Politics and the City - Issue 2

War is Peace
The smell of patchouli wafted through Union Square last Thursday night which had been transformed into a liberal outdoor mall - tshirts, bumper stickers, banners, and pins galore celebrating the unique yet traditional qualities of the junta and its associated henchman. I'll be forwarding more photos through snapfish so you can see the highlights. A few favorites:

"Who Would Jesus Bomb?"
"Bill O'Reilly is Full of Shit"
"Abstinence: No Bush or Dick in 2004"
"Dethrone Emperor Bush"
"Nazi Lite"

There were a few W supporters. Dressed in bourgeois BC (business casual), they kept bellowing, "Four More Years. Four More Years." One of them, evidently unaware of current economic conditions added, "Four more GLORIOUS Years." Maybe he was a wanna-be Billionaire for Bush slumming it with the anarchists and socialists (as Fox News repeatedly and erroneously described all protestors.)

After walking around for about an hour, we headed to a local bar to watch W's speech - a masterpiece of Orwellian doublespeak. My favorite line was the one that trumpeted the expansion of liberty. I guess he meant "with the exception of the enemy combatants being held illegally at Guantanamo in total disregard of the Geneva Conventions, the Patriot Act, and women who have had abortions."

My big question for Bushie is how come we haven't invaded Saudia Arabia when 17 of the 19 hijackers are from there? I notice the junta is a very fond of uttering the phrases "9/11" and "Saddam Hussein" in the same breath. Maybe they think if they keep saying it, it will become true? Maybe because a large percentage of Americans still think there is a connection?

The Old Town Bar was fairly quiet while W was speaking. One 50-ish white, drunk guy kept clapping. The only real reaction, besides overwhelming disgust and repulsion, came when Fox News split the screen to show a protestor being dragged out of the hall. Most people were in disbelief that the Chickenhawks ("The Few. The Rich. The Elite. Born to Kill. Not to Serve." ) continue to deride Kerry's military service while their deferments (e.g., "Dick-I- had-other-priorites-Cheney") total double-digit figures. Check out http://www.nhgazette.com/cgi-bin/NHGstore.cgi?user_action=list&category=%20NEWS%3B%20Chickenhawks for more specifics.

I spoke to some Quaker women who encouraged me to visit their exhibition Eyes Wide Open which depicts the cost of the Iraqi war in a very compelling manner. I had read about it a few months ago and sent some of you a link. More on that in my next post.

U.S. Postal Service - Official Sponsors of the Bush-Cheney Junta
A postcard bumper sticker reading "It Takes a Village Idiot" with a line drawn through Bush's name was stolen after being mailed to an address in Chicago, Illinois. Isn't that a federal offense?

Upper East Side - We're Blue!
I decided to tally reactions to a tshirt I wore in my neighborhood (traditionally - more blue blood than blue state) on Friday morning. A simple, white tshirt (made in America) with BUSH IS A LIAR printed boldly across the front inspired quite a few impromptu discussions.

As I waited in line at the bank, a 69-year old Hungarian women told me I was brave to wear it. When I asked why she told me she had been hassled (enough to scare her) by a group of young men while she wore her "Beat Bush" tshirt. Apparently, verbal aggressiveness isn't reserved for the unruly anarcharists who were hassling delgates last week.

As I ran errands, a young man walking toward me said, "He most certainly is a liar!" I asked, what became my standard response for the day, "Are you registered to vote?" Everyone with the exception of my UPS guy, Dennis, said "Yes!" "Hell, Yes!" and "Abso-fucking-lutely!"

(The latter response is complete dramatic license. I have yet to spot Chris Noth - that's Mr. Big to you Republicans - but I'm hoping like the junta, if I just keep repeating it over and over, it will become a reality.)

I spoke with Dennis for about 15 minutes trying to convince him that his voted mattered. If nothing else but to prevent the Supreme Court from becoming completely overloaded with Le Famille Bush consiglieres. He told me that he thought the war in Iraq was W's form of population control. Of Puerto Rican descent, he has a wife and two kids who live in the Bronx. He said he felt safe because he was 29, but was worried about his younger brothers if a draft becomes necessary. He talked to me about the military recruiters all over his neighborhood. Fahrenheit 9/11 certainly had it moments of manipulation but the scene of the recruiters in the urban mall came immediately to mind. I've never seen any recruiters in my neighborhood - just about a mile or so south of Spanish Harlem.

All along Lexington and Park Avenues, doormen smiled and nodded at my shirt. One man offered to buy it. I had only one negative response - a woman in Starbucks walked past me and muttered, "Stupid tshirt." I called after her, "Read the First Amendment."

MLW Reaches Detente with Car Service Drivers
Some of you know about my ongoing impasse with the car service drivers who gather under my apartment window. These guys yack and yack - LOUDLY - from 6:00 am to 7:00pm. I've been polite, I've been rude, I've called the police, I've tried to reason with them - all to no avail. When I came home Friday, one of them stopped me and said, "Miss, I love your tshirt! I'm going to bring you a present tomorrow." Sure enough, he brought me a Kerry/Edwards button on Saturday. Who would have thought a quick political discussion would have brought our contretemps to a peaceful resolution? He smiled at the banners hanging from my apartment windows. ("Impeach Bush" "The World Says no to the Bush Agenda" and "I Say No!"). I think I've acquired my own personal doormen working a revolving 13-hour shift.

A taxi driver, a U.S. citizen from Bangladesh, told me Sunday night that 95% of his customers were "happy that all those Republicans leave us!" We talked for awhile and he told me he was also registered to vote. His family wants him to come back because they think the U.S. is too dangerous now. Overall, it was encouraging but New York City isn't exactly a balanced representation of the U.S. The Democrats outnumber the Republicans 5-1.

Overhead on the Train
A girl from the Dominican Republic reading The New York Post article about the massacre in Russia, "Let's see them bring that shit to the Bronx."

An abomination for sure - there is absolutely zero justification for bringing children into a dispute. I reserve the same opinion for the manner in which the Russian government has dealt with the children of Chechnya the past several years.

Stoddabobbas Rock the Vote
Following the footsteps of Pearl Scher of the Lower East Side in NYC, Dorothy Bednar of the Lower West Side of KCMO gets today's "shout-out" for organizing a Voter Registration Drive at Cathedral Towers in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. Aiming to register the entire population of her building's senior citizens and to ensure they have transportation to cast their vote on November 2, this 75-year old stoddabobba (Croatian for "old lady") is doing her part to smush Bush.

Teed Off and Wearing it on your Sleeve
Kudos to B540 of Flagstaff, Arizona, for letting MLW know about the tshirt he sports the most:

Graphic: Four Native American Warriors circa 1800
Slogan: "Homeland Security: Fighting Terrorism since 1492"

Give Junta Loyalists a Chance
MLW flashes a peace sign to Bill Barloon of RNC Central for even considering mixing it up with folks definitely not of his political ilk on Thursday night. He mistakenly chose W's reading of the Imperialist Manifesto over a rocking display of the First Amendment in Union Square. Dude, we'll save our indoctrination sessions for the near future. In the meantime -remember - the hottest chicks vote Democrat. (Wouldn't that be an awesome tshirt. Maybe I can get Carrie Bradshaw to wear it?)

The Last Word: To Be PC Or Not To Be PC
You might wander why I often mention a person's ethnicity in my articles. Easy - it's to provide a glimpse of the awesome diversity of New York. The size and space limitations of Manhattan make it more melting formaggio fondue pot than any other place I've experienced. I purposely took a mental survey around the train this morning on my way downtown. Across from me were two Chinese boys, three Dominican girls, a young girl from India, and an African-American man. A Russian woman and her child sat to my left; a Puerto Rican kid to my right. A Jewish girl stood in front of me.

Even in my one-block region : my coffee guy Frank is from Naples, Italy; my bodega guy is Pakistani, my dry cleaner is Puerto Rican, the cobbler is Russian, my tailor Eddie is from Uzbekistan, the pizza restaurant is owned and operated by Koreans and Hasidics. I get my manicure from a Sarah, a Nepalese woman; my pedicure from Amy who emigrated from Hong Kong. My landlord and super are from Turkey. The diner across the street is owned by Greeks and the used book store by a Jewish guy from you got it, - Manhattan!

You might also wander how I know what ethnicity someone is - sometimes I ask, other times, people wear or carry things that enable you to identify their heritage. (A Star of Davidnecklace, a Puerto Rican sticker, a pierced nose, a book with Chinese characters, copy of the Koran, etc.)

This then, is the best part of New York City. Not the fashion, the restaurants, the shopping, the museums, the culture. But this - Lady Liberty (of French descent) - my favorite NYC landmark, lives and breathes on every street corner every hour of every day. She's one lady who never sleeps. Let's keep her wide awake on November 2.