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| Gratitude! Gratitude! |
The Wind on the Beartooth Plateau
Last weekend my wife and I went to a beautiful public garden in the Raleigh Hills neighborhood of Portland. A crystal clear blue sky and the autumn foliage was at its height. While Phyllis inspected the garden I sat on a bench (I tire easily nowadays sad to say) and looked at the tall trees with their myriad leaves, blowing in the golden wind.
The political season is upon us and there is a financial battle being fought simultaneously: maybe the first world war where everyone is one the same side and the enemy we are fighting is a devil of our own devising... Late nights, many of us are watching the glowing screens and seeing the openings of the bourses from Australia to Japan to China; what happens there will effect the EU and then us here. Others of us are watching the poll numbers jump and shift. Quiet contemplative tasks: seeing the washes of photons that derive from distant battles that will shape all of our lives with tremendous finality.
My favorite place in the world is the Beartooth Plateau. Hardly a year goes by when I don't visit. The wind whistles up there and the air is icy cold when a rock wall shuts off the sun. There is an upland meadow at about 3000 meters that I love especially. If you drive the Chief Joseph Highway and, reaching the pass, look northwest, you will see it: a vast table in the sky.
The tumult of this autumn never reaches that place, just the wind whistling in the little stands of trees that punctuates the grass expanse. One can look south toward the Sunlight Basin from there and see the austere peaks rising...what does it mean to them that we are entering a new age...perhaps a golden age at that?
I am weary, feeling my age multiplied by illness and responsibility, seeing the changes coming, and knowing how much distress they will cause some on the short term. But the Plateau endures and so shall our species; we are contemporaries after all, and all this tumult is so much wind, so many fleeting photons ghosting through the ringing air.
Obama shall surely win and become one of the greatest presidents this country has ever had. And simultaneously with our country's fall from haughty financial power, may come a new golden age where a great and lasting peace will be shared by all.
Such is my hope and prayer and I contemplate these things late nights as markets tremble in the balance, and the world waits to see what our choice will be, and the eternal winds blow the trees in my city park and those up on the plateau of all of our hopes.
PERMALINKThe political season is upon us and there is a financial battle being fought simultaneously: maybe the first world war where everyone is one the same side and the enemy we are fighting is a devil of our own devising... Late nights, many of us are watching the glowing screens and seeing the openings of the bourses from Australia to Japan to China; what happens there will effect the EU and then us here. Others of us are watching the poll numbers jump and shift. Quiet contemplative tasks: seeing the washes of photons that derive from distant battles that will shape all of our lives with tremendous finality.
My favorite place in the world is the Beartooth Plateau. Hardly a year goes by when I don't visit. The wind whistles up there and the air is icy cold when a rock wall shuts off the sun. There is an upland meadow at about 3000 meters that I love especially. If you drive the Chief Joseph Highway and, reaching the pass, look northwest, you will see it: a vast table in the sky.
The tumult of this autumn never reaches that place, just the wind whistling in the little stands of trees that punctuates the grass expanse. One can look south toward the Sunlight Basin from there and see the austere peaks rising...what does it mean to them that we are entering a new age...perhaps a golden age at that?
I am weary, feeling my age multiplied by illness and responsibility, seeing the changes coming, and knowing how much distress they will cause some on the short term. But the Plateau endures and so shall our species; we are contemporaries after all, and all this tumult is so much wind, so many fleeting photons ghosting through the ringing air.
Obama shall surely win and become one of the greatest presidents this country has ever had. And simultaneously with our country's fall from haughty financial power, may come a new golden age where a great and lasting peace will be shared by all.
Such is my hope and prayer and I contemplate these things late nights as markets tremble in the balance, and the world waits to see what our choice will be, and the eternal winds blow the trees in my city park and those up on the plateau of all of our hopes.
Beauty-full. "and all this tumult is so much wind, so many fleeting photons ghosting through the ringing air."
Thank you so for this, a much worthy meditation which, for so many reasons, will replace tonight's countless racing thoughts.
How I miss the coastline South American mountains to which I belong. Even in their aloofness toward the higher latitudes, the inhabitants nevertheless, I am told, also pray that our choice over here is the wise one.
Wonderful piece, Lux, and a strong prayer.
You done Chief Joseph proud.
LUX, I have come to think of you as Aeolus, caring enough to harness our tempestuous winds into a gentle force that is steady and favoring. Thank you for being.It's hardly Mozart, but I thought this might express the range of feeling we've all been through during the past several months and the hope that we have now:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5P5EFjRupE&feature=related
Your writing is beautiful. This post brought back memories of my times in New Hampshire, when I'd go up there as a kid just before summer ended. Up there, I could smell autumn starting in August. Mornings were cold. Afternoons were warm in the sun, and the sky was as endless as my joy. Thank you for bringing back those memories.
Nice.
I felt the wonder.
Thank you, truly something that this day needed in my life.
One of the Romantic Poets wrote this great long poem Mont Blanc. And your meditative thoughts remind me of that. I think as we grow older and we face our mortality, we look for metaphors that somehow help us to see the immensity of the world, the way that everything changes and decays and yet endures. (or maybe I've always been of a philosophical bent that way... I think I have) I love mountains for that.
Thanks so much for sharing this. And here is the beginning of the poem, one I have long loved, since college, together with a link for anyone who cares to read more (thanks to da google!):
To all who commented and recommended.
Sometimes the comments ennoble the text, like the other instruments joining, one-by-one, a solo woodwind in a Mozart piece.
Much appreciated.And sometimes the comments are sparked because the poster is a muse. And that you are!
Lux, I thank you most sincerely. You've captured a bit of the eternal in the midst of the onward rush.
As an anonymous scribe once said:
Seasons change, Love remains
What a wonderful respite it was reading this, Lux. Thank you.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
I'm so blessed to have beheld you.If you check back in Lux, hope you're enjoying the Inauguration. And the Wind on the Beartooth Plateau. qLux: I miss you. We all miss you. More to the point --- thank you, for being you. You are not only respected -- you are loved.
More in keeping with the mood you were in the day you wrote of Beartooth Plateau:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Dm1-R6sc_c&feature=related
And then, to celebrate the gratitude we feel about tomorrow, in the figurative as well as literal sense, this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKUC92PHa7Y&feature=related
of which somehow you are an integral part, even though tomorrow belongs to the young.
The wind on the Beartooth Plateau has died down for now
But the cold air remains
Does the wind follow the cold?
Or does this entire world rely upon the wind?
I threw vinegar and hot chilis in your soup, my friend
And in return, you gave me bright berries
Sweet, bright, black berries
"Eat them now," you said, "they won't last."
One day
Gratitude! Gratitude!
One moment
Gratitude.
One single bright, black berry
Gratitude
Nothing more
Nothing next
Just now
You knew
You knew
How wonderful!
You knew.
The wind on the Beartooth Plateau has died down for now
But on a distant peak, a silent shiver runs through the trees
Lux Umbra Dei
Shadow of God
You knew.
*crying*
*smiling*
Thanks, bunnykitty.Amen to Lux's prayer and yours Hreb.
The Great Community
(Dedicated to TheraP)
It was raining a few days ago, and one of our neighborhood cats, took shelter on our porch. Softies that we are, we let him in and gave him a few kibbles to boot. Humans are unique in that way.
I want to shamelessly repeat verbatim some things I said on Tom Wright's Knowledge and Morality post because they came up in my mind when I read TheraP's Dignity, Hospitality, Community but I feared to repost them there as they were to the side of TheraP's goal.
When we talk about morality and ethics and community and dignity we are sometimes unaware of the hillside from which we gaze out at these issues. That hillside is our definition of our own selves.
It was raining a few days ago, and one of our neighborhood cats, took shelter on our porch. Softies that we are, we let him in and gave him a few kibbles to boot. Humans are unique in that way.
I want to shamelessly repeat verbatim some things I said on Tom Wright's Knowledge and Morality post because they came up in my mind when I read TheraP's Dignity, Hospitality, Community but I feared to repost them there as they were to the side of TheraP's goal.
When we talk about morality and ethics and community and dignity we are sometimes unaware of the hillside from which we gaze out at these issues. That hillside is our definition of our own selves.
We have to re-examine what "human" means when it relates to moral dilemmas, community, and compassion.
Lets leave that term aside for a bit and look at the concept of personhood. Who qualifies? It is a little like expanding the voting franchise. From landed white males, to minorities, and finally to women and youths. Who falls under the aegis of our compassion and concern and our sense of right and wrong?
Perhaps the time has come to expand it. And if we do center it on a definition like: "that which can give rise in us of compassion and concern", then we might extend our ethical umbrella out to cover starfish, trees, and the very earth itself. And so too our sense of community.
When we do, we probably will find that there is a deepening of our concern for each others as persons and as humans.
Lets leave that term aside for a bit and look at the concept of personhood. Who qualifies? It is a little like expanding the voting franchise. From landed white males, to minorities, and finally to women and youths. Who falls under the aegis of our compassion and concern and our sense of right and wrong?
Perhaps the time has come to expand it. And if we do center it on a definition like: "that which can give rise in us of compassion and concern", then we might extend our ethical umbrella out to cover starfish, trees, and the very earth itself. And so too our sense of community.
When we do, we probably will find that there is a deepening of our concern for each others as persons and as humans.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS (30) | RECOMMEND (15)
Now you're smokin', Lux! Your Global EC idea was good,
but if you can squeeze some animals in, trees, a few bugs & some
moonbeams, then we're on our way to a deeper sanity.
Here's the thing for me. Yes, I understand the differences. But. We have other species living within us. We are enormously dependent on other species to live. We evolved from what were, at some point other species. We can actually communicate with other species. And some of us even kinda like each other.
But we count them as ZERO. I read the bloody Kantian this & rights that & medical ethical this & Singer that until frankly, it just bored the bejeebers out of me. We already use gradations, and we need to get busy, as you say, on other species. And then, the Earth. And then, I donno, great music maybe.
I'm playing now, but your point, that how we define ourselves, how define as persons, how we deal with our multiplicity within and connectedness without, what we feel part of & compassionate for, what sustains us & co-creates us... well, it's bigger than what we thought.
And this is not bad news for us humans, that's the thing I'd like to add. It's GREAT news. The Earth, the whole universe in fact, will start to feel a little more like... home.
Here's the thing for me. Yes, I understand the differences. But. We have other species living within us. We are enormously dependent on other species to live. We evolved from what were, at some point other species. We can actually communicate with other species. And some of us even kinda like each other.
But we count them as ZERO. I read the bloody Kantian this & rights that & medical ethical this & Singer that until frankly, it just bored the bejeebers out of me. We already use gradations, and we need to get busy, as you say, on other species. And then, the Earth. And then, I donno, great music maybe.
I'm playing now, but your point, that how we define ourselves, how define as persons, how we deal with our multiplicity within and connectedness without, what we feel part of & compassionate for, what sustains us & co-creates us... well, it's bigger than what we thought.
And this is not bad news for us humans, that's the thing I'd like to add. It's GREAT news. The Earth, the whole universe in fact, will start to feel a little more like... home.
The maximal extension of kin selection (acting to help
one's near kin as a source of altruism) is wanting to help the entire
biosphere. After all, we share genes with yeasts and sponges. So the
best chance that at least some of your genes will survive into the
future is to try to maximize diversity. The ultimate hedge fund.
Interesting. Particularly when considered with the possibility that Humans are (NOT) unique in that way.
Elephants, gorillas, and dolphins are among the species that have
demonstrated acts of altruism. Wonder if it's less of a hedge fund and
more of a credit union?
I like the credit union.
As to kin selection, also consider social insects like honey bees.
As to kin selection, also consider social insects like honey bees.
Lux, I am humbled and touched beyond words - by your kindness and your wisdom.
Was it you recently who spoke of a "loosening of ego boundaries?" (It could have been you, but it wasn't, I now recall.) But that's what you're describing here. Where our sense of "self" enlarges beyond our skin, beyond what we see or feel or even know. And we feel a kinship with others, with our planet and its inhabitants, with the cosmos - and beyond.
The Tibetan Buddhists have a very specific type of meditation, geared to helping people enlarge those ego boundaries. It's called Tong Len and I believe it's described in the Dalai Lama's book on ethics. But essentially it consists of repeating a series of blessings or prayers - for beneficence - on yourself, then those close to you, then those farther removed from you, then even enemies... and of course you could take it as far as you want to include plants, animals, whomever, whatever.
Some individuals, the Dalai Lama is one, have so embodied compassion (and thus allowed ego boundaries to loosen) that simply being in their presence fosters peace and calm and seems to deepen or enlarge oneself at the same time.
In my view your presence on this blog is doing exactly that. We, neither of us, is perfect of course. But we're seeking to embody compassion, I think, however imperfectly.
I love your title: The Great Community.
I may answer you at greater length in another post, sparked by your post.
Blessings upon you, Lux. (If anything happens to you, I hope someone in your family will post and let us know. Your light shines so brightly - as the candle burns low.)
Was it you recently who spoke of a "loosening of ego boundaries?" (It could have been you, but it wasn't, I now recall.) But that's what you're describing here. Where our sense of "self" enlarges beyond our skin, beyond what we see or feel or even know. And we feel a kinship with others, with our planet and its inhabitants, with the cosmos - and beyond.
The Tibetan Buddhists have a very specific type of meditation, geared to helping people enlarge those ego boundaries. It's called Tong Len and I believe it's described in the Dalai Lama's book on ethics. But essentially it consists of repeating a series of blessings or prayers - for beneficence - on yourself, then those close to you, then those farther removed from you, then even enemies... and of course you could take it as far as you want to include plants, animals, whomever, whatever.
Some individuals, the Dalai Lama is one, have so embodied compassion (and thus allowed ego boundaries to loosen) that simply being in their presence fosters peace and calm and seems to deepen or enlarge oneself at the same time.
In my view your presence on this blog is doing exactly that. We, neither of us, is perfect of course. But we're seeking to embody compassion, I think, however imperfectly.
I love your title: The Great Community.
I may answer you at greater length in another post, sparked by your post.
Blessings upon you, Lux. (If anything happens to you, I hope someone in your family will post and let us know. Your light shines so brightly - as the candle burns low.)
No need to worry TheraP, I'm doing fine! Though I could use a vacation....
May you be blessed with a vacation. Perhaps you could do
a blog on your best future vacation, whether you're able to take it or
not.
Students in my studio and digital arts classes have
recently been tested to expand their definition of "kindred" species --
as, without screens, we have been swarmed in recent weeks by bees and
yellow jackets. Sad to say, the initial response by the girls was to act
alarmed and threatened; in consequence, the initial response among the
boys was then to demonstrate "manliness" by killing them.
I called a moratorium on the killing, and required all the students to watch a documentary about bees and what the implications are for our "green" planetary hopes if they become extinct.
Last week, the prime macho man/terminator among them demonstrated that there is hope, not only for bees, but also for our children. Patiently, he showed his classmates how easy it is to trap a bee or yellow jacket and release it outside. A far cry from his mocking behavior of a few weeks ago when he pondered, ironically, if I would like to "say a few words" over the dead bodies he had assembled as trophies.
Yes we can make change that matters.
I called a moratorium on the killing, and required all the students to watch a documentary about bees and what the implications are for our "green" planetary hopes if they become extinct.
Last week, the prime macho man/terminator among them demonstrated that there is hope, not only for bees, but also for our children. Patiently, he showed his classmates how easy it is to trap a bee or yellow jacket and release it outside. A far cry from his mocking behavior of a few weeks ago when he pondered, ironically, if I would like to "say a few words" over the dead bodies he had assembled as trophies.
Yes we can make change that matters.
Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and feelings on this thread. Good vibes all around.
May all beings be free from danger and fear > May all beings have mental and physical happiness > May all beings have ease of well-being > May any happiness I feel be shared with all beings, to help bring us all to the end of suffering.
May all beings be free from danger and fear > May all beings have mental and physical happiness > May all beings have ease of well-being > May any happiness I feel be shared with all beings, to help bring us all to the end of suffering.
May the homeless find shelter
May the hungry have nourishment
May the thirsty receive cool drink
[add your own]
Thanks ttarleton!
May the hungry have nourishment
May the thirsty receive cool drink
[add your own]
Thanks ttarleton!
Gimme that old time metta, it's good enough for me!
A book I would recommend to all (human) beings:
Lovingkindness by Sharon Salzberg
A book I would recommend to all (human) beings:
Lovingkindness by Sharon Salzberg
Well, this is just beautiful. The whole discussion. Just beautiful.
Lovely, Lux. Thanks to all for a calming and uplifting experience.
Would it disrupt the mood if I said something really rude?
Oh.
Oh.
It might amuse me. Actually, it definitely would.
A Cat, an Elephant & a Wolf were out walking one day,
discussing whether & the the degree to which human beings should be
granted rights within the wider community of living beings.
Now, the Cat was very Compassionate, and argued that humanity's past sins should be forgiven, and humans be fully included.
The Elephant was very Ethical, and began to refine the discussion, weighing the degree to which sins committed against the earth by human beings in the past should weigh against the (relatively less-blameworthy) younger people.
The Wolf, of course, was VERY Wise, and listened to all that the others said. The other animals sat silently as the Wolf considered all it had heard. For the Wolf, in addition to being Wise, was known to have great sway with the other animals at the Council. When just as the Wolf opened its mouth to speak, Sarah Palin flew overhead in a chopper & shot the shit out of the three of them.
I think I better run now. Lux is gonna gun me down for that.
Bye!
Now, the Cat was very Compassionate, and argued that humanity's past sins should be forgiven, and humans be fully included.
The Elephant was very Ethical, and began to refine the discussion, weighing the degree to which sins committed against the earth by human beings in the past should weigh against the (relatively less-blameworthy) younger people.
The Wolf, of course, was VERY Wise, and listened to all that the others said. The other animals sat silently as the Wolf considered all it had heard. For the Wolf, in addition to being Wise, was known to have great sway with the other animals at the Council. When just as the Wolf opened its mouth to speak, Sarah Palin flew overhead in a chopper & shot the shit out of the three of them.
I think I better run now. Lux is gonna gun me down for that.
Bye!
I can't believe I did that to Lux's lively post. That was appalling.
I'm banishing myself. ;-)
I'm banishing myself. ;-)
You = genius.
That's a confirmed equation.
That's a confirmed equation.
That's okay Quinn. I just came back from renewing my PETA membership.
People Eating Tasty Animals
Lets see my PETA cookbook: page 64: Preparing Quinn/Destor Ragout
Gotta run out to get some paprika!
People Eating Tasty Animals
Lets see my PETA cookbook: page 64: Preparing Quinn/Destor Ragout
Gotta run out to get some paprika!
Love them vittles you can't raise nor buy!!
Vittles 'R Us? Why does this concept worry me.....
Thanks Lux. Into every harmonious post, a little discord must fall. In this case, that'd be me.
I blame it on Destor though. Damned rabble-rousin' 'rasslers.
Up Huskies, UP! Good snow tonight lads! MUUUUUUUUSH!
Goodniiiiiiiiiight all ! ;-)
Thanks Lux. Into every harmonious post, a little discord must fall. In this case, that'd be me.
I blame it on Destor though. Damned rabble-rousin' 'rasslers.
Up Huskies, UP! Good snow tonight lads! MUUUUUUUUSH!
Goodniiiiiiiiiight all ! ;-)
"Thanks Lux. Into every harmonious post, a little discord must fall. In this case, that'd be me."
Desi, you are living proof of the Hairy Ball Theorem, to wit: you (and Space Mountain) are the cowlick on an otherwise smoothly combed sphere of harmonious comments!
My Lux Blogs have never yet survived unscathed!
This fact proves that no continuous non-zero tangent vector field can exist! QED
Desi, you are living proof of the Hairy Ball Theorem, to wit: you (and Space Mountain) are the cowlick on an otherwise smoothly combed sphere of harmonious comments!
My Lux Blogs have never yet survived unscathed!
This fact proves that no continuous non-zero tangent vector field can exist! QED
Not DESI moron! Quinn, its Quinn, It's always Quinn!
I'd kinda prefer it if Des took the blame for this one.
He's a right bastard, you know, and deserves blame for things he hasn't done... because he's escaped so often for things he HAS done.
Nothing self-serving about this argument, either.
He's a right bastard, you know, and deserves blame for things he hasn't done... because he's escaped so often for things he HAS done.
Nothing self-serving about this argument, either.
what?!
Don't ask me! Quinn's in charge here now.
After the sensible people have had their say, Lux lends me the tail-end of the blog to tell happy bedtime stories for children.
I think this one is a winner... Cats, Elephants, Wolves, a moral, plus a psycho in a chopper with a gun. Dr Suess, of a sort.
I think this one is a winner... Cats, Elephants, Wolves, a moral, plus a psycho in a chopper with a gun. Dr Suess, of a sort.
It was rather droll ......
what?!
chickens aren't tasty....you're safe!
The Coming Battles
This may well be premature, but I am assuming Obama will be our next president and how joyful that will be.
But after the exhilaration and emotion recedes, then there is surely coming a titanic battle with the Republican Party. As I wrote in my Fat Man in the Doorway blog a while back, the modern GOP is interested in only one thing, keeping our government from functioning in the way it was designed to. As Bill Clinton found to his sorrow, the Republicans are quite ready to hamstring government and any democratic administration when it is in their power to do so.
And it is in their power to do to Barack Obama what they did to Bill Clinton-- put the administration on the defensive with constant legal attacks. They don't need the House to harass the next president, nor is impeachment the only weapon in their armory.
The coming Obama administration had better be ready for every kind of harassment and obstructionism from the Republican Party. We are all hoping for a new Camelot, a new bright day in American politics, of reaching across the aisle and bipartisan comity. But what we are far more likely to see is a barrage of assaults on the administration, originating from all around the country and avidly reported by a controversy-hungry media.
My belief is that Barack Obama is uniquely able to handle such battles and that the GOP will fail; but forewarned is forearmed and we cannot trust the Republican Party, so haughty and over-mighty in ascendancy, to grasp any olive branch of peace we extend to them once we have dethroned them. They are Strife personified and the next years will show they cannot change their nature.
Or such is my opinion and fear.
But after the exhilaration and emotion recedes, then there is surely coming a titanic battle with the Republican Party. As I wrote in my Fat Man in the Doorway blog a while back, the modern GOP is interested in only one thing, keeping our government from functioning in the way it was designed to. As Bill Clinton found to his sorrow, the Republicans are quite ready to hamstring government and any democratic administration when it is in their power to do so.
And it is in their power to do to Barack Obama what they did to Bill Clinton-- put the administration on the defensive with constant legal attacks. They don't need the House to harass the next president, nor is impeachment the only weapon in their armory.
The coming Obama administration had better be ready for every kind of harassment and obstructionism from the Republican Party. We are all hoping for a new Camelot, a new bright day in American politics, of reaching across the aisle and bipartisan comity. But what we are far more likely to see is a barrage of assaults on the administration, originating from all around the country and avidly reported by a controversy-hungry media.
My belief is that Barack Obama is uniquely able to handle such battles and that the GOP will fail; but forewarned is forearmed and we cannot trust the Republican Party, so haughty and over-mighty in ascendancy, to grasp any olive branch of peace we extend to them once we have dethroned them. They are Strife personified and the next years will show they cannot change their nature.
Or such is my opinion and fear.
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Let's hope moderate heads prevail and the Michelle Bachmann's of the world grow ever smaller.
Can't we just fucking kill them all??
We mustn't talk like that. It demeans us. Sows seeds which are not helpful. We're angry, of course, but we have to channel that anger in constructive ways.
He will just ignore attacks. Unlike Clinton, he will not have substantial opposition in Congress. He has the endorsement of the major papers and other media. His challenge will be the rest of reality.
Rush will blather away more inconsequentially, barring the possibility of him inspiring threats that become serious.
Rush will blather away more inconsequentially, barring the possibility of him inspiring threats that become serious.
Tom,
I think verbal attacks will roll right off. Barack can handle any such and make the issuer look small in the process.
I sometimes feel that this beloved country of ours is, in fact, on the verge of becoming ungovernable...that one powerful faction hates the other with such deep venom, that they are willing to take down the country rather than see the ideals of their opponents actualized.
I think verbal attacks will roll right off. Barack can handle any such and make the issuer look small in the process.
I sometimes feel that this beloved country of ours is, in fact, on the verge of becoming ungovernable...that one powerful faction hates the other with such deep venom, that they are willing to take down the country rather than see the ideals of their opponents actualized.
But isn't that what the other side thinks about us?
Yes, rbtg, I thought of that also even while I was writing my blog, but I kept on going because even though both sides may view each other similarly, it is my belief that the real threats to governance per se, come from the GOP side. They are enemies of government at least of the kind that interposes its power between private economic forces and the welfare of the people.
Of this philosophical bent, they have been more prone to shutting things down or threatening to since Newt's days, at least in my own opinion.
Witness how many Clinton judicial nominations got lost in the process. How the whole second Clinton administration was sabotauged. How they derailed any constructive legislation in the last eight years of the Bush/Cheney co-presidency. What did we see? The BAPCPA, the MCA, FISA II? I really believe the blame falls more squarely on them than "us".
But I am a partisan, in my partisan moments, and can't claim to be objective.
I am willing to bet that if there were such a thing as "disinterested" academics: say political scientists and/or political economists from a "neutral" country who studied our internal affairs here since 1990, they might come down to similar conclusions.
Of this philosophical bent, they have been more prone to shutting things down or threatening to since Newt's days, at least in my own opinion.
Witness how many Clinton judicial nominations got lost in the process. How the whole second Clinton administration was sabotauged. How they derailed any constructive legislation in the last eight years of the Bush/Cheney co-presidency. What did we see? The BAPCPA, the MCA, FISA II? I really believe the blame falls more squarely on them than "us".
But I am a partisan, in my partisan moments, and can't claim to be objective.
I am willing to bet that if there were such a thing as "disinterested" academics: say political scientists and/or political economists from a "neutral" country who studied our internal affairs here since 1990, they might come down to similar conclusions.
Coralsea... what can I say?
Orlando, I think that it is likely the GOP will become more extreme as they contract in size and power. It is like an ice skater tucking her arms in when she spins....it speeds her up. As the GOP shrinks under the weight of demographic changes in America, they will become increasingly more extreme....laager Afrikaans, if you will. The nativist/tribalist base of the GOP is emerging into the light and it is pretty ugly...
Orlando, I think that it is likely the GOP will become more extreme as they contract in size and power. It is like an ice skater tucking her arms in when she spins....it speeds her up. As the GOP shrinks under the weight of demographic changes in America, they will become increasingly more extreme....laager Afrikaans, if you will. The nativist/tribalist base of the GOP is emerging into the light and it is pretty ugly...
More extreme and as a result, hopefully, less viable. The lunatic fringe.
The Republican party is in turmoil and will remain in turmoil for some time, barring huge oversights by the Dems, or terrible mismanagement of the crises currently on our collective plate. They will devote the next 10 to 20 years to reinventing their brand. As such IMO the lunatic fringe will be even more marginalized as the Republicans still capable of ideation strive to bring the party more toward the center. The fringe will certainly not disappear, but as Orlando says, the will certainly be less viable, perhaps moving to one room shacks in Montana or Alaska to work on their own manifestos.
It's the anti-Bush conservatives that are going to be the problem. They've got the passion, still (remember the House GOP conservative team holding up the Nancy Pelosi speech right after the bailout plan failed and saying it was the reason? They were already starting up the program. It's going to be the Obama bailout plan, it was all Obama's idea to socialize the system, bailout the cheaters, whatever. That's going be standard behavior.)
And they've never had much use for McCain, I think they'd much rather see him lose and be back to the minority side attacking a Dem majority for all the problems inherited from Bush than to have to labor under a President McCain. Now Sarah Palin, that's another story, she's an up and comer for them, I bet you're going to see her a lot more interested in Congressional issues and vice versa.
I recommend watching for clues of what they are going to be up to here:
http://newt.org/
(Hey! He has what I just said as the headline on his site right now! It says: The Reid-Pelosi-Obama (RePO) Team Vs. The Rest of America. I swear it, I didn't cheat, I didn't see that until after I wrote my first paragraph.)
Also, I recommend the comments discussion in the following if you want ideas and input about where the GOP might be heading:
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/10/rebuilding_the_republican_part.php#
And they've never had much use for McCain, I think they'd much rather see him lose and be back to the minority side attacking a Dem majority for all the problems inherited from Bush than to have to labor under a President McCain. Now Sarah Palin, that's another story, she's an up and comer for them, I bet you're going to see her a lot more interested in Congressional issues and vice versa.
I recommend watching for clues of what they are going to be up to here:
http://newt.org/
(Hey! He has what I just said as the headline on his site right now! It says: The Reid-Pelosi-Obama (RePO) Team Vs. The Rest of America. I swear it, I didn't cheat, I didn't see that until after I wrote my first paragraph.)
Also, I recommend the comments discussion in the following if you want ideas and input about where the GOP might be heading:
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/10/rebuilding_the_republican_part.php#
P.S. I think it was reality, the way things were heading, before Obama even took the national stage, that the Republican party was going to be reduced to being the "passionate conservative" party. (All Karl Rove's dreams of "big tent" down the drain.) I was just looking at some old blog posts of mine (now that they have finally loaded them back,) and I found this from April, 2006:
The Purple Majority?
April 27, 2006, 2:44PM
Introducing the Purple Party
It behooves to keep in mind that voter registration as Indpendent is growing by leaps and bounds in the country. As the article says, there are more of them than loyalists to either party. From his writings, I think this is something that is always foremost in Obama's mind, but I can't say I think the same of many writers in the blogosphere, who seem to think it's all about the Democratic party reviving. Well, yeah, if it changes and doesn't fight Obama's" cross-the-aisle", purple over red v. blue ideals. He's going to try to rule by majority, I have been convinced that is a strong desire of his, and with that, lots of liberals/progressives better get used to the idea that they are going to have to continue to compromise on a lot of things. In order to do that, he's going to have to call out both liberal and conservative goals as too extreme at times. The purple party is going to running this country, or at least attempting to.
The Purple Majority?
April 27, 2006, 2:44PM
Introducing the Purple Party
It behooves to keep in mind that voter registration as Indpendent is growing by leaps and bounds in the country. As the article says, there are more of them than loyalists to either party. From his writings, I think this is something that is always foremost in Obama's mind, but I can't say I think the same of many writers in the blogosphere, who seem to think it's all about the Democratic party reviving. Well, yeah, if it changes and doesn't fight Obama's" cross-the-aisle", purple over red v. blue ideals. He's going to try to rule by majority, I have been convinced that is a strong desire of his, and with that, lots of liberals/progressives better get used to the idea that they are going to have to continue to compromise on a lot of things. In order to do that, he's going to have to call out both liberal and conservative goals as too extreme at times. The purple party is going to running this country, or at least attempting to.
Another thought comes to mind to clarify and tie together what I was saying above. I can see a Gingrich coalition making an big issue of some Pelosi Reid this or that iniative or action that actually resounds with the majority public as being against it, whatever it is, they'll find something, make a big cri de coeur about it. If it's the case that it truly does resound with the majority, a President Obama, I'm pretty damn sure, would distance himself from them on it in a New York minute. You know how some people used to complain that Bill Clinton governed by polls, finger to the wind to see which way the populace it going? I think Obama's going to do a lot of that, too. I think he'll do it because he really believes it's the right thing for a president to do, that constituionally, the president is supposed to represent the majority's wishes, that the courts are for protecting the minority.
astute. I predicated my forecast on the assumption that a Democratic House would try to get some liberal legislation passed and the GOPs reaction to same.
But if Obama can wield the same kind of tight party discipline that the Bush/Cheney co-presidency had over its congressional faction for at least five years, then we might never see any cataclysmic confrontations, because of the dynamic you relate.
But if Obama can wield the same kind of tight party discipline that the Bush/Cheney co-presidency had over its congressional faction for at least five years, then we might never see any cataclysmic confrontations, because of the dynamic you relate.
And that makes me sad. But its better than gridlock.
They were already starting up the program. It's going to be the Obama bailout plan, it was all Obama's idea to socialize the system, bailout the cheaters, whatever. That's going be standard behavior.)
That is where Dems. traditionally suck - at the messaging game. The Dems. must consistently remind the country that all of the problems were created by the Bush administration. It's the fault of the Dems. that the GOP has before been able to revise history.
That is where Dems. traditionally suck - at the messaging game. The Dems. must consistently remind the country that all of the problems were created by the Bush administration. It's the fault of the Dems. that the GOP has before been able to revise history.
Clinton came to power as a centrist right in the middle of the Republican ascendancy, and did so by taking a majority (narrowly) of white Independents*. In 1988, the white Indies had gone overwhelmingly to the Republicans. This combo created the fear that Republicans could be out of the White House for a very long time if Clinton wasn't brought down. But most of all, Republicans still had plenty of credibility during the Clinton years.
If Democrats somehow manage to win both houses of Congress and the White House this time around, the remaining Republicans will be so far from power that they may have to beg Rush for an interview, at least in the beginning. :-) Also, their traditional tricks with social issues are bound to flop until the economy gets better, and they have narrowed their wiggle room in that arena already. There is a much bigger Republican credibility gap now than in 1992-1996, both with their own donors and among Independents. It's probably safe to say that the right now the Republican party looks a lot like Joe the Plumber -- the one with the name of Sam and without a license to plumb.
Having said all that, I agree with you that the Republicans will try every dirty trick that they have used in the past. I think the odds of their success are lagging behind Wall Street's and Baghdad's for awhile (I hope).
(*Taken from a website rec'd by artappraiser.)
If Democrats somehow manage to win both houses of Congress and the White House this time around, the remaining Republicans will be so far from power that they may have to beg Rush for an interview, at least in the beginning. :-) Also, their traditional tricks with social issues are bound to flop until the economy gets better, and they have narrowed their wiggle room in that arena already. There is a much bigger Republican credibility gap now than in 1992-1996, both with their own donors and among Independents. It's probably safe to say that the right now the Republican party looks a lot like Joe the Plumber -- the one with the name of Sam and without a license to plumb.
Having said all that, I agree with you that the Republicans will try every dirty trick that they have used in the past. I think the odds of their success are lagging behind Wall Street's and Baghdad's for awhile (I hope).
(*Taken from a website rec'd by artappraiser.)
Excellent post by the way, and wholeheartedly recommended.
Personally, however, I'm more concerned about the coming fight among Democrats. Those of us in or affiliated the trade union movemement taste the enactment of the Employee Free Choice Act ("EFCA"). Senator Obama and 46 other members of the Senate have endorsed it. But, already, folks like George McGovern are engaged in a campaign to defeat it, based on opposition to "card checks" as a basis for certifying a union as opposed to the imaginary benefits of "secret ballot" elections in the American workplace. Friends, in the American workplace, it is more than easy to bust unions and frighten workers with threats or worse--without recourse--to the point where there are no such thing as a free and fair secret ballot election in the American workplace.
EFCA shall be a huge test for the real intra-party unity we will need to preserve. It will make or break our coalition. Think long and hard about taking a stand against what the Republicans love to refer to as Big Labor. We ain't so big but we ain't going away so quickly either. We are helping to elect Senator Obama as no other constituent group in this country and we are not going to forget that.
The Republicans will eventually, after the blood-letting, unite in hating a Democratic-run government as you suggest. It is we who will have to make the tough decisions about what it will take to keep us united. I love George McGovern, but I hope he doesn't start us down the wrong track one more time. Labor has expectations and, yes, those expectations are Big.
Personally, however, I'm more concerned about the coming fight among Democrats. Those of us in or affiliated the trade union movemement taste the enactment of the Employee Free Choice Act ("EFCA"). Senator Obama and 46 other members of the Senate have endorsed it. But, already, folks like George McGovern are engaged in a campaign to defeat it, based on opposition to "card checks" as a basis for certifying a union as opposed to the imaginary benefits of "secret ballot" elections in the American workplace. Friends, in the American workplace, it is more than easy to bust unions and frighten workers with threats or worse--without recourse--to the point where there are no such thing as a free and fair secret ballot election in the American workplace.
EFCA shall be a huge test for the real intra-party unity we will need to preserve. It will make or break our coalition. Think long and hard about taking a stand against what the Republicans love to refer to as Big Labor. We ain't so big but we ain't going away so quickly either. We are helping to elect Senator Obama as no other constituent group in this country and we are not going to forget that.
The Republicans will eventually, after the blood-letting, unite in hating a Democratic-run government as you suggest. It is we who will have to make the tough decisions about what it will take to keep us united. I love George McGovern, but I hope he doesn't start us down the wrong track one more time. Labor has expectations and, yes, those expectations are Big.
My reply to you was sited wrong and I didn't proof it so caveat lector.
Anyway, as one union man to another, the bill is under relentless assault here, even in our Portland liberal bastion. TV ads, radio blurbs even on our liberal talk radio, KPOJ. The US Chamber of Commerce, one of the most dire regressive forces in the country, will spend no little capital to defeat this measure I predict.
Thank you for your rec.
Anyway, as one union man to another, the bill is under relentless assault here, even in our Portland liberal bastion. TV ads, radio blurbs even on our liberal talk radio, KPOJ. The US Chamber of Commerce, one of the most dire regressive forces in the country, will spend no little capital to defeat this measure I predict.
Thank you for your rec.
Bruce, I hadn't thought about this before, but I wonder if the labor movement will get caught up in the wave of anti-corporate sentiment that is bubbling up as a result of the economic mess that we're in and all the attention on the largess at the top. It could take a very interesting and positive turn.
Orlando:
I hope you're right, and I hope that the arguments that Labor makes on behalf of EFCA are better than the proofreading I performed on my piece above.
The key is, I think, that the anti-corporate sentiment about which you speak does not get meshed into a sentiment that is anti-everything-that-was, including Big Labor. It is one of those things that concerns a former Clinton supporter like me, that the compelling post-partisan essence of Senator Obama's monumental march to the White House could lead to too many of his backers all too ready to throw the babies, even the Big ones, out with the bathwater.
I hope you're right, and I hope that the arguments that Labor makes on behalf of EFCA are better than the proofreading I performed on my piece above.
The key is, I think, that the anti-corporate sentiment about which you speak does not get meshed into a sentiment that is anti-everything-that-was, including Big Labor. It is one of those things that concerns a former Clinton supporter like me, that the compelling post-partisan essence of Senator Obama's monumental march to the White House could lead to too many of his backers all too ready to throw the babies, even the Big ones, out with the bathwater.
Thanks Bslev and exactly.
Purple rule may be all too willing to compromise on things that should not be compromised, for the sake of comity. FISA II may have been a omen of things to come.
I am a fan of the Clintons also and a DNC member (who's not?) and a strong labor supporter as is my whole family. I do hope the EFCA will not be broken in Obama's first term as was the health care initiative in Clinton's first.
I believe Obama's greatest strength is his broad vision of our country and the need to heal the rifts. To do that healing, I suppose he will have to rule from the center. But I don't believe the Republicans will emerge from this coming election, so shattered or broken in spirit that they will do something they have shown no sign of doing for 18 years: to compromise on their unrelenting opposition to liberalism be it social or economic.
Purple rule may be all too willing to compromise on things that should not be compromised, for the sake of comity. FISA II may have been a omen of things to come.
I am a fan of the Clintons also and a DNC member (who's not?) and a strong labor supporter as is my whole family. I do hope the EFCA will not be broken in Obama's first term as was the health care initiative in Clinton's first.
I believe Obama's greatest strength is his broad vision of our country and the need to heal the rifts. To do that healing, I suppose he will have to rule from the center. But I don't believe the Republicans will emerge from this coming election, so shattered or broken in spirit that they will do something they have shown no sign of doing for 18 years: to compromise on their unrelenting opposition to liberalism be it social or economic.
Thanks for your calm assessment of coming storms. Your voice here is a valuable one.
For myself I cannot presume to predict which groups may do "what" after the election.
What concerns me overall is a kind of breakdown in civility. A GOP unleashed dismantling of commonly accepted constraints, which make for a civil society and social order, resulting in endorsement of hooliganism and Lord of the Flies behavior. I find this very worrisome, like some genie released from a bottle, which will be hard to contain now.
I'd like to see a thread where people can post words of wisdom to hang onto in these dark hours, when we sense that victory will come along with too many Trojan horses.
For myself I cannot presume to predict which groups may do "what" after the election.
What concerns me overall is a kind of breakdown in civility. A GOP unleashed dismantling of commonly accepted constraints, which make for a civil society and social order, resulting in endorsement of hooliganism and Lord of the Flies behavior. I find this very worrisome, like some genie released from a bottle, which will be hard to contain now.
I'd like to see a thread where people can post words of wisdom to hang onto in these dark hours, when we sense that victory will come along with too many Trojan horses.
thank you TheraP.
I think Barack Obama showed us the model of how to bridge the partisan divide even when the other side is unwilling to grasp the olive branch.
Calmness, reason, explanation, respect.
But there are dynamics in American politics that work against the cooling of the public's passions that such a president would ordinarily effect.
The media has no interest in calmness, civility, a new Era of Good Feelings. They will work against it. They are the true fly in our comity ointment.
They will seize on any discord and magnify it not because they are necessarily obstructive but because controversy generates revenue for them.
They have a vested interest in keeping things boiling.
This works against Obama, I feel.
Plus the historic migration of hispanics is making the nativists feel increasingly threatened and bitter that "their" country (never mind the sweat equity others put in to this place) is being transformed and changed before their very eyes. This nativist subculture is growing apace in strength and virulence and alienation from the mainstream (that they with increasing unreality claim to represent). This makes for unsettled politics for quite some time...
If I have any wisdom to provide it would be to quote the Dalai Lama:
"Out of my experience, I tell my friends wherever I go about the importance of love and compassion. Deep down we must have real affection for each other, a clear realization or recognition of our shared human status."
I think Barack Obama showed us the model of how to bridge the partisan divide even when the other side is unwilling to grasp the olive branch.
Calmness, reason, explanation, respect.
But there are dynamics in American politics that work against the cooling of the public's passions that such a president would ordinarily effect.
The media has no interest in calmness, civility, a new Era of Good Feelings. They will work against it. They are the true fly in our comity ointment.
They will seize on any discord and magnify it not because they are necessarily obstructive but because controversy generates revenue for them.
They have a vested interest in keeping things boiling.
This works against Obama, I feel.
Plus the historic migration of hispanics is making the nativists feel increasingly threatened and bitter that "their" country (never mind the sweat equity others put in to this place) is being transformed and changed before their very eyes. This nativist subculture is growing apace in strength and virulence and alienation from the mainstream (that they with increasing unreality claim to represent). This makes for unsettled politics for quite some time...
If I have any wisdom to provide it would be to quote the Dalai Lama:
"Out of my experience, I tell my friends wherever I go about the importance of love and compassion. Deep down we must have real affection for each other, a clear realization or recognition of our shared human status."
Thank you for the quote from HH. Amazing how sane words can effect a deep calm.
I agree the media has too much interest in stirring the pot and watching it boil over. But they would not be able to do so without complicity.
Migration of many from different cultures and different religions. But at bottom it is simply people feeling threatened when society is not all dyed the same.
Glad you're here. We all need to hang onto our sanity and share the wisdom at times like this.
Peace.
I agree the media has too much interest in stirring the pot and watching it boil over. But they would not be able to do so without complicity.
Migration of many from different cultures and different religions. But at bottom it is simply people feeling threatened when society is not all dyed the same.
Glad you're here. We all need to hang onto our sanity and share the wisdom at times like this.
Peace.
I think that the ugliness that was evident during the Clinton administration and was perpetrated by the republicans has left America fractured. There is no longer any sense of real community or commonality. In my own case, I look at the hatefulness in this country and I think "I don't know these people, I don't like these people, and I don't care about these people." It is a real stretch to think that I would do anything at all to defend these people from any sort of outside threat. Their attitude of "every man for himself" taken to its logical conclusion leads to no one being willing to help any of them in any way. I look at American culture and can only think that Americans are idiots, as though I have no connection to them or the country at all.
My belief is that Barack Obama is uniquely able to handle such battles and that the GOP will fail...Gotta agree with you there, Lux. Our man Obama has proven that he's a fighter like no other. Not only will he handle the Republicans, but he'll show all of America just how wrong the Republicans have been on every single issue.
He handled McCain with respect and humanity even though he had opportunities to highlight McCain's own questionable decisions, associates and strategic changes of position......
Hreb, its going to be an interesting season. We need a landslide and 60 votes in the Senate.
Hreb, its going to be an interesting season. We need a landslide and 60 votes in the Senate.
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