Who I am…
I am a lawyer, former mother of teenagers, and a quixotic seeker after and champion of factual truth.
I make the best damn brownies you have ever had that are not regulated by the federal government.
I love movies, Broadway, and intelligent conversation.
I think in song lyrics and movie and television quotes.
I believe in the use of proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar even in text messages. I am willing to debate the use of the Oxford comma, if you know what the Oxford comma is. It also makes me very happy if people use the subjunctive mood when appropriate.
I have been told I intimidate people. I am really just a fluffy-centered teddy bear. Really.
- It's all my fault. No, really. The views expressed in this blog are mine and mine alone and in no way whatsoever represent the views of anyone else, including any past, present, or future employer.
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Words to live by ….
“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8.
“Pray for the dead, fight like hell for the living.” Mary Harris (“Mother Jones”).
“Don’t boo. Vote.” Barack Obama.
“Man’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.” Reinhold Niebuhr.
“No one ever thinks of themselves as one of Them. We’re always one of Us. It’s Them that do the bad things.” Sir Terry Pratchett.
“Damning facts are still facts.” Steven C. Holtzman.
“If you don’t stick to your values when they’re tested, they’re not values — they’re hobbies.” Jon Stewart.
“Darkness never sustains, even though it sometimes seems it will.” Doctor Who.
“Writing is a form of mischief.” Stephen Sondheim.
“An idea is not responsible for the people who believe it.” Don Marquis.
“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it’s not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That’s why it’s your path.” Joseph Campbell.
“Truth is our strongest ally, our biggest weapon, and our best defense.” Me.
“Reality has a well-known liberal bias.” Stephen Colbert.
“The opposite of war isn’t peace, it’s creation.” Jonathan Larson.
“We live through times when hate and fear seem stronger.
We rise and fall, and light from dying embers
Remembrances that hope and love last longer.
And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love;
Cannot be killed or swept aside.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda.“If I can’t dance, I don’t want to be part of your revolution.” Emma Goldman.
“No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Samuel Beckett.
“I believe that the God who made (among other things) light, and space, and number, and time, and the spiral curve of Fibonacci numbers, must be acknowledged to understand more than I do about why there’s pain in the world.” Teresa Neilsen Hayden.
“No, it’s not fair. You’re in the wrong universe for fair.” John Scalzi.
“Liberals got women the right to vote. Liberals got African-Americans the right to vote. Liberals created Social Security and lifted millions of elderly people out of poverty. Liberals ended segregation. Liberals passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act. Liberals created Medicare. Liberals passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act. So when you try to hurl that label at my feet, ‘Liberal,’ as if it were something to be ashamed of, something dirty, something to run away from, it won’t work, because I will pick up that label and I will wear it as a badge of honor.” Lawrence O’Donnell
“So keep fightin’ for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin’ ass and celebratin’ the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.” Molly Ivins.
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Category Archives: Politics
Today’s rant.
[This has been reposted from Facebook: FB friends, you can skip this. Of course, you can skip anything I write, but in this case you won’t miss anything.) Here’s the deal: The First Amendment protects EVERYONE. Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, … Continue reading
The best lines from tonight’s State of the Union address: “I don’t have any more campaigns to run. I know, because I won both of them.” And… “I have two words for any member of Congress who truly thinks you … Continue reading
Dick Cheney’s unpatriotic utilitarianism.
“If you don’t stick to your values when they’re being tested, they’re not values: they’re hobbies.” Jon Stewart. The word torture is once again in the air and permeating the airwaves and the national consciousness. The release of the Senate Intelligence … Continue reading
What did Obama do?
He punted. He basically told Congress “I’m going to just stand here until you people fix this.” This is not an amnesty. An amnesty would regularize the status of undocumented immigrants. This will not do that. It will simply provide … Continue reading
QOTD, for those in Silicon Valley
Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian, talking about the lack of affordable housing in Mountain View: “Next time we have a big earthquake, the safest place is to be in Tracy, because as far as I know, every cop, firefighter … Continue reading
I am not going to do an analysis of the California ballot, another than to make an observation: Unions and trial attorneys make easy villains. But what are unions but collections of workers? Being in favor of taking care of … Continue reading
Just a reminder: this year marks the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Berkeley Free Speech movement. It was a movement that could only take place in an environment free from social media, from a job market where potential graduates have to … Continue reading
I think the vehemence of the prior post was caused by several arguments I have had today with people who insist labor unions are the worst thing that ever happened to this country, that cops are overpaid, and that public … Continue reading
Some things to think about. (More links.)
Senior NSA official claims that we live a police state. Blackmail as part of the NSA’s playbook. I thought that went away when J. Edgar Hoover died, but then I have always been naive. Tom Engelhardt’s Requiem for America. Engelhardt’s saying … Continue reading
We’re being held hostage. At gunpoint.
Obama nominated a very worthy candidate for Surgeon General. Dr. Vivek Murthy has degrees from Harvard and Yale, teaches medicine at Harvard, and is an attending physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He is involved in medical nonprofits and a … Continue reading
There are days….
… when the best you can say is that you didn’t quit. I hate dealing with people who, just as they are foaming at the mouth about Obama, let slip enough information to make it clear that if they could … Continue reading
Happy Veteran’s Day.
My father was a Marine. My grandfather was a Navy aviator and test pilot. I have ancestors who fought in both World Wars, the Civil War (on the wrong side), and the Revolutionary War. (If I so chose, I could … Continue reading
Guy Fawkes Day Randomness
It’s day celebrating the patron saint of Anonymous. It’s two days after the great fall, and I have spent most of the day in bed on opiates. Part of this is that I have been sleeping a lot, but more … Continue reading
Miscellany
Just a few random thoughts on this Monday? Tuesday? It gets hard to keep track of what day it is. Since my work week starts on Sunday, this is technically Monday, but functionally Tuesday. Looking at the back of the … Continue reading
How did we become this?
It is day 15 of the shutdown. All because Tea Partiers hate Obama and what to destroy the ACA. I read the news. (Less and less, I do admit.) I worry about how we’re going to make it if this … Continue reading
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