Dear Mr. President,

You know there’s no way in hell I am going to vote for a Republican, so you think you can take my vote for granted?

Throw the gays a bone – say that you’re going to extend federal benefits to partners – but oh, DOMA says you can’t offer them health or retirement benefits.

And the justice dept doesn’t have a problem with the constitutionality of DOMA?

Eff you, and your little dog too.

xo Art

I have gotten sucked into doing this stupid My First Chain Letter thing with P’ito, wherein you send a pack of stickers to one person and a letter to six and then eventually you are supposed to wind up with 36 packs of stickers.

If you have already done this and your kid didn’t get any stickers and got their poor itty bitty heart broken, please shut up remain discreetly silent.  If your kid you are willing to give it a shot, would you please send me an email with your address: artsweets AT gmail DOT com.  I need four more victims participants.

On a totally different note, Sarah asked:

Here’s a question for you: what is good etiquette for going to a gay pride parade if you’re straight? I’ve got a hand-tie-dyed rainbow shirt and a need to do something positive for gay rights – any suggestions? I’ve only recently (last couple of years) moved to [midsized Midwestern city] and haven’t made many friends yet gay or straight.

First of all, thanks Sarah, for being a friend and ally to the gays

It sucks trying to make new friends in a new place.

I think that just going and clapping and cheering and pumping your fist in the air when the gay vets go by adds to the supportive ambiance.  You don’t need to haul out the rainbow tie-dye, although if you wear your I heart Sarah Palin shirt, you may get some strange glances.

The one thing that straight people at gay pride do that gets on my nerves is to make out all over the place.  It’s pride – shouldn’t I get a break from your conspicuous display of heterosexuality for one day? That, and holding up protest signs, but somehow I don’t think you’re going down that route.

If you want to you, you can make yourself a sign that says something like “one more straight person for gay rights” – it’s nice to know that we have allies amongst the general public (it also makes you less likely to get hit on, if you’re concerned about that, although honestly, I’ve never been hit on at Pride, even when I um, wanted to be.)

Anyone else have any advice for Sarah?

From Bishop Gene Robinson’s (magically unbroadcast, ahem) invocation:

O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will…

Bless us with tears – for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women from many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.

Bless us with anger – at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

Bless us with discomfort – at the easy, simplistic “answers” we’ve preferred to hear from our politicians, instead of the truth, about ourselves and the world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.

Bless us with patience – and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be “fixed” anytime soon, and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.

Bless us with humility – open to understanding that our own needs must always be balanced with those of the world.

Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance – replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences, and an understanding that in our diversity, we are stronger.

Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world.

And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of President of the United States.

Give him wisdom beyond his years, and inspire him with Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for ALL the people.

Give him a quiet heart, for our Ship of State needs a steady, calm captain in these times.

Give him stirring words, for we will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.

Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership, there will be neither red nor blue states, but the United States.

Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination, that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.

Give him the strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods.

And please, God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking FAR too much of this one. We know the risk he and his wife are taking for all of us, and we implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand – that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and peace.

AMEN.

Your running mate’s son has DOWN SYNDROME, not AUTISM.

and p.s. – Obama did not vote against Breyer. Breyer was apppointed to the Supreme Court in 1994 – long before Obama was in the Senate.   Even Joe the Plumber knows that, Senator McCan’tRemember.

That creaky sound you hear? It’s the sound of me opening wordpress again. Yes, I’m still alive. And I promise my next post will have cute baby toddler future olympic sprinter photos – and a rant about my endocrine practice. But I can’t not write about politics right now.

One of the interesting things about this internet community that we’ve made for ourselves is that the things that connect us cross party affiliations and geography. You – or your kid – can get diabetes whether you’ve voted Republican all your life or would sooner vote for your cat than for McCain. Infertility doesn’t care whether you’re blue or red. And adoptive parents and families come in all stripes of the rainbow. As I’ve watched the conventions and the debate and the reactions to them in the different forums that I read, I’ve felt compelled to explain why I believe that Barack Obama and Joe Biden are the best choice for our country.

“The thought of [McCain] being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me.” — Senator Thad Cochran (R) of Mississippi

With rising conflict around the world and a sinking economy here, I don’t want a president who already – during the campaign – is war-mongering against Iran and Russia. I don’t want a president who doesn’t know how to pronounce the names of foreign leaders (who has a vice presidential nominee who didn’t have a passport until 2007). Even joking about “sending Iran an airmail message” doesn’t send a positive message about our commitment to working things out in the least violent way possible to the rest of the world.

And as a diabetic, the thought of McCain’s health plan terrifies me. It effectively makes state-level laws requiring insurance coverage of say, mammograms or diabetic supplies useless. It calls for taxing employer health plans in order to provide us with a $2500/person $5000/family tax credit (and if you don’t pay taxes because you’re too poor? I guess you’re screwed.) to the end of encouraging more people to rely upon the free market for their insurance policies. I notice that Mr. McCain doesn’t hesitate to take advantage of his employer sponsored health plan – perhaps he’d like to try and get health care on the free market at age 72 with a history of melanoma. He’d probably have to sell a house or two.

I had the pleasure of briefly crossing paths with the Obamas a long long time ago – when he was running for State Senate in Illinois. I have friends who worked on his campaigns then and have worked on them every since. He is a truly thoughtful, informed, and pragmatic man who I believe will make this country a better place for all of us – and help to restore the U.S. image in the eyes of the world. We don’t have the luxury of another fat-cat cowboy in the oval office. It’s time – yes – for change.

And since you probably knew I would say that, read this - a conservative for Obama.

P’ito has made his decision:

Gina of Diabetes Talkfest is trying to get the word out about a great opportunity for NY diabeaters and our friends! She writes:

If you are a New Yorker and have been denied coverage by insurance or would like coverage for the Continous Glucose Monitoring systems I have great news.

A friend of mine spoke personally to NY State Assemblyman Robert Sweeney tonight. Here is what transpired.

Assemblyman Sweeney said that when he wrote the diabetes laws (anyone active in anything to do with diabetes in NY State know we commonly call them the Sweeney Diabetes Laws), he positioned it as such that the NY State Health Commissioner AT HIS DISCRETION can add to the existing law, any diabetes product, medicine or technology that he deems necessary to be mandated for coverage by insurance companies in NY State. He does not even need an act of legislation, he can merely add to it.

Assemblyman Sweeney has sent a letter to the Commissioner about adding CGMs.

I was informed by my contact that we all need to send letters VIA SNAIL MAIL (NOT email, or fax) directly to the NY State Health Commissioner if you want your voice to be heard. If we respond in huge numbers he will hear us. RAISE YOUR VOICE.

Let Commissioner Richard Daines know that we are in support of his correspondence with Assemblyman Robert Sweeney that the Continuous Glucose Monitoring Systems should be included on the list for mandatory insurance coverage in New York State.

Here is the mailing address:

Commissioner Richard F. Daines
NY State Health Commissioner
State of New York
Corning Tower
Empire State Plaza
Albany NY 12237

Also, I would like it if you could mail me a copy of your letter as well, via snail mail, (you can contact me and I will send you my mailing address privately) or if you can make an electronic copy of your letter with your address whited out and send it to my email address gcapone1@optonline.net

I will post all the letters written on the Diabetes Talkfest. Our voice will be heard!

Thanks Gina, for organizing this. I will be writing for sure.

The best he can say about 4000 U.S. soldiers dead (and untold Iraqis) is “they volunteered?”

Um, “stop-loss” much, Dick?

Time to find myself a good 1/20/09 countdown ticker.

Pictures of Pepito in his adorable monkey costume will no doubt come later.

In the meantime, for all those who were interested, here is my donation to UNICEF for this Halloween (right click to download).  For background on why UNICEF is on my poop list, go here.

It’s meant to be photocopied double-sided. Some charities that I recommend as substitutes for what you would have thrown in the UNICEF box this Halloween are:

http://www.behrhorst.org/

http://www.wingsguate.org/

http://www.concernamerica.org/

Please feel free to pass this file along to family and friends!

I’m so sorry Cali.

I wish there was more I could do.

If you want even more to get enraged about, check out my latest post at lesbian family. Let’s just say there will be no Tonka toys at our house any time soon. Grrrrr.