Tomboys will be tomboys

Apparently the news that Swedish retailers are applying gender neutral catalogues has spread around the world. The Swedish newspaper SVD is reporting about it with an ill conceived patronizing angle. It is with an underlying attitude of amusement that the Swedish paper relates the uproar internationally about what is going on in Sweden and citing people’s comments.  Such as John in Dublin, he writes on the Daily Mail’s web-edition: 

"More surreal news from Occupied Sweden. The most insanely socialist, watchful, interfering, nannying and just plain paranoid society on earth appears to have arrived at its nadir. How did this clique manage to quietly take control of a previously independent-minded people?" 

The author of the article in SVD sums it up at the end of the article by asking what men are so afraid of? 

I don’t think that one automatically is afraid just because one does not agree on all the ideas and theories that are popular at the moment. When I grew up as a boy, no one tried to make me wear dresses or decided for me that I should play with dolls. When I think back I cannot recall that I have had any major trauma due to this. I played with typical boy toys, all days long. I have daughters, they play with toys. They have cars, guns, bows, firetrucks, spiderman suits and pirate stuff, when my daughter recently turned 8, I got her a compound bow but also some typical girl toys. They love girly toys, dolls, ponies, princess dresses and what not. But here’s the thing, first of all, no one is telling me what is right or wrong to buy, secondly, they prefer to play with the girl stuff, it is their choice. 

I have daughters that now are adults, they were raised the same way. They turned out just fine. They were more into the boy toys growing up, they were real tomboys. Sometimes they’d crack me up running around with helmets and waiving toy swords wearing princess dresses, taking off their helmets and underneath they had their hair full of pink bows! Now they're two typical young women with nail polish and make up and all that. But again its been their choices no one else’s. 

Hey Barack, Long time, No see

Dear President Obama,

Long time, no see. The door is always open here in the Palmetto State and we've always got a fresh pitcher of sweet tea ready. But you don't come around no more. In fact, you haven't been here since January 26, 2008 when you won South Carolina's primary.

Happy to see Obama inaugurated?
(Or to have a snow day?)

Remember me? OK, probably not, but a week before that primary I saw you at the Columbia Convention Center on the eve of Martin Luther King Day. I hoisted my three-year old daughter onto my shoulders so she could see you. My six-year old son stood on his tippy-toes so he could catch a glimpse. Every time they heard your name on the radio or TV for months after that they would exclaim, "Hey, Daddy, they're talking about Barack Obama!" A year later, on your Inauguration Day we happened to have a rare snow storm here and so I got to stay home with the kids to watch the events of the day. Jacob estimated there must be "like 7,000 people there or something!"

So this week you'll be in Charlotte, North Carolina at the Democratic National Convention. Do you know how close that is to South Carolina? Pretty darn close. Like, as in, we have an amusement park that is in both Charlotte, North Carolina and in Fort Mill, South Carolina. 

So, while you're in the neighborhood, stop by. We'd love to see you here. Some think that traditionally red states like South Carolina are a "lost cause," but others, even Republicans (including Karl Rove), think that you could win here. Do you think you could? Is there even a hint of a 50-state strategy this time around?

Friendship Nine Lunch Counter

Get this fun fact: More than 385,000 registered black voters—and more than 168,000 unregistered voters for a grand total or more than a half million black voters—didn't show up to the polls in the 2010 election. In 2008 you lost South Carolina by 172,447 votes in the general election and it is estimated that nearly 400,000 black citizens did not vote.

And get this other fun fact: Mitt Romney enjoys a 0% approval rating among black voters.

Just sayin'.

Some think that black voters in South Carolina are essentially forfeiting races by not showing up. And you may have heard we've got a little Voter ID law debacle going on right now, too. Good times.

So, if you stop by, I've got a perfect place for you to stop in for a burger and some sweet tea: The lunch counter where the Friendship Nine did their sit-in protest in Rock Hill in 1961, a crucial event in the Civil Rights Movement here in South Carolina.

I was in Rock Hill several weeks ago and ate there. The food is delicious. And it's just a hop over the border from Charlotte. You could zip down, have a burger, a photo-op (maybe even with some of the Friendship Nine; I met a few of them at a premier of the documentary about them, "Jail, No Bail"), and be back to Charlotte in no time. 

Could South Carolina get an hour or two of your time while you're next door?

Just some food for thought. 

Sincerely, 

The Palmetto State

Changing Your Mind vs. Flip-Flopping

This past Sunday morning on, er, Sunday Morning, commentator Luke Burbank defended Mitt Romney's flip-floppiness. He said that, Hey, it's cool; we all change our minds. You can see his Mitt apologetics here:

Yeah, true enough. We all change our minds about stuff. And what Luke gets absolutely right is that changing our mind is a good thing. I'm sure the first patient who got a house call from a doctor who said, "Hey, I've changed my mind about bleeding you with leeches" was pretty stoked. We can come up with a gazillion and half other such examples. Progress is about changing our minds based on the evidence.

The problem is that Mitt doesn't change his mind based on the evidence. He flip flops based on political expediency. He doesn't say, "Well, I've evaluated the evidence and I've changed my position on X because of the evidence." He looks at the political winds and sets his sail accordingly. He panders.

And he's either completely unaware that he does this or willfully ignorant of it. Did you see his interview with Faux News, the people who practically work for the GOP, where he denied over and over changing his stance on key issues? It was one of the most uncomfortable interviews I've ever seen. Let's let Jon Stewart break it down for us:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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There's a big difference between changing your mind based on evidence and pandering. That's why Mitt is a flip flopper. He wants you to stop him when you like what he's saying and will thus vote for him instead of him evaluating the evidence and arguments about a particular issue and making (and even changing) his mind on said issue.

So, Mitt, change your mind all you want. But at least own it. At least acknowledge why you're changing it.