Gay is the New Black

I was happy with the election results for about twelve hours. Sure, Missouri finally went for McCain and was wrong about the new president for the second time in voting history, but that isn't the reason I'm bummed out over the state of affairs in the United States. Yes, the world reaction to Barack Obama's election was positive. It was fabulous to know that the world respects our country just a little more these days. And I was proud of this country until I got up this morning and started figuring out what happened in the elections beyond the president. And now I'm upset with Americans.

In particular, I was looking at the ballot initiatives in four states: California, Florida, Arizona, and Arkansas. Now, I know there isn't much to do about the 27 other states who had already voted on some sort of same-sex marriage ban or defining marriage between a man and woman, but when Proposition 8 came up in California this election, I was sure - certain - that it would be voted down.

That didn't happen. Proposition 8, which will eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry in California, has the support of 52 percent of voters. If it is to pass, it would override a state Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage not all that long ago. I mean, something like 20 thousand couples just got married! So what - now they're just going to take it away? Again?

They're still counting votes so let's hope that I'm wrong about this. Let's hope that Californian voters can restore my faith in all of America.

Similar things passed in Arizona and Florida, where voters decided that marriage is only a union between one man and one woman.

Not only that, but 57 percent of voters in Arkansas supported a measure to prohibit unmarried partners from adopting children or from serving as foster parents. The measure specifies that the prohibition applies to opposite-sex as well as same-sex couples. WHAT? Because there are SO MANY foster kids finding good homes that there just aren't enough to go around to second class couples who aren't married? WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE? Why would marriage make you a better parent?

Whatever happened to those old American ideals about equality for everyone and life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?

Many news outlets are reporting that we've broken racial barriers, I mean, we have a new African-American president for goodness sakes, so we must have overcome our racial bigotry. Right? What else is it going to take for people to realize that homosexuals deserve equality, too?

By the way, California also passed a ballot initiative for egg laying chickens so that they don't have to be in cramped cages. So, apparently the hierarchy of things goes something like this:

Men of any color
Women of any color
Egg Laying Chickens
Homosexuals
(oh my goodness, don't even mention bisexuals or transgenders!)

That looks a whole lot like equality to me.

Le sigh. You win some, you lose some.

Let's hope this new administration takes notice to the injustices still evident. It'd be nice to pass a federal amendment stating that you can't vote discrimination into a BILL of RIGHTS. Hopefully the Supreme Court will get involved and fix this... someday. Maybe when I'm 100 I'll be crying tears of joy over an election just like Jesse Jackson. There's still hope.


Eng Blog.

Election Day

Today is your last (or maybe only) chance to vote. Make sure you do it because if you complain about the President or any other leadership, and you didn't vote in the election that hired them, you will be killed in your sleep.

Seriously.

Vote.

If you want to bitch about it, you gotta get to the polls. Belinda agrees.

Or you can listen to a bunch of famous people saying the same thing. (Including my Halloween costume.)




End Blog.

Vice Presidential Nominee Biden

When I heard the nominee for the democratic vice president, I asked, "Does anyone know anything about him?" No one did. So, I asked Wikipedia. It knew a whole bunch.

After reading about him, I decided that he's a good guy because he pays my salary. No, not because I'm a public servant. You see, most of my salary is paid for with grant money received from the Violence Against Women Act. Senator Joe Biden wrote the law that made the money that pays my salary possible.

I read about his political positions on wiki as well and turned out to be alright with Obama's choice. However, here are the things that I read that bothered me:

He plagiarized a speech in his first attempt at becoming president during his campaign in 1988. When that happened, it came out that he also plagiarized something in law school. This leads me to believe that he's either lazy or stupid, and his ethical character is called into question.

He also lied about graduating in the top half of law school (he was 76th in a class of 85), that he had attended on a full scholarship, and had received three degrees. He actually had two majors, (History and Political Science) and a single Bachelor's degree, as well as a half scholarship based on financial need. So, he's a liar. But, so are all politicians, right?

He's also recently quoted as saying "If I could wave a wand, and the Lord said I could solve one problem, I would solve the energy crisis." Now, I'm not a religious person, but... really? I think he just equated God to magic.

Regardless of these things, I still found myself not hating him. He's from Scranton, Pennsylvania. He's been involved with many federal crime laws over the years, increasing the number of capital crimes, and voted for heavier punishments for hate crimes. He drafted VAWA which helped investigation and prosecution of violent crimes perpetrated against women over 14, and gave me a job. He also introduced the Reducing Americans' Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act (RAVE), which was an effort to stop the spread the drugs used in sexual assaults such as GHB, rohypnol, ecstasy and ketamine. He's pro-education, Roe v. Wade, and stem cell research. All of these things are close to my heart. So, I can't hate him.

So, the "old crusty white dude" (as Kathy Griffin put it) will probably bring more conservative voters to the polls because an african american dude and a woman on the same ticket would probably be suicide.

Although, Biden does have a reputation for saying really stupid things, so I guess Obama will just need to make sure he's kept under tight reign.

Can't wait to see what happens with McCain. And also, have you seen this? It's amazing - Hillary's in a campaign ad for the Republican as she tries to reunite her Democratic party.



Such drama. I wish they all had really awesomely edited reality shows.


End Blog.

Hillary's "Tears for Votes" Campaign

Sigh. I didn't want to do this, but I've found myself so angry about this non-issue that I need to speak my peace. Just to get everyone on the same page, if you haven't seen the infamous Hillary Clinton "crying" clip, here it is. She was at an informal coffee shop meeting in Portsmouth, New Hampshire and was asked how she could stand the stress of the campaign trail:


It evokes a memory of Howard Dean "screaming" after naming states. Both events were blown completely out of proportion. So, here's what I have to say:

1. I don't think this was staged, and I'll tell you why. This is the most natural and authentic I have heard Hillary's voice... ever.

2. She is not "crying" or holding back tears because she thinks she's losing her campaign or because of her defeat to Obama in the Iowa caucus. She's not crying because of the stress. I have held back those exact same tears. They are tears of pride for her country and the opportunities she has been given in her lifetime. They are tears for her own accomplishments and those that she has not yet finished fighting for. Those are tears of passion and determination to get the job done. I completely understand them. They are not a sign of weakness, they are a sign of hope for the future and the potential that we have as a country.

3. Yes, it is very likely that she cries about other things like the war, the Katrina aftermath, and so on. Just because it's never been caught on film before doesn't mean that she has not cried for those things.

4. She's not the only one who has teared up on the campaign trail. That's right, Republican Mitt Romney choked up on NBC's "Meet the Press" while talking about his religion. Later, in a speech made during the Iowa caucus, tears welled in his eyes as he spoke of watching the casket of a soldier killed in Iraq being carried off of an airplane at the airport he was invited to, to welcome a soldier home. No one had told him the soldier returning was no longer alive. Not one person in the media talked about these events. Stop making this a female weakness issue. It has nothing to do with the matter. Get beyond this double standard.

5. In the book Dead Certain: The Presidency of George W. Bush, which went on sale Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2007, President Bush is quoted as saying, “I’ve got God’s shoulder to cry on. And I cry a lot. I do a lot of crying in this job. I’ll bet I’ve shed more tears than you can count, as president. I’ll shed some tomorrow.” How many more of these things must I point out? I've even seen Bush cry at an awards ceremony.

6. Having men analyze Hillary's tears will only inspire more women to defy the continuance of male chauvinism in politics. The more you talk about it, the more it will hurt your campaign. Quit while you're ahead. It is clear that women bonded over the issue that the media created. Women aren't going to let them get rid of Hillary just like they did with Dean. This has made Hillary more human to everyone. More compassionate, more likable, and more likely to be a leader. She is no longer Bill Clinton's stone cold unemotional wife.

7. Oh, and one other not-really-related thing: McCain's primary win in New Hampshire was reported when only 12% of the votes were in, yet the Democratic race was claimed, "too close to call", even though Hillary Clinton led in the polls ALL NIGHT. I just wanted to point that out. People were expecting Clinton to fail, and when she didn't, they couldn't even report the facts. Maybe an African American president won't be the 'biggest American political story in modern times' that all the media are looking for. Maybe, just maybe, the country will decide to spell change "w-o-m-a-n", not "o-b-a-m-a". Congratulations, Hillary Clinton. You're the first woman to ever win a primary presidential election, and as a fellow woman, I am proud of you.


Okay, I suppose I'm done for now. I just wanted you to know that the news media makes me sick.


End Blog.

An Open Letter to John Edwards

Dear John Edwards,

Please create another speech or pay someone else to do so (is the writer's strike affecting you, too?). I have seen you speak live three times on television and each time you've said approximately the same thing. And so I ask you to stop speaking about the girl who died because she didn't get a liver transplant and the dude who couldn't get his cleft palate fixed until he was 50 because of lack of health insurance. Also, I know your family worked in the mills. Let's work on talking about something else.

Thanks,
Nikki

An Open Letter to John McCain

Dear Senator John McCain,

There is no "R" in Washington. Please stop putting one there.

Thank you,
Nikki