I WENT TO A CONVENTION AND A HOCKEY GAME BROKE OUT
I'm not gonna bother wading into any of the "substance" of what the republicans have talked about at their convention. I'm sure you an guess what my opinions are in that regard.
And I'm not gonna delve into my thoughts regarding the "effectiveness" of America's favoritebeauty pageant runner-up governor, or America's favorite fascist mayor, or any of the other white christians who tried to sell their platform of . . . change(!).
Nah, you can go read the pundints [sic] to learn about that.
I'll stick to something far simpler, far more gut-level. I'm gonna talk about the spectacle of watching that arena filled with wide-eyed & gaping-mouthed white people, whooping it up and chanting "USA-USA-USA" after every invocation of McCain's military service and readiness to lead us into at least 4 more years of never-ending war, as if Mike Eruzione had just slipped the puck past Vladimir Myshkin on the rink in Lake Placid.
And I'm gonna talk about speaker-after-speaker walking onto that stage to talk about war and gutter patriotism and abstract values and cities on the hill, backed by unsubstantiated and unsupportable declarations that America is the greatest, free-est, safest, richest nation in the history of the world.
I'm gonna talk about Rudy's mass rally, straight out of Mussolini's handbook, complete with sneers and sarcasm and outrageous insults based on nothing and backed by even less. Red meat? This was raw meat, with maggots squirming on the rotting flesh.
I'm gonna talk about Traitor Joe Lieberman, standing in front of a stage of rabid christian fundies -- counting the days til Jesus returns to smite his Jew ass and bring about the New Jerusalem -- dragging the names and reputations of his erstwhile colleagues and allies through the mud as he transparently & shamelessly positions himself for a cabinet post if McCain takes the day.
I'm gonna talk about Sarah Palin -- after days of hiding behind the right wing spin machine's salvos at "the left wing media's attacks" and "leave her family out of it" hand-wringing & whining -- introducing her children, one-by-one, in order to milk applause from the fetus-loving and war-craving audience of bible-thumping xenophobes.
That's what I'm gonna talk about. About the frightening image of these fucking insane pleated trouser would-be rock stars and their blood-thirsty, soul-saving groupies raising hell (so they can rail against and try to "save" it), as they reduce the scope of the Presidency to its commander-in-chief duties, turning America into a military state, riding to save the world from non-believers of every color & stripe.
I'm talking about the fact that as an American who isn't naive, and understands that there is a world beyond NY & California, I nonetheless find myself staring at the screen and thinking, "Who the fuck are these people?! Are these my fellow citizens?"
And then, with disappointment mixed with anger and sadness, I remind myself of what I knew after Election Day four years ago: I detest them, I loathe them, I despise & hate them from the core of my soul, to the center of my very existence. I wish they weren't Americans and I wish they didn't control or affect my country's policies.
Frankly, I don't care what Obama does or what he thinks or what he believes in. But I want Obama to do one thing & one thing only: smash these bastards into little pieces.
I can only hope.
And I'm not gonna delve into my thoughts regarding the "effectiveness" of America's favorite
Nah, you can go read the pundints [sic] to learn about that.
I'll stick to something far simpler, far more gut-level. I'm gonna talk about the spectacle of watching that arena filled with wide-eyed & gaping-mouthed white people, whooping it up and chanting "USA-USA-USA" after every invocation of McCain's military service and readiness to lead us into at least 4 more years of never-ending war, as if Mike Eruzione had just slipped the puck past Vladimir Myshkin on the rink in Lake Placid.
And I'm gonna talk about speaker-after-speaker walking onto that stage to talk about war and gutter patriotism and abstract values and cities on the hill, backed by unsubstantiated and unsupportable declarations that America is the greatest, free-est, safest, richest nation in the history of the world.
I'm gonna talk about Rudy's mass rally, straight out of Mussolini's handbook, complete with sneers and sarcasm and outrageous insults based on nothing and backed by even less. Red meat? This was raw meat, with maggots squirming on the rotting flesh.
I'm gonna talk about Traitor Joe Lieberman, standing in front of a stage of rabid christian fundies -- counting the days til Jesus returns to smite his Jew ass and bring about the New Jerusalem -- dragging the names and reputations of his erstwhile colleagues and allies through the mud as he transparently & shamelessly positions himself for a cabinet post if McCain takes the day.
I'm gonna talk about Sarah Palin -- after days of hiding behind the right wing spin machine's salvos at "the left wing media's attacks" and "leave her family out of it" hand-wringing & whining -- introducing her children, one-by-one, in order to milk applause from the fetus-loving and war-craving audience of bible-thumping xenophobes.
That's what I'm gonna talk about. About the frightening image of these fucking insane pleated trouser would-be rock stars and their blood-thirsty, soul-saving groupies raising hell (so they can rail against and try to "save" it), as they reduce the scope of the Presidency to its commander-in-chief duties, turning America into a military state, riding to save the world from non-believers of every color & stripe.
I'm talking about the fact that as an American who isn't naive, and understands that there is a world beyond NY & California, I nonetheless find myself staring at the screen and thinking, "Who the fuck are these people?! Are these my fellow citizens?"
And then, with disappointment mixed with anger and sadness, I remind myself of what I knew after Election Day four years ago: I detest them, I loathe them, I despise & hate them from the core of my soul, to the center of my very existence. I wish they weren't Americans and I wish they didn't control or affect my country's policies.
Frankly, I don't care what Obama does or what he thinks or what he believes in. But I want Obama to do one thing & one thing only: smash these bastards into little pieces.
I can only hope.
posted by Mike at 6:43 AM
18 Comments:
Fuckin A, sir, fuckin a. As someone who managed to sit through the convention, Rickey was flat out disgusted by the gaul of these people, from the speakers to the organizers, to the crowd. Rickey's thinking that Palin could be as much as a motivational figure for the Dems as Hillary was for the GOP for all those years.
"as if Mike Eruzione had just slipped the puck past Vladimir Myshkin"
Good on you for remembering it was not Tretiak. Viktor Tikhonov SHAMEFULLY pulled him from the game in the first period, embarrassing a legend.
Applesaucer
I'm with Rickey. Ridin' with Rickey on this one. LOL
But Mike, Palin has more executive experience than Obama and Biden. Rudy said so.
Of course, she also has more than McCain, since he was never a mayor or gov, but let's not confuse the neo-cons.
As for Palin wooing Hillary supporters, last time I checked, Hillary supporters were anti-gun and pro-choice. Mrs. Palin, notsomuch.
I was sick to my stomach listening to Rudy speak last night, made moreso by the image of lower manhattan behind him. Politicizing a tragedy, once again.
That fake toothed facist dick.
Rudy - “I’m sorry, Barack. Maybe they cling to religion there,”
Apparently not too much, else Palin's daughter would not be pregnant. I always thought sex before marriage was a no-no in the Christian faith. That's what I was always told.
Abstinence education works real well, eh?
This shit is so Twilight Zone it's not funny. The USA-USA-USA chants are downright Nuremberg-esque. And did you hear the guy yelling "YEEEEAAAAHHHSSS!" after every pause in Fred Thompson's speech the other night?
I still think McCain will win. This is what Americans want. They don't want hope. They don't want to be told that this country has major problems. They want a proud war-loving military "hero" and a fundie hot librarian sidekick.
gutter patriotism
God damnit Mike, you've hit it. You've hit the whole fucking ridiculous point behind their strategy. The lowest common denominator: gutter patriotism. I love that phrase and am formally adopting it and using it all over the place.
This is what Americans want
Sadly, I agree. Again, gutter patriotism is why.
Over and over from Palin, we heard about what a "dangerous world we live in." Be afraid, be afraid, all the not-Americans are out to curtail our freedom.
This is it. This is what the fucking republicans have to offer our future. A policy agenda that is based in fear, terrorist attacks, perpetual war and criticism of opposing worldviews. Greeeeaaaat.
I think, at least, I HOPE, you're wrong, agi. I think MANY, if not MOST, Americans are adult enough, mature enough and educated enough to understand that we are facing some very serious issues which require thoughtful analysis and perhaps some work on the part of the American people.
I think many Americans are sick of the politics of fear, the politics of morality and the hollow message of the Republicans, which frankly, just doesn't ring true anymore, if it ever did. And I think it did, for a very short time.
The fact is, Republican economic ideas don't work, they haven't for a long time; they can't very well run on George Bush's economic record; they have no new ideas or messages to bring; they nominate a 44-year-old former pro-life bible-touting beauty queen for VP, who has almost no experience to remotely qualify her for the job (which is very relevant with a 72-year-old potential president with known health issues); all of which go a long way towards showing how hopelessly out-of-touch they are.
"I think, at least, I HOPE, you're wrong, agi. I think MANY, if not MOST, Americans are adult enough, mature enough and educated enough to understand that we are facing some very serious issues which require thoughtful analysis and perhaps some work on the part of the American people.
Oh Jesus, that is funny.
I just picked myself up off the floor, rolling in laughter.
Let me wipe the tears from eyes...
I am not laughing at you, but I have been so disappointed in my country in recent years, that I have a hard time having as much hope as you.
Your spleen is my spleen, Mike. If this is really want America wants, then we deserve to die an ugly empire's death.
I'm with you, Mike.
I can't watch this convention. There's just too much shit flowing out of their mouths and out of the TV that it threatens to drown me, my family, my country.
Would it be going too far to say that I'm reminded of certain rallies held in the 1930's over in a certain country in Europe that one can watch all the time on the History Channel?
Well, Mike, don’t sugar-coat it. Let us know how you feel.
I get up at 4:45 in order to walk an hour before breakfast so staying up past 9 p.m. is problematic. Also, I’ve decided not to over indulge in political coverage that I know in advance will render me apoplectic. However the few excerpts I got on Morning Edition had me muttering obscenities at the radio.
I expect any day to see a bumper sticker:
“McCain—Palin ‘08
The grandbaby won’t be a nigger either.”
Believe it or not I will be at an industry convention next week and the breakfast speaker is none other the Karl Rove. I will skip this talk, but if not for a couple hundred million in lost business and jail time, I would be advertising for a bushel of overripe tomatoes.
Take two very dry Martinis and blog me in the morning.
I still think McCain will win. This is what Americans want. They don't want hope. They don't want to be told that this country has major problems. They want a proud war-loving military "hero" and a fundie hot librarian sidekick.
Unfortunately, I agree.
gutter patriotism. I love that phrase and am formally adopting it and using it all over the place.
Of course you know that Orwell used the term at least as early as 66 years ago, when he referred to Kipling as a "gutter patriot." Not sure that George gets credit for inventing the phrase. I doubt that was the first time someone said it.
My country for a copy of the OED!
Would it be going too far to say that I'm reminded of certain rallies held in the 1930's over in a certain country in Europe that one can watch all the time on the History Channel?
Going to far to say they're the same thing? Yeah.
But too say one reminds you of the other? No, not too far in my opinion.
the breakfast speaker is none other the Karl Rove.
Ugh. I hate the smell of turdblossom in the morning.
The USA-USA-USA chants are downright Nuremberg-esque.
Yes, they are, and they have been for some decades now.
Sieg heil!
Don't get mad, get organized.
If you're mad about the RNC's ugliness, the best way to channel; that anger is to donate time and/or money to the Obama campaign.
Remember, Obama opted out of public financing, while McCain did not. McCain's getting a nice check for $57million (?) this week, and Obama isn't. No matter what you can spend, it'll make a difference.
Very well said. And this is one reason, among others, why at some point, perhaps not in our lifetimes, the U.S. will splinter into smaller pieces. We can't live with these despicable cretins, and in fact, we'd much prefer that they weren't alive at all. Furthermore, all the bellowing, bloodthirsty, half witted imbeciles littering the RNC floor are the best reason I can think of for not just continuing to allow abortions, but for subsidizing them by taxing the demonic dens of fundamentalist worship.
all the bellowing, bloodthirsty, half witted imbeciles littering the RNC floor are the best reason I can think of for not just continuing to allow abortions, but for subsidizing them by taxing the demonic dens of fundamentalist worship
Screw "gutter patriotism," I am gonna take full credit for that line! Sorry Edwardo, you'll have to go back and read the by-laws -- I have a proprietary interest over every word in these comments. This is MINE.
I'm happy for you to take credit for those lines anytime and anywhere you see fit.
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