Rascism and a White Girl

Been given to thinking about the question of racism lately... seems to be on a lot of minds lately, can't imagine why;) I've always thought of myself as 'colorblind' and probably am more than some, having grown up in Southern California in a land of no obvious majority. I have come to see that 'isms' come more from the perspective of 'what is the norm.' Now living in a state that is predominantly white, I notice race or at least skin color at lot more. However, this has not lead me to believe that I am more racist.

But, when it is drawn to my attention, I realize that I suffer from a sort of silent entitlement that I am mostly unaware of. For example, I have often invoked strangely colored people when trying to make a point - "I don't care if he's black, white or purple." It never occurred to me that only a white person would use such a phrase... that it minimizes the importance of race because race may be unimportant to me... I'm not discriminated against because of my race. That never occurred to me.

On the other hand, I have been discriminated against because of my gender. Back to the idea of 'norm.' Males have been gifted with this majority position because of our culture. So, when listening to Chris Rock point out that he doesn't have the luxury of being crappy at his job because to be recognized as a professional while being black means that you have to be twice as good.... well, I can identify with that. Remember all those cracks about Hillary Clinton's appearance? yeah.

So back to culture. In the end, that's what it's all about isn't it? We live in a culture that defines the majority in a certain way - and that puts everyone else in the minority and subjects them to discrimination. Skin color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender - all these things are used to marginalize those that the dominate group wishes to keep at bay. So is there such a thing as race? I think I agree with Edward James Olmos - that there is only one race. It's the human race. Everything else is just the efforts of one CULTURE to dominate another. Think I'll just work at being human....

Greener?

According to Adharanand Finn in the Guardian, one needs to use the ceramic cup over 1,000 times to outdo the polystyrene cup, and even more compared to paper.

It may not sound very plausible - but on closer inspection the arguments seem to add up. Firstly, ceramic cups use more energy in their production. Second, there is all the hot water and washing-up liquid used when you wash up your mug. Third there's the environmental consequences of distributing ceramic mugs - because they are bigger and heavier than polystyrene cups, which can be tightly stacked, you are looking at more ship and lorry journeys, using more fuel. And, finally, polystyrene cups can be more easily recycled.

Except that polystyrene cups are rarely recycled, they mostly go to landfill, often after being carelessly thrown onto the street. And picking them up and disposing of them is an externality to the company that sold you the coffee, usually paid for by the taxpayer, whereas washing the mug is a producer responsibility. So hang on to your ceramic or stainless steel mug and in three or four years you will have made a difference. ::Guardian

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It could happen to you

I began to think.

It started out innocently enough. I began to think at parties now and then-- to loosen up.

Inevitably, though, one thought led to another, and soon I was more than just a social thinker. I began to think alone -- "to relax," I told
myself-- but I knew it wasn't true.

Thinking became more and more important to me, and finally I was thinking all the time. That was when things began to sour at home.

One evening I had turned off the TV and asked my wife about the meaning of life. She spent that night at her mother's.

I began to think on the job. I knew that thinking and employment don't mix, but I couldn't stop myself. I began to avoid friends at lunchtime so I could read Thoreau and Kafka. I would return to the office dizzied and confused, asking, "What is it exactly we are doing here?"

One day the boss called me in. He said, "Listen, I like you, and it hurts me to say this, but your thinking has become a real problem. If you don't stop thinking on the job, you'll have to find another job."

This gave me a lot to think about.

I came home early after my conversation with the boss.

"Honey," I confessed, "I've been thinking..."

"I know you've been thinking," she said, "and I want a divorce!"

"But Honey, surely it's not that serious."

"It is serious," she said, lower lip aquiver. "You think as much as college professors and college professors don't make any money, so if you keep on thinking, we won't have any money!"

"That's a faulty syllogism," I said impatiently.

She exploded in tears of rage and frustration, but I was in no mood to deal with the emotional drama.

"I'm going to the library," I snarled as I stomped out the door.

I headed for the library, in the mood for some Nietzsche.

I roared into the parking lot with NPR on the radio and ran up to the big glass doors...They didn't open. The library was closed.

To this day, I believe that a Higher Power was looking out for me that night.

Leaning on the unfeeling glass, whimpering for Zarathustra, a poster caught my eye. "Friend, is heavy thinking ruining your life?" it asked.

You probably recognize that line. It comes from the standard Thinker's Anonymous poster.

Which is why I am what I am today: a recovering thinker. I never miss a TA meeting.

At each meeting we watch a non-educational video; last week it was "Porky's." Then we share experiences about how we avoided thinking since the last meeting.

I still have my job, and things are a lot better at home.

Life just seemed...easier, somehow, as soon as I stopped thinking.

I think the road to recovery is nearly complete for me.

Today, I registered to vote as a REPUBLICAN, so Limbaugh can do my thinking for me.

A little optimism and 'practical wisdom'

This 20 minute talk got a standing ovation... worth the listen...

Compromise is for Wussies

"Bipartisanship is safe and effective, when used as directed. In the present circumstance, however—dire economic crisis, hardheaded Republicans, time running out—bipartisanship is doing more harm than good. President Obama and the Democratic majorities in Congress can no longer afford to let comity defeat common sense.

An additional 600,000 Americans lost their jobs last month. If the loyal opposition chooses to obstruct economic recovery, those who hold power are obliged to use it."

Does the US Government have what it takes to stimulate this economy? My personal opinion - President Obama should take the proposal back to it's original and mostly useful, if still woefully modest proportions - less all the Democratic pork (even if some of it might be stimulating) and all the ridiculous Republican tax breaks which make no sense at all. And he should make our lawmakers (term used loosely) swallow it whole. And if they cry like the spoiled little girls that they are... he should go on national TV (because that's where the voters are,) and make an appeal to the American public that's proportioned to their tiny attention span. He should say something like, "Folks, you elected me because you wanted change... a new direction. But your elected officials are not interested in changing anything and they are not going to let me do what you've asked me to do. So now you need to take it up with them, and I'll be here waiting to get things going when you do." At the end of the ad - should be a screen with contact info for each state, because most good Americans have no idea how to contact their Senators and Reps (most good Americans might be fuzzy on just who those people are...)

It would be interesting to see what would happen now, wouldn't it?

This is not an issue where the answer is to be found in the “middle.” This isn’t a matter of left, right and center; it’s a matter of yes or no: Does the federal government try to get the economy moving again, or not? This will sound ridiculous, but the fact is that the details of Obama’s plan don’t matter that much. If anything, many economists believe, the government needs to spend even more than Obama proposes.

Republicans are using this debate as a branding opportunity, positioning themselves as careful stewards of the public purse. This is absurd, given their record when they were in charge. It’s also cynical. They know that some kind of stimulus will get passed anyway. If it works, they’ll claim their principled intransigence made the plan better; if it doesn’t, they’ll say “I told you so.”

Obama and the Democrats have public opinion on their side and the wolf at the door. Republicans need to get out of the way—or get run over. "

Read all of the excellent article by Eugene Robinson (quoted material) here.
And for an even more heated argument... click here.

Refreshing... sort of

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After Dubya and his infamous, never ending refusal to take any responsibility for the horrific errors of his administration, I personally find it refreshing that this President can look into a camera and admit that he screwed up. However, we both know that the vultures circling his head are taking no end in delight in this... both to point it out as weakness and a character flaw not tolerable in a leader, and to show a lack of competancy. Come on, Obama, you can't afford this kind of shit.... Be sure. Do your GD homework and for Godsake, call the damn IRS on the carpet for not fleecing every dime out of the wealthy.... for they surely don't mind picking my pocket....