Romney/Ryan and the Republican Reichstag

An Earlier Convention

The video clips I saw from the Republican Convention were absolutely terrifying. Well, Clint Eastwood interviewing an empty chair was laden with unintentional humor and pathos, but nonetheless the speeches and the audience comprised a scene reminiscent of Germany in 1933. 

Yes, the Democrats are hypocrites too and are unapologetically leading this country into financial ruin (witness Jerry Brown's recent "pension reform" proposal), but the gathering storm of Fascism in the Republican repertoire is absolutely appalling. To hear them champion equality and freedom while trumpeting the "sanctity" of marriage made every Jewish hair on my body vibrate with racial memory. 

How far would a Romney/Ryan administration go to remove the civil rights of LGBT folks? Make same-sex marriage illegal, ensure job and housing discrimination in the name of "religious freedom?" Possibly work toward re-criminalizing same sex pairings altogether? 

We know about the economic consequences of an administration that wants to remove medicare, social security, pensions and all other Roosevelt-era protections of our feeble "safety net." Yes, and also rescind a woman's right to decide what happens to her body. These are all grave and serious concerns. Still these genuine threats pale in the face of the open advocacy of dehumanizing a minority faction of the population. Economic devastation creates the perfect environment for the bacteria of hatred to thrive.

So, hang on to your seats because here we go on to Charlotte with the Democrats. Yes, that's North Carolina, a state which, by a sweeping vote in May of this year, made same-gender marriage and partnership illegal. Could you imagine the Democrats holding their convention in Alabama or Mississippi in the early sixties, before the Civil Rights Act abolished the Jim Crow laws?

Neither can I.

Solidarity and New Attacks

Oakland Rally--April 4th 2011

Of course their was not much mainstream press coverage but some workers took to the streets yesterday, the anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, to show solidarity with Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan and Indiana, states where workers rights are being butchered mercilessly. King who had arrived in Memphis in 1968 to support a strike of that city's sanitation workers. We must remember that a vast swath of states across the American South call themselves "right to work" states, Brave New World doublespeak that means the same as 'freedom is slavery," they are states where it is against the law to unionize.

Yes, we are up that proverbial creek full of fecal matter but we are beginning to fight back. And speaking of fecal matter, Dairyland Dictator Scott Walker is continuing to refuse to comply with judges orders and has said he will deduct a percentage of state worker's wages, in line with his illegal bill, on their April 21st paychecks. Holding fast to a his warped yet gilded memory of Ronald Reagan and the air traffic controllers, he is steadfastly refusing to acknowledge, even the not-so-just, justice system.

Paul Ryan

Meanwhile another meadow muffin, Republican, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (Scott Walker's evil twin), is going hog wild with his proposal to transform Medicaid and Medicare into a for profit, private voucher system with the unspoken goal of ending healthcare for a large chunk of middle and working class and poor folks. His sights are also set on doing away with Social Security and other last remnants of safety nets the non-wealthy rely on.

In other news, will the government shut down on Friday? Only time will tell...