No comment.

First of all, while I may have had no opinion about Arnold a month ago, I do have one now. And it ain�t pretty. The man is an ass. And he is completely disrespectful, but that would hardly distinguish him from a few other people on the panel last night.

Including, sadly, Cruz Bustamonte, the Democratic candidate that I was going to vote for (I am still voting No on the recall, and you should too).

Cruz? Um�he�s kind of a dick. So much so, in fact, that I don�t think I want to vote for him anymore. I still agree with him politically; but he was such an arrogant, condescending, disrespectful ass last night that...well, I know I should disregard these personal feelings and vote for him based on his political positions, but I don�t know if I can. Plus, I�m really pissed because he took great pains last night to separate himself from Gray Davis and make sure we all know just how much he disagrees with Gray on�well, pretty much everything. So what happened to the �Vote No on the Recall, but then vote for Bustamonte� position he began his campaign with?

I guess if I had accomplished as much as he has, coming from where he comes from, I might be a tad (more) arrogant, too. But still...were I Arianna Huffington last night, I might have just smacked him.

This is why I am not a politician, by the way.

Speaking of Arianna...she makes a lot of valid points. Plus, I like that both she, of the Independent Party, and Peter Camejo of the Green Party were both included in this debate. However...man, she bugs!

She and Arnold basically sniped at each other all night long and talked over each other constantly so that you could hear neither of them. Bustamonte was not far behind the two of them in the rudeness luge.

So that leaves us with the only two candidates who were reasonable, respectful and also made well thought-out and valid points: Peter Camejo (Green Party) and Tom McClintock (GOP State Senator).

You�re not gonna believe this, kids...

I may vote for a Republican!

What�s that? It�s a little chilly? Has hell frozen over????

Here�s the thing...I am still voting no on the recall and hope that after we Californians got a gander at our other options last night we will all realize that Davis is far from perfect, but are any of these morons any better? However, we also vote for who we want should the recall go through. Now that I am rather disillusioned with Bustamonte, I am in search of a new candidate.

Being the nerdy, liberal, tree-huggin� neo-hippy/punk that I am, I of course really love everything Peter Camejo has to say. However, I am one of like 13 people in California who even knew before last night that he was running; let alone who are planning on voting for him. If I vote for Camejo, I kind of feel like my vote will be wasted. It�s going to be a close race. Do I really want to vote for Camejo when the difference between Arnold and Bustamonte might be extremely slim? Look at what happened with stinkin� Ralph Nader and the 2000 election (Conservatives have my permission to skip to the next paragraph). Had he dropped out of the race even a month before the election (which would have given him ample time to make his points about our fucked up two-party system), his votes more than likely would have gone to Al Gore and we wouldn�t be in the horrid mess we are in right now (I will never forgive Ralph Nader for that, by the way, and it doesn't matter what else he has ever done or will do for me, the consumer). Yes, I know...that�s kind of a wishy-washy position to take. It�s the realistic position to take, though.

So more than likely I won�t vote for Camejo.

Which brings me to Tom McClintock.

Tom is Republican. As such, I don�t agree with a lot of his positions (like, say, regarding Proposition 54, but I�ll leave that entry for another day...like tomorrow...or later today). However, I do agree with some. He�s kind of a Centrist-Republican, from what I can see. And he was very smart and savvy, but still respectful last night. In fact, I will be stunned if his numbers don�t go way up today. They were already rising and Arnold�s �people� have been pressuring him to drop out of the race for weeks, now. I really would not be surprised if he pulls this off.

So, I haven�t made up my mind yet. I have to think about this whole Bustamonte Disillusionment and see if I can get over it. If not, I will either vote my heart, go with Camejo and see where the chips may fall; or I will vote for McClintock, figuring he�s a better option than Arnold or Cruz.

But man, I hope this recall effort fails.

~~~

DEADLINE FOR THE "PATRIOT ACT"

Congressman Dennis Kucinich continued his leadership today on Capitol Hill today (sic) by introducing the first comprehensive bill to repeal offensive sections of the misnamed "USA PATRIOT Act." The Kucinich bill -- called the "Benjamin Franklin True Patriot Act" -- is already supported by the ACLU, NAACP, a Jewish group, an Islamic group, and 20 members of Congress.

Kucinich's bill would repeal sections of the original "PATRIOT Act," that authorize 'sneak and peak' searches; warrantless library, medical, educational, and financial record searches; and the detention and deportation of non-citizens without meaningful judicial review. Passage would be the final deadline -- or death -- for the "PATRIOT Act."

Rep. Kucinich is the only presidential candidate who voted against the "PATRIOT Act" in October, 2001. The other Democrats in Congress currently running for president all voted for it -- and Howard Dean has said, "I never criticize them for that" in view of the post-9/11 pressure. Congressman Kucinich stood up to the pressure then...and now.

At a news conference today, Kucinich invoked the words of Ben Franklin, "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." Kucinich added: "Will we stand by as the Administration formulates a second more dangerous "PATRIOT Act" because, in the President's words, 'the first bill didn't go far enough'? Or will we step back from this atmosphere of fear and work to restore our basic freedoms and rights? With the introduction of the True Patriot Act, I say we take back our Constitution."

For more on Kucinich: http://www.kucinich.us

~~~

Word of the Day for Thursday September 25, 2003:

hobbledehoy HOB-uhl-dee-hoy, noun: An awkward, gawky young fellow.

Quote A Day:

People travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the seas, at the long course of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars, and yet they pass by themselves without wondering. --St. Augustine

Fact of the Day:

From the flocking geese to the spawning salmon, many animals can navigate. But exciting new research shows that lobsters can even find their way "home" no matter where they are! Caribbean spiny lobsters have an advanced magnetic compass sense that enables them to travel long distances in darkness to specific den locations. It's also the first signficant finding about the earth's magnetic field.

Be The Change:

Spend some time watching animal behavior.

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