DID YOU ENJOY YOUR ELECTION DANCE?

Election Horrors: They're gonna make you watch it.

Daylight Saving just ended but it seems our politicians are always turning the clock back on us anyway.

Let's look at the just-passed mid-term elections. Ah yes, it was just like yesteryear... again.

Money was thrown around, begged for and blown, and the ads just kept on comin'. Yep, even recipients of last year's big bailout gave political donations. Does anybody else think that's kind of sick?

They (e.g. GM) even gave it to pols who were anti-bailout (e.g. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell). So why would you trust anything the vast majority of the Capitol Hill monkeys ever say?

There were great rallies and speeches and the prez town-hopped like he was touring with the Stones. Nothing like a good show with lots of little flags being waved to get to the heart of the country's problems.


A Bad Right Turn

The mid-terms also saw the continuation of a dangerous shift to the right -- something that feeds into people's emotions in tough times. The so-called Tea Party (Do they get caps or not? No journo seems sure); candidate henchmen stomping on activists' heads; and real gems like Sharron Angle (Nevada) who tried to grab Harry Reid's Senate seat and went close.

Angle did a heavy duty profiling job on Hispanics in broad-stroke, illegal-immigrant fear ads that would have made Goebbel's proud.

But she's not finished with Harry.

Angle has filed a voter intimidation complaint with the Justice Department alleging that Reid and gambling giant Harrah's Entertainment Inc. did a little negotiating whereby Harrah's would make it pretty clear to its employees who they should vote for.

Yep, business as usual in Nevada. And everywhere else. Need a shower yet?


Party on the Plaza

Jon Stewart (of The Daily Show) had a big rally in D.C. It was a positive but didn't exactly inspire the poor to go out and get fitted for new suits.

To me, the main weaknesses were these: 1/ The whole thing lacked a certain depth. For example, Stewart's summation speech made some good points but didn't address the age-old question of "What now?"; 2/ Because that question wasn't addressed, it was a case of Opportunity Lost. We all love rallies and to feel invigorated. Problem is, without direction to go with that fleeting motivation, most folks just leave feeling better about themselves and go home and flip on the tube and do nothing.

To some degree, it was showbiz as usual. But that's politics U.S.A. And while I'll take any change I can get, Stewart doesn't really talk about anything nearly radical enough to improve the lot of the poor or save us from being strangled by factory emissions. Let's give him a C- for at least doing something.


The Bottom Line

The Repubs grabbed the House and that is likely bad news at the perimeter of things. But anyone who thinks choosing between the two same, cynical parties -- the "two arms of the Business Party" -- again and again is going to one day deliver The Big Fix must be living in a bunker.

It's the system that's broke!

George Carlin the comedian -- a smart guy and good soul -- used to boast that he didn't vote. He wasn't going to support any of the clowns. I'd be all for that if it could be a movement of tens of millions. Otherwise, the lesser of two evils is probably our best, marginal move within this marginal game we're presented. And yes, there are some decent people in Washington -- like independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

The media were awful as usual. Focusing on the wrong stuff, spinning things for their own agenda, giving us fluff rather than facts.

But all is not lost. Grassroots activism is what all those D.C. money grabbers fear. Let's work together for campaign finance reform, grassroots candidates, alternative parties, outstanding people like Green Party dynamo Jill Stein of Massachusetts, and just keep networking and networking and networking until we create a din that cannot be ignored.

That's when things will get interesting.


A DAYLIGHT SAVING TALE

A light note to finish off. As Daylight Saving ended last night, my fiancee Shelley scampered round her house adjusting her clocks before going to bed.

The Lovely Lady of Clockland.

By the time she was done, it was almost time to put the clocks forward again. She has so many clocks it's like they're breeding in front of your eyes. You can face just about direction in any room and see a clock.

She's actually sort of painted herself into a corner because there is no way she can ever use the excuse "I lost track of the time" with anyone.

It's really kind of cute and I hope time is always on her side.

Take care,
Adrian Zupp
IF YOU FOUND THIS BLOG POST INTERESTING you might like to take a look at EDMUND BURKE'S ETERNAL TRUISM.