Two Rants...

1. On Liberals as “Pussies”…

You know, I’m always hearing (from “tough” conservatives) that liberals and progressives and the like, are “entitled”, “weak”, and “pussies”. Supposedly, we’re hateful of war, afraid of conflict or confrontation, soft on crime, enablers, pushovers, and totalitarian socialist communist militant fascists.

Now, I’ve never heard how weak pussy pushovers would form a totalitarian socialist communist militant fascist government, or how totalitarianism (rule by one), socialism (large government), communism (no government – a left form of anarchy), militancy (requires not hating militancy) and fascism would all work as one government. As well, fascism is hard to define, and is really now just a buzzword for any authority one dislikes, no matter what side they’re on, and so when anyone yells it, you can be 85% sure that they don’t know what they’re talking about. However, that is the crux of the matter, since what is clear these days is that conservatives are no longer known for things like “thinking” or “reading” or “educating” (themselves) on matters so “complicated”.

The main people I hear calling us liberals “pussies” though, are conservatives of certain “stations” as it were. The traditionally poor and or rural conservatives, who think the world is literally black and white – or more accurately for them – brown and white – and Jewish. These are the “Bible-thumping”, “gun-lovers” who bristle mightily at the use of those terms, then do nothing to dispel them. In fact, they’ll often tell you how wrong you are by quoting the Bible and threatening to shoot you if you don’t agree, using John Wayne-approved phrases like “you’d better watch what you say next, mister” and “we don’t take kindly to that type of language in these parts”, while fondling their holster lock and / or releasing their safety.

But you know what I’ve come to conclude about these people? They’re actually the pussies! Interesting, eh? They’re the ones afraid of conflict who are simultaneously militant.

They’re the ones stocking up on guns to defend themselves, and they’re the ones who are prepared to violently defend what they believe. And whom are they defending their beliefs against? Well, of course, that amorphous mix of unbelievers, criminals and the government. Amorphous, because none of the three are real threats; just threats imagined by the “victims” themselves, and paranoia’s preyed upon by those using them to seek office or sell more redneck treasures.

In reality, they’re the ones truly scared. That’s why they need so many guns, a big bad God to back them when they’re defenseless, and when all else fails, they can hide behind their one-track, over-simplified version of the constitution – the one that says the government isn’t allowed to intrude into U.S. citizens’ lives, unless it’s the lives of the brown citizens they dislike and feel unreasonably threatened by.

If these characterizations seem overly harsh and simplistic, they’re not. True, these are hardworking people who only want the best for their families. But let’s face it; they’re not too bright. I mean, who ISN'T a hardworking family person? But, the idea that a poor, rural miner would vote republican, when it’s republicans who want to deregulate mine safety and then deny free healthcare to the victims of said neglect, just so they (and their already rich friends) can make even more money, says they’re not thinking. And they’re not thinkers. They’re reactors. And the damage they are causing to this country is becoming nuclear.

Ultimately, they’re not the backbone of this country, they’re the front-bone of this country. Because honestly, they’re just a bunch of dicks.

2. “Give him a break…”

When are liberals, and other blacks, and other black liberals, and comedians, going to stop telling me to leave Obama alone? “Lay off the man”; "Give the man time"; “He just got into office”; “You expect him to change the world”; “He’s the first black president of a western power, how much more do you want?”

I’m sorry - I missed the memo that stated, “Once Obama becomes president, his success is complete. Also, stop telling me “he just got here”. Terms are only four years. This is year three idiots; How long should we wait? Year five? Oh, I mean year one of the next republican. Thanks a lot “wait and see liberals”.

How much more do I want? I want him to do his job as a president. His windfall-to-insurance-companies of a healthcare plan is not that great. There are great things in it – like the “no dropping of people with pre-existing conditions” idea, but this is in few ways a “good” deal. Private citizens are now required to buy health insurance starting in 2014. Well, what if you’re like me and haven’t worked in ages and are not working now? How will I afford that? And how will I afford the penalties incurred as a result of not affording it? Again, the poor get punished for being poor. 

I worked and paid taxes for years! How about using some of that and AT LEAST giving me a public option, if not outright universal government coverage. Oh, that’s right, you can’t, because you’re too busy caving in to republicans’ demand for more of our tax dollars to fund corporate incentives for companies that hold the nation back, like Big Oil and Gas, and the military industrial complex. Well, thanks to lax gun laws, there are plenty of guns on the streets of U.S. cities and in the hands of “rurals”. So how about we take care of our citizens’ healthcare and educations, and cut some of the military spending and take chances defending ourselves in case we’re invaded by Canada or Mexico. If we cut our military budget in half, we would still be spending the most in the world AND add 400 BILLION dollars to our economy. That’s not a made up number – look it up for yourself at the Congressional Budget Office (C.B.O.).

And stop saying China’s a threat. China’s not a threat, we’re their number one customer! Drug dealers don’t kill clients, they kill rival drug dealers. If China offs anyone, it’ll be Japan, South Korea or Thailand. And the way they make things there, maybe they’ll get reckless and inadvertently lead-poison Iran for us.

Pre-existing conditions reform. Student loan reform. Awesome. Oh, wait, is that it? Is that going to be the legacy? Are the days of Roosevelt really gone, or are we just too lazy? What about taking the Wall-Street crisis creators to task? What about Guantanamo? Those would have been huge. Instead, we get half-assed healthcare that the republicans are going to repeal anyway (and I can’t fully say I’m against that at this point – maybe the next democrat can go all in and get us Universal).

Talk about liberal pussies.

Hey, I like the guy, but I like my plumber too. But if he fails to do his job, should I wait and see or take him to task and get my money’s worth? Believe it or not, we’re paying money to be here – a lot of it – and I want my money’s worth. I’m tired of not working, and not getting ahead when I am working because of rich assholes and do nothing politicians – who themselves are often rich assholes.

The conservatives, again, have successfully changed the conversation. We’re talking about the national debt instead of Wall Street. The national debt is a major problem, but it was not the cause of this economy, nor is it the reason it continues. The reason is Wall Street and consumerism. But we’ve let them change the conversation again.

I’m 35, I want kids, but I have no job, no prospects, and I AM college-educated, with a load of debt to show for it. Yet I have to watch Christmas commercials where people are giving each other cars? What the hell is this? After 9/11 the answer was “keep shopping”. Are you kidding me?

Stop shopping.

Wake the fuck up!

And don’t tell me to leave Obama alone. I’M already being left alone – in the cold.