Are you serious? You can’t be serious!

There once was an awful point in American history, when people who loved each other could be prevented from marrying one another because they were of different races. This went on until the U.S. Supreme Court decided in Loving v. Virginia that all race-based marriage laws were unconstitutional. But everything old is new again, right? We’ve got sports teams in throwback uniforms. Throwback sneakers. Pepsi Throwback. And now we’ve got throwback racist marriage policies.

I guess arguing over gay marriage got boring or something, so Tangipahoa Parish justice of the peace Keith Bardwell decided to do his part to prevent miscegenation by refusing to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple. I kind of feel like I know where old Keith falls on the gay marriage question, but is this just not a traditional enough kind of marriage for him? We’ve got one man and one woman. I thought that was the magic formula! I guess God just forgot to use the same crayons when he was coloring them in.

I find it interesting that Bardwell, who has held the elected position of Justice of the Peace since 1990, was a Democrat for his first three terms. Only in 2008 did he run as a Republican. Hmmm…what changed in 2008?

Am I naive?

This weekend, Serena Williams and Kanye West both had really public, ugly, meltdowns. They behaved horribly, which both of them later acknowledged. Whether their apologies (Williams; West’s initial apology, and what’s on his web site now) move anybody remains to be seen. With Serena Williams, she hurt herself far more than she did anybody else. Her tirade against the lineswoman cost her match point, a $10,000 fine from the USTA, and put Kim Clijsters in the finals (Clijsters won, which is all kinds of awesome).

For Kanye West, who is no stranger to controversy, this particular episode ended up hurting not only him, but also both Taylor Swift and Beyonce (although Beyonce is a total class act and had Taylor Swift come onstage and redo her acceptance speech).

One (black) woman who I follow on Twitter (she usually writes about tech stuff) posted several comments about how Kanye’s behavior would reflect poorly on black people. I didn’t agree with her assertion then, and I don’t now. When I heard about what he did, I wasn’t worried that we’d all be tarred with the same brush as West; I was just thinking, “Not this stupidity again.” I mean, seriously, how many times can one person wander across stage at an awards show before he determines that it isn’t a good idea?

BUT…Rep Joe Wilson also did the same thing. His was probably even worse though, because he heckled the freaking president. Ummm…not smart. And I haven’t heard anybody say that they feel all white people would do this, just  because one white person did it. If there is an assumption that any person who is in some way other (which in this country usually means non-white and/or non-male) than the norm speaks for everybody in that same demographic, the smart thing to do isn’t to pander to it. That kind of thinking is central to stereotyping and racial profile, and people shouldn’t accept that kind of laziness. Is it naive of me to think that this kind of thinking isn’t common? Do people generally go around thinking “all black people are…?” I really hope not. I’m an individual, and anything I want to say, I can say for myself.

Kanye West does not speak for me.

Serena Williams does not speak for me.

I’m pretty sure that Joe Wilson would not speak to me, and he damn sure doesn’t speak for me.

Related:

Joe Wilson, Serena Williams, and Kanye West Kick Off National Outburst Week

Say it ain’t so, Philly

I really like Philadelphia. Despite its obnoxious baseball team (who the Mets beat today in dramatic fashion [finally]), it has a lot of good things to recommend it. It’s walkable, pretty, and since the murder rate is so high (but now falling!), it’s nice that the cabs are plentiful and relatively cheap. Plus, I have good friends who live nearby, which clearly adds to the awesomeness that is Philly. At one point, I’d even considered moving there and getting a job at one of the city’s library branches. Which is why the news that the entire city/regional Free Library of Philadelphia system will close on October 2, unless the state legislature approves funding, is both so shocking and frightening.  I’ve heard of branches closing or hours being cut back, but I’ve never heard about such a large library system considering closing down altogether. This is both nuts and scary. In this time of increased economic hardship, libraries are playing a vital role in their communities.

Should this happen, I wish the best of luck to all who lose their jobs because of this, and the worst of it to the politicians responsible.

Please stop being so retarded, people

Who knew that a back to school speech could cause such an uproar? I think it’s pretty sad that people are keeping their children home from school and that some school districts are requiring parents to opt their children in to hear a speech by the President of the United States. I know! The President. Not some random dude in an office or anything. I understand that using the phrases “socialist agenda” and “left-leaning” to critique the President is generally another way to say “I’m a raging idiot and/or racist asshole,” but I still find this pretty disappointing. The worst part is that the text of the speech is up on the White House’s web site, so there’s no reason to speculate as to its content.

This, from the CNN article that I linked to above, is one of the scariest things I’ve ever read, “”I believe this is the greatest country on Earth, and I try to teach that to my children. … I don’t want them hearing that there’s a fundamental flaw with the country and the kids need to go forward to fix it.” I feel so sorry for this man’s children.

Potato/Po-tah-to

Yesterday a friend asked me what I thought of the Qaddafi situation. The town of Englewood, NJ is in an uproar (at least according to the media; I have not witnessed any uproaring myself) over the fact that the Libyan ruler (dictator?)  may be staying here when he comes to New York to speak in front of the United Nations.

First, I am truly amazed at how many ways there are to spell Gadhafi’s name and still be considered correct. In honor of this fact, I will never spell his name the same way twice in a row (although I will leave newspaper spellings the way I found them). Second, I completely understand why people would be upset about him staying in Englewood, but I don’t understand how they can allow themselves to be quoted saying such hysterical things.

NIMBY #1: “Unless this man comes into the U.S. and starts paying his share to reside in this community, this mayor and this community will not be coming with honeycake and sugar,” Mayor Michael Wildes said. “This is going to be an even greater drain on an already overtaxed community.”

• Translation, please??? What does this even mean? Why would this man be a drain on our community? Unless he suddenly cries poor and tries to collect welfare, how is he going to command any community funds? He travels with his own protection detail, so it’s unlikely that the city would have to oversee that. Also, now I can’t stop picturing Michael Wildes baking honeycakes.

NIMBY #2: City Council President Ken Rosenzweig said that if Gadhafi comes into the city, the council will do everything in its power to protect residents, especially immediate neighbors.

• Again, I do not get this. Qadaffi is not going to impose sharia on his block and start stoning the neighbors, so I do not understand why people would feel physically unsafe due to his nearness. He sucks, but I’ve never before heard claims that he would personally injure people. People in the immediate vicinity of the property owned by the Libyan government who are worried about their safety need to get a clue and realize that they’re probably on the safest block in the US right now.

Also:
”Gadhafi is a dangerous dictator whose hands are covered with the blood of Americans and our allies,” said U.S. Rep. Steve Rothman, whose district includes Englewood. He promised there would be ”hell to pay” if the U.S. State Department violates a long-standing deal barring the dictator from staying at the Libyan estate.

• Lay off the Internet Tough Guy speech there, Rothman; I doubt you can back that up. What, exactly, is he going to do to the State Department if Qadaffi is allowed to stay at the estate? Oh, right. Nothing. He may get lucky, though, as he is now saying that the White House and the State Department are urging Gaddafi to stay in New York City.

And finally:
A lot of articles about Kaddafi mention tents, and at first I thought it was some sort of ignorance, with people assuming that the Northern African dude must live in a tent. But, behold: he actually does travel with a tent. And he may need it, now that the city of Englewood has revoked work permits for improvements being made to the house owned by the Libyan government.

My personal feelings:
Gadhafi is scum, and knowingly supports criminals. He is no friend of this country or our ideals, and I’m conflicted about the fact that you can’t arrest and imprison people for sucking, but then all the politicians would be incarcerated and there’d be nobody to ru[i]n things.

Sometimes complaining works

I wrote this letter to the Goergia O’Keeffe Museum fully expecting that it would end up in some spam folder and would never be read. And I’d fully intended to mail it, but just got sidetracked. Moving on. Then, I saw the following email in my inbox this morning:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 7, 2009

For more information please contact:

Jackie Hall

Director of External Affairs

Georgia O’Keeffe Museum

505.946.1020

jhall@okeeffemuseum.org

Georgia O’Keeffe Elementary School and Georgia O’Keeffe Museum to Work Together

Santa Fe, New Mexico—On July 31, 2009, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum’s Interim Director, Carl Brown and its Director of Education and Public Programs, Jackie M, met with Lucinda Sanchez, Principal of Georgia O’Keeffe  Elementary School.  Mr. Brown conveyed  to Principal Sanchez the Museum’s regret over the misinterpretation of issues surrounding  correspondence between the Museum and the elementary school.

Mr. Brown stated, “The Museum does not object to the elementary school’s use of Georgia O’Keeffe’s name, nor do we object to the selling of t-shirts that feature the school’s name for fundraising purposes.   We are pleased and proud that the elementary school is named after Georgia O’Keeffe. The school has been in existence for 20 years and the Museum has never had an issue with its name.”

The Museum and school officials spent most of the meeting discussing cooperative efforts in the area of education for students, faculty, and family members.

“I’m so appreciative for the opportunity to work collaboratively with the O’Keeffe Museum in coming to a win-win solution for all.  We are so grateful to continue honoring the brilliant legend of Georgia O’Keeffe through the use of her name,” said Principal Sanchez.

Ms. M added, “ We look forward to working with the school, one with such a noteworthy academic record and a long history of outstanding accomplishments.”
# # #

It’s nice to know that public shaming was enough to get the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum to back down and stop looking like such greedy jerks. I think the reaction to their attempt to strongarm a school showed them that people will step in when such overt wrongdoing is happening. Right now, I feel like people who care can actually make a difference. On that note, I will get on with my day and enjoy the loveliness of Newport Beach!

Doing it for the children

I find it highly cathartic to write an angry letter every now and then. This is one I emailed to the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, which is trying to prevent the Georgia O’Keeffe Elementary School from going by the initials GOK, which might diminish or tarnish the artist’s legacy…somehow. Anyway, I like this letter so much that I’m going to print it out, put it in an envelope, sacrifice one of my pretty pretty Jackie Robinson stamps, and allow a mail carrier to deliver it.

************************************************

To those who make the decisions [I considered, and decided against, Dear Wankers]:

I just read this article about your museum, and to tell you the truth, it made me a little sick. You’re a well-respected art museum that apparently has all the grace and compassion of a school-yard bully. It has been said that there’s no such thing as bad press, but I’m pretty sure you know that this is simply not true. We live in the age of the Internet now, and I am always begrudgingly impressed when highly visible entities like the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum display such an appalling lack of awareness of how quickly information spreads via this medium.

I read just a few minutes ago on Metafilter (consistently listed as one of Time Magazine’s Top 25 and PC Magazine’s Top 100 Classic web sites) that your museum is trying to get the Georgia O’Keeffe Elementary School of Albuquerque, NM not to go by its initials, as if having people pronounce “gawk” for GOK would somehow diminish this amazing artist’s legacy. There’s quite a lively discussion going on over at Metafilter about the way that your museum is doing a fine job on its own of tarnishing the legacy of Georgia O’Keeffe. There’s a lot of sympathy in that thread, but none of it lies with you. And I don’t think that Metafilter is somehow unique in its interpretation of this situation. I sincerely doubt that anybody is going to say, “Well, I used to respect Georgia O’Keeffe, but ever since that one elementary school in Santa Fe started going by GOK, I realized how vastly overrated she was as an artist and have since allowed my membership to the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum to lapse.”

More than anything, I wonder what you could be thinking by even allowing your ridiculousness to continue through several rounds of emails, letters, and now the serious threat of legal action. I’m curious to know whether you are somehow unfamiliar with the plight of public schools in this nation in general, and Albuquerque in particular. It’s not as though schools are raking in the dough hand over fist, so why would you think it prudent to threaten the school over its use of Ms. O’Keeffe’s initials? You do realize that she was a former schoolteacher, right? I can’t imagine, if she were still living, that her sympathies would lie with you, either. And let’s not forget the very real fact that the school had this name before your museum even owned the rights to Ms. O’Keeffe’s trademark.

In the olden days (say, the late 1980s), awareness of this story might not have reached very far. Locals might have tsked, and if it was a particularly slow news day, you might have made it onto one of the nightly news programs. Dan Rather would have used some indecipherable phrase to illustrate how dastardly he found your behavior (because “like stealing candy from a baby”) would have been to easy, and Peter Jennings would have said something amazingly erudite that would have made you look like graceless money-grubbers.

But now we’ve got blogs, 24-hour news cycles (it’s always a slow news day somewhere), incessant social networking, and online communities with near-global reach. And just like I’m posting this on my web site, Facebook page, and twitter feed, somebody I know is going to see this and pass it along, too. I’ve got friends all over the world, and being that I am a librarian, several of them work in museums, archives, and libraries. We’re used to feeling like the good guys, and this will be passed along just as a sheer oddity. I mean, shouldn’t an entity dedicated to the preservation of an artist’s works, spirit, and legacy be on the side of education? Who are you saving this legacy for, if not the people who will grow up in a world where knowledge of Georgia O’Keeffe recedes further and further into the past? And what about the students affected by your misguided attempt to prevent the disrespect of Ms. O’Keeffe’s legacy? Let me tell you: you’re doing a heckuva job at disrespecting your raison d’etre all by yourselves. At this point, all that the kids at that school are going to remember is that they were named after a woman whose memory was left in the hands of seriously misguided, greedy people.

I am utterly disgusted by your behavior.

************************************************

So there.

Times are not that desperate

I understand that we’re in a recession, and people are cutting back on paying others to do what they can really do for themselves. Some have learned to cut their own hair; others have done their own nails or forgone artificial tans. Still, I think we can all agree that there are some  things that you shouldn’t try to do for yourself; at some point you just have to admit that if you can’t afford it, it’s better just to wait. And tops on that list would have to be plastic surgery.

Let’s face it, no matter how much better you want to look, elective plastic surgery is not a necessity. It’s expensive, and requires many years of intensive training on cadavers and cadaverous trophy wives before one can really be said to master it. Why, then, did this woman try to perform her own plastic surgery? And then seem surprised when she effed up her face? How could this outcome not have seemed the likeliest to her? Of course, she then had to have an actual doctor perform several corrective surgeries to remove the liquid silicone that she’d injected into her face. Heckuva job, lady.

Good old Jersey

Of course, it would be remiss of me to rag on West Bend, Wisconsin and not even mention the big news in New Jersey today. A boatload of politicians and religious leaders were arrested today on charges of corruption. One of those people is Hoboken’s mayor, Peter Cammarano. I’m not surprised that a mayor would get caught up in this; this is New Jersey, after all, and Secaucus mayor Dennis Elwell and Ridgefield mayor Anthony Suarez were also arrested (I linked to the Google caches, in case industrious city workers remember to yank these). No, what surprises me is that Cammarano has only been on the job since July 1. And he’s being accused of taking$25,000 in that time. So this man, if the charges are to be believed, has taken over $1,000 in bribes for every day that he’s been on the job. He should be happy the feds arrested him; how could he have possibly kept up that pace? Also, it might be good for him that this happened so quickly, before he could make more incredibly boneheaded statements. All in all, I’m pretty sure that this is not what Cammarano had in mind last night (his 32nd birthday!) as he poured beer  for the opening night of Hoboken’s St. Ann’s festival.

Again?

I never tire of asking what is wrong with people, and as usual, the dawning of a new day just brings me new people to despise and pity. The culprits this time? Some stupid yahoos in West Bend, Wisconsin, who think that censorship, law suits, and book-burning (literally) are perfectly cromulent responses to books in the Young Adult section that they find inappropriate. No rational person is going to argue that every book in a library is appropriate for every person who who may walk into that library. And I’m all for parents having a say over what media their children consume (until those kids are over 18 or paying their own way in life). But instead of these people just telling their own children not to read certain books, which would be well within their rights as parents, they want to label and move books and prevent other people’s children from having access to them, too.

Instead of being ashamed of themselves for being so fearful and hiding their intolerance from the world, such people wear it proudly like a badge and want to get more people to join their crusade. Ginny Maziarka is one of the spokespeople for the efforts to censor the library’s materials and amend its policies for labeling young adult material. She seems to be the leader of those in West Bend who are trying to prevent other people’s children from reading things that their own parents may not find objectionable, and runs the West Bend Citizens for Safe Libraries web site.

This is what I don’t get about so many issues that people object to; if you don’t like it, don’t do it/watch it/listen to it/eat it, etc. Why should I have to live according to what you believe? And who gets to say what is appropriate anyway? I mean, I find those Purity Ball things highly suspect, but I would never force grown men to stop encouraging their daughters to wear prom dresses, don pseudo-wedding bands, and pledge their virginity to their fathers. Because that’s not creepy at all.

Thankfully, Ms. Maziarka does not speak for the entire town, and there is a reasonable response to that site, in the form of Sleepless in West Bend. The library is for everybody (even weirdos)! There are a lot of things in the library that I kind of give people the side-eye for even wanting to look at, but that doesn’t lessen my support for those items to stay in the library. I’m not sure how I missed out on hearing about this sooner, since Gawker covered it over a month ago.