Keesha Patterson and her girlfriend, Rowan Ha, moments after Patterson proposed to her at President Barack Obama's headquarters in Chicago last night. Patterson is a Maryland resident, and just won the right to marry the person she loves.
[Via.]
Photo of the Day
Keesha Patterson and her girlfriend, Rowan Ha, moments after Patterson proposed to her at President Barack Obama's headquarters in Chicago last night. Patterson is a Maryland resident, and just won the right to marry the person she loves.
[Via.]
Also This
The one thing the GOP will learn from this election is to ixnay the aperay uffstay! Media must learn to MAKE THEM ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS.
— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) November 7, 2012
This idea really deserves its own post, but I am so tired my brain has slithered out my ear canal in search of a nap. So my tweet will have to suffice for now.
Headline of the Day
The article is here, if you'd like to read it, although I don't recommend it. Unless, of course, you are prepared to laugh at its absurdity. When Misty and I were talking about it earlier, she observed: "I refuse to believe that article isn't actually an Onion article in disguise. DOOOOOOMED! LOL!"
That would have been my favorite bit of conservative hyperbole, if only former SNL star and current dipfuck Victoria Jackson hadn't tweeted this last night:
America died.
— Victoria Jackson (@vicjackshow) November 7, 2012
RIP AMERICA!
An Observation
Iain and I were just talking about why we think Obama won the election.
We each proposed various theories, each of which were collectively analyzed and explored. Some were dismissed out of hand, after consideration. Some were assessed to have merit, although they seemed at best factors that had insubstantial influence.
There are, after all, precious few people who wouldn't have voted for their chosen candidate if zie'd been different on this issue or that issue. Truly single-issue voters are rare. Which is in no small part because so many social and economic issues are inextricably linked.
So what is the magic thing?
At last, I said to Iain: "I think President Obama won because more people thought he is the better person. I think that's why Bush won reelection in 2004, too, even though I disagreed with the consensus that time. It really seems to come down to who is perceived by the most people to be the more decent person."
"I think you're right about that," Iain agreed. "And this time, America picked the right guy."
And so I add another WIN to the list: Yesterday, US voters decided to reject a bully.
Sometimes, it's the not-nice guys who finish last.
Across the Nation, Around the World
Wang Chung suggests everybody have fun tonight, which is really just good advice.
#winning
WIN: President Barack Obama was reelected.
WIN: Relatedly, terrible plutocrat Mitt Romney lost.
WIN: Voters in Maryland, Maine, and Washington (projected) break a 32-state losing streak and legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote.
WIN: Voters in Minnesota vote down a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would have defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman.
WIN: The 113th Congress will have a record number of female senators: 20. Sixteen of them are Democrats; four are Republicans.
WIN: Elizabeth Warren (MA) is one of them. Elizabeth Warren won.
WIN: Mazie Hirono (HI) is also one of them. She is the first Asian American female senator!
WIN: Tammy Baldwin (WI) is also one of them, defeating popular Republican Tommy Thompson in the Wisconsin Senate race, making her both Wisconsin's first female senator and the first openly gay member of the US Senate. Said Baldwin: "I am well aware that I will have the honour to be Wisconsin's first woman US senator, and I am well aware that I will be the first openly gay member of the United States Senate, but I didn't run to make history. I ran to make a difference. But in choosing me to tackle those problems the people of Wisconsin have made history."
WIN: Claire McCaskill (MO) is also one of them, defeating the loathsome anti-choice rape apologist Todd Akin.
WIN: In Indiana, Democrat Joe Donnelly beat the loathsome anti-choice rape apologist Richard Mourdock in their race for the US Senate.
WIN: In Washington, Democrat Suzan DelBene beat the loathsome anti-choice rape apologist John Koster in their race for seat in the state congress.
WIN: In Illinois, Tammy Duckworth beat the loathsome anti-choice rape apologist Joe Walsh in their race for the US House of Representatives. Duckworth, who lost both legs serving in Iraq, is the first female war veteran with disabilities elected to the US Congress.
WIN: US voters chose women of color, women with disabilities, women who are gay, pro-choice women, and rejected men who minimize rape.
WIN: New Hampshire became the first state in the nation to have an all-female Congressional delegation: Two female senators and two female representatives. Their newly elected governor is also a woman.
WIN: Colorado and Washington voters legalized marijuana for recreational use. Massachusetts voters legalized marijuana for medical use.
WIN: A majority of US voters support legal abortion, and voted accordingly.
WIN: A majority of US voters rejected bigotry and reelected our African American President.
WIN: US voters rejected voter suppression efforts and often withstood long lines and shady disincentives to vote. vote. vote.
That is not a comprehensive list. And there were also some disappointments. Some state initiatives passed that are shitty. Indiana's new governor is Mike Pence, and we certainly aren't the only state who elected a gross conservative to a statehouse or Congress in a hard-won race.
But it was a big night. A big night for progress. A broad mandate.
I hope the President hears the roar of his progressive base. I hope he knows what a difference it made when he spoke out in favor of marriage equality. I hope he governs like a person who won because of people who expect more.
I hope we all muster the strength and sustain the will to urge him ever forward.
Quote of the Day
This country has more wealth than any nation, but that's not what makes us rich. We have the most powerful military in history, but that's not what makes us strong. ... What makes America exceptional are the bonds that hold together the most diverse nation on earth. ... America, I believe we can build on the progress we've made and continue to fight for new jobs and new opportunity and new security for the middle class. I believe we can keep the promise of our founders, the idea that if you're willing to work hard, it doesn't matter who you are or where you come from or what you look like or where you love. It doesn't matter whether you're black or white or Hispanic or Asian or Native American or young or old or rich or poor, abled, disabled, gay or straight, you can make it here in America if you're willing to try. I believe we can seize this future together because we are not as divided as our politics suggests. We're not as cynical as the pundits believe. We are greater than the sum of our individual ambitions, and we remain more than a collection of red states and blue states. We are and forever will be the United States of America.—Current and future United States President Barack Obama, in his victory speech last night, thoroughly repudiating conservative ideology, bigotry, and the politics of division.
A transcript of the entire speech is here.
Open Thread
Hosted by a collapsed soufflé.
Because now that all the adrenaline and anxiety of Election Day have drained from my body, and after only a few precious hours of sleep, I am a useless heap. Posting will be light today while I put myself together again.
Election Night Open Thread
I really struggled to decide what image to use for the Election Night thread. I considered doing one last Obama v. Romney image, or an image of someone casting a vote, or other things similarly predictable. But I really wanted something more meaningful.
And when I thought about what this election means to me, I realized that I wanted an image of what I want our future to be. So pictures of the man who is our current and I desperately hope future president interacting with children, the future of this nation, was what I chose.
My thanks to Jessica for the image.
This is it. Here we go.
Top Five
Here is your topic: Top Five Moments That Led to Your Engagement with Politics/Culture/Social Justice. Go!
Please feel welcome to share stories about why your Top Five picks are what they are, though a straight-up list is fine, too. Please refrain from negatively auditing other people's lists, because judgment discourages participation.
A Note
There is definitely other news in the world today besides the US election. I just can't write about any of it! That is because I am a jittery mass of head-numbing anxiety!
SOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!
Al and Franni Voted!
Al and Franni made it out to the polls this morning. Have you voted yet?#VoteMN #VoteNo twitter.com/alfranken/stat…
— Al Franken (@alfranken) November 6, 2012
[Image description: Senator Al Franken, a white older dark-haired man with glasses, and Franni Franken, a white older dark-haired woman with glasses, show off their voting stickers.]
Minnesota is one of the states in which people are voting on the civil rights of LGB USians today. (DON'T GET ME STARTED.) And Senator Al Franken and Franni Franken are firmly on the side of marriage equality. Yay!
Please consider this an open thread on the equality measures on the ballot in Maryland, Minnesota, Maine, and Washington. I know there is a lot of anxiety about how it's going to go in these states, and if you need to express it, or celebrate voting for equality, or talk about how you've helped GOTV in favor of equality, or any related things, here's a place to do it!
