Alabama, I want to get to know you better…

A reader forwarded this story on the referendum that was on the ballot in Alabama. It appears that it failed (thus far, because they are demanding a recount) to eliminate segregationist provisions (to be fair – long-unenforced) from the Alabama Constitution. Close call though, 50% against, 50% in favor. [The problem? The referendum was tied to another provision, the removal of which threatened to raise school taxes.]

I was all ready to get on the Ocean blog and write – you wont get this blogger to venture to Alabama if my sun-deprived self depended on it!

And then I thought to myself: no, Ocean will rise above such sweeping, pernicious and defamatory condemnations. I have written earlier, after all, about the ability of honorable Europeans (even those who are in the Coalition of the Unwilling) to differentiate between Americans and their war-boy antihero. The Other Side of the Ocean should be at least as noble as those on the other side of the ocean.

And so I forced myself, here on Ocean, to make that gesutre. Reach out! Reach out to the heart of Dixie, I said, feeling magnimonious and resisting the temptation to pinch my nose. And what did I come up with? I don’t have county by county data on the Amendment, but take a look at these counties in terms of the Bush – Kerry election (source: CNN):

(overall state numbers: 37% Kerry, 63% Bush)
Macon – 83% Kerry, 17% Bush
Greene – 80% Kerry, 20% Bush
Lowndes – 70% Kerry, 30% Bush

By comparison, us smug Dane County (our little island of idealism in the vast sea of reality) voters have produced only this:
Kerry – 66%
Bush – 33%

Okay, I’m sorry Alabama. I will not make generalizations about the state and (all) its people again. Just get rid of that Amendment.

Be real, people!

My words to our neighbors across the Pacific: let’s not hope for the impossible and we will not be disappointed.

I read in the IHT today that the Asahi Shimbun (a Japanese paper) posted this:

The newspaper … appealed to Bush's humility, reminding him that there was still "persistent opposition" to his security policy and saying, "We want him to respect the criticism humbly."

Come, come, have you looked closely at the face of our victor? This is not a man who gulps down humility with his orange juice each morning. Look at these humble servants from the official GOP website:



Japan, you are so UNREAL. You! A member of the Coalition of the Willing! And what’s this with the other Asian countries? I see a reference to a paper from South Korea, another American ally:

Similar sentiments were echoed by newspapers in South Korea. … The JoongAng Ilbo said the United States had "suffered great damage from its unilateral diplomacy over the past four years" and urged it to be more considerate of its allies.

Are you stuck on the old Bush or are you asking this of the current George? Don’t hold your breath, pals.
Hong Kong, at least, steps cautiously:

In Hong Kong, The South China Morning Post characterized Bush's victory as a "victory for divisiveness."
"Great challenges lie ahead," The Post said. "But they will be confronted by a nation that is at odds with itself. History will judge the price his country will have to pay for this most divisive of victories."

But you have to hand it to India, a great beneficiary of American outsourcing. What a sense of humor that country has! (as it cheers – now isn’t that interesting – the November 2nd results):

The Times of India touched on a growing trade issue with the United States by asking, "Should the U.S. outsource its electoral process to India's remarkably efficient election commission?"

A review of day two

(Or: How I got through yesterday on virtually no sleep for two nights in a row)

Was 2 minutes late for first class (never happened before), forgot lecture notes, poured cold water over tea bag, forgot to record exams, locked myself out of my office just before second class and was, therefore, 2 minutes late for that (unbeleivable!), called student by wrong name, fell asleep (visibly) during faculty meeting, was late for coffee meeting, kept complaining about the freezing weather during evening walk (an objectively inaccurate assesmment of the meteorological conditions outside), talked politics at dinner with Ann and remember none of it today, got a parking ticket, dozed off in the middle of writing a blog post.

A special treat for Ocean readers: tomorrow you get to read a post under the heading: How I got through yesterday on virtually no sleep for three nights in a row. It’ll be a doozie.