Soundtrack: Deftones, "My Own Summer"
Mood: Fretful
The Iowa caucus and Bush's SotU address have got me thinking. I live in California - SF Bay Area, a fetid breeding ground of liberal pinko creeps like me.
Out here, it's easy to be critical of George W. and his cronies. It's easy to demonstrate against the Iraq bullshit. It's easy to have hairsplitting arguments about Dean vs. Clark vs. Kerry.
It's easy to believe that there's no way the sonofabitch is going to get elected again.
But every now and again, on a day like today, it occurs to me that I live in a place very unlike the rest of this country. In the rest of this country, the President's diversionary tactics and militant bluster are admired. In the rest of this country, everyone watches TV and believes what they see on the news without double-checking it against two or three other sources. In the rest of this country, people believe that the words "electability" and "terrorist threat" have meaning. Economic policy? Whatever. PATRIOT Act? Makes us safer! Foreign policy? Fuck the foreigners!
So what happens when the rest of this country cements the Republican autocracy in November? What's a government-fearing patriot to do?
Flight or renewed activism?
If flight, where to?
If activism, with what hope?
Mood: Fretful
The Iowa caucus and Bush's SotU address have got me thinking. I live in California - SF Bay Area, a fetid breeding ground of liberal pinko creeps like me.
Out here, it's easy to be critical of George W. and his cronies. It's easy to demonstrate against the Iraq bullshit. It's easy to have hairsplitting arguments about Dean vs. Clark vs. Kerry.
It's easy to believe that there's no way the sonofabitch is going to get elected again.
But every now and again, on a day like today, it occurs to me that I live in a place very unlike the rest of this country. In the rest of this country, the President's diversionary tactics and militant bluster are admired. In the rest of this country, everyone watches TV and believes what they see on the news without double-checking it against two or three other sources. In the rest of this country, people believe that the words "electability" and "terrorist threat" have meaning. Economic policy? Whatever. PATRIOT Act? Makes us safer! Foreign policy? Fuck the foreigners!
So what happens when the rest of this country cements the Republican autocracy in November? What's a government-fearing patriot to do?
Flight or renewed activism?
If flight, where to?
If activism, with what hope?
hey - i am in the south and even here i can find compatriots who know that the w is a plague on all of our houses. sure, there are people who believe in bush. obviously we have military believers as well. BUT i come from a military family (of liberals) and my roommate from a conservative military family and BOTH agree that george is totally cracked out. there is hope yet.
we just have to work hard to make sure if the worst - reelection - happens that we keep a keen eye on our individual liberties. i was just saying that i've been way to politically passive lately, and this is an bit of inspiration.
sorry to rant as a new visitor, but you really got me thinking. so other than that, just hi.