Category Archives: News & Politics

Just my rants, raves & reflections on things that happen around the world.

Touching Base

I really need to start posting here more. I just don’t know to post about anymore. I can always do politics, but I tweet so much about that I don’t know if I really should. I work at home and other then errands and the gym, my face to face interactions with people that I use to comment on is limited.

Totally love that we finally got Osama Bin Laden….but even with that, overall it hasn’t been the best of weeks. Maybe crappy people like Cheney will quit lying about Obama not caring about national security and putting this country in danger.  It help to put that racist birther crap down.  So sad it took that and he showed his birth certificate….total crap.

Monday was a total Monday in the worst way.  And today was blah.  Put on Despicable Me for some much needed laughter  We did have one day that was totally dry and sunny and hit 70!!  Even if that was at 6pm, it was nice.

We finally got our tomato plants this week.  Went for 5 instead of the 3 we did last year.  It looks like some will mature mid summer and the a couple in late summer, my beefsteak ones.  So looking forward to those.  =)

After having a few rough winter months at the gym where we only went 4 days a week, we’ve been going 5 days for about 2 months.  BUT they haven’t been full days.  Mostly cardio.  I really need to get back to my abs and weights.  Getting some of my tummy back, doesn’t help that I’m eating a bit too much of things I shouldn’t be.  So both my eating habits and not doing the full workouts is not helping.  Need to get back on track next week.  Especially the workout part.

I have finally gotten back into  making time for reading, other then my news/political surfing addiction.  Both for magazines I can’t finish at the gym and books.  I’ve added a couple of new mag subscriptions, so now I have Time, Ms, Bitch, Progressive, Washington Monthly, American Prospect and also trying out Nutrition Action for better eating habits.  Don’t expect to totally change too much on eating, just want to be more educated about it.

On books, hubby got me Lyndon Johnson by Doris Kearns Goodwin (he was so complex) and John Paul Stevens by Bill Barnhart and Gene Schilickman (love Supreme Court stuff…lol) for the holidays, I got those read. I finally read One Soldier’s Story by Bob Dole (brought that when it came out…really liked that), Audition by Barbra Walters (learned a lot about what women went through by 1st person), True Compass by Edward M Kennedy (very interesting read), and during all that, finally finished the big one, My Life by Bill Clinton…which was good, but loaded with so much detail….wow.  Currently working on American Gospel by Jon Meacham, about “religion, the Founding Fathers and the Making of a Nation”.  How they counted on religion being in the public sphere without it being in government so not lead to the tyranny like it did Europe.

I did finally get off of my butt and took a photography composition class, wow….so much to learn.  They use so many terms for what is used on a SLR camera.  Going to have to take the class on how to learn to fully use our nikon ds70.  I actually planned on taking that class this semester, but with my luck the ONE day I actually made plans for it, we had other plans….ggeezz..  Normally we don’t do a thing…lol  Going to see about making time to go through the book we brought years ago on the camera and try to apply it. What I really want and need is better weather so I can take it out.  I have cats to take pics of, but they aren’t the most cooperative when you are learning the equipment…..lol  And that is what the stressed in class, know your equipment, know your equipment….so I really need to learn all the little things.  I have my point and shot olympus, but learning the nikon will help me with that also.

Well the day that I was going to take that class on learning the nikon, we went up to our friend’s in Seattle for a Zombie Jesus Party…..lol  I love satire.  I made deviled carbury eggs and very fudgy brownies….I must admit, I LOVE my brownies….grin…hubby made his addicting chili.  We had a great time, but I do have to admit we are old and cranky in that instead of staying overnight there, we came home that night….3hr drive back.  We just love being in our own beds and miss our cats too much.  As we have gotten older, we miss our cats even more….much harder to stay overnight without them.

I did have an issue that came up on my fb that disturbed me in their twisted logic.  Just because I’m an american feminist doesn’t mean that I’m going to hate on Islam.  One of friends on fb was from HS….and I had posted the quote from POTUS’ speech “Our war is not against Islam. Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader – indeed he was a mass murderer of Muslims.”  And what she posted on it, I can’t describe as nothing but hateful and bigoted. And I simply told her that I found it to be that and not post it on my fb, those may be her beliefs but do not post hate on my wall/posts.

And she part of her reply : “I find it difficult to believe that any feminist would ever deem to support a religion that will put women to death for the crime of their own rapes”  I’m like, I don’t support that, hell I do not support any religion.  EVERY religion has been used to justify rape, beating, abuse and slavery….they all suck on that and that is why I don’t like them.  They never follow their positive and good lessons of their religions, but their books are written by men and totally screwed up due to that.

Just because of my dislike of religion and the majority of their leaders, doesn’t mean I’m going to hate on them as a people.  That is no better then what Hilter did the Jews…..and I told her that, she didn’t like that and did one long post accusing me of attacking her beliefs.  I’m just too old for dealing with that…..it is my fb, which has far as I’m concern is my house and I won’t tolerate what I find is hatred and bigotry towards one type of people….so I unfriended her, I don’t need the drama.  I’m sad in that she has so much hatred built up in her.  And I’m not the most positive person in comments about society.

I can’t say that I’ve ever really known any Muslims, I’ve maybe encountered a few in my years of work but my husband served with some and we all know that every religion and race has both good and bad in it.  I did ask one woman about how do you keep the head wraps on and she seemed very happy to share her culture with me.  But I’m not going to judge a whole group of people based on bad ones, most things are cultural…not religious when it comes to things that are done in the name of Islam.  And I go on about the crimes and stuff of Christianity all the time.  But I also know that there are a lot of good people that actually try practice the teachings of Christ, which are good and get lost.  So individually I have no issue with people having their different faiths when it is not twisted to hurt, abuse or mistreat people or forced on me.  But I do have a MAJOR issue with all the evil and bigotry done in the name of religion.

Now hubby will say I’m dwelling on it, maybe I am….but not in the way that I’m upset in the standard sense of the word.  More like it makes me examine things and want to break it down about human nature and myself.  I think if I’m upset about anything it is that horrible generalization she made about being a feminist….like there aren’t Muslim feminists.  It was insulting to me to think that being a feminist meant that I should hate on them…wtf?  I guess I will never get that way of thinking…..maybe happier not to.

If you hadn’t seen, I became a great aunt in Jan.  =)  Very cool……the closest I will ever to being a grandma and that is as close as I want…grin  I will say that I’m not too please about some of the decisions my niece has been making.  Believe she is making them for all the wrong reasons and doesn’t want to work for anything.  Wants everything now and expects it to be easy.  Her sperm donor father coming out in that.  =(  But it is her life to screw up, just worried about my great niece.

Wow after not posting in awhile, this is a long one.  Maybe I’ll do more of it, probably more social commentary.  =)

Caring About Human Issues

As you may have noticed, I do more tweeting then blogging now.  Much quicker on getting out my thoughts.  Yesterday I tweeted this link : The FBI’s Restrictive Definition Of Rape and stated that this needs to be changed.

I received a comment back asking “have you something to talk about you are pretty hardcore on abuse of woman?” I responded back “Nope, just a feminist and every single of one of my close friends have suffered abuse.”  The more I think about it, the more insulting and sexist their question was.

Why do I need to have “something” to talk about to address the issue about the abuse of women? If they actually read the article, it addresses the fact that rape of men are so, so poorly under reported and not even included.  These are issues that effect MEN and WOMEN, not just women.  It is a cycle that we must always work to break.

But then, their comment really had nothing to do with the article, since they didn’t read it, they really don’t see that comments/links I make are not just about women, they are about SOCIETY as a whole.  Why do so many think that women issues are not HUMAN issues, that it does not effect them?

Why can I not talk about it for the simple fact that I am a human and I care about the human condition and ridding the world of violence?  Why must I have story to give a damn?  I actually have had a very good life, especially compared to my friends.  But just because I had a good life doesn’t mean I shouldn’t care about others.  Doesn’t mean that I don’t want others to have what I had, every one deserves to have a good life.

My question to them should’ve been, why don’t you care about these issues? If more people cared and was aware the issues, the violence will go down as we develop programs to address it.

Education and awareness is always the key to changing things.  Which is why slaves where not allowed to learn how to read, it was illegal, why women weren’t allowed to be educated.  An educated person is someone to be reckoned with, you can not just use them, fool them and abuse them.

They also made this comment “They should report any abuse to the authorities or their brothers .I have 0.0 respect for men who abuse woman.”

Ok….good on the zero respect for the abusers and for people who have no actual experience dealing with DV situations….a common comment. Sexist on the brother comment, why must a female always need to get a family man’s protection?  Goes back to the history that women are nothing but property and chattel (which the GOP loves to treat us as).

But it really shows that they do not have any idea what an abuse victim goes through.  All the complex issues that they face, child care, job safety, having a job, lack of family support, the fact that they are re-victimized by the system and it fails them on a continuous basis.  Whether is from failure to enforcing a protective order, to not giving them, to abusers not giving a fig about a piece of paper, to blaming it on the victim.

After volunteering at a women’s shelter for many years, that simple statement that they made, doesn’t work.

More women, men and children are raped or killed by someone they know, not by the hyped up “strange danger”

How are these issues are just about women, when they effect all of us?  And why don’t you care about them?


Funnies

I really like this story line in Doonesbury.  They have a couple of different ones, but other then this one the only other one that I like about US women soldiers in Afghanistan.

4/4/2010

5/2/2010

Reminds me of what my dad told me about us having the right to burn our flag in political protest…..that it was a freedom he defended in ‘Nam even if you don’t agree with it.

Flying Cat, Police & SCOTUS

Well, this time I remembered to put subjects down when I thought of them to remind myself of what I wanted to write about.  =)

Today we actually got a few things done, hubby got the place vacuumed of all the cat fur…not a fun job. We did some outside work.  Hubby got it done much faster then I thought it would take. I got #8 of strawberries cleaned and frozen, shortcake made, laundry done & a blog post.  Tomorrow, debating on making up some egg salad and need to finalize our taxes….fun, fun….  I really need to get back focused on our project….need to get that done.  What I need to do, is put on my ipod to my classical music and just tunnel vision myself.

I finished the Secret Lives of the Supreme Court last week. That was a very interest for a SCOTUS geek like me….grin I’m now reading True Compass by Edward M. Kennedy.  I’m really enjoying how he wrote it.  It is filled with humor, personal insight…..telling a story without it being dry.  So far you get to know people like he knew them….  I have been trying to give myself reading time…it really helps for chilling out and keeping my sanity.  =)

I so can’t wait for more hiking weather…just to get out of the house more.  The gym is getting ho-hum…I think I’m getting restless with it.  I don’t want stop it, just want to get more drive again and less boredom.  Changing between the treadmill & elliptical is helping.  But by the time I get my abs in, I don’t feel like getting my weights in….not good.  But as long as I’m maintaining for now, it is a good thing.  Once we get out more, it won’t be so bad.

We discovered that our other cat, Sakura, can fly….grin  But unlike her brother, she didn’t care that we saw her.  We have a black leather chair that spins with a foot stool about 5-6ft away from the end table.  As we were watching a Ron White stand up, I saw out of the corner of my eye a chunky furry body flying through the air from the end table to the chair….she landed on the top of the chair and it went spinning around in circles.  LMAO  She just looked at us like “What? I do this all the time”  Holy cow…..we just lost it…  I don’t get these 2 cats….we’ve never had cats act like they don’t give a rats ass about us correcting them and don’t care if they do things in front us that they are not allowed to do.  They are something else…we have never had cats fly before….LOL

There is one thing that I find very different to me here in Portland.  I guess there is a history of police brutality from the PDX police.  And from the news reports it sounds like they have taken a lot of steps to correct the actions of the past.  But there have been a few deaths from police shootings in the last year or so.  One of the shooting, sounds like the cop totally screwed up, but unfortunately we had one a few weeks ago and there has been protests….but this one doesn’t sound like a screw up.

This last shooting, the guy was covered in blood, had a knife and was acting crazy.  A knife is a deadly weapon, I would prefer and would hope that they could find another way to disarmed them….but a knife is not something that you play with when it comes to the public and your safety.  So with the info that has been released, at this time I feel it was more like a justified shooting….but I like to hear the all the info.

I hate the arm chair “cops” that act like they know what should’ve been done without being in that situation and knowing all the facts.

Now yes, I know that there are cops that abuse their authority….ever dealt with a small town cop on a power trip?  Not fun.

But now a days, in most places (there are some cites that are nothing but corruption…..not going to name the ones I won’t trust) most cops are just doing their job, trying to keep the public safe.

Maybe I just have been lucky with my dealing with cops, especially the county and state cops in IN, even when I’ve gotten pulled a lot when I was younger and dumber (very well deserved pull overs, 90% of the time). I’ve only had one bad experience, it was in FL and that was due his attitude and talking to others…this cop was known for being an ass….so I don’t actually count him.  Every other cop I’ve dealt with has always been professional.  I treated them with respect and it has always been returned.

My first two jobs were in food service and when cops and emergency responders came in they got 50% off. There are two main reasons for that.  One you know their jobs don’t pay…..so two, if you take care of them and they keep coming back they keep even a better eye on your place.  One of places I worked, it was the only location in all of Lake Country that hadn’t been robbed, because we had cops there all the time. And when they saw cars that they didn’t recognized in our parking lot after hours, they called us to check on us to make sure that everything was ok.  So it is a win-win situation.

So, even though I know that PDX police’s history has been spotty, I’m very uncomfortable with how quickly that they “burned at the stake” no matter what the info is….like the knife and the threats.  It so ties the hands of the good cops that are putting their lives on the line to do a thankless job.

Well, if you follow my tweets with all the links, you know that I’ve totally tied up in the retirement of Justice Stevens.  When you are addicted to politics, history and social issues you know that the Supreme Court is a huge part of our advancement in society, ie Civil Rights…women being allowed to control their own bodies.  What is really sad about Justice Stevens retirement is that he is seen as the force on the liberal side when he is actually old republican moderate.  It is the court that has changed.

The right-wing-nuts rally against “activist judges” (which is code for liberal judges) but their hypocrisy shows because the actual activist judges on the bench are the conservatives.  They are always rolling back our rights…..I feel as if they are going to throw us back to segregation and back alley abortions.  Screw our rights as long as corporations are allowed to do what they want and the white men keeps their power…..ggrrrr No ONE tells me what I can or can’t do with my body, my husband respects that.

Time to do a little bit of reading.  =)

My Random Thoughts

Eat Me!
  • 10:42 even sneezing as much as I do from it, I love the smell of spring… AHCHOO!!!! ew… wet one…
  • 11:04 Zach Braff has confirmed via his Facebook page that the long running comedy series “Scrubs” is officially over – major bummer/maybe time?
  • 11:56 My only question, is he really sorry or just really scared? -Health-reform rally heckler says he’s sorry/scared – tinyurl.com/yc379k7
  • 13:37 Bill Donahue, just because no other religion called 911 on molesting in no way justifies catholics not calling 911, LAME argument.
  • 16:14 LOL! Jim Boeheim has coached ‘Cuse longer than Butlers coach has been alive…
  • 17:37 from the “You should be dead just for being THIS FUCKING STUPID” file… tinyurl.com/ygj4g2y
  • 18:02 Wow! Butler is looking great!
  • 18:08 Congrats to the Butler Bulldogs!
  • 21:11 WOW! Xavier/KSU 2 OTS!!! Some HUGE shots in this game! March Madness!!!