Sunday, November 14, 2010

CALIFORNIA. AHEAD OF THE LEARNING CURVE.




I never thought that I would ever declare the following sentiment, at least with any marked degree of seriousness.

Thank God that I’m a Californian.

As a matter of fact, thank God that I’m in Sacramento, in Midtown, and what the Hell, since I’m in a generous moment of spiritual gratitude, thank God that I’m on the block I live on.

We told not one, but two former CEOs (one who was trying to buy the state governor’s office, and another who was trying to brainwash us that she was somehow going to represent anyone resembling real persons and not corporations in the United States Senate),through a majority of the vote, to fuck off. We also came out relatively unscathed (with no real change in our House of Representative members) in a year when Fux News was highly successful in selling high fructose Kool-Aid to the mass electorate of so-called Flyover America, the effect of which has now populated our Congress as well as Senate with a whole shitload of village idiots and snake oil salesmen who somehow bamboozled their local populace into thinking that their out of state big business fueled campaign contributions are going to somehow translate into representation by and for “the people”. While I agree that “the people” have spoken, if translated from Politicalese into plain English, the phrase emanated would be somewhat along the lines of, “Send you to Washington D.C. in exchange for sole ownership of the Brooklyn Bridge? Sure thing partner! Can’t beat that deal with a stick!”

Having already seen similar exercises in ballot box stupidity in previous decades, I don’t feel that sad or pessimistic about the results this time, although, as I’ve mentioned previously, being in the particular (truly golden) state in which I currently reside greatly softens the blow. If anything, my first impulse toward these unfortunates is somewhat a feeling of pity in their effort to try to placate their general frustration toward the powers that be, whether real or perceived, about things like chronic unemployment, shrinking payrolls and opportunities for business growth, a general discouragement of realizing what can be described generally as the American Dream, and the like.

They’re not necessarily unjust or incorrect in their sentiments nowadays. They just need to learn how to think it through when determining who is actually going to represent them, and also who is going to do so by fighting for what’s really going to help them attain a better life for all Americans, and in turn, build a better, stronger and more prosperous and secure nation all around.

But instead, too many of them teamed up with bunches of corporate-fascist whores who, among other stupid reasons, are pissed off because a black guy got elected President. However, there's no crying over spilt milk. The damage has been done and like a strange course of natural disaster we must tolerate the damages and casualties to a certain degree.

I feel that it is just a matter of self-education by trial and error. People will figure out that they fucked up and the next two years should be fun to watch, that is, if you are a big fan of gridlock and partisan bickering as comedy. One interesting byproduct of November 2010 is the fact that many of the so called Blue Dog Democrats, those elected representatives who are donkeys of the moderate to conservative persuasion, lost numbers dearly in their respective re-election attempts. Thus, the new Democratic minority in the House is now lean, mean, shamelessly progressive, labor friendly and hopefully willing to provide some obstructionist payback when need be.

This new attitude remains to be seen, of course, seeing as there are already mumbles in the lame duck Congress about compromise and all that shit. If anything, I envision a House full of proposed bargain deals for the gazillionaires whose contibutions had won a seat for many a 2011 freshman in the House chambers, fulla tax breaks on top of the extended Dubya-era kind, with all kinds of relaxations on those inconvenient environmental and safety regulations and the like. What the Hell, they may well introduce a “Minimum Wage and Eight Hour Day Elimination Blowout” and “Social Security Sundown Extravaganza” to boot.

Hopefully the still Democrat-controlled Senate and White House can know when to say “You are out of your fuckin’ minds!” and fight back when needed, but I suppose that will be a wait-and-see situation, at least for now. Either way, it seems that we will have a lot of hooting and hollering and arguing in Washington D.C. for the next two years, and in my humble prediction, a whole lot of nothing actually being accomplished. What will the people who comprise the American voting public learn after this next Congressional term? If past election trends are any indication, not a whole Hell of a lot. They’ll just scamper along with the next Pied Piper who shows up with an appealing melody.

God help us all.