Letters from the Underground

More Politics

I think today is the first day when I truly understand why a lot of people don't vote. I don't necessarily blame them either. I think politics suffers from a number of flaws that don't make it sexy for the average person.

First off, it's rather confusing. Most people have no idea how the system works, or why it's set up that way. I don't think many politicians understand either, really. I understand the history behind it, and I understand how bills get passed and such, but I couldn't tell you anything about the government that effects me most, which is the local one. The wondeful attack ads from both sides make you think that both canidates are better suited for jail and/or Satan than to be president. But that's really our fault, since it works.

Secondly, the attack ads. It's just indicative of the whole climate really. We're right, they're wrong. We're smart, they're stupid. We're good, they're evil. I know when I have to watch two people argue over something I'm not all that interested in to begin with, it gets more annoying when they get irrational and just silly. I tend to tune it out and find people who make me laugh. Probably why sitcoms are more popular than the news.

Finally, those who are really interested in politics don't understand those that aren't, and vice versa. I liken this to gamers talking to non gamers, or any club or clique you can name. As a gamer, I try not to bore non gamers with gaming stories. I think I've met one person who found them interesting. Heck, I'm a gamer and even I don't find the conversations that interesting. Having two people discuss whether or not Jaques Chirac (Or Black Jacques Chirac as my friends call him. It just goes so well together) likes the US or not. I don't think this matters to most people in their day to day lives.

Thing is, I used to care about this stuff, and part of me still does. But I was listening to NPR today, and someone was talking about how all the midwesterns were so silly to vote republican when they were poor. Because it was totally against their class interest or something. Then the guest and the host acted all mystified when they talked of the 'culture wars' that seem to have been won by the republicans in the 90s. I think the country is so big that a lot of times, we tend not to remember that the culture of someone 1000 miles away in our own country is not the same as ours, nor are their values. And they're not necessarily stupid or ignorant to have those values.

Maybe it's that politicians know what we don't. That to run the country, you have to compromise. You should listen to everyone's opinion, since in a republic, everyone's opinon carries equal weight, no matter how much of an idiot you think they are.

I for one, will just be happy when the election is over so I can stop listening to everyone bicker for at least a year. Until the next congressional elections, that is.

Upcoming Election

I think someone, somewhere once said that traitors are welcome nowhere. They're never trusted back at the place that they've betrayed, and they are never traitor enough for the side they'd like to go to.

This is kind of how I feel about the upcoming election.

Basically, I've decided not to vote for Bush in the election due to his wonderfully nasty idea of supporting a Defense of Marriage Act. Because I'm sure those darned gay people were just champing at the bit to destory marriage as an institution, because the straight people have maintained it so well. My mother has decided the same thing. So I disgruntledly(is this even a word, and if so it cannot be spelled correctly. I refuse to use a dictionary in the middle of a semi-rant) decided to vote for Kerry.

At which point I found out that he is also against gay marriage. But, he is more that happy to offer 'them' Marriage Lite. It's pretty much just like marriage, but since you're obviously a deviant who could not really make the true commitment that a normal straight person could, we won't call it marriage. Aren't you happy we're giving you something?

So I'm voting for Nader. Problem here is that Mr Nader is the Judas to Gore's Jesus. I'm not sure if people think he got the 29 pieces of silver or not, but people are pretty sure Republicans Were Involved. This is an actual conversation I've had with two people(two different people at different times and places).

Me: "So, yeah. My mom and I are pro war republicans and we're not voting for Bush because of the Defense of Marriage Act."
Them: "Oh good. Kerry is a good canidate."
Me: "I'm not voting for Kerry either. He's not for gay marriage, and I hate the protectionist way the dems are leaning. I'm voting for Nader."
Them: "I voted for Nader. Don't waste your vote."
Me: "I'm not wasting it. I'm registering my protest with the canidates the parties have provided me with."
Them: "If you vote for Nader, Bush will win."
Me: (sighing) "Look. Originally I was voting for Bush. So 'your side' still gains a vote."
Them: "Oh. That's the wonderful thing about this country. You cna use your vote as stupidly as you want to."

So yeah. This will be a lovely religious revival of an election. With The Savior vs. The Anti-Christ. Lots of rational debate amongst people who have no intention of changing their votes, and an election decided by who can get the most fanatics out from their party. I anxiously await the next shift in politics back to the center.

Racism

I'm not sure I should even broach this subject, really. It's a lightning rod for badness in life, really. But tonight I watched the MTV/VH1 special on the Illest Minority moments on TV. It kind of pointed out to me the major problem with the 'can't we all get along' attitude that, I think, is what most of us use in our day to day life.

I'm a fair person. I get along with people. I'm pretty damn white, skin tone and culturally. I guess what bothers me is this: all the people on the show were talking about how important it was to 'represent' and all that jazz. Cool. My problem is this. How do I, as a white male, represent in a positive way that is not imposed upon me from some other group, something which is 'bad'? Pretty much the only people being all white crazy are the crazy white people in the far right, but I don't really like them, don't really feel a connection to them, and think they're wrong. But after that, the options for up with whiteness are pretty slim.

I could go the frat boy/jock route, but while I like sports, I can't really obsess over them 24/7, and I don't really like hanging out with that crowd too much. Not drinking also limits my social acceptance there. If my life was a beer commercial, it would be pretty darn boring.

I also really can't go totally into the intellectual/sensitive man route.(I do realize I'm talking in stereotypes, here.) I'm a semi smart guy, but I do have my definate idiot qualities in their eyes. I like sports, I vote republican more than half the time and I tolerate the religious right(though they are definately annoying at times.)

I guess how I see it is the way I've always thought Dr. King saw it. Respect each other as individuals. The more we group ourselves, the more we seperate from each other. If you focus on the differences, you're only going to see differences.

I'm off the soap box now.

I want this life

I was reading Atlantic Monthly, which my wonderful brother and sister-in-law got me for Christmas, and got totally immersed in the article about the man in charge of the US military presence in Mongolia. Up to that point, I didn't know we had a presence there, but as the article pointed out, it's a really good spot for some of our assets to be, right in the middle of China and Russia.

Anyway, this guy is awesome. He's basically set US policy towards Mongolia as far as how and how much we help them out with matters military, and from what the articles say, the Mogolians love him too. They had a short bio of what he's done(I can't remember his name, so he remains merely 'he') and he's led an interesting life. Which kind of kicked in my apathetic wander lust. I would love to see Mogolia and China and pretty much anywhere in the world. I really need to get off my butt and get it done.

It also brings about the feelings that I've had that I should have really joined the military out of college or high school. It's not really a concrete feeling, more of a tickling in the back of my skull. Hard to explain. Anyway, if I had to live my life over, I'd probably go that route. Riding a pony along the Chinese border with a bunch of Mongols just sounds like a good time.