Now That's a Grudge

Listening to: Foolish Games – Jewel
Mood: On

As I mentioned, I’ve renewed my relationship with BBC news. Ah BBC, but I missed you. I’ll never leave you again.

Greece is in a spot of economic troubles right now, as you probably know. Again, this blog is based on the presumption that you don’t like ostrich holes. If you do, just go, this won’t make any sense to you. Ahem. So yes. Economic woes. This isn’t what caught my attention, as Greece was one of the first European places to start throwing around SOS signals.

Apparently, many Greeks blame Germany for their economic woes. Wait… what? That, intrepid reader is exactly what I thought. According to the news story, there are still plenty of people out there who are angry with Germany for its rampant invasion and destruction and subsequently, lack of any economic reparations being paid.

In fact, if you check out what Wikipedia has to say, it really does look like Greece got shafted from a few different directions in WWII.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_history_of_Greece_during_World_War_II

While I do sympathize with Greece about how the end of WWII went down, I’m still failing to see how this relates to the current management of their economy and how this turns out to be Germany’s fault. Is any of this actual feeling, or is it more like, “Hey, remember how Germany sucked a while back? Let’s blame them!” type thing. Is anyone from WWII still alive still? Apparently there are still lots of folks around, but I have a hard time imaging that all those elderly veterans being the driving force behind this sentiment.

Can we call it as it is? I’m sure that the end of WWII was a devastating time for Greece. However, this was damn close to 100 years ago. 100 years of government, policies, and decisions being made since that time. Yes, it is convenient to blame Germany for encouraging austerity measures, but I really don’t think this is a rational thought pattern for finding out what went wrong and what should be done to fix it. The entire world has had a paradigm shift in thinking. That, Greece, is why so many countries in the world are struggling, not because of the outcome of a war. Almost the entire world has been at war at some time or other. Empires and wealth come and go. I think it’s time to man up a bit. To be fair, I think the shift in thinking has to happen for any country that is over extended and facing economic difficulties. I’m just picking on Greece for being whiney about it and blaming someone else for their problems. The fact is, Germany is not responsible for your economic choices. You chose to be a part of the European Union, meaning you get the responsibilities as well as the benefits. If everyone is tightening their belts, you can’t whine that Germany was unfair and that you should get an exception. Hopefully Greece won’t ever get into another war with Germany, so that doesn’t need to be an economic concern for them. They do however need to do some serious thinking as to how they’re going to help themselves work on the economic problems they do have. Looking back at the past and blaming someone else for your current problems never solved a damn thing.

Destroying Bin Laden’s Compound

Hmm. Seems Pakistan is going for some positive PR by making a big deal out of destroying Bin Laden’s compound.

I’m kind of at a loss as to why this is important enough to rate a spot on the top news wires. The man has been dead for a while now. It’s almost like putting Bin Laden’s name on paper they would be hoping for some higher ratings or something. Ridiculous, I know.

Seriously folks. He’s dead. What does it matter what happens to his compound?  I’m pretty sure that destroying it won’t demoralize anyone who chooses to carry on in his legacy. I’m also pretty sure his family isn’t going to claim to care, even if they do. So…why? Buildings are just buildings. They don’t carry on the legacy of people who have spent time in them. Otherwise  serial killers' houses – never used again.

I really hate PR stunts and this just reeks of being one. I’m pretty sure no one in Pakistan is all that interested in hearing about his house being torn down (in fact, it may piss off some people quite a bit). Spitting on Bin Laden’s grave by being happy his house was torn down just seems a bit juvenile.

Really, Bin Laden was just a man. He was a particularly hateful and evil man, but only a man none the less. Can we move on already?

Becky

Watching the Nonsense From Afar

My family and I have moved to India. This is really old hat news for me, but since I don’t think I ever mentioned it in this blog, I thought I would explain my absence from complaining about all the nonsense. 

In fact, I haven’t paid much attention to what’s happening in the US since we left in September. I took a look at my blog today and it made me wonder exactly what was going on in the US.  I think some BBC viewing time is definitely in order. Alas, while India has stepped out of the comedy stone age and now gets Comedy Central (even though the programming is distinctly un-Comedy Central-ish), I still haven’t been able to catch a current John Stewart, which makes me weep on a regular basis. I do love that man.

Anyhow. Being out of the US with little access to all the nuanced news and talking heads in the US has made me wonder how much all of that nonsense really means anyhow.  It just doesn’t seem to have the same importance to my family now that we aren’t living there.

I’m going to have to catch up with what’s going on, just so I can stay informed.

Becky

That is so Gay

Listening to:Staind

Mood: Mellow

So…In case you aren’t following politics in or around New York, Albany recently passed a bill allowing gay marriage.   Wait, wait. Have you read about how much I LOVE Albany? People, ALBANY passed gay marriage in NY! This is indeed an interesting day in history. A great one to be sure, but completely unexpected for this blogger. New York city definitely has a well deserved reputation as being a liberal Mecca, but we actually have quite a few conservative minded folks from the rest of the state. Albany is not usually a place to take a stand; it’s a place to establish yourself in political corruption.  So that would be a pretty big middle finger pointed at all the rest of the god fearing people in the country who are positive that gay marriage is going to open up a big sink hole somewhere in Kansas that will swallow any and all wholesomeness in this country.  Mmm hmm. Sorry about that.

Let’s stick in a disclosure: I’m not gay. I don’t even know anyone who is openly gay. I’m really hoping that I don’t offend anyone who this directly applies to because I support this idea whole heartedly.  I get a pretty big hard on over people being able to be equal. 

This historic incident just happened to occur at the same time as the gay pride parade was happening.  I love it.  I do think the parade would have been a lot more colorful and fun (if that’s possible!) had the bill been passed before the parade.

I think the kicker of this whole thing is sitting slightly below the surface here. You see, New York wants to brand itself as some kind of gay marriage destination. You heard right, we are hoping to attract the gay tourist market segment. As if New York didn’t have enough reasons for people to come here. Now, this leads me to be suspicious that this law was passed because all of the politicians had little dollar signs dancing in their vision after someone convinced then there was money to be had. That’s right people, this always comes back to money. As happy as I am that this was passed, I don’t for one minute believe anyone in the state capital cared all that much about civil rights or the morality of being gay. They cared about dollars. Welcome to New York people.

Becky

Enlightenment vs. being a Pussy

Listening to: Random Hindi on the ipod

I was watching John Stewart the other night (as I am known to do on a regular basis) and watched him roast John Boehner for the waterworks show he has been putting on as of late. Before anyone accuses me to promoting the bastion that is the heartless, sexist, uber masculine old boy’s club, let me just express my support for the enlightened, sensitive, new age male. That being said, grow a pair Boehner.  The American public has had its fill of apologies filled with false regret and tears, we’re really not falling for this display, not matter how genuine it may have been.  I think it’s great that you feel strongly about certain issues (this is key to becoming a good politician, if that exists, in the first place), but crying on tv…. It just undermines your point.

I’m not a big fan of Boehner in the first place. I know it’s a cheap shot, but I can’t help but think of him as Beaner every time I see him on tv. After someone like Obama, it’s hard to find the same gravitas and leadership and many politicians come across as spineless jellyfish. I’m sure this is a useless generalization, but it is my opinion after all.  

Seriously Boehner, meet me at camera 2. Listen, I’m not really sure if you have genuine strong opinions or this is a new sensitive side of you that you’re trying to convince us that you really do have. Either way, if Obama bowing to certain world leaders comes off soft, you have absolutely no chance of being taken seriously if you are willing to cry on tv. Tell you what. How about you translate your strong emotions into a motivation to implement some real, strong, actual changes that we can respect you for? That way we can appreciate you as an enlightened politician instead of just a possibly fake weepy pussy.  Good luck with that.

Becky

Israel vs. Palestine - War of the 2 year olds.

Mood: Calm

Listening to: Wind of Change - Scorpions

The republicans have won. No doubt you noticed from all the little happy dances that have been performed ever since on every news channel out there.  I’m going to leave this alone for today, but I’ll be back. This means you Boehner, I’m nowhere near done with you. 

So. Israel and Palestine. According to Yahoo news, Israel is defending its choice to continue construction in Eastern Jerusalem. It seems to me that Israel is amazingly callous and uncaring of any world opinions or criticism on how they are conducting themselves with the Palestine, a situation that would seem to benefit from a little something called diplomacy. In a recent Time article with Condoleeza Rice, she stated that there was only one workable solution was two separate nations working to respect each other. I’m not a huge fan of Dr. Rice, but I totally agree with her on this. Why in the world can these two countries not behave like adults on this? Perhaps I don’t know ALL the facts on this, but Israel does seem to be the aggressor in most of these situations. All of the land grabbing and refusal to budge on anything.  Eh Israel, meet me at camera 3. You guys got your own country. Take a look back in history and notice how rare a solution this is. Seriously. Not sure how you pulled it off, but you have your own space. It’s a decent sized space that came at the expense of the countries around you. Why be assholes about taking further space from your neighbor?  Prime Minister Netanyahu, your statement is either naiveté, or simple belligerence. Just because you don’t agree that you shouldn’t develop in eastern Jerusalem doesn’t mean it isn’t affecting the peace in the region. Good grief.  Contrary to your belief, you can respect the border. Let it go. Redirect your attention, persistence and efforts into developing your country in other ways. Really, 1300 apartments in that exact neighborhood isn’t really all that important. Good lord, I feel like I’m talking to my own children. Don’t make me tape a line down the middle of your room and make you have a time out until you agree to play nice. Palestine, you meet me at camera 4.  Israel, you stay right where you are at camera 3. No poaching in on camera 4.  Palestine, if you continue to take the high road, you will come out ahead in this conflict. Keeping your stance on not giving in is a good idea. You don’t have to be a wimp in the process, but let’s keep that crazy Hamas under wraps, ok? Try and keep the suicide bombers to a minimum. The world will eventually place enough pressure on Israel that they will have to cave in and stop building. Patience is the key here.

Becky

The Slimy Time of Year

Mood: Rather Lost. I missed an entire week somewhere.

Listening to: Sheryl Crow

It’s that time of year, kids. The time when you can turn on the tv and get all the dirt on your local politicians and those who wanted to wade into the fray and challenge them. The nerve of those amateurs. Thinking that they can get into democratic politics. The very idea. Ludicrous. The joyous time of year when campaign signs litter the street corners and curbs of headquarters trying to sucker the innocent into thinking they have chosen a candidate that will actually change Albany. Ah, the innocent – they are so cute you just want to pinch their cheeks to make them wake up! It’s the time of year when they create advertisements about themselves and how they will create change in Albany and the other guy will without a doubt contribute to the shamefulness and mockery of democracy that is Albany.  Yep, local elections folks, just in case you had your head in the sand.  If you live in New York, you have a bit of an idea of how local politics runs. 

The word that keeps popping up here is Albany – our capital and where all of the political machinations occur.  What those of you not from New York may not understand is that Albany is historically and currently notoriously corrupt. To the point where corruption is almost a birthright of any politician involved in any level at all. The fun thing about all of these sound bite advertisements is that none of these local fools can change Albany at all. Kind of like Obama not being able to single handedly change everything we hated about the white house the minute he landed up there. It just ain’t happening. Even if we wiped the slate clean and started over again with all new politicians, or even average folks, Albany’s reputation and nefarious nature would suck the newbies in and create more of what was there. It’s just the nature of the game. You may not like it, but let’s be realistic. 

I’ve always hated the absolute reek of sleaze that accompanies local politics. The first whiff of an election a few months away and you can sit back and let the mud pies fly back and forth.  Even if they aren’t slinging mud, they’re promising people the moon, a Mazarati, and everlasting Change. Can we please let this idea go? It didn’t work for Obama, gifted speaker that he is; it’s not going to work for you either. 

My husband has encouraged me to enter local politics just for the giggles he would get -he’s a bit sadistic that way. I told him I wouldn’t touch that nonsense with a 20 foot stick. Kind of like my watching the “Situation” on MTV. I like watching him, but I would not touch that fool with a 20 foot stick. Ew. God knows where that’s been.    

So we can divide the candidates into 2 basic categories – the innocent and the players. The innocent think they can honestly change things. Or are really, really good at selling that idea. The players have been there, seen it, and done it twice with 2 girls, a dog, and possibly a reindeer. These guys are the professional mud slingers that have written down every real or perceived transgression of absolutely everyone else, and they’re not afraid to use it. This would include the slaughtering of the innocent because they can’t possibly do things right. It’s pretty easy to tell them apart.   

It makes you want to throw your hands up at the whole system, but that’s what they want because then they can carry on as they have been for so long.

Becky