Re: OT Election

["vickysmith2368" <vicky2368@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

To take a term from a right wing blowhard, I feel like a "dittohead"
concerning James' post about the election.  I would like to add my
opinion to it.

I have noticed a lack of fiction on the list lately and while I don't
know why other authors left I do know why Ivy Gort did.  She explained
her reasons to me in an email and she left for one reason, this is a
gay list and her creative efforts were putting her mentor in danger.  

For a lot of people the concept of America's election is abstract, if
you live in the "blue states" then it difficult to understand the fear
that drives gay people living in some of the red states.  But let me
break it down: if just one of Ivy's stories is linked to her mentor
then it is possible for her mentor to lose her healthcare, her
retirement benefits from her job, and because her mentor is disabled
all her disability insurance.  Since Ivy was under 21 in the state in
which she lived, in when most of the stories she wrote were posted,
her mentor could be arrested for undue influence of a minor.  All
these laws are on the books of most states they were just never
enforced; in the past four years the political leaders have taken it
as a mandate in some states to start enforcing them.

The second thought I would like to add is voter fraud.  I saw almost
every African-American at my polling place be stopped from voting. 
The white, male, Republican "poll watchers"  stopped every single
African American and challenged their right to vote.  In my state you
are not allowed to ask for picture IDs, actually you aren't allowed to
ask for ID at all, just your name and address,  the Republican "Poll
Watchers" were demanding two forms of ID from every African American
that voted.  How many people on this list have two forms of picture
ID?  These people were kept from voting with no provisional ballot
offered.

The next thing I would like to add is Iraq.  Our men do not now, nor
did they when the conflict started, have bodyarmor, armored humvees,
and spare parts.  In some cases they are running out food.  While the
company that is supposed to be supplying them is now being
investigated by the FBI for fraud.  Everyone knows the name of the
company so I will move on.

Traditionally our military forces vote Republican, yet 75% of all the
troops that have either been to Iraq or are in Iraq right now voted
for Kerry. More than half their votes were lost.  

My last few words on Iraq, according to some grunts on the ground,
marines fighting this war, we are not losing it, we have lost it.  We
lost it when they were ordered to protect the oil fields and pumping
stations instead of maintaining civil order.  They lost it when they
found hundreds of weapon stockpiles and were ordered to leave them in
their rush to get to the oil ministry in Bagdad.  They lost it when
they smashed the Iraqi army and then weren't told what to do next
except guard the oil fields.

The last thing I would like to add is the closeness of the election. 
51% went to Bush and 49% to Kerry.  In my opinon this country is
divided and its divided over fear.  Fear of gays, fear for your
safety, fear of losing your job.  Fear is the only thing Bush and the
right wing have to use and they are masters.

What Bush is counting on is that when people get tired of being afriad
they will get angry.  What Bush and the right wing wants is to be able
to direct that anger, not at them, but at the gays, the black welfare
mothers, the "weakminded liberals that would have given our country
away to terrorists."  That is the next phase, that is the next big
plan for the right wing and the only way to stop it is get off the
fence and start fighting.  Otherwise Ivy's stories won't be the only
thing we lose.








------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> 
$9.95 domain names from Yahoo!. Register anything.
http://us.click.yahoo.com/J8kdrA/y20IAA/yQLSAA/RoMolB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~-> 

Willow: "It's a good fight, Buffy, and I want in."
Buffy:  "I kinda love you."
                     'Choices'

Community email addresses:
     Post message: buffywantswillow@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
     Subscribe:    buffywantswillow-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
     Unsubscribe:  buffywantswillow-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
     List owner:   buffywantswillow-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Shortcut URL to this page:
     http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buffywantswillow

Official archive for the list:
     http://www.ikoly.com/fanfic

Other links to Buffy/Willow fics:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buffywantswillow/links  
Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
   http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buffywantswillow/

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
   buffywantswillow-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
   http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/