By Judith Gayle | Political Waves
Many an individual has turned from the mean, personal, acquisitive point of view to one that sees society as a whole and works for its benefit. If there has been such a change in one person, there can be the same change in many.
–Mahatma Gandhi
I slept restlessly on Thursday night as welcome but dangerous thunder storms moved through the Pea Patch. Each time I opened my eyes to peek at the clock, I heard the same phrase echo in my mind: Si, su pueda. Yes, we can — words that have no doubt struck terror into the hearts of countless Republicans yet again, and for damned good reason.
Shortly after Obama’s acceptance speech, I caught Karl Rove on FOX News holding up a white-board of hastily scribbled talking points and assuring the faithful that he couldn’t understand how ANYone could buy all the lies and misrepresentations of the ‘Democrat’ party, but even a casual observer could sense his anxiety, see the veins popping out on his forehead. He was working harder than a one-legged man in a tap-dancing contest.
It was not my intention to write a Dem bookend to last week’s Pub convention piece, but so much for that. Early in the week, I decided that most of you who were interested in an actual American future would be looking in on what the left had to say, given the gravitas of this election. I suspected, pre-convention, that I would enjoy it, simply because I am happily engaged when someone ‘speaks my language,’ and I’ve never watched a Dem convention that didn’t ring a few populist bells to keep the natives dancing. Reviewing the roster of speakers, I knew I would be moved, inspired and encouraged, and assumed that if you watched, dear reader, the experience of what is traditionally part propaganda, part pep rally would be self-defining. I lifted my eyes to heaven in hope that Obama would give us a glimpse of his progressivism rather than his pragmatism, turned my TV to C-SPAN and cleared the decks for three nights of political dialogue.
What I didn’t figure on was the collective emotional tug of liberal aspiration. We don’t hear it much, these days, but it used to be part of our self-definition as citizens. Not to put too fine a point on it, I heard the language of “we” again, inspiring stories of those who dream and accomplish not just for themselves, but for everyone else as well. I didn’t make it through the first night dry-eyed, and wept my way through the next two. Did the Pubs get that same emotional zap, hearing those who argued for more prosperity and the end of evil free-loaders who want to raid their piggy banks? Does the language of “me, me, me” move its listeners to tears of yearning and empathy, or does it encourage them to take up the blood-sport of eliminating those impeding their progress?
I wish I knew. I don’t want to widen the breach between the parties with idle speculation and create more divide between me and my neighbor, but I can’t get a sense of their innermost emotion, overlaid as it is by that dark blanket of fear and paranoia, of perceived victimization orchestrated and nurtured by their party leaders. And just as this election could not draw clearer lines about the philosophies that will lead us into the future, there couldn’t have been more difference between these two conventions.
Oh, both political conventions were slick enough, infotainment wedded to stagecraft. This is the traditional tribute to public governance and democratic underpinnings, held every four years to prove that we, the people, are still in charge of our own republic. Many of us know how diluted that influence has become, how stilted the notion that our votes count or that they will even be accurately tallied in a system no longer accountable to provide the iconic “life, liberty and pursuit of happiness” we value so much. There is every indication that the very plutocracy we now recognize all around us controls all but the most minute details of our lives, perhaps even them; that we’re becoming a more authoritarian state by the day, our police more brutal, our liberties eroded, our opportunity stifled. We have immense challenges that seem unsolvable — but we have to start somewhere, assessing where we are by stopping to look at where our feet are planted.
That first step, that “somewhere,” occurs at these conventions, where we get a sense of our options and the intention of our leaders. This year, much like the last dramatic cultural divide we faced in the 1960’s, our choices are stark. It’s not much of a stretch to select a side, and we’ve been told that the votes up for grabs are miniscule, which is not good news in a race so tight. But the Pub convention did not move the needle. It fell flat, even among its own. Reports that Eastwood’s talk with the vacant chair was the highpoint of the multi-million dollar Pub spectacle are remarkable, given Romney’s supposed track record at rescuing troubled events from obscurity. There seems little or nothing this man or his minions can do to make him likeable, with no bounce from his selection of stalking horse, “lyin’ Ryan,” or new converts to his business-friendly policy.
We don’t know if Obama will get bounce from his event, but he put a bit of it in my step for a day or two. What happened in Charlotte this week was like an all-star game of my favorite sport. Day after day, speakers followed one after another with their little piece of the political puzzle, and it became clear early on how different this convention was from any we’d seen before, not just this year, but ever. This was the most full-throated progressive “do” I remember, with GLTB people wrapped in rainbow flags, women proudly proclaiming choice, Muslim Dems and Sikhs waving placards, large numbers of Latinos supporting the ticket, including young Dreamers who fall under the Presidents’ recent umbrella of tolerance. Outshining even the traditional tapestry of political conventions, this was the brightest, most dazzling collection of diverse colors, shapes and interests I’ve seen collected in one room since Obama’s inauguration.
On C-SPAN, without commercials, speakers flowed into one another much like a slide show. I was treated to moving moments like the one in which a young woman praised Obamacare for the life-saving treatment of her little girl, tightly holding her hand on stage while her husband stood by with a toddler in his arms, and the delighted face of a beaming Gabrielle Giffords, haltingly led on stage by her friend and colleague, Debbi Wasserman-Schultz, to lead the convention in an enthusiastic Pledge Of Allegiance. The applause was deafening.
Different aspects of progressive consciousness were addressed: by a ‘Nun On The Bus‘ assuring us we ARE our brother’s/sister’s keeper, gently demanding a compassionate budget; by the lovely young woman that Rush Limbaugh called a slut assuring us that the Dems are the only party respectful of women’s rights, and the only hindrance to the Republican obsession with a return to a regressive past; by the Cuban-American journalist known as the Spanish ‘Oprah,’ urging her millions of viewers to renew the Dem mantra, “Yes, we can!” We were treated to Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick, thundering down at us from the podium to “get a spine” and walk the progressive walk. We stood when Elizabeth Warren assured us that we must change a game that is rigged against us, and that corporations — despite Romeny’s claim — are NOT people.
Still, these four long years of two-steps-forward, one-back had taken a toll on us all. It never seemed far from mind that all that had been painstakingly achieved could be rolled back in the blink of an eye. When Obama told a reporter that his “grade” for his first term had to be an “incomplete,” the Pubs shouted with glee and ran with it. Poor guy just couldn’t do it, they said, couldn’t make the grade, couldn’t plug the leak or fix the plumbing. A failed president, they said.
But others said it was THEIR fault Obama failed to press forward, shamefully overusing filibuster and then using the agenda-setting power of the House to block all forward motion. Chris Matthews said it best this time, and in something of a loud televised snit, bless him: “For them to criticize the Democrats after leaving this country in hell, and then to come back and to claim it isn’t heaven, is insane.” Well, yes, but then again, nobody has accused the Republicans of rock-solid sanity for over a decade now.
It was the job of this convention to affirm what had been accomplished in the last four years and make the case for its continuance. Because Obama was the “decider,” as it were, the Pubs had managed to weaken his brand, his ability to make good decisions suspect by even some in the middle. So, while the Pub convention was an exercise in amnesia, never mentioning the little Bush that took us to the cliff, Obama’s convention became an exercise in defending the last four years and, given the spin-factor, turning it into a plus.
On the first day, Michelle spoke for her husband’s heart and populist instincts. On the next night, Big Dog Bill Clinton spoke reassuringly of his policies and political savvy, pushing back Pub obfuscation on several points they had gained traction misrepresenting. On the night of the nomination, Joe spoke for Obama’s character and his political courage. All three speeches were touted as barn burners. By the time Barack was called upon to make his speech, most everything had been said and his speech was declared only adequate; on the other hand, an Obama “adequate” is equal to several “astoundings” from other speakers. He made his case.
I’m glad I watched the convention and I’m glad I decided to write about it. We can’t afford avoidance and discouragement. I’m glad I allowed my thoughts to be led along the path of populism, my eyes to shed tears of inclusion, empathy and compassion, my heart to blast cynicism away with an opening to collaboration, tolerance and acceptance. I’m pleased that I allowed myself to be touched by the delightful flavors of diversity and youth, a signature completely missing from the Republican convention floor. We haven’t taken time to celebrate so much change in these last years! To even note it! We’ve already ‘moved past’ so many of the things that seem ‘new’ this year but resonate as old in our soul — like loving whom we will, like lifting one another up, like expecting fairness and decent wages not as some reward for our performance but because of our mutual human experience, like bending in service to “the least of these” because it’s the RIGHT thing, if not the easiest. Change has brought us far — have we noticed?
If the last years have given us anything, it’s a sure sense of stagecraft, of theatrical anticipation. Nothing that happened at the Democratic Convention was a surprise, except perhaps the earthquake that opened Wednesday’s schedule, when a voice vote was called to approve an addition to the Democratic platform. There was just a skeleton crew in the hall, a handful of delegates filtering in as Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa proposed the addition of a specific reference to “God” and “Jerusalem as the capital of Israel” to the political platform. He took a voice vote for the addition, and then repeated it. The first two votes were loudly in favor of REJECTING the proposal. Calling for a third, with only slightly less difference in volume, he called for inclusion — and the camera panned to voters looking at one another and shaking their heads.
I don’t believe this was a rejection of the word God. It was a rejection of Zionism in no uncertain terms. Obama had called for the revised language, no doubt hoping to avoid ill feeling from AIPAC or bullshit from Romney’s camp on the eve of a difficult election. Villaraigosa was caught between a rock and a hard spot. It was not a pretty moment, but it was telling. Watching it with my son, I mentioned that we’d seen the quake, the tsunami would follow, and it will. As Gawd is their trump card to all things “secular” and “liberal,” we will hear of this again — we unwashed, baby-killing hippies, Gawdless miscreants on the left. This progressive sentiment to be fair arbiters of a Palestine/Israeli peace process was a stumble in the right direction, but a stumble, still, and the only surprise. At least nobody talked to a chair.
Obama didn’t tell us a lot about what he wanted to do with the next four years, except complete the projects started in the first four. He DID however, speak to climate change: the first mention in the entirety of this campaign. Let me recommend a read by old yippie activist Tom Hayden that speaks in reasonable tones about Obama’s political realities. There are some hints there about what to expect, how we can advocate for a more progressive outcome. Remember, as well, that as Obama himself indicated in his speech, WE are the change, WE are the hope. As such, WE are the future and we will decide all this together, much as we do each day, here at Political Waves and in other websites asking for mind and heart to work in tandem for our own person experience as well as our common good. They are always the same, those two; good to remember, in case there’s ever a question.
If you’re a liberal and you watched the Dem convention, then you probably got a little battery recharge. Where we want to go in this nation is not alien to Obama, who too often chooses the Establishment’s way forward. It’s not airy-fairy dreams that we conjure together, our desires represent actual political realities that can only be established if we come together to MAKE them happen. Obama knows this reality, and in his heart of hearts I think he approves it, but when pushing ahead is a hard slog only to move the ball inches, watching it sail over the goal posts seems very far away. Making a better world happen will take heart and courage.
Each of us is beginning to close in on the truth: our own. We’ll vote that truth in November as a matter of consciousness. Some are voting for Romney because their pastor told them to, or because the other guy is black. Neither of those reasons really has much to do with us. Some are voting for the incumbent because the possibility of handing over the shrinking middle-class and the struggling lower-class to a man with no appreciation for our respective realities seems unthinkable and in so doing, at least behaving with some caution in a dangerous time. Some are just biding time until the whole world explodes in chaotic need of food, water, sustainable resources and — if you will forgive the candor — that’s not only foolhardy, it’s selfish. None of these actions show authenticity. None of these lead us to passionate action.
Heart and courage are why we came here to this planet. It’s why we step up to be the one lending a hand, the one feeling what others refuse to feel, the one speaking for those with no voice. It takes considerable courage to live the advice our hearts give us because we are the few, listening to that quiet voice. We do not behave in character with others around us, who don’t understand why the callous maneuvering of the greedy and mean-spirited affects us so profoundly. They are as yet unable to put themselves in another’s shoes, empathize with the plight of others, and that is what the two conventions showed: the choice between living in a world where the takers win, or the inclusive world we want to make for all the citizens of the world.
Here’s your take-away. We are so evenly divided, in this nation, and every day someone surprises us by changing their mind. So many of us see the real danger of our inhumanity to one another, now. Take comfort that exposing the darkness hastens the Light!
Everything we see, everything we do these days is refining and redirecting energy, bit by bit, that adds up to more than the sum of its parts. We serve the whole by our willingness to take on these small, difficult feelings and challenges. Who knows? One random feeling, accepted, understood, experienced and released may be the last small piece that breaks the back of a cabal of dark workers half-way across the world, suddenly aware that their selfishness is a form of suicide. Each kindness extended, each exhaled disappointment followed by a deep breath of renewed intention changes our own world, and that of everyone around us. Each little sliver of Light that we usher into this plane changes every possibility for good.
Gandhi tells us that if one person can change, so can others. The theory of the Hundredth Monkey tells us that when that last pivotal individual changes, everyone else will too. What if just one change of mind today — provoked by one extended kindness or one act of forgiveness, one hand extended or criticism swallowed — was that very last thing we were all awaiting? What if our one little piece was the last before the Shift?
What if you woke up one morning and heard the voice that whispered, “Si, su pueda”? Yes, we can. Would you put aside your discouragement and disappointment in the slow, difficult politics of this century? Could you bring your best to the hour, the day, the week? Then let me be that voice, encouraging you past your weariness and despair. For what is better, kinder, more functional and compassionate to each of us on this lovely planet — for what is infinitely larger than the sum of its parts — remember: Yes! We can!
I encourage anyone interested to read William Rivers Pitt’s article on Truthout.org about the two conventions. A real reality check.
Thank you for your feedback Judith and for mentioning Bernie.
As a Vermonter I have met Bernie on several occations and am known in his office by name. It’s easy when there are only 600,000 people in the whole state.
The morning I first learned of the massive purchase of bullets by Homeland Security I was on the phone to Bernie’s office at 8 a.m. and had a lengthy conversation with his assistant Harper. Bernie, as you know, is a Progressive who caucuses with the Democrats. He is, in my opinion, the best we have in the US Senate and is a member of a third party. I am a registered Democrat but had Ron Paul been on the ticket I most likely would have voted for him. I, too, like Jill Stein and what is happening with the Green Party. It would be great to make room for other parties with the two we have. Competition is healthy.
We are accompanying each other on our journey here on planet Earth to hopefully support and encourage while growing spiritually ourselves. At what point do we reach the end of violence so consciousness can flower? At what point is there enough for everyone? At what point is technology that already exists released because it is the right thing to do rather than keep existing corporations and the elite content and refusing transition?
Another Nobel Prize winner, Harold Pinter, used his acceptance speech in 2005 to point a finger at America. It is a stunning indictment and a wake up call that we as Americans choose not to pay attention to. Take a look at the photos of human birth defects in Iraqi and Afghanistan children from the dirty bombs Bush and Obama have and continue to drop. As Americans we are morally responsible and karmically tied to the actions of those we elect. It is not a matter I can take lightly.
Would Barak Obama have been elected if his name was still Barry S. instead of Barak O.? It”s an interesting question and I suspect it has entered the minds of many at PW. It’s a big deal esoterically to change one’s name. And of course it ties in the whole Lord of the Rings trilogy in terms of dark and light.
For the past eleven years we have been bombarded with
O S A M A B I N L A D I N
And the antidote is:
O B A M A. B I D E N
The synchronicity cannot be overlooked. It is rather stunning.
I will not address the throwing of Bin Laden’s body overboard. We were not able to bring Bin Laden to justice and let him stand trial as we did with Saddam. Isn’t that what America is based on?
A N D J U S T I C E. F O R
A L L
Change will come, it has to. It will come person to person, community to community.
Television is a form of entertainment. So are books like TLOTR (which I love by the way.). Reality is what is happening as we grab up oil and opium in other peoples’ backyards. It is not pretty and magical thinking will not take it away. I am 56 years old and have experienced the entire enchilada. In looking reality squarely in the eye I have been able to find center.
It was the biggest gift of my life.
Beautiful, Jude, thak you!
Thanks for adding your voice today, miaferoleto. I too have little patience with commercials, which is why I prefer to watch politics on still-reliable and commercial-less C-SPAN (cable-satellite public affairs network.)
I was very pleased at the candor of John Lewis at the convention, although he caught Hell on the other side of his comments on racism from (even racially diverse) groups on the Right, insisting that the “race card” is anachronistic to these times — clearly not, from what I see. But then, the Pubs have never been comfortable with “nuance” … tracking bias from the overt-style we can’t miss to the less-obvious covert behaviors we endure today takes more patience and vision than they have (or want, whichever comes first.)
Rocky Anderson in an interesting candidate — and I very much like Dr. Jill Stein and Cheri Honkala from the Green Party, both given the spotlight by Moyers today. Here’s the link, in case you missed it:
http://billmoyers.com/segment/jill-stein-and-cheri-honkala-on-third-party-politics/
My title this week — the sum of these many diverse and reality-shaking parts bombarding us on a daily basis — is akin to your comment, “the power of an idea whose time has come.” As be mentioned, it described the convention and I think it also describes these times we’re living in, newly-discovered truth’s and disillusionments awakening us to what no longer serves. Powerful and complex.
Ah, well — as dire as all this often seems, as much an epic battle as Brendan and Gary intuit it to be, as discouraging as it is that we have found no perfect leader that meets all of our ethical desires and political wishes, I most often find myself enlarging my perspective beyond the specifics of all that’s wrong, taking comfort in all that’s right.
As Ram Dass says, “We’re all just walking each other home.”
In epic terms, it does still feel like The Ring’s the thing, Gary and Brendan — although we’re not as shocked now as we were when Dubby went after The Precious! That really was a blindside of a power grab we’re still digging out from. We’re not even close to that last big epic battle, but at least we know that we’re in a struggle between darkness and Light. That took decades to discover!
I’ve lost some friends too, GaryB, but even as that feels sad, it also feels like we’re lightening the load, somehow, looking to link arms. Life is not so vanilla as it used to be, I guess, and certainly it’s instructive to look around you and see who stands WITH you, as opposed to against you. Occasionally, we may find ourselves in the wrong line.
Thanks for lending me luck, Brendan — it served me well, assisting me to dodge all bad looks and hex-signs cast my way. There was only one verbal altercation this time, and I missed most of it, passing out Obama buttons and others that say, “When women vote, Democrats win!” All in all, we had a good deal MORE action at our booth than usual this year … I take that as an encouraging sign!
Thank you, be, for filling in the blanks for us. I enjoyed the Arroyo quote. A friend of mine went to him for a reading “back in the day,” we were both very impacted by his way of seeing astrology. That was when humanistic astrology was a mere fledgling, only recently hatched from the inflexible traditional interpretations, still a bit heretic. Sometimes I think that very awareness — how things move slowly but they DO DEPENDABLY MOVE — is one of the most important perspectives informing my attitudes. It takes a good bit of time on the planet to get that sense.
I really appreciate your thoughtful take on the “bigger picture,” be (and you always give me my Rudhyar fix!!) Interesting that Barack and Mitt so closely connect in Scorp — two sides of a coin, perhaps? And I love this bit of wisdom, regarding Mitt’s purpose: “… maybe he came to this planet to serve in another way.” Yes, yes. Seems to me that dim and grinning Mitt is our guru of moment, much as Dubby shook so many of us awake. Each of these shadow-side teachers give us opportunity not only to awaken to what does not serve us in pragmatic terms, but (if we’re watching our own response and process) give us fodder for spiritual and ethical growth.
For a long time Dubby was “the enemy,” now it’s Mitt although if we’re honest, the real danger is the mindless consumerism that is used to keep the masses sedated. That used to be religion; now it’s “stuff.” I find it difficult to think of Mitt in the hierarchy of the Dark Side … more likely a pawn from the ranks of the Dim Side. Still, we’re only just now noticing the holes in Establishment politics, squirming to make enough wiggle room for a genuine populist toe-hold. Clearly — to me, anyhow — our ability to find a platform for such wiggles and struggles is dependent on the outcome of this election. This isn’t a time for detours!
While Romney isn’t a pimple on Sauron’s ass, he is — and always will be — emblematic of the 1/2 of 1% that has slowly eroded government intended for and by the people for the last thirty years, lobbying it into self-enrichment and profit while creating the shameful process that left the bottom 60% of our citizens with less than 2% of the nations wealth. If George was the darling of the Neo-cons, then Mitt is the plaything of the privileged. Now that we’ve awakened to the dangers of American imperialism, I guess we need a good dose of predatory capitalism to turn us sour on this pecking order. As Bernie Sanders puts it, “Fraud is the business model for Wall Street,” and those money interests own all but the fringe elements of our democratic process. We cannot change that unless we have a process to do so … and if the Pubs win this election, major portions of that process disappear for another 4 years.
Speaking of Bernie, he was on Moyers today, telling truth and breathing fire, you can … and should … watch it here:
http://www.commondreams.org/video/2012/09/08
Hug hug hug to you dearhearts!
Since I do not own a television and prefer to avoid the seduction of glamour associated with celebrity, I tend to read a speech rather than watch a person deliver one. Each letter contains energy and the assembly of letters into words have a vibration, tone and power. I suspect that since you are reading PW you are aware of that fact. I find the purity of the written word helpful and clearer for my intution to discern the true message.
In addition, I have no patience for commercials.
Four years ago Barak Obama received my unconditional support. I tuned in to his campaign on an almost hourly basis to send my thoughts and prayers in his direction. At this moment in time I am conflicted about the idea of voting for him. I cannot support the NDAA, the purchase of almost a billion bullets by Homeland Security, the increase in drone warfare and countless other activities our country is currently engaged in.
Marine Brandon Raub was taken by police and FBI from his home in handcuffs and no shirt because he posted on his Facebook page that he thought 9 – 11 was an inside job. If not for Veterans Today Senior Editor Gordon Duff and countless others Brandon would still be sitting in a psychiatric ward at a VA hospital. 6500 veterans are committing suicide each year. Where is our support for them?
Last weekend I went to see 2016: Obama’s America. I sat there chuckling because some of the key objections against Obama were things I approve of: anti-colonialism – we need to allow citizens of other countries to benefit from their own natural resources. Obama is in favor of reducing nuclear arms. So am I. He, however, won a Nobel Peace Prize which he might consider returning based on some of his activities. When recently interviewed in Ohio he would not confirm or deny the existence of his “kill list” written about on the front page of the NY Times.
Make no mistake. In no way am I supporting a candidate with off shore bank accounts who refuses to release his tax returns. But, is this the very best we have to offer?
Obama had a democratic majority his first two years in office and more than that, he had the good will of virtually the entire world. What has he done with it? Has he used it wisely?
For me the inclusion of John Lewis as a speaker was very moving. Although I read his speech I have watched him countless times in Eyes On the Prize: The History of Black America. Henry Hampton, the producer and creator of Eyes was a friend. His sister Veva was my oldest and closest friend who died of cancer in 2008 before she, as a Black woman, could see a Black man in the White House. Watching the actual documentary footage of the entire Civil Rights Movement is truly inspirational. Those times were certainly dark for millions of people but the Spirit was alive and well, flaming brightly.
It is a fact that Lyndon Johnson, certainly a member of the good ole boys white male club, did some surprisingly good things while in office fifty years ago, including signing the Civil Rights Bill. We have given over so very much to Barak Obama IN ADVANCE of seeing who he is and what he has accomplished. Why have we done that?
The power of an idea whose time had come.
It was time for America to elect a person of color. Bobby Kennedy predicted it forty years before it happened.
I have my own theory about Lyndon Johnson. He was surrounded by Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy who each provided a voice of conscience for him and a constant prod to do better, to in fact do what was morally right. Keep in mind those were the days before the media glut that surrounds us today.Information was not at our fingertips. I suspect the media was more free then than it is now.
In addition, Johnson grew up on John Wayne and the ideal that being a man required certain strengths and held obligations. Who, in Obama’s life, plays the role of Martin Luther King or Bobby Kennedy? I see no one. Not Michelle whose powder blue nail color, for me, was an indication of something a bit too glamour-centric, too Hunger Games. I could not help noticing it in her photos on the Huffington Post.
Do we really need to accept the lesser of two evils when it is clear this structure is not working? I am not saying that either men are evil but it is clearly time for a change. Wealth and power corrupt. Nancy Pelosi made over sixty million dollars last year. How did that happen?
Recently I read Obama supporters are purchasing a 35 million dollar estate for the Obama family in Hawaii. They are selling their Chicago home and moving in January. Or so the article said. It seemed a bit excessive to me. But so is a garage with elevators.
The thing that reassures me somewhat is that the awareness is rising globally. People worldwide are learning how to cooperate and work together. Perhaps they and we will be our real hope and change. In the meantime, none of us can afford to take things at face value. We need to look beneath the surface, do our own research and SHARE what we learn with each other. Information is power and we need to use it again as we did in the 1960’s.
Personally, I like Rocky Anderson. There is no way he will win but I believe what I have read so far.
Dang, GaryB, I hadn’t even read your post yet, and there you are going off on Bilbo and Frodo while I’m talking about Gandalf and Sauron. Hmmm, must be the lack of sleep last night…
Good luck, Jude!
If you’re recharged, I’m recharged! I didn’t get to see any of it actually, but I read about each day in turn, and found myself buoyed each morning (after) by what was said and done. Now, victory.
For what it’s worth, this morning I found myself framing this election year as a Gandalf versus Sauron fight, where life as we know it hangs in the balance, and the world either lives or dies. It would not truly be the end if Romron won, but we really don’t want the Orcs back now, do we?
You are so inspiring Jude, and you too GaryB! She’s got the right stuff and should have been on the podium, mike open at the Dem convention, for sure.
The Sun may be in Virgo these days but instead of looking at the details alone, these times must be accounted for via the broad, sweeping outer planet vantage points and other galactic influences too. Not the least is the present (transiting) north node of the Moon at the 29th, 28th and soon the 27th degree of Scorpio, the sign of transformation. In our last Solar Eclipse on May 20th, the asteroid Goddess Juno was located at 29 Scorpio and retrograde. Juno represents the principle of Relatedness. President Obama has 28+ Scorpio on his natal chart’s midheaven, and with his repeated emphasis on WE, he and his speech on Thursday night manifested this principle in words and spirit.
Gov. Romney also is tied to this north node Scorpio transit as his natal Moon and Jupiter are at 27+ Scorpio. So why does he not relate? Possibly he has before and will again, but right now he supports a different message. The North node in Scorpio and Romney’s Moon-Jupiter are sextile the U.S. natal (Sibly) Pluto at 27+ Capricorn, a much easier aspect to comply with than is the square aspect to the U.S. Moon at 27+ Aquarius which challenges him. Not everyone hears that quiet voice, although maybe he came to this planet to serve in another way.
In Astrology, Karma & Transformation, Stephen Arroyo says “That the trans-Saturnian planets are the symbols of cosmic (or galactic) forces which impel (and, in actual experience, often expel) the individual to grow and to join his consciousness with greater, more comprehensive forces of life is revealed in numerouss ways”. In 2007 and much of 2008, including the U.S. election day, transiting Pluto hovered around the astrological degree occupied by the Galactic Center, known for its powerful higher dimensional inspiration and influences. A fairly recent move (Jan 2011) into the 27+ degree of Sagittarius was important because the GC spends OVER 70 YEARS in one degree. The symbol for this new degree is “An Old Bridge Over A Beautiful Stream Is Still In Constant Use”. The Keynote for this degree given in Dane Rudhyar’s book, An Astrological Mandala, is: “The enduring elements in a society which reveal its ability to significantly link the genius of its individuals to the everyday needs of the collectivity.” This symbol is manifesting throughout all our planet’s countries, but nowhere more so than in the U.S.
In the Solar Eclipse chart where Juno was at 29+ Scorpio, the eclipsed Sun was at 0+ Gemini, as was the midpoint between Pluto and Saturn. This eclipse remains powerful today and is activated by Neptune’s transit back to 0+ Pisces to square it. The Sabian symbol for the eclipse’ degree is “A Glass-Bottomed Boat Reveals Undersea Wonders” and Rudhyar refers to it as “A New Dimension of Reality”. This degree has been aspected many, many times since then by personal planets as well as the transiting south node and transiting Jupiter who symbolizes Understanding.
Your title Jude, “The Sum Of Its Parts” so perfectly describes the convention. It also reveals the value of the considerable help that the Universe is providing through unseen, and for the most part, unknown and unconscious energies being supplied to all sentient beings, including Earth herself. We are in it together and we are not alone.
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Judith,
You could have/should have given this as a speech at the convention as it surely would have eclipsed Bill’s homerun. Definitely a walk off homer!!!! I am leaving many a former friendship behind over this election and that is sad but as Michelle said of Barack “the Presidency didn’t change the man it revealed him” and so it is too of our moral fiber during these times.
Thank you for the great words of comfort in our slog. It is seemingly impossible to comprehend that this race is razor thin. You could not, in your wildest dreams, have created a party that has has offended so many. I feel like I am living in a Lord of the Rings Trilogy with three more years of the UR/PL square to go. You go Bilbo and Frodo. Maybe our 2016 candidates!
According to Huffington, Obama got an immediate 7 point jump in the polls. THAT’s what we call “a bump,” Mr. Rove! As quickly as these things turn, that will likely fade soon enough, but it proves we’ve got wiggle room … and Mr. Romney DOES NOT!
I have to work at the Democrat’s booth at the local Fall Festival today — blessing the grumpy, milling opposition with a bright smile and a free button. Pray for me! I’ll check in later in the afternoon.