Not for nothing

Washington, DC, 20 Jan 2009 Presidential Inauguration (Google Earth)



Washington, DC, 25 April 2004, March for Women's Lives (Marilyn Rader, AP/Wide World Photos)

Last photos of the evening

I cried all the way home on the metro at 6h45. When I got off at my stop, the black guy sitting across from me for about 5 stops held his thumbs up and looked at me contentedly. I cried even more.

I can't believe it.

(Not a huge fan of his speech, but maybe they were aiming for modesty and American-centric. I thought McCain's was condescending at times and down-right rude at others, but was rather modest, as well. Did not like Michelle's dress at all, but she is still totally a rockin' First Lady.)


















Fox News calls it Obama - that's when we REALLY knew

starman was right

by 6am we'll know

and it'll be Obama and who knows on Prop 8... we're still watching..

Election in a nutshell via professional pollster friend

"after the last two elections the nets have gotten much more conservative in their calling of states. so if they call something they have a high degree (est at 99.5% confidence) of faith that it's true. an early call in some place like PA means they most likely have a very wide margin of victory in the exit polls even if they aren't telling us what that number is. they also tend to use actual results from polling places they've collected to confirm the exit polling, but again those actual real results are ones that aren't publicly available yet."

but so it's all fake - exit polls people lie - there are no ballots .. how do you trust that?

"By sampling enough people you reduce to a small percent the chance of enough bad info (ie liars) entering the survey to change the results"

"also, a key part of what they do is look in very fine detail at where geographically the exit polls are showing the leads and comparing that turnout to past turnout and results. my colleague at AV who knows obama won florida says it's based on obama extremely out performing kerry and gore in key areas. in PA the call was easy because the margin was wide and they could see how he was winning demographic groups, like college educated whites, who dems have never won there in 40 years."

so are you confident it's obama?
when does he win a Bush state?

"Confident it's Obama. I think Indiana of north Carolina will be official in the next hour"

......

My sister was #1233 in MN
Her boy pal was #98
She had no lines and things went smoothly.

Looking at Franken
And Prop 8 here

pre-ejaculat -- election happiness

If Florida falls to Obama it's in

Pennsylvania that's crazy!

They, supposedly vote with their guns and religion. I worked with a woman from PA who thought this day would never come.

Our party has gotten little quiet but enjoying the CNN entertainment. We're wondering if Jon Stewart is live online because we don't have full cable here. America Votes is calling Obama win. We're still watching the colors on CNN turn blue, red.

Battleground

CNN is going in all color on the States map. People here - all Americans and a couple of French folks - don't know what they're looking at and are bummed when something goes red, except for the Canadian guy who is confused because liberals in Canada are red-colored. We still feel good. The good cheese came out. The wine is still flowing. We're all watching

Star Trek on CNN

Dude, they're "beaming" people in for commentary on CNN. This woman commentator is like glowing. This virtual stuff is hilarious. Holograms... ha!

We're all laughing. Someone made caipirinhas. There's pasta in progress possibly. Wine still flowing. Some of the French folks left. The Americans remain. It's still early. Kentucky and Indiana closed so early - I hope other polls aren't closing early.

Sheesh.

election party arrival

Indiana and Kentucky closing polls at this hour c/o CNN...

Mingling with some French folks, some Americans, some I don't know where from. We've got CNN on and watching the strange interviews and probing investigations that still continue on TV.

On the way to the party, getting off the metro, a guy said loudly and over-spelled (I was wearing my headphones) "J'aime bien ton t-shirt." I replied, "Moi aussi. Merci!"

It's a strange thing to wear t-shirts for your candidates in Paris. People rather think shirts for Gore, Kerry, Obama are more fashionable than their own country's candidates. I'm flattered by this idea, especially as I'm sometimes one of the "anti-American elitists" that Palin talks about lately.

Anyway.

Wil and me.






A Sacramento expat (making power Obama heart.. or um... signs)




Sacramento again






A Sciences Po French supporter




I <3 Obama

pre-election night fiesta

Not getting out the vote this year, but definitely representing at school, on the metro, on the street on my way home (where a gentleman leaning out of one of the sexy-lady-bars asked me if he was going to win and I said, "Bien sûr! Il n'y a pas otre possibilite!"), and then later tonight when I get to a colleague's for the long night of result watching.

I hope we get to celebrate.

PS. Thanks, starman, hope you're having fun wherever you are!

Countown!

I was speaking to my cave guy tonight, when buying wine for the US election party tomorrow, and he's for Obama. Peeking over someone's shoulder who was reading the newspaper on the metro, and the US map was full of color: reds, blues, swings. Maybe electrons really do fly fast, but I can FEEL the energy from the US over here. So excited!!

But first, I have to get through final planning details of the conference, linen laundry, full day of class tomorrow (10am - 18h), run home, un-fold the futon couch-bed, pull out the air mattress, put away the drying clean clothes, tidy up last details, and then go to the Election Party. Stay up as late as I can (will we know by 6am Paris time?). Sleep during the day. Go to school. Help with registration and set-up. And then, hopefully be a joyous bundle of contentment at the fact that we'll have our first African-American President. Ooooo so excited!!!

I'll have a big, long post on conference planning in Paris because I tell you, it is an entirely different beast. Panelists we invited 6 months ago and started calling 3 months ago are still undecided. There isn't such thing as a conference center at Sciences Po. Accommodation with students and staff is hell because we all live in flats the size of bread-boxes or in a dormitory at Cite Universitaire. Panelists cancelling at last minute. Visiting students making irrational demands from abroad. It's been an interesting challenge. Kind of like running a campaign, including firing staff people, setting deadlines along the way, keeping it cool on the outside while I freak out on the inside, giving interviews to other students not engaged in the planning, schmoozing to get panelists, encouraging team members, etc. So, while I wasn't in the States to do my usual Get Out the Vote efforts, I've run my own campaign down here. Let's hope it goes as smoothly as Obama's!!

Cheers to all!

To be French

Thank god I'm not 19 anymore. Really. But I did have a nice evening hanging out with a new colleague at school (who is 30) and 3 French teenagers. Colleague and I went for a drink following a long day at school and then were invited to beers by the next table over.

I'm always astounded when I hear the America-Love from people. And I've heard it from my Chinese colleagues via a link regarding the fascination with America during the Olympics. And tonight I heard it again from three 19-year-old French boys. They cited more movies and TV shows than I've seen in the States. They spoke "American English" as opposed to British. It's strange to look inside from the outside.

Of course, I know it's easier to criticize the US while I carry her passport. And I can always return. But how strange, in the middle of a financial meltdown and in the middle of the fresh roll of a new wave of The Depression. But people still hold a high regard for the US, an esteemed worship, a lust, a hope for the country and to find themselves someday making their yellow brick road there.

It hasn't changed my view on the country. I'm still skeptical - despite the Hope instilled by Obama (and these boys know Obama and McCain and know that Change is associated with the former and toasted to it). I'm still exhausted with the work ethic. Still dismayed by the urban and rural planning of the country. Still disencouraged by the policies. Still hoping to get a job in Europe or the rest of the world so I won't have to return next year. But then I run into these people who want to clink every round of beers to the US and to the hope it instills.

It's true, too. In Europe, or at least in France, still, to this day, you have to declare your intended track of study before you graduate high school. You have to determine your fate beforehand and you have to stick to it. There's no such thing as a 33-year-old going back to school. It's unheard of and weird. Hence, the lack of student discounts for me - they end at 26 years old. No one can understand why someone would be able to or want to change their life path.

To these boys, the US represents Hollywood, New York City, chance, glory, opportunity, uniqueness, freedom. To me it represents the opposite for I have felt the crush of these things. But we always think the grass is greener over there, don't we?

And now that I'm in Paris again, I remember how much I love my boulangerie, my cave man with the wonderfully cheap wine, the idea of sitting out on a sidewalk drinking beer for hours in the evening, the risk of greve (strike) any moment, the challenge of being a country, a city, and a piece of the EU. Who is the US a member of? Iraq??? To whom do we have to submit our concerns?

It's food for thought on a late night before a class.....

What kind of a policy-maker are they making here? I'm not a Socialist or a Republican or a Liberal or a Fancy Pants. But good god, what has this education in France given me??

On the Vice Presidential Debate from over here

Missed it? Catch the full 1 hour 33 minutes of comedy here.

Well, it's Friday night and what better have I to do? Actually, a ton, but I'm sick as a dog so why not catch up on my American politics? I'm slightly disgusted with the US media saying Palin didn't too poorly. Obviously, the bar was lowered to the gutter so anything that didn't involve her storming out, saying "Vote for Bush and Palin" or "Biden's a baby killer" or breaking down into tears basically constitutes doing well. No, I won't even say, well she did alright. While I don't expect my representatives to be without human failures (Errare Humanum Est), I do expect them to have eloquent arguments (even if it's bull), well-thought out ideas, and a drive to change what Bush had messed up for the past 8 years. Being able to remain composed for an hour half does not qualify as doing well. As my old boss commented, she is "shocked and appalled that 'folksy' makes someone a viable vice-presidential candidate."

So, if it hasn't been said, most of what I noted had to do with analyzing Palin. Although, I was trying to be critical of Biden. I'm not as familiar with him, his policies, his beliefs, his background, etc I did wonder if he wasn't going to suffer a stroke at some point, the way those veins stuck out above his eyebrows. He almost looked like a Vulcan. I'm also tired of the old, white guy syndrome. And he doesn't need to remind me he's had a lifetime in politics - I'm tired of the old school. But he does wear his upbringing on his sleeve - or play it up for the people - and that I fell for.

So, here are my brief notes on the interaction:















stolen from Cajun Boy


What does "more and more revelation made aware now.." mean, Palin? And who says "Yah, I wooduv" or "bringin'" or "A-mare-ica" like a teenager chewing gum? Seems like she's running a Bush, Jr Jr here.

And what is with all the winking? Seriously, SNL was handed gold on a platter while they were fanned by Donatella Versace's slave men.

Really, who is so proud of being the governor of the only arctic state? Isn't that where there's a huge alcohol problem, man-eating bears, and a whole yard of ice? Get over it. It's really not so amazing. Especially considering the fact that the whole damn country is barely populated (683,478). I mean, HAWAII has more people living there than Alaska.

Did anyone feel like Palin was your mom giving you the smack down, shame-on-you speech after you'd overspent your allowance on a cheap Barbie dollhouse? Really, do I need a VP who wants to ground me or wag her finger at me?

"People are SO hungry for that domestic source of energy to be tapped into"? Are we? Are we soooo hungry for oil and not for a paid job? Are we so eager to tear open wildlife and suck its life out?

"I'd tell America straight up.." Is that what she'll say to foreign dignitaries? "Let me tell you straight up about our foreign policy." Ugh.

"We can not afford to lose.." in the war in Iraq. Is that what it's about, Palin? Losing is losing face? How about we can't afford to leave Iraq in the disastrous state we put it in? "Shift responsibility" - nice, Biden. She did kick Biden in the privates by throwing his words back at him in regards to criticizing Obama before Biden was chose as VP.

Was Palin stumbling on the word "nuclear?"

engagement w/ enemies: "..these dictators who hate America... and hate what we stand for.. our respect for women's rights" WHAT?! What in god's name does she consider "women's rights" - she's been a champion of limiting women's rights since day one! Disillusioned much?

Did anyone think her insert of "building an Embassy in Jerusalem" sounded a bit like a sales pitch: This duplex is just the house for your family, with the two-car garage, great view of the lake - and an Embassy in Jerusalem - you just can't go wrong!

"We both love Israel" - the next great campaign tee-shirt. It's almost like, "We both love ice cream!"

I'm sorry, but she's so condescending. It's so inappropriate. Biden should have taken her stupid, sick, sweet-cheeked Maverick ass out the door and kicked her off her high heels. But he remained diplomatic and exuded class by not stooping to her level.

Surged principles that have worked in Iraq?

I wish Biden would have pointed out that he's actually attained the experience on the issues of war, genocide, peace, and the economy and that Palin hasn't had that same education and can't do the job.

Ooooh, "McCain knows what Evil is." Like, Evil Knievel?

"Whaddya expect?" cheerleader shoulder shrug with a head tilt, "We're a team of Mavericks...." Gimme an M! Gimme an A! Good gracious.

Has anyone seen Wasilla Main Street? Who wants that in the capital? Union Street or Katie's restaurant? Who wants that in the capital? Why did Biden drop Home Depot into the conversation? Is he getting paid?

"Government get out of my way" I wish she'd thought of that when considering bills regarding women's rights. Hmmm... Now, who's the 2-faced politician?

"Say it ain't so, Joe... now doggoneit..." next campaign tee-shirt. Followed by "Your wife being a teacher for 30 years and god bless her - her reward is in heaven." I think she started to lose it here.

Nice try on her part to turn the "Bush Administration = McCain" into "looking to the past" instead of talking about the future. Ain't gonna work, woman. The last 8 years is the future and it's gotta change.

"ramped up" "shout out" - oh.my.god. Our next VP? Please nooooo. I love what "youngin'" said in the comments here: "- I don't think 'shout outs' are appropriate during national debates"

Palin wants flexibility in the role of VP...hmmm... like what? What does she want the power for? Um, that's scary. Nice knock on Cheney, Biden. Thanks!

I love my mother, really, I do. And, I love most of the moms I know. But I'm sorry, the only ONLY mother I wanted to run for President or VP was Hillary Clinton. Being a mother does not qualify you for the leadership of this country. Political education, experience, diplomacy, foreign expertise.. and if you're a parent, great. But don't run on your parenthood - it's really not so hard to get or have kids. And, we've seen that prime example through her daughter!

Biden spoke about political issues (albeit with a lot of spin and some lying), but during his one lengthily moment on family, he got all choked up over his kids. Wow. Nice play.

Maverick. Really, it used to be an interesting, descriptive word. It's now like an off-key chord on a bagpipe. Ugh. Ew. And, stop. Please.

Just like the next person, I'm not interested in having an elitist President, but if a person can't find another, more eloquent way for describing "quasi-caved in" then they shouldn't be leading my country. Enough of the "I'm the decider" for me, thanks.

"[Since then,] Never questioned their motive, questioned their judgment." - Biden. Nice.

"You walk the walk, you don't just talk the talk. At the end of the day, as long as we're all workin' together for the greater good, it's gonna be okay." - Palin. Not nice.

And another good critique from "yougin'": "-I learned in grade school to enunciate my words ending in -ING . If the word ends in ING then you best pronounce the G!!! They must not teach that in Alaska."

Why is Palin's closing a threat of fear? Freedom is at stake - freak out! Vote McCain

Be able to pay the mortgage, send kid to college, best equipped soldiers, best health care. Dignity and respect. Accomplish anything - we believed it and we did. Reestablish that certitude. "Champ, when you get knocked down, get up" And the last god bless the troops - selfishly - ooooo, sizzler! Vote Obama/Biden

Last, and again stolen from Cajun Boy's website:

Mad Dog Palin

"John McCain's running mate may be a tawdry, half-assed fraud — but that's not as scary as what her candidacy really says about America."

The October 2nd issue of Rolling Stone has an article by Matt Taibbi, 'The Lies of Sarah Palin' which is an excellent commentary on what this election represents and has devolved to. You can read it here.

Leaving on a jet plane

Well, rather, on a fast train.

Bought my ticket to Paris on Monday. Leaving on 9/11. Seems appropriate since I left the USA for Paris on the same date - after all, tickets are cheaper then. It's my reinvention of a bad day into something good, some change.

Cinque Terre was great. It wasn't the pilgrimage I thought it would be, but it brought me closer to my good friend. It was a lot drier this time around so we weren't slipping on rocks the whole hike. The pasta was excellent, the seafood fresh, the sun boiling, the exercise cathartic.

Since I got back to Geneve, have been working on photos, working on the conference I'm planning for the students of my school and 4 other schools that will happen in November. (How oh how did I rope myself into this one?) Also, caught all the DNC and RNC action online. Interesting differences. I'm scared, I'm hopeful, I have no idea what's going on. It feels strange not to be participating in another one of the most important historic events of my country. Strange, but relieving. I don't envy my past co-workers who are working so hard for this election. I'm slightly disillusioned, but yet inspired still by Obama. I can't imagine what the campaign trail does to a person, but I hope everyone is taking their vitamins. (Especially after the news clips of Hilary talking about eating pizza all the time.)

.....
9/11/08

It's always strange to see an empty room without the hope and excitement of filling it. I can't wait to arrive in Paris, although I'm not looking forward to the miles of up/down stairs with my backpack and suitcase. They need to invent elevators. Seriously, I still wonder what physically-challenged people do to get around. And, then, I'll have the long climb of 101 stairs to my apartment. I'll go up, unload the backpack, go down, separate out the suitcase and go up with both. Then, I will pass out. No, then, I will make the bed, check the apartment, get food, get wine, and slowly unpack to fill an empty room with future.

Last night, the flatmate and I had a wonderful meal, drank really great wine, and read tarot cards again. It's quite interesting this pagan ritual. Interpretation can play a major part, but I never, not once, picked up the "fool" card. In fact, it seemed as if my fingers were blessed to pick out only cards with strength, communication, warmth, internal power, and victory. I'm excited about this next year of school, and I can't wait to see what happens afterwards.

Well, see you all back in Paris! Oui, oui, Paris.

Ciao, Geneve!

Now, that's good organizer talk

“I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don’t fit the typical pedigree, and I haven’t spent my career in the halls of Washington. But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the naysayers don’t understand is that this election has never been about me. It’s about you.”

- Barack Obama, August 28, 2008

Maybe some McCain supporters are racist

I pondered it before.

But now I'm starting to think that they really are.




Chris Matthews Battles Full-On PUMA Inanity







"PUMAs -- women who love Hillary Clinton whilst simultaneously hating the policies for which Clinton has fought." c/o Huffington

Now I feel far away

I really don't have a formulated opinion on the Biden bid. Any thoughts from you all?

I hear Paris is turning into September already. Geneva is turning chilly, although next week promises to be back up in the sunny 77F-80F (25C-27C), just when I finish the internship. I'm keeping an eye on Cinque Terre weather for the last weekend in August to early September (hi, mom & dad, I'm going to Italy for a few days with my Russian friend, Dasha). It's supposed to stay in the same temperatures as Geneva next week. I'm not one to talk much to anyone about the weather, but I have noticed how tremendously much happier I am in the sun and heat. I guess I should find a job in Africa or Central America to keep the spirits up. (only somewhat kidding)

I have noted to a few people that I have been under the weather (hardy har har) of late. Not sick, but low in spirits and not just because of the change in weather. In self-analysis, I'm realizing it's because I miss my friend. Dasha left last week to go to summer school up in the Netherlands. I hadn't really spent that kind of time with anyone since I left Madison. Almost all of my colleagues in school in Paris were friends, but we were working so hard night and day (well, I was) that I didn't have one or two people with whom I spent much time. For nearly two months here I worked with Dasha, went out on the weekends with her, spent nights with her. It was very interesting how quickly we gravitated to each other. Her face in slight features kind of reminded me of photos of my sister when she was a kid - long straight hair, rounder face and warm eyes. We have so much in common, too.

So, when I went to bed the other night, after a nice meal with the flatmate and her friends, I laid there wondering what was wrong with me. I have felt so happy for weeks and weeks. All that surfaced was "Something is missing." I hadn't felt that longing, homesickness (for a person), or minor emptiness in a long time. It was good to feel this. Life is full and diverse and it's not realistic to be happy 24-7 (nor is it healthy to be dependent or sad or angry or whatnot 24-7). I'm lucky to feel it all.

......................

More new photos - mostly in request from the colleague interns that I get the photos online of them, for them, and asap - you can find them in the "UNOG and intern friends" folder. We've had weekly good-bye parties for interns as they depart their internship and go wherever next. I am so thrilled to have made good friends in such a short time. So proud to know such an amazing array of people from all over the world, who are ambitious, smart, funny, and kind people. I've never spent much time with people from Central Asia or Russia, especially during a critical period of international activity. We have discussed the culture of the USA (including the more patriotic side of things from the point of view of an intern who is Russian-born, American by choice versus my more critical point of view as someone who is American by birth, world-traveller by choice). We have taught each other new languages. We have suffered heartbreak, found new jobs, had interviews, shared food, met each others' friends, and laughed so much together. I think that this is the strongest point of the internship. I might not have networked myself to the perfect job after graduation, but I can rest assured that I have made good friends who might one day end up working with me - or me for them!

.................
oh, and there's a ton of new videos from Italy up on youtube/larauk05

Who is the man that would risk his neck for his brother man?

(Shaft!)

As a friend wrote, big props to Bernie Mac and Issac Hayes.

#############

What you don't know by yourself, you don't know.

--Socrates

#############

Things have been somber lately. I work in an office with four Russian women and down the hall, a Macedonian, a couple of French, an Argentine, a couple of Italians, and a Georgian. We have been watching so much different worldly news, and feeling so many conflicts.

One of my Russian friends commented that she was thinking about how biased the media in both of the countries are (Russia, Georgia). I replied "RE: media bias in both countries (all countries for that matter)...

Reading a book on Gilles de Rais. In 1420, a war between two families in France, '...it was decided that [the] immediate task was to raise an army of 50,000 men. This is an enormous figure for the period and probably represents wishful thinking rather than fact. It was common practice in the Chronicles of the time to exaggerate the number of soldiers involved in any engagement and to falsify casualty lists in in favour of whichever side one happened to be writing for. Everyone knew and nobody cared.'

Seems we haven't come very far in 600 years."

The Georgian colleague and I spoke at length and her family is living near one of the many places that has been bombed.

It seems we don't get very far at all in the history of days, and our histories are written by bias, and our memories fail us.

#############

I'm also having a fascinating debate on Facebook about the Edwards scandal. Some have called this an exceptional event, while I see no difference from any other sordid political/sex revelation. I'm not even very interested in retelling the commentary here. What I will note is that I'm terribly curious about the way different cultures view their political leaders and their private lives. Some holding them in high esteem close to messiahs, while others separate the leadership of constituents from the bedroom antics.

#############

A piece of a conversation with a friend today:

We should be our own best friends and we should find happiness through ourselves. It is a blessing to be able to share that with another person... To have strength and stability (as much as is possible in this difficult world), and then share that with someone, instead of feeding off of their contentment to boost ours.

Regarding being what we really are.. I was talking to someone about this recently. For the life of me, I cannot remember which philosopher or writer, but a guy I read while studying in Spain, wrote a poignant piece about the harmful effects of denying one's "calling." When we are supposed to be mechanics, we can only be bankers for so long before our misery drives us insane (insert whichever career or way of living or whatever). If we are close to our soul/spirit/energy/mind, we can hear our future calling to us. Suppressing that voice, repressing the core desires of our purpose on earth (in this body, at this time, in this country, with these talents) will only lead to our own suffering, not to mention an injustice to the world and to history. This is the ultimate fight of every person. To be aware of it, and to live as one should, the way that is written by you and not by society or family or church, that is the ultimate power and the biggest everyday challenge.

Socrates was very, very correct. And, even when you know it by yourself, the hard task is to recognize it every day.

#############

As for me, all I know is that I know nothing. - Socrates

The Biggest Issue

NYT Op-Ed by David Brooks

Really interesting.

"Why did the United States become the leading economic power of the 20th century? The best short answer is that a ferocious belief that people have the power to transform their own lives gave Americans an unparalleled commitment to education, hard work and economic freedom."



As I told the friend who forwarded it to me:
Wow. Thank you so much for sharing this.

I don't fully agree with the pessimistic, condemning decision that "By 5, it is possible to predict, with depressing accuracy, who will complete high school and college and who won't." But I wholly agree that USA's increasing protectionism against globalization is the wrong direction, and that education leading to innovation and increasing human capital is the right one. Let's hope that Obama can use the latter while campaigning more than the former, too. The world out here is exhibiting concern over our reactionary defensiveness, and it doesn't bode well for our people.

Spasiba muchisimo.