Citizen of the World

When Scott Walker survived his recall in WI last night, about 1/3 of my feelings leaned toward wanting to escape this country and move to Canada or some place else, or just sink into Xbox role playing games and escape. But the other 2/3 of me got really mad, frustrated, and concerned.

• MAD at the situation and voter determination in WI. I sense that Walker wouldn't be above tainting the voting pool further to secure a win by any means possible. Still hoping for an indictment against Walker for corruption - that'll get the fucker out of office.
• FRUSTRATED at Citizens United, when the ruling decidedly isn't about citizens of the US at ALL - it's about corporations. And corporations are NOT people.
• CONCERNED about people who are apathetic to their voting rights and who aren't paying attention to what's going on in our country.

I want to inform people around our neighborhood about voting (after meeting 2 somewhat apathetic college girls yesterday). What can it hurt?  I'm not telling people how to vote, but I'm presenting information about how to register - whether they vote or not. Hopefully, once they've registered, they'll want to vote, too!  I'm putting together the following flier to hand out around my neighborhood.  I'm thinking about making a VistaPrint card to hand out, as well - just to hand out to people in NJ.

How To, Who Can, & Where To Register, as well as answer “Am I Registered?”
Or call the Division of Elections toll free at 1-877-658-6837 for more info.

LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD!  ACTIVATE YOUR RIGHT TO VOTE!

Feel free to copy/paste this information for your own state. Make copies and give to friends, neighbors, family members, and local businesses that you visit. Make sure that people are aware of their right to vote. Make sure that you have an impact on the 2012 election.

Here's how the VistaPrint card turned out:

Faith in America today announced a state-wide campaign that will bring awareness about the harm caused to LGBT youth and families to the communities of every North Carolina legislator that votes to proceed with an anti-gay marriage amendment to state constitution.

The NC General Assembly could decide as early as tomorrow on whether to proceed with a vote that would amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage, despite the fact that state law currently recognizes only marriages between two people of the opposite sex.

"Going forward with this vote signals that the North Carolina General Assembly embraces the immense harm that religion-based bigotry places on the lives of this state's gay and lesbian citizens," said Brent Childers, executive director of the organization.

Childers said recent studies, from the American Psychology Association (APA) and one by the Centers of Disease Control have documented a link between anti-gay marriage amendments and emotional and psychological harm to gay and lesbian individuals. In the 2008 APA studies, lead researcher, Sharon Scales Rostosky, Ph.D., at the University of Kentucky, said emotional and psychological harm was "a direct result of the negative images and messages associated with the ballot campaign and the passage of the amendment."

"These studies only document what common sense tells us," Childers said. "Placing a moral and religious stamp of disapproval on someone's very being causes immense and lasting harm to individuals and society. Women, African Americans, Native Americans and interracial couples have all been targets of this vile form of bigotry in the past when religious teaching was misused to justify prejudice and discrimination. Those historical precedents of religion-based bigotry all have been judged as immoral. Yet, a group of ill-intentioned lawmakers want North Carolina to embrace that same form of bigotry today.

Childers said he is hopeful lawmakers will refrain from bringing such harm to North Carolina communities. He said he believes the majority of legislators do not agree with using misguided religious teaching to cause harm to innocent people, especially LGBT youth and families.

"We hope a majority of legislators will decide in favor of human dignity and equality rather than using their vote to bring harm to others for potential political gain or favor. If they come down on the side of causing harm to LGBT youth and families, they will not do so with impunity."

Childers said the organization will conduct public awareness campaigns in the communities of every legislator who votes to proceed with the anti-gay marriage initiative.

"The constituents of every legislator who votes to proceed with the anti-gay marriage initiative are going to learn how these elected officials are promoting a social and religious climate of hostility and violence toward innocent people and children. We plan to reveal to parents, business owners, church-goers and the kids in these legislators 'hometowns the heinous and immensely harmful form of bigotry and prejudice that these legislators are embracing."

Faith in America is a N.C.-based nonprofit organization which works nationally to educate the American public about religion-based bigotry, its harm to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals and its history of oppression toward other minorities in American society. Brent Childers, who himself as an evangelical once identified with the Religious Right and embraced religion-based bigotry toward the LGBT community, serves as its executive director.

Here's hoping that this post backfires in a positive way! Given positive outcomes in other holiday goings-on, this issue might be resolved today! Here's hoping!

On Dec. 13, I sent out a package priority mail with the USPS (with a 2-3 day turnaround), who we always use for any of our packages - domestically or internationally. Usually, their delivery windows are the best for the price point. In contrast, FexEx, DHL, and UPS are terrible. The package was destined for Brooklyn. Another package I sent out on the same day got to NC within 3 business days. I fully expected the same with the package to Brooklyn because, after all, it's basically just over a couple of bridges.

Using Track & Confirm, the last update status after "Sorting Complete, December 17, 2010, 10:29 am, BROOKLYN, NY 11217" was, "Delivery status not updated as of December 18, 2010, 12:39 am".

I was shocked! I'd never seen any update like that on the USPS tracking site. I contacted customer service on Monday, Dec. 20, after 9AM. Even they said they'd never seen anything like this either! Let me reiterate: The USPS Customer Service said they'd never seen an update like that either!

A little later our local NJ PO contacted me about the package. I'd been trying to call the Brooklyn PO all day and got a constant busy signal. Our local PO had no further information and was also having trouble getting through to Brooklyn. Although I fully expected to hear on the news, "The Brooklyn Post Office at zip code 11217 was blown up today in a terrorist plot initiated by postal workers who were denied their pensions...", I kept trying to get through to the Brooklyn PO.

On Tuesday, Dec. 21, I got through to the Brooklyn PO after lunch! The guy I spoke with was fully 1) trying to get me off the phone, 2) did not want to help me, 3) couldn't have cared less about my problem, 4) came up with all sorts of excuses about why the package hadn't been delivered, and 5) took about a full 10 minutes to locate a pencil to take down my information. He still hasn't called me back and now my friend, for whom the package was intended has gone over - on Christmas Eve - to hopefully retrieve the package. He just called and the post office in Brooklyn couldn't locate the package.

This whole thing is soooo frustrating!! Most likely, the package was lost and no one wants to claim responsibility. Other stuff has made it to Queens and Brooklyn (other POs), but not this one little package.

Here's what's in the package along with a card:





We had missed their tree-trimming party, the first one we would have ever been to, because Matt was pretty sick with a cold. We were both so very sad to miss it. I had made these ornaments especially to give them for their tree. They are inscribed on the back of each ornament for 2010. UGH!

Well, here's hoping that at some point during the year, someone finds the package and actually delivers it to them. I've heard about packages that are lost around the holidays might not turn up for years. Years. So, here's hoping that someone finds it soon! This is really the only sad thing that's happened for us around the holidays this year, and I hope it stays that way!

American Airlines just announced new fees - for front row seats in COACH! There are government subsidies that should be helping out the consumer, but all the subsidies do is help airlines fly empty planes!

Coach was always that place on the plane where the working class folks or normal travelers sat, fell asleep, enjoyed their Diet Coke and peanuts, then got off the plane to their destination. The "good travelers" had very few carry-on luggage and were polite. Sometimes they had reading material and some enjoyed chatting for a bit with their neighbor.

The Business Class was reserved for people whose companies were paying for the flight. Or First Class for those who could afford better seats, but not their own chartered airplanes.

Those days are really gone. The separation between coach class and business fares is getting narrower and narrower. Soon, just to be "done with all the mediocre extra fees for this or that", it'll just be easier to purchase a business class seat and not have the headaches.

Bigger airlines these days figure with all the business travelers, they can charge out the ass. But in reality, it's going to start killing domestic tourist travel. Better yet, the smaller airlines will get ahead. But then, they'll take over the routes of larger, more established airlines, which will fall apart, and the cycle will start again.

There are fees now for: 1) check-in luggage (higher cost if handled at the counter), 2) emergency row seating, 3) carry-on luggage (not all airlines), 4) snacks or food, 5) trip insurance (a policy to protect a trip were it canceled, bags were stolen or a traveler needed emergency assistance), 6) EARLY BOARDING (nope, not the frequent flier membership), and many many more things.

Matt and I have planned (and spent money for) our trip this next week to the NC Outer-banks, so that we only have to take carry-on luggage. Who wants to pay an extra $50 each round-trip for luggage? If we want more leg room, though, that will be roughly $180 extra round-trip for EMERGENCY SEATING. Yes, that would be $230 APIECE on extra fees for a more comfortable flight without the hassle of luggage. The round-trip ticket price for me is $250 and for Matt is $217, which is GREAT. But with the extra fees for this and that, the flight alone to NC would become almost $450!!

For our LA flight a couple of weeks ago, which started out at a "bargain" of $530 round-trip apiece, in actuality we paid $760 apiece - WITHOUT FOOD on the return flight! To LA. No, not to Paris, Aruba, or Cancun (no, those flights were actually cheaper than $760 apiece without extra fees for nonsensical crap).

How do you combat companies that piss you off or take advantage of people? Boycott them (starting to hate that term and process) or sue them? What if you need to get to Raleigh, NC, and the fastest way to get there is via the company you hate or want to boycott? If hundreds or thousands boycott that same company and they go under or nix THAT route, then what? It usually takes years of negotiations and agreements with airports, state governments, and the FAA for a new airline to get a new route or hub in a given city. I guess we're all SOL in a shitty creek without a blooming paddle!! I guess we'll have to straddle our coach seats, buckle in, and bend over. Makes for having an otherwise nice, relaxing vacation very frustrating from the get-go!

Here is a video of a "House hearing [that] addresses growing concern for the numerous fees air travelers are forced to pay." - from CNN