Mr. Shakes and I aren’t big celebrators of Valentine’s Day, but I’m feeling especially mushy today.
This is something I wrote for Mr. S at the beginning of our relationship, and perhaps the most amazing thing is that, years later, I feel this mad for him every single day. It’s the hugest crush I’ve ever had, and it’s never gone away. I love you, babe.
Renaissance
He is to me my most beloved book;
He is a song that makes me toss my hair.
He is a storm whose thunder rolled and shook,
Whose lightning charges surged and thrilled the air.
He is the cause of creases ‘round my eyes
As my expression slips into a smile.
He is the air that fuels contented sighs;
He is where tears and laughter reconcile.
He’s poetry and art and symphonies.
He’s ev’ry frame of each film I adore.
He’s contemplation and philosophies.
He’s strength and hope and love forevermore.
He’s ev’rything that stirs in me response;
He is my passion and my renaissance.
Happy Valentine’s Day.
PDA
14
Now More Than Ever’s Travis shares a link to a truly chilling indictment on George Bush’s America. Watch it. The F word (and not the 4-letter variety for which I have a particular affinity) is not hyperbole anymore, folks.
(And btw, Now More Than Ever has been added to the blogroll, which I meant to do on Friday. Apologies for the oversight, Travis.)
Gannongate (Again)
Check it out (from AMERICAblog’s John Aravosis):
BIG Gannon story coming tomorrowMy mouth is watering…
I'm wrapping it up now. It's big. Very big. I've just contacted him for comment. If he now decides to go public to pre-empt my story, well, you heard it here first. Stay tuned.
Bad News for Queer Hoosiers
Ugh. In Indiana, a state law banning gay marriage just isn’t enough:
A Senate committee advanced a resolution Tuesday that would begin the process of changing Indiana's constitution to ban gay marriage.
Opponents of the amendment said the proposal would do more than just ban gay marriage, saying it could prohibit future lawmakers from creating legal benefits for homosexuals.
Resolution sponsor Sen. Brandt Hershman, R-Wheatfield, said some rights could be granted to homosexuals by future legislatures. However, he said the amendment would prohibit granting a whole group of legal privileges similar to those of marriage — such as those included in the civil unions granted by other states.
Sen. Anita Bowser, D-Michigan City, questioned the need for the amendment since courts have already upheld a state law banning gay marriages. She said there was no need for such a change to the state's constitution.
"We are demeaning it. We are defiling it. We are abusing it," Bowser said.
After more than two hours of debate in the Senate's civil matters committee, lawmakers voted 7-4 to send the resolution to the full Senate for consideration.
If the resolution passes the General Assembly this year, it would have to be approved by the Legislature during either 2007 or 2008 to appear on the November 2008 ballot for a statewide
referendum.
I just emailed every Democratic State Senator in Indiana:
Dear Democratic Indiana State Senators:
I am writing to you in regard to the resolution that has been introduced that would ban gay marriage. Please withhold your support for this resolution.
Indiana already has in place a measure banning gay marriage; the new resolution would go much further in codifying discrimination into the Indiana State Constitution by prohibiting many of the other legal rights afforded same-sex couples. Not only does this undermine the very principles of equality that are integral to the great American Democracy, but it will also be bad for Indiana's already struggling economy, as our businesses would not be competitive with those who are free to extend partner benefits to potential and current employees.
It is enough of an injustice that we do not even allow civil unions as an option to gay and lesbian Hoosiers, but to act punitively to take away family benefits from employees of major employers such as Indiana University is beyond the pale.
For your consideration, I am not a gay person, nor do I have any gay family members or friends who are employed by an Indiana business that would be affected by this decision. I am simply a voter who believes in the principle of equality for all citizens, as the US Constitution is intended to ensure.
I am extremely concerned about the escalating attacks on the rights of gays and lesbians throughout this country, and I beg of you to please try to halt the tide of prejudice we're seeing in this state. Please vote against this biased and hateful legislation and consider introducing legislation that will repeal the existing ban, replacing it with such that would at minimum guarantee the opportunity for gays and lesbians in Indiana to find the same security and happiness that my husband and I are afforded through civil unions.
I appreciate your giving me your time and the chance to express my views.
I sent a special note of thanks to Senator Bowser for publicly speaking out against the amendment. I will also be emailing Evan Bayh and my Representative, who happens to be one of only a couple Democratic Reps in the entire state. Sigh.
Red State Values: Love Jesus, Ignore His Message, Hate Everyone Who’s Not Like You.
Butchered-Up Security
Frickin’ awesome:
NEWARK, N.J. - A security screener at Newark Liberty International Airport failed to spot a butcher knife in a passenger's pocketbook and was removed from the post for retraining, officials said.Okay, I’m going to go ahead and skip over the oddity of carrying a butcher knife on a blind date, no less the perhaps even greater peculiarity of having forgotten it was in there, because although that’s some bizarre shit, it’s not really the point of this story.
Katrina Bell, 27, had cleared security and was waiting with her sister to board a flight on Saturday morning when she discovered she was carrying a knife.
Bell had put the knife in her bag "just in case" before going on a blind date earlier that week, her sister and travel companion, Tikisha Bell Gowens, 30, said in The Sunday Star-Ledger of Newark.
The North Carolina women immediately told airport personnel, who summoned police and officials of the Transportation Security Administration, which employs the screeners.Remedial training? No. Unacceptable. That idiot should have been canned on the spot. Why is it that no one, in even the far reaches, the lowest echelons, of this administration, seems to be held accountable for anything anymore?
The women were not charged.
The screener was removed from the checkpoint and will undergo remedial training, TSA spokeswoman Ann Davis said.
I suppose the only thing worth losing one's job over these days is a grievous lapse in judgment like putting a Kerry bumper sticker on your car.
On Saturday, officials asked Bell to go through security again with the knife in her pocketbook. It was discovered during the second check.
So the remedial training will really help, because you can train someone right out of laziness and indifference.
"Suppose someone else had this knife and their motive was to hijack the plane?" Bell Gowens said. "Come on, now. We had a butcher knife. How do you miss that? How many years do you need to get this right?"Oh, Ms. Bell Gowens, I certainly hope you’re not intending to impugn the integrity of the Transportation Security Administration.
Election Reform
Via Looking at the Stars, we find out Senators Hillary Clinton and Barbara Boxer are co-sponsoring and election reform bill called the Count Every Vote Act of 2005, which will:
* Provide a verified paper ballot for every vote cast in electronic voting machines.As Linnet says, “I've criticized Senator Clinton a lot on this blog, so it's only fair to point out when she's doing something that's not only good but vitally necessary.” Ditto for me. This is legislation that should, by all rights, receive biparisan support. If it doesn’t, the excuses from the GOP should be amusing.
* Set a uniform standard for provisional ballots, so that every qualified voter within the state will know their votes are treated equally and will be counted.
* Require the Federal Election Assistance Commission to issue standards that ensure uniform access to voting machines and election personnel in every community. It's outrageous that some people in predominantly minority communities had to wait up to 10 hours to vote, while people in other communities often voted in minutes!
Well done, Senators Boxer and Clinton. You’re the 21st Century Suffragettes.
Why?
Fixer’s got an excellent post today (here to comment) that dovetails nicely with my post about the capitulation of the media:
Why? I ask the same question all the time. It’s not The Fixer’s imagination; I’ve seen it, too—ostensibly "nonpartisan" journalists caught mouthing GOP talking points, suddenly averting their eyes, shifting in their chair, shaking their heads. Sometimes it’s even the partisan hacks that squirm with discomfort; remember Jon Stewart confronting Tucker Carlson? They do know they're wrong, that they're full of shit, and yet on they go, fidgety ventriloquists for an unseen but always-present master. It’s inexplicable. What could be worth such resolute submission? The scary thing is the impression they give that what’s happening is inevitable, like fighting for what’s right, for the truth, is a losing battle.[Sam Donaldson’s] on Little George today with the two resident idiots and pieces of furniture (Cokie "What-a-waste-of-a-good-looking-woman" Roberts and George "What-a-waste-of-my-good-air" Will) … Will and Roberts tut-tutted Sam at every turn. Sam was his old self and called it right. On Howard Dean, Sam told them that Dean was a breath of fresh air for the Dems, and the right choice for the job. The Wit twins, Half and Nit, basically blew it off, saying Dean was the choice of the 'fringe' and that the Democrats should come closer to the center … Sam, taking out his big brass ones for all to see, told them they were wrong. …
Thing is, and maybe I'm a good judge of body language (or maybe I just have my tinfoil hat on) that Half and Nit knew Sam was right. They know how wrong they are, how wrong the crap they're spewing really is. You could see it in Sam's eyes too, looking the two of them over in disgust as if to say, 'what the fuck happened to you two?'It's the fucking 600lb. gorilla. These once-reputable journalists know they are mouthing Republican Talking Points. They know what they are saying is outright wrong, know that they are going against every ethical principle they were taught in J-school, and they can't look a principled professional in the eye when he calls them on it.
Thing that bugs me is, why?
Don't tell me these people don't see this nation going down the tubes. What could be worth the silence? What do they stand to gain by not pointing out the inconsistencies in Bush policy and its public statements? When we answer that question, we will know why the once-free press has allowed us to travel down the road toward Fascist dictatorship.Fucking right we will.
And then we will know whom to hang when we storm the gates.
Friday Blogrollin’ (Early Sunday Morning Edition)
Better late than never…
First up: A Mockingbird’s Medley, who, it should be noted, I intended to blogroll even before I was given a great plug.
Second (and final) stop this week: Rox Populi. I particularly liked Rox’s smackdown of Yglesias’ assertion that woman aren’t as funny as men, including the reminder than woman don’t blog as well as men, either. Which is of course why the comedian who most regularly shows up on blogrolls is...Margaret Cho.
Truth: The Great Liberal Conspiracy
Recently, while browsing through referrals to Shakespeare’s Sister, and looking at links I didn’t recognize, I came across a recommendation for the site that left me quite bothered. The recommendation itself, for which I am humbly grateful, was actually quite generous and lovely. What gave me pause, however, was that this blog was identified in part as promoting “the latest conspiracy theories on the Bush Administration” using information that is “interesting though usually not confirmable in its entirety.”
To be clear, I don’t believe the author of this recommendation was slighting the blog in any way, but was instead reflecting a very common perception about a great many liberal bloggers. As I thought about this assessment of Shakespeare’s Sister, I was admittedly perplexed; I don’t particularly feel like a conspiracy theorist, as I am loathe to rely solely on rumor or speculation, despite the fact that blogging (especially on a scale as small as mine) requires no real journalistic ethics. My sources are not anonymous or mysterious; I have no access to cloaked informants or insider information. I use news as reported by major, respected newspapers, the AP, Reuters—if this can be dismissed as unverifiable, I can’t imagine what is required to establish the veracity of reported information.
I don’t feel obligated to defend the work done at Shakespeare’s Sister, however, as much as I do to point out the reason why so many liberal bloggers are pegged as conspiracy theorists. The mainstream media is doing such a piss poor job that it makes anyone who reports on the follies of the administration seem like a conspiracy theorist by comparison.
The Bush Administration has repeatedly demonstrated a contempt for the truth when it gets in the way of promoting their ideologically-driven policies. That is a statement of fact. A look at FactCheck.org, a “nonpartisan, nonprofit, ‘consumer advocate’ for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics,” reveals an undeniable willingness to disseminate misinformation as a means to an end. On Tax Cuts, Education Reform, Social Security—all key policies of the Bush Administration—honesty is a readily expendable commodity. Indeed, their own “playbook” for promoting Social Security included the following passage:
The campaign will use Bush's campaign-honed techniques of mass repetition, never deviating from the script and using the politics of fear to build support -- contending that a Social Security financial crisis is imminent when even Republican figures show it is decades away. (p33)Such disingenuous politicking is not, unfortunately, exclusive to the Bush Administration. Policy-makers on both the Left and the Right have utilized similar underhanded tactics before, and they will no doubt do so again. What makes the Bush Administration unique is their shameless insistence on partisanship from an ostensibly objective media—undermining the credibility of any media outlet that does not strictly adhere to the party line with charges of liberal bias. The media’s unprecedented complicity with this unreasonable (and undemocratic) expectation has allowed the GOP to use a strategy of lies to promote their policies unfettered.
The Bush Administration also has no compunction about utilizing propaganda to advance their agenda. This is also a statement of fact. The Government Accountability Office has, by request of Democrats, investigated multiple instances of media manipulation, including bogus TV news segments created by the administration to peddle both the new Medicare law and the administration’s education program, a study rating individual journalists on their “favorability” to Republican education policies, and the payment to journalist Armstrong Williams to promote “No Child Left Behind.” Journalists Maggie Gallagher and Michael McManus were also paid to promote the President’s marriage initiative.
The recent revelations about Jeff Gannon/J.D. Guckert, a White House Press Corps reporter with dubious credentials and a checkered past, who received his pass under a false name, was regularly called upon by Scott McClellan to ask the President partisan questions (thereby reducing opportunities for objective—or tough—questions that might have come from unplanted journalists), and was likely given an internal CIA memo revealing the name of operative Valerie Plame, are also indicative of the White House’s role in attempting to further propagandize the media.
Yet connecting these dots is relegated to the realm of conspiracy theory, as the mainstream media seems reluctant to do so. What such judgments ignore, however, is the fact that the media have every incentive to avoid connecting these dots, as it shines quite an unflattering light on their collusion in withholding the truth about this administration’s unethical practices from the American people.
Conspiracies are, by their definition, covert, and so perhaps by their surrender to the administration’s wishes of unquestioning compliance, the media have made many of the Bush gang’s machinations conspiracies. They have also made themselves useful tools in a far-reaching propaganda campaign; the reluctance to comment on the accuracy of any of the administration’s claims shows no less a disdain for the truth than those who made the fallacious claims in the first place. Propaganda works best, after all, when it comes under the guise of objectivity, and commandeering the perceived objectivity of the media through intimidation was an integral part of the administration’s strategy. Quietly and slowly relinquishing that objectivity was demonstrative of the media’s acquiescence to fulfilling the role of covert propagandists, and instigated both the general mistrust of any media source and the phenomenon of relegating truth-seekers to the realm of conspiracy theorists.
There was a time when pointing out blatantly obvious political maneuvering would not have warranted charges of being a conspiracy theorist. We used to have a healthy mistrust of our government; we assumed that the flaws of humankind weren’t checked at the doorways of the White House and the Pentagon. When the shit hit the fan, we assumed that the people involved might do less than ethical things in the pursuit of self-preservation. Now to suggest such a thing is to be deemed a paranoiac. It is as though we have been asked, and, inexplicably, collectively agreed, to rid ourselves of common sense and our very understanding of human nature.
Such willful ignorance, such readiness to suppress our instincts and abilities for critical thought, such easy compliance with the suggestions that we should obediently believe what we the administration tells us about themselves and denounce those who don’t as traitors…these are not the healthy attributes of a genuine democracy, and they are not indicators of freedom.
If I am a conspiracy theorist, if my sources are perceived as unreliable, it is the fault of a cowed and impotent media and a manipulative, deceitful administration who care little for what’s right if it impinges upon what they want—an administration who couldn’t be happier that someone like me is seen as little more than a wacky conspiracy theorist with unconfirmable information.
This is a but a symptom of a larger disease. Left indefinitely untreated, it will eventually mean the death of the American Democracy.
Happy Darwin Day
Feb. 12 is Darwin Day, in honor of Charles Darwin’s birthday. 
I don’t know about you, but I think that symbol has a really intelligent design.
(rim shot)
You Catch More Flies with Honey...
Rigorous Intuition (link via Wolcott) has an interesting take on Gannongate:
The Gannon scandal may not be that he was undeserving of accreditation, or a shameless cheerleader, or even a prostitute. (It ain't for nothing that members of the press are called "media whores.") The scandal may be that "Jeff Gannon" was a honey pot: a lure, floated in the press pool by the White House to compromise persons of influence. Something Gannon, or rather Jim Guckert, certainly was not.Read the whole post; very interesting stuff. History does, indeed, repeat itself.
Terror Warnings
Digby and Seeing the Forest have excellent posts on how calling Liberals traitors just isn’t good enough anymore. Now we’re terrorists.
What I find interesting about this is that we are defined thusly because of our alleged goal of “the destruction of the country and society that vanquished its dreams fifteen years ago” (according to Nelson Ascher, from Digby’s post) or, as PETA is identified (by the Heritage Foundation’s TownHall, in Seeing the Forest’s post), the destruction of property in pursuit of a goal.
One might reasonably argue that Conservatives who are interested in blurring the line separating church and state, or enacting tax laws that are slowly eroding the middle class, or undermining social programs which provide a safety net to all Americans, are actually doing more to destruct the country than, say, legalizing gay marriage would. One might also reasonably question why PETA is singled out as a terrorist organization as a result of tactics such as property damage, but pro-life groups that have bombed abortion clinics and murdered doctors who perform abortions are not.
I’m not arguing that destruction of property is an acceptable strategy; personally, I find it objectionable that there are animal-rights activists who throw paint on people, even though I despise the wearing of fur as much as anyone. My point is simply that the double-standard is curious. Nothing new, though, is it?
I also question the wisdom of turning “terrorist” into a catch-all phrase invoked to denigrate anyone with whom one disagrees. Surely there is less to be gained by attempts to equate activists with the likes of Osama bin Laden than there is to be lost by desensitizing people to the term, thereby likely creating apathy toward the concept in its original definition, for which we should rightfully reserve some outrage.
Compassionate Consumerism
Pam has an excellent post up about the double-fucking American consumers are getting care of the Bush administration. They've limiting the ability to file class action lawsuits and are trying to limit malpractice awards as well. She brilliantly explains the problems with this legislation; check it out.
Dean's In
Howard Dean is officially the new chair of the DNC.
It's the ultimate Buy Blue opportunity:
Let's put our money where our mouths are.
(Code for form via Kos.)
Bleh
I seem to have Blogger's Block today.
Am working on something, though, which should be up tomorrow morning.
In the meantime, enjoy this picture of Dog Falls in the Scottish Highlands, which was taken not even halfway through what turned out to be a 20+ mile hike.
I wish I were there now, and if this picture really did justice to the beauty of the place, you would, too.
Friday Bookishness
On Wednesday, I asked if there was any interest in instituting a regular book recommendations feature, and it seems like there is, so I’ll make this a regular Friday feature unless or until we get sick of it.
My book recommendation for this week is Mark Hertsgaard’s The Eagle’s Shadow: Why America Fascinates and Infuriates the World. Not only an incredibly engaging and enjoyable read, this collection of stories from around the world is an important topic for those of us who think globally, who care about other cultures aside from our own. Knowing what others think about us is sometimes sad, sometimes scary, and sometimes very humbling. I highly encourage you to consider it.
Oh, and another one, because I can’t resist: Joshua Braff’s The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green. Just recently finished it; it’s so good. Funny, clever, well-written…I can’t really say enough about it. There are some books that, during the reading, around page 10 or so, I’ve realized I’m going to love them, and I’m going to be disappointed when they end, because I won’t be ready to let them go. This was one of those books.
(Joshua Braff, by the way, is Zach Braff’s brother. Zach was the one who wrote, directed, and starred in my favorite film of last year, Garden State. A couple of very talented brothers, these two.)
Since a bunch of people made recommendations just two days ago, I’ll include them here, in case anyone missed them. The dangerous thing about this, I’ve realized, is that the list of books I want to read will get even longer and even more impossible to ever complete. For a bookish thing like me, though, that’s a great problem to have.
Pam’s recommendations:
Partially read:
The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty/Kelley. This is a really thick one, kind of slow going in the beginning with the earlier parts of the family tree. I've just gotten to the part where Kelley speculates Barbara Bush (Chimpy's mom) was an unrealized lesbian.
Finished:
Will They Ever Trust Us Again: Letter from the War Zone/Moore. Soldiers and families write Michael Moore.
Anything But Straight/Besen. Exposes the pathetic and dangerous "ex-gay" movement.
On the Down Low/J.L. King. One man's perspective on black men that sleep with men and do not consider themselves gay, seeking and having relationships with women that they do not tell about it.
Beyond the Down Low/Boykin. (read King before Boykin, since the latter comments on the former). Book analyzes and criticizes King's theories and approach, and counters with how the black community is fostering homophobia by not allowing black men to come out.
Anxious to get started on:
Don't Think of an Elephant!/Lakoff. We've all heard about this one.
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?/Tatum. A psychologist explains the development of racial identity. 1998 Multicultural Book of the Year.
The End of Blackness: Returning the Souls of Black Folks to Their Rightful Owners/Dickerson. A challenge to the black community by the (black, female) author to stop obsessing about racism.
Don't Play in the Sun: One Woman's Journey Through the Color Complex/Golden. The biases based on skin color (colorism) within minority communities and the long lasting societal repercussions.
Gordon’s recommendations:
I recommend Jimmy Buffett's latest novel, A Salty Piece Of Land. His best yet.
For a truly obscure piece, try and find the late Ken Kesey's last work, A Sailor's Song. That guy musta put acid in his ink. Good read, tho'.
The Dark Wraith’s (noncommittal) recommendations:
Perhaps your reading circle will one day get around to some fun stuff like The Faerie Queene, or maybe something truly salacious like Chaucer's poetic translation, The Romaunt of the Rose. We take a shot at the Old English poem, Cædmon's Hymn.
Me4President recommended reading about Lincoln, Reginald Lewis, and Paul Wellstone to expand one’s mind, without giving us any bloody titles, but also amusingly noted that “Modern political and biographical works may be classifiable as fiction,” so we’ll forgive him.
Tami heartily recommends:
...all the "Thursday Next" books by Jasper Fforde. "The Eyre Affaire", "Lost in a Good Book", "The Well of Lost Plots", and "Something Rotten".
Pierce’s recommendations:
The best book I've read in the past year has been The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. It's told from the point of view of a 15 year old autistic boy. Fantastic book.
The best fantasy I've read in a while has been A Song of Fire and Ice series by George R.R. Martin. The good guys have bad habits while the bad guys are not always so bad (well, some of them are really pretty evil). The characters are more realistic than in normal fantasy, though. They each have their own motives and goals. You know how sometimes professional writers talk about how their characters start doing things seemingly of their own volition? This is one of the few times where I as a reader can truly see that happening. Aside from the obvious (Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, etc.), that's my suggestion.
and doesn’t recommend:
The worst book I've read in the past year (and I'm extremely disappointed in this one) is Philip Roth's The Plot Against America. The combination of Roth's ability to write sentences that are (no kidding) hundreds of words long and the complete cop out on the ending nearly made be quit reading it all together. A rare feat for someone whose favorite reading includes crappy fantasy and sci-fi.
Scott listed his own recommended reading here.
T. Rex recommended checking out his site for his reading list.
Please feel free to make more recommendations, too. Current reading, books you loved from childhood, books you haven’t read and want to solicit opinions on…it’s a book-lovin’ free-for-all!
Friday Cat Blogging
Handsome Jim hopes we never unpack this box.
Tildy guards our loafers from the Shoe Thieves.
The only time Livy sits still
long enough to take her
picture—when she’s eating.
CNN Needs More Doses of Aravosis!
AMERICAblog’s John Aravosis was on Aaron Brown’s show last night, talking about Gannongate. The video is here, and it’s awesome.
You know how when they put an alleged liberal on these shows, most of the time you’re cringing, or screaming at them to stop capitulating to rightwing talking points? Not this time! John totally does the business…and it doesn’t hurt that he can talk a thousand miles an hour! He got more into 5 minutes than just about anyone else could, I think.
Well done, John!
World Press Photo Awards 2004
Awesome stuff. (Link via 42.) My favorite is this one:
Sports action singles:
First place:
Bob Martin from the UK was covering the Paralympic Games for Sports Illustrated when he shot this image of the 200m freestyle heats.
Death of a Playwright
Arthur Miller, the brilliant playwright of Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, among others, has died.
Playwright Edward Albee said Miller had paid him a compliment, saying "that my plays were `necessary.' I will go one step further and say that Arthur's plays are `essential.'"You can’t really argue with that.
