WHERE THE HELL IS PAUL VAN DYK?

YEAH! I´LL COME BACK SOON MY FRIENDS!

CEFILIBE GOES ONLINE!

I have just learned that my buddy Cefilibe has finally decided to launch his personal weblog. That´s great news! This guy is really, really good. I wish him the best on this new project.

CLIENT # 1

This morning, as everybody knows, Eliot Spitzer announced his resignation as Governor of the State of New York for what the Times called the “seamy sex drama.”

I think what is really sleazy is the way the media (even the so-called progressive) have covered this and many other dull events while the country is falling apart. It´s troublesome! But at the same time, it is curious too. Basically because ultimately the media do as the media ratings go. Sometimes, as it is said, all it would take is one person to stand up and say “fuck this!” And then, another one.

It must be hard to be known as “client #9” but, it would never be as hard as it is to be client #1 (sometimes even without realizing it) to a club (the media club) where intelligence has no place, to say the least.

But tomorrow, it will be another day. Maybe a good time to cancel my unrequested registration.

ALEX AND WOMEN

I was told that Alex was born a normal beautiful baby but one day, at the age of five, he was involved in a terrible car accident that left him in a comma. As the months passed by, everybody became hopeless about the likelihood of his recovery. However, one year later, without any previous sign of improvement, all of a sudden, he got back.

In spite of having suffered no visible major injuries in neither his body nor his head as a result of the accident, Alex had to re-learn how to do all basic stuff such as walk, talk and eat, for he did not remember how to do those things. In addition to that, in time he was detected a rare learning disability because he did not seem to understand basic explanations of almost anything when given to him, though he used to come back hours later with an outstanding sort of rationalization that most of the times left jaws on the floor.

That habit, that in time became a kind of attitude, was one of the things that caught our eyes when we first met him at college. The other thing was the fact that he immediately got surrounded by women who liked the guy a lot “for no particular reason”, they used to say. It is interesting to mention that he never did a big deal out of it, as if he were kind of used to it.

One day, I approached to him and asked him, "this thing about you and women, how does it happen?" And he goes like "what do you mean?" And I told him “Yes, you know.. why do they seem to be so enchanted with you?" And he was like, “Are they? Um, I don´t know, I hadn´t thought about it until now that you mentioned it but, let me think and tell you later, ok?” Here we go! –I thought to myself. That was 10 years ago. As a matter of fact, he never answered that question to me.

Today, Alex´s case came to my mind -I don´t know exactly why, when I was trying to write an entry for this blog regarding “Women´s Day”. At first, I wanted to say a bunch of things about their beautifulness, their unique perspective of things and their amazing tenderness. I also wanted to talk about their struggles and how impossible it becomes to think of a better world without considering a different view on sex equality (on caring labor, for example) and so on. But then I thought how flawed it would have been without having the fundamental: a real knowledge of them.

I may have remembered Alex because for that end it could be necessary to re-learn basic stuff about women and stop pretending that we already know them, just as he naturally did it with the rest of the world. I am sure Alex would agree with me on this.

THE ELECTION FRENCY

After yesterday´s results in the Democratic race, I kept thinking of the almost unbridled frenzy that this election has generated in the people. Frenzy that has made voters all across the nation show up at primaries and caucuses in record numbers and the two remaining candidates fight till the very last moment. I think that is good. What is not good is that the reasons behind this massive turnout does not seem to be an object of consideration, especially by the media.

To think about it would probably lead us to ask ourselves why this was not the case in the past?, or yet better, what should be done to avoid the new government, once elected, from failing its responsibilities to the people once again, to simply avoid having a 2-minute democracy –-the time it takes to pull the lever down in the voting booth?

Looks like somebody has already given a thought to it.

NADER, A LOST READER?

As everybody knows, Ralph Nader, 4-time presidential contender, announced a new bid for the White House as an independent candidate today. I regard Mr. Nader as among the most distinguish progressive political activists in the United States nowadays but, this time, I have to say I believe his decision is a mistake, basically for himself.

Mr. Nader does not seem to be reading the same book (or at least the same page) the majority of the people of the U. S. is reading aloud: that which narrates the end of the Bush Regime and his wacky policies. It is idle to say that for that end, it is necessary to add up forces (not to subtract them in any way) there where there´s better chances to succeed. Obviuosly, it does not imply to give a blank check of support, it implies to understand history.

Ralph Nader is a great guy, no doubt about it, his intentions are the best (to represent those who have no voice, to have a much broader debate, to push the Democratic candidates to take a more progressive stance) but his moment could not be worse, basically because having no chances to have a real impact on the race this time, he will only end up diminishing his own voice. I hope I am wrong.

OBAMA VA!

After Wisconsin´s Democratic primary and the Democrats Abroad results, things seem to have come down to a point where the question is not whether Barack Obama will get the Democratic nomination for president in 2008 or not, but rather if Hillary would be a good VP running mate (hehehe… just kidding!) What I really want to say is that I share the enthusiasm of those who think that even when large states are still at stake (Ohio, Texas, Pennsylvania) Obama really seems to be now virtually unstoppable.

I say enthusiasm because that is clearly what this unique character has brought about to people: great excitement, motivation and hope. I myself experienced that sensation too the first time that I saw him talk on a video I stumbled across while writing my very first post for this blog (I even wrote about it here). What I wonder now is whether this excitement is all justified beyond the consideration of his personal traits and manifested intentions. I have to say that I am not sure about it.

I am not going to deny I think Obama represents now the most consistent prospect of change of the way politics have been conducted under the Bush administration (and that I don´t consider this to be a little thing). However, it is not just a change of direction (difficult in itself) what is required to fix the mess but a complete change of the common American political mindset. That would make politicians authentically fight corporate interests, bring to light the so called “non-topics” (those essential topics which are absent from public debate or even public consciousness) or simply change that American Notion -held by some- of believing, like temper tantrum kids, they own the world.

Be Obama the fist step towards that change!