Political BS.

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I thought the U.S. was headed down a “slippery slope” in a number of ways, one of them being that I felt the Federal Government was becoming too involved in the personal lives of Americans. I have noticed that this trend is continuing at an alarm pace as I pay closer attention to what is going around me.

One of the earliest technologies of the Internet was Usenet, a collection of “newsgroups” that anyone could read and contribute to. Usenet has been around for a really long time (in technology years). Newsgroups pre-date web-based message boards, AOL communities and all of the graphical (point-and-click) technology. Participation in the group can be fairly anonymous. I have been an active Usenet user since 1988 or so; a proper search in Google will turn up posts I wrote in 1989.

Over the past several years, spammers and the like have discovered Usenet and have used the technology to further their dubious causes. There are over 100,000 newsgroups which cover a wide selection of topics; I could usually be found on the roadgeek group: misc.transport.road. As Usenet technology evolved through the 90s, some newsgroups devoted themselves to exchanging binary files: illegal copies of software, porn, font files and the like. Unfortunately, a very small number of groups started trading child pornography. We are talking less than 80 groups out of more than 100,000.

I am a broad minded individual (to say the least). I have met folks with wildly varied sexual tastes. Some I get, some I don’t, but I never judge. Hey, if it turns your crank and doesn’t harm another person then do what you need to do to find your nirvana. If everyone was the same the world would be wicked boring. HOWEVER, child pornography is a whole different story. That’s one subject that will evoke the same response from me every time: “That’s just sick.” And while I find anything related to child pornography to be intolerable, I do NOT believe in the government shutting down technology that may (or may not!) have been used for that purpose. It’s too close to censorship. And that’s exactly what has happened: The NYS Attorney General is leaning on Internet Service Providers to ban the Usenet newsgroups used to traffic child pornography. ISPs are opting to take the easier route: they’re just shutting down Usenet access for their users all together.

This is unacceptable. ISPs are shutting down open communication between American citizens. We are talking about 80 newsgroups out of over 100,000. That’s like throwing the entire population of Cambridge, Massachusetts in jail because there are 80 criminals on the street.

Does that make sense?

Another disturbing turn of events is that the Department of Justice is going to be involved with the development of Microsoft’s latest version of Windows, Windows 7. It’s slated to come out in 2010. Let’s think about this. I am no Microsoft fan by any stretch (they’re stuff works but it doesn’t blow my skirt up or anything), however, why should the Federal Government be involved with the development of their product? That’s like asking Uncle Sam to stir the recipe with Ben and Jerry! Do we trust the DoJ to not put a “backdoor” into Windows 7 so that they can spy on the American public in the name of “Homeland Security”? I certainly don’t.

I think I need to add a layer of tin foil to my hat.

I have a proposal for the United States of America. Let’s just let the media pick whom they want for President, o.k.? They’re pretty much swinging the way the U.S. population thinks these days so why don’t we just go all George Orwell and just let them decide. Besides, a good percentage of the citizens of the U.S. are afraid to ask questions or make decisions so let’s not bother them with that. Remember, doing research, weighing issues and casting a responsible vote is hard work! It’s easier to dial 1-866-IDOLS03 than to figure out how that newfangled electronic voting machine works.

I thought I reached a political burnout point a couple of months ago. It turns out I was dead wrong. My distaste for the whole affair reached new heights yesterday when one media source said that Obama was definitely the Democratic candidate and that Clinton would be dropping out last night whilst another media source said that Hillary said that she was “absolutely not” dropping out of the race last night and it was up in the air. Why wait for the story when you can make your own declarations, trounce them out as truths and then have the sheeple believe you?

I have some rather unpopular beliefs about this upcoming Presidential election. I believe there’s a good share of “Billy Bob Beanstalks” (no offense to anyone out there with that actual name) that will never elect an African-American President. Personally I think that sucks that in this day and age people still have that sort of prejudice but it can not be denied that it exists. Throw the whole “sand-N” sounding name (not my choice of words, I overheard it at a restaurant recently during a political ‘debate’) and I don’t think that Obama has quite enough of a chance to win the Presidency (it’s going to be very close if we don’t have people getting cutsey with the voting system). I really, really, really, really hope I’m wrong. Is he my first choice? No, his words ring hollow and he just doesn’t sit well with my gut instinct. I wish I could articulate that gut instinct part better but I can’t and I realise that my ‘gut instinct’ reason smacks contrary to my belief in making an informed decision. But I just can’t shake the feeling.

Then we have Hillary. There’s a really strong “we just hate her” vibe running through many people throughout the country (especially Upstate New York). When questioned why, there’s hardly ever a good answer. Lately I’ve heard the argument “she’s old style politics, so if she’s on the ballot, I’ll vote for McCain instead”.

Em, yeah. That’s a great school of thought you’ve got going there.

Listen, here’s the thing. I’ll vote for the Democratic nominee no matter who’s on the ticket. Obama/Clinton, Clinton/Obama, hell I’d vote for Mondale/Barbara Bush if I had to. I wish I could make my choice tomorrow so we didn’t have to endure another five months of the process. I’m sick of it! And frankly I’d rather vote for the Libertarian candidate but I can’t help but feel like that’s a waste of time in this fucked up two party system we so gleefully embrace. There’s forty-five different scents of Downy vying for space on the supermarket shelf but by God you can only have two major candidates for President.

So here I am, trying to escape the noise of the 2008 elections and it’s all I’m talking about today. Let’s try a change of subject. Hey, did you see the scarf Rachel Ray was wearing in the Dunkin’ Donuts commercial? It was cute!

As an American gay man I should care about the upcoming Presidential election. I believe that the direction of the United States is wavering in all sorts of hideous directions, as well as probably backtracking a bit these days and we need a good solid leader in the starring role to get things back on track. I don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but there are two nominees left vying for the chance from the Democratic side of the stage. Their names are Hillary and Barack. Perhaps you’ve heard of them.

I’m trying really, really hard to maintain interest in this upcoming election. I want to be informed, I want to know the issues and I want to cast an intelligent vote when that right comes up in November. I’m trying desperately to listen to all sides of all arguments so that I can form my own point of view.

What concerns me is this bickering back and forth between Hillary and Barack. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Barack’s words ring hollow to me though I can’t put my finger on why. There’s something about him that does not sit well with my intuition. I don’t really care for him and I could never put in words why I feel this way. Perhaps I haven’t done enough research. I know his speeches sound promising but I don’t hear HOW he’s going to accomplish his vision. I just know that he has a vision and that he’s going to do it. I’d like to know how.

Hillary, whom I supported early on in the political season, is starting to grate on my nerves. I think she knows her stuff and I think she’d make a great leader. She has spit to go along with her polish. But many aren’t buying it. Much of it is not her fault. (People: give up the whole Monica Lewinsky thing, it was a blow job for God’s sake, he didn’t pre-empt the Second Coming or anything.) However, I can’t help but pick out an affectation in her voice that makes her sound less than cuddly. I don’t like the way she sounds in her speeches these days. She’s not talking to me: the American citizen; she’s talking to the country as a whole and it sounds that way. I want a candidate that speaks to me. He or she may be speaking to a group of people, but I want to feel engaged in the conversation. I don’t want to be talked AT, I want to feel like I’m listening on a conversation. To me she’s sounding a little desperate.

I don’t believe that Hillary should drop out of the race at this stage of the game. That wouldn’t be fair to those of us that are still up for a primary election in the coming weeks. But if anyone is going to be a member of a “new-generation of political leaders”, then the two candidates need to suck it up, calm down and start talking with the American people about what THEY are going to do, not what the other should do or won’t do.

I’m hoping that regardless of the outcome of the Democratic convention that we’ll have a ticket that’s either Obama/Clinton or Clinton/Obama. Unfortunately I fear that egos will prevent that from happening.

A while back I refrained from commenting on the apparent stupidity of Sherri Shepherd on “The View”. I read somewhere that she had never voted before so I decided to see if there was a clip on YouTube stating this.

Of course there was.

If you pay close attention you’ll notice that she quickly says she’s never voted before because she didn’t know the voting dates.

Um, hello? I think it’s in third grade social studies that we have our first mock election on the first Tuesday (following the first Monday) in November. Some of us even got to dress up as a president or something.

If you watch a little further, you’ll note that her reason for voting is because she’s on “The View”. Forget any sense of patriotic duty that that side of the aisle is always preaching, Sherri is more concerned about looking good.

Oy.

The topic at most watercoolers this week undoubtedly has been the racist comments made by Don Imus, his suspension and subsequent firing from MSNBC and CBS. Countless bloggers are also chatting about the same subject, so I figured I might as well throw my two cents in as well.

Now, I don’t want to sound like an insensitive buffoon, but I believe that there are bigger fish to fry in the world right now than to focus on what this guy said. “Shock jocks” have been saying ridiculous things in all sorts of places for a long time. That’s what they do. That’s what they get paid to do. In many respects, it’s a sad reflection of the state of our society. But, like many others, I am why does everyone have their panties in such a knot over this? Are we surprised that he said what he said? I’m not. He has said idiotic things like this before. So have many others. That’s what he does. That’s one of the things that makes him famous.

Of course it’s all about the money. MSNBC and CBS play the “oh the morals” card but we’re not stupid. We all know that they lost big bucks from big sponsors so they had to take a stand. If no one had pulled their sponsorship this week, Don Imus would still be on the air and this would not be a “hot topic”.

I’ve never listened to Imus. I don’t care to. His show is not my cup of tea. I can’t listen to him just as I can’t listen to the current excuse of Top 40 radio, where many of the same things are said on an hourly basis!!! I’m not defending his comments. They were ridiculous and hurtful. But on the other hand, that’s what the guy does. Why are we all getting worked up over this when Donald Trump has been saying incredibly vicious things about Rosie O’Donnell, Isaiah  Washington continues to work (and wins awards!) after making incredibly stupid remarks about a gay co-workers and Mel Gibson continues to be a “big name” in Hollywood after his anti-semetic remarks. Why is the news industry picking on Imus? Are they distracting us from the real issues, including a failing war in Iraq and what is mounting to be a war with Iran?

I believe that this is absolutely the case.

Did Imus say rude, obnoxious, hurtful things? Yes he did. Was he wrong to say them? Depends on who you ask. I say he’s an idiot that gets paid to be an idiot. Should he have been fired for doing it? Absolutely not.

One thing that I find incredibly interesting is that Halle Barre is slated to appear in a movie to be released in 2008 entitled “Nappily Ever After”. Where is the outrage about this? 

It was announced today by Defense Secretary Robert Gates that the Army tours in Iraq have been extended by three months. Anything that can be said about this has already been said by bloggers much more versed in the subject than I, so this is all I can say:

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Rosie O’Donnell has recently started doing a videoblog on her site. It’s quite interesting to hear what she has to say when she’s not being tempered by the influences of “The View”.

I have been a Rosie O’Donnell fan since her Star Search days. I have always loved her comedy, it’s great to see someone else that has as much useless crap as I do in her head (tv and movie trivia, etc.) and I’ve always been amazed at the amount of support and energy she puts into her charities.

Since she has substantially ramped up her personal views, observations and opinions on current world affairs since joining “The View”, my admiration for her has grown tenfold. I admire her courage to ask the questions that few have the balls to ask and I’m in awe of the amount of passion that she has in her convictions. I may not agree with her 100% on everything (usually 95-99% of time, quite honestly), but you can’t help but appreciate the compassion of her arguments.

Take a peek at her videoblogs where she answers questions from her blog readers. It’s very interesting.

I wasn’t going to say this but I figured what the hell. I’ll admit that when I got up this morning, turned on CNN and saw that the Democrats had gained control of the House and are thisclose to doing the same with the Senate, I got choked up a little bit with happiness. When I saw that Elliott Spitzer, a proponent of gay marriage or civil unions, was elected as the next Governor of New York, I shed a few tears of joy.

The winds of change are here!

Now we should have some realistic checks and balances going on in Washington again. It feels like the insanity cycle is finally coming to an end.