Senator Franken did the right thing

I don't feel happy about writing this. I don't have a song in my heart and I don't want to include another photo of Al Franken looking downcast as he exits the Senate building. So here is a picture of Sheeba.

I also realize that I'm going to piss off some of my pals on the left with this post. It won't be the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last. I might even lose a few friends over it. But I need to say this, if only to get my own thoughts in order about it. 

Before I write anything else, I would recommend that you read this piece by David Atkins writing for Washington Monthly, titled "Defending Franken is Neither Moral Nor Pragmatic." He articulated my thoughts quite well but I want to add my own.

Let me start by saying that I love Al Franken. I loved him on SNL and I loved him as a Senator. He was a great progressive voice and he did plenty of good during his time in the Senate. I loved his most recent book and it remains my favorite of 2017, although it pains me a bit to say so. 

Since he resigned, I've seen plenty of friends on the left say that he was wrong to do so and that Senate Democrats (led by female Senate Dems) were wrong to force him out. I've seen the argument that what he did wasn't "as bad" as what the "president" did and what Roy Moore has been accused of doing. I've seen conspiracy theories about how it was all a right-wing plot and a deliberate attempt to get him out of the Senate.  

I've read through all of these things and while I understand the points that many are trying to make, I just can't get past the fact that there are multiple women who have told very similar stories. If we are going to believe the stories of the accusers of the "president" and Roy Moore, we cannot ignore the accusers of Senator Franken.

This smacks of cherry-picking to me. It pisses me off when people do it with religion, it pisses me off when people do it with science, and I'm learning that it pisses me off when people do it with sexual harassment allegations. You can't just decide that one person is a credible accuser and another isn't. That's not to say that some accusers can't be proven to be lying about it, but that is not what we are seeing now.

I feel that we cannot continue to rail against the piggish and abusive behavior of people like the "president" and Moore if we ignore the piggish and abusive behavior of those in our own ranks. If the past couple of months have shown us anything, it's that sexual aggression and disrespect toward women (and occasionally other men) knows no political boundaries. Both sides do it.

Our side has done it.

If we are going to accept and work toward a cultural shift in the way women are treated in our society, we must admit that our side has its own faults and we must work on them and vow to do better. Ignoring Franken's accusers does the opposite.

As for the argument that the other side has done worse and they are getting away with it, that is a lazy argument that lowers the bar rather than raising it. I understand that politics is a rough business and that sometimes you have to be a honey badger in order to win, but that doesn't mean that we have to stoop to allowing our candidates or politicians to wallow in the mud right along with the other pigs.

I demand better. We all should. I know that I am not alone in my dismay about the coarsened political discourse of the last year or two. That doesn't mean that I am ready to start behaving that way, too (although I might say more in private discussions than I do online). I still believe that we are capable of reasonable discussion and that compromise is not necessarily a bad thing. 

Beyond that simple fact, we need to be more like President Obama and play the long game here. While Sen. Franken's presence in the Senate would be a good thing, we have to think about what will be happening in 2018 and 2020. How can we maintain the moral high ground and campaign against the serial abusers on their side if we give those on our side a pass? We can't. Not only is that the wrong thing to do ethically, it is the wrong thing to do politically. Which is exactly what Mr. Atkins was writing about in his article. 

I know that it's frustrating to see this playing out. I'm frustrated, too. I still think that Sen. Franken was a good Senator and I believe that he helped a lot of people in Minnesota and in the country. But we cannot and must not hold their side to one standard and our own to another. I'm all about fairness. If our side does something wrong, we need to acknowledge it. Does the other side always do that? I laughed when I wrote that sentence. Of course, they don't.

But that doesn't mean that it is now okay to do the same things that they do.

Democrats need to stand on our policies.

We are on the side of human rights, we are on the side of equality in all aspects of our society, we are on the side of working people. We are on the side of making the über-rich pay more than their fair share because they want for very little and can afford to do so. We are on the side of those who need a hand up in order to get out of a bad situation, whether it is addiction, debt, poverty, or abuse. And yes, we are on the side of women, because we want to control our own bodies, we want to be believed when we tell our supervisors that we were harassed, we want our kids to have a fair shot at a better life, and we want to be able to get out of abusive relationships.

We must be on the right side of things. I am truly sorry that Senator Franken was one of the sacrificial lambs, although that is probably too innocent of a metaphor. But it simply had to happen that way.

More women are running for office in 2018 than we've ever seen. We are motivated, we are ready to work, and we are pissed off. Tolerance of the bad behavior of someone (or someones) on our own side is not going to give us any credibility or moral authority when we run against hypocrites.

Hold the high ground, Democrats. Not only is it the smart thing to do, it's the RIGHT thing to do. 

An Exercise in Futility

Now renegades are the people with their own philosophies

They change the course of history

Everyday people like you and me

We're the renegades we're the people

~~ “Renegades of Funk” by Rage Against The Machine

Tonight we went downtown to the county Democratic HQ for a meeting with the state Dem chair, John Zody.

The invitation said that it was designed to be a session in which to exchange ideas about how to proceed. I expected maybe a couple of dozen people and a chance to sit around and discuss ideas and strategies about how to strengthen the party and elect more Democrats locally, statewide, and nationally.

Instead, it was a packed house in the small DNC HQ building, bad enough that Ken and I had to ask people to not block the walkway to the door (we were standing against the wall) and try to get people to move through and find a place towards the back or wherever. I didn’t care, just don’t block the only point of egress, says Fire Marshall Beth!

Ostensibly, such a big turnout is not a bad thing. I was happy to see how many people cared enough to come out on a slightly snowy January evening. Unfortunately, it devolved into an airing of the grievances.

There was the young guy next to me who was pissed off that our Senator Joe Donnelly voted against the bill that would allow drugs from Canada to be sold here. I said it’s because we have the FDA and stringent regulations for a reason. (Did you hear about the miracle Hep C drug that is now causing liver damage? Yeah. That kind of thing.) There was the young woman who claimed that “young people” did all the work in the county in this last election. I think there were plenty of white-hairs in the audience who would dispute that claim.

There were a couple of people who said that everyone perceives us as “elitists” and that we have to be better about getting our message out there. Like we haven’t tried to do that! When right-wingers are getting all their news from ClusterFox, they are going to believe that we are “elitists.” We have to counter that with clear messaging. We do not have that yet.

There were Sanders supporters who were still pissed off about how they were treated. There were people who said that we need to forget social media and focus on meeting people face-to-face. There were people (like me—yes, I actually spoke up, and I don’t do that often in large gatherings!) who felt that social media is crucial, especially with what we are seeing with the gag rules and the “alt” government agency Twitter feeds that have cropped up in the past day. (Actually, I feel that we need both. It’s not an either/or proposition.) It got so bad that Ken finally said, “It is this kind of divisiveness that is hurting us.”

I realize that the majority of people were there because they are longtime Democrats and want to work to elect Democrats up and down the line. However, this was not a productive meeting. It reminded me of a lot of our lab meetings, where there was little focus and no one reining people in. It used to drive me NUTS when people would just be allowed to ramble and bitch about every damn thing that was bugging them. There is a time for such discussion, and that time is with your friends, or one-on-one with your supervisor. When you get a meeting together, the focus needs to be on identifying the problem(s) and coming up with ideas for the solution(s). To quote Sean Spicer, “PERIOD!”

It is not just our party that is facing an existential crisis. It is our COUNTRY, and our values as Americans and as human beings. The Yam is that crisis. I don’t want to hear whining about how your candidate didn’t get a fair shake. I don’t want to hear you bitch about how your Senator didn’t vote exactly the way you wanted him or her to vote. Grow the fuck up. No candidate is perfect and there will always be situations and votes on which we disagree. I have sent letters to both Democratic and Republican legislators about such things. You can’t always get what you want, but sometimes, you get what you need. And YES, sometimes you have to compromise!

It is time to put all these petty grievances aside and realize that we have a major threat to our country, our people, and to the world, and that threat is the current president. Get on board, dammit, or you are going to drown with the rest of the planet. No one is talking about blind allegiance to anyone or even to any party but for fuck’s sake, look at what is going on and realize that we need to unify behind the party that isn’t going to fuck over as many people as possible! Oh, you’re a Democratic Socialist? Well, fucking YAY FOR YOU. How is that working for you as we try to stop the Yam from doing damage to everyone who isn’t a white dude—and to the entire planet, for that matter? If he’s president for eight years, you probably won’t have to worry about your feelings, because you’ll be gasping for air on a dying planet.

Jesus.

We left a half an hour early.

As frustrating as this was, I can say that it left both me and Ken thinking about how we can get more involved. If nothing else, I’d love the opportunity to tell people to just stop all the nonsense and FOCUS.

Yes, there is a reason I wasn’t always popular in our lab meetings!

Why I’m With Her

A Facebook friend posted this on my timeline this morning:

Hey, I want to start this out that I really like you. I respect your opinion. I look forward to reading what you are up to and what you are thinking. I watched the debates. I know where you stand on the politcal side and I respect your opinion. I want to ask you a few questions. I don't want you to defriend me. I just don't know how you can lean towards Clinton.? Trump is no better than she is. I also know that you like Obama as well. That is your opinion and I respect that. I voted for him as well. A couple of observations. Hillary is talking about bringing back jobs back from other countries. Correct me if I am wrong? When Perot was running, he had mentioned, if AFTA is passed? We are going to hear the sucking sounds of all of our jobs are going to other countries. Clinton passed those laws. Now, Hillary is going to try to bring them back? My Mom lived in ARK when he was Gov. He pulled some shady deals back then. The people wanted him out. They got their way and he headed to Washington. Respectfully waiting your response. Thanks in advance.

Instead of responding there, I thought I would just do a blog entry and answer it here. I am overdue for this endorsement, anyway! I’ll take everything one-by-one.

First, thank you for respecting my opinion and asking about my thoughts on the matter.

I’m not sure why you are wondering how I can “lean towards Clinton.” It’s pretty obvious that I’m a Democrat and tend to vote that way. I have occasionally cast votes for principled Republicans, like Richard Lugar. Trump is not a principled Republican. In fact, I’m not even sure he’s a Republican. (Sometimes I wonder if he’s a human being, but the lizard people conspiracy theory can wait for another day.)

I support Democratic policies. Democrats care about things like climate change, education, marriage equality, women’s reproductive rights, healthcare for all, lifting people out of poverty and helping them with security nets, creating jobs, increasing taxes on the wealthiest among us while giving tax breaks to the middle class and the poor, as well as numerous other issues. I believe that our federal government can be a vital part of moving our country forward and ensuring that all Americans have a fair chance. I align almost completely with Democrats and very rarely with Republicans.

Why wouldn’t I vote for the Democrat? Especially one who has proven to be eminently qualified for the job? Secretary Clinton has spent her life working to help others, whether as First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the United States, United States Senator, or Secretary of State. She is smart, I believe she cares about Americans, she knows how to keep her cool even when everyone around her is losing their shit, and she does the hard work necessary to be informed about every issue. Everything the Republicans have thrown against her over the years has proven to be a big ol’ nothingburger. I honestly don’t know what has driven the extreme hatred of her on the right—and even sometimes on the left—but I don’t doubt that there is an element of misogyny among many of her detractors. Not all...some just don’t like her. I’m not sure what has driven that, either, but it’s obvious that those people will never change their opinions and I’m done arguing with them.

Contrast that with the know-nothing Trump, who seems to wallow in his own ignorance. Anyone who knows me well knows that a quality I despise in people is willful ignorance. It’s one thing to admit that you don’t know something but want to learn about it and quite another to admit it and say that you don’t care and don’t need to know. If you are running for the most powerful position in the world, yes, you DO need to know. He is a misogynistic, sexist bully who thinks that women are nothing more than bags of meat for him to grope as he sees fit. Only if they are of a certain age, though. Once they get past a certain point, it’s time to ditch ‘em!

Trump talks about how a vote for Clinton is a vote for a third Obama term. I say, “Yes, please!” Contrary to what Trump would have you believe, we’re doing pretty well after two terms of President Obama. Unemployment is way down, the deficit has been drastically reduced, the stock market is doing well, and millions of Americans now have access to healthcare. Do we have problems we need to address? Of course! When do we not? I’d much rather have the cool hand of Hillary Clinton at the helm than a bloviating, sexist pig who doesn’t pay his fair share in taxes and who has the temperament of a toddler throwing a temper tantrum.

As for NAFTA or other trade agreements causing a massive loss of American manufacturing jobs? Nope. Most analyses show that it’s due to an increase in productivity and automation. Many parts are made in the U.S., so even if cars are assembled in Mexico, there are still American workers doing those jobs here. I’m also not sure why that is germane to my support of Hillary Clinton. NAFTA was passed by Bill Clinton’s administration, and Hillary is the one running for President in 2016. Not Bill.

Anecdotal “evidence” that goes something like “I have a friend who worked with a guy who was a cop in Arkansas when the Clintons were in office” mean nothing to me. That’s like a game of telephone and it’s how urban legends take root and get told as factual. I prefer to deal with facts.

The statement I see from some friends on both the left and the right that Hillary and Trump are equally as bad is absurd. Fact-checkers have rated her the most honest of recent politicians, second only to President Obama. The least honest? Trump. This is long enough, so I don’t even want to go into why Trump is a danger to our Constitution, our country, and possibly even the world. He is a demagogue and a dictator wanna-be who would be, to use one of his favorite words, a disaster.

To sum up, I am not just “leaning” towards Clinton. I am also not voting against Trump. I am enthusiastically and happily supporting Hillary Rodham Clinton and I will be proud to cast my vote for her and proud to call her Madam President.

I’m Beth and I approve this message.

Well, that was refreshing!

Tonight was the first Democratic debate and boy howdy, wasn’t that a breath of fresh air?

1. Everyone talked about the issues.
2. No one attacked each other to any extensive degree.
3. Everyone agreed on the Democratic principles and vision, and no one really went off the reservation to any great extent.
4. Everyone seemed knowledgeable and was able to use their words and put them together into sentences that actually made sense.
5. There were only five people onstage, which meant that everyone got to say their piece, although I suspect Jim Webb would disagree with that.

What a contrast from the Republican debates. No one was attacking viciously, no one was stupidly attacking President Obama, no one was attacking immigrants or blahs or poors...it was all quite civilized.

I almost don’t know how to handle it. I mean, what just happened here? Did a group of candidates hold a debate and actually talk about the issues in a substantive way?

Huh. Weird.

P.S. I think Hillary won. Webb definitely lost, Chafee was marginal, O’Malley did pretty well, Sanders did very well, but Hillary was cool, calm, and collected, and came across as the most ‘presidential,’ which definitely counts for something in these debates. Biggest loser of the night? The Republicans. This is how you do a debate, kids. Please make a note of it.

Fair Warning

It seems that we’re really starting to get immersed in the 2016 election, with most of the air in the room being aspirated by Mr. Trump. It’s not surprising that the main focus right now is on the Republican side, because honestly, who can’t ogle a train wreck?

But there is some action on the Democratic side, too, and I feel like I need to make something very clear. I think everyone knows that I dress left (ha!), so that should come as no surprise. I’m starting to see some infighting between Clinton supporters and Sanders supporters, though, and I’m here to tell you that I want none of it. I refuse to bash either candidate. The main thing those of us on the left need to do is ensure that a Democrat gets into the White House again, whether it’s Hillary, Bernie, or Joe (although I really don’t think he’s going to run). I don’t care who the nominee turns out to be: I will vote for the Democratic candidate. We actually have a pretty good bench, and I would vote for O’Malley or Webb or Chafee if they somehow got the nomination. They are all decent people who will advance the Democratic agenda and support Democratic policies.

There are possible Supreme Court nominations looming. Do you really want a Republican nominee on the Court? This is crucial.

I am fine if you support any of the Democratic candidates. We have no argument there. However, I will not get into any arguments about who is the better candidate, and I will not tolerate any bashing of any Democratic candidate. Don’t like Hillary? Fine. But don’t be posting stuff on my Bookface wall bashing her. Debate is fine (although I really don’t want to engage in that this time around...my mind is made up), but angry rhetoric and name-calling is not. I also know my own mind well enough that I have come to my own decision, so going after me and trying to convince me otherwise isn’t going to work very well for you. Something some of you might not know about me is that I am very stubborn, and the more someone tells me I have to do or see or read something, the less likely I am to do so.

That’s why I still haven’t seen “Titanic.”

Anyway, at the end of the day, we need to remember that we are on the same side and want the same things. The best way to get there is to get a Democratic president into the White House again. Don’t lose sight of that goal.

(For any Republican friends reading this, it really doesn't apply to you. Carry on!)

Dinner and a movie

I mentioned the other day that Ken and I were going to the annual Jefferson-Jackson dinner given by the St. Joseph County Democrats. It was worth going to, and I’m glad we did.

A couple of nice women sat next to us, and we enjoyed chatting with them while we waited for the speakers to begin. Unfortunately, the “real” speakers weren’t up just yet. As much as I’m interested in politics, I have little interest for all the minutiae that is involved. There were a few party operatives who spoke, and it was a litany of thanking this and that person, welcoming various groups, that sort of thing. I know they have to do that stuff, but man, it was Snoozeville for a while there.

I have to say that I dislike extreme partisanship on either side of the aisle. I’m obviously quite liberal, but I was bothered by some of the cheap shots taken. The worst one for me was someone speaking derisively about Governor Daniels, calling him that “short guy in the Governor’s mansion.” I guess it’s not THAT horrible of an insult, but as a vertically challenged American, I found it petty and childish.

Ken and I both exchanged glances when one person talked about tradition and following your ancestors in their Democratic ways. I completely disagree with that...think for yourself! If I’d done that, I’d be a staunch conservative, and Ken would still be a Republican rather than an Independent. Whatever you decide you want to be, whatever your feelings on policies, read and learn and come to your own decisions rather than just saying you are what you are because your mommy and daddy were. To me, that’s just lazy.

Finally, we got to the main speakers. Congressman Donnelly wasn’t actually there, but spoke to us in a video. That was a bit disappointing, but he IS a working Congress Critter, so I can forgive him for that. We heard from John Gregg, who is running for Governor against Mike Pence. I like him, and I can’t stand Mike Pence, so that’s an easy choice for me. B. Patrick Bauer, the minority leader in Congress, spoke. He’s from South Bend, and I’ve never been a huge fan, but I give him credit for being a scrappy fighter. I went up to him before everyone started speaking to ask him about SB 89, the stupid creationist bill. Wow, I’m not the only one who is vertically challenged! The guy really isn’t much taller than me. Anyway, I said I’d heard that the bill might be dead. He said, “Oh, it’s so stupid. It’s a stupid bill.” I asked if he thought it was dead in the water, and although he didn’t explicitly confirm that, he didn’t seem to think it had much chance of going any further.

We also heard from Brandon Mullen, who is running for Congress against Jackie Walorski. We were both impressed by him and agreed that he is worth supporting, both with our votes and with what donations we can give. He is an Iraqi war veteran, and seems like a very sharp guy. Finally, our new Mayor, Pete Buttigieg spoke. For someone so young, he does very well in a speech. He sounded seasoned and was very well-spoken. He continues to impress me.

After everyone was done and people were making their way out, we stopped and shook hands with a few of the speakers, said we were happy to support them. I’m glad we went, although it was more of a rallying the troops kind of thing than anything else. I can tell you that if you think Democrats aren’t fired up for the 2012 election, you are quite mistaken. I think it’s going to be quite a year.

Last night we headed over to my sister Diana’s house for a small get-together to watch “Midnight In Paris.” Di is a huge Woody Allen fan (her and Tom even got to see Woody play clarinet with his band in New York), and was excited about seeing this movie. Based on what I had read and heard about it, I was excited, too. I’m happy to report that it lived up to expectations, and then some. I just loved this movie, and told Ken I’d like for us to get it, because I’d enjoy watching it again. The shots of Paris were just beautiful, and the literary and artistic legends that Owen Wilson’s character encounters were just so cool. I think all of us that were there are avid readers, and it’s something that Diana and I talk about often. I think Di was in seventh heaven! I recently finished A Farewell to Arms, so I especially liked seeing Hemingway. Dali was also a fun encounter.

It was a very funny and charming movie. I would recommend it to anyone! After the movie, we played some records and danced (Yes, you read that right! Actual records, and actual dancing. We’re all baby boomers, after all.), enjoyed more munchie food, and just generally had a fun time. Thanks to Di and Tom for a really fun evening!

Ken is off on a trip to Syracuse for a week, and I’ll be holding down the fort. It figures that we got a few inches of lake effect snow today, right before he left, but I hope it’s done and I’ll be able to get out later in the week. If not, I’m stocked up on everything, and even thought ahead and got my green peppers late last week to make stuffed peppers tomorrow. (That’s one of my Ken-is-on-a-business-trip dinners, along with eggplant parmigiana, eggplant lasagna, cabbage rolls, and...well, pretty much anything with eggplant, cabbage, or sweet peppers.) On Tuesday, my mother-in-law is coming over, and we’ll go have lunch and then I’ll put some music on her MP3 player. On Wednesday, I’m having dinner with Shane and Matt, and on Thursday, I may be going to a lecture at Notre Dame with Diana (that’s kind of weather dependent, though). I think I’ll manage to keep myself busy and out of trouble!