I get sorta pissed when I keep hearing die hard fans or supporters – be it in politics or pro sports – confess their undying devotion towards one thing or another… And then cynically stomp on what they lov eor soem item they are true blue about.

I mean, I just wrote an article last week at Boltsmag (yeah, it isn’t gone yet) about sports fans not being willign to leave their comfort zone to devote themselves to something bigger than their pro sports team… So what do you say about a political junkie who cynically tears down an issue, or a candidate, or a part position… All for the sake of the opportunist stance of “wait and see”?

If you really believe in something, aren’t you supposed to be willing to stand up for that something or at least do what you can to put it’s best foot forward? Be it an idea, a team, a principle, etc? Or are we all supposed to be just blind soldiers who will accept whatever we are handed by the powers that be?

So where was I?

Oh, yeah… Dwelling on inevitability. Surgery. All that joyous stuff that makes life grand for me. August 7th, 2007 was an extremely surreal experience in that my focus had to be elsewhere instead of impending doom and gloom (thank you Oren Koules, Jim Sherrin and Doug Maclean). Surreal may be a strong word for it. A grand, welcome distraction might be a better phrasing. Having a friend come over to spend some time with me and further distract me only aided to things.

The next day was no better – wanting to deal with that story and yet lying in a hospital gurney most of the day while waiting an angiogram: the pre-operative procedure as bad as I dreaded (but with a great staff of physicians trying to deal with my issues and some medical breakthroughs since my last angiogram that kept me from being bed ridden).

You know, I feel like I’m being shallow in the details but at the same time — there weren’t many meaty details before I was trucked off to the ninth floor at Tampa General Hospital where I stayed overnight before surgery. Besides pain issues with thanks to the angiogram, everything went swimmingly.

And how can I properly term my stay at TGH besides saying I was surrounded by good omens and positive energy? Days previous to surgery, I’d gotten a religious card sent to me with the only Patron Saint I identify with. It’s sorta grim but after I learned about him (and wrote about a poem where I invoked him) I didn’t see it as an ill omen as-so-much familiarity. I can deal with familiarity.

When I got to the ninth floor, who greets me warmly but an old friend from High School who works as an Registered Nurse on the floor? It was good mojo to see her, realize who she was and have come right up to me and say hi.

Another thing that was positive and yet drenched with negativity was a nurse I had overnight who I couldn’t understand due to her accent. She was warm, pleasant and tried her best to overcome things and I foudn myself mad that I had gotten frustrated with her.

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(NOTE — my post below has nothing to do with the Pinellas Democratic Party, it’s members or it’s direction. Apologies beforehand for any confusion or any suggestions this was targeting the local party.)

I’m getting pissed off.

I’m a user on a non-official Pinellas Democrta mailing list/user group and I’m just shocked and dismayed. Somewhat because of what is said on this, but mostly because these are (supposedly) Democrats saying it. I’m not sure if I should accept this as the normal discontent of Democratic voters or if I should feel this is wingnuttery going on?

I mean I am a blogger, I read Daily Kos, Florida Politics and Kate’s blog titled Out in Left Field but to give you an idea on some of these local “supporters” are standing… It’s like they are beyond left field. Maybe out in the bleachers? Maybe standing in the upper deck… Perhaps in the parking lot, but much more likelystanding on the freeway that passes the stadium.

OK, you get my analogy.

Being part of this group, I’ve trying to draw interest in local political campaigns and hob-nob with like-minds on the left. Yet I find so much hate for the party itself on there. Hate, naysaying, doomsday scenarios, conspiracy theories and general disconnect and discourse for the Democratic party. There is also a disconnect of the present and connection to the days of the past where the Democrats stood in the mid 1960’s.

For instance, there are people on this group complaining about both Democratic candidates running for Florida governor and attacking the party in general. These aren’t righties disguised as Democrats, these are Democrats who have ideals leading them beyond left field. No, not the ideals and principles that divided the Democratic party that you know and love (Gay Rights, or Women’s rights, the environoment or some other faction of the party) I mean their beliefs that everything is corrupted by money, by election fraud, by weak candidates and by the fact the Democratic party is so close to death.

Yes folks, supposed Democrats saying this. A far cry from the Crashing-the-gate, Democracy for America crowd, eh?

Example: Someone on the group has called Howard Dean a “Corporate Whore” for raising money for the Democratic party. The complaint was that Howard Dean “doesn’t show the same fire” he did during his presidential campaign and now he is supposedly a “pawn for the DLC.” The Chairman of the Democratic National Committee has helped raise more money for the national party (largely through small donations) and yet he must be a corporate whore for generating money at all or having to appeal to a broader group as the head of the DNC.

Right… Ok… 8-|

Example 2: public encouragement of Pinellas Democrats to vote third party or for instead of voting for Jim Davis or Rod Smith in the the Florida Gubenatorial Election. “It sends a message!” seems to be the logic behind that but after the 2000 election debacle, you’d think they’d know better. Especially Florida based Democrats.

Example 3: A woman who runs a clique of self-congratulatory members on this list tries to explain the civil rights movement from the 1950’s and 1960’s was “more intense than the ‘Grand Theft Auto’” video games. Not trying to play down the civil rights movement or the events of them — but having them compared to a video game in the first place (a stereotypically intense urban warfare game) is a mockery of analogy to describe it and belittles both those she addressed with this “logic” and those who were central parts of the civil rights movement.

And these are the regular voices that are supposed to represent the local Democratic party in Pinellas County? It’s a joke and a shame.

There are many members on this group who will not post but are Democrats and proud. They’re dismay or amazed with the wing-nuttery disconnect of the vocal minority of the group. Instead of what was supposed to be a tool for organization and a tool for sharing concerns and thoughts, articles and information with like minded people. the unofficial Pinellas Democrats mailing list happens to be a shelter for those who cannot connect to the realities of everyday life, and a general disdaine for the party they supposedly are members of.

Just out of curiosity, just out of wanting to know how strongly people stand behind their ideals —

would you stand up militarily for your beliefs? I don’t mean support the troops being sent to a foreign land… I’m saying that if you stand on different political sides here int he country — would you take up arms agaisnt the other side if the cross the line with their acts?

Case in point right nwo is the power grab by the president — at what point, with lack of checks and balances in play, do the people of the United States start reacting physically to the injustic3s going on?

Conversely, when does the RIght start physically reacting to judicial decisions they on’t approve of that doe snot let them push their moral beliefs on the rest of the masses?

Just when and where is the boiling point? Unfortunately, it’s getitng close right now. With goverment corruption at an all time high, with the country divided like never before and with the Executive Branch grabbing all the powers that are possible to grab – damning the United States Constitution along the way…. Soemthing’s got to give. And I don’t know if it will simply be difused with an election.

I haven’t tried this in a long time – the last story I published in part on this blog was never competed (“Peter’s Problem” just rambles on and on) and never got any opinions on pieces fo the story I DID publish.

At any rate, I told people about this story in an earlier entry… There is no title to it as it stands right now and it’s just a few hundred words… Let me know what you think if you think anything about it… Just click on more to view it.

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The Deanmeister Rides again!

For all of the willy-nilly Democrats who see Dean being vocal as a bad thing – just how many times have you thought along the same lines as what Dean is saying? He’s saying NOTHING that the base of the Democratic party hasn’t thought or believed – and if you think that politicians distancing themselves from Dean is because what he is saying is bad, it’s more along the lines that Dean is saying things that are Liberal beliefs that aren’t embraced at all by Democrats elected to congress or elsewhere.

It peeves me to look at the situation the United States and the Tampa Bay area are in right now and to see at least two groups that I have been involved with in the past no where in sight to take the opportunity to reach more people with their beliefs.

Lets take the Green Party for instance. The third-party on the left side of the spectrum with it’s conservation, alternative methods, environmentally friendly (on top of other stances on things), etc…. WIth the Democrats weak and everyone smarting from higher gas prices and doomsday scenerios with regards to world resources, the Greens seem missing-in-action. There are no news headlines, and the local party seems oblivious to speaking out on these touchy issues… Or set their sights too far left and stay off the touchy subjects that are dominating the media.

Another issue that coincides the higher fuel costs are mass transit options. Tampa Bay has increasingly bad roads and reports nationally are that our intersections routinely have a grade of D-. In Tampa Bay, there is no push for Mass Transit coming from David Piniero and Tampa Rail much bigger than the one that already exists with his site If anything he seems more oblivious to the broader need for rail and a stronger Mass Transit systme in Tampa Bay (and points his transit talk to Tampa and Tampa alone) and oblivious to trying to preach his cause and the cause of ocal commuters through the blogsphere and mass-media (why not post on Tampa Bay Blogs that talk about transit issues? Why not email the local newspapers with letters and such talking about the merrits of rail?)

Of course, in either case, the ass-backwards politics of America still reign supreme…. But with certain issues that the Left has dibs on, being priorities… Wouldn’t you think that groups such as Mass-Transit advocates and Progressive Envvironmentalists would speak out and try to gain support?

I think I finally get Ralph Nader a bit more this year.

Ralph was on the Daily Show last night and came off like a senile old coot and was in charge of his entire time on the program. I’m not saying his senility is the reason why he is running for office. He seems to be doing it out of principle…

The principle that the dual-opoloy of the political process must be stopped. Not stopped as so much a third choice always be there. It’s not him trying to play the spoiler but give voters a choice. I think he knows that getting Bush out of office is the top priority in the 2004 election year (“Anybody is better than Bush.” are his exact words) but at the same time, I don’t think he is going to drop out regardless of how much of the vote he is siphoning off.votes from Kerry. He believes he is siphoning off votes from Bush too…

That belief isn’t guiding him to stay in the election race however. It’s the thought there needs to be a 3rd candidate…. or a 3rd party without the corporate ties. I agree with him on that much but I know my vote is going to Kerry this year because if I vote Nader, I could help screw the US once again like in 2000. I know a lot of people chalk this up as Ego (as do I at times) but I gotta respect the thought that there needs to be another voice for the disillusioned… Even if the election will be a 2-horse race yet again.

Ah the wonderful world of Johnny. Details, details, details of Keith’s visit to suburban hell… er, Tampa Bay.

So I was f’n stoked on a Saturday Night when the Lightning tied the Stanley Cup finals. Keith, of course, is in disbelief. He had expected to be attending one of the upteenth city parites that would be going on if–no, WHEN the Flames had won.

But it didn’t happen that way.

So what happens when Keith gets home from Saddledome? He’s got to book hsi flight to Tampa. He had tickets lined up since the Flames / Lightning NHL Finals had been set. Game 7 tickets in fact. The series hadn’t been as good as we both had hoped but – gods – this was a game seven! You can’t scalp tickets for an event like this for less than 500 bucks… We got them through Ticketmaster before the game was even scheduled – so we’re in luck.

Sunday night, Keith was due to start flying to Tampa — going to Vegas first and then getting a connector flight / red eye to Tampa. Only problem was his flight was 2 hours late to begin with, which thus made him miss his connecting red-eye flight to Tampa.

Back in the Bay area I am going nuts Sunday night trying to figure out WTF has happened to Keith. He’s stranded, or is he moving? Flyte Comm basically confirmed where Keith was — just leaving Alberta – about the time I was ready to call it a night.

I decided to indeed call it a night, wondering what the hell was going to happen and how Keith woudl be when he finally got here – if he got here…?

I wake up bright and early Monday morning and have a sense of urgency running over me. Not just urgency but anxiousness. Within a couple of hours the Lightning would be playing for a world title and I would be in attendance.

Maybe.

My first thought is – where Keith? His connector fflight took off on time (fuck America West) and that meant he indeed missed his connector flight. I fought on the phone for a good hour trying to find out what happened to him and I find out (through America West customer service) that he’s “Taken another route and going to another city. He’s all right.”

Well, whoop-de-shit. He’s OK. Now where is he? “Sorry, can’t say… but he’s all right.” :rolleyes

I call his cell phone (which I am still told is a wrong number by parties that call back later — but it’s the same number that America West has in their system and same number I have from Keith directly) but I still tell him on his message service to give me a ring to let me knwo what happened and where he is…

I find out a little while later it’s Orlando, and he’s still on his way here.
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Pat Tillman, former NFL player who gave up the game and turned his back on millions from the Arizona Cardinals to join the Army Rangers after 9-11, was killed while involved in the hunt for Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. I know at the time he joined up and news was everywhere about it, I was a little put back by this — for political reasons, admittedly — but now I have such a new appreciation for him and I can’t fathom the amount of sacrifice this man has made for America.

I wrote a couple of “Letters to the Editor” at the St. Petersburg Times over this, and I won’t repost it entirely because I took jabs at Simeon Rice, Defensive End for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and former Defensive End for the Arizona Cardinals who put down Tillman in general in the media after he enlisted (and personally I like taking jabs at that pompous son of a bitch when I can get the chance) but I did make the statement that Tillman has made the ultimate sacrifice for his country, and he is a prime example of why we here in America are able to enjoy the comforts we know and live a good life where we can do things like play a game for a living in the first place.

Tillman was fighting on the front that mattered IMHO… Someone attacks the US and you go find the source and deal with it… And to lose your life trying to stand up for your country… that just means a hell of a lot to me. That’s Patriotism, that’s what the government has distorted and perverted for Politics since 9-11 happened.

It further cements certain ideals in me… That Iraq was wrong (and costing us billions while costing US Soldiers their lives to fight for a rich man’s principles), that the War on Terrorism needs a new game plan, etc… Yet it gives me a better understanding of how and why we should appreciate the comforts we have…. Because these comforts were paid in the price of blood by many before us. It also makes me feel a monumental appreciation — that’s not even the right word, admiration might work better — for Tillman who gave it all up, who turned his back on MILLIONS to fight to protect his country. Fighting to protect makes me feel so much more for a war than fighting to spread an ideal. Vietnam was fighting to spread an ideal and it wasn’t the right thing to do. Iraq is fighting to spread an ideal and it’s spreading hatred instead and helping the forces we wanted to stop in Afghanistan It’s ironic I blasted Rice because I admire Defense so much more than Offense as these political statements make.

I could go on about political beliefs here and thoughts on war but this should be Pat Tillman’s post… because Tillman’s sacrifice can’t be dismissed.

Rest in peace, Pat Tillman. And let honor ring around your name as it rings around the names of those who have fallen before you to protect the nation and the world.