So Long To Ya, 2010 | The JibJab 2010 Year in Review!

In Honor of My Mama's Birthday!

When you thought I wasn't looking,
You hung my first painting on the refrigerator,
And I wanted to paint another one.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
You fed a stray cat,
And I thought it was good to be kind to animals.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
You baked a birthday cake just for me,
And I knew that little things were special things.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
You said a prayer,
And I believed there was a God that I could always talk to.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
You kissed me goodnight,
And I felt loved.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw tears come from your eyes,
And I learned that sometimes things hurt
But that it's alright to cry.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
You smiled
And it made me want to look that pretty, too.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
You cared,
And I wanted to be everything that I could be.
When you thought I wasn't looking, I looked,
And wanted to say thanks
For all those things you did
When you thought I wasn't looking.

POST-al: Feminist Presumptions

This editorial (click title for link) from the Washington Post is over two months old, but the questions it raises have reverberated around the Web to this day. Although untimely, I'd like to share my two cents to this matter. Certainly the author makes some good points, including that digg at Palin-approved cuts  for shelters, about the anti-WOMYN policies of the aforementioned former Alaska gov and her conservative cohorts. But to be fair, Palin is not the first nor the last to use feminism as a slogan. Hillary Clinton is as much a symbolic figure as she is an actual feminist. She and Elena Kagan both believe in the type of hawkish executive and military power that neo-conservatives argue for. It is their identity as women which enables them to be seen as advocates of feminist ideology, but I would argue that their actions contradict the interests of women as much as anything Palin's have.


My point is to grasp who Valenti is so quick to dismiss the idea of an emerging conservative feminist identity? her own analysis shows that these thinkers have been around a while. Just as many Black Americans did not want to stir up any trouble with white folks, there have been plenty of women who felt that systematic oppression is a mythical creature. But I'm thinking of practically-minded, solution-driven leaders who are both conservative and feminist (Palin, Clinton and Kagan all exhibit some of these traits to varying degrees).
I wish there were more self-proclaimed feminists who are fiscal conservatives (no one can balance a budget better than the moms I know). Nothing prepares a person better for the challenges of stretching a dollar than parenthood. Olympia Snowe, Mary Matalin, Susan Collins, Kathleen Parker and many others are conservatives who bring a fresh and not-so-nutty perspective to the table all the time. I'm willing to bet most of our mothers fall into the conservative feminist category in ways which way surprise you and me.


The desire to reduce abortion numbers is something that's in all people's interest and now that anti-abortion activists have (for the most part) stopped screaming bloody murder at the only REAL choice that is viable and healthy, I think activists who want to exclusivize feminism should take a few seconds to listen.
Feminism can be articulated and fulfilled in numerous ways. Women of color have long been excluded from feminist discourse, which Valenti also acknowledges. A lot of feminist activists throughout Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America espouse rather conservative values but are fighting for women's liberation just as diligently as any radical leftist fembot. Conservative women and conservative feminism have plenty to offer the world of politics and policy. It is unfortunate that Palin is portrayed as this movement's spokesperson but perhaps it takes a lipstick pitbull, no matter how half-baked of a political figure she may be, to show that conservative feminists have some byte.

Picture Me Rollin: A Note on Patrotism

2009 marked the 10th anniversary of my arrival in the United States. I've become more Americanized in that decade, but as of late I've also embraced a more Afrocentric part of my ideology (college really is A Different World!)
For years, I've pondered the extent to which I can genuinely claim to be a patriot- American, African or otherwise. The answer came to me this Memorial Sunday and inspired this blog.

My father had determined that we would attend the downtown Cathedral service due to tardiness for our home church mass. I'm sitting in the backseat of the car loungin with my newspaper, thoughts about the meaning of Memorial Day floating through my head, when I realize that entire situation is what soldiers are fighting to preserve. I could have been in any city in the country, riding in the back of some car, going some place on a beautiful Sunday afternoon (wish it had been the beach). My family has the freedom to choose which church to attend (if any), we have numerous options for residential space and as educational facilities available and all around us we are surrounded by a buffet that satisfies our nutritional and recreational needs. Superficial though it may sound, this was an uncanny experience of how much I appreciate those who have paid the highest price to keep aflame the light and spirit of liberty and progress. Furthermore, I believe my level of "life quality" must become available to all.

Now understand that it isn't materialism and consumerism I want to spread around (although that ship sailed long ago). I'm talking about democracy and freedom. The car was silent initially until I heard Pac's "Picture Me Rollin" blasting from my brother's headphones. The moment overwhelmed me with pride and a sense of stability. It's always for simple reasons such as this that my patriotic gratitude rears its underdeveloped head, but it is because I feel obligated to help establish such security throughout the globe that I cherish it all. The superficial and the just.

Thoughts about how the various facets of influence in my life make up my being still floated in my head as we got comfortable in our pew. The Catholic church is one problematic institution I find particularly hard to reconcile with my personal values and the stuffy atmosphere at mass never helps.
Turns out the Cathedral has an African priest as part of their parish now and he led mass.
Obviously, the reason why African priests are becoming prolific is deeply and ironically related to the church's many historical, political and sexual dogmas and mores, but that's a subject for another day. The above article is rather interesting though and it's NEWSWEEK, so let's give em a victory lap (read: comeback) folks.

Now it did not make the service any less procedural, but the sight of Rev. Sylvester, AKA black Phil Collins, preaching before this American audience, three elderly white men as altar boys and an amazing orator behind him, only intensified my conclusion that if I'm gon be a Patriot, I need to promote democracy and freedom far beyond The Local. (hehe@Shirley)

For me patriotism isn't about flags and it certainly doesn't involve wars. I picture me rollin with patriots who understand that a lasting peace is only achieved by offering each individual the opportunity to live with grace and respect. I hope my reflections will advance that vision.

But for now, please take a moment to appreciate and honor those who truly fight for our rights. And pray that their mission will soon come to an end.