Strangely enough, this is inspired by P!nk's song, "Dear Mr. President".  I really liked that song because it put into verse what a lot of people were thinking throughout the entire Bush Administration.  Unlike her earlier stuff (which was more pop-princess-like than anything), this poignant, soft song (with the Indigo Girls) was brimming with rage and sadness.  The best part about it was that it followed the trend of Green Day's "American Idiot" as well as other albums in terms of confronting the state of the country. They harnessed the anger of the majority of the American public--if not the youth of this country.

But I digress.  Ever since I first heard P!nk's song, I had wanted to write a list of questions I would ask the President Bush.  And, like the end of her song, I know he'll never walk with me.  However, it feels good to put these inquiries out there in terms of discussion.

Let's face it.  The Bush Administration is in short supply of a lot of things.  Honesty doesn't dwell there.  Forthrightness doesn't make itself home as well.  Generosity has danced a jig out of there.  And of course, empathy is all but non-existent.  

What of justice?  It is long coming, slowly dripping out of the fountain of transparency.  And on its precipice, the public awaits some relief from the long train of offenses that have occurred without any type of redress.

It makes one wonder whether this is nothing but dark times in America where hubris is king and arrogance is his scepter.

Last night's diary on Dr. Condoleeza Rice courting the McCain camp for the Vice-Presidential nominee was a learning experience to say the least. Despite the discussion centering on her career as both an academic and a governmental official, it unleashed deeper questions that I reflected upon about her legacy, actions and history as the first Black woman Secretary of State during the day.

I also spent my time musing about race, social agency and how it crops up in every discussion whether one knows it or not.

During my daily perusal of political sites, I came across an interesting tidbit that has made the rounds.  Dr. Rice, The Devil's Handmaiden, is courting Republican Nominee John McCain to be included on his Presidential ticket as Vice-President. Although the former Stanford University Provost has been known as unflappable, intelligent, and highly gifted, this pick still reeks of the far reach of Mr. Bush's hand if it were to be so.

Crooks and Liars has the lowdown. Even before Mr. McCain was ever named a possible nominee for President, there has been groups which urged Dr. Rice to run.  Except, during those times, she had politely refused.

I guess power, as they say, is a great seducer.  

Although this election cycle has produced many issues, one that I've been thinking about since the 40th anniversary of Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King's assassination has been the notion of the hero. Witnessing the tragedy and the corruption of the Bush years, I find that heroes are in short supply.

And although a lot of lip service is spent in the media about what makes a hero and what doesn't, I find that the people who have real courage are often overlooked while those who have little to no merits to be one are lauded and celebrated.  It is enough to make someone ill by the way the network and cable news outlets vomit out who is a hero every other day.

It's getting to the point that the notion of the hero is getting meaningless.  Believe me, I don't want to see it that way.  I desperately want someone in public life that I can admire without feeling let down.

Commemorating the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the lessons I've learned is that we must put his ideas and words to practice.  My contribution to the humble, yet eloquent leader is dismantling a word that promotes more war instead of peace: the notion of the "homeland".

This is a word that is problematic and loaded, historically, polemically and nationally.  It is a word that has been bandied about by the Bush Administration as a rallying cry for patriotism.  And, it has even spawned a new agency sporting its name.  The name of that agency (the Department of Homeland Security) continues the ugly legacy that even extends into the Orwellian nightmare in which group-think is the order of the day. The use of such a name contributes to the xenophobia and paranoia that has run rampant in this country.

The only way to walk toward a time of peace is to take away the words which spawn and support the ugliness of war and hatred.  If there was any word that demonstrates it, "homeland" does it for me.

Most recently, the ACLU went to bat against the government in order to get the Yoo Torture Memos released to the public.  And once it was, it became quite a read. It was once said that if the public knew half the things that the government was doing to screw them, they would have a revolutionary riot in the streets.  That is why it is very important for all of us to be informed about what is being conducted in our name.

Yes, the stakes are very high November 2008.  We've got to deal with Supreme Court nominees, the aftermath of the Iraq War, the financial crisis and the clean-up of corruption.  We also have a society on our hands that is emotionally numb through too much tragedy while being wised up about how our trust has been used by Bush Administration.

In listening to the Hardball College series with Barack Obama tonight, I thought really deeply about what we need in a leader.

On the Thursday, March 20, 2008 diary, I had placed a poll based on racial attitudes (which is still open as far as I know.  Folks, please do take it if you have a chance) of the public of DKos.  Even though the results were fascinating over all, there were two questions on that particular survey that truly caused me to take a step back:

1. people of color should stop complaining about race - 3%

2. people of color should express themselves more about race- no votes

No one voted for people of color to express themselves more.  Fascinating and sad at the same time, such lack of encouragement for us to speak is right on par with how race-relations is conducted in America.

I would have resigned myself to the usual afterglow of watching a night of enthralling, hard-hitting Basketball games under the wire in which six and seven footers collaspe at the end either from emotional defeat or the utmost elation. Yet, there was one other thing that also lingered in my thoughts the entire day.  

It began with reading the rotten and rather pejorative words of MSNBC pundit Patrick Buchanan from his vitriolic "A Brief for Whitey".  

I've read quite a plethora of different texts since I was knee high to a grasshopper. But this one truly broke the mold in terms of its content.  For it to be on not only the national stage (if not an international one) only showed that even with two steps forward in terms of racial progress, society takes two steps back.

Lewis H. Lapham said something fascinating about the motivations of the current Presidency:

"What the Bush administration is primarily interested in is regime change in the United States, not regime change in Iraq or South East Asia or the Balkans. A foreign war is a wonderful lollipop to stuff in the mouth of a possibly quarrelsome press."

----Lewis H. Lapham

Along those lines, it seems that our culture, speech, actions and social interactions changed overnight since the toppling of the Twin Towers and the fire at the Pentagon.  From what was once a vibrant and rather carefree sort of existence, then came a dark gloom that hovered over the American landscape.  In this hushed fog, a bizarre circus of the current Administration using bizarro logic became the order of the day.

A lot of explanations could be made, but for this diary it all comes down to semantics. And it says a lot about how they affected us in a time of crisis.

Let me tell you a few things.  I am very glad that Senator Barack Obama had the guts to address issues of race in this country.  It is far better than the canned and false sympathy-laden statements Mr. Bush uttered (with a smirk) all through his "tenure" as President of the United States.

One thing, however, needs to be pointed out.

Mr. Obama had touched upon many of the racial attitudes that have been lingering over the years. It touched upon the taboo that "everyone knows" but does not speak. His forthright candor translated into many wonderful writings here and elsewhere in a heartening, relevant and inspiring manner.  However, there are still those who think that "race should not be discussed" and that Mr Obama "should not bring this up any more".

Although this is a day of remembrance when "shock and awe" kicked off one of the most exasperating, horrible and heart-wrenching era in American policy, it is apt to remember the precursor (if not instigator) of a United States society held under the pressure from Post Traumatic Shock Disorder.  

War is hell, yes.  But fear is a mean mother.  And the current Administration has perfected its tools of deterrence, suppression and hinderance by honing the nature of being scared in all the right places.

I have to admit to you something: this topic wasn't my original diary for tonight.  But, as I was combing around the Internet and reading my usual news outlets, I picked up on this news.  Now this might have been announced.  Or you already probably know.  But since I try to go out of my way not to watch FOX news, this tidbit popped into my lap today. It proceeded to shock (if not repulse) me ever since.

Yes.  If you haven't already heard, Mr. Rove has a new job. Oh no.  Not that job with Senator John McCain.  That's moonlighting work.  The other job: as a "consultant" on FOX News.

Yes, you heard right.  There's no wax in your ears.

 As much as I have studied the candidates in this current election, I've found that you can never have too much information.  This is especially true when there are books that are published in order to shed a little light on the stances of particular persons running in political races.

Late last fall, I had bought such a book about Senator Barack Obama, called Barack Obama: In His Own Words (2007).  I think it is a good resource for people who are interested in actually reading what Mr. Obama says instead of hearing other sources interpret his words.  Especially after the latest attempts by the MSM to distort his record, abilities and his speeches, it is always nice to go back to check what he says in order to see if they apply to one's principles and ideals.

After all, this election cycle is the most important in an age. And as my mom says, to be forewarned is to be forearmed.

The notion of anger and its productiveness has been part of the American discourse for the last few weeks after three little words hit the MSM with a force to be reckoned with.  The words of Rev. Jeremiah Wright had been played, replayed, edited, (rarely) dissected, denounced, rejected, and talked to death.  It has been chatted up so much that those three words of damning America has been on the minds and the lips of many a soul.

It is high time to cast off the shackles of repression.  Maybe we ought to say, "God damn."  Too much has been done in the public eye for us to stay silent.  Quite a deal more has been inflicted on the American landscape that would convince the most gentle soul that gentility and kindness is dead and gone.  When people are losing their homes, continually facing discrimination, seeing their jobs go overseas, not getting affordable healthcare and watching their loved ones die in a war based on lies, yes, it is time to say, "God damn."

I have waited seven long years to be enthusiastic again.  Since 2000, it seemed like a long drought in which there was no way to quench one's thirst.  It was almost unbearable to watch the State of the Union as well as the countless fallacies which scarred America as a nation.  Most succinctly, the Bush 43 years reflected an age of cynicism and malaise which seemed to spiral upon itself as each new event came across the nightly news.

Even worse, the fear of self-expression and dissent seemed to loom over everyone I knew.  After 9/11, it was nothing but a cacophony of warnings to stay quiet and alert.  And even ridiculously enough, to pay attention to the glowing color alerts from the government.  With the continuous tales spun in the media about the threat of terror which continued to be repeated by people who were taken in hook, line and sinker, the days stretched on even more drearier than before.

Now that 2008 has been launched, I wonder whether we, as a country, have the wherewithal to choose a path of change.

Although I am more of a reader and commenter than a diary writer here,  I became inspired by a few entries to contribute something near and dear to my heart.  I love to talk about culture, society and people.  Yet, sometimes, when embarking on this subject, it is frought with voices who put up the road-blocks to understanding.  Instead of empathy, antipathy occurs.  It is disheartening to find people "sick and tired of race" when race and gender is a participant in all social relations, laws, behaviors, and institutions in society.  We cannot stop "talking about race".  It has even affected our history in which we still experience the deep repercussions.