no. 25

In an ongoing effort to address the topics of a list I wrote in June 2008, I will provide annecdotal evidence of those events here.  First, no. 25, Vote.

I cast my ballot in my second presidential election yesterday.  Watching previous elections I was of the understanding that these things are all night affairs.  Who is going to win, and when?  So, I was surprised by how soon after I arrived at my chosen election night party the decision was made.  I am not really sure how to communicate exactly what I feel.  I am totally elated, a thrill for the future is coursing through my body.  I feel electrified, that my voice matters, that the voices of my friends and family and fellow Americans were heard. 

Jessica's party was an absolutely fantastic way to celebrate the Obama victory.  The party was held at Dave's studio overlooking the intersection of 12th and Pike.  After several celebratory glasses of champagne, confirmation of election results, a conscession and acceptance speech, the party took to the streets.  We were not alone.  Thousands of people flooded the intersections and avenues of Capitol Hill to cheer, congratulate, and embrace their friends and loved ones.  Everyone's faces were aglow, people radiated in ways both unfamiliar and beautiful.  I will not ever forget the sheer joy I experienced celebrating this election with my good friends and my incredible community.  I have never in my life seen such genuine enthusiasm and good will.  Last night was incredibly memorable for me.  

As today turns into tomorrow and tomorrow into January 21st, my hope evolves.  I will leave the now and look toward inauguration, and hold on tight to the anticipation I have for the next four years.  I cannot wait to be part of Barack Obama's pledge to bring change to America, and to the world.  It is incredible to be part of this, absolutely and totally incredible.  

if this were pinball

Honest to god, I feel personally jilted by the American financial system and the longstanding policy of deregulation that has led us to this place, the place we find ourselves today.   It goes something like this:

Prey upon the poor and lend money to them because they have poor credit! and limited financial capacity! and need money! and then you can eventually raise their interest rates a 100% after four years! and you'll make out like a fat cat! 

except when those people with poor credit and limited financial skills can't make the payments with the increased interest rates, and since you already cut their loan up and sold it to the i-bank down the street for a hefty profit, it isn't the credit union calling for money, or even the state, it's the i-bank that bought it and obviously can only take the house, because it has some value.  but there is still a loss.

then just when the creditor can't pay (i.e. middle class Americans), demand capital and put unknown pressure on the financial system!  and leave hundreds of thousands of Americans without homes!  

Don't fret, those companies can just write their debt down.  No worries!

But then come September.  Recall January when there were 5 i-banks that existed, now down two a paltry September set.  And somewhere in the neighborhood of, oh, i don't know, 150,000 American jobs shit canned.  

And there you go, the short version of why America is what America is today.  Why McCain thinks the fundamentals of our Economy is strong.  And why I feel jilted.

It amazes me that the men and women who exploited so many poor Americans all of a sudden know what it's like to be on the short end of their trade. 

And the sad thing is, while I want not to feel bad for them, I can't, because I sympathize with all of them, and every other American who is also affected by the financial tumult we experienced today.  Because today something big happened, and it is going to grow even bigger over the next several months.  

You know what, this is the fierce urgency of now.  And it is about politics and policy, about rich and poor, and the ability to call ourselves Americans.  Americans who stand on foundations of our making and not the foundations of foreign making, because a foreign bailout leaves the greatest country in the world as insolvent as its banks.  

And that's scarier than I know how to imagine right now.  

people i hate

sarah palin.

worth a 1000 words

if you're at all interested in political figures and the photography of political figures, particularly barack obama and the photos of him from the 2008 campaign, you should check out this expose in the new york times.

the progressive politics of possiblity

yesterday hillary clinton suspended her campaign for president and announced her endorsement of and support for barack obama. i admit, i'm elated about this. i'm definitely happy for many reasons, but mostly I'm relieved that the democratic party can finally begin to coalesce and campaign against the republican machine. i know the primary season was long, and that some argue it was bitter and spiteful, but i think it was remarkable in that it actually didn't resort to the mud-slinging, swift boating that we've experienced in campaigns past; instead, every american eligible and willing to vote had the opportunity and most importantly, barriers were broken and glass ceilings were shattered.

i want to address clinton, the senator, the candidate, the woman. i want to acknowledge the grace with which senator clinton spoke about senator obama yesterday, her expression of commitment to his candidacy, and mostly how her efforts over the course of her campaign have given me quite a bit of hope.

senator clinton gracefully suspended her campaign yesterday and threw her full support behind senator obama and his campaign. i know it took her a long time to step aside, but for some reason it feels right that she did it on her own accord. her speech made it obvious that she has a commitment to the united states that is no less great than that of sen. obama. they are both exceptional leaders who want nothing but the best for this country and for its people. yesterday, she was eloquent and graceful in her speech, acknowledging senator obama's abilities and and qualifications, “I have served in the Senate with him for four years...in this campaign with him for 16 months...stood on the stage and gone toe-to-toe with him in 22 debates. i’ve had a front-row seat to his candidacy, and I have seen his strength and determination, his grace and his grit.” this is what i would expect from her, sen. clinton does not hate barack obama, she just ran a campaign the only way she knew how and her behavior was no less similar to that of any man who came before her.

i suppose, though, what really struck me about this was the time she took to acknowledge the remarkable feat she accomplished, she is a woman who ran for president of the united states of america, who won primary state victories, and engaged in the national political discourse as an equal of men. this is what i am proud of. she said,

"you can be so proud that, from now on, it will be unremarkable for a woman to win primary state victories, unremarkable to have a woman in a close race to be our nominee, unremarkable to think that a woman can be the president of the United States,” she said. “To those who are disappointed that we couldn't go all of the way, especially the young people who put so much into this campaign, it would break my heart if, in falling short of my goal, I in any way discouraged any of you from pursuing yours.”

i am the daughter and granddaughter of very strong women, who for much of their lives have fought against the patriarchy and misogyny that tries (has tried) to keep them from lofty aspirations or achieving their goals. i have heard about this from birth. i have been very confidently instructed in my own capacity and capability, often encountering surprise and resistance to my approach to the world. But, whatever. I am proud to see the endeavors of the feminist era finally manifest, opening doors and cracking open ceilings for me and the women and men older and younger than myself.

just because senator clinton didn't win the nomination does not mean she failed. she has successfully given me hope and proudly exclaimed that she has every right to make decisions on her own account (even the pesky decision of when she should step aside and let a man take center stage). and for that, i'm really very thankful.

i look forward to this campaign with hopefulness. i look forward to this campaign for the possibility it promises, for the hopefulness supporting its lofty, progressive platform of the politics of yes, we can! we, man and woman, finally, equally capable and committed to a new united states of america.

yes, we can

Do you remember your first political instruction?

I do. It came, initially, when my grandfather decided I was capable of grasping the magnitude of party preference. I think I was seven. I must have been seven, because that was 1991 and it was leading up to an election year. He said, you, you’re a BICD, and don’t you ever forget it. Well, walking around saying that meant very little to me way back then. Who cares what a seven year old thinks? But now, now it matters. ‘BICD’ is roughly translated as “Butte Irish Catholic Democrat” and in a town like Butte where the holy trinity of Ethnicity, Political Affiliation and Religion makes the man-- a place where a seven year old girl's party affiliation is just as important as a 70 year old man’s.

Well, today I am just as much the BICD I was when I lived in Butte only an older, more educated Seattleite (who just happens to be admittedly less catholic). Regardless, why is this important? Well, my grandfather is one of the most instrumental political figures in my life. A man whose lessons and wisdom stressed community centeredness, an obligation to serve, a duty to others, loyalty to the collective, and an unwavering awareness of the potential of a life incorporating these values. He also happens to be a staunch supporter (still) of John Kennedy. And last summer I had a conversation with him about politics and about what I perceived to be a tremendous change on the horizon. And, fittingly, he told me a story…

“In the 1960s, I was an unemployed WWII veteran with five children and a mortgage. I was in need of something that made my life make sense, something that could lift me from the uncertainty and pressure of my responsibilities, something that would ensure a promising future for my family and for my community. I was ready to vote for change”

Last Christmas I was having a conversation with him about Barack Obama and he sat across from me and said, “have you noticed I haven’t said anything to you, now it’s your generation’s turn, I’m old hat, but you all want change.”

I left the room and walked into the dining room and climbed a ladder that happened to be there from an earlier venture into the upper closet. Tucked away in the back corner was something i'd nver seen before. Inside, tucked away, was a voluminous stack of newspapers from the 1960s that chronicled the campaign, election, inauguration, and assassination of JFK. I didn't know what to think and then almost immediately something really powerful washed over me, in onlya a mere few seconds, for the first time in my life, I think I understood what a movement meant to a person, I understood what it was like for someone to be part of a movement for change.

I want that feeling. I want to feel like I am part of something that monumental. That a political figure’s ability to change the course of history, to move the world with words, to bring together a polarized society in equality and equitability is possible. That feeling is important to me. And that assertion is the most profoundly certain I have been in quite some time.

I want to one day tell my grandchild that something really mattered, that I, too, was part of a movement. Like my rather inspiring grandparents, who you see flanking President Kennedy in the photo above.