We’re Divorced … So, It’s Over Baby!

I have to confess (sadly enough) I have never been married. Apparently, I have not met the right woman or it just has not yet developed to that point. Anyway, a CNN.com article recently caught my attention. The article was titled: We’re divorced – you’re not my friend.” Obviously, the headline did what it was supposed to do since it caught my attention enough to make me want to read it. So, as I read the article, this early paragraph caught my attention and I will share it with you:

“Crystal Byrd of Cedar Creek Lake, Texas, has a pretty good idea. She says her ex-husband asks to borrow money for gas and groceries, has requested that she make lunch for him when he comes to pick up their 5-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son, and even inquired whether she could make a deposit on his new apartment.”

Apparently, this dude has forgotten that a divorce has taken place and it is time to move along in mostly separate directions. Obviously, with kids in the picture, there has to be some level of cooperation, but I am not sure that includes borrowing money for gas and groceries or paying a deposit for an apartment. It’s hard to get to know the dynamics of this couple, what brought them together and what split them apart. I have a hard time imaging how tough it would be to divorce, but then again I have never been married either so that makes it even more difficult to think much of how I might be impacted by divorce.

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/11/14/lw.divorced.not.friends/index.html

Memo To John McCain: Your Party Is Beginning To Throw You Under The Bus

I knew it was a matter of time before some Republicans chose to break silence and begin to throw Sen. John McCain under the bus for his failed presidential bid in the general election. It is ironic, however, since some members of McCain’s team did its best to throw Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, his vice presidential running mate under the bus, for the failed bid. Although, Palin deserved plenty of criticism for her bungling efforts from start to finish in a campaign that turned into a tragic debacle right before our eyes. Here are some comments from South Carolina Republican Sen. Jim DeMint:

“We have to be honest, and there’s a lot of blame to go around, but I have to mention George Bush, and I have to mention Ted Stevens, and I’m afraid I even have to mention John McCain,” he said. “McCain, who is proponent of campaign finance reform that weakened party organizations and basically put George Soros in the driver’s seat. His proposal for amnesty for illegals. His support of global warming, cap-and-trade programs that will put another burden on our economy. And of course, his embrace of the bailout right before the election was probably the nail in our coffin this last election. And he has been an opponent of drilling in ANWR, at a time when energy is so important. It really didn’t fit the label, but he was our package.”

Sen. McCain will need to have his suits dry-cleaned to remove the tire tracks from being thrown under the bus by his colleagues who now have clearly abandoned ship. Sure, President Bush did not help and I suppose the controversial situation of Ted Stevens was problematic, too. But, the Republicans have been in power for too long and we now have two wars going on (one in Afghanistan and another in Iraq), one of the direst economic situations we’ve seen in our nation’s history, energy problems, a housing crisis and controversial financial bailouts for rich companies, and more. McCain, representing the Republicans, did not have the answers that the American people were looking for from the next president. Barack Obama had better answers and that is the reason he is now President-elect Barack Obama. McCain was not the only person on both sides of the aisle to embrace the bailout. Simply put, the nation was tired of the Republican Party and spoke with its voting powers. History teaches us that both parties have had to pay the price on Election Day for their failures. John McCain is a good man, but he just was not the best man for this job at this moment in history.

CNN:
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/11/15/gop-senator-mccain-betrayed-republican-principles-2/

Controversial Gay Marriage Issue Divides Us All

NOTE: This is a very controversial and emotional topic (for me and for so many others) that I was not going to write about, at first, but later changed my mind.

On Election Day, as so many of us celebrated the the victorious effort of now President-elect Barack Obama, another movement was taking place in three states around the country – though, most notably, in California. Anti-gay marriage initiatives were passed in California, Arizona and Florida on Election Day – moves that have since sparked protests across the country. For the record, I am not in favor of gay marriage (because I feel that marriage is between a man and a woman … that is my personal opinion). On the other hand, I do support civil unions that would offer gays and lesbians all the rights of heterosexual married couples. Some people might argue “what is the difference?” That is a good and legitimate question, but it also is my opinion that marriage is between a man and a woman. I think the most important step that the gay community needs to take is to rethink the way that these initiatives are being pursued. I am torn, because I can understand what so many gays and lesbians want and I can understand why they would want what they feel are the same rights a heterosexual couples. I favor the basic rights that they seek, but I suppose my only quarrel is with the language of calling it “marriage” vs. calling it a “civil union.” I am not sure our country is ready to fully embrace equal rights for gays and calling for gay marriage gives so many of the bigots (those who oppose equal rights for gay couples regardless of whether it is called marriage or a civil union) an easy escape. They can simply oppose it because it is called marriage. Initiatives like this are tricky. If they are not worded correctly they will not pass even if the intentions are noble (as I believe the intentions are with this gay marriage effort). Frankly, I would not have been angered had the initiative failed and gay marriage been legalized. I feel that there are too many bigots out there who are opposed to gay marriage for hateful reasons and oppose nearly all rights for gay and lesbian couples (including gay adoption). It is understandable for gays and lesbians to want the same rights as heterosexual couples. Gay couples should clearly be allowed to adopt and they should be allowed to have civil unions with the same rights as heterosexual couples. Those who want to advance the cause of gay Americans need to take it one step at a time to change the hearts and souls of those who are violently opposed to their causes. Working for civil unions, first, would have been a wiser move. Then, the movement toward gay marriage, if that was something activists really want to pursue, would have been a move that would have made more sense. Also, there is homophobia in the black community, but there is homophobia in many different communities and in our nation as a whole. So, to blame black people for the gay community’s loss in California is inappropriate. Right or wrong, many ethnic minorities and both genders are uncomfortable with considering being gay and lesbian as the same as being part of an ethnic group or being a gender (being a man or a woman). This is part of the reason the approach for the gay community has to change if it continues to pursue change in this country right now.

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/15/same.sex.marriage/index.html

The Disgusting Michael Savage Makes Another Vicious Attack On President-elect Barack Obama

Right-wing extremist commentator Michael Savage, syndicated on far too many radio networks around the nation for reasons that I will never understand, has made yet another outrageous (albeit old) attack on President-elect Barack Obama.

Here is a recent comment from Savage on his Nov. 10 radio show:

“Well, we don’t even know where Obama was born. His grandmother died the night before the election. There’s a lot of questions around this character that the media won’t answer. Let’s start with what country he’s from. Why was the birth certificate never produced? Why in the world did he take time off from the campaign to visit the grandmother who then suddenly and suspiciously died virtually the night before the election? Tell me about that.”

Yet another disgusting commentary from a man who has made a career of appealing to the lowest elements of society with hateful and bigoted rhetoric. Again, Savage tries to bring back the ridiculous rumor from right-wing extremists about President-elect Obama possibly not being born in the United States. This was a failed “Hail Mary” attempt late in the campaign (and even at earlier stages) to try and eliminate him from the presidential race (by declaring him ineligible for not being born in the United States). Just as is the case in football, “Hail Mary” passes generally fail. Savage’s above comments, however, have an even more disturbing element to them. Savage brings up Sen. Obama taking time off from his campaign to visit with his ailing (we now know she was dying) grandmother. This comment, “Why in the world did he take time off from the campaign to visit the grandmother who suddenly and suspiciously died virtually the night before the election? Tell me about that?” These are wicked and evil words designed to make an implication that perhaps there was something suspicious about her death. Savage is trash and his comments give us a smell of just how bad the source of that scent must be.

For more on this garbage, visit Media Matters:
http://mediamatters.org/items/200811140011?f=h_clips

Sarah Palin Continues To Pass The Buck For Failures Of The McCain-Palin Ticket

It just amazes me to listen to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin continue to blame others for her personal failures and the failures of the ticket of her and Sen. John McCain to take the White House. Palin continues to push this vague and disturbing theme of blaming all of her failures, misstatements, half truths and everything else that went wrong on the “mainstream media.” She has worked this mainstream media angle well past its prime. Any rumor that came up in the tabloids or was driven by an Internet blogger she lumped in with what she referred to as the “mainstream media.” My question is this: Does she know what the term “mainstream media” means? Is she lumping blogging Web sites like this one and millions of others in with the likes of CBS, NBC, ABC and CNN? Does she really know what she is talking about when she says “mainstream media” or is she simply regurgitating tired Republican talking points from the now dead presidential and vice presidential bid of the McCain campaign? Here is another question: When does Sarah Palin start to take credit for her own mistakes, her own errors in interviews, her own contradictions, her own half truths and her own continuing unwillingness (and perhaps) inability to answer tough (but fair) questions that we would expect a vice presidential candidate on a major-party ticket to be able to answer?