Maybe We’re All Depressed

While politicians like to talk of big things like terrorist attacks and global warming and where to put the rest of the $350 gazillion of bailout money, my friends and loved ones seem to talk of something else–depression.  Since I’m been open about my battles with that and anxiety the past few weeks, others have been telling me that they’re struggling, too.  I don’t know if seasonal affect disorder has gone amuck, but we could all use some rays of sunshine it seems.

My one friend just got out of rehab to a less-than-supportive family, save for her sister, my other good friend.  Another friend lost his job and his family is looking for direction.  A woman I know has been working a couple of part-time jobs to make ends meet and was dumped by a romantic interest who “just wants to be friends.”  Others like me are apprehensive about the directions of our lives and trying to make it through the day.  There are various factors at play in the psyche of the nation and people are just so danged down.

A lot of people are placing their hope in soon-to-be President Obama, like he’s some sort of messiah for the United States.  If he’s unable to turn our frowns upsidedown, will we “crucify” him?  It seems like an awfully tall order for one man, who isn’t even God-incarnate.  Even though I support McCain, I am hopeful that Obama can do some good things for our nation.  I want him to succeed and am proud for this country to have its first black President.

However, hope placed in a man is still hope that is misplaced.  In Jeremiah 29:11, God talks about the plans for He has for His people–plans to give them a hope and a future (my friend Alyssa named her blog, Plans for Hope, after this verse).  I don’t think this verse is JUST for the Israelites of old, but it’s for us today.  Despite all the stuff around us that compress our hearts, keep us awake at night with worry, and cause so much pain, God has plans for hope in our lives.  It’s just surviving on the tiny bit of faith we can muster–faith of a mustard seed.

I don’t think we’re going to become magically undepressed (or unanxious) because of my blog post, but through mutual understand and prayer and Bible reading and other inspiration, I think we can make it through this together.  Who knows how long this season of our lives will last?  But at least winter will be over towards the end of March.

I hate feeling like this.  You hate feeling like this.  Yet we’re all in this together, despite our separate stories, our journeys have joined us together on this path.  So, take your hand in mine and we’ll trudge through this depression (and anxiety) together.  We’ve no other choice but to believe God’s promises.

Movie Dogs & First Dogs

Today I went to the movie theater and saw “Marley & Me”.   Getting up, getting dressed, and going somewhere is a major victory in my battle against anxiety and depression right now.  It sounds silly when something that’s usually fun and easy is difficult, but such is the nature of the beast   Those of you who battle depression or anxiety or both (double the “fun”) know what I mean.

Since “Marley & Me” by John Grogan is one of my most favorite of books (read my first thoughts), I was pretty sure if the screenwriters didn’t turn the story into a slapstick comedy, I would like it.

I loved it.

It’s the kind of movie that makes you want to rush home as soon as the credits appear so you can take your furry canine friend (or friends) in your arms and shower them with kisses.  Like the book, I was left thinking about how much a dog can add to a family dynamic, and through the story of Marley, the story of the Grogan family comes to life.

I’ve read reviews that said there was too much Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston (John and Jenny Grogan) and not enough dog (Marley).  It is a DOG movie after all, right?  True, but it’s more than a dog movie.  It’s a movie about the sociology of a family and how they interact with their dog (and in turn, how their dog interacts with them).  Wilson and Aniston have great on-screen chemistry and are pretty terrific in these roles.  I don’t think I’ve seen either actor in such a “serious” role prior to this movie.

See the movie and then buy the book because it’s much better to see the movie and then let the book flesh everything out.  And then go get a puppy (if you don’t already have one).  And knit it a sweater.

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Speaking of dogs, I’d like to weigh in on the Barack Obama puppy situation.  As you may know, Obama promised his girls a puppy and the family has the breed narrowed

The very presidential Portuguese Water Dog

down to two choices–a Portuguese Water Dog OR a Labradooble.  I’m thinking a shih tzu would be the best possible choice, but I guess a shih tzu isn’t a very manly dog.  I mean, soon-to-be-President Obama doesn’t want to look like a wuss in front of foreign dignitaries.  Plus, if the Obamas did have a shih tzu, they would probably keep its hair long (the traditional shih tzu look) and put bows in its hair.  Yeah, that definitely won’t fit Obama’s “man” image.  Although, does “Labradoodle” sound any manlier?

For the safety of our country and the sake of his image, let’s hope that Obama goes for the Portuguese Water Dog (even though I’m more keen on Labradoodles).  It’s a safe and masculine choice for our country’s leader.   Just watch the Obama girls ruin everything by naming the dog “Princess” or something.  I’m thinking “Lincoln” would be a good name due to Obama’s fondness for the former President.  Not only that, but it sounds cool and macho.

Johnny Takes It All (Minus 3)

If straw polls are any indicator who the likely winner of next week’s presidential election, then John McCain’s got victory in the bag with 535 of the 538 total electoral college’s vote.  This is, of course, according to AOL.com’s straw poll.  So, if the election was decided by people who vote in online straw polls and use AOL, then McCain would be a shoo-in.

Here’s the proof…

I listened to a pundit talking about a surprise McCain upset–he must have been looking at this poll.   But, hey, stranger things have happened.  My prediction–it’s going to be a long night, and with all the allegations of voter fraud, we could have a repeat of the 2000 Presidential Election.  Now wasn’t that fun?

All Is [Not] Lost

John McCain has lost this election.  Despite the fact that no one has actually gone to the polls (with the exception of early and absentee voters), it seems that Barack Obama is the President-elect.  Now that’s democracy in action, isn’t it?  Pundits and media folks are telling US what WE think, and apparently, they think we’re pretty stupid.

The evidence, which mainly consists of calling weary voters to ask who has their vote, has Barack Obama ahead in every major news poll.  However, what does the “man on the street” actually think?  Here in the great state of Pennsylvania, it seems that there are a lot of McCain/Palin signs in people’s yards (as well as a great deal of Obama/Biden signs).  We may be sick of hearing about it, but the election is far from decided.

Obviously, I support the McCain/Palin ticket and find these reports disheartening.  I’m about to peel my “McCain” bumper sticker off the back of my car and admit defeat.  I mean, who wants to promote the loser anymore than necessary?  And yet, Election Day is still days away.

How is it, then, that this is (representative) democracy in action?  Surely, both McCain and Obama want the outcome of the election decided by the people, not the pundits, anchors, columnists, and snarky new producers all over the nation.  The court of public opinion may be very different than what happens when each voters is alone in his or her respective voting booth.

Cheer up, McCain/Palin supporters, all is not lost.  The people have not yet had their say.

Who is Joe the Plumber?

The guy with the B&W baseball cap has a weird Shrek-like shadow on his face.

Those of you who watched Wednesday night’s final presidential debate were, like me, wondering just who this Joe the Plumber guy is and why both John McCain and Barack Obama kept talking about him.  Fortunately, Philip Elliot of the Associated Press did all that work for me, so I didn’t have to search too long or too hard to learn about the now-infamous Joe Wurzelbacher of Ohio (full story).

According to the story, Joe the Plumber (who has an uncanny resemblance to Mr. Clean) met Barack Obama at a campaign stop and their meeting left Joe feeling “uneasy” after telling Obama that his taxes on small businesses would keep him from owning the plumbing buisness that he’s worked at for many years.  Even though Joe says he agrees with McCain’s plan, he’s ever the diplomat when it comes to divulging who’s won his vote, “That for me and a button to know.”  Way to dodge the question, Joe!  A tactic he learned to employ expertly from watching the debate.

While Joe may have gotten his questions answered, I’m still in the dark.  I don’t own a home, have kids I’m sending to school or college, and I didn’t lose all my money in the stock market.  I’m really wondering what either candidate would do for me–a single woman in her late 20′s with a ton of school loans.  I did hear Obama say he would give $4K back to students who volunteered, which doesn’t do me a lot of good now.  Can I get a $16K credit on my loans for my volunteer service?  I was even nominated for an award by my college for my work…too little, too late.

With all this focus on families and economy, I’m beginning to wonder what’s in it for me.  I do come from the “me” generation after all.  So, where’s my piece of the American Dream?  Single adults fall through the cracks yet again.  Sigh.  Maybe we should elect Joe the Plumber as President.

Edit: There are a lot of videos aimed at “Joe the Plumber” circling around YouTube, many of which are critical of Joe because he is “rich”.  I’d like to point out that just because his company makes $250,000 a year or more does not mean that’s what Joe is taking home.  Remember, Joe has to pay his other employees, rent and/or maintenance for his business location, the cost of tools/supplies, advertising (so he gets customers), and other business-related expenses.  Joe is not “whining” and he’s not rich because his business would make $250K.

Edit 2: Midday Thursday more information about Joe the Plumber has begun to surface.  According to several news sources, Joe is actually named Samuel J. Wurzelbacher (he probably goes by his middle name, which is most likely “Joseph”) and he isn’t a licensed plumber–he just works for a guy that is.  Plus, Joe/Samuel/Whoever He is owes back taxes to the tune of $1200 (full story).  I seriously feel bad for the guy.

Palin’s Only the VP Pick, Right?

Is Gov. Sarah Palin running for President or running alongside John McCain as his VP pick?  It’s hard for me to tell anymore since the media has been slamming the governor left and right (but the attacks mostly come from the left).  Why hasn’t Joe Biden been under such scrutiny?  He’ll only be a heartbeat away from the Presidency if Barack Obama wins the election, yet he can make stupid statements until the cows come home and it’s barely a blip on the political scene.

Yet Sarah Palin is being ripped apart, and some say, she’s just got to toughen up and take it like a man.  But the problem is that she’s not a man; she’s a woman.  And I believe that because she’s a woman–a conservative woman at that–that she is arguably enduring harsher criticism than any other candidate.  Take the informative news clips (teasers) on AOL.com’s main page, two articles on Sarah Palin–one about her interview with Katie Couric and another about how she was blessed by a witch hunter.  There’s also a teaser regarding David Letterman’s rant against McCain for ditching Letterman to head to Washington to deal with the budget crisis (I’ve already dealt with Letterman’s nonsense…read post).  Whoa, a politician acting political! Now if only we could get a late-night talk show host that’s actually funny…

Initially, Palin seemed to be a media darling, but all that has changed.  I even heard a “comedian” suggest that Palin’s husband is molesting her teenage daughters (“doing those girls” was how he delicately phrased it).  Umm, on what planet is that deemed acceptable?

One Fox News pundit suggested that being a woman in politics is hard and Sarah Palin needs to learn to suck it up.  However, is asking what size bra cup she wears really politics as usual?  I don’t mean to be crass, but when was the last time we ask how big Obama’s you-know-what is?  Just typing that caused my gag reflex to hop into action.

It is right to question Gov. Palin’s experience–does she have what it takes to be a heartbeat away from the presidency?  Is she a good diplomat?  Will she be able to handle herself with foreign leaders?  Or maybe we should ask, are foreign leaders ready to handle her?  Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari called Palin “gorgeous” and is also quoted in Newsday as saying, “Now I know why all of American is crazy about you.”  Sorry, Mr. Pakistani President, all of America is not crazy about Palin (video below.  I think she handles herself masterfully!  What would *you* say if you were hit on by the President of Pakistan?) Of course, being as Zardari is the widower of the dazzling Benazir Bhutto (read my posts: “The Beauty of Benazir Bhutto” and “The Woman Who the Terrorists Feared Most“), he’s not one to be intimidated by beautiful or powerful women.

However, it’s the other rhetoric regarding Sarah Palin that makes me angry.  Yes, she’s beautiful and she’s from Alaska.  So what?  Growing up in a small town doesn’t diminish her intelligence (though some have suggested otherwise) and “straight talk” actually endears her to the people.  Generally, political speeches engage me for the first ten minutes then my mind starts to wander.  Sarah Palin, on the other hand, fascinated me.  She engaged me.  She made everyone care about presidential race again.  But that was so last week.

As soon as she was viewed a viable threat to the potential Obama presidency, the media turned on Palin–viciously.  They make pitbulls and hockey moms with or without lipstick look scary.  While Sarah Palin may be used to such attacks, I’m taking it personally.  I’m so tired of the media telling me who I should or should not vote for when clearly Obama is the favorite–his face is plastered all over Facebook and AOL and the news.  His associations with folks like Rev. Wright and others is just dust under the rug.  His qualifications are called into question, but Palin’s resume seems to be getting a tougher critique, which makes me wonder–Palin’s only the VP pick, right?

Read “I Hate You Sarah Palin” by the National Review’s self-proclaimed liberal writer David Kahane.  It’s a very interesting column. Here’s an excerpt: “So that’s why we hate you, Sarah Marshall Palin. We hate you because you remind the other side of their wives, their girlfriends, their daughters, and make them want to fight for you against our sneers and our smears.”

Letterman: After McCain Drops Dead, Palin Won’t Teach Sex Ed

So I was watching “The O’Reilly Factor” to see Bill O’Reilly’s interview with Barack Obama when he showed a clip from “The David Letterman Show” airing on Sept. 3.  In the clip, Letterman is chatting with Dr. Phil McGraw about Republican Vice-Presidential nominee Sarah Palin and her pregnant teen daughter.

Letterman sets it up like this, “Here’s the first thing that came to my mind–OK, so poor John McCain drops dead in office. He gets elected and drops dead.  It’s happened!  I think Grover Cleveland dropped dead in office, I don’t know.  So now she’s the President and I’m thinking to myself, so she’s the president, fine, but don’t you want your President to have had the presence of mind to have chatted to her teenage kids for five minutes about birth control?”

Dr. Phil responded by saying (this is paraphrased), “Whoa, Dave, just wait until your kid becomes a teenager, and we can contiue this discussion then!”  The joke basically bombed, but apparently true wit isn’t one of Letterman’s strong points (guess he has to use the teleprompter).  He then asked, “They don’t sell Trojan condoms in Alaska?”  Further pressing the issue, Letterman suggests that Sarah Palin probably forced abstinence on her daughter, didn’t teach her about birth control, and that’s why Bristol Palin got pregnant!  (Don’t believe me?  Go here to watch a clip of the show.  The part I’m discussing starts at the 4:38 minute marker and continues on until the end.  Yes, over four minutes of this nonsense!)

First of all, I find it offensive that Letterman would suggest that McCain would just drop dead once he gets into office because he is in his early 70′s.  Did anyone get a load of his mom, Roberta?  The lady is 96 and as spry as a 50 year-old!  While I know that Letterman is edgy, that statement seemed rude, even for him.

Second, Letterman assumes that the Palins didn’t teach their children about responsible sex because their daughter is pregnant.  Guess what, Dave?  Girls who wear condoms (and use birth control) can still get pregnant.  Amazing how that works!  Besides, even if the Palins didn’t talk to Bristol about sex, I’m sure her public education told her all about the dangers of pre-marital sex.  I’m willing to bet she even got to practice putting a condom on a banana.

Third, I can’t believe he blamed “abstinence” for her pregnancy saying that she was less likely to use a condom!  Just because she was told to abstain (if she was told to abstain), doesn’t mean she listened.  What if her boyfriend kept a condom in his wallet “just in case”?   While I’m abstaining from premarital sex, I’m not so naive as to think that people don’t have sex, even if they’re told abstinence is a better choice.  And really, what does that have to do with anything, much less Palin’s vice-presidential nomination?

Fourth, why is he trying to drag poor Dr. Phil into his nonsense?  At one point, the audience actually went silent, probably because Letterman’s rant was so mean-spirited.

Some rags and media outlets seem to be having a field day with Sarah Palin’s personal life, which is interesting because I don’t recall Joe Biden receiving this much attention.  And Obama was raised by a single mom who had Barack when she was 18, didn’t she?  Hmm, why does Letterman seem so ignorant of that fact, or does his show exist to simply spew stupidity?

Ignorant or stupid–take your pick.

According to my friend Derek (he’s just a wealth of information lately, isn’t he?), Letterman isn’t the only host that is down on Palin.  Apparently Oprah refuses to be “fair and balanced” and interview Palin on her show.  Read about it here.

For an insightful post on Sarah Palin and women in leadership, check out Jonalyn Fincher’s “Sarah Palin- Integrating Work and Home.”

Cute, Cuddly Take-Home Obama (and Hillary)

I know what you’re thinking–”Barack Obama is just so darn cute I wish that someone would make a plush cartoon-like doll out of him so I could take him home!”  Well, you’re in luck because someone out there heard you and did just that…and even made a stuffed Hillary, too.  Where can you get the little dickens?  At one of those of those “claw grab” vending machines near you (see picture below).

This particular claw grab machine was located at Ollie's in Allentown. I drew a circle and arrows to point out the plush Democratic candidates.

For a mere 50 cents, you, too, can take home a plush rendition of the man who just may be the next President of the United States or of a former First Lady.  I was tempted to try to “grab ‘em”, but I never win at those things.  And I’m wondering, where’s the McCain plush?  Isn’t he cute and cuddly enough?  Wouldn’t people want to use “the claw” to fish him out of the mess of stuffed animals?

Here's Obama flanked by two Hillarys. Is it me or are Hillary's cheeks reminiscent of a chipmunk?

And just think if my mom hadn’t abandoned me at the check-out counter on our afternoon shopping excursion, I might not have been idling around the front of the store for 15 minutes bored out of my mind.  Boy, was I glad I had my camera on hand!

Here they are again, the two BFF's, side-by-side, in their plush likeness

However, the SugarLoaf Co. that owns this machine isn’t the first to pay tribute to Obama in plush form.  Hero Builders began crafting action figures of all sorts of political and pop culture celebrities, including the Obamakinz (see below).  You can order your Hillary and McCain plush, too!

So hop on over to Hero Builders or stop by one of your local claw machines to get a plush Presidential candidate today…so you can always have something to remember him or her by!  Oh, and win me one, too.  I think they’re hilarious.

Obama: Black or White?

Young Barack with his mother

As the love affair for Barack Obama continues to swell in the Democratic Party (and media) and Hillary is tossed aside like yesterday’s politician, I’d like to point out something obvious–Barack Obama is half-white. I keep hearing it repeated over and over again how Obama is making history as the first black presidential nominee. However, I keep thinking, the guy’s as much white as he is black, isn’t he?

Just because he chooses to pretend he didn’t have a “white bread” upbringing, now closely identifying himself with the plight of the black man, doesn’t make him any less white. Marrying a black woman and attending a controversial black church with black pastor, Jeremiah Wright, doesn’t make him any more black. He simply is what he is and should embrace his whiteness and his blackness.

FrontPage Magazine published an article in 2004 detailing the history of Barack Obama’s interesting lineage saying that “racial segregationists” want Obama to be African-American. The article continues, “Considering a mixed race individual an African-American is a typical liberal practice. They routinely refer to anyone who is partially black as black. Tiger Woods, Halle Berry and Mariah Carey are all mixed race celebrities regularly referred to by the liberal media as black. Tiger Woods has had the gall to complain about this. (With good reason; his mother is Asian.)”

The article recounts the days of the Jim Crow laws in which a person who was as little as 1/8 black was considered black and therefore refused the rights granted to whites. Fortunately, Jim Crow laws have been outlawed, but our nation is still obsessed with race (read full article).

Like Michael Jackson said in his famous song, “Black or White”, “It doesn’t make a difference if you are black or you’re white…” That is, unless you’re running for political office.

Voting:: American Idol vs. American President

By Andrew J. Wilhelm Congratulations to the latest “American Idol” David Cook, who received the majority of the 99.7 million votes cast. While the inconvenience of college cut into my T.V. viewing, , I am a big fan of the show. The overall premise of the show, to give an amateur singer the chance of a lifetime, is a good one. It is also one that the American public can buy into–who doesn’t want dreams to come true? Still, 99.7 million is a daunting number! Since fans of the show can vote mutliple times, it doesn’t accurately reflect the actual number of viewers. Yet “American Idol” finales typically garner around 30 million viewers. Having 10% percent of the country captivated by a single television show is pretty impressive. Props to Simon, Paula, and Randy!

Although the 2004 presidential election garnered 40% of eligible voter turnout, “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell almost always gets more Americans to vote than political candidates. Primaries, even in this extra-thrilling campaign season, often struggle to reach double digits. Most people just don’t care enough to drive to the polling station and hit a button. Why are people more willing to vote for the nation’s next rock star, but seem lackadaisical about picking the next leader of the country? While his good looks and throaty vocals may make David Cook the next big thing; he’s not attempting to rule the free world (by political force anyway). Why do American citizens have more interest in pop stars than presidents?

I decided to ask a few of my friends, mostly college students like myself, about this issue and have elicited several interesting answers to my inquiry.

The most popular answer was that politics is “boring.” A vague expression, but one I’ll try to uncover more fully. Most people fall into three categories of “political boredom”: they believe their single vote couldn’t possibly make a difference; they simply don’t understand government workings and don’t care to learn; or they have been disenchanted because of corruption, scandals, etc. In fact, among those who choose not to vote, I would conjecture that all three possibilities would apply.

I have heard an enormous amount of people say that they are unhappy with our current options–John McCain, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton, who’s hanging on by the skin of her teeth. Their remedy to such disdain is to simply not vote. I’d urge everyone to at least limit the damage by voting for whoever they deem the lesser of the two (or three) “evils”.

The weather also has a lot to do with whether or not people show up to the polls. A sunny, pleasant day can yield up to twice the voters as a cold, rainy day. Lame? I sure think so. Unfortunately, Americans have become uncontrollably lazy. They are used to being able to do everything from the comfort of their own La-Z-Boy. What if voting could be done via the Internet or even text messiaging, as in “American Idol”? These are possibilities that would dramatically change the voting landscape, but must be explored to keep up with this generation’s demands. Can you imagine Hillary standing on stage urging viewers to vote for her by calling 1-888-PREZ-001?

The level of disengagement from politics is being felt as severely as ever. Some everyday Americans–the ones who who go to work, pick up the kids from school, go to bed, only to repeat the process don’t have a clue what’s happening in Washington. But the politicians don’t seem to know what’s going on in middle America either. Like the a monarchy, the wealthiest tend to rule (and make the rules for) big-time politics It seems our government will be ruled by older, wealthy, white men in the foreseeable future, which doesn’t bode well for the “American Idol” voting crowd. In fact, many might want to replace the President, Congress, and Supreme Court with the checks-and-balances of Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson, with AI host Ryan Seacrest as press secretary naturally.

In fact, the start-up of “American Idol” is arguably the best part of the show, and a lot more exciting than the primaries. The show’s preliminary auditions present viewers with freaks and tone deaf contestants that give us all a chuckle. After that, a few contestants who can actually sing make it through to the voting stages. Each contestants has his or her unique personality, hair style, vocal range, personal story, and connection with viewers. Not so in politics. While there has been some diversity in this year’s presidential election, politics is sill mostly wealthy white men who enjoy listening and arguing with other wealthy white men. Those who push the envelope threaten this hierarchy of power and can rarely penetrate the deep layers of aged power in Washington.

When it comes down to “American Idol” versus the American President, it seems we choose entertainment over politics, unless of course there’s a political scandal brewing. Nothing shoots up ratings like an old-fashioned affair or deep-seeded corruption. I enjoy “American Idol” as much as anyone else. In fact, I’ve for more AI contestants than politicians. In all fairness, I’m 19 and have only been eligible to vote a couple of times. I have voted every time since registering to vote and was proud to do so.

Though it’s a little more time-consuming to research and uncover the candidates’ positions, policies, and experiences, it is of the utmost importance. “American Idol” simply feeds its audience with stories, songs, flashing lights, and snarky judges; your vote only makes a super star. Despite dissatisfaction with politics and awe at “American Idol”, it is essential for Americans to get off their couches, put down their remotes, and head to the polls. As the United States continues to be the dominant force in the world; your vote will not only impact you, but millions around the globe. If you have the power to turn an obscure rocker into an “American Idol”, you have the chance to turn a candidate of your voice into the next American President.

Andrew Wilhelm is a sophomore at Wheaton College majoring in political science with a minor in economics. His two main passions are playing piano and golf. He also enjoys learning about and analyzing trends in culture, economics, and politics. For some strange reason, he consistently refuses to send his Nintendo Wii to Amy.

Print copy of Scribble.

Andrew Wilhelm a sophomore at Wheaton College majoring in political science with a minor in economics. His two main passions are playing piano and golf. He also enjoys learning about and analyzing trends in culture, economics, and politics.