Category Archives: Stand Up

Think About the Sun

Posted by Tata on

Jon Stewart, once again, shows us how it’s done.

There is one detail we must observe. When the towers came down, an unmistakable cloud of debris, smoke and human remains rolled away from Ground Zero. We saw it. We lived under it. We could smell everything about it and knew what it meant. I’m sitting 35 miles from Manhattan and almost everyone I knew was sick and we knew it was from that cloud. At some point I can no longer recall, Christie Whitman told the media the air was safe to breathe. I didn’t believe that. I don’t see how anyone could have, but you will never hear one of the first responders say anything about this. The lie was ridiculous and transparent. In a legal sense, admitting they knew what everyone knew might invalidate health insurance claims. It shouldn’t.

The exact opposite should be true. We should see that knowledge and the first responders’ going on anyway for what it was: greater courage than most of us possess. We owe them a greater debt than we can repay and the least we can do is take care of them.

Everybody’s Time Has Come

Posted by Tata on

Let us take stock of this moment. Our current normal:

  • Economists are now conditioning us to accept double-digit unemployment for at least a decade.
  • Foreclosures continue.
  • Our police forces regularly apply potentially lethal electric shocks to our neighbors for sometimes no reason at all.
  • The people who wrecked the economy got richer and Congress just adjourned – again – without extending unemployment benefits or covering COBRA.
  • Our military prosecutes two pointless, already lost wars that are draining our treasury and killing uncounted numbers of men, women and children, and apparently will forever.
  • Our children’s future is being subverted by people who seek to destroy public education.
  • Even reality itself is subject to revision, sometimes several times.

    • I could fill this post with links to appalling breaches in the public trust and demonstrate the world is actually a lot worse off than we even know, but that would be beside the point. Yes, I have one. Don’t act so surprised, sheesh!

    The most outlandish ideas enter our public discourse first as a joke, then as a crazy suggestion, then our talking heads repeat magic words and then Constitutional scholars talk about torture in casual tones and we ourselves become monsters. Gingrich likes to claim credit for changing the language of our public discourse but his tactics wouldn’t have been possible if advertising hadn’t taught us to take a cue when a turn of phrase meets our verbal, tribal needs. In other words, if we weren’t looking for words that told us we had found fellow travelers, a good portion of American pop culture falls apart. Don’t believe me?

    Why, I can make a hat or a brooch or a pterodactyl…

    Of course you’re laughing. Welcome to my tribe. So back to the discourse: you’re watching TV and some maniac with a strange glint in his eye says something so bizarre you hope someone’s going to adjust that guy’s meds. Let’s fabricate an impossibly stupid example: “Nurses promote weakness by healing sick people. If we weren’t burdened with a parasitic nursing industry, Americans would heal themselves and trim the deficit.”

    Work with me, here. That is some hot, steaming horseshit. You can almost hear George Will let that one loose.

    Anyway, some plainly crazy person says this. Then another crazy person says it in print. Then a bunch of less-than-sane commentators on TV, radio and in magazines say hauntingly similar phrases like those fake Florence Nightingales and healthcare hoochie mamas and next thing you know, 30% of the population cringes at the sight of crepe soled shoes and pickets vaccination clinics. All of this goes on way too long – nursing schools get the Molotov cocktail treatment in Kansas and hospitals close in rural districts – and one day, for no reason anyone will ever discern, the fire goes out and twenty years on, women’s history courses include a small, puzzling mention that spawns a few Ph.D. theses. The hospitals never reopen.

    This is what happens over and over because we allow it, because crazy people shout and we politely refute their points and they keep shouting, because taking a step back and murmuring, “Well, the smell of rubbing alcohol makes me nervous, too” is all the agreement a crazy person needs to control the conversation. Got it? Get this: crazy people have been working to cut Social Security and the rhetoric has reached the stage where a Democratic President agrees. There is no need to cut Social Security. Doing so will not fix the deficit. The point is to fuck the poor and middle class.

    If you flinch now, if you take a step back, it will happen. It is time to ditch wonky, splintered arguments and take passion straight to the crazy. Your opening line:

    Your ideology failed.

    Oh yes. You are GOING THERE.

    YOUR IDEOLOGY FAILED. COMPLETELY. CATASTROPHICALLY. It destroyed the industrial manufacturing base and the crashed the world economy. Trashing the Geneva Accords has wrecked our international reputation. Your racism and sexism are evident to even the most casual onlooker. There is nothing you can say that can twist these failures into grand successes. They are failures.

    You’re not done yet.

    You can say anything, but we know you’re lying. New Orleans drowned and we saw you let people die. We saw you. We know most of the prisoners at Guantanamo are innocent. We know that you are poisoning the only planet we have because you love money more than your children. We know you hate women, working people, the poor, children, and you see us as serfs and servants. We see you. And we are not going to back down anymore. We have earned the right to grow old with dignity and we will not give it up for your personal enrichment. YOUR IDEOLOGY FAILED AND THERE IS NO FURTHER NEED OF YOUR ADVICE. YOU ARE WRONG ABOUT EVERYTHING. STOP TALKING.

    Specifics?

  • If they say, “No one could have known,” you say, “Inevitable outcome.”
  • If they say, “Business must have a free hand,” you say, “Business can make plenty of dosh when it’s stringently regulated.”
  • If they say, “Illegal aliens,” you say, “that’s a racial slur. Would you care to rephrase that racial slur?” AND KEEP SAYING “RACIAL SLUR.”
  • If they say, “No timetable for withdrawal,” you say, “Why do you hate our men and women in uniform?”
  • If they say, “Homosexual agenda,” you say, “ARE YOU GOING TO THAT PARTY? WHAT ARE YOU WEARING?”
  • If they say, “Criminalize abortion,” you say, “LOCK ME UP RIGHT NOW, I MADE THE RIGHT DECISION, AND I WILL NEVER STOP DEFENDING EVERY WOMAN’S RIGHT TO MAKE HER OWN.”

    • Let no point go. Let no lie pass. Let no banker off the sharpened hook. Let no insult go unanswered and no fatuous ass go unmocked. Go. Don’t let ennui become your normal state. Go forth and be a ferocious, mouthy defender of your and your children’s future. Go.

    And here, take with you some way-dated, eighties musical inspiration: Rise up!

    There Is No Other Troy

    Posted by Tata on

    When I left my house this morning, it was a cold spring day. Two miles later, it was winter again as I hiked from the parking deck to the library. I was only dressed for one season, and underdressed without a Sherpa.

    Plastic slipcover filled with lettuce sprouts, occasional Italians.

    A weekend or two ago, Pete took this picture on a warm, sunny morning before we experienced daily variations on raw, with spotty raw, followed by cold, wet, windy and – you guessed it – raw. Over the weekend, we’d planned to get up early, don silly outfits and pedal around our hometown in support of the local food bank, but the idea of giving ourselves pneumonia for charity lacked a certain broad appeal. You will be pleased to know we were wracked with guilt as we ate really delicious bagels in our cozy dining room instead.

    But there is a time for everything, though some things like spring and understanding for Sinead O’Connor take longer to arrive than one might hope. Sinead was always right: the Church hierarchy was covering up the abuse of children. This week, she returned to American television with the story no one wanted to hear 20 years ago, and now, we must listen.

    [T]he Vatican is – it‘s a 15th century organization. It‘s a medieval organization. And what we‘re seeing is the battle between medieval thinking and 21st century thinking.

    If they want to survive into the 21st century, they‘re going to have to become a 21st century business, which means that they are, first of all, those who have brought the Holy Spirit and Catholicism into total disrepute should be fired.

    Whoever was involved in the cover-up of child abuse and therefore endangering children should be fired. The pope should be fired or should stand down. There should be a criminal investigation of the Vatican and of the pope.

    They should all get out and let us in the 21st century choose who we think is fit to run our church because it is ours. It‘s not theirs. It shouldn‘t be any more of this black smoke, white smoke nonsense, you know, it‘s them and us.

    It‘s our church. We need to reclaim it and we need to have it run by people who actually believe in God.

    This is the person American Catholics punished?

    Yes, yes it was. Her career was destroyed, and she will never trust us again, but even that is not important.

    [O]n behalf of all the Irish survivors, they and I and anyone involved in the campaign is so, so grateful to the American media. Because, you know, you all have leapt in just at the right moment.

    After Pope Benedict‘s letter came – that‘s why I then wrote to the “Washington Post.” I was disgusted by this letter, which actually referred to the priests, the bishops who covered up as being a “well-intentioned” desire to protect the church.

    What on earth was well-intentioned about it? The letters are a study in the art of lying. It suggests that the Irish hierarchy were acting independently of the Vatican.

    The letter and their actions have not punished at all those people who were accomplices by silence to the crime of child abuse. None of them have been fired. It looks very bad that the pope hasn‘t fired all of them and said, “How dare you bring us into disrepute.”

    That looks like the house of the Holy Spirit has become a haven for moral criminals. But as I say, just at the right moment, America stepped in, the “New York Times” piece. “Boston Globe” also stepped in.

    And now, a lot of the victims – I was just sitting with some of them this morning. They were saying, you know, almost with tears in their eyes, sitting back, saying, “We‘ve waited 40 years now, trying to bang the door down here. And now, we can sit down and relax because the American media have taken it on board.”

    And it‘s their baby now for want of a better – pardon the pun, you know. But we‘re enormously grateful in Ireland for what the American media are doing because we know the Americans don‘t take any nonsense and they don‘t take any prisoners.

    And there‘s no way the Vatican are going to get off the hook now that the Americans are after you. So thank you very much.

    The Phoenix rises from the flame. And we will learn.

    Smile In Your Face All the Time They Want

    Posted by Tata on

    Salon:

    In the Oval Office Wednesday afternoon, Obama signed an executive order imposing restrictions on abortion funding in the new healthcare reform law. In contrast to the swarm of people in the East Room on Tuesday, this time it was just Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., who led the fight over abortion language in the legislation, along with some of their allies. The only record of the event allowed was a photo taken by the White House photographer. (It accompanies this post.)

    This sort of thing doesn’t do much for the administration’s transparency credentials. But there’s good reason, politically, for a move like this. Women, especially women’s organizations, are an absolutely key constituency for the Democratic Party, and the White House can’t afford to alienate them any more than it already did by making this deal with Stupak. On the flip side, Stupak and crew probably didn’t want this moment to get much coverage either – though they did get this one concession, they still essentially caved, and have been taking a beating for it.

    Alex Koppelman – like the administration, evidently – thinks women won’t notice the bill blows. Certainly, some women care more what the boys think than what other women need. The article’s wording is so awkward one can’t help but notice the boomerang construction. Read again:

    This sort of thing doesn’t do much for the administration’s transparency credentials. But there’s good reason, politically, for a move like this. Women, especially women’s organizations, are an absolutely key constituency for the Democratic Party, and the White House can’t afford to alienate them any more than it already did by making this deal with Stupak. On the flip side, Stupak and crew probably didn’t want this moment to get much coverage either – though they did get this one concession, they still essentially caved, and have been taking a beating for it.

    What the hell is this? A justification for something, but what exactly? Congress passed the biggest setback to repro right in decades and the President invited the sore winners over for a private hoedown – get it? A hoedown! And women aren’t supposed to notice, and when abortion is unavailable, no hard feelings, mmkay? It’s no big thing. Where’re your checkbooks, ladies?

    That’s the kind of “choice” we have in America today—limited to those who can afford to pay. I’d like to say I’m hopeful that feminist groups and progressive allies can reverse this trend, but I’m not. Confronted with the GOP filibuster threat, the Democratic Party wholly failed to deliver on its promise to support reproductive rights for rich and poor women alike, and there isn’t any other viable political movement to turn to.

    “And there isn’t any other viable political movement to turn to.” That tired story, too: Shut up, no one else would put up with you, make me a sammich. Well, leaving is dangerous, but staying with the abusive fucker will kill you.

    When someone, be it a parent, a lover or a political party, is abusing you and you make up your mind that you determine your own fate, you look for your opportunity to leave. When you find it, you slip away. Sometimes, you don’t know where you’re going when you leave. You just go.

    You’re ready. Just go.

    Put ‘Em Under Pressure And You Watch

    Posted by Tata on

    So I’m – like – frigging civic minded. Last month, I went to a well-attended meeting about sustainability and didn’t punch anyone in the face, though the topic did come up. Last week, I went to a second and – fortunately for me – the face I wanted to punch didn’t put in an appearance and a mustachioed man at the other end of the table became visibly excited every time I blurted something blunt and sensible. Perhaps he was happy that someone else was interested in tasks and not subcommittees; it’s also possible he was tired and my peppery language burned a bit. Anyway, his bouncing was no doubt aerobic: I made many remarks that ended with a growled, “…why the hell not?”

    It wasn’t a question. I’m colorful like that!

    A member of the committee said the tiny town was interested in setting up a recipe exchange.

    Tata: Go one better: make the recipes feed a family of four for $10.
    Committee Member: Is that even possible?
    Tata: Of course it is.
    Another Committee Member: With actual food?
    Tata: I double dog dare you.

    Yes! I did it! I double dog dared the committee to try something tougher than talking, party throwing and meeting attending-ing. Fortunately, other people are working on this very proposition.

    USA TODAY asked four dietitians who blog at dietchallenge.usatoday.com to come up with creative ways to feed a family of four for under $10 — as healthful alternatives to the meal advertised on a new KFC commercial. The company is selling seven pieces of fried chicken, four biscuits and a large side, such as mashed potatoes, for $9.99 and is challenging people to make this meal without going over that amount.

    This inspiration SUCKS. Is there good news?

    Cooking a meal for a family of four for under 10 bucks is a piece of cake. You can make hearty soups, sub sandwiches, chicken dishes, Sloppy Joes, large salads with leftovers, omelets and other egg dishes, nutritionists say.

    USA TODAY is not the only entity interested in the challenge, but some responses are more awesome than others.

    You’re saying to yourself, “No sweat, I can make you six months of recipes with one ladle tied behind my back.” Yeah, but you have to do better than a plate and a block of cheddar. That’s the caveat: that dinner for four for less than $10 must be nutritious. Don’t be shy.

    Speak up. I double dog dare you.

    Fly Through the Revolution

    Posted by Tata on

    The logo says Feeding the World Two Cups At A Time. What’s the big idea?

    Here at Soup Kitchen, Inc. we place purpose above profit, and our purpose is simple.

    We are here to end world hunger.

    Here’s how it works:
    For every portion of Soup Kitchen Soups sold, we donate an equal portion to someone in need through local and regional food banks. Sales are tracked by area / zip code. We like the idea of people being able to help in their own community.

    Holy crap! I LOVE these people! Wait, who are they?

    Jamie Klein
    Chef / Owner

    After more than 25 years of kitchen experience, in every level of restaurant, catering, private chef, movie and television production, my most memorable meals are the ones I’ve given away.

    …

    Besides absorbing a love for food and feeding, I’ve enjoyed defining my career goals by the process of elimination. It has been a terrific run of feeding people in every way from delis, to the finest restaurants, to the grandest homes and some incredible Hollywood sets around the world (well, the western hemisphere anyway). Now it’s time to heed that inner voice that just wants to feed those who are simply hungry.

    Omigod, little red hearts are popping up over my cartoon head! Soup Kitchen, Inc. is a website of few words, but they pack a punch: you buy soup and a soup kitchen or food pantry in our area gets an equal donation. So. You can order soup online, which sounds awkward – or! or! or! Or: ask a retailer in your area to carry this product and the donations go to the soup kitchen or food pantry. It’s really that simple. See? To stock canned soup, you don’t even have to be a food store!

    It’s a brilliant idea. You gotta eat, right? Soup’s on!