Apathy Ensues

I have been a McCain follower and supporter since before I could even vote; through the last 3 elections and the last 8 years I have followed his career and felt that one day he would make a wonderful president.  I remember when I was 16 and first learned about voting, and political parties and my parents shared with me their views and how they were neither Democrats, nor Republicans, but Independents and that Independents didn't have to follow party views but got to choose what they did and didn't agree with.  I remember thinking that I wanted to be an Independent because I too wanted to have a choice.  I remember my dad telling me about the Senator from Arizona and how he was an Independent too who tried to bring the parties together on issues rather than divide them.  I had thought at the tender age of 16 that that was a very honorable thing.  I became more and more intrigued with Senator John McCain, the more I learned; his family history in the Navy, his imprisonment and gruesome torture while a POW in Vietnam, his inability to run or lift his arms above his head due to the injuries he endured as a POW, his marriage to Cindy, their children and all his work in the Senate.  I admired him to say the very least and could not wait to see him run again in 2004 against Bush for the Republican nomination.  

Unfortunately everyones favorite maverick, was too much of a "risk" for the GOP to back.  Risk?  Why because he picks and chooses what to believe on which issues like EVERY free American should?  I was infuriated.  Not only had the GOP passed McCain over in 2000 for that dimwit Bush, but now they were doing it AGAIN in 2004 for the SAME DIMWIT!  WTF?  I thought surely they were all brainless or on drugs.  And sure enough, Bush screwed up our country (military, international relations and economy) so bad that the American people became LITERALLY afraid to vote for a Republican in 2008.  I can proudly say that I did not vote for Bush in 2000, and I did not vote for Bush in 2004.  I did not get to voice my opinion about this moron on a ballot in 2000.  However, in 2004 I chose to stage my own coup against the traditional aspects of being forced to choose between only 2 candidates who I had no part in choosing to be the representations of the Democratic and Republican parties.  Instead of being forced to choose the lesser of two evils (lets be honest, Kerry versus Bush--NOT really a choice at all) I wrote in John McCain's name in the "other" section.  Some may say I wasted my vote, but I disagree.  I exercised my right as an American to HAVE A CHOICE.

When the 2008 election rolled around and the GOP could no longer overlook my favorite maverick for the idiot Bush again, I was convinced that McCain could no longer be harmed by Bush.  I was ecstatic when the GOP picked up McCain as their nominee and was sure that his non-partisan views, independence and experienced qualifications would lead him directly to the Oval Office.  Alas, I would not fully understand just how extensive the damage Bush had done to the Republican party and the American people was until about 8:30 pm on November 4th, before the entire West coast of the country had even had a chance to count their ballots.  McCain's opponent won by an overwhelming majority in the Electoral College (one of the most ass backwards aspects of our election process), a "landslide" for which I blame George W. Bush and the abusive, draining and dishonest relationship we have been forced to have with him for the last 8 years.  

I can close my eyes and revisit yesterday; less than 36 hours ago I got the privilege of walking in to a voting facility, obtaining a ballot and looking down at something I had been waiting to see for for 3 elections--John McCain's name PRINTED on the ballot.  I stared at it for a few minutes almost in disbelief, taking in the moment, and then I proudly filled in the bubble next to his name, said a little prayer and dropped it in the black box.  But the man who had peaked my interest in politics would never make it to the final prize.  The 44th president of the United States of America was declared before my vote was even counted--my vote did not even count.  And so my apathy begins...

Make a difference in the life of an animal...

Adopt.  Volunteer.  Give your love in some way, for it may be the only love they have gotten and it may change their life and yours.

"I would have died that day if not for you.  I would have given up on life if not for your kind eyes.  I would have used my teeth in fear if not for your gentle hands.  I would have left this life believing that all humans don't care, believing there is no such thing as fur that isn't matted, skin that isn't flea bitten; that there is is no such thing as good food and plenty of it, beds to sleep on and someone to love me, to show me I deserve to exist.  Your kind eyes, your loving smile, your gentle hands and your big heart saved me...you saved me from the terror of the pound and soothed away the memories of my old life.  You have taught me what it means to be loved.  I have seen you do the same for other animals like me.  I have heard you ask yourself in times of despair why you do it when there is no more money, no more room, no more homes.  You open your heart a little bigger, stretch the money a little tighter, make a little more room just to save one more like me.  I show you my gratitude with the love that shines in my eyes...the only way I know how, reminding you why you go on trying.  I am the reason.  The animals before me are the reason, as are the ones who will come after.  Our lives would have been wasted, our love never given...we would die if not for you."

Author unknown.

Save a life and who knows, it may save yours.

You are probably a DoucheBag if:

You start a fight with a pregnant woman at a baseball game because she isn't supporting the same team as you.

You completely ignore your girlfriend/fiance/wife in favor of playing a video game.

You shave your head and wear "bling" in your ear/ears and you are white.

You take up two parking spaces because you're afraid that your Benz/Beamer/Audi will get door dings.

You drink so much that you make inappropriate comments about an elderly woman seen on the news who was just murdered.

You make fun of your friends for not going out to party with you if they are tired and want to catch up on their sleep, especially if you are over the age of 22.

You have a Superman tattoo and you are NOT either Clark Kent or Shaquille O'Neal.

You try to dance right up on girl's asses in a club when they are CLEARLY there with just the girls.

You preach your religious or political beliefs on someone who didn't ask for them.

You use the word "Hella" (which technically isn't even a word).

You think that Beer Pong is the best game EVER invented.

You keg-stand past the age of 22.

Double-Douchbaggery:  Correlating the amount of time one can keg-stand to the amount of "pussy" one can obtain.

You use too much product in your hair, you wear too much Axe deodorant or you leave the sticker on the underside of the brim of your baseball hat, which you then wear sideways and slightly to the back.

You use steroids.

You are Dick Cheney.

You wear sunglasses when there is no sun.

You constantly "one-up" the stories of your friends, family and coworkers.

You don't remember the last time you were wrong about something.

You use all five washing machines in the basement of your apartment building because you either have too many clothes or you wait too long to do your laundry (eww), preventing all other residents from doing their laundry until you are finished.

You walk around with a bluetooth headpiece permanently attached to your ear because it makes you feel important.

You have ever taken a picture of yourself without a shirt on, in a mirror.

Double Douchebaggery:  Posting said photo on MySpace.

You buy a $50,000 car when you A) still live with your parents, B) still owe half of that in student loans, C) still work retail or D) all of the above.

You walk like you have a baseball bat thrust up your ass.

You send roses to your girlfriend at her workplace EVERY SINGLE TIME you piss her off.

You are in a service related profession and you give really bad service.  If you hate your job...FIND A NEW ONE.

You hit on someone else's girlfriend at a party.

Half of your MySpace friends are not actually personal acquaintances or friends of yours and/or they are only partially clothed.

You have ever said in all seriousness, "No Fat Chicks."

Double Douchebaggery: Your car/truck has a bumper sticker claiming "No Fat Chicks, The Bumper Will Scrape."

Unending Douchebaggery: Your car/truck is already lifted.

You've ever tried to start a mosh pit during a concert of ANY genre other than Punk or Metal.

Double Douchebaggery: You punch or kick people in said mosh pit.

You act as if and generally believe that no one else matters other than yourself.

You've ever overheard the words "douchebag", "asshole", "wanker", "pretentious", "prick", "fool" (not to be confused with "cool"), "jerk-off", or "eeww" when you've entered a room.

You use the words "bro" (sounds like "brah") or "homie" to refer to your friends.

You shop at Abercrombie & Fitch or Hollister past the age of 18.

You have an over-inflated sense of self or if you don't know what that means.

...and I'm sure there are MANY more where that came from...

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

Something that has totally changed my life, some of you may already know it, but it is new to me.

The Serenity Prayer

God grant me the Serenity

To accept the things I cannot change;

The courage to change the things I can;

And the wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;

Enjoying one moment at a time;

Accepting the hardships as the pathways to peace;

Taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world

As it is, not as I would have it;

Trusting that He will make all things right 

If I surrender to His Will;

That I may be reasonably happy in this life;

And supremely happy with Him

Forever in the next.

McCain's no 'Warmonger'...even his own son is at risk.

Yes it's true, John McCain's son is in Iraq as we speak.  His own son's life is in peril, yet he still believes that American troops can finish what we so unintelligently started.  

That does not make him a 'warmonger', as Senator Obama supporters have recently called him. It makes him an honorable man--someone who finishes what is started, whether for the right reasons or for the wrong ones, that my friends is no longer the issue and realistically hasn't been since we set foot in Iraq.  It makes him an honorable man because not only does he believe in a stable Iraq, but he believes that the good reputation of America can be restored.  Not by quitting; plugging our ears with our white iPod headphones, turning our backs on a horrible mess of our own creation, signaling 'Peace-Out' and hoping that it all works itself out in time while we go about our privileged lives, but by providing support and keeping our promises.  

Yes, American soldier's lives are precious and should not be put in harms way unnecessarily, but THAT decision was made many years ago by pretty much the worst president we've ever had.  John McCain's choice to stay in Iraq does NOT mean that he deserves the entirety of the blame for the decision to go into Iraq in the first place.  We the people as a collective whole need to take responsibility for that one.  Why?  Because this is a democracy, thank God, and in a democracy the people control the government, NOT the other way around...and obviously some Americans voted for he-who-shall-not-be-named, or he wouldn't have set foot near the White House to begin with.

Another sign of an honorable man?  Taking the flack like a champ, and never once mentioning that his very own son is over in the Middle East, missing his father's campaign for president, never knowing of his victories, simply so you and I can sleep soundly tonight in our beds, comforted by the thought that someone with a big gun and a few hundred tanks is making sure that the bad guys don't win.  Sure, he could shut a few people up by telling them how his son doesn't hear about his victories because he's busy patrolling Anbar or digging military vehicles out the mud--but that would make him a chump, not a champ.

If his own flesh and blood is at risk, and the man wants to stay instead of look out for his own interests (bringing his son home), then he must really believe.  And if he really believes, there's no one else I'd rather trust.

To read the whole article: McCain Remains Silent on Son's Service

Blogging...Not as easy as it looks...

So I've pretty much been spending the last 2 days trying to figure out how to create my own blog.  I purchased a domain name and everything.  I came up with a clever name.  That combined with my basic knowledge of xhtml and css code and my server space that I already owned through .Mac, I thought I had it made.  WRONG.  Apparently it is not as easy as just using my server space to host my blog.  Apparently writing your own blog from scratch is a HUGE pain the ass.  And apparently Apple limits your blogging abilities to only be used in conjunction with iWeb.  F*ck that.  So the domain name that I so proudly purchased yesterday is pretty much a waste because I ended up using a free, customizable blogging site anyway.  Sheesh.  Stay tuned, I won't promise not to rant or bitch in future posts, but I can promise that there will be more interesting ones than this.