Here's links to all the latest and greatest in our new reality known as the BARACK OBAMA UNIVERSE...and yes, his universe has universal appeal...aren't I punny?
The following should give you something to gnaw on besides a turkey leg. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
"Sara, you're the poet in my heart, Never change, and don’t you ever stop..."
Wrong spelling of Sarah, but you get the idea...anyway.
She's the gift that keeps giving. She's the mustard stain on the tie that won't come out. She's the termite infestation that keeps returning to eat away at the foundation, despite continued efforts to exterminate...she simply refuses to go away.
...and I couldn't be more amused!!!
Sarah Palin might very well be the greatest bomb to go off in the face of the GOP...and as a Left-leaning Independent, I'm just crackin' another beer and kicking back to enjoy the show. I really, really hope Sarah Palin keeps talking and blabbering away.
The more she opens her mouth, the more the oxygen is sucked out of the Republican room...and the more she sandbags the GOP's efforts to get breathing room to retool and strategize.
Like, for example, today...when she totally hijacked the Republican Governor's meeting and steered the biplane right into King Kong's swatting fist.
I love how she chases her tail in the spotlight, being the self-proclaimed "pit bull with lipstick" that she is...just chasing her tail...going faster...and faster...and faster! Until all the china crashes all over the floor!!!
I can hear Republicans seething with every word that comes out of her mouth. Even if Republicans start telling her to shut her mouth, that will only rile her up even more and spin her into new heights of "Sarah unleashed."
Perhaps Sarah's fire will burn out, but it doesn't look like that will occur anytime in the foreseeable future.
I'm beyond amused with this gift known as Sarah Palin that fell out of the sky. Sarah! Sarah! Keep talking! Don't stop! Go on, and on, and on, you little energizer bunny! Don't leave us anytime soon!
I find that many of us have heard about it, and have heard it referred to numerous times over the years...and many of us may have referenced it ourselves.
...but have you actually sat down to watch the entire thing?
You should...it's some of the best 17 minutes of your life you'll ever invest in.
It's ESPECIALLY interesting following Obama's election to the Presidency. You can see what Obama has referenced to in his speeches; especially in his DNC acceptance speech last August. it's fascinating to see where he's channeled MLK and borrowed lines from him, such as "NOW is the time."
Check it out here, all 17 minutes of it...actually, we should know the entirety of this speech by heart. It's arguably the most critical, transcendent, sweeping speech in our nation's history.
As the dust settles from the historic election several days ago, my thoughts have been all over the map on the hope and possibilities that lie ahead for America.
More than anything, I keep going back to the complicated issue of race relations, and where we stand today. The lives lost in the Civil War and the family trees that could have been... the bloody and insanely protracted history of racism since... the civil rights movement and Dr. King's martyrdom... the misconceptions and gaffes I had growing up in Seattle, arguably the least racist part of the States... the Rodney King riots and resulting destruction that I witnessed firsthand... my conversations about race with black fraternity brothers in college... witnessing racism firsthand in Tucson against Latinos and confronting it... everything. Everything I've ever read about, heard about, discussed, or witnessed firsthand.
...and now what having an African-American in the White House means.
It means everything, especially for black America. I'm hoping it starts putting many of the issues I just touched on to bed, and accelerates the healing.
As Sheri Shepard said on The View, "No more limitations." A black mother or father can now look their kid in the eye and tell them that they can become President --- and mean it. It can't be questioned. It's indisputable. We can point to proof.
I believe Barack Obama has the ability to heal this nation in ways that we can't begin to imagine...even in ways that HE can't begin to imagine.
The light is shining in...let the healing begin!
Here's Sheri Shepard from The View, see below...but have a handkerchief ready, this is powerful stuff.
Here's a video of CNN, covering the last minute before Obama was announced as the President-elect.
I'm glad someone put this out there...I have to say I missed most of the coverage after the announcement due to a bizarre reaction I've never had before...a combination of hysterical weeping and laughing at the same time...what one might feel, perhaps, if their team won the intergalactic Super Bowl.
Checking my email today, I got this message from the Obama Campaign last night.
While I realize it's just something routine, it's the message I've been waiting to read...I can't believe that I'm seeing this...dear God, this day tastes sweeter than I could have ever imagined!!!
Sweva --
I'm about to head to Grant Park to talk to everyone gathered there, but I wanted to write to you first.
We just made history.
And I don't want you to forget how we did it.
You made history every single day during this campaign -- every day you knocked on doors, made a donation, or talked to your family, friends, and neighbors about why you believe it's time for change.
I want to thank all of you who gave your time, talent, and passion to this campaign.
We have a lot of work to do to get our country back on track, and I'll be in touch soon about what comes next.
Last night was a FANTASTIC night up here in Washington State and in the Seattle area.
The following took place:
Democratic Governor Chris Gregoire got reelected...and I think we dodged a HUGE BULLET on this one, as Dino Rossi would have been an utter nightmare, like another Bush. He's such an ass...it's the second straight election loss where the guy's refused to concede...and this time he got his ass handed to him. So then, Dino, GO AWAY.....
Prop. 1 passed, which extends the light rail lines to Bellevue and moves toward completing a light rail corridor that links Everett to Tacoma. This is a massive, massive, move in the right direction for the region to alleviate traffic congestion...we have some of the worst in the nation.
Initiative 195 failed...which would have made our traffic woes even worse...it was a citizen-based initiative driven by our local village idiot, Tim Eyman. Let's just say it's a long story on that scab that's not worth going into.
Washington passed a death with dignity law. It allows terminally ill patients to get prescriptions from their doctors to end their lives if they have less than six months to live (from a severe cancer diagnosis, etc.).
The House Rep race between Darcy Burner and Dave Reichert still hasn't been called...we'll keep our fingers crossed on that one. Go Darcy!
...and last but not least...Barack Obama will be the 44th President of the United States of America!!! Woohoo!!!
What a glorious day today is. These sorts of victories don't happen very often...but last night was a massive, massive victory night!!!
Puget Sound residents have invested in their future, and invested wisely...now let's roll up our sleeves and get to work!
It's difficult for me to absorb the feeling I had when I woke up this morning, or even to describe it.
As I awoke, all I could hear were victory trumpets going off in my head...you know, like the ones from King Arthur, being blown by those duke dudes in tights with feathers in their hat?
Shut up...you know what I mean.
I opened the window and all the little creatures in the woods were waving at me as they danced in a circle holding hands.
Not really...but it certainly feels that way!
It's a beautiful day...my heart feels fuller than it has in a long, long time. Hope has prevailed.
It's a feeling that's been hard fought and won. After knocking on all those doors...after raising more than $1,500 for Obama's campaign...after representing him as a 41st District representative in the primary...after all the caucusing...after all the days of frustration...after all the days of not knowing what the future would bring...after pining over the future of the planet...after suffering the loss of a classmate in Iraq...after the thieves left us standing in our living rooms with an empty bag in our hands in 2000...after a razor-edged steel toed kick in the balls in 2004...after screaming in anger and pain all the way to work the following morning the day after...
...after going through all that...all that garbage...after being beat down so hard again, again, and again...so hard that you can't look up anymore...
...IT'S THAT MUCH SWEETER.
The dawn of a new day has come. I have a little more steam in my stride today.
Oh, and when the sun rose today, it looked like the Obama logo coming over the hill...how about that?
Not really.
Now the REAL WORK begins...let's get busy! Hop to it!!!
Going into the last day before the election, things certainly aren't short on drama.
First, Obama's grandmother, who's lovingly referred to as "Toots," passed away today, hours before the election.
My condolensces to Barack Obama and his family...and I like to think she has a higher calling right now...somehow she's needed to help with tomorrow.
However, I can't imagine what's going through Barack's mind right now, and the strength and resilience he's putting on display. As if the road to Election Day isn't difficult enough to begin with, the guy loses his grandmother the day before...sheesh.
Be strong, my man...I know you are. We're all in this with you. Then there's the story of my hair stylist, Brenda, who I've been going to for about 4 years now...not that she "styles" my hair, as all I require is a basic cut.
So...why speak of these individuals in the same post? What do Toots and Brenda, both who never met nor know of one another, have in common?
They share the same dream: to see Barack Obama elected President of the United States of America.
This is how I see it: Toots shaped Barack's upbringing and brought him to this moment to -- through a chain reaction, or network if you will -- inspire people like Brenda, who is a Taiwanese-American who was born in Asia and immigrated here with her family some time back, and finds herself now voting in her very first election.
Not only is Brenda voting in her first election, which was triggered by her registering to vote in just this last month, but she has engaged numerous family and friends in the voting process. By educating them, she got them to send in their voter registration last month in time to vote in tomorrow's election.
...and why this election? Why now for Brenda? Why, in 2008, at this point in time, is she so engaged in the future of America?
Perhaps it involved a conversation the two of us had about six weeks ago about the future of America, the last time she was cutting my hair. We spoke of Obama and how we liked him, but in the conversation I discovered that she wasn't registered to vote...and with a bit of a perceived language barrier, or lack of knowledge of the process or where to go, she seemed a bit too busy or distracted to do anything about it.
So I decided to bring the process to her.
Following the haircut, I stopped by a library and put together a packet for her, with some registration forms and Obama propoganda that I printed from online. I even included a reader's digest version of the issues between the two campaigns as they view them, to provide both the Democratic and Republican perspectives.
A couple days thereafter, when I was passing by her work, I dropped off the information for her...I had no way of knowing what she'd decide to do with it.
It was only until I went in today, on the eve of the election to get my hair cut, that I found out the efforts she had made in the last six weeks, and all the other people she got registered to vote.
I told her the greatest feeling I have as an American -- as a free individual exercising my right in a democracy -- was when I vote.
She plans on going to her polling place tomorrow morning with her sister to experience that feeling for the first time. She expressed excitement about the prospect of voting in her first election as a free American.
I couldn't be prouder of her. LET FREEDOM RING!
Toots --> Barack --> me --> Brenda --> her family = 6 more votes for Obama.
We're a happy bunch! Sure, it's a little Left-leaning around these parts, but doesn't that make us more fun?
While the contributors here (we refer to ourselves as jumpers) are made up of progressive Democrats and Independents, not all of our views are "liberal." We're a mixed bag (scroll down further for our positions on the issues)...however you might say we're pretty much driven by ideals involving reason, science, and REAL information to enhance the progress of society in the 21st Century while promoting conservation.
We also like to listen to a little "2112" and STICK IT TO THE MAN.
That being said, we tend to rail against the nonsensical diarrhea of the lunatic fringe, the assault on reason, and dogmatic, intolerant religious views. We believe in individual responsibility and shared responsibility. We tend to be angry about political policies that favor the rich over the middle class...and we want the lobbyists in Washington to take a fucking hike!
We're not perfect peeps and have our faults just like the rest of you...but we are American citizens who want a better future for our children and grandchildren. After all, we all share the American Dream.
Soooo...where are we jumping today?
The following is where the jumpers on this blog "jump for joy" on the issues...
health care
Exceptional leadership from a President and Congress will be necessary to address this to where we see fundamental change for the better. All the stakeholders should be brought to the table, with the idea of producing a partnership between the public and private sectors and affordable coverage for all Americans.
The one exception to that might be the pharmaceutical companies...being that if you don't understand this issue is a societal and moral one, and you're blinded by only profit motive, you're going to resist.
Mandatory coverage for children could provide a pilot study and boilerplate for which to refine a larger health care system.
schools
Tweak "No Child Left Behind" and find a new approach...it doesn't work. It might help to ACTUALLY FUND schools with new programs also, rather than simply squeezing teachers and holding them accountable with unrealistic expectations and an added workload that receives no added funding. Charter schools and home schooling is okay...the more options for families the better.
reproductive rights
The fact that this is a political issue to begin with is unconscionable. The government should stay out of a woman's womb. Period. No bun intended (sorry, a little levity that I couldn't resist in the face of a very serious issue).
same sex marriage /civil unions
Another one of those issues that, well, really shouldn't be an issue in the first place. Fear and religion seem to drive this issue...but fear of what, may I ask?
Folks of all sexual orientation have the right to live lives free of discrimination...and yes, speaking from our heterosexual angles, we believe gays should have the right to marry.
It would be nice to see the human race evolve on this issue from the mindset of primates into a place of tolerance, with a live and let live philosophy, in the near future...can we put the damn issue to rest so we can move on, please?
war in Iraq
Ending it responsibly is more important than ushering out of there quickly and hastily. I like to think of it as cleaning up the twisted steel from something like a bridge collapse...you have to carefully engineer and unwind yourself out of it to clean up the mess safely.
I'm shocked at myself for coming across as that detached from the war, despite the fact that a high school classmate of mine was killed over there in 2006...the first casualty of that year, actually.
gun control & 2nd amendment
This is an urban vs. rural issue. The 2nd Amendment can be upheld while bringing in an EFFECTIVE AND AGGRESSIVE new ban on assault weapons. There's absolutely no use whatsoever for a 19 round AK-47 other than spraying bullets into a crowd and taking a dozen lives in as many seconds.
environment
A matter that has an affect on our nation, the planet, and everything we do.
Our planet is sick with a fever, and we must take measures now to remedy that. The long-term survival of our planet's biodiversity, and of the human race for that matter, hangs in the balance.
This matter is attached to our energy policy, economy, and our ability to bring ourselves to the table and pony up to matters such as the Kyoto Protocol. We must create the example of leadership --- to bring the other nations that represent the world's greatest consumers and polluters into a consensus --- on the necessary actions that need to be taken to restore the planet and ensure the health and longevity of its air, oceans, and land along with the biodiversity that lies within.
Jumpers here at the Left believe President Obama can accomplish this, and has already begun demonstrating this in his first year in office.
energy
Get off the oil...duh! Many years from now, our descendants will think we were nuts...keep the oil for what we REALLY NEED in the future. ENOUGH! Conserve it, dammit!
A smorgasbord of options need to be explored, including natural gas, more advanced and expanded nuclear options, environmentally-compatible hydroelectric, geothermal, solar and wind. We all know this...let's just move the stupid albatross foward.
economy
The free market should reward drive and innovation, and generate growth, and businesses should live up to their responsibilities by looking out for American workers and playing by the rules of the road.
The last 8 years have seen the economy spin around the yard without any parameters. There are ways to let it loose during upturns while having some application of a safety net during the bad times.
A historical analysis will reveal that a little well-applied regulation helps to keep the economy stable.
immigration
Secure the borders first, then wake us up. Any policy that separates families is inhumane and TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. While the Jumpers at The Left don't have a clear-cut solution to this issue, we believe there is a way to enforce our borders and secure effective immigration policy without having to perform these inhumane tactics.
foreign policy
Let's exercise diplomacy, in an intelligent way I might add, as a REAL WAY to work with our international neighbors. Despite overall belief, it really isn't that hard to be real with other countries...for some people, I guess.
Then there's the terrorist thing..."Either you're with us, or you're with the terrorists."
We need a different approach...for starters, you don't defeat terrorist networks in 80 countries by occupying Iraq...and it might help to follow Bin Laden to his stinky little cave before you catch up with him at the "Gates of Hell." Just a thought.
urban growth & housing
Florida, Oregon, and the state of Washington are the most progressive states when it comes to urban growth measures that curb sprawl and encourage infill development with concurrent bolstering of infrastructure. More states will be following those examples. The concepts of mixed use in urban areas, including diversity of housing, is in full swing with the New Urbanism movement. The availability of more grants and Federal funding can only help more, especially in rural areas and less affluent communities.
transportation & infrastructure
Do everything you can to encourage the expansion of mass transit in urban areas, with an emphasis on light rail and OPTIONS for getting between the home and work places.
That means telecommuting, expanded mass transit, ride sharing /car pooling, walking, and more safe design with expanded construction of bicycle paths along major road corridors.
Assess the state of our roads, bridges, levies, and other aging infrastructure so we can move ahead with a strategy for upgrading them and avoid catastrophes...like the bridge collapse in Minneapolis in 2007.
Oh...and anything you build --- do it GREEN, please. Thank you.
Forests, parks, & open spaces
These precious resources of unlimited value have no price...they're more important than ever before and MUST be safeguarded.
A balance must be struck between those areas that are suited to active vs. passive recreation, along with those areas that must remain pristine and untouched.
If there's room for expansion of the parks and monument systems, let's do it. Safeguard these vital national treasures and resources. We can never conserve and protect enough.
space exploration
The program should continue with NASA overseeing development of space travel in the private sector.
A Mars strategy is a great idea and will provide us with opportunities that we have yet to imagine; especially in terms of the specter of human population growth and future colonization of other planets.
Let's refine our Mars strategy by engaging ourselves with the Moon once again...if the experts find it sensible, let's use this resource as a satellite and base of operations from which to launch our more aggressive and risky missions that take ourselves away from Earth.
A space program that embraces the Earth~moon~Mars continuum seems to bring forth a set of limitless possibilities and provides a platform to work from that can sustain itself for decades and centuries to come.
So you see? There's a jumper in all of us!
As you can see, the world's just chockfull of jumpers from every walk of life. We all truck ahead and dive into the same deep and heartless waters together...it's how we work together to keep afloat that defines us.
Here's links to all the latest and greatest in our new reality known as the BARACK OBAMA UNIVERSE...and yes, his universe has universal appeal...aren't I punny? 
So how's that Fleetwood Mac song go?
As the dust settles from the historic election several days ago, my thoughts have been all over the map on the hope and possibilities that lie ahead for America.
Checking my email today, I got this message from the Obama Campaign last night.
Last night was a FANTASTIC night up here in Washington State and in the Seattle area.
It's difficult for me to absorb the feeling I had when I woke up this morning, or even to describe it.
Here it is...the vote!
Going into the last day before the election, things certainly aren't short on drama. 
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