Coming Never to A Theatre Near You!

The thrills!  The chills!  The speed!  The uncertainty!  Will Karen, Linda, and Gale ever exit the roundabout?!

Are You Thinking As You Speak?

Two days ago, an independent investigation into the actions (or inactions) of the Penn State Football program released the findings.
In short, Joe Paterno and his staff did nothing to protect the young boys who were being raped and molested by one of their own.  NOTHING.  And, by doing nothing, more boys were attacked by the evil that is named Sandusky. 
Joe Paterno?  Turns out he got a substantial reward for his behavior--in the form of a salary increase.  Yup, the Penn State "powers that be" decided the old guy was worth keeping around.  Even though he and his staff were allowing children to be sexually assaulted.  Not quite the legacy he thought he would leave, is it?  You know, I wish Joe Paterno were still alive, so he could lie awake at night, wondering who would be the next person to ask him to justify the unjustifiable.  I wish he was still alive to see his legacy collapse.  He deserves that, and so much more, for his terrible, horrible choices. Some of us thought it was bad enough that Joe Paterno, as Athletic Director, kept Rene Portland on as head women's basketball coach.  We thought it was terrible that a homophobic, emotionally abusive person was allowed to coach at Penn State.  I believe that Joe Paterno's own homophobic ignorance--his thought that Sandusky must be gay because he was attacking little boys--added to his reluctance to report, because God forbid that Penn State would have a faggot on staff.  How horrible would that be to the little game called football?!  Little did we know how far Joe Paterno would be willing to go.  And why would we? 
No matter how successful his teams, no matter how many wins they accumulated, nothing will ever compare to the devastation of young lives, all to protect a game.  An image. 
Joe Paterno gets the legacy he deserves.
And the reporters of this story?  How stupid can they be?  If I've heard it once, I've heard it a dozen times, the cautionary:  "This is hopefully a wake-up call to other athletic programs..."  REALLY?  You, stupid reporter, actually think there might be another place like Penn State, where young boys are raped and molested, and nobody does anything?  REALLY?
For the sake of children everywhere, I sincerely hope there is never, ever another place like the Penn State football facilities.  NEVER another Sandusky, never another whole bunch of cowardly men who could not find their human compassion and their voice in the midst of heinous acts being committed, over and over and over.  I hope there is never another institution who values a game over the health and safety of children.  To suggest, as reporters have done, that there ARE others, takes my breath away. 
I hope it is a wake-up call for all of us--a reminder that games are just games.  But the lives of children are worth so much more. 

You Asked, I'm Answering

     So I'm sitting at a light this morning, waiting for the green.  I'm lost in thought, enjoying the cool breeze coming through the open window.  I see the left turn arrow turn green, and the line of cars next to me start to move.
     All of a sudden, I hear, "Hey!"  Thinking it must be someone I know, I turn, smiling a little.  This man is leaning over his front seat so he can yell out the passenger-side window.  He looks a LOT like the photo to the left.  
     I squint, and he continues shouting at me:  "How's that 'hope and change' working out for you?"  Before I can really register anything, he's gunned his truck, turned left, and is gone.
      The first thought in my head is, "I don't know him."  My second conscious thought is to get a good look at his truck.  It's fairly new, shiny, and black.  My next reaction is a verbal one:  "Jerk."
     Then I went back to my original reaction:  "I don't know him".  He didn't know me.  He was a complete stranger, compelled to yell something angry at someone he didn't even know.  I didn't feel threatened, just chagrined, silly--I thought it was going to be someone I knew; I looked up, made momentary eye contact. 
     I have written before about incivility in this country; as I thought about this incident today, I was most disturbed at what would motivate someone to yell something like this at a complete stranger?  How angry do you have to be to do that?  Makes me sad, yet again, for our country.
     YOU are probably wondering what set him off, what made him yell THAT question at me?
     I have a bumper sticker.  It says, "The Bush Legacy:  Leave No Child A Dime".  It's been on my car since mid-2008.  I could have taken it off at any time, but I leave it on as a reminder to people that George W. Bush was the one that took this country to the brink (reckless tax cuts for the wealthy, 2 unfunded wars, etc.) and then left.  NOT Barack Obama.  George W. Bush.
     Until today, I haven't heard a negative comment.
     As I thought throughout the day about the nameless, angry white man, I just got more and more annoyed.  Annoyed that I didn't get to answer his question, "How's that hope and change working out for you?"
     So, here's my answer:
     Dear Mr. White Middle-Aged Man in the Shiny Black Truck,
     I still have a lot of hope for true change in this country.  I feel President Obama could have accomplished so much more for our country if the Republicans had not decided their number one goal, according to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, was not jobs or improving the economy, but "Making sure Obama is a 0ne-term president".
     I don't know how long you were sitting behind me, but in the less-than-one-minute you took to read my bumper sticker, you did a lot of judging and reacting without even knowing me.  So will I.  And my guess is I'll be a lot more closer to the truth than you thought you were.   
     I know you're a Republican.  That was apparent by the question you asked.  My guess is, based on the illogical and unprovoked anger my bumper sticker caused, you are a Tea Party supporter.  Tea Party people like to completely forget all the things George W. Bush did that they rail against now.  Where were you 8 years ago?  Did I hit a nerve with my bumper sticker?
     Furthermore, Mr. Middle-Aged White Man, I think the whole "Hope and Change" thing has worked out pretty well for YOU.  You are driving a large, new truck--that tells me you can afford to pay for gas, no problem.  You had....ahem...a protruding belly, so that tells me you are not going hungry.  Ever.  You also must have a job--you were wake before noon, and clearly had somewhere to go.  AND, you're a man.  The past year in particular has been very good to you, since you don't have a vagina, and other white men are not interested in your reproductive health.
     Finally, Mr. Middle-Aged White Man, you are privileged, and you have a huge sense of entitlement.  You don't know it, and yet you know it.  You had no problem stopping a line of cars waiting to turn, just so you could yell down into my little 13-year-old car.  You were thoughtless, inconsiderate, and that's to the people waiting behind you.  You also felt entitled to share your anger-laced opinion with a complete stranger.  Oh yes, I could clearly see the white privilege coursing through your veins.  I can therefore deduce you are not a minority....in any way, shape, or form.  Pity.  You could use a little humility.
     And anger management classes.  I mean really, who gets that angry at 8:30 in the morning?  
     
   

                 The bumper sticker that started it all.

America and Me

I know I'm in trouble when I start a blog, "You might get angry, but please keep reading."  But you might, and I hope you do--hear me out, that is.

I am a product of the United States.  I was born here, had a child here.  I attended school in the United States, took Government class in high school, and loved it so much, I majored in Political Science in college.  I have run for political office in the United States, and have been known, on occasion, to wear red, white, and blue on the 4th of July.
But things about this country, done in the name of this country, make me squirm uncomfortably.  Many people, claiming to be patriots, have done a disservice to this country--have made her appear to be so much less than she really is.  When I see people wearing red, white, and blue hats, shirts, whatever, and they're screaming hatred at whomever will listen, I want to deny I'm from here.  There are people who wave the flag of this country, and DEMAND that I pledge allegiance.  They make me want to run the other way.
But by far the worst are those who utter one of the most heinous sentences ever crafted in this country:  "America--love it or leave it."  I think I was about 10 when I heard those words thrown about, and I remember cringing, as if I had been physically assaulted.  Then, and now, I wondered who the real patriot was; if the majority of Americans were in agreement with this absolute, or if there was some room for compromise.
I grew up with America, moved into the 21st century with her.  I love America, but I'm ready for a more adult relationship with her.  I'm not the blind, trusting kid I once was; I'm ready for adult discussions and adult feelings.
I know a lot about America--I've read alot about her, heard some of her history.  I've read her Declaration of Independence, her Constitution.  I think some of the information about America has been embellished, and I think she's taken steps to hide her more sordid past.  But the fact that I know about these things, and still want to love America--isn't that part of being in a real relationship?
America has done some bad things, very bad.  She's apologized--sincerely--and I am going to take her at her word--that she'll never repeat slavery, internment camps, forced relocation, extermination.  I would like to help her overcome her addiction to denial of basic human rights; she's made great strides (just look at her Amendments!), but she knows she has some work to do.  I do want to help; that's part of being in an adult relationship, isn't it?
I left America once--I went to live with another country for three years.  I think it helped my relationship with America.  People in the new country were curious about America; they asked questions about her, wanted to know what she was like.  People of the other country had opinions about America, so we had a great discussion about her.  I learned she wasn't perfect, she wasn't the end-all-and-be-all, but I also learned that other countries liked her, and respected her...for the most part.   

Yes, I want to have a more adult relationship with America, but it's those things I hear about her--written, spoken, repeated, yelled, and believed by some people--that make me doubt our relationship.  That makes me sad--that I, and so many others I know--have had our relationship with America sullied.  By other people, who think they love her too, but yet say such horrible things about her. 
It's so easy today, to say things in the name of America, and to have those things believed.  For one, there are a whole lot of powerful bullies out there, and if you don't immediately believe what they say, they will put you in your place--hurt you, if they have to.  Beginning with that stupid, heinous declaration:  "Well, if you hate America so much, why don't you just leave?"  There's just no good answer to that level of stupidity, so your silence is believed, by the bully, to be agreement with whatever lies about America they want to spread.
Then there are the sheep.  We have a lot more of them these days, and in my black hole of despair for humanity, they will never speak out in time to save us.  These are people who are educated--can read and write, and yet do not use their critical thinking skills.  It's just too easy to listen to one television channel for all their news, or what's worse, to not listen or read at all, and let their co-workers tell them what to think (see paragraph above).
In some ways, America is powerless to fight--I know that, so I can look beyond some of the things said about her.  She and I know it's not true that gays are second class citizens, and she's taking steps to fix that injustice.  She and I know universal healthcare is NOT un-American, but we have a lot of work to do to combat that loud minority of bullies, and we need help!  She knows,and understands, her Constitution, and she wishes everyone did.
 But there are other things I've heard about America that has really had an effect on our relationship, things that make me love her less.  America is a democracy, so when her leaders, in so many states, pass laws that restrict so many women's healthcare choices, I have to believe it's what she wants.  Then I see America courted, wooed, and influenced by men with lots and lots and lots of money, I love her less.  I think she can do better, if she would just try.  When I see America, a Republic, becoming so swayed by the Religious Right, I find myself wanting to walk away.
But I'm an adult.  I do have power, and I have more power when other people, who love America too, decide it's time for an intervention.  There's still a chance that America will walk away from those negative influences.  We have to try--we love America too much.  And we want to preserve our relationship with her. Because heck, she's worth it.