At the same time, you can’t watch things like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-IrhRSwF9U&eurl=http://www.salon.com/mwt/broadsheet/feature/2008/05/27/sexism_sells/
and think that the race was gender-blind.

If only it had ended a couple of months ago, she might have saved herself the embarrassment of explaining that she doesn’t like to listen to those silly economists on economic issues. Now, the only question is where to sign up to volunteer for Obama’s presidential campaign!

We should have a national popular vote for President. The candidate who receives the most votes wins the election. Simple. Straightforward. No more battleground states. No more safe states. Just voters.

Such an effort is underway in every state. Changing to a direct national popular vote can be accomplished state-by-state. It is already law in Maryland and New Jersey and making legislative progress in a bunch of other states. It obviously won’t be in effect for 2008, but 2012 is a real possibility. I read about the proposal and the group, http://www.nationalpopularvote.com in the NY Times.

You have called down the thunder!

“In the interest of defending Ohio: the ONLY person in my family who is a racist (and also a republican) is in…come on, guess it…California. Now suck it.”

And I called someone (anyone) a racist where, exactly?

For that matter, where did I insult anyone in Ohio? All I said is that Ohio has race issues that generally go unaddressed, both by those who live there and by the national media. In that respect perhaps it IS a microcosm of America.

“Quit ragging on Ohio, go pick on Texas or something.”

I’ve never lived in Texas. And I used some very specific examples, none of which apply to or stem from Texas.

“I get real bitchy when my friends move to CA because I know that around 6-12 months after they move I’ll be on the receiving end of some mass criticism of all us dumbasses who don’t have the common sense to move to “the promised land.” No one who moves anywhere else does this. I have tons of friends who move to New York or Chicago and they don’t suddenly turn into promotional robots. Do they give y’all a chip in your brains when they check for imported oranges at the CA borders?”

Your point would be valid if a) I didn’t have these views while living in Ohio and b) I didn’t have these views while living in Atlanta. Where in this entry did I mention that CA was better than Ohio? When have I ever done that? Don’t try to marginalize my opinion simply because you disagree with it.

“You should talk to my friend Sarah, she’s in San Fran, or my friend Randy, in LA…oh, or my cousins in Seal Beach…they all constantly question how I can stand living in the midwest (like I’m a savage tribesperson and they’re all fucking CA missionaries). Maybe all of you can stage an intervention?”

And yet most of my friends and all of my family live in Ohio, so either I’m not very convincing or — gasp! — I’ve never questioned the fact that they live in Ohio. It’s shocking, I know, that I’m not Sarah or Randy or your cousins.

Here’s a funny quote I found somewhere:

“Ohio: We’ll vote for a woman, but we ain’t voting for no colored folk.”

Sure, it’s in jest, but I didn’t even come anywhere close to saying anything like that.

In other words, chillax, Betty.

My mom, dad, 96 year old grandma, and everyone of voting age in my family voted for Obama. And we are hillbillies; hillbillies aren’t racists necessarily…they are often, however, ignorant and gullible, in fact it seems to me that wealthy people are more racist than us hicks. The reason that Southern Ohio voted for Hillary is because she was fully supported by Ted Strickland, and where Strickland goes all Appalachian Ohioans go. The reason Northern Ohio voted for Hillary…fuck if I know?! You all speak a different language; Ohio is too damn big a divided state.

As a current Michigander, of course my vote don’t count. I got a choice between Clinton, Kucinich and Non-committed. BAH!

Quit ragging on Ohio, go pick on Texas or something. In my experience, those of you midwesterners who move to CA become more adamantly critical of the rest of the country’s perceived shortcomings and failures than any other group of folks I’ve come in contact with. I get real bitchy when my friends move to CA because I know that around 6-12 months after they move I’ll be on the receiving end of some mass criticism of all us dumbasses who don’t have the common sense to move to “the promised land.” No one who moves anywhere else does this. I have tons of friends who move to New York or Chicago and they don’t suddenly turn into promotional robots. Do they give y’all a chip in your brains when they check for imported oranges at the CA borders?

You should talk to my friend Sarah, she’s in San Fran, or my friend Randy, in LA…oh, or my cousins in Seal Beach…they all constantly question how I can stand living in the midwest (like I’m a savage tribesperson and they’re all fucking CA missionaries). Maybe all of you can stage an intervention?

(Oh, I got grumpy there…oops!)
Enjoy your natural disasters, and know all of us out here appreciate your tearing up at our tragedies (we make for good tv).

I still love you,
M