New Exquisite Corpse

I've been intending to write this for some time and have simply not gotten around to it. Now I find myself shamed into it because my compatriots who have blogged this were thanked for doing a couple of days ago.

I have contributed to an on-line art format for about three years. I wrote somewhere below about it's sad demise. I still maintain a link to that site at the right, but I have not written about, nor provided a link to, that site's most valid successor, New Exquisite Corpse dot net. I am doing so now.

This site was created and is maintained by my online friend, Shae. I have a link to her blog, Shae's Place, at the right as well (and have added one to her New Exquisite Corpse site too).

We are currently about 30 members strong, but are looking for fresh blood (just a vial or two; not enough to turn you into a corpse). If you have a knack for digital art, a computer, email account, and software such as Photoshop (anything that will edit and create Jpeg files), why not take a peek. And if you are interested you should also check out the old site, An Exquisite Corpse, which though inactive still contains about 1,000 corpses (what we call this collaborative art form). I suggest this because our new site is in its infancy, but the old site can show you an exceedingly broad spectrum of the type of art we have collaborated on in the past.

Both old and new sites provide an in-depth explanation of the origin of Exquisite Corpses and why they carry that moniker. The history is interesting and quirky. I really hope to get a few takers here.

By the way, this is the latest output from the new site. I was player number two (from top to bottom). There are four players all-together:

Progressives aren't Progressive unless they are Progressive

I came home tonight to frozen pipes. I had planned on getting to this right away because I am really concerned about the topic on which I will write below, but I needed to take care of my water problems first. As it stands now, we still have no water, but we have called the city water department, and set up a blow dryer to spew its pitiful output on what I hope is the inlet pipe behind a vent in my crawl space.

But this is what I wanted to talk about:

I think we have some marvelous Democratic candidates currently running for the United States Presidency. I have this for one and this against another, and in my heart of hearts I would love to think of Dennis Kucinich the next time I hear Hail to the Chief played, but all in all, each of the remaining five candidates is real catch. Especially when compared to anyone running on the God's Old Party ticket.

The way I think about my decision in selecting our next Executive is based on their character, their stand on issues that matter (as opposed to those created by Karl Rove merely for the purpose of division and contention), and maybe lastly, on the way in which they break the mold. Of the three media-anointed "front runners," John Edwards most piques my interest based on these criteria. He is old-guard in that he is a white male. And my interest in him over Obama and Clinton is entirely divorced from that fact. If I felt all three were wholly equal, I would only then take into consideration race and sex.

However that is not to say that race and/or sex are not important barriers to break, especially when we have such an unprecedented opportunity. But let me clarify my thinking: I would not choose a candidate based on race or sex over a candidate I felt more qualified. I would, however, not exclude a candidate from my choice due to the impression that they were unelectable based on their race or sex.

This has to be couched in terms of "all else being equal." Qualifications should be paramount. But even qualifications are nuanced and open to discussion and interpretation. What I am getting at though, is the crap I continue to hear such as, "Well I have lots of respect for Senator Obama, but let's face it, America is not ready to vote for a black." And I listen to progressive talk radio and that is where I keep hearing this absolutely reprehensible line spoken by caller after caller. I am appalled by the number of racists in denial in our own ranks!

I haven't heard this argument so much in regard to Clinton and her sex, but the same goes for that. To say we shouldn't nominate a candidate based on electability, if the credentials in question are in regard to their qualifications, is a good argument and one to be considered. But to say we shouldn't nominate a candidate based on electability if the credentials are their race or sex is just simply wrong. And worst of all, I have heard this argument made by progressives.

Let's face it people; this is akin to the argument that bi-racial marriages are bad because of the way in which the children will be persecuted. To say that taking affirmative action against regressive social standards is wrong because the status quo will fight back hard is itself no better than being in lock-step with the bigots themselves.

I do not care if Barak Obama is electable based on his race or if Hillary Clinton is electable based on her sex. If we as progressives call for discouraging their candidacy simply because of the facts of their respective race and sex, then we are regressive, and not the progressives we claim to be. I call on my fellow progressives to disavow this kind of talk. How dare we call ourselves free thinkers and then turn on others who aren't in line with the status quo?

What a Cut-Up!

Now here's a story you don't read every day:

Plea deal for body-snatch ring boss

BY WILLIAM SHERMANDAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, January 16th 2008, 4:00 AM

The boss of a multimillion-dollar body-snatching ring will plead guilty to carving up hundreds of corpses at area funeral homes and illegally selling body parts, the Daily News has learned.

Michael Mastromarino - who earned millions of dollars through the ghoulish enterprise - agreed to the deal after lengthy negotiations with the Brooklyn district attorney's office. He will serve a minimum of 18 years in prison.

"He was facing life in prison," said Mastromarino's lawyer, Mario Gallucci, adding his jailed client will appear in court Tuesday to formalize the plea agreement.

As part of the deal, Mastromarino, 44, will cooperate with prosecutors in an ongoing probe of several companies that bought the stolen body parts and then sold them to more than 20,000 transplant recipients throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe. The transplants included bones, skin, arterial valves, ligaments and tendons.

The illegal enterprise ran for more than four years, ending in fall 2005 when The News detailed the operation and an ongoing probe by the Brooklyn district attorney's office. More than 1,400 corpses were illegally harvested. (Read more here...)

How would you like to find out you had one of these parts in you?

Waking Virgilio Cintron

If you liked Waking Ned Devine, you will love this story. All that's missing are the Irish accents and bonny green countryside.

Then I Can Die Happy

I wrote briefly about this as a comment on a friend's blog tonight. I was going to leave it at that (it's late and I'm tired), but I was lying in bed and more about this was going through my mind.

Barak Obama has not been my favorite candidate. Truth be known, I have had no favorite other than the very dark horse of Dennis Kucinich. And I have liked Kucinich because of our common ground. He believes in the punative measures I believe in. Measures that I believe should be exacted against the criminals who have held our constitution hostage for seven years now. And I have written about those beliefs freely here. And argued them with friends and family.

And if pushed to it, I will argue no differently today.

But in just the past handful of days I have begun to think that my beliefs just may be superfluous after all.

This is what I wrote in comment earlier tonight:

"I found myself today thinking of Mikhail Gorbachev. As far as I am concerned this man was a true hero of the late 20th century (far more responsible for the fall of the Soviet Union than Ronald Reagan).One of his greatest facets was his determination to change his society for the better - even at his own expense. That takes a great person.

"I have felt similarly about Obama to what (others like myself have said). But I have come to realize in just the past few days that just maybe we're seeing something greater than any of us hard lefters had hoped for. Just maybe we're seeing the beginnings of a truly new emergence of freedom. And just maybe that new freedom has more to do with a message of hope than it has to do with a detailed reckoning of the evils of the NeoCons' crimes. And just maybe we're becoming the ones who are superfluous.

"I'm not sure. But one thing I am sure of: if that is what is happening, I damn sure want to have the good grace to let my mightily held indignations go by the wayside as I watch the new hope ride into town."

To expand on that, I don't think this has anywhere near as much to do with Barak Obama as it has to do with The People. Hillary is already acusing Obama of being full of empty rhetoric. The NeoCon death machine is already planning the implementation of a vicious attack on Obama. (Ironically, this attack is going to focus ten times more on his supposed Muslim roots than on the color of his skin. The insidious viciousness of this lies in the false choice it attempts to lay before Obama's defenders: Do you assert that he is indeed not a Muslim, or do you rise up and emphatically declare the truth and promise of our Constitution that mandates that there shall be no religious test for any person seeking public office in the United States?)

But do you see? I cannot help but continue to couch this in an "us against them" paradigm. And I am beginning to see that those who will truly manage to rise above this and usher in the new age that restores - and even better yet, realizes - the promise of our democracy, will not be those who have fought the old fight, on the old battleground that is steeped in the traditional enmities of that old struggle. No, the victors will in fact not be victors. They will be winners. Not victorious vanquishors of foes of old, but inheritors of the promises of liberty fought for by our founders.

General George Washington led men to victory against King George in 1783. But we claim July 4th, 1776 as the birth of our nation, when the pen declared us victorious. Rhetoric is not empty. Rhetoric inspires. An inspired people rises above conflicts and sets their sights on horizons they clearly see. And that inspiration provides the strength and courage to turn vision into heritage.

I will gladly become superfluous. I finally understand why Barak Obama has likened our current body politic to the struggle of the 60's. He hasn't demeaned the struggle thereof. But that struggle, which continues today, is a struggle not destined to resolve itself in identifying a victor in terms of the day, but rather in birthing a new people, free of those struggles.

The Travel Continuum

Bonnie and I love traveling and meeting new people. Our lives consist of three stages along the travel continuum: 1) Planning our next trip, 2) Taking a trip, and 3) Biding our time until we can forecast having enough time and money saved up so we can start planning our next trip.

The third stage is the most difficult. Planning a trip is almost as much fun as taking a trip, and it lasts longer and costs less, so it can bring a lot of wanderlust satisfaction. But that in-between stage, when we are in no position to do more than thumb through atlases and travel books and sigh wistfully, often seems interminable. We sometimes get the urge to go buy a new suitcase or travel gadget, just to feel some of the residual effects of the travel-related expenditure. We usually are able to resist these urges; I want a day pack that is designed to accommodate a laptop computer and I nearly purchased one a few months ago, but I wisely decided to wait until our next actual trip planning phase arrives.

Sometimes serendipity has its way of providing you with opportunity and delight you hadn't seen coming. In an effort to do something related to travel - something that cost nothing and that would have the only immediate benefit of its immediate engagement of my interest - I signed up with The Hospitality Club. The Hospitality Club is an online organization with thousands of members world wide. The mission of the club is very simple; members provide hospitality to, or are provided hospitality by, fellow members. I joined simply because Bonnie and I love to meet locals in the places we travel, and because one of the central precepts to this club is free accommodation.

I signed us up several months ago. It takes a few weeks after you sign up to become a member (there is some vetting process, presumably in an attempt to weed out the scammers and spammers). After becoming a member I filled out our profile. I provided information such as the fact that we own a cat, permitted smoking only outside, and preferred six week's notice in advance of requesting accommodation at our house. Of course I was really thinking of our accommodation at other member's homes, more than offering our home up, at the time.

And that's when serendipity hit. About a month ago we received a request from another member. She apologized for not providing 6 weeks' notice and then said she would be traveling from California, where she lived, through our area around New Year's, and could we accommodate them. I saw this email briefly as I was leaving work one day, and forgot all about it until about a week later. After quick discussion with Bonnie I responded to the request (the initial contacts, both ways, are facilitated by The Hospitality Club to retain your relative anonymity until you choose to contact each other directly). We sent emails back and forth. Their plans changed and gelled, and eventually five young people showed up on our doorstep this past Thursday evening.

And I have to tell you; they are some of the nicest young people I have ever met. They are all educated (one just passed his bar exams), well-spoken, progressive professionals. They were courteous and respectful; not just with us, but with each other as well. They invited us out to dinner last night and we all enjoyed the local cuisine and chatted about things important and trivial.

Two are teachers of developmentally challenged children, one is a worksite organizer for her local union. The guy who just passed the bar has aspirations of public defense. In other words, they are all very socially responsible young people. And that really gives me hope, because they are also all clearly highly intelligent and could easily make their way quickly up corporate ladders, but have instead chosen lives that enrich society.

We bade them goodbye early this morning. Each of them hugged us and asked us to please visit them when we were out their way. It was a wonderful, if short, experience and one we both want again.

So serendipitously, while setting ourselves up for future travel arrangements, we ran into a fourth stage of the travel continuum; hosting other travelers. We will do this again, and again. And you can be sure we will be every bit as courteous when we eventually visit the homes of fellow club members.

Iowa lot to Barak

I'm still going to vote for Dennis Kucinich in our primary - provided he hasn't dropped out by this coming spring - because I made a promise. But I have to admit, I was really impressed with Barak Obama tonight.

Barak looked so wonderful coming up onto the stage with his wife and young daughters. I turned to Bonnie and commented that he would be the first President younger than we are. It just feels good to think of this young man, so full of hope and promise and with his young charges, as President. Like JFK two generations ago.

The primary season has barely begun. But I have new hope after tonight. Good luck Barak.

To Bury a Parent

I don’t recall if I’ve written about this previously or not. I just reviewed my archive titles, and I don’t believe so.

A few months from now will be the thirty-first anniversary of my mother’s untimely death. I was twenty at the time. She was forty-three. A school bus rear ended her car and she burned to death. She had just dropped off one of my brothers at school. He was fifteen at the time, and the last person to see her alive.

At the time, it was decided that we would not have a traditional graveyard burial and memorial. I say “it was decided,” because I don’t remember being part of the discussion at the time. I don’t know if I would have agreed or not, but that’s neither here nor there.

She was cremated (obviously), and we planted her ashes under the roots of a sapling on a small pastoral piece of property my mother and father owned. They had planned on building a house on this land. My dad subsequently remarried less than a year after my mom’s death, and the land was sold. The rancher who purchased the land had a bull who destroyed the sapling; thus obliterating my mother’s “grave.”

Several years later my dad buried his second wife to breast cancer. This is a terrible thing to die from, but we celebrated as she was the quintessential evil stepmother. I only encountered her evil peripherally, but my younger siblings suffered under her. And my spineless father allowed it, and helped her coddle her own sons. So the celebration at her death was well deserved. I don’t remember where she was buried, and I don’t care.

My dad went on to wed again, and he showed equally, if not worse, judgment this time around. We were all grown and out from under parental thumbs by this time, but this woman ended up being a drug-addicted money pit. All of my dad’s current and future worth went into her money pit of a B&B, though he was not afforded any portion of ownership thereto. When my grandparents’ estate was eventually liquidated, that very considerable wealth was similarly subsumed. It went up her nose as had his career when he took the very public fall for her addiction – her career to protect.

He died a little over a year ago (three days before Thanksgiving, 2006), for all practical purposes, without a penny to his name. He was still married to the money pitted old tart. She was delighted to see him gone; he had dementia his last two years and that lessened the fun she had at his expense.

His children, my siblings and I, will be gathering in Hawaii this spring. Our mother was born and raised there, as were we all (except my older sister – born in Munich). Our father and mother met there somewhere on the order of fifty-five years ago. They met while working on a set for a college theater production. They made a very good looking couple. They have been apart nearly thirty years.

So we will meet this spring to reunite them. We have a smidgeon of his ashes; his drug-addled ex managed to scrape some off the kitchen counter before snorting them or mixing them in with the kitty litter. And my sister and brother rescued these dried old flakes of bone in a spice jar. These we will place in the ground not far from the town our mother was raised in. We will add mementos of her life.

Her parents, our grandparents, are buried there as well. It’s fitting. After thirty years of being blown to the wind and trampled underfoot by a bull, now long gone itself, our mother can rejoin our father. And perhaps (though I am not so romantic to really believe it so), she can redeem him at last.

Happy New Year

I’m back at work today after eleven days off. My employer enforces a “use it or lose it” policy with regard to vacation time, and I had three days saved up. This past Monday was therefore a work day for me, and I dutifully showed up. The parking lot was almost empty as was the building in which I work. I spent about 3 and half hours processing the miniscule amount of work that had accumulated the week before, and then I went home.

But everybody but the chronically hung over is back at work today. The vase majority of the work I do is downstream of work submitted by others. Since these others have by and large all been off for the holidays too, I must now wait for them to all get back up to speed and begin submitting work to me again. Until that happens I am in a thumb twiddling mode. I check my email constantly to see if anything new has shown up. I have done some file maintenance this morning. I have been catching back up on personal emails as well. Right now I’m waiting for lunch time.

And I can’t leave early as I did on Monday because as I said, everybody is back in force. I am beginning to wish I had simply given things a cursory glance on Monday morning so I would have an additional 3 and a half hours of work to do today. Of course I would have finished that an hour ago and then taken another hour to do the work that has trickled in thus far today, and would still be sitting here writing blog entry now.

That isn’t to say that I won’t be interrupted and thrown into a tail-spin at a moment’s notice. In that case I may not even post this as it would no longer be apropos.

Guess it's apropos because I'm publishing it now. Happy New Year!

Is it Time for a Tea Party Yet?

The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) was created into law in the late 60's to keep the wily tax-dodging rich from getting away without paying a dime. It was a good idea (although far too lenient).

But the AMT hasn't kept pace with inflation. Now middle and upper-middle income families are falling prey to this tax. Ok, let's not cry too loud. We're not talking about the poor. But this is on the heels of Bush's tax breaks for the rich, furthering the divide between the payers and the payers not.

Much ado is currently being made about how folks will need to be filing late becasue the IRS had to rewrite five forms related to the AMT. Why? Because Congress was trying to fix this tax. Now seriously, the tax needs more than the yearly patchwork to minimize its impact on the middle class. It needs a complete overhaul with its original intent reinstated. But at least Congress was trying.

The problem that faced Congress was the $50 billion shortfall that would result from the fix. And true to form, Bush growled and snarled and clashed his teeth when Congress mentioned raising taxes on the rich to make up the shortfall. So Congress caved and let the shortfall stand as a shortfall. Just more money to borrow from China.

Why do working class conservatives continue to believe this tyrant has their interests at heart. We are all (excepting you uber rich out there of course) being robbed blind. This is the biggest heist in American history and the law is just telling the gangsters to help themselves. And if they get bored not arresting the real criminals, they just round up patriotic citizens and arrest them instead.

Peace on Earth, Good Will toward Men, #2

Priests brawl at Jesus' birthplace

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) -- Greek Orthodox and Armenian priests attacked each other with brooms and stones inside the Church of the Nativity as long-standing rivalries erupted in violence during holiday cleaning on Thursday.

The basilica, built over the grotto in Bethlehem where Christians believe Jesus was born, is administered jointly by Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Armenian Apostolic authorities.
Any perceived encroachment on one group's turf can touch off vicious feuds.

On Thursday, dozens of priests and cleaners were scrubbing the church ahead of the Armenian and Orthodox Christmas, celebrated in early January. Thousands of tourists visited the church this week for Christmas celebrations.

But the clean-up turned ugly after some of the Orthodox faithful stepped inside the Armenian church's section, touching off a scuffle between about 50 Greek Orthodox and 30 Armenians.

Palestinian police, armed with batons and shields, quickly formed a human cordon to separate the two sides so the cleaning could continue, then ordered an Associated Press photographer out of the church.

Four people, some with blood running from their faces, were slightly wounded.

Goodbye Benazir

I'll readily admit that I don't know much about Benazir Bhutto. Until this past October when she returned to Pakistan out of exile (a self-imposed exile to escape corruption charges), I think I had heard her name, but nothing more. Or perhaps I only think I found her name familiar as it has become familiar since. It's all together possible I didn't even know of her at all until two and a half months ago.

But she seemed to embody something that was about the people instead of being about power and wealth. And maybe this also was spun out of whole cloth. And maybe not.

Ms. Bhutto defied a power-hungry friend of George Bush who, also like King George some fear, opposed free elections and fancied dictatorship as his due. She returned to Pakistan in hopes of building a coalition government with Musharraf. Instead he declared her an outlaw. He fired the Pakistani Supreme Court and declared marshal law. And now he takes no blame for her assassination.

George Bush sits and points his finger at "international terrorism." He probably ordered her death at Musharraf's behest.

I didn't know even a smidgeon of what could have been know about this probably very brave woman. But I find myself deeply saddened and disturbed at what was done to her today in a land that we call an ally.

Hello Big Brother

FBI Prepares Vast Database Of Biometrics
$1 Billion Project to Include Images of Irises and Faces

By Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 22, 2007; Page A01

CLARKSBURG, W. Va. -- The FBI is embarking on a $1 billion effort to build the world's largest computer database of peoples' physical characteristics, a project that would give the government unprecedented abilities to identify individuals in the United States and abroad.

Digital images of faces, fingerprints and palm patterns are already flowing into FBI systems in a climate-controlled, secure basement here. Next month, the FBI intends to award a 10-year contract that would significantly expand the amount and kinds of biometric information it receives. And in the coming years, law enforcement authorities around the world will be able to rely on iris patterns, face-shape data, scars and perhaps even the unique ways people walk and talk, to solve crimes and identify criminals and terrorists. The FBI will also retain, upon request by employers, the fingerprints of employees who have undergone criminal background checks so the employers can be notified if employees have brushes with the law.

"Bigger. Faster. Better. That's the bottom line," said Thomas E. Bush III, assistant director of the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division, which operates the database from its headquarters in the Appalachian foothills.

Read More ...

Peace on Earth, Good Will toward those who can afford it

I go back and forth with regard to my feelings regarding the criminality of the Bush Administration and what we the people should do about it. Sometimes I want to rant and rave with my utter frustration (and sometimes I do). Sometimes I want to merely despair and leave this country forever. Sometimes I want to take up arms (I do not own guns, and I am wont to interpret the 2nd Amendment as being about a well-ordered Militia, not about gun ownership).

Sometimes I listen to reason. I hear my brother who believes stability is paramount, not patriotism; not our Constitution. I hear seasoned scholarly activists cautioning us not to be too hasty; not to despair; not to consider this our worst hour. I hear my daughter speak of her ideology (which is more or less in alignment with mine), but I also hear her speak of friends antithetical to that ideology, as it that makes perfect sense.

I am truly torn. One part of me remembers the sage Taoist advice, "this too shall pass." Another side reminds me that our founders quelled such rhetoric as a form of giving succor to the Tories. And I don't know what to think.

The company I now work for employs the marvelous services of Cigna Insurance. Now I know these bastards are not the only ones who routinely allow, and even encourage, teenage kids to die in the interest of feathering their stockholders' nests, but I'm picking on them because this latest story comes close to home for me since these bastards could do it to me and the ones I most love too now. What enrages me is the complicity of our government in this obscenely evil corporate greed.

So do we seek the forcible overthrow of these criminals? Do we continue to hope our elected officials grow a pair and in turn use constitutional means to oust and incarcerate the defilers of our democracy? Do we take to the streets and hope the corporate media airs a second or two of our ire before doing a fade to a Wal-Mart ad? Do we try to work from within; do we give the benefit of the doubt to the spineless, co-opted politicians who sit figuratively opposite our opponents in Congress?

I am too angry to make a rational argument for constrained compromise; for patience; for belief in the sure and certain inner workings of a democratic framework. Our world's history is too replete with stories of corruption, and too impoverished in stories of the success of liberty, for me to place much hope in the inevitability of the triumph of the democratic system. Another Boston Tea Party seems to me to be the only course. Destruction to the traitors to our liberty!

Or is it just Merry Christmas?

It's snowing outside as I write this. Falling snow has a way of bringing serenity to dark moods. I'll try to find that serenity. But there should be no Merry Christmas for Bush and Cheney. They need to rot in the polluted coal and oil that has ever been the only lining to their stockings. I won't say more because these traitors have usurped our land and redefined treason. One day though...

Wrong Test

AP story reads "Obama Describes Faith Amid False Rumors." It goes on to tell of how Barack Obama dispelled rumors that he is "Muslim and poses a threat to the security of the United States."

I'm not necessarily an Obama supporter. Nor am I a Clinton or Dodd or Biden supporter (I do lean a little friendly toward Kucinich and Edwards, but that is neither here nor there). But this really pisses me off.

Just about the very last line of the pre-amendment US Constitution says that "there shall be no religious test" for public office. That is fundamental folks. This constant barrage of religious bullshit is getting on my nerves. And to be honest, if should be making all of us extremely uneasy.

No religious test means precisely that. Religion is not, cannot be, must never be, a criterion for electing our representatives or leaders. The very fact that Barack felt it necessary to repudiate the rumors of Islam as his faith of choice is way beyond disconcerting. We should be up in arms as a people decrying both the people who are creating such false issues, and the politicians who stoop to denying the "charges," whether or not they have any merit.

Personally I would love to see a candidate who comes out as a flaming gay, atheist, mixed-heritage, professional wrestling fan. Or any other group of things that bear not a whit on her or his credentials. This current trend in American politics is not just stupid (although it is very stupid); it is un-American, it is dangerous, it is unconstitutional.

I will not place my vote based on such false attributes. And while I really could relate very strongly to an Atheist candidate, I would not ever vote for one based on that conviction. I would do so only at the expense of our democracy.

What comes around...

Call me an idiot, but wasn't it the Emergency over California's Budget that Arnie used to launch his bid to overthrow Gray Davis a few years back? If Davis was fiscally irresponsible then, and therefore subject to recall, why isn't the Governator now?

Bumper Crop

Bonnie and I saw a bumper sticker today that made us laugh, so I went searching for it on "the internets." Here's the sticker:

Of course I found the sticker. Stamp and Shout dot Com has a bunch of good stickers. Here a a few that made me chuckle:


Of course to be fair, and one should be, Ann Coulter is not the Chancelor of our country. Do you think maybe she wants to be?

Birthday

Today is my older sister’s birthday. She turns 52. I need to remember to send her a greeting. I’ll email it; we’ve all pretty much settled down to the ultra-last-minute email for birthday greetings in my family these days.

And really, who wants birthday cards hanging around? If you’re anything like me, you read them (when they arrive at all) with a swift mental “thanks for remembering;” you note to yourself that the card’s canned joke (or worse, “sentiment”) is either Dixie®-Cup camp or saccharine. If it’s from older generation family you shake it open upon first inspection, and look for any cash that might fall out. You toss the card on your current pile of things you know you should file or read or give money for, or something. The card gets buried a few levels down and you notice it one day, re-read it and smile. And then you toss it in the trash.

Emails are much more efficient and don’t add to land fills (I’m sure moldering birthday cards must account for something on the order of 0.002 percent of the annual American refuse output). I’m doing my small part. Each card not sent, may add one one-hundredth of a second to humankind’s longevity.

Or some such.

But there are cards worth getting. I have one on the fridge that my aunt sent years ago. It shows a ponderous, but none too bright, cowboy on horseback with the sky as backdrop. He’s saying to himself (and to the sky), “But what if everybody does Wang Chung tonight? Who’s gonna look after the herd then?” On the back of the card my aunt wrote, “What in the world is Wang Chung?”

And there’s a card Bonnie got from her sister several years back. I’ve seen it on her dresser ever since. It’s of a young girl, maybe seven, with red shorts, sitting on steps of a house. It makes me think of how Bonnie would have looked at that age. I think it does for her as well, and I think that’s why she keeps it; her sister connected with her when she gave her that card.

And these cards, now that I think of it, are the exceptions that prove the rule. They will forever be enshrined, on a refrigerator, on a dresser top, or even in a drawer. They will find their way to a landfill only once mankind has learned balance. One hopes.

Happy Birthday, Mary.

The Princess

Once upon a time there lived a king. The king had a beautiful daughter, the PRINCESS.

But there was a problem. Everything the princess touched would melt.

No matter what; metal, wood, stone, anything she touched would melt.

Because of this, men were afraid of her. Nobody would dare marry her. The king despaired. What could he do to help his daughter?

He consulted his wizards and magicians. One wizard told the king, "If your daughter touches one thing that does not melt in her hands, she will be cured." The king was overjoyed and came up with a plan.

The next day, he held a competition. Any man that could bring his daughter an object that would not melt would marry her and inherit the king's wealth.

THREE YOUNG PRINCES TOOK UP THE CHALLENGE.

The first brought a sword of the finest steel. But alas, when the princess touched it, it melted. The prince went away sadly.

The second prince brought diamonds. He thought diamonds are the hardest substance in the world and would not melt. But alas, once the princess touched them, they melted. He too was sent away disappointed.

The third prince approached. He told the princess, "Put your hand in my pocket and feel what is in there." The princess did as she was told, though she turned red. She felt something hard. She held it in her hand.

And it did not melt!!!

The king was overjoyed. Everybody in the kingdom was overjoyed! And the third prince married the princess and they both lived happily ever after.


Question: What was in the prince's pants?





M&M's of course.



They melt in your mouth, not in your hand.

What were you thinking??

The Corpses are Dying

Since the spring of 2005 I have contributed to An Exquisite Corpse, a website for collaborative art. This has been a wonderful community to belong to with its marvelous, and sometimes stunning, art, and endless discussion, artistic and otherwise.

Phineas, the site owner and moderator, announced yesterday that the site will be finis following the last posting (there are seventeen remaining "corpses" in the pipeline). He promises to keep the site available as an archive. I am glad for that at least.

To date I have contributed to 42 corpses (the name for the collaborative art pieces). I've been pretty proud of some, and much less so of others. I guess I can at least say that I have been ashamed of none. And it has been a real honor to work with so many other talented artists. I am going to miss this community. A lot.

There's already some talk amongst us of trying something new. I hope we do. I'll do my part to help make it happen. But it will be very difficult to match the spirit that has made An Exquisite Corpse so successful. Please check it out.

Thank you Phineas for everything.

Liberal Consensus

As recently as a year ago if I discussed politics with other liberals, Democrats, progressives, left-wingers, pinkos, or the like, I would most likely find little to disagree with. Sure we'd quibble over the actual meanings of the labels we use for ourselves or that others call us; I'm progressive, not a liberal because of the negative connotation, etc. But we'd all agree that Bush is evil, Cheney is Satan incarnate, Iraq is an unmitigated disaster, the US Constitution deserves better protection, surveillance of Americans without warrants is illegal, suppression of the black vote is a tactic of the true evil empire: the Bushies, and so on.

Now that the light at the end of this administration's dark tunnel is in full view though, I find myself arguing with those with whom I am most politically aligned. I for instance believe impeachment is the honor-bound duty of the Congress of the United States. And since Nancy Pelosi had the gal to "take it off the table" without the American people's consent, I think she should be one of those impeached. Cheney and Bush are traitors and should be tried as such. Nancy is obstructing justice and so should be tried in a like manner.

But that's my point of view and while I know it's held by many, there are also many, who would consider themselves well left of center, who would adamantly disagree. My brother visiting for the holidays is one such. Here I was secretly happy we had ended up with only the liberal element of my family over for the festivities, when I found myself in a very heated debate over that precise issue. And other issues grew out of it as well. War funding for instance: I believe Congress should simply cut it off. Period. My brother thinks that would be abandoning the troops. He calls me naive. I have heard his point of view (Congress itself keeps spouting it in defense of their inaction) and it's enticing. Any time you can say "here's the problem with that solution," you’re looking to get a free pass. But I think you need to offer up a solution before shooting down another.

Liberals are often accused of just complaining about the problems and not doing anything about them. In other words, we are accused of being negative. But within our own ranks, if some of us posit solutions - and I won't deny that those I suggest are drastic - we're often accused of being too, well, drastic. But those who say that generally don't have any suggestions themselves. They just argue why the proposed solution will not work. And truly I'm not trying to argue that all the kinks have been worked out of my solutions. But debate and consensus has its hallmark of greatness in its ability to achieve synthesis. You can't achieve that goal by dismissing extreme solutions out of hand. Extreme solutions are usually proffered only after it has become clear that a) the danger inherent in following the status quo is itself extreme, and b) that something has to be done and that current approaches are tantamount to doing absolutely nothing.

We lefties have trouble achieving consensus. A large part of that is inherent to our cerebral wiring. We are generally critical thinkers who understand not only the value, but also the necessity, of free thought. It's very difficult to broker single-visioned compromise under those circumstances.

The problem with that is that the Right enforces unity of vision very well. Admittedly that becomes less obvious during the primary season. And Republican candidates must spend copious energy distancing themselves from this administration while also doing the opposite (to appease both the centrists and the hard right – or as I like to call them: the righty-uptighties). But all you need to do is to listen to the right-wing punditry (something I try to avoid) to hear that day’s talking points faithfully regurgitated. These guys know how to present a united front.

So while it’s long been the hallmark of the enlightened left to be in discord due to our superior critical thinking abilities, I call complete bullshit on the notion that we cannot be united. The difference is that we need not to unite ourselves under the banner of a strong man, but rather to unite ourselves via the mechanism of debate and consensus. It’s a great tool that can be used very effectively by clear-thinking people and it’s time we do so. If impeachment is too drastic (it’s not, but I’m allowing for debate), then let’s discuss what will work. Let’s come up with a plan. You don’t need to strong-arm the solution; you just need to come to the table believing that consensus is mandatory.

Chocolate

When I was a kid I guess I liked sweets as much as any other kid. If something tasted nice with a sprinkle of sugar, how about three tablespoons? Up until maybe 5 or 6 years ago I continued to put sugar on my cereal. And I still put brown, or even better raw, sugar on my oatmeal. But other than natural sugar in fruit or the rare bowl of icecream, I can pretty much take or leave sweets. In fact if someone eliminated all access to sweetness tomorrow, I wouldn't shed a tear.

Except for chocolate. I only eat chocolate rarely. But not because I could take it or leave it. On the contrary, I could just take it and take it. And it really needn't be particularly sweet. I love bitter chocolate. And I used to nibble on unsweetened bakers' chocolate as a kid.

So I read this evening that chocolate is 3000 years old. 500 years older than previously thought. And it all started with making beer in Honduras. I found this quite interesting.

And did I tell you I like beer too?

Just Stuff

I think I have blogger's block. I feel an obligation to write something here. Anything. But I have no idea what to write about. So I figured if I sat down and just started writing, something would come to me and we'd be off to the races.

Still nothing.

China rescinded the exportation license for the manufacturer that was making those whatchumacallit dots that administered the date rape drug to kids. Interesting: They can't export the dots. But they presumably can still manufacture them. For Chinese kids, you think?

We have family coming for Thanksgiving and so we're spending this weekend cleaning up and organizing. Or at least Bonnie is. I'm sitting here typing. As soon as I'm done I'll shower and help with the cleaning. That is, unless I can come up with another diversion.

The fall is beautiful this year. The weather started cooling in September but has not become really cold yet so the colors are hanging in there for a long time. I took this photo a couple of weekends ago (same weekend Bonnie and I built our front steps). This is the southwest corner of our back yard, in what we refer to as Bonnie's Sanctuary. It's very pretty isn't it?

I got my computer back from the shop on Thursday. It blue-screened again Friday night. I don't know why, but I'm waiting to see if it blue-screens even one more time. If it does I'm going to demand my money back (wish me luck). But I hope it blue-screened due to a random high-energy photon from outer space or something. I really like this machine - when it's not in crash mode.

I'm getting hungry and I refuse to eat before I shower so I guess this is it. I hate cleaning. Oh that's right; I just remembered one of the things I need to clean is the garage. Hooray! I love spending quality time in the garage. I can stretch that out for a long time.

Happy Sunday.

Red Nose

Ever notice how the press keeps saying "In a surprise move, Pat Robertson backs Rudolph Giuliani?" Surprise my ass.

Get a clue you right-wing religious nuts: this was never, will never be, could never be, is laughingly not, about religion!

Pat Robertson is a billionaire. Or did you know that? He has helped foster child labor. Also true.

Pat Robertson is not endorsing Giuliani because Rudolph plays in any Evangelical games. He is endorsing him because of MONEY.

I really pity those of you who love the right because of your Christian religion. You've been had.