voting, dreams and my psyche
My dreams have always been rather extravagant. They’re long, rolling affairs that flow like a 5,000 page novel strewn with unlikely, but extraordinarily real, appearances from people in both my past and my present. My dreams are filled with emotion, and I wake up feeling like they actually happened with the residue of the experience sticking to me…sometimes for the rest of that day. Sometimes, it’s hard to shake.
I’ve had three recurring dream themes for as long as I can remember about:
- Swimming (in pools mostly)
- Airplanes (because I’m terrified to fly)
- Not being able to see (like when you come inside after being in the blinding sun)
I don’t have those classic and cliche dreams about showing up to school naked or sitting down to a test and not knowing the answers; I don’t have dreams that speak directly to my current goings on or reflect literal and immediate anxieties…I just never have.
But last night, I had a marathon dream in which every thing that could go wrong with my voting activities went wrong.
- I stood in my line to vote, Barack was at the table receiving ballots, and after waiting for a really long time and getting right up to the front, I realized that I had never checked in and didn’t have my ballot.
- Then, I went to get the ballot and didn’t have the money to pay for it. (yes, I know it’s free to vote - this was a dream)
- Somehow, I got back in line and when I got to the front, Barack was talking about his grandmother who just passed, ‘Toot’, and I hugged him and cried with him, but still had no way to actually vote.
- I finally got my ballot and went back to get in line but now it was miles long.
- I waited and waited…and several other nutty things happened.
- Then, just as I got to the head of the line, Barack and his children had their lunch break, they turned around to the other side of their table, and we were told to go find another line.
Over and over again, I’d find myself in line, at the voting building, only to realize that I still hadn’t managed to vote.
Oy. It seems that this election has done a serious number on my psyche…my subconscious is feeling it.
I live in a tiny town on a tiny island. I will vote today…I know that…so maybe my anxiety was as indirect as usual…maybe it was for all of you (who I can’t control and are likely to face interminably long lines and broken voting systems).
So, do me a favor…vote (early, often and for Obama) and let me know when you did…it’ll put my mind at ease.
Update: I voted. I cried when we got to the polls, when I saw someone holding an Obama sign outside - I was so overwhelmed with how amazing all of this has been. It took exactly 12 minutes from start to finish, beginning of the line to out the door. I stared at the Obama/Biden line and the oval that I had filled in - I wanted to remember what it looked like after I left. I wanted to make sure I had done it right.
Filed under Myth or Reality, News, Politics | Tags: 2008 election, Biden, McCain, Obama, Palin, Politics, presidential election, vote | Comments (8)Is it November 5th yet?
It’s PMS! It’s bipolar disorder! It’s being mom to two 2 year-olds!
NOPE, it’s this damn election. The stress is killing me.
When I hear that Obama is going to win in a landslide, I feel like I can conquer the world.
When I hear that the Republicans are engaging in unethical tactics to keep poor and minority people away from the polls, I become furious.
When I read that MoveOn’s call parties made a whopping 373,000 calls to get volunteers active in swing states, my heart sings.
When I read that with a small margin, the Republican party can easily steal this election, just like they did in 2000 and 2004, I want to rip out my hair from the fury.
I’m up… when we hosted a MoveOn call party last weekend and I talked to so many people excited to volunteer, so many people already volunteering who told me about the change they see in their community as a result of their work. Thrilled that they got 50 people registered to vote…
I’m down…But, then one of those calls was a McCain/Palin supporter. And she told me, and I quote, “You people are being terribly mislead.” US? We’re being mislead????? Left me utterly distraught by the injustice of it all. The murderous irony.
I’m ready for November 5th. I’m ready to wake up in the morning and jump up and down, thrilled beyond belief that Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States…
Filed under Politics | Tags: 2008 presidential election, Barack Obama, Biden, McCain, Obama, Palin | Comments (13)Blog Action Day ‘08: Poverty and Barack Obama
Today is Blog Action Day. Bloggers across the internet are focusing their posts and energies on one topic: POVERTY.
The goals? Awareness, action, change.
To write like I understand poverty, would be wrong. I have never experienced poverty. I’ve never been hungry for more than a few hours. I’ve never been too hot, too cold or too wet when it hasn’t been on purpose or when I haven’t been able to remedy those situations quickly and easily. I’ve never been sick and unable to afford health care. I’ve never had no money without the safety net of friends and family to pull me through.
I am ever so grateful that the above statements are true.
What I’m doing today to bring awareness to the world is writing this post.
What I am doing today as an action to bring change to the poverty and devastation faced by my fellow humans across the globe is donating to the Obama campaign and urging you to do the same.
Barack Obama has seen the world. He chose to focus his career on grassroots change and communities. Ending national and world poverty are important to Obama because he understands that no human is better than another - we all deserve to be safe, secure and free.
In honor of Blog Action Day ’08 and because you can, please donate (even $5) to the Obama campaign and VOTE blue in November.
Filed under Blogging, Politics, Social Media | Tags: Blog Action Day, Blogging, Obama, poverty, social change | Comments (4)do you speak palinese?
I just received this…and couldn’t wait to repost it. No idea who wrote, so I can’t give credit…
If you’re a minority and you’re selected for a job over more qualified candidates you’re a ‘token hire.’
If you’re a conservative and you’re selected for a job over more qualified candidates you’re a ‘game changer.’
Black teen pregnancies? A ‘crisis’ in black America.
White teen pregnancies? A ‘blessed event.’
If you grow up in Hawaii you’re ‘exotic.’
Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, you’re the quintessential ‘American story.’
Similarly, if you name you kid Barack you’re unpatriotic.’
Name your kid ‘Track’, you’re ‘colorful.’
If you’re a Democrat and you make a VP pick without fully vetting the individual you’re ‘reckless.’
A Republican who doesn’t fully vet his VP pick is a ‘maverick.’
*If you spend 3 years as a community organizer growing your organization from a staff of 1 to 13 and your budget from $70,000 to $400,000, then become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new African American voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, then spend nearly 8 more years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, becoming chairman of the state Senate’s Health and Human Services committee, then spend nearly 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of nearly 13 million people, sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran’s Affairs committees, you are woefully inexperienced.
*However, if you spend 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 9,000 people, then spend 20 months as the governor of a state with 650,000 people, then you’ve got the most executive experience of anyone on either ticket, are the Commander in Chief of the Alaska military and are well qualified to lead the nation should you be called upon to do so because your state is the closest state to Russia.
If you are a Democratic male candidate who is popular with millions of people you are an ‘arrogant celebrity’.
If you are a popular Republican female candidate you are ‘energizing the base’.
If you are a younger male candidate who thinks for himself and makes his own decisions you are ‘presumptuous’.
If you are an older male candidate who makes last minute decisions you refuse to explain, you are a ’shoot from the hip’ maverick.
If you are a candidate with a Harvard law degree you are ‘an elitist-out of touch’ with the real America.
If you are a legacy (dad and granddad were admirals) graduate of Annapolis, with multiple disciplinary infractions you are a hero.
If you manage a multi-million dollar nationwide campaign, you are an ‘empty suit’.
If you are a part time mayor of a town of 9,000 people, you are an ‘experienced executive’.
If you go to a south side Chicago church, your beliefs are ‘extremist’.
If you believe in creationism and don’t believe global warming is man made, you are ’strongly principled’.
If you have been married to the same woman with whom you’ve been wed to for 19 years and raising 2 beautiful daughters with, you’re ‘risky’.
If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the month after you are divorced, you’re a good Christian
If you’re a 13-year-old Chelsea Clinton, the right-wing press calls you ‘First dog.’
If you’re a 17-year old pregnant unwed daughter of a Republican, the right-wing press calls you ‘beautiful’ and ‘courageous.’
a tale of 2 books, a tale of great marketing
One, a slanderous attack filled with lies and smut from the conservative right. The other, a fact-based, realistic, inspirational book from a fantastic author.
The video also showcases some brilliant marketing- and the authors and publishers are asking us to join in the fight. Why? Because they aren’t using church groups and the people’s money to spend millions on ads to make the book a bestseller. Instead, they’re going the Obama way - grassroots, community.
Whether you want to help or just examine some solid marketing via video and the Groundswell, check it out:
FYI: About Chelsea Green Publishing Company (from their website) For more than 20 years, Chelsea Green has been the publishing leader for books on the politics and practice of sustainable living. We are a founding member of the Green Press Initiative and have been printing books on recycled paper since 1985, when our first list of books appeared.
We lead the industry both in terms of content—foundational books on renewable energy, green building, organic agriculture, eco-cuisine, and ethical business—and in terms of environmental practice, printing 95 percent of our books on recycled paper with a minimum 30 percent post-consumer waste and aiming for 100 percent whenever possible. This approach is a perfect example of what is called a ”triple bottom line“ practice, one that benefits people, planet, and profit, and the emerging new model for sustainable business in the 21st century.
Chelsea Green happens to have published a great book by the man that built my house and co-housing community, John Abrams of South Mountain Company and they are about to publish Susan Gibbs’ book about the world’s first natural fiber CSA she started, the Martha’s Vineyard Fiber Farm.
Filed under Marketing, News | Tags: Chelsea Green, copywriter, copywriting, green business, John Abrams, Julie Roads, Marketing, Martha's Vineyard Fiber Farm, Obama, Obama Nation, Obama's Challenge, publishing, Susan Gibbs, sustainable business, video marketing, Writing Roads, YouTube | Comments (4)Barbra Streisand on McCain, Palin, Smart Women
Babs is all set to perform at a huge fundraiser for Obama on Sept. 16 - tickets are reportedly $28,500 a pop. This letter was originally posted on her website:
McCain Doesn’t Get It: Women are not that stupid.
Maybe he was sick of the lack of media attention…maybe he had enough of the late night talk show hosts poking fun at his age…maybe he realized that belonging to a party that has been associated with rich, white men was not going to connect with voters in this historical election year. Or maybe he was just ready to take back some of the spotlight that has shined so brightly on Barack Obama and the Democrats since the beginning of the Democratic convention. Desperation can motivate people to make some pretty cynical and hypocritical decisions. Whatever the reason, John McCain’s Hail Mary– in the form of Vice Presidential pick Governor Sarah Palin–sent a very clear message to America about how he views female voters. Women, he thinks, will vote another woman into office regardless of the candidate’s values, experience and political positions.
No one can dispute that this decision was micro-targeted to the small percentage of Independent and Democratic women residing in the Rocky Mountain West, who strongly supported Hillary Clinton in the primary and still find themselves undecided as we move into the general election. Unfortunately, what John McCain failed to realize is that after eight long and destructive years of George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and their cronies, American voters will not fall prey to political ploys once again.
For months, John McCain and the Republicans went after Barack Obama for lacking the experience they felt was necessary in order to be commander in chief. Yet, on this day, an aging John McCain, who is the oldest Presidential nominee in history, chose a running mate—a person that is just a heart beat away from the Presidency—that has no foreign policy experience, no national experience and limited state government experience…. a virtual unknown who has only been Governor for a less than 2 years of a state with a population of fewer than 680,000 people…a woman who condemns a woman’s right to choose.
I believe John McCain chose Gov. Palin because he truly believes that women who supported Hillary—an experienced, brilliant, life-long public servant–would vote for him because his Vice President has two x chromosomes. McCain’s selection of Governor Palin is a transparent and irresponsible decision all in the name of trying to win this election.
John McCain has served this country. No one in this election is denying him that. But his selection of Governor Palin has demonstrated that he is willing to put his desperation to win this election above the welfare of the American people. As someone who has spent over 40 years advocating on behalf of women both politically and philanthropically, as someone who was a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton and as someone who cares deeply about the health and welfare of all women, hear me Senator McCain: “This calculated, cynical ploy to pull away a small percentage of Hillary’s women voters from Barack Obama will not work. We are not that stupid!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
You said it, Sister.
Filed under News, Politics | Tags: 2008 presidential election, Barbra Streisand, Biden, McCain, Obama, Palin, political celebs, RNC | Comments (14)what you just saw: the Obama response to last night’s RNC
I wasn’t planning on sending you something tonight. But if you saw what I saw from the Republican convention, you know that it demands a response.
I saw John McCain’s attack squad of negative, cynical politicians. They lied about Barack Obama and Joe Biden, and they attacked you for being a part of this campaign.
But worst of all — and this deserves to be noted — they insulted the very idea that ordinary people have a role to play in our political process.
You know that despite what John McCain and his attack squad say, everyday people have the power to build something extraordinary when we come together.
Both Rudy Giuliani and Sarah Palin specifically mocked Barack’s experience as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago more than two decades ago, where he worked with people who had lost jobs and been left behind when the local steel plants closed.
Let’s clarify something for them right now.
Community organizing is how ordinary people respond to out-of-touch politicians and their failed policies.
And it’s no surprise that, after eight years of George Bush, millions of people have found that by coming together in their local communities they can change the course of history. That promise is what our campaign has been about from the beginning.
Throughout our history, ordinary people have made good on America’s promise by organizing for change from the bottom up. Community organizing is the foundation of the civil rights movement, the women’s suffrage movement, labor rights, and the 40-hour workweek. And it’s happening today in church basements and community centers and living rooms across America.
Meanwhile, we still haven’t gotten a single idea during the entire Republican convention about the economy and how to lift a middle class so harmed by the Bush-McCain policies.
It’s now clear that John McCain’s campaign has decided that desperate lies and personal attacks — on Barack Obama and on you — are the only way they can earn a third term for the Bush policies that McCain has supported more than 90 percent of the time.
But you can send a crystal clear message.
Enough is enough. Make your voice heard loud and clear by making a $25 donation right now.
Thank you for joining more than 2 million ordinary Americans who refuse to be silenced.
Filed under News | Tags: 2008 presidential election, Biden, McCain, Obama, Palin, RNC | Comment (0)Obama-Kennedy ticket…Caroline, not Edward
Michael Moore’s open letter to Caroline Kennedy:
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008
“Caroline: Pull a Cheney!” An Open Letter to Caroline Kennedy (head of the Obama VP search team) from Michael Moore
Dear Caroline,
We’ve never met, so I hope you don’t find this letter too presumptuous or inappropriate. As its contents involve the public’s business, I am sending this to you via the public on the Internet. I knew your brother John. He was a great guy, and I know he would’ve had a ball during this thrilling and historic election year. We all miss him dearly.
Barack Obama selected you to head up his search for a vice presidential candidate. It appears we may be just days (hours?) away from learning who that choice will be.
The media is reporting that Senator Obama has narrowed his alternatives to three men: Joe Biden, Evan Bayh and Tim Kaine. They’re all decent fellows, but they are far from the core of what the Obama campaign has been about: Change. Real change. Out with the old. And don’t invade countries that pose no threat to us.
Senators Biden and Bayh voted for that invasion and that war, the war Barack ran against, the war Barack reminded us was the big difference between him and Senator Clinton because she voted for the war and he spoke out against it while running for Senate (a brave and bold thing to do back in 2002).
For Obama to place either of these senators on the ticket would be a huge blow to the millions that chose him in the primaries over Hillary. He will undercut one of the strongest advantages he has over the Hundred-Year War senator, Mr. McCain. By anointing a VP who did what McCain did in throwing us into this war, Mr. Obama will lose the moral high ground in the debates.
As for Governor Kaine of Virginia, his big problem is, well, Obama’s big problem — who is he? The toughest thing Barack has had to overcome — and it will continue to be his biggest obstacle — is that too many of the voters simply don’t know him well enough to vote for him. The fact that Obama is new to the scene is both one of his most attractive qualities AND his biggest drawback. Too many Americans, who on the surface seem to like Barack Obama, just don’t feel comfortable voting for someone who hasn’t been on the national scene very long. It’s a comfort level thing, and it may be just what keeps Obama from winning in November (”I’d rather vote for the devil I know than the devil I don’t know”).
What Obama needs is a vice presidential candidate who is NOT a professional politician, but someone who is well-known and beloved by people across the political spectrum; someone who, like Obama, spoke out against the war; someone who has a good and generous heart, who will be cheered by the rest of the world; someone whom we’ve known and loved and admired all our lives and who has dedicated her life to public service and to the greater good for all.
That person, Caroline, is you.
I cannot think of a more winning ticket than one that reads: “OBAMA-KENNEDY.”
Caroline, I know that nominating yourself is the furthest idea from your mind and not consistent with who you are, but there would be some poetic justice to such an action. Just think, eight years after the last head of a vice presidential search team looked far and wide for a VP — and then picked himself (a move topped only by his hubris to then lead the country to near ruin while in office) — along comes Caroline Kennedy to return the favor with far different results, a vice president who helps restore America to its goodness and greatness.
Caroline, you are one of the most beloved and respected women in this country, and you have been so admired throughout your life. You chose a life outside of politics, to work for charities and schools, to write and lecture, to raise a wonderful family. But you did not choose to lead a private life. You have traveled the world and met with its leaders, giving you much experience on the world stage, a stage you have been on since you were a little girl.
The nation has, remarkably (considering our fascination with celebrity), left you alone and let you live your life in peace. (It’s like, long ago, we all collectively agreed that, with her father tragically gone, a man who died because he wanted to serve his country, we would look out for her, we would wish for her to be happy and well, and we would have her back. But we would let her be.)
Now, I am breaking this unwritten code and asking you to come forward and help us in our hour of need. So many families are hurting, losing their homes, going bankrupt with health care bills, seeing their public schools in shambles and living with this war without end. This is a historic year for women, from Hillary’s candidacy to the numerous women running for the House and Senate. This is the year that a woman should be on the Democratic ticket. This is the year that both names on that ticket should be people OUTSIDE the party machine. This is the year millions of independents and, yes, millions of Republicans are looking for something new and fresh and bold (and you are the Kennedy Republicans would vote for!).
This is the moment, Caroline. Seize it! And Barack, if you’re reading this, you probably know that she is far too humble and decent to nominate herself. So step up and surprise us again. Step up and be different than every politician we have witnessed in our lifetime. Keep the passion burning amongst the young people and others who have been energized by your unexpected, unpredicted, against-all-odds candidacy that has ignited and inspired a nation. Do it for all those reasons. Make Caroline Kennedy your VP. “Obama-Kennedy.” Wow, does that sound so cool.
Caroline, thanks for letting me intrude on your life. How wonderful it will be to have a vice president who will respect the Constitution, who will support (instead of control) her president, who will never let her staff out a CIA agent, and who will never tell her country that she is “currently residing in an undisclosed location.”
Say it one more time: “OBAMA-KENNEDY.” A move like that might send a message to the country that the Democrats would actually like to win an election for once.
Yours,
Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
MichaelMoore.com
Filed under News | Tags: 2008 presidential election, Caroline Kennedy, Obama, Obama's VP | Comments (4)
