the Elvis twins were both truck drivers? Maybe the singer had a terrific voice but an overlooked face, like Susan Boyle? So the scruffy/kind twin fell in love with her, but the handsome/cruel one didn't--he just wanted her fame, etc. That would lead to some powerful emotions...

Anyway, enough rambling for now; I just wanted to show how the internet can help hit the ball. Now, I'm off to drag Harry. ;-)

Stephanie, well said. I wish there wasn't so much ...

2009-10-27T16:03:39.030-07:00

Stephanie, well said. I wish there wasn't so much stigma attached to Marx's terms, because they're very useful. The problem isn't the petit bourgeoisie, it's the bourgeoisie itself. And these days, a millionaire is only petit bourgeoisie.

The reason there are more millionaires now is infl...

2009-10-27T14:57:20.199-07:00

The reason there are more millionaires now is inflation. Someone who had $80,000 in assets before the Great Depression would be a millionaire before this latest downturn. (Not so much afterward.) If they retired right now at age 65 with that much wealth, they'd probably be able to continue living a comfortable middle-class lifestyle for the rest of their lives...assuming they didn't become centenarians or have very expensive health problems.

"Millionaire" isn't a magic word that makes someone rich. It just involves a bunch of zeroes. It's also a very convenient word for the rich to use to make people feel part of their club.

If you want to look at the effects of hereditary wealth, you've got to look much higher.

Joel, I think the list of sins needs at least one ...

2009-10-26T23:03:24.549-07:00

Joel, I think the list of sins needs at least one more: complacency. Yes, many Americans are doing just fine. Millions aren't.

I wish Christians paid more attention to John the Baptist's commie advice: If you have two, give one to someone who has none.

How much of those millions of millions is real mon...

2009-10-26T22:25:52.161-07:00

How much of those millions of millions is real money as opposed to ponzi scheme money?

"As for the number of millionaires today, yes, the...

2009-10-26T18:54:24.703-07:00

"As for the number of millionaires today, yes, the rich are getter richer. The problem is the gap between them and us."

I don't agree to the first half of that- over a million millionaires in the US, mostly first generation? That's not the rich getting richer, that's the upper middle class or lower getting rich. Almost all of them earned their money, not inherited it.

As to the second half, that's always been something I've always been uncomfortable with- either way. If I have a car, how am I harmed by Jay Leno owning hundreds of cars? If I have plenty to eat, wear, and have a roof over my head, does it matter if Gates earns 100,000 times as much a year? Isn't envy the lust that cannot be sated?

Joel, you seem to be forgetting about the US's rob...

2009-10-26T18:08:12.216-07:00

Joel, you seem to be forgetting about the US's robber barons, and Europe's mercantile princes, and well, a whole lot of rich capitalists.

As for the number of millionaires today, yes, the rich are getter richer. The problem is the gap between them and us.

ogre, very true that it's both--the reason for the growing gap has a lot to do with the growing income, especially for corporate princes in the US, but also in Russia, China, etc.

"Fair" can't be regulated. Some people think giving everyone exactly the same amount is what socialists want, but that's not what "from each according to ability, to each according to need" means. I don't expect there to be a happy time when no one quibbles over the distribution of resources. I just expect a lot more compromising than we currently get.

I'm not sure if I qualify... but I want to ask a q...

2009-10-26T17:45:36.186-07:00

I'm not sure if I qualify... but I want to ask a question: how equal does distribution need to be before it's fair?

I think that this asks the larger (murkier) question about what lies between (pseudo)free-market-gone-wild capitalism and utopian fantasy communism. Stuff that might be practically applicable and workable....

Income range.

The need to re-distribute wealth--on a permanent, ongoing basis (thus a good stiff inheritance tax, getting stiffer as one goes up the economic pyramid) absolutely makes sense. But it's not just wealth, but income too, that makes for the system we have being abominable.