The Only Thing I'll Say About This (Maybe)

I don't want to get into politics too much. Not because it's too personal, not because I'm too burned out (but I am), but because once I start I probably won't stop, like, ever. And that's tedious.

Four years ago I started volunteering for Kerry in the fall. Much of this work involved knocking on doors, which wasn't fun as a kid trying to sell coupon books for gymnastics, and it wasn't fun as an adult trying to register Democrats to vote. I knew we had to get Bush out, and my state is a swing state, so we'd hop in the car and drive outside of town to poll neighborhoods and register voters. We'd also sign people up for rides to the polls if they couldn't make it on their own, things like that. It was uncomfortable but exciting work, and I knew we'd win, because God, how dumb is this country? Not that dumb. I knew we'd make it.

But then, we didn't. Bush stole the election again, and I don't even like to think about that night, that ridiculously shitty night.

So here we are again, and it's so tempting to hope. I don't want to go back to that hopeful, involved state I was in four years ago. This time, I listened to the convention and watched parts of it like an addict in recovery. Just a little bit here, just a little bit there. Nothing too much. I can stop any time I want.

And now McCain has picked Palin. Well you know what, McCain? It's not going to work. You think you're going to get those disgruntled Clinton voters, and you're not. McCain's party is the party that doesn't give a shit about women. McCain's voting record is clear. He doesn't want women to have control over their own bodies. He doesn't support equal pay for equal work. He doesn't care about families who need policies to support their ability to work and raise their kids. Instead of picking a VP who would be capable of actually running the country if the unthinkable happened, he's picked somebody with less than two years' experience in a serious political office. He's picked somebody with no foreign policy experience and no experience crafting national policy. He's picked a seriously anti-women's-rights woman, a hardcore anti-choice social conservative. It's not going to work. We are not going to vote for a woman who supports turning back the clock on women's rights. Palin is no Hilary.

It's not going to work...right?