[ Monday, November 01, 2004 ]
Some Final Thoughts Before Zero Hour.
...or hours, as the case may be.
You know, it took a lot of thought before I decided to put that Kerry/Edwards button on the page. I mean, in the past four years I've made no secret of my feelings towards the current president.
I think it's important to get out there and vote, obviously, and as I said earlier, those who don't are lazy douchebags.
Now, in his speeches, Kerry's been riding a high current, and has been everything that most conservatives hate: Self-righteous and, well, correct.
The defense that I've heard for Bush most often is that he can keep the peace, and that this war on terror he's declared has been what's kept any further terrorist attacks since 9/11.
Hmm. This somewhat smacks of a favorite Simpsons quote:
Homer (to Lisa): Well it looks like the new Bear Patrol is working like a charm.
Lisa: That's faulty logic, dad.
Homer: Thank you dear.
Lisa: No dad, that's like saying this rock here keeps away tigers. You don't see any tigers around here, do you?
Homer: I see... Lisa, I would like to buy your rock.
Also, just the fact that this war was brought about for the purpose of killing, catching, or detaining Osama bin Laden. The mere fact that he's able to record a video in which he looks in pretty good health, as well as seeming to be flourishing while under Bush's rule may speak to the idea that Bush isn't really doing much to keep our country safe.
And while we're at it, just the fact that the most major attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor happened while Bush was in power should also be somewhat of a red flag, but hey.
But no, goes the argument, national security is more important than anything! We need someone to protect us in our time of need!
Is that person really Bush? There have been attempts on American soil almost on a monthly basis for decades, and previous presidents (Democrat as well as Republican) have been able to prevent them without making the rest of the country a divided nation.
I was always somewhat liberal before, but I had my conservative points, too. I used to have much different attitudes on gun control (actually, my attitudes on that haven't changed that much), and for a time was pro-death penalty, and, for a brief time in my early teens, felt that life began at conception and that being gay was a choice.
I was borderline. I pretty much slept through the first Gulf War, and didn't give a shit one way or another about Dempcrats or Republicans, I just didn't want to get involved.
When Clinton was humiliated on national television with his testimony during Zippergate, I watched, laughing and frothing, saying that I lost all respect for him.
I was borderline.
I can remember the first time I saw Bush during the 2000 debates, and as he looked into the camera, I got the same eerie vibe I got from Dan Quayle: I saw no light behind his eyes. NONE.
And, like a lot of other people, I figured there was no way in hell he would ever be elected.
And I was right. He wasn't.
When 9/11 happened, the country changed. I know that's a cliché.
In the years that followed, I've found myself thinking of others in terms of "us and them."
I've had conservative friends. I've had liberal enemies.
But I'd never felt like...like it was "Invasion Of The Body Snatchers," where I'm constantly wondering who's Pro-Bush.
My father is. That I sort of expected.
But
Dennis Miller?
I used to like Penn Gillette. Hell, I loved P&T, but then I saw him on tough crowd telling people that "Bush and Kerry are exactly the same," and telling people not to vote.
And I thought
John Edwards was the Biggest Douche In The Universe.
It's weird. Whenever I find out that a friend or someone I admire is "one of them," I feel like people do in zombie movies when they see a friend's been bitten.
How did the country get like this?
I believe Kerry will be able to keep the terrorists at bay. All he has to do is let the counterterrorist units
actually counteract terror--
something that Bush couldn't do.
Another thing that Kerry can do that Bush cannot is be able to reach across the waters (be they partisan or continental) and work with others. Bush just does not have enough credibility with other countries, and hey, we may need some help someday in the future from any or all of them.
After 9/11, the world loved America. We were in the hearts and minds of the world. And the country, in those first days, worked together to help make everything better.
And somehow, less than a year later, Bush undid all of that. How is that good leadership?
If the threat was so imminent that we couldn't wait for the U.N. inspectors, what does that say about the president who lets it get that far?
There's another side to my whole "Us and Them" conundrum, though. There were people I didn't expect to come forward, who did.
Here's one that totally shocked me:
Eminem.
Yeah.
You may have seen
his recent and powerful video for his song "Mosh."
But think of what it's really saying. Here are some of the lyrics:
How could we allow something like this without pumping our fists
Now this is our final hour
Let me be the voice in your strength and your choice
Let me simplify the rhyme just to amplify the noise
Try to amplify the times it, and multiply by six...
Teen million people, Are equal at this high pitch
Maybe we can reach alqueda through my speech
Let the president answer a higher anarchy
Strap him with an Ak-47, let him go fight his own war
Let him impress daddy that way
No more blood for oil, we got our own battles to fight on our own soil
No more psychological warfare, to trick us to thinking that we ain't loyal
If we don't serve our own country, we're patronizing a hero
Look in his eyes its all lies
The stars and stripes, they've been swiped, washed out and wiped
And replaced with his own face, Mosh now or die
If I get sniped tonight you know why,
Cause I told you to fight.
I never thought I'd ever say this, but GO MARSHALL.
Added to this, he made a public display out of the fact that for the first time in his life,
he's planning to vote.
Who cares, right?
Think about this. His target audience sees him as someone who (in his own words) doesn't give a fuck. How many kids who idolize him do you think will get off their asses just because he will? It's like, if Slim Shady gives a fuck, they're thinking, well, maybe it
is important.
And this image in the the video, of people young and old, students and soldiers, black and white, male and female, all marching to the polling station...
...He even makes the idea of voting seem pretty cool.
To contrast that,
here's a fan-made flash video of a terrific Johnny Cash song named "When The Man Comes Around." It's been edited to be pro-Bush and anti-Kerry.
Like on the lyric "There's a man goin' 'round takin' names. An' he decides who to free and who to blame. Everybody won't be treated all the same. There'll be a golden ladder reaching down. When the man comes around," there's a series of pictures of Bush looking vaguely non-stupid, or kissing a baby, or in the flight suit, or whatever.
And for the lyric "Whoever is unjust, let him be unjust still. Whoever is righteous, let him be righteous still. Whoever is filthy, let him be filthy still," there are pictures of not only bin Laden, but celebrities like Sean Penn and Michael Moore.
Later in the video, Kerry is shown wearing a tiara. Classy.
What's funny is that the last lyric of the song is omitted from the video.
That's the one where the identity of "the man" is revealed:
And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts,
And I looked and behold: a pale horse.
And his name, that sat on him, was Death.
And Hell followed with him.
So think about that as you cast your vote.
Almost there.
Stay on target.
posted by Rob on 11:30 PM |
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