You Know What I Hate?

Politics! 

(Excuse me, I’m going to cuss and rant a bit here.)

Sometimes, I really hate politics in this country.  It’s a fucking circus.   There’s only two fucking parties in the country that anyone ever really takes seriously.  And some people TAKE THEM TOO SERIOUSLY, in my opinion.

Some people stop treating the parties like the slightly changing and shifting ideological platforms they are, even ignoring the diversity that exists WITHIN each party (not to mention the possible diversity outside the two main parties). Instead people treat them like fucking sports teams.  Like, fucking Red vs. Blue over here.

And then people start drawing lines in the sand, dividing every fucking thing into two.   They do this while saying, “you either ARE or you AREN’T.”  Like there’s always only two options to every choice or two possible solutions to every problem. 

And if I don’t completely agree with them on every single hot button issue?  I’m suddenly the idiot, the douchebag, the prick, the overgrown child.

How dare I express a third opinion!
 

And then the terms liberal and conservative turn downright radioactive… don’t wanna to touch that shit.

And then there’s the fucking mud-slinging campaigns. 

Because no one really votes FOR a candidate as much as they vote AGAINST a candidate… at least not these days.  The same could be said about the parties as well.  And the politicians fucking KNOW this.

And sometimes I’m watching the two (sometimes so incredibly hypocritical it burns) sides of these arguments and it all plays out like a tween playground fight gone horribly, horribly wrong. 

Person A will call Person B out for being unable to spell or use proper grammar or whatever when Person A IS DOING THE EXACT SAME THING.

Granted, everyone is at least a little bit of a hypocrite, but when you’re acting in such a fashion AND acting all high and mighty about it?  It’s just embarrassing!

And even if and when I DO agree with you, I will still always have the urge to call you out on shit when you’re being inconsistent and hypocritical.  I don’t CARE if we’re “on the same side.” Because I have standards.  Because I believe in Common Decency.

Just because your so-called opponent is being a level one douchebag idiot DOESN’T mean you have to stoop to their level, too.  It also doesn’t mean you have to tell the person they are a level one douchebag idiot.  Be the bigger person, for once!

I.  HATE.  EXTREMISM.  (EXTREMELY.  xD)

What happened to logic?  What happened to respect?  What happened to practicing what you preach?  What happened to thinking for your own damn selves?!

You know what?  I’m a slightly liberal-leaning moderate, and mostly because I’m socially liberal.  Fiscally?  I’m divided, and I have mixed feelings on pretty much anything to do with this country’s fiscal policy.  I am pro-choice but I still have some reservations about abortion and I take as much offense to people calling a fetus a parasite as I do to people calling the pregnant woman a whore.  I am otherwise pretty live and let live and support the ideal of a minimalistic and efficient government (but with some socialistic programs involved where they’re needed).   I am also a feminist and generally just a peoplist.  And I pretty much always try to be fair.  THIS IS WHO I AM.

More than anything, I support queer rights, because that’s a very big and very personal deal to me.  This is also the #1 reason I never vote for the Republican party in Texas.

Because I’d rather live in a state with a questionable economy than live in a state where I could be arrested and condemned just for being who I am.  Especially when giving me the rights I DESERVE doesn’t remotely infringe on other people’s rights at all.

If I could have it my way, the two major parties would be Democratic Socialist and Libertarian, as those generalized platforms would best represent my own internal political conflicts.  As it is, I don’t affiliate with either existing major party.  BOTH dissatisfy me. There’s groups of people I wouldn’t in a million years want to associate with on BOTH sides. 
 
(And a number of people who are quite alright.)

And you know what?  You’re perfectly welcome to disagree with me.  Granted, I respect people more when they think for themselves without parroting newscasters and the like, but whatever you want… more power to you.  I can live with that.  I can agree to disagree. 

Hell, you can even mock me a little.  I lightly mock others, too.   One of my best friends in the world is incredibly more liberal than I’ll probably ever be and we tease each other all the time. But there’s a big difference between casual mockery and the kinds of bullshit a number of politicrazy people seem to be pulling these days. 

I just want it to stop.  :/

Consolation.

On [Oliver]

In early December of 2008, my mother brought home a black and white pitbull puppy.  Apparently someone left him abandoned underneath a truck.  He was small, sickly, and malnourished.  He did little more than sleep.

At the time, I was still living at my parents’ house and, like I tend to do, I mothered this little guy.  Because of that I had the honor of naming him, and so I named him Oliver.

Oliver also formed a strong bond with my mother’s other dog, Sadie Belle.

After a few weeks, Oliver became more energetic and rambunctious.  And pudgy.  Like a puppy should be.

He grew up and I? I, unfortunately, moved away.

Over the last summer, however, I got a distress call from my mother.  Apparently, Oliver was out of control.  She just didn’t know how to handle him.  He had too much energy, and needed too much of her time.  So I took him in over the summer.  I took him on walks, gave him lots of lovin’ and taught him some doggy manners.  His behavior improved tremendously.

At the end of summer?  I had to give him back to my mother.  This was due to circumstances out of my control.  Still, I was fortunate enough to be able to come visit him whenever I pleased.  It was clear he still saw me as his mommy.  x3

But now, something else has happened.  My parents are moving out of their house, and they have chosen not to pay the pet deposits for two of their three animals.  This means they are getting rid of Juliet…

…And Oliver…

They’re giving Juliet to my stepbrother, and they’re taking Oliver to the SPCA no-kill shelter.

:(

I wish I could take him, but my landlord says ABSOLUTELY NO.  Their insurance policy expressly forbids pitbulls.

So I spent the night at my parent’s house last night and cuddled on the couch with my dear friend Oliver.  I came to say goodbye.

Goodbye, Oliver.  Goodbye.

FYI…

…I miss you.  Come back.***

***EDIT: She’s back!

Bike Hero

Part of this is me, venting.

Part of this is me expressing myself vicariously through others.

And part of this is just a hella lot of fun.  :)

Original music video.

Iceland has Bad Acne. And Lots of Yogurt.

Volcanoes are the zits on Mother Earth’s face.

Mother Earth may have some pretty angry zits, but I still think she if frikin’ gorgeous as hell.

Happy Earth Day.  :)