Category Archives: government

Bill White’s victory party

a week ago saturday (election day), there was a small snippit about it in today’s City & State section (full story)

But in a nod to his name and his race — thought to be a liability before he managed to win supporters from Houston’s three main ethnic groups — the campaign cranked up an unlikely song: Wild Cherry’s Play That Funky Music (White Boy).

Andrea Greer was a coordinator of the gathering and lobbied against using this song (I agree with her), but she was outvoted.

The Dec. 6 gala had all the makings of the party of the year. The crowd wore everything from dashikis to feather boas, business suits to baseball caps. The unifying elements were the Bill White-heads — paper hats, of sorts, that mocked White’s bald head.Music was provided by the hip local lounge band The El Orbits, who eschewed the White-heads in favor of Santa hats.

-b

Illin’

Uuugh, 2+ days of flu with 101º F at times is not fun.  No appetite.  Weak.  Sweaty.  Changing into dry clothes all the time.  Ick.  But the worst is my brain is no tired.  I’ve been laying prone listening to radio and tv for most of the last 24 hours – some cat naps.  It only leaves my brain to idle.  The Bush Administration doesn’t want my mind to idle, they need to make sure i get barely employed with no time to think.

I’m dreading the Bush address tonight, and I have too many comments about the morning political news shows to mention here.  One I will…

Condoleeza Rice has bothered me for a while.  I haven’t been able to figure it out till now.  I really like her when she is talking about non-political issues (she’s a big football fan for one), but when she’s being an administration spokesperson, something about her demeanor bothers me.  It’s almost like I’m watching a prisoner of war speaking from captivity.  Today I picked out the key issue.

When someone asks her a question, that’s definitely a toughie, and there is usually contention among the cognoscenti about the truth behind it, she raises her voice and is adamant in her tone, but… she shakes her head no.  It appears almost involuntary.  I’m surprised the press office hasn’t noticed it and coached her on it.  Today it was “absolutely” during the head shake.   I don’t recall the question.

-b

to silence dissent is morally treasonable

Teddy Roosevelt may have been his own breed of war monger in his day, but he appreciated what was important in this country, and stated it plainly.

“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else.”

— Theodore Roosevelt, The Kansas City Star, May 7, 1918

In March, Tom Daschle, Senate minority leader, said that President Bush had failed “so miserably at diplomacy that we’re now forced to war.”

Congressional Republicans promptly suggested that the comment bordered on the unpatriotic.

Teddy made the comment during WWI, and would have entirely disagreed with the reaction.

Daschle paraphrased Roosevelt thusly: “It’s unpatriotic to hold one’s voice in a democracy under any circumstances, right or wrong, regardless of one’s view of the president, whether he’s right or wrong.”

A sentiment as solid today as it was 85 years ago.

-b