Studs Terkel and This American Life

I am listening to a This American Life episode with Studs Terkel interviews. He was adept in getting great stories from people. This particular episode is dealing with the Great Depression, his most famous topic. The production was "A Gathering of Survivorsr: Voices of the Great American Depression."

One of the last women he interviewed was talking about how she found out President Roosevelt had 80 cufflinks; some ruby, some emerald, some diamond. How could one person have so much while so many people are starving, she thought. Amazing. There are so many people like that out there, that feel that way, especially now, and yet socialism is still a bad word. "Sharing the wealth" is such a bad thing.

I think it was the same woman who was later talking about how she came to understand that Black people were the same as White people. She said that after the Great Depression, there was a lot of propaganda dividing Americans. Yeah, you all went through all this terrible poverty, but you're white, so you're better. One of her realizations was of gender. She saw a huge white man slam the door in the face of a grocery clerk, a black woman, as she took his groceries to his car for him. She cursed him off, and it was one step towards this realization that a certain kind of people aren't different or inferior or superior than another kind.

I love This American Life. I cannot help thinking that if more people listened to this show, we would live in a different world. Maybe that's not true. Maybe people could divorce what they hear from what they live. But maybe, just maybe, it would make one person change their behavior towards those less fortunate or in positions where they have no power to change their situations, controlled by a machine much larger than themselves.

Maybe that will be one of the lessons of this "minor" economic downturn. People are losing their homes, their livelihoods, their cars... do you think that they will realize that the important thing to do is to stick together?

From the Annals of "Duh" Science...

Thank goodness for stories such as this one from NPR's Talk of the Nation Science Friday. "Happy Tunes Make for Healthy Hearts." Apparently, listening to upbeat, "joyful" music releases endorphins and dilates the blood vessels, allowing for better blood flow to the heart, much like exercise. Woah, really?! Happy music makes you happier and therefore healthier?? You just freakin' blew my mind! Who woulda thought?

In other news, this afternoon, I signed this pledge to repeal Prop 8. It won't happen, but it's apparently being decided by the California Supreme Court even as we speak, so something will happen indeed. The post includes a comment from Keith Olbermann that he recited on his show last week that was really quite amazing. I have embeded the video from YouTube. Feel free to check it out. I nearly cried. Had I not been at work, I would have done so.

At Least Someone Can Laugh About It

Gays Less Popular Than Farm Animals, More Popular Than Criminals

Happy, With Caveats

I'm so psyched for Barack Obama. Really, I am. And I'm very optimistic about the direction of the country with Democratic control of House, Senate, and the Presidency. Plus, the defeat of all of the anti-choice ballot initiatives and bans is icing on the cake of a great night.

I am, however, perturbed by the idea that a rich few can take away the civil rights of so many. This time, it's the rights of gays and lesbians in California. How long will we have to wait to have marriage equality? 10 years? 20? 50? Why do people care? Have gays been running around killing or destroying property after they took their vows? Homosexuality isn't a disease, it's not getting into the water, and it's not destroying the institution of marriage. DIVORCE IS.

My new motto is: "Protect traditional marriage. STOP DIVORCE."

And no, I don't mean no one should get divorced. There are plenty of people who have and should be allowed to do so. It's just crazy that people can be so afraid of something they cannot even see, touch, or hear. "Oh no, not another married gay couple! WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!"

Thus, my happiness for President-Elect Barack Obama is heavily tempered by my disgust with intolerant Americans.

Bother to Vote!

Apparently, my brother bothered to vote yesterday and he had to wait in line for hours, even though it was early voting. Democracy in action!!!



Anyhoo, things are good here in view of the mountains. The gf may get a job soon, though she also now has a part-time job to get a little extra cash to help pay the bills. Mostly, my bills, because I've been buying everything. We're trying to keep track of spending and doing so by having me spend all of it and keep track. It'll work, I promise.

Thanks to my good friend Jim for the link to this website. The videos are pretty funny, but my favorite was the fake McCain robocalls. Priceless.

The election is only 9 days away! What on earth are we going to do for the next week? I know, watch the Daily Show online FOR-E-VER. Starting now.

Oh, and work is great. I love working for KTEH/KQED and Northern California Public Broadcasting. It rocks. Development too, rocks.

(Sorry about this post, I'm a little distracted by the Daily Show.)

I Have an Apartment, Too!

First, before I talk about me, I read in the LA Times that a couple in Dubai got drunk and had sex on the beach. They were sentenced for drinking and having -- you guessed it -- pre-marital sex. How long was their sentence? Three months! Thank you, Dubai, for taking this dangerous couple off the streets. Who knows who could be their next victim!

Anyway, back to me - I have an apartment! Moving this week is our current priority, and I'm very excited to have my own space. Also, the gf might be getting a full-time job soon - she has an interview today and one on Monday. Wish her luck!

In other news, I watched the debate last night. I think the Republicans are race-baiting, and Congressman John Lewis was right. If someone comes to your rally and screams that your opponent should be killed, racial slurs, or other horrible things, you should call them out and stop it so that it doesn't happen again. Calling your opponent a terrorist is NOT OK. Letting your supporters call for him to be killed - NOT OK. I agree with Stanley Rich on this one. Republicans are playing up fear, and inevitably, some of that fear is race-based. I guess the McCain campaign is doing so poorly they cannot afford to offend their racist supporters, either.

So now, here's one last photograph with which to close the blog. This one is from the AP. It's what happens when John McCain walks off the wrong part of the stage. Haha, awesome. A picture definitely is worth a thousand words.

I Have a Job! And Other Things You May or May Not Care About

I have a job! Soon, I will be working for public broadcasting in Northern California. Huzzah! Don't worry, I will be posting the link soon. No, the gf doesn't have a job yet, but it's coming - I can feel it in the wind. And no, we don't have an apartment yet - but we'll be looking starting... now.

I just voted! I voted for... hey, none of your damn business! Hint: it wasn't for John McCain. But anyway, I was happy to see the entire Green party ticket was female. Huzzah! I nearly voted Green, but I've heard that there's a possibility that New Jersey could go red this year, and I can't let that happen. Crap, I just gave away who I voted for!

But, I did vote Republican once. I know, I know, save it, you pinko Commies. Anyway, I voted for the incumbent in the Ocean County Clerk race, mainly because I think it's low that the Democratic challenger suddenly, within the past week, was asking for an investigation into the clerk's use of public funds. That's the only thing I can find about the guy, and it's negative, and that seems like dirty politics to me. Also, I can't find any bad press about this guy Carl Block, so until something bad comes out, I'm OK with keeping him in. Plus, I'm not going to be a citizen of Ocean County for much longer.. he he he...

Oh, and those ballot initiatives? I voted No and Yes respectively. I read the ballot descriptions on the League of Women Voters site, and I used my best judgment. Only time will tell if I'm correct or not.

If only there were as much coverage about local and state races as there is about national ones. Then I'd know how to vote. Of course, being in California doesn't help, either.