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posts about #barackobamagloriasteinem more → Oprah Winfrey & Gloria Steinem Bask In The Glow Of Obama's Win
New York, 3:48 AM
Mon Nov 30
18 posts in the last 24 hours
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| posts about #barackobamagloriasteinem more → |
Oprah Winfrey & Gloria Steinem Bask In The Glow Of Obama's Win |
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11/06/08
11/06/08
All that said, I am unfamiliar with what period of American history your mom is referring to. You might ask her exactly when was this terrible time she's "remembering", where paying taxes to democrats resulted in something besides the federal govt. doing defense and interstates and farm subsidies, and, yes, welfare and WIC and the myriad programs the govt always does, Dem or GOP? I struggled hard to not go on welfare (more as a matter of personal pride rather than not qualifying), but I know many who've been on welfare in rough patches of their lives. They don't drive Escalades and live on steak. "Welfare queen" urban mythology to the contrary, it has never been this way. Ever.
I've seen people I know mistake bogeyman fears for some kind of experienced "reality". Is somebody in her immediate orbit is a hard right wing ideologue? Like a friend of mine, she may have absorbed that view rather uncritically from someone she trusts and that's what you're hearing reflected back at you. Or maybe she attracted to the Fox News black vs white version of the world, but the toxicity of such simplistic notions has overwhelmed her common sense.
Not much you can do to change extreme political views or favorite fears, in my experience. You might reassure her that none of what she dreads has yet come to pass, and it may well never occur. I guess I'd encourage her to put her belief on the side of angels and pray to be pleasantly surprised. What's she got to lose?
11/06/08
I saw some earlier posts on Jez about horrible Obama comments on Facebook and other social networking sites. I've seen them from some of my "friends" too, and have just been unfriending or ignoring them. But then I saw this posted by a person in my immediate family: "My president is black :( !?!?"
The person who wrote that and I are not close. We see each other around the holidays, and that's it. She is a teenager and she currently lives in rural Georgia, where I am from but no longer live. None of those are decent excuses (what would be?!), so I mulled it over for a long time and ended up sending her a lengthy message. I tried to strike a disappointed but encouraging, educated tone. I wish I could post the whole thing here for feedback. I hope I did the right thing. I feel like letting it go would have been damaging -- to both myself, and her. Help?
11/06/08
Yes, because I suddenly forgot I'm from rural Kentucky, the meth and welfare capitol of the South.
11/06/08
My answer to those sorts of comments is "Yep, your new president is a black guy. He also appears to be a smart, level-headed, well-organized big-picture guy. Considering how well the old-style rightwing white crew has been doing, I think we ought to give him a chance."
While they may not agree with me, it does shut them up, because all but the most rabid Jonestownian Republicans think BushCo has screwed the national pooch pretty badly.
11/05/08
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11/05/08
[www.cia-on-campus.org]
11/05/08
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11/05/08
Good luck in getting those inauguration tickets, I'll cross my fingers for you!
11/05/08
Go to: [www.palinaspresident.us] and turn your speakers on. Trust me, the song makes me cry everytime I hear it.
11/05/08
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11/05/08
The ACLU is arguing that this ban is so over-reaching, it is a matter for the legislature, not voters. Another group says it goes beyond the "simple" amendment (for which a simple majority is required) and should have required a 2/3 vote to then put it before the CA Legislature. The San Francisco City Attorney is also going to file a suit.
11/05/08
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11/05/08
Allow me to say this - I don't think that Steinem's observation implies, in any way, that racism should not be taken seriously. To the contrary -
I'm not advocating a competition for who has it toughest. The caste systems of sex and race are interdependent and can only be uprooted together.
She's not the one playing Oppression Olympics. People who want to deny the existence and prevalence of sexism because they think it somehow fortifies their position against racism are, IMHO, out to lunch.
I don't think everything she's done or said is perfect in this election, but honestly, if you think Gloria Steinem or "feminists" are the biggest enemy of anti-racism, your target sights are seriously out of focu.
11/05/08
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11/05/08
Shocked? That hardly does how I felt justice.
11/05/08
11/05/08
Am I the only sap who felt tears at the end of the show when the singers came on and the slide show began? I was folding laundry (fun times at the gerbilhouse) and felt my icy little heart melt a little. Okay, a lot.
11/05/08
11/05/08
However, I disagree with her whole "private citizen" thing and how she was backing him in her personal life, but not on her show. What I mean is, who she is is inseparable, for most of us, from what she does.
I feel like it's disingenuous to suggest that not talking about it on the show was the better option. We all knew. Just talk about it, for God's sake.
11/05/08
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Anyway, I get that she wasn't trying to shove her views down everyone's throats..and I also understand that she's a businesswoman and did not want to alienate Republican viewers.
11/05/08