The charge of SEXISM really doesn’t help women’s causes to lead, not to say there isn’t sexism out there, but it is too loosely thrown around and is being used as an excuse and a roadblock to any real dialog. SEXIST is the charge directed at anyone who questions Sarah Palin about ANYTHING, but particularly when it is directed at Palin’s ability to take care of her children and the nation at the same time. It is what her supporters are first to point out in their sexism charges. Never mind those same concerns were voiced about Michelle Obama, the difference is the Obama’s didn’t whine about it and charge sexism. They met it like everything else, head on, acknowledged our concerns and assured us in real ways the girls weren’t weren’t going to be sacrificed for ambition or even the greater good of the country. Follow me below the fold for my take on the mother issue.
September 6, 2008 archive
Sep 06 2008
Weekend News Digest
Weekend News Digest is an Open Thread
| From Yahoo News Top Stories |
1 Questions remain on Palin vetting
By DAN JOLING, Associated Press Writer
Sat Sep 6, 11:04 AM ET
| ANCHORAGE, Alaska – John McCain’s presidential campaign did not speak with the Alaska House speaker and other leading Republicans before McCain tapped Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate.
The low-profile vetting allowed McCain to spring Palin onto the national scene uncolored by media scrutiny. But it has left the campaign open to criticism that McCain did not fully explore her qualifications. “I haven’t heard of anybody being contacted, not that that’s bad,” said John Harris, speaker of the state House of Representatives. “I just haven’t heard of anybody.” |
Sep 06 2008
From North to South, The Whole Damn World is Melting
The data just keep pouring in (quite literally,) on ice-melting around the world.
Most people have focused their attention on Arctic sea-ice melt, but the heating of the water and the air that is driving the breakup of Arctic ice shelves is also taking down all of the regions ice sheets as well. Similarly, increased melt rates have been noted in Greenland and Antarctica, while mountain glaciers are also losing mass at unprecedented rates. See chart below:
There can be no doubt that we are now past the tipping point for ice melt worldwide.
Sep 06 2008
Obama On McCain as Change Agent: “They must think you’re stupid.”
“And suddenly he’s the change agent? Ha. He says, ‘I’m going to tell those lobbyists that their days of running Washington are over.’ Who is he going to tell? Is he going to tell his campaign chairman, who’s one of the biggest corporate lobbyists in Washington? Is he going to tell his campaign manager, who was one of the biggest corporate lobbyists in Washington?”
“I mean, come on, they must think you’re stupid,” Obama said as the crowd laughed and cheered.”
http://www.mercurynews.com/ele…
And he takes on Palin’s act as reformer.
“Don’t be fooled,” Obama told the crowd surrounding him in a large barn. “John McCain’s party, with the help of John McCain, has been in charge” for nearly eight years.
“I know the governor of Alaska has been saying she’s change, and that’s great,” Obama
said. “She’s a skillful politician. But, you know, when you’ve been taking all these earmarks when it’s convenient, and then suddenly you’re the champion anti-earmark person, that’s not change. Come on! I mean, words mean something, you can’t just make stuff up.”
http://www.mercurynews.com/ele…
There’s a lot more and it’s really good.
This is good. Plain talk from Barack Obama.
Sep 06 2008
Inspiring Speech from Shamako Noble at the RNC Welcoming Committee Press Conference
[Cross-posted at you-know-where]
Hey kossacks.
This is my first diary for awhile. I have to admit I’ve kind of given up on the kos. Like is often said in these cases, it’s not you, it’s me. [It was at this point I realized I should post this also here.]
Sep 06 2008
SeaWorld: flipper and friends
One of the many venues that can be seen from the Skytower is Dolphin Discovery, with its lighthouse motif. But we made a lot of stops along the way. It was sort of like Dorothy and the gang…we had to have many adventures before we reached the Emerald City.
In the interest of trying to force a thematic scheme to today’s photographic offerings, the old television shows Sea Hunt and Flipper kept popping into my head…with a touch of Might Morphin’ Power Rangers.
In order, for the purposes of this epic, we visited the dolphins at Rocky Point Preserve, the sea turtles near Shipwreck Rapids (a ride we did not take), Cirque de la Mer, Shark Encounter, Manatee Rescue, Dolphin Discovery and, finally, Penguin Encounter. Maybe the good news is that I do not have photos of them all.
So, without further ado, Flipper:
Fourteen more photos on the inside…
Sep 06 2008
Vote Republican!
If you make over 5 million a year, you choice is clear, Vote Republican!
If your children are over draft age, Vote Republican!
If you think the REAL elites will let you in their club someday, Vote Republican!
If you like bailing out Wall St. with your tax dollars, Vote Republican!
If you fear that whites are losing ground, Vote Republican
If you don’t care if we kill some foreigners to get more oil, Vote Republican!
If you think America should rule the world, Vote Republican!
If you think black people are uppity, Vote Republican!
If your SUV is important enough to justify torture, Vote Republican!
If you can’t make decisions regarding your own uterus, Vote Republican!
If you like $4 a gallon gas, Vote Republican!
If you think Sith Lords are just misunderstood……
Vote Republican!
Sep 06 2008
The Sarah Palin Watch Widget: How Long Will She Stonewall The Press?
|
The Palin Watch Widget Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin burst on the scene from nowhere – Nowhere, Alaska, that is. You know, the place where they wanted to build that bridge to. And despite the fact that nobody in at least 49 states knew the slightest bit about her, she rocketed to stardom as the leading light of American conservatism. Consequently, some Americans wanted to know more about the person who may become a 72 year old heartbeat from the presidency of the United States. They will be disappointed. The McCain campaign has sequestered Palin and will not permit reporters to interview her. They will allow no questions on the vetting process, or the abuse of power investigation that is currently underway. They refuse to clarify her positions on foreign policy or Congressional earmarking. There will be no direct examination of her record as governor or her fitness for national office. Brought to you by… |
Sep 06 2008
Baseless in Obamaland
Original article by Eric Patton, sub-headed From Chad Ocho Cinco to Sarah Palin, via counterpunch.com:
It’s official. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson is now Chad Ocho Cinco. What in God’s name does this have to do with the left?
Sep 06 2008
Palin: “F**king Eskimo’s” & “Arctic Arabs” (Update)
Take a real good look at her face – not at her fake smile, but look into her eyes.
What do you see?
Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean”“It was kind of disgusting,” Lucille, who is part Aboriginal, said in a phone interview after admitting that she is frightened of being discovered telling folks in the “lower 48” about life near the North Pole.
I see the eyes of a racist and a global warming denier. Sad indeed; and, her racism helps to clarify how climate disintegration is a human rights issue. (This is a MUST READ from the update below)
Sep 06 2008
From High Risk to High Hopes – Public Art
A few months ago I engaged in a project at work that was like nothing I’ve ever done before. It was completed this week and I thought I’d share a bit about it here. I’m not sure it will have much interest for anyone but me. But its something that has moved me and I hope the end product will be a lasting legacy and testament to the small ways we have tried to change a few lives in this town.
But first, a little background. Most of you know that I work for a non-profit agency who’s mission is “to work with families and the community to redirect youth who are starting to get in trouble at home, at school, or with the law.” We do this in an urban setting where too many kids live in a darkness created by poverty, racism, abuse, domestic violence, crime, and drug addiction (to name just the most obvious). Many of them make mistakes that too often lead them into being criminalized for life. Our task is to try and enter their lives early on to both hold them accountable for their behavior and support them in taking a different path.
After 30 years of renting space for our operations and moving on average once every three years, in 2006 we bought a building. That’s been a whole interesting process, but not the heart of what I wanted to write about. The building was originally built by the 3M Corporation (whose international headquarters are just up the road from us) as a community bank. The interior is perfect for our needs – wide open spaces with lots of natural light that sooths the tensions that are so present in the work we do.
But the outside of the building was anything but warm.
Sep 06 2008
Hell in Haiti – Ike Update in Comments.
Cross-posted from my blog, The Wild Wild Left.
My friend went to The Dominican Republic a few years back. Staying at a Gated Resort, she mentioned how the worst part was getting there. Apparently the tour bus had to pass nearby the machine gun border areas with Haiti, and the driver reiterated how dangerous it was to even go near their border.
Devastating poverty and war lords out of sight, though, she had a marvelous time in a lush resort with huge buffets and plentiful alcohol. When asked if it bothered her, her typical American response was “Not my problem. They obviously fucked their side of the Island up, so why shouldn’t I enjoy the Good Side?”
Much the same American response to how Gustav fucked Haiti like Katrina fucked NOLA, and is now fucked worse from the rains and flooding from Hanna in the area and Ike on its way.
“Not my Problem?”
