a river of nerds

I'm a liberal-leaning person. I don't think that's any surprise to people who know me. This does not mean, however, that I am a "professional" protester. That's not how the Rebecca do.

I attended my first protest when I was in college. Isn't that what college students are supposed to do? The cause? Ummm...I don't really remember. It had something to do with the fact that our apartment-style dorm rooms and hallways weren't being kept up, while the floor that the head of housing lived on was immaculate. I know - major cause, huh? It was a sit-in in the commons area of our housing. Pretty peaceful. Not a ton of people, not very loud or anything, but somehow the Chicago Police were called and someone ended up getting arrested. Drama! The news media was alerted and the next day I somehow ended up showing a TV reporter around our building. (I wish I could remember his name. He ended up in a movie a couple of years later and I was like - "Hey! That guy was in my bedroom!") I was even interviewed for the news (with one of my roommates watching the whole thing because she was too in awe of the reporter's good looks to speak in coherent sentences) which was kind of fun. Unfortunately, the whole story got bumped for most likely two reasons: 1 - It was a pretty lame protest and 2 - It was the same day that John Wayne Gacy was executed. Priorities. Whatever.

Aaanyway, time has gone on and causes have come and gone. Protests have been pretty frequent over the past few years - especially so in the past few months. Some I've agreed with, others I haven't. The ones I did agree with, I didn't participate in for one reason or another. Could have been that there wasn't a protest near me or their mission statement was jumbled and lost or just too vague, or I just couldn't see what a bunch of people holding signs would get accomplished.

So, flash forward to the March for Science. I've been a bit frightened of the number of people in high ranking positions who choose to ignore scientific facts. It's one thing for someone to not believe - I'm sure they've been around the whole time, but the fact that funding is being cut left and right makes me a wee bit nervous. I mean, science saved my life. Research is really important. If we cut funding, how will we ever advance? But, that's enough time on my soapbox, back to the narrative...

I enjoy science. Always have. Well, until high school chemistry defeated me and made me feel like I had no place in the scientific world whatsoever. Now I enjoy reading about science and learning things via internet and museums. I still have curiosity, I just don't have enough left-brain power to be a "scientist". As a supporter of science, and museums, and life, I decided to join the March for Science in Chicago.

Well, something like that...

When the time came, I knew the schedule, the location, but one important thing was missing - My Sign. I knew a sign was very important in the whole protesting thing. I just wasn't sure what direction I wanted to go with it. After doing a little searching, I was still at a loss. I knew what my focus wasn't, but what did I really want to say? After some thought, I came up with "Science saved me, now it's time for me to return the favor." I threw a sign together quickly - very quickly - but it just wasn't working for me. I didn't want a pity party on poster board. So, it was back to the literal drawing board. I had a direction that I wanted to go, but a big blank needed to be filled in. After talking with the hubster, we came up with this one:

Whad'ya think?
As you can tell, I'm not a professional sign maker.

Now, the train station that I go to is the last stop out of Chicago. It's an extremely rural area right next to the WI/IL border, so imagine my pleasant surprise when I saw other people there with signs. As we got closer to the city, more and more people boarded the train with signs of their own. This was a good sign (and it helped me fell less self-conscious about being on a train with a big piece of poster board). As I got off of the train and made my way to the rally point, the number of people with signs and science-related clothing grew and grew. I knew they were expecting thousands of people, but I didn't know they'd all be getting there late like me! Or so I thought.

Once I got about three blocks away from the rally point, the movement of people was basically at a stand still. I had no idea just how many people were in front of me, so I'd put my phone above my head, snap a photo and take a look at it to try to guage what was going on ahead of me, but even that didn't help.

What's going on up there?

Fortunately being there alone had its advantages, one of which was the fact that I could snake my way in between people and get up toward the front a little faster. I still never got that close. I could just barely hear the "kick off" of the march, but we certainly weren't moving anywhere. While we stood there, I took a look around at the other people around me. Their signs were now being held over their heads. That's when I knew that these were my people and I was happy to be supporting them.

Then we started moving. Yay! Slowly, but we were moving. There was definitely forward progress. We finally got to the main road of the march and people spread out a bit. We could finally see everyone around us. There were news helicopters hovering above getting footage, police helicopters in case of anarchy. People of all ethnicities, ages, genders, abilities were there - some were there for the social aspect, checking in on Facebook and Snapchat more than anything, but most people were passionate about why they were there. Another thing that struck me - everyone was kind, polite, said "excuse me" and complimented a sign if they saw fit.

I pulled off to the side for a moment to grab a quick video of the moment:

I moved around the masses, taking in the enormity of it all.

We made our way down the route. What would have normally taken me a half hour to walk ended up taking 2 hours. The ending point was the Field Museum where they were holding a science expo. As we walked under Lake Shore Drive and came out on the other side of the tunnel, I was amazed at the number of people who were still there, sitting on the campus lawn.

And when I made it to the expo on the other side of the museum, there was still another crowd over there.

Since there were so many people, I really only saw those in my section. I had no idea how far people were spread out in front of me or behind me. Only those who lingered afterwards. I figured maybe a few thousand people maybe 10,000 tops. On my train ride home, I checked social media and saw that they had estimated 50,000 people! Fifty. Thousand. (The next day they upped that figure to 60,000!) And there were no incidents. It was like a beautiful river of colorful nerds slowly meandering down the streets of Chicago.

Peaceful protest IS possible, and it was a beautiful thing to see.

presidents i would rather elect

Oh, this election cycle has the country so divided and angry that it's truly sad to watch. I'm not terribly happy with the choices we have in November, so I'm making a wish list of fictional Presidents I'd rather have sitting in the Oval Office come January.

Abraham Lincoln: Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies

Sure, I could have gone with his incarnation in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, but this movie was so much better because it didn't try to be what it wasn't. And this Lincoln was intelligent, well spoken, and full of zombie ass-kicking skills. We'll need that come the zombie apocalypse.

President James Dale: Mars Attacks!

He wasn't perfect, but he tried. He listened to others and did what he thought was best, even if it backfired terribly. Can you blame a guy for wanting everyone to "just get along"?

Dave Kovic: Dave


A look-alike replaces the actual President in an emergency and becomes the President we would all hope for. Can this happen?  Please?

President Beck: Deep Impact

I know we all feel like the end of the world is coming soon sometimes. Who else would you want to hear calmly telling you about your impending doom other than Morgan Freeman?

President James Marshall: Air Force One

Harrison Ford and this line. Need I say more?

President Thomas J. Whitmore: Independence Day

He stayed in the White House to make people feel safe. He found out all about Area 51. He flew a fighter jet to try to shoot down the aliens. And he gave one of the most inspiring speeches ever. I'd take him over a couple of serial tweeters.

President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet: The West Wing

I'm so sorry that I was late to the West Wing party. I've been watching it lately and dream of a President the likes of Jed Bartlet. We can only hope that come 2020, the stars will align, the Super PACs will dissolve, and a worthy presidential candidate will appear.

the rants i never post

There have been so many times on Facebook when I've written out a rant and then decided not to hit "Post" because I figure I'm basically preaching to the choir.  Almost all of my friends are above juvenile behavior and for the most part it's the friends of friends comments that get me riled up - they wouldn't see my rants anyway.  Why bother?  But, because I still need to vent my virtual frustrations, you get to be the lucky folk to read my latest rant. 

Dear apparent 10-year-olds who were actually born before 1985:  The President's name is Barack Obama.  Not O-blame-a, Obummer, Odummy (really?), etc.  Yes, his middle name is Hussein. Is that his fault? Many people are forced to use initials only because of their hatred of the mysteriously picked middle name forced upon them.  Do you think poor Richard Tiffany Gere loved writing out his full name?  Or Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland?  How did he fit that on a scantron test?  And Mitt Romney - He's not Mittens or R Money or Flip Flopney.  If you're going to post a four paragraph political rant and want to be taken seriously thereby keeping your readers' attention and possibly changing minds (*cough* good luck *cough*) then speak like a freaking adult!

Did you know there are websites that list the candidates nicknames?  No lie!  There's the Pretty Exhaustive Obama Nickname List and this list of 85 Romney nicknames found in internet searches.  Some are pretty creative, some are extremely offensive.  Most are just plain dumb.

Sometimes I wonder what these people teach their kids about bullying and name calling...if anything.  Rant over.  Enjoy your day!! :)

hearts on fire

I know this is about a week late, but it's been rumbling around in my head and I just have to share it. 

The vice-presidential debates were last week.  Biden vs. Ryan.  Not getting into actual politics, who won, who was rude, who drank 5 gallons of water, who actually answered questions and who didn't...  No, this shall focus on the visions I had of the two of them preparing for the debate in two completely different ways. 

Ryan getting up in early the morning, doing his P90X in his workout room / home theater, having a protein shake, running a half marathon on his treadmill, looking at his shirtless self in the mirror over and over again as his wife tells him how awesome he is.  Biden crawling out of bed around 9am, frying up a thick steak in some bacon fat and drinking a raw egg for breakfast, going out into his filthy garage, doing some bicep curls on a rickety old bench set that he's had for 20 years, knocking through 5 sets of fifty push ups on the hood of his Trans Am, and squeezing a couple pull-ups on a bar over the door as his wife looks on and rolls her eyes.  All with cheesy 80's movie montage music playing in the background.

I'm sure it all played out something like this:




Just had to free that image from my brain and put it out there in the universe.  You're welcome.

my memories of the rnc

The date was July 31, 2000.  Ah, I remember it well.

It was night-time. I was stuck in bed in the maternity ward of our local hospital...still pregnant.  They had induced labor that morning, but the dang kid was stubborn and didn't want to come out into the world yet.  The doctors decided to keep me overnight so that they could kick it up a notch the next morning, so I shooed my hubby home so he could get some sleep in a decent bed before he wouldn't be able to again for quite a few months.

So there I was, alone in a hospital bed, hooked up to internal monitors (in other words, I had wires hanging out of my hoo-ha) and an IV, a nurse call button to the side of me, and a TV remote in my hand.  Unfortunately the only thing that was being shown on the limited number of channels offered by the local hospital was the Republican National Convention. (This was prior to the name being shortened to RNC for the sake of people who type using only their thumbs.)  Hundreds of people in silly hats prattling on about the "great state of" blah-ba-dee-blah that they were from and casting their nominations for "The next President of these great United States, George W. Bush!"  Sigh.  (Don't get me wrong, I would have despised being forced to watch the Democratic Convention as well, though this was a bit worse.  I hate politics.)

The 2000 Republican National Convention

A scream came from down the hall.  She must have been just as thrilled about the television selection as I was.  Oh, wait...this was the maternity ward.  Nice to know someone around here is actually giving birth.  And then I remembered that I was supposed to be doing the same thing the next day.  In an instant, I wasn't so thrilled to be listening to the woman down the hall screaming in agony.  I wanted to turn up the sound on the TV to block out the screams, but that would have only made me scream right along with her.  I couldn't win!

I tried desperately to find something - ANYTHING - else to watch.  I would have taken the Weather Channel if they had it, but I wasn't that fortunate.  I tried going to my happy place, but the 3rd circle of hell that I was somehow trapped in was too overpowering to allow me to escape.  I had to concede to one or the other and in an effort to psych myself up for the next day and keep a little bit of sanity, I turned off the television and listened to the horrific beautiful sounds of the miracle of childbirth, made a mental note to have the hubby bring movies for me to watch the next day, and swore that I would never watch a political convention ever again.

I'm proud to report it's a promise I've kept to myself for twelve years now.

give me the strength to make it through another election year

Another presidential election year is upon us.  Oh gods above, below, and in all directions please help us.  Time to be inundated with political commercials about nothing but how bad the other candidates are, news hours, internet space, and plenty of ink devoted to each and every candidate, letting us know what they said, how they flubbed, what they ate for dinner, and what color undershirt they prefer, but not telling us where they really stand on any issue.  The spin, the soundbites, the mud-slinging, the Vaseline-coated smiles...

Oh, I don't think I can do it again.

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Last night, I received eight - EIGHT -  "Breaking News" updates in my email about the Iowa Caucuses.  They were coming in "With 50% of the votes in..." followed a little while later with, "With 67% of the votes in..." etc.  What?  Couldn't they just tell me who won when it was all over with? 

Today I had three "Breaking News" updates about Bachmann...First one at 9:26am
"Source close to Michele Bachmann campaign: No 'viable way forward' after sixth-place finish in Iowa."
The second at 9:42am
"Rep. Michele Bachmann will announce Wednesday she's suspending her GOP campaign for president, a source tells CNN."
The third at 10:36am
"Michele Bachmann announced today she is dropping out of the presidential race, saying 'I have decided to stand aside.'"

It was then that I decided once and for all that CNN and I have very differing views on what Breaking News really is, and I unsubscribed.

Front runners are determined a year before the election even takes place?  Debates become a show of who can throw out the right soundbites as opposed to giving straight answers?  How is anyone supposed to make informed decisions in this overly-packaged swamp of "coverage?"

In the perfect election year in my head, the candidates would give you the information you want.  They would give interviews, only being asked questions about policy and where they stand on issues, they would only be allowed to answer the question as asked and not mention where their political rivals stand.  Same goes with public debates.  The only news coverage given to the candidates would be these interviews, debates, and election results (when the votes have all been counted).  There would be no Super PACs, no "I'm so-and-so and I endorse this message," no phone calls during dinner.  Simple yard signs, bumper stickers and the like would be it.  We, the voters, would have the information we need to make intelligent decisions based on our own opinions - and we wouldn't have to sift through all the waste to get to it. 

Oh that sounds so refreshing.

Unfortunately it's my little dreamworld and it's nowhere near reality.  I guess I'll be fast-forwarding through every commercial, rolling my eyes at the internet headlines, and trying desperately to find the information I need to make a sound decision.  And I'll stay well-stocked on whiskey.

politics...again? sorry

And this is why I don't get into it:  (And forgive me if I ramble a bit, but this cold is making me a smidge spacey) Shouldn't government be open to the people, free from game playing and somewhat civil?  Am I truly that idealistic?  Apparently.  I know that people who live in other countries envision our government that way.  I know when we were learning about government in school, that's how we saw it.  Unfortunately, it's nowhere near the case here in America's Dairyland.  Seriously - this goes far beyond the games I'd expect to be played in Washington.  Rushed meetings, no notice, things that are one minute all about money are suddenly not about money at all... 

I want to go back to thinking our government is full of people who are working together, with some differences of course, to make things better for the people with reasoning and civilized debate - not just push agendas through by any means necessary.  It's a sad, sad time not only for those who are immediately affected by the decisions made by the state government, but for all of us who live in the state as we are embarrassed that people like this could come from the place we love.   Now we'll be known for Dahmer, Gein and Fucked Up Government Officials.

a blog about politics by someone who hates politics

I live in Wisconsin.  A pretty calm, happy place to live.  We have festivals and beer and music and the Packers and brats and deer hunting and cheese and the Badgers and loons and....we're pretty content for the most part. We also think the cows who live here are far happier than those in California.

Usually the kind of political turmoil we have around here these days is when a small town mayor is caught pilfering money or cops screw strippers in squad cars while on duty.  It's not thrilling and that's the way I like it. But now all of the sudden, there's all this drama going on.  Our tranquil little state has become the center of national media attention (for something other than sports or binge drinking) and it's not shedding a favorable light on any side of the issue. 

It all started when the new Governor, who just took office six weeks ago or so, decided that in order to fix the budget and get out of the huge financial hole the state is in, that he would do a little...okay, a lot of...tweaking to the public employee unions.  (Please note, I'm putting all of this in the simplest terms possible not because I don't know what's going on, but because if I were going to go into everything, this blog would take up far too much space on the World Wide Web.)  Some of the changes didn't have a ton of opposition, some weren't pleasant, but do-able, but other changes were pretty drastic including taking the right of collective bargaining away from them. 

Yeah, all of those changes in one fell swoop didn't go over well.  With no discussions allowed and a quick-time vote scheduled, people went ballistic.  Protests were scheduled by people against the bill, the Governor called out the National Guard, more protests happened, the capitol building was filled with protesters who brought in sleeping bags and signed up for round-the-clock speeches before the committee.  The speakers were stopped, and the vote sped up.  Teachers from across the state made their way to the capitol to voice their disdain which closed schools everywhere.  Then, when it came time to vote, the Democrats all seemed to drop off the face of the earth.  They disappeared out of state so that a vote couldn't be held, and now the Governor has sent the cops out looking for them.

This is all getting pretty ridiculous - on both sides.  At this point, wouldn't any sane person who wants to keep some sort of order in the state stop and say, "Okay let's stop all these shenanigans, look at the bill, talk to both sides and make some changes," instead of stomping his foot and saying, "No, this is how it's going to be.  So there!"  On the other side...playing hide and seek?  Really?  And I can't say I'm too jazzed that teachers are forcing schools to close.  Colleges and universities are one thing, but when elementary schools don't have enough teachers present to stay open thereby forcing people to call in to work to stay home with their children who are oblivious to the whole thing and just want to hang out with their friends and play at recess...Not cool.  Voice your objections, call people, write letters, get to protesting after school.  Do your part, it's great!  Don't make the kids and their families suffer to get a point across.  I don't think that's very fair either.

Changes do need to be made, and people are willing to work together to make the changes, but they have to be allowed to discuss things and not rush through it.  Do such drastic measures really need to be taken?

Again, I am NOT a political person, but when things get this out of hand, I just want to pop, and this blog is a quiet enough place for me to do it without people jumping down my throat. I'm sure people who read this will have their own opinions as well, so if you feel the need to comment, please do so without name calling, catch phrases or superiority complexes.

I never thought I'd say this, but can we get back to talking about the Packers again?