From the GOP: Will You Still Love Us Tomorrow?

From the Miami Herald:
President Bush returned to Texas on Monday to rally Republicans in the heart of Bush country. He had his work cut out for him.
The president's visit to Sugar Land, about 20 miles southwest of Houston, was another indication of how tough times are for Republicans. Just a few years ago, no one would have predicted that the party would be struggling to hang on to the congressional district that launched former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's political career.
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Sex scandals, a botched national security program, even in the midst of a healthy economy...hmm, late-90s redux anyone?

Hey GOP, do you know what it feels like for a Democrat? Now you do.

With things looking rosey for the Dems I still wonder if this means the White House will be ours in '08.

Here's hoping...

Halloween Tricks

If you're bored, check out this past weekend's Halloween revelry here.

On War: Madonna, Bill O'Reilly, Michael J. Fox and other hot search terms

You no more win a war than you can win an earthquake.
-- Jeannette Rankin (1880-1973), U.S. legislator

And with that brilliant quote in mind I will launch into my diatribe on a week's worth of issues. Newsflash: America is at war. And not just with Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Bolivia and, catch breath, Argentina. Our country is also at war within. Americans hate each other. And thanks to DVR, you can go to work and come home to roll up your sleeves and crawl into the mud that is daytime TV.

Thank God. I was afraid I'd miss out on the fear mongering that is at the core of our national identity but I'm fortunate enough to be able to bloody my knuckles on the issues of the day with just a click of my remote.

With elections just a few days away I thought I'd write about some of the races going on around me. Hands down, I think the New Jersey governor's race is way sexier than the NY race. Or at least I'm seeing more commercials for that race.

Whatever the case may be, I am totally on Team Menendez. He's the son of Cuban immigrants, self-made, a Democrat, and I am smitten with him after reading this address before the Senate regarding the nomination of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court:

"We live in extraordinary times today. President Bush has sought the accumulation of unprecedented powers. He has asserted the authority to not only torture detainees and indefinitely detain American citizens as enemy combatants, but to also conduct warrantless wiretapping of American citizens.

[...]

The bias Judge Alito has shown in favor of the executive branch threatens to undermine the freedoms that our judiciary has historically protected. From his work as a government lawyer to a speech before the Federalist Society in 2000, he consistently favors the concentration of unprecedented power in the hands of the President, even endorsing the so-called “unitary executive” theory that even many conservatives view as being at the fringe of judicial philosophy. It virtually gives the presidency exclusive powers that historically have belonged to either Congress or the courts. This theory is an activist theory, not a theory that reflects mainstream American thinking or values. In fact, the Supreme Court has largely rejected it. "

As our country begins to charter the course toward internal reconciliation, we need this kind of candor from our states' leaders. Menendez opened his discourse on Alito by stating his similarities with the now Supreme Court justice:

"Samuel Alito’s story is one that rings familiar to so many New Jerseyans, including myself. His parents came to this country in search of opportunity, and worked hard to build a better life for their children. The son of immigrants, Judge Alito’s life is a story that demonstrates the power of seizing opportunity and working hard. Frankly, it is a story close to my own heart. I too, am the son of immigrants who came to New Jersey to seek a better life and greater opportunity. Thanks to their hard work, and my own, I was the first in my family to graduate from college and law school. "

Very cool. A gentlemanly, diplomatic take on a very weighty issue. I respect and admire Bob Menendez and hope his home state elects him to the post he deserves.

Here in New York, I'm also supporting Jeanine Pirro , a Republican, for Attorney General. She's had a hell of a year, but the one message that has resonated in my mind, in spite of her blubbering attacks on Hillary Clinton and the rumors surrouning the Pirro marriage, is JP's stand on domestic violence and hate crimes. She proudly states that she has incarcerated wife beaters and people who commit hate crimes against gays and lesbians. I haven't heard Elliot Spitzer talk about these issues. And they do matter if we're going to stay the course of reconciliation and progressive politics.

And speaking of reconciliation, will someone please kick Rush Limbaugh in the nuts? And while they're at it, take a swing at Patricia Heaton and that nobody pitcher from the Cardinals who are taking the airwaves to pontificate on an issue that they are fortunate enough to NOT be impacted by.

With stem cell research being a swing issue for many voters, both sides of the debate are endorsing their point of view on commercials running right now. Michael J. Fox is imploring voters to pass a resolution that will allow for stem cell research, while Patricia Heaton and other blowhards, including James Cazaviel (what have you seen him in since "The Passion of the Christ?") and St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jeff Suppan are urging Americans to stop the ammendment that would allow for continued exploration of this potentially life-saving field.

Let's hope that none of these right-wingers have to eat their words and come pandering to the American public for support like one Nancy Reagan, whose husband's despicable treatment of the AIDS epidemic came back at him in the form of Alzheimer's.

Rush Limbaugh had enough (expected) poor taste to suggest that Michael J. Fox was faking the tremors caused by his disease during his commercial endorsing Democrat Claire McCaskill. What kills me about this issue, and others like gay marriage and abortion is that people who are not the least bit affected by them are the ones making the most noise. People are dying and yet healthy, rich, self-important jerks are trying to dictate how science can go about saving people's lives. And these people have the nerve to say they're pro-life??

I guess anything goes in times of war.

And that's exactly the point that Bill O'Reilly drove home during his appearance on Oprah
to peddle his new book "Culture Warrior." Says the big purple monster (I have seen him countless times in person and without make-up he is quite horrific):

There are inequalities, we work to do a level playing field. But fundamentally, the founding fathers, based on Judeo Christian philosophy—not religion, philosophy—fundamentally, we've risen to be the strongest country that civilization has ever seen. We give opportunity to more people than anyone else in the world. We freed billions of people and spent our blood and treasure doing it. We're noble. Traditionalists.Secular-progressives say, "No. We're a flawed society. Deeply flawed. We need changes in every area. Social. Economic. Foreign policy."

I hate to break it to Bill, but I think America is a wonderful country that is in need of a drastic overhaul. We are quite flawed. So flawed that we elected W into office and are trapped in an endless war that is only fueling more rancor across the world against us.

Were it up to the likes of Bill, every last American would be strapped with an AK47 and would be doing rounds between the US/Mexico border and Iraq. Americans may disagree on issues, but to pit us against each other and toss the term war around with such blatant disrespect for the word which has cost us 3,000 American lives, is reckless.

Of course, pop culture is at the heart of the culture war, and Madonna could very well be our Joan of Arc. Madge is at the center of a firestorm for wanting to adopt a Malawian baby whose father is still alive but too poor to care for the child. As part of her project called "Raising Malawi," the pop diva is drawing the world's attention to the poorest country on earth, where there are millions of AIDS orphans.

I have mixed feelings about Madonna, but I have to say, if she's going to draw attention anywhere, I'm glad it's on issues that matter and not on her proclivity for girl-on-girl action. Shame on the press for attacking her and turning a wonderful gesture into something despicable. What if Jenna or Barbara Bush did something as selfless?

Madonna v. The World....isn't this old news anyway? Can't wait for the album/documentary/bumper sticker.

War...who needs it?

Election 06: What Happened to the Immigrants and the Gays?

From today's New York Times:

In many ways, the economy has not looked so good in a long time. The price of gas at the pump has tumbled since midsummer. Unemployment has fallen to its lowest level in more than five years. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average has finally returned to its glory days of the late 1990’s, setting records almost daily.
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The issue for fickle, easily-deceived Amercians is now the "direction" of our country. The culture war is on the backburner for now (our country is on first-date mode with Barak Obama) and simple-minded Americans everywhere are now asking themselves if they still trust the thieving warmongers they elected into power two years ago.

I just want to know where the "illegals" went and what happened to the threat on the American family? Of course, I'm taking for granted the fact that we will never leave Iraq, so nuts to the soldiers who are stuck there and to their families who are awaiting their safe return. Perhaps Iraq will become a serious issue of concern for our nation's people a-la Darfur in the summer of '08.

The Republicans are trying to ride on their laurels through the November elections, but after seeing my new fav film "Marie Antoinette" this weekend, I would love nothing more than for the American public to "storm" the system (through the poll booths) and demand accountability from the Republicans even after the Dems win control of both Houses. This year found the Republicans sinking to new lows in their fear propaganda campaign and while it's going to cost them these elections, they should still be held accountable for the reckless and cheap tactics they've been using to drag our country into unnecessary conflict -- both at home and abroad.

Fantasy Congress: You (Kinda) Saw it Here First

Last month I invited my readers to participate in my very ad-hoc version of fantasy sports called Fantasy Dems. Well, some enterprising students out in California have taken a very good idea and gave it structure to come up with Fantasy Congress:

Fantasy Congress™ offers you the power to "play politics." As in other fantasy sports, you - the Citizen - draft a team of real-life legislators from the U.S. Congress and score points for your team's successes. Join a league and compete against other Citizens, or form a league of your own! Play against your friends, family, bloggers, fellow politicos, or even a sitting U.S. Senator (one could be playing incognito, you never know!). On weekends, move Members of Congress into your active line-up or off your team to strategize for the upcoming week of legislation!
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Good ideas are a dime a dozen, it's all in the execution. Cheers to these guys for a very clever site, I plan on playing and posting on it regularly.

Latinos Doing It for Themselves

Interesting article in today's New York Times about Latino immigrants working for other Latinos here in the U.S.

The gist of the piece by Mireya Navarro is that while there are clearly benefits for both parties: shared language, culture, an expected shared immigration experience, there is some friction between recently arrived immigrants and their more established compatriots.

Says the article:

"In the employment market for both legal and illegal immigrants, many nannies and maids are finding their first jobs among the older generations of Latinos, who are now in a position to hire domestic help. But while the two groups of strivers may gravitate toward each other because of cultural and language similarities, their intersection can also be fraught with odd tensions and broken expectations, say researchers, employers and workers."

I can see how this can happen. My own experiences have found me all but apologizing to blue collar Latinos who take my garbage out at the office or clear my table at restaurants. Long story short, it bothers me immensely to give orders to or receive services from other Latino people.

This reminds me of a scene from one of my favorite movies, Real Women Have Curves; the movie is about the daughter of first-generation immigrants who wants her family to be as motivated and ambitious as she is. In one scene, she dares her sister to stand up to her Latina boss at Saks Fifth Avenue who commissions the gowns made by the girl's mother and sister at a local factory. When the boss acts like a bitch, looking down on the two girls in her high heels and beautifully tailored suit, the movie's heroine disses the boss in Spanish, only to be sassed right back. It was painful to watch only because many a time I have found myself in a suit and tie having to weather comments like "fag," "blowhard," and "he thinks he's white" by other Latinos who think I have no idea what they're saying, or, worse, they know I know what they're saying and don't care.

I've had many discussions about this sort of class struggle with my black and latino friends and really, it all boils down to our communities not expecting for us to be more than invisible. It's OK to work and toil, but to assume a position of leadership and to actually go head to head with the establishment is still unheard of for old school latinos --- to see some of their own "leave the flock" and embrace American values, values that then breed the same kinds of class struggles that exist in the old countries, is painful.

But as we say in the 'hood: Don't hate, participate and congratulate.

On Mark Foley and Sex Crimes

The major news of the day, aside from Diane Sawyer's interview with North Korean officials who are basically telling the world they're going to fry us all within the next week, focuses on a rash of sex crimes across the entire spectrum of American society.

A new twist in the Foley scandal: his childhood priest revealed that he used to massage a young Foley in the nude back in the 60s, in addition to skinny-dipping with him and sharing hotel rooms with him.

As if that weren't enough, 125 people have been rounded up in a child porn raid that caught adults subscribing to sites that featured sex between adults and INFANTS.

Finally, two teens on Long Island are accused of attacking a developmentally disabled man in a bowling alley and sodomizing him with a plumbing snake. Yuck.

***
What are we to make of all this?

I don't know. But in my opinion, "culture warriors" need to be riled up about real sexual deviance. There is more indecency on TV news than on HBO or on any rap CD. The disintegration of the family, the lack of mentorship and guidance for our nation's youth, it's all catching up with us in frightening ways.

Weekend in Paris

If you're interested, check out pics and a recap of my trip to Paris here.

Botero + Guernica = Big Trouble (?)

One of my favorite painters is showing some controversial pieces at the Marlborough Gallery here in New York.

Fernando Botero, a Colombian painter known for his exaggerated, Ruben-esque paintings, is depicting the crimes at Abu-Gharib in a new collection that apparently is too outre for my city's museums.

Says New York Magazine:

"'Abu Ghraib was a shock to the whole world, and I was angry,” says Botero, who has dubbed the suite of works “my Guernica,” referring to the antiwar Picasso painting. The controversial exhibition, a hit in Rome and Germany, has brought the artist his best critical notices in years. So why is it opening at a blue-chip but somewhat blue-haired 57th Street gallery, especially as the works aren’t even for sale? Botero says the “Abu Ghraib” series is at Marlborough because museums won’t show it."


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I'm looking forward to the exhibit, even though it's an unnecessary rehashing of the events at Abu Gharib. I can see why the painter chose to select this particular incident as a platform for a statement against the war, I think there is more going on in Iraq that could be addressed by the painter's unique style to make a similarly impactful statement. For instance, how cool would portraits of a fat W or Saddam be, or even Osama?

Mel Gibson and TV News: Trivial Pursuit

The second part of Diane Sawyer's interview with Mel Gibson aired this morning and I had no choice but to watch because every TV at the gym was playing it.

Kudos to Diane for asking important, probing questions to a public figure who really, really effed things up for himself. Not only does Mel have a drinking problem, he's also, possibly, an anti-Semite. How upsetting that the man who helped create one of the most moving films about Jesus Christ should be reduced to explaining inexcusable, dangerous behavior on national tevelevision.

As pissed as I am at Mel (who unfortunately still looks kinda cute) I am more angered with the American press who has made his behavior an issue of national importance on par with the war in Iraq and the threats posed by North Korea. It is shameful that I am getting more cynical, thought provoking commentary from Rosie O'Donnell than I am from Wolf Blitzer or any other hack on CNN (with the exception of my baby daddy Anderson Cooper, who can do no wrong).

I'm in between jobs now and the past week has afforded me the opportunity to spend more time at the gym, more time on this blog, and more time dissecting the state of affairs on American television. My cable box says I have access to 1000 channels and yet I would not be any wiser to the goings on in the world if I lived glued to the set.

Oprah actually talked about this on her show yesterday. Frank Rich, one of my fav writers at the Times, was on the show talking about the danger of infotainment and about our nation's willingness to be manipulated by the media and politicians. He was there to promote his book The Greatest Story Ever Sold: The Decline and Fall of Truth from 9/11 to Katrina and to answer questions from the studio audience. In short, Rich makes a startling, though absolutely true, observation about Americans' unintentional complicity with the lies that are coming out of Washington that have 1) muddled 9-11 with the war in Iraq and 2) impugned George Bush and his cabinet from the disaster that is Katrina.

While he defends President Bush as someone who at least tried to do something about the Middle East and their threat to us, the reasoning for this war has gone from one of a pre-emptive attack to a humanitarian effort. Whatever the reason for this war, which Rich says we'll probably never know, we're almost 1 million casualties into it.

His attack, really, is on the media and on consumers who are engaged in an endless, innocuous dialgoue that ignores the real issues of our times. So, bravo to Diane for grilling Mel like he should be. So Diane, do you think NOW you can go and ax W a few questions for me:

1. Do you, in your heart, believe Saddam had anything to do with 9-11?
2. Do you feel any responsibility for the woeful mishandling of Hurricane Katrina?
3. Are you open to shifting the strategy of the war on terror to a more robust intelligence gathering and espionage program as opposed to a ground war?
4. What made you decide to pursue diplomacy with North Korea, a nation who is boasting about its nuclear program, while engaging in combat with Iraq?
5. Are you proud of your achievements in office thus far?

***

I'm heading off to Paris for the weekend and will be back in the States on Tuesday. In the meantime, I plan on posting an entry or two while I'm away. I'm sure the French will give me plenty to talk about.

But first, it's time for The View (dammit, it's not for another 2.5 hours!)

LIVE: DEFEND CBS

"I believe it was CBS that once said the world would be better off with Saddam Hussein in power."

Um, I don't know if CBS would say that. Anyone else? I'm digging now....

LIVE: The Commander In Chief is Responsible

Q. Why not use the military against other threats, like Iran and North Korea?

A. The Commander In Chief must use miliatry force responsibly...diplomacy...each situation must be dealt with differently.

We're dealing with people who maybe don't want peace. It says volumes about a person who signs an agreement with one administration and doesn't honor it with another. It points up the fact that these are dangerous regimes.

We will work within the context of the Six Party Talks. [The] North Korean leader knows our position. [...] We won't attack North Korea, we agree there shouldn't be NUCULAR weapons on the Peninsula.

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Passion can only go so far. W is fumbling. WHY AREN'T WE USING MILITARY POWER AGAINST NORTH KOREA? Because they don't have oil there.

Bush can't be accused of having a sophisticated vocab, but he can't be accused of telling the truth either.

What's to stop North Korea from doing business with Al Qaeda? Chavez is rallying the world community in support of Iran and NOBODY is doing anything about that, either.

Face it: In its efforts to make Haliburton and other Bush/Cheney chronies rich, our military and intelligence is tied up fighting a useless war while other regimes plot against us.

***

LIVE: THE ENEMY THAT PLOTS AND PLANS

President Bush is on TV now saying that the Dems are going to raise taxes on anyone they can, and that the war in Iraq is still the right course of action.

"I don't believe we can wait to respond until after an attack occurs [...] Iraq is a part of the war on terror [...] in this war, if we leave early, the enemy will follow us here. I believe we will maintain control [of the House] because we are on the right side of the economic and security issue."

A lot of stuttering and a lot of smirking on W's behalf.

"No one's ever accused me of having a sophisticated vocabulary."

***My two cents: The Republicans are going to stay in control for a while. Aside from the fact that the Dems don't have their act together, the passion with which W speaks is frightening. He truly believes he's doing the right thing. The Dems, with all their hemming and hawing just look moronic. Grrrrr.

LIVE: Bold and Provocative Act

Can someone please get W a speech therapist?

North Korea conducted a NUCLEAR test, not a NUCULAR test.

That said, some strong words, "bold, provocative, Syria, Iran," in an otherwise ineffective speech.

"We're working to confirm North Korea's claims."

ABC News: "The administration needs to reassess and figure out where they're going to go from here."

So scary.

Michelle Malkin & Jim McGreevey: Dying to Belong

Here are two people who are single-handedly undoing the course of progress and acceptance in America:



Michelle Malkin and Jim McGreevey suck. *Pun sorta intended.

Michelle Malkin is all sorts of pissed off at the New York Times because they mentioned the fact that she's Filipina. Yes, Michelle Malkin, nee Maglalang, that tank-top wearing, caramel-skinned Conservative sell-out is crying foul after reporter Virginia Heffernan mentioned the pundit's ethnicity in an article about Malkin's attack on YouTube.

Says Malkin: I love how the always oh-so-sensitive New York Times has no problem throwing my ethnicity into an attack, when my ethnicity has nothing at all to do with the subject (the jihad vs. anti-jihad war at YouTube).

Here's why Malkin's etnicity matters:

-- Malkin has done everything in her power to whitewash herself.

-- Her psyhotic desire to belong to the "winning" team has her screaming like a banshee for a cause that undermines the very values that have allowed a woman of color to become such a visible figure in our society.

--She boasts on her blog: [I] opposed publisher [of Seattle Times] and supported successful campaign to abolish race-based affirmative action in government hiring, contracting, and college admissions.

-- Her book In Defense of Internment draws psychotic parallels between the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII and the need for similar actions with Arab Americans today.
Among other hallucinations, the book claims to expose "how both Japanese American and Arab/Muslim American leaders have united to undermine America's safety."

I would dare say that Michelle Malkin is the Jenna Jameson of the Conservative movement. Here you have a woman of color begging to have her race stripped of her while she whores off her wit and intelligence to advance the cause of the Republican party.

What a godsend she is to the white Republican establishment -- to have one of the little brown ones speak out against affirmative action and espouse the homophobic and xenophobic ideals of their party.

Kudos to Virginia Heffernan for pointing out Malkin's most egregious trespass -- that which she has perpetrated on herself and her heritage by becoming a puppet for a slowly dying cause.

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So what's my beef with Jim McGreevey?

To hear him speak about his newfound "truth" is like watching a man possessed by Pat Buchanan and George Michael. Every utterance out of McGreevey's mouth as he promotes his new book The Confession, especially his embarassing, vomit-inducing appearance on Oprah, reveal a man still struggling with a major identity crisis.

I can't even applaud him coming out of the closet. Jim McGreevey didn't say he was gay, he revealed himself to be a depraved, co-dependant, lying son-of-a-bitch, who like Michelle Malkin was all too eager to sell his own people out just "to belong."

He told Oprah that even though he marched in Gay Pride parades, he refused to vote in favor of gay marriage out of fear that he would be outed. He went into detail about his trysts behind a Synogauge (DAYS before Rosh Hoshanna no less, OY the timing!), he said he had a penchant for anonymous sex with truck drivers, and that he met "the love of his life" in an Israeli whom he would later sleep with in his wife's bed while she was holed up in a hospital recuperating from a Cesaerian section.

WTF?!!!!

This isn't truth or liberation, this is a twisted man who is still acting out of homophobia. WHERE THE HELL ARE ROSIE AND ELLEN to distract America's attention from this wacko fag?

To make matters worse, McGreevey invited Oprah's cameras to his new home which he shares with his "life partner" of six hours (or months).

James and I were flipping out while we watched, in horror, how this idiot confirmed Middle America's worst fears about gays:

-- That we're whores
-- That we lie
-- That we ruin families
-- That we're self possessed and only out for own satisfaction

As I think about topics to write about on this blog, and as I question its effectiveness, I am thankful for the example provided to me by Michelle and Jim. Unless I speak out as a gay person of color, the only point of view this country is going to hear is that of these two self-hating loons. I can't let that happen.

Smoke Up and Live Long

From CNN: Good news for aging hippies: Smoking pot may stave off Alzheimer's disease. New research shows that the active ingredient in marijuana may prevent the progression of the disease by preserving levels of an important neurotransmitter that allows the brain to function.

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I grew up in a nice, dysfunctional Christian household, so of course this news kinda rubs me the wrong way. Especially because I've never smoked pot. But I must say, this sort of news makes me think pot should be legalized, as should all drugs. Liquor is readily available everywhere and I barely have a drink a week (but that's because I have body issues and save my indulgences for fatty foods which I then burn off at the gym or just puke out) so I don't think I'd be more inclined to buy pot, crack, meth, crank, or heroine if it was available next to my Dentyne Ice or Coca-Cola. But that's just me.

What do you think?

Sidebar: Why is the person holding the joint in this picture black?

It's SO On

What do you do when your party becomes the laughing stock of the country and your pithy war in Iraq proves you a fool? You start a war somewhere else, stupid!

Watch out North Korea!

From the NYT: The Bush administration sent a direct message to North Korea on Wednesday warning it not to set off a nuclear test, and later declared that the United States “is not going to live with” a nuclear-armed North.

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First: I totally agree that North Korea cannot be allowed to pursue a nuclear program.

Second: THIS is a legitimate cause for concern.

Third: The Bush administration is not in a position to threaten anyone anywhere because:

-- Our military prowess is too tangled up in Iraq.
-- The Iraq mission is failing.
-- There is no consensus in America about who our enemy is.
-- The American people are tired of fighting.
-- The money that is being spent to make us safer is just fueling the rancor of everyone, even our "allies" (all oneo of them).
-- One minute it's the culture war and then the next minute it's the war on terror.

For you conspiracy buffs out there, wouldn't it be something if the GOP were coaching the North Koreans on when to threaten us? Soooo interesting that North Korea should plan a nuclear test just weeks before the November elections.

** Sorry I haven't posted in a few days, I was sick.

They'll Turn On You, Too

Just got back from a screening of "The Queen," a brilliant, Oscar-worthy film by director Stephen Frears starring the divine Helen Mirren.

What I love about the film, a chilling yet endearing dissection of the mechanisms of the English monarchy at the time of Princess Diana's death, is the lesson it provides today's leaders on how to manage the hearts of the little people.

The film builds Tony Blair, the then-just-elected Prime Minister, as the hero of the monarchy. Toward the end of the movie, when one expects a humbled Queen Elizabeth to thank Blair for helping her court navigate the nation's mourning for Diana, she in turn reminds Blair that soon enough, unexpectedly, the people will turn on him, too.

How telling of the predicament Blair and his pal in DC, W, find themselves in now as they wage a "war on terror."

**Added fun: James and I were sitting behind Elvis Costello and his wife, the lovely and pregnant Diana Krall at the Angelika on Houston Street.