Thursday, October 30, 2008

Glorious day

I often complain about things here, whether it be annoying people in my life, or some sort of political upset in my head. So today, given the brisk yet sunny day, I will list off all of the great things going on right now.

1) Five days until the most exciting election I've ever witnessed. History is in the making (whether or not it is the first black president, oldest first-time elected president, first Catholic vice-president, or first woman VP), and we all get to witness it!

2) This is a couple of days old, but still it gets to me: Daughter of slave votes for Obama. This is a 109 year-old woman whose father was a slave.

3) Corbett arrives in the 'burg tonight!

4) I am working from home today, to the beautiful sounds of Etta James.

5) Last night was emotional for me, I am not sure why. First the Obamapalooza half-hour made me teery-eyed by the end of it. Then, I got sucked into Deal or No Deal (I hate myself for admitting this), and then nearly cried at the end when the woman won a million dollars (you really had to see it, I wasn't just crazy).

Monday, October 27, 2008

Catch 22

Ever since the battle over gay marriage began in California this year, I've been following the polls and getting updates from my mom and sister about how the campaigns are being run there. I'm sure some of you have seen the ads: in one, a little girl comes home from school and tells her horrified mommy, "today I learned that a prince can marry a prince and I can marry a girl." Another ad features a Pepperdine law professor warning that churches will be forced to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies or be sued for discrimination. Several others feature young urban hipsters in cute San Francisco settings saying that they "love their gay friends" but don't agree with gay marriage. "Why does it have to be about hate?" they ask. "I just have a different opinion."

Then today I read an L.A. Times article about the conspicuous absence of actual gay people from the Prop. 8 ads, even in the ads that oppose the measure. Someone in the No on 8 campaign explained that, "from all the knowledge that we have and research that we have, [those] are not the best images to move people." He also confessed that depicting children in the pro-gay ads is equally unappealing to viewers. The overall message is stomach-turning, and only confirms how deep the roots of homophobia still run today.

For my part, I was raised to hate gay people. My father was every sort of bigot imaginable, but gays earned the lion's share of his disgust, and he made no secret of it whenever they came up in conversation. As a result, I unquestioningly shared his views. I remember the first time I ever saw two men holding hands: I was ten or so, and I remember feeling total revulsion swell up inside of me, almost physically, at the sight of them. It's a knee-jerk reaction that I still sometimes experience when I see two men kiss on TV, or when I hear a particularly flamboyant gay man talk, or when I hear my own voice on an answering machine. I get uncomfortable, and each time it happens I'm only reminded of how deep-seated and unshakable social hatreds can be. (This is related to the fact that most gay men I know will only date "straight-acting" guys, probably due to their own internalized homophobia).

It seems that such feelings, held either openly or subconsciously by many Americans, are what lie at the true heart of the marriage debate, and that "marriage" itself is only secondary. It would explain how conservative groups are able to win over voters with posters that simply show two men kissing: the disgust elicited by such images does more work then their campaign could possibly achieve with words. It would also explain Focus on the Family's attempt to terrify Americans by predicting that an Obama presidency would not only legalize gay marriage everywhere, but would force the Boy Scouts to "hire homosexual scoutmasters and allow them to sleep in tents with young boys." And it now explains the apparent exclusion of gays from the gay rights movement. It seems as if Proposition 8 is no longer about marriage, or even civil rights. It has become a fight for the legitimation of hatred. My question is: How can gays win when their very presence is deemed detrimental to their own cause?

"Don't boo, just vote"

While at a rally in Pittsburgh today, Obama was talking about McCain's voting with Bush on all of his economic policies, and there was a light roar of "boos" in the audience. Obama's response: "Don't boo, just vote!"

Amen.

As all things Sedaris...

This is a must read, as is anything by David Sedaris:

Undecided

It's from the most recent issue of the New Yorker. The last two lines are the best.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Sigh

Okay, so just in on CNN, McCain about Obama:

"We talked about nuclear power, well it has to be safe, environmental, blah blah blah." [crowd cheers]

3-mile island anyone? Chernobyl? Yes, nuclear power is safe and can be one of the more environmentally sound than other sources of power. But to shrug off the environment like that, it bothers me. Just nine more days and we'll be free of this!

Saturday, October 25, 2008

If it weren't so close to the election



I would so buy this if we didn't have like, ten days left:

Monday, October 20, 2008

McCain's Ball and Chain

I'm sure by now most of you have heard the latest horror to emerge from McCain's mouth, following his stunningly ignorant dismissal of the "health" of mothers during the last debate (see Melinda's post here). Now he is proudly touting Sarah Palin as the perfect woman, the anti-feminist:
"As a cold political calculation, I could not be more pleased. She has excited and energized our base. She is a direct counterpoint to the liberal feminist agenda in America."

That's right, shame on you liberal feminists and your twisted "agenda": expecting equal pay, desiring control over your own bodies, demanding social and legal equality, and fighting for the freedom to maintain both a career and a family. Take some advice from Mrs. Todd Palin and learn what it means to be a real woman:


Apparently, McCain is too stupid to realize that Palin owes her entire political career to the "liberal feminists" he so despises. It's alarming that someone so close to attaining the highest office in this country has no idea what feminism means. Then again, only someone this contemptuous of women would have chosen a female running mate not for her experience, not for her intellect, not for her capacity as an adviser, but merely as a "cold political calculation." In other words, a Vice-First Lady. A White-Housewife.

WV lost votes

So actual voting fraud is happening in West Virginia already. According to this, there are at least three people, and according to this six people have seen their votes for Obama be switched to a McCain vote. This is why I am opposed to electronic voting machines. As a programmer, I know how easy it is to write software that does one thing and say another. Honestly, even if the screens say it's voting for Obama, how do you even know?

The best is that the officials working at the election site are blaming the voters. "They don't realize that it sometimes takes a few seconds to register you touched the screen, and if you hit it twice, it cancels the vote." (And as a punishment, votes for the other guy.) "Touch the screen softer/harder, that'll make it work." (What!?)

You know that the Republicans would be all up in arms if this were happening the other way around. The Dems will not say anything, I fear, even though there is a slim chance they could carry West Virginia. Although it is the Republican M.O., if our guy doesn't win this election, I am going to call foul play. Seriously

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Colin Powell

I'm sure you've all heard about Colin Powell endorsing Barack Obama. My favorite part of his interview on Meet the Press was when he said:

I'm also troubled by, not what Senator McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said such things as, "Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim." Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he's a Christian. He's always been a Christian. But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer's no, that's not America.

It's nice to hear a well-respected republican say that. Even McCain has not said this, as far as I've heard. Of course, I may be wrong so point it out to me if you have a news article/clip that shows my error.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Real Virginia

I won't go into my tirade about the "pro-America" comments as of late. I'll just stick with this: McCain aide says he's strong in 'real' Virginia.

I guess this area, "Hampton Roads," in "Real Virginia." I feel honored to live in real Virginia, but (and I know this is not an accurate measure) if bumper stickers and yard signs are anything to go by, McCain ain't gettin' the 'burg!

Friday, October 17, 2008

Rainy day

So the week started off sunny and I was in a very happy mood (for some unknown reason). Now it's gloomy and rainy, but it's Friday, and I'm still in a fairly good mood.

1) I sent out all my job applications. Now I get to wait and fret and worry about this for four months, as these have been sent out quite early.

2) My last make-up class for all the lectures I'm missing this semester is in seven minutes, and that means that we'll only have two classes a week from now on, except when I'm out of town and we have one or none.

3) A professor from Wash U is giving a colloquium here today, and he gives great lectures. I've already said hi to him, and it is a little surreal seeing him here.

4) It's the weekend, and although I have to prepare my talk for Bonn (I leave on Tuesday), I love not having to come to campus. (I should have worked from home on Monday and Tuesday, when we had fall break.)

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Well, he's not Bush...

But he is the next best thing:

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Broken record

Seriously, McCain does not answer questions during these debates! He just repeats the same things over and over.

When asked to clarify and give more specific answers, he just stutters and freaks out. Now, Obama is just as bad at times, but he at least answers the questions!

Update:

Okay, so McCain says that Sarah Palin understands issues with regards to special needs children and will fight for help for those with special needs. Obama points out that this costs money, and couldn't happen with an across the board spending freeze. McCain's response: "Why does Senator Obama always talk about spending?"

Um, because it costs money to run a country?

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Sunny day

I'm in a very good mood this morning, and I am not sure why. There was nothing too different, although I did go to the vet briefly to get Dante his bordatella shot and fecal test (for his boarding next week when I go to Bonn). I didn't get much sleep, because I was up late watching Lost, to make sure I keep up with Corbett (we are just starting Season three). Although, I must say that I think I am better off in the morning with less sleep.

Part of me is thrilled about the election. It's like Christmas: The month before is nothing but psychotic anticipation, only to be either overyjoyed or extremely disappointed come the actual day. I have taken to having CNN on the TV whenever I am home, just so that I can hear Wolf Blitzer or Anderson Cooper repeat over and over again the same news. (Incidentally, I know they don't expect the viewers to be watching continuously over the course of an hour, but to describe something as "breaking news" and "just happening now" four times within the hour is somewhat obnoxious. I am not saying anything that people don't already know.)

I've also finished Lesson 16 of my German CD's. There are three levels of this, with 30 lessons each, and I'm more than half done the first level. This means that I can confidently say, "Ich möchte jetzt ein bier bei Ihnen trinken," which means, "I would like to drink a beer now at your place." This is a sentence that clearly would come in handy all the time.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Fair and Balanced

In bitter retaliation to Sonya's questionable casting choices for the film adaptation of her life, here are some better suggestions, provided by a broad panel of impartial Hollywood film producers:

Corbett (Brad Pitt - 15 years ago, obviously)

Christopher (Tom Cruise)

Dante (Uno the Prize-Winning Beagle)
Sonya (Amber from Clueless)
Chris (That Dude from the British Office)

Jake (Jabba the Mutt)

Ramona (Elwood the Toxic Chihuahua)

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Fireside Chats

After watching the Daily Show that aired Tuesday night, I have done was Sarah Vowell (the guest that night) suggested and looked up FDR's old "Fireside Chats" that he would read to Americans on the radio. I have read a couple, and I wish he could be our president.

In these chats, he explains, in just enough detail (not too much to confuse the average person, but enough to show that he knows we're not all idiots) what is going on. He makes no claims like "Everyone is doing better now!" but instead says things like, "On average things are better, but for some areas it's not better at all and others it is quite a bit better." That's honesty for you.

I think about how McCain said during the debate the other night that we could work on everything all at once (when Brokaw had asked him to prioritize Energy, Entitlement reform, and health care), essentially implying that all of our problems could be fixed during the first year he was in office. He didn't answer the question at all.

And while Obama is great at avoiding answering questions, he made it very clear that these things have different priority, but he said it in a way where (I think) it was clear that they could still be worked on simultaneously. Obama has a way of speaking that honestly reminds me of these Fireside Chats: Clear, honest (mostly), and hopeful.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Seriously, now...

I have to say that my "outer-office" mates are rather bothersome. One in particular actually. See, the way the offices here are, at least on the third floor, are as follows. There is an outer office for graduate students (usually three), and an inner office for post-docs and faculty. Being in an inner office, I like having both the outside door and my door open when I'm here, so that people know that I'm around. This one grad student has never gotten it through his head (though I've told him numerous times) that I like it this way. It is not like the hallway is at all noisy, but for some reason he always closes the door. I don't want to deal with someone knocking on the outer door and forcing me to go open it (since it is usually locked), when they just could walk right in.

My election drug

It really is a drug. I had to watch the debate last night and here is a NY Times article which dissects what they said.

Moral of the story: Neither candidate was completely honest with what they were saying (of course), but in terms of facts, Obama clearly won.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

What I love and fear...

Two reasons I love Sarah Palin (direct quotes):

"What I think Americans at the end of the day are going to be able to go back and look at track records and see who's more apt to be talking about solutions and wishing for and hoping for solutions for some opportunity to change, and who's actually done it."

and

“We see America as the greatest force for good in this world. If we can be that beacon of light and hope for others who seek freedom and democracy and can live in a country that would allow intolerance in the equal rights that again our military men and women fight for and die for for all of us.”

These make my head hurt, and while I enjoy these comments, it worries me that she could actually get elected to the second highest office in the country.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Go to Italy, and this happens...

Corbett has had to deal with a big pain: My car apparently got broken into the other day in New York while I was here in Trento. Only the back right small window was broken (the smallest window on the car), and the trunk lock was destroyed (apparently they were trying to open it). I imagine when they opened the back door, the alarm went off and they ran. Sigh.

So yeah, I'm having a great time in Italy!