Yesterday was a trip to Stanford. My Doc said that I looked the best that he has ever seen me. I feel that way too! He told me he doesn’t need to see me next Friday!!!!! I am so happy about that I cant tell you. Yesterday Mary drove me and Terry came along. It took over 7.5 hours of driving there and back, which for me right now is pretty grueling. Terry and Mary were great sports though. Thanks a ton you guys!
My recovery is coming along beautifully. I feel better than I have since last spring. The pain that I was experiencing is way, way down. I am walking with a cane but pretty well. My legs are still recovering strength and balance. I have neuropathy in my feet which is a fancy way of saying pins and needles, all the time. It deadens my sense of touch significantly which makes balance a challenge. My lungs are still recovering, my aerobic capacity is limited so I am not quite ready to go out and do hill repeats just yet.
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Thanks to Tom, Anon 8:59, Bikesgonewild and for everyone else jumping in on the political comments. Last week I wrote about my optimism stemming from what is happening in the our country right now as well as for me. The CH and I watched both McCain’s speech as well as Obama’s on Tuesday. It was interesting that even though McCain was very appropriate with his words, taking responsibility for his own campaign’s mistakes, giving credit and respect to Obama, and asking his supporters to do so as well, that the audience still booed when Obama’s name was mentioned. That is the sort of thing that we don’t need right now. I don’t think that there are many people out there that can say that their life is better because of the Bush administrations last eight years. We have a real opportunity to move our country in the a better direction right now. I don’t think that Obama is going to wave a magic wand and fix everything. He is however our President elect and as such I think he deserves at least the benefit of the doubt if not support.
Heck I even believed Bush when he told us there was WMD’s in Iraq. I thought that something as important as the cause for war would be something to be truthful about. What a crock. These are the same folks that spread rumors that Obama is a Muslim.
I digress. Here is what I want to say; I like politics, I like writing about politics, I like talking politics and I got really excited that people were making comments. So lets keep it up. If your opinion is different from mine and other commentors that is good! I want to know what you think. I listen and learn as much as I can. Our country is in crisis and the thing that is going to make change for the better is an engaged population that respects each other and works together, so please be respectful .
Here is an email that was sent to me by my Dad it is allegedly written by Michael Moore. I really liked it because it represents that sense of optimism that I have been feeling. I think there are some out there that are feeling doom and gloom over this election. Well, that’s how I’ve been feeling for the last 8 years.
Wednesday, November 5th, 2008
Friends,
Who among us is not at a loss for words? Tears pour out. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. A stunning,
whopping landslide of hope in a time of deep despair. In a nation that was founded on genocide and then built on the backs of slaves, it was an unexpected moment, shocking in its simplicity: Barack Obama, a good man, a black man, said he would bring change to Washington, and the majority of the country liked that idea. The racists were present throughout the campaign and in the voting booth. But they are no longer the majority, and we will see their flame of hate fizzle
out in our lifetime.
There was another important "first" last night. Never before in our history has an avowed anti-war candidate been elected president during a time of war. I hope President-elect Obama remembers that as he considers expanding the war in Afghanistan. The faith we now have will be lost if he forgets the main issue on which he beat his fellow Dems in the primaries and then a great war hero in the general election: The people of America are tired of war. Sick and tired. And their voice was loud and clear yesterday.
It's been an inexcusable 44 years since a Democrat running for president has received even just 51% of the vote. That's because most Americans haven't really liked the Democrats. They see them as rarely having the guts to get the job done or
stand up for the working people they say they support. Well, here's their chance. It has been handed to them, via the voting public, in the form of a man who is not a party hack, not a set-for-life Beltway bureaucrat. Will he now become one of them, or will he force them to be more like him? We pray for the latter. But today we celebrate this triumph of decency over personal attack, of peace over war, of intelligence over a belief that Adam and Eve rode around on dinosaurs just 6,000 years ago. What will it be like to have a smart president? Science, banished for eight years, will return. Imagine supporting our country's greatest minds as they seek to cure illness, discover new forms of energy, and work to save the planet. I know, pinch me.
We may, just possibly, also see a time of refreshing openness, enlightenment and creativity. The arts and the artists will not be seen as the enemy. Perhaps art will be explored in order to discover the greater truths. When FDR was ushered in with his landslide in 1932, what followed was Frank Capra and Preston Sturgis, Woody Guthrie and John Steinbeck, Dorothea Lange and Orson Welles.
All week long I have been inundated with media asking me, "gee, Mike, what will you do now that Bush is gone?" Are they kidding? What will it be like to work and create in an environment that nurtures and supports film and the arts, science and invention, and the freedom to be whatever you want to be? Watch a thousand flowers bloom!
We've entered a new era, and if I could sum up our collective first thought of this new era, it is this: Anything Is Possible. An African American has been elected President of the United States! Anything is possible! We can wrestle our economy out of the hands of the reckless rich and return it to the people. Anything is possible! Every citizen can be guaranteed health care. Anything is possible! We can stop melting the polar ice caps. Anything is possible! Those
who have committed war crimes will be brought to justice. Anything is possible.
We really don't have much time. There is big work to do. But this is the week for all of us to revel in this great moment. Be humble about it. Do not treat the Republicans in your life the way they have treated you the past eight years. Show them the grace and goodness that Barack Obama exuded throughout the campaign. Though called every name in the book, he refused to lower himself to the gutter and sling the mud back. Can we follow his example? I know, it will be hard.
I want to thank everyone who gave of their time and resources to make this victory happen. It's been a long road, and huge damage has been done to this great country, not to mention to many of you who have lost your jobs, gone bankrupt from medical bills, or suffered through a loved one being shipped off to Iraq. We will now work to repair this damage, and it won't
be easy.
But what a way to start! Barack Hussein Obama, the 44th President of the United
States. Wow. Seriously, wow.
Yours,
Michael Moore
Thanks for reading everyone and thanks for all the love and support you have given me and my family over the last year.
8 comments:
i saw spencer today at a soccer game, happy, upbeat, and looking toward the future with optimism. it made my day when he was beaming about how well his trip to stanford had gone. he was really psyched!
freer
I gotta join in here. First, Spence, It's great to hear youre doing much better. The hell you and you family have been through, you deserve this healing moment.
On a political note, Michael Moore is no better than Rush Limbaugh. They are both just as guilty at "spreading mud" as the other. Obama is only as powerful as the congress he has behind him. I believe he's a lot smarter and has much more character than Pelosi or Reid, and I pray that he doesn't sink to their level of "government". Otherwise we are going to be taxed out of our minds. I do believe we need to focus on helping our elderly, the working poor, and our children. I do have a problem with raising capital gains, payroll, and death taxes. It's definitely not a way to jump start our economy. I guarantee if Obama comes out and says he's not going to raise capital gains, the stock market would go crazy. Right now there is no incentiv to invest. People want out before they are taxed heavily. Just my thoughts.
Hey PedalDork,
So great to see you are still lurking around the blog. THanks for the cybersupport over all this time.
You are right about Michael Moore, he is a polarizing figure just like Rush. The email really seemed to capture my mood though. It is hard because if a lib hears Rush, they turn their ears off and if a Con hears Michael Moore they do the same.
Today's NY Times had a great commentary by Frank Rich about the election in General. I really liked this passage tho':
For eight years, we’ve been told by those in power that we are small, bigoted and stupid — easily divided and easily frightened. This was the toxic catechism of Bush-Rove politics. It was the soiled banner picked up by the sad McCain campaign, and it was often abetted by an amen corner in the dominant news media. We heard this slander of America so often that we all started to believe it, liberals most certainly included.
I truly feel that we are moving past that way of thinking, to a place where we can listen, share ideas and move forward.
Interesting point about capital gains but I am not quite sure how your suggested action would spark investment. It seems to me that investors have pulled out for safety in the storm, how would a promise to not tax cap gains spark investment?
Spence
Hey Spence,
No capital gains probably wont entice investing but I do think it will keep people from bailing out of the stock market.
I'm anxious to see what the next 4 years holds. It's a shame to see such huge unemployment numbers especially around the holidays.
It's so cool to see you getting your health back.
Keep writin'
...in simple terms, i have the sense that the upcoming administration will be one of the most "balanced" in our history...
...the country itself can't afford anything else due to the extremes it's been pushed & while obama doesn't make a particular issue of it, he has a very good sense of his place in history, on many levels...
..."[a] lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me"...that is actually a brilliant & defusing statement for the masses while being used within the context of choosing a puppy for the kids...
...time for political yoga...the man is "centered"...our present president is "self-centered"...two different animals...
What brings tears to my eyes is the positive vibration in your recent posts and learning that there is life force flowing strongly through your body.
Was at an Intillimani concert in Berkeley last night, this is a beautifull Chilean band that has been performing amazing music alround the world for the last 40 years. The lead singer thanked all americans on behalf of the rest of the world. He said: "it's about time,you are finally getting it" He also expressed a concern: "one person can't change a world, Obama is not a messia. All of us together are responsable for changing the world!"
You are amazing Spence!
pantani
Hey Spence,
I love the posts!
The tax talk always gets me riled up - often those most vocal in their concern over tax increases are the ones currently paying the smallest percentage of their income but possessing the greatest wealth. Not really driving the economy on a local level or reducing the unemployment issue - the capital gains issue isn't affecting the great majority of those folks and although I understand the pyramid effect, I don't think only fixing things at the top is the way to make a difference for those suffering at the bottom - and now the middle. The last eight years in terms of the massive growth of corporate profits and the lag of worker's incomes is evidence of this. Part of this comes from a greater percentage going towards pensions and to some degree insurance, but not remotely enough to count for the massive disparity in the growth charts. (And you don't want me to go back to the insurance issue and corporate profits.)
I am also struck that many who identify as Republican also identify as war supporters, advocating staying in this war until "we win." At the current cost of the war, I'm wondering where this vocal anti-tax group thinks we should get the funds to do so indefinitely.
My feeling is that in my adult life the left has been pulled much more towards the middle as the right has gone much more extreme. This newest step feels more like balance. Like hope.
love,
H
i love you spencer
especially when you prattle on about politics
I'm a very good driver, wopner at 10
chicken hawkie mole
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