isn't this america anymore?

*** Paladino’s anger: Speaking of the Tea Party, NBC Nightly News last night profiled New York gubernatorial nominee Carl Paladino, who epitomizes the Tea Party’s anger and campaign against government. “I am angry,” Paladino said in the piece. “That's OK; it’s all right to show people that you're angry. It's sort of gets the discussion going.” But when is the anger too much? Paladino is now caught on tape threatening New York Post reporter Fred Dicker over digging into the daughter that Paladino had out of wedlock. “If you send another goon to my daughter’s house, I will take you out, buddy,” Paladino yells at Dicker. The reporter replies, “You’re going to take me out? How are you going to do that?” Paladino answers, “Watch.” Why should folks care about Paladino, a candidate who will likely lose in November? Because if he becomes an anchor on the Republican ticket, he could cost the GOP a chance at three to five House seats. MSNBC.

Perhaps, if we were reading a story by the main stream press about the politicians of a third world country, or the politics of a drug lord, or the infighting of gang members we would all shake our head and say such idiots. Perhaps if we chatted over cocktails about the insanity of some far right, or far left wing nut who is lost and self absorbed who opens his mouth and inserts foot we would giggle and guffaw stating how it was stupid and inane. Perhaps if we pretended that the person threatening others with violence was just a pervert with a lack of morals or conscience we could pooh-pooh the behavior as a mild case of insanity. Perhaps we could do all of that, but Mr. Paladino received the nomination from the Tea Bag/Republicans of the state of New York to run as Governor. Mr. Paladino received a majority of votes to become the man responsible for the good and welfare of New York. He is running to support the laws and governance supporting the Constitution of that state as well as abide by the laws of the United States. And he is threatening to kill a reporter. And where is little Sarah Sunshine Palin, or Uncle Newtie Gingrich, queen and king of the Tea Party/Republicans with their lessons on morals, values, and God---chastising Mr. Paladino for this unchristian like, un-American like behavior? Where are those with any common sense or any sense of decency protesting this maniac’s machinations? Isn’t this America anymore?

Tea Party-backed Nevada Senate candidate Sharron Angle again fielded questions about some of her more controversial statements Wednesday, including those about "Second Amendment remedies" and "domestic enemies" in Congress, and again chose to explain them as perfectly acceptable and logical rather than walk them back.

Asked by ABC News's Jon Karl to clarify an earlier conversation regarding the role of "Second Amendment remedies" in combating a "tyrannical" government, Sharron Angle at first shied away from the answer, then claimed that the entire exchange was taken out of context. In the end, however, she maintained that she believed a "revolutionary situation" was indeed "possible." Huffington Post

Perhaps in the days of the Wild West when the Sheriff needed to correct the corrupt behavior of its ornery citizens, a gun in hand, a threat to take life and liberty away made a bit of sense. Perhaps in the days of anarchy and chaos, anyone with a grander gun a bigger bazooka, could threaten perceived enemies and make them undo any perceived injustice to their reputations. Perhaps in countries infamous for juntas, rebellions, no democratic electoral systems, target practice, killing and murder are the norm with those candidates running for offices who would rather use the bullet than the ballot as the example. Where are those who live and breathe the red white and blue and one person one vote that smother themselves in the Constitution of this nation demanding that violence is not the way to elect officials. Isn’t this America anymore?

The death of 13-year-old Seth Walsh in California is one of at least three youth suicide cases nationwide this month that are prompting renewed attention to antigay bullying.

“It appears that what has always been a crisis is that much more severe right now,” says Daryl Presgraves, spokesman for the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network.

In the five years that Mr. Presgraves has been tracking media reports of such cases, this past year has included the largest spike he’s seen, including the suicides of four students in Minnesota’s Anoka-Hennepin School District who were reportedly discriminated against because they were gay or were perceived as gay. Christian Science Monitor

Perhaps the youth in our nation have discovered new role models in the likes of Carl Paladino and Sharron Angle whose use for fair and honest have been replaced with vile and violence. Perhaps the youth of our nation have listened to such Tea Bag/Republicans as the minister/politician Mike Huckabee who refuses to admit to anything as natural if it is not stated in the New Testament as correct or Mr. Moral Mormon Mitt Romney who finds homosexuality an abomination. Perhaps the youth of our nation go to churches, synagogues, mosques whose spiritual leaders deny the beauty of a God but rely more on making God human with ugly human like qualities such as hate, bias and bigotry. Perhaps the youth of our nation just recite the anger, self loathing of their self victimized parents who need a scapegoat to blame all the ills of their life upon. Perhaps the heterosexual couples that the Family Values hypocrites espouse as the perfect parents are so afraid of truth and honest that they create fear and loathing and teach their children to taunt and torment, finding the difference before the commonalities. Isn’t this America anymore?

I am so tired of hearing the Tea Bag Brigade and the journalists and reporters stating that THIS ‘grass roots’ organization wants change and their behavior is so American. I am so tired of the Jon McCain’s, Liz Cheney’s; Glenn Beck’s obscenely reciting the Constitution changing sentences of that document to feed their self absorbed egos. I am so tired of the religious leaders saying they speak for God and never speaking about people. I am so tired of hearing about the unaffiliated voters or the Independents who still have not made up their mind as to who they will vote for in the mid terms, suggesting crazy people actually might get their vote. I am so tired of permitting liars, tax evaders, ultra wealthy, lobbyist scabs to talk out of one side of their mouth of good vs. bad while the other side is chewing up real American honor and history.

What is going on in this country? How do we even give the slightest ounce of credence or credit to individuals who prey on violence, venom, and vitriolic? Are we so angry at the dirt that what we end up doing is kicking more dirt into our faces? Are we not brighter, smarter, bigger, and braver than the Carl Paladino’s, Sharron Angles, the cowardly ball-less bullies? Isn’t this America anymore?

say what you mean

"Every single one of you is a shareholder in that mission of rebuilding our country and reclaiming our future."

"We can't let this country fall backwards because the rest of us didn't care enough to fight," he said. "The stakes are too high for our country and for your future." Quote from a rally at the University of Wisconsin. Tuesday September 28, 2010. President Barak Obama Tuesday, September 28, 2010.

Vice President Biden telling the progressives to “stop whining” quote from the hallowed halls of the West Wing.

And so hope is handed out along with don’t hope so much. Change is provided, provided you don’t want that much change. The future is glowing but it will take more of an immediate wait and see to bask in the glow.

The stakes we are told are high, just don’t raise your standards too high and go with the flow even if it feels like a teeny tiny trickle. Understand that what we got is good enough for now, and follow the lead of those who know politics way better than you and reap the rewards of waiting without whining.

And I voted for “change I could believe in”, and pressed the flesh of many of my friends and family to do so and was so proud that finally this country voted in office politicians who would care for the less fortunate, help the minority, share the wealth and put into place rules and regulations equalizing the playing field as much as possible.

As a middle class American, financially, I believed that the tax breaks for the wealthy, the benefits bestowed to those who could afford tax loopholes, high end attorneys, and write offs would trickle down to me. As a Gay American I believed that equal but separate was obsolete, and marriage, adoptions, serving in the military were granted as basic human and equal rights in our Constitution. As an American parent of two kids I thought that health care, education, working environment would permit my children and their children to afford the best in the world. As an American baby boomer working from the age of 16 to now almost 61, that my efforts, my taxes, my giving to the Government would reap me a reward permitting me to retire with dignity without fear of homelessness or two less meals on the table. As an American human being I wanted to be sure my environment, the world in which I breathe and share space with billions of others would become healthier and safer. As an American Democrat I felt confident that having a majority in the Congress and having a Democratic administration, the treason, the tricks, the charades, the chaos committed by the Republicans in power for the past eight years would end.

I voted for “change I could believe in”. And Mr. President Mr. Vice President you did say it wouldn’t be easy but what you didn’t say was that part of making it not easy would be the lack of a back bone, the missing spine, the selfishness of the Democrats elected. What you didn’t say was that all of those lack ofs would surpass the nerve, the will and the guts to make change happen.

I will support the Democrats running for office because the Tea Bag/Republicans running against them are Un-American, self consuming, selfish, ideologues who want the rich to get richer, hate anyone they deem as different, and confuse the Constitution with a Christian Holy Bible and use both as outline for an unholy war.

I worry about an America that turns so far right we no longer have rights or freedoms. I worry about an America which permits hate and loathing and confuses fiction with fact. I worry about an America who is led by hypocrites who set a moral standard never to follow it in their own lives. I worry about an America that is racist, homophobic, anti-Semitic, Islamaphobic, gender biased, and bigoted. But I worry also that the people we elected to make those changes have taken many Americans for granted. And now Mr. President, Mr. Vice President, you want us to forget the immediate past and trust once again, almost as the Kellogg’s Corn Flake commercial jingle states, ‘to try us again for the first time’. And as we try YOU again for the first time you promise us we can trust in change we can believe in?

The sad thing is you got my vote this time because the lesser of two evils dictates I vote for the Democrats, too scary not to.

President Obama, I believe in your words, I want to once again believe in your heart and your actions. And Vice President Biden, if we didn’t whine, you would have had no idea how much more we expected. Promises half filled are somewhat like little white lies both ending up empty and egregious. Say what you mean and mean what you say or just remain silent.

what is it all about?

In another move that will raise further questions about Christine O'Donnell's embellishment of her education record, she claims she studied at the University of Oxford -- but a look at her actual record shows this is at best an exaggeration and at worst an outright falsehood.

O'Donnell's LinkedIn bio page lists "University of Oxford" as one of the schools she attended, claiming she studied "Post Modernism in the New Millennium." But it turns out that was just a course conducted by an institution known as the Phoenix Institute, which merely rented space at Oxford.

What's more, the woman who oversaw Phoenix Institute's summer program at Oxford tells me O'Donnell's claim about studying at Oxford is "misleading."

By itself, O'Donnell's Oxford claim might not matter too much. But the larger context is that O'Donnell has already been nabbed fudging her education record not once, but twice. She claimed for several years to have graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson Unversity, but she actually obtained her bachelor's degree last summer. And in a lawsuit she suggested she was trying for a Master's degree courses at Princeton -- but subsequently acknowledged she hadn't taken a single Princeton graduate course. The Plum Line.

Here we have a darling of the Tea Bag/Republican Party, protégé of Sister Sarah, (what serve out my tenure as Governor and be found out to be a fool sooner than later) Palin fabricating yet again the truth. Yet on the Rush Limbaugh Propaganda for the Dumb Radio show, he and his legions of haters say nothing about the lie, but go on attack that Democratic women only earned their place in society via their husbands, cue in the names of Hilary Clinton and Michele Obama. Mr. Cigar smoking, drug stealing demon of deceit is on the offense and never once interested in the facts or the truth. He, like his cronies from the RNC, don’t want to talk about the incompetency of Christine O’Donnell but would rather make others the victim of what is bad in America. And it works.

Those who can’t pull themselves up from their own bootstraps, those who like to scapegoat others for fear the scapegoating will come their way, those who feel safer bullying others then talking to people who seem different, those who take no responsibility for their failures and need to blame others just to cope, think that the liberal media is picking on an honest hard working woman. The subject changes from the fact that Christine O’Donnell a potential Senator LIED and suddenly it is all about why is education so important anyway? With the efforts of the Tweeting queen, Sister Sarah, to the harangues of Limbaugh in ignoring the basic fact that O’Donnell lied to the public and making it a personal attack, the minions of the mindless are rallying behind a lying liar.

Instead of the public wondering why O’Donnell needed to embellish her resume, or the fact that a candidate for Senator will try and do anything to get elected, (whether honest or not) the dishonest agents of LIES Palin and Limbaugh ignore the real issues and supplant them with more fabrications. OY! And the racists, the homophobes, the disingenuous, the disgruntled, the loons are acting as if those with any conscience, any morals, any ideas of right and wrong are out for blood.

This IS NOT just about Ms O’Donnell, this is about Sharon Angle, John McCain, Ken Buck, Jan Brewer, Joe Miller, Sarah Palin, people who disguise the truth for personal gains, people who want to divide the we from they, people who dislike honesty, people who pray on fear, people who are very un-American and people who interpret the Constitution as their own piece of the pie created with their particular prejudices in mind.

This IS about the Independent voters who still haven’t decided who to vote for. This is about the Democrats who want to teach the politicians in their party a lesson and not vote this time around. This is about Republicans who permit the Tea Baggers for setting the priorities. This is about the future of this country. This is about allowing lies, discrimination, demonization, religious dogma and hate take precedent.

People like Christine O’Donnell are not the darlings of politics. They are scary people who want to make the United States into a place only they can call home. If you run from the press, refuse to debate, deny your own words as shared on audio and video, incite hate filled speeches and lie, what place should you , would you, or could you have running the government in this country?

Still undecided as to who you want to vote for? Wasn’t it enough that we had eight years of deceit and we still have not recovered, eight yeas of promises to the poor while the rich got richer, eight years of greed and gluttony? And now for many, we want the same clowns running the circus? Really?!

core values

A few days ago Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and never to be out done Newtie Gingrich started in on Michelle Obama, complaining she would send in the FBI if any child was caught eating French Fries. (Yes the Neo Cons have permitted us to use the term French Fries instead of Liberty Fries). These out of touch men, and over weight individuals were spewing their rabid form of hate against the first lady selling their snake oil by stating that now the Obama Socialist regime is controlling what we eat.

The ignorant cast of fools on FOX Noise under the tutelage of born again to hate John Stossel ranted and raved about how no one is safe from government dominance, and no one should ever, EVER tell our American children what to eat, let alone eat healthy or wisely.

Those in the nether world of finding hate a worthy American concept, applauded the trio of con men and Mr. Stossel received rave reviews from mobs of people who will eat as much fat and serve it to their children as much as they desire.

The main stream press reported all of this, never once adding the caveat that Michelle Obama had no power to enforce any dietary rules and that Ms. Obama was trying to educate the youth population of this nation and their parents on how to help curb childhood obesity.

And none of the progressives or liberals or democrats in the Congress took the time to rebut the silly and bogus claims of the the three stooges plus one, that what the First lady was doing , was in fact educating a mass of people who just don't know.

And the Republican right that same day pressed the flesh of the Tea Baggers claiming that not only would a vote for the Republican/Tea bag party candidate be a vote for small government, but it would be a vote for 'core family values'.

'Core family values' what the hell? Complaining that no one should educate kids on proper nutrition, harangues about no one has the right to explain the concepts of fatty foods, dismissal of a caring First Lady about the health of our youth as being socialistic, those are core family values?

Those of us who believe education, intelligence, finding common cause, caring, have a very short window of opportunity to survive must make sure the chaos ridden environment bestowed to us of 8 years of Republican rule under the Bush/Cheney Dictatorship will not become fact one more time. We see the foolish, self serving, self promoting gimmicks that the entertainers like Beck, Limbaugh, the posers like Palin, and Gingrich, the liars like Boehner and McCain have presented to America and anyone with a conscience and heart should worry.

To try and smear the First Lady for her concerns on the health and welfare of our American youth is outrageous. (Do we want someone like Sister Sarah talking to our youth. She was so successful in explaining to her own daughter Bristol, that abstinence is the only way to think about sex, and forgot to mention that if you should partake in sexual activity while in high school try some protection.) Should we have Sister Sarah saying to our youth eat what you want but don't get fat. Have sex but don't get pregnant.

The Republican/Tea Bag political party are no one's friends. They are good at talking dumb, speaking ignorant, and appealing to self loathing, fools. Their core family values are only to be afraid and never ever think for yourself.

If the Republican/Tea Bag Party politicians win in November we may not live to regret it. And then think of the 'core values' the youth will inherit!

i wonder

A Senate bill to repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy was defeated 56-43, Tuesday; a major setback for gay groups that saw the vote as their last chance this year to overturn the 17-year-old ban.

Advocates had been optimistic that the Democratic-controlled White House and Congress could overcome objections to repeal of the law barring gays from serving openly in the military. The move is unpopular among Republicans, military officers and social conservatives.

But in the end, Senate Democrats fell short of the 60 votes needed to limit debate and advance the legislation. Associated Press.

Makes me wonder, just who’s America this is? Makes me wonder who is granted access to the freedoms our Constitution grants and who doesn’t matter? Makes me wonder, how we allow fear, loathing, religious dogma, ignorance take precedent over truth, equality, honest and integrity permitting a majority to deny the minority. Makes me wonder how we value the differences in each other over the sameness. Makes me wonder who will be next not to fit into some Republican/Christian Conservative/Tea Bag definition of these United States.

Makes me wonder how many of the 56 Senators who voted against the repeal of the policy have ever served in the military, or how many of their children, grandchildren have served? Makes me wonder if the 56 Senators who voted for the wars in Iraq, and Afghanistan have ever met any of the LGBT service members who have given their life, their limbs, in those wars? Makes me wonder if the 56 Senators who voted not to repeal “don’t ask don’t tell” were more concerned about their personal lives and could care not one ounce about the lives of the LGBT community who fight every day for freedom.

Makes me wonder what would happen if ALL LGBT members of the armed services would collectively resign from the military. Makes me wonder what would happen to our troops when strong, intelligent, brave, caring, patriots would suddenly go away? Makes me wonder exactly how many non Gay service members there would really be?

I wonder just how much more prejudice, bigotry, bias, and religious based harassment the LGBT community should and could take. I wonder when we as a community reach our tipping point and say enough is enough. I wonder when true American freedom and justice comes to all of us?

And most of all I wonder why the LGBT community would want to serve a country which has the highest disregard for a demographic population of the country based on innuendo, fearful clergy, and those who wrap their flag around hate. I wonder when enough is enough?

supposedly

Supposedly it’s about the economy, stupid. Supposedly, the down trodden have had enough BIG GOVERNMENT type politicians (mainly Democrats) trodding on their liberties and pocketbooks, and supposedly they want to fight back and reclaim THEIR America. Supposedly it’s not about race, gender, disability or sexual orientation. Supposedly we are ALL Americans, even if only those in the Tea Bag Brigade understand the true definition of being an American. Supposedly it is a grass roots organization, but since no one has ever heard of the billionaire Koch Brothers who have funded this grass roots group, it remains of the people, even when bought and paid for by those who want to keep the people down trodden.

Supposedly Sarah Palin and Jim DeMint are the new faces of politics; each brandishing unknown candidates who supposedly speak for the used to be silent majority who now have a voice. Supposedly that voice is based on truth, fact and understanding, but somehow like Sister Sarah and Senator DeMint, the only time that voice can be heard is when the evil mainstream press, those who seek honesty, are not asking the questions. Supposedly there will not be a debate on any subject because the liberal media will distort and diminish the lies and rhetoric the supposedly... of the people candidates say.

Supposedly we the people have had enough of two years of change, digging ourselves up from the abyss of eight years of repressive republican rule. Supposedly we want to punish those in power by bringing back into power those who want to punish anyone they declare the enemy, anyone they deem Un-American, anyone who does not act like a lemming and requires fact instead of fiction.

Supposedly the Tea Bag Brigade wants less government interference in our lives, as long as we live our lives in conjunction with the standards of the Tea Bag Brigade. Supposedly equality is not equal for all and if you are Non Christian, Gay, Disabled, Old, Unionized, Poor this is not your America.

Three Tea/Party GOP primary victors for Senate, Christine O’Donnell of Delaware, Sharron Angle of Nevada, and Rand Paul of Kentucky were surprising winners in their respective state races. Each speaks clearly of less government involvement and supposedly in our lives but each does have a caveat as to who should be the recipient of less government interference.

If they are elected then certain citizens in this country may find themselves on the receiving end of bigotry, bias and bull shit.

Long before Tea Party backed candidate Christine O'Donnell won the republican primary in Delaware and became the GOP Senate nominee, the conservative firebrand was arguing that the government was spending too much money fighting AIDS and said condoms wouldn't stop the disease from spreading.

O'Donnell has said, for example, that masturbation is wrong, and that looking at pornography is equivalent to cheating on your spouse. When a married person uses pornography, or is unfaithful, it compromises not just his (or her) purity, but also compromises the spouse's purity. As a church, we need to teach a higher standard than abstinence. We need to preach a righteous lifestyle.

O'Donnell, it seems, is opposed to masturbation, and considers looking at pornography akin to adultery. "The Bible says that lust in your heart is committing adultery. You can't masturbate without lust!" msnbc news

As Nevadans have begun to understand who Sharron Angle is and what she’s for, they’re rejecting her extreme and dangerous agenda – an agenda that includes killing Social Security and Medicare, abolishing the Department of Education, and eliminating any and all oversight of Wall Street and big oil companies like BP. (If BP had no regulations, they assuredly would have been more careful and we wouldn’t even be talking about this oil spill nonsense…) msnbc news

Rand Paul, the superstar of the Tea Bag Brigade, was on NPR talking about the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disability Act. He's not supportive of those federal laws, thinking discrimination should be a "local" issue. msnbc news

These three individuals are just the tip of an iceberg. This renegade chunk of ice is freely floating in the ocean of politics and may sink the ship of freedom and democracy in November if it lands in voting booths. You may not be Gay, or Elderly, or work with Union benefits, or Disabled, but who says once Christine O’Donnell, Sharron Angle, Rand Paul or their cohorts of chaos gain power, they won’t come after you. We, who believe in equality, not equal but separate had better become just as revved up as this bunch of self serving, selfish band of thieves or our freedom will be forgotten. Supposedly this is America?

a book of life

Tonight is the culmination for many Jews, of the Days of Awe. It is Yom Kippur the Time of Atonement, a day to reflect on the life behind us, the life we live and the promises, practicalities, potholes and potentials of the life ahead. It is believed that with this High Holy Day of Yom Kippur God will be closing the Book of our Life and perhaps our journey ahead will have already been signed sealed and delivered.

I am not always sure if the future is foretold by the actions of the past or the present. I am not sure if who we will become is designed by the wishes, the pardons, and the pleas of who we currently are. I am not sure if atoning for our sins our inactions, our frailties and failures are forgone conclusions of a future frightening or fabulous. I wonder and seek answers and for me that is when I find my spirituality, my beliefs, my higher power, my God.

For the past many years I have become much more aware and cognizant of freedoms, rights, equality. I have become aware of people, organizations, and groups deciding that there can only be one way to think, act, believe, and live. I have noticed a trend of gluttony, greed, selfishness, and self serving. In a country like ours whose history has always been to help, I have noticed a trend to hurt. In a country like ours whose history has always been that of an immigrant emerging, I have noticed a fearful case of xenophobia arising, honing in on different as bad and proliferating the landscape with “we” vs. “they”. In a country like ours with a rich past, I have noticed that we have stopped learning the lessons of history [those] that have provided us with reason and rational and instead pretend that what came before is wrong and is now ridiculed.

It seems to be the Book of Life for America will be closed on Tuesday, November 2, 2010. There has been a wave of discontent turned into hate, bias, and bigotry by disingenuous people, using ignorance, fear, and loathing to fool many who seek help. It seems from the pulpits of preachers a lesson of lies has been lingering long laying blame on self selected demons. It seems that honest discourse has been drowned out by clutter and chaos never permitting consensus or choice, but instead developing disgust and disillusionment. It seems without fact, fiction is becoming the front runner in figuring out the future. And I worry.

I know that in my life, for the year ahead as God closes the Book of my Life, I can still make a difference in what tomorrow brings. I know that with more insight, emotion, care and comfort I possibly can change the supposed next chapter. I have the free will to do so. I just wonder if when the Book of Life in America closes on election night in November, will we as Americans have done the necessary changes to hope for a better brighter future. Or will the raving and ranting of some who want nothing else but fear and loathing to control the future dominate and win?

Do we as Americans have some kind of sane control on our year ahead, or will we have the next year be written in pain, inequality, jealousy, anger, and fact less truth? Or does that book of life remain etched in un- erasable tyranny and blood? I wonder and I worry.

bad people rewarded

Rewarded for bad behavior! Seems the more we watch television with its unending and endless despicable display of reality shows, listen to the irresponsible, untactful, insulting tidbits of faux news by FOX, or read via the Internet or newspapers the stories of mean spirited, bigoted, biased bastards demanding and dishing…we all end up with the same conclusion, bad people are getting rewarded for bad behavior.

Suddenly those with fewer scruples, little stability, less ethics and no morals are the heroes and heroines of US society. They are belligerent, bitchy, boisterous and blatantly self absorbed and selfish. Yet they become cult idols and the more their popularity grows the meaner their moods grow.

And now, it seems the most venomous and vicious people running for government offices in this country have won their Republican/Tea Bag primaries. They speak against most things Constitutional, love to divide the “we” from “they”, use their definition of Christianity to defend good and bad as if Jesus spoke to them personally, drop racist, homophobic, religious innuendo, threaten the democratic process by stating the Second Amendment will be used if the ballot box fails, raise problems with few resolutions, and discard fact and replace it with fiction.

Poster children for these supposedly “of the people” politicians are people like Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Jim DeMint, Rush Limbaugh, Newt Gingrich. This group of self defined prophets likes to fabricate the truth, rewrite history, speak as if they were one of the lemmings like lost tribes of Americans wanting help, and walk away having opened the bottle for a very evil genie to appear. They speak in tomes of red, white and blue reciting the Bible as their source of strength, and never own up to their lies even when confronted with such via video or audio. And somehow all of these cowards, get a free pass, and are hardly ever pushed for honesty or sincerity.

They are smart enough to yell fire in the theater just before they find the exits for themselves and leave the ensuing chaos behind. They are smart enough to understand the fears and bigotries, hates and loathing of those who feel as if they are victims from some unseen force, and they are smart enough to leave as little DNA on the crime scene seeming to almost get away with murder.

They are supported in their efforts by wealthy folk like the Koch brothers, who know that keeping a nation divided permits more capital for the wealthy, FOX News which is an arm of the Republican party with no retribution from the FCC, insecure pastors and preachers who are more concerned about their own lives and want to keep the fold unthinking, and Americans who now see that hating out loud has no consequences.

In one news article after another we are told just how revved up and ready the Tea Bagger, Neo Cons, non middle of the road Republican are, and how everyone else could care less. People who in more sane times would be considered insane asylum candidates now roam the streets and avenues freely holding news conferences to spew lies and are NEVER asked to account for their misspoken actions and deeds. We have the party of NO tasting the meal of control of the Congress, never offering solutions just providing derailments and detours. We have bad people, malicious people, being rewarded for bad behavior.

I am not pleased with the Democratic majority missing a back bone. I am not pleased with promises made by the candidates in the 2008 election, not being honored. I am not pleased with the wishy-washy sometimes self directed policies of the party in power. But I at least find these men and women closer to finding a solution then creating a problem. I know the baby steps by the Democrats have been slow to little to lame, but they at least are moving, and the majority of Republicans/Tea Baggers have stood still, stagnant… moving away from consensus and closer to confusion.

So the enthusiasm of the Democrats, the educated, the middle class, the minorities, we are told has waned from the hey days of ‘change we can count on’. So the vigor and vitality of those who voted in the Democrats supposedly has diminished. So, we gave this Congress two years to totally change eight years of self serving, hedonistic, gluttonous greedy policies. So what! I am scared of the winners in the Republican/Tea Baggers party primaries. Most or all of these candidates want to rescind freedoms, want to permit a larger rift in haves and have not’s, want to make this nation a Christian nation, want to discriminate. I am terrified that the lax and lazy observance of people who could make a difference in the 2010 elections are just sitting idle as the tide of hate floods this country.

I am so tired of rewards for bad people. I am so tired of rewarding them with bonus checks, large salaries, permission to lie, cheat, and squander. I am tired of rewards for bad people, rewarding bad people. When do the good people win?

nine thirteen

It has been two days since the anniversary of the horrible tragedy of 9/11. Pundits and politicians have cackled, cajoled and called upon true Patriots to remember, recall and repute the actions of the terrorists. They have also stood upon their soapbox demanding and defining the values of true Americans and easily pointing fingers to those they seem less American, less red white and blue. We have raised our flag, had vigils, and sworn in unison, never again. Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck held a rally in Anchorage asking true Patriots to come and gather, at anywhere from $75 to $250 a ticket (not sure where the proceeds will go), and every news channel on television has played back video from the awful day. And now it is two days hence.

The first responders, those still alive, are still suffering from some horrendous health care issues, for responding to the fires and calamities in New York City. Many of these brave men and women are still being denied full coverage or correct care because the Health Insurance Cartels are playing business as usual and first saying no before considering the situation. (Bottom lines to Share Holders take precedent to Patriotism). The salaries of the first responders are still less than enough to help their families and non of them live the same kind of life the Financial Institution’s boys and girls live. And Ann Coulter is making tons of money speaking at Neo Con conclaves, shouting that the widows of the dead from the 9/11 disaster are a bunch of whiny spoiled brats.

George Bush has left the room but his reputation of starting a war to find Bin Laden remains, with no one finding the declared public enemy number one. We didn’t go into Afghanistan immediately because Dick Cheney wanted to rob the Iraqi’s of their oil and created a false alarm by insisting there were weapons of mass destruction. Both men are writing books and have hit the lecture circuit, both men reaping the rewards (in spite of committing heinous and unpatriotic crimes to the citizens of this nations and in particular the 4000 plus dead troops and the thousands of young men and women who have come home with physical and mental distress). Perhaps Mister Bush and Cheney could contribute some of the income from their books of fiction to aid the health of the first responders and sick Vets? The Republicans don’t want to talk about the past, the Democrats do an imitation of a dance to recall the past, and more and more time, resources and bodies fall into a war a seemingly bottomless pit that was supposedly created to make America and this world safer.

And now in the face of disrespect for what happened on 9/11, we have once again NOT come together to solve the problems that led to 9/11, but have decided to divide our will and drive. We have become divisive and dismissive finding scapegoat and culprit for all that is wrong in America. We refuse to try and solve problems because that might motivate some people to take responsibility for THEIR actions or inactions, and we point fingers away at others for fault. We use 9/11 in political ads, we use 9/11 to explain our religious fears, we use 9/11 to fight the rights and powers of the Constitution, we use 9/11 not to heal but to hurt.

We all prayed, recalled, rallied and cried on 9/11/10. We all felt the pains and sorrow of those who died that day. We all rung our hands and shook our hearts. And now two days later what are we doing to remember the lessons learned from that tragedy? We talk of burning the Quran, not permit cultural centers to be built, threaten anyone who seems UnChristian thus UnAmerican, and we continue to fight in two wars with no happy end in sight. It is 363 days until September 11, 2011 wonder how much different we as Americans will be? Wonder how we will honor that day when it comes again?

days of awe

For me, this past Wednesday evening through Saturday night of the next week, I am and will be trying to mull over the people, personalities, places and particulars that have made my almost 61 years of life possible, plausible and particular. These moments in life are referred to as the Days of Awe, the days between Rosh Ha Shana and Yom Kippur; the Jewish New Year, and the Day of Atonement. By Jewish tradition these are the days when God opens the book of life for the upcoming year and closes the same book until next year.

Jewish traditions, as go traditions in most religions, are based on someone’s interpretation of a Holy Book, oral tales of history told and shared from generation to generation, family habits, and experiences gained in a life time lived. For some these traditions are based on fact, for others these are mere superstitious acts enforced by guilt and or fear of the unknown of which we want to know more. And for many, traditions are an unquestioned means of standards and morals which must have been generated from a higher power and provided us as lessons of life to mere mortals.

It is a time when many a Jewish person asks for forgiveness for his/her injustices, inaccuracies, and inabilities to help, aid, assist to the best of his/her potential. It is a time for some to reflect on their own lives and what kind of impact they have made on the world around them and those living in that world. For many it is a time to look at the lessons from the past and create pathways to the future of promise, pride and potential.

I am a spiritual man, proud of that but never so boastful as to diminish those who find no cause in a higher power, or believe that fate rules us and we have no ability to change the reactions from our owned actions. For me I find hope in moments of talking to God, minutes of seeing the positive and the millennium of knowing that potential and change can and should happen.

Something has come over me in the past few years however, (perhaps based on life experiences, being a father, a partner, seeing and experiencing bad things happening to good people, or witnessing self serving, self promoting, selfish behavior by too many people around me), which has found me wondering if in fact we are becoming a world of good versus bad, right versus wrong. I had thought I surrounded myself within the prism of the colors of the rainbow, but somehow now I seem to be treading in a world of black and white with very little room for gray.

In the past ten years this country and this world have seemed to delight in finding enemies, delight in creating division, and delight in doom saying while derailing any concept of compromise or consensus. We/they have insisted on enemies, invited bigotry, bias, racism, sexism, homophobia into our conversation, and sadly wrapped all that hatred in a Flag and our Holy Books. We/they have pounded on our chests chanting my God is better than your God, my God is the only God. And it seems to me that those who do boast of being closer to God, more righteous, more religious are the people who draw strict lines in the sand and build moats and detours for anyone perceived as different. They somehow seem to defile a God.

Whether it be the Ayatollahs, the Chief Rabbis, the Pentecostal Preachers, the Pope, the Tele-Evangelist ministers or just the average person who needs others to think for them before they react, many people who say they know God better than you or I are blasphemous in their adoration to God, making a God into a human being with frail, and fragile human emotions. They speak as if they are ordained by a God to only punish the bad (and bad is their definition), and reward not the good, but those who look, think act just like they do.

I get so frustrated with the hazardous haze that seems to have appeared over the hearts souls and minds of many in this human race. It seems pointing a finger away rather than toward ourselves is the salvation and solution and the assumed only way to find God.

During these Days of Awe, I am trying my best to find reason and rational for my being on Earth and those with whom I share this World. I am trying hard and I hope I can find the spirituality to do so. It has been a frustrating road to ride.

But I have faith and must rely on that. And since this part of the reason for the Days of Awe, I will persevere. So in honor of the potential of possibilities I wish to all my family and friends new and from my six decades of history I wish a shana tova ketiva ve-chatima tovah: ‘a good year and may you be written and sealed for a good year’. I know GOOD is out there, somewhere.

speak up johnny

A Florida minister said Wednesday that he would go ahead with plans to burn copies of the Quran this weekend despite widespread opposition, including a warning from the top commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan that he would be handing extremists a propaganda gift.

Speak Up Johnny, I can't hear you...

Hey Johnny McCain, you ex-‘mavricky’, ex-POW from the war in Viet Nam, you major flip-flopper, you talk out of both sides of your mouth, you spineless self serving politician, cat got your tongue? Seems you got all huffy and puffy when George Bush and his Neo-Con goons declared war on Iraq with their phony declaration of weapons of mass destruction. You insisted that during a time of war, even if the war was created by Dick Cheney, ALL Americans should support the troops and do the right thing. Whatever it took to keep our Troops safe, you demanded we as citizens of this great Nation should do it. You flew your red white and blue colors high on the flag pole, ready to single out anyone who wanted to question the policies of the war in Iraq.

You huffed and puffed all over again when fair minded people began to open dialogue on permitting Gays to serve in the military. You took exception, umbrage to stopping the inequity of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”, explaining that if the top military brass felt it was okay, you would consider going along with that decision. Yet when the Secretary of Defense and his Chief of Staff said it was time to end this type of discrimination you reverted to McCain Syndrome and ran away from what was right for this nation and crawled into your self preservation cave of bigotry and bias and said not on my watch. (Got you the primary election didn’t it.)

Now General Petraeus, a man you once placed on a platform as an ideal soldier, has spoken out about grievous, grave, un-American activities of a pastor from a Pentecostal church who wants to burn the Quran, and your voice is no where to be heard. General Petraeus has renounced this act of Quran burning as dangerous to the safety and health of the Troops in Afghanistan. (I assume you remember that war, or that country---Afghanistan is where Osama Bin Laden deployed his attack on America on 9-11. That was the country most likely to have originated the whole deplorable attack, but that was the country you and George Bush ignored while making Saddam Hussein public enemy number one). Once again Johnny you were wayyyyyyyyy verbal about finding Saddam and that Bin Laden could wait.

Johnny, what is going on with your voice now? Are you afraid that the Tea Baggers whose hate is greater than their love for this country will sniff you out as an Islam loving liberal? Are you fearful that the venom you espoused about illegal’s in Arizona will seem to have been a whisper in the wind if you defend the lives of our military? Are you scared that Sister Sarah may ask her good Christian minions to NOT vote for you if you show any ounce of courage and leadership and speak up for the Troops and against the anti American behavior of self loathing evil doers?

To the people of Arizona is this the leadership you want? Do you not already have a Governor who talks about headless corpses in the desert, only to be proven she has no facts correct, and is only helping to flame the fear insecure people harbor to help her get elected? Do you want one more politician who only looks after what is good for him/her and cares less what is good for the people? Do honesty, integrity, humanity no longer get priority?

Speak up Johnny, I can't hear you...

I wonder how people like you Johnny McCain sleep at night.

In Germany they first came for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me -
and by that time no one was left to speak up. Martin Niemoller, January 6, 1946

the bible tells me so...

So Sister Sarah tweets from some lofty pent house in the sky, Newtie explains that how he lives his life is not necessarily how he judges others to live their life. Televangelist Glenn Beck hears voices from some deity (most likely the attorneys for the gold conglomerates he acts as ad man for), the Republican party leadership let the lemmings follow them to edge of the cliff, before they (the Republican leadership) step aside and permit the lemmings to fall to the bottom, and all the bigots, racists, Islamaphobes get free reign to run their reign of terror and some snake oil salesmen is reaping the rewards of lying, fictionalizing and shouting untruths to a body of people who never want to recognize their own weakness, but blame anyone and everyone for every single ill in their life.

And for the moment the really BAD guy all Americans need to loath, hate and lynch are the Muslims. Move over Gays, Illegal’s and Abortion doctors, some one has tarnished the red white blue and cross of Jesus more than you and they need to be taught a lesson first. Once they are handled then the rest of the sinners will appropriately be tended to.

And waiting in the wings, under a rock, in the stench filled corners of a cave a pastor from Florida Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Church in Gainesville, decides that his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has a chip on his shoulder regarding other religions. And that Jesus wants to wage war for fear that someone else’s beliefs may trump those who want to believe in Christianity. And Pastor Jones revelation (why does Jesus seem to only speak to angry white southern Pastors) is that we should burn the Quran. It is waging Gods war and by creating violence we are somehow curbing violence. According to Pastor Jones, Jesus wants vengeance.

According to his flock they agree:

"We are using this act [burning the Quran] to warn about the teaching and ideology of Islam, which we do hate as it is hateful. We do not hate any people, however. We love, as God loves, all the people in the world," Ingram wrote in the article, dated Sept. 2.

A member of the church, Fran Ingram, told msnbc.com that they had a "stack of about 150" Qurans, which she said had been sent from across the world. "We are expecting to burn about 200 at least," she said. -msnbc news

And so in the name of God in a land where we pride ourselves in separation of Church and state, where so far anyone of any religion or anyone who does not believe in religion can freely state his case we are now finding some Americans burning a holy book of prayer. And this group of people who hate for Jesus would have never even had an inkling of burning anything had it not been for the affirmations of no consequences for my actions Sister Sarah…do as I say not as I do Newtie… I hear voices and there is no one there Televangelist Beck… most of the Tea Bag Brigade/Republican candidates running for office encouraging them to hate despise and scapegoat. Seems to me this group of low life, hypocritical self serving right wing self appointed idiots are asking the congregation to drink that specially made cool-aide as they did in Jonestown while they lounge in the luxury of speaking engagement fees, lobbyist dollars, and book fees from publishers.

Hate is catchy, fear is contagious, and blame is hazardous. Think the Muslims will be the only ones to have pitch forks thrown at? Think again, it happened in Nazi Germany in the 40’s first the Jews, then Catholics, then the gypsy’s, then the middle class… reared its ugly head in America in the 50’s first anyone who disagreed with the politics of McCarthy and his closeted side kick Roy Cohn, then the intelligentsia, then the artists...There is a great shopping list of enemies just ripe for a beheading, wonder where we all stand on that list?

This finding an evil doer based on scripture is not new, but isn’t this America? It would laughable if this mindless congregation were an isolated group of religious based haters, but they are not. Where are the same voices who love to shout fire in the theater as they exit the doorways first, finally taking responsibility for their actions? And the polls say we want to vote them into office as we vote the bums out. Who has to be next on the evil doer list to finally say enough is enough? Who?

THEY

At first THEY came after the Muslim, Kenyan, non citizen, Communist man who, by the democratic process won the election as President of the United States. He was too smart, too black, too Chicago, too uppity to be the President.

Then THEY decided that no matter how high the divorce rate, the acts of infidelity, or adultery by the heterosexuals, the mere mention of marriage between two members of the same sex, would wreck ruin, and destroy The Institution of Marriage. Pretending it was about the preservation of families and not out and out homophobia THEY insisted that life on earth would not be the same if Adam said to Steve “I Do”.

Then THEY wanted the average person in the United States to forgo any adequate health insurance, because healthy was not the governments concern. They were against abortion, euthanasia, and needed control on those aspects of a person’s health but to require universal medical care for all Americans was just Un-American. We will tell you what is right for you body based on the Bible and the profits of the Health Insurance Cartels and then we will act as God once again and insist that you don’t need the assistance from the government to maintain a healthy mind and body.

Then THEY refused to hold debates or to be interviewed or asked any questions by journalists or reporters who were considered the enemy. Like those on Nixon’s Enemies List, THEY blacklisted anyone who asked why, contradicted them or asked for fact instead of fiction. If it was on video it was altered, if it was on audio it was re-dubbed, if you saw it in person you only saw it through uncaring liberal eyes. Only those who spoke the same language of racism, bigotry, and bias could understand the hate filled loathing message THEY spoke.

Then THEY blamed the Mexicans for all the ills in the economy. If you were Mexican you were an illegal. You were the reason for unemployment! Never mind the fact that corporations out sourced jobs, never mind that corrupt business men wanted to pay less than minimum wage to boost their bottom lines, never mind that you tried to pull yourself up from your own bootstraps, nope you were not an American and you were a lighter shade of black and you were to blame.

Then THEY called out the unions; made the word union synonymous with Communism and Socialism. You didn’t deserve better working conditions or good benefits or salaries because THEY were not receiving the same. The workers of unions wanted to freeload, to live a middle class life; if THEY couldn’t live that life then neither could you. And even the word worker is a communist word, ‘dontcha’ know!

Then THEY smeared the religion of Islam. It’s a cult, a monkey religion, a baseless vile jihadist religion that is so Un-Christ like. It is not the red white and blue American religion, the one written in the Constitution, the official Christian religion our founding fathers founded. Muslims need not apply, need not worship, need not live in this land of free speech, free religious choice unless there was a renouncing of Muhammad and conversion to Christianity.

And now THEY are sure any educated individual, educated in universities are the real reason for the moral, ethical and Anti-Christian downturn this nation is experiencing.

Under the tutelage and torment of THEIR secret society Televangelist, Pastor, Reverend Glenn Beck, THEY have announced “We have been setting up re-education camps. We call them universities". With an okee –doe- kee and pat on the back from Sister Sarah Palin, Sharon Angle, Michelle Bachman FOX Failed News, Glenn Beck is warning THEM that smart people are people you need to be wary of. University educated people are the front line in the devils army to disrupt and disband the kind of democracy Mr. Beck knows this country needs, or can profit from.

In Germany THEY found one scapegoat and group after another as reason for recession, depression, the downfall of government, the lack of quality of life. THEIR only solution aside from the Final Solution was to rid the country of the intelligentsia, the organized labor unions, the press who might offer a differing voice. THEY feared a voice of reason, a voice to solve the problems and issues. In America of the 50’s Senator McCarthy and his army of Communist hunters insisted that the shores of America would crumble and fall if we permitted free speech, free press, free thought. Anyone with an idea was a potential “red” and that color red was not found in the red white and blue of the flag. Eliminate debate, dissent, discourse and create divisiveness, discord and demons.

Hey America, so you want to ‘vote the bums out’. Just look who you might end up voting in. THEY won’t stop, you know, until everyone in this country is an unthinking lemming like clone--- one of THEM. The meek will not rule this world as the Bible states, NOPE in America of 2010 it looks more like the stupid, the inane, the bigot, the bully, the, the fool will surely reign supreme. Wonder WHO is next and when THEY will find you and declare you the enemy?