Thank you Jesse, thank you George. (with subtle camwhore) (779 hits)
Category: PoliticsRating: 1.25 on 16 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Great Angst! (View user info) at 2004-11-02 16:01:56 EST
There have been two significant political influences on my life.
The first was Jesse Helms.
Growing up in Eastern North Carolina, I was surrounded by Republicans and conservative values (hell, my family was -- and still is -- almost 100% Republican). Jesse -- for better or worse -- symbolized the G.O.P. for all of us. For my family, that meant support for tobacco, strong Christian beliefs, and political bulldozing that gave Liberals fits. For me, that meant racism, social intolerance, merging of church and state, and political bulldozing that gave Liberals fits.
Helms was a pro when it came to polarizing voters, extravagant campaign spending, and politics based on fear and prejudice. IN the mid-80's, he was the Senator that filibustered the vote to create the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday (a political stunt that gave him a HUGE boost in the polls in that year's NC Senate race). He fought against black voter registration drives. He accused his Democratic opponents of being supported by homosexuals, labor unions, and "crooks". All this time, the state he so aggressively "defended" consistently ranked near the bottom of nation lists for test scores, education spending, and wages ... and near the top of lists for pollution, infant mortality, and poverty.
Because of Helms' influence, I became a Democrat, much to the chagrin of my family. In college I was politically active. I voted for the fist time in 1990 for Harvey Gantt, who was running against Helms in the NC Senatorial race. I even helped campaign for him on the UNC campus. I debated with Young College Republicans. Shit, I came close to punching a couple of them.
Then I graduated.
And I got a job.
And I got comfortable.
I moved away ... eventually to Houston. Life was good. Like a lot of other people in the late 90's, I became fairly complacent when it came to politics, as well as domestic issues or foreign affairs. Sure, I still voted (Democrat) ... but that was about it. I could care less about what was going on in the world.
Enter George W. Bush. The second ... err ... "great" political influence on my life.
After 9/11, I was (God, I can't believe I'm typing this) actually "OK" with the fact that Bush was the president. Like most Americans, I was pissed off ... and wanted revenge. I wanted someone to pay for those attacks. Bush was a cowboy. Cowboys are good at fucking people up, right?
We found out that Al Qaeda was behind the attacks. Fuck yeah! Kill those motherfuckers. We began military offensives in Afghanistan. Fuck yeah! Blow those motherfuckers up. We handily beat the Taliban. Fuck yeah! Let's fuck up all of those terrorist motherfuckers! Everywhere. Hunt them down. Kill them.
Then the President re-introduced our old enigma, Saddam Hussein and Iraq. Condi Rice and Rumsfeld started hinting at imminent threats. Colin Powell made presentations about WMD's to the UN. The president told us of aluminum tubes and "Nukular" threats. And it was clear we were going to war.
WTF?
[My intent is not to make this post an anti-war rant ... I've done that enough in the past ... but needless to say] I was not in favor of the invasion of Iraq. Shouldn't we be looking for the terrorists who attacked us? What does Saddam have to do with OUR national security? What about North Korea? What about Saudi Arabia? Saddam is a fucked up evil horrible man, but should we be doing this NOW ... when we still don't have our borders protected ... and we still don't have the 9/11 masterminds in custody? Why can't we get ANYONE but the U.K. and Poland (or their leaders, at least) to agree with us? Can we afford to do this, with so many other critical priorities here in the U.S.?
This woke me up. George Bush managed to rekindle my political fire.
Since then, I'm a crazed Democrat ... again. I've been campaigning for Kerry. I've been speaking out against the war (the -WAR-, mind you, not the -troops-). I've become ultra-obsessed with current events -- beit politics, or domestic or foreign affairs. I get into debates (ok, political arguments) all the time. I type long, preachy replies to any conservative emails that show up in my inbox ... and I reply-to-all (how obnoxious is that?).
Once again, I am a political activist. All the other things I believed in or used to car about -- protecting the environment, preserving and advancing personal and civil rights, separation of church and state -- all came crashing back into my daily life.
The highs:
- I'm much more aware of what is going on in the world
- my rusty debating skills have improved dramatically
- I converted 4 friends and 7 coworkers to the Democratic party
- I no longer suffer from low blood pressure
The lows:
- I'm much more aware of what is going on in the world
- I watch Fox News ... just to see what they're going to say
- I lost 3 Republican friends
- I have 37 Republican employees and 300+ Republican co-workers who think I'm crazy
- I start to convulse every time I see one of those "W" stickers in traffic
- my Republican boss (president of my company) is slightly annoyed by the 6-foot vinyl "John Kerry for President" banner in my office
- a little old lady flipped me off yesterday after she saw my " \ W" sticker on my car
Part of me really enjoys this ... I've always enjoyed healthy debate ... and I'm damn good at it.
But another part of me feels like I am 10 years old again ... sitting in my parents' Southern Baptist Church ... thinking "Are all these people crazy? How can they possible believe all of this crap?"
It's now "Us" vs "Them" when it comes to politics or social issues. I find myself (mentally, usually not verbally) belittling conservatives and their views. Calling them "lemmings" and "Jesus freaks" and "fascists". I sometimes think I'm turning into a liberal version of Ann Coulter ... with a goatee.
And I don't like that.
So thank you, Jesse Helms. For turning me into a Democrat.
And thank you George W. Bush, for reminding me that I was a Democrat.
And fuck you both for making me see the worst in people.
And myself.
User Reviews
Submitted by steph (user info) at 2004-11-03 20:31:21 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by hidden101 (user info) at 2004-11-02 20:35:00 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
you're a good lookin' dude.
i'd fuck you right up the ass.
Submitted by great_angst (user info) at 2004-11-02 20:29:03 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Rooster (user info) at 2004-11-02 18:06:08 (#)
Ranking: 0
"my Republican boss (president of my company) is slightly annoyed by the 6-foot vinyl "John Kerry for President" banner in my office"
Uhh, I'd be pissed off too. 6-foot, in vinly? Come on, that's a little much.
------------------
Don't worry, it's coming down tomorrow - whatever the outcome is.
I got it from two of my analysts ... they stole if off a Kerry-supporting building (they wouldn't say where in the city) ... and then showed it to me (somehow, they forgot I was a Dem).
I confiscated it and put it on my wall. They're still pissed.
Submitted by Vermin (user info) at 2004-11-02 18:24:30 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Rooster (user info) at 2004-11-02 18:06:08 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
"my Republican boss (president of my company) is slightly annoyed by the 6-foot vinyl "John Kerry for President" banner in my office"
Uhh, I'd be pissed off too. 6-foot, in vinly? Come on, that's a little much.
Submitted by Asylem (user info) at 2004-11-02 17:36:19 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
GENIUS!
Submitted by downerSTAIN (user info) at 2004-11-02 17:03:57 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I hate how people automatically assume that if you're against the war, you're against the troops. That's bullshit. I support the troops 100% because most of them didn't choose to be over there, they thought "Hey, I get to go to college free and all I have to do is give up a couple weekends!"
Submitted by the_lone_stranger (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:55:01 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by domenad (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:49:50 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Hey! You got to shake hands with the president!
Submitted by Caulaincourt (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:43:22 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
but Saddam could've nuke north america! OPEN YOUR EYES!
Oh let the eaaaaaaaaaaaaaagle sooaaaaaaaaaaaaaar!
Submitted by miss_behvn (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:40:49 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
"- I start to convulse every time I see one of those "W" stickers in traffic"
I speed up to see who the moron is. Most of them also have the "support our troops" sticker. I dont get it.
Submitted by Random Joe at 2004-11-02 16:27:21 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
It's sad that people derive motivation from a dislike from a candidate, and not a genuine sense of admiration for a politician.
Submitted by zakalwe (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:23:40 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Good story.
Submitted by Mitchell (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:23:04 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Stabkill (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:21:22 EST (#)
Ranking: -1
If Kerry wins I hope you bang your war drum in facing North Korea & Iran still.
Submitted by BLITZKREIG_BOB (user info) at 2004-11-02 16:04:32 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
The horse is already halfway out of the barn and you're trying to close the door.