First, the chant.
More of a sing-along.
If the police or soldiers start to riot, we start singing the Imperial March aloud. Footage of authority figures asserting control always looks sinister with John Williams' opus in the background.
Better yet, bring it on boom box.
Flyering for Dean:
So, one day, I went to Washington Square with flyers and started passing them out. Many people were still interested in Dean in those days.
An older couple came by and the woman eagerly took one.
The guy turned to me and said: "I don't trust him. He's a doctor."
The wife explained that her husband had bad experiences with physicians.
I smiled nervously. "Well sir, I'm training to be a doctor. I'm a MD/PhD student."
This put the guy on the defensive.
"Welllll, to be honest ... I really DO like what this Dean guy has to SAY ... but he's too honest. They will crucify him. You're too young. No President has ever been a good man."
"I disagree."
"Oh, really? Name one out of the clowns we've had lately."
I decided to be funny.
"Al Gore is a good man, and he was elected President."
The guy smiled for just a sec, but then came right back at me.
"He was a sleaze."
"Okay ..."
"I mean, c'mon! Clinton, Nixon, all schmucks."
"Teddy Roosevelt and FDR."
"Better, but still sleazy. And one of them was a Republican."
"I'm open-minded ... TR was a sleaze."
"SURE. He was just helping out HIS friends in business."
"All right ... I'm not sure I should give you that one ... Lincoln."
"Lincoln was an inveterate liar."
"Okay ... I can see I'm not getting anywhere ..."
"He didn't really grow up in that kind of poverty."
I gotta tell you ... these are the kind of old people that get my goat. They act as if they can sh*t some poor 31 year old into thinking they were there at the Lincoln-Douglas debates.
"REALLLY? Well then, Dean isn't for you. I finally found someone I can recommend Bush to."
"Oh, no. I'd never vote for that piece of XXXX"
"Nader?"
"Are you kidding me? He's the worst fraud in human history. At least Hitler was honest."
I realized at this point that I wasn't dealing with someone with a full deck, despite his marital status. Perhaps I was observing an actual case of Folie a Deux.
But then the wife piped up.
"He gives everyone a hard time. He used to do this kind of thing too when he was your age."
That was worse.
"Look kid (now he was really testing my demeanor) ... I'll vote for Dean, but he's not going to win. They're going to crucify him, and then I'm going back to apathy."
I turned to the wife.
"Make sure he votes for anyone, please. In both elections."
"Don't worry ... I will. I just remember when he had so much optimism, like you."
"What happened?"
The guy spit out one word.
"Nixon."
"Well, I'm sorry about that."
"Don't you apologize ... this country elected him."
"Well, as far as I can tell from my vantage point, we probably didn't."
At that, the guy smiled again, took a Dean flyer of his own, and walked away with his wife.
At least, I'm assuming it was his wife.
Kerry on Kids:
Wants the FDA to review all medications currently used in children but not tested in children. This is genius. There haven't been a lot of studies on the use of anti-depressants, and we now have enough longitudinal data to figure out the long-term effects of SSRIs on pre-teens.
And that's only the tip of the iceberg. It will promote medication usage, because doctors will have better guidelines and knowledge.
He also wants to restore funding to states, so that CHIP programs can be resumed for all eligible kids.
Clear and consistent Allergen labelling ... this will save a LOT of money in the healthcare system.
Initiate a new program to combat child obesity, focusing on schools as disseminators of information. Besides nutritional information and exercise promotion, it would also educate parents and kids how to deal with childhood obesity.
Prevention hasn't worked. Many kids are fat. Let's fix the problem.
AGAIN, a MAJOR healthcare cost reducer.
Resume polluter-pays cleanup policy.
Resume Clean Air protections.
(Oh yeah, the Parties are the same ... that's possible on Day Freaking One)
Get this one ... resume criminal background checks for the Military Child Care Provider System ... Bush has to believe that if he screws up enough, Jesus will come back just to kick his ass.
Fully fund the Military Child Care Provider System. Develop uniform standards for the Military Child Care Provider Outlets.
Kerry wants to begin an initiative for universal early childhood education ... what I want to know is when Denny the K announces that he wants this, why doesn't Kerry say "I plan on that too."
Under Kerry, CHIP will be extended to families making up to 60,000 dollars (hurray for Dean), legal immigrants would be immediately eligible for pregnancy and child care (no five year waiting period), and children with disabilities would not lose their coverage if their parents went back to work and began earning more than 60,000.
Registration for the CHIP programs would be offered when children register for school. One simple form. Feds pick up the tab.
He'd also make booster seats the national law, to prevent adult seatbelt injury.
Better training for child care professionals through federal grants to states.
He opposes vouchers. Period.
He would experiment with pilot school programs and school choice within the public school system.
Resume Clinton era protections and enforcement of Title IX ... Bush's weeping over club sports be damned. Kerry knows ... the Yale wrestling team and male cheerleaders sucked anyway.
TOmorrow, more Dean flyering follies and Kerry on college affordability.