Ready for Hillary, Already

I blog because I can. I eat because I must. I exercise because I'm ashamed not to. I die so that I may live? I don't know. I try to be existential about everything, including this never ending acrimonious election and I die. Inside. A little each day. Enough already.

Last blog I posted was 2012--about wanting THAT acrimonious election dirt-digging to be over. Sigh. I sighed then. I sigh now.

I loved what Oprah said to the audience in a recent video interview. And I paraphrase: "I know you may not like Hillary, but so what? She's not coming over to your house!" Indeed. She's the most experienced, prepared, knowledgeable presidential candidate probably ever. And she works for women's, children's and family rights. So, let's get over ourselves, 'Murica, and follow the advice of the TV show host apparently everyone loves--Oprah. Not Drumph. He's only planning, preening, posturing, selling, dividing Americans to gain reality show market clout, anyway. Knowing he's losing, crying "rigged" at every opportunity, he's also busy hustling his new TV channel idea to homeboys like Roger Ailes and friends. Win or lose, we'll still have the Donald. I die.

Never have we sunk so low as to call women despicable names, just to gain voters. America's rascism reared its ugly head with the Obamas in the White House. Now, with Hillary Clinton our next president, watch out ladies. It's gonna get nasty out. Donald said so.

#ImWithHer

OMG! The System is Corrupt!

I woke up this morning with this urgent message screaming in my head. I was writing copy as I stretched. Must blog. Must lash out the only way I know how. Must do something about our broken political system. Yeah, as if I can. As if any of us can. I stopped trying to do that when I switched majors in college at 18 years of age. A degree in political science wouldn't do it. Even then, I saw the brokenness of our country, our world. And my inability to change it.

And so I gave up and became an advertising major. I can control what people like and dislike, I figured. I'm good at persuasive writing, creating interesting, fun ads and news stories that move products and services. In particular, I know how to entertain through advertising. And then I became disillusioned with that, as the conglomerates bought up everything media and the whole ad game changed, not for the better.

And always, I meditated and mostly pretended to live a Zen existence, as if it didn't matter what the idiots in Washington or the monsters in Bahrain did. But even with meditation today, I find I'm compelled to speak out, call out the idiots in Washington. And the monsters among us.

It's a broken system. People, we need to start screaming "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore." People are losing their homes to banks while bankers claim $9 million bonuses. Each. Each year. From tax dollars we've given them, because they were "too big to fail." And we continue to foster the "trickle down theory" of giving tax breaks to the top 2%, the Kochs and the GEs. While the silent majority (yes, we've become those fools again) eats it. And pays for it. Find the error in that picture without being an economist. It's not hard.

We continue to war when in 2011, we've had a long enough history on this planet, for even the dimmest witted of us to see that war only begets more war, more awfulness.

The mean, greedy bastards who make millions sucking off the American political system want to cut "Obamacare" and Medicare and everything else that even halfway portends to good social services for our citizenry. While we pour trillions into a war machine that only cripples our young who serve and those upon whom we wage this incessant madness.

We are a corrupt government. We are no better than Egypt. In fact, the economic disparities and social inequalities are scary similar. And I'm afraid that economically, we're closer to Greece. Or Rome, when Nero fiddled. Arrogance is going to do us in.

I think I understand why Americans are so fat. We overeat because we're trying to escape this crude, unequal system under which we live where the middle class is taxed to death. Where we borrow to the hilt from those to whom we give aid, like China. While the Cheneys and the Department of Defense contractors continue to profit on war that only destroys everything.

I'm mad as hell. I'm going to meditate now.

Your Rights. Use 'em or Lose 'em.

While we have a revolutionary, history making election in progress, the US Senate just passed a bill Tuesday night, 2/12/08, granting retroactive immunity to telecom companies that helped spy on Americans, without a warrant.

Fun stuff, huh? Congress just sanctioned the single largest invasion of privacy in American history. So much for the Constitution which our officials in Washington were elected to uphold.

But it's not over, if Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont and others in Congress have their way. And if we speak up. The Internet makes it oh, so easy to do, too. Senator Leahy urges citizens to email your home state Senators and Representative and ask them to insist on a House-Senate conference that produces a fair FISA bill.

To get email contact info on your senators and members of congress, I like this link: http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html

According to Leahy's email message Friday, 2/15/08, "We may have lost the first FISA fight on the Senate floor this week, but I'm not backing down -- and neither should you.

President Bush and his allies blocked our efforts to improve civil liberties protections and remove telecom immunity from the bill that passed the Senate. Without those fixes, the Bush-Cheney Administration's FISA bill is unacceptable.

There's still time to fix FISA and do it the right way -- providing the balance we need to protect national security, preserve civil liberties, and refuse retroactive immunity to phone companies who went along with Bush-Cheney Administration lawbreaking. But I need you to join me in speaking out, right now, to make sure we get a fair FISA bill."

So speak out now or forever hold your peace. No, I mean, really, hold your peace. Your wires and wirelesses just might be tapped.

Si Se Puede. The Election Continues.

Let me preface this by saying, my intent is to remain unbiased as I continue to post my comments on probably one of the most important elections in history. I'm a political animal, always have been. I can't help it. I find it fascinating. That said:

Another primary, another great Obama speech. The man is unbelievable. I can feel him channeling Martin Luther King, JFK, RFK and yes, Ronald Reagan as he works his magic at the podium and in front of the cameras. His numbers in South Carolina today, Saturday, 1/26/08, were amazing. As was Caroline Kennedy's New York Times endorsement of Barack Obama as the candidate who most reminded her of her father. Heavy words of praise, for sure.

Yes, today, the state that started the Civil War gave Obama a more than double win over Clinton. A true smack down for the Clintons' recent race-as-politics issues. I think it clearly proves voters are beyond these hateful tactics and want to move in a new, cleaner, more wholesome direction. We're so over that old school stuff.

It was surprising to me that Edwards made such a poor showing in the state he calls his own. But it's culling-of-the-Democrat-candidates' time, folks, and we all know that everyone wants to ride a winner. Edwards is a powerhouse with great ideas—actually, he is the candidate with the most substantive ideas for lifting America out of our dire straits. And he has done much to help push the two front runners in the correct direction. He's smart, decisive, and extremely instrumental in whatever change happens in November. You gotta give Edwards his kudos for that. When asked hard questions, he gives real answers and not platitudes. Refreshing, but it won't get him to the White House, I'm sure. Whether he's running, pushing, or simply hoping for a position in the next cabinet, he's doing something. At great expense to him and his family. Nobody rides for free.

Watching the returns on BraveNewFilms.org I was inspired to see the numbers of viewers and the percentages of Boomers, near Boomers, and older who were online and participating, while the younger viewers were posting comments saying the older generation was "out of touch" and didn't understand "the issues" confronting our country today. Obviously, BraveNewFilms is a young, hip, progressive site and their coverage should naturally skew to the younger generation. But the older generation is still way interested and involved. And very much a web-savvy group, as noted by the numbers below. (I would say this is a heads up to web marketers—but you already know that.)

Today's South Carolina Coverage/BraveNewFilms online viewer numbers by age:
Under 21: 6%
21 to 30: 22%
31 to 40: 14%
41 to 50: 17%
51 to 60: 24%
61+: 17%

To me, this substantial number of older viewers (58%) could say that younger voters simply aren't as interested as their older counterparts in election results. Not true. As election returns show, the younger constituents are turning out, getting involved, and voting in the primaries in unheard of numbers, which is a great sign for us all. Keep it up, Millenniums. We need your voice and your ideas. We need real change in politics and in the direction of this country and the world. You bring that to the table.

As for the Republicans, I don't even go there, as it's a mind-numbing blur. Staying the course. No change, no deviation. Business as usual. As if the American people aren't rising up and screaming for change. Do these guys even poll? No matter which candidate is in the media spotlight at the moment, the Republican candidates are not giving up the battle cry even if substantial numbers of Americans are tuned out—and switching horses. Good for change; bad for them. Also interesting that CNN had so many Republicans on camera today when they didn't even have a Republican caucus. "Equal time?" Whatever. And it wasn't just FOX doing this.

Finally, "Si Se Puede" is the Spanish translation of Barack Obama's mobilizing cry, "Yes, We Can." Which will be Obama's next move—to prove to the Hispanics that we are one people, one America. (His mantra.) More on that as we continue with the most exciting and important election we've had in generations. Or as one 30-something California voter stated, "It's the first time I've ever had a reason to vote in a Primary." Let's hope we all do.

Film at 11.