Yes, We Can

That's what I hear surprisingly often from the kids at school. "Sit down please." "Yes, we can!" "Can you clean the board please?" "Yes we can!" "Follow me." "Yes, we can!" Always with the same upbeat and somehow hopeful tone as I would expect to hear from an Obama supporter after one of his speeches. I was just thinking the other day about how huge Obama is over here. This is a picture of the magazine section of my library taken just after the results of the US elections:



Clearly, Americans weren't the only ones celebrating. Headlines from left to right, roughly translated, are: "What the world is expecting of him," "The man who can change the world," and "An Obama Revolution." I forgot to take a picture at the time, but I even saw a headline at a station once that read, "The first president of the world." Wow. I mean, I'm not in any position to speak for citizens of the whole world or anything, but I can say that on the whole, the French are pretty damn happy that Obama won.

The hype has worn down a little. But I still do see signs of Obama everywhere. Some kids still shout "Obama" at me in the halls and wait for their high-fives. Kids who haven't met me and have the opportunity to ask me questions often ask if I love Obama. And then, as I was walking to the library today, I saw this poster promoting annual sales in a store window:



When I saw this, I immediately thought about this recent Sociological Images post about advertising with Obama's "brand." I don't know that I'm equipped enough to argue about what kind of ramifications this type of advertising might have. I'm just adding my example.

PS, I was going to use the Urban Dictionary definition of Obamania for this blog, but then was put off by the negative connotation I gathered from entries two and (most definitely) three. But it's still interesting. I'd say go take a look. And what got me were all the obama- entries on the left side bar. I wonder how many will stick?

PPS, Am I a terrible person because I want the Obama chia pet?

Agitation

From page 5 of the George Bush exit interview with Charles Gibson:

Bush:I'll be frank with you. I don't spend a lot of time really worrying about short-term history. I guess I don't worry about long-term history, either, since I'm not going to be around to read it -- (laughter) -- but, look, in this job you just do what you can. The thing that's important for me is to get home and look in that mirror and say, I did not compromise my principles. And I didn't. I made tough calls. And some presidencies have got a lot of tough decisions to make --

So, W, that would pretty much mean you don't care about any history at all? As long as it doesn't affect you, right?

I just have one question: Are there really people out there who still think George Bush was a good president? I mean, I know there are people out there who defend him, who say he did the best he could. But does anyone really believe that?

I really wish I could watch the World News tonight. That's when the interview is airing. Than again, just reading the transcripts is infuriating. And there was a five-minute preview of the interview that really rubbed me the wrong way. Bush says he's sorry for certain things, like the economy and the way, but it just seems so...unapologetic. Perhaps it's better for me not to watch his face as he so indifferently talks about the decisions he's made. To him, that's all they are.

This is what it means to be an American

That's what people keep saying today. Arianna Huffington said it, the letters to the editor of the New York Times repeat it often, it's obvious it's what Juan Williams was thinking when he broke the news.

Obama won. Obama fucking won! My dad often said, when talking about this election, "if democrats can't win this election, I don't see how democrats can win any election." I'm really happy we won, and I don't have to think of a world where we couldn't. So what does it mean to be an American? And what does it mean to be an American living overseas?

It means that people are eager to talk to me if they know I am American. The landlord: "What do you think of the new president?" The man at the post office (in attempted English): "Chicago? Home of new president?" My friend Mourad (quoting Obama's speech): "It is not a black America. It is not a white America."

It means I have to stop every so often and remind myself what a historic day this is. As Tom reminded me, I can look into the future and see children twenty years from now asking me, "where were you when Barack Obama was elected President?"

It means I had to stifle tears as I watched this speech in the library.



It means I couldn't help it when the pride I felt made my chest swell. It means all of these "it means"s just scratch the surface of how I feel.

Obama talks a lot about hope. Here are my hopes: I hope great things for his presidency. I hope predictions of assassination don't come true. I hope conservatives don't try to blame a Democratic (or worse, black) president when the economy finally goes down the shitter, and I hope that if they do the American people are smart enough not to buy it.

I hope Americans are as passionate about every election as they were about this one.

Today I feel better about America. And hey, I did vow that I wouldn't come home if McCain won. Guess it looks like the States will welcome me back in May!

A strange day to be away

Very strange. I don't feel at all like I'm not in the USA. Last night almost half of the eight o'clock news had to do with the US elections. Leonardo DiCaprio was a guest to talk about his new movie, and also how he voted for Obama (which makes me love him almost as much as I did when I was 12). All day on the internet I've been reading up on news from the elections (not much so far). Right now I'm sitting next to my friend who is sporting his Obama t-shirt. I've blogged and had more conversations (in French and English) about this election than any other. I was afraid I would miss home on Election Day, but it's going all right. The only thing I'm gonna miss is one kickass election party.

I hope everyone who can vote does. And I hope the winner really wins.

another reason to be nervous about election day

Thanks for the tip D.

"West Virginia Voting Machines Prefer McCain

This is the second West Virginia county where voters have reported this problem. Last week, three voters in Jackson County told The Charleston Gazette their electronic vote for "Barack Obama" kept flipping to "John McCain".

In both counties, Republicans are responsible for overseeing elections. Both county clerks said the problem is isolated."

Surprise, surprise, it seems that I can't find a major news outlet covering this. Hopefully something soon.

And I was worried about my vote not counting because I'm overseas. I'm not too worried about it anymore, considering I got my ballot and sent it out priority mail, and I live in Jersey.

Election day is close, and I'm feeling very uneasy. Rachel explained why in a fantastic post that, I'll admit, made me a little teary-eyed.

There's a lot of uncertainty right now about this election. The last thing we need is for machines to glitch and switch votes.

I won't be online again until election day. At this point, I just want it to be over. And I hope someone calls me right away to tell me who won.

Forgve Me

I know that that last entry about Deauville could have been a lot better. I had a really nice time, and I was so beyond happy that S and M remembered me during this lonely vacances.

But I am finding it hard to blog about my humble travels when shit like this is going down.

Yes, if you read the article, you saw that the USA has invaded Syria and Pakistan. Since I’m in France, I don’t know what kind of coverage this is getting on the news in the US. I don’t know if people are outraged about it. I don’t know if people are talking about it outside the internet. I haven’t seen anything about it on the news, but hey, I’m in France. I don’t understand why this happened, but I do understand that it’s pretty clear what it means for the USA. Our country, so focused on freeing the world from terrorism, has become the terrorist. Sigh.

I don’t have that much internet access to get into deep-research mode, but I found some decent conversation about it here (a discussion forum), here (from Progressive Magazine and here (article from the Huffington Post..

Peine de Mort

Best Week(end) Ever, Part 3

I had an Orientation on Friday with all the other English assistants and one teacher from each school. And bonus for me – two of my teachers came! It was eight long hours of talking about the French system, our roles, what the kids should learn from us. Mostly boring stuff, I thought.

The most interesting thing that happened: we had a debate. It was to be conducted in French, so we could know how the kids would feel if they had one in English. The topic was the death penalty, and I was assigned to the “for” side. Which, you know, sucks for me because I happen to be totally against the death penalty.

But I know all about debates. I know I don’t have to really be the side I’m assigned, it’s all pretend, yada yada. I’m not surprised that my partner and I were able to come up with some really convincing arguments (even though I’m sure with some research I could confidently counter every single one). What shocks me is that we won. Yeah, two of the other assistants judged the debate, and we won.

Blech. I feel like I need to redeem myself or something. This is totally not cool.

The rest of the day was lovely. After the orientation we walked around the town (the name is escaping me right now). C has had a few meetings here before, so she knew the cool things to see. Among my favorites are this house:


And this:

It’s the inside of a store. I wish we had stores like that in Jersey. Can you imagine shopping inside an awesome centuries-old house?

Watching Palin from France

is really hysterical. As I've found it nearly impossible to get internet access here, I've been current-events-less for almost a week. But now I've got internet, and the first YouTube video I watched was this one, via this really great post on Metrophobic:



Is it just me, or does Charlie Gibson think she's a total jackass?

I like them because they are not at all subtle.

My favorite shot from today's Day in Pictures:



Caption reads: US President George W Bush emerges from darkness to give a speech at a gathering of defence academics.

:]

Laverne fired on I Wanna Work for Diddy

I was so hoping she would make it a little further. But Laverne Cox, the beautiful dancing queen trans woman, was kicked off I Wanna Work for Diddy on last night's episode. The reason I am upset is not because she is gone - hell, my favorite contestants never win reality shows (except for Dee of course) so I can't say I'm surprised. It's the reason Laverne was fired that bothers the hell out of me.

In mission 6 of the series, both teams have to sell as many bottles of Diddy's new perfume as they can. Laverne has recently been switched from the Downtown team to the Uptown Team, which includes queen bitch Poprah. And no, I will not link to Poprah's website because it does not deserve any more hits.

So the teams have to sell this perfume that must not be so hot after all since no one is interested in buying it. But the challenge is about hustling so the teams have to come up with some marketing technique. And Poprah decides that it would be a good idea to put Laverne in the window as a live mannequin. Because really, that's the only way that people won't be put off by her. Laverne says no - that is exploitative of who I am and I won't do it. Kudos to you, Laverne. It was an incredibly arrogant and exploitative idea that Poprah had, and I am glad that Laverne rejected it and told her as much.

In the end, Laverne didn't sell any perfume, and her team lost the challenge. Which meant that they had to vote one person into the board room. It was a tie between Poprah and Laverne. The people who voted Kim did so because her attitude is cancerous to the team, and the people who voted Laverne did so because she didn't meet the challenge. Diddy's panel of judges now have the opportunity to send one person home. You would think that they would finally get rid of Poprah. She has the same conversation with the panel every time she stands before them, and the only thing that changed last night was that she defended her obesity (though no one even brought it up). And Laverne has proven to be a smart, witty, productive member of both teams she has been on.

But they told her she's not ready to work for Diddy.

What???!!!!

The panel told her that in the end, this show is about results. And she didn't sell any perfume. Would those people have been happy if she'd stood in the window the whole time? She wouldn't have sold any perfume then either, and she would have been a spectacle instead of a salesperson. But perhaps that would have been a better approach, what with the transphobic attitudes of people in this country.

Laverne didn't deliver in this challenge, but Poprah has failed to deliver several times as well. LIke in the episode where the teams had to map trails through a forest, and Poprah couldn't even walk half a mile before she suffered an asthma attack. Guess what? She didn't deliver. And remember when Diddy's mom came to New York and Poprah promised her a Southern style breakfast? She couldn't deliver then either.

This show is about results, all right. And Poprah pulls in more ratings with her crazy bitchy antics. I don't want to watch her anymore. She depresses me because I know she is exemplary of too many people in this world who are just like her.

I am sad to see Laverne go. I hope that she finds something more fulfilling than a job with Diddy. Like Isis on this cycle of America's Next Top Model, I think Laverne probably felt some pressure to represent the trans community, which is a pretty large and unfair task. But I felt like she was as authentic as one can be on reality TV, and she probably impacted a lot of viewers in a positive way.

Whether you liked Laverne on the show or not, you should check out this piece on her blog, in which she talks about her experiences with objectification and devaluation in her life as a transgender black woman. I found it really smartly written and informative, and I'll certainly be following her blog from now on.

Please please please tell me this is not true

Am I really surprised by this?

That link is to a Huffington Post article about VP nominee Sarah Palin, and a speech that she delivered to her church about three months ago. My favorite bit from the article: [Emphasis mine]

"Speaking before the Pentecostal church, Palin painted the current war in Iraq as a messianic affair in which the United States could act out the will of the Lord. 'Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God,' she exhorted the congregants. 'That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan'."

There's a video embedded into the article too, and it makes me uncomfortable. Palin seems unsure at first on the fairly large stage, but that doesn't stop her from giving a speech - wait no, a well-practiced sermon. To be honest, I only watched seven minutes of the video, but in those seven minutes she did two things that the type of preachers that bother me the most also typically do:

1. She spoke like them. You know, intonating certain words and phrases that she thought were the most important to her speech. In fairness, all good orators have to do this. Barack Obama does this. Martin Luther King, Jr. did this. And I can't make an argument about why it bothers me more when Sarah Palin does it. Perhaps its because I trust her about as much as I trust Pat Robertson or his faith healing.

2.She attributed all responsibility of serious matters to her god. Not only did she claim that the Iraq war is god's will, she also tried to convince chuurchmembers to pray for completion of her $30 million pipeline by saying, "I think God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that." Horrifying!

The article is called "Palin's Church May Have Shaped Controversial Worldview." No shit. Anyone who is that involved in and enthusiastic about her church is going to have a worldview that reflects that church. And that worldview is probably going to be at least a little insane. It scares me to think that governors are still using religion to convince people to support their agendas. I don't care if she was in a church. I don't care if she was in her own home. She mixed her politics with her religion, and that is totally uncool. What is more scary is the number of people who think this is acceptable practice.

Believe me, you really want to click on that last link. I mean, it's clearly anti-republican party propoganda, but I think it makes some really interesting points.

After an awesome night of body-accepting and comfort

I came into work and remembered what has been irritating me lately. I am secretary to a Health Sciences Educator for Rutgers University so most of my time on the internet is spent looking up information on Obesity and Overweight (real sad when the focus is on children), Diabetes, High Blood Pressure and Cholesterol levels, Diet and Exercise, and anything else that has to do with nutrition or family health.

One might say, "Hey that's great. You get the inside scoop. You get to learn new ways to be healthy now."

Except that I have struggled with weight since I was eight years old. Maybe longer. News flash: I already know. I have known the (quite simple) ways to lose weight for a very long time. We all know that more calories out than in equals less weight on the body. But, as most people who have a hard time keeping weight off will probably feel familiar with, the extra pounds that I carry on my frame have little to do with science. And another thing that far trumps all the tips and tricks I know about losing weight: These extra pounds and I are stating to get along. I am learning to be OK with them.

Let me clarify. I am just learning to be OK with them. After years of hiding them behind hairstyles and clothing and accessories, I am beginning to accept these pounds. I'm starting to realize that I have quite a sexy hourglass figure, one that could probably kick some roller-derby ass if I wanted it to. Sure I'm starting to see that this body is one that men can be attracted to. More importantly, I'm becoming aware that it's a body I can love, and feel secure in, and be proud about.

So what has inspired this ranty blog? Two things.

First, it seems that every single health website that I visit uses the BMI calculator as an indicator for wellness. And that really frustrates me. In addition to this being a skewed measure for health, it also makes me feel shitty. Really, I'm borderline obese? OK. Oh, and I'm at a much greater risk for diabetes and high blood pressure and death? That's funny, because I heard that women in the overweight group had the lowest mortality rate. Oh my god, AHA,are you telling me that if I don't make changes now I'm going to die someday? Fuck. Let me give you a trophy for opening my eyes. Truth is, it doesn't matter. Because I am going skydiving next year. Because I hitchhiked in a foreign country. Because I drive on a highway everyday. Yeah, I could make some wiser decisions about exercise and diet. But fuck it. I like chocolate chip cookies, and eating them is not going to put my life in any more danger than the next decision I make.

I'm frustrated that (because of all the searching I have to do at work) my google and scrabulous sidebars are always filled with ads for ridiculous get-thin-quick schemes. I'm tired of looking at "Are you Fat -----> Take this Quiz" ad banners on the top of my monitor. And I am at the end of my rope with people like Lissaana, who comment insensitive and cruel things on the bottom of sincere, well-written posts.

I don't understand why weight and body image are always ALWAYS on my mind. And I am terrified to take all of these issues to France with me. I'm planning on leaving them here, buried in 1725's back yard. And I hope I never EVER have to dig them up.

But perhaps what I am most cranky about is that I have still not found my USB cord, and all I want to do is show you the pretty pictures that I took. In July.

no words (well OK a few)

Go look at this.

I know that if I wanted to, I could start some HR shit with the chauvanist who works at my office because he has made a few inappropriate comments and cupped my shoulder on occasion. I know it, he knows it, and any HR rep would know it. And for that I am thankful. Thank god I wouldn't have to hear, "If we had no sexual harassment, we would have no children."

Kudos to Curvature

I just read the entirety of The Curvature's Day of Blogging, and it was phenomenal. In the span of 39 blog entries (which were written to raise money for RAINN - the nation's largest anti-sexual assault organization) I gained a ton of knowledge, and a whole lot of respect for Cara as well. She is a fantastic blogger who sheds light on serious feminist issues that I have realized do need to be addressed a hell of a lot more often.

She led me to some Lines that Rock by Julie Buffaloe-Yoder.

My favorite post highlighted a new series of posters from the Date Safe Project that challenge "consent" as it is commonly understood. I am really loving them. Here's my favorite one:



I've kissed a lot of guys. Not horribly too many, but still a lot. And two kisses stand out in my mind. The hands-down best kiss ever happened after I asked him if I could touch his lips with mine. The runner up happened after he asked "May I kiss you?"

Though I've never asked (or been asked) consent for anything more major than that, I'm going to start.

These posters rock.

let's has a moments

barbiturates and bull

I know it was a long time ago, but when I was in high school I wrote a paper about capital punishment and I chose to argue against its use, and especially the use of lethal injection. My argument throughout the five pages (oh, the good old days) was that the paralytic element of the cocktail makes it impossible to gauge the amount of pain the injected feels, and therefore it is impossible to decide whether lethal injection falls under the category of cruel and unusual punishment.

I'll admit that since high school I have not been keeping incredibly up-to-date with the latest developments in the field. And of course, some of my opinions about capital punishment have changed, but I stick behind what I said, until someone provides me with really tight evidence that contradicts the previous argument.

So when I was reading the news today I stumbled upon this article and it brought me right back to that high school paper. And what I am left with upon reading this article is the feeling that I really have to get my act together. First, I need to conduct some current research about the controversy (since mine is from '04) and once I've done that I need to do some research on the Supreme Court. I was always sort of indifferent to the Supreme Court; for some reason, maybe because I've been trained that they are supremely genious prophets, I remained indifferent to them and their rulings.

But their decision to allow continuation of lethal injection, even after the argument that I summed up before was presented, shocked me. And what surprises me even more is this(from the New York Times article today):

"Lawyers for the prisoners contended that the barbiturate-only method is widely used by veterinarians, who are barred in many states from using the same paralyzing agent employed in executing people. But the court rejected that argument, stating that 'veterinary practice for animals is not an appropriate guide for humane practices for humans.'"

Since when are animal behaviors not indicators for human behavior? What of Pavlov? What of Watson? If the Supreme Court can deny these obvious counterpoints, my faith in them is definitely shaken.

Sundown Towns

So right now I am reading Lies my Teacher Told Me, an account of all the things that history books typically omit or misrepresent, by James Loewen. I'm only on chapter two, "1493," and I feel like I'm already sprouting constant information that I had been mistaught like so many others, like how Betsy Ross never created the American Flag, Woodrow Wilson did a whole lotta shady shit, and Helen Keller was one of the leading women in the socialist revolution.

I was so excited to get into the discussion of Columbus that I did some research on the internet about James Loewen, and what I found, though it had nothing to do with Columbus, intrigued me nonetheless. Most of what I explored on his weblog is dedicated to discussing his new book, Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism. After 21 years I had never heard of these towns until now! They are areas where blacks were historically kept out with signs like, "Nigger, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On You In ___." And some of these towns still exist today! How is this still going on??

Of course one of the first things I did was check the possible sundown towns of New Jersey, and yup - my hometown is one of them. Although it is defined as "surely not" still a sundown town, it is highly possible that it was at one time. In fact, according to Loewen's preliminary research, a former mayor can remember a time when no African Americans were allowed in the city after sunset, except for the barber.

I no longer live in my hometown, but I think it would be incredibly interesting to conduct more research about this.