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Okay, not for nothing, but here goes. Massachusetts is in a state of perpetual civil war, self-doubt, under siege and pissed off. It's what gives us our 'wicked chahm." We are a fiercely loyal people. Once we take you in we expect it to be for life. Occasionally head-exploding moments happen when our loyalties are no longer so easy to figure out. (Clear the room when this happens, there's about to be a 'wicked fight.") This is one of those times. (Non-combatants are advised to go someplace else during this time period. Someplace where nobody knows nothing and you can just be left alone, like ahm, Florida. No offense to Florida, we love you and visit every March cuz the Red Sox have Spring Training there. But you do know what we mean.)
Brief interlude: Dec '06. Many, many DU JK folks visit Boston to hang out and have a Senatorial moment. The local entertainment is provided by the Old South Church which is having a re-enactment of the Boston Tea Party. Except it doesn't recreate the actual tossing of the tea, cuz any state or city in America could do that and it is wicked boring. We recreate the damn argument that led to those colonials getting all wicked pissed off in the first place. Those patriots decided that those friggin bastids in London were not fit to lick dust off our pointy shoes and they could take their friggin tea and put it where the sun don't shine, honey. Out-of-towners remark that even the Boston school children attending this reenactment are 'getting into it.' Yup. Arguing is in our blood, we are born this way. (Nature and nurture, honest.)
Okay, back on topic. Massachusetts generally believes that torturing our politicians is a fine way to make sure they are fit to hold federal office. (There is not enough time to get into state politics and it defies explanation anyway.) We do this by "putting them through the ringer" at every possible moment and making sure they are not getting above themselves. Our national pols must be wicked smart, courageous, hue to a certain progressive line and be humble and funny. (Funny is a requirement for holding federal office. People who are merely wicked smart get legislative aide jobs or work for think tanks. Cheesus, you think I want to listen to some guy drone on and on about some topic without cracking a few self-dreprecating jokes to break the monotony. Cripes, that's what Harvard is for, so the stuffed shirts have some place to hang out and not annoy regular people.)
Hillary Clinton came in and asked for support back in March of '07. She came over, reminded people that she and her husband had been wicked nice to us during their 8 years in the Presidency and had even dropped some money on us when they vacationed on the Cape. So, what, we are supposed to forget all that and go for this new guy who we don't know yet? I mean, yeah, he went to Harvard Law School, but that doesn't count as being in Massachusetts. (He pronounces the name of the state funny too. It's not Mass-a-too-setts Barack. Gawd, do you pronounce Worcester as Wor-ces-ter instead of Wooster too?) We might grow to like him, but, we don't know yet. You know, "marry in haste, repent in leisure." We are not ready to marry him yet, we are still standing back and evaluating. (Again, I told you, loyalty is for life unless some friggin bastid steps over the line and way, way pisses you off. Then you get betrayed. Hell hath no fury like a Mass-soul betrayed.)
As for Deval Patrick and the "Mass is kind of not okay with voting for black people." Ah, last time I checked Barack Obama scored his lowest percentage of AA votes in Mass. The AA vote in MA was not even close to what he has been getting nationally. Maybe we ought to figure out why. Maybe the AA community never spoke up for Barack in MA cuz they might be feeling a wee bit left out right now. It is possible that other MA pols have 'forgotten" them and not done anything to indicate that these voters are valued. That just might be a factor in play here. So, given this loyalty thing we have going on here, this guy that you think is taking you for granted comes by and asks you to vote for his friend and basically says this guy is a lot like me. Do you believe him or grumble under your breath that this is exactly what you are worried about, that your friend is just like you. That is a legitimate thing, in my book.
Now, you'll excuse me. My husband just noticed that Dish Network has taken NESN, the Red Sox and Bruins channel off the network. I have to find a Senator who understands that this is so upsetting we might all friggin explode. (And we love the Senitah who understands that not getting Pats or Sawx games is like depriving a person of food or oxygen.)
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