BLOGGING THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION PRE 1

 

BLOGGING THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION 2012 PRE 1

Can it really be, this once in a lifetime event, attending the Democratic National Convention? At the West Virginia State Convention in June I teased a young woman, Hannah, age 18, from Jefferson County, who was soliciting my vote for her nomination as delegate to the National, “What?  Why should a young whipper-snapper like you get to go when I have never been?” I, being one whose age is the reverse of Hannah’s, that is, just reverse the digits.  Of course, I did vote for Hannah and she was a winner.  But for myself?  It was a few weeks later that my baby daughter, Valerie, who as Vice President of the Washington State Democratic Executive Committee, is a super-delegate to the convention, invited me to be her guest.   I still can hardly imagine it, but, Hannah, I hope to see you there.

Now it is just five days before I leave by train from Martinsburg for Charlotte NC, and after three days there, travel by train with Valerie to Maryland to visit with family.  A total of seven days.  And so much to do.  Like catching up on all the gardening I haven’t been able to keep caught up on all summer.  Weeding the main garden, with its prolific invasion of jimson weed and that stickery-weed-that-resembles-redroot pigweed-but-isn’t from a liberal truckload of manure that was spread in the spring, and harvesting the silver queen corn, the tomatoes, the peppers, digging the last of the potatoes.  And weeding the back gardens—the kitchen and arbor gardens—with their profusion of self-sown summer phlox mingled with queen anne’s lace and goldenrod and that awful grasslike weed-whose-name-I-also- do-not-know-but-may-be-smartweed, which is superior as a ground-cover to any other weed I know, but at least has the virtue, if virtue it is, of easily coming out by the handsful.  Oh, and did I mention mowing the lawn?

And then there is the barn work, clean out the hen coops and clean up the barnyard, make sure there is an adequate supply of feed and that the caretaker (another daughter) knows how to care for them all.  As well, replenish supply of dog and cat food and post their schedules.  And don’t forget the birdfeed.  Dispose of trash and compost and organize recycling.

Not to mention preparing for the trip, checking out the luggage and planning the wardrobe.  And how come the railroad tickets haven’t come yet?  And how many pieces can I carry on board and how many books can I manage?  And don’t forget the camera.  And oh yes,  personal business, such as a trip to the courthouse to pay property taxes.

And, not least of all, responsibilities for our local Democrats.  I know, I know, of course they can get along without me, but years ago when a friend cautioned me that, after all, no one is indispensable, I responded that if we all really believed that, we would never undertake to do anything.    And now there is the list of pollworkers to be completed, trying to recruit members for the executive committee and volunteers for campaign work, setting up headquarters, planning for candidates’ events, helping to prepare agendas for the meetings I will miss.

And trying, in the midst of all this, to keep up with what is going on at the Republican National Convention.  Did I hear aright?  Rick Santorum refers to “the assault on America and the family?”  As in, “assault on women’s rights, assault on the poor, assault on the middle class, assault on voters’ rights, assault on entitlements, assault on social safety net?”  I dvr all of this, and catch it in bits and pieces.  Don’t know if I can stand to listen to that wonderboy Paul Ryan, but I guess I must.  I prefer to listen, or read, for myself, and not just take someone else’s word for what was said.

But what really got me up at 3 a.m. is worry about Sukey, my young cat who scrambled through a torn porch screen yesterday evening, as she is wont to do (she, after all, having torn the screen herself), and failed to return at dark. 

Musings Feb 15-17

Musings February 15, 2012

Gretchen Carlson interviewing Mitt Romney, “You know that is going to be President Obama’s whole strategy now, the fairness/sharing thing…how would you combat that?”

Did you hear Rick Santorum castigating the 1%, along with the Republican candidates and the Republican congresspeople?  “Don’t you see how they see you…these elite snobs…looking down their noses at you…they don’t care about the average person.”  Well, actually, he thought he was castigating Democrats.

Martin Bashir says the choice between the parties is, “Do you want intervention in the boardroom, or in the bedroom?”

Give Gov Walker his due, he gave a gracious welcome to the president when the latter arrived in Wisconsin, presenting him with an Brewers’ athletic shirt that says:  “OBAMA 1.”  Of course, he was too sick to accompany President Obama on a trip to a factory, but that is probably not a swipe at the president, but prudence about appearing before his people at this volatile time.

Sec Panetta:  “We’ve made very clear that they [Iran] are not to develop a nuclear weapon.  We’ve made very clear that they are not to close the Straits of Hormuz.  We’ve made very clear that they are not to export terrorism and undermine other governments.”   And who are we?  Who do we think we are?  Who told us that we could not develop nuclear weapons?  Who told us that we were not to close any sea lanes or blockade shipments from any port?  Who told us that we were not to bomb civilians and assassinate people, and that we were not to foment rebellion against other governments?               

It really was a simpler time.  Men kept their wives under control by keeping them barefoot in winter and pregnant in summer.

Foster Friess goes from bad to worse.   After passing off as a joke his comment about  using an aspirin for a contraceptive, he argues that forcing religious entities to cover contraceptives is like “asking a Muslim soup kitchen to serve pork or a Kosher delicatessen to have to serve ham.”   One can see why his protégée, Rick Santorum, equates the contraceptive rule to requiring that insurance provide coverage for toothpaste and deodorant.   Both of them trivializing women’s reproductive rights and health care needs. 

And what about those sweater vests?  Mind you, I have nothing against sweater vests, at least, I never have had.  But I am getting rather sick of seeing these all the time, is this some kind of fetish?  Is this supposed to set a fashion trend?  Has anyone seen an uptick is sales of sweater vests?  But now I see,  there is Santorum’s billionaire benefactor, who accompanies him on his tour, standing at his shoulder,  and who introduces him at CPAC—while wearing a sweater vest. 

If God really meant sex only for procreation, then why did that sly old fox make it possible for seniors to still enjoy sex even in their 50s, their 60s, their 70s?  Do you suppose he’s up there, chuckling away, and saying, “Go for it, it’s high time you could enjoy sex without worrying about the consequences?”  Or perhaps he’s saying,  “Whoops, I didn’t see that coming.  What did I do wrong?”  Maybe  Rep Issa’s oversight committee should look into that.

Musings Early February

Musings feb 8 2012

The Nation’s Katrina Vanderheuvel says, about President Obama’s decision to allow superpacs in his campaign, that though she is reluctant, “There are times when you cannot win with one hand tied behind your back, when you cannot fight fire only with a philosophical opposition to fire.”

Stephen Colbert says, of Obama’s  singing:  Once again, Obama is playing his same old dirty political trick of being irresistibly appealing.  You’ll never see Newt Gingrich stoop that low.

Keith Ellison said: “If we can walk with Obama, we should…if we can’t then we should walk ahead of him.”

Sen DeMint likens the rivalry between the Democrats and Republicans to a football game—argues that when the two teams go out onto the field they have no intention of “cooperating” or “collaborating.”  They do not share the same goals.   So now we understand—it really is their “game plan”.

Romney:  I will put an end to this kind of assault on religion, if I am president of the United States.

Romney apparently objects to the auto industry  “bailout” because it didn’t hurt workers enough.

Romney would “take us back to the good old days,” while at the same time he would “Restore Our Future.”  [How do you restore something that has never been?]    He wants our country to be “the shining city on the hill” that would presumably hold out the hope of freedom and democracy for the world, but he would also have it to be the mightiest military power in the world so that all who look us it would tremble in fear.

Handel, of Komen,  says private organizations have a right to make their own decisions about grants, etc., without being subject to vicious attacks—but after all, people have the right to object to your right to make decisions that we don’t like, to criticize and withdraw support, etc.

Julian Epstein, Democratic strategist, just said that Newt Gingrich is “collapsing of his own weight.”

The Man Who Would Be Pope:  Rick Santorum

Rick Santorum reminds me of no one so much as Brother Jerome, the self-righteous monk of the Brother Cadfael chronicles.

Santorum says: 

·         When you give government power, they will use that power over you.  [much better to give the pope that power]

·         Catholics are told that they have a right to health care, but the health care will be what the government tells you you have to give your people, whether it is against your church or not.

·         Says he will fight for “your voices for freedom in America” [yes, freedom for religion but not freedom for the people]

·         Says his grandparents and parents came to this country for freedom, because they didn’t want a government  telling them what to believe, that we had a first amendment that actually stood for freedom of conscience, and not that we would have a president that would impose his secular values on the people of this country [but they meant that we should submit to a pope, represented perhaps by Santorum himself, telling us what to believe, and imposing his religious values on the people, even though we didn’t elect him]

Rick Santorum says, of gays who glitterbomb him, that they represent “true intolerance.”

Rick Santorum, inveighing against the contraceptive rule, equates that to providing coverage for toothpaste and deodorant.  Previously, he had ridiculed the idea that contraceptives were expensive—they are cheap and insurance shouldn’t have to cover cheap things.  I recall reading recently of a man who died of a tooth infection because he didn’t have $24.00 to get his prescription for antibiotic filled.