The end of an era.

I had a really good night. We watched the elections, which ended a lot faster than I expected, and had hot dogs with good friends. It is the first time, since I've been old enough to vote, that I've enjoyed presidential election night. Now youth who voted for McCain know exactly how I felt for the past 2 elections. (Facebook status updates show a forecast of high depression and anxiety for our young Republicans.) I hope that what Obama said is true, and that we really do find change. One can only hope that it really is the end of an era and not just a bunch of hot air.

At the end of the day, it is the same circus with a different clown. Obama is not my messiah and I know that the only hope I have for certain is my hope and faith in Christ.

Happy Halloween!!

Question of the day: Is there a bear? What?




PLUS: One alternative to the halloween costumes you know you will see this year (the joker and Sarah Palin):



kudos to BWE and Passive Aggressive Notes for today's spooky/cute/aggressive material!

Stay with me a little longer please...

Alright. I feel like I should apologize in advance. Posting so much political activity on my blog makes me feel like I'm either a "liberal" blogger that thinks Karl Rove is the devil and has a laundry list of examples and quotes and knowledge... I don't. I know what the Democratic party stands for in theory- "socialistic" government, anti-war, pro-choice, pro-gay rights, pro- a lot of stuff that means taxes, especially on the rich, so that poor people can get more welfare. And I know that I run the risk, albeit quite slight as I'm not exactly a celebrity blogger, of someone who is voting Republican commenting on my post(s) with their FOX news rhetoric/information to prove I'm wrong/naive/ignorant myself and that I'm certainly not "fair and balanced". Stay with me here, I promise that this will all be over soon and it will soon be filed into my archives to collect internet dust and I can look back and for my own personal reasons, remember what I thought about this election.

The tongue cartoons just don't stop. Ok. They totally will after November 4th, I swear. And look, I have an Obama cartoon too. I know it isn't entirely fair but it's a little more fair.


My Aunt, who is young enough to be open to voting for a democrat and old enough to still be freaked out by democrats, has been anti-McCain all summer. But she sent me an email today saying that she's having second thoughts because of all the campaign funding Obama has received. Fair enough. Obama has a lot of campaign funding.

Maybe I should make things clear. Just because I think pictures of McCain's tongue are HIlarious doesn't mean I completely think that Obama is a Messiah. I voted for Hillary. Obama isn't a perfect guy. He's a politician. They change the clown but the circus stays the same. I just... I can't even put into words how ready I am for this political season to be over. I'm tired of thinking that my Republican family members and friends are terrorist voters or worse that they are ignorant or racist. And I'm tired of the whole argument for or against. A lot of what Obama says IS rhetoric. And he is really green as in inexperienced. And he does have a lot of campaign funding and he is totally loved by the media. This happens to me every election year. I wish I could remember what it is like to not care about who will be elected.


But McCain did pick Sarah Palin... I really think he would do anything to be president, even if it meant picking a good-looking governor with a short resume (so she's more maverick) that he didn't even know earlier when he could have picked other token women to better help him out. And even though a lot of Obama is rhetoric, his rhetoric and the way he interacts with the camera is moving and compelling. I don't know that I can relate to Obama 100% but I know I can't relate to McCain.









At the end of the day, it doesn't matter who I vote for- I'm in California and it's probably going to swing to Obama. And my aunt- she lives in Texas. I'm guessing that her vote will get canceled out by the gazillion of McCain voters.


BTW: if you are down here still, google "tired of politics". I'm not the only one, apparently who is basically blogging the same thing. (I liked what this guy had to say).

I'm a hypocrite, and I apologize.

Watching the VP debate, I realize that I have a gut instinct to react and I'm trying really hard to not do it on facebook. But I realize that putting it on my blog might not be any different. (This is kind of a "live-blog" of the VP debate.)

1. Sarah Palin and John McCain are Mavericks! So she can speak!!



2. She does this jokey thing "All you kids get extra credit for watching this debate!" and the whole "wow, I guess I'm just not used to how you guys work in Washington because I'm from Alaska..." I get what she is trying to do but the cutesy-ness is just.... well, it does recall a disney movie (Matt Damon reference). ("Say it 'aint so Joe!!")

3. We are in a WAR and we need to win!!! I can't go into this. I just can't. I can't write just how wrong it sits with me in my inner core that we still think that we are fighting evil terrorists and that we are in danger and that we have to spend resources "winning" against Bin Laden and Iraq.


But of course, she knows what a VP does!!! :) (and she's from Alaska! And there is energy in Alaska!!)

I am so confused...

I am watching a CNN special on Israel/Judiasm and settlements on Palestinian land. They show Christians and Jews meeting for worship. Jews are our brothers, they say, because they are our religious roots. For every two Jews you support in building settlements, we send you a prayer book. "God is calling me to help Israel take back its' homeland."

This is all touchy and a bit confusing to me. There are two problems. The first problem is that (against international law), Jews invaded Palestinian land. And now Palestines are trying to kick them out. Via bombs. And in the US, Jews and Evangelical Christians are uniting as brothers: "We are going to win in Israel!" A pastor says. This calls on the idea of some Christians that if we rebuild Jerusalem literally, Jesus will come back.

But Jews don't believe that Jesus is Messiah. Right?

(I just heard a Christian commentator saying that Jews and Christians embrace life while Muslims embrace death. How's that for a dangerous anti-tolerant kind of iffy statement??)

So, basically, if you are a Christian and from the US, you support Jews settling on Palestinian land. If you say that what the Jews are doing is wrong, you are labeled "anti-semitic".

And so I am very confused. I am a Christian from the US. I do not believe that I can say "if we help the Jews rebuild Jerusalem, Christ will return." Because I truly believe that no one can say how or when Christ will return. And if the Jews are settling on Palestinian land, against international law, why would I support them? This doesn't mean that I justify Palestinian suicide bombings. I don't have an answer for this.

And I am pretty open-minded as far as religion goes. I hold nothing against the Jews or Muslims. The Old Testament is part of the foundation of my faith. Where is the line drawn, between affirming my faith that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, and loving those of other religions. Is it right to say "I support the Jewish cause of tearing down the dome of the rock in Jerusalem because we are so closely connected to Judaism"? Is it un-Christian to feel bad for the Palestinians, who are kind of demonized? (Their retaliation is certainly terrifying! But the Jews retaliate too! My God! This is so wrong on both sides!!) (Just as we hear all the time of Muslims and Jihad, this program also points out Rabbis who invoke similar war cries. Both sides are for peace and both sides would kill for what they believe in.)

I'm so confused.

But I've decided that Christiane Amanpour is brave for exploring this. She is doing a weekly series explaining the negative/extremists of all religions (including Christianity).

is it really so lofty?

I think we are sometimes afraid to sound naive or idealistic. I found this prayer through blog-surfing and was impressed- is peace in this world possible? have we secretly given up? are these just beautiful words too good to ever be true? maybe it does really begin in the small circles of our lives, in how we treat the neighbors closest to us, how I treat classmates, people driving on the road next to me, the poor homeless man outside "Subway", or Dennis, or even how I treat myself.

I've got some thoughts....

two.

1) maybe that one guy who says he's the father of anna nicole smith's baby is telling the truth. I've been thinking that I've never seen a man so persistent to be someone's father. All the men that I've known have been reluctant, especially if they don't think the baby is theirs. He's sending presents/buying toys. He seems to want to be the father. Makes sense... (stupid post?)

heavy political/war thought so don't read if you like Dick Cheney.
2) I passed a blog that made a statement: basically "I don't understand how you can say 'I don't support the war but I support the troops'"
I've been thinking about it all day. Is that really an oxymoron type statement? I don't support the war and I've said "but I support the troops". Would it be better if I said "well I don't support them either. I wish they would die"? (insensitive?) I'm trying to think about it logically- these guys are following orders, getting shot at, bombed, and basically not living the life I live cozy in Malibu. I've seen stories of men who don't even know their children because they've been fighting. So if I say "I support the troops" (girls included), I guess I mean "I don't agree with the war but they are following orders and I just pray that more return home safe and emotionally/physically unscathed by this war." I know there are wives who have husbands fighting- when it's so close to home, how can you not feel like you should support the cause that your husband is fighting. But is it really his cause? Even if it is his cause and even if he believes, as I'm sure many do, that us being in Iraq is the right thing to do, I don't agree. I don't think killing people is right. I can't support that. If that means I'm not supporting soldiers under that definition, then the definition of "support" is retarded.

It's just aggravating that there are billions of US dollars missing, sent to help restart Iraq, and the guys making the decisions are sitting comfortable in the leather chairs of D.C., while millions of people- patriots, thrill-seekers, guys who saw the army as a way to get into college, people who truly believe they are protecting the US- these guys and the millions of Iraqis we don't really talk about, are all trying to survive in the desert and to not get bombed or shot at/lose a limb/lose a best friend/lose someone loved.

It might sound idealistic or cliche, but prayer for peace and prayer for the safety of these troops and the Iraqis, is a mighty weapon. Jesus said "put down your sword". You can't pick and choose.

ten things i'd like to change about my country...

(this is how I feel sometimes about work. so true.)

per this meme here- 10 things I would change about the USA (which is a political statement and I hate making these sometimes so I hope noone is offended.)

• I wish we had more vacation time, like they do in Europe. First thing that popped into my head
• I wish we had better healthcare for the poor. I know I would pay for it in taxes but I've been there and the healthcare really sucks.
• I wish healthy food was cheaper
• I wish public transportation was better (might be great on the east coast but it sucks over here)
• I wish we weren't so split as a country on things like presidential elections. I hate that half of the country is red and half blue.
• I wish we weren't involved in the war in Iraq. If we are going to help other nations, I wish that it was more clearly defined so that we are really helping countries and places like Darfur where there is no vested interest in us helping except for the fact that it would be a good human thing to do. If we can't do this, I wish we would just become isolationist again instead of getting involved.
• I wish we'd be kinder to minorities that have kind of supported our country now and in our history: the irish, the chinese, the native americans, the mexicans, etc.
  
• I wish that we were more consistent on our borders- we are shooting mexicans who are getting in but we don't even have a fence between us and parts of Canada. So people who are dangerous could come here from Canada into like Montana, maybe even easier than they are getting to San Diego from Mexico. It's inconsistent and I hate that if I give an illegal immigrant from any country any kind of help (like a room or a jug of water) that I'm at risk for felony.
• I wish there was a bigger safety net in our economy. Sometimes I feel like we are on the edge of losing it all, just like the Roman empire. And we have an entire generation of old people that have to keep working (maybe I'm just too liberal and i'm freaking out on my blog).
• I wish that we paid more attention to women's rights. It really freaks me out that there is only one abortion clinic in North Dakota and that the women who go there have to watch out for snipers. No matter where you stand on that matter, you should at least not want people who feel differently to fear for their lives. And something is seriously wrong with male people in power deciding that women who are usually single mothers and quite powerless, are automatically welfare cheats. I know first hand that what they give to a mother for welfare is not enough for her to survive- not enough money for food and barely enough to cover rent.

I'd like to add that I put a lot of thought into this one. For all that I could complain about, I really do think this country has so many strengths. We actually do a lot of things right and have a lot of blessings as a culture. My husband is going to school where in Chile it's so much harder. And things like divorce and custody are believeitornot so much more fair here. Our legal system is better here too. (I can list more...)

My official statement: I am a hippie.

Tonight at the gym, I was talking to my friend about the female soldier who was photographed with the prisoners being tortured. We weren't talking about whether or not we even agreed on the war. We were just saying that it is sad that it is so easy for mentally unstable people to enter the military. I made the comment that the military is recruiting by all of the ads we see in the movie theater, for example.

And then some guy next to us decided to interrupt to make sure that I knew that he thinks that we should be defending our country. He wanted a confrontation, I didn't respond, we left the gym. (Actually I did say something mean in Spanish. But I don't think he heard me. Dennis said that I should have said "hey, who invited you into our conversation?")

It really bothered me and still bothers me. Suddenly, because I support things like taxes and peace, I'm a borderline communist. Not only am I being anti-American because I don't support bombing for peace, but I am now a communist.

So I am officially saying that yes, I am a hippie. I am absolutely against this war. I get that "just war" theory says that we are allowed to defend ourselves. But I do not, as a Christian and as a human being, understand why we are okay with killing people. I know it's a lot more complicated then that but more people are dying in this war, on both sides, then even died on 9/11. And not all of them are terrorists.

My biggest influences for believing this, on an intellectual level, are found in the Bible and in books and essays by people like Lee Camp and Joan Chittester- Christians who oppose the war. Camp writes, "We wage a war to save a civilization itself," asserts George W. Bush. And the stakes are thought to be so high, the way of Christ will not suffice. Instead of loving our enemies, the president would have us "hunt down our enemies." (Mere Discipleship, p. 34).

"You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." Matthew 5:43-44

I think that it is okay to know that even if we stopped, if we worked for peace instead of "peace through violence", etc., that maybe terrorists would continue to try to fight us. Studying the book of John right now, I am reminded of how Jesus knew that he was going to the cross. And he did not fight it. He loved even Judas, even the soldiers, even the ones that nailed him to the cross. And so if I say that I follow Christ, I should also follow him to that cross.

"So Christians refuse to fight wars not because they naively believe they will thus rid the world of war; instead, we do not fight wars because the kingdom of God has come... Christian nonviolence, then, is always rooted in the narrative of redemption. We worship a God who, in Christ, has nonviolently dealt with the injustice, the alienation, the sin, and the unrighteousness of this world... We have learned in Christ a particular way of dealing with enemies: to love them. In Christ, the long-awaited day of the prophets was revealed- the time has come for beating swords into ploughshares, for putting away our conceit and pride, for abolishing the bow and warfare, for admitting that we are not in control of human history. Unless our lives embody that good news, our worship is in vain." (mere discipleship, p.127)

So, officially, I don't support this war. I pray for peace. I pray for the soldiers fighting in Iraq, on both sides. I pray for the families affected by all of this chaos, on both sides. I pray for the young men, on both sides, who are so anxious to fight in this war without even knowing what war is. And I pray that I can practice what I preach.