Human Excellence
Topic: Personal
I've had it with the pontificators, the pundits, the ignorant and worst of all those that know better and allow complacency and fear stop them from taking action. I'm tired of being negative. I sick of wasting my energy, my thoughts and my words on those people and things not worthy of my attention. I want to talk, think and do those things that lead to human excellence.

Tonight I've had a glimpse of just that.

I had the privilege and the honor of not only listening to Cindy Sheehan and Jeff Key speak on the "Bring Them Home Now" tour, my pregnant and rather hungry wife and I had the fortuitous opportunity of sitting just 4 feet from both of them while we ate dinner at Angelo's in downtown Raleigh.

Let me tell what I think human excellence is all about. Human excellence is raising a son and instilling in him the beauty of sacrificing for others. Human excellence is not caving in upon yourself when that same son makes the ultimate sacrifice for his country. Human excellence is finding the strength to pull yourself together so that you can not only stand on your own 2 feet again but so that you can muster the courage to stare down and stand up to a great big lying Goliath. Human excellence is forsaking what's in your best interest and your better judgment by lying down in a ditch so that not one more mother experiences the same tragedy. Human excellence is looking within and realizing the power inherent in 1 little soft-spoken Mom from California.

The human excellence that Cindy Sheehan embodies is simply put, unselfish action.

Cindy you are an inspiration and your strength of character and soul are utterly admirable. Me and my wife hope to see you in Washington, D.C. on the 24th of September.

For more information, Bring Them Home Now Tour

Just Remember: "INSANE GOVERNMENT"
Topic: State Of The Union
Hat tip for CrooksAndLiars.com for running this article, IMPEACH BUSH NOW by Paul Craig Roberts.

What CrooksAndLiars.com doesn't mention is this guy's resume as a REAL conservative and it's an extensive resume at that!

If there were to be a comprehensive book on the history of the Bush administration this 1 article could be the table of contents, the full contents and the index as far as I'm concerned. I could not have said it better. So straight and so to the point, I agree "IMPEACH BUSH NOW!!!"

Exodus 14:15
Topic: Retort
Please read this article entitled A God With Whom I Am Not Familiar by Tim Wise before reading The Indy Voice's response.

Mr. Wise,

I too am unfamiliar with the God with which your lunchtime acquaintances spoke of. I don't listen to Rush Limbaugh, don't wear Brooks Brothers, don't drive a Hummer2, don't support the war in Iraq and don't feel sanctimonious enough to reify the suffering of others anywhere, for any reason. I do believe that we should all work in whatever capacity we can to do something to alleviate the suffering of those in New Orleans, IMMEDIATELY.

However, I do think that on 1 point your fellow Mexican-food loving friends, notwithstanding their perverse perception of reality, may have some validity in their statements.

Think about the waiter or waitress, cook or owner of Mexican descent working at La Paz. I want you to ask them 2 questions if you go back. The first question is "how did you come to this country?" The second is "why did you come to this country?"

I think that you'll find that the answers to those questions may cause you to rethink condemning those that would question why someone would not leave an area doomed to destruction by mother nature. You see, I have asked those questions of every person from Mexico that I have had the privilege to work with. The answers are usually varied but they share a common thread. The first answer is where you will find the most variety. Some walk through border crossings with forged I.D., others come by saving up what little money they have, often for years and pay another to bring them across the border, usually in the cramped underbelly of a pick-up truck. One story that I remember particularly well by a guy by the name of Jose was how his friend came here by being placed in the bottom of some type of truck where plywood was nailed over a row of people and another row of people lined up on top of them and they were again covered with plywood, kind of like human sardines, 2 rows deep.

The answer to the 2nd question is always the same, "to make money," but all that really means is that they will do whatever it takes to support their families and friends. These guys travel sometimes over 3000 miles under some of the worst traveling conditions imaginable with only the clothes on their backs and whatever money they've been able to scrounge up. They're usually flat broke when they arrive at their destination, hungry, have no place to live, no job and because they usually don't speak English their prospects for landing a job on Wall Street are about the same as George W. Bush winning the Nobel Peace prize. They usually leave behind a wife and kids and the rest of their families for up to 4 years at a time before they go back. Jose at age 52 and after being in this country for years told me that his sister made up a story about their mother being sick just so that his family could see him again. These guys come from some of the poorest places in the world. They don't have the luxury of a public bus or train and many of them die while walking through the desert on their way here.

Although they do sound like Supermen these guys can't make their way here without the assistance of another human being. In addition to their families, their communities in the U.S. and Mexico support their trip to the U.S. So I ask why wasn't it possible in the most mobile society on Earth for a community of poor but able-bodied Americans to come together to find a solution to take each and every occupant of New Orleans just 30 miles out of harms way?

If we're going to play the blame game for what occurred before and after the hurricane struck in New Orleans, we can say that the President, FEMA, the Governor, the Mayor and yes, those that choose to stay, are all contributors to the suffering and all should share some part of the blame. We can say that this community that is the United States, the state of Louisiana and New Orleans are to blame for their failure to have compassion for the frail, the sick and the young by not using their able-bodies and their capable minds to help those less fortunate. Or we can go a step further and say that our culture of holding up the almighty dollar as our familiar God will always ultimately fail us.

So I respectfully ask that you don't attempt to kick my lily-white ass when I have compassion for the suffering of others but still wonder why they didn't find a way to help themselves?

He Can't Handle The Truth!
Topic: Hopefully Humorous
Ralph Nader, Al Gore and George W. Bush go to a fitness spa for some fun. After a stimulating, healthy lunch, all three decide to visit the men's room and they find a strange-looking gent sitting at the entrance who says,
"Welcome to the gentlemen's room. Be sure to check out our newest feature: a mirror that, if you look into it and say something truthful, you will be rewarded with your wish. But, be warned, if you say something false, you will be sucked into the mirror to live in a void of Nothingness for all eternity!"

The men quickly entered, and upon finding the mirror, Ralph Nader steps up and says, "I think I'm the most truthful of us three," and he suddenly finds the keys to a brand new Bentley in his hands.

Al Gore steps up and says "I think I'm the most ambitious of us three," and in an instant, he was surrounded by a pile of money to fund his next Presidential Campaign.

Excited over the possibility of having a wish come true, George W. Bush looks into the mirror and says,"I think...", and is promptly sucked into the mirror.

(Lynette strikes again!)

In A Nutshell...
Topic: Hopefully Humorous
How Many Members of the Bush Administration Does It Take To Change A Light Bulb?

1. One to deny that a light bulb needs to be changed

2. One to attack the patriotism of anyone who says the light bulb needs to be changed

3. One to blame Clinton for burning out the light bulb

4. One to arrange the invasion of a country rumored
to have a secret stockpile of light bulbs

5. One to give a billion dollar, no-bid contract to Halliburton for the new light bulb

6. One to arrange a photograph of Bush, dressed as a
janitor, standing on a step ladder under the banner:
Light Bulb Change Accomplished

7. One administration insider to resign and write a
book documenting in detail how Bush was literally in
the dark

8. One insider to viciously smear #7

9. One surrogate to campaign on TV and at rallies on
how George Bush has had a strong light-bulb-changing
policy all along

10. And finally, one to confuse Americans about the
difference between screwing a light bulb and screwing the country

Let's see, there's Bush, Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Libby, Armitage, Zoellick, Bolton and Rove. That about rounds it out.

(Thanks Lynette!)

Short Memory
Topic: State Of The Union
I'm just curious what it's gonna take for a Democrat to step up to the plate to tell the nation that the present state of affairs is exactly what you get when you hire a Republican to do anything. When will they explain to the American people in plain English that Republican leadership in modern times has been inept, ineffectual, corrupt, heartless, immoral and hypocritical. What I'm trying to say is that it's been pretty bad.

Just look at some recent events,

Republican response to 9/11 - Smoke and Mirrors
Economy - Doldrums
Taxes - Low (IF YOU'RE RICH!)
War - Losing
WMD - None
Debt - Great
No Child Left Behind - Contradiction in Terms
Family Values - BOMBS AWAY!
Christian Values - Christ who? (SEE ABOVE)
Schiavo - PAWN
Decisive Leadership - Where?
Lies - A plenty
Osama Bin Laden - Saddam Hussein
Katrina - VACATION!!!

I believe that the American people are smart, I just think they have short memories. They should be reminded of the Reagan days filled with paranoid delusional fear, the increased burden on the middle class and poor, the enormous debt and his high crimes and misdemeanors. The American public keep voting for these incompetent crooks because they keep forgetting that the Republican party has over a 40 year demonstrated history of these offenses. Do I need to bring out Nixon?

Why don't we remind the American people of what they'll be missing when they kick these losers to the curb?

A Taste of What's To Come
Topic: State Of The Union
Last night my grandfather had a massive heart attack. We took him to the local emergency room. The only thing that kept him alive was a ventilator. The doctor told us that he could survive but that with the forecast of thunderstorms in the area he might not make it. We asked the doctor what bearing thunderstorms had to do with our grandfather's prognosis. The doctor said that if the hospital was to lose power my grandfather could die because the hospital lacked an alternative energy source.

We immediately called another hospital and asked if they had alternative energy. Their answer was sure, any hospital built within the last 50 years and anyone with just half a brain in their head wouldn't design a hospital any other way. We called other hospitals and their answer was the same.

We couldn't figure out why on earth this particular hospital lacked an alternative energy source, after all, they have the technology and the money to implement one. They've also known about the need to have an alternative energy source for over 50 years.

While this scenario is completely fictional the specter of an entire economy hinging upon 1 source of fuel is an even scarier proposition but that is our reality. Every product or service that our country produces is directly tied to our insane dependence on oil. In much the same way that my fictional grandfather would die in the hospital that lacked an alternative energy source, our economy will die without oil.

Politicians, especially our President, are more than keenly aware of this catastrophe waiting to happen. Do you see why it's more than likely that the war in Iraq is being fought directly related to oil? It has nothing to do with the President trying to bring oil to the masses at a couple of pennies savings. It has everything to do with our economy, our livelihoods and our way of life as we now know it. Does that sound like a more pressing reason to invade a country that NEVER posed a military or terrorist threat to ours?

Those of us that take the time to understand the issues and value the truth have been well aware of this ridiculous dependence for over 50 years. Considering the immediate implications on human life it would seem as almost an ancillary benefit that removing this dependency could also stop poisoning the environment.

How's this for a solution; state, county and town planners take the perspective that just because automobiles are ubiquitous we still need to plan communities that provide easy access through proper planning. Mass transportation to work, play and shopping resources should be considered essential. Every home built from this day forward should be mandated to be capable of supporting its energy usage completely off the grid and should not use fossil fuels. Legislation should be passed mandating that essential government services should have redundant alternative power. A country wide initiative should be started to promote academic, governmental and corporate innovations with the stated goal of creating multiple forms of decentralized energy sources. And every form of transportation should immediately be required to dramaticly increase the number of miles per gallon with the 10 year goal of removing fossil fuel burning vehicles from our roads.

The benefits to these solutions are almost infinite and without these initiatives there is going to come a time when we will look back on the days that hurricanes squeezed supply and we will long for them. This problem is not going to go away and it is only going to get worse. We can wake up as a nation and do something about it before a major disaster occurs or we can wait, allow the status quo to remain the status quo and slowly or rapidly and violently have our worse nightmares become our daily existence.

Representation Anyone?
Topic: State Of The Union
In preparation for writing about the hypocrisy and lies which is the modern day Republican party I thought about things like the truth, salvation and honesty. I decided to direct the eye that I normally use to point out Republican hypocrisy towards the Democratic party. What I came up with I wrote below entitled "The Opposition?"

I am growing more convinced that my problem as a voiceless liberal lies squarely with the Democrats in their obstinate reluctance to fight the Republicans. You see, I've never voted for a Republican in my life and with the Republican political field compromised of homicidal maniacs purchased by corporate America I think it will be quite some time before my vote knowingly selects someone with an R behind their name. They may see a vote when this changes or hell freezes over, whichever comes first, but I think the smart money's on a climate change in the nether region.

Tonight I was watching my favorite real TV news program, Democracy NOW!, when I saw a clip of Cindy Sheehan. Democracy NOW! also showed clips of other mothers who have come to the realization that their sons have died needlessly in a war based upon lies. After reading Cindy's writings on BuzzFlash and listening to these other women, I've come to the conclusion that they're a bunch of courageous ladies, unafraid to speak the truth.

My thoughts turned to our elected Democratic leaders. I thought about those Democrats that I've supported and voted for.

Where the hell are they?

Why are they leaving these moms out there all alone?

Why don't they lend their considerable voices to the mix?

Where is Cindy's representation?

Who in Washington is going to represent the voices of the people who value the truth,
who have looked at the evidence and have concluded that this President has lied to the tune of thousands of people needlessly murdered?

Where is the Democrat willing to admit that they made a mistake when they authorized this President to use force?

What Democrat has the balls to step forward and call this President out on his lies?

Here's an even better question,
if you fail to stand up for those that fearlessly say what millions of us believe,
why do you deserve our vote?

The Opposition?
Topic: State Of The Union
op?po?si?tion

1.
a. The act of opposing or resisting.
b. The condition of being in conflict; antagonism
c. Placement opposite to or in contrast with another.
d. Something that serves as an obstacle.

A political party or an organized group opposed to the group, party, or government in power.


It's time to face the facts, the Democratic party is not a solution for someone that values peace, truth, justice and equality. Look at the record, Democrats oppose the President in the way that he's "handled" the war but they don't have a problem with his policy of war, they even voted for it. The President supports radical ideologues for prominent positions and the Democrats do little to nothing to oppose them. Congress passes legislation that further hurts the poor and the Democrats sit idly by on the sidelines.

In fact with exception of a few, Democrats actually differ very little in action from Republicans. They are just as entrenched in the power structure as the Republicans and completely disconnected from the realities that Americans face every day. That's why Clinton served up nationalized health care to Hillary. He knew it would fail without him throwing his weight behind it and he failed to realize the +45 million reasons why it needed to succeed. He played a game of politics with people's well being and what the Democrats fail to realize is that Clinton was primarily successful because of his charisma and ability to communicate not because he was a moderate.

Hell, I volunteered for John Kerry because it was my belief that had he been President we never would have ruthlessly attacked another nation that posed absolutely no threat to ours but the fact of the matter is that John Kerry voted to give George W. Bush authorization to use force. Regardless of what Kerry thought was the proper course of action he and his Democratic compatriots should have opposed George W. Bush then and now. But they're not. Not one of them is making a stand. Not one of them is going out on a limb. They are so damn concerned with maintaining their grasp on the little power that they have that they won't stand out and stand up and use every resource at their disposal to fight Congress and this administration at every turn.

The situation is analogous to how the poor destroys itself for control of meager resources. You see, the Democrats are losing power and have been for years. Instead of changing course, which means to stop looking at the polls and start doing what's right, they cling more and more to the failed examples of the past. All that they need to do is look at why the other side is winning. The answer is brazen decisiveness. The Republicans have a vast agenda to advance and they dive into it wholeheartedly. For anyone paying any kind of attention can see that they're not even trying to hide the fact they've been completely purchased by corporations and legitimized by self-appointed religious extremists who all have an interest to further, which incidentally happens to run contrary to the needs and desires of the American people.

They represent fascism and zealotry and they're beating YOU! Don't you get it? You need not look at polls to win! You just need to stand with the people. Don't laugh at them, don't condescend to them and certainly DO NOT tell them what you think that they want to hear. Be honest, be strong and stand willing to give up your seat of power if necessary to say and do what should be said and done.

A Journey Worth Taking
Topic: Personal
Let me tell you where I've been lately. I've recently decided that I require some form of credentials or some universally accepted document that adds some additional validity to my writing. So I've decided to take some night classes at North Carolina State University (Go Wolfpack!) leading towards a degree in Political Science. But just like everything else in life and exactly at the moment when you think that you've got everything figured out, irony comes from around the corner and kicks you squarely between the eyes.

You see, I started thinking and I realized that in order for me to earn the aforementioned credentials I would have to read books and write papers. The problem is I already read books and write papers. I read a lot of books and I write more often than I would if I were to attend a class. Now I'm not saying that I'm against education but I think I've just internally confirmed something that I've been saying in posts found throughout this blog which is that nothing matters more than your credibility.

You can become a PhD, write books, publish papers, work in the field etc., but if you don't have credibility no one is going to buy your books or read your papers. No one is going to hire you, except maybe the Republican party (I hear they're looking for a President), if your word is not credible. That's what ultimately matters, not some arbitrary credential given out by an institution, the validity of which may be suspect.

However, I am going to plug away at getting my degree not for the credentials but for the fundamental reason why higher education is so important; to expand my horizons, to consider the thoughts and opinions of others who I may not even have heard of if not for the introduction by some learned professor. I'm going to embark on this journey, not so that I can wind up at a specific destination but rather so that I may be better able to discern a journey worth taking.