Adam and Eve, Mel! That's Two Cigars!

Now, let's see if I can maintain my attention span long enough to voice these thoughts brewing in my head before the next "shiny object incident" occurs.

I've been pondering my emotions over the past few days.

I'm pretty annoyed, I'm rather concerned. But angry? No, not for long.

The only way I could be really angry was if someone had tampered with those 80% of the electronic voting machines that have no verification process. If it is true they have no verification process. I'm not so sure about that. The information I've found so far on the subject is rather weak.

So, until some better proof has come along, I do what our criminal court system does: presumption of innocence until proven guilty (beyond a reasonable doubt).

Having an itty bitty philosophy degree under my belt prevents me from thinking this is truly perfect. As much as I believe in the truth, I also see that people have subjective truths, and they operate on those truths.

But I am digressing from my original intent.

I've always thought that this country, being the land of democracy, and a system built in place where we, as a people, have the right to believe whatever we wish to believe. We have an election system, that, (see concern about electronic voting above) gives us, the people, a chance to choose our leaders based on a majority vote. Not always perfect, not always efficient, not always what we want to hear, and sure as hell not always what we want. But what the hell do you expect for a country of our size?

I've always liked the fact that we can be a nation; a strong, thriving nation of people with unique views, cultures and experiences all these people bring to the table. Granted, there are some real creeps and scuzzballs running around out there, but hey! somebody has to be at the lower end of the bell curve.

So, I believe that variety is a good thing, that it's healthy and educational. I certainly don't think everyone will hold the same views I do. And sometimes, my views are going to be in the minority. So, if a majority of the people voted to support a candidate that I don't believe in, I'm not going to hate my neighbor because he/she voted for someone else. I'm not going to divorce myself from my fellow americans because they have different views from my own. I do this in the hope that they do not do the same to me.

So, when the majority of the country doesn't vote the way I, Queen Anne of All that I Survey, voted, I'm not going to despise and rail against all those people who expressed their beliefs. Nobody likes to be called stupid. Nobody likes to be called ignorant. Most of all, no one is going to listen to your point of view after you have called them stupid, ignorant, evil, etc. Since most people do not think they themselves are stupid, ignorant or evil, upon informing them of said "facts" gives them reason to not trust your judgement or opinion.

This is where I smile and think of one of my favorite literary characters. Oh, let me call him out right now. [cut to dialogue]

ME: Atticus!!! Ooooooh, Atticus Finch!

ATTICUS: Well, good evening, Anne. You haven't been fantasizing about me again, have you?

ME: Uhhh, well that's not why I called you here, per se.

ATTICUS: Oh, alright then. What can I do for you?

ME: I want you to tell them [points at livejournal] what you told Scout. About the trick.

ATTICUS[clearing throat]: Of course. I said, "First of all, if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."

ME: That's the one, Atticus! Thanks!
[Just as Atticus was about to say something, Anne shoves Atticus back into Harper Lee's book, closes the book, and shoves it back on the shelf.]

*sigh* Am I the only one who thought that Gregory Peck was incredibly sexy as Atticus Finch?

The moral of the story, kids? If you catch me trying to crawl into your pants, I'm not molesting you; I'm just trying to understand you.

But seriously, if about half of us think that George Bush is doing the right thing, and the rest of us think he's Satan's spawn, and we're looking at the same man, I don't think this is a time for a big knife fight. It's time to figure out where we're coming from, and what "truths" we're operating on.

I'm not saying that you need to hug your ideological opponent today. But I guarantee that getting militant about your views will not change anyone's mind, either. Presenting your viewpoint in a style and language that only your sympathizers care to hear is not going to inform. That's just preaching to the choir. It's also like masturbating in public. You're really into your righteous indignation and vitriol, but those that aren't feeling what you're feeling are a little disturbed and creeped-out by it.

So, to all my friends, regardless of your beliefs, if you want to make a difference among people who are different, you must understand and respect those very elements that separate you and them. Notice I didn't say "agree".

Now, if you indeed follow Atticus' advice, and walk a mile in someone else's shoes, and still believe that all those people are utter ass-clowns, then yes, maybe forming a new nation of like-minded thinkers is what needs to happen.

I've always thought that the foundation of this country was form a social contract of individuals. Implicit in that concept is that we have different views, yet we do not oppress or hate each other because of our different views. If your believe in tolerance and love and liberty, wearing anger and intolerance does not suit you.

Now, we'll get to the fact that I do not believe that our current administration is supporting the ideals of this country. But not tonight.

Well, that's it for now, kids. The "shiny object incident" has come to pass. Sweet dreams.

Friday morning

Ah, it's Friday, glorious Friday!

I was reading some letters folks from the Red States sent into Salon.com about the election. There are some interesting thoughts to consider:

Red state readers write
Progressives in Bush country give their blue state neighbors a piece of their minds.

( Read more... )

(no subject)

It's comforting to know that in these times of fear and uncertainty, one constant is that on my easy listening musak at work, I can always hear Hall and Oates sing, "Your Kiss is On My Lips".

Oy veh.

(no subject)

I was lurking in someone's livejournal today, and saw that several of his posts included lines about how his relationship with God was going great, etc. It almost seemed like everything was planned out for him. He did have a few concerns, though. He was concerned what seemed to be God's blessing might be the devil in disguise.

It seemed to me, and I could be wrong, that a lot of responsiblity of others and himself was waved, thanks to his awesome relationship with God, and the plans God had for him.

Such language is utterly foreign to me.

I don't know; his relationship with God doesn't seem all that fun. I mean, it might be worth a chuckle if God placed his hand in a holy grail of warm water while he was dreaming of God's great plan for him. Or, I doubt we'll ever see a post like, "God and I got into a fight, and God said he made me ugly and dressed me funny. But he laughed when I told him that not all of us can walk around in long, white flowing robes all day."