We’re traveling, which gives me a chance to avoid as much convention news as possible. But this headline from my local fishwrap made me laugh:
“GOP Aims To Show Diversity At Convention”
Ha ha ha ha ha! Yeah, the fat white guy and the skinny white guy. The Northern white guy and the Southern white guy. The tall white guy and the short white guy. So much diversity! And amazingly, every one of them is an expert on women’s health issues!
Good luck with that, fellas.
I’ve been talking to some interesting folks on our travels. Last night we chatted with a couple from New York and I heard something I hear often from New Yorkers: there’s a real fear of torch-and-pitchfork wielding mobs as income inequality in this country escalates. This guy said we could be looking at something like 40% unemployment in the next few decades just from automation and globalization. I learned of a software company that laid off hundreds of software engineers after they wrote the code that made their jobs obsolete. They had dug their own graves.
New Yorkers seem really scared that this many unemployed people will lead to riots and violence and instability, which is no doubt why Occupy Wall Street scared the crap out of them. But no one seems interested in a WPA-style “put people to work” program, so until people get over their fear and start doing more than just retreating behind their gates and guns, we don’t have any solutions.
And yeah, I’m thinking thousands of pissed off, laid off software engineers is a bigger threat than thousands of pissed off, laid off burger flippers. Y’all sure that was a solar flare that took down India’s grid? I’m not afraid of the torch-and-pitchfork mob, but I do think our conversation is totally on the wrong things. Someone needs to address these massive changes and formulate a plan. I don’t think tax cuts for the wealthy are going to solve the problem of mass unemployment because of technology.
Here are some pictures from our travels; we’re back on the road tomorrow to a place with even more spectacular scenery.
If I Had A Boat…
This guy wants my breakfast
Solar panels on a convention center roof, what a concept!
Words to live by
I’m sure diversity means that they’ll roll out the log cabin republicans who say, “Marriage is a non-issue, I’m more concerned about Obama’s weak stance on IRAQ!”
Or the Uncle Toms who come out and say, “Birtherism isn’t racism, because we’re black and we think that Barrack Hussein Obama bin Ladin is a close friend and relation of Sadam Hussein Osama bin Ladin!”
My, the places in those pictures look familiar… (waves)
{ waves back }
I’m pretty sure that “diversity” in the GOP means that some of them are just teh Batshit KKKrazzee and others are really, Really, REALLY teh Batshit KKKrazzee.
Looks like Southern Cal to me, but I ain’t been there in a few years and for all I know the ickymanbuttseks made it fall into the ocean. Oh, wait, Warren Zevon said that wouldn’t happen until he’d paid his hotel bill at the Hollywood Hawaiian Hotel.
Make sure that you visit the In’n'Out Burger and ask if they’re doing the “Cruelty Free Beef”, yet. McDonalds, btw, was supposedly buying–and has now stopped doing so–from the same purveyor–that’s gonna leave a mark.
Hi Demo,
It doesn’t look like San Diego or Los Angeles to me. Once you get north of Ventura, there aren’t any convention centers until San Francisco. Besides, we have too many republicans to put solar panels on public buildings. Even Coca-Cola has more enviro-sense than the SD-OC-LA megalopolis.
I thought I would have to eat my words when I found out that Orange County had launched a solar-equipped convention center project in 2009.
Orange County Florida!
LOL! OC FL is more progressive than OC CA? NO WAY!
Allen West from Florida is a black Republican that the party is pushing to the front. I have heard him speak to Vietnam Vets and he is predicting the guns, fights, looting and riots. He is big on inflammatory speech.
Yep, and in a tiny corner of OUR local fish wrap that the Congress has votet against the President’s JOBs bill for the upteenth time. And my daughter just got laid off this week… supposedly Knoxville is 10th in jobs ane economy growth in the country…she lives up the road, not here. Hopefully when our President wins a 2nd term, he can create millions of good jobs by Executive Order. That’s what FDR had to do…and it worked then. This Depression is so much worse but the rich CANNOT admit that.
The quadrennial exercise of “Hey, America, meet my black friend” is underway in Tampa.
It appears that GOD has not been copied on the memo about laying waste to some sinful city instead of Tampa. I also saw, somewhere, that the Tampa S&G* Service Sector was getting a lot of “outcall” business.
Wait, perhaps there’s some relevance there.
* Sodom & Gommorah
Saw on Gawker that a pastor is crediting prayers with sparing the RNC from Isaac’s wrath .. bless his heart…
At one point Cspan panned over the mostly white crowd and zoomed in on the only 2 minorities in the room- a black man and an asian man. I thought it was odd that they were both together- it seemed too convenient. Then it became apparent that they were a beautiful gop gay couple on the dl. They were brave standing there.