vote, vote, vote

I really feel like there's nothing else I can say here until Nov. 3. I'm wary of the election, and afraid that something will go wrong. Also - work will keep me busy until then.

Remember, su vota es su voz! Save democracy: vote! and all those other pithy sayings. Whatever gets you to the polls. This election is so vital. I can't stress it enough. Whoever you want to vote for, go do it.

I'm gonna link to my Susan B. Anthony post.

As P. Diddy says, "Vote or die!"

Just remember, the election is November 2, no matter what anyone else tells you.

those quirky Brits.

According to a poll by a British film magazine, George W. Bush is the year's top villain. I'm not making this up! He beat Doc Ock and Gollum.

CNN.com - Top film villain: Bush?

if you haven't seen it already. . .

you really should. It got me all riled up, and I already voted! It is somewhat work-safe. I could watch it over and over again, but I should get back to work now.

Eminem - Mosh

"He was rarther a presumshious man"

I was just bumbling about on the internet this afternoon when I found this story on how Jim Broadbent brought The Young Visiters to the small screen. Never having heard of this work, I went here and started reading it. I can't believe I missed out on this great work when I was growing up! It's deliciously awful. Well, not really awful. But it was written by a 9-year-old and is lacking in punctuation and correct spelling. You can read the entire opus online. It's about an "elderly man of 42" and his ward trying to make it in Victorian-era society.

The Young Visiters will be making its stateside appearance in early November, and stars Jim Broadbent and Hugh Laurie (among others).

Remembering Wellstone

Today marks the second anniversary of Paul Wellstone's death. I get choked up just thinking about the tragic loss. I spent one year in Minnesota, and was lucky enough to hear Wellstone speak twice. Our nation had so much to learn from him and his work.

Wellstone Action - We remember them.

Statesman endorses Bush

I got about six emails this morning (from Austin for Change) about the Statesman endorsing Bush and the answering protest. Unfortunately I'm still getting over an allergy attack, so I couldn't join in the protest on Congress bridge.

I am a little surprised about the endorsement, as I think a lot of Austinites are. I assumed since it is an Austin paper, it would reflect the thoughts of the community. I have little doubt that Kerry will win Austin (there's no way he can win Texas, however). Austin is an extremely liberal community and a lot of us are very upset with this administration.

I'm going with the optimistic thought that the editors wanted to endorse Kerry, and the publishers made them endorse Bush. Call me naive, but it helps me feel a little better.

a quick look at conservatives and sexuality

The hypocrisy of all the hubbub being made over Mary Cheney's obvious sexuality has not been lost on me. Frank Rich compares the coverage of the conservative reaction to the lack of coverage on the Bill O'Reilly harassment story.

The New York Times > Arts > Frank Rich: The O'Reilly Factor for Lesbians

Is this an affirmation or what?

Pat Robertson alleges that Sojourners is a "semi-socialist" organization:

ZAHN: If you're not a Republican, can you be a Christian?

ROBERTSON: Well, I was a Democrat for about 55 years, so I guess so. You know, the party left us. The Democratic Party went far to the left, I think, and left some of us stranded on the beach, so we went to the Republican Party.

ZAHN: But there are a lot of Christians out there who take umbrage at what you're saying. There is this magazine called "Sojourners" magazine.

ROBERTSON: Oh, yes.

ZAHN: Which, by its admission, is a liberal Christian magazine.

(CROSSTALK)

ROBERTSON: Semi-socialist.

CNN.com - Paula Zahn's interview with Pat Robertson

If Pat Robertson, who has always been a little out of touch with reality, makes this claim, then certainly Sojourners is doing something right. After all, this is the man who stated that "(f)eminism is a socialist, anti-family, political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."

Sojourners Executive Editor David Batstone responds

well, this is a good sign.

Kid power! Democrat John Kerry is the winner, and the rest of the country should pay attention because the vote on Nickelodeon's Web site has correctly chosen the president of the United States in the past four elections.

Nearly 400,000 children and teens voted, and the results were released Wednesday. Kerry received 57 percent of the vote; President Bush got 43 percent.

with my emphasis. Not that I believe we've got it in the bag, but if the kids think Kerry should be prez, maybe theire parents do also.

Kids Pick Kerry to Be the Next President

I won't vote for Nader, but . . .

I am very tempted to vote for the Green Party candidate for President. Part of me thinks that I might as well, because all of Texas' electoral votes will go to Bush anyway. But then the other part of me knows that I have to vote for Kerry.

I saw Cobb on NOW and was extremely impressed. The Green Party's platform is far more progressive and peaceful than the Democrats, so I definitely agree with them more. But I know that we are stuck in a two party system. They say social change has always come from a third party. . .

It isn't getting any better

I don't know how 9/11 could be politicized any more.

Relatives of people who lost loved ones in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks vouch for President Bush or Democrat John Kerry in new TV ads that try to persuade voters that just one of the two would best lead the country in a time or terrorism.

9/11 Kin Vouch for Bush, Kerry in TV Ads

On my Netflix list: 11'09"01. It will be released on DVD 10/26. I missed it in the theatres, so I'm really looking forward to seeing it. Has anyone else seen it?

MUST READ: Without a Doubt

If you are a registered voter, you must read this article from the NY Times Magazine. It is a very detailed and disturbing look at the character of the Bush administration. Here's a taste:

Each administration, over the course of a term, is steadily shaped by its president, by his character, personality and priorities. It is a process that unfolds on many levels. There are, of course, a chief executive's policies, which are executed by a staff and attending bureaucracies. But a few months along, officials, top to bottom, will also start to adopt the boss's phraseology, his presumptions, his rhythms. If a president fishes, people buy poles; if he expresses displeasure, aides get busy finding evidence to support the judgment. A staff channels the leader.

A cluster of particularly vivid qualities was shaping George W. Bush's White House through the summer of 2001: a disdain for contemplation or deliberation, an embrace of decisiveness, a retreat from empiricism, a sometimes bullying impatience with doubters and even friendly questioners. Already Bush was saying, Have faith in me and my decisions, and you'll be rewarded. All through the White House, people were channeling the boss. He didn't second-guess himself; why should they?

I'm going to forward this article to everyone I know. It is a long read, but extremely relevant.

The New York Times > Magazine > Without a Doubt

If you are in Texas, you have eleven more days to vote early (before Nov. 2)!

Supreme Court says review it.

The Supreme Court has urged further consideration of the Texas redistricting, setting aside the federal panel ruling that upheld it.

The U.S. Supreme Court ordered on Monday further consideration of a challenge by Democrats and minority groups to a controversial Republican-backed congressional redistricting plan in Texas.

The justices in a brief order granted an appeal by those challenging the plan and set aside a ruling by a federal three-judge panel in January that upheld the bitterly contested map.

The justices ordered further consideration by the federal panel in view of their ruling in April that upheld a Pennsylvania redistricting case. They did not elaborate further.

This seems a tad wishy-washy to me, but at least they are urging another federal review of the plan. Too bad the "wrong" districts are already being voted on as we speak. What will happen if the redistricting is not upheld (which, Lord willing, it won't be)?

Supreme Court Orders Texas Redistricting Review

cell phones, polls, and other election questions

Thanks to Electoral vote predictor for linking to this great discussion on the Washington Post site with Charles Cook.

Quotable quote:

Berwyn, Ill.: With unprecedented numbers of newly registered voters all across the country, aren't ALL polls essentially irrelevant?

Charles Cook: Virtually all the polls you are seeing are using random digit dialing, not voter registeration rolls, so theoretically even newly registered voters are being polled. A far bigger problem is that as many as 18 percent of telephone subscribers today have no land lines, and since pollsters are not calling cell phones, almost one in five voters are not being included in poll samples.

Election 2004: State of the Races (washingtonpost.com)

Milwaukee may be turning voters away.

In Wisconsin, it's not necessarily one person, one vote (or even one ballot) from MoJo Blog. Very disturbing.

a pro-lifer looks at abortion during the Bush administration

Research Dr. Stassen did shows that during Bush's administration, abortion increased.

I am a Christian ethicist, and trained in statistical analysis. I am consistently pro-life. My son David is one witness. For my family, "pro-life" is personal. My wife caught rubella in the eighth week of her pregnancy. We decided not to terminate, to love and raise our baby. David is legally blind and severely handicapped; he also is a blessing to us and to the world.

I look at the fruits of political policies more than words. I analyzed the data on abortion during the George W. Bush presidency. There is no single source for this information - federal reports go only to 2000, and many states do not report - but I found enough data to identify trends. My findings are counterintuitive and disturbing.

Abortion was decreasing. When President Bush took office, the nation's abortion rates were at a 24-year low, after a 17.4% decline during the 1990s. This was an average decrease of 1.7% per year, mostly during the latter part of the decade. (This data comes from Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life using the Guttmacher Institute's studies).

Enter George W. Bush in 2001. One would expect the abortion rate to continue its consistent course downward, if not plunge. Instead, the opposite happened.

emphasis mine. Go read more about his findings here

great quotes and their pertinency

Wordsmith's quote of the day:

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (1803-1882)

I discovered this quote through one of my favorite films, Next Stop Wonderland, in which it is misquoted multiple times. Reading it today reminded me of the film, of course, but also its pertinence to our "commander-in-chief" really struck me. His refusal to admit a mistake and stick it out really does seem to be a "foolish consistency".

At least they realize that they have a problem.

Networks to Test New Exit Polling System

Can you believe this quote from Fox News (after the 2000 fiasco):

"We're just going to really, really be cautious," said Marty Ryan, Fox News Channel's executive producer for political coverage. "When we think we have it, we'll wait a few minutes and look again. Then we'll wait a few minutes and look again."

I'll believe it when I see it. I don't even know if I can watch any election coverage the night of. L and I discussed it last night and we decided that PBS and CSPAN are the only networks we will really trust on election night.

MUST-SEE SHOW

Frontline is without a doubt my favorite news show, period. They don't pull any punches and present viewers with the truth. Last night I watched The Choice 2004 which compares the history of both Kerry and Bush from Yale onward. If you want to see a no-spin take on the candidates, you must watch this show. Friends, family, schoolmates and current spouses share their stories about the candidates and how they got to be who they are.

It will replay Thursday night at 8pm central and will be viewable online after October 15. I cannot recommend this show enough.

eat your veggies.

The New York Times: Vegetables? Sure. We'll Take Some Fries.

wanna work for Al Gore?

Al Gore's new TV station is recruiting digital correspondents. It will be up and running in 2005, and applications will be accepted until next Friday. I'm tempted to apply myself, except I have no video experience.

INdTV - Home

Bush being prompted?

Is there a possibility that Bush is being prompted during speeches (and the last debate)? Conspiracy theorists have found reason to think that he is being prompted by some male (read: Karl Rove). El Moreno has culled some resources at his post, Sexy conspiracy. I'm extremely skeptical; I know Bush isn't as idiotic as he appears, and I hope he would be smart enough not to think he could pull something like this. But who knows? I'll be on the lookout during the debate tonight, that's for sure.

Wangari Maathai wins the Nobel Peace Prize

I'd never heard of her before this morning, but it seems she does extremely relevant work empowering women and helping the environment. She is the first African woman ever to receive the notable award.

BBC NEWS | World | Africa | Profile: Wangari Maathai

Bushwhacked

Steve Brooks has a nifty song that has been played on "Eklektikos" lately. It's called "Bushwhacked". It's a catchy little tune.

Kerry and religion

Should Kerry plug his religion more? I don't know. He's a regular church-goer, works for social justice and the environment, and more. He obviously believes (as I do) in actually doing God's work, instead of just talking about it.

"If you look at Catholic teaching," [Kerry] said, mentioning his days in church school, "it teaches about the environment, our responsibilities to the next generation. It teaches about poverty, our responsibility to the poor. It teaches about fairness. It teaches about peace and brotherhood and a whole series of things which I think this administration is failing on."
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Kerry said Bush had politicized faith to an unacceptable degree, used religion to divide and breached the boundary between church and state by promoting government aid to "faith-based" organizations.
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Careful not to question the sincerity of Bush's faith or to criticize the mobilization of conservative religious forces on his behalf, Kerry nonetheless suggested his opponent's campaign had gone over the line with the way it frames some issues.
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"I think you have to draw that line, so the answer is yes, they reached beyond that line, and in my judgment they're trying to exploit certain issues," he said.
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"The president and I have the same position, fundamentally, on gay marriage. We do. Same position. But they're out there misleading people and exploiting it."
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Bush uses the language of faith, not only to mobilize conservative Catholics and evangelicals, but also to underscore his sense of purpose and to justify an unwavering certitude.

I hate how Bush uses God in a political sense. It also annoys me that a perceived belief in God is all it takes to convince voters.

Sure, Bush is advised by religious counselors. Does he take their advice? That's a different story. Jim Wallis has "advised" Bush on a couple of occasions, and has been ultimately disappointed in Bush's decisions.

This article discusses how Kerry should plug his faith to lure more voters. Is it relevant that he might become only the second Catholic President ever? I just don't know what to think.


IHT: News Analysis: Is Kerry paying a price for reluctance to discuss his faith?

Michael J. Fox endorses Kerry

I'm not too surprised about this, given Fox's dedication to stem cell research (and Bush's lack of it).

See the ad

B'nai B'rith and Presbyterians

My boss got a form letter today from the B'nai B'rith Foundation of the U. S. saying, basically, that PC(USA) has become anti-sem*tic (they use the term Anti-Zion*st many times):

"At the 216th General Assembly. . . the delegates voted to adopt a series of hostile, aggressive and profoundly insulting resolutions aimed directly at the Jewish people and the State of Israel."

The main thing this organization is angry about? I wrote about it in August. Apparently the fact that the Presbyterian church is considering divesting from companies that do business in Israel (such as Caterpillar) is enough to make the denomination anti-Zion*st.

I am extremely disappointed about this. The term anti-sem^tism is not something I like to see thrown around by anyone. At least PC(USA) realizes how big an issue this has become.

tell me something I don't already know.

U.S. Report Finds No Evidence of Iraq WMD

pledge your vote

You can go to this site and pledge your vote to Kerry (or Bush). I don't know how scientific it is (if at all), but it is neat to see their breakouts and graphs. The thing about pledging is that you can change your pledge at a later time, if you'd like.

It's fun; go do it already.

Travis county early voting locations. . .

. . . are listed on this site. Early voting is available from October 18 through October 29.

I strongly depend on the League of Women Voters' Voter's Guide. Here is the online version.

Save democracy: vote!

the dangers of e-mail

Farnaz Fassihi was covering the war in Iraq for the Wall Street Journal. During her time in Iraq, she wrote an e-mail to friends and family about what was really going on over there. Unfortunately for her, her friends and family passed her email on, and the Journal found about it. Now the reporter is said to be on a "vacation" until after the election.

Read more about it here and here.

It is sad that she is suffering such consequences for what she terms as "a private e-mail to my friends as I often do about once a month, writing them about my impressions of Iraq, my personal opinons and my life here".

Lice and their evolution

I just finished reading this article in the NY Times:

The New York Times > Science > What a Story Lice Can Tell

It's gross, and engrossing. Hee.

evhead, we hardly knew ye

Evan's leaving Google.

a note from Pastor Greg

Preachers like this make me happy to be a Presbyterian.

----- Original Message -----
From: Greg M----
To: undisclosed-recipients
Sent: Sunday, October 03, 2004 8:31 AM
Subject: Our Church Family


I want to share with you a part of a message that was left on our answering machine at church late Saturday afternoon. It seems that a certain man had read my article in the Statesman yesterday promoting the Arts Festival and the need to come together, celebrating our differences in the transforming beauty of religious art. This particular gentleman was obviously concerned that such tolerance probably meant that we must be a "Homosexual Heretic Church.' He wanted me to know that he was praying for my dark soul and that God would remove from (the church) its blasphemous ways.

It is just such calls that make me more sure than ever that the course we have taken to be "deliberately diverse and fully inclusive" is indeed of God. I am proud to be a pastor of such a courageous family of faith. Please join us this Sat. for the Arts Festival. Let us make everyone who chooses to gather at this festival know that they are loved by God.

Our calling is clear: Faith, Hope, Love abide, these three. But the greatest of these is Love.

Thank you for being you.
Greg

Going Upriver with Napoleon Dynamite

This weekend I saw two very different films, both at the Arbor Cinema.

Saturday afternoon I got to see Napoleon Dynamite which has a minimal plot, yet still works. I laughed so many times at this film (see memorable quotes). The actor who plays Napoleon gives his character the funniest inflection. The costuming is so dated that my friend and I were confused about the time-period for the film: the outfits are from the 70s and 80s, yet mention is made of cyberspace and music from Jamiroqui and the Backstreet Boys is danced to. There was only one short period of time when I was wondering where the film was going; the rest of the time I was too busy laughing. This film is a shoo-in for cult status. I would be shocked if it didn't have a cult following already (Mel said she saw "Vote for Pedro" shirts on about three people at the ACL fest).

Sunday afternoon I caught Going Upriver: the long war of John Kerry. While not a groundbreaking documentary, it is PBS quality. There is no narration, only interviews. I learned a lot about John Kerry, and would suggest that anyone who has the slightest interest in Kerry check the film out. Ultimately, I left the film astounded at his presence and resoluteness. And at the fact that he was 28 when he spoke before the Foreign Relations Committee about what the VVAW was all about. I just can't fathom being able to do that.

How "Schindler's List" came to be

Thomas Keneally writes how he was convinced by a handbag store owner to write his great book.

Granta: 'The Handbag Studio'

I remember my freshman year of college, I spent a weekend reading the book (my choice, not for class). It made me bawl. I love it when books get so under my skin, because it is somewhat rare. But Schindler's List is not only an amazing story, it is well-written to boot. In fact, I put off seeing the movie for a while because I liked the book so much.

Going Upriver

Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry has actually gotten some wonderful reviews! It is going to be playing here this weekend, and I may try to catch it.