i know, i know

It's been like forever since I posted anything. Let's just say I've found a few other diversions to keep me occupied. And yes, one of them is working.

Speaking of work, they are going to outsource all or part of IT. Everyone is freaking out about it, but I've decided to ride it out, wait for my severance package and THEN stress about finding another job. lol

if you love to laugh at the repugnicans...

They're Everywhere

recruit those kids

Well, I think I've figured out how the KGB (king george bush) is going to avoid instituting the military draft. And I am not sure I like it, though surely fewer children will be sacrificed to the war machine.

I just read this:

"Thanks to a still little-known provision in the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, high schools like South Lakes are required to provide military recruiters with previously confidential information on students..." You can read the whole article here. In the same article it also says, "In 1999, military recruiters were barred from schools on 19,228 occasions, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. And especially now, recruiters assert, with the military fighting major combat operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan, the need for a steady supply of fresh recruits is ever more important."

And why do they need a steady supply of bodies? Because they have messed it all up and they don't have an exit strategy. If the whatever-the-hell-it-is (war's over, remember?) in Iraq were a school assignment, the shrub would have received a failing grade by now.

Here are some more articles about recruiters in the public schools:

Army Recruiters: No Latino Left Behind

OPERATION OPT OUT

Iraq presents challenges for military recruiters

Tougher sell than it used to be - Local military recruiters feel impact of war

army recruiter update

The name and rank of the recruiter and the address and phone number of the recruiting office in question have been forwarded to Recruiting Command. Stay tuned for updates.

join the army and drive a bmw

OR join the air force and drive a mercedes

This is what the Army recruiter told my daughter's 11th grade history class last week.

My daughter (thank God she is so smart) replied that her uncle has been in the air force for 20 years and can't afford a Mercedes.

WTF is wrong with these recruiters? And he didn't even mention the war in Iraq...

He did bring along a couple of young soldiers, one of whom is reported to have said that it's fun to go overseas and kill people. NICE.

I'm sorry but I would rather see my child in prison before hearing her say something like that.

And before you go off on me, I have 'earned' the right to talk about this because, you see, I was in the Army myself. I know what it's all about. It sucks. And that was during peace time.

Military recruiters should be banned from the public schools. Believe me, the kids know they are there and if the kids are interested, they will join.

I am considering filing a formal complaint about this man. What a jackass.

I need coffee.

wow - 'ethnic cleansing' of voter rolls in ohio - reposted from friday, november 5, 2004

Late yesterday it hit me - finally - that Kerry has conceded.

Unfuckingbelievable.

And then this morning, I received an email from truthout. Greg Palast of TomPaine.com has written an article - Kerry Won - that exposes the voting shenanigans in Ohio. Surprised? Nah, me neither. Now I guess we wait to see if the Kerry campaign finds the cojones to deal the shrub et. al. a swift kick in the ass...

Is this a reason to be hopeful that somehow the KGB (king george bush) will be removed from the White House? I'd like to think so, but I am afraid of getting my hopes up again. I think it is probably too much to ask the "haves and have mores" for justice and truth in government elections. We can kiss that notion goodbye as long as corporations are pulling the strings.

I need a vacation.

headache

I have a terrible headache this morning. Later...

f&*^ing boxes, part 2

I wish they would just go away...

boxes, part 1

I suppose this should be part 1,000,000,000,000,000. Oh well. I haven't written about the boxes (as a subject) so I say it can be part 1.

I picked things up in the living room. Didn't unpack any boxes, but did put some stuff away.

These boxes are mocking me.

They are.

Seriously.

OK, OK -- I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that I am completely crazy because not only do I think the boxes are mocking me, but I am writing about it. Whatever. We all have our issues.

So these boxes. Did I mention that I've had most of them for nearly two years? (Some of them don't belong to me and have only been here one year.) Maybe I'll call it a style. You know, decor de cardboard...

What's in these boxes? I'll tell you what's in these stupid boxes. Almost every pair of shoes I own is in one of them. The problem is that I don't know which box they are in. And in order to find them, I'd have to go through the boxes, which, as you are by now aware, I cannot bring myself to do.

What else? I have no idea what else. Crap I own. Crap that's been stored in boxes for two years and which I probably don't even need at this point. But I can't just throw them out because there might be something important in there.

I know how good it would feel to get rid of them. So what the hell is my problem?

I still need a vacation.

dream of dead soldiers

Last night, I dreamed of dead soldiers and their families. One in particular stands out. I dreamed of a helmet on a shelf. Inside the helmet was a toy water gun and something else that wasn't clear. The father was there and inconsolable. I woke up in a cold sweat. I hope this is not a preview of dreams to come. I'd like to dream of something other than death and destruction.

If we have a draft, I don't know what I'll do. I have a 16 year old and a 10 year old. I am particularly worried about the 16 year old. I think I will advise her to let them throw her in prison as a conscientious objector. Terrible, I know, but less evil than the alternative. Maybe if I knew the freaking BUllSHit twins were on their way to Iraq, I'd feel differently.

Hopefully, this insanity will be over by the time the 10 year old is old enough to be eligible.

I am off to Starbucks for a caffeine boost and to do my part to bolster the economy by paying an outrageous sum of money for a beverage.

pledge of allegiance

My son is a Cub Scout. Tonight he had a meeting. At the beginning of each meeting, the Scouts (and their parents) say the Pledge of Allegiance. You know it. It starts out, "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of .... " blah, blah, blah.

Tonight was the first time in my entire life that I absolutely DID NOT WANT to pledge my allegiance to that flag or to what it represents. In fact, I am feeling particularly seditious lately.

It's probably just a passing phase, but I don't know. The more I read and hear about others' disillusionment with the whole mess, the more depressed I get. It's really unbearable. Four more years, four more years, four more years...

oy.

four more years of BUllSHit

Yes, indeedy, folks. We are in for four more years of BUllSHit. OMG, I don't know about you, but I don't think my heart can take another four years.

Here's something you'll really enjoy -- a breakdown of states by average IQ (and the candidate for whom the majority voted).

Is it just me or do you think it's odd that the smartest states voted for Kerry while the dumbest voted for BUllSHit? Let me know...

State Avg. IQ 2004
1 Connecticut 113 Kerry
2 Massachusetts 111 Kerry
3 New Jersey 111 Kerry
4 New York 109 Kerry
5 Rhode Island 107 Kerry
6 Hawaii 106 Kerry
7 Maryland 105 Kerry
8 New Hampshire 105 Kerry
9 Illinois 104 Kerry
10 Delaware 103 Kerry
11 Minnesota 102 Kerry
12 Vermont 102 Kerry
13 Washington 102 Kerry
14 California 101 Kerry
15 Pennsylvania 101 Kerry
16 Maine 100 Kerry
17 Virginia 100 Bush
18 Wisconsin 100 Kerry
19 Colorado 99 Bush
20 Iowa 99 Not determined
21 Michigan 99 Kerry
22 Nevada 99 Bush
23 Ohio 99 Bush
24 Oregon 99 Kerry
25 Alaska 98 Bush
26 Florida 98 Bush
27 Missouri 98 Bush
28 Kansas 96 Bush
29 Nebraska 95 Bush
30 Arizona 94 Bush
31 Indiana 94 Bush
32 Tennessee 94 Bush
33 North Carolina 93 Bush
34 West Virginia 93 Bush
35 Arkansas 92 Bush
36 Georgia 92 Bush
37 Kentucky 92 Bush
38 New Mexico 92 Not Determined
39 North Dakota 92 Bush
40 Texas 92 Bush
41 Alabama 90 Bush
42 Louisiana 90 Bush
43 Montana 90 Bush
44 Oklahoma 90 Bush
45 South Dakota 90 Bush
46 South Carolina 89 Bush
47 Wyoming 89 Bush
48 Idaho 87 Bush
49 Utah 87 Bush
50 Mississippi 85 Bush

friday afternoon blues

Is it 4:20 yet? I am at work and there is only one thing I can think of that would be worse than being here -- unpacking boxes at home. Yes, yes, I still have rooms full of boxes from the last time I moved (2 years ago). I have way too much shit for one person. Add to that all of the crap that I have that belongs to other people and you have one gi-normous crapload of garbahge. Sometimes I kind of wish it would all just go away, you know?

My daughter has a soccer game tomorrow in Lake Arrowhead. I suppose I will drag my ass up the mountain to see it (and her, of course). I have something for her. (I won't say what it is since there is the slightest chance that she will read this.) But I have a feeling she'll be happy to get it.

My father is in the hospital, dying. He's been in the hospital, mostly in intensive care, for at least 5 weeks. He's had Parkinson's Disease for forever and this has been a long time coming. And yes, of course I voted in favor of funding stem cell research.

Back to the issue of my house being a mess. I really cannot stand it. And yet, I am incapable of doing anything about it. Why this is, I cannot figure out. I don't like it and yet I do nothing. I do want it done, though. Crazy talk.

Four more years of BUllSHit. Every time I think about it, I feel like I am going to hurl and I don't know if I can take it. I think I'll blame the state of my house on that moron...

wow - 'ethnic cleansing' of voter rolls in ohio

Late yesterday it hit me - finally - that Kerry has conceded.

Unfuckingbelievable.

And then this morning, I received an email from truthout. Greg Palast of TomPaine.com has written an article - Kerry Won - that exposes the voting shenanigans in Ohio. Surprised? Nah, me neither. Now I guess we wait to see if the Kerry campaign finds the cojones to deal the shrub et. al. a swift kick in the ass...

Is this a reason to be hopeful that somehow the KGB (king george bush) will be removed from the White House? I'd like to think so, but I am afraid of getting my hopes up again. I think it is probably too much to ask the "haves and have mores" for justice and truth in government elections. We can kiss that notion goodbye as long as corporations are pulling the strings.

I need a vacation.

campaign for america's future

http://www.ourfuture.org/onmessage/borosage/tp_kerryconcession.cfm

big brother is in the house

http://www.4verichip.com/

and you thought w was scary...

October 13th 2004

** FDA CLEARS VERICHIP™ FOR MEDICAL APPLICATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES **

DELRAY BEACH , FL and So. ST. PAUL, MN -- Applied Digital (NASDAQ: ADSX), a provider of Security Through Innovation™ and Digital Angel Corporation (AMEX:DOC) announced today that VeriChip™, the world’s first implantable radio frequency identification (RFID) microchip for human use, has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for medical uses in the United States. The FDA clearance follows the completion of a de novo application review.

another good anti-w blog - we got issues

http://wegotissues.blogspot.com/

stem cell research in california

from the us...

san francisco examiner
http://www.sfexaminer.com/article/index.cfm/i/110404n_stemcells

newark (nj) star ledger
http://www.nj.com/business/ledger/index.ssf?/base/business-0/1099551015278900.xml

from offshore...

new zealand herald
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3606971&thesection=news&thesubsection=world

the register (uk)
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/11/04/stem_cell_research_california/



the statesman (india)
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=2&theme=&usrsess=1&id=58853

the washington times speaks - are these guys serious?

http://www.washtimes.com/world/20041101-104314-2553r.htm

check this out - another blog

http://pandpelex.blogspot.com/ - Pop and Politics--Real-time Election Journal

"because of you, there is hope"

an email from moveon-help@list.moveon.org

Dear MoveOn member,

We'll admit to being heartbroken by the outcome of yesterday's election. It's a dark day.

But this afternoon, we received this email:

Subject: Running for Congress

Eli,
In light of what happened yesterday, my friend and I have decided to get personally involved. He wants to run for Congress in 2006, and I'm his campaign manager at this point. Do you know of a good information source for how we handle the legalities of forming a campaign, opening bank accounts, registering with the FEC, etc?

Thanks,Chris

We have suffered a defeat, but we are not defeated.

And our heartache does not diminish our pride in what you've done. We're proud about Wisconsin, where MoveOn volunteers turned out over 27,000 voters and Kerry won by only 11,813 votes. And New Hampshire, a former Bush state where we turned out 9,820 of the people on our list and Kerry won by 9,171 votes. Other groups were working with us in both states, but it's clear volunteers were at least partly responsible for the margin of victory.
We're proud about Ken Salazar, the newest Senator from Colorado, whose campaign was fueled by the donations of thousands of MoveOn members. We're proud that before he conceded this morning, John Kerry called to thank all of you for what we did to help his campaign.
Most of all, we are so proud of all of you, the MoveOn members who worked so hard and gave so much to take back America.

Yesterday, over 70,000 of us worked from before 5am Eastern to 8pm Pacific, getting voters to the polls. At 4:50am in Florida, we heard from our lead organizers that hundreds of precinct leaders had checked in and were on their way to the polls. In Columbus, with three hours to go, we sent out a final message saying "It's not too late! Help volunteer." Within minutes, two dozen people came running up the stairs in the rain, wanting to know, "What can we do? Put us to work!" One volunteer whose car broke down ran home, grabbed her bike, and biked from house to house in the thunderstorm, knocking on doors and reminding people to vote.

That you put so much into this effort makes the loss more painful in some ways. But the fact that so many of us were involved offers true hope for the future of democracy. In the campaign to defeat George Bush, you have proven that real Americans can have a voice in American politics. In the months and years to come, that revelation will change everything.

Although George Bush won by 3% nationally, we must remember that 55.4 million Americans stood with you and with John Kerry. You are certainly not alone. And a healthy environment, a strong and fair economy, good schools, domestic safety and the end of the war in Iraq are goals we all share -- red states and blue states alike.

Our journey toward a progressive America has always been bigger than George Bush. The current leg is just beginning -- we're still learning how to build a citizen-based politics together. But it's a journey our nation has been on for a long time. As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice."

Today, we'll take a breath. Tomorrow, we'll keep moving toward the America we know is possible.

Sincerely,--Adam, Ben, Carrie, Diane, Eli, Hannah, James, Joan, Justin, Laura, Lee, Marika, Mat, Meighan, Micayla, Nepunnee, Noah H., Noah W., Paul, Peter, Rosalyn, Wes, the team at We Also Walk Dogs, the team at Fenton Communications, and all 500 members of the Leave No Voter Behind staff.

November 3rd, 2004

PAID FOR BY MOVEON PAC http://www.moveonpac.org/ Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

from erin

email from my friend, Erin - on the concession speech of Senator John Kerry, 11/03/2004

I listened to the speech on NPR. Very nicely done - gracious. He's such a smart man.

It was so depressing today at work (you can imagine that there aren't many (ok ANY) Bush supporters at our school). My sister went online first thing this a.m. to volunteer for Hilary Clinton in 2008, lol.

I'm so sad that this country is so divided. I hope people in power start to pay attention to that. There's no *good guys vs. bad guys* here - lots of good people with different views. It's sad that 50% of us are marginalized because Bush won all those red states. Not sure if people are making it clear that nearly 50% of people in those red states still voted for Kerry!!!

OK, done venting and off soapbox for now.
E

welcome to the vomitorium

wednesday, 3 november 2004

Welcome to the vomitorium. I am creating this blog as a place where I can rant and rave and post things that I think others should see.

Today we are mourning the loss of the Presidential election to one of the most-hated leaders in American history. Even hated by some of the 50% of the nation who voted for him; they simply saw him as the lesser of two evils -- how and why I'll never know.

If something here offends you, I apologize. You can set up your own blog at www.blogspot.com.

-carrie barrott