Since This Still Seems to Have America Up In Arms...

I'm utterly baffled by many of my otherwise intelligent friends who have utterly lost their freakin' minds over the "mega-mosque"/"monster-mosque"/"super-mosque" which is supposedly being built across the street from/in the shadow of/on the site of (and, yes, I heard that from one of the blonde airheads on Fox News just yesterday) Ground Zero, so that Muslims can continue thumbing their noses at us by insisting that we put our First Amendment money where our mouths are.

The most baffling part of it for me is that at least two of these people are NEW YORKERS!!! They know where Ground Zero is. They know where Park Place is.  And yet, they persist in using some nine-year-old grudge as an excuse to promote hatred and intolerance.

No. 1 - We don't use 9/11 as an excuse to espouse MORE hate and MORE intolerance.  I realize we were all raised to (soto voce whisper) hate the brown folks. And, because we do have a First Amendment, I suppose you get to do that, as long as you keep it to your own damn self. The people who died on 9/11 do deserve the respect... they deserve enough respect that haters don't use their deaths as an excuse to hate more.

No. 2 - THE MOSQUE IS ACTUALLY NOT A MOSQUE, it's a combination cooking school and community center (complete with a basketball court) that just happens to include a prayer room (what with Muslims needing to pray three times a day and all, this is a matter of practicality).

And, finally...

No. 3 - (And this is rather an irrelevant point, since even if the misnomer "Ground Zero Mosque" were accurate, it would still be Constitutionally protected by the First Amendment) THE PARK51 COMMUNITY CENTER IS NOT WITHIN SIGHT OF THAT SACRED OF ALL AMERICAN HOLY PLACES, GROUND ZERO, but actually located two blocks away, on Park Place. (see map below)

Rest easy, haters... your precious Ground Zero is protected from the desecration of a mosque in its sight-lines.  You'll still only be able to see the Burger King and the souvenir stands which profit off the tragedy by selling memorabilia from 9/11 (because I guess that's okay, huh).  Not to mention the nudie bars and OTB storefronts that punctuate the neighborhood.

Not that that really has an effect on property values in the area.  What was once a thriving residential and commercial area has nearly become a ghost town, with residents and retailers having fled years ago.  And with no new Trade Center project in the immediate future, the fortunes of those who have remained behind are in doubt.

But that's okay.  Make sure we keep those dirty Allah-worshipping foreigners (many of whom are native-born Americans, not that the haters care) from opening a community center across the street from what used to be that OTHER holy American icon destroyed on 9/11 -- The Burlington Coat Factory (What? They destroyed the Burlington Coat Factory? BASTARDS!!!) It might actually begin a revival of business and breathe life into the surrounding community, but don't you mind about that. That shouldn't concern you.

I've had enough... I have been patient with you long enough.  The facts of this situation are ridiculously easy to research, and the fact that the haters haven't done it, but just plunged in to hatred full-bore has now worn through my last nerve.

Got it, haters? Do you understand now? Can you visualize your blind ridiculousness and folly? Can you put your racism on hold for about two and half seconds to take a look at the map and realize you're being manipulated by the right-wingers to do their hating for them?  If you want to be a puppet of the Right, be my guest (this is also Constitutionally protected). But you should know that's what you're doing.

Just don't do it in my presence. Because I warn you, in a war of words with me, you'll lose.  And I'll crush you.  Crush you.  I have now decided to hate the haters. I realize that that goes against the principles of my Buddhism. But I hate the haters so much, I'm willing to brave the horrible karma just to do it. Shut your mouths. You're not helping.

(The map was pulled from this article by Foster Kramer at The Village Voice blogs.)

Operation: Iraqi Freedom is Over.

As of this writing, MSNBC reports that the last 440 combat soldiers, accompanied by embedded MSNBC correspondent, the remarkable and incredible Richard Engel, are less than a half an hour from the Kuwaiti border, thus ending Operation: Iraqi Freedom.

All remaining Americans are strictly on an advisory capacity, mostly technicians and office workers, as well as independent contractors overseeing the restoration of infrastructure and utility service.  Unlike Viet Nam, Americans are operating under strict orders not to engage in combat, other than in self-defense.

MSNBC has complete coverage, including Engel, embedded with the troups, and Rachel Maddow in Baghdad.

To mangle a well-known line from literature: This is not the end of the beginning, but merely the beginning of the end.

P.S. Keith Olbermann just used my "beginning of the end" line. Stealer....

History, In All It's Shapes and Sizes

Today is a day of anniversaries.

Historically, it is the 65th anniversary of the day the atomic bomb, nicknamed Fat Man, was dropped just outside of Nagasaki, killing nearly 40,000 Japanese. Nearly a week later, Japan's emperor, Hirohito, agreed to accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration -- full and unconditional surrender -- which finally led to the end of World War II. The Emperor officially surrendered to General Douglas MacArthur on September 2nd, 1945, closing out a sad chapter in world history that left all of the main players with a mixture of relief and regret for the rest of their lives. It's important to remember this event -- to never forget it and the events that brought it about -- because it is important to remember that there truly is no such thing as "moral war." War is hell, as well it should be, and can never be -- should never be -- sanitized for our protection. (Are you listening, President Obama?)

On a more recent and local historical front, today is the anniversary of the murder of Sharon Tate and five others (including her unborn child) in her home on Cielo Drive, by members of the Manson family. I believe this is also an important event to remember, since members of the Manson family who participated in this murder and the subsequent killings of Lino and Rosemary LaBianca seem to think that there should be an expiration date on their penance. To their way of thinking, they've suffered enough after their many long years of imprisonment, and so should be paroled. To which I say... have always said... will always say.... The day the victims climb up out of their graves and start living again, you ladies can get out of prison. Until then, just chill, bitches.

And, finally, on a personal note -- today is the nineteenth anniversary of my mother's death. It was sudden and unexpected, and left us both with many things unsaid. We might never have been able to say them, given her debilitating illness, but it would have been nice to have had the chance to try all the same.

Okay, so maybe these aren't the happiest of anniversaries to contemplate. But I believe all of our history -- the happy and the sad -- can teach us what we need to know to get through our days. If nothing else, these events can teach us that we should never let a day go by without doing our best to connect with each other on a compassionate and personal level. We should take neither peace nor freedom for granted. We should understand that human nature, while capable of the most brilliant displays of love and generosity, can also be capable of inflicting great pain and evil, and we should always be on our guard to prevent it.

Mostly, these events should be a lesson that life is precious and easily vanquished, and no word of love should go unspoken, no act of affection go undone.

So that's the story of this day in history -- histories, personal and public.

Happy August 9th to you all. May it be a day of peace and tranquility.

Photo credits: Nagasaki photo from Life Magazine; Sharon Tate publicity photo; publicity still of Lynn Bailey during rehearsal for "The Starcross Story", photographer unknown.

Five Democrats Who Need to Pull Over and Submit Blackberry Resignations... and, No, It Can't Wait.

In honor of the USDA's expeditious jumping through Glenn Beck's and Andrew Breitbart's nasty hoop, I've decided to create a list of people that I believe need to pull over and send a resignation from their Blackberries.

1. Cheryl Cook (Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture) -- Since Cheryl Cook was so desperate for Shirley Sherrod's resignation that she insisted that Sherrod pull to the side of the road and text if from her Blackberry, I think she should set the example. She's a disgrace to her office, to the department, and to her country, so she should be willing to be the first to throw herself on her Blackberry sword and get the hell out of the department, before someone picks up on the fact that she's still working there.
2. Tom Vilsack (Secretary of Agriculture) -- Oh, sure... he apologized. But let's face it. This was the kind of bell you just can't unring.  Once the accusation of racism has been leveled, and then fortified by the victim's own employers and party, the taint is never fully cleansed by an apology.  Tom Vilsack behaved abhorrently in this entire affair, and he needs to admit that, quit and let someone step into the job who has brain AND a heart.
3. Ben Jealous (CEO of NAACP) -- Of all the tragically shameful characters in this fiasco, Jealous is the worst.  When Ms. Sherrod's comments were recorded, she was speaking at an NAACP event.  Does he now want us to believe he had no access to a transcript or complete tape of the event, against which to verify the accusations? Ridiculous! Furthermore, Shirley Sherrod is the wife of Charles Sherrod, who co-founded and organized the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, which played a key role in the American Civil Rights Movement in the 60's.  The SNCC members risked their very lives by going into rural communities in Georgia and Mississippi in order to register voters and encourage participation in the Movement, at a time when people were being killed for doing that!  The mention of Shirley Sherrod's last name should have been a tip-off to the NAACP in general. Charles and Shirley Sherrod have dedicated their lives to the abolition of bigotry and prejudice. Jealous should have known that this story wasn't all that it seemed.  Certainly, a single phone call to the white farmer in question would have put an end to all speculation, since he and his wife have been on network news all week, referring to Sherrod as a "lifelong friend" who "saved us from bankruptcy."  But no such call was ever placed -- not by Jealous, nor by anyone else at the NAACP.  Pull over, Mr. Jealous, we'll be needing your resignation immediately.
4. Jim Messina (Deputy White House Chief of Staff) -- In a staff meeting the morning after Sherrod's firing (less than 24 hours after the story had broken), Messina was quoted at a staff meeting of saying: "We could have waited all day — we could have had a media circus — but we took decisive action, and it’s a good example of how to respond in this atmosphere." Ironically, if Messina had waited all day, he'd have probably figured out that the story he was being told wasn't the true story at all. Messina, of course, reports directly to my least favorite person certainly in the White House, and possibly in the entire world, Rahm Emanual. If Messina had a hand in any of this, then it was certainly NOT without Emanuel's complete knowledge and blessing. Which brings us to Number...
5. Rahm Emanual (White House Chief of Staff) -- The biggest mistake Barack Obama ever made was in recruiting this guy as his Chief of Staff. Classless, heartless, soulless, with a sinister, self-promoting agenda that has little to do with a desire to serve his country, Emanuel has always done what is best for one person and one person only -- Rahm Emanuel.  When Cheryl Cook called Shirley Sherrod on her now-infamous drive home, Cook specifically told Sherrod that the White House wanted Sherrod's resignation immediately, and couldn't wait for Sherrod to return to her office.  Later, Vilsack back-pedaled on that statement and took complete responsibility for Sherrod's dismissal.  As reprehensible as I think Cook's behavior was in all of this, I doubt that even she would have the unmitigated gall to invoke the color of White House authority were she not damn sure the order was actually coming from them.  And if it was coming from the White House, it wasn't coming from President Obama. I think if we've learned anything about the President by now, it's that trying to get him to actually act on something -- ANYTHING -- is an exercise in frustration and futility.  This entire affair smacks of the impulsive, take-no-prisoners, cut-em-off-at-the-knees style of Rahm Emanuel.  He needs to resign just on principle, because he's bad for Obama, he's bad for the country and he's bad for us.

Those are the five people that this ugly, horrible incident should take down immediately. Not tomorrow, not the next day, but now -- this minute -- while they're on the expressway. They need to pull the car over, or (in Rahm's case) have the chauffeur pull the car over, and immediately text their resignations to the White House, beg for forgiveness, and may the Goddess have mercy on their immortal souls (if they're still in possession of them - there are a couple of folks on that list about whom I have my doubts).

As for Andrew Breitbart, I'm guessing Ms. Sherrod has already gotten several calls from attorneys dying to take on a civil lawsuit. With any luck, this sick, sad little man and his pathetic little righty-bloggy thing be driven forever into the ground.

Introductions

World, meet Sylas.

He was born on July 9, 2010. He was 8 lbs. 8 ozs., 21" long.  He also had a wicked little lung infection that necessitated a stay in the NICU, where he seems to be doing well.

Unfortunately, it meant my daughter was forced to leave without him once she was discharged yesterday. All the time since has been trekking back and forth between home and the NICU, so that we can see him and spend time with him, his parents can feed him... He's increased his food volume tenfold in the past 24 hours, and he looks less like a newborn and more like he's around two or three months old.

Exhausting.

Hopefully, he'll be home this coming Saturday or Sunday.  All his tests have been coming back clean, and he's responding well to the antibiotics.  He started developing a little baby jaundice today, but nothing a trip under the bilirubin lamp won't fix.

Meanwhile, I have a job interview tomorrow, so I'd better get to bed.

Just wanted to share a Nana's joy.

So, World, meet Sylas.  Sylas, meet World... And remember Nana loves you more than... chocolate. Yes... even more than chocolate....

(cross-posted at Naked Voodoo Chicken Dance)

Enough is Enough... We Hope....

In the vast sea of possible dreck jobs I've applied for, there came this little gem, and... well... I can't tell you about it.

I'm very superstitious these days, and I don't want to jinx it.  But trust me -- it's a gem.  I didn't realize how much of a gem it was until after I sent my resume to the outside recruiter.  Then I really began to look up the company, including magazine articles about the founders and the company objectives and such.  And I fell a little bit in love.

So I sent a follow-up letter to the recruiter, telling her how interested I was in the position and the company.  And I heard... nothing.

I want this job, people.  I mean, I want any job. I just applied online as a barista at Starbucks, so yeah... there's that.  But this job... this job... I want to work for this company. Really, really badly.... So, rather than leave it to some recruiter who will surely leave me on the trash pile for any number of reasons (my age, the length of my present unemployment history, etc.), today, I went straight to company's website, and sent them an e-mail directly, telling them, in effect, that this was kismet, I was made for them, they were made for me, and the Fates must not be denied.

Okay, I couched in more professional verbiage, and my letter was more me than any cover letter I've ever written for a resume (by which I mean that I just flat-out went for the laugh). Still, the overall groveling, begging undertone in the letter will not be lost on them, I'm sure. And I believe that, when confronted with something which you truly believe is your destiny, you should run at it headlong, and let the Devil take the hindmost. Even if it means you end up with a big lump on your forehead.

Wish me luck....
-

Dear Congress...

This is how it works... in case you forgot... because... well... it's been a while...