CheapThrills

The election question that scares the crap out of me

About a week ago, I woke from my nightly slumber with a start. At the moment I couldn’t quite place my finger on the problem, but then over the next week it all became clear - in the form of a question:

What will happen if Obama loses?

The question hangs over my head every day. Outwardly it's perfectly obvious why - I've been supporting Obama's campaign for nearly two years. But there's more to it that that.

This election has drawn out a new passion in me, one that has boiled over into every aspect of my life. Over the past two years, I’ve completely immersed myself in not only the future of this country, but also in trying to figure out how this country defines me. It’s something that I had never done before—because, to be perfectly honest, from the year 2000 to just before this election season started I’ve felt nothing but a need to distance myself from the label “American”. Guffaw all you want, tell my I’m unpatriotic or that I’m not a “real” American, but I’ll tell you this: it was hard not to reject it after traveling abroad and hearing such anger/disappointment from our friends overseas, after watching my fellow citizens drown in a sea of filth as our President looked down from his plush leather Air Force One seat, after hearing of the lives lost, the trillions spent, and the lies sold on a crap war that should have never even come to pass. So yeah, maybe my disillusionment makes me a bad American or an angry Black woman or something.

Or maybe it’s given me the opportunity to define what being an American truly means to me, claim it for myself, and then believe in it. With all my heart.

So now I’m grappling with the question. The one that keeps me up at night. If November 4th comes and goes, and if (God forbid) Obama does not come out victorious, will I be able to keep my redefined America? Will my passion for this country survive? Or will it implode inside of me, leaving nothing but dead empty space and a shadow of a hope… 

But then I check myself, take a deep breath, and remember what my heart’s been telling me for years: everything will be okay. That ease starts with the vote I cast a few weeks ago, lives with the images from the early voting polls, and will come full circle on November 5th when the newspapers hit the stands.

What questions are plaguing you? How are you coping with your one-week-til-election stress?

Strange election anecdote from Miami Beach, FL

Just got back from a fun-filled weekend with friends in South Beach, Florida. Though dancing ‘til 5am was top-of-mind for me and my cohort, we kept two other current events at a high second: the ALCS and, of course, the presidential race.

It seemed two Obama spots ran on a loop during each baseball game: the “unravel” ad, and the one I like to call  “many faces of McCain” (an ad that I find equal parts hilarious and unsettling).

We also spotted quite a few Obama signs in store windows, Obama bumper stickers (including one on a taxi cab – is that legal?), and a bonafide Obama-gear store.

On the McCain end? To our observation, no T.V. spots running (we even tuned in to Fox News… for as long as we could stomach it) and limited support signage. However, on our last vacation day, we did run into some HARDCORE McCain supporters, out in full force.

Who were these McCain fans, you wonder? Three Black supporters! Ingenious. One – an older gentleman – was clearly native African; the other two (both women) might have been African-American. Though I didn’t get a photo of them, I did obtain one of their most peculiar fliers. It got all crumpled in my bag (oops!), but I have included a photo regardless.

I’m particularly impressed with the 5th line: “Adding ‘sexual orientation’ to the definition of hate crimes”. Obama supports it, McCain opposes it. Maybe you aren’t for same-sex marriages. Ok, fine. But to be opposed to providing protection against violence directed at LGTB individuals? That’s flat-out brutal and heartless.

And, of course, the 8th line, "US Senate vote declaring English as the official language of the U.S. Government" (McCain supports, Obama opposes). How ironic - it was clear the African man who handed me this flier spoke very limited English.

Anyway, early voting in Florida begins today. So we’ll see if these three represented a larger Miami voting block… or just themselves.

THE Celtics' championship trophy comes to Digitas Boston

Between the Thursday afternoon Scattergories showdowns and the monthly "mystery" tours, there's always a ton of fun stuff to say about work... but I try to keep all office-talk off of this blog. However, I'm making an exception for yesterday's special guest visit...

From the Celtics' Championship Trophy. The real one!!!

I have a photo of me standing next to it as well (below). They told us to wear green... so I wore a Philadelphia Eagles t-shirt. Is that sacrilegious?

Mad Men's Joan Holloway: Jessica Rabbit reincarnate?

Oh, Joan Holloway. Clearly everyone’s attracted to you. Even straight women. Even me. And I think I’ve discovered the reason why. You are the character who shaped my youth. The one whose super-slitted red dress I’d always try to find for my dress-up bin. The one whose pursing lips and smoky voice I’d impersonate with my friends. The one whose sashaying, high-heeled walk I’d imitate down the halls of my apartment.

You are Jessica Rabbit.

Obviously, Who Framed Roger Rabbit's Jessica Rabbit oozed sex. But not in a vapid, Playboy Bunny sort of way. There was always something more to her. Something captivating and calculating and titillating and tragic all at the same time. Let’s look at some of those Jessica/Joan similarities that push the characters into the realm of the untouchable ultra-babe.

1. The feminine figure. Men do it all the time. They embrace their masculinity at the workplace as a source of power—whether it’s in a meeting or on a conference call. Women, on the other hand, cover up  their natural feminine qualities with hunched shoulders and pipsqueak-ed voices. Joan and Jessica? No way. They push femininity to its peak by accentuating the attributes many women try to hide. They walk chest first. They talk in their natural low, raspy voice. While most women (myself included) try on an outfit and then ask whether or not it makes their boobs/butt look too big, Jessica and Joan wonder if it makes their curves look too small - and if so, out the window the outfit goes! 
2. The know-how. From the real world to Toon Town, Jessica Rabbit could play the game better than anyone else. She held all the keys, she knew all the answers—effectively, Jessica was the center of the action… all masked in a sly side-smirk and a sleepy gaze. Similarly, Joan rules Sterling Cooper. Without her, the whole operation would fall apart. And even when she's tasked to help out in the T.V. department, she's, as Boston.com points out, a natural. And not because she's playing by the "male" rules. But rather, because she creates her own.
3. The vamp red. It takes a lot of chutzpa to full-on rock out with your red out, because peeps LOVE to hate on redheads. There's even a term for it: Gingerism. How do Joan and Jessica respond to this? Red hair. Red lipstick. Red dress. Red shoes. Red cheeks. Red, red, red. In your face haters!
4. The dudes. What do I love most about these two? They don’t swoon for the typical hearththrobs. Joan behind-the-scenes dated a few of the Sterling Cooper guys, but she’s never so much as winked at hunk-of-the-office Don Draper. And as for Jessica… well she baked carrot cakes for hubby Roger Rabbit. ‘Nuff said.

Related:

What Would Joan Holloway Do?

MSNBC: Men Rule - At Least, in the Workplace

iVillage: How to dress sexy without looking slutty

I voted for Obama today – Absentee ballot straight to Lower Merion, PA

Though I currently live, work and pay taxes in Boston, MA, I am still registered to vote in my home state of Pennsylvania. I plan to reside in the Philly area at some point in my life, and in the meantime I figured it’d be a smart choice to keep my PA voter registration alive and well.

Because, as we all know, Massachusetts always goes blue, and PA… well who knows. The potent mixture of conservative suburbs (mine included) surrounding the cities and a rural center always causes PA to sway back and forth like the neighborhood drunk.

So today’s the day I did my part in preventing said drunk from barfing all over our country: I sent in my absentee ballot. Give Obama a point in Lower Merion, PA! I’ll see the rest of my townsmen and women on Nov. 4th.

P.S. For all your Philly Obama supporters, he'll be visiting 4 neighborhoods tomorrow:

Change We Need Rallies
with Barack Obama
Saturday, October 11th
http://pa.barackobama.com/PhiladelphiaChange

Progress Plaza
1501 N. Broad Street

Mayfair Diner
7373 Frankford Avenue

Vernon Park
5789 Germantown Avenue

South 52nd Street and Locust Street
Public entrance on Spruce Street

The October 7th presidential debate, cocktail party politics style

I've been covering the politics beat over at AOL's Lemondrop for a couple weeks now, writing a column called Cocktail Party Politics. It's basically a fun way of discussing a current political issue... I give a short recap, then offer up talking points according to your stance.

And, of course, what political debate would be complete without a complementary drink tip?

Today's post covered last night's presidential debate. I think my take on the debate shines through my apparent "unbiased" stance. This week's drink? "That One": No real recipe, just involves pointing to whatever the guy next to you is drinking and saying, "I'll have whatever 'that one' is having."

You can also check out last week's post on Sarah Palin - a commenter calls me "liberal trash"! Haha! Total crazytown. 

"Kill him!", "Terrorist!", "Sit down boy!" - Sounds from the latest McCain/Palin rallies

UPDATE: (10.9.08) Just found this on Ben Smith's blog over at Politico. Man-on-the-street interviews from a McCain/Palin rally in Strongsville, OH. 

Secret Service is looking into the "KILL HIM" threat yelled during Palin's rally in Clearwater, FL. No thanks to the McCain/Palin campaign.

__________________

I attended two Obama rallies during the primaries. At each one, Obama made a point of praising Sen. Clinton for her many achievements, calling her a worthy opponent. At one of the rallies during this praise, someone in the audience booed. No words, no threats. Just a boo.

Some audience members chuckled. Obama paused, furrowed his brow, shook his head...

And flat out condemned the negativitiy. Like, denounced and rejected it.

So when I see stuff like this from McCain/Palin rallies, it royally pisses me off.

McCain, seriously? Someone calls Obama a terrorist at your rally, you take a pause, let the audience bask in their laughter and excitement, and then go on to condemn the "angry barrage of insults" that come out of the Obama camp? Really?

Oh, and let's not forget about that Palin rally in Fort Myers yesterday, where a supporter shouted a racial epithet at an African American sound man for a network and told him, "Sit down, boy."

But worse yet, the "Kill him!" proposition that came from a supporter at a Palin rally in Clearwater, FL. Seriously?

It's beyond gutter politics. It's criminal.

Related: Obama Dodged Snipper Fire Scenarios

A red-blooded American man's opinion on Palin (+ Tina Fey SNL debate skit. Hilarious)

Concerning last week's VP debate...

I found these comments on my last post and felt they deserved their own space. The comments were actually written before Lowry's ridiculous "starbursts" blog post... is Lowry reading CheapThrills?!? ;)

From PDaddy -

When Sarah Palin winked at camera, I felt she was winking right at me and my heart went all aflutter. Maybe it is a guy thing, but she really connected with me. I honestly cannot see why any red-blooded American man would not want her to be the VP -- she can memorize the playbook; she is really pretty; she wears nice clothes; and most important, she stands by her (Mc)-man! She is the stepford wife turned politician...and what's so bad about that? (wink)

Yes, that pin really caught my eye (the one that wasn't rather continuously winking back at my Sarah), and oh, what a satiny dress suit! (...or suit dress, or whatever it is called) But even more than that, I was so captivated by her folksy persona -- when she spoke about Joe-Six pack it really resonated with me. (And my wife liked Palin, too, because she [my wife] is a soccer mom to my son, who, yes... plays soccer!). And, I must say that I was so impressed...no haunted... by Palin's stepford thing. Spooky and sexy at the same time. 

I really think that it all got the best of me -- her wink, her dress, her lapel, her haunting stepford thing -- so much so that later, after the debate was over, I could not remember a single substantive point about any of her policy positions, save some vague stuff about her being a 'maverick' who's on a 'good ticket' with her man McCain. And that's a shame, because according to Ed Rollins on CNN and some other conservatives on talk radio, she really had a lot to say. I can't believe I am so shallow that I got swept away by her eye (not her eyes, exactly), her satin dress, he bejeweled pin, her folksy tone, her maverick image, and her sexy obsequiousness that I missed all the important things she said.

I'll post more from PDaddy sometime this week. On the topic of apes and evolution.

Thoughts on last night's VP debate

I haven’t yet read anything from the spin room. I've only talked to a handful of people at length. So I thought this'd be the optimal time, before my mind gets totally corrupted, to give my short two cents on last night’s debate.

1. Most importantly – Biden kicked ass. He was clear and straightforward, but also honest and gracious. When he spoke, I believed every word he said.
2. Biden also showed tremendous restraint. I know that’s what he had to do, but man I really wish he had pounced on some of Palin’s responses. She flubbed names and circled the issues, and I really wish Biden had called her on it.
3. On that note – umm, seriously Palin? Winking at the audience and dodging literally ALL the questions? We must have heard about her energy policy 5 times, if not more. We know she governs the HUGE, energy-producing state of Alaska, but doesn't she have anything else to talk about? I guess not.
4. But because Palin sounded literate, we will hear the “she nailed it!” spin. Of course. So, Palin, bravo for stringing sentences together. You get a Reading Rainbow certificate of appreciation.
5. And I’m just going to throw this out there: How the HELL are we going to solve the environmental crisis if we don’t first acknowledge the cause of the problem? Logically, that makes ZERO sense.
6. The format sucked. Big time. It favored canned speeches and memorized answers.
7. Along those lines, with all due respect to Ifill, I really wish she had demanded that each candidate (Palin more so) stick to the issue at hand. I remember watching the primary debates, and man oh man Tim Russert really forced the candidates to answer the actual questions. I would have liked to see something similar from Ifill. Oh well.
8. And one other thing, are you kidding me with the “McCain suspended his campaign for the economy” play? McCain didn’t save the economy. He barely “suspended” his campaign, if at all. Can we just call that for what it was – a pure political play?

There’s my pre-spin room rant. If you watched the debate last night, what did you think?

Update: Ok I went into the Internet spin room (I had to!!!). And I found this awesome Palin debate flowchart.