some random music selections

for the wedding. awesome:
1. sadie hawkins dance - relient k.
2. ugly day (a.k.a. the original 'rhubarb pie') - five iron frenzy.
3. stickshifts & safetybelts - cake.
4. the cure for pain - jon foreman.
5. do you remember - jack johnson.

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25 days!

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p.s. getting a marriage license is a strange experience. if you've gone through it, you know what I'm talking about.

start the day with a smile..

hey, someone's still got brains and that old enlightenment crap going for them:

Dan Rather’s conspiracy theories about CBS make about as much sense as a two-story outhouse, the network says.

Rather and his old bosses were facing off in Manhattan Supreme Court yesterday, where the former Evening News anchor was seeking documents he says will prove his storied career there was sacrificed to appease the Bush administration. ...

“We allege this was a sham investigation on be half of CBS so they could mollify the right” and get rid of Rather, who’d been a thorn in Bush’s side, Gold said.

In their court filings, CBS states, “Rather’s position defies logic and common sense.”

“Rather’s theory is that CBS News commissioned a costly panel, in order to criticize itself, exonerate Dan Rather, and give themselves cover for doing something that it had a contractual right to do anyway,” which is remove Rather from his anchor seat, the filing says. CBS lawyer Jim Quinn said that while the report found Rather did nothing wrong, it “excoriated CBS.”

“If that’s a sham, it’s the dumbest sham I’ve ever heard of,” Quinn said.

just to remind folks of the backstory, this goes back to a 60 minutes ii episode about president bush's national guard service that was all well and good.. modulo the fact that it was based on completely (and rather obviously) fradulent documents supplied by a democratic party operative.

now, if folks would only apply the same sort of argument-ad-absurdum from the self-interest perspective w.r.t. iraq, we might have more intellectually honest dialogue about the history there..

good day!

damn straight

will bunch gets it:

"Yes, they’re voicing outrage today inside the sacred sanctuary of the Temple of Objective Journalism, where the celebrants nervously fingered their rosaries rather than confront the Constitutional bonfire that was building outside.

But for eight years now, there’s been an out-of-control fire raging outside of that temple – a fire that was built upon the USA Patriot Act and Guantanamo and rendition and torture and signing statements and 16 words in a State of the Union Address. Ultimately, saving the last fabric of democracy is more important than worrying about what contrived commandments of journalism were stepped on while the blaze was finally extinguished.

I myself would call it truth-telling, and honest journalism, but now we have some who want to call it “media bias.” That’s fine with me, but understand this.

"Media bias” may have just saved America."

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seriously! out with the arrogant bums who suppress truth in favour of their own vision for what's best for our country! let's save democracy by getting rid of 'em.

"paging george orwell.."

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jeff goldstein has the best reaction to this nonsense:

"Objectivity suppressed in the name of the Greater Good.

Call that attitude fascist, and you’re a crazed wingnut. Because in the world of the progressives, the highest form of patriotism is a willingness to cast off bourgeois conventions (when to do so is convenient, of course — just call it “pragmatism”) if in the final analysis the Greater Good is the result.

Never mind that presuming the Greater Good is yours to define against the will of an informed electorate is anti-American (and so de facto unpatriotic). The solution to that is simply to redefine patriotism in a way that matches your agenda.

The ends justify the means. And if a democratic republic consistently proves itself incapable of doing the right thing, the right thing to do is to make sure that they no longer trip over their own persistent idiocy.

As defined by progressives.

Welcome to Hotel Orwell. Free cable — but no Fox News."

as for me and my vote..

local:
- governor. I voted for rossi on three major grounds:
1. divided government. letting a single party run olympia for nearly twenty years has induced massive amounts of inefficiency, corruption, and the generally salient features of any one-party state that you expect, regardless of what name they bear. consider sheena's situation at public health: massive services for, you know, poor people are being cut while management positions in bright, new, and really shiny buildings are added. along with sophisticated and awe-inspiring technology for those managers to manage their now-dwindling functions really really well.
2. fiscal responsibility. our state's response, I suspect largely due to its nearly one-party governance, to any kind of financial difficulty is invariably to say "we can't do this! we must raise taxes so that we can provide new services! help yourselves by helping us." or rather, post-2004-election, do this under the guise of 'emergency legislation' and charge .15USD/gallon statewide in new gas taxes to 'fund' non-existent transportation projects around puget sound that will in fact be funded by tolls and new taxes installed at the time. see, that way, voters forget about the old massive tax hikes you installed to pay for your promised pretty roads and then you can tax them again later on and they won't know the difference. because they're just going to vote for a democrat anyway. thus encouraging accountability for politicians. anyway, rossi's clearly not from this pattern. I'm not expecting great things and perhaps he'll go too far (doubtful with a democrat-controlled state legislature; people forget these things..). in which case, we'll then have another fifty million years of one-party democratic control after him during which things can slide completely in the opposite direction for like, forever.
3. somehow my third reason got absorbed into #2. don't ask me why. maybe it's because I'm still pissed about the post-2004 debacle and general mismanagement of resources with our government.

- initiative 985. I voted no. summary:
1. another classic tim eyman initiative that sounds flippin' awesome at first and then becomes more and more sour; leaving you with a sort of bitter feeling as you realize you got taken in by a guy who's likely more about himself than actually helping traffic congestion.
2. I liked: the carpool lane, roadside assistance, and toll limitation bit. the last one I thought was important: just like new taxes, new tolls should be passed by a simple legislative vote instead of instituted by fiat.
3. but anyway, the thing meddles way too much with telling state & local government how to manage minutiae. that strikes me as a bad precedent for good governance from either the right or the left.
4. but seriously: having come from the east coast, the washington DOT is one of the most absymal organizations I've ever seen. seriously. and their knee-jerk taxation impulse for anything new just indicates some of the institutional non-accountability I hinted at in the governor description.

- initiative 1000. I also voted no on this one.
1. as a small 'l' libertarian (long discussion there), I was naturally predisposed to vote 'yes' for something like this. as contrasted with abortion where we don't have a clue about a fetus' consciousness or potential volition about whether or not it would like to be crushed or maimed or dead.
2. but the decisive thing here was what happened in oregon after they passed a similar initiative. essentially, the matter comes down to insurance.
2a. down there, they've had a number of cases where insurance companies would tell terminally ill patients that they would not help fund expensive, life-prolonging medication (which they funded before the initiative passed) in lieu of a much cheaper assisted suicide option.
3. which is the generally scary thing about government-run health care, now that I mention it. the availability of health care and its options should never be subject to perceived social interest. ever.

- initiative 1027 (I think). I voted yes on this one.
well, it seemed rather obvious. quality control for long-term care is just as important as quality control in the hospital. and the utter absence in the former (and associated horror stories from nursing homes) is pathetic.

- president. I voted for mccain/palin.
1. much like the governor note above, there's this whole divided government thing that I value. essentially, ideological 'movements' based upon bettering the people and sweeping out old corruption tend to very quickly settle into new corruption and new problems that are just as immature and/or, well, problematic. divided government at least ensures that the progress of such rhetorically boldened movements is kept pretty close to earth, if only by slowing its rate of 'progress.' there's also much better public accountability this way. which brings me to my second destructive reason..
2. essentially, the prospect of having a man in the white house who engages in the foundational lie and isn't called on it by a supposedly interested media scares the shit out of me w.r.t. the health of the republic. don't get me wrong: all politicians lie to a greater or lesser extent. the beautiful thing about our republic is that we have (i.) at least one opposition party and (ii.) a private media who both have self-interest in rooting out lies/deception to make the other party look bad or make news [of course, they often generate fictional or assumed 'deceptions' that lots of really smart people then process without ever worrying about whether or not they are verified; but that's a separate issue]. here though, no one really believes a word coming out of the republican party (for better or worse) and the media has been permanently engaged in worship mode for months. as a result, we've seen justification and rationalization for all sorts of massive lies/self-contradictions from obama's campaign and obama himself. not at all limited to:
- preconditions in negotiating with iran
- free trade
- foreign policy in latin america
- addressing russia
- iraq and the success/failure there
- israel
- tax increases/decreases
in additional to the foundational lies about obama himself and his transformative lightworking being, including:
- post-partisanship
- campaign finance
- his pastor and other radical associations
- any pretension or claim to being 'moderate'
- copious amounts of vacuous rhetoric and empathy that shrouds a very different policy vision
as I said, all politicians engage in a massive amount of deception. obama is no different in that. the crucial difference to my eye is the willingness for large numbers of smart/educated/important people to rationalize obvious self-contradictions into suave arguments for his awesomeness. the fact that the media has assisted this is abhorrent and sets awful precedent for future governance. it essentially introduces the possibility of no electoral accountability for a man who mouths the 'right' sort of words (judged by some informational elite), even if they sometimes include statements like "black is white." and even if mr. obama doesn't misuse that lack of accountability to his advantage, like I said: it sets awful precedent for the future.
2a. if you don't agree, imagine karl rove as president with twelve versions of fox news broadcast in every cafe. with everyone smiling knowingly about all the things they don't actually know, but merely assume. because, well, it's true dammit. then you'd live in my world - in reverse. either way, it's bad.
3. oh, and the last destructive reason that's more me-oriented rather than more global: I don't actually agree with him on, well, anything policy-related. and while it's very nice of him to consider little people like me that probably got brainwashed into a non-progressive value set, his voting record indicates that his consideration is purely abstract. I personally have no use for such big-minded people.
4. now, on to constructives. economically, if we have to choose between, say, increasing capital gains/property/estate taxes on the 'rich' (while crucially affecting small business and investment incentives for the not-so-rich) and not, then taking option 2 will be healthier for everyone - period. if you want to prolong whatever recession and economic troubles are country is plunging into, then a good way to do that is to motivate rich folks and corporations to move their money overseas by taxing the shit out of them. see, that way, you increase unemployment (since the jobs left) AND decrease economic output (since the money left) AND generate even more despair as your economy suffers even more, which naturally leads itself to invest more power in government to help out further. this was the good old great depression model that - not to be too blunt - prolonged the depression far longer than it would have likely lasted under a more minimal government approach. but hey don't believe me, listen to this guy. anyway, that's a long way of saying that populist rhetoric is all well and good (if entirely unjust: an extra zero on your tax return suddenly kicks in conditional social ethics that make theft legal and appropriate), but its historical effectiveness for, you know, actually helping the poor is actually poor itself. all the while, it also decreases individual conceptions of responsibility for their fellow man. because, well, Jesus didn't reaaallly call you to love your neighbor you know, yourself. that's government's job to 'make sure it happens;' your free will and love pale in comparison to the act of achieving nominal dependence on some impersonal entity.
4a. not that mccain's that great in this region either; but he's certainly better.
5. iraq. well, not that anyone cares about that place anymore not that it's doing so much better, but I do. and pissing away achievements there and disengaging from active conflicts with AQI and others to.. umm.. fight them in afghanistan even though they're primarily localized near iraq.. umm, oh I lost myself again. oh yeah: pissing away those achievements is quite dumb. tackle afghanistan/pakistan soon; secure one front first and then move on. you know, like you learn from basic military history.
5a. random interlude: I'm terribly sick of the fact that many smart people think of iraq entirely in terms of the 2003 invasion. you know, the folks that love to contextualize everything simply fail to contextualize this: that regardless of how you felt about whether or not we should have or should not have invaded iraq, we are there now. and we will be there for the near future. this act of presence can either be something that benefits the iraqi people, the middle east, and us, or it may not. the ethical question of 2003 is now a historical question; saying 'we shouldn't have gone there' is fine, but the statement 'and so we shouldn't be there now' does not logically follow. obama half-falls into this nonsense (likely for political reasons, thereby engaging much political support from the perpetually outraged) while also advancing this "they're in afghanistan! seriously!" business that, were it true, would be much more advanced in convenient leaks by higher-ups in the defense dept. in some fashion that shows that they aren't simply convenient for obama's benefit, but convenient toward shaping public policy.
5b. people forget, after all, that people and institutions act primarily out of self-interest. the defense department & co. have a vested self-interest in actually doing their jobs well. which means they usually know a helluva lot more what they're talking about than the vocal lot that make it onto sunday morning talk shows. of course, they also have a self-interest in manipulating publicly released information as well. but here, a hyperactive and tourettes-like press is actually useful.
6. for all that people have made fun of palin (to the point of absurdity), her policy outlook is actually the closest to my own; namely, small 'l' libertarian. not that people care about that when they can butcher quotes to prove that she believes in holy war; you mess with the narrative when you do that. not that it terribly matters anyway; vice presidents, even cheney, don't do that much compared to other offices.

hmm, that seems like a sufficient summary for now. I need to actually mail my absentee ballot and then get back to work.

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all in all though, none of this truly matters on an eternal timescale. I have voted my conscience while recognizing that my hope and duty does not reside in politicians or our republic, but rather in our God and King. it is my desire that beyond my vote, that His Will is done and that our government and its function reflects His wishes and desires. that whoever He wants in office will be elected.

but now I go back to my duty: love for Him and love for my neighbor. those He will lift me up to pursue independent of who is in earthly power. and as my hope lies in Him, He will bring about the change He desires in me, the change and redemption that I cannot bring to myself. praise be to God.

derek webb on the election tomorrow

and that well said.

from patrol magazine - how then shall we vote?

Part 1: A Brief Statement On Matters Of Conscience

Depending on when you’re reading this, we could be on either side of one of the most evocative elections in our country’s recent history. It shouldn’t really matter, as this writing isn’t necessarily about our current election but rather on living an honest and integrated political life. Even so, there is no time for clever stories or introductions. I’ll cut right to the chase: ultimately our problems will not be solved by the right man (or woman) in the White House. It simply doesn’t work that way. We live in a democracy, a representative form of government, where it’s as much if not more our responsibility to love and take care of our neighbors than our politician’s responsibility. Real and lasting change comes from knowing and loving the folks who live in the houses that sit next to ours rather than saving all of our longing and hope for the voting booth.

Now that’s not to say that we shouldn’t make informed decisions, be involved in the process. Of course we should. I mean, if your conscience allows, you can even vote. But that’s tricky, especially in a two party system (but I definitely don’t have time for that).

But in all seriousness, I want to be perfectly clear on this point: it is never advisable, in any decision that you make, to violate your conscience. As it applies to this election, you might have serious moral conflicts with both candidates, and therefore feel as though you must vote in a defensive manner or for the lesser of two evils.

Now let me say before I go any further that that may not be you. And in terms of the body of followers of Jesus, it would likely be sinful if we were all reaching the same conclusions on how to best love our neighbors, so there’s plenty of room for a difference of opinion there. But if that is you, I have a few suggestions:

1. Look through your bible for a mandate that you must vote.

2. When you don’t find one, listen to that conscience of yours. That’s what it’s there for, to be a guide and a red flag when you’re making difficult and significant decisions.

What I’m not saying: you should not vote.

What I am saying: if your conscience is seriously conflicted over both candidates, you are at liberty to not vote.

Part 2: Some Common Objections

Some would say that not voting is giving your vote over to those who seek to use the governmental process for evil. I would actually argue the opposite. By voting, especially when based on just one or two issues, you’re giving your ‘yes’ and ‘amen’ to that party’s entire platform, which likely goes far beyond the statement you’re trying to make on these few issues. This is certainly more perilous and less nuanced that abstaining altogether. No party can co-opt a vote that isn’t cast.

Others would say, ‘Jesus said to “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s.” Therefore we have biblical an obligation to vote.’ And of course Jesus said that. That’s why I pay my taxes and try to drive the speed limit. These are among the laws of the land. But my conscience doesn’t belong to Caesar, therefore I don’t render it unto him. Caesar cannot force me to violate my conscience. Voting is a legal right, like carrying a gun or having an abortion. And I can abstain from doing anything that I have a legal right to if it violates my conscience.

Some say that we’ll never completely agree with the agenda or platform of a politician, that if we wait for a candidate that we line up with 100% we’ll never vote. I completely agree. There are many issues upon which I can disagree with a politician that don’t amount to a crisis of conscience. So there will always be necessary and acceptable compromises to make when engaging in the system of politics, but never when your conscience is on the line.

Which brings my to the last common objection: our forefathers fought and even shed blood so that we would have the right to vote. While there’s obviously nothing in this statement that I would disagree with, there is a context to consider. Even greater than our forefather’s sacrifices are those of our heavenly Father, who also shed blood in order to stir in us an allegiance greater than that of nation. We have an ultimate allegiance to our King and the Kingdom he’s building in and through us that trumps all others.

In the early 1520s Martin Luther famously stood before a general assembly in Germany, at the beginnings of what’s known as the protestant reformation. In his legendary speech Luther risked excommunication and death in order to keep from violating his conscience when he said, “To go against conscience is neither right nor safe. I cannot, and I will not recant. Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me.”

These matters of conscience are serious and should be considered at great length. I have many friends who have considered the issues of this current election in all their nuances and have chosen to vote for either Obama, McCain, or a 3rd party candidate, and I support them in doing so. Again, we are diverse members of one body in our following of Jesus. It would be suspicious if we all reached identical conclusions to such complex problems. So again, maybe there is no conflict of conscience for you in this election. By all means vote. But if there is, be at liberty not to vote.

Our ultimate hope is not in politicians or powers or governments, but in a day coming when all things will be made right. And our ultimate concern isn’t success but faithfulness. So if you find it necessary to abstain from voting in this election because to do so would be a violation of your conscience, be at liberty to remain faithful and leave the worry of success or outcome to God. He, after all, created governments in the first place.

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yes.

"..And whatever is not from faith is sin." - Romans 14:23b

(see the rest of the chapter for the appropriate discussion on conscience; see also 1 john)

d-bags for obama

easily the funniest thing I've read this election cycle.

from iowahawk:

Obama Pix Hipster Prix to Reclick with Stix Hix

Rural Michigan-bound Hipster douchebags train in hyperbaric sarcasm chamber at Obama training center

Denver - With new polls showing Barack Obama's once-commanding lead over John McCain all but evaporated, the Obama campaign announced today it has begun deploying its vast volunteer army of downtown hipster douchebags to help reconnect the presumptive Democratic candidate with middle-American voters.

"Unlike Iraq, this is one surge that is actually going to work," said Obama campaign manager David Axlerod.

Sources within the campaign say the new strategy was prompted by recent national poll trends indicating McCain pulling even with, and in some instances even overtaking, Obama. More troubling for the campaign were internal tracking polls that show the candidate losing significant ground in key Midwestern, Southern and Western battleground states. As the numbers dropped, some within the campaign were left in stunned disbelief.

"It really didn't make sense," said Carly Voorhees, an East Village experimental performance poet, Cooper Union graduate student and member of Obama's 600-expert foreign policy team. "We knew in theory there were a handful of stump-toothed biblebillies and neocon dead-enders out there, but by all rights we should have had at least a 60%-75% lead. Even after Barack threw that awesome victory rave in Germany, the numbers kept deteriorating."

"At first we were stumped," she added. "Then it dawned on us -- McSame's subliminal attack ads were stoking the deep-rooted, latent racism of white middle America. We needed to warn these uneducated simpletons that McSame was exploiting their superstitions and genetic bigotry. The big question was -- how?"

A Few Good D-Bags

At first, the Obama team looked into major media buys in key battleground states. But with a campaign budget already strained by price increases in arugula and Hawaiian airfare, the impact was deemed to be minimal. Instead, they turned to a key campaign asset -- a dedicated cadre of young urban hipster douchebags willing to take Obama's message of change to America's small town streets and rural blacktops. An intensive eVite recruitment campaign on websites like the Daily Kos and Huffington Post yielded over 1,500 volunteers for the potentially dangerous mission.

"I couldn't be prouder of all of you wonderful young indy rock assholes," said Axlerod at a swearing-in ceremony at the campaign's official training center in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. "You represent our party's finest, the best of best -- you are our Douchebag Delta Force."

Highly motivated, and with skills ranging from post-modern gender theory to espresso cafe blackboard chalk art, the volunteers were eager to get to work on the campaign trail. But before deployment Obama officials insisted that all recruits undergo an intensive training regimen to prepare them for the rigors of life in Red Country.

"A lot of the plebe douchebags come in here full of swagger, thinking all it takes is a few hours of FM country music endurance training, and I have to tell them they have no idea what they're up against," says Ethan Dodge, a Seattle conceptual theater set designer and veteran douchebag of Obama's Iowa caucus campaign. "Believe me, I've been to Dubuque. I know."

Douchebag DI Dodge: "They don't what they're
up against"

To toughen up the recruits for the task ahead, Dodge and other drill instructors take a direct approach.

"We tell them straight up: we aren't your mommy or daddy or your au pair. There aren't any independent lesbian film festivals in Youngstown, and just because Iowa has a lot of farmers it doesn't mean they are going to see a lot of Sunday chill-out farmers' markets," says Voorhees. "After that shock wears off, we tell them about how the natives drink Pabst unironically."

"Sure, it scares some recruits off," admits Dodge. "But the ones who stay are much less likely to crack under the pressure of a two week isolation from American Apparel or Urban Outfitters."

According to trainers, one of the toughest obstacles to building a cohesive field team is overcoming natural hipster douchebag one-upsmanship.

"Most douchebags take pride in being in on trends and bands before anyone else, and abandoning them before anyone else," says David Forrester, a grant composer for an Austin non-profit community public radio art advocacy outreach agency who serves the training center chaplain. "When we tell them their conversion target is fat middle-aged western Wisconsin Wal-Mart moms, it creates an ethical dilemma in many of them. They have fears that the mission success conflicts with their own finely-tuned sense of douchebag exclusiveness and superiority."

"I counsel them that they are serving Obama, and a greater hipness," he explains. "Still, I admit some harbor thoughts of abandoning the campaign for edgier, more-out-there bands like Nader or Ron Paul."

Fighting Back for Barack

While training continues at the Williamsburg facility, an advanced detachment of Obama hipster douchebags is already on the ground in several electoral hotspots throughout the Midwest and the New South's notorious "Nascar Triangle." Led by Los Angeles guerrilla marketing douchebag Benjamin "Benjamin" Lorenz, the elite edgy squadron contains some of the Obama campaign's top flamewar-hardened Farktards and Digg dipshits, and has been spending several days preparing the American election battlefields for the Obama douchebag airlift expected later this week.

"After all those hours simulating, training and trolling on wingnut message boards, it's good to finally be on the ground," said Lorenz, landing at the airport in Wisconsin's hotly contested Fond du Lac province. "Which way to the free public yellow bikes?"

Lorenz: wooing Midwest senior voters through
snark, attitude-y posing in gritty alley doorways

According to Lorenz, winning back fence sitters to the Obama column takes a disciplined three-pronged attack of sarcasm, irony and condescension, which he demonstrates on a diner at a Fond du Lac IHOP.

"Excuse me, who are you voting for?" Lorenz asks the elderly man.

"Oh, I don't know, McCain I suppose," the man answers.

"Yeah, I guess you senile old fucks need to stick together," says Lorenz. "That way you can stay safe from those scary Muslim nee-groos."

"See?" observes Lorenz. "Now that he's been properly shamed out of his racism, he'll think twice before pulling any lever for McBush."

Outside Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte, NC, elite douchebag and Berkeley environmental street theater expert Jeremy Bremer uses a similar approach -- with a green message.

"Hyuk hyuk hyuk, lookie me, Ima inbred Republican hillbilly drivin' round in circles, jist lak that thar Nafcar," shouts Bremer, pantomiming a race to boombox banjo music. The scene quickly draws a curious throng of onlookers, when Bremer suddenly stops.

"Except I'm not destroying the planet," he shouts angrily.

When a McCain supporter from the crowd responds, Bremer removes a video camera and begins filming her.

"Guess what, bitch?" taunts Bremer. "You just been rickrolled on YouTube."

"I'd like to see her show her face again after that," laughs Bremer after the incident. "Totally PWN3D."

Obama douchebag Meilani Cohen poses
atop her MFA thesis, perhaps ironically

In Perrysville, Indiana, special forces douchebag Meilani Cohen uses a softer sarcasm approach when wooing Hoosier swing votes to the Obama column. For the last week, Cohen has been conducting a traveling one-woman show of "Six Years of Tuition," the pink fiberglass rock that was her Yale Art School master's thesis.

"The piece is a great conversation starter with the local proletariat," says Cohen. "I use it to demonstrate how Obama is all about change and unity, and cutting edge postmodern sculpture, and how he will fund public arts programs to bring it to their dismal little hellhole towns."

"Occasionally I will run into a McBush supporter, and I will pull out two campaign posters and let them compare," she explains. "Obama: Shepard Fairey. McCain: Copperplate Gothic. Then I ask them - are you really going to vote for someone that out of touch with graphic design trends?"

In Urbandale, Iowa, a six-member Obama douchebag team seeks converts through music. Squad leader Xander-Kai Topher says the group was an outgrowth of a 2005 NYU Semiotics class student project, and describes their style as "Hopcore Acoustotrance."

"Semiotic theory shows that messages become persuasive through repetition," Topher explains as we walk the streets of this quiet Des Moines suburb. "To win back Obama voters, it will take a lot of chanting."

To demonstrate, the group rings the doorbell of Debbie and Mike Lefko's split level ranch, whose tidy lawn features several John McCain signs. When the Lefkos emerge, the group treat them to a 7-minute performance of the campaign's official headbobbing hypnochant "O-ba-ma, O-ba-ma," punctuated by soulful, if off-key, glissandos.

Clearly moved, Debbie Lefko retreats into the house and gives the group a $10 campaign donation.

"I had heard that schizophrenic homelessness was on the rise, but I had no idea," said a tearful Lefko. "My God, those poor people looked like they got their clothes out of a Salvation Army dumpster."

The Fog of War

Whether Obama's douchebag heartland surge will ultimately succeed remains to be determined, but longtime political analyst and What's the Matter With Kansas? author Thomas Frank thinks the basic strategy is sound.

"Unfortunately this election comes down to winning the hearts and minds of whitebread, middlebrow, middle-class, middle-Americans," says Frank."This effort shows that Obama troops are willing to reach out and condescend to them, one-on-one, no matter how pathetic and stupid they are."

"I think the energy and diversity of these young douchebags will really help Obama in the swing states," agrees longtime political watcher David Gergen. "It shows that the appeal of Obama transcends Chicago government union thugs and celebrity shitheads."

But others say the Obama douchebag surge is already stalling. New polls conducted after the surge indicate further polling losses, and the frustration is showing in the field.

"I've seen some poor morale," says Richard Greil, a Chicago Tribune reporter embedded with Obama's 131st Douchebag Infantry in Northeast Missouri. "It goes beyond the usual grumbling over lack of graffiti art and gritty-yet-trendy warehouse districts. These volunteers are being dropped into areas largely unfamiliar with irony and snark, and it can be completely disorienting. They call it the 'hundred yard Farm & Fleet stare.'"

Some volunteers worry that indigenous population has recognized the strategy and already adapted.

"After I talk with some of these morons, I'll ask them, 'so you're going to vote for Obama, right?' and they're like, 'ya, sure, you betcha,'" says a weary London Whitworth, 26, outside a Brainerd, Minnesota strip mall. "But in the back of my mind I can't help shake the notion that they're using sarcasm too."

In an ominous sign for the campaign, there have also been recent scattered reports of some volunteers going AWOL -- and even defecting. One such defector is Chael Martin, 25. The former Echo Park douchebag and Obama community organizer fled his post Wednesday and now spends his days sipping Miller Lite and playing skeeball at a Glenbeulah, Wisconsin tavern, where he talks about his dissolutionment with the surge.

"Dude, Obama like an hour ago," says Martin. "These Republicans are so far out, they're in.

love it.

a turn

the truly Self-sufficient is Infinite, not closed upon Itself.

with its converse:

the truly self-insufficient is finite, compact.

cool/undeserved things

1. unexpectedly being able to get bridesmaid dresses through a legitimate local store instead of through a big sketchy online question mark (and as you well know, question marks have small holes; making it hard to get things through them).
2a. finding an amazing caterer for much cheaper than everyone else.
2b. finding out today that we can get a different amazing caterer for even cheaper [!]
3. new boots. asolo even.
4a. getting to go out to leavenworth this weekend with the lovely sheena & my sister.
4b. being able to see phil in the process. plus being able to see him perform.
4c. aleida & david will be up at the same time, so we can see them too.
5. family getting together on sunday.
6. blessed assurance.

yuppers.

the "dude, you see that cult over there?" post; PLUS: wedding!

from the hordes of the perpetually hope-oppressed comes this piece of electoral magic: the obama salute

"Our goal is to see a crowd of 75,000 people at Obama's nomination speech holding their hands about their heads, fingers laced together in support of a new direction for this country, a renewed hope, and acceptance of responsibility for our future," says Rick Husong, owner of The Loyalty Inc. Husong tells me that he got the idea after seeing the famous Obama-progress poster by artist Shepherd Fairey. "We wanted to get involved some way," he says. So, the agency came up with their own a symbol of hope and progress that also plays off Obama's name. "We thought, 'Let's try and start a movement where even while walking down the street, people would hold up the O and you would know they were for Obama,' " says Husong. Much thought went into the relatively simple idea. "You interlace your hands in a circle, the interlacing being a symbol of different types of people coming together and the circle a symbol of unity," he says. Their design, unlike Fairey's, is free , and Husong is urging people to download it and print it on posters and T-shirts. "We want to see it everywhere, but more importantly we want this sign to take the world by storm."

"seriously?" I ask. "seriously."

but really, it's all quite alright. very smart people have informed me that the great O!'s hope-drive exhibits no cult-like characteristics and that anyone who thinks it does is just dumb. *therefore,* this cannot possibly be evidence of cultish affection.

I'm grateful that I was told that a while ago. otherwise, I would have been caught completely unprepared and just acted dumb. or maybe even racist.

which is ultimately why I rely on other people to tell me both how to interpret evidence and what I mean when I say things.

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all sarcasm aside, my thoughts on the lightworker can be summarized by a simple quote:

As soon as politics, for the sake of politics, becomes a society’s principle passion — its object of hope, its pearl of great price — that society has already subjected itself to a type of totalitarianism. Unwittingly, it has relinquished a citizen’s and a people’s privilege and responsibility of self-determination. It has bet the outcome of the common pursuit of happiness on the eventual good actions of chosen elite.
- unknown

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alrighty, my spleen is vented. which means on to happy awesome wedding glory [!]

1. it turns out that planning a wedding takes more than a day. in fact, it takes many days. as a result, I've done some things lately that I never imagined I'd do:
- help sheena search for bridesmaid dresses (if you know any good websites for cheap bridesmaid dresses, please let us know! we're looking for a light blue [not baby, royal, navy, etc] two-piece without too much flair)
- make informed decisions on colour choices ("I think that cornflower's a little more full-bodied than we want")
- go fabric shopping at multiple stores, multiple times
- and so much more
2. but we've gotten a ton done. sheena has a dress that she adores and supposedly will make me fall into seizures from its awesomeness (according to sarah coffey); pastor jon is confirmed to wed us; God's scheduled to stick around for the whole process; we have a church with a basement for the reception; photography - checkeroo; and just confirmed.. we will have the cutest flower girl/ringbearer couple EVER. no, seriously. let me prove it.

here's the flower girl (pekay, if you're watching this, smile!) & the ringbearer (yes, lukie is confirmed); also, that really hot smiling beauty on the left is sheena, in case you've been in a hole or something.



my personal fantasy is to set the two of them up before the reception's over. if you want to help, just step in and you can be a part of this matchmaking frenzy.

3. the official date is december 13th. the official place is seattle. the official spiritual state is exalted.
4. yeah, the whole thing is freaking awesome. I deserve neither sheena nor her love and yet I have both! what undeserved joy! [needless to say, I could go on for a reaaaallllllyyyy long time; apparently I nearly made my sister vomit from the sappiness several times in the last months; so watch out]

ok, to work. awesome.

a route to apocalypse

1. the continuing demystification of 'absolute' morality
2. the filling of that void with definition-by-consensus, aka the new morality (progressive, regressive, whatever)
3. the attempt to solidify the new definition with any means available
4. rinse & repeat

for lower-case morality is always an exercise in definition and choice.

viewed in this light, much of history is mankind's collective processing of this self-contradiction.

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"there is nothing new under the sun."

this only reinforces a fact: the choice has been and is only between God and the devil.

africa

for those who haven't heard, sheena left seattle bound for southern africa this past tuesday. she will return late may 23rd (about 41.5 days from now). she is there to serve in a local church with kids as well as to help start an HIV home care/prevention program.

I'm grateful that I was able to speak with her last night: she arrived in the city where she'll be serving (rundu in the country of namibia - near the angolan border) safely. she's tired: she's been traveling almost constantly since she left tuesday afternoon.

I take solace and happiness in the knowledge that God knows her needs - I have little idea what is best for her right now and therefore what I should pray for, but He knows.

more to come soon.

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[part of] faith is this: to submit hardship to God. and thereby turn pain to suffering and a little crucifixion.

in other words, pain can be passed by with business and a focus upon non-painful things. this is functional but it is a deliberate attempt to fool yourself by separating knowledge from the heart. "I will get through this hard time by not thinking about it and plugging away."

but this is a mistake for two reasons:
1. it is a lie, for it seeks to deal with pain/hardship by trying to create a psychological environment where that pain simply does not exist. "if I don't think about it, then it can't hurt me."
2. it does not treat God truthfully or lovingly.

the second reason is intimately tied with the first statement: that faith is submitting hardship to God.

- if I lie to myself, then when I submit myself to God I am lying to Him.
- if I do not know myself, then I do not know what I am submitting to Him.
- if I am not willing to submit my pain to God, then I am denying His strength to resolve it.

for the loving truth is this: God calls us to submit ourselves to Him. that is a spiritual and psychological act (that He assists and makes possible). in True submission (may I find it by His grace!), pain is transformed into suffering and thus something for the sake of the Gospel. for in suffering, I can no longer claim anything for myself - not a right, not offense, and certainly not a notion that I deserve a thing. in pain, I claim to have all of these things - the right not to be in pain, the offense at hardship in my life, and the idea that I don't deserve hardship (even if it's only for a time: "I just want one day of peace.").

it is in suffering - not in pain! - that we find True perspective. it is therefore in suffering - not in pain! - that God draws near to us (for all of my claims in pain blind my spirit so that I no longer allow myself to perceive God).

may He draw near to sheena and me now. and by that, may He take the distance between us and turn it into an object of glory before the Throne.

amen and glory.

clueless

from iran's mehr news agency:

Chomsky: Palestinians punished for not obeying Israel-U.S. orders

TEHRAN, Jan. 23 (MNA) - Noam Chomsky, a widely known intellectual and political activist, says an immediate punishment of Palestinians started “for the crime of not following orders” by Israel and U.S.

In an interview with the Mehr News Agency, Chomsky said, “Savage punishment of Palestinians by the U.S.-Israeli alliance” should come to an end.
Following is the text of the interview:

The major crisis in Gaza started immediately after Hamas won a free and fair election (ed: uh huh - on what planet?). The West, which despises democracy unless it comes out "the right way", immediately turned to punishment of the people for the crime of not following orders (ed: perhaps it was in response to rockets fired against civilian targets..?), Israel and the U.S. in the lead, Europe following timidly along as usual. The crisis has continued to escalate, and of course it is tied to U.S.-Israeli takever of whatever is of value in the West Bank (ed: wait, is he actually claiming that the israel fought back in an effort to acquire assets in the west bank?), often with considerable violence (ed: initiated and sustained by the palestianians; a.k.a. acts of war, a.k.a. casus belli).

The Annapolis conference was a joke in poor taste. It had almost nothing to do with Israel-Palestine. It was an effort by Bush and Rice to line up the "moderate" Arab states (ed: you mean those that aren't actively threatening nuclear holocaust?)-- that is, the extreme fundamentalist tyrannies that are expected to follow orders (ed: spoken in.. iran?)-- in an anti-Iran alliance. That's why it was held in Annapolis.

There should be efforts by the Islamic states, and everyone else, to put an end to the savage punishment of Palestinians by the U.S.-Israeli alliance (ed: presumably he's referring to iran's pledge to nuke israel).

spoken in iran no less.

(the factual vacuum there is high quality: don't walk too close or you'll get sucked into the same mode of reasoning that defines the conspiracy theorist)

two possibilities:
1. his words have been misconstrued by mehr to the point that what's written doesn't match his opinion (mehr clearly did a reduction job; the question is how much). this however seems unlikely, given that chomsky has an online mouthpiece and community to rebut an attempt by iran to put words in his mouth. or..
2. he means what's said above, even if he would consider it a gross simplification.

two consequences:
1. chomsky has placed himself in a position where he is used as a propaganda piece for a terrorist regime publicly committed to genocide and mass murder. or..
2. he has deliberately assisted said terrorist regime toward the goal of self-justification and internal consolidation.

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the 20th century's version of irreligious 'morality' manifests itself as totalitarianism.

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slightly related aside: the real idiocy with folks like chomsky is that they identify a narrative consistent with fact and then define the narrative as fact. denial of the narrative is then couched as denial of fact; if this inconsistency is noted, denial of the narrative is then couched as stemming from subversion by some hidden external (read: unverifiable) force (big business for the marxist, western imperialism for the chomskyite, &c), rather than careful observation of fact.

and so the attempt to fight imagined totalitarianism becomes the active support of existing totalitarianism.