The Governator: A Political Girly Man

A little late? Yeah. And while I'm close to losing my head without news like this, I'm still hearing about it and I still want to scream in Schwarzenegger's face.

(by the by, is it okay for me to criticize government leaders?)

This past Tuesday California had yet another "special election" because Arnold can't lead to save his life. Because Arnold does not understand that this is a republic, not a democracy. We, the people, vote in others to represent our interests and ideals and they, in turn, go to work full time to ensure we, the people, get what we say we want. This is for a few reasons:

1. The People do not have the time to follow up and research--and vote for--all of the laws to be passed.

2. The People largely do not have the smarts to deal with all the laws to be passed.

But Arnold doesn't get this. It felt neat at first when he threatened the legislature with "taking it to the people" but after a while, the people got tired. We've our own crap to deal with.

He can be entertaining to be sure, but he's too scared to lead. Coward. To use his own words, Arnold is a political girly man.

You see, everytime there's a big decision to be made and the legislature throws their arms in the air and Arnold can't rally them up--which is almost every time--he takes it "to the people."

And it costs m-o-n-e-y. So much effing money.

As some may well know, California also cannot (a) balance a budget and (b) pass a budget. So what does he do? Special Elections.

And with the nationwide economic crisis with California suffering moreso than some other states, gasp, Arnold knows he has to cut some programs.

And what does Arnold like to cut? Education. Fire.

Now my involvement in politics admittedly ends too soon and I have no other answers. However, a friend of mine on a privatized blog of mine asked a key question:

What is he not willing to cut if he's willing to cut Education and Fire?

Before the election this past Tuesday, Arnold and his ilk were running around saying things like "I don't like to threaten with fear, but I have to. If you do not pass these propositions, I will have to cut education."

Just wait. There's more.

All the propositions failed. By a landslide. Arnold's reaction? "You guys sent a strong message this past Tuesday, that we need to live within our means. We need to cut education."

Arnold.

That is NOT what we said.

We said: do your job. Figure it out. We don't have time for this.

Don't come back and say "well, the people hath spoken" because that's political speak for "if this doesn't work, it's not my fault your child can't afford to attend a college here, to take his music and physical education class. The people voted."

Let's not forget the state is in more debt, I hear, even with the economy aside, than we were when Gray Davis was Governor.

You're taxing the hell out of us, too. You're just spreading it around so it doesn't seem like it. Our vehicle registration fees are doubled. It costs money now to get a smog extension. Our sales tax has been hiked. Thousands upon thousands of teachers are now out of a job and more are scared they're next. Schools have closed. Fire stations. I actually heard a leader say "don't worry, we still have enough firemen to get to everyone. It just might take a bit longer to get to your house."

Come on now. Seriously?

You know you can't run for President. Your tenure as Governator is, thankfully, coming to a close. There's very little to lose here. So stand up and do something. If you run for the Senate or the House, well. We know what kind of congressman you'll be. A lazy one.

I didn't vote for you the first time nor the second time, and you can bet your ass I won't vote for you again.

Go back to Hollywood.

Don't let the homo storm get YOU!

From the National Organization for Marriage (These people are dead serious. "I am afraid" Oh man.)



Gay people are so scary.

And Stephen Colbert's fantastic response:



You gotta love Colbert.

Idiots!

I wanted to share a few quotes from Meet the Press and some Jon Stewart episodes from the past week.

You know, for a guy who isn't a real journalist, he sure as hell is doing a better job than most.

I do have some rather...inciteful posts in my queue right now I'm debating on posting. We'll see. But in the meantime, I want to go back to politics. From April 19th's Meet the Press:

"FMR. REP. DICK ARMEY (R-TX): Well, first of all, I, I want to correct the record. While FreedomWorks did participate and help with the organizing, we had over 800 TEA parties. Now, this is very important. Over 800 TEA parties around the country, with attendance in the hundreds. [yay?] And Atlanta was 15,000. These were almost exclusively organized by volunteer people. I say they were. [well then we will have to take your word for it, huh?] And where FreedomWorks helped with technical assistance, in every TEA party that I was aware of a real person in their real community put it together. Now, what they're concerned about is where it's going to go. Quite frankly, the--most of the people that I talked to at the TEA parties and, and who had that sentiment frankly just simply do not believe that the president is either going to hold the line on spending. Look, he's, he's taken the, the deficit up to $2 trillion and promising to halve it. That still makes it, what, a--twice as big as it was when he started. So the fact of the matter is there's real doubts about him, and taxes must inevitably go up if he's going to grow big government. [Where the hell were these people when Bush was making big government?]

"FMR. REP. HAROLD FORD JR. (D-TN): There was not--but, but, but, Leader, there was not one TEA party in the eight years that President Bush was in office. [I love how they're using the TEA acronym now. Lame!] And this is not meant to litigate the last eight years. But let's be honest, there was a $5 trillion increase in the amount of the, the nation's debt under President Bush. Normally when you use a credit card and you go out and charge things, you're able to show something you got in return. For the last eight years there are no more kids with health care, there are fewer kids who are able to afford college, we have not found new energy sources, and we can make a pretty credible argument that the Middle East is less stable and more dangerous than it was before. I give the president great credit for another attack not occurring on our soil. When we look at the long-term investments and the foundational platform that this president, President Obama is trying to create, one could make a legitimate and I think a compelling argument that in the long run this will produce the new--new investments in energy will produce not only alternatives but less reliance overseas, cheaper energy here at home, a smarter electricity grid, more kids going to college, more people with access to health care, which will lower business costs and allow the economy, for that matter..." (emphasis added)

Let's not forget, John McCain's plan was going to increase the deficit as well.

And besides that, anyone watch Jon Stewart? To quote an overused phrase, I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. Correspondent John Oliver attended a tea bagging party where everyone shouted about tyranny and how "taxation is slavery." I just wanted to beat the utter crap out of these people.

Slavery? Tyranny?

These are the SAME PEOPLE who are running around screaming how we don't know how good we have it. How we don't appreciate our freedom.

Idiots!

I just want to know how many of these teabaggers went out and bought the then half-million dollar houses which are now in foreclosure.

Then Oliver speaks with a teabagger who doesn't understand what "Taxation without Representation" truly is. Basically the conversation went like this:

Reporter: "But you are represented."
Teabagger: "Yeah, well, um. I'm not represented in that my views aren't being represented."

Idiot!

Keep encouraging these people, Faux News. It's making 2012 look much more brighter than it already does.

Don't Panic: We've Been Here Before

The fundamentals of the economy are strong.

Remember that quote? It still makes me giggle, especially since most knew at the time that John McCain was very, very wrong.

The more aware among us realize the Recession has been around for a while now, and now everyone's losing their jobs and losing their homes.

In my county and the neighboring county, unemployment is at a staggering 20%. The foreclosure to resident ratio in my neighboring county is the highest in the state.Most of us know where all this began: investment in housing. For the longest time when housing prices were so inflated as to induce laughter at the mere sight of the price tag (half a million for a dilapidated house in my father’s neighborhood was snatched up in no time), and nobody thought this would have to, you know, stop.

The experts were saying it would have to, but people refused to listen because they wanted to believe the realtors who swore that wasn’t the case. Because the realtors had no interest in lying to the public about any sort of bubble, right? We had our bank and others approach us to offer us home loans. Out of nowhere. Our annual income at the time was around $25k a year. Our credit scores were fantastic, but credit scores can change when a family making around $25k a year are talked into buying a $300k home. Because everyone wants that. Everyone wants to be able to buy a home. And I’ll admit, we considered it (for like, half a second. It took one look at the prices for us to realize that wasn’t possible no matter what we wanted. We’ve good credit for a reason).

People were going into interest-only loans where their $800 mortgage payment would balloon after five years into $3000. Some of these people were true victims, but I still believe many of them were just damn stupid.

You want to talk about entitlement? There's your entitlement.

And before we knew it, people owed more on their homes than the homes were worth.
And they couldn’t afford the payments.
The bank comes in and forecloses or the family asks the bank for a short sale (in which the bank basically forgives the remaining debt and takes the house to sell – hardly a “short” process)

But we’re hardly the first to think we can have everything we want, own things we cannot afford, and dive into an ocean of credit that will eventually return to stab us in the back.

Then the banks don’t want to give out loans to anyone. People lose their jobs because businesses need some loans to thrive and thus can no longer afford those employees.
A huge company defaults.
Throw a war in the mix,
And the economy grinds to a screeching halt.

And no, the Great Depression of the 1930s wasn’t the first time this sort of thing happened - just the worst yet. During my readings for my US History course, I came upon two panics which occurred during the 19th Century and found there to be many parallels. Upon more research I’ve discovered far more financial disasters our country has endured. This is hardly a comprehensive list, but I hope it says enough.


The Panic of 1819

War: The War of 1812, Napoleonic Wars
Speculative Activity: Real estate
Other reasons: American shipping boom ending, demand for American “foodstuffs” declining
Lasted: Five years

“The western land boom that began in 1815 turned into a speculative frenzy. Land sales, which had totaled 1 million acres in 1815, mushroomed to 3.5 million in 1818. Many settlers bought on credit, aided by small “wildcat” state banks that made loans far beyond their resources. This was not the first—or the last—speculative boom in western lands. But it ended like all the rest—with a sharp contraction of credit, begun on this occasion by the Second Bank of the United States, which in 1819 forced state banks to foreclose on many bad loans.” (Out of Many [1], 232, emphasis added)


The Panic of 1837

The War: None
Speculative Activity: The Second Bank of the United States
Other Reasons: Specie Circular of Andrew Jackson
Lasted: Six years

“The Recession of 1833-34 was followed by a wild speculative boom, caused as much by foreign investors as by the expiration of the [Second] Bank [of the United States]. Many new state banks were chartered that were eager to give loans, the price of cotton rose rapidly, and speculation in western lands was feverish. A government surplus of $37 million distributed to the states in 1836 made the inflationary pressures worse. [President Andrew] Jackson became alarmed at the widespread use of paper money (which he blamed for the inflation), and in July 1836, he issued the Specie Circular, announcing that the government would accept payment for public lands only in hard currency. At the same time, foreign investors, especially British banks, affected by a world recession, called in their American loans. The sharp contraction of credit led to the Panic of 1837 and a six-year recession, the worst the American economy had yet known.” (Out of Many, 284)


The Depression of 1873

The War: Civil War
Speculative Investing: Railroads
Other Reasons: Commercial Overexpansion
Lasted: 65 months (the longest in history at the time)
Unemployment: 15 percent+

“Mass meetings of worker in New York and other cities issued calls to government officials to create jobs through public works. But these appeals were rejected. Indeed, many business leaders and political figures denounced even meager efforts at charity. They saw the depression as a natural, if painful, part of the business cycle, one that would allow only the strongest enterprises (and workers) to survive.

"The depression of the 1870s prompted workers and farmers to question the old free-labor ideology that celebrated a harmony of interests in northern society. More people voiced anger at and distrust of large corporations that exercised great economic power from outside their communities.” (Out of Many, 457)


The Great Depression of 1930s[2]

The War: WWII
Speculative Investing: Stock Market investing. Investment in factories and new machinery led to overproduction, which lead to more stock investing. Loans given to invest in the stock market and for buying cars.
Lasted: Nine years
Unemployment: Nearly 30% in 1932.



I could go on. The Energy Crisis of 1970s (Vietnam War). The multiple recessions of the 1980s (I remember the late 80s one well). The dot-com bust of the late 90’s. And now the housing crisis of the late 2000s. The list is huge and goes back to the late 1700s for America.

It happens

In the words of John Rockefeller: "These are days when many are discouraged. In the 93 years of my life, depressions have come and gone. Prosperity has always returned and will again.”[3]

I could go on. The Energy Crisis of 1970s (Vietnam War). The multiple recessions of the 1980s (I remember the late 80s one well). The dot-com bust of the late 90’s. And now the housing crisis of the late 2000s. The list is huge and goes back to the late 1700s for America.

People are “scared” about Obama’s stimulus plans. They were fuming over Bush’s bailout plans. People were pissed off about some of Roosevelt’s solutions. And they still argue over whether or not it did anything.

But let's consider the alternative and if anyone has any other ideas?

“In neither 1837 nor 1819 did the federal government take any action to aid victims of economic recession. No banks were bailed out, no bank depositors were saved by federal insurance, no laid-off workers got unemployment payments. Nor did the government undertake any public works projects or pump money into the economy. All of these steps, today seen as essential to prevent economic collapse and to alleviate human suffering, were unheard of then. Soup kitchens and charities were mobilized in major cities, but only by private, volunteer groups, not by local or state governments. As a result, workers, farmers, and members of the new business middle class suddenly realized that participation in America’s booming economy was very dangerous.” (Out of Many, 284)

Before too long, few will remain who were alive during the Great Depression enough to really remember it. In time there will be none left who experienced it, and we will forget. In some ways we are ignoring it. We’re willing to allow people to lose their homes and with the potential live in squalor just so we can see which of us is the strongest (please go read John Steinbeck’s "The Harvest Gypsies". Unbelievable). We seem to think we should suck it up and let the market roll.

But couldn't we say that's kinda what got us in this mess in the first place?

While I’m hesitant of the bailouts (hated them) and of the stimulus plan, I have hope in Obama’s idea to invest in programs which will encourage economic growth. This doesn’t mean I agree with all of it, but I like the idea. And I realize it isn’t his idea, but modeled under FDR. Truly, what other choice does Obama have?

And truly, Bush followed the model, too.

Though the debt is and will be far beyond comprehension, I have hope that investing in infrastructure, education, and in green jobs will promote such growth that we’ll be able to pay this off.

We can learn from history, though. We have to take care when investing in speculative issues. We have to be informed. We have to think critically. We have to have an educated population. We have to be willing to dissent.

To this I add that we have to learn that if we’re too big to fail, than we’re probably too big. If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

And it’s easy for me to say this. My husband still has his job. We’re able to afford a home now because of the bubble bursting. But that doesn’t mean what I’m saying is untrue. The market will recover. We need to take care of each other. We need to work with the government instead of against it. We need to be informed and educated and work with reason rather than emotion. It does seem to be the natural course of things for the universe to strike us back when we get too excited about money and material things – the problem is we’re not learning. And we won’t. But it is hardly the end of the world.

Footnotes:

1. Out of Many: A History of the American People. 5th ed, Volume 1
2. http://us.history.wisc.edu/hist102/lectures/lecture18.html
3. http://us.history.wisc.edu/hist102/lectures/lecture18.html

I didn't want to be the rule.

When I first started this blog, I had all of these same doubts, questions, and the knowledge that I might not be able to hack it.

I didn't want to admit that, though.

When I first began discussing lefty topics with fellow LDS on Facebook, I did so to feel a sense of community. The good people there gave me strength. I thought maybe I could do this, that who I am doesn't have to contradict the Church, that maybe I was wrong concerning everything and could be a middle-roader without sacrifice.

Numerous faithful, liberal members of the Church fight valiantly against sweeping generalizations that one cannot be a liberal Mormon and yet a good Mormon. Some succeed better than others. It's a hard fight to be made in a Church which seems to pride itself on being rooted in "family values," in being "pro-life" etc. and can't see past their ideological noses. Funny, really, because the Church is technically pro-choice and is based on as many liberal ideals as conservative. But whatever. Nobody wants to see that.

When I first began this blog, a girl from my stake came by to discover I support Obama, I am Pro-Choice, and I thought Prop 8 was a load of crap. She said something to the effect of "Except Obama, everything you just said goes against the Church!" These are basic stances many liberal members have and must contend with, along with a very real questioning of our faith and worthiness. This is the reason many choose to remain in the closet. I daresay this is why so many of us became so aggressive when it came to Prop 8. In our own way, we know what it's like to be shoved into a closet.

Over time, though, I weakened. My doubts raised to a piercing scream I couldn't ignore anymore. Knowing that my bishop could find this blog and call me in for expressing my opinion and discipline really rubbed my fur the wrong way. It's happened to too many others. Good members everywhere have walked into their bishop's offices where they were asked to shut down their blog. One commenter at The Faithful Dissident's recent post says his bishop told him he wouldn't sign his temple recommend based on his blog. He shut it down. Call me prideful, but there's something seriously wrong with that. I don't think I could shut mine down. Not in good conscience.

Freedom of expression, shut down. There's a reason so many abhor censorship - it brings to mind far too many things I'd learned in school, so much history we'd rather never happened. We live in America where we are supposed to be free to express our own beliefs. Without America, we would have no Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I should be able to say I respectfully disagree and why without fear of rebuke. I should be able to discuss why I think marrying gay couples won't be the end of society as we know it and encourage people to reconsider their vote.

But, one might say, if you don't believe, why are you here?

This is my eternal soul, that's why. For so long I fought against the cultural crap - I could sweat the culture. I could rally against and scream about it all I wanted. There are some things about LDS culture I really love but most of it just sucks. But this is my church, I've been grafted to it. This deals with my eternal soul. I believed in enough for it to matter.

I didn't want to be this stereotypical liberal Mormon girl on the precipice of apostasy. I wanted to be an activist of sorts, change minds. I've never wanted to be an activist for anything until this past year. I wanted to be an example, so the first time I expressed serious doubt with the Church. I thought great, so much for being an example. But I couldn't keep pretending. That wasn't fair.

The Faithful Dissident says that without the courageous gay community who fought for so long to have others know their orientation is not a choice, that without courageous Mother's Who Don't Know fighting against the June Cleaver or Die mold, that without activist members this church never would have changed. And despite what many orthodox members will insist to the contrary, this Church does change.

I wanted to be part of that so much. I'm a martyr. I would be more than willing to fight except I don't really believe this anymore, not enough of it at least. I could still attend (and do) without being "worthy" of the temple, but...I would be willing to pay tithing if I could and if I believed in what I was investing my money in. It's not really a matter of faith. I would be willing to avoid coffee, tea, and alcohol if...well, as stupid as it is to make a point to drink this stuff, it's just as stupid to make a point not to drink it. I could give it up, though. Much as the garment top bugs the absolute shit out of me, I would wear it. These things matter about as much as they don't in the eternal scheme of things, and instead of worrying about the piddly crap, I'd rather spend my time focusing on other things that will make me a better person because I've so far to go. So that's what I'm doing.

This is the church that most closely mirrors my lifelong beliefs. BUT! sometimes the best form of protest is the one we make with our feet. I have a difficult time believing God would place me on the same shelf as the man who couldn't give up everything he had and follow Christ because I have an occasional cup of coffee - and no, I was never addicted to the stuff (though I freely admit addiction to soda).

My bishop knows I'm having a crisis of faith. At least that's what I told him. The truth is I've been having a crisis of faith for four years now; my husband for the last eight - I didn't even know about his doubts until I expressed my own. The truth is I'm at my end. I requested release from my calling as a Relief Society teacher because I couldn't stand up there and do what I could to show these girls that the norm isn't always the best way, that there are good people outside the church, that the culture doesn't always jive with the doctrine. I couldn't stand the material, of people trying to sound biblical instead of like regular members of the human race who are trying just as hard as I am.

They are no better than me and I am no better than them.

I never wanted to be the rule. I wanted to be the exception, but sometimes it's not worth the fight, not worth the mental abuse one has to go through. I've a family. I worry about enough things. I guilt trip myself, I don't need any help.

There are good, liberal Mormons out there who do believe and have testimonies. I just don't know what I have to add anymore but more of the same, more validation to the idiots' belief that "Liberal Mormons aren't Good Mormons." They do exist, and they're amazing people with very valid views and concerns. I hope more members accept them and give their ideas a moment of their time. I wasn't always like this. I used to be a Limbaugh girl - it was because I listened to other views that I began to change my mind. Not everyone will, but acceptance is all we ask for. We need each other, after all - apostate or not.

I'm very, very proud today. Welcome, President Obama!

Thanks to the Dallas Morning News, here is the transcript of President Obama's Inauguration speech this morning.

Once you're done reading, please visit Renew America - USA Service. This is a fantastic site where we can all find something to do for our community and our country - for our fellow (wo)man

Today is a happy day!

* * *

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true.

They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

- President Barack Hussein Obama, January 20, 2009.

What's that golden rule thing again?

I can't believe this was deleted. Sorry to my commenters - I have no idea what happened.
* * *


Anyone heard? Barack Hussein Obama won’t drop his middle name - GOOD. Nobody else has over the past two years, why the hell should he?

But that’s not his reasoning. His rationalizations are that we need to get over our prejudices and realize that “Muslim” does not equal “terrorist.” We need to send a message to the rest of the world that we’re not all idiots, that there is change in this country, that George Bush and his administration is no longer in town. Not really.

What’s disheartening is that there are so many out there who will grumble and grouse about this, the same people who made such a point to use his middle name during the campaign season will flinch at this move….well, maybe not this move but the point in which it’s being made.

The fact that it’s even an issue says something. While the prejudices against the Muslim community are probably somewhat more mild than before - at least in my experience - it is here. It always brought to mind what happened with Pearl Harbor and the Japanese internment camps.

Equating a man with an untimely middle name with “terrorist” is horrifying commentary on American culture. Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Let’s get over ourselves, focus less on the Muslim (and even Arab) communities at large and deal with the extremists. Arabs and Muslims are not all extremists. Let’s first understand that. It would then do us some good to try to understand the extremist mindset.

My husband took a few classes on genocide and terrorism over the last few years. He spoke with me about it at length (I also typed up his papers), and the real point to be made is this: Extremists are not so much insane as they have a really, really, different view on the world. We see them as insane, and by our standards they absolutely are. Too many people do not want to see these extremists as human, though. You start humanizing people and - gasp - you start feeling a smidgen of compassion. Psssh, stupid liberals.

But we cannot change nor defend ourselves against that which we do not understand. It feels better to call them terrorists and dehumanize them because that is exactly what they’ve done to us. A little research into our own little domestic terrorists, be they the Una bomber or even kidnappers, murders and rapists will tell us that the best defense against those who would hurt us is to make them see us as human.

It’s actually one of the more important aspects of rape defense. You start talking about your family, whose waiting for you at home, what your favorite color is, etc. You fight like hell to get that person to see you as human because at that moment they do not and it is much easier to hurt that which you do not empathize with. It’s also a way they train our military - they dehumanize the enemy. They did it in WWII and in Vietnam. You’d be surprised to hear how many of our soldiers do not have the courage to pull the trigger. The military gets their soldiers over that by dehumanizing those they target.

I fear most in power get this bit of wisdom but don’t want to understand. They want to hurt, and so do we. We want revenge. We want to torture. I get that. I feel it. But it’s childish. It isn’t right - and what’s that Christ says about loving our enemies? I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t be okay with how we’ve acted. Treat others the way we’d want to be treated. Compassion might seem like more tree hugger philosophy, but it works. As a Christian people, shouldn’t compassion trump carnal desires? Seriously. I wonder about some of my more conservative counterparts when it comes to this stuff. Is it just mere convenience to forget about those the thousand stripling warriors were defending? those who loved their enemies so much they laid down their weapons and resigned to death instead (See Alma 24:17)? We’re always admiring them in Sunday School. I’m not suggesting this is what we should do - we should absolutely defend ourselves, but the fact that we speak of these people in reverent tones and then forget about it once church is over tickles me to death. Is it that we really think that compassion is only for the dude who cut us off in traffic the other day…? I don’t know.

For real homeland defense, we need to get over our prejudices and start understanding our enemies. We need an ounce of compassion or we cannot expect to get any in return. There are books abound written about this. The most recent being promoted is Michael Alexander’s “How To Break a Terrorist: The U.S. Interrogators Who Used Brains, Not Brutality, to Take Down the Deadliest Man in Iraq “

If you want a transcript/story of a recent interview with the author, go here - even Fox News’ Sean Hannity can't seem to get around this guy. It's fabulous.

I’m thrilled Obama takes pride in his name and wants to make a point. Good for him. I’m so proud to have voted for this man. He’s already changing things for the better, and the timing couldn’t have been better. People are ready. I am.



This post has also been submitted to Mormon Democrats where I am a contributing blogger.

Kevin Hamilton's Post Prop-8 Letter

Many of you undoubtedly have seen this letter from Kevin Hamilton in light of Proposition 8 passing. Our church has sent out a statement basically saying "Hey, we were just exercising our right to vote and voice our opinions. What's your problem?"

Well.

Here's the letter and my responses to each point:

In the aftermath of the recent election, we may find ourselves oddly on the defensive regarding our support for the Yes on Proposition 8 cause. Our young people have been especially subject to mean spirited comments by high school friends and teachers. We have nothing to be ashamed of. We did nothing wrong. In fact, we did everything that a civic minded American can and should do. I have put together a few facts that help me to appreciate our position better. For example:

1. Mormons make up less than 2% of the population of California. There are approximately 800,000 LDS out of a total population of approximately 34 million.

2. Mormon voters were less than 5% of the yes vote. If one estimates that 250,000 LDS are registered voters (the rest being children), then LDS voters made up 4.6% of the Yes vote and 2.4% of the total Proposition 8 vote.

And yet the members of our church donated nearly half the money to the cause.

People aren’t angry at us because we make up the majority of the people in California who voted yes – they’re angry because we bankrolled it. Money talks in politics, as we all know. You could say that without the LDS so greatly invested, this proposition would have lost.

3. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) donated no money to the Yes on 8 campaign. Individual members of the Church were encouraged to support the Yes on 8 efforts and, exercising their constitutional right to free speech, donated whatever they felt like donating.

Actually the Church did, well within their legal limits (something like a little over $2000), but they did donate.

Encouraged? When the Prophet says jump, we ask how high. That's how it is. We follow the prophet or risk being unworthy of many, many blessings like going to the temple. Yes, some people understand the principle of praying to know for yourself, but most consider this a matter of belief vs. non belief.

Encouraged? Some people were called into their leader's offices and were asked specifically if they would be willing to give more.

Flyers were placed in the foyers of ward buildings. Sign up sheets were passed around. Announcements and discussions took up the majority of some class times. Donations were “encouraged” over the pulpit. Some people were strongly encouraged – bishops and leaders alike. I’m glad I wasn’t a leader. Makes me wonder if I would’ve been released from my calling.

That makes some wonder about the tax-exemption thing. I don't think it'll happen. I think the Church flirted with the line, but nothing will happen.

4. The No on 8 campaign raised more money than the Yes on 8 campaign. Unofficial estimates put No on 8 at $38 million and Yes on 8 at $32 million, making it the most expensive non-presidential election in the country.

And?

5. Advertising messages for the Yes on 8 campaign are based on case law and real-life situations. The No on 8 supporters have insisted that the Yes on 8 messaging is based on lies. Every Yes on 8 claim is supported.

And yet…not. I’ve got all sorts of evidence to the contrary. If they weren’t outright lies, they were half-truths meant to deceive and scare people. If you know law, you know loopholes, and that nothing is cut and dry. Context is everything. Look it up.

6. The majority of our friends and neighbors voted Yes on 8. Los Angeles County voted in favor of Yes on 8. Ventura County voted in favor of Yes on 8.

Not as many of our "friends and neighbors" voted as they did back in 2000. About nine percent less. That's a lot of people.

And uh, LA County was 50/50. 16,000 votes separated Yes from No. In a county of millions, that doesn’t hold much clout.

7. African Americans overwhelmingly supported Yes on 8. Exit polls show that 70% of Black voters chose Yes on 8. This was interesting because the majority of these voters voted for President-elect Obama. No on 8 supporters had assumed that Obama voters would vote No on 8.

What does this mean? “It’s not our fault it passed! Go after the blacks! Go after the Hispanics! The Catholics! Just not us, we don’t deserve it!”

You voted for it. You called people, knocked on doors, gave up your life savings in some instances for it. So stand up for it. Be not ashamed. You expressed your right to an opinion, to a vote, to get others to vote - these people are expressing their right to be pissed off. As long as they're peaceful, who cares. And they do want to be peaceful about it - you just always have your idiots on either side.

8. The majority of Latino voters voted Yes on 8. Exit polls show that the majority of Latinos supported Yes on 8 and cited religious beliefs (assumed to be primarily Catholic).

See response to 7

9. The Yes on 8 coalition was a broad spectrum of religious organizations. Catholics, Evangelicals, Protestants, Orthodox Jews, Muslims – all supported Yes on 8. It is estimated that there are 10 million Catholics and 10 million Protestants in California. Mormons were a tiny fraction of the population represented by Yes on 8 coalition members.

See response to 7.

10. Not all Mormons voted in favor of Proposition 8. Our faith accords that each person be allowed to choose for him or her self. Church leaders have asked members to treat other members with "civility, respect and love," despite their differing views.

And yet I’ve been chastised for going against the prophet, testimonies have been called into question, various idiots on some discussion boards have declared we should rip up our temple recommends, family and friends can’t really look me in the eye anymore, etc.

I don’t want to be told how to vote, what to think, what to do or I’ll be ex’d, lose my calling, etc. I don’t appreciate those regarding the proponents of 8 as the “moral majority.” I don’t like the Church calling those gay couples who want to marry “selfish.”

11. The Church did not violate the principal [sic] of separation of church and state. This principle is derived from the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which reads, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The phrase "separation of church and state", which does not appear in the Constitution itself, is generally traced to an 1802 letter by Thomas Jefferson, although it has since been quoted in several opinions handed down by the United States Supreme Court in recent years. The LDS Church is under no obligation to refrain from participating in the political process, to the extent permitted by law. U.S. election law is very clear that Churches may not endorse candidates, but may support issues. The Church as always been very careful on this matter and occasionally (not often) chooses to support causes that it feels to be of a moral nature.

Like Prohibition?

What about other causes of a moral nature?

You know what else grates me? A story on The View yesterday recounted about a boy with some problems who nobody wanted to adopt. Finally, a couple who specialized in working with kids like him stepped forward and put in papers to adopt him. His reaction? "Somebody wants me!"

It was a gay couple. You're going to tell me this is immoral and wrong? Tell that little boy that.

And can we quit implying that separation of church and state doesn't exist? No, the phrase verbatim doesn't exist in the Constitution, but the idea is absolutely there. We don't live in a theocracy, and I'd prefer to not live in one right now thankyouverymuch.

12. Supporters of Proposition 8 did exactly what the Constitution provides for all citizens: they exercised their First Amendment rights to speak out on an issue that concerned them, make contributions to a cause that they support, and then vote in the regular electoral process. For the most part, this seems to have been done in an open, fair, and civil way. Opponents of 8 have accused supporters of being bigots, liars, and worse. The fact is, we simply did what Americans do – we spoke up, we campaigned, and we voted.

They spoke out on an issue that concerned them? I know of a handful of people who wouldn’t have voted yes, donated, made phone calls, etc. if the Church hadn’t made an official plea for its members to do all it could to allow it to pass. Pretty sure there are many more.

And we’ve been just as awful to the No on 8 people, calling them selfish and abhorrent to God and that giving them the ability to marry would bring down society and the world as we know it. Yeah. They really should just have thicker skin than that.

Neither side was right in calling names. Don’t for a second think it was just the No side. We got in the mud, we got dirty, deal with it.

Hold your heads up high – you did a great job on this most important cause. We will have more opportunities in the future to participate in our democratic process. Let's remember the lessons learned and do an even better job next time.

These are my personal opinions and thoughts; any errors are mine and in no way reflect official Church policy or doctrine.

Thanks,
Kevin Hamilton

Thanks, Kev.

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Projecting Racism

I've gotta wonder.

The more I hear people spew their diatribes about how those who voted for Barack Obama voted purely, or at least mostly, because he is black the more I want to ask why it's such a point of focus for so many.

Seriously. I swallow a scream down about every time.

People! Stop listening to John McCain, Sarah Palin, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh (to think I used to listen to that man), and Karl freaking Rove. If you honestly believe Fox News is "fair and balanced," I've got a couple bridges to sell you. To nowhere.

When I was investigating the church, a common quip was "You don't go to a Chevy dealer to find out about Ford."

The same applies anywhere else. You don't go to radical conservatives to find out about Barack Obama. It transcends stupidity, to be honest.

I really wish people would afford Obama's supporters with a bit more intelligence and discretion than "you voted for him 'cause he's black." I also appreciated Limbaugh's lovely summation of Colin Powell's endorsement: "It's all about race!"

Gee, thanks, Rush. And everyone else who echoed his sentiments.

It makes me wonder who, exactly, is thinking a little too much about race.

Hmm?

I have followed Obama for two years. I considered voting for McCain until he allowed someone to stick a hand up his butt and a tie a couple strings on his extremities.

It has nothing to do with gender or race, but rather quality of character, ideas, courage, and dignity. Toward the end, McCain proved to me he had nothing on Obama. Nothing.

Just for the record, I've had it with people saying they're scared of Obama. Should I reverse the race card and insist they're scared because he's black? Would that be fair? Absolutely not.

But I will suggest that perhaps some of it, if not all of it, has more to do with ignorance. As a busy people, we're prone to believe anything we hear and not do the research to back it up. We look at white men in suits and ties and assume they're conservative. We hear one, a former prisoner of war, say that his opponent is a closet socialist, and people agree because it sounds good, sounds right (damn liberals!), and it comes from...wait. A politician.

Since when did we trust what politicians say, again?

Look inside yourself and ask why you voted McCain if you did. Was it because he's Republican? White? A war hero? Old? Because your parents did, your church did?

For most of us, this isn't about race. I know for some it absolutely is, just like there were people who would've voted for Hilary just because she's a woman. People want history to happen in their lifetime. It's understandable, but hardly the best reason.

Just remember, there are people who voted for John McCain because he was the white guy. It's safe, it feels good, etc.

I just happen to believe there's more racism from those who cry "racist!" than people want to recognize. Just like sexism. How many of you are honestly scared a little of Muslims? Mexicans? Gay people?

This is a rhetorical question, but I think it's an important one. I think it's only human to have some kind of -ism within you. I do. The first thing to do is recognize it so you can fight it. Remember that God loves everyone, black and white, bond and free, male and female. Sometimes people decry ideas and people with zeal because they are trying to distract from their own prejudices.

If this hits home, and I imagine it should with most people, then we need to work on that.


http://www.barackobama.com/

Would everyone SHUT UP about Socialism!

It's not socialism!

Socialism: social and economic doctrine that calls for public rather than private ownership or control of property and natural resources. According to the socialist view, individuals do not live or work in isolation but live in cooperation with one another. Furthermore, everything that people produce is in some sense a social product, and everyone who contributes to the production of a good is entitled to a share in it. Society as a whole, therefore, should own or at least control property for the benefit of all its members.

Honestly, it doesn't sound that bad to me. But I know people aren't ready for this. I know the attitudes of most if not all people go against this. You would have to have a body of people ready and willing to follow this. You would have to be purged of most, if not all, corruption. Honestly, I would think more LDS would have a softer spot for this idea.

And no, I'm not anti-Capitalism. I just don't drool at its shrine like some do. It's not by any stretch of the means a perfect system. It leaves too many behind and allows too many to ignore them. It's a class system: upper class and lower class. Middle class is for those who make too much to qualify for assistance and yet too little to thrive. I find, too, that those who are able to break through the lower class threshold somehow think they've license to judge those who have not been able to. It's disgusting.

But anyway.

McCain is capitalizing (haha) on Obama's unfortunate choice of words. McCain and his buddies think it was more than just a freudian slip of the tongue, but...ergh.

By the way, what has proved to add up to a $1 trillion bailout? Buying up banks? Buying so much stock that the government now owns companies like AIG? That's socialist.

The government programs: Welfare, WIC, Food stamps? That's socialist. (agh! these programs suck, too. I think we can do better)

Our public schools, fire, and police? Socialist.

Palin raising taxes on oil companies and handing out the profits thereof in the form of checks to each Alaskan resident? Socialist. (by the way, for what I know, I'm not so much against this.)

When confronted with the fact that the bailout is a huge socialist move, even McCain has said there is a time and a place.

Obama is liberal. He's voted with his party on many, many things. I don't necessarily see this as a problem, though I understand why some do. We want a president who will work with all the people regardless of political convictions. I do believe with everything in me Obama is open to being wrong and listening to others. I know this from the things I've heard him say. I know this from those who have recounted stories of working with him, seeing a junior Congressman speaking with and against veteran Congressmen. He doesn't respectfully defer because of their experience. He was voted into office and he intends to do his job. Not many people do this.

He's a liberal.

He may be more liberal than most.

I appreciate that he's not trying to centralize himself for political expediency. He is who he is.

But what he has suggested is not socialist. He wants to bring taxes back to where they were when Clinton was president. He wants the middle-class to have a tax break and give the top 5% back their taxes because they can afford them. Because, as he's said, as well off as he is, he should not be paying the same taxes as a waitress does.

I know some of you have issues with the ideals behind that. Punish the successful? I get it. I really do.

But we should punish the unsuccessful?

Yeah, that'll help.

I don't see it as punishing the successful as much as I see it as an opportunity for those who have to contribute more to society. I know a lot of you may see this as compelling charity, which is wrong, but then we must work with the attitudes of people. When businesses go up, oftentimes they are required to help build up their surrounding area (fix up the landscaping, streets, etc). This is no different. Let's help. Let's build up when we can. This isn't tithing, people. This is taxes.

Listen, it's easier to make money when you have money. When you have no money, it's really hard to make it - harder still to become comfortable.

We say we want smaller government. Republicans generally support smaller government - unless you're George Bush. Unless you're John McCain.

Oh yeah - and Obama is not calling for Universal Healthcare. His plans will not, unfortunately, cover everyone. It's a step though.

By the way, I'm going to post quotes over the next few days in the hopes it will sway those who are not planning to vote for him. I think many conservatives would be surprised. You can find the quotes to the right side of your screen.

Squirm, Baby, Squirm!

I love Meet the Press.

(I know! Not a Prop 8 entry! Wow!)

If anyone missed it this morning, you really ought to go see if you can find a clip or watch your DVR.

I mean, I have the transcript, but it doesn't do near the justice it ought to. You can't see McCain's tic like blinking, figeting, stammering; his forced smile (you know, the one that says he's trying hard to not seethe certain words through his teeth)...did I mention fidgeting?

He backpeddled and, as my husband described it, did a bit of fillibustering. Tom Brokaw kept showing clips of previous McCain appearances on the show, at various rallies, etc. from the past that totally contradict the John McCain of today.

Talk about an inadvertent stuffing of the foot in the mouth. It was like watching a tennis match, with one competitor standing tall and calm while the other slouched, acted jittery, and couldn't seem to return the serve.

And ol'Sarah really isn't helping the cause. She's referring to the President as unpopular (which, I know "duh" but Sarah's supposed to be wooing the base. Insulting the base's Budda, so to speak, won't help things). She's referred to the campaign's robocalls as "irritating," which I tend to think is more her attempt to be folksy again - she's so folksy - but the campaign itself has tirelessly defended their tactics and strategies, and as of late, the robocalls have been a large part of it.

(speaking of, I guess Barack's campaign passed around robocalls to decry McCain's use of the robocall, hahahaha)

Some are calling Palin's acts and words as of late "rogue" and there are whispers that, since the polls are looking so dismal (but don't tell John that!), she's working on her own political future.

Ahhh, politics.

It shouldn't be funny, though I do admit to some giggling, that watching the McCain campaign lately is a little like watching a nasty spider wither as it dies, but the desperation levels have reached a bit of a tragic humor level.

I am not so naive as to believe Obama has it in the bag - we've learned that lesson before - but it's looking good. I think even McCain understands this.

There's just something cool and confidence-instilling about Obama right now. He's cool, calm, and collected. McCain can't seem to stand up these days.

I wish my husband wasn't so bogged down with homework, though he will be home November 4th....I won't be alone for the first time ever on election night! Yay!

I just hope we don't have a recurrence of the 2000 election. Silly, young me was up until midnight that night, gnawing at my fingernails in the hopes that Bush would win.

I don't want to be up again. Really, everyone, there's no use for it.

Please don't vote McCain just because you're LDS and it's somehow written in between the lines of the covenants we make at baptism. Look at the issues, look at the man, read the articles.

McCain and the neo-conservative values/principles are hardly conducive to what we believe in our core. You cry out that we should vote yes on 8 because of the Prophet? I say vote Obama because you believe in being good, getting better, and in serving your fellow man.

I truly believe Obama has our best interests at heart, much moreso than McCain, and if you insist on throwing around the "socialist" label, I'll be more than happy to blog on that as well.

Obama '08!

Why Barack Obama?

I'm going to do my best to address the question directly and not go off on McCain or Palin.

That would be a fun separate entry though...hm.

Over the past year or so, I've received e-mails regarding the frightening entity that is Barack Obama. He's a radical Muslim (false), he attended a radical Muslim school known as a "madrassa" (false), his middle name is Hussein (true - but c'mon, are we really going there? let's grasp at another straw, shall we?), his stepfather, Lolo Soetero is a radical Muslim (false)

etc. etc. etc. Check out Snopes.com, people. Even if the email you receive says Snopes has already been checked, do it yourself. The authors of these emails hope you're just stupid enough to trust what they say. Don't let them call you stupid.

I've looked all of this up. I've been looking at Mr. Obama for quite some time - I'd even say a few years, now. At first, I wasn't thrilled with a few of his stances, like those wedge issues (Roe v. Wade, etc), but upon exhaustive introspection, I find I feel the same way. Read the previous entry and its comments to understand why.

Really, though, these issues distract from what would be true substance. I like Barack for a number of reasons:

1) He won't be intimidated.
I'm going to say this once, because I know everyone's heard it so often our ears flinch: he was against the Iraq war on the onset and spoke out against it. I heard that speech, and it took guts.

Not only that, though, but when Bush wanted yet more funds to support this war last fall, Barack spoke out against it when many were afraid to. Bush likes to put the fear of God into people by warning of the world crumbling to bits if we don't do what he says. Barack didn't take the bait and stuck by his principles. His quote:

I will not support funding for a failed policy. It is long past time for the Republicans to stop filibustering a responsible removal of our troops from Iraq, and for the President to stop threatening to veto anything that is not a blank check for his failed strategy.

Our troops must not bear the burden for the failure of Iraq's leaders to reconcile, nor should they be kept in Iraq to counter Iran.

For his entire statement, visit the page at Project Vote Smart


2) One of the greatest characteristics of this country is that you can succeed, even when working from the ground up. Obama has done this.
A major part of what pulls so many to America is that it is known as "the land of opportunity." Anyone, if they work hard enough, can accomplish whatever it is they want to here.

By basic definition, Barack came from a broken family. He never knew his father. His grandparents raised him for some time. He rebelled. He struggled. He had ill and confused feelings toward many things.

BUT.

He overcame. This man went to Harvard, became the first African-American Harvard Law Review president. He's practiced as a civil rights lawyer and taught Constitutional Law in Chicago, IL.

This man has tenacity and is unafraid (many have expressed their discomfort at having a President who very well may be the victim of an assasination - Barack is undoubtedly aware of this danger, but he presses forward).

Either way, he's a wonderful example to disadvantaged and otherwise advantaged youth alike. I'm going to speak to any Christian people reading right now and say that Barack's time in Chicago is more Christ-like than anything I've seen in other politicians.


3) He cares about the "little" people.
He put law school and corporate life on hold to work with a church in Chicago, IL to better the lives and living conditions in poor Chicago neighborhoods. When he concluded he could do more for them if he held office, he went into politics.

If he cares about them, to the tune of living in poverty himself to do it, then he'll remember the poor when he is in office. I'm tired of hearing about the rich getting richer. I understand the Republican doctrine of helping corporations to have more money so they can create more jobs, etc, but that just isn't happening. Everyone else is being forgotten. (I'll get more into this later).


4) He hasn't forgotten where he came from.
Granted, he was not born in Illinois, but that's where he put so much of his efforts. After he earned his Harvard degree, he returned to Chicago. Not many decide to take their education back to their neighborhoods - instead, many may decide to swim in their own newfound riches and intelligence. Academic learning does not intelligence make (have you heard Bush speak?), but this kind of compassion is what is needed in our country, if nothing else but for an example.

Barack also intends to make it easier for many to attend college, but if they are to receive a financial "free ride," he wants them to agree to 100 hours of community service.

Makes sense to me.


5) He didn't wear the lapel pin.
This was, by far, the stupidest thing I'd ever heard...well, maybe a close second to the Republicans' insistence to remind everyone what his middle name is. Seriously though? We're really going to question a man's patriotism because he chose to not wear a pin?

Peer pressure, anyone?

On a humorous note, this always reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Cosmo Kramer wouldn't "wear the ribbon" in a race for a cure...can't remember which one, but the point stands.

Come on.


6) Tax cuts people.
I know, I know - tax cuts when the economy is flushing? We'll have to see what we're able to do, here, but if Barack can't cut taxes, McCain won't either. This may be beyond any good intentions and promises each candidate may make.

However, I do like what he wants to do. He wants to give tax credits to companies that maintain or exceed the number of employees in America relative to employees working internationally, maintain American headquarters, pay well, support their military employees, provide decent health insurance, and prepare workers for retirement.

And as far as this crap about him raising taxes on everyone: FALSE.

I get my information from sources such as Fact Check and Project Vote Smart, by the way.

Fact Check states that two conditions have to be present if your taxes will be raised under an Obama Administration:

1) You make more than $200k single/$250k family

And

2) You receive dividend and capital gains income.

Now, it is true that under an Obama Administration the national debt will rise. I won't lie and say I don't know if it'll go down in time, if these are just initial operating costs, but lets also consider this:

Under an Obama Administration, the national debt will rise to $5.9 trillion dollars over the next ten years.

Under a McCain Administration, the national debt will rise to $7.4 trillion over the next ten years.

Both suck, but at this point I don't know what can be done. 5.9 sounds better than 7.4, though.


7) He didn't choose Hillary.
I'm not saying this because I'm anti-Hillary. What I am saying is that he didn't give into the vice-like pressure to ask this woman to be his running mate. Instead, he went for old white guy Joe Biden. That says volumes to me. He could've asked another African American, an African-American woman, or a woman/person of any minority ethnicity.

Instead, he chose based on merits and the person. Think what you will of Biden, but he's not afraid to speak his mind either.


8) Will not resort to scare tactics.
Every time something happens, Bush gets on the TV and describes with great urgency how this world will come to a crashing end if we don't do what he says.

Each time, he's been wrong - most recently on this bail out plan. Congress passed it, and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) continues to plummet.


9) I like his optimism
We could really use some anymore. Call it unrealistic, whatever, anyone who can rally us together, who can inspire us is someone we need right now. He's, as they say, "cool, calm, and collected."

I also like that he's thoughtful and for the most part (I hesitate to use an absolute here as I haven't watched everything), he's prepared.


10) He wants to modify No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
Speak with any teacher - my husband is one, my FIL is another, and they will tell you NCLB is a joke. Teaching to the tests doesn't accomplish near what it should.

As for FMLA, Barack wants to modify that to allow family leave for employees who need to care for their elderly relatives, attend their children's events, and allow time for victims of domestic violence.


11) I like what he wants to do for the elderly.
Barack wants to eliminate taxes for any elderly people making less than $50,000 a year.

For more on this, see Barack's Seniors and Social Security page.


12) He's not war hungry, and he wants to talk.
*gasp* I know. Talk? To...the Iranian president? Awful people like that?

Yeah. Why not?

Not talking to them is doing us soooo good right now, isn't it?

That said, our military is overstretched right now. To even hint at a war with a place like Iran is extremely irresponsible. We also have Russia preening their feathers right now. We have to be careful, we have to be thoughtful, and leave war as a last resort.

13) Universal Health Care

We need it, and Barack wants us to have it. This isn't beyond our ability to solve, here, everyone. Too many people either think it is or don't think we need it, that people without health insurance somehow deserve it.

That's a narrow-minded conclusion to come to. My family was without insurance for just a month when he switched jobs (from grocery store clerk to middle school math teacher), and it was honestly a frightening month.

*adding this topic to list of issues to tackle* I won't bore you any further, but this is sorely needed.

And I like his plan. Call me a Socialist if you want to (it seems to be the insult du jour) but his plan resounds with me. It may not be perfect, but he's got the right idea. Just remember that we need Congress, too. The President isn't the end all be all, folks.

For a short list, though, and you can read more about his plans at his official website, here is what we're looking at with Obama as quoted on his site:

• Require insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions so all Americans regardless of their health status or history can get comprehensive benefits at fair and stable premiums.
• Create a new Small Business Health Tax Credit to help small businesses provide affordable health insurance to their employees.
• Lower costs for businesses by covering a portion of the catastrophic health costs they pay in return for lower premiums for employees.
• Prevent insurers from overcharging doctors for their malpractice insurance and invest in proven strategies to reduce preventable medical errors.
• Make employer contributions more fair by requiring large employers that do not offer coverage or make a meaningful contribution to the cost of quality health coverage for their employees to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of their employees health care.
• Establish a National Health Insurance Exchange with a range of private insurance options as well as a new public plan based on benefits available to members of Congress that will allow individuals and small businesses to buy affordable health coverage.
• Ensure everyone who needs it will receive a tax credit for their premiums.
• Reduce Costs and Save a Typical American Family up to $2,500 as reforms phase

Conclusion:
I know Barack isn't perfect. He's not a messiah as so many like to joke. I do think he's exactly what this country needs right now. I also realize Barack makes promises upon promises upon promises, but I don't mind. I know that he won't be able to fulfill all them, perhaps even most of them. I'll be happy if he's able to follow through on just a few.

Just before anyone assumes anything (by the way, we all know what happens when we assume, right?) I don't agree or like everything Barack stands for or says.

But what I do like overrides the things I don't like.

And in the end, I trust him. I don't trust McCain.


(Sources not cited here: CNN.com)

Introductions

I wanted to forego the initial introductions and just delve into my first post, but...

...I can't.

Before I get into anything, I'd like to explain what you can expect here, what I hope you'll gain from this, and how much I hope you'll come back for more.

(hint: lots)

"The Liberal Mormon That Could" is not a title I came to lightly. Technically, I'm a "decline to state," a left-leaning-ex-Republican who belongs in a church known for being rather conservative. It can oftentimes feel like trying to fit that proverbial square peg in a round hole. This same church feels strongly about certain issues, and despite what may come across here, I am going to do my best to not reveal my personal stances on various sensitive subjects. You're going to have to guess what I think, because I won't be saying it here.

What I will do is question people's reasons for voting a certain way or believing a certain way. I don't believe it's a good idea to just follow the other sheep because they're sheep. God gave us brains and hearts for a reason--He intends for us to use them, and anymore, I'm afraid we're not.

I've run into too many otherwise smart people who fall into what I like to call "stupid traps." They believe in a certain doctrine--political, religious, or otherwise--and don't have anything to back themselves up with other than "because I'm [insert label here]." In their religious or political fervor, they'll allow anything to make sense when it just doesn't. The banner of faith in anything does not a good argument make. I don't mind if "faith" is the reason, but as a contention it's insufficient if you wish to rally those who don't belong in your choir.

I don't claim to be any sort of genius. I certainly have a lot to learn, but when I receive e-mails saturated with irritatingly false or illogical arguments for serious or "wrinkle" topics alike, I have to scream.

In the end, I don't care what you think or believe--I just care that you have something to back yourself up with, whatever it might be. I also hope that others will allow me the same privilege. I want and encourage discussion and self-reflection in not just any readers that happen to stop by (thank you), but for myself as well.

My posts won't all be serious, though. They won't all be regarding the religious or political topics du jour.

I mean, I have three kids. I've gotta take advantage of that.