AT LONG LAST

On the evening news recently was the heartwarming story of the Medal of Honor being finally presented to a Vietnam warrior, Leslie Sabo. Long overdue is an understatement of many moons.  The story behind the Medal is a backstory for sure: The writeup of the medal, lost in the fog of war or simple neglect, then recovered; there are many unsung heros, the researcher who found the citation in the archives and his own tenacity, possibly--all given faint praise in  "sound bites." At least in the modern world of media, it was something. And, we cannot forget the soldier who originally recognized the great bravery. And the recipient of the Medal: the trooper taking the fight to the enemy, pulling the pin on a grenade and shielding a fellow soldier.  It does not come close to the whole story. The drama of combat. Bravo company ambushed, firefight with North Vietnamese Regulars. In this battle, Sabo, along with many of his fellow soldiers stepped up. I hope all of them got medals. Sabo paid the ultimate price. And, his dear wife, married 31 days before her husband went to Nam. The President's remarks, very classic and sincere. He calls Rose, the wife: "I am honored Mr. President."  "No, Rose, I am honored." Classy! 

WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ROSES

When Jessie Helms ran for the Senate in NC, my mom got out of her sick bed to vote for him. He had been a long time TV type and even in those days defined bigotry. But, nobody who thought about it doubted that he honestly believed what he was preaching. Recently some Pew research type when asked, "how is it that Americans keep getting more tolerant of gay marriage when surveyed amd yet more and more states like NC prove otherwise. His answer: "those who are more open do so in a Laissez-faire type way. Yet those who are opposed are zealots. They vote. The rest of us better wake up and smell the roses or these people are going to be running the country. How scary is that?

FALACY OF AMERICAN PEOPLE

SAN FRANCISCO VOTING BALLOT GUIDE I just voted and always vote absentee  because I want time and I like doing it casually, sitting on the "John" or whatever. Because I keep up with politics, etc, I'm pretty much on top of issues. Voter Guide, we could probably save money. Do I think most pay voting much attention. Not really. I simply voted for non incumbents. Does my vote make a difference, doubt it. 50% don't even bother and this is one of the reasons that everytime I hear some politician say, "American people," I want to throw up. American people, bullshit. Most don't give a "rat's ass" about the electoral process. The dumb MFers. They vote against their own interests if they don't vote but they don't get it. It is such a bullshit term, "American People": should be "Americans who care." And, while I am on this rant, let me say this: I didn't vote for a single Republican. As an Independent, I, at least, want to be able to say I never voted for s party that wanted us to get back to 1950. In this election, I feel they will do anything to get rid of the President, even if they have to hold their nose and nominate a Mormon and gazillionaire with whom they have little in common. I'm going with a bumper sticker I recently saw which sums it up for me as I'm heading out to drop my ballot in the mail: "I think, therefore I am a liberal."