The Regular Person's Inauguration Weekend

Don't believe what you see in all those press pictures. This is what real people did Inauguration Weekend (hint: it involved lots of waiting). Was it worth it? Hell Yes!


So, I managed to convince my mom to come to Baltimore to see Obama's "whistle stop." The sun was out, but the temperatures were still arctic. Literally, I could count all the Fahrenheit degrees on one hand. At least we only have four more hours to wait.



I was visiting from San Diego and failed to anticipate the FREEZING cold. It's too cold to smile. I spent about $90 at Sport Chalet purchasing survival gear (but that hat is sweet, right?).


Baltimore arranged for a Billy Blanks wannabe to come out and lead some aerobics. The funny thing was, we actually did it. It was really that cold.


I just thought this guy was cool. He was all about the peace sign.


My first shot of Obama. Of course the teleprompter is blocking his face.


That's better. You can't really tell, but we're pretty close. It was awesome!



You'll notice there are no pictures of the concert on the Mall. That's because it was (again) freezing cold and I can really only tolerate so much. So, I visited friends in VA instead. But, on Monday, I was returning my rental car to the airport (parking in DC is hopeless at best anyways), and I was treated to a preview of some of the parade floats. The cops literally blocked off the intersection right in front of me. Not sure what the Cinderella carriage is all about...







Code Pink looking good. Keep it up!


I decided to walk around the Capitol Monday afternoon. I figured it would be as close as I would get (I was right). Apparently a lot of other people had the same idea.


Ok, let's get to the good part. Inauguration Pics!!

Sunrise on the Capitol. This was about two hours after we headed out. At least we got in (some were not so lucky). AND, you have to have a ticket to get this close (yea, I got hookups!). This is the view from the silver section. I figured that only gold and platinum would be ahead of us. Wrong. Purple, yellow, blue and orange were ahead of us. Apparently the color designators don't know their rankings. I think this should have been renamed the puce or "flesh tone" section.


Inauguration Weekend friends. You can't tell how excited I am because I look like I'm dying from exhaustion. I was trying hard to make facial expressions, but apparently my face was frozen.


OMG!! It's Obama! Can't you see him?!?! Hahaha


Thank God for the Jumbotrons. He got it right in this shot, but for some reason, the teleprompter typist kept typing "threat ring" instead of "let freedom ring." Weird...

After the sun rose higher in the sky, it cast a shadow on the jumbotron and I gave up trying to get any good pics. I wanted to be there and absorb the moment. Besides, other people got way better shots than I ever could.

The official moment. It was incredible (and I'd like to point out that all those people were farther back. See the tickets were good).


The second biggest cheer came when Bush flew over for the last time. One guy yelled, "Take him to Guantanamo!" Most people gave him the finger. Good riddance!!


And, of course, after a shower and a nap, we celebrated like all young, urban professionals. Sushi and sake bombs!!




I do wish I was able to get better pictures on my own, but I was just so thrilled to be a part of this incredible weekend. People ask, where were you when Kennedy was killed? When the Challenger blew up? When the towers came down? And when people ask, "where were you when Obama became president?," I can say: I was there. Simply amazing.

Ok, back to work!

Will I always be mad at Bush?

Seriously. Will I see pictures of him in five or ten years and still want to throw shoes at him?

Interestingly, it's not the series of increasingly bizarre press conferences that disgusts me (but it's safe to say he's back on the sauce). No, it's my graduate class. We actually had to have a discussion about Bush's "leadership ideas" and his "picture of success." Leadership? Success? I suppose Bush's picture of success will be staying out of prison.

Having to take (another) long look at the past eight years makes me sick. Everything he touches turns to shit. And he's so damn smug about it. He knows he's going to leave us holding the bill and with the targets on our heads while he just clears brush (or hires "non-whites" to do so). Fuuuuuuuuck. I'm having a hard time articulating how much he sucks. Justice. Economics. Environment. Military. Constitution. All of the above.

All I have to say is, no wonder Bush drinks. If I were him, I'd drink, too!

What are you doing here?

That is probably the second most common question I'm asked. People come to my cubicle, see my Obama buttons (two, I'm tasteful) and my picture of Obama and Biden from the convention (not as tasteful, but cool to me), and they immediately forget what they came to talk about, instead asking me "You're a liberal? What are you doing here?"

See, I'm in the Navy and apparently, being a liberal in the military makes me a total freak. I usually just let it slide, but with the new year, and the impending inauguration, I've decided to change my attitude. No more shrugging it off. No. From now on, I'm going to take on these douchebags (nicely,if they out-rank me). As far as I can tell, the only people that have actually defended the Constitution in the past eight years have been liberal. Torture? Conservatives. Wiretapping? Conservatives again? I mean, Bush was the one who said the Constitution is "just a piece of paper." So, fuck conservatives. They suck at defending the Constitution.

I'd like to say that I have no idea why conservatives have felt that they own the military, but that's not exactly true, and this article does a pretty good job of explaining what drives the conservative mind ("fear and aggression, dogmatism and the intolerance of ambiguity"). Well, I'd say that pretty much sums up the military. That, and they can be protected from "the gays." I guess it makes sense that conservatives would be attracted to the military environment. And there's guns, so many guns!!!

The past eight years have been a Bush love-fest. It's gross. He can do no wrong and I've endured way too many "discussions" about how going into Iraq was the right thing to do. But, I can feel the pendulum swinging back in the other direction. For people that have taken the "support the president or fuck off" attitude, they're surprisingly ready to shed that mentality. Ok, it's not surprising, but it's so hypocritical, it makes my head spin!

Well, I've been supporting the Constitution all along. It's not about the President, and it never should have been. So, you want to know what I'm doing here? The same thing I've always been doing here: exercising my right to serve my country and defend the Constitution. If you don't like that, well, fuck off.

Addicted to Religion

I just want to preface this by saying that I’m not a psychologist or psychiatrist. I haven’t even taken the “standard” college psych class. I’m just writing from my observations and experiences. So, on with the show…

I have this theory that everyone is addicted to something. Alcohol and drugs are the common ideas that pop into people’s minds because those are addictions that cause chemical dependency, but there are many more addictions and they’re only driven by one chemical: dopamine. Gambling, shopping, BASE jumping, sex, food, hell, even politics (c’mon, you know you’ve gotten a “rush” from a heated debate and totally trouncing your freeper cousin). We’re all after that feeling of total awesomeness. It’s not that our compulsive society drives these addictions, but that our need for satisfaction drives the compulsive society.

Addictions can be treated, but the need for that next rush never goes away. my observation is that people “trade” one addiction for the next. I have a family member that is a gambler. After attending Gamblers Anonymous, he gained about 60lbs. He loves food. Well, he loves eating. It’s that rush. It makes him feel good. I’m sure everyone knows someone who has traded one addiction for another (maybe it’s you); food for exercise, gambling for shopping, alcohol for God. Yea, I said it. People don’t stop being addicted, they just focus their addiction on something else.

How many people do you know that found God after battling an addiction or rough spot? I know a lot. After all, most born-agains have the “My life was crazy until I found God” story. And, it’s not just Christian God. We all know people who have converted to another religion and became fanatics. Well, I’d like to replace the word “fanatic” with “addict.” I believe that the religious fanaticism in this country is not about God at all, but about addiction.

Think about it. Is there another explanation for religious fanatics? They’re addicted to feeling righteous, to feeling superior. But, beyond that, they display all the signs of addiction. Here are some general signs of drug use from the Mayo Clinic:

• Feeling that you need the drug regularly and, in some cases, many times a day
• Making certain that you maintain a supply of the drug
• Feeling that you need the drug to deal with your problems
• Driving or doing other activities that place you and others at risk of physical harm when you're under the influence of the drug

And my personal favorite (from the Hallucinogens section):

• Greatly impaired perception of reality

Interestingly, neglect and abuse were not listed, but from my own experiences with addicts, these are classic symptoms.

Religion can absolutely be substituted for drug in many of these cases: daily church attendance, not being able to go without church, feeling that only God can handle your problems, denying medical care to people because of religion. The impared perception of reality speaks for itself. We can plainly see that religious fanatics are not operating in the same dimension as the rest of the world. These are signs of addiction. I went to college with a girl who became “born again” and she used to pray that God would give her ideas for her assignments. She’d waste hours waiting for signs instead of just writing the paper. I thought she was just crazy, when in reality, she was an addict.

Maybe it’s too controversial to suggest that people can be addicted to religion, but I’m pretty sure that if scientific studies were conducted on the dopamine levels of religious fanatics, they would bear strikingly similar results to those of recognized addicts. Religious addiction is damaging our society, our Constitution, and it, more than anything else, drives a wedge between us and keeps us from moving forward as a people.

How can I say this?? You're wrong

So, I saw this the other day and laughed:



First of all, it's funny, but more importantly, it's true. I'm so sick and tired of having to defend equality. I'm sick of the Prop H8-ers, of the fundies, of the "civil unions are ok" people. No. Separate is not equal and marriage is a state institution. You and your partner can go into a church (or house of worship) and say your vows, but without a marriage license, you're not married. Conversely, you can go to town hall and say your vows before a judge or clerk, never set foot in a church, and be married.

So really, let's just get this equality thing on the books and everyone chill the fuck out. Civil unions are not equal. And, I don't really understand this thinking at all. Marriage is not car insurance. You can't pick the features you want. You're either married or you're not. It's very simple.

One reason this issue touches me is because my parents are an interracial couple and married only four years after Loving v Virginia. They endured hell to date and my mom, who's white, was shunned by her mother (didn't attend the wedding, never met or wanted to meet me, her oldest grandchild). People are people, rights are rights, and to quote Loving v Virginia, "Marriage is one of the 'basic civil rights of man,'..." So, to all those people out there who are opposed to gay marriage: You're wrong. Go worry about your own lives and stay out of everyone else's.

I Am A Liberal Because...

So, I just hung up the my picture of Obama and Biden that I received after donating to the DNC. I have this overwhelming sense of pride every time I look at the picture, and I though "I am so proud to be a liberal." But, I started to ask myself why am I liberal in the first place. So much of the last eight years have put liberalism in a context as against Bush and his administration. Yes, we are against many (all) of the things that W has done, but we are for more than we are against. And we stand for a lot.

* I am a liberal because I believe that America can only succeed when we include everyone in our process and our consideration.

* I am a liberal because I believe that success does not come from the top down, but from the bottom up. When the lives of those who are struggling the most are improved, we all benefit. America is the land of opportunity, but everyone is not born with the same access. We can change that.

* I am a liberal because I believe that the government has an obligation to take care of its people. Health Care and Education are a right, not a privilege.

* I am a liberal because I am not afraid to deal in reality. Sex is a reality. Unwanted pregnancy is a reality. We cannot solve the problem if we pretend it does not exist. Education is the key.

* I am a liberal because I believe in every right provided in the Bill of Rights. I also believe in the safety of the greater community. It's illegal to yell "fire" or "bomb" in a crowded building and I'm ok with that. You're not hunting with an assault rifle, so let's be reasonable about how far our right to do anything really goes.

* I am a liberal because I believe in the rule of law, man's laws. You can practice whatever religion you want, just don't expect me to follow your religion or its "laws."

* I am a liberal because I believe that when the government is run by good people, it can do great things. When there are bad people in charge, terrible things happen.

* I am a liberal because I believe in an economy that respects the strength of the individual not the influence of the corporation. Without individuals, every corporation fails.

* I am a liberal because I believe America is part of the global community. We cannot expect to hold influence if we don't also take responsibility. We are all partners and every nation shares in the future of this world.

* I am a liberal because I believe that power and military strength are not the same thing. I would rather speak softly and carry a big stick. Potential to act can be just as influential as the action itself.

* I am a liberal because I appreciate nuance and gray area. Life is rarely simple, and I accept that.

* I am a liberal because I believe that every person is equal regardless of the money they have or the place they live, I believe in a government by, of, and for the people, and that the future can only be better if we work to make it so.

Make no mistake, tomorrow is not the end. It is the beginning.

I would just like to start out an say that I am so proud of the Democrats this year. We always knew we could run a better campaign, that we didn't need Karl Rove and fear tactics to win. We haven't won yet. I'm not counting those chickens. But, we are on the offensive, fighting Republicans on "their" turf. We are going into this ahead, in the best position we've seen in years.

And, thank you, all of those that have volunteered these past 20 months. Not just to those that have volunteered for Obama. Personally, I began this political season in the Edwards camp. But, from the beginning, we have been charged up. We have been ready to put our hearts and souls into electing a Democrat. We have put our divisions behind us and come together around Senators Obama and Biden.

When the votes are counted tomorrow (or next week), we will have our next president, and I believe we will have President Obama.

But, please, don't think the fight is over tomorrow.

This election is round one. The next four years will see an organized, vocal and aggressive Republican minority. They will push back against every plan we have for fixing America. They will not yield to our majority as so many Democrats yielded to them.

Make no mistake, tomorrow is just the beginning. We will need all of our strength, all of our grassroots networks to continue to be mobilized. We need to continue to speak out and support everything we have worked so hard for. After tomorrow, we will have the chance to see our dreams become reality. Fox and Rush and Bill-O will be feeding the fires of their followers. We must continue to outshine them. We must drag them kicking and screaming into the 21st Century. They will hate it and us for it, but it is the only way to fix America.

Barack Obama could not have gotten this far without us. He will not get any further without us. Please, celebrate tomorrow, relax on Wednesday and come back ready for round two on Thursday.