He just got two kick-butt, I'll do-anything-that-needs-to-be-done volunteers added to his roster in New Hampshire.
My parents.
My mom called me at work today to tell me that they called the Kerry campaign, especially highlighting the fact that my dad's a Korean War vet. Dad even went to the VFW and got a hat to wear.
They live in upstate NY, and will be leaving Friday for New Hampshire. They got a list of places to stay, but will be willing to take a hotel/motel in Maine or Vermont if they need to and drive an hour or more each day. They'll stay for at least the weekend.
It's great to see them this enthused and willing to participate in the political process. The last time they exhibited this level of political involvement was over 30 years ago, in some local issues.
I am really proud of these two folks, one 70 and the other getting pretty close. Maybe I can be cool when I get to be their age.
[ February 10, 2004, 05:18 PM: Message edited by: sndrake ]
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
I thought this was going to be about John Kerry getting the message of the New Testament. Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
Hmmm... thinking of retitling thread.
Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
Hey, cool, sndrake! That's great. Glad to hear that they are so involved. Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
That would be my state.
What's cool is that Fox News is using my alma mater as a base for their primary coverage.
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
Thanks, CT. I'm glad too. They're in that part of the public that has been very unhappy with a lot of things the past 4 years.
(I'm unhappy too, but as someone who gets to deal with people on both sides of the political aisle in work-related matters, I've developed a pretty even-handed dislike party-wise.)
Every time they've gotten worked up in discussions, expressing how unhappy they are with the current administration, I'd suggest they do something - write letters to the editor, call in on talk radio, anything rather than just vent and let the blood pressure build.
Now they're doing it - mom sounded so thrilled on the phone. And I was happy and excited for her. This is how we're supposed to do things. Otherwise, those with the largest checkbooks win the day.
(Edited to add: Mack, does that mean your alma mater will be "fair and balanced" after they leave?")
[ January 21, 2004, 10:18 PM: Message edited by: sndrake ]
Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
And you know that being involved in something you find interesting makes you yet more involved in other areas of your life. Much better than zoning out in front of the TV or, as you said, just cranking up the blood pressure.
You have cool parents. Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
St Anselm College will always be fair...but never balanced. Posted by Storm Saxon (Member # 3101) on :
It's a very cool thing your parents are doing, Sndrake. Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
I'm impressed - my parents haven't even gotten to New Hampshire and they've already had an impact! (We are not a clan to take lightly)
Very cool sndrake!
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
CT:
quote:And you know that being involved in something you find interesting makes you yet more involved in other areas of your life. Much better than zoning out in front of the TV or, as you said, just cranking up the blood pressure.
You've got to rattle your cage door. You've got to let them know that you're in there, and that you want out. Make noise. Cause trouble. You may not win right away, but you'll sure have a lot more fun. -- Florynce Kennedy
Posted by Ayelar (Member # 183) on :
Well, shoot... now Mark and I will have to travel to NH to support Dean and cancel out their volunteering.
Upstate NY, eh? Maybe we could carpool. Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
Ayelar, go for it - the more the merrier.
To me, the exciting thing is seeing people like my parents get active in the political process. While a lot has been said about money and the Republican party, the fact is that religious conservatives have an excellent grassroots network of people willing to do real work - and it's contributed heavily to the gains they've made.
Another Florynce Kennedy quote:
"Don't agonize, organize."
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
I've often argued that secular humanists need an organization, preferably one that serves crumpets.
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
Don't forget the sushi and latte! Posted by Destineer (Member # 821) on :
Is this a big liberal board or something?
Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
I have to say, Kerry is my favorite among the Democratic hopefuls. He seems to be a reasonable, pragmatic guy who knows how to compromise and work with others. Guys like Dean and Kucinich (sp?) are good for riling up the troops, but somebody else should be making the hard decisions.
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
Yeah, but he's kind of stiff. And not in that way that gave Clinton the gender gap.
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
*bump*
Lots of talk about Bush, but nothing about the part of the political process that really matters right now - Democrats casting ballots.
BTW, did anyone see that CNN issued a very belated apology for overkill on running the footage of Dean's NH speech? Sure that makes Dean feel better...
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I haven't decided to endorse any particular candidate yet, but assuming one of the current batch is the eventual Democratic nominee, he will have my vote in the election.
I threw my vote away last time on Ralph Nader. I'm no longer going to win the battle of voting my principles and end up losing the bigger battle. I'm voting for whoever can get Bush et al. out of the White House.
And if my side loses, I'll grouse about it for at least the next 4 years.
Just so you all know now. Be prepared for a very grumpy Bob if the current Administration gets another term.
Oh, one caveat, if Rudy Giuliani is the VP candidate on the GOP ticket, I will vote for that slate and then pray that George Bush is impeached or resigns as quickly as possible.
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
Oops, I'm sorry. This is a thread about how cool sndrakes parents are.
I think it's great that they are getting involved politically.
I think I heard Bush mention them in his interview on Sunday. Didn't he say something about "activist parents?"
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
I was wondering if anyone else caught the reference. He was reading off names from a list given to him by John Ashcroft - names of people who subscribe to Counterpunch. I got my dad a subscription for Father's Day last year and he got very worried about ending up in an FBI file as one of the mag's subscribers.
And, not to sidetrack the general praise of the coolness of my parents, but...
you might want to do a little more research on Rudy Giuliani - my understanding of him is that the post-911 leader we saw is nothing like the NY mayor who was an incredibly abrasive and divisive leader. He has a lot of the same qualities that you seem to find objectionable in Bush.
But thanks for remembering the purpose of this thread -- how cool my parents are. Posted by Storm Saxon (Member # 3101) on :
quote: I was wondering if anyone else caught the reference. He was reading off names from a list given to him by John Ashcroft - names of people who subscribe to Counterpunch. I got my dad a subscription for Father's Day last year and he got very worried about ending up in an FBI file as one of the mag's subscribers.
Not to derail the posts on the coolness of your parents, they sound really cool, but what is this about counterpunch? Are you seriously saying that counterpunch subscribers are on a frelling FBI watch list?
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
Storm,
It was kinda tongue-in-cheek. My parents are more prone to paranoia than I am, having lived both through the McCarthy era and the Nixon years. I only have real experience of the Nixon years, so I have a less developed sense of paranoia than they do.
But then again, I saw a news story years ago that claimed that thousands of schoolkids during the 1960s and 1970s had FBI files started on them. See, anyone who contacted the People's Republic of China or the Soviet Embassy for info got a file (the years of J. Edgar Hoover). As part of an assignment in the fifth grade, I wrote to both.
So, somewhere, there may be a file with a copy of my request for information at the age of 11. I wonder if anything has been added to it since?
(Again, mostly kidding. While I don't like the way things are going, we are NOT in a police state. Just a currently unpleasant one.)
Posted by Xavier (Member # 405) on :
I too would like to add that I will be a very grumpy person under a second term of GWB.
Back in 2000 I was angry, but if I had known just how worse Bush was going to be then I had even feared, I don't know what I would have done.
Posted by Storm Saxon (Member # 3101) on :
O.K., Sndrake. Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I have personal reasons for voting for Giuliani that matter more to me than his mayoral attributes. But even with that, he did a much better job as mayor than his predecessor, David Dinkins.
Of course, a decomposing corpse would've done a better job than David Dinkins. All the wimpiness of Carter without the redeeming moral virtues.
Ah well.
I would consider it a badge of honor to have an FBI file on me.
Of course, if you've ever applied for or received a secret clearance, there's a file on you as well. I had Secret clearance for about 2 years. Never actually saw anything Secret, but some restricted things (like you couldn't look at it without an escort because it was on an actual military base behind locked doors). Not a really big deal.
Oh yeah! Go sndrakes parents!!!
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
quote:I would consider it a badge of honor to have an FBI file on me.
So would I, if I had it was for something other than me being just a little outrageous in fulfilling the requirements of a fifth grade assignment. (yeah, I picked China and the USSR on purpose - big deal. Sometime around then, I also wrote to the air force for info on project Blue Book and to Inverness, Scotland for info on Nessie.)
I hope, if the FBI did start a file, they didn't interview my fifth grade teacher. She hated me. Not without reason, of course.
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