I Got A Tan from Standing in the English Rain

Cheerio from London! I've completed my move (actually a week ago) and I'm still figuring things out, but as of right now, I am a resident of London, England, United Kingdom, The Queen's Most Venerable and Pants-less Domain. I still don't have a phone, sadly, but it just makes me remember what living in the 90's was like. Ah yes, good times.

Anyway, I've been loosely keeping up with the 80's sitcom that is American politics, and I must say, I did not expect Mitt Romney to unleash his full bourgeoisie upon America so soon. In that video, Mitt denigrates those who use some sort of "government handout," whether it is the retiree who receives social security checks (after paying into the system his entire life), or the family on welfare that does not have enough to make ends meet.

What's even more hilarious is how he talks about his wife, saying something along the lines of "we don't want people to get tired of Ann (Romney)," as if she spoke in some kind of Fran Drescher-like voice and talked only about her vast collection of handbags.

Seriously Republican Party? This is the best you've got? Are you actively trying to lose this election? What with Paul Ryan's ludicrous new lie about Obama and NASA, I don't know how you guys expect to win anything. Ever. As kids, I bet you guys were the ones who bragged "oh yeah, I've got a girlfriend, but she lives in the next state over," as if that proved your machismo.

There may be a silver lining in this, however: Romney's campaign demonstrates how poorly the moderate Republicans work with the Tea Party Conservatives.

From the outset, Mitt Romney was always the frontrunner; that much had always been obvious. He was rich (note, when I say rich, I mean that he could probably buy Australia), he had "moderate" success (see what I did there?) in Massachusetts as governor, and he ran a "successful business" (see what I did there?). Of course, his positions have oscillated more than a spinning fan in summer, so the Republican core thought the best VP candidate would be, of course, the ultra-conservative, ultra-religious, ultra-deluded Paul Ryan, who makes dubious claims based on what color his stool is in the morning (hint: it's red).

Sadly enough, it is the super-rich who bankroll the ultra-conservative Tea Party, and of course encourage moderate Republicans to turn more conservative. Will there still be moderate Republicans who dislike this new trend? Jon Huntsman certainly demonstrated his willingness to be a moderate during the Republican debates, and if he had actually been selected as the Republican nominee, he would certainly have a better chance than Mitt Romney at this point.

I guess the crux of this blog entry is this: moderate Republicans, please do not support Mitt Romney just because he's running on the Republican ticket. If so, you might as well vote for a cardboard cutout of Ronald Reagan, since it will probably have a better budget plan than Mitt Romney.

That's all for now.
Das Flüg

My usual procrastination

It's been a while since I've posted, but for good reasons:

First, I've been writing heavily for another book. I've reached 60,000 words pretty quickly, if you understand how much that is.

Second, I've had to find accommodation in London in a hurry because of certain extenuating circumstances. Doing so is very time-consuming and, I assure you, very stressful. Thankfully, I've found a good place.

Now, as that cool breeze rolls in and reminds us all that it is yet another presidential election season, I think my only real complaint (for once, I only have one) is: How can anyone who makes less than $250k a year, or is a woman, or is a fiscal conservative, or is a senior, support the Romney-Ryan ticket?

No, seriously. How? I can't wrap my head around the support that Romney has from the Republican Party and various other sects of "traditional" American conservatism. The only people who should support the ticket are people who stand to benefit from his ludicrous budget plan, and that is a vast minority of voters.

I feel as if so many Republicans are suffering from a bad case of confirmation bias- that is, they're ignoring all the blatantly terrible and inconsistent positions of Mitt Romney just because they want Republicans to win.

Here is a list of all the topics Mitt Romney has changed his mind on (taken from www.procon.org, an overview of presidential positions):

• Abortion (Pro, then Con)
• TARP
  
• Automotive bailout
• Outsourcing
• Health care (multiple times)
• Social Security Privatization

(Not to mention that his foreign policy positions are confusing.)

His fiscal plan is simply puzzling. Romney somehow wants to cut all spending to 20% of GDP which, as the article so accurately states, is impossible.

So why, why, why is anyone in their right mind supporting this? Mitt Romney can trumpet the words "America" and "freedom" all he wants, but that doesn't make his policies any less confusing.

This is simply my opinion: the Cold War still exists. I don't mean that the United States is still holding its finger over the big red button, staring menacingly at Russia from across the table, but that the two parties in the United States are in a virtual war. Why?

Why not? There is no major enemy in the world to threaten the United States with immediate destruction and force government hawkishness. There is no external threat that "directly attacks" American values, regardless of what various pundits call "Socialism" or "Communism" or "Jihad." If there is no viable external threat to America, then there must be an internal one. If it is not physical, then it is ideological.

So are people willing to vote for a man who believes that not everyone should have equal rights, or that women should not have the right to choose (even if they're raped)? It makes no sense. It makes none at all.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

Et al.

Do not superimpose your subjective desires onto a tragedy. Do not proclaim yourself as correct and disregard all evidence to the contrary. Do not believe a madman to be insane simply because he is mad. Empathize, accept fact, adjust and adapt. Nothing else can ever be so simple and wondrous as empathy.

Random side note

Holy shit, I just realized that I finished all my New Year's resolutions.
http://dasflug.blogspot.com/2012/01/be-resolute.html

Enough.

I told myself that I wouldn't pontificate about the recent shooting in Aurora, Colorado. I told myself that I wouldn't stoop to the level of so many self-important, pompous, pedantic chatterboxes that seem so intent on labeling and spinning this tragedy. And yet, here I am, unable to restrain myself. Why?

Because I saw some of those chatterboxes on the morning political shows today. Of course, they were talking about the shooting, how it should prompt gun control legislation, how "crazy" people should be controlled, how it is indicative of a decay in the morals of the average citizen of the US, how violent movies and video games contribute to the death of humility, etc. etc. blah blah blah. It was the usual tripe that occurs in the wake of a shooting. As always, there will be intense argument for a few months, then it will be forgotten with the advent of some new problem.

I don't particularly care to talk about gun rights, or violence in society with this shooting, but rather the individual himself. I won't talk about this perpetrator individually, but rather the mindset of America and how it turns immediately on those exclusive individuals.

Crazy. Schizophrenic. That is what the perpetrators are always labeled. In the wake of such an event, there will always be an endless circus of doctors willing to step in front of a camera and declare these people "insane, obviously." People who knew the perpetrators, though perhaps not very well, will say things such as "he/she was always very reclusive, quiet," etc.

So many people will look for any little bit of evidence to support the notion that these people are outside the societal norm for "sane." With every little bit, no matter how tangential or loose the connection may be, the nail of "insanity" gets hit harder and harder until the perpetrator no longer has a voice due to the label.

It sickens me, honestly. These people get dismissed so easily, as if we served them up with a freshly sliced lobotomy. Let's be frank, just for a second, and I realize just how ludicrous this might sound: they are no different from even the most mundane, insipidly boring person.

Before you stop reading, consider this: each perpetrator had a reason for what they did. Columbine, Virginia Tech, Fort Bragg, Aurora, etc.; they all had their individual reasons. Now, think back to a time when you wanted something so dearly that you would do anything to get it, regardless of consequences. We've all had times like that, and for some of us, those goals are a bit more extreme than others. I, personally, hardly go out anymore (ever) because of my constant writing. Not much of a sacrifice since I barely went out in the first place, but now I actively tell people that I won't leave the house except for work.

All of these people had a reason. Disregard them if you may, ignore them, whatever. Every single person alive needs comfort and a caring ear; why else might we be so driven to find love, or gain our parents' approval, or surround ourselves with things that make us happy? We love our comfort, but it is the confidence in the person upon whom we bestow that comfort that keeps us, as some might call it, "sane."

Surprisingly enough, Marylyn Manson put it best:


I couldn't care less about his music, but Manson makes an extremely prudent point. Too often, many are self-obsessed; you might notice this in any conversation, how quickly one person or the other goes "I would have..." or "I once..." as if a personal anecdote or opinion might have any relevance.

Talk to any person for long enough and you learn their eccentricities. Maybe they believe that some invisible man created the universe with a twinkle of his finger, or maybe they believe that the Illuminati control the world, or maybe they believe that fluoride renders teeth susceptible to detection by spy satellite. No one is ever completely "normal," whatever you may believe that definition to be. Our eccentricities divide us and individualize us, and sometimes they cause us to go to extremes. I cannot begin to recall all the times I have battened down my temper to stop myself from attacking someone, or did something completely random without realizing it. These things are motivated by emotions (for those of you who don't know what they are, it's that thing you feel whenever you do well on an exam or have wet stuff falling from your eyes), and emotions are not always easy to figure out on one's own. That's why, when you find someone with whom you are comfortable, whether it is a significant other, parent, best friend, or JD-Turk bromance , you feel you are able to accurately express how you feel. It makes your head clear. It's absolutely liberating.

Without that, you would be left to the self-denigrating voices in your head. It's not a happy time.

No one is truly crazy until they are labeled as such.

That's all for now (maybe even a while; currently editing),
Das Flüg

Done.

So, after a little less than two months, my book is finished; well, the story is finished. It still needs editing. But, 60,000+ words later, the entire story is down on paper. Exposition, character building, denouement, the whole ten yards, all down on paper.

I guess my only concern is finding some way to get it published. Not to denigrate what I'm going to study, but I'd much rather be a published fiction author than work as a policy analyst or diplomat or professor. It's such an awesome feeling, being able to write one's imagination down, create something entirely personal, share it with the world, and be praised for it.

I've been told that I have to get an agent in order to get my work published, which is a little concerning- I feel as if I might be taken advantage of, my work changed or altered without my permission, etc. So, at this point, I've got no idea what to do, maybe aside from start on the next story or just edit this one.

For the two or three people who actually read this blog (including myself), feel free to contact me if you want an advance copy (if this damn thing ever goes to print). I probably will hate my own book, but that doesn't mean that you have to as well!

I guess that's it. Man, these posts are really uninspired.

Words few

Approach the minutiae of life with child-like joviality and curiosity, for only then can you appreciate what it means to live.