"A New Birth of Freedom"

It's day 2 of the new and improved United States of America. I watched the Inauguration on the 20th and thought it was amazing. I watched it alone so I had to cheer, stand, and cry all by myself at home. I thought Reverend Warren's prayer was beautiful and appropriate. I love Biden and I can't explain why. It's like the weird affection I have for Bill Clinton where I realize he's kinda scary, but so affable that it dims their mistakes, but their intelligence and unexpected savvy reminds you why they are where they are. (Yes, I know this sounds hypocritical, but in my opinion, they can be a trainwreck as long as they are smart. And they are smart.) I am sure most people could have appreciated a more simple Inauguration day (Especially the President and First Lady) and I certainly would have thrown out some of the pomp. I loved the moment that Barack Obama became our 44th President at 12 pm (est) as per the 2oth amendment of the Constitution, to the strains of "Air and Simple Gifts" (performed by Yoyo Ma, Perlman, Montero, and McGill). A more beautiful moment than the actual swearing in which was moving, even though there was a bit of a confusion when Chief Justice John Roberts. It was the first time that a President had been sworn in on that particular Bible since Abraham Lincoln. And the country breathed a sigh of relief when he ended in "so help me God." (Well at least the ones who were still clinging to the Muslim terrorist thing.) I breathed a sigh of relief when I found out that the Oath was retaken in a private ceremony in the map room of the White House so there would be no question. I have always been moved by the 21 gun salute and even more so on this day and then watching as "Hail to the Chief" was played for our new President.
President Obama's Inauguration speech was everything I had anticipated it would be. Direct, inspiring, moving, and brief. He made it clear in no uncertain terms that we are not victims. We are strong and will always remain so because we are America. There will no longer be injustices against us by the leaders we have put our trust in. That we are willing to help any country that will extend their hand in friendship but not tolerate those hands clenched in fists. We will not be defeated. In 18 and a half minutes, President Obama reminded all of us along with the entire world that America is ready to overcome all of the challenges we face.
The speech in it's entirety can be read here: Inaugural Address
The video of the Oath and address can be viewed here:

I have yet to watch the parade and seriously TEN Inaugural Balls??
This one WAS amazing, though:


I am so excited about our future. I am encouraged by the words of our new President, but mostly I am convinced of his character not by his words alone, but by the way he treats his wife and children with love and respect. By the way he makes this victory not his, but ours. And by the loyalty he shows to his staff and that they show to him.
Now, I pray daily that he is given the chance to prove himself without the constant criticism of skeptics and kept safe from people who in their ignorance, and hatred, seek to harm him or his family.
God bless America and God bless President Barack Hussein Obama, who has proven that there is nothing we can't achieve.

Now is the time. We have been blessed with greatness throughout history.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/world_news_america/7838851.stm

Inauguration Day.

I will have BOTH Tivos going to assure I don't miss a moment. But before that day comes, Monday, January 19th is Martin Luther King Jr. day. Take a moment to remember the man who "Had a dream" LONG before President Elect Barack Obama achieved his and ours.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an African American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States and he is frequently referenced as a human rights icon today.

A Baptist minister,[1] King became a civil rights activist early in his career. He led the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president.

King's efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. There, he raised public consciousness of the civil rights movement and established himself as one of the greatest orators in U.S. history.

In 1964, King became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other non-violent means. By the time of his death in 1968, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and opposing the Vietnam War, both from a religious perspective.

King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was established as a U.S. national holiday in 1986.

Cited from Wiki.

The Obama family has challenged our country to take this day that honors a man who so loved his country, and worked to heal a racial divide that was born in ignorance and hate, and do something as a family to help out. Help your community, help one person in need. Visit a sick friend or write to our troops. We will never fail as a country no matter how bad things get because of who we are. We will always have each other. We will always have the will to stand up and dust ourselves off and keep going. Martin Luther King Jr. taught us that and Tuesday furthers his dream and our progression toward "A more perfect union."

**Cool little update**
Mississippi Paper Offers Apology for Its 'Gross Neglect' During Civil Rights Struggle

www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003931673

I am having problems making that address a link. Sorry.

Attention Sarah Palin.

No not FOR you, FROM you. I realize that you're the journalist major, and you read everything you can get your hands on (you can't remember the NAMES of them, but you read them.)Have you seen this?

Emmonak man seeks food airlift to combat economic crisis
ALASKA NEWSPAPER STAFF
editor@alaskanewspapers.com

January 12, 2009 at 1:42PM AKST

A combination of extreme cold and high fuel prices has created a humanitarian crisis for the village of Emmonak, according to resident Nicholas Tucker.

In a letter sent out as a cry for help, Tucker describes economic conditions in which families are rationing food and warmth for themselves and their children in the Southwest Alaska village of 800.

The situation could easily worsen — extreme cold that arrived early this winter and stuck around means heating fuel must soon be flown in, which residents fear will push the price from $7.83 per gallon to $9 a gallon or more.

In the letter, Tucker, who calls himself a longtime advocate for the region, describes the desperate circumstances faced by several families. He learned about their situation after putting out a VHF radio announcement in the village asking families to describe how they were weathering the fuel crisis in rural Alaska.

Tucker requests a “massive airlift” of food and said money from churches, state agencies and other groups is needed to offset the high fuel prices. The 100 gallons of free heating fuel for every home in Alaska Native communities that has been promised by oil company Citgo will help. But it won’t be enough because it will last only one month, he said.

Tucker originally circulated the letter on Jan. 10 at a meeting in Emmonak in which Lower Yukon River villages discussed ways to lower fuel prices next spring. The letter has also been sent to some churches, the Food Bank of Alaska and officials with Calista Corp., the Native corporation for the region which owns this and other rural newspapers.

Bristol Bay Times, wow that's a toughy to remember. If only you has some way to remember it.
Also, Ms. Energy Expert, stay off of Fox on Inauguration night. It's not about you. It never will be. You will be remembered as the attention whore that rallied people against the first African American President. Smiling as your mindless followers called for his blood. Pawn Todd's silk boxers and all of the rest of the clothes that you raped the Republican supporters to get and buy your people some oil. Stay in your own state, SHUT UP, and do your job.

Note to anyone with questions: Yes I know the election is over. I'll shut up when she does. I will shut up when my daughter isn't taught at school that Obama's idea for youth pride and service to their communities is equal to Hitler's Youth. I will shut up when, people stop threatening to kill him because of all the lies perpetuated in hate and ignorance. I will shut up when people stop bitching about how he's failing us when he isn't even President yet. I will shut up when I not only voted but threw myself into this election with my money, time, and harassment to and from family members and my property vandalized. I will shut up when all of the critics of every new idea (because the old ones worked so VERY well... NOT) run for office themselves. Yeah I don't think I will be shutting up anytime soon. As long as there are haters, ignorance, and racism. If my opinion offends, either don't read it OR study up. I'm almost always right. Ask anyone.

Umm ok. Birds of a feather.

I think I can sum this one up in two headlines:

With A Few Days To Go, Bush's Approval Rating... Inches Up
Rush Limbaugh's "Secret Meeting" In DC: Birthday Lunch With Bush

LIMBAUGH: With 10 minutes left in lunch the door opens and the stewards walk in, three stewards, walk in with a little chocolate birthday cake. … And there’s a little chocolate microphone on the plate with the chocolate birthday cake. And my mouth falls open and I’m just in stunned disbelief.

Limbaugh noted that while he had salmon over rice, french fries, and a salad for lunch, the President had only a PB&J sandwich.

And afterwards they retired to the study for brandy, OxyContin and hydrocodone and commiserated that they weren't invited to the sit down between PE Obama and the conservative authors??

Palin/Joe the freaky reporter 2012

So I'm sure everyone knows that Joe the Plumber has been promoted to Joe the War Correspondent for Pajamas Media. One wonders how he got a degree in journalism so fast. He actually explained that he's been watching the news and reading what he can and working hard so he could 'pronounciate' all the words he'd be needing. He's not afraid of traveling into a war zone, he said that he felt protected because as a Christian God is protecting him going into Israel. I hope he doesn't ask any of the "Average Joes" in the Middle East if they feel protected by the Christian God, I'm pretty sure that wouldn't be a good question for a Jew or a Muslim. He says "I don't think journalists should be anywhere allowed war (sic). I mean, you guys report where our troops are at. You report what's happening day to day. You make a big deal out of it. I think it's asinine. You know, I liked back in World War I and World War II when you'd go to the theater and you'd see your troops on, you know, the screen and everyone would be real excited and happy for them. Now everyone's got an opinion and wants to downer-and down soldiers. You know, American soldiers or Israeli soldiers." Yeah we all long for the old days when everyone was happy and excited when their loved ones went to risk life and limb, not to mention sanity to fight against people who were fighting for THEIR countries, as well. Imagine his disappointment when he was told that he, as a foreign journalist, was not allowed near war. Unless he put on an Israeli uniform (Ooooo then we could go to the theater and watch him on the screen and be happy and proud). So barred from the Gaza strip, what's a Joe to do? He picks a fight with an Israeli reporter. I can't wait 'til next week to see what Joe the Epitome of Mainstream America does next.
Sexy Sarah's been busy. She's gone green. No, no, she's not going to stop aerial shooting wolves or making up stories about thanks but no thanks and probably not even find out the value of fruit flies in the study of genetic. She's green with envy. She's been hating on Caroline Kennedy also both Katie Couric and Tina Fey who have recently won awards in their respective fields (Fey, best actress in a comedy for 30 Rock) because she thinks that they "exploited her."
Ironic that after all that exploitation she would agree to appear on SNL. Also, in Esquire, Mike Huckabee refutes the idea that Palin was the victim of bad press. "Now I must say I did not think that either the Charlie Gibson interview or the Katie Couric interviews were unfair. In fact, if anything, Katie Couric was extraordinarily gentle, even helpful. [Palin] just... I don't know what happened. I can't explain it. It was not a good interview. I'm being charitable."
In the same issue of Esquire, she states "Bored, anonymous, pathetic bloggers who lie annoy me...."
I guess that makes us 'Fake Americans' or 'Anti Americans'. Unfortunately we are also the Americans who VOTED, campaigned, donated and supported our candidates. I assume she means bloggers who voted Obama/Biden. I suppose that IS annoying. WE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Palin is pretty sure she's have won with Obama.. Ummm, honey you're Republican and you said he was palling around with terrorists. You allowed people to shout "Kill him" "Terrorist" etc. You have been found guilty of ethics violations (yeah I know her self appointed group found her innocent, but the Alaska Supreme Court found her guilty.
This speaks for itself:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin sent out a fundraising solicitation today that charged that "the Obama/Biden Democrats have been vicious in their attacks directed toward me, my family and John McCain."
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/09/obama-to-media.html

All I can say is just keep talking Joe and Sarah. You are definately comic relief.
But one little word of advice from a pathetic blogger (I'm not bored, anonymous, nor am I less intelligent than you) You know how to lie, so stop holding out. Stand behind your new President. He's smart, he's open, he's proven to keep his word. Take a week to be gracious and then take your shiny new passport and hit the road with Joe the War Correspondent. You don't want him out qualifying you.

George the Lobster

So we all know my Liberal pinko-ness has some conservative speed bumps and among them are the occasional overboard environmentalists. I am all about doing as much as we can for energy conservation and alternate energy. I think we need to save certain species of animals that are endangered (prairie dogs are NOT near extinction) but be reasonable people. So 2 concerned customers of a seafood restaurant in New York alerted PETA to George the Giant Lobster. He's been imprisoned in a tank for a very long time and I'm not sure how they know that he's 140 years old, but he weighs 20 pounds.


Okay, first off turning a captive animal loose into the wild (they drove to Maine)often doesn't work because they are unfamiliar with the necessary survival skills. Plus what is the survival rate of a lobster in the wild? If it isn't snapped up by a larger predator in the food chain, isn't lobster fishing pretty much big business in Maine?? Probably some lobster fisherman is going to snag him within a month and make huge money not to mention huge dinner assuming he survives the transition. So what shall happen to George?? Death by food chain or death by a big freaking pot of boiling water??? PETA, PETA, PETA... Are you really bored???

Small Towns...

I love the little town I grew up in. I love a great many people there. There is a necessary interconnection of the town (I was harsh and edited,I'm sorry) I went to high school in which I shall refer to as Hell. (It goes without saying that Dems are as rare as non-hypocrites). As with all small towns there is gossip. Like Mrs. Olsen on Little House on the Prairie only there are not just one and they aren't old. But they are still mean-spirited, petty, people with no life. Making themselves feel better by tearing at others. They really suck. They are really stupid. And I'd wager my house they voted for Sarah Palin. See? That right there proves they're stupid. (This was not a direct attack on anyone. If you have read any of this blog other than this post, I REALLY dislike Sarah Palin and I REALLY campaigned hard for Obama. And I mean the real thing, knocking on doors, making calls, dealing with the campaign managers of neighboring states who kept a close eye on where it was unsafe for a white woman to campaign for a black man. I had my list pulled more than once.)

I won't flatter myself by assuming that they read my blog, but on the off chance that they are desperate for dirt. Yeah you found it. In the mirror.

**I think I may have either underestimated the amount of people who read my blog, or who looks at my, all of a sudden, hopping Facebook. I started my blog out a bit harshly and I think it may have been misconstrued. Also, the people who have always read my blog know that I have been angry and frustrated through a long campaign and I vent here so no one else has to hear it, unless they want to.) I think the most perfect place on earth was the town I grew up in. I had the best friends growing up. I will not mention names, but the one that I really, really, love and owe an eternal debt of gratitude for was my very best friend from the age of 4. We loved each other, we fought, we caught frogs, she taught me how to ice skate on the frog pond (yeah bad idea), she was unflinchingly loyal and had the courage of a lion. I want no misunderstanding here, I can never express how much I love her and owe her for her part of my childhood. Our frendship was legendary as was recently pointed out on my Facebook by a classmate. I would be there for her in a heartbeat if she needed me for anything just as she has been for me and I always will. She is my family, her family is my family.
I had another very good friend that was one of my BFFs. We played for hours and never got bored we made some crazy mud pie restaurant along with a song advertising it to the tune of "King of the Road." We had an uncle that was published and we KNEW he'd be astounded at the talent of our song. We gave him a hastily scrawled copy of the song and waited for the glossy publication. When we were handed a photocopy of our song as we had written it with an addition of a poem that did not capture the glory of our restaurant, we looked like Ralphy after he'd been told by Santa that he's shoot his eye out. She also knows the definition of a Gwashy, which is anything that can fit into the pendant part of a necklace. That is pretty much everything because their could be a giant cosmic necklace and we live in the gwashy.
Time has passed in my hometown and I'm an outsider, so to speak. The people who live there are young and only a few grew up with me. My memories never change, they are fond. I hate the town I went to school in. It WAS hell for me. It accentuated everything that sucked about me. I know other see it differently, but it's a matter of opinion. I love my friends there and occasionally run into them and am happy to. But my opinion of ME when I was there was very low and in a crucible sort of way it shaped me too. I was always happy to be back home.

Smart Republicans

I know.... Oxymoron, heavy on the moron. But just like the McCain people FINALLY realized (too late, fortunately) that the stupid, crazy, Repug fanatics need to be locked up in a zoo or something 'til they find an intelligent Republicans to rebuild the GOP. But they have these total LUNATICS that just make the party look way worse. Palin is insisting on being a poster child for the Diarrhea of the Mouth Club whining that Caroline Kennedy is being treated preferential because the media is has class bias. Umm no, Sarah, she is smart. She has legitimate experience and she is ethical. But the loudest defender of Republican lunacy: Ann Coulter. Who cut the wires that wired her jaws shut. They need to be smacked. Tell me.. Is THIS normal??

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/05/ann-coulters-today-show-a_n_155393.html

Shanda Sharer

I thought I would help get the word out for something that was posted about Shanda Sharer.

Candlelight Memorial Ceremony for Shanda Sharer


On January 11, 2009 we will be having a Candlelight Memorial Ceremony in honor of Shanda Sharer and her family in New Albany, IN. Jacque Vaught, Shanda's mother, has given us her consent and blessing to hold this event.

This event will be a casual affair and those who are able, are asked to bring a single white candle. There will be candles made available at the service as well. But, considering we cannot estimate the exact number of people that will attend, we may run out.

We will be having a few guest speakers at the ceremony. We do not expect the ceremony itself to last more than 1 1/2 hours. Although we do not expect there to be bad behavior or trouble at the ceremony, there are a few police officers that are donating their services and will be patrolling the grounds as well as mingling with those of us inside the building.

We would like to make this a world wide event and, are asking that if you would like to participate in the Ceremony to please join us in prayer and the candle lighting from wherever in the world you are. A few people have even mentioned having a vigil at their home or a public area in Shanda's honor.

However you choose to participate is fine with us. We are also asking that you take a photo or two and send it to us to put into our gallery here at JusticeforShandaSharer. Please include your permission to display them here.





DETAILS
Pyke & Calloway & Mullineax Funeral Services

1217 East Spring Street
New Albany, Indiana

Opening Prayer begins at:
2pm EST
3pm CST
4pm MST
5pm PST


FOR THOSE NOT ABLE TO ATTEND
The opening prayer for Shanda's Memorial will be 2pm New Albany time on Jan. 11, 2009. At 3pm we will light the candles and have a moment of silence for Shanda. Those that wish to participate, but cannot make it to the ceremony, will also light their candles at home (or wherever) at the same exact time.


So the candle lighting and moment of prayer and silence for Shanda and her family, will be happening at the same time worldwide! For sure there will be candles lit in The Netherlands and Canada. I'm sure that as the word gets out, it will be happening in several countries, as Shanda has folks that love her all over the world.
3pm EST
4pm CST
5pm MST
6pm PST
These are the times that the candles will be lit and we will have a moment of silence and then a prayer to close the Ceremony

http://simplysue1958.webs.com/eventsactivities.htm

Tomorrow my friend Mary and I will be signing the contract for the new Shanda Sharer Scholarship Fund! I'll pop back in with that information for everyone!

I hope that some of you will join us and light a candle in Shanda's memory on the 11th. If you do and send me a pic and the location I will be happy to add you to the photo album I will be adding to my site about the candlelighting service!

Peace!!!

If you are unfamiliar with Shanda's story, here's a link: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/shanda_sharer/1.html

Happy New Year in the Paradox Patch!!

The economy is tight and Christmas may not has been as big as it's been in the past, but we have something to look forward to in the New Year(s)to come. We have a president that's smart and refuses to conform. He will NOT play basketball in a suit!! I'm pretty sure that's a sign of terrorism. But, beside the fact we now have the coolest president ever.... We also have the HOTTEST President ever!
I am going on a diet, but I don't do resolutions. I have enough guilt in my life. No need for another reason to feel like a failure.