In the light of day, I awoke to a plea from Dr. Dowdy, asking for my money, as usual. (He is still smarting from the $50 bones I won off him when W. beat Kerry. My cynicism finally paid off.)
Dr. Dowdy is defiantly non-mainstream; he's a curmudgeon by birth. As he once said, "I hated teenagers even when I was a teenager." He is famous for his political rants - the idiocy of "pinks" and a few other groups I'll opt not to mention here.
When I lived with Dowdy back in the early 90s, he was constantly firing off angry letters (in the days before email) to the LA Times and Orange County Register - citing alarming ignorance and naming names. There was one he'd asked me to mail and after looking over its venomous language, I opted to 'forget' the assigned task, fearing the open threats would surely bring the FBI to our door.
Dowdy has always been on the edge of society in more ways than one. He votes for people like Jerry Brown and Ralph Nader; rarely does he find himself aligned with a potential winner.
This year, things are different. Dowdy has joyfully embraced the campaign of Sen. Barack Obama, along with a few million other people. It's a weird feeling for him to willfully be a part of a mainstream movement. Either Dowdy has grown up, calmed down or the world has finally caught up to him. Personally, I think it's a bit of all three. (As for me, I have not yet made up my mind between The Magical O and the The Mighty H but I do feel good about both. And that alone is worth celebrating.)
So, Dowdy asking for contributions to Obama's campaign and I'm passing along his request. If you are Obama-inclined, then here's your chance to help this great man in his quest for The White House. I will say that I'm amazed at how many Republican friends and family are shocking the hell out of me by confessing that the Illinois senator already has their vote.
"Wha ...... ?"
But mostly, I'm impressed with how O has turned Dowdy into a real live optimist, a less angry man who is genuinely hopeful about the future - no small feat, I assure you.
3 comments:
Neither Hillary or Obama is a progressive. Neither has promised to restore habeas corpus, give Guantanamo Bay prisoners a fair trial, scrap the Patriot Act, halt torture, get the hell out of Iraq, tax the rich, restore the Constitution, abolish doublespeak "fair trade" agreements. Well, you get the point.
Of course they haven't talked about any of THOSE things - they'll never get elected that way.
With all due respect to Heidi, both have urged for the the restoration of habeas corpus. They both have promised to get out of Iraq too.
But I see Heidi's point. They're classic liberals, not progressives. (Unfortunately, the term "progressive" has been co-opted by liberals who have allowed conservatives to stigmatize the dreaded L-word.)
Beyond all that, thanks Heather for the support!
And, damnit, why didn't you send out those letters!
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