Political Ramblings.. and Bad Ideas
I 'should' be studying for class later tonight, but frankly, I've got a political itch that wants to be scratched. Over these past weeks, my interests in politics have once again surfaced strongly, and my distaste for political parties has only grown stronger. To put my views on the coming presidential election briefly: I don't want Obama to win. I really don't want to McCain to win. My hope and views lie somewhere in the misty left that is currently best espoused by Ralph Nader.
Now, I don't really expect Nader to win this one. If US politics weren't fucked six ways sideways, I think he'd have a great shot. But unfortunately, the process we have is not exactly one of fairness or equality. Unless of course you're talking about the wonderous Republocrat* party. The loops that third-party candidates have to go through, with the decked stacked against them, is insane in a country that is supposed to support freedom.
(*It's one fucking party, with a fuzzy amorphous line 'separating' between the right and the left. On a good day, the span on the spectrum ranges about two hairs off-set from center in both directions. Fuck that shit.)
I'm sorry, but when it comes to electing our officials, we are not as free as they would have us believe. We've become trapped in this prison that there are only two choices, and if neither floats our boat, we should vote for the person we dislike the least. Why isn't there a stronger voice against this? Why don't more people rally for their rights that politicians have pissed away? I somehow don't think George Washington would look kindly on the US government were he magically alive and well today. Though, I do kind of wish that would happen. I think it would say something when an iconic national hero gives a big verbal bitch-slap to their own nation.
I kind of think it's a conglomeration of things. People in power desiring to keep said power, and creating a very unbalanced field for outsiders. Journalism and the news seems to have taken on the shape of entertainment, rather than something approaching information. (Sadly, The Daily Show and The Colbert Report are closer to being "something approximating election news with something approximating honesty" than I'm seeing on mainstream news channels.) Every citizen that's bought into the party rhetoric. It's just one big giant circle-jerk, and it's circling the fucking drain. I'll admit, there is probably a ton more at play here, spanning far before my time, but I'm not exactly up to delving into that history here, nor can I say I'm even qualified.
On another note, I watched the presidential and vice-presidential 'debates.' I found myself slamming my face into my palms more times than I care to count with both of those. Why even call it a debate, seriously? I mean, I get that more people will want to buy a burger made out of shit if it's repackaged as.. say, a 'Quarter Pounder.' But wake the fuck up, are there really that many oblivious people in this country?
I saw four talking heads for their respective parties, sticking to party lines and prearranged talking points. I saw a willful lack of answers to questions that were actually asked, and instead two people dancing around on stage, essentially campaigning to the public. Yes, it is all well and good to talk about how your plans and policies will have an impact. On relevant questions. As an example and if memory serves, in the VP debate, when Sarah Palin was asked about her biggest flaw, she went on to talk about how great she is at being a governor. She wasn't called on it by the 'moderator.' Where is the awareness of what the fuck is going on? I'm not picking on Palin here, since I saw that from everyone, though admittedly it seemed more.. obvious in the VP debates. They should just don boxing gloves, and duke it out. You'd get about the same out of it, politically speaking, and it would be far more entertaining. Of course, a bout between Obama and McCain would likely result in one very injured old dude. It would probably be awesome.
I'm not really sure where I'm going with this. I'm putting out my thoughts as they come to me, and hopefully it makes a sort of sense taken as a whole. I'm just annoyed at this whole sham of a democracy we've got going here. The candidates are pretty similar, nobody is really rocking the boat, outside of a few Obama speeches I can't say I've heard anything terribly hopeful, politics is rife in the whole thing, it's a big media circus, doublethink is fucking everywhere, and any attempts to change it from the outside is met with stern resistence by the same fuck-ups running the world into the ground.
I'd like to hope that it would be better for Obama to win this election than McCain. But then, I think if either major party takes office, we lose.
The system is fucked. I think the last eight years can attest to that. Bush & Co were elected, twice, as per the rules drawn out by the system we have in place. Congress has become an ineffective bureaucracy with the 'left' and 'right' in a kind of deadlock most of the time.
On another note, I'm just going to throw out random suggestions for alternate ideas than what is being proposed in this current presidential election, (among the 'real' candidates.) After all, that's what's so fucking awesome about having freedom and discussion of different viewpoints, seeing what else is out there.
Fossil fuels are where it's at. Alternative energy is just the realm of hippies and their nefarious pot-smoking ways. So why drill in the Arctic when we can bring dinosaurs back to life, Jurassic Park style? Think about it. No longer will be stuck in our impersonal shells so disconnected from each other, but instead can ride to work on the back of a majestic triceratops, or an adorable iguanodon. Sauropods like brachiosaurus can be used for hauling freight or heavy loads, and machismo can be appeased by saddling up on the back of a tyrannosaurus. The adventurous or time-constrained can take to the skies on the wings of a pteranodon. Imagine the beauty of flying through the skies, free of the rush hour stampedes. You could express your individualism through what you choose to ride, and kids everywhere love dinosaurs! Think of the happy smiles on their face when they aren't being devoured alive. To top it all off, we'll be practicing real long-term planning for our future. Millions of years from now, our mutant children from the fifteenth nuclear war will be able to harvest those vital fossil fuels, so crucial for life after sunlight is blocked from reaching terra firma. Everybody wins!
What about Afgahnistan, though? That clusterfuck that has fallen into disarray completely through unforseeable and unavoidable events? Poppies for Peace! Let the current poppy production there be used to support the worldwide opium based medicinal drug shortage, and shifted away from illegal markets. (You know, until somebody else picks up the slack.) The money from production can go toward rebuilding the country, while the world gains the benefit of a wonderful resource. Everybody wins!
One of these two ideas is pretty ridiculous. The other is a potential solution being proposed currently. If you're in doubt as to which is which, just think, what would Nikola Tesla do?
Now, I don't really expect Nader to win this one. If US politics weren't fucked six ways sideways, I think he'd have a great shot. But unfortunately, the process we have is not exactly one of fairness or equality. Unless of course you're talking about the wonderous Republocrat* party. The loops that third-party candidates have to go through, with the decked stacked against them, is insane in a country that is supposed to support freedom.
(*It's one fucking party, with a fuzzy amorphous line 'separating' between the right and the left. On a good day, the span on the spectrum ranges about two hairs off-set from center in both directions. Fuck that shit.)
I'm sorry, but when it comes to electing our officials, we are not as free as they would have us believe. We've become trapped in this prison that there are only two choices, and if neither floats our boat, we should vote for the person we dislike the least. Why isn't there a stronger voice against this? Why don't more people rally for their rights that politicians have pissed away? I somehow don't think George Washington would look kindly on the US government were he magically alive and well today. Though, I do kind of wish that would happen. I think it would say something when an iconic national hero gives a big verbal bitch-slap to their own nation.
I kind of think it's a conglomeration of things. People in power desiring to keep said power, and creating a very unbalanced field for outsiders. Journalism and the news seems to have taken on the shape of entertainment, rather than something approaching information. (Sadly, The Daily Show and The Colbert Report are closer to being "something approximating election news with something approximating honesty" than I'm seeing on mainstream news channels.) Every citizen that's bought into the party rhetoric. It's just one big giant circle-jerk, and it's circling the fucking drain. I'll admit, there is probably a ton more at play here, spanning far before my time, but I'm not exactly up to delving into that history here, nor can I say I'm even qualified.
On another note, I watched the presidential and vice-presidential 'debates.' I found myself slamming my face into my palms more times than I care to count with both of those. Why even call it a debate, seriously? I mean, I get that more people will want to buy a burger made out of shit if it's repackaged as.. say, a 'Quarter Pounder.' But wake the fuck up, are there really that many oblivious people in this country?
I saw four talking heads for their respective parties, sticking to party lines and prearranged talking points. I saw a willful lack of answers to questions that were actually asked, and instead two people dancing around on stage, essentially campaigning to the public. Yes, it is all well and good to talk about how your plans and policies will have an impact. On relevant questions. As an example and if memory serves, in the VP debate, when Sarah Palin was asked about her biggest flaw, she went on to talk about how great she is at being a governor. She wasn't called on it by the 'moderator.' Where is the awareness of what the fuck is going on? I'm not picking on Palin here, since I saw that from everyone, though admittedly it seemed more.. obvious in the VP debates. They should just don boxing gloves, and duke it out. You'd get about the same out of it, politically speaking, and it would be far more entertaining. Of course, a bout between Obama and McCain would likely result in one very injured old dude. It would probably be awesome.
I'm not really sure where I'm going with this. I'm putting out my thoughts as they come to me, and hopefully it makes a sort of sense taken as a whole. I'm just annoyed at this whole sham of a democracy we've got going here. The candidates are pretty similar, nobody is really rocking the boat, outside of a few Obama speeches I can't say I've heard anything terribly hopeful, politics is rife in the whole thing, it's a big media circus, doublethink is fucking everywhere, and any attempts to change it from the outside is met with stern resistence by the same fuck-ups running the world into the ground.
I'd like to hope that it would be better for Obama to win this election than McCain. But then, I think if either major party takes office, we lose.
The system is fucked. I think the last eight years can attest to that. Bush & Co were elected, twice, as per the rules drawn out by the system we have in place. Congress has become an ineffective bureaucracy with the 'left' and 'right' in a kind of deadlock most of the time.
On another note, I'm just going to throw out random suggestions for alternate ideas than what is being proposed in this current presidential election, (among the 'real' candidates.) After all, that's what's so fucking awesome about having freedom and discussion of different viewpoints, seeing what else is out there.
Fossil fuels are where it's at. Alternative energy is just the realm of hippies and their nefarious pot-smoking ways. So why drill in the Arctic when we can bring dinosaurs back to life, Jurassic Park style? Think about it. No longer will be stuck in our impersonal shells so disconnected from each other, but instead can ride to work on the back of a majestic triceratops, or an adorable iguanodon. Sauropods like brachiosaurus can be used for hauling freight or heavy loads, and machismo can be appeased by saddling up on the back of a tyrannosaurus. The adventurous or time-constrained can take to the skies on the wings of a pteranodon. Imagine the beauty of flying through the skies, free of the rush hour stampedes. You could express your individualism through what you choose to ride, and kids everywhere love dinosaurs! Think of the happy smiles on their face when they aren't being devoured alive. To top it all off, we'll be practicing real long-term planning for our future. Millions of years from now, our mutant children from the fifteenth nuclear war will be able to harvest those vital fossil fuels, so crucial for life after sunlight is blocked from reaching terra firma. Everybody wins!
What about Afgahnistan, though? That clusterfuck that has fallen into disarray completely through unforseeable and unavoidable events? Poppies for Peace! Let the current poppy production there be used to support the worldwide opium based medicinal drug shortage, and shifted away from illegal markets. (You know, until somebody else picks up the slack.) The money from production can go toward rebuilding the country, while the world gains the benefit of a wonderful resource. Everybody wins!
One of these two ideas is pretty ridiculous. The other is a potential solution being proposed currently. If you're in doubt as to which is which, just think, what would Nikola Tesla do?