Atonement

Wow, has it really been almost a month since my last post? It feels like it was just yesterday. Anyway, this is a personal post because I am frustrated about a lot of things in my personal life right now and I don't want to spend time thinking about other things.

A fundamental concept in religion is atonement, although I think the Jews do this best. Christians tend to say that atonement isn't relevant because Jesus died for their sins. Jews at least work for this, and I'm not quite sure what the Muslim perspective is on the topic, or that of any other religion for that matter. What I can tell you is that this seems to be a concept that is misunderstood.

The concept requires a recognition of a mistake made, followed by an idea of how to make it right and a request that the other person both forgive and also accept the gesture. This requires a lot of effort both for the atonee and the atoner, and yes atonee is a new word I just made up. The process of atonement needs to start with the person that made the mistake in the first place though, and people need to respect each other during the process.

I am finding myself frustrated by a lack of atonement in my life. I have been painted with the Lilith brush and expected to own the mistakes of others and atone for the mistakes of others, but others don't seem to understand the impact that they have on my life. In fact they don't even see my life all they see is their own reality. I find this to be a very sad process within my life. It is death affirming, whereas atonement can be life affirming and is life affirming, to withhold it and then blame the person who has been wronged seems to me a huge mistake and very death gripping.

I prefer to be surrounded by life affirming influences and so I have decided to sever all ties with the death crew. This is also a death affirming decision on some level, although over all it is life affirming.

So, I have decided as my "atonement" for all the wrongs that have been committed against me, but supposedly are my fault that I'd like to start my own company. Now I am just trying to figure out how to make that work and what kind of company I'd like to create, for example product or service and industry etc.

What is Wrong with this Picture?

I'm watching CNN and like 10 minutes ago they had a story about who would be a better first Lady, Cindy McCain or Michelle Obama? I can't help but ask WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS COUNTRY? We're electing a president not a first lady. I don't really care that much about the first lady, it's the president I am concerned with. I understand the first lady is a counselor etc for the president, but I am more concerned about the decisions a president would make not some sort of stupid who'd be better at being first lady. Who really cares? Since when does this need to be a contest between the spouses? No one interestingly enough asked who'd be better Michelle Obama or Bill Clinton did they? Bill Clinton would look pretty bad in a dress and high heels!

Why Obama Should Get the Nomination

I'm sitting in my favorite coffee shop and I've been busy with some other stuff. I started thinking that I should maybe address this topic. Clinton is a qualified candidate, and it's not that I think she's incompetent. She's not incompetent, but the country isn't ready for her yet. Black men have always gotten things before women, the right to vote etc. Why should the presidency be any different. Furthermore, Obama is younger than Clinton and McCain both. I'm of the opinion that the country will elect a Democrat this year, even if I think we should elect someone that isn't tied to a chimpanzee party. Obama would be the best qualified person to elect. This is because he's younger so he has fresh ideas and blood, he has some experience, but let's face it no one has experience as president during their first term anyway so the whole experience card is a joke. I also think that Obama is much more likable than Clinton or McCain. This is a factor in electing a president even if people don't want to acknowledge this idea. It is difficult to vote for som I theone one doesn't like. Young people like Obama, and he's very inspirational to a lot of people. He makes people believe in themselves again and in the country, often times I've thought he sounds a lot like Kennedy. I hope he won't end up being shot like Kennedy, especially since he has to deal with Clinton and her reference to the other Kennedy. I think Obama will make a fine president, and who knows I might let some of you out there convince me to vote for him.

Pandora's Box

My dearly beloved makes the point that I live in Michigan. This is true as I have lived in Michigan for the last 12 years, or 3 election seasons to use his time measurement system. Upon arrival to Michigan I found an in with the college Republicans at Hope College and actually did some volunteer work for the Dole for President campaign. Not a surprise really since the Dole campaign changed my life in more ways that I can really comment about in a brief post.

When I came to Michigan it was still under the Engler Administration. I can't comment much about this since I didn't particularly pay attention to local politics when I came here. After a while though I was forced to pay attention by my belief in eternal vigilance and by my residence. My beloved will tell you I am hyper-responsible when it comes to matters of a civic nature.

Now, we have a clusterfuck and the question has been asked "How can Democrats run a country if they can't run an election?" Well first of all, neither party is qualified to run a country in my opinion. This has been proven time and time again in Michigan and in other states. Democrats and Republicans are the opposite side of the same coin and they're a bunch of jackasses. I think the Republicans should also adopt the jackass as their symbol based on the last 8 years, or maybe even a monkey. A monkey might be more fitting actually.

Democratic senator Carl Levin, from Michigan called the system for getting a nominee "irrational". It's irrational on several levels. First of all, I am loathed to admit I agree with him elections should be held on the same day in all states instead of having it spread out over months. This does give an advantage to earlier states, I don't care what logic one wants to argue, it's a bad system and that's true on the Republican side as well. Second, I've long said that people should run regardless of party (like in the old days) and the person with the most votes would be president and the one with the 2nd most votes would be vice president, again regardless of party. This is because I agree with Washington that political parties are of the devil, that's not quite what he said but it's the same idea. Michigan then came up with a "compromise", which isn't really a compromise by any means of the imagination.

Under the Michigan compromise, the Michigan and Florida delegations are seated but they get half a vote. What's the point in half a vote, does anyone else see the irrationality here? It's still disenfranchising the votes of both states, but now we have to put on a face that we're happy with the idea. The party wants to claim this is a move towards unity, but is it really? I mean the Michigan delegates were divided in a way that makes very little sense to me. Obama gets 59 and Clinton gets 69, but they're each worth half a vote. Florida had an equally ridiculous concept for its delegates. It would have been more rational to divide out all the delegates equally and have them either worth half a vote or give them full voting rights. After all Obama followed the rules and shouldn't be penalized for this.

A much more rational system for nominating would be to just have conventions. Have delegates to the convention and no primaries and let them pick the nominee. This way people can vote in the general election, but everyone can vote on an equal footing, and winner takes all is much better than proportional divisions. These proportional divisions are ridiculous, and I feel the same way about the super delegates.

Pandora's box has been opened though and this leaves this election season with a bad taste. It's unfortunate, because the reality is Obama is very capable and it's not his fault these things have gone on, Clinton is an opportunist and will either have him assassinated or will cry foul play all the way to the Supreme Court like someone else we know to get the nomination. She will do whatever she has to do now that she has been given a foot hold, plus the number of delegates needed has now been increased in an attempt to level the playing field. Why level it when she is still over 170 delegates behind? It's basic historic precedent, black men have always gotten things before women and why should being elected president be any different.

Obama's administration doesn't strike me as being any worse than what we've had for the last 8 years, but I'm not sure who he'd want his cabinet for various positions so I can't really comment a lot here. Clinton's administration would probably mirror her husband's and NAFTA was a bad idea then and is a bad idea now. Michigan was the 2nd hardest hit with NAFTA losses and it's completely unfair that the issue was handled the way it was under Clinton and Bush both. I could say the same for the way each president has handled the war on terrorism as well, but I'll save that.

The whole electoral process has become irrational in this country and now we have irrational delegate counts, we now increase delegate counts for the Hell of it etc. We do all sorts of ridiculous things in the name of trying to be fair and give everyone a voice, but having state conventions on the same day, and then having a national convention to make the nomination official would be a much more rational plan, or even having different state conventions and not releasing the results until the national conventions. Primaries and then conventions seem to be antiquated ways for determining a nominee, especially when neither is productive and the season gets stretched out so much.

I for one, can't wait for this election season to end. I am sick and tired of the whole thing and I am relieved that my party doesn't stoop to these levels. These tactics are just an example of why both parties are made up of microcephalic pissant peons that should fix their cranial rectal inversion.

In conclusion, when I ran for office as a Libertarian we didn't have these kinds of issues. I think though that Obama shouldn't be penalized for the party being a bunch of morons. Obama and McCain are both capable and should be evaluated on their own merits, I just prefer Libertarian ideals and will be voting accordingly. Statements that I am throwing away my vote by doing so will be removed.

Until next time RAF :)

Intro to Politics

I have been asked by numerous people that befriended me on my journey to freedom, how I became involved in politics. So I've decided it might make a funny blog post to share this with everyone.

I first became involved with politics in the 1980s. Maybe even before that as at one point my parents used to take my brother and I on demonstrations with them, and I was born in 1977 and he was born in 1979. So, that's the short answer, but how did I become actively involved in politics, this is a second issue that's pretty amusing actually.

I was watching TV one day, and for the umpteenth time my favorite TV show, the Cosby Show had been pre-empted by a presidential press conference. Naturally, I wasn't allowed to watch it my mother hated Reagan after all she didn't want me to be corrupted by the logical arguments he'd be making. I became incensed about this, and she told me to write the president. Part of me thought this idea was ridiculous, I was a child and children don't vote why would he write me back? After all it isn't as if I was writing to him about nuclear weapons or something of substance. I mean would he really move his conferences for me?

I deliberated about this for a few days and then decided to go ahead and write the president. I'm thinking this was early 1986 or maybe it was 1985. I can't remember exactly, I met Reagan in 1986 and I hadn't met him yet when I did this. Anyway, I wrote the president a letter. It went something like this "Dear President Reagan: My name is Rebecca and I am 8-9 years old (whichever I was then). I'd really appreciate it if you would please move your press conferences. I've been trying to watch the Cosby Show for several weeks now and you've been interfering with my ability to do this..." I can't remember all of it, and this is probably not the entire verbatim version. I went to the post office with my mother to mail my letter, and everyone asked me what I was writing the president about. I think they found it funny that a child would take the time to write, let alone about such a topic as this...I mean it's a TV show, but for me it was more than that.

A few weeks later I got a letter back from President Reagan. I had wanted to keep it, but I wasn't able to do so because my mother ultimately threw it out. I found out a few years ago this was written on personal stationary. This is also most likely not the entire verbatim letter, but Reagan basically said, "Dear Rebecca: Thank you for taking the time to write me about this important topic (I think maybe he was mocking me). I have to hold my press conferences when most Americans will be watching and it so happens this is during the Cosby Show. Perhaps you would be willing to watch my press conferences and become involved in the political process. I am moved that a child of your age would take the time to write me...."

Later in 1986 I would be selected to go to a rally in New Jersey where Reagan would be at. He waved at me, I think maybe we even shook hands at the event afterwards. I never told him that I was the child who wrote him about the topic of the Cosby Show. I was super excited to be able to greet the motorcade though.

This was a very gratifying experience, as I was touched that he wrote me back personally, I always felt he had done so himself since it was signed Ronald Reagan. My mother tried to convince me that it was an aid that did it, but I was steadfast in my conviction that it was in fact Reagan who wrote me back. I was also gratified with the way he asked me to become involved in the political process. I thought that was just totally cool, of course I didn't know back then that Youth for Reagan is what won him the election and how much power young people really have. I just loved the fact that he had made this comment to me.

I was sparked onto a lifetime of civil awareness by this interaction. My desire to become an internationalist came much later, in the 1990s actually, but that's a rather dull story so I will keep it to myself unless anyone asks for me to tell it.

RAF

What a strange time we live in, or maybe it's just that I live in a very strange time. I find myself with an abundance of things to say and no words to say them with, or ways to really flesh out what I'd like to say. So, I will post about what I feel I am able to discuss intelligently. Namely, my dear friend Chess Novice's allegations regarding spoiling my enjoyment of films. First of all the idea of him as a Chess Novice is really insane because he's been playing chess longer than I remember knowing him, and that's quite a long time ago now.

First of all, it is correct to assert that I have an unequivocal aversion to having my enjoyment of films spoiled. However, it is not so easily done. Your summary was of things and contexts that didn't really affect me regarding this film, and perhaps it is because you don't know of my love for this particular story.

I have had an ongoing love affair with this particular book chronicle for quite some time. All seven have a special place in my heart, and I do so hope they will make all 7 of them into movies, but this particular one has long been my favorite. I can't really explain why, in fact until I saw the movie I had no idea why and now I do have some idea.

First of all, the story of this chronicle is perhaps on of the most action packed of them all, and I really enjoyed the way it was envisioned by the film makers. Moreover, the themes in this chronicle are outlined very nicely by my friend, and so it is not the themes that I find so fascinating.

What I find fascinating is the actual content of the movie. "You're not lost, you're going the wrong way" there's something very interesting in that quote that I can't quite put my finger on here, I know what it is but to explain it would require too much energy and I am getting lazy in my old age.

Also, it's interesting that throughout my childhood I was constantly corrected about my feelings regarding Aslan. I always assumed Aslan was God, yet I was constantly told that everything was a Christian allegory and that Aslan was Christ. Interesting, maybe it is my transition out of Christianity, but when the sea swallowed up the Talmarines it reminded me more of Passover than anything Jesus ever did. Maybe I just don't understand the deep hidden Christian meaning the Lewis was going for in the book?

Many of these things strike me as interesting, but I'd rather not continue down this path. I have some political commentaries to make and perhaps I will do that later but at the present I just don't have the energy to deal with anyone or anything.

RAF

Yom Heudelet Tov!

Since the 5th of Iyaar this year is on a Sabbath this year, the parties are going on now. Happy Birthday to Israel. It exists simply by a miracle, there is no other explanation for the way our people have managed to survive all of the persecutions of previous generations, and also of the last 60 years in order to maintain a blooming flower in the desert and a beautiful tradition. It is amazing the way G-d has blessed this nation, and it really must be true, He who guards Israel never slumbers. I wish I had that kind of peace in my life presently, but perhaps with time it will come. There is only so much we can do as individuals and as communities. The community of Israel has always been a complex one, and will most likely get only more complex in years to come.

I am planning to visit my family in Israel, it is the only family I have left. Most of them are not blood to me, although I suppose with my latent Jewishness as they call it that my grandfather has given to me, they would be blood. Anyway sometimes water is thicker than blood. I was hoping to be in Israel for Purim, and then Passover, and then 60th anniversary, now I think I will shoot for Chanukah but hopefully be there far earlier. All of these days are commemorating to great divine presence and works. It is a way to honor myself, and others of course. My first trip, I can't wait. I'm like a little kid with anticipation about the entire situation.

It's been suggested to me that I should go and not return, I don't know what will happen, but I do know it'll be a magical time as this is a magical time for our people. It really is true in every generation there are those that rise up to destroy us, but we are always rescued from it. I haven't yet seen this in my own life, but perhaps going to Israel will help with that a little bit.

Malka