New Age in Politics
Well it has been an exciting and emotional past few days. Ethiopians were very happy, as was most of the world and I got quite a few "congratulations" from various people, which I would assume is a big change from the past 8 years, not that I've been abroad that long, but I'm sure they weren't saying that in 00 and 04.
Even though I'm pretty happy about the results, it is still bittersweet for me for several reasons.
For one, although it was a huge step for race equality, it was a step back for gay marriage in that 3 worth-a-damn states, including the most liberal one in our country next to Mass., voted to ban gay marriage. Florida, Arizona and California.
While I know Arizona is republican and Florida has a good hick population in the North, these are actually states people like to visit and live in, not quite the Dakotas or Alabamas that can be easily avoided if you're not from there. Also the fact that some people are going as far as to say that this is the end of racism and blacks can essentially "quit bitching" about it. That's far from true, but I do believe in the message that Obama and other prominent black leaders are in so many ways sending out: "No excuses, full accountability." Being black, not having a father and growing up poor are no longer an excuse to not succeed, commit crimes and have children out of wedlock you don't support. There isn't anything holding you down but yourself. And that is a HUGE step for black america and all minorities and I hope the message resonates throughout the country. Too often have I seen young minorities lower the bar for themselves to what they believe is expected of them.
To me, that is more important than the fact that I don't agree with democrats and essentially Obama on everything. But he wants to end the Iraq war, which is very important to me, and I believe in his healthcare plan and I have high hopes, trust that he will not give us The New Deal 08 and get us into more doomed to fail social programs that will have us and our children, children's children paying out in taxes for the rest of time.
It's a lot of trust, because I'm not a democrat or republican and in the past 4 years since Bush have found that I can't agree with either one completely and have found that both are dangerous for our country, it's just a matter or who is more dangerous at the moment. Because while economically I can agree with less spending overall for Republicans, they want to spend billions of dollars in carrying on an unnecessary war that puts strain on the military and military families. On top of the religious and social conservative agenda pushed through our government I find reprehensible. I'm getting tired of bastards around the country, in office or in churches telling me how to worship God and how I have to support certain political agendas in order to be a true Christian. Fuck all of that, seriously. I'm getting sick of it and we've been dealing with this for the past 4 years, it's sickening. I find it hard to support republicans on those two things alone.
But on the otherhand, I'm not in support of many things Democrats want to do. Hillary would've spelled disaster economically with ideas like universal healthcare and a confusing tax policy that I'm still unsure who and how it would've benefitted anybody. I'm not for saving people with government, and on the same note with social issues, I do not feel anybody needs to be sensitized and that our biggest concern is the overturn or roe v. wade and eradicating every negative -ism on the planet through indoctrinating and conditioning our children.
In a nutshell, I believe people are free and entitled to feel and think however they want so long as it doesn't hurt anybody and it's not the government's job to tell us otherwise or condition us to be a certain way by forcing laws upon us. Don't tell me it's wrong to support gay marriage by banning it and at the same time don't make my kid take classes teaching how right homosexuality is and enlisting him to defend gays in school. I hate both extremes. But I believe Obama is the less extreme in this case. He has excellent ideas and what he will do for minorities in this country is powerful and historic. It wasn't the only reason to vote for him, but it's a nice bi-product of his presidency.
I just hope he's everything he appears to be.
Even though I'm pretty happy about the results, it is still bittersweet for me for several reasons.
For one, although it was a huge step for race equality, it was a step back for gay marriage in that 3 worth-a-damn states, including the most liberal one in our country next to Mass., voted to ban gay marriage. Florida, Arizona and California.
While I know Arizona is republican and Florida has a good hick population in the North, these are actually states people like to visit and live in, not quite the Dakotas or Alabamas that can be easily avoided if you're not from there. Also the fact that some people are going as far as to say that this is the end of racism and blacks can essentially "quit bitching" about it. That's far from true, but I do believe in the message that Obama and other prominent black leaders are in so many ways sending out: "No excuses, full accountability." Being black, not having a father and growing up poor are no longer an excuse to not succeed, commit crimes and have children out of wedlock you don't support. There isn't anything holding you down but yourself. And that is a HUGE step for black america and all minorities and I hope the message resonates throughout the country. Too often have I seen young minorities lower the bar for themselves to what they believe is expected of them.
To me, that is more important than the fact that I don't agree with democrats and essentially Obama on everything. But he wants to end the Iraq war, which is very important to me, and I believe in his healthcare plan and I have high hopes, trust that he will not give us The New Deal 08 and get us into more doomed to fail social programs that will have us and our children, children's children paying out in taxes for the rest of time.
It's a lot of trust, because I'm not a democrat or republican and in the past 4 years since Bush have found that I can't agree with either one completely and have found that both are dangerous for our country, it's just a matter or who is more dangerous at the moment. Because while economically I can agree with less spending overall for Republicans, they want to spend billions of dollars in carrying on an unnecessary war that puts strain on the military and military families. On top of the religious and social conservative agenda pushed through our government I find reprehensible. I'm getting tired of bastards around the country, in office or in churches telling me how to worship God and how I have to support certain political agendas in order to be a true Christian. Fuck all of that, seriously. I'm getting sick of it and we've been dealing with this for the past 4 years, it's sickening. I find it hard to support republicans on those two things alone.
But on the otherhand, I'm not in support of many things Democrats want to do. Hillary would've spelled disaster economically with ideas like universal healthcare and a confusing tax policy that I'm still unsure who and how it would've benefitted anybody. I'm not for saving people with government, and on the same note with social issues, I do not feel anybody needs to be sensitized and that our biggest concern is the overturn or roe v. wade and eradicating every negative -ism on the planet through indoctrinating and conditioning our children.
In a nutshell, I believe people are free and entitled to feel and think however they want so long as it doesn't hurt anybody and it's not the government's job to tell us otherwise or condition us to be a certain way by forcing laws upon us. Don't tell me it's wrong to support gay marriage by banning it and at the same time don't make my kid take classes teaching how right homosexuality is and enlisting him to defend gays in school. I hate both extremes. But I believe Obama is the less extreme in this case. He has excellent ideas and what he will do for minorities in this country is powerful and historic. It wasn't the only reason to vote for him, but it's a nice bi-product of his presidency.
I just hope he's everything he appears to be.