Movie time!

No Trump!
No KKK!
No fascist USA!

~~ Green Day chant

I don't write movie reviews very often because I'm more of a "do your own thing" kind of person. People like different things. 

But every once in a while a movie comes along that I think is so good, so clever, so powerful, or some combination of all of those things that I want to write a little bit about it and about why I recommend it so highly. 

"BlacKkKlansman" is one of those movies. We just got back from it and I'm still thinking about it and still processing my emotions. You've probably heard about the storyline because the movie has been getting a lot of buzz. A black cop begins a dialogue with the local chapter of the KKK and a fellow cop (a white guy) impersonates him to infiltrate the group. Sounds kind of implausible but it's a true story! Don't worry, no spoilers ahead. 

It was directed perfectly by Spike Lee, all of the actors were great (including a local kid-made-good, Adam Driver), and the storyline, set in 1979, resonates powerfully in today's atmosphere of divisiveness and racism. 

There are some very tense and uncomfortable moments. The racism made me feel ill. If someone had turned on the lights and looked at my face, I'm sure I had a look of disgust several times. 

There are also some laugh out loud moments. Thank you, Mr. Lee, for breaking the tension once in a while! The sly references to the orange creature occupying our White House were funny but also made me feel sad. Who would ever have thought that we'd reach this point? There is also a lovely dance scene in a club that brought a tear to my eye. It was just beautiful.

There is some good, suspenseful action-type stuff, but I won't say any more about that. We definitely get some satisfaction but it is short-lived as we are reminded in a very sobering, powerful way of what is happening in our world right now. Especially this weekend's sad one-year anniversary of the white power march in Charlottesville, Virginia. I read that Spike Lee purposely released it this weekend and I think that was a good move.

The theater was silent as the movie ended. 

It is a very powerful movie that has plenty to say. It's a message that we need to hear. And you know what? It made me feel determined. When I hear some racist white (or orange) A-hole say, "We're taking our country back," I think, "It's my country, too, motherfucker, and you're not getting it. Not without a fight." 

A great movie. You should go see it.

The Birthers Who Wouldn’t Die

Article first published as The Birthers Who Wouldn’t Die on BlogCritics

Bowing to over two years of birther nonsense, with increased yammering as of late from Donald Trump, President Obama today released his long form birth certificate publicly. There were no surprises here. It is essentially the same as the previous document released a couple of years ago, with the addition of the hospital name and signatures of attending physicians and witnesses. There were also no surprises from Trump, who pulled a muscle patting himself on the back, nor were there surprises from the birthers who predictably countered with “Why did it take so long?” and answered themselves with “It gave him time to have it forged.” Trump said he needed to examine it to ensure its authenticity. Perhaps we need to send the birth certificate on the road so every American can see it with their own eyes, and touch the raised seal with their fingertips. We can send it off in a super cool tricked-out tour bus, call it the Birther Bus Tour 2011. “Are you ready to rock? On your feet or on your knees!”

Sadly, it’s increasingly clear that nothing will ever be good enough to convince these people that our President is a bona fide American citizen and that he is their duly elected President. When some of us point out the obvious, that there is a racial element to their refusal to believe in his citizenship, they howl that we are playing the race card. As Bill Maher said, “There are two things that teabaggers hate. One is being called racists. The other is black people.”

I can simply find no other explanation for their willful, blind ignorance concerning facts and documentation. If someone wants to protest his policies, have at it. That is your right. However, your refusal to accept him as “one of us” can only be due to the fact that he doesn’t look like your concept of the typical American, and the fact that the typical American is no longer a white guy is what really drives you crazy. He is smart, he is well off financially, he is articulate, and he is occupying the White House. He’s also black, and you simply can’t accept that. I would have at least a glimmer of an iota of respect for anyone who stood up and said, “I don’t like him because he’s black.” At least they would have the honesty to stand up for their beliefs, no matter how abhorrent and ignorant. If there is no racism involved, why haven’t you been clamoring for any other candidates’ birth certificates? Why this particular man? Why didn’t you demand to see John McCain’s birth certificate, a man who really was born in another country (Panama) when his father was stationed there? Be honest. You don’t have to be honest with anyone else, but at least be honest with yourself.

No, this brand of racism is insidious. It’s sneaky. It allows people to publicly say that a black man has no business in the White House...no, no, not because he’s black, of course not! No, it’s because he’s not really a U.S. citizen. I would like to ask these people how they would feel if they applied for a passport, and showed their birth certificate. The person at the office hands it back to you and says, “I’m sorry. This isn’t a legitimate document.” You explain that you went to the court house and that is the document that they issued to you. The clerk says, “It’s not real.” You say that it is what they gave you...they told you it was a legal document. The clerk says, “No, I can’t accept this.” You grow increasingly frustrated and ask why not. They shrug and say, “I don’t know...it just doesn’t look right. And I don’t think you look right, either.” That is essentially what the birthers are doing to the President of the United States of America, and it’s time to start being a little more honest with their motives and reasoning (or lack thereof). You have every right to tell me that you don’t believe the President is a U.S. citizen. I have every right to tell you you’re mistaken, and that I doubt your intelligence.

Was it a good choice for the President to release this? Some have said that he is pandering to these people, or legitimizing their “cause.” This was certainly a case of damned if you do, damned if you don’t. The percentage of Republicans who doubt his citizenship has only gone up, inexplicably, in recent months. There will always be those who refuse to accept any documentation; at least this might result in a few somewhat rational people accepting it and moving on. Others—like Trump—will simply ask for more records, like his college transcripts. It is time for this to stop. It does provide an opportunity for the Democrats and President Obama; if the Republicans continue to align themselves with extremists, that can be pointed out early and often. The reasonable thing to do would be to put this non-issue to bed once and for all, as John McCain did during the 2008 campaign. Who among the current crop of Republican candidates will have the courage and decency to do so now? I won’t hold my breath.

Empathy for the Devil

“You don’t know how I feel! NOBODY knows how I feel!”

Remember Rob Petrie’s brother Stacy (played by Dick Van Dyke’s real brother, Jerry) yelling that whenever anyone told him they knew how he felt? Have you ever had to deal with that person for real?

I have, and it gets old real quick. People who feel that way seem to be saying that no matter what you’ve experienced, no matter what you’ve thought, or how much you’ve studied a situation or an issue, you can’t possibly know how they feel unless you’re exactly like them.

Technically, I suppose that’s true. Unless I’m your clone and have experienced every single thing that you have, lived every moment the exact same way you have, I probably can’t fully comprehend how you feel.

That doesn’t mean that I am not sympathetic to your situation, or that I don’t have empathy for what you have been through. It doesn’t mean that I lack the intellectual capacity to comprehend how your experiences might have made you feel, or how they might have colored your perception of the world around you. It also doesn’t mean that I have no right to comment on a situation merely because I am not the same stripe as the people involved. I may not be a child in Africa, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t be horrified by the perils that the majority of them face, and that certainly doesn’t mean that I can’t recommend donations to wonderful organizations like Nothing But Nets or Doctors Without Borders because of the aid that they provide to these kids.

I have opinions on racial prejudice and bigotry; are my opinions and thoughts on such subjects invalid because I am a white woman? Am I not allowed to say that I deplore such attitudes without hearing that I have no right to speak of such things because “NOBODY knows how we feel!” Do I not get to call people out on their racist remarks because there is simply no way I can possibly speak with any sort of authority or even voice my condemnation of such behavior because it hasn’t been my experience? If I speak out on such things, am I merely playing lip service to ending prejudice, am I trying to prove my progressive credentials, and am I busily congratulating myself because I voted for Barack Obama, thereby personally solving every prejudice problem in the country?

You know one of the things that has been my experience? It’s that sometimes people have such a Sequoia-sized chip on their shoulder that they can’t recognize when someone is on their side. Maybe it’s easier for them to say that NOBODY knows how they feel! and that no one can possibly relate, that no one can ever truly support them because no one else is like them. Maybe years of being the victim has left them unable to realize that not everyone wants to paint them into that corner...and maybe by their continued obstinacy in refusing to recognize that someone just wanted to be a friend to them, and was willing to discuss such matters—without being unfairly accused as being some sort of racist—they have effectively painted themselves into that very same corner, all on their own. You lost a friendship because of your unreasonable accusations? Congratulations. You’re a victim.

What the Huck?

Well, butter my butt and call me a biscuit, it's back-to-back entries from me! I haven't done that for a while, but the issue is censorship, and I'm on that like mud on a pig. Also racism, and I'm on that like white on rice. (See what I did there?) I'm mixing metaphors, but that's not important now.

You've probably heard about a publisher's decision to censor Mark Twain's novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In short, the word 'nigger' will be replaced with 'slave,' and the word 'Injun' will be replaced with 'Indian.' I actually revised myself there...I originally wrote 'edit' rather than 'censor,' and I think my revision is appropriate. This isn't a matter of editing something for offensive content; this is censoring a classic American novel because of a word that is now highly offensive.

I read an interesting piece on Politics Daily by Delia Lloyd concerning the Huck Finn controversy, and it served to gel my own thoughts concerning this. I already had an opinion, and it seems that most of my literary-minded friends share it: this is unwarranted and unwelcome censorship of a novel written only a couple of decades after slavery ended in our country. This is not just a classic American novel. It is a historic American novel because of its context. I did understand several of Ms. Lloyd's points, and left a comment there, but I want to address some of those issues here.

She mentioned that she and her husband bought an edited version of an Eminem CD for their 10-year-old son because of language.

There is, to be sure, a big difference between contemporary rap music and a classic of American literature. Or at least so my son thought when I posed this question to him. His view is that rap is an inherently angry genre and, as such, swearing is central to its aesthetic (word choice mine, idea entirely his). But he says that he can still enjoy a rap CD even when it's "sanitized"--it is, after all, still entertaining.

In contrast, he thinks that "Huckleberry Finn" is a book about social relationships. And so to remove the language in which those relationships are couched is both historically inaccurate and distorts the meaning of the text.

That is one smart kid, who seems to get what his parents don't. There is a big difference between a music CD and a classic American novel. If you take out the bad words in music, you're still left with some great music. (I'm never a fan of censoring music, but there is stuff that is probably age-inappropriate--that is up to the parents to control. Good luck with that. haha) If you censor Twain's writings, you are censoring and attempting to sanitize a piece of our history. A shameful history, but one that cannot and should not be forgotten. Lloyd wrote:

I remember a few years back, when one of the teachers at my daughter's school tried to get a group of 8-year-olds to understand racism by having all the white kids in the class yell all the racial slurs they could possibly come up with at all the children of color. Her objective was to get the students to see the idiocy and toxicity of racism. But the experiment backfired. The children were frightened, confused and horrified. And even here, in the less-than-PC U.K., the teacher nearly lost her job. It's not clear that you can do Twain--or racism--justice in the hour you get as a teacher to talk about this book.

Good grief, how is that acceptable? How is hurling epithets a teaching exercise in any way, shape, or form? And why was it the white kids throwing the epithets at the kids of color? If that was an experiment to teach the students about the idiocy of racism, I think it failed miserably and only highlighted the idiocy of the teacher. Why would this book be a matter of an hour of discussion? When we read books in my school, we spent at least a few weeks going through them and discussing them. Lord of the Flies, A Separate Peace, Of Mice and Men, Hamlet, Macbeth, and so many others. These were not works that could be discussed in an hour. Why is Huck Finn confined to an hour? It has many more implications and much more significance than warranting only an hour of discussion on it.

Last year, my colleague Mary C. Curtis wrote about talk show host Dr. Laura Schlessinger's use of the N-word, which she uttered so liberally during one particular on-air rant that the subsequent outcry prompted her to say she would retire. As Mary points out, "This is the word that people with ropes used as they lynched men and women for an afternoon's entertainment. This is the word craven politicians shouted to stoke racial fear. This word has been used as background music to terror."

Most certainly...but equating Twain's book, a contemporary account of the treatment of slaves and Huck's dangerous friendship with Jim, to Schlessinger's radio rant and inflammatory use of the word 'nigger' in order to boost her ratings is a ridiculous comparison.

In short, the N-word isn't just a piece of regional jargon that marks a particular moment in our nation's history. It's a hateful word. It's poisonous. And it's pervasive. Does all this mean that in the future, children should only consume the kindler, gentler Huck Finn 2.0 that Gribben [the person who is revising the novel] and Co. are peddling? I'm not sure. But this issue certainly isn't as black and white, so to speak, as some critics are making it out to be.

Yes, it IS a hateful word, and it's still in use today. I hear it once in a while, and it makes me cringe and it infuriates me. But strapping a paper strip on the book stating "Sanitized For Your Protection" is not solving anything. It is ignoring a very real, very significant, and very shameful period in our history. If we cannot rationally discuss this with our kids and with our students, we are only perpetuating the problem. Much like some of the Confederate groups trying to revise history and paint the Civil War as being about nothing more than states' rights, it is revisionist history. Huck Finn isn't just an ordinary novel. It is part of our history. It's the story of a young man finding friendship with someone that he isn't supposed to befriend because that is what society dictates.

If our students can't comprehend the full meaning of the book and its place in our history after a reasonable and rational discussion (one that lasts more than an hour), what does that say about us as an intelligent society?

Am I raising the bar too high?

I’m just waitin’ on a friend

I had a very pleasant lunch today with my pal Jim from the lab! (This isn't a current picture--this is from the last time we were out with some other lab friends.) We met at Granite City Brewery, and it was Jim's first time there. He seemed to really like the atmosphere and food, and was excited to see that they have 25¢ wings on Mondays. We gabbed and ate for a couple of hours, talking about everything from his Mom's recent surgery to politics to Notre Dame football. It's always great to see him, and thanks for lunch, Jimi! Next time it's on me!

It was kind of funny...I got there about ten minutes early, so I was waiting in the foyer. The hostess saw me and asked, "Are you Becky?" I said, "No, I'm Beth, and I'm waiting on a friend." (The Stones song is going through my mind now.) She said, "Beth, yeah...I must have written it down wrong. He's here." So I follow her, and we come up to this booth and she stops. There's a fairly small guy with glasses and brown curly hair sitting there. Jim is a big guy, with short, mostly grey hair. Sometimes he even shaves his head. And he doesn't wear glasses. I said, "Uh...not the guy I'm meeting." The hostess was like, "Oops, sorry!" I went back and sat in the foyer again, and a few minutes later, Other Beth came in. Yes, her name really was Beth. What a weird coincidence!

I appreciate all the thoughtful comments I got on my entry yesterday concerning President Carter's remarks about racism. I made it explicitly clear that I was not equating everyone who is against Obama's policies with racists, and that I believe that the worst and most hateful of the protesters that are anti-Obama are the ones who are often motivated by racism. I don't think I could have been any more explicit than I was. I stand by my remarks, and I still agree with President Carter. However, the Obama administration is treating this as a distraction from the important work of health care reform, and does not want the focus to be on any discussions of racism. I can understand that to a certain extent; President Obama addressed the issue of race during the presidential campaign, so why should he have to do so again? I will respect their wishes and not continue the discussion to any great length until after health care reform is passed, but I do think it is something that can and should be discussed.

Jim and I talked about it at lunch today. We agreed that it is hard to pin down, but you know when a remark makes you feel uncomfortable. We have both resolved to speak up when we hear something that bothers us. It's always tempting to keep the peace and not start any sort of debate, but I've come to believe that silence is tacit acceptance of such remarks and behavior. You don't have to start a fight with anyone, but you can simply say, "I don't think that's a fair remark" and let your feelings be known. Until we all start speaking up, the sub rosa thread of racism will continue to run beneath the workings of our country. I don't believe we can eradicate it, but we can certainly do our best to show that we believe it to be shameful behavior.

I'll say little more about the subject...for now.

After I got home today, I was excited to dive back into Angle of Repose, and I finished this afternoon. I won't give any spoilers, because I know Laurel is reading it now. I will say that it is one of the best books I've ever read. Not only did I love the plot, I found the writing wonderful. I have a few passages that I wrote down in my journal, and I know you'll be thrilled to find out that I'm going to share them with you! [grin]

A wandering dog of a night wind came in off the sagebrush mesa carrying a bar of band music, and laid it on her doorstep like a bone.

I love that. I really do.

Civilizations grow by agreements and accommodations and accretions, not by repudiations. The rebels and revolutionaries are only eddies, they keep the stream from getting stagnant but they get swept down and absorbed, they're a side issue. Quiet desperation is another name for the human condition.

This book was published in 1971, so all the uncertainties, violence, and upheaval of the 60's made its way into it. I found it interesting to see what was happening at the time reflected in the writing.

...her white summer handbag like a white kitten in her lap...

More excellent imagery. God, that is some kickass writing. I was just delighted with this book, and it's one of the reasons I'm glad I'm reading the books on the Modern Library list. (Thanks for starting the group, Jillian!) It's gotten me to read some books that I never would have read otherwise, and I've enjoyed some of them very much. After I had finished the book and posted on our Google group site, I read what another member had to say about the book (I think she was the only other member who read this one). Oddly enough, she was not so enamored of the book, and actually put it at the bottom of her favorites! This member lives out of state, so I've never met her, but I have to chuckle that we're so opposite on which books we've enjoyed. My previous favorite from the list was The Magus, and she put that right at the bottom. Isn't it strange to see what strikes different people? I suppose that is the way with all art or literature. What speaks to one person leaves another completely indifferent, or sometimes even disgusted. It's fascinating to me to see the different reactions some of these books generate.

Oh, and we had another nice life is like a box o' chocolates moment! Both Ken and I got comments from Scott the Botanist, who was on the Swamp Angel tour from last weekend. He has a blog, too, and is working on a write-up of our tour. I'll link to it as soon as he posts. How cool that he found our entries! He might be sorry...I can see myself picking his brain about native plants!

I’d like to phone a friend, Regis

Today it was time for something completely different, and I toddled on down to the DNC local Headquarters downtown to do phone bank duty! It was all hustle and bustle, with dozens of people talking at once, phones ringing, people running in constantly with updates....

Well, not exactly. It was very quiet, and I sat at an oval table by myself with a list of names and numbers and a cell phone. There were other people there making phone calls, but one was back in an office, and one was at a desk several feet away. In two hours, I made my way through dozens of names, but at this time of day, many weren't home. These were all numbers of supporters and sometimes volunteers in the past, so I wasn't debating with anyone. It was mainly a way for Organizing for America to get people to contact their members of Congress to urge them to support health care reform legislation, and to get more volunteers. Everyone I spoke to was friendly and most had already contacted their legislators; a few even committed to coming down to do phone calls! (My Mom used to work on a switchboard like the one in the picture, by the way!)

One phone call was exhausting, lasting a good 15 minutes. A woman who was the caregiver to her mother had questions, some of which I could answer, some of which I couldn't. She was almost a nonstop talker, so I mostly said, "Mm-hm. That's right." The most heartbreaking call--one that brought tears to my eyes--was my next-to-last call, which would make it...anyone? Bueller? My penultimate call. That's right, class! Good job! Anyhoo, this guy was all for health care reform. He is the caregiver to his wife, who has Alzheimer's. He said about the only place he's been able to get help was through Hospice (a wonderful organization). He went to one place that told him he'd have to pay for a month upfront, $6500. He said, "We don't have that kind of money!"

It's people like that man and his wife, or like my in-laws who had to declare bankruptcy several years ago due to medical bills, that have made me want to get more involved. You know what else finally did it? I was sitting here last week reading about these protesters that carry signs like "It's MY money, not yours" or "Obama lied, Grandma died," and people like Palin and Bachmann with their lies about non-existent death panels, and I was writing an entry about some of this stuff. OFA called and asked if I could work the phones, and I think I was to the point where I'd just had it, so I said, "Yes. I would love to do that."

I suppose that the message here is that for all those who think that their voices are being heard as they march (all 70,000 of them, not 1.5 million as Glenn Beck reported--oh, and he wasn't even there) on Washington, or those that think that carrying an assault rifle to a town hall meeting somehow makes them more of an American than me, or for anyone who thinks it's funny to carry a sign that says "Bury Obamacare with Kennedy," understand this: your voice is being heard. It's being heard by people like me who believe in affordable health care for all, and who find your lack of compassion appalling and frankly, un-American. Yeah, I said it. It's being heard by those of us who find your scare tactics ridiculous, and by those of us who can't abide the lies you're spreading about this plan. We're hearing you loud and clear, believe me. And those of us who feel differently also have voices.

On a related note, Sherry wrote that she'd be interested to know my thoughts on President Carter's interview with NBC, in which he said that he believes that much of the animosity, from some factions, towards President Obama is because of racism. I'm glad he said it, and I believe he's right.

Let me start off by saying that I do not believe, in any way, shape, or form, that everyone who opposes President Obama's plans does so because of racially-motivated reasons. I have several family members who do not care for him and did not vote for him, and I know without a doubt that they feel that way because of political leanings, not because of race. I know that the statement "Anyone who doesn't like Obama is a racist!" is not true, and it is hyperbole that has no place in civil discussion. If someone makes that statement to me, I will tell them that I believe that it is false.

However, I also feel, like President Carter, that some of the more vociferous and vitriolic anti-Obama sentiment is coming from those who do hate him because of his skin color. South Carolina Congressman Joe Wilson's outburst at the President's speech to a joint session the other night would not have taken place if it had been a white man standing up there. I firmly believe that. Wilson is a member of the Sons of the Confederacy and was one of only seven members of the South Carolina Senate who voted to continue to fly the Confederate flag over the state house in 2000. I don't believe his disrespect to the President would have happened if he didn't have racially-motivated feelings.

It can be hard to pin this down; most people don't speak right up and say, yeah, I hate the guy because he's black. (Although I'll never forget hearing a guy from Kentucky say on CNN during the election that the best advice he can give Obama was to "Quit bein' so black." Lovely.) Sometimes it's just a feeling, a general impression. Indiana has more than our fair share of racists (just one is one too many, in my opinion), and I've heard it all my life, so I know when I'm getting racist vibes from someone. It's usually sort of conspiratorial, like "Look at that black girl with that baby. I wonder how many more she has at home?" Right. White girls don't get knocked up, do they, Br--nahhh, I won't go there. Other times it can be blatant, like "Stay away from those street monkeys." It's ugly and hateful, and it's still here, in my state and in much of our country.

So when I see people carrying signs that show Obama as an African witch doctor, or when I still--still --hear people wanting to see his birth certificate, I get the definite vibe that it's racially-motivated. I heard a good example last night. Say that Obama was a white guy, with a father who came from Ireland. O'Bama, if you will. Do you really think people would be foaming at the mouth to see his birth certificate and producing bogus birth certificates from County Cork? You know they wouldn't. These are deep-seated feelings coming from certain people who just can't accept the fact that a black man is the President of the United States. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Get over it.

I'm glad that President Carter spoke up about this. He grew up in the South, and I believe he is well-qualified to offer his opinion on this. If it were someone from New Hampshire, for example, people would be saying that he's just some liberal East coast elitist. (Whatever that is.) With him speaking out, I hope others will have the courage to stand up and say, "This is wrong. We’re better than this." Nothing will be solved overnight, but it has to begin with a discussion, and I applaud the former President for bringing it out into the open.

Let me reiterate. I do not believe that every person who opposes Obama is a racist. But without a doubt, there are many who are, and anyone who flatly denies that is naive and disingenuous.

Trying to understand

[sigh]

I don't really want to write about this...but feel I need to.

This morning, I read a column that my pal Lisa had posted on Facebook. It was from the Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts, and I know he's one of Lisa's favorites. He's one of mine, too. I always find his columns thought-provoking, and I think he tries to get people to understand where others might be coming from. This particular column from Pitts was about the recent arrest of Professor Gates and the subsequent brouhaha, culminating tonight (at least for now) in what is being called the Beer Summit, when the President, Prof. Gates, and Officer Crowley sit down at the White House for a beer and some talk. My friend Milwaukee Dan #1 is calling it Beer Bong Thursday, and I kind of like that!

Anyhoo, Lisa's thread got a little out of control (partly my fault) when someone posted that they thought the police did nothing wrong, then someone else posted that they felt it was mishandled and Gates should never have spent four hours in jail, then I posted and said that it's naive to think that race did not play a part in this, even if it was a matter of assumptions on the part of the neighbor, or on the part of the police...then the original poster wrote that they always side with the police and that they think Gates was the racist here.

[sigh]

That made me a little sore. I wrote that I suspect my cousin might disagree with such blind faith in the police, since he was shot in the back of the head on his prom night by a police officer, who dumped his body in the woods. He would probably disagree with that...but he's dead. Lisa, I apologize if things got out of hand, and just say the word and I'll remove my comments. My cousin was indeed murdered by a police officer about 40 years ago, and it's something that my family rarely talks about because it was and still is so painful. Apparently there was a girl involved...my cousin was dating a girl that the cop had a thing for, and none of us will ever know exactly what happened that night. The cop did go to jail, though. For about a year. ONE YEAR.

Maybe that's why I tend to not have blind faith in any given profession. There are crummy accountants, crummy doctors, crummy microbiologists, and yeah...there are crummy policemen. I think the majority are not, and I have great respect for those who protect and serve. But I'm certainly not going to assume that they were in the right merely because they were wearing a badge and uniform. I'm not saying that the officer involved here was racist, or that he's a crummy officer, because I just don't know. It's also quite possible that Gates over-reacted, but I think Mr. Pitts was trying to make a point that so many people just don't seem to get. Those of us who are not black will never understand the fear that blacks carry with them because of racist behavior on the part of others. How can we know that? We can't. I would imagine that the frustration of trying to get into his own house (apparently after returning from an overseas trip and probably travel-fatigued) and having the cops called on him was maybe just the final straw.

Can we not put ourselves in his shoes? Maybe it was all finally too much, and he snapped and yelled at the cop. I just don't know, because I wasn't there. The police reports say that he was belligerent and shouting at them. The fact of the matter is that racist behavior has taken place in our past and is still taking place today. Wouldn't that make you have a bit of a chip on your shoulder? It sure would me.

Ken and I watched a movie the other night called "The Great Debaters" with Denzel Washington and Forest Whitaker. It was excellent, and I highly recommend it. It tells the story (based on truth) of a black Southern college debate team in 1935. Part of the movie deals with the racism they sometimes faced, and in one scene, as the team is driving to another college for a debate, they come upon a lynching, a man hung from a tree and set on fire. The lynchers spot them in the car and go after them. This is part of our history, people. A shameful one, but it cannot be denied. Do we honestly think we can say, "Oh, that was in the past--get over it already" and people will say, "You know what? You're right." We may not see lynchings today, thank goodness, but there is still mistreatment and racism happening. The racism ingrained in those people who would string up a man and set him on fire does not disappear with a snap of the fingers.

The election of a black man to the Presidency seems to have stirred up many of those feelings again. I get the impression that President Obama welcomes the dialogue, and his speech on race was quite eloquent. I believe that we do need to talk about this and make it, as the President said, a teaching moment. Part of the process needs to be to understand that the experiences of white Americans are different than that of black Americans or Latino Americans or other ethnic groups. I cannot say that I know what it feels like to fear that I will be stopped by the police for the color of my skin. But I acknowledge that it does happen to others, and that is a fear that others carry around with them every second of every day. To ignore this is to lack empathy for what others have had to deal with in their lives, and are still dealing with.

To top it all off, we get this from Glenn Beck:

Hey, Beck? Fuck you. And the horse you rode in on. No, not the horse...I like horses. So fuck you two times. How dare he say such a thing? I've sent my email to Faux News saying that Beck owes the President an apology and every single American an apology. His remarks are incredibly offensive. They're also incredibly stupid and full of shit. In the space of a few seconds, he goes from saying "Obama hates white people" to "I'm not saying he dislikes white people" to "Obama is a racist." What the fuck? Pardon my language, but this is the kind of crap that needs to stop. Do I believe that being Caucasian is a requirement for being a racist? No. There are racists of all colors and stripes. But for some pasty-faced blow hard to start calling Barack Obama a racist is the height of ignorance and does our country no favors. If you would also like to voice your displeasure, you can write to Fox at yourcomments@foxnews.com. This insanity is inflammatory and needs to stop.

Okay, I think I'm done. I guess I'd reached my snapping point, too, and had to write about it. My plan is to return to lighter fare tomorrow...of course, at Nutwood, anything can happen!

Talking with Mom

I hope everyone had a good day!

Are you all fired up for the debate tonight? Woohooo! Me, too! Let's get to debatin'! Gimme a D! Gimme an E...okay...shutting up now.

Whoops! I just almost did a spit take when Chris Matthews said just now that Sarah Palin has lost her "new car smell." That was a close one, but I managed to keep it inside. The computer is spit-free.

I had a good talk with Mom this morning when I called to wish her a happy birthday. (Thanks everyone, for the birthday wishes for her! She thought that was pretty cool!) I told her that my gift to her today was that I would NOT be singing to her. She laughed and said that she wouldn't mind, and I said, "Don't be so sure!"

We talked about several things, and when I asked if they were going to watch the debate, Mom said, "Ohhhh, yeah!" Even though they've already voted! We didn't dwell on actual politics too much, and talked more about the economy and dealing with hard times than anything. (As Depression kids, her and Dad know all about hard times, believe me.) This entry isn't about any of that...but we did talk about racism, and that's what I want to write about tonight.

We got on the subject because Mom said that it's sad that there are a lot of people who won't vote for Obama because he's black. She mentioned the South, and I said, "Mom, it's just as bad up here." LJ has mentioned that she's heard people in Ohio say that they won't vote for him for that reason, and I've heard it here in Indiana. I'm not singling out any state or region, because I've heard it plenty here in my own state, much to my chagrin. But...that's reality. I don't like it, I think it's shameful, but it's still present. The stupid Klan was very active here in the 20's, and there's still a group in the area. (By the way, I find them completely irrelevant and ludicrous. Maybe one day they'll figure it out, too.)

Mom told me about visiting a relative who had a house in southern Georgia (an aunt by marriage). This aunt, who was a very sweet lady in many ways, took Mom and Dad to a place on the property where there was a big old tree. She told Mom and Dad it was the "killing tree."

Mom said that it was a huge tree, and there was a big limb that stuck straight out sideways, and when she realized what the woman was talking about, and what that tree was used for, she had a chill come over her, thinking about all the horrible things that had happened there. She told me about the son of this woman, who said he saw "a nigger walking in town" (and you're right, Marc, it's very hard to even type that word) and he "wanted to just run him over." I told Mom that if I heard someone say that in my presence, I would probably just go off, because that is beyond belief, and I cannot stomach such idiocy.

I'll say again that this isn't about politics. This is about simple human decency, and getting past such sheer stupidity. Our friend Mark tells us that we don't fully comprehend the impact such racism has had on blacks. I don't take offense at that, because I believe he's right. I CAN'T completely understand it, but I CAN condemn it for what it is: ignorance. A complete and utter lack of understanding for other people, other cultures, and fellow human beings. I can also stand up to people who make racist remarks and hold them up to the ridicule that they so deserve.

I thanked Mom today for the fact that her and Dad never gave me any sense of that kind of prejudice and racism. It's interesting that they didn't because there are many in their family and of their generation who DID feel that way. For some reason, Mom and Dad never did, and they gave that attitude to me and my sisters. Mom said something that made me happy. She said, "Dad and I were always glad that you girls never felt that way." I never realized that it was something that was an issue for Mom and Dad, but apparently it's something that they discussed and actively promoted with us. It must have been from an early age, and fairly pervasive, because I never remember feeling that anyone was inferior to us because of their race.

So here's to my Mom and Dad, octogenarians who were way ahead of their time, and who taught me that the measure of a man or woman is not their skin color (or their orientation) but their ethics, compassion, and humanity. Thanks, Mom and Dad.