politics

The Election Is Not The End

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Well, Nate Silver’s book THE SIGNAL AND THE NOISE is ranked #3 on Amazon as I write this.

Obama won and I won’t pretend to be sad about it. I don’t think Romney was trying to become president for nefarious reasons–I’m sure he wanted to do good for the nation–but the policies he promised would have been terrible. Obamacare and financial reform might have been weak sauce, but that’s better than an empty bowl.

What’s more, I think he could have won if he hadn’t become so cynical about the process. It wasn’t just his 47% comment, which hurt him badly; he campaigned as though the strategy to win the White House was to say just about anything that sounded good at the moment. Yes, Nate Silver and the pollsters showed the superiority of their numbers-driven system, but the other big winners here were the fact-checkers. The media is changing the way it addresses untruth, and it’s about time.

The Senate has lost Lieberman and Nelson, two of its most conservative Democrats. Can we have a public option now? And filibuster reform? Republicans retained their majority in the House and have enough to seats in the Senate to continue to block, thwart, and slow the people’s business. With luck, McConnell et al will abandon their Deny Obama Everything strategy and work with him.

As for Obama, support for same-sex marriage didn’t hurt him at all, and neither did his demands to increase taxes on the wealthy. Those are welcome changes, too. Still, I know most Americans don’t vote based on this or that policy: does the country seem to be on the upswing? That’s what drives most votes, not the thickets of policy and personality that drives most political junkies.

But here’s the important thing: It’s not over. Voting isn’t the end. I mean it. Too many people think that the only influence we have over our political choices is our vote.

It’s not. Politicians pay attention to the letters they get, and a small number of them can have a real impact. Here’s the text of the letter I’m going to send today:

Dear Mr. President:

I voted for you and I’m happy that you have won a second term. I believe you’ve been a good leader for this country and that you are a decent man.

That’s why I’m asking you to end predator drone strikes in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The loss of innocent lives in this way is unacceptable. Also, dropping bombs only hardens the resolve of the target population, creating more enemies than we could ever destroy.

As an American citizen and a voter, I’m saying we must end this program.

Thank you,

Your vote is not your voice. Your voice is your voice. Speak up. Be heard.

POW!

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From ClimateSilence.org

I have voted.

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Yes, I voted for Obama. No, it’s not a huge shock; even though the Green candidate was closer to my positions than the president, I held my nose and voted for the guy who drops bombs on innocent people in Asia.

That sucks, but it’s still better than what we were going to get from Romney, if his own positions could be believed (and they can’t). If it’s a choice between Obama and another neo-con, I know who I have to vote against.

Not that it matters all that much. Washington is a very blue state, so our electoral votes are not really in play. More important to me are the state, county and city issues: I voted to support same sex marriage, to reject charter schools, to reject supermajority requirements on tax legislations, to support sea wall repair in downtown Seattle, and to support marijuana legalization.

I also supported a mix of Democratic and Republican candidates, although you can probably guess that I voted for more of the former than the latter. On occasion, I’ve said (mostly-joking) that I’m about as far to the left as you can get while still remaining a capitalist, and the GOP has been moving further and further to the right in recent years, so there’s not many in that party who would be a good match for me.

Anyway: Duty done.

Randomness for 9/27

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1) “Because in my own way, I can (unfortunately) point out exactly what is wrong with men when they don’t realize how hard it is to be a woman. How we do not have equal opportunities and freedoms in everyday life. How most men, even good caring men, have no clue what we go through on a daily basis just trying to live our lives.” Warning: That could be triggering.

2) In Plain View: How child molesters get away with it.

3) Are you at a hipster wedding? A flowchart.

4) Thirteen congressional candidates with interesting ideas.

5) How to make the perfect ice cube.

6) Interested in giving up masturbation? Try 50 Cent’s four-step plan.

7) i09 calls this “The worst death scene ever comitted to film.” I was doubtful until I watched it.

Guns, Germs, And Private Equity

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I’ve been pretty busy–too busy to do a lot of blogging–but I thought I should point this out:

I didn’t realize that, for some time, Mitt Romney has been quoting from Guns, Germs, and Steel to explain his view of the world and the way to develop healthy economies.

Normally when I talk about a book I put up a buy link for interested readers, but not this time. While Diamond’s book is interesting, it’s not something you want to base an economic policy on.

Keeping the internet at arm’s length

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Back in 2010 when the health care debate was going on (and before it) I kept pretty careful track of the health care debate. In truth, I stressed out over it to an unhealthy degree. I couldn’t contain my disgust when Ben Nelson demanded the end of the public option, and I was livid with hate when Joe Leiberman revenged himself on the liberals who primaried him by ending voluntary Medicare buy-in for folks over 55.

In short, I spent a shitload of my time following reports on the legislation, annoyed and alienated friends with my arguments, and generally made myself unhappy. In the last few weeks, I’ve been following the news in only the most general way, trying not to let myself get distracted.

Now that the Supreme Court has (rightly, in my view) upheld the individual mandate, the ACA is going forward. This is going to be a very good thing for me, personally, because the health care plan my family has (bought as an individual) is outrageously expensive. Obamacare will ease that burden. I mean, I have health insurance right now, but I won’t go to the doctor to have my foot checked (I have a possible stress fracture) because my outrageous deductible means the expense would all come out of my pocket.

Anyway, people are saying dumb things on my Facebook feed, and on Twitter, and everywhere. Me, I’m going to stay offline and keep working, to preserve my sanity.

Randomness for 6/27

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1) If you’ve played Minecraft, this will crack you up. Assuming you have a soul. Non-Minecraft players might also be amused. Video.

2) A picture book you hope you’ll never have to give to a little kid in your life.

3) Nessie is real, the KKK were good guys, apartheid was neutral, and other lessons taught in tax-payer funded “Christian” schoolbooks.

4) What filesharing studies really say.

5) R-rated movies re-imagined as children’s books.

6) I’ve never worn a hoodie, but I’d be tempted by this, no matter how stupid I’d look.

7) Investors sue movie producers for fraud over “One of the Greatest Box Office Flops of All Time”

Randomness for 3/28

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1) A history of the McFarlane/Gaiman Miracleman lawsuit.

2) Trompe l’oeil graffiti vanishes Egyptian military barrier

3) A working scientific calculator, built from Minecraft blocks.

4) Two words: Explosive. Polymerization. (Video)

5) Eight “forgotten” live-action children’s shows from the eighties. I doubt “Small Wonder” has been forgotten, but “My Secret Identity” is the only other one I remember (but I’m a bit old for this time period)

6) Heroic Goofballs: Aardman takes on DC. Video

7) An infographic showing the last words of executed inmates in Texas.

Five things make a post

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1) I’ve asked my agency to accept an offer from a Polish publisher to do a Polish edition of Child of Fire. Awesome! Never let anyone tell you that agents are unnecessary.

2) Netflix Streaming seems to promise a great deal, but I can’t pretend to be happy that the shows continually stop to rebuffer. It took 35 minutes to watch a 20-minute cartoon.

3) This small town will get a grant to cover 60% of the cost of a new library if they can raise the other 40% themselves. Can you help? Video.

4) Like many Americans, I’m not terribly happy with the current state of the GOP, but one thing I do like is the protracted primary process. I’m pleased to see so many candidates sticking it out and going from state to state. Why? Super PAC stimulus. Ad buys, sign printing, mailings, the whole thing, millions of dollars from a handful of extremely conservative millionaires are being poured into each state’s economy as the campaigns move from one to another. I may not like the message conservative candidates have been promoting, but I like watching them spend their cash.

5) Regarding the Suvudu.com cage matches, I’ve made a difficult decision: even if Ray Lilly wins, I’m not going to write the next round. Honestly, I just can’t. I’m struggling too much with my new book to let my attention be divided and that’s where I have to put my energy. I’m 96K words into it; I gotta get this done. On top of that I have more than a few demands on my personal time.

So, vote for Ray if you want but don’t vote to see another writeup from me. The cage matches are fun but I can’t afford to play any more.

Randomness for 2/22

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1) Author Jim Hines matches the poses of women on urban fantasy covers.

2) Read this fantastic metafilter comment about libraries.

3) Twelve Creative Business Cards

4) The setting of Word of Warcraft recreated in Minecraft.

5) Comics need fewer creators and more owners.

6) How Pilot Season ensures that the right actors aren’t cast in the right TV show. Via

7) How to [Title] Your First Novel