Friday
On the whole, the day was a good one. Getting to that point, however… *shrug* The day started last night. With a sick cat. Sleep was not very restful. I woke up to colder-than-I-wanted temperatures and rain. At least it was “rain” and not “snow.” I wouldn’t exactly say that today had the best of starts. But, it did get better. I even talked, albeit briefly, with the mother-unit; she, and the rest of the southern contingent, seem to be doing well.

Stray Toasters

  • I spent the evening hanging out with , , and . Always a pleasure. I wonder how many people we offended. Not that it really matters…
  • ReBoot!
  • Are they really fitness magazines… or thinly-veiled porn?
  • Cracks, racks and overheard comic book conversations.
  • Mediasharx
  • Justice League Unlimited “premieres” in August. They’re using a cast of sixty (60) characters. They are also doing away with the multi-episode story arcs (for the most part). And they will apparently be teaming up some of the JL “original seven” with new members for episodes. And there will be… continuity: If someone is injured or leaves, they’re out of action for a while on the show. I’m impressed so far; I hope that they can maintain the standard that they have set in the first three seasons of Justice League.
  • The Girl from Ipanema
  • Since posted her pic from tonight, I figured that I would do the same. The source is from American Artist: Drawing magazine, Spring 2004 issue. It’s not “done,” but it’s coming along well. Thanks to for her input and help.


I submitted the following to an email discussion group to which I belong. Why? Because I could. And, more importantly, because it touched on a subject that I feel somewhat strongly about. That led me to another subject about which it seemed that I have a rather strong opinion. With that in mind…

I have been a bit remiss in keeping up with current events recently. When I friend showed me a couple of links to something about President Bush receiving some unfavorable press for rubbing someone’s head, it caught my attention. I haven’t been able to find anything about this in a mainstream news source, but the links that I have are:

  • http://www.counterbias.com/news001.html
  • http://jer.dailykos.com/story/2004/3/12/41137/3966 (includes some forum comments)

As a bald-by-choice person, I am familiar with people who think that rubbing a bald head is “cute” (or something), in much the same way that people feel compelled to rub a pregnant woman’s belly. Or, to call to mind another popular reference: Rubbing Buddha’s belly for good luck. I confess, I have rubbed pregnant friends’ bellies… but only after getting their consent to do so.

I typically have no problem with certain people rubbing my head. Operative words: “Certain people.” They are called “family” or “close friends.” With them, it’s allowed. Other people – relative strangers – have walked up to me and tried to rub my head, also. In most cases, I have been able to dissuade them before they did so. On the occasions where I reacted too slowly, I made it painstakingly obvious that it was: a) not welcome and b) not something that they would wish to try again. It may be something with the way -and where- I grew up; relative to the wide open spaces found here in the west, it’s a bit crowded on the east coast. People tend to respect others’ space. This might come off as “rude” or “impersonal,” to some, but it’s the way we tend to be wired.¹

Let’s put aside the possible racist history of rubbing a Black person’s head and to get back to The Shrub’s faux pas.

This display shows a lack of professionalism. If he had done something like this in the context of participating in a sporting event (college, pro, or even sandlot), I think that it would have been a “no harm, no foul” situation – one sees sports players rub each others’ heads or smack each other’s backsides all the time. In these instances, there’s a measure of camaraderie that comes with being part of a team.

The differences?

  • This was at a conference, not a church picnic.
  • He is the President of the United States of America.
  • He was greeting the Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

There are appropriate means of greeting someone or thanking them for an introduction. Rubbing their heads isn’t one of them. At least, I am pretty sure that it is not a method proscribed by Robert’s Rules of Order. I understand that The President is supposed to be “a man of the people.” That’s all well and good. As the “leader of the free world,” I expect more than a cursory nod to professionalism and decorum… especially when he is operating in an official capacity. I expect him – or anyone in his position – to exemplify those ideals. And, no, Bill Clinton wasn’t a paragon of virtue, either; but this post isn’t about him. If we expect other countries to follow our example, does this display mean that we are leading them down the road of “good intentions?” We all know where that leads. Are we going to sell them handbaskets and gasoline underwear, too? I’m sure that we could get them a great volume discount deal. Or this just a case of the blind leading the blind?

Let’s play Devil’s Advocate and take a look at the situation in reverse: What if the President of the United States was African-American and the Acting Secretary was White? Had that hypothetical President come out and said something to the effect of “Thank you for that rousing introduction, cracker ²,” should/would there be any less backlash? Even if they were good friends in their out-of-the-spotlight lives? I would hope not. I would like to think that people of any or all races would take him to task for such an unseemly comment.

The bottom line, as I see it, is this: A professional/social gaff was made.

The man is human; I’ll chalk it up to that. Hopefully, he (or one of his staffers) issued some form of apology. As I said, I haven’t been able to find any links to this story in a mainstream news source… which also makes looking for said apology a bit difficult.

::: gets down from soapbox :::

That’s my 2¢ worth.
(With the other 98¢ thrown in, at no extra cost to you!)

Namaste.

Rob
“My moral fiber is unraveling…”

¹ – This is not intended to be an absolute statement/generalization: I said “tend to (be)… ” not “always…”
² – This ‘quote’ was intentionally hyperbole; if it made you stop, reread that line and evoke some sort of response, it served its purpose.

No one in the group has, as yet, said anything about it. *shrug*

That’s enough for tonight.

Namaste.