House of Swank

Proactively Indignant

For someone who's generally pretty ambivalent about politics, I sure am keeping close track of everything this year.  It's the debate team's fault.  The kids are currently debating whether or not the US Primary System meets democratic values, so there's been lots of focus on what's going on in the current situation.

Anyhow, some news that came out yesterday is making my blood boil, and the word needs to get out there now that this is just wrong.

Here are the basics:

Once upon a time the DNC pledged there are four states who are allowed to have their primary/caucus prior to Super Tuesday:  Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada.  Florida and Michigan said "but we want to go early, too."  The DNC said if you go early none of your delegates will be seated at the convention, and if a candidate campaigns there we will punish them.

In Michigan Obama and Edwards actually removed their name from the ballot, so your choices as a democrat were "Clinton" or "Uncommitted."

Now we're in what could turn out to be a race that is not decided before the convention, and those delegates could come in handy.  The DNC is recommending the states hold caucuses now, and delegates be seated with those results.  The states are saying "we've had our elections, take the results or leave them."  Hilary is saying "they had their say, let's use their results."

YOU CANNOT SUPPORT THE IDEA THAT DELEGATES ARE SEATED WITH THE RESULTS FROM THE EXISTING PRIMARIES.  Especially in the case of Michigan.

It was NOT a fair fight, and the rules cannot be changed in the middle of the stream to suit the ease and interest of certain individuals.

Even if you're a Clinton supporter, no good can come of this.  If she becomes the nominee as a result of these "elections" you have to know that the Republican party will make all kinds of smear out of it.  There are already some people who question Clinton's integrity - and this will NOT help things any.

Me, I'm trying to let the world know what's happening, so we can all take a stand.

I'm also going to be contacting the Democrats at the National, State, County, and District Level, to let them know just how unacceptable this is.

I encourage you to do the same.

Participating, In My Own Special Way

Washington State selects delegates for the DNC via caucus rather than primary.  This year the caucuses are on Saturday, February 9.

Which also happens to be the weekend of the next debate meet, so my Sweetie and I will be serving the youth of America rather than our political party of choice.

Today while wasting time on the internet, I discovered that there is a "Caucus Surrogate Affidavit Form" that can be completed to participate in the caucuses if you are unable to.  This excited me.  Unfortunately, in order to qualify for the form you must be unable to participate because of "religious service, military service or disability."

However, in the Delegate Selection and Affirmative Action plan it states "At no stage of Washington State’s delegate selection process shall any person be required, directly or indirectly, to pay a cost or fee as a condition for participating."

My argument, which I have just made to the state party, is that by requiring that my husband shirk a work responsibility and me to not volunteer that day in order to participate in the caucus they ARE requiring us to indirectly pay a cost.   

It will be interesting to see if anything comes of this or not.

In Which Theoretical People Scare Me

Today I completed the steps necessary to get my Type II license.  Which means that I'm legally allowed to drive high school students to debate meets.  Which is a very important step in Sweetie keeping his sanity and safety in check while debate coach at his school.  The hours a debate coach must keep are quite ridiculous at times, and the driving to and from make the ridiculous a bit frightening at times.  Now he can just be along for the ride and leave the driving to me.

In order to obtain the license I had to:

1. Show first aid certification
2. Provide documentation from the DMV that shows my driving record is clear.
3. Take a 40 question video-based test (produced circa 1980-something) to show my defensive driving skills.

The test was one of those where you are shown a scenario on the screen, where the camera is basically in the driver's seat of your car, and asked, in multiple choice format how you would respond.  5 points if you pick the best answer, 3 points for second best, 1 point for third best, 0 points if you get it completely wrong - although, really, there are some that if you get wrong they should rescind all driving privileges from you immediately.

In one question someone cut you off, or did something equally annoying, and one of the available options was "express your disappointment at the other driver with a rude gesture."  Which, although it may be true in many cases, anyone worth their weight should know it's not the CORRECT thing to do.  Especially with impressionable youth in the car.

The one that really got me, though, was when we were heading down a curvy mountain highway at 40 mph and the brakes start to go out.  One of the options, I kid you not, was to abandon the vehicle immediately before it can pick up more speed.

I hope and pray I never meet anyone who would think that's an appropriate answer.

Also, major props to the folks at the district who are forced to listen to this video however many times a year as people are taking the test.  While fielding calls from parents concerned because their high school student thinks she may have seen a condom on the bus yesterday afternoon.  I especially enjoyed it when we got to the question that indicated I was driving past a place where I knew intoxicants could be obtained (fancy term for liquor store, I believe) and the question asked what I should be doing.... one of the people in the office suggested "Pull into the parking lot and pick up a little something."  Thankfully, that was not one of the answer choices available.  I believe I was to be looking out for drunk drivers or pedestrians.

Better Late Than Never

I was a speech geek in high school.  And when I graduated high school my goal du jour was to become a high school social sciences teacher and speech/debate coach.  A semester into college I realized high school teacher wasn't for me, and just moved on with my life.

Then I fell in love with a guy who was a speech geek in high school.  Who had become an English teacher and debate coach.  At the time it was a long-distance relationship, so I would judge for him during debate season because otherwise I would not get to see him during debate season.  He paid judges sometimes, and that year I allowed him to pay me, to recompense for the gas it took to get from the Tri-Cities to Seattle on the weekends.  Yep, I made a profit to see my man. :)

For several years I was "the judge friend."  Once I became local I volunteered my time, but because we were only dating the students were not allowed to know of my existence as a girlfriend.  Every damn student on the team, I'm sure, knew I was the girlfriend, especially that first season when I would show up with the coach in his car to get on the bus in the mornings, and leave with him at the end of the day, but we played the little game.

Once I became the wife he stopped being the debate coach.  So I'd occasionally judge for the new guy, but it was infrequent. 

Now the husband is a coach again.  And I am unemployed.  And he could use the help trying to grow the team.  So I have become an Assistant Debate Coach.  I'm volunteering, but the district's computers show me as "hired" (so as to get fingerprinted so as to be able to supervise the kiddos without my Sweetie around). 

I must say, it's a lot of fun.  The team is small (but growing), and they are all doing really well and are really excited about debate.  The community around here is really supportive and good, too.  I'm hoping that once unemployment is a thing of the past I'll still be able to work this into the schedule.

Really, the only downside to it is that the kids all insist on calling me Mrs. SwankPoet.  I tried to have them call me Swankette, but they don't.  Two and a half years married, and I still find it very odd to be called Mrs. SwankPoet.  But if that's the worst things the kids ever do, it's a pretty good life.

A Resolution Regarding Our Bathroom

WHEREAS we have already gone well over budget in regards to the bathroom; and

WHEREAS we are currently committed to replacing the shower head, flooring, and toilet; and

WHEREAS the current vanity is a cheap  piece of shit that appears to be made out of cardboard that has suffered some water damage in the past;

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SWANKPOET FAMILY CONGRESS that we should buy a new sink to install and just call it a complete bathroom remodel, rather than reusing the one we've currently got.

Hereby enacted this 4th day of November 2007 at around 5:45 pm according to my watch, but really it was 4:45 pm because I'd forgotten to reset it for the end of daylight savings time.

I'm serving as assistant coach to Sweetie's debate team at the moment.  It's a lot of fun.  For some reason, while he was out for a bit this afternoon, once I decided we should replace the damn sink I decided to write a Student Congress style resolution in support of it.