I was so happy to see all the wonderful pictures from the "Alaska Women Reject Palin" rally in Anchorage (click on the link for the full gallery, plus great video of the event).When I was in Alaska a few months ago, I was in a bubble of writers, so it was hard to get a sense of the pulse of the state; I certainly didn't think to ask anyone about their governor. Anne Lamott's keynote address of the conference was a public event, though, and she held no punches when she spoke to the packed auditorium of her hatred of Bush and his cronies. A small number of people stormed out in protest, but the majority of people there seemed so happy to hear their own thoughts spoken out loud on stage. I know I was! It is always a relief to connect with like minded folk; it's always an inspiration to see like-minded folk banding together in the name of justice, in the name of a more hopeful future, as the photos of this Anchorage event so beautifully display.
I was in Oceanside this morning with my dad and my boyfriend, and saw a small demonstration of "secure our borders" Minutemen. I yelled "boo" from inside the car as we drove by, but I had to remind myself that they had every right to be there, that it is wonderful that in America, we (still) have freedom of speech. I intend to use that freedom tonight when Karl Rove comes to speak at Claremont McKenna College. Any suggestions about what I should put on my protest sign? I'm thinking something along the lines of "Rove Drove Us in the Wrong Direction", but that's not short or punchy enough. Maybe I could just have one that simply says "Shame"...
UPDATE: While I still plan to vociferously protest Rove tonight, I almost want to kiss him today for saying McCain's ads have gone too far. As the linked article states: "When Karl Rove is saying your political ads have gone too far, you know you must be doing something dishonest." Bless you, Turdblossom.
2 comments:
My sister lives in Alaska, is a lifelong Democrat, but views Palin not as inherently evil, but as a good politician who had the sense to run against the incredibly corrupt GOP establishment in Alaska. When Palin was named to the ticket, she couldn't help but feel some hometown pride...but at the same time, did attend the anti-Palin rally, and certainly doesn't support her bid.
There's a lesson there, I think. Democrats have to find a way to run against Palin without calling her (in effect) Satan. Not as easy as it might seem.
Gayle
One thing I never understand is how the Republicans continue to see immigrants as threats to the American way of life, when at the same time they are indeed using the immigrants to gather support for their social conservatism.
The Republican Party in California does NOT work without the immigrants - particularly the Vietnamese, the Koreans, and the Protestant Latinos. Without their social conservatism, misogyny, and homophobia, nothing conservative will ever get done in California.
And sitting in Seoul, I can definitely state that it was the full intention of the South Korean right-wing regimes of the past (and even today), to ship out hundreds of thousands of its pawns to the United States (the most famous being Reverend Moon of the Unification Church, but most Korean-Americans do count in this category), so that they could keep the Republicans in power and keep America spending its money on military pork as opposed to more domestic matters (including programs for "undeserving lazy" blacks and Latinos).
Which is why I was kind of heartened to see continuing protests here in Seoul against the importation of American beef, even though it hurts American ranchers. It's less about mad cow disease (which is really hysteria) and more about the right-wing S Korean government bending over backwards for the Republicans.
Rach
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