Yes, I'm disappointed about the election results. And yes, I'm deeply concerned about a number of issues, human rights among them. I do take some consolation, tho, in the fact that my state went blue, and that Sen. Fiengold, Rep. Baldwin and Rep. Kind were reelected.
The way that I see it is this: Bush made it back into the White House with popular support. But this term will differ significantly from the last in several important aspects -- in ways that will make it a crucible for his ability as President. It will be more difficult to invoke 9/11 as an excuse for failure or a justification for difficulty; he now has three years of context behind him and is entering a term where terrorism, Afghanistan and Iraq are known factors, not surprises. It will be more difficult to blame problems on the previous administration, activist judges (assuming an appointment to SCOTUS) or Democratic opposition.
It's time for him to show and prove. This time he will stand or fall on his own merits -- at the very least, his personal accountability will carry more weight -- and we will see whether or not the faith placed in him was justified.
I, for one, will be watching him and his administration very closely for the next four years. If my fears are proved wrong, I will be more than happy to admit my mistake. I will be relieved to do so. But if those fears prove justified, I will be there to document and call him on it. Hard.
Contrary to how it might appear, I believe that the election just concluded ended with the best possible result. The fate of the current administration now lies in the hands of its own incompetence. I could think of no better place.
As far as the gay marriage issue goes, I can't say that the either the results or its influence were unexpected. In fact, I suspect that measures in support of it will be consistently defeated for years to come. Along with this I expect that religious-based support for government actions will grow, and vice-versa.
I do not consider this a bad thing.
This is not because I support either the opposition to gay marriage or the religious right -- or Christianity itself, for that matter. My criticism of the last is famously and blatantly vitriolic, even on theological grounds. But I think that no substantial gains will, or can, be made against it until it reaches a degree of extremity far in excess of its current state. Until and unless it becomes a clear, manifest threat to what America stood for, and still stands for in the abstract, I doubt that it will be assailable. What is needed is not a restriction of religion, but an inflation of it: until such time as it reaches the kind of influence that resulted in the Reformation.
An entity that is seen as beneficial cannot be vilified, nor can it be deposed.
As such, and with this in mind, I hereby give my best wishes to the radical fringe of the Christian right. It is my fervent hope that you achieve everything that you plan to achieve -- and in so doing, lay the groundwork for your own demise.
Oh, and a final, vociferous fuck you to all of the people posting in the CE boards lately stating that people are morons or should be ignored because they didn't vote the way you thought they should. You're no better than the people you claim to oppose.
The way that I see it is this: Bush made it back into the White House with popular support. But this term will differ significantly from the last in several important aspects -- in ways that will make it a crucible for his ability as President. It will be more difficult to invoke 9/11 as an excuse for failure or a justification for difficulty; he now has three years of context behind him and is entering a term where terrorism, Afghanistan and Iraq are known factors, not surprises. It will be more difficult to blame problems on the previous administration, activist judges (assuming an appointment to SCOTUS) or Democratic opposition.
It's time for him to show and prove. This time he will stand or fall on his own merits -- at the very least, his personal accountability will carry more weight -- and we will see whether or not the faith placed in him was justified.
I, for one, will be watching him and his administration very closely for the next four years. If my fears are proved wrong, I will be more than happy to admit my mistake. I will be relieved to do so. But if those fears prove justified, I will be there to document and call him on it. Hard.
Contrary to how it might appear, I believe that the election just concluded ended with the best possible result. The fate of the current administration now lies in the hands of its own incompetence. I could think of no better place.
As far as the gay marriage issue goes, I can't say that the either the results or its influence were unexpected. In fact, I suspect that measures in support of it will be consistently defeated for years to come. Along with this I expect that religious-based support for government actions will grow, and vice-versa.
I do not consider this a bad thing.
This is not because I support either the opposition to gay marriage or the religious right -- or Christianity itself, for that matter. My criticism of the last is famously and blatantly vitriolic, even on theological grounds. But I think that no substantial gains will, or can, be made against it until it reaches a degree of extremity far in excess of its current state. Until and unless it becomes a clear, manifest threat to what America stood for, and still stands for in the abstract, I doubt that it will be assailable. What is needed is not a restriction of religion, but an inflation of it: until such time as it reaches the kind of influence that resulted in the Reformation.
An entity that is seen as beneficial cannot be vilified, nor can it be deposed.
As such, and with this in mind, I hereby give my best wishes to the radical fringe of the Christian right. It is my fervent hope that you achieve everything that you plan to achieve -- and in so doing, lay the groundwork for your own demise.
Oh, and a final, vociferous fuck you to all of the people posting in the CE boards lately stating that people are morons or should be ignored because they didn't vote the way you thought they should. You're no better than the people you claim to oppose.
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Happy Birthday!
I don't know if you know but it is also bonfire night here in the UK so lots of people will be lighting fires, burning effigies and letting off fireworks on your birthday.