Last week, we took our old man, Fox, to the vet. He'd been kind of "off" for awhile, but we were attributing much of it to old age & the cold weather. We were mostly wrong...
The vet wanted to take some blood & do a work up on him, since we were discussing doing a dental cleaning in the not-too-distant (when we got our tax return) future. Lab results discovered a very elevated white blood cell count, so high it warranted a pathologist looking at it to see if there was cancer present. Thankfully, no cancer. He instead has pancreatitis. In dogs, this is brought on by too much rich food, raiding the trash, and in the case of our dog's memorable bout, eating a whole bunch of cat food. You give 'em meds, it goes away until the next time they do something stupid. In cats, it's a bit different - it's chronic and must be managed with diet. So, he's on meds "until gone" and now is eating a special food. He's been improving every day since his visit on Wednesday. Appetite has picked up, he's back to some of his old habits. I started to really wonder yesterday, how long has he been sick?
If you're reading this and you have a pet, you know that animals are often experts at hiding how they feel. But it's times like this I really wish that he could speak English. Obviously it would be nice if this happened: "Excuse me, she-who-feeds-me, I've been feeling a bit off for several days. Perhaps a doctor visit would be in order?" But, realistically, it would probably just be complaining about how they feel like shit since almost every pet I've had hates going to the doctor as much as I do.
It's one of those situations where, when I look back over the last few months, I see that he had been off and was probably sick then, but we didn't realize it. I trusted my gut, as a friend was advising me to do, and made that appointment. So happy I did, even though I feel like kind of an asshole for not doing it sooner. It will take some adjusting, as he can no longer have the usual treats we feed the other cats or their usual food, or in fact, some of the human nibbles we like to slip him from time to time, we have our Fox and he's getting well. That's what's most important.
Even if, twice a day, he probably wants to murder us for shooting medicine down his throat.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Saturday, January 12, 2013
On the Passing of Friends..
Neil Gaiman's dog Cabal died. He made a blog post about it and by the end I was sobbing. Not because I know Neil or Cabal, but because I know a dog...and three cats. I have also known other dogs and cats.
His blog reminded me of a time, in 2002, when we lost our old dog. He was 12 and became suddenly very ill. In the end there was nothing for it but we had to make that most difficult of decisions. (A decision we would make again 6 years later for one of our beloved felines.) A year later, my mom passed away. I am (only a little bit) embarrassed to say that I wept more and was more devastated over the loss of Bo. After all, he had been my constant friend & companion since the age of 13 or so and my mom & I had become a bit estranged, especially with her moving to another town, etc.
As I write this, our elderly cat, Fox, is perched on the desk in front of the keyboard. He'll be 16 this May. He's gotten thinner over the last year & a half, in the manner that humans often do when they reach a certain age. He's still loveable, feisty, eats & drinks normally, and after a myriad of tests about a year ago, we know he's still pretty healthy. However, despite our joking about his immortality, we know with a logical certainty that someday... well, nevermind that someday. (The same goes for our 8 year old dog, whom I've begun to feed a better food in hopes of his continuing health.)
In the end, it's not use worrying about what is to come. We should focus more on what we can do right now. All the playing, petting, scritches, and hugs we can possibly fit into a day. Even the days when they might do something not so great (like Fox's shredding of the toilet paper or 'marking territory' as one of our less civilized cats does from time to time). Hug your furbabies and spare a few kind thoughts for Neil....
His blog:
http://journal.neilgaiman.com/2013/01/the-power-of-dog-cabal-2003-2013.html
His blog reminded me of a time, in 2002, when we lost our old dog. He was 12 and became suddenly very ill. In the end there was nothing for it but we had to make that most difficult of decisions. (A decision we would make again 6 years later for one of our beloved felines.) A year later, my mom passed away. I am (only a little bit) embarrassed to say that I wept more and was more devastated over the loss of Bo. After all, he had been my constant friend & companion since the age of 13 or so and my mom & I had become a bit estranged, especially with her moving to another town, etc.
As I write this, our elderly cat, Fox, is perched on the desk in front of the keyboard. He'll be 16 this May. He's gotten thinner over the last year & a half, in the manner that humans often do when they reach a certain age. He's still loveable, feisty, eats & drinks normally, and after a myriad of tests about a year ago, we know he's still pretty healthy. However, despite our joking about his immortality, we know with a logical certainty that someday... well, nevermind that someday. (The same goes for our 8 year old dog, whom I've begun to feed a better food in hopes of his continuing health.)
In the end, it's not use worrying about what is to come. We should focus more on what we can do right now. All the playing, petting, scritches, and hugs we can possibly fit into a day. Even the days when they might do something not so great (like Fox's shredding of the toilet paper or 'marking territory' as one of our less civilized cats does from time to time). Hug your furbabies and spare a few kind thoughts for Neil....
His blog:
http://journal.neilgaiman.com/2013/01/the-power-of-dog-cabal-2003-2013.html
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Just Because I Have the All the Parts...
It's inevitable, I suppose. I'm a certain age and in a stable relationship. At least twice a year, someone asks the question "do you have kids?" in some form or another or I get told I'd make a good mom. About a year ago, something happened that was a little bit weirder. A co-worker asked me the usual question. After two follow ups - "do you plan on it?" and "not now or not ever?" - she expressed shock at my answer and went on to say "Not even one? Tanya...c'mon..." in a joking, slightly wheedling tone. I'm sorry? What? It's like I just said I didn't want to join her club...which I suppose I did. I don't want to join the Mom Club. It's worth mentioning that she then launched into how difficult it is to coordinate her work schedule with her son's school schedule, and ended with a tight smile and "but it's really worth it." Um...yeah. If you're trying to get someone to join up, maybe a speech about scheduling conflicts really isn't what you want to use to sell it?
Many women dream of being a mom, from the time they're little and playing with dolls. My sister was one of those people, so I hear. Not me. I've never wanted kids. (Except for a brief period between the ages of 17-19. Young, stupid, there was a boy involved.) I don't have the "Squee! Toddler!" button. You know - the function that causes otherwise reasonable women to devolve into squealing, cooing creatures when they see a baby or small child. (Seriously, I can tell, even with headphones in, when someone has brought a baby/small child into the office. Oy, the frequency!) I have been known to have that reaction to cute, fuzzy animals, but that's not the point. It's not that I hate kids, that's not it at all. I think they're very nice when well-behaved and in fact, they get more interesting as they get older.
As to "you'd make a really good mom..." *sigh* The most ridiculous incident of this was when someone who'd only known me about 6-8 months said this to me. I was like, wow, you barely know anything about me. She appeared to be basing this assessment on me giving a shit about other humans & being compassionate. (I no longer speak with this individual unless out of occupational necessity. She's batshit crazy & I have to work with her. It's interesting sometimes.)
Just because I don't want to have children is no reason to look at me like I'm crazy. It's also not a reason to think that I'm covering for being infertile (which some people probably seem to believe because they're assholes and refuse to accept that it can be an actual choice not to procreate). We no longer get harassed by family. My side is understanding, my sister even hitting one of the reasons immediately when discussing the topic. His side stopped asking...or mentioning it...especially after my brother-in-law & fiancee had a kid.
We have our cats and our dog. They are our children. If someone doesn't like that or thinks our lives can't possibly fulfilled because we haven't decided to bring another life onto this already overloaded planet, well, fuck 'em. I'm perfectly happy with our furry children and, frankly, sometimes I can barely manage them. The really great thing about pets vs kids? You can leave pets home alone while you go to the movies, shopping, whatever and nobody says you're a terrible parent. For a really wonderful illustration of pets vs. kids, The Oatmeal. Hilarious! (I wanted to provide the link for said comic, but couldn't find a direct link. Go look at his book, "How to Tell if Your Cat is Plotting to Kill You" and turn to the next to the last page. It's in there for sure.)
Essentially, what a woman does with her uterus is her business. Just because I have one, doesn't mean I want to use it, so leave me alone.
Many women dream of being a mom, from the time they're little and playing with dolls. My sister was one of those people, so I hear. Not me. I've never wanted kids. (Except for a brief period between the ages of 17-19. Young, stupid, there was a boy involved.) I don't have the "Squee! Toddler!" button. You know - the function that causes otherwise reasonable women to devolve into squealing, cooing creatures when they see a baby or small child. (Seriously, I can tell, even with headphones in, when someone has brought a baby/small child into the office. Oy, the frequency!) I have been known to have that reaction to cute, fuzzy animals, but that's not the point. It's not that I hate kids, that's not it at all. I think they're very nice when well-behaved and in fact, they get more interesting as they get older.
As to "you'd make a really good mom..." *sigh* The most ridiculous incident of this was when someone who'd only known me about 6-8 months said this to me. I was like, wow, you barely know anything about me. She appeared to be basing this assessment on me giving a shit about other humans & being compassionate. (I no longer speak with this individual unless out of occupational necessity. She's batshit crazy & I have to work with her. It's interesting sometimes.)
Just because I don't want to have children is no reason to look at me like I'm crazy. It's also not a reason to think that I'm covering for being infertile (which some people probably seem to believe because they're assholes and refuse to accept that it can be an actual choice not to procreate). We no longer get harassed by family. My side is understanding, my sister even hitting one of the reasons immediately when discussing the topic. His side stopped asking...or mentioning it...especially after my brother-in-law & fiancee had a kid.
We have our cats and our dog. They are our children. If someone doesn't like that or thinks our lives can't possibly fulfilled because we haven't decided to bring another life onto this already overloaded planet, well, fuck 'em. I'm perfectly happy with our furry children and, frankly, sometimes I can barely manage them. The really great thing about pets vs kids? You can leave pets home alone while you go to the movies, shopping, whatever and nobody says you're a terrible parent. For a really wonderful illustration of pets vs. kids, The Oatmeal. Hilarious! (I wanted to provide the link for said comic, but couldn't find a direct link. Go look at his book, "How to Tell if Your Cat is Plotting to Kill You" and turn to the next to the last page. It's in there for sure.)
Essentially, what a woman does with her uterus is her business. Just because I have one, doesn't mean I want to use it, so leave me alone.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Superheroes, Strong Female Characters, Batgirl Review
When I was little, I wanted to be a superhero. (Who am I kidding, sometimes, I still do. Or, at least have a non-obvious power that I can use under a secret identity. I've never really liked the spotlight or extra attention, so, a secret identity would really be best.) I used to watch cartoons before school: G.I. Joe, Transformers, and something that I now think was an incarnation of Justice League, since it had Superman, Wonder Woman, and others. I wore Wonder Woman underoos and dreamed of fighting crime/evil/bad guys. Somewhere along the way though, I noticed something about these cartoons. Wonder Woman never really did anything. I mean, she flew around in her invisible jet, but, I don't recall her ever really employing her Lasso of Truth or fighting the bad guys. What's the point of being a powerful Amazonion warrior if all you do is fly recon? The male heroes did all the fighting & apprehending. In G.I. Joe, Scarlet was part of the team...but she really didn't do anything either except provide background color & yell "Go Joe!" when applicable. (Sure, G.I. Joe had the Baronness, and she did a lot but, if you're looking for a positive heroic female model...yeah...) So...disappointed. I stopped watching these shows and still looked for strong female characters in other places.
I didn't pay much attention to comics for quite awhile, since most of the images of women there looked like these crazy, gravity-defying creatures who couldn't possibly exist. (Lady Death, anyone?) So I started reading fantasy novels and found what I was looking for in the works of Anne McCaffrey, Terry Brooks, Mercedes Lackey, Marian Zimmer Bradley, and others.
At the end of high school and just after, I discovered Xena, the Warrior Princess and her (sometimes annoying) sidekick, Gabrielle. Then came Spc. Agent Dana Scully...and Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. These were some of the women I'd been looking for! Particularly since Scully & Xena didn't have any superpowers. They were, and are, just fucking awesome. (In fact, for awhile, it annoyed me when people would proclaim Buffy as this pinnacle of "girl power" when, in fact, X-Files & Xena pre-dated her. But it's ok, because they're all there now as fine examples of feminine strength.)
I read my first comic when I worked at Target after high school - the title "Ghost" from Dark Horse. Elena, while being rather gravity defying and in an impractical outfit, was pretty kick ass. (I think I kind of gave her a pass on account of not being actually alive and because the stories were pretty great.)
Later, at Borders, I would discover Oracle. While shelving & organizing the graphic novels I happened upon a title called Birds of Prey. I thumbed through it, ordered my own pristine copy, and I was hooked. See, a few years prior, Alan Moore wrote a disturbing piece of fiction called The Killing Joke in which the Joker pays a visit to the Gordon home & shoots Barbara Gordon (aka Batgirl), rendering her wheelchair bound & paralyzed. (On a side note, this was another sore point with myself & many, many other readers - Batman can recover from a broken back, why is she stuck in a fucking chair? There's been so many injustices towards female superheroes and superhero girlfriends, that the writer Gail Simone once devoted a site to it called "Women in Refrigerators.") Anyway, Babs decided to use her considerable mental & computer skills to become an information broker to the superhero community & she ran her own team - the Birds! After meeting Black Canary, Huntress, Lady Blackhawke, etc, etc, I found out comics can be awesome. The heroines can have real lives and only slightly exaggerated features. Now, I'm hooked not only on Birds of Prey, but also on Buffy's continued run in the comics. Then, I found the new Batgirl...
Last year, DC Comics sort of re-booted most, if not all, of their more popular titles under the heading of "The New 52." Birds of Prey & Batgirl were amongst the titles. I eagerly read the first couple Birds of Prey issues & was a little confused...Black Canary went to Barbara Gordon's place to invite her to the team...and Barbara was standing up! Well, the newest graphic novel explains it. I'll admit it. I'm one of those people who is going to dearly miss Oracle...but...it's nice to see Barbara as Batgirl again, scaling the rooftops of Gotham city. Gail Simone, who wrote the Birds of Prey stories that drew me in, is the author of Batgirl and she does a fantastic job. In this reboot, Barbara still gets shot by the Joker and was wheelchair bound for 3 years. She took an experimental treatment and has regained the use of her lower body. The story is told in an interesting way, she's still dealing with the emotional aftermath of being shot, (PTSD, if you will) - the first time a villain threatens to shoot her, she freezes. There is much of her inner monologue, a look inside her head as she thinks about why did she get this miracle, but so many others never get a second chance. One moment I love, is a flashback in her head when she remembers first taking up the mantle of Batgirl. Batman wasn't terribly pleased, as he wasn't looking for a partner & she says that neither was she. Barbara Gordon is a bit vulnerable, just moving into her own place after getting her legs back, looking for a job, learning to trust other people again. Batgirl is confident, witty, and kind of personable in her crime-fighting; she ends up getting hugged by a couple she saves from a couple of violent muggers. She's still building the strength in her lower body, but learning on the fly to compensate for her current weaknesses. The story is well-crafted & now that Gail is back (DC fired her via email last month & then a couple weeks later hired her back. The story goes that the move was partially due to outrage from fans & professionals alike) I look forward to so much more.
So where does that leave me & others looking for strong female characters? Well, one could look to the work of Joss Whedon. His work is full of them & they pretty much all rock. He has rather famously answered "why do you keep writing such strong female characters?" with "Because people keep asking that question." (After the way Black Widow was portrayed in the Avengers movie, it still pisses me off when I see things that say Avengers and it only has Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Captain America. I mean, seriously - they're not the only ones. She's a badass. So is Hawkeye & all the others we haven't met yet, but, you get the idea. Why do people making the promotional stuff behave as though she's not a part of the team? *sigh*) There's also the new Battlestar Galactica . At this point, I think it's pretty easy to find good female characters in literature, film, comics, etc. Even real life. I read a blog the other day where a woman was speaking about this topic & discussed the teachers from Sandy Hook Elementary School. The stories of heroism about these ladies were phenomenal.
As an adult, I still favor female superheroes, look for books with good female leads, and I've learned something along the way. We don't have to have superpowers, or amazing abilities to be heroes. We just have to realize we're capable of heroism.
Some interesting related links:
Women in Refrigerators - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_Refrigerators (Info about the term, the trope, and other tidbits.)
Heroes of Sandy Hook Elementary School/Strong Female characters -
http://madelineashby.com/?p=1368
I didn't pay much attention to comics for quite awhile, since most of the images of women there looked like these crazy, gravity-defying creatures who couldn't possibly exist. (Lady Death, anyone?) So I started reading fantasy novels and found what I was looking for in the works of Anne McCaffrey, Terry Brooks, Mercedes Lackey, Marian Zimmer Bradley, and others.
At the end of high school and just after, I discovered Xena, the Warrior Princess and her (sometimes annoying) sidekick, Gabrielle. Then came Spc. Agent Dana Scully...and Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. These were some of the women I'd been looking for! Particularly since Scully & Xena didn't have any superpowers. They were, and are, just fucking awesome. (In fact, for awhile, it annoyed me when people would proclaim Buffy as this pinnacle of "girl power" when, in fact, X-Files & Xena pre-dated her. But it's ok, because they're all there now as fine examples of feminine strength.)
I read my first comic when I worked at Target after high school - the title "Ghost" from Dark Horse. Elena, while being rather gravity defying and in an impractical outfit, was pretty kick ass. (I think I kind of gave her a pass on account of not being actually alive and because the stories were pretty great.)
Later, at Borders, I would discover Oracle. While shelving & organizing the graphic novels I happened upon a title called Birds of Prey. I thumbed through it, ordered my own pristine copy, and I was hooked. See, a few years prior, Alan Moore wrote a disturbing piece of fiction called The Killing Joke in which the Joker pays a visit to the Gordon home & shoots Barbara Gordon (aka Batgirl), rendering her wheelchair bound & paralyzed. (On a side note, this was another sore point with myself & many, many other readers - Batman can recover from a broken back, why is she stuck in a fucking chair? There's been so many injustices towards female superheroes and superhero girlfriends, that the writer Gail Simone once devoted a site to it called "Women in Refrigerators.") Anyway, Babs decided to use her considerable mental & computer skills to become an information broker to the superhero community & she ran her own team - the Birds! After meeting Black Canary, Huntress, Lady Blackhawke, etc, etc, I found out comics can be awesome. The heroines can have real lives and only slightly exaggerated features. Now, I'm hooked not only on Birds of Prey, but also on Buffy's continued run in the comics. Then, I found the new Batgirl...
Last year, DC Comics sort of re-booted most, if not all, of their more popular titles under the heading of "The New 52." Birds of Prey & Batgirl were amongst the titles. I eagerly read the first couple Birds of Prey issues & was a little confused...Black Canary went to Barbara Gordon's place to invite her to the team...and Barbara was standing up! Well, the newest graphic novel explains it. I'll admit it. I'm one of those people who is going to dearly miss Oracle...but...it's nice to see Barbara as Batgirl again, scaling the rooftops of Gotham city. Gail Simone, who wrote the Birds of Prey stories that drew me in, is the author of Batgirl and she does a fantastic job. In this reboot, Barbara still gets shot by the Joker and was wheelchair bound for 3 years. She took an experimental treatment and has regained the use of her lower body. The story is told in an interesting way, she's still dealing with the emotional aftermath of being shot, (PTSD, if you will) - the first time a villain threatens to shoot her, she freezes. There is much of her inner monologue, a look inside her head as she thinks about why did she get this miracle, but so many others never get a second chance. One moment I love, is a flashback in her head when she remembers first taking up the mantle of Batgirl. Batman wasn't terribly pleased, as he wasn't looking for a partner & she says that neither was she. Barbara Gordon is a bit vulnerable, just moving into her own place after getting her legs back, looking for a job, learning to trust other people again. Batgirl is confident, witty, and kind of personable in her crime-fighting; she ends up getting hugged by a couple she saves from a couple of violent muggers. She's still building the strength in her lower body, but learning on the fly to compensate for her current weaknesses. The story is well-crafted & now that Gail is back (DC fired her via email last month & then a couple weeks later hired her back. The story goes that the move was partially due to outrage from fans & professionals alike) I look forward to so much more.
So where does that leave me & others looking for strong female characters? Well, one could look to the work of Joss Whedon. His work is full of them & they pretty much all rock. He has rather famously answered "why do you keep writing such strong female characters?" with "Because people keep asking that question." (After the way Black Widow was portrayed in the Avengers movie, it still pisses me off when I see things that say Avengers and it only has Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Captain America. I mean, seriously - they're not the only ones. She's a badass. So is Hawkeye & all the others we haven't met yet, but, you get the idea. Why do people making the promotional stuff behave as though she's not a part of the team? *sigh*) There's also the new Battlestar Galactica . At this point, I think it's pretty easy to find good female characters in literature, film, comics, etc. Even real life. I read a blog the other day where a woman was speaking about this topic & discussed the teachers from Sandy Hook Elementary School. The stories of heroism about these ladies were phenomenal.
As an adult, I still favor female superheroes, look for books with good female leads, and I've learned something along the way. We don't have to have superpowers, or amazing abilities to be heroes. We just have to realize we're capable of heroism.
Some interesting related links:
Women in Refrigerators - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_Refrigerators (Info about the term, the trope, and other tidbits.)
Heroes of Sandy Hook Elementary School/Strong Female characters -
http://madelineashby.com/?p=1368
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Politics and a Survey
Last week, I received a survey in the mail. This very official looking document was published & sent out by the Republican National Commission. Why did I get it? Well, 17 years or so ago, I registered as a Republican and have never changed it. After reading it through, I'm glad I got to do the survey, but first a little background.
See, as a kid, my exposure to politics was fairly limited. But, I did know that my mom was on one team & my dad was on the other. When it came time for me to register to vote, I let my mother influence my choice. She was a Republican & explained why they she was one (I no longer remember what she said); however the main thing she stressed was that it was better to vote one's conscience than to vote party lines.
Now, back to that survey. I've heard it said over & over again that many view points espoused by the Right are fringe views, just vocal outsiders, it's not the party line. Some of the questions on this survey have caused me to believe otherwise... either that or the RNC is totally pandering. After collecting some basic data, the first question is: "Do you believe Barack Obama has used the presidency and the powers of his office to look out for concerns and interests of Americans like you?" Ok, that's fairly reasonable. Later in the survey, which is divided into sections, we encounter some questionable items such as:
It's those questions/items that cause me to question what the hell the Republican party is actually up to. Many of the items above are things I've heard discussed by people who are generally considered to be on the edge of things, not the mainstream, not the party line. Are they all a bunch of nutjobs? Is the RNC pandering to the far right? Is this survey simply for the RNC to gauge what it's members are up to/believe since there seem to be fractures within the party?
To be fair, there are items on the survey that are pretty reasonable questions and reasonable bullet points as well. Such as asking if respondents are worried about inflation impacting their finances. Are we worried about border security? Do you agree it's time to leave Afghanistan? Should retirees be exempt from property tax increases on their residence? There are many others.
I don't really have any plans right now to change my registration. Partly due to laziness, partly because I might get to screw with their status quo by answering surveys such as this. Frankly, I'm not sure it really matters at this point which party one's voter registration card states. At this stage in the game, it seems to me that both Republican & Democratic lawmakers are really just two sides of the same coin & they're all in it for themselves. To be sure, one generally shouldn't paint with broad strokes as it's details that are always important. However, when something like this comes around, it really causes me to wonder if the broad strokes that are often used to paint the Republican party are a little more suitable than originally thought. I don't know, I don't pretend to. I just know that I listened to my mom & still vote my conscience.
See, as a kid, my exposure to politics was fairly limited. But, I did know that my mom was on one team & my dad was on the other. When it came time for me to register to vote, I let my mother influence my choice. She was a Republican & explained why they she was one (I no longer remember what she said); however the main thing she stressed was that it was better to vote one's conscience than to vote party lines.
Now, back to that survey. I've heard it said over & over again that many view points espoused by the Right are fringe views, just vocal outsiders, it's not the party line. Some of the questions on this survey have caused me to believe otherwise... either that or the RNC is totally pandering. After collecting some basic data, the first question is: "Do you believe Barack Obama has used the presidency and the powers of his office to look out for concerns and interests of Americans like you?" Ok, that's fairly reasonable. Later in the survey, which is divided into sections, we encounter some questionable items such as:
- "Would you support a phased-in increase in the retirement/eligiblity age for Social Security benefits that would not affect anyone over the age of 50?"
- "Do you believe Obama's strategey of treating all countries as equals to the United States has strengthened our security and weakened the resolve of our enemies?"
- "Do you support the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe vs. Wade to allow states to regulate/restrict abortion as they see fit?"
- "Do you believe life begins at conception?"
- "Do you support immediate and total repeal of ObamaCare health care legislation?"
- "Do you believe the Republican Party needs to do a better job of exposing the Obama record and his radical liberal agenda?"
- "Are you committed to helping ensure that in 2012, the Obama-era of radical liberalism, reckless spending and embarrassing foreign policy comes to an end?" (That's the last question before the section that requests donations)
(There's also a section at the beginning of 'bullet points,' so to speak that are considered as "How important are these issues...": Repeal ObamaCare, Exposing Obama's radical left-wing policies, Expanding domestic exploration for oil & gas.)
It's those questions/items that cause me to question what the hell the Republican party is actually up to. Many of the items above are things I've heard discussed by people who are generally considered to be on the edge of things, not the mainstream, not the party line. Are they all a bunch of nutjobs? Is the RNC pandering to the far right? Is this survey simply for the RNC to gauge what it's members are up to/believe since there seem to be fractures within the party?
To be fair, there are items on the survey that are pretty reasonable questions and reasonable bullet points as well. Such as asking if respondents are worried about inflation impacting their finances. Are we worried about border security? Do you agree it's time to leave Afghanistan? Should retirees be exempt from property tax increases on their residence? There are many others.
I don't really have any plans right now to change my registration. Partly due to laziness, partly because I might get to screw with their status quo by answering surveys such as this. Frankly, I'm not sure it really matters at this point which party one's voter registration card states. At this stage in the game, it seems to me that both Republican & Democratic lawmakers are really just two sides of the same coin & they're all in it for themselves. To be sure, one generally shouldn't paint with broad strokes as it's details that are always important. However, when something like this comes around, it really causes me to wonder if the broad strokes that are often used to paint the Republican party are a little more suitable than originally thought. I don't know, I don't pretend to. I just know that I listened to my mom & still vote my conscience.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Odd Feeling of Relief and Abe Lincoln
Wow, I just looked & realized it's been a loooong time since I posted anything here. I ended up feeling compelled to share some thoughts that have been rolling around in my head since Friday.
There's been some heated discourse over on my Facebook page for a couple days, so Friday I decided to check in & see if I still had the same number of friends. Finding I was down one, I went to see who. To my surprise, someone I had actually been wanting to defriend had dropped me. I found myself feeling an odd mixture of relief and happiness. When I told my husband he said "sad." I then explained that the sad bit was this person not realizing a long-ass time ago that we were NOT friends. (The only reason she was still in the list was due to trying to avoid any possible work drama.) He understood after that. :) But I realized, as a smile broke over my face, that I was actually a bit relieved. She got it. She finally got it. She's due back at work from medical leave soon, I can only hope this new knowledge sticks.
Now, for a more exciting topic! I just finished Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. I've been reading it for awhile, and did actually have a conversation with someone where they asked me what it's about. I know. Seems obvious, right? Though Jason did point out that's often the sort of thing people say when they don't know what else to say about a book. Oh well. :) Anyway, you might have seen some trailers for a movie of the same name... but, after finishing, I'm not entirely certain how close it follows the book. I'll still see it, but, now I'm curious. The book though is by Seth Grahame-Smith. It opens with a man running a shop in a small town who talks about a regular customer named Henry. One day, Henry gives him a wrapped bundle that will change his life forever... Journals of Abe Lincoln. The story follows Lincoln's life and fantasy is woven very skillfully with fact. Jason read it, too, and he warned me that as you go through the story, it becomes harder to draw the line. He was right! I found myself thinking that many details actually seemed pretty plausible. ("So that's what happened to the second lost colony at Roanoke...") On the whole, even if he wasn't a vampire hunter, I found myself admiring Lincoln even more... and wanting to go read more about him. Y'know, actual biographies. :)
Unless... of course... this is real and it's only being marketed as fiction to throw us all off. Muahahahaha!
There's been some heated discourse over on my Facebook page for a couple days, so Friday I decided to check in & see if I still had the same number of friends. Finding I was down one, I went to see who. To my surprise, someone I had actually been wanting to defriend had dropped me. I found myself feeling an odd mixture of relief and happiness. When I told my husband he said "sad." I then explained that the sad bit was this person not realizing a long-ass time ago that we were NOT friends. (The only reason she was still in the list was due to trying to avoid any possible work drama.) He understood after that. :) But I realized, as a smile broke over my face, that I was actually a bit relieved. She got it. She finally got it. She's due back at work from medical leave soon, I can only hope this new knowledge sticks.
Now, for a more exciting topic! I just finished Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. I've been reading it for awhile, and did actually have a conversation with someone where they asked me what it's about. I know. Seems obvious, right? Though Jason did point out that's often the sort of thing people say when they don't know what else to say about a book. Oh well. :) Anyway, you might have seen some trailers for a movie of the same name... but, after finishing, I'm not entirely certain how close it follows the book. I'll still see it, but, now I'm curious. The book though is by Seth Grahame-Smith. It opens with a man running a shop in a small town who talks about a regular customer named Henry. One day, Henry gives him a wrapped bundle that will change his life forever... Journals of Abe Lincoln. The story follows Lincoln's life and fantasy is woven very skillfully with fact. Jason read it, too, and he warned me that as you go through the story, it becomes harder to draw the line. He was right! I found myself thinking that many details actually seemed pretty plausible. ("So that's what happened to the second lost colony at Roanoke...") On the whole, even if he wasn't a vampire hunter, I found myself admiring Lincoln even more... and wanting to go read more about him. Y'know, actual biographies. :)
Unless... of course... this is real and it's only being marketed as fiction to throw us all off. Muahahahaha!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Rumors? On the Internet? Say it Ain't So!
It's been said many times, many ways. But I'm not talking about Merry Christmas. I'm talking about the Internet. Sure, we all know it's a great way to communicate with others over distance, conveying messages, ideas, and knowledge at speed. There's millions of wonderful things to be found, no I'm not talking about porn, but you can find that too, and no doubt some of it's wonderful. However, there is also a great lot of false nonsense. Someone will take a rumor they heard somewhere, and circulate it around as a gospel truth. If it's accompanied by blustery language designed to rile the reader, all the better.
I, along with everyone else, gets these emails from time to time. The ones that say things like "The ACLU wants to ban crosses for headstones in military cemetaries!!" or "The Obamas hate Christmas!" or even the one from this morning that if you sell your house in 2013 or after there is a 3.8% "sales tax" that will be imposed and that this is "hidden" in the health care reform act. The last item was from this morning, was a forward, and the person I got it from actually left intact a comment from the previous recipient "Don't know if this is true. click the link below for further explanation." Really? All clicking the link did (as in most of these emails) was take me to a site that was aligned with the general opinion of the rumor.
When I get these notes, I go a step further. Rather than blindly becoming horrified & outraged at the percieved misdeed of whoever the target happens to be, I fact check. There are several wonderful sites that can help with this endeavor, though this morning I only had time to visit one of them. Upon determining the veracity of the email, I then copy the link, hit 'reply to all' and send it off. I believe rather firmly this may be why I don't get as many of these emails as I used to- perhaps people don't like the rumor mill being debunked.
From my experience, the main hallmark of spotting a rumor like this in your inbox is blustery language that is designed to raise your moral outrage. "How dare they!" the author wants you to think. All I usually think is "how dare you, author of this email!" Another big way to spot a fake, the author will make it sound like there's a huge conspiracy afoot and by sending this email you will help to rail against it.
This morning's offering, as stated, involves a 3.8% tax that will go into effect in 2013. The email bills this as a real estate sales tax, that someone, no matter their income level, will have to pay if they sell a house, because they're "out to screw the retiring generation who often downsize their homes." A quick check at www.snopes.com does much to dissuade that theory. The 3.8% tax is in fact a Medicare tax that will be instituted on Capital Gains earnings, or investment income, only if certain income levels are in place. (Read the full entry here: http://www.snopes.com/
Stay wary friends, and, if you believe everything that comes into your inbox, well, I'm sure there's a Nigerian Banking Scam out there with your name on it!
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