Okay, so The Huffington Post may not be what you’d want to call impartial. But its front page for today warms my cockles. In an article titled “3 Days of Undoing Bush,” a partial list of Obama’s activities includes:
Signs order to close Guantanamo
Shutters CIA “Black Site” prisons
Forbids torture of detainees
Lifts abortion “gag rule”
Freezes proposals on easing emissions
Revives Freedom of Information Act
Not bad for his first half a week on the job.
Remember the first thing his predecessor did? Went on vacation. Yes that's right.
And all right, I’ve mostly forgiven Obama for that offensive faux pas with fag-bashing hypocrite Rick Warren. The spectacle of that bigot pretending to grace Obama's inaguration with Christian love almost made me forego the rest of it. Glad I persevered.
But that's another post, isn't it.
Thank you Buchino for alerting me to the Huffington cover story.
2 comments:
The Obama/Warren issue still plagues me. I turned red when Warren began his prayer - which was delivered with the false sincerity of the worst Hallmark Card. I wish I could somehow know if Obama simply got caught between politics and his own integrity. But I cannot know what he really thinks. Do I trust him to take the country in many a better direction? Yes. Do I trust him on the progression of equality for those with a minority gender and sexual orientation? Not. One. Bit. The test will be the repeal of "Don't Ask Don't Tell" If he moves quickly on this, then I will be encouraged. If he waits so as to bury the gesture when the cameras aren't quite so focused on him...then we have our answer.
All sat down in one boat together. . . troubled voyage in calm weather. - R. Williamson
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To me the matter of choosing Warren raises a larger issue, viz., I'd really love a separation of Church & State at our inaugurals. I understand the whole Christian, specifically Protestant, specifically Evangelical, thing is very big in American politics but sheesh. So I was startled and pleased to hear non-believers actually included in Barack Obama's speech. To me that was better than if we'd heard Wiccans and Taoists and Unitarians in the list: non-believers. And he didn't say it like it was a problem. That was a step toward pluralism.
If I were a person who makes bets, I'd bet Obama & Biden will do a bunch of things to reform the military with the repeal of "Don't Ask Don't Tell" accomplished in the context of other improvements, such as decent health care for veterans for once, or addressing sexual harassment.
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