Can't Vote for the Guy, But I Sure Like Him

I've liked Mike Huckabee since I saw him pushing his book and his fledgling presidential campaign early this spring on The Daily Show.* Then he made the best poke at John Edwards at an early Repub debate and continued to quietly charm his way beneath the media vortex surrounding the incredibly stiff and disingenuous Republican front runners.

I like the guy even though he's pro-life and believes in creationism. (Better to say he's anti-choice. I'm pro-life, after all, I just also happen to believe a woman gets to decide what ultimately happens to her body.) I don't believe I could ever vote for him, because he believes unequivocally that Roe v. Wade should be overturned, and because he would rally for a Constitutional amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman, but it's refreshing to hear some intelligent dialogue on the campaign trail. And I still haven't heard him say creationism or intelligent design should be taught in schools, though a little more research needs to go into this.

So when I read in Slate that Huckabee is surging in Iowa, I say good for him. He deserves it. Except for Ron Paul, he's the only Republican candidate I've heard who consistently stays on message and doesn't change that message simply to pander to his crowd.** That said, I don't get invited to a whole lot of Republican fundraisers, so what do I know?

Here's an exchange between Slate's John Dickerson and the candidate:

Slate: Are you going to use this moment to confront your GOP opponents more?

Huckabee: What I've got to do is to show people why I've got to be president, and people are smart enough to draw their own conclusions about the differences between us. It's not that I mind bringing out contrasts, but to relentlessly attack an opponent—I'm not sure that's what people are looking for. I think they're looking for someone who can manage the government, not necessarily disable their opponents.

Yup. Emphasis mine. That's what I'm looking for, and I'm not limiting myself to voting for the major Democratic contenders, though I think I could get behind any of the Big 3, and even maybe Bill Richardson or Chris Dodd too. The point is that when I check my options for presidential candidates I'm looking for someone who is level headed and smart (I think we're all ready for a breath of intellect again at the highest levels of government), and who surrounds him or herself with good, smart, thoughtful people. People with proven track records in their fields, unlike so many current and recent upper-level appointees. I'll give extra credence to any candidate who can elevate the level of discourse surrounding national politics in this country (and especially in the Republican Party, which tends too often toward the vituperative just to keep things cycling on Fox News). The dumbification of presidential campaigning has proven a supreme failure for the legacy of our country. We didn't merely elect ("elect") a president who exudes folksy charm and therefore polls well (or did at one time, anyway), we got a know-nothing whose active embrace of anti-curiosity he wears as a coat of arms. It's time to bring thoughtfulness back to the Oval Office.

Also, though I loathe and take issue with the term "Islamofascists," I'm relieved to hear a candidate talk sensibly about the threat faced by Americans both at home and abroad:

Osama Bin Laden was largely influenced by the writings of Sayyid Qutb, executed in Egypt in 1966, a true radical Islamic cleric who helped to further the most radical notion of the theocracy that the Islamofacists would love to install. Because of their sense of fervor and the fact that they have completely married government and religion, there is no negotiation with an organization that is not a nation-state, it's an ideology. They have no timeline in which they have to accomplish it. Where we want our wars to be finished in a thousand days, they're quite willing for this to go a thousand years. It's not about obtaining a particular border or boundary, and once they obtain it, they'll be satisfied. They really believe they have to destroy everyone who does not help them bring about the purity of what they believe is their version of Islam.

Emphasis mine. As a culture we've been entirely too short-sighted about the challenges presented since 9/11--the day the notion of an America as everybody's darling (a notion held only by Americans, by the way, and dwindling numbers of us at that) was shattered. I still don't think most Americans get this key point mentioned above. Remember "Mission Accomplished," when George Bush put on a flight suit and a codpiece for a photo op on a Navy aircraft carrier? If for no other reason than that which Huckabee points out, that our enemies who happen to be Islamic extremists will a) die for what they believe is holy and right and b) inculcate in future generations a thousand years' war ideology, it is both immature and inane to believe that we can "win" this war.

The best we can hope for militarily is to contain outbursts of radicalism that threaten our citizens and our state. Beyond that we have to go to diplomacy and be willing to make some compromises. While there will always be radical, fanatical fringe elements, and while there will always be some level at which they will be able to operate, we have already proven that we can work with governments whose ideology differs from ours (not necessarily for the best: Pakistan ringing any bells right now?) I get the impression Mike Huckabee gets all this, and, if he and I don't exactly agree on the solutions, I like the feeling that at least we agree on what the threats are, where they come from, and what's behind them.

Here's another thing I like about Mike Huckabee: he's on about schools. I have no idea if he's prepared to put his money where his mouth is, but I like what I'm hearing so far.

Slate: You talk about the need for arts education in school. Why? And how have you benefited from being a musician?

Huckabee: The discipline that one learns from it is important, but also the stimulation and creativity. If an education system is only left-brain and it does not properly stimulate the right brain, then it's no small wonder why students are bored to the point of quitting. We lose 6,000 kids a day to drop-out. A third of students in our public schools will drop out of school. It's not because these kids are dumb. They are bored. What music and the arts do is make sure that those who are right-brain oriented have their lives touched as much as kids who are logic-centered. It's our creativity that becomes our cultural vehicle and gives us continuity between one generation and the next. Without that continuity, we not only lose some songs or artwork, we lose our capacity to transmit our culture.

I think a lot of politicians play the education card when it suits them, and I don't suspect Huckabee is any different. All I'm saying is his concerns, his emphasis and his attitude resonate with me. Plus he goes on to mention his affinity for John Mellencamp. Now, I can take the Cougar or leave him, but at least the governor didn't go goo-goo over the Rolling Stones.

At the end of the day, Mike Huckabee leaves me feeling, well, optimistic. He used to weigh 300 pounds and now he's a marathon runner. He's been married to the same woman, his first (only) wife, for 33 years. He's got experience running a state that's already produced at least one affable, charismatic politician who, overall, I can still get excited about. The only thing sticking in my craw is the anti-choice platform on which he locates himself, and another uber-conservative addition to the Supreme Court would be all it takes. So no, I can't vote for him, no I'm not ready to see him as President (though of any of the Republican pack, he's our best-case scenario), and at the same time I'm grateful for what he brings to the race.

*This link goes right to the clip but I can't get it to play. If it works for you, or if you find another way to watch, please let me know.

**Except possibly for Tom Tancredo, but I can't bring myself to even discuss that man's campaign.

Thousands Turn Out to See Frida Kahlo's Moustache

Okay. I know it's not kind to joke, but really, the National Museum in Oaxaca was mobbed on Thursday night when we went in to see the largest tapeta de arena of all. Seriously. We haven't seen so many foreigners in Oaxaca this year until now. Jenna doesn't recall this many when she visited three years ago. I am excited to report that, at least this weekend, tourism thrives in Oaxaca.*

Same for Friday night when we walked down Abasolo all the way to the panteon, the cemetery. Street vendors lined the calle as we got closer, and carnival games were set up in booths. There were little shooting galleries, throw-the-dart-at-the-balloons games and even a small carousel running round and round on a gas powered generator (and much faster than anything you'd see in the States; that's kind of how it goes here: kids are expected to hold on tight and grow up fast) peppered in between stands selling tlayudas, tortas, memelitas, tacos dorado, tostadas, and many, many more food stuffs. Vendors sold cds, jewelry, baskets, leather works, clothing and even kitchen supplies. Oaxacans and tourists made their way through the crowds, each casually inspecting the other amid the noise and celebration.

Only the main gate was open for passage in and out of the panteon, and so the mob merged into a tight stream of people jostling to get in, or out, of the cemetery. A brass band played rompous parade music under the grand concrete awning just inside entry hall, a sort of oom-pah-pah oom-pah-pah with a Latin twist, and candles glowed warmly at every tomb on the walls (picture an Egyptian type catacomb, or something out of the Matrix, slender, horizontal pods extending deep into the walls one on top of the other where bodies were laid to rest and cemented in place).

The graveyard itself, taking up the garden within the massive enclosure, was crowded full with off-kilter above-ground graves in various states of splendor and disarray. In the night, with the air of joyous remembrance and just a tinge of sadness for those most recent, most unjust deaths, with so many candles lighting the paths and the strong aroma of fresh flowers on every breath, with the beer and the mescal and the wine that people brought and shared and poured in plastic cups or real glasses, it was difficult to see the cemetery as a place for somberness, melancholy or sobriety. Families sat on the recently-tended graves of their deceased and told stories, told jokes, sang songs and took turns crying and laughing out loud in honor of the holiday of the dead. I found myself wishing we had a similar custom back home.

I returned to the museum on Friday during the lunch hour to take these photos of Frida when the exhibit was a little less crowded. Ironically enough, a young man stopped me to ask where I was visiting from and the like. I answered his questions in the entryway as he filled in the column on his clipboard, and then I proceeded into the museum. It was only after I took my pictures and headed for the exit that I saw the signs posted in the entrance requesting patrons leave their bags at the bag check and please don't take any photos. Well, nobody stopped me, and in this country that's as good as having gotten permission.

So here are some potentially contraband pics of Mexico's national artista, rendered in sand. These were taken from a second floor mezzanine, looking down on the ground floor. The attention to detail in the portrait of sand is stunning.

*I don't know but suspect that, if asked, local hoteliers would reply that reservations and room rentals are still below average (since the unrest of last summer and fall).

Proceeds to Benefit . . . ?

This is the kind of congressional oversight I can really relate to:

Over the past year, as the government issued nearly 14 million new passports, it collected at least $111.4 million more in passport fees than its stated costs, according to calculations by The Associated Press based on figures from State Department and congressional investigators.

. . . [Sens. Byron Dorgan and Charles Schumer] are asking the Bush administration for an accounting of where the passport profits go.

Emphasis mine. In fairness, the article goes on to state that the government uses some profits to "provide free passports to relatives of dead soldiers traveling overseas to attend funeral services." I can't really argue with that. Then there's this, though:

But the senators said it was "inconceivable" all the government's profits were used for those purposes, and they asked [Secretary of State] Rice for a detailed accounting of where the money went.

The GAO has yet to publicly release it's investigation findings, so of course the State Dept. has no comment. When I know where the average traveler can apply for his or her refund (wishful thinking), I'll post it on this site. In the meantime, you can read the whole article here.

Notes on Oaxaca

Tapetas de arenas. Carpets of sand. That's what a friend told me today. In reference to the sand images photographed for my previous post. And el Dia de Muertos is this week, Friday (Thursday too, but less so), not "next weekend" as the post casually mentioned. When I was writing Monday night the holiday still seemed a little ways away, but not anymore. The streets are busy as vendors near the mercado 20 de Noviembre, several blocks from our house, crowd the sidewalks with stalls selling marigolds and a deep red velvety flower which name I do not know (perhaps somebody will tell me tomorrow) and skulls made of sugar, pan dulces (sweet breads) with faces of sugar baked into the crusts, and all manner of garish plastic trinket or toy featuring skeletons or ghouls practicing their arts.

"JUSTICE FOR OUR DEAD"

If the city is in turmoil--and I don't presume that quiet is the same as resolution--it is less obvious to me now than it was this summer. While there are military patrols there is not the same presence of force observed during the Guelaguetza or the August 5 election. While there is still the tug of war between political graffiti artists and the city crews whose job it is to follow with whitewash and rollers, especially in the zocalo and other central points, there does not appear to be, in the past two weeks since our return, the protests, demonstrations, ad hoc public kiosks demanding the release of political prisoners or the further investigation of human rights abuses or the removal from power of Governor Ulises Ruiz Ortiz. I'm not saying these things aren't happening, I'm just saying that, for me, they are not as visible as they were in the peak of the summer.

The tone right now to the casual eye is much more neutral, except for all the empty tables in all the restaurants that rely on tourism for so much of their business, which is very nearly all the restaurants in the centro historico. For these owners and employees I can only wonder how much the emptiness is costing in lost profits and wages. I wondered out loud the other day how many empresarios have gone or are going deep into debt in order to keep their businesses running throughout the tourist drought of the past 18 months. And who are the few creditors bankrolling much of the city as the lull endures? The way things work in Oaxaca, I think, there will be three or four very powerful people with their thumbs on all the commerce of the city. Of course when I read about Mexico in general I get the sense it is the same ten families who, when you cut through the smoke and paperwork, appear to run everything, so maybe nothing is so unusual after all.

I haven't been keeping up with the papers since we returned but intend to start reading again soon, now that we're settled. This week marks the year anniversary of the murder of American independent journalist Brad Will, and that's generated its own bit of attention, though moreso outside Oaxaca and Mexico, as far as I can tell, than here in the city where he died (see here to scroll through various posts on the subject). Outwardly things are calm. I am not informed enough at present to suggest what may be going on under the surface.

El Dia de Muertos: Images

The streets flow over with excitement as Oaxaca prepares for el Dia de Muertos next weekend. Fireworks go off nightly, though that's hardly limited to the holidays in Oaxaca. Brass bands and throngs of dancers fill the zocalo while religious ceremonies overflow the sanctuary of the great cathedral at Santo Domingo and into the front courtyard, illuminating the night. Colorful altars, populated with images or likenesses of deceased loved ones and adorned with offerings of chocolate, candies, cigarettes, mescal, sweet breads, flowers, fruits, toys, trinkets and more are installed in homes, restaurants, bars, galleries, souvenir shops.

Here two men in the zocalo labor over one of the many sand illustrations that have cropped up before the holiday.


And here are some striking images from the Alcala, one of the wide stone avenues in the historic center of town. These displays are made almost entirely with sand, though some incorporate maize, flower petals and more. Enjoy!

Self Portrait

Blogger says I may only update my profile photo from an online source, not from my hard drive or other storage device like my camera. So here's a photo of me, online. Soon to be seen in my profile, as well. At least it turned out better than my passport photo.

Z Magazine Online

Here's a little more print media hype (of the electronic variety . . . which maybe means it's not print media, but that sort of feels like an existentialist dialogue coming on, and we've got football and baseball to watch): I haven't read a single article yet, which makes this one of my more openly shallow posts, but the contents page of Z Magazine Online looks pretty damn compelling. Unfortunately (but understandably, sort of; I waver on whether I think politico-socio-cultural websites are better served selling or giving away their online product) the bulk of the site content is available only to subscribers. A handful of taster articles are available, however, to lure us in. And they look alluring indeed:

GAY & LESBIAN COMMUNITY NOTES: Sex and the Single Issue Movement
Michael Bronski
The lesbian, gay, and transgender (LGBT) movement has been fighting for 50-plus years to challenge the oppression of queer people and make the world a better, less hostile, and safer place for everyone. Fifty years is not a particularly long time and given the entrenched cultural homophobia in the United States, the LGBT movement has done a pretty good job so far—except when it comes to dealing with sexuality.; (More)

CARAVAN FOR PEACE: On the Road with Cindy Sheehan
Paul Bloom
Rather than telling the truth about U.S. actions in other people’s countries, mainstream media present us with a false picture, a patriotized history. In this imaginary world, U.S. actions have the same five characteristics regardless of place or time. (More)

FOREIGN POLICY: Cold War II
Noam Chomsky
These are exciting days in Washington, as the government directs its energies to the demanding task of “containing Iran” in what Washington Post correspondent Robin Wright, joining others, calls “Cold War II.” (More)

TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY: The Silenced Majority
Barbara Ehrenreich
YOU MAY not have noticed, but 50,000 U.S. coal miners were on strike for four months this spring and summer 1989. The 10-state strike featured the unprecedented mass application of nonviolent civil disobedience to a labor struggle: Thousands of miners and family members have been arrested for peacefully blocking mine entrances. Troops have been called in; they have, in some instances, fired on the strikers.(More)

Okay. Gotta go read some Chomsky. Thanks to Mostly Water for putting Z Mag on my radar.

Vanity Fairing

Included on our packing list for travel to Mexico was the October Vanity Fair, a subscription we've enjoyed this year as a gift from our sister-in-law Wendy. So even as the volume of the movie on the 8 hour bus ride from Mexico City to Oaxaca (everybody agrees it only takes 5 1/2 or 6 but we've yet to experience such a short ride) overpowered us I was able to get my fix of glossy fashion ads and haute couture.

One reason I really like Vanity Fair is for the political reporting, and the October issue is no exception. I realize the month is nearly spent and, periodicals existing in the perennial race for readers that they do, Christmas editions will be on newsstands shortly. That aside, let me direct your attention to a pair of articles that are well worth reading.

The first, Todd Purdum's "Inside Bush's Bunker," is a thorough look at what goes into making the White House arguably one of the most secure installations on the planet. The bunker in question, however, is every bit as much mental, emotional and intellectual as it is physical. Purdum, through interviews, accounts and, by necessity, a bit of informed speculation, offers a peek inside what could be characterized as the most media unfriendly and closed-minded administration this side of Iran. For an idea of how the President gets his information and whom he trusts for pushback or outside ideas (nearly no one, and trusting and listening to are two different things) this article is a must read.

I have not yet finished reading "Billions Over Baghdad," but the content is scandalous, or would be if as a citizenry we could just quit caring about whether Paris is in jail or Britney has her kids for the night. Here Donald Bartlett and James Steele investigate how, from start to finish, the Coalition Provisional Authority (I last blogged on the CPA here) arranged for nearly 12 billion dollars in US cash money--literally 363 tons--to be withdrawn from the Federal Reserve and airlifted to Baghdad from 2003-2004. More than $9 billion of that has since "gone missing" with no one to account for it. And not theoretical money, money on paper or electronic funds. We're talking about tangible bills, ones, fives, tens, twenties and hundreds with the likenesses of dead white men on the faces and the seal of the US government on their backsides. The authors point to croneyism from the Pentagon and the White House, confusion as to how the CPA was mandated and to whom it answered*, a compliant and increasingly bamboozled Congress, and a breathtaking lack of concern about what the money actually went for, as reasons why it was so easy for anybody with open hands to capture what may have been the real loot of the Iraq War.

So there you have it, my plug for print media for the month. Check it out online (free) or go to the library for an afternoon of reading (also free) or get your hands on a rumpled and dog-eared copy from the beauty salon or motor vehicle office (we wish!) and don't let it go until you've read these articles about the people in charge of our country today.


*Sidenote: the CPA apparently answered to nobody. The article points out that the Coalition Provisional Authority, in actuality, was neither a US government agency nor a UN body nor an Iraqi entity). In essence the CPA mandated, approved and oversaw the CPA, and in the confusion of post-invasion Iraq that was enough for the world.

El Dia de Muertos

I often find the Oaxaca Times to be brazenly biased and hopelessly in need of a decent editor (hmmm . . . maybe they're hiring). The paper is chiefly a means of advertising to tourists, dressed up as a newsletter and distributed free throughout el centro. That said, I found this article about el Dia de Muertos to be exciting and enlightening, especially as the event draws near.

The Day of the Dead is a blend of cultural traditions: the pre-Hispanic cult of death, the veneration of ancestors practiced both by the indigenous people and by Spanish pre-Christian pagans, and the commemoration of Catholic Saints on All Saints' Day. Above all, it is a wholly Mexican occasion. The most ostentatious Christian festivity of the year—more exuberant than either Easter or Christmas—it illustrates the special relationship that Mexico has with death, a laughing, mocking familiarity embodied in the portrayal of grinning paper mache skeletons performing life's everyday tasks. Dancing on someone's grave, an action which carries negative connotation in the rest of the Christian world, here represents a reaching out of the living to the dead, a reunion in the most festive spirit.

I don't know enough about the holiday to say if the writer gets it right, and I don't have the will to go fact checking it now, but it's a pretty thorough article and offers insights on the customs with which I am unfamiliar. Of course there's a plug for tours run by Oaxaca Times, but that's how it goes. You get what you pay for, as the saying goes. This time it turns out pretty good.

Art and the Resistance

The title of the post manages to sound trite and lofty all at the same time (it's a gift, I swear) but most everybody in Oaxaca seems to agree on this one thing: the street art keeps getting better. I tried to capture some of it this summer but never did it justice. Check out some of these images, though, at Puntos B. You don't have to read Spanish to be struck by the art that rises from the wreckage of last year's unresolved conflict.

Regresamos a Oaxaca

Jenna and I have returned to Oaxaca, and I´ll be writing from here over the next six months. The city is much as we left it, although traffic seems to be worse as a result of the government´s grand plan to create something like 10 more blocks of pedestrian-only streets in the historic center. From the little I hear, businesses are screaming because there are no tourists coming to the city now--an enduring result of Oaxaca´s political instability the past year and a half--and it´s generally tourists who shop and sight-see in the historic center. So the streets downtown are all torn up and nobody is happy about it.

That´s the quick update. I hope to write more, with more perspective, very soon.

For What it's Worth

From the New York Times:

With only 15 months left in office, President Bush has left whole agencies of the executive branch to be run largely by acting or interim appointees — jobs that would normally be filled by people whose nominations would have been reviewed and confirmed by the Senate. In many cases, there is no obvious sign of movement at the White House to find permanent nominees, suggesting that many important jobs will not be filled by Senate-confirmed officials for the remainder of the Bush administration. That would effectively circumvent the Senate’s right to review and approve the appointments. It also means that the jobs are filled by people who do not have the clout to make decisions that comes with a permanent appointment endorsed by the Senate, scholars say.

Emphasis mine. A country run by substitute teachers. I find it all unsettling, but not surprising. You could say this is a do-nothing government, but that would be wishful thinking. It's more a do-whatever-we-want kind of government, and when any item, issue or strategy comes up for review, then the answer is to stall and avoid, eg. run out the clock, as witnessed above, or, worse, review the reviewer.