athena
athena's JournalFrance would not be an improvement over the U.S.
There is lots of Islamophobia, xenophobia, and racism, not to mention a deep, unconscious, and extreme sexism there. Perhaps, if you're white and Christian, you won't be too bothered by the openly expressed French hatred against black people, Arabs, and Muslims. But the xenophobia, not to mention class and nationality-based snobbery, extends to a resentment of Americans. You will never fit into French society; you will always be treated as an outsider. I love France for vacation, but I would much rather live in the U.S. than in France. There is a good chance that this country and its institutions will survive Trump. I'm not so hopeful for France under Le Pen.
After all, France is a country where you're still expected to put a photograph on a job application. It is a place where if you're a woman of childbearing age, you will be asked at every job interview whether you are involved with someone and whether you plan to have children. It's a place where a man forcing himself upon a hotel maid is seen primarily as a question of privacy. And that's just the sexism.
In towns across France, mayors have recently been forcing schools to serve pork for lunch - something observant Muslims and Jews don't eat. In 2004, France passed a law that prohibits girls from wearing the hijab in public schools. There is "extraordinary" discrimination against Muslim job applicants. In France, if you're Muslim or have an Arabic-sounding name, even if you were born in France, many people will not consider you French. This is a level of discrimination that is unthinkable in the U.S. If you were born in the United States, no one gets to tell you that you're "not really an American".
If you can still change your mind, I would urge you to reconsider. The reality is that the rightward move is a worldwide phenomenon. We just happen to be living through it, like millions of people have throughout history. The only solution is to fight it in your tiny corner of the world. No one is truly safe anywhere.
(Edited to add specific examples of anti-Muslim discrimination in France.)
HRC haters are so filled with hate. And yet they can't see that their hate hurts THEM most.
It must be very sad to live life as someone who hates HRC so much that they still can't let go of their hate, despite having gotten exactly what they wanted and ensured that she didn't become president.
Enjoy the fact that HRC is not president. Enjoy how sad you imagine she must feel about it. And, most of all, enjoy the corrollary: Trump's presidency. You got exactly what you wanted. And your hate against HRC is hurting you a lot more than it's hurting her. She, I'm sure, has love, not hate in her heart. And love, unlike hate, makes one feel good. It's called karma.
Don't e-mail. Call. Call them at their State office.
A call is much harder to ignore than an e-mail. Check this out:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/2/10/91524/-
and this:
Democrats must filibuster any nominee who is not Merrick Garland.
This has to be the new meme.
Voting to confirm anyone but Merrick Garland means allowing the Republicans to get away with murder. It sets a horrible precedent of the party that controls the Senate subverting the system to take over all three branches of government. The only way to undo the damage done to the Constitution at this point is for the president to nominate Garland and for the Senate to confirm him. A presidential president -- a responsible, adult president who cared more about the health of this country than about himself and the political designs of his party -- would have nominated Garland. In fact, I am certain that Hillary Clinton would have nominated Garland for this reason.
Remember: the Constitution does not say that the president should nominate someone "in the mould of" the retiring or deceased justice. If that were the case, the court would never change. The Constitution was designed to allow the Supreme Court evolve with the will of the people. The will of the people in 2008 and 2012 was to elect President Obama. Merrick Garland was President Obama's choice. The only person who can replace Antonin Scalia is Merrick Garland.
Please call your senators first thing tomorrow morning and demand that they declare that they will vote to confirm Garland, and no one else but Garland. If Trump refuses to nominate Garland, we must wait until 2018 or 2020 if necessary, and put Garland in there.
Please don't give in to this. Call your Senators. Get this idea out there.
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Member since: Sat Aug 7, 2004, 11:55 PMNumber of posts: 4,187
