I’ll send it over by cab.

Excellent blog! I know the feelings. The main scary point is not Palin as you said, but the fact that, “I live in a country that actually believes someone such as Sarah Palin is worthy of consideration.”

By the way, have you heard the latest republican trick? They are trying to pass laws in swing states like Michigan (with a large black population) that would NOT ALLOW PEOPLE WHO LOST THEIR HOMES TO THE MORTGAGE CRISIS TO VOTE BECAUSE THEIR ADDRESS WON’T MATCH THEIR VOTER REGISTRATION RECORDS. We cannot allow this to happen!

I am going to do as Melissa suggests and do at least three things.

First, I’m donating money – even though I’m broke and make $8/hr at the moment. As someone at a fundraiser I was at said, “How much is it worth NOT to have a Republican in office worth?” Well, I don’t have that much money (lottery amounts!), but I will definately borrow some to donate.

Second, I’m going to help organize a local get-out-the-vote campaign, even though in theory I’m in a state that “doesn’t count” because we’re blue (but you never know, so I’m not going to let the repubs count on my thinking that). As a sub item on number two, I’ve organized a new polling location in my neighborhood so that people won’t use the I-Don’t-Know-Where-My-Polling-Location-Is or the It’s-On-The-Other-Side-Of-The-Freeway excuses not to vote. That seriously hurt our neighborhood in the primary election where an awful incumbant Council Member was voted in. Another sub to number 2 is to help Melissa with the local fundraiser.

Third. Hmm, this is a tough one. I’m considering taking a week before the campaign to go somewhere like Ohio or Michigan to help. I keep telling myself that going door to door and telephone phobias should be overcome by the fact that a repub might get re-elected. Argh! Can I be away from my business that long? Especially considering I’ve already booked my 10-day recovery or celebration trip to Hawaii leaving the morning after the election. I know I’ll need it either way.

I watched _Blue State_ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780486/) recently and it was enough to have me in tears. Will I go door to door and fail? Will I be able to recover if we don’t succeed?

One other suggestion I heard at a fundraiser was to send a heartfelt letter to my friends and relatives in the midwest to tell them why I am supporting Obama/Biden and why I am afraid of McCain/Palin. I read one friend’s letter here: http://fireflye.wordpress.com/ I have dreams/nightmares about writing this letter. What if I’m not successful? Well, I know I won’t be with the majority of my right wing religious family, but honestly they’re so poor that I will never understand how they are right leaning anymore than they will ever understand my left leanings…

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/15/AR2008091502406.html

One thing I’ve decided to do about it is stop reading blogs, newspapers and watching TV news (maybe even the Daily Show) for a while. I’m trying to resist opening emails with the word Palin in the subject line. I hope that resisting the germ-carrying overload of information will help and in a week or so it will all die down and people who support the Republican ticket will come to their senses about the insanity and the lies. Like Melissa, I too vow to do something and not be paralyzed by fear and dumbfoundedness. Thanks for the reminder that we CAN do something about it.