Happy Valentine’s Day! It’s not Hallmark. It’s NPR.
Update: I left Denver, CO on Sunday morning. I drove 845 miles to St. Louis, MO to stay the night at my friend Joel’s house. I left St. Louis on Monday morning and drove to Cincinnati to see Chase. All in all, that’s 1,200 miles and 18.5 hours.
“Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples. The Constitution simply does not allow for ‘laws of this sort.’ Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620, 633 (1996).” — Judge Stephen Reinhardt
American culture offers young Americans the “choices” of fundamentalist religion and fundamentalist consumerism. All varieties of fundamentalism narrow one’s focus and inhibit critical thinking. While some progressives are fond of calling fundamentalist religion the “opiate of the masses,” they too often neglect the pacifying nature of America’s other major fundamentalism. Fundamentalist consumerism pacifies young Americans in a variety of ways. Fundamentalist consumerism destroys self-reliance, creating people who feel completely dependent on others and who are thus more likely to turn over decision-making power to authorities, the precise mind-set that the ruling elite loves to see. A fundamentalist consumer culture legitimizes advertising, propaganda, and all kinds of manipulations, including lies; and when a society gives legitimacy to lies and manipulativeness, it destroys the capacity of people to trust one another and form democratic movements. Fundamentalist consumerism also promotes self-absorption, which makes it difficult for the solidarity necessary for democratic movements.
rtnt:
The Making of a Post-Post-Partisan Presidency
Today’s guest submission is from Javier Ogaz.As President Obama prepares to give his State of the Union address, which pundits will parse for evidence of how he plans to take on Republicans this fall, it’s easy to forget how different his strategy toward the opposing party was at the outset of his presidency. Three years in, it appears Obama’s efforts at post-partisanship have been futile. Ryan Lizza writes for the New Yorker on whether it is possible to reach across the aisle when an energized opposition has little interest in compromise:
Obama didn’t remake Washington. But his first two years stand as one of the most successful legislative periods in modern history. Among other achievements, he has saved the economy from depression, passed universal health care, and reformed Wall Street. Along the way, Obama may have changed his mind about his 2008 critique of Hillary Clinton. “Working the system, not changing it” and being “consumed with beating” Republicans “rather than unifying the country and building consensus to get things done” do not seem like such bad strategies for success after all.
It’s Saturday night and I’m home alone thinking about my life. Three glasses of wine make for good company. They loosen thoughts and free the mind. These thoughts are neither good or bad, but they paint an accurate picture of what I’m feeling. Amy Winehouse comes on the speakers and fills my apartment with lament. My odds are stacked. I’ll go back to black.
NEW VIDEO! Most everyone has noticed the wide swath of internet websites that have been blacked out in protest of the pending PIPA / SOPA legislation in congress, but not as many people understand exactly why those bills are such a problem.
This short documentary explores PIPA and SOPA, how the bills work, who’s behind them, and why all internet users have reason to be concerned.Please help us by SHARING THIS VIDEO and spreading the word about PIPA / SOPA.
New Left Media has just released a new video discussing PIPA/SOPA. If you want to know what the bills try to accomplish, the technical mechanisms that are used, and who supports the bills, WATCH THE VIDEO! Speak out against ONLINE CENSORSHIP!
PIPA/SOPA would have disastrous effects on the Internet. We’ve seen the ability of social media and the free flow of information change the everyday lives of millions of people. Stand up for free speech!
I’ve been listening to this song on repeat for longer than I’d like to admit. One of my close friends is dealing with getting over someone and I continually find myself unable to give him advice. I usually try to tell him that time heals all things. We move on from others when they aren’t in our lives. It happens with friends, family, and lovers. Each are complicated in their own way. There’s a certain sadness in all endings.
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. The true neighbor will risk his position, his prestige and even his life for the welfare of others.
I know it sounds a little harsh, but I’ve had to endure the last week of football posts. I was calling them #thecolosseum.
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