What Ted Kennedy Means to Me

I knew that he was old. I knew that he had a brain tumor. I knew that he would die - and soon. What I did not know was how it would affect me.
I did not know Senator Ted Kennedy. Would never have had any reason to have met him. But as I turned on the news yesterday morning and learned of his passing, I was filled with a deep sadness. I feel that America has lost more than we will ever realize.
I have watched all the news specials and will watch the coverage of his public memorial this weekend. I feel that it is important that we do all we can to celebrate the life of this youngest, but arguably most effective Kennedy brother. It is just as important, perhaps to note his past failings because they have made him the lion that he was. Kennedy made many (and public) mistakes in his life. But, to his credit, he never disowned them. And always, he recovered stronger.
Kennedy took to heart his mother, Rose Kennedy's, favorite bible quote. "From those to which much has been given; much will be expected" (from Luke 12:48) Yes, he was a Kennedy and all that that entailed. But first and foremost he was a public servant.
Will we ever again find in today's generation those who feel called to public service just for the sake of said service? Will there be those who step forward who will not compromise their principles and in so doing will gain the respect of their political enemies? Will there be those left in the Senate who know when it is beneficial to stand tall behind party lines and when it is prudent to reach across the aisle?
Senator Kennedy was the author of a staggering 2,500 bills. The programs and laws that he helped enact are countless. For many of our rights as 21st Century Americans we owe a debt of gratitude to Sen. Kennedy. He was a champion of civil rights as a natural continuation of his brothers' works. He championed women's rights before it was politically correct. He stood up for gay rights before it was cool.
Yes, there are many things for which to thank Teddy Kennedy and his service not just to Massachusetts and the US Senate, but indeed to all Americans. But that for which I will always be grateful to the Liberal Lion is a sense of awareness for the problems that we face and a willingness to stand up and do something about it. Teddy did not shrug away from voicing unpopular opinions, and neither shall I (no matter how insignificant I may be). As another great man (my grandfather) once said, "Nobody ever said doing the right thing had to be easy."
Ted Kennedy's life was oftentimes not easy, but he will always be remembered as great. Yes, he made mistakes. But he was a good man who dedicated his life to trying to do good for others. At the end of a long and eventful life, can there be a higher compliment?
What a statesman! What a life!

Marriage Confusion - or something kind of like it

As I set and watch my news this morning, I am moderately surprised to see that West Virginia, my neighboring state (with more air time than sense), has decided to have their state supreme court (supreme being a relative term) define marriage. Of course that definition would be that marriage exists between a man and a woman.
What the Hell? Are you kidding me? Are you homo-hating conservs really that threatened that you have to define marriage? Yes, I know other states have done it. But if Alabama jumped off a bridge, would you? Don't answer that.
Now before I go any further let me say that I consider West Virginia one of the most beautiful states in the country. The natural beauty cannot be matched. Unfortunately that beauty does not extend to its people. The problem with West Virginia is that it's filled with West Virginians.
Back to the point at hand. Why do we have to be married at all? One local attorney in my hometown recently ran an add in our paper that he would personally pay for the wedding of any couple in the community that had been co-habitating for a certain amount of time. WTF? Why this sudden need to have all the heteros happily married off?
I don't think that any of us need to be "married" at all. I think the laws should be changed so that any couple (no matter their sexual affiliation) should be able to go to the courthouse and obtain a civil union, or partnership, or whateverthehell you want to call it. It should be treated like the business partnership that it in fact is. Then if you want to have a wedding, then that is a private thing for you to deal with with your spiritual leader, or not. To share with your family and friends, or not.
I just don't get why it has to be so damn hard. If I want to take my dog down to the courthouse and enter into a partnership with him, I should be allowed to. Now if we later decide to make vows in front of our closest friends and family where I vow to keep his food bowl always full and he vows to not lick his balls on my good rug - well then that's between me and my dog. As it should be.

A Whole new level of "Kiss My Ass!"

So here's the thing. I was watching my soap the other day, (yes, I'm a stay-at-home mother who watches soap operas. What of it?) only I can't watch it during the day, because I'm often too busy. So I watch it at night on Soap Net after the kids have gone to bed. So I'm watching, I'm watching, I'm guiltily enjoying all the drama. What kind of new trouble has that Sami cooked up now? Then, damn it, another commercial. She was just about to reveal who the baby's real father is. Crap. But wait. What's this? A new show on Soap Net. It's called Southern Belles - Louisville.
Now normally I am anti-reality TV. I consider it neither reality nor very good TV. But I'm from Kentucky, right? So of course I'm gonna have to check this out. It will have to be more real that those Real Housewives Of shows, right? I mean come on. It's Kentucky.
So the premier rolls around and I get ready to tune in with a jaded eye. And boy was I glad I hadn't set my hopes too high on this one. What a bunch of BS. These women lead lives so not even close to my own reality it's like we don't even live in the same state. Now, of course I know that geography doesn't count for everything. But it's gotta count for something and besides these women weren't even vaguely human as far as I'm concerned. Louisville or not, I refuse to validate these whoores rolls as quasi-celebrities for one second longer. Oh, darlings, get over yourselves.
There are five of the so-called belles, each one just as annoyingly grating as the last. My favorite of the moment though is Kellie. Poor Kellie. Poor poor Kellie. Evidently we should all feel very sad for Kellie because she has just gone through a very painful divorce. For the second time. (She's 32) And has had to "downsize" into a smaller home that frankly is quite a bit larger than the home I live in now which I consider to be almost too large for my family of four. Kellie is also trying to make adjustments to her new salary (read: divorce settlement). She is having to fly commercial instead of private and is having to buy her clothes -gasp- off the rack. Poor girl. Louisville is a great on wonderful city to be sure, but I don't even know where one would go to not buy off the rack.
I also really like Shea. Shea comes from money. And when I say money, I mean MONEY. Think Ron White when he says his in-laws are "llllooooooooaaaaaaddddeed." And Shea wants everyone who sees her to know just how much money she has. Or rather, Daddy has. And lucky Shea has found her dream man. (Starter husband - whatever) This poor guy is killing himself just to keep up with her demands and he doesn't even seem to know it. Shea is even planning their elaborate society wedding, and he hasn't even proposed. Love it. Dude, I have just one word for you. RUN!!!
So seriously, people. Please please please don't watch this show. Don't give these girls any more validation than they already get. Boycott Southern Belles - Louisville with pride and know that a real Southern Belle is one that knows that it's not all about the money or the house or the divorce settlement with all the zeros. She is one who says please and thank you, and yes ma'am and no sir. She can wear linen without wrinkling it (too much) and she knows how to brew the perfect pot of sweet tea. She wears her hair big to be "closer to Jesus" and she knows just why every southern woman has a coffee cup of bacon grease in her refrigerator. Be cool Kentucky, and don't give these "Belles" the attention they so obviously desire.

Ellen - take my kids. Please!

I was taking my kids to school this morning and I had the radio tuned to the local station WUGO/WGOH 102.3 in Grayson, KY) to try and get a little weather info for my day. They were talking and talking, as they are prone to do, about a whole lot of nothing when voice A said that he had something interesting to share that had to do with mother's day.
He had a poll that someone had done about how people feel about celebrity mothers. It was mildly interesting. Best celebrity mother - Jennifer Garner. OK, if you say so. Best celebrity step-mother - Jada Pinkett-Smith. Yeah, she seems pretty cool. Worst celebrity mom - Courtney Love. Totally, but whatever. Like I said, it was mildly interesting drive time prattle. Until . . .
Voice A then shifts his voice and says that there is a part of the poll he doesn't agree with. "Oh?" asks Voice B, "What would that be?" Evidently he already knows. Now this station is an admittedly conservative, quasi-Christian entity and I have often said that if I won the lottery the first thing I am doing is buying the station and changing it to indie/alt rock and my drive time show would be called "Shut the Hell Up". So I was kind of ready for some sort of unwed mother republican bullshit. But, yes it's true, they even surprised me. Turns out ignorance know no bounds.
The question was what celebrity would you be most willing to leave your kids with. Hmm, that's a good one I thought. What could people have possibly said that would have gotten these gas bags panties in such a wad? Brittney? Nah, who in their right mind would leave their kids w/ her? That's a real head scratcher.
So, wanna know who they deemed such an unfit role model, such a "sad commentary on the way our society thinks today", who no decent God-fearing, bible-thumping republican, should never leave their kids with?
Ellen. Ellen freakin' DeGeneres. And her "gay lover, partner,whatever, I'll not call her wife 'cause in the eyes of God they're not married Portia DeRossi."
Are you fucking kidding me? Ellen DeGeneres is the biggest threat to child development out there? Give me break, people. God forbid we would let someone who is in a stable relationship (by whatever label you want to put on it), has a highly successful career, is community and globally minded, is extremely generous, fair, and kindhearted look after your children. No we certainly wouldn't want that, now would we? What a crock of bull.
Hey, Go Radio, get over yourselves. I may not have always agreed with you but I at least respected you for having stuff on the air that I at least knew I wouldn't have to screen for my kids. Not anymore. I will not be tuning in anymore. You may not want your children (or grandchildren, as the case may be) to be exposed to gay people, but I don't want mine to be exposed to Ignorant Dumb Asses. Even my daughter, who is nine BTW and highly politically and socially savvy, couldn't believe it. "What's wrong with Ellen," she screamed. "Ellen's cool!"
That's right, sweetheart. Ellen is cool. But more than that Ellen is someone who I would be proud to let take care of my children. And that's saying something.

Ugly on the Inside

It's old news by now that Miss USA runner-up Carrie Prejean is a homophobe. She spoke out against gay marriage in the finals of the pageant and claimed that that is what cost her the crown. Perhaps. But generally it's not the best idea to give a crown to a bigot. But whatever.
Much has been said since then, mostly from conservatives, about how admirable it was that at least she had the courage of her convictions and was not afraid to stand up for what she believes in. Big F-ing deal. Hitler had the courage of his convictions too. Stay the course. The surge is working.
But now, yippee! Imagine my excitement upon turning on the news this morning to learn that Miss Prejean had previously posed for semi-nude photos and that said photos had been leaked to the media. hehehehe.
Now, normally when a situation such as this arises I say 'it's no body's business what a person does in their private lives' and honestly if I looked like Miss Prejean it wouldn't be a matter of nude photographs that anyone would have to worry about. My ass would be walking around naked for everyone to see. So more power to her on that front. But I digress.
The point is that Miss Prejean set her own self up as a moral example with her little morality play during and after the Miss USA pageant. She wrapped herself up in her so-called Christian Faith and now it appears she's a little tangled.
According to Prejean the whole thing was not her fault. The photos were "surreptitiously leaked to a tabloid website that openly mocks me for my Christian faith." Umm excuse me. Didn't you mock your faith yourself when you donned those little pink panties (and nothing else) and said cheese?
Bitch, give me a break!
Carrie Prejean, you are a real piece of work. Your faith is what guides you and teaches you what's right and wrong. But then when you do something stupid it becomes an excuse for others to attack you. Wake up and smell the holy-water, sweetheart. They're attacking you because you're a hypocrite. Big Time.
Prejean also goes on to say that she feels that the attacks on her and others who "speak in defense of traditional marriage" are intolerant and offensive. Guess what, Princess? I find your bigoted views intolerant and you stupidity offensive. So put that in your crown and smoke it!