And it is. It is a beautiful bountiful thing.
My friends friend came by and sat with us a short time later. My friend left the room for a few minutes and I filled the silence with "Did you watch the election results?"
She asked "What election results?" ( this was one day after Senator Obama was voted in as President-Elect )
I was thrown off. I sputtered "the U.S. election".
She said ( and I fucking kid you not ) "the U.S. had an election? what kind of election?"
I was floored. No, I was stunned.
Then, in the back recesses of her mind, she remembered,and said "oh, yah " She asked who won ( picture me wanting to reach out and smack her ) I said Mr. Obama.
She said "ohhhh, the black dude right?" ( I am smacking her once more)
I said, "the Democrat won".
She looked very confused. Poor poor pitiful thing.
My friend came back out at that moment and looked surprised that her friend had no clue as to the previous days events.
Her friend said that she didn't pay attention to politics. Also that she had never voted in a Canadian election.
I was floored,and stunned for the second time in 10 minutes.
My friend and I sideways glanced at each other, and my friend asked her friend, "You've never voted? Why?"
She said "It doesn't interest me". I said," wow, I know of only one other person like you". She shuffled in her chair and looked uncomfortable. Good...you should be uncomfortable about such an ignorant thing I was thinking.
How the hell do people get like that? What is NOT interesting about how political parties are shaping our, her future? How the hell can one not be interested??
I don't understand that ridiculously stupid attitude.
We're having an election for Mayor and Council of my little berg in the next bit...of which she has zero interest.
And here's a funny Jo sent me today. I laughed my ass off. It's exactly the way I felt at my friends the other day.
Hahahah...I love your blogs girlfriend.....stupid is as stupid does or doesn't in this case.
ReplyDeleteJo
Haha you crazy wench! Having in mind the sort of mentally challenged people ****in' with US for the last 8 years, I would totally agree with your smackin'. How ignorant of her. But then again, knowing the sort of unscrupulous criminals that sit and collect fat in our government, no matter what party (they are all the same, kleptomaniacs with long fingers, a criminal record and a retard face), I have decided to do the same as your ignorant friend (I can live with the smacking LOL). I don't see an Obama to come and rescue us anytime soon so until then, I am as ignorant of any elections as a solitary cactus somewhere between nowhere and goodbye.
ReplyDeleteI am always astounded by the number of my (adult) students who NEVER watch a news broadcast or read a newspaper. Out of a class of 30 students in my "Women in Canada" course, only a small handful planned to vote in our recent federal elections; most said they "weren't interested in politics" or felt their vote doesn't make any difference. Our foremothers fought for over fifty years for our right to vote, at great personal cost, for this ??????????
ReplyDeleteAnd, viooltje, your expression "retard face" is offensive. People who are differently-abled should not have their appearance used as a putdown for themselves or others; that is no different from making a racist remark.
(My apologies, Hunde Haus, for using your blog to raise someone's consciousness. But I'm not one to let slurs against the differently-abled pass, any more than I would let an ethnic slur pass.)
Jean,
ReplyDeleteViolet is from Croatia. Our wording over here and the wording over there, is completely different.
I know, for a fact, that Violet did not mean any harm towards any part of the "differently-abled",as you call them. ( and that's a new word for me,never heard that before! )
There are more than likely words we in Canada use that are offensive to her.
K,that said....it is indeed astounding that there are so many women and men that have a care not attitude concerning their OWN freedoms and rights. It's a mind blower to be sure.
I hate to admit it, but I actually had family members who didn't vote this year. Not that I didn't try to make them see how important it was, but some people you just can't help.
ReplyDeleteViolet, President-Elect Obama will surely influence your part of the world!
ReplyDeleteSoon enough you will also have a Predsjednik Vlade that has only good and right in mind.
( did I use "Predsjednik Vlade" in the proper context?
Jo, damn! I should have used "stupid is as stupid doesn't" as my title for that post!!
ReplyDeleteS....I too have relatives that did not vote in our federal elections. "A waste of time" or "a waste of money" were the excuses. Ignorance is not bliss.
Colleen, I really do admire your optimism, and I sure do hope Obama is your new messiah. But then again it is very hard for me to explain our situation and history to anyone who had not actually have the 'honor' to experience it on its own skin. Especially while doing so by endangering your comments area LOL. Which I'm about to do...I remember the days when I wouldn't have traded my nationality for anything else in this world, when I thought my fellow-citizens were a few good men, isolated from a world of colonizers, racists, hypocrites and their feigned manners. Then again, that remains only a memory, and I now think of myself as an unyielding misanthrope. And unfortunately, like you have correctly put it, our Predsjednik Vlade will not cease to be a retard, whatever be has name. Let me for a moment apologize to Jean for she has got it all wrong and I'm sorry that she had found it so inappropriate. Sincerely. I do use the word retard on a regular basis, as I am surrounded by such on a regular basis. And actually never do I refer or even think or visualize the differently-abled, or the unfortunately disabled as I like to call them. Actually I'm appalled by the people who have the heart to refer to their appearance and misfortune as such in the 1st place. I have worked with 'differently-abled' in a dog-friendly programme for years and I could never possibly understand how these unfortunate ANGEL faces could be referred to as such. Even be it a scientific term. Let's just put it this way: for me, the face of George W. Bush and his 'accomplices' is a fine example of a retard face. Arrogant, deceiving, immature, uneducated and inbred freak show who has impacted the misfortunes all over the bloody planet in countries whose names he could not even pronounce or remember, but sure as hell looked fine as a new star on his expansion map of WMA potentials. Now back to Colleen...So what would you say if I told you Bush was a laugh compared to the morons that decide upon our future, which is by all means going to be dark, very dark. I did vote quite a few times, and it took me a few times to realize my vote doesn't make a difference, when the results are elegantly forged, each time. It is actually a waste of time I could have efficiently spent pulling weeds in my backyard. When corruption and organized criminal hits a small country, it doesn't take long until the aftereffects. And it (corruption, both of mind and soul) has hit all spheres of life, from education to health and human services to banks and finance to the very government where you couldn't possibly find one decent face. They all have retard faces. Stiff, deformed or non-existing upper lip, rat eyes and that disgusting face expression with a complacent smile and a golden tooth here and there (please see Italy's prime minister Berlusconi for a picturesque reference ;.) Their root system has been well built through decades to the point where their toadies infiltrate every domain of your life and feeding the corrupted system is the only way of survival. Or a rebellion on a large scale which still wouldn't solve the enormous debts they have caused through their master theft. And so on and so forth, blah blah blah. From the US point of view, nobody puts it better than Mr Kuhner of Washington Times (please do read http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/09/croatia-in-chaos/
ReplyDeleteAs far as racists remarks go, I will hold back my grumpy temper and not react to the implications but will say one thing only, I come from a country, area even, where racism never existed as a term per say, where people were never divided to white or black or red, where colonization was a foreign word, where the natives were never slaughtered and erased from the face of the Earth, but quite the opposite, where people have often been the victims of megalomaniacs and their appetites, walked over by foreign colonizers and racists, but have somehow preserved their identity (I guess, for they have never fought back with much resistance or pride, except in the recent war, and accepted their destiny silently, unlike many nations/races who are extinct nowadays). Can't quite say which way is worse. Anyhow, accidentally, I happen to stop by Jean and her lucky critters every now and then, so I do know what an exceptional lady she is. And Jean, if you happen to pop back expecting a rude, racist remark to trying to raise my dirty conscience LOL, hear this: I only know two types of people, good or bad. The rest of the story doesn't interest me. And in my opinion, and take it as you wish, there is far too many people in this world, and far too little humans. Perhaps I could have said 'social retards' and then you would understand me more clearly, and it is precisely the 'social retards' I try to cocoon away from, wishing I was a bird or a fly and was oblivious of human cruelty and senselessness which are taking over the world.
Sorry Colleen, I should have warned you about not having an ON/OFF button. Cheers and kisses!!!
Violet, I simply adore you! I think you know that.
ReplyDeleteThank you so very much for the link to the article Mr.Kuhner wrote,and thank YOU for your eloquent and heartfelt post here.
The article was extremely enlightening for me. I had no idea Croatia was in as much political turmoil,and as such, the people. I'm embarrassed by the not knowing. I am a person of this earth,and I should know more than what is plastered across the front pages.
I am going to spend alot of time reading about Croatia in the next while. Please send me links to articles and authors that you know are relevant.
Oh,and I know and knew what you meant by "retard". I know enough about you to know you have a soft heart, and would never use it in a hurtful manner.
My heart goes out to you and your countrymen.
Hugs, Colleen
And Violet,
ReplyDeleteyou said "Sorry Colleen, I should have warned you about not having an ON/OFF button."
NEVER! :))))
The link to the article Violet referenced didn't come out too great,so here's a shorter link:
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/6kyck8
Or, you can go to http://www.washingtontimes.com/ and in the search box,type in Kuhner.
He has a umber of articles I will be reading.
Well the feeling is mutual, I believe you know that too. Btw, I don't see why you would feel embarrassed, there's absolutely no way we could know what goes on in different parts of the globe unless we literally lived there, for a decent amount of time. And having in mind the authenticity of the front pages and media in general, I don't see how an exclusively money-oriented device (papers, TV, whatever) could ever tell the truth and nothing but the truth or give the right image/tell a story without a hidden agenda. That is a general opinion, of course. That's why reading my favorite blogs gives me an unblemished insight to all the beautiful areas of this planet that no tourist guide could ever do. I could send you all the links you wanted, but not without first pointing out to what's really relevant. I can't take racial accusations of any sort, as you might have noticed. 'Cause ...
ReplyDeleteEbony and ivory
Live together in perfect harmony
Side by side on my piano keyboard
Oh Lord, why don't we...
I'm happy with my life, it doesn't take a lot to make me happy, the 1st thing in the morning to make my day is my dogs and cats' fishy breath LOL. Or the smelly mess my hedgehogs have made in the basement. And I know when it comes to politics, the story is the same wherever you go. You've got your problems, we've got ours. They all boil down to one thing - money. But the fact that you have them too doesn't make me feel any better about it ;-) I honestly can't see an end to the corrupt political system that we have. Not in my lifetime. God, may I be wrong! No sort of Divine intervention will liberate us of this evil, corrupt government. The thing is, they serve as a guiding light to all those folks who don't pay their brain bills that often. Or maybe they do... And the saddest thing is watching your fellow-citizens turn corrupt as well. In every meaning of the word. When I was a silly lil brat, the shootings and mafia killings were the things we read in the section 'From around the World' or watching 'A Bronx tale'. That did not exist in our world. Today I wonder if someone will knock me out if I stop at the crossing and let an old lady cross the road, because they're late for their male botox treatment. The driving culture reflects the mental state of the folks so well, doesn't it? LOL And the safest thing is to be ignorant, which a grumpy 'personage' like me can't seem to do. I will not even mention the animal cruelty. When I read about 8-year olds slicing off kitten's limbs, I know the end of the world is surely not far off.
But it is sad to think whenever you go shopping for your pets, that they actually have a better life and more food then some of your fellow-citizens. No place is different. It is just that the majority of people remain happily oblivious of that. My boyfriend spent 5 years in the war, fighting for his country (or so he thought, they all do), shooting at each other, killing someone else's father, brother. Once a pride, today they are regarded as the dirt of the nation, elegantly disposed off under the rug with all the other mess (sounds familiar?) It's hard to find a job when there's a general media-guided notion that they are all looneys, and all of their benefits were tossed away to war profiteers, fake generals and war criminals. In '91, when the war started and during the war, there were only 40,000 soldiers, volunteers mainly. Today, there's 500,000 veterans. Enough said. And the fake ones ended up with fat pensions, nasty cars and villas. The rest would love to have my dog's life. My hometown was probably one of the most peaceful places in the world, but that has changed too. I don't feel it on my skin (yet) but lately the hyenas (read: politicians) have turned against each other, after having sold out all of the country's assets while stealing anything that could be turned into cash. And sometimes innocent people pay the price. That happened in October, where my hometown's soul finally died. It was the day when mafia killings became reality. And one girl, Ivana (http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/blogreview/2008/10/10/blog-03), was to pay for someone else's dues. Born into a rich family, with both mother (former deputy prime minister) and father (prominent lawyer) politically involved. She could have eaten out of a golden spoon, she could have become a spoiled rich brat, but yet she was a modest young woman, finished her studies and worked at 3 different places and among other things, visiting orphanages and collecting stuff for animal refuge, but never spoke of it, not even to her friends. She was only 26. Recently she had met the love of her life, a formerly cocky, successful lawyer, whose view of life she turned upside down. Even though she loved to travel and wear nice clothes, she made it clear that she would be just as happy without the material stuff. She was shot dead in front of her parents' doorstep, in midday, with 2 bullets in the head and died on her mother's arms. In the very city center, 100m from the Police HQ. What shocked me even more was the public reaction where many people thought she got what she deserved, just because she was rich and was rudely tagged as a member of 'the golden youth' - spoiled rich brats. Sadly, many were not aware that such a person is almost endemic these days, and should have been proud to have breathed the same air as the poor girl. This story broke my heart. Completely. To this day, there hasn't been a day that I haven't thought of her awful destiny. And of those who were left deprived of her love and companionship. The fact is that we will not get any further as long as we as a country and society are not honest about ourselves and if we don't rethink our values. Ever since her murder, the hyenas have started to eliminate each other over the last decade dues. We now have a new pastime game: Guess who's next to blast! So funny and tragic! Story of our lives, otherwise called: Long Live Ignorance! ;-)
I don't intend to turn your blog into a confessional LOL so anything that interests you, please write to Grumpy Violet at violet@hi.t-com.hr.