The most striking example is comparing remakes of old movies and TV shows to their hip new cynical remakes.

The media, music, art, politics, religion, fashion and even body modification... If it ain't cynical, well, it's just too boring.

No more innocent relationships, the new cynicism makes them "meaningful". Kids were always great culture chameleons, gotta be hipper than their old fashioned parents, even more than the kids have always been.

Young folks still have that hormonal drive to date and make out, but find that the cynicism gets in the way when you're stone cold sober and uncool. YAY, Binge drinking!

Angst over the current state of instability with an unhealthy dose of nostalgia are great components of the new cynicism.

Hell, life is just too cynical to go on living without a crutch these days. Gotta do something to take the cynicism away, you know?

And don't discount the anonymity of posting on the Internet, a great proponent of cynical behavior. OWNING, PWNING, Farking and like makes it great with pictures.

Your "allies" and "heroes" are not to be trusted. You're a sucker if you eschew the snark and are unable to go it alone.

Why be thoughtful when cynicism is soooo much sexier?

Both sides of the political spectrum have adopted the new cynicism, but it's no accident that the proponents of today's Reaganism have perfected the art of cynicism with a grand scheme of irrationality and fear mongering. That way the cynicism becomes the best of defense mechanisms.

Why do you think that they hate "Hope" and "Change", huh?

I'm don't have an extensive education under my belt. There's a lot of stuff out there, that had I learned about it in school, would be more obvious to me now rather than less so. Which to some, may make me out to be a Captain Obvious.

So please, bear with me, if you don't mind.

Anyway, tonight as I watched Rachel Maddow's "Mind Over Chatter" segment as she explained why Fox News should not be considered a legitimate news channel, I wondered why Fox News Channel is allowed to get away with their obvious and willful disregard for anything resembling something as simple as "The News".

How can Fox News' paid employees can engage in broadcasting, what any reasonable person would consider complete fabrications on a massive scale, stories and commentary that would seen grossly out of place if they were broadcast of the other major news outlets?

Well, the answer as I thought of it, was pretty simple. It's because any viewer of Fox News is asked to engage in the same suspension of disbelief processes that are asked of viewers of fictional programming like Star Trek and Leave It To Beaver.

Thank the Goddess for Wikipedia, for when I wondered if suspension of disbelief was, if fact, the culprit, I looked up the meaning. I came across this excerpt:



If anything, this exemplifies your basic fan of Fox News. How they can sit there and watch all of that bullshit, believe in it and regurgitate it to their outraged and bewildered friends and family. They are willing engage in suspension of disbelief of outright fantasy on the level of badly written science fiction, because Fox News Channel masturbates their own fucked up value systems.

Suspension of Disbelief is the fuel behind all of Fox News Channel's talking heads. None of their utter crap is meant to convince people who are fully in charge of their own mental stability. A person who is right in the head knows exactly what is broadcast on Fox News, which is complete bullshit. It's no accident that some of the people who are fans of Fox are the same people who say outrageous shit and act like people who a few fries and a burger short of a Happy Meal.

These are crazy people.

The other fans of Fox News, the one who are not so outwardly nut jobs, are greedly assholes and horribly inhuman dipshits. These fuckers are not to be trusted for anything. They're disingenuous, many are cheerleaders of economic, political and military violence, and they know full well that the purpose of Fox News is to provide a convenient outlet for their own fucked up reasons for living.

These walking-talking turds who hate Democracy and everything this country stands for, in order to line their own blood drenched pockets with as much money as possible.

Everyone else, the people who aren't whacked out nut-units or greedy and heartless Scrooge jockeys, say, "Damn skippy", when White House describes Fox News as what it is, which is opposition research for the Taliban-inspired, right wing driven mother fuckers in the Republican Party.

That is the real legitimate purpose of Fox News. There is no real reason to say that they aren't anything otherwise. It's not to go to war against them, or to exclude them from exercising their legitimate press credentials.

It's an admission that Fox News has an agenda. And that agenda is to be the mouthpiece for anyone who opposes the Democrats, a Democratic President, the supporters of Democrats and the Democratic President and anyone else who deigns to not be a right-wing, mouth breathing, money-grubbing Neanderthal with a moral compass stolen from Cracker Jack box.

Frankly, I must admit to you that I find it amazing that Fox News Channel keeps up this facade that they're "Fair and Balanced", when there is nothing on that channel that says that they really are.

That, in fact, I think they would garner more respect for an honest admission that everything shown on that sewer dispenser is one-sided claptrap, made to make the Democrats look bad and the Republicans look, uh... human.

But, until then, we all have to play this little game of their making.

Because, after all, that's what Suspension of Disbelief is all about, isn't it?

Of course, he earned the Nobel Peace Prize.

I'm looking at this right now: "Commander In Chief Of The Biggest WAR MACHINE On The Planet Gets Peace Prize?"

Alfred Nobel invented DYNAMITE! So what about it? We should be proud to have a man of peace in charge of the war machine... Would you rather have a war monger?

If anyone thinks that they have to denigrate President Barack Obama while he carefully tries to correct the errors of the last eight years, that person should RETHINK the prospect of their further membership to this forum.

Rather than un-recc'ing me, I'd rather you reply with a defense of your position so that we may have a debate,

Thank you.

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the watching too much Fox News. They do not believe except they see, which are pretty much all lies on that channel. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds.

All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little, especially if they watch too much Glenn Beck or Sean Hannity. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Virginia, in order to know the truth, it's best to compare what America stands for today and what, in opposition, are the positions of Republicans. Such as:

America is a multicultural country... They hate that.

America, as the world's preeminent nation is supposed to set a good example for the rest of the world... They'd rather we bully the world instead.

In America, you are free to worship (or not to worship) as you please... Unless you worship only as they see fit, they pretty much think that you're destroying the country.

In America, being a gay, bisexual or transgendered person is not a crime... Unless you fit their narrowly determined sexual status, they pretty much think that you're destroying the country also.

Our President has invited the Republicans to join him is solving the nation's problems... They'd rather spit in his face.

When our President puts his best foot forward to increase our nation's stature in the world... They'd rather the world hate and fear us instead.

When Americans clamor for the right for decent health care... They'd rather Americans go bankrupt and die needlessly in debt to the insurance companies.

When America needs solid leadership on all fronts... They'd rather promote incompetent nutjob attention whores to sow fear and hatred while making a buck.

When we need all Americans to join together, without regard to race, creed or national origin... Their so-call spokescritters are calling for racial segregation in this day and age.

When our nation needs to build a future so that little boys and little girls, such as yourself Virginia, can have a place where they are free, healthy and safe... Republicans would rather junk all of that in their effort to further the worship of fetuses.

So Virginia, it's pretty much a lock that Republicans hate America. Where are they when we need them the most? Not standing by their fellow Americas of all stripes to work hand in hand to rebuild our broken nation. They'd rather stand on the sidelines, jeering, hurling epithets and issuing threats.

Sometimes it takes a an innocent heart to speak truth to power, and Virginia, you can see with your own young eyes that Republicans hate America.

With a MODEST raise on the marginal tax rates.

My great uncle, Joe Louis, was once the richest black man in America.

Here he is with my Great grandmother at one of the several houses that he bought for our family.



Unfortunately, his wealth was lost.

Although he was much too generous with his money and he made several bad business deals, it was a witch hunt by the IRS, backed up with some of the highest marginal tax rates in this country's history, that did him in.

http://www.truthandpolitics.org/top-rates....
(Check out those rates during the 1940s-1950s when my Great Uncle Joe was getting harassed)

So wingers, teabaggers, fiscal conservatives, anti-socialists and generally greedy assholes, DON'T TELL ME that the rich shouldn't have to pay their fair share after all these years. I know that that "cut the tax", supply sider bullshit is nothing more than that...BULLSHIT.

The rich have been living far too high off the fat of the land for far too much and for far too long... And all of us have paid for it.

- Glenn Beck's daily extended TWO MINUTES' HATE reported as undisputed fact

- Militarized untouchable police forces that rival most nations' military forces

- A movie that can't be shown in this country, not because it's obscene, but because it has the audacity to depict things that are told in all elementary school textbooks

- One political party dominated by ill-tempered, illiterate hacks and another party that can't even organize itself out of a paper bag

- People caught red handed using language that's straight out of the Ku Klux Klan handbook, but are fine upstanding folks who get really thin skinned when you correctly call them racists

- Corporate excess (murder, corruption, fraud, embezzlement and kickbacks)... All financed courtesy of the tax payers. Just don't give pennies to a company that helps poor people.

- The free exercise of religious prayers decried as anti-American

- You want health care in the richest country in the world? Feel free to go bankrupt first

- And a man who is seen by half the country as too smart, worldly, sophisticated, educated, articulate, thoughtful, deliberate and black to be president. Even if he is the president.

- Prancing felons all over the TV machine

Well... What else can I say?

It's too sad to be laughable... It's like all of us are the butt of really sick joke.







Ha-ha. Very funny, motherfuckers.

From Wiki:



It seems today that the real opponents of Civil Rights and Social Justice in America no longer come in the middle of the night wearing white sheets, bearing guns and fire bombs.

Today, they wear suits and come straight at us during the day on nationwide TV, bearing cameras and blackboards.

In no uncertain terms, ACORN suffered a high-tech lynching.

Welcome to America.

Let me put it like this:

Let's say that you are responsible for raising a nine year old child.

Unfortunately, despite your best efforts and despite many notable exceptions, your nine year old has turned out be just as petty, selfish and uninformed as many other children his/her age.

By the way, the name of your child is Republican.

It's always a daily struggle dealing with young Republican, but you're smart, well informed and generous and you have have in your heart the hope that some of that will rub off on your young progeny.

I'm sorry to have to break it to you, but your young Republican is a spoiled brat. It's amazing that a child raised under your roof on 1789 United States of America Lane has turned out like this. But, that's the way it is.

Your young brat is always screaming and hollering for nice toys and candy, and no matter how much you give your child, it's never enough.

Up to a certain point, you've always been able to keep the balance right, by taking care of your household needs and give your greedy brat what he or she "needs".

But at a certain time, let's call this time the 1980s through most of the 2000's, you've decided to take out a few risky debts to give your youngster nicer and nicer things.

Of course, the brat squandered every cent you gave him/her. Ate so much candy, that they ballooned to the size of giant beach ball and developed a case of type 2 diabetes. They never leave their pimped out bedroom, because they have a sweet XBox, plasma TV, celly and MP3 player. There's never any need to visit the library or even care about the nice parks that they have over in Canada or France.

They have the best bedroom in the world, and no one can tell them any different.

But you, as the good parent, as taken on some extra work, maxed out your credit cards and grabbed a couple of home equity loans to keep your brat in the finest of digs.

Now all this time, your brat is complaining that you're over extended. That they don't have to do chores like take out the garbage and setting the dinner table for people other then themselves: Like your neighbors for over in Mexico who came over to help you straighten out your garage.

They're pissed that they have to sit at the table with them. Even though your brat's greed is the main reason why you need a helping hand.

Now young Republican has noticed that they aren't getting as much stuff as they're used to, so they have figured out in their mind that all you have to do is stop giving money to your debtors, helping your neighbors who help you and instead, give the kid, lets say a two hundred billion tax cut.

At the same time, someone throws a rock through your window, and in response, your brat turns into a bullying asshole who runs off kicking kids named Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq (of whom had nothing to do with the window incident) in the shins and starts all kinds of other problems.

Well. You've had enough, haven't you?

You finally put you foot down.

Punishment.

You take way the Xbox, plasma TV and celly. You put the kid on an exercise regimen and even make doctor's appointments to take care of that diabetes problem. You try to work out the issues that the brat started with all those other kids. And most of all, you demand that the kid face facts and grow up, because it's a new day of change.

Unfortunately, despite the fact that you've changed, young Republican has not. They're still pining for the days of candy and Xboxes and have no idea how to deal with the new regime.

Thus, they engage in some serious tantrums. Do you give in? Do you stand fast? It's up to you.

However, perhaps... it's time to give up the ghost and vote young Republican off the island.

Perhaps, it's time to take care of business without factoring in how you're going to satiate the greedy desires of you young brat.

Perhaps, it's time to be a leader instead of a compromiser.

Perhaps, it's time turn a deaf ear to to the sound of a raving tantrum.



Perhaps.


I'll leave that up to you.

Starring Sherriff Bart as President Barack Obama


And Co-starring Gov. William J. Lepetomaine as
The American Health Care Insurance Industry &
Hedley Lamarr as the Industry's Republican Allies


Also with The Waco Kid as Democratic and Progressive Health Care Reform Allies


And Lily Von Schtupp
as the Mainstream Media


With The Good Citizens Of Rock Ridge as The Anti-Health Care Reform Protesters


Produced and Directed by MrScorpio (With apologies to Mel Brooks)


In America, the winds of change and hope are a-blowing. Far and wide, the need for health care reform is needed. It is a time of taking sides, between those who want a new way and those who want the Status Quo.

In the sleepy town of Rock Ridge there is a fire burning, as the good and righteous citizens there listen to the Glenn Beckian/Rush Limbaughian voices warn that the winds of change carry a fetid stench. The stench of "Socialism™":



Even the Freepers clue in with their special touch of eloquence:



The Sunday Morning Editorialists clearly describe the debate:



Meanwhile in Washington DC, America's Health Care Industry and their Republican Allies confab on the state of affairs of health insurance in the United States



But in spite of the poor state of affairs, the allies shore up their base in defense of their phony baloney jobs:



Meanwhile, back in Rock Ridge, The good citizens meet with their Congressional delegation to express their dismay over the prospect of health care reform:



The raucous nature of the debate is dire and very few Congress Critters are spared:



But just as the fate of reform looks as if it's doomed to failure in an atmosphere of discord and confusion... A hero arises, the President of the United States (Cue Count Basie):












The good citizens of Rock Ridge await his arrival for a nationally televised town hall meeting:






At first, the fine citizens of Rock Ridge don't know what to make of this charming young leader from the East:




It's at this moment that he makes his presentation the fear rears its ugly head:




But the young President reaches out to the fine-fine citizens of Rock Ridge:



Yet there is resistance:




But just when it seems as if the worst is yet to come, the quick thinking young President takes the audience by storm:







He eventually wins over the audience...:




And leaves their minds open for the possibility of reforms that will eventually help those fine fine citizens as well as the rest of the nation:







To be continued:


President Barack Obama has laid down the gauntlet with skill. But it will take supporters of health care reform to help write the next chapter. That's why you need to call your Congressional members and tell them that you stand by reform.

You want to keep the public option and a single player plan. You want to save health care reform!

Call now and keep calling. Don't let the fine fine citizens of Rock Ridge cause an end to the debate.

Because in the immortal words of the Waco Kid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txrikNFX-8E



http://www.congress.org/congressorg/direct...

Frankly, I apologize to you if I gave you that impression. That being said, I will admit that I am wary of the police.

Now, throughout my entire life, I have been driven by a quest to fully understand my surroundings. In many cases, it has to be this way as a matter of survival. This is much more than a case of intellectual curiosity, but as a black man in America who has more than a keen interest in civil discourse and individual rights and responsibilities, I've taken to heart and faith an obligation to know the meaning of things.

Not for touting myself as a source of authority or reference, but as one who will recognize the truth when I see it.

I've been on DU for quite a long time, and as long as it's around, I would like to be around here longer. Be that as it may, I believe that I owe you an explanation for my recent posts regarding the subjects of policing and the Gates/Crowley incident.

First, I admit the my "Whiny B____" post (Redacted for the sake of a particular word's controversial nature), was a pure emotional outburst. I believe that in the thread I explained my motivation, and I'll leave that said as it is.

I must say, however that if I gave the impression that I was engaging in a generalize form of police hatred, I apologize. That was not my intention.

Moreover, up to the point in which I made that outburst, I was quite content to let the events play out without adding to the divisive nature of the debate around these parts. Unfortunately, my reaction to what I felt was an unfair criticism of the President impelled me to speak out on the matter. If somewhat bombastically.

Not long after I posted the first item, I've come to realize that I have an obligation as a good DU member in standing to engage in civil discourse, rather than throwing fuel on the fire of an already hot topic subject. I've posted a couple of more items that I hoped to inform rather than incite. I hope that I was successful.

That being said, I'd like to present an OP-ED. Which is something that I'm quite known for, and it's about time for another.

As I said, before, I don't hate the police, but I am wary of them. Many of us on DU may understand and sympathize with my wariness and I've noticed that others do not. But since I respect and admire all members of DU in good standing, I want to explain to you why.

This is because, through my personal observation from actual experience, books, news articles and various media, I've come to realize that the police operate quite in a different fashion that is portrayed in the generalized mythos surrounding their profession.

That is, that police when dealing with any circumstance within their jurisdiction has a generalized order of priorities under which they operate and enforce, but is not fully enumerated at the time of any incident.

The reasons that they don't take the time to hand you this list of priorities have practical applications, of course. Not to mention the time restraints required to sort out any particular situation quickly and effectively. But from my perspective, most of all being that that cops would not rather put themselves at a disadvantage of having everyone knowing what the rules are of the game while its being played.

If you don't know the rules, you see, how the hell can you win the game?

Cops are given badges, guns, TAZERs, dogs, arrest power and bright, shiny vehicles as equipment to play the game. That's what they have. What you must have is a knowledge of the game's rules and the willingness to apply them for you own self preservation. You need your wits throughout an interaction with the police. Because, if you're not playing within the bounds of the cop's game, it could most definitely end badly for you.

OK, here we go... The order of priorities that cops are protecting goes like this:

1. Themselves.

2. Their fellow cops

3. The laws of the jurisdiction that pays their paychecks

4. Ordinary, law abiding citizens and the victims of crimes

5. The criminal element.

6. The Truth: To protect cops, applying the laws of the jurisdiction to separate and arrest the criminal element from ordinary "law abiding citizens" and their victims and put the motherfuckers in jail.

Now some may think that I'm being unfair by portraying cops as being self-serving. It's not unfair if you think about it. Of course, they have to look out for their own asses first. It's self preservation and no cop will last long without it. It's necessary for the business in which they are in.

The problem, however, is that cops are human and it takes a lot of courage, intelligence and forbearance to strike a delicate balance between priorities in their proper order. Many of them are just not up to the task, and these cops create an atmosphere of distrust and misunderstanding of the ones who do. A misapplication of the priorities has dire circumstances for all involved and lives are ruined and or lost. That is the difficult part of a cop's profession.

The other part of a cop's profession is something under which they have very little control. That is the labyrinthine nature of laws that apply to American jurisdictions. Unfortunately, local jurisdictions have decided that their main motivation for passing laws is not to protect the safety and security of the citizens over which they govern. The first priority is to generate revenue for the self preservation of their bureaucracies. And the main function of the police is to ensure that the citizens are impelled to keep the money rolling in through a system of fines, penalties and operating costs.

It's why I said that when you are confronted by the police, you should look out for your own best interests first, because that cop most likely is not.

The cop is first making sure that he or she (or their fellow cop) will not end up as a victim.

Secondly, the cop is looking for a way to apply the law. Most of these laws of course, are designed to restrict your freedom and separate you from your money.

Thirdly, your safety and security comes into consideration, but only if the cops thinks that you really deserve consideration.

If by your deeds, you show disdain for the order of priorities, you should expect to be quickly shuffled to the bottom of the deck. Most likely, with your face is on the pavement and in handcuffs, which is much more preferable than being dead.

And in the nature of their business, sometimes the truth has to be "managed" in order to ensure that they go home at night, even if you don't.

On another subject, that would require a very long dissertation in which I'm not willing to engage fully, but I do think that it needs to be mentioned, is the blatant militarization of police forces in America. A lot has been said and a lot needs to be said. But all-in-all, this militarization has played a part in creating distance between the actions, duties and responsibilities of those police departments and the needs of communities for fair and effective community policing. Whether it's the various "wars" on crime, drugs or terror, this militarization has resulted on a "war" on ordinary citizens and their individual and collective rights.

On the subject of racism. It's a sticky matter. Although, I will say that a lot of this depends on many factors, such as the general socio-economic makeup of a particular community, various institutionalized practices, general attitudes and willingness or unwillingness to apply egalitarian principles of tolerance and equality. All of this does not mean that cops are inherently racist. However, racist cops do exist. There is no disputing this. And like those cops that misapply the system of priorities, racists cops makes all other cops look bad.

The motivation for racist behavior by cops may have nothing to do with their opinions of minorities in general. I'm quite sure that some cops who have committed acts of racial profiling might even have friends or family from a minority group in their personal lives.

I have to say that rather than a form of racial discrimination, the underlying motivation for most profiling is based upon the opportunistic predation of less advantaged classes. Classes that are more vulnerable to that labyrinthine system of laws that jurisdictions pass to keep themselves in business.

The most egregious example of this form of class warfare is cited in the events surrounding racially profiled stops of minority drivers near the town of Tehana, TX. http://demopedia.democraticunderground.com...

It's an unabashed, over the top shakedown of blacks who happen to be caught driving through that jurisdiction while black and part of the American underclass. It's American law enforcement on steroids.

Hopefully, an outrageous situation to be rectified.

In conclusion, I have a few points to reiterate.

First, if you ever come across a cop for what ever reason, hope for you own sake that he or she is not having a bad day.

Second, let the cop know through your deeds (or words) that you do not constitute a threat to that cop's safety.

But lastly and most of all, LOOK OUT FOR YOUR OWN BEST SELF INTERESTS. I posted a thread yesterday on what to do if you're stopped or arrested. Please heed it. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discu...

Thanks.

Now, let the civil discourse begin.

Both mother and child are fine and in great spirits. The hospital staff was skilled, attentive and caring and the birth occurred in an excellent and secure facility. One of the best, here in the state of Michigan.

Lots of family were surrounding her and the nurses were amazed that so many of us showed up, but that's my family for you. Throughout the labor, which lasted just over five hours, all of us took time to let my niece know that we were there for her, and we love her and everything was going to be alright. And by grace, it was.

My niece's pregnancy and birth was entirely uncomplicated, despite the child arriving two weeks early. My brother, the child's grandfather, checked all of his fingers and toes and I myself observed him react to the changing lights and sounds around him.

It was truly a happy and joyous occasion. It was the way all births should be.

We are very fortunate, as I'm sure that you can all see.




I can't but help to KNOW that what happened in the wee hours of this morning has not been the same pleasant and joyous experience for many others.

That due to grave and serious complications, a birth promised to take the health and or life of both the mother and the child. And that the uncomplicated pregnancy, which we experienced, has instead become a death sentence.

It's at this point that a decision is made by a family to choose the life of the mother over a life threatening medical condition. I'm sure that up to the last trimester, there was always the expectation to bring a healthy baby to term. But instead, tragic circumstances warranted much needed intervention.

That is the bottom line when it comes to late term abortions. It's not matter of choice or convenience, but instead, it becomes a needed medical procedure to save lives. Imagine the heartbreak in the room when a family hears the news from their doctor that the child that they have expected will most likely kill the mother. That the only way to save her is to end the pregnancy. Or that the child itself, brought to term, may not survive.

It's at this time that skilled and dedicated medical personnel are needed to save lives, but unfortunately it's at the expense of the expected hopes and dreams of the family.



The moralists in this world, who would have that mother sacrifice herself for the sake of a slim chance of survival, are in my opinion the most cold and callous people alive.

What's their excuse, "Go ahead and roll these loaded dice and if or when you end up dead, tough luck?" Wow.

These people have no real sense of humanity or compassion, do they? Only misplaced aggression, moralism and misogyny fueled by sanctimony. That's not really a good combination for feeling empathy for a grieving family, now is it?

I'm not going to say much more about them, as less said of them is better. But I will say this; they have absolutely NO business telling any expected mother to kill herself. And NO business killing doctors who are saving lives.

NO "right" whatsoever.



Again, I know that we're very lucky. I held my great-nephew and told him that, with every step he takes in this world, there will always be someone there to watch over him. I told his mother that I loved her and was very pleased to see that everything was indeed alright.

By the way, I'm very happy and proud to tell you that she asked me to be his godfather.

The Republican Party has finally failed to be a political automatic default button for this country.

It's about freaking time that the American people did not fall for the okey-doke.

For the last 28 years, that's been their whole game plan. That somehow, it's in the best interest of ordinary citizens to slit their own throats in the voting booth, by installing oligarchs and their cronies, who wrap themselves in a gauze of God, Guns, Guts, Gametes and Gays. That despite every bit of proof to the opposite, they are the party that a naturally conservative American nation would automatically gravitate to. Of course, that's the main part on their okey-doke strategy; the truth is that every thing that they profess to stand for, they are in fact, diametrically opposed.

The key to understanding Republicans is knowing that they are the "Against" Party. They fool Americans into ignoring the real issues in their lives by casting attention on what they're supposed to be opposed to, rather than what they are supposed to be for. It's done by distorting a particular issue, turning it around and smearing Democrats with it. Tools to divide and conquer the American electorate. We see it all the time. And up to this recent election, for the most part, Americans have kept falling for the same old crap to their own detriment.

They claim to be conservatives, and were they to follow a purely classic definition they actually wouldn't be too bad. Patriotic, conserving the land through conservation, or letting Americans live their lives without government interference, or being or being fiscally responsible (thus making lower taxes a naturally occurring state), or being responsible in general. These are merely a few things of the many that they've failed to live up to as so-called conservatives.

The actual picture is quite clear. I'll give you one particular example, which is Abortion.

Abortion is a medical procedure, that if Americans would actually focus on doing the things that would prevent it from being a form of birth control, it would be relegated to the level of appendectomies or kidney surgery. All we have to do is follow the recommendations of pro-choice advocates; common sense and appropriate sex education, safe, readily available and affordable forms of contraception, such as access to RU-486, the "morning after pill", available and viable prenatal care, especially for women who choose to have children and just generally a true conservative attitude that dictates that the individual is the best person to run their own life.

Unlike John McCain's air quotes, deriding the health of a mother as some phony baloney cover for the "Abortion industry", it really is about preserving the health of women, whose lives would be in danger without a concerted effort by organizations like Planned Parenthood and NARAL.

Let me be clear, no one in this country is "pro-abortion", except for Republicans as another wedge issue. They are the ones who would suffer politically, if under the circumstances I've outlined, the number of first term abortions dropped to an imperceptible level. All late term abortions are medical procedures to save the life of the mother. Only by distorting the actual picture, like the way they misrepresent when life begins or when a fetus becomes a person, they muddle the picture and force abortion to become a moral, religious and emotional issue rather than a medical one.

Case in point, the recent effort in Colorado to grant fetuses the status of personhood. A ridiculous notion to label cells that are dividing on a intrauterine wall the same legal status as you, your Uncle Larry or your Cousin Marcia. It had the possibility, if enacted in to law, to classify a fetus as a viable person in the census, or impel a charge of manslaughter for a miscarriage. The penchant for the Republican Party to be against things as wedge issues has driven them into the category of utterly insane. The people of Colorado, thank God, did not fall for the okey-doke.

Outside of Abortion, they have huge trick bag of goodies for smearing the truth with ugly lies. Racists code words, hate for the poor and gays, cultural superiority and isolationism, fear and intimidation, outright lies, utter hypocrisy, and the is goes on and on.

In the wake of Democratic Party victories in the recent election, they've tried to drive home the completely untrue notion that America is a "Center-right" nation. To insist that the Democrats and President Barack Obama do not have a "mandate" to pursue their policies is a way that Republicans are furthering their distortions. Only a fool would believe that the Democrats, by dint of their victories, have to maintain the programs and policies of their Republican predecessors in a self-evident environment of "Change". This is where the media becomes complicit with the Republicans to maintain their facade, by advancing the notion that it's a good idea for Barack Obama to keep some of Bush's cabinet cronies on the payroll instead of showing them the door.

According to the Republicans, an Obama Administration would hurt itself and the country by deferring away from the Republican default, instead of pursuing its own agenda. This is the tool that the Republicans are using to try to kneecap President Obama before he's even inaugurated. Frankly, I find it appalling that anyone in the media is deferring to any Republican opinion in the wake of the repudiation of republicanism in this last election. The Republicans are utter failures, in every sense of the word. They haven't changed their tune and to credit any of their delusional meanderings with a grain of credibility is nothing except the pinnacle of intellectual dishonesty.

Such is the very heart of the Republican Party. A tool to shift power and money out of the hands and pockets of the majority and into the coffers of the ultra-rich. They are the first to cry foul, "class warfare", when class warfare is their bread and butter. Class warfare that they have masked with a facade of patriotism, an utterly cynical exercise to damage the American ideal for their own benefit.

This is their greatest fear, to turn their default off.

To reverse the standard by which wealth and power trickles up, instead of down.

To preserve liberty, instead to subverting it under a gaze of fear and intimidation.

To stand by the rule of law, instead of an arbitrary rule of power.

To pursue necessary peace, instead of elective war.


Off and on for the last twenty-eight years, this nation has been at the beck and call of barbarians who have sought to make their standard the only one to follow. Now while the worm has not completely turned, as evidenced by the passage of anti-gay proposals like California's Proposition 8, the body politic is poised to slay the faux power of Republican ideology once and for all. The Reagan Revolution, which heralded their artificial default, is dead. Killed by the self-immolation of greed, incompetence and malfeasance. It was an artificial default because it could not meet the standard imposed by true American idealism, Constitutional mandate, common sense and basic decency.


I, for one, am thankful to see this happen in my lifetime. I've never believed that the Republicans were the one true Default party, because to me they've always been so very wrong in so many ways.


What I'm also happy to see is that America has finally corrected herself... But, if I've ever doubted that she would, I'm ashamed to admit it.

The answer is clear as a bell.

The American people have roundly condemned the Republicans and their experimentations, which promoted crony capitalism, fascism, militarism, bigotry, fear mongering, class warfare and lawlessness, dressed up with the buzzword of "Conservatism".

With their so called "conservatism" they have robbed and bankrupt this country and it was clear that more of the same is no answer for the problems that they've cursed us with.

To turn America around, we'll need exceptional people to lead us away from the failures, the reactionary fear mongering and cowering under the boots of the ruling class.

Change is required.

In the Black community, we have a notion that a black man has to be twice as good as his white counterpart in order to be considered his equal. The notion of Black exceptionalism has been part of the sports world since the days of Joe Louis and Jackie Robinson and has driven deep and dynamic changes there.

It's no accident that today, there are so many people of color competing at the highest levels of sports competition. And overall, today's athletes are bigger, faster and stronger than their counterparts of the past. Also, because those better athletes of the past have raised the standard, it now takes better athletes of all ethnicities to compete at the highest levels of competition.

As a reaction to racism, the legacy of exceptionalism has changed the landscape.

The world of American politics has seen this notion reach its own zenith, with the election of Barack Obama to the Presidency.

Without regard to his race, Barack Obama is a truly exceptional human being. I posit that his race shouldn't even be a consideration other than a trivial footnote that he will be the first African-American President of the United States.

I am not diminishing the importance of this milestone, but clearly based upon what I have observed from his strategy, running as the first black man to be president was not his modus operandi.

What I think that people should consider as his most salient aspects and advantages, are his exceptional intelligence, his ability to communicate expertly, his skills at organizing efficiently, his willingness to transform the landscape of the American body politic to service the needs of all its citizens instead of the privileged few and the way he has inspired so many people to see beyond their petty considerations and work towards a higher ideal.

His success has been exemplified by the way he has surpassed all expectations of a "black candidate", by pushing aside the entrenched power of the Clinton political machine and the superlative way he has waged his presidential campaign to achieve his staggering victory.

Barack Obama clearly represents a potential evolutionary step forward, in terms of the American statesman. He has raised the standard by which everyone in the arena needs compete successfully.

However, in spite of running the best campaign seen in quite a long time, the true test for Barack Obama and his exceptionalism will be how he functions as Head of State, Commander-in-Chief and Chief Executive of the United States of America. Also, how effectively he employs the Bully Pulpit.

In the coming years, we will see if he can be the transformational leader that is required to change the direction of the country. We will see if his message of change and hope will continue to inspire the Congress, which his coat tails have driven greater Democratic gains and the People, whose support he truly needs. We will see if his qualities are up to the job at hand.

He is challenged to be successful, in spite of the way that the Republicans and their right wing supporters have distorted the political landscape and corrupted the body politic. Challenges yet unknown are impending as well.

But, the true measure of this leader is not how he will avoid adversity, but how he prevails, helps the country to prevail and inspires leadership in spite of adversity.

I have complete confidence that he lead us all to prevail in the times ahead.

...Because I'm a 47 year old liberal man of color

Barack Obama will be the defacto standard bearer for an American. And guess what? He's another 47 year old liberal man of color.

It's not just a coincidence, it's a fact.

When I've traveled around the world, the first thing that people in other countries would identify me as is an AMERICAN. Not a black American, Afro-American, or as some motherfucker once screamed out of the window of a car in 1975, a "Nigger".

What is coming is a moment that will shatter the myth that America is somehow the bastion of White, Anglo-Saxon preeminence with a permanent multi-cultural sub-strata.

What is coming is the vindication that we are all Americans and equals, at least in the cultural sense of the word.

However in America, there are other vindications that are required. The fight must still continue:

For non-heterosexual Americans, we must vindicate their orientations and their love for their partners as the equal of heteros.

For women, we must vindicate the power that they are entitled for control over their own bodies and their equal worth as employees.

For non-Christians, we must vindicate that everyone's personal belief or non-belief is equal under law, as long as one belief does not impede the beliefs of others.

For the financially disadvantaged, we must reverse the deference to just the richest Americans and institute mechanisms that raise all boats instead of the just biggest, fanciest yachts.

We must vindicate peace and justice.

We must vindicate the rule of law.

We must vindicate the protection of our environment.

We must vindicate all Americans, not just any specific demographic.

In all places of our nation, we must vindicate Americans in small towns, big cities and everywhere else in between.

Once we do this, it'll be a clear direction to walk, to respect ourselves and as the most influential nation at this time and respect for everyone else on this planet.

I see beyond the fact that a person of color will obtain the highest office of the land. I see the potential for vindication of all Americans, our ideals and our sacred trusts. Apply the same standard for selecting Barack Obama as President of the United States for what must be accomplished:

Because, it's the Right Thing To Do.