The Edge of The Abyss

Where to Find Me

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Fri, 20 Jun 08 07:49:00 UT

My web page will be back up fully within the next week or so, but it is once again accessible at JosephPaulHaines.com.

You can find my new journal page there as well, along with a bulletin board for ongoing conversations.

See you there.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Virtual Life

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Tue, 17 Jun 08 14:56:00 UT

You know, I've been thinking a lot this last week. My princess has been out of town visiting her mother, and I had a great deal of time to myself. Hence, lots of thinking.

And I've come to a major conclusion: my real life has disappeared into a virtual existence.

I work from home, in Washington. My office is in Cleveland. I live in Bremerton. My nearest friends are in SeaTac. I don't have a car. I order groceries online and they are delivered to my house. Once or twice a month I'll rent a car (cheaper than car payment, insurance, maintenance, gas, ectetera) but other than that, I don't often get out of the house.

So, what's happened is that I've replaced my interactions with others with my interaction with my computer. I write blog entries, but really, I haven't had anything worth saying in quite some time. Without life, no new input. No new input, no interesting output.

So I quit. This journal has gone on for five years now, and it's had a good run. I've thought about giving it up in the past but left it going for one reason or another, but now it's more harm than help. I leave a journal entry and then go back to see if anyone has left a comment.

Often.

Because, well, my life is virtual. I want it to be visceral. So, things have got to change.

Maybe I'll go out and actually make friends whose faces I see more often than their phosphors. That would be nice. That would be very nice indeed.

Take care, everyone. It's been fun. Go out and play.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Mark Rylance Acceptance Speech Video. WATCH THIS!

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Mon, 16 Jun 08 16:15:00 UT

And, as promised, here it is . . .

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Best Acceptance Speech. Ever.

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Mon, 16 Jun 08 05:57:00 UT

At last night's Tony awards at a venue no less prestigious than The Radio City Music Hall, a wonderful actor by the name of Mark Rylance (after beating out none other than Patrick Stewart as Macbeth, Lawrence Fishburn, playing Thurgood Marshall and Ben Daniels playing Valmont in Les Liasons Dangereuses) gave what may be the best acceptance speech ever after winning the award for his performance in the revival of the play Boeing-Boeing. Here it is in its entirety:

When you are in town, wearing some kind of uniform is helpful, policeman, priest, etc. Driving a tank is very impressive or a car with official lettering on the side. If that isn't to your taste, you could join the revolution, wear an armband, carry a homemade flag tied to a broom handle, or a placard bearing an incendiary slogan. At the very least, you should wear a suit and carry a briefcase and a cell phone, or wear a team jacket and a baseball cap and carry a cell phone. If you go into the woods, the back country, someplace past all human habitation, it is a good idea to wear orange and carry a gun, or depending on the season, carry a fishing pole, or a camera with a big lens. Otherwise, it might appear that you have no idea what you are doing, that you are merely wandering the earth, no particular reason for being here, no particular place to go. Thank you very much for this.

That was it. No mention of the play. No mention of the director. None whatsoever of his family, friends, dog, personal trainer, nor John Malkovich. Just those glorious words.

It is, of course, the prose poetry of Louis Jenkins, but to be delivered after winning such a prestigious award . . .well, I'm still blown away by the brilliance of it. I'll try to find a video and post it later, as the performance of the poem makes the incredible verse above twice as jaw-dropping.

It's very rare these days that something makes my heart smile with the sheer genius of the human race, but this did the job. So thanks, Mark.

Cheers, buddy.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Additional Scandal in the Obama Camp

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Tue, 10 Jun 08 10:01:00 UT

Saw this today.

Followed immediately by this:

LUDICROUS, MO-- Scandal continued to rock the Obama camp today as back-to back revelations snet the Illinois Senator's campaign into damage control mode.

The potentially embarrassing situation first came to light when it was uncovered that Senator Obama purchased an, "Oreo Cookie Milkshake," last Saturday from a McDonald's restaurant while campaigning in South Central Western South Dakota. Campaign aides for Senator McCain later discovered that the clerk that rang the order, Miss Tabitha Shirkwork, had consumed a discarded Hamburger from a Happy Meal prepared by accident earlier in the year. Miss Shirkwork declined our request for an interview, but a statement by her girlfriend, Mandy Whassup, stated, "She was hungry. It was an extra. They were just going to throw it out, anyway . . ."

"Such conspicuous consumption and misappropriation of company assets is particularly troublesome," a senior aide from the McCain camp stated, "considering the state of our economy and the dire conditions facing small business owners across this great land. We fully expect Senator Obama to make an immediate apology to the American public and schedule a . . .ahem, cleansing as soon as possible. God Bless America, by the way."

The spokesman for Senator Obama's campaign called the charge, " . . .ludicrous. It's just like the Republican Party to make a hysterectomy out of a Happy Meal."

Further complicating the democrat's efforts to move forward on issues was the discovery that Senator Obama's oldest daughter, Malia, paid for his Father's Day present this year with proceeds obtained from an unlicensed lemon-aide stand run over the summer.

"We fully expect that in this time of economic uncertainty, Senator Obama will live up to his promise of increased regulatory oversight and demand the immediate resignation of Malia Obama from the Obama family," the senior McCain official added, between flossing his teeth and installing new batteries in the Arizona Senator's hearing aid. "Are you kidding me?" he continued. "Senator Obama doesn't think it's a good idea to vet his SENIOR CHILDREN?"

When pressed for a comment on the second revelation from the McCain camp, Senator Obama simply blinked twice and walked away, refusing to answer the question.

Welcome to the general election, friends. And you thought the Primaries were bad . . .

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Five Years of Journalscape

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Thu, 5 Jun 08 16:01:00 UT

I can't believe it's been five years and over 300,000 site visits since I started this blog here at Journalscape. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who's taken this trip with me. It's been a blast interacting with all of you.

And, of course, thank you for showing up to listen to me talk way too much.

You all are great.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Shooting the Elephant in the Room

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Thu, 5 Jun 08 05:13:00 UT

"He wears a mask, and his face grows to fit it. I had got to shoot the elephant. I had committed myself to doing it when I sent for the rifle. A sahib has got to act like a sahib; he has got to appear resolute, to know his own mind and do definite things. To come all that way, rifle in hand, with two thousand people marching at my heels, and then to trail feebly away, having done nothing--no, that was impossible. The crowd would laugh at me. And my whole life, every white man's life in the East, was one long struggle not to be laughed at."

--George Orwell, "Shooting an Elephant."

An essay you might want to read before deciding to give Hillary Clinton grief for taking a few days to make her concession to Barack Obama.

No man is an island.

Nor woman.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

We're Lucky to Have Her

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Tue, 3 Jun 08 07:24:00 UT

Those of you who have read my posts in the past know that I am an avid Barack Obama supporter. As we are now sitting on the edge of Senator Obama securing the Democratic nomination, I'd like to say one thing:

Hillary should not withdraw her candidacy.

Don't get me wrong. As things currently sit, Senator Clinton has lost in her bid to become the nominee of the Democratic party and as reported by the New York Times, she is preparing a formal announcement of the suspension of her campaign this evening in her home state of New York. And I think that's the right thing to do: suspend, not withdraw.

My preference in candidates is due in large part to something in which I never thought I'd indulge: Hope. Not just hope for our future, which I've always held deep inside in spite of overwhelming evidence that greatness just wasn't in our nature as human beings, but hope that we might be on the verge of a paradigm shift in this county. Our history is littered with political posturing, ugly physical and emotional violence toward those who do not share our views, and a lack of regret for both our ambivalence toward those on the other side of the fence and our actions in treating them as a lesser species of human. We have felt in the past that the ends justified the means, and it seems to me that we have paid the price, both domestically and internationally for the reality of conflict we have allowed--no, more than allowed; that we have actively nurtured--to overtake our ability to reach for greatness. It is my sincere hope that Barack Obama can and will lead us down a better road.

But I'm also a realist.

I've seen failure before. So have you. We've all tasted the disappointment of our failures to live up to our hopes. We've all felt the overwhelming despair of wanting to fly but being unable to grow wings.

I've been disappointed by Senator Clinton's campaign. It seems to me that she is rooted in the style of politics of which she's been victim to her entire public life. Being a victim of Republican abuse, she in turn has been swept away by the cycle of abuse and become the abuser herself.

Again, I don't believe that her intention is to be abusive. There's a great distinction there, and before you scream at me, please understand that I firmly believe that as in life, so in politics: One should not blame the victim. That being said, the cycle needs to be broken.

I believe that Barack Obama may be able to break that cycle. But I've been wrong before. So have you. We all have. It's not a crime to hope, but it is a crime not to plan for failure when the lives of so many hang in the balance.

Hillary should suspend, not withdraw. She should be available should anything occur that might keep Senator Obama from defeating McCain in the general election. Should an event occur that makes Senator Obama unelectable--and no, I don't believe that anything that has happened up to this point makes him such--the party needs to realize that she's there waiting in the wings.

She may not represent the paradigm shift our country desperately needs, but she does represent a tough, principled fighter who shares the policy stances of the Democratic Party. She may be a bully, but she's our bully. We may not like to see the violence, but if we have to fight, it's good to have a warrior on our side. Not one of use--save the most extreme--would advocate not having a military to defend our right to live as we have chosen. As such, the crucible of partisan politics which has battle-hardened Hillary Clinton should be looked upon as a gift of strength should it be needed.

Hillary Clinton is a formidable warrior who will fight to keep the ideas of the Democratic Party alive and active should the need for such a fight become necessary.

I, for one, feel lucky to have her in the wings. As should you.

Hope for peace, prepare for war.

Thank you, Hillary. It's good to have you on our side.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Why Offense was Taken, or, "Never use the "A," Word"

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Tue, 27 May 08 10:45:00 UT

I've heard both sides of the argument over Senator Clinton's Bobby Kennedy remark now, and the one thing that strikes me is the fact that so many people can't honestly understand why such offense was taken.

And while I understand that in almost any other situation, or with almost any other candidate, this wouldn't have been as big an issue. But the fact remains--and understand me now, I don't want to believe that Hillary MEANT it this way--is that when you speak you need to understand the full effects of your words, intended or otherwise.

We have two historic candidates in this Democratic nomination process; one a woman, one a man of mixed Caucasian-African descent.

The argument has been presented that Senator Clinton was only quoting historical reference as to the fact that this nomination process is not dragging on longer than others have in the past. There are two problems with this argument: The first is that should you look backward to the first reference--the 1992 campaign of her husband--you would see that few people had any doubt that the campaign was wrapped up far earlier. On Aril 7th of that year, George Stephanopolous, who was working for the Clinton campaign at that time stated quite aptly that it was, "mathematically impossible for Brown to get the nomination," and further, "So, lightning would have to strike," in order for Bill Clinton to lose the nomination.

Sound familiar?

The second reference, the much more troublesome one, is inaccurate as well. Bobby Kennedy had only entered the race six weeks prior to an insane radical taking his life in June. So to simply state that, "Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June," is to compare a six week campaign with a sixteen-month campaign.

So historically, the precedent doesn't stand up. Hillary Clinton is a smart, capable person who has done much for the Democratic party and the people of America. I understand that spin is a part of every election, and politics as a whole, but one must realize and take into account many other factors so that spin doesn't have unintended consequences.

There isn't a single person who hasn't watched this campaign that hasn't had unnerving flashes of worry over Senator Obama's safety. If they haven't, they're either living in a fantasy world in which people of color weren't hung from trees in our so-called, "enlightened," country (and as recently as either of the above historical references made) or they're just being obtuse. Senator Obama had Secret Service protection far earlier than the other candidates--except Senator Clinton, whose ongoing protection as a former First Lady never ended--due to a number of specific, credible threats to his well-being.

By even mentioning the word, "assassination," one plays the part of the ghost of Hamlet's father. It's poison in the ear; to the more mentally deranged, it's a call to action.

Is it Clinton's fault that people in this country could hear her innocuous comments as a call to arms? No. Should she be more responsible, particularly when the argument was historically flawed to begin with? Yes.

And should her campaign then accuse the dust-up as being a product of Obama's campaign, admitting no fault for her words and offering no apology to the only person whose safety was jeapordized by her comments?

To tell the truth, that's the part that upsets me the most. She refuses to acknowledge that she did anything wrong, which is typical of the most aggravating form of non-apology of which I know.

And that is this: "I regret that my words caused you any emotional distress." In other words, I don't apologize, because you're the one who took it that way. I have nothing to be sorry for.

Yes, Mrs. Clinton, an apology is in order. To Mr. Obama, and to the American people.

Don't use the A-word. It isn't necessary, it isn't accurate, and it is dangerous.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Because the Kennedys don't have ENOUGH on their plate at the moment . . .

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Fri, 23 May 08 14:30:00 UT

I know she didn't mean it, but man, when Hillary steps on it, she makes certain she's wearing heels . . .

Between this and Huckabee's comment about someone pointing a gun at Obama . . .well, I mean . . .man

Check out the story here.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Obama/Clinton

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Thu, 22 May 08 20:15:00 UT

Word came out today that Barack Obama is starting a not-so-secret search for his running mate. In spite of what many seem to think, it is not too early and not even slightly presumptuous. He's won. It's over. Hillary can spin all she wants and try to change the rules of the game, but there is no way, no how the Democratic party will allow that to happen. Florida and Michigan will get seated, but it will happen in a way that will not alter the outcome of the race.

Write it down, mark my words, take it to the bank: Barack Obama will be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States.

Now, as to his vice president . . .

He's got a lot of options. Kathleen Sebelius, two-term Governor from Kansas would be my first choice in most cases. She's a self-made woman, she's won re-election in the great red state of Kansas and her approval ratings in that heavily republican state are through the roof. She's a good orator, tough, and has executive experience. She would bring most of the positives to the ticket that Hillary would without a lot of the baggage.

But it isn't going to happen.

Now let me be perfectly clear. Hillary has pissed me off like nobody else since Bush/Rove. She's engaged in disingenuous discourse on the rules, repeated known falsehoods over and over again until people started treating her words as if they were actually true. She's managed to play every card in the book while playing a gosh-golly I didn't say that game.

She's vicious, she's Rovian, she's lied and then said she lied but oh well!

But we need her. As much as that pains me to say, she'll be the perfect v.p. choice.

I've read in a couple of places today that it would be a direct repudiation of Obama's primary message of change to pick Hillary as a running mate. I've heard others say that they'd never vote for Obama if Hillary was on the ticket. I've heard that she's much too polarizing a figure to help Obama win. I've heard that Obama doesn't want to be pushed into picking her just because of all the posturing and waves she's stirring.

And, really, who can trust her? Not over fifty percent of the Democrats according to the latest polls.

All those reasons are valid. They're also the same reasons she must be picked.

While HIllary may be part of the political establishment, she'd also be the first female vice-president and she's got the right cross that no one, and I mean no one, would take her on without first ensuring they'd politically survive the tussle. Jeez, I mean really, there's a bunch of uncommitted super-delegates out there who are STILL sitting on the fence even after Obama has won the majority of pledged delegates. It's IMPOSSIBLE for Hillary to win more pledged delegates (delegates selected be actual votes of the American public) than Obama. She could be the muscle to Obama's reason. She could be the military to Obama's diplomacy. Obama could look you in the eye and say, "Fine, if you won't listen to me, I'll send my vice-president over and see if she could shed some light on my position . . ." Um, maybe it's just me, but that's friggin' scary.

Many moderates and independents won't vote for an Obama/Clinton ticket, where they most certainly would vote for an Obama/Nunn ticket, or a Obama/Sebelius ticket. However, there's a lot more people (probably about seventy percent of 17 million Clinton supporters) who WOULD vote for that ticket and not the others.

And even if Obama doesn't want to be pushed into making her his v.p. choice, and he doesn't really trust her, look at it this way: Picking a Clinton to be on your ticket shows some serious cajones. If anyone doubted that the man had BALLS, that might go quite a way toward dispelling that thought, particularly if he could bring the mighty Clintonian machine under control to work for him. Do I hate the Clinton demagoguery? You bet. Am I willing to use that political power to make certain the Republican party doesn't get to pick the next three supreme court judges, almost certainly overturning Roe v. Wade and destroying any chance we have for same-sex couples from ever achieving true equality in this country?

Fuckin' straight I am.

Some things are more important than dislike, or even outright revulsion. Just because Obama may not like Hillary--and he certainly has good reason--here's the straight dope: Hillary can seal the deal.

Change you can believe in can't happen without being in office. First step: Win the election. Then go after the problems.

Go after them with a real bulldog in your corner.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

April 15th

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Tue, 15 Apr 08 15:07:00 UT

You know, the importance of the day got me thinking . . .

THINGS I WISH WERE TAX DEDUCTIBLE:

1. My iPhone bill.

2. Thai food (you know, without those nasty business related necessities . . .)

3. Beer.

'Nuff said.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

That's It.

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Sun, 13 Apr 08 10:21:00 UT

From here until the end of this election cycle, I'm not discussing politics here. Were I to indulge in allowing my true feeling to come out for the ridiculous nature of what's happening to this county, I'd offend almost every single person who read this blog.

I will, however, say this:

I never really believed (I suspected, but I dared to hope it wasn't true) that having an IQ above one hundred disqualified someone from being President. I never really believed I'd see half the Democratic party turn into Karl Rove. I never really believed I'd see a major Democratic contender for President stand up in front of a crowd and paint themselves as a, "Second Amendment believin' Gun-Lovin', God-fearin' good old boy (girl)," in order to try and somehow convince a bunch of party insiders that they're the only person electable.

If some people were offended by the truth that one candidate had the guts to say, then well, I guess I'm equally offended that the other seems to believe that we should play up to the least-common denominator in this country to get elected. Maybe it's true after all. Maybe you do have to speak to Americans as if they're pathetic morons in order to get elected.

If so, then I guess what they say is true: We get the President we deserve.

I just never thought I'd see the ideals of the Democratic party flushed down the toilet for the sake of getting elected. I never thought I'd see gun-control abandoned. I never thought I'd see the separation of church and state put in such a tenuous position by my own party.

I'll vote for whoever wins the Democratic primary. To do otherwise would be to vote for killing more American soldiers, and that's blood I don't want on my hands. But should I vote for the panderer, I'll probably go home and throw up immediately after. Because I'll have learned that here in America, if you want a President who isn't a war monger, or who supports a woman's right to choose what they do with their own body, or who supports the rights of two people in love to consecrate their relationship, regardless of sexual orientation, you've got to accept someone who will say and play whatever game they can to get elected. In America, you can't have a true visionary lead this county, and instead you have to accept that this gleaming example of what could be, never will be. In this country, if you say, "I have a dream," we kill you. Either with a bullet, or with back-room deals and mischaracterization. We kill you with racism, or gender bias, or with plain lies. We kill you by using your middle name over and over and over, because most Americans are too stupid to realize that having the name Hussein does not make you party to terrorism. We kill you by holding you responsible for the statements of others.

And that, my friends, does nothing but make me weep. Because I want to believe. I want to care. I want this country to become the beacon of civilization I KNOW it can become.

If that makes me an elitist, so be it. But is it too much to ask that we at least try? Even if we lose, can't we at least try to be what we could be? Is it too much to ask that instead of dumbing down America, we build her intellect up? I know I'm asking the impossible here. I'm asking Americans to do some work, same as one of the candidates for President is doing.

And I'll probably be attacked as well for it. Because Americans only want one thing: They want everyone else to do the work required to fix the country. Americans want others to fix their problems, because to do work themselves would require they look first in the mirror with an honest heart.

And that ain't gonna happen, is it?

Further, deponent sayeth naught.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Six More Months

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Wed, 9 Apr 08 16:06:00 UT

I'm not much of a MoveOn.org guy, but I thought this hit the nail on the head:

Joseph Haines, and all of us, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.

Ugly

joseph@josephpaulhaines.com — Tue, 11 Mar 08 14:33:00 UT

Okay, I've keep my peace on this particular subject long enough. I'll start with the caveat that yes, if you believe most of the negativity coming from the Clinton camp, I've drunk the Kool-Aide. I've sipped from the waters of the Lethe and forgotten why I didn't like Mr. Obama when this campaign started. I'm supporting Obama in his bid for the Democratic nomination, but here's the thing: I think either candidate would be a great choice and help put this country back on track.

My first inclination was to believe that Senator Obama wasn't necessarily the best choice. Sure he could give a great speech. Sure he could be inspiring. So what? Oratory skills alone do not a President make. But then something occurred to me in the middle of one of his speeches. Senator Obama actually _believes_ what he's saying. He believes that he can make a change. He believes that hope isn't a four-letter word. (It is, but let's skip the semantics, okay?) And the best part of all this? He makes others believe it as well.

The last time we've had someone like that, well, we compared the White House to a fairy tale where knights gathered in the round to make the country better.

I'm a cynical man. I don't like being told, "It's all okay," when it's obvious that things are far from okay. But he's got me believing. As I said, I drank the Kool-Aide.

But if he doesn't win, I won't take it personally. I won't vote for McCain simply to spite the party. I won't hate Hillary Clinton. She's a strong woman, and you know, the country could use a strong woman as President.

So why is it that so many people are engaging in rhetoric that is so destructive to our party? Why are so many people swearing up one side and down the other about BOTH camps? Neither camp is completely innocent here--although I do believe that Camp Clinton has engaged in a few more disingenuous tactics than the Obama camp--and both have said things and done things that made me shake my head. I understand from where the Clinton camp is coming. The political arena is a tough sandbox in which to play, and the Clinton team is very good at the political game. But there's been an air of desperation lately, causing them to cross some lines that I think even they will look back on and regret.

Obama's camp isn't much better (but I do believe it IS better) and the game that's being played on that side isn't about destroying the credibility of your opponents, but in letting your staff do it for you and appearing to be, "above such old style politics." Feh. Wasn't born yesterday, Senator. A game is a game is a game. I appreciate you taking aim at those advisors who've crossed the line, but c'mon now. Tell me you aren't happy that it also appears to make you look like a strong leader, taking responsibility and dismissing anyone under your command who differs from your campaign's position. Even if it's completely one-hundred percent genuine, you can't tell me that it doesn't work in your favor.

And Hillary, stop it. Just stop it. You can't state that, ". . .there are only two of the three candidates remaining for President that are qualified to be Commander-in-Chief," one week and then float the idea of making Mr. Obama your running mate the next. You can't say, "He's not qualified," in one breath and, "He is capable of being a heartbeat away," in the next without either appearing as untruthful or self-serving.

One more thing: (And yeah, I'm going to get beat up bad for this one . . .) If Hillary loses, it's not going to be a repudiation of the right of women to be counted as equals. I'm sick and tired of watching Geraldine Ferraro make the most outrageous claims, almost as if it's worse to be a woman in this country than it is to be a different minority. That type of claim isn't just wrong, it's beneath you, Ms. Ferraro. Do I really have to point out the number of women in Congress compared to the number of other minorities? (Both senators from Washington and its Governor are all women, by the way.) The numbers don't add up to your statements, and it makes you and your side look more than just a little desperate. And that's the last thing our Party needs right now. Mrs. Clinton would make a great President, but let's start having the conversation on the basis of merit instead of playing both the gender card and the race card (Yes Mr. Obama, say, "Hoodwinked," one more time and I'll call bullshit on you as well.)

Let's clear the road and leave the guns in their holsters until we face off against the Republicans, what do you say?

Okay, let loose in the comments section. I can take it.

Joseph Haines, signing off from The Edge of the Abyss.