Stats

Comments Posted By choicelady

Displaying 1,591 To 1,620 Of 5,146 Comments

Time Out for O/T – Vol. 18

As I noted above, they are captive, not free people, not certainly free women. The low turnout IS an indicator that more expansive and thoughtful conservatives may not be voting at ALL.

I just think it’s terribly hard. I am a great fan of writer Sherman Alexie. His “True Confessions of a Part-time Indian” really captures the fear and danger of leaving one’s safe place. Had his parents, as dysfunctional as they were, not been there for him when he elected to go to the “white school”, I wonder if he’d have continued. We would have lost a great voice – but I’m not sure he could have toughed it out without that support. It’s a book well worth reading if you have not.

Those of us who triumph over narrow ideas and dead-end roads had pretty much one of two paths – either we were ALREADY rejected by everyone, with nothing to lose, OR we had supports that helped us move forward. Many – maybe most people – have neither experience. And so they go step by step through their lives. The hegemony of everyday life triumphs over all.

» Posted By choicelady On March 14, 2012 @ 4:46 pm

I think when you’re born and raised in this environment, it’s not just something you can easily shuck off, no matter what. It’s a risk of being cut off from everyone you care about. THAT is why part of the Seven Mountains Mandate is about the family – it means you have to be an ex-pat in your entire family and community to be an individual. Most of us, raised in loving families, would not easily jettison them for a principle that may well NOT pan out for us personally. Hence the closeted gays, the silent feminists, the guilty silent observer of injustice. If what you have to give up is EVERYTHING, then – it’s a lot for us to ask of them when we have nothing to offer them back.

If you’re raised to seek a modest life – home, marriage, kids, picket fence – then what is the lure of the big city, bright lights if that is NOT what you want? Who takes us in when we break the moral codes? No guarantees.

Look at Roe of Roe v Wade – she is lesbian, she has now bonded with Flip Benham and Operation Save America because NO ONE in the feminist movement embraced her as a friend. She was “white trash” and had nothing in common with them. Flip traded on that and yes, DID treat her as an individual. Can we offer traditional conservative women that haven? We don’t even know them, and we sure cannot promise them a place to be in the world where they would be honored and cherished.

This is the hardest thing to overcome. I lived in TN when Rev. King was murdered. I as a Yankee could write a letter to the paper decrying this horrible event, but others, locals, crept quietly to my side to say yes, they agreed, but they could not be public about it. It was a small step they took – telling me – but they took it. The next step was a bit bigger. Then another – but they were terrified of losing their place of love and security and friendship in the world. And I could NOT blame them. I gave up nothing. They would have lost everything. Loss of community is HUGE. I cannot judge them, only try to be there when it gets tough. And if I’m not there? They have no one. And that is a huge price to pay for justice. Not everyone can do it.

» Posted By choicelady On March 14, 2012 @ 4:37 pm

It therefore reduces all of us to being pre-dead.

They REALLY oughtta think this through…

» Posted By choicelady On March 14, 2012 @ 4:25 pm

When the Southern Baptists voted, after centuries of tradition, to eliminate women preachers, women remained in the church anyway. There is no understanding this – from our perspective this seems entirely foolish, but with the church, the community, the traditions being the ties that bind women to home, family, and community – to think differently is to lose everything they have. EVERYTHING. We said the same about Southerners with respect to racial issues. To be different and to support Black civil rights back in the 50s and 60s was to shatter every bit of your familiar and beloved life – possibly to LOSE your life. It takes time and change does come, but the strong and outspoken women – so smartly and deliciously portrayed in “Designing Women” and other shows – are still the minority. To be other than what you were raised to be, other than what those you love are expecting of and from you, requires a total break from everyone you love. It’s just not going to happen easily. Women may react from fear, from ignorance, from hope that they can keep stability and prevent scary change. Every woman is different. But think about this – he got ONLY 49%. Two decades ago – he’d have gotten 90%. THAT is change.

Oh – and remember that the turn out for these primary elections everywhere have been the SMALLEST numbers seen for a very long time. There is, within the GOP, ‘silent majority’ who are not even bothering to vote. That is quite telling in and of itself.

» Posted By choicelady On March 13, 2012 @ 10:30 pm

What an amazing experience that must have been to raise a coyote! The capacity of one species to bond with another never ceases to amaze me. So why, then, can’t we bond with our OWN? So cool you had that in your life Sally!

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 5:22 pm

No – they call it polenta and put stuff on it and never eat it for breakfast.

My grandfathers both used to eat white rice with white sugar and butter plus a little milk. Downhome special.

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 5:18 pm

Yeah – and you haven’t lived until you’ve had scatter fries, fully loaded, cooked in lard. Or anything cooked in lard. It just tastes – amazing.

It’s not just the South. You take yourself to Farmer Brown’s well outside Omaha, and two things will become obvious. One – you will, I don’t care WHO you are, be half the size or less of everyone local. Two – you will have incredible food, tons of it, and walk away smoothly for being so well greased from the, again, lard. We farm people don’t do things by halves. I’d like to see Mitt chow down on catfish, ribs, biscuits and gravy, pie – any kind – and tons of vegetables cooked in pot likker.

Now there’s a test – he’s a Mormon. Will he know enough to know pot liquor is not alcoholic? Bets are on the table – he gets offered pot liquor and declines on account of he doesn’t drink.

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 5:15 pm

Thanks, KT!

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 3:35 pm

In the land of milk and honey we have emaciated coyotes? Doesn’t seem fair at all.

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 3:34 pm

Wow. Those are amazingly awful stats!

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 3:33 pm

KT – yes, he’s clearly trying to be a downhome guy. With his cheesy grits will he have sweetie tea? He can’t get anything right when it comes to dealing with the ordinary person!

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 3:32 pm

Must be, Khirad. We who hail from the Rust Belt prefer the time-honored “youze” for the second person plural, but y’all is much nicer to say.

» Posted By choicelady On March 9, 2012 @ 3:30 pm

Hi-

I will TRY to read it, Sue, but it may have to wait until I have the stomach for it. I’m up to my eyebrows in batshitcrazy, so that may be overload!!!!!

Boxer is basically a cultural Jew, not religious that I can see, but because of her funders she gives in to the extremists on Israeli issues. Even the Anti Defamation League has become more and more RW in its opposition to Muslims, more and more leaning towared the Dominionists for their support of Israel.

Boxer listens to Steve Emerson, a man so virulently anti-Muslim as to nearly blow up when he writes. No matter the lie, he spews it, and unfortunately no matter the truth, she ignores it. I’ve been directly involved with her on this when she gave an award to a local Muslim leader – then took it back because Emerson claimed the man’s organization was a terrorist sympathizer.

Our local community mounted a diverse, interfaith, multi-cultural opposition to her act – and for whatever reason she called me personally to seek my absolution over her deed. (She has NO idea who I am – not clear why I got picked.) I stood my ground with her in a 45-minute call, but she would not listen to me at all.

Then we all sent a delegation to her DC office – and the same Emersonian (forgive us Ralph Waldo) crap was all her staff and she would discuss. She first agreed to a resolution that was announced back here by our allies, but then her office sent a press release AFFIRMING her opposition to both the organization and emphasizing her retrieval of the award. It was outrageous – she promised one thing then did another. I smelled AIPAC on her heels.

When narrow but virulent views are allowed to shape the discourse, when corrupt and biased people are admitted as “experts”, it does incalculable harm. We have only to recall the role of Hearst papers in the Spanish American War or any other propagandistic drumbeat that led this nation into despicable acts. Despite this historical knowledge, we see people such as Boxer and, perhpas, Feinstein, run as lapdogs by extremists. It’s dangerous, and we’re not immune from the consequences. Not at all.

» Posted By choicelady On March 8, 2012 @ 8:04 am

CAru – I don’t even doubt this. It may go beyond Rush and his ilk to stories that are so outrageous that they infuriate. Case in point: this morning our paper revealed that our local Catholic diocese will no longer give any money (usually about 7500-10,00 per year) to Francis House, a NON-Catholic charity that does amazing work for the homeless and those adrift in our society. Why not? Because the new director, a woman Methodist minister, was an outspoken supporter of marriage equality and women’s right to choose their reproductive options. She did her advocacy when she was pastor of a local progressive congregation, but she does not speak out as the ED of Francis House.

The local Catholic officials, all of whom I know, said funding Francis House – a place that does the social justice work they all claim to support – was “confusing” to the people in the pews. That the minister’s past advocacy was threatening to Catholic doctrine.

Well – CA Catholic Conference works with MY organization that was and is openly in opposition to their creed. We support marriage equality and women’s right to choose. Does this mean I am no longer welcome to partner with them in our work together to lobby legisltors on preserving justice funding? May I no longer be a co-equal partner in introducing legislators at events? Can I still show up at the Cathedral for weddings and funerals of Catholic friends? Am I banished from their office for meetings? Can I have meals with my Catholic friends?

That the Church would cut funding for people in need because of the views of a NON Catholic who heads the NON Catholic charity shows the depth of influence of people such as Rush. We all had, for a very long time, agreed to disagree but to happily share in the power of the work we did jointly. Rush and the most base people who seem to have forgotten they live in a pluralistic society are doing enormous damage to good sense as well as good causes.

I hope when the homeless are found sleeping in the doorway of the Cathedral or office annex, these “people of conscience” about where their money goes will figure out a way to take care of them. Francis House did. Can the Church?

This is the impact of outrage. Stupid and venal decisions made to appease rather than to do the right thing.

» Posted By choicelady On March 8, 2012 @ 7:07 am

I have seen even smart people – ministers in my own organization’s denominations – buy this crap. It’s deadly. Barbara Boxer relies on an extremist for all her info about Muslims. ALL of it. The pervasive reach of these extremist “christians” (freaking Old Testamentarians) is deadly to world peace, to making reasonable policy, to sanity and world peace. It is THEY who desire Armageddon, not the Muslims. My tutoring in Islam from – gosh – Muslims in America is that like many people they believe that SOMEDAY there may be a Second Coming, Christ will be involved, and it will bring PEACE and serenity and joy on earth. On EARTH people, where we live? No 72 virgins stuff – a restoration of Eden and of a world where we live as one.

This is scary stuff – if you’re a violent, hateful, power-mad Dominionist. To the rest of us it’s a lovely hope. No dystopia, no firey end, no chaos, power rage, global armed insurrection. Nope – peace.

Go suck eggs, Rick. You know not what you do. Or, worse, maybe you do.

» Posted By choicelady On March 7, 2012 @ 6:25 pm

Only if God cared. Why would God care? We anthropomorphize everything and think it is obsessed with what obsesses us. Nature and cosmic power don’t care. So guys – you’re lightening free. Unless you’re on top of a hill in an electrical storm under a tree. In which case the Darwin principle holds.

» Posted By choicelady On March 5, 2012 @ 7:33 am

Mine don’t bother. The glare alone gets me moving.

» Posted By choicelady On March 4, 2012 @ 8:53 pm

According to the Church, Onanism is a sin no matter HOW you do it. And please – do NOT speculate on what he’s doing? TMI.

» Posted By choicelady On March 4, 2012 @ 8:51 pm

Oh absolutely. These Tridentine or Opus Dei or Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) extremist ultramontagne Catholics believe sex is a sin that must be paid for forever. Being a slave? Well – you had sex. What’d you expect?

They are, of course, totally forgiving of their own foibles. Santorum and his wife HAD a late second tri abortion. I don’t say that lightly – I say it as a result of HER article bragging about how they made the right choice while all the women who could not physically sustain an actual delivery were sluts and murderers. Her story is in the October 1997 Family Circle – it’s her words that condemn them. I read it then and was horrified at the incredible self justification she brought to an experience any woman in her position would face – a deformed fetus, a decision not to let it die in utero since they DID have other children who needed a mother.

Now, of course, they’re calling it a miscarriage. That is NOT what she said in 1997. They can do no wrong – and other women in precisely the same position can do nothing right.

Loathesome hypocrites! And I wonder if Ricky had nookie before marriage? But, of course, he’s a guy, so it doesn’t matter.

» Posted By choicelady On March 4, 2012 @ 8:49 pm

WTF???? He just screwed every single homeowner and business that was damaged out of REAL help. How DARE he do that???? I remember after Katrina all the snot-nosed GOP who were pissing and moaning about helping the 9th Ward had nooooo problems at all getting money for a couple of their buds by which they could rebuild their summer 15-room “cottages”. THAT was a worthy federal expenditure.

I’m thinking that a good number of people in the Red SW corner of Ohio might be pissed enough NOT to vote for him again. That is despicable!

» Posted By choicelady On March 4, 2012 @ 8:42 pm

Indeed! But those were the days when the issue of women’s equality was at least being DISCUSSED in a Catholic college! Today? Not so much.

» Posted By choicelady On March 4, 2012 @ 11:27 am

Interesting word, broken. Perhaps more apt than we think?

» Posted By choicelady On March 3, 2012 @ 10:03 pm

Is The Blov OK, AB? He didn’t just BLOW in I hope! Wow – that’s a bit close for comfort. Glad he’s home safely!

» Posted By choicelady On March 3, 2012 @ 7:13 pm

That’s amazing! The problem is that any cat I’ve ever owned would just sit there, look at me, and convey the sentiment – “Are you talkin’ to ME? Get over it. Now FEED me!” Seeing an interactive and compliant cat is almost supernatural! Not that I’d mind having one…for the novelty of it all.

Super video, thanks KT!

» Posted By choicelady On March 3, 2012 @ 7:11 pm

In the “War Against Women” I have to tell a very funny story that is absolutely true – another time and mindset that shows what once was possible.

My brother teaches at a small Catholic college. He is not Catholic nor is his wife, and they have a son. Back in the early 80s the college took up an entire college-wide discussion about how the school and Church were dealing with the issues of women’s equality.

At an afternoon presentation, my brother and sister-in-law attended with my then 5-year-old nephew in tow. He was obviously bored out of his mind and diverted himself by crouching down and “hiding” then popping up and saying, softly, “Surprise!” He wasn’t bothering anyone but was keeping himself occupied.

The priest who was speaking was coming to a close saying, “So we must ask ourselves if we are treating women on this campus fairly, and sadly we must say, we are not.”

Into the silence that followed, a little voice piped, “Surprise!” And the entire audience burst into laughter, including the priest.

Ah – those were the days.

» Posted By choicelady On March 3, 2012 @ 10:03 am

I saw the map with the tornado patterns – too close for comfort! Glad you’re OK!

» Posted By choicelady On March 3, 2012 @ 7:25 am

Hi kes – and this morning Sleep Train pulled advertising. They are employee owned BTW, so it may have helped.

We’d love the link, and others are doing the same. There is a 2011 list you may Google, but I’m not sure it’s up to date.

» Posted By choicelady On March 3, 2012 @ 7:24 am

Just saw the video, and I agree with kes – simply amazing! That looked like more damn fun than anything! Congratulations on having the experience and being part of such an awesome performance and group. Wish we all could have been there! Just “friended” you on FB so I can keep track of what else you’re doing “out there” in the complex world of Mid East issues and Celtic pipes and drums.

» Posted By choicelady On March 2, 2012 @ 8:04 am

I will! But I’m going to have a major disconnect between the real you and your avatar that I’ve known for quite some time and believe to be you. When I learned you were part of the pipes and drums group – well, I’m still in shock. No beard?

» Posted By choicelady On March 1, 2012 @ 10:14 pm

I just spent the afternoon with people pissing and moaning about Obama AND saying their work is focused on re-electing him.

I do think the penny finally dropped, the second shoe fell, the house fell on them.

They’re still idiots.

» Posted By choicelady On March 1, 2012 @ 7:11 pm