Moved

I'm moved beyond belief right now. I just listened to the entire evening's coverage of "Together We Thrive: Tucson & America." The evening began with Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man," a very emotional piece of music written by a proud gay Jewish man. A Native American offered the opening prayer, and it was beautiful in its simplicity and inclusiveness. Daniel Hernandez, the 20 year old intern that is credited with saving Congresswoman Gifford's life in the first few minutes, is an openly gay Latino, a fiercely proud American absolutely deserving of the title "hero." He spoke with great humility of those he felt were the "real" heroes, the first responders, the staff at the hospital, the people that rushed the shooter and shielded their spouses. When the President and the First Lady came out, they hugged Hernandez and he was seated at the President's right side—Hernandez IS a hero, whether he calls himself one or not.

Along with all the other great moments, tonight showed the world that gay people are every bit as great, as honorable, as worthy of respect as anyone else in this country. The right-wingnuts are already freaking out, and let them. They're small-minded individuals—I have no time for them in my life.

President Obama's speech not only knocked it out of the park, he knocked it out of the park in the next state over, evoking the image of Christine Green, the nine-year old child that was gunned down like an animal that day. He evoked her spirit, her child-like uncynical view of the world we all really need to live up to. I really think this was Obama's finest hour of his political career. I really feel this was his "I Have a Dream" speech and will be looked back at in the future with the same reverence as Dr. King's. I'm sure there will be YouTubes of it, and transcripts you can find if you missed it tonight.

I was commenting and posting at Joe.My.God at the same time the evening was unfolding. Many "first timers" there also known as "the Right" most likely, were complaining about the raucous crowds, the cheers, the standing ovations, their perceived lack of "decorum" for a "solemn memorial." I couldn't disagree more. I found it to be a relevant celebration of life, a loud celebration of lives lost and heroes gained and an uplifting outline for our future.

Personally, I want fabulous '70s disco as well as David Bowie and Pink Floyd to be played REALLY loudly at my own memorial some time in the future. I want people dancing and laughing, doing shots of tequila, smoking joints, whatever they enjoy the most, celebrating their lives as well as mine. I want everyone to have a smile in their hearts as well as their faces, as they remember me. I really don't feel black clothes and hushed whispers will work for me. I thought tonight was just wonderful and moving beyond my expectations.

Right now, I just had to post my feelings in real time.

• Here's link to the Maddow Blog, with the speech in its entirety. Thanks for Katie N.J. for furnishing the link!

Palin's "Crosshairs" Targeted Rep. Giffords

Gunsight Graphics Aimed at Eliminating Congresswoman

This is the graphic that Sarah Palin used last year to "target" Democratic Representatives she felt would be ripe to lose their seats in Congress to Republicans. She used GUNSIGHT CROSSHAIRS indicating where each Representative's state office was. One of the three crosshairs in Arizona belongs to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords who was shot in the head today at an open "meet and greet" in a supermarket parking lot in Tucson today. Eighteen people were shot, and six people were murdered, including a Federal Judge and a nine-year old girl. Rep. Giffords is out of surgery, but was shot in the back of the head. Surgeons say they are cautiously optimistic regarding her recovery.

Palin's headquarters has supposedly begun to "scrub" her website of these graphics, but thanks to one of the finest activists in this country, Joe Jervis, of the blogsite Joe.My.God, we have this proof of the level of violent rhetoric Palin uses. At the time this graphic appeared last year, calls were immediately made to take it down, that it was over-the-top, that the gunsight crosshairs could incite violence, and Palin completely disregarded it. I think there needs to be some SERIOUS rethinking of just what is said by these Teabaggers and their de facto leader Palin.

• The continually unfolding breaking news story at MSNBC, here.

N O T E :  Do I think for a second that Palin actually called for violence with these gunsight crosshairs and her inflamed rhetoric to "take out" various members of Congress? No. But I DO think that she never, ever thinks five seconds beyond her words. She never thinks about the consequences of her words, she never thinks about who might be listening and what they may actually do about what they hear from her. I think what she frequently says is the equivalent of yelling "FIRE" in a crowded theater. I also find it highly galling that Palin released a statement today saying she is praying for the victim's recoveries after she placed a crosshair on Gifford's seat.

"We Must Have That Which Men Have…"

Clicking on these vintage typed pages should enlarge them enough to be easily read .

M Y   C O L L E C T I O N — This is a rather fascinating "find" from my collections. These two pages were typed using my great-uncle Art's antique Remington typewriter, below (I tested it carefully with the 120 year old ribbon in place!). It purports to be a speech in Congress by the famous Clare Boothe Luce, a vocal supporter of equal rights for women, and a former U.S. Representative from Connecticut. She was also married to the publisher of Time, Fortune, and Life magazines, and became the ambassador to Italy in the 1950s. 

Reading these two pages though, you realize it's a very clever satire of her speeches. It pokes good-natured (and adult!) fun at a typical Luce speech on equal rights for women. I have no idea if Art wrote it, or just typed it from a political newspaper or magazine of the day. I've read many of her speeches doing research for this post, and this piece uses many of her phrases, with twists and double entendrés throughout. It's really a fascinating look back in time, when clever satire was a tool for "regular" people, and not just a literate, "high brow" few.

• The Wiki on Clare Boothe Luce, here. Her life is the very definition of fascinating and worldly!
• For some of this fantastic woman's quotes, click here.
• The Women's Suffrage movement is detailed at Wiki, here.

My Remington typewriter dates to the late 1800s. In this composite image, notice the keys are arranged in a full circle under the carriage, not in a semi-circle as modern typewriters are. For my earlier post on this vintage apparatus, click here.

Happy New Year!

I'd like to wish everyone that reads my blog a very happy and healthy new year. May we find peace, joy, and equal rights for all in 2011.

Sunday Morning Politics—1951: Loyalty Files. . .

Click to read the pro and cons of making public the Loyalty Files gathered on Americans in the late '40s and early '50s. 

C O L L E C T I O N — "Battle of the Week" from summer 1951 edition of Quick magazine, a now-defunct pocketbook-sized pre-tabloid supermarket-type publication. Quick published short articles about the Hollywood stars of the day, TV shows, popular news stories, and sports athletes-the cover has Joe DiMaggio and Jackie Robinson on it. This political "battle" was whether or not to "open up the Loyalty Files" on fellow Americans. This article appeared a few years before the televised "McCarthy Hearings' on anti-American activities in 1954. Everything about these quotes is disturbing!

Not on Recall List; Execs Testify in Congress Today

C H O P — The best part of fake cars is that they rarely, if ever, get recalled. Toyota's execs are testifying in Congress today about their company's recent spate of recalls, and they are all breathing a sigh of relief that my chops aren't on their recall lists, too.

Pictured above is the Corolla's new 5 door bodystyle in top-line trim, the revived SR label. In this newest application, the SR6, the 6 refers to their new 6 speed automated dual-clutch transmission. A bunch of detail changes have been chopped into this Corolla model, including rwd proportions signaling a new platform. They all add up to a pretty cool, sporting high-end look if you ask me, and a great nod to the crazy-fun rwd Corolla SR5s of the past!

B T W :

I N F L U E N C E S — I've always admired 4 door fastbacks, +1 if they're equipped with a hatch, +5 if they're the sporting or avant garde versions. The Rover SD1 comes to mind from the '70s for the former, and almost any '70s Citroën, the BS, GS, the CX, fills the latter niche. The first Lancia Gamma Berline was full-figured fersure, but still a beautiful form with sophisticated details. Going back a bit further, the Austin "Landcrabs" intrigued me as a child. Going back even further, the early 50s Nash Ambassador had a gorgeous aerodynamic fastback bodystyle. Even the lowly post-war Chevys had a fastback option, the Fleetline, until 1951. Not big sellers then, I find them the best looking of that series—with the exception of the first pillarless Bel Air of '50. I'll take mine in pale gray with blackwall tires and fender skirts.