Category Archives: Social Commentary

Margaret and Helen

This is a great blog from two women in their 80’s who have been best friends for over 60 years.

Here is an excerpt from their latest entry:

I just can’t believe 87,000 people are dumb enough to buy that crap. If Beck and Palin want a government so focused on one God and one religion, they should visit the Middle East and see how that concept is working out.  It’s gotten to the point where you can’t distinguish Fox News from the Christian Broadcasting Network.   It’s nauseating.

Palin and Beck don’t care about you, me or anyone except themselves.  They are getting filthy rich pandering to angry white mobs so transparent in their racist feelings toward the President that a sheet of Saran Wrap would cast a darker shadow.

The greatest threat against America is not terrorism.  It’s not a mosque in Manhattan.  It’s not gay marriage.  It’s not healthcare reform.  And, believe it or not, it’s not even Beck or Palin.  The greatest threat against America are the tens of millions of Americans who won’t turn out to vote this November effectively giving power to 87,000 angry assholes.

Sarah Palin is an idiot.  Glenn Beck is a moron.  And I am sick of Fox News.  I mean it.  Really.

via Margaret and Helen.

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Get Together…For What It’s Worth

I may be the only preppie, hippie, psuedo-socialist, big government, peacenick, intellectual elitist around….but I doubt it.  We used to be called Democrats before the party was co-opted by the Corporations…

Anyway…A little feel good flashback to 1967 to give us a little perspective before the campaign season bloodletting starts on Monday…

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Eugene Robinson – The spoiled-brat American electorate

Great editorial from Eugene Robinson.  I encourage you to click the link and read the entire article.

According to polls, Americans are in a mood to hold their breath until they turn blue. Voters appear to be so fed up with the Democrats that they’re ready to toss them out in favor of the Republicans — for whom, according to those same polls, the nation has even greater contempt. This isn’t an “electoral wave,” it’s a temper tantrum.

It’s bad enough that the Democratic Party’s “favorable” rating has fallen to an abysmal 33 percent, according to a recent NBC-Wall Street Journal poll. It’s worse that the Republican Party’s favorability has plunged to just 24 percent. But incredibly, according to Gallup, registered voters say they intend to vote for Republicans over Democrats by an astounding 10-point margin. Respected analysts reckon that the GOP has a chance of gaining 45 to 60 seats in the House, which would bring Minority Leader John Boehner into the speaker’s office.

My guess is that with a decided advantage in campaign funds, along with the other advantages of incumbency, Democrats will be able to mitigate these prospective losses — perhaps even relieving Nancy Pelosi of the hassles of moving. But there’s no mistaking the public mood, and the truth is that it makes no sense.

And:

The nation demands the impossible: quick, painless solutions to long-term, structural problems. While they’re running for office, politicians of both parties encourage this kind of magical thinking. When they get into office, they’re forced to try to explain that things aren’t quite so simple — that restructuring our economy, renewing the nation’s increasingly rickety infrastructure, reforming an unsustainable system of entitlements, redefining America’s position in the world and all the other massive challenges that face the country are going to require years of effort. But the American people don’t want to hear any of this. They want somebody to make it all better. Now.

via Eugene Robinson – The spoiled-brat American electorate.

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Prep Yourself

Great GQ video that makes the point that the Prep look really is multi-cultural, international, classic and casual.

I don’t agree with it all–too short pants are a no, no- but it’s basically right on…

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True Prep

This one is mainly for my College friends.  The Washington and Lee, Sweet Briar, RMWC, Mary Baldwin, UVA and other Virginia Colleges  gang.

The rest of you, please bear with us…

If it’s any help…my partner says he would probably have hated me in College, but we’ve managed to reach a stylistic middle ground and last almost 14 years…

Lisa Birnbach was one of the authors of “The Official Preppy Handbook” back in the late 1970’s- early 1980’s.  I won’t say it was our handbook because that implies we didn’t know it all before hand.  It just happened to reflect our lives at the time.  Her new book, “True Prep”, comes out on September 7th.  It’s about Preps at Middle Age.  I’ve already pre-ordered my copy from Amazon.com.

I’m already scared….How many cliches can I be at one time?  I’m already seen as a middle aged Guppy and now I realize I’m still a middle aged Preppie.  From what I have read of this book so far, I’m totally still a prep.  Just because I have at least a half dozen pair of Cole Haan Loafers and my weekend wardrobe is totally J Crew.  Everything else is Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren.  It hurts to face the truth….

You can take the boy out of W&L, but you can’t take the W&L out of the boy…

Here is the video that defines our generation’s new place in Society:

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Filed under Entertainment, Gay, My Journey, Social Commentary, The South, Virginia

The Few, The Proud, The Loud and Uniformed with Bus Tickets: Part 3

Amazingly depressing video interviews with the attendees at Glenn Beck’s rally last Saturday….

I repeat one of my favorite quotes from Dr Martin Luther King:  “Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”

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The Fag Hag: How a Girl’s Misguided Friendship Choices Can Lead to a Lifetime of Loneliness | ChristWire

Another great post from one of my favorite satirical websites:

I received an impassioned letter the other day that I’d like to share with you. It reads, in part:

My daughter surprised me by moving into an apartment in the city this summer with 3 gay men. I certainly don’t hate homosexuals but when I paid a visit we spent the entire weekend with these people. We went to a restaurant where the boys were very catty and drunk. Then I slept on their living room couch and that was interesting to say the least… I guess they all think their bedroom doors are sound proof. Next day one of them even came clothes shopping with us! So I’m worried about her finding a real man. She has assured me many times over that she’s a heterosexual but how is she going to find a man to marry if she hangs around these types of people all the time?

This is an incredibly complex issue and to the letter writer and other worried parents out there I will say there is no easy answer. The psychological and physical relationship between heterosexual girls and homosexual males is many layered. It can begin at an early age but, tragically, the consequences can last a lifetime.

PRINCIPLES, PIMPLES & POPULARITY

It is common for young girls who have not socialized properly to seek solace in the company of outcasts. The problem begins in the teenage years when girls are intensely self-conscious about their looks. Not having the right clothes or failing to join a sports team can drive a young person inward and away from her popular peers. Pimples are also a big problem. A girl suffering from pimples feels ashamed and awkward, ugly and unloved. She will hide her face, sit at the back of the classroom and lose interest in meeting boys. Fortunately, pimples and acne are easily addressed by a good dermatologist and the right medications. If your child suffers from pimples, please get involved and monitor your girl’s facial care. It’s a simple thing to do and can really make a difference for her self-esteem and for her ability to meet your expectations. I should note, however, that pimples are also symptomatic of marijuana use so if your child is unwilling to talk to you about her pimples, you may have a far more serious issue on your hands.

Despite the fact that these young female outcasts are on the fringes of school social groups, they still yearn for male companionship. Teenage macho culture may scare them, so they look for a softer form of friendship, one that is initially non-threatening. Homosexuals of all ages and young women share many similar obsessions– clothes, gossip and melodramatic TV shows– and this is what draws them together. As they become young adults, alcohol consumption is often added to the list. They also begin to lust for men who are, by definition, beyond their reach. This is why we have a culture of young people who idolize the “zombies” and “vampires” played by handsome actors. Zombies and vampires may be asexualized fantasy characters, but much of their practices on TV and in the movies are nothing more than simulated fornication. Naturally, this form of entertainment appeals to those unsuccessful at mastering their own bodies.

The more time a girl spends with her homosexual friends, the more she will fall under the influence of their habits and mannerisms. She might pick up homosexual fashions and dress mannishly. Instead of cultivating a delicate, feminine look, many dress in black clothes and heavy shoes. Some keep their cheeks pale and wear not enough lipstick. Most mimic homosexual facial expressions, tending to frown and wince a great deal to evince a disdainful attitude towards the world. When this type of girl hears an off-color joke or some piece of gossip, she will shriek at absurdly high levels, levels that would be unacceptable in sober, polite society. She may also take up cigarette smoking to replace the heterosexual intercourse that her body so desperately craves, somehow equating a damp little instrument of cancer lodged between her lips with the act of copulation.

Click the Link for More…..via The Fag Hag: How a Girl’s Misguided Friendship Choices Can Lead to a Lifetime of Loneliness | ChristWire.

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12 Most Toxic Fish (For Humans and the Planet) | Mother Jones

Great info from Mother Jones.com:

Food & Water Watch just released its 2010 Smart Seafood Guide to the safety and sustainability of more than 100 kinds of fish and shellfish. Now I still love the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s pocket guides and searchable Seafood Watch site (the only place where you can geek out with a trawling fact card, as far as I know), but the Smart Seafood Guide has a few unique features worth pointing out.

For starters, while some guides only address human health issues (like mercury) and environmental problems (like overfishing), Food & Water Watch also considers seafood’s socioeconomic impact. “For example, lobster is a a key part of the economy up in Maine,” says Marianne Cufone, director of Food & Water Watch’s fish program. “Knowing that fact is really important to some consumers.”

Another handy thing: It’s organized by texture and taste, so you can figure out the safest and most sustainable options in categories such as “mild” and “steak-like.” This makes it easy to figure out substitutes for recipes.

Here’s Food & Water Watch’s “dirty dozen” list of seafood that failed to meet at least two of the group’s criteria. For more details, plus a list of alternatives for each verboten species, check out the guide. In no particular order:

1. King crab: Even though crab is abundant in some parts of the US, imports from Russia—which aren’t well regulated—are much cheaper and more common.

2. Caviar, especially from beluga and other wild-caught sturgeon: Overfishing and poaching of this coveted species is very common.

3. Atlantic bluefin tuna: Extreme overfishing, plus concerns about mercury and PCB contamination.

4. Orange roughy: May contain mercury and “is particularly vulnerable to overfishing due to its long lifespan and slow maturation.”

5. Atlantic flatfish (e.g. flounder, sole and halibut): Seriously overfished.

6. American eel: Concerns about mercury and PCBs.

7. Atlantic Cod: Overfished, and also has major bycatch problems.

8. Imported catfish: Much of it comes from Southeast Asia, “where use of chemicals and antibiotics is barely regulated.”

9. Chilean seabass: Concerns about mercury, plus illegal fishing in Chile damages marine life and seabirds.

10. Shark: May contain mercury, also overfished.

11. Atlantic and farmed salmon: Concerns about contamination with PCB, pesticides, and antibiotics. Also, waste and germs from salmon farms often leaches out of the cages and can harm the surrounding marine life.

12. Imported shrimp: About 90 percent of it comes from countries where the seafood industry (waste control, chemical use, and labor) isn’t well regulated.

via 12 Most Toxic Fish (For Humans and the Planet) | Mother Jones.

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“When Fascism Comes to America It Will Come Wrapped in the Flag and Waving a Cross”

This is a famous quote.  Variously attributed to Sinclair Lewis and to Huey Long.

I was researching it on the web today and came across this extremely interesting article about the situation in America in the 1930’s.

It is still very timely.  Maybe even more so than in 1938 when Prof. Luccock originally delivered this message.

New York Times:  September 12, 1938


Image:Fascism.png

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Andy Griffith: “A Face in the Crowd”

Seems like a good day to repost this….

This is one of my favorite films.  It’s also amazingly timely now, 53 years after it was made.  It could almost be called “The Glenn Beck Story.”

If you only think of Andy Griffith as Sheriff Andy Taylor of Mayberry, you really should see this movie.  He is amazing.  I can’t believe he didn’t get an Oscar nomination for this performance.  It also features a stellar performance by Patricia Neal, at her peak, and introduces Lee Remick in her first film.

Here is the original trailer:

There is also a great article in “Vanity Fair” about this film.  Here is the link:

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/03/wolcott200703

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