Is there another way to overturn Prop 8?

Part 2 of our 7 part series:

Prop 8 and Obama and Jasmyne, oh my: Part one

My latest appearance on the Joey Panto show. I talk about Prop 8, Obama, Jasmyne Cannick and other racist 'journalists,' and more!

Demand Net Neutrality

SMSlate: Part Two - The People (OC)

My Picks for 2008:

Anaheim City Council: Lorri Galloway - I have received multiple mailers from Curt Pringle and Company against Lorri. Since Pringle is such a corrupted Disney hack, I don't even bother to cover him on OJ. Therefore, my enemy's enemy is my friend and I support Lorri. Harry Sidhu, who decided to attack immigrants such as himself in order to keep pace with the Pro-Prop 8 Mimi 'The Queen of Mean' Walters in his failed bid for the State Assembly, is listed prominently on slates against her, and that doesn't exactly help the cause. I offer no other endorsement in this race except to vote No on Gail Eastman and Harry Sidhu, who were both featured on one of the most recent anti-Lorri mailers.

Congress 40th District: Christina Avalos - As Art Pedroza would say 'Ed Royce es un Republicano de Bush.' That's all I need to know to vote against him.

Congress 42nd District: Ed Chau - He may not have much name recognition, money, or centrist political cred. He may be yet another candidate who chose to ignore my advice at his own peril, but anyone, and I mean anyone, is better than Gary Miller. To say he's a Bush Republican would be a serious understatement. Miller has been involved in shady deals and self-serving lawmaking for many, many years before Bush made it cool. Abramhoff, Libby, Cheney, Foley, Stevens... when will it be Miller's turn?

Congress 46th District: Debbie Cook - Ok, so in a recent debate, Dana Rohrabacher came off more calm and composed than did Debbie Cook, but as Vern pointed out: if you got that close to Dana, you'd really want to pull out the upset too. Dana is a proud Bush defender. Oh how I'd love to see him go.

Congress 47th District: Loretta Sanchez - If her opponent Rosie Avila is spearheading a theocracy, and Loretta is a Blue Dog Dem, well who do you think I like in this race? Total no-brainer. No on Rosie!

OC Superior Court Judge Seat #12: Debra Carrillo - Carrillo has a great record on fighting crime, an endorsement list as long as my arm, a commitment to civil liberties, and even though she did not receive my party's endorsement, it was due to a communication breakdown, not a matter of platform, so no biggie.

CA State Assembly 67th District: Steve Blount - It's the year of the change vote, and who wouldn't want to remove an ally of Van Tran and Chuck DeVore in Jim Silva?

Garden Grove City Council: Robin Marcario and Linh Ho - Despite my recent support for Andrew Do, both he and his boss OC Supe Janet Nguyen have seemed to go hard right with the reconciliation of the Trannies and the Jannies. Too bad, so sad. And of course, vote No on Paul Lucas!

Santa Ana: No Team Pulido

Mayor: Michele Martinez - I did a little grassroots work for her on the days of and before her visit from Becky Valencia, and considering how I've been patronized many times in the past due to what I call 'keep-away syndrome' (when one doesn't really want me on their team because I am so controversial, but also doesn't want me to work for their opponent because I operate like a blunt weapon) as well as the fact that neither Michele nor Valerie has called me since that night, I have to assume that I was expected to publicize the fact that Valencia attempted to sting her, although I was asked not to do so, so I didn't, and Art ended up with the story. I guess I passed the test.

City Council: Art Pedroza & Jim Walker - Well, isn't that obvious? Art is running against the Space Commander, and I personally helped encourage him to run, so... yeah. Jim Walker is running against Vince Sarmiento, who is a really nice guy compared to Busty or the evil Claudia Alvarez, but his is merely a proxy vote for Mayor Miguel Pulido.

SAUSD Board: Irene Ibarra & Valerie Amezcua - Two ladies who, like me, would have joined Trump's 'Street Smarts' team on The Apprentice both have done amazing things to help their communities. Irene is a small businesswoman who battled back from domestic violence to put herself in a position to help a lot of people. Valerie, who, as well as being street smart, has a college degree, works with troubled youth in the community. As a multiple-time domestic violence victim, I have the utmost respect for both of these ladies who make the city of Santa Ana a better place. Frankly, there are no big egos or hidden agendas here, so they both have my support.

... and finally:

President of the United States: Bob Barr - Ron Paul said it. I believe it. That settles it. It's time to vote for a third-party POTUS. While I'm disappointed with Paul's reluctance to be the King of the Libs, I appreciate that he believes there are advantages to having a third party in our system. Of course, he doesn't want to see the Republican Party falter, so he stays on that side of the aisle (unlike Joe Lieberman, ugh).

Barr may have impeached Clinton for the dumbest reason I've ever heard, lying about his private sex life, but he was just doing his job. He doesn't tout this part of his resume as much as he used to, probably because of the social commentary required to do so, and that's fine. I don't really see that as one of his career highlights.

Indeed, Barr represents a much more contemporary, aware, and incrementalist Libertarian Party than years past. His running mate Wayne Allyn Root, whom I've had the pleasure of meeting personally, is the poster child for the new 'alive, free, happy' Libertarian Party: a self-made gambler multi-millionaire and home-school father with the charisma of a Hollywood actor. Both of these men are evidence that anything is possible in a free society and that we don't have to continue to be cookie-cutter representations of the political dough... and that life truly is what you make of it.

Major Party POTUS endorsement: Barack Obama - Frankly, the lesser of two evils. Please, if there are any Gods, please don't punish us with President Palin. We still have rights in this country you know? In case you've forgotten, early in the vetting process of 'Hitler in Heels,' she was declared a 'Libertarian.' It's still unclear on what planet she would be so.

I used to love McCain for a lot of the same reasons that I love Ron Paul, but the fact is, he thought he couldn't win the election without the religious right, and now we'll never know if he was right because he sold out - he's an utter, absolute disappointment. Sorry McBush, this isn't your year, and at your age, thankfully it also isn't your lifetime.

SMS

SMSlate: Part One - The Propositions

*drumroll please...*

The Propositions:

Prop 1A: High Speed Rail - No. Ok, we're in a financial crisis so it's open season on government spending. It damn well better be. Government spenders have been procreating like rabid, power hungry, fuzzy little bunnies with checkbooks. $20 billion to construct and a billion a year to maintain? Where's the mention of the project's potential income? *crickets chirp* Because really, who the hell knows if anyone will even ride our new multi-billion dollar toy? A track to nowhere?

Prop 2: Confining of farm animals - No. These animals are not pets. And besides, what's a little leg stretching worth when you're destined for slaughter? I love animals, but as I've said before on this very blog, I'm not exactly what you'd call a PETA-person and I'm not comfortable with the idea of telling people how to run their businesses.

Prop 3: Children's Hospital funding - No. Yeah, I know, it's for the kids, but then you also know how strongly I feel about reducing the size of government. With that, I encourage everyone to make a donation to the childrens' hospital of their choice.

Prop 4: Parental notification of pregnancy termination - Uhh, duh, NO! Two words folks: President Palin. This is an attempt to put restrictions on abortion in the bluest state in the nation in a wacky election year that sees an underage pregnancy as a controversial highlight, and it will hopefully backfire loudly, bringing Palin's divisive 'my daughter didn't have an abortion, so you can't either' politics down with it. There are parents who still beat their children for looking at them 'wrong.' Do they really need this too?

Prop 5: Non-violent drug offenses - Yes. I just know I'm going to be ridiculed for this one because I'm Libertarian and a medical marijuana patient, but I gotta do what I gotta do. Sending addicts to treatment instead of jail? Whodathunk we could save money in the process? I did. Been saying it for years. Drug addicts need treatment, not jail. Whose idea was it to treat them like criminals instead of sick people in the first place? Why I believe it was none other than good ol' Ronald Reagan on what was apparently not one of his more lucid days.

Prop 6: Law enforcement funding - No. $500 million dollars and 30 changes to the criminal code. I'm not inclined to give out that kind of money without an explanation of each of the 30 changes, and since providing them that would be impossible on the ballot statement and I don't think a proposition should be described this vaguely, I have to ixnay this. Besides, with less 'drug money' coming in due to Prop 5, there's no telling how the courts might like to make a quick buck next.

Prop 7: Renewable energy - No. You know it's bad when even the Dems don't want it. Oh yeah, the Republicans don't either, nor the Libertarians. Oh, and it'll raise your electric bill - sort of a tax by proxy. Need I go on?

Prop 8: Eliminates right of same-sex couples to marry - Gee, I wonder: FUCK NO! I could start with the bigotry. I could start with the constitutional implications. I could talk about the court ruling that paved the way for this initiative. I could start with Jeff Flint, Frank Schubert, Matt Cunningham, or the LDS (Latter Day Saints aka Mormon) Church, or even the lunacy of Joseph Smith that inspired said church, or even the insanity that has it honestly believing it can use gay marriage as a smoke screen for their polygamy in order to curry favor among the other X-tian faiths - the new Evangelicals? I could keep going like the Energizer Bunny, but I'll spare you and ask you instead: What would Jesus do? Forget what the church told you and meditate on this for all of 5 minutes and you will come to the realization that Jesus would not want discrimination of legal partnerships any more than he'd want to redefine the concept of religious marriage to include gay people, and that's fine. It's called co-existence. You Reeps should learn something about it so that you can clean Obama's clock in 2012. Don't get me wrong, I prefer Obama to McCain, but it wasn't always that way, nor does it mean that I wouldn't have voted for Ron Paul.

Prop 9: Victims' rights - Yes. Protects crime victims and may actually save the state money. Oh yeah, if someone came after my family, it would be nice to know that, once caught, they couldn't do it again.

Prop 10: Alternative fuel vehicles and renewable energy - No. Yes, it is deja vu. Why do some people insist that slapping the words 'renewable energy' on a bad proposition will make us feel guilty enough to vote for it? Well, I tossed out my political guilt years ago. People make their own bad choices and placing these energy schemes on the ballot are great examples. Oh yeah, and it costs $10 billion. Yes, with a 'b.' Thanks, but no thanks.

Prop 11: Redistricting board - Yes. As some have already correctly pointed out, the legislature could not do a worse job in drawing its own borders, nor should it be allowed to. Does anyone else see the conflict of interest inherent? I thought so. That's why nearly the entire state will vote yes on this.

Prop 12: Veterans' Bond - Yes. The VA has been a running joke since the Vietnam War. There is no government organization that takes worse care of its people than the military. I mean sure, most of the federal spending goes to hardware intended to take them off the front lines, but seriously, isn't it time we literally put our money where our mouths are and give Vets what they deserve? I'm sick of seeing our troops get lost in the system as soon as they're no longer able to fight. Let's help our men and women in uniform. This is the only spending bill that I'm for, and I truly believe that it's justified. Cost? $2 billion versus the $20+ billion necessary for Prop 1A - that's 10% folks.

Thanks for tuning in. Later: Part Two - The People.

SMS

From the OC: Red County Blog banning readers for being pro-Pedroza!

ACTION ALERT: Stamp Out Censorship

Remember, Red Yellow County is owned by Partisan Media Group, LLC.

Wow! It's finally happened. I, Sarah Michelle Spinosa, have been banned from both of the other big OC blogs.

What is it that they're so afraid of that they would gang up on our good friend and Council candidate Art Pedroza with a lame mailer that actually promotes this blog above all, and then censor those who defend him. From what I understand, Matt 'Jubal' Cunningham, editor of OC Blog, is notorious for his thin-skined, 'journalistic terroristic' ways, banning those who disagree with him.

I understand that the 1st Amendment doesn't have a lot of influence over the actions of partisans, but to put out that mailer to help settle a personal vendetta and then be upset to the point of censorship without hesitation when someone questions you on it is just plain weakness. I didn't make an allegation, I merely stated that I doubted Jubal's sincerity and described a hypothetical situation which in legal circles is called 'emphasizing reasonable doubt.'

Why did he overreact? After years of playing 'Tom and Jerry,' Matt (Tom) has finally found a way to get Art (Jerry). I mean, really get him, in the really real world, not on the blogosphere. He took the opportunity, and that's fine. As I've said repeatedly, he's done us a terrific service, bringing more readers to our already #1 political blog, but now I'd like to bring a few to his.

Click here and tell Jubal that we're not going to take it, that smear campaigns only work against those who are full of BS, and that he can no longer claim to be a proponent of free speech until he can practice what he preaches.

What is Matt hiding?

SMS

Free by birth. Libertarian by choice. SMS goes AFH (Dems lose another one)!

8/8/08

It's been long overdue. Though I was born into a Democratic family, I was a Reagan Democrat and a Clinton Centrist. I was the one at family dinners that used to debate my step-siblings' old-generation Republican grandparents to revel in their glee and excitement as they watched me give the family know-it-alls a taste of their own medicine. It was fun being a Democrat in those days. The social tolerance, the youthful, energetic nature of the campaigns. I will look back on them with a fond nostalgia, for if they had never occurred I would never be where I am today - running OC's most popular political blog as well as a solid campaign for City Council.



After speaking to Wayne Allyn Root and experiencing his 'social tolerance' and 'youthful, energetic nature,' as well as that of the 'Alive, Free, and Happy' audience, I began to feel a tingling sensation. I wasn't quite able to identify it at first, but after a few minutes I came to a realization: life was finally returning to me; I had fallen in love with politics all over again!

In fact, W.A.R., as he is sometimes referred, seems to have a bit of a messianic vibe about him, but his halo is held up by his horns, and it's deliciously refreshing! He's like a used car salesman who seems a little too flashy at first but actually has a heart of gold, finding your perfect vehicle, on-time and under budget... right before he gives the kids Tootsie Roll pops and a ride in a fun, but safe sports car!

Now I must admit, there is no such thing as a perfect political party and I don't agree with the Libertarian platform 100% of the time, but why would I (this is me we're talking about here; I live to argue)? Like every political party, even those in the so-called 'middle' have their share of extremists and like always I think a lack of compromise is bad for society. A Libertarian extremist is called an anarchist. I'm not sure what anarchists think will replace government, but I'm not sure I want to find out.

The truth though is that most Libertarians are nothing like the stereotypes. What really won me over about the San Bernadino group that hosted Mr. Root was the camaraderie, the generosity, the friendship, and the fairness of mind. They're sort of like stereotypical Mormons, but without the creepy aftertaste. As I left their event, I was asked a few times if I was going to write nice things about them. True to my nature, I told them point-blank that I would write the truth. Everyone had the same response: 'that's all we ask.'

Now they're speaking my language. I'm proud to officially be able to call myself a Libertarian!

AFH,
SMS