Twenty-five days to the end of Bush indoctrination... or hey, let's rewrite history!

*

The top thing that bothered me the most about the news this Christmas was the Santa Claus shootings in California.
Look, I'm sorry that the guys marriage failed and he lost his job but it gives him no right to kill anyone.
To shoot a young girl, to kill his ex-wife and others. To be that vindictive.
Okay so many folk will say he was disturbed, sick, deranged, crazy, yea probably all of those things... I don't care.
He didn't know what he was doing, he snapped, he was stressed out, he couldn't stop himself. I still don't care, no excuses.
It's simple, he was evil. I don't care what his sad story was, he had no right to end anyone's life except his own.
To dress in a santa suit and go on such a hateful rampage on Christmas Eve... shooting an eight year old in the face?
Maybe they'll even blame it on his mother, you know that inadequate mothering bullshit. Or his daddy. Or a bad schoolteacher, or his past employers... or even his ex-wife.
And there's always the member of his church (or a neighbor) that says to a newspaper that he was "just the nicest guy. He would do anything for the church."
Well, apparently he wasn't all that great in moral character because the son of a bitch shot people and then set the house on fire.
He booby trapped the car he was found in, so more people could potentially be injured.
Yea, this sounds like someone we should all sympathize with. Nope not me.
I don't believe in hell but if I'm wrong and there is one, I hope he rots in it.

Of course he ended up shooting himself.
He should have started the killing with himself.

There's no excuse. There are people that have gone through all kinds of divorce hell, lost jobs, lost health, had horrific childhoods, evil destructive relationships that haven't ever hurt anyone and never will.

We are all the walking functional dysfunctionals in one way or the other.
Evil, selfish people are simply that. This was an evil thing to do, I can't comprehend it because it's beyond understandable.

*****************

Politics and Rick Warren

Why? Seriously. Barack Obama, there are literally thousands of ministers, priests, pastors, preachers, reverends, monks and other religious figures you could have chosen from that wouldn't likely have caused this friggin' mess that you created.

I don't get it. You've been so well thought out, so calculated and articulate in your program so far... what the hell happened? Was someone asleep at the wheel? Did you forget to use your fabulous internet to look at the Saddleback Church's web site?
I don't see why time and time again everyone caters to the religious right (far right). They are not on Obama's side to begin with so why? Again I just don't get it. Yea, Warren is probably further to the left that some of the real core strict evangelical's... but why pick him out of all the others
Hey, why didn't you just pick Reverend Jeremiah Wright? Oh yea that's right. Hmm.
Disappointed right now but hoping against hope that it doesn't change into disillusioned and discouragement like the last eight years of political "leadership."
You could have done so much better... Gay rights is a civil rights issue just like the rights of children, elderly, blacks, and women. Please get the government out of consenting adults bedrooms.

And can someone explain to me why prostitution is illegal? I don't really understand why it is.
I don't need a lecture on how it's immoral, or promotes adultery, or how women are debased and devalued by pimps and their johns. I just don't understand why it's against the law. I get that they don't want them to be hanging around on street corners or soliciting in public places, but why is the act illegal? Is it the money exchange, lack of paying taxes, what is it?

And it really looks like it's going to be Senator Al Franken from Minnesota since the state supreme court denied Coleman's current lawsuit. However it still might go to a "post recount election contest." Still, it favors Franken, but who knows at this point. Don't like either of them. Can't really see Franken as a senator. Ugh.

**************


If you knew me you might know that I'm a long time comic book aficionado along with the so-called graphic novels.
I also like manga and anime. But mostly I like the darker side of stories with good vs evil battles.
Well my son got me a copy of the Comic Book Tattoo for Christmas.
It's a beautiful oversized book full of short comic/stories.
The interesting thing is that they are tales inspired by the lyrics of Tori Amos.
Even if you're not an Amos fan the stories are interesting, well done and the interpretations fascinating.
Tori gave full creative license to the comic/writer/artists to create their own concepts and it's really sweet.
The foreword is by Neil Gaiman who is a friend of Tori's (not surprising).
So if you get the chance check it out in a store. I think if you like the format like I do you'll be impressed.
Books like this one could illustrate many music lyrics... could be a really fantastic series for bands (or at least their lyricists).
And how the hell did they produce such a beauty of a book for only $29.99?

So I'm in enough trouble for one day,
Hope the "soon to be here" 2009 will be a decent year!

G'night

Laura

*

Thirty-four days left of the George W Bush rodeo... out to pasture?

*

I'm not happy with Rick Warren being the pick for the invocation at Obama's inauguration.
I have no problem with his beliefs as far as they are his but he is polarizing on issues like gay marriage and abortion.
Not all that unusual for many pastors and religious groups but he's not all that tolerant about it.
Could have made a different choice.

I suppose I'll take a bit of criticism for saying this again (said it before the democratic nomination) but while Barack Obama
will certainly add his own slant to the government many things will be politics as usual.
He won't be overhauling the whole system and changing the way all things are done. It won't happen.
As we have seen all ready with the rush to jump on the initial bailout package and now the battle in the senate over the auto bail out... there are things that won't go well, things that are decided for reasons other than nobility and promises made to the public. They are calculated and political chess playing.

Barack Obama is if nothing else very intelligent, ambitious and thinks things through. He knows the game.
You don't rise that quickly without being aware that he needs to placate the right people or when the 2010, 2012 elections come up the party (and him) could lose their favor (read as their advantage of numbers) in congress.
He can't let that happen so like almost every president (and businessperson) before him he will change accordingly.
If constituents don't like something (like gay marriage for instance) and there are a large number of them in key places things change. There are deals and trade offs... just because he's Barack Obama doesn't mean that will all change overnight.

If you look at his picks for his cabinet (and I'm not really complaining here about them at all) you will realize they were picked for reasons, calculated and thought out reasons. The fit into the pattern he wants (or needs) to present.
I'm not saying that's bad or that he won't be a great president but he's only human, a mere man, and subject to certain laws of nature. Knowing the parameters of the game and playing it well isn't necessarily a good or bad thing, it simply depends on how it unfolds in this place, with these particular players, in this particular time. Idealism will have to take a back seat to political necessity. Not if he wants to get anything done and most importantly get re-elected in 2012.
I wonder if "no drama Obama" will hold true over the four or maybe eight years of his presidency.
That would probably nominate him for sainthood...
Hey remember "Read my lips: no new taxes"

And please someone with some kind of power tell the current RNC republicans NOT to campaign the entire next four years.
I'm sick of it all ready and all we have is the president elect Obama. There are more important things to consider.

So we're going to screw the auto industry for now. Sad, for the people that work in the industry: the entire industry not just manufacturing. And they now say the TARP payouts didn't accomplish what they were supposed to do... (Whine, whine, wink, wink)
Hey no shit Sherlock! I'm not a CEO, a business person or an economist and I'm certainly not a politician but I thought that in all it's incarnations the 700 billion bailout sucked and likely wouldn't fix anything.
A whole lotta chump change.

Still think 2009 is going to be business as usual for Main Street USA???

Need to stop now as my cynicism is rearing it's ugly head just like Putin over Palin's Alaska.
I'll put my rosy glasses back on so I can get some sleep and just stop talking about politics.

*************
Personal:
Finished all the outside shopping today and started wrapping, ran out of energy though.
Still have considerable baking (pies and cookies) to do this weekend, but I'll get it done.
Mentally and physically stressed at the moment.
So I just dug out something to make me laugh (okay so maybe it was more like a smile) but that's an improvement cause I'm really tired and grumpy.
Me and Papa Bear Bill O from the O'Reilly factor (what is it a factor of or in by the way?).
It was a joke, an escapade and I knew it would make me smile.
Now if anyone out there knows Stephen Colbert I would really, truly like to meet and talk to him!
Ain't it cute to see the liberal elitist social worker and the conservative... (what exactly is Bill again?) pun... dit together.
Well, we both hail from New York. Does that make him a liberal, elitist, cosmopolitan like all the rest of us Islanders?
Aw, cute ain't he? Besides you can't hear him talking in a photo... well maybe his fans can but I definitely can't.



G'night
All is well (or at least that's what I tell myself all the time)

Laura

*