By Judith Gayle | Political Waves
It’s election year, a sure indicator being the recent run on weapons. The mythology that a Democrat in the White House will gather up all the guns as prelude to sucking our brains out through a tube, or similar nonsense, has been going on, decade after decade, since yer great-great-grandpappy toted his hog-leg with him to pick off varmints, human and otherwise. Besides gun-hysteria, there are other typical activities in preparation for possible switch of leadership, although if you talk to the old-timers, this year is something special.
To put a sharp point on it, this election year the rhetoric long ago crossed the line of acceptable speech. Candidate promises to relieve us of the horror of having that black guy in the White House are so unreasonable as to be sheer fantasy. While a certain amount of this is to be expected, we clearly lost our e-brake on ugly political hijinks back in 2010. It’s also apparent that the opposition party is having a bit of a nervous breakdown this year, babbling to itself within hearing distance of a worried nation.
With the hoopla of Super Tuesday behind us, Santorum, who is picking up speed among the Christocrats as a bona fide not-Mitt, still wants us to have many children, one for each sexual act, apparently. He isn’t so interested in feeding or educating them, though. I mean, wasn’t it Jesus who said, “The poor will be with us always?” That’s good enough for Rick, who seconded that motion and put the nation on alert to his intent regarding birth control and home schooling. In the minds of disgruntled Pubs, Santorum has taken on the mantle of populist freedom fighter.
Meanwhile, struggling against the meme of elitist wealth and privilege, Mitt’s pretty wife, Ann, is attempting to humanize him, saying that not only does she NOT feel wealthy with that quarter-billion in off-shore accounts, but also she often feels “poor in spirit.” That’s a hard sell to a struggling populace, but rather than dissect her intent, I’ll just comment that she shouldn’t have married the Mittbot, who claims his favorite movie is the one they saw on their first date: The Sound of Music. Poor Ann, wealthy and poor at the same time: my condolences on a plain vanilla life. And yes, Gingrich and Paul are still in the race, but for no apparent reason. None of these, according to the talking heads, are electable, but we’re addicted to the political theatre so we watch with rapt attention.
There are other circus acts available, of course. Like a DNA-compromised love-child of Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, wild-eyed and off her meds again, accused Obama of wanting to limit the number of babies you can have with his intrusive health care plan and federal interference into our lives. She’s obsessed with child welfare, Michele is, having previously announced she wouldn’t do anything for those pesky “anchor babies,” which was no surprise since she’d proposed no policy except tough love and continued poverty to the nation’s children. Yet Michele is more than just comic relief. Why should we be interested in this failed candidate, you ask? Because — like Rush Limbaugh, only temporarily chastened by his loss of more than 50 radio sponsors, according to Kos – she speaks for the right in this campaign season and beyond. Crazy is as crazy does, to tweak Forrest Gump a bit. And while Rush is crazy like a fox, Michele is, to quote Matt Taibbi, a “rare breed of political psychopath, equal parts crazed Divine Wind kamikaze-for-Jesus and calculating, six-faced Machiavellian prevaricator.” Happily, Michele was an early casualty in the Pub war for candidacy.
Yes, it’s election season and there are always casualties, but some are more distressing than others. Dennis Kucinich, the man who unerringly spoke for progressives against the military industrial complex, has lost his job and the lefties have lost their anti-war advocate. Now that we no longer have Russ Feingold or Ted Kennedy, we can ill afford this loss. Dennis was the man who kept ’em honest, along with Bernie Sanders, who — unless we can re-elect Florida’s Alan Grayson — will now have to serve as the last voice shouting into the conservative wilderness. Thank John Boehner. Thank the Republican redistricting plan. Thank gerrymandering, and if you haven’t taken a look at that lately, you really should. Along with issues of voter registration and continuing concerns about secure voting machines, gerrymandering is an enormous problem in the nation, and in this coming election.
After eight terms, it was not by chance that reapportionment forced Dennis Kucinich to compete with another Dem for his seat. Republicans deliberately created a new district that snakes its way across a narrow strip of Ohio to link a portion of Cleveland with Toledo, where Representative Marcy Kaptur rests on her reputation as the longest-serving woman in the House and one determined to bring home the bacon (pork) to local military interests. Kaptur enjoys solid popularity in working-class Toledo. Pitting city-liberal Kucinich against Kaptur brought on a series of vicious attack ads, while Dennis chose, as usual, to take the high road by having Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Russell Simmons, Willie Nelson, and Gore Vidal come out for him.
To no avail. Ultimately, Dennis was the outlier to Toledo residents, and he lost the primary along with his position in the House of Representatives. It wasn’t pretty. As Cleveland Magazine senior editor, Erick Trickey, put it: “No one who looks at the creepy-looking lizard-shaped 9th district can deny it: Toledo and Cleveland were fused together unnaturally, just to throw Kucinich and Kaptur together into a cruel, friendship-destroying cage match.”
Reapportionment comes every ten years, as the census reveals changes in population over the previous decade. In order to fairly deliver “one man, one vote” and assure that all districts contain a similar number of people and enjoy equal representation in the halls of government, new lines are drawn around Congressional districts, shifting the demographic assigned a representative and — in Ohio, California and several other states this season — occasionally eliminating Congressional seats. In fact, migration shifted almost a dozen liberal House seats to the South and West this time around, giving the right a numbers advantage in a tight political arena.
You may remember me yelping about voter turn-out in 2010, not only to provide Obama a continued opportunity to get some of the nation’s work done, but also because it was reapportionment time. We remain a republic of diverse and independent states, each one with its own way of redistricting, most allowing the ruling political party to redistrict to its own advantage. In the majority of the states this year, thanks to Tea Party fever that flooded the House with newbie representatives, that influence is Republican.
Our political system is a complex, bloated and intricate piece of work. Remember big green Herman Munster and his pale bride Lily? When it comes to our political system, we’re all like pretty, clueless cousin Marilyn — we’ve been living with this bizarre scenario so long, we don’t realize it’s a monstrosity worthy of Dr. Frankenstein. And as long as the political game in this nation is winner-take-all, reapportionment will be wielded like a billy club and democracy will get a black eye as local politicos sculpt their maps to choose their voters, rather than allowing the voters to choose them.
A piece of long-ignored political intricacy, the art of gerrymander became a matter of national interest when George Bush’s House Speaker, Tom DeLay, rode into town. During Tom’s tenure as Speaker in Texas, he refined the art of “packing and cracking,” creating a map of improbable districts that defy the imagination. Some voting blocks solidified special interests, some districts were as thick and blocky as a Humvee, others stretched out in hour-glass fashion like the shape of a corseted matron in the Gilded Age. Others seemed as random as something produced by a can of silly string, but deliberately fashioned to marginalize voters along lines of race and wealth.
According to Wikipedia:
Gerrymandering is effective because of the wasted vote effect. By packing opposition voters into districts they will already win (increasing excess votes for winners) and by cracking the remainder among districts where they are moved into the minority (increasing votes for eventual losers), the number of wasted votes among the opposition can be maximized. Similarly, with supporters holding narrow margins in the unpacked districts, the number of wasted votes among supporters is minimized.
In the Kucinich case, House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio deliberately created an improbable district that stretched 120 miles along the Lake Erie coastline, at one point only connected by a small bridge and, at high tide, not even contiguous. This artistic example of gerrymander evidently fell between the cracks in a year when more than half the states have asked judges to make independent decisions on redistricting, taking the issue out of — at least in Boehner’s case — smoke-filled back rooms of state legislatures.
But that may not be enough, given the proclivity of judges to display their political bias these days. For instance, due to lawsuits for inappropriate gerrymander, Texas has had to push its primary back until May and perhaps longer, waiting for a final map. A panel of judges redrew the one proposed by the legislature, but the Supreme Court has stepped in to send it all back to the drawing board. Clarence Thomas actually issued an opinion, so we shouldn’t hold our breath trying to guess whom the new instructions favor. Other countries who regularly redistrict hire independent agencies to redraw maps using strict criteria, but — you know — that’s not the American way.
Indeed, we’re faced with a subtle challenge to the claim that America is a union. There is every reason to suspect that Republicans are gerrymandering Southern districts in an attempt to resegregate. A recent article indicates that white Democratic leadership is scarce as hens’ teeth in the Southern states, and it’s estimated that these few will disappear after this year. Think of that! No caucasian liberal representation across a wide swath of the nation. For those of us who think redistricting is the luck of the draw, this should be the litmus test. In the South, gerrymander is splitting out the political competition to dispose of it, while reaffirming the racial and cultural bias we fought an epic and bloody war to defeat.
Elsewhere, states across the nation are scrambling to get their districts in order. Here in the Pea Patch, the block of similar counties that was our district has now been changed to look like an inverted t-square. Those far to the north are in farm country, and we’re a resort area. We don’t have similar needs and our old familiar representative is gone with the wind, replaced with a newbie we don’t know — more importantly, who does not know us. So much for representation in an election year. Holding both a primary and a caucus vote, this year our primary vote took place in one district, our caucus will take place in another, and those who say politics is too damned difficult to understand have every right to complain — but not to turn their backs. That’s how we got embroiled in this mess in the first place.
Who loses by the continued corruption of radical gerrymander? We all do. The democratic process does. The nation has lost Dennis Kucinich as its watch dog, the man who proposed we establish a Department of Peace and who has traditionally railed against each piece of war rhetoric that makes its way into the public arena. Iran is on the table. Dennis will go after it. Who will go after it when he’s gone?
Radical gerrymander must be retired, and a more functional process put into place. The whole concept of one person, one vote falls apart when the system is gamed like this. From Wall Street to Foggy Bottom and on into Afghanistan, it’s gamed on too many levels as it is. Students, old and poor folks, and those who don’t drive are being denied their right to vote by radical state governments, eager to eliminate the great unwashed from election rolls. Even with the obvious examples of election-theft in 2000 and 2004 in near memory, we still don’t think about the security issues with voting machines. The days of Diebold are not behind us. The Citizens United decision will find its way into the courts, but perhaps not soon enough to impact this election year, leaving big money to talk louder than anyone else in the room. These are only a couple of ways the system is tweaked to benefit one side over the other: political gamesmanship gone rabid, destructive and disproportionate.
Still, you know what I’m going to say next. When Dennis is gone, who will stand tall for the peace-lovers? You will. I will. It’s time now for us all to stand tall together, arms linked for what we believe in, allowing the remarkable energies of 2012 to magnify the power of our intent. A district is just a big neighborhood — it will change as we engage with our neighbors, seeking solutions to common problems. We can act locally, from the bottom up to impact our states and, eventually, our nation.
Yes, the game is rigged, but this is no time to sit it out; too many of us did that for too long as it is. This is the time to engage for what we want, to rally toward a future we can help co-create. If it has not been given, then let me give it now: blessed are the game-changers, for they will recreate the world!
I also know that a lot of people (around here in Flagstaff at least) use that “work on yourself” thing as a cop-out. They just keep saying they are working on themselves so no one realizes they are not helping anyone (or any cause) else. What they really mean is they are either too apathetic or too lazy to do the work it takes to help others. Hence my triggering on those phrases so often. Please do not take it personally.
“I think we need to put our energy into ourselves, first — as the well we draw from. I really like your statement, “I should not be confused,” but let’s us make it an affirmation: I shall not be confused! As our own lives begin to reflect clarity, we have more to offer to our community and nation and world. As we find our creativity, our right-livelihood, i.e., our bliss, we are able to stand against corruption we witness and FOR the change we want … locally and nationally, with no axe to grind. Simply the [non-gender-specific] midwives of a New Paradigm. Thanks for your comments, kiddo.”
I understand where this is coming from but after four decades of Me, Me, Me, self actualization, self-work, self, self, self, I wonder if that is the best message to be sending now? We have had four decades to figure out ourselves and we got so self-involved with it that we soon began to integrate the “every man for himself” mantra. Isn’t it time to stop looking at ourselves, stop being so self involved, and start looking to help others? Obviously a lot of people could use some self awareness but a lot of the “light workers” are well capable of turning outward and leading the rest, (even if the rest are not finished being self aware), to help others now.
Part of the transition from the age of Pisces (artistic illusion) to the age of Aquarius (the interests of the group) is turning toward th needs of the group as a whole. Let’s be the leaders in turning our attention outward to our fellow humans. That would be working our Aquarius age to come as it were.
Jude: Thank you for once again expanding my consciousness, allowing me to see as not having seen before. There is an understated genius to this piece. Intimations of Uranus aside, it seems for all the world like you have achieved a verbal hologram.
Clarifying as always, be. I’ll tell ya, kiddo, you may be right about “sooner” than later. I’m sensing that we’ve made a huge U-turn n awareness, not yet visible but picking up speed. My gazillion petition sites are sending more and more “thank this or that one for a victory” or “we’ve done it, keep up the good work” messages than I remember ever receiving. It’s like there are two political tracks — the one we see playing out with bozo noses and the actual track, running parallel but quietly, making real progress. We shall see, but — as Martin Sheen said recently — you can’t “unring a bell.” And the bell’s already rung, hasn’t it!
Oh yikes, Brendan — every time I think I’ve had a gut-full of MO politics, with Roy Blunt leading the charge and a likeness of Rush being sculpted, as we speak, for the MO statehouse Hall of Fame, I think of Jan Brewer and shudder. I miss Tucson, but I suspect if I was there in the slipstream of such dark doin’s, my head would explode! Glad to hear she was stopped, at least for now. One more victory of-the-moment.
A nice column today, Jude, very apt. Here in AZ the independent redistricting commission was on the verge of completing the new maps when the governor basically tried to dismiss the head (a registered independent) and take over the commission in order to re-draw the maps to suit the Republican party better.
She failed, smacked down by the state supreme court twice in fact, and then tried to have the state senate legislatively do away with the commission – can’t do that either, since it was a referendum that put it into place in the first place. The goal of the original, empowering legislation was to provide for an independent commission, free of any political constraints by the legislature or governor, and thus do a fair job.
The commission itself prevailed (with help), and published their maps on time for the new election cycle. The resulting districts actually favor incumbents fairly well, but it did make some more competitive, created a new one, and eliminated some very obvious gerrymandering. The congressional districts may be a bit more blue next December, since the eliminated gerrymanders actually put urban R’s in control of rural D areas (including the Navajo and Hopi nations up north), and they now have a chance at real representation.
Never say never though: the gov intends to re-visit the whole question in 2013, trying to turn back the clock yet again. We do have to get “pre-clearance” from the DOJ under the VRA, so the governor’s plans may never happen anyway. {the DOJ loves the new plans by the way…}
There’s a word in Latin – hybrida – meaning breeding a wild boar with a domestic sow. This sounds a lot like gerrymandering to me. Or as Mr. Trickey puts it “Toledo and Cleveland were fused together unnaturally, just to throw Kucinich and Kaptur together into a cruel, friendship-destroying cage match.” The early modern French word “hybrid” comes from “hybrida”, and the word “hubris” comes from the word “hybrid”. Boots Hart wrote about this subject on Daykeeper Journal website, where it can be found. So you know where I’m going with this don’t you? There is an asteroid called Hybris which is presumed to come from the word hubris and Boots says that Alex Miller (also of Daykeeper Journal site) tells her “Hybris represents a point all about what we think we can get away with – which in time comes back to bite us.” These days (haven’t checked lately) Hybris is transiting in the vicinity of where Chiron is in Pisces. It is also in the neighborhood of squaring the U.S. Sibly Uranus (shock and awe) at 8 + Gemini. You said gerrymandering must be retired Ms. Jude, and just maybe it will happen sooner than we would dare to believe.
Something I don’t hear a lot about regarding the U.S. Sibly chart is the fact that Neptune at 22+ Virgo is trine to Pluto at 27+ Capricorn so this could explain the way confusion and deception seem to go hand in hand with the rich and powerful in this country. I hear even less about the U.S. natal asteroid Atlantis at 23+ Taurus which would add the element of sophisticated technology to the grand triangle of earth for this country’s birth chart.
Even more interesting is the U.S. Solar Return chart for the U.S. this year, which has Atlantis in the same degree as natal Neptune, at 22+ Virgo. Maybe this will signal the sinking of the machine of deception as it is caught between the cross-hairs of the north and south nodes and conjunct Juno who is all about equality of power.
If not, we still have hubris, or as Boots goes on to say “That’s where we get to thinking we can get away with “breaking rules’ or extending our reach beyond a point of sensible/responsible control.” Then we start talking KARMA! And what goes ’round, comes ’round.
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Great idea, GaryB. We should tell Norman Lear. He blogs occasionally at Huffy, a big-time Lefty. Casting options are fun to think about. Maybe when Joe the Plumber loses his Congressional race in Ohio, he’d consider steady work as Archie! LOL! Hug to you this weekend.
Oh, Michele — slippy-slidy? You’re a wordsmith! Speaking for myself, I’ve always thought of our neighbors to the North as more sensible and adult, with American’s like the bratty teens at the table. Lately though, your government has caught the right-wing fever and contracted considerably. Let’s affirm it’s a quick down-and-dirty slip and slide, caught and remediated before it solidifies.
Here’s how I see the bigger ‘big picture,’ dearheart. We are in the last days of the old way, the death throes of a paradigm supporting century’s of power that used people up like Kleenex, male AND female. It has to get worse before it gets better, but we’re on the downhill slide, now. We can’t, as the Bible sez, put new wine in old wine skins. Another way to look at it is that pouring fresh water into a stale, half-full glass bubbles up the nasty stuff at the bottom until it’s flushed away. It’s not a pretty process, but required.
I think we need to put our energy into ourselves, first — as the well we draw from. I really like your statement, “I should not be confused,” but let’s us make it an affirmation: I shall not be confused! As our own lives begin to reflect clarity, we have more to offer to our community and nation and world. As we find our creativity, our right-livelihood, i.e., our bliss, we are able to stand against corruption we witness and FOR the change we want … locally and nationally, with no axe to grind. Simply the [non-gender-specific] midwives of a New Paradigm. Thanks for your comments, kiddo.
It would seem to be the perfect time to bring an updated “All in the Family” back to prime time.
From Wikipedia: “Produced by Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin, it is based on the British television comedy series Till Death Us Do Part.[2] Despite being considerably softer in its approach than its BBC predecessor, the show broke ground in its depiction of issues previously considered unsuitable for U.S. network television comedy, such as racism, homosexuality, women’s liberation, rape, miscarriage, abortion, breast cancer, the Vietnam War, menopause, and impotence.”
How little has changed. Now these issues are just everyday bizarre events on the comedy -American Political Theater. It is very early in the Silly Season and it is only going to get crazier from here. How much fun could our Archie have with this period of time!
I read US politics here avidly. Because we (Canada) seem to be following in these footsteps. Not so complex. I still don’t understand how the US does its electoral process… But on so many policy and legislative levels, we are certainly riding on the coat-tails. How slippy-slidy of us.
I am still trying to work out where to put my energy in the big picture. In the little picture, it’s women. Perhaps that’s the big picture, also… But I continue to balk at seperating by gender.
It seriously pisses me off that these people confuse me. I should not be confused. I should be an arrow, right? Or a sword. Better yet.
Thanks for this piece.