I Told You So!

Strange/muted tension at work today. I am one of a handful (five? six?) of out-of-the-closet Obama supporters in our office. Two years ago, Bush supporters roamed the hallways like Senior jocks, administering titty-twisters to freshmen Liberals. As Bush devolved into the pariah he has become, they shed their Neocon uniforms and melted back into the crowd.

Today, the morning after the majority of Americans said they’d had enough of W and his ilk, I gave the gop’er’s lots of room and resisted the Snoopy Dance. And they found other things to talk about as we passed each other in the parking lot.

A few have dropped a little chum in the water to see if I’d bite (“Boy, the country is in trouble NOW”). But it’s hard to lay this shit-storm at O’s feet after only a few hours.

But it’s coming. A few of my pals are already looking forward to playing “I Told You So,” but I’m ready.

I’m encouraging them to chronicle every misstep of our new president. If they don’t have a blog, I’ll help them set one up. They can share their anger and despair with the world. And me.

For those that insist on sharing their political angst with me in person, I’m introducing a new feature on my politix blog:

Itoldyouso“I Told You So.”I’m keeping an audio recorder with me at all times. When the subject turns to President Obama’s latest terrorist/socialist/liberal sin, I whip out the recorder and let them have their say. Which I’ll post to the politix blog. Unedited and unfiltered. A bully digital pulpit.

Don’t want to go on the record, no problem (“Did you see 30 Rock last night?”).

Seriously,  hope it doesn’t come up. I HATE talking about politics. Or religion. Or my sexual fantasies. I’ve posted on this before.

So, if you love me… if you enjoy my company, but hate my politics… don’t read my blogs. And I won’t read yours. But we can both have our say and spend our time together talking about movies or books or that smokin’ hot intern.

Voter Number One

Original plan was to roll out at 4 a.m. and get to the polling place by 4:30. Couldn’t sleep so wound up getting a good spot by arriving at 2:30 a.m. Didn’t see a soul for a couple of hours, but by 5:30 a.m. a line had formed. I am proud to say I was voter #1 at my place. Whatever happens, I’m glad there was an election and I got to take part.

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Update: Very short video of the line as I left at 6:08 a.m.

Tribes by Seth Godin

Picture_1I’ve read most of Seth Godin’s books and I’m a daily reader of his blog. But his latest book, Tribes, really spoke to me. When I read, I highlight or underline, make notes in the margins and, in recent years, post my favorite parts here.

I struggled to find one pull that captures the idea behind Tribes and decided on this one. Lots more after the jump. Continue reading

30th Wedding Anniversary

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Thirty years ago I was roaming nervously throughout Dr. Miltenberger’s home. Waiting for Rev. Harlan to show up and make an honest man of me. Combo Halloween Party/Reception followed (photo). Barb is still my best friend and I’m counting on another 30 years with her.

“This is not really an Obama area.”

I grew up in Kennett, Missouri, the county seat of Dunklin County. So when I heard the St. Louis Post-Dispatch had a front-page story (by Todd C. Frankel) about Bootheel politics, I headed for the paper’s website to check it out.

I wasn’t really surprised to learn than Dunklin County was Obama’s worst showing in the primary. Just 18 percent.

But then I was heartened to learn that the Obama campaign has two office in the county and that Sheryl Crow’s momma and daddy volunteer for O.

They have a Republican campaign HQ but if I read the story right it’s a first for Dunklin County.

The story quotes Ronnie Johnson who’s “voting for McCain. Or rather, against Obama.”

“He is reluctant to explain this at first — “You don’t want to know why,” he says.”

“The others on the porch goad him. And Johnson, a lanky 20-year-old white man who works as a meatcutter at a grocery store, starts to talk about an issue that has persisted throughout the campaign: race.”

“It is not just that Obama is black, Johnson says. He has heard that Obama is Muslim. (Obama is Christian.) He also has heard rumors that Obama refuses to salute the American flag, and that Obama has promised that black men will have more rights than white men. (Independent fact-checking groups say these rumors
are false.)”

“He’s white,” Johnson says.

The story concludes with a couple of demographics:

“Dunklin is one of the poorest counties in Missouri. The unemployment rate hovers near 9 percent. More than a quarter of the population lives in poverty.”

Not sure we’ll see this clipping on the Chamber of Commerce bulletin board.