TRYPTOPHAN DREAMS

I don't think I had fully engaged my thankfulness until the morning after the morning after. Spent a wonderful Thursday with a family of 25, where I tiptoed up to the edge of gluttony, stared into its gorgeous face and embraced it. Fully. Reprised my performance yesterday with another family remnant of six, where, in addition to performing the roll (that's right, I performed the roll, not role) of digestion machines, we baked crazy amounts of cookies and chocolate goodies for my nephew and his buddies serving in Qatar.

Yesterday, as my wife and daughters and I were together decorating the house for the holidays, listening to Christmas music by Sufjan Stevens, James Taylor, Sarah McLachlan, and the late, great Dan Fogelberg, I was reminded--as I am every year about now--how fortunate I am.

When I turn on the faucet I can get hot water, while many in the world can't even get clean water.

I may fear the turns my life may take professionally, aesthetically, emotionally...but I don't live in fear that someone is going to conk me on the head and drag me by the hair into the weeds.

I have more than one guitar, even though I can only play (sort of) one at a time.

I live in a 98-year-old house that is aging well and continually shaping me in its image.

I have three women in my life (only sleeping with one) who are exceedingly beautiful, intelligent, funny, and simply the best company a man could want.

I have friends from the Midwest, to Colorado, to DC, to NYC, to New England, to Florida, to Oregon, to Greece, to Singapore, to New Zealand, to China, and all divers places in between who are meditative, irreverent, crazy smart, and full of grace; who would actually acknowledge my presence in their world and would at least stumble a bit in their daily lives if I were to depart this skin suit.

I live in a country that is confused and in disarray, but where no tanks are rolling in the streets, and we are free to bang our rhetorical heads together as we try to figure things out. And where we are hopeful.

I am generally content with the things I have, and I don't feel the need to trample my fellow humans to death in pursuit of outrageously low holiday prices.

I know Love, when so many do not.

In the words of the profound prayer written by Anne Lamott, "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

TWO EARS, ONE MOUTH

We have just come through a time of talk. We have heard the candidates and all the pundits had to say, and we have all said our piece. Too often we didn't say our peace, just our piece of some bigger thing that was being hammered against the thing of the other, in hopes of being the winning thing. That's not to say that our piece and peace are always mutually exclusive.

It is my belief that there are two primary uses for communication: conciliation and critique. There is a time for each. There is a time to speak "truth" to power, and jab our rhetorical sticks into the soft underbelly of whatever beast is in need of poking. There is also a time to use our voices as magnets and glue--drawing closer to each other through the sharing of narratives and the building of consensus. Conciliation without critique makes us victims. Critique without conciliation can make us mean.

So, the timing is very appropriate for Storycorps to sponsor the National Day of Listening this week.

As we prepare to enjoy the balm of family and gravy, may we all use this time to be mindful. And listen. Be mindful of the one across the table. Everyone has stories to tell. And it is in the telling that we become aware of who and what we are.

In the listening we take on the posture of thanksgiving. How can we give thanks when we are onstage or on the attack, or preaching, or desperately needing to be right?

Two ears and one mouth? Must be a sign from God.

MY LIFE THESE DAYS

I'm Not One Of Those "Love Thy Neighbor" Christians

The Onion just keeps bringing it.

WHAT NOW?

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

PREACH IT, KEITH

I'm not always an Olbermann fan, but on this day he could be my pastor.

SPREADING THE WEALTH IN AN AGE OF SELFISH CHRISTIANS

Conservatives regularly oppose state-supported social programs for the poor, arguing that they interfere with market principles and diminish incentive for individuals to achieve. In rare moments of compassion (or cold calculation), when they consider how the catastrophic failure of the proletariat will affect the ruling class, they will say any relief should come from private rather than public sources.

Politically conservative evangelicals and fundamentalists will continue this argument by suggesting that such relief is the responsibility of the churches, not the state.

Fine.

Where are they?

Let me say that I have read about and witnessed extravagant and impressive acts of giving from faith communities, and there is no doubt in my mind that well-intentioned and well-motivated believers are far more capable of addressing the needs of the poor than most agencies, public or private.

However a new book, Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money, delivers some sobering news about the reluctance of believers to part with their cash. In his review, Ron Sider (author of Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger), lays out some of the disturbing data:

• 20% of Christians give nothing.
• Those who do give average 2.9% of their income.
• 20% of Christians give 86.4% of the total.
• 5% give 59.6%.
• As our income has quadrupled, our giving has declined.
• The facts suggest that as we get wealthier, we get stingier.
  
• If Christians who attend church regularly would tithe (presumably the standard 10%), there would $46 billion extra available for serving the poor.
  

For the record, I happen to believe that relieving the suffering of the "poor" (in all manifest meanings of the word) should be the prime objective of our churches. Above mall-like worship centers, gymnasiums, and Starbucks, we should be serving "the least of these." And, it appears that as hard as it is to get believers to give, when they do we are more likely to fund our edifice complex than the poor.

A couple of disclosures: My wife and I used to give over $500 a month to an organization that serves the poor in Central America--we quit giving to churches years ago (see edifice complex comment above)--until things came to light about how the funds were not being used honestly. Now, we will only give to actual people in actual need. But, it is terribly inefficient and ad hoc.

Also, it appears from Sider's review that while evangelicals still have nothing to brag about, they give better percentages than other Christian groups.


So, I cannot take conservative Christian's arguments seriously when they protest loudly about "socialism" and "redistributing the wealth," while they are actively keeping more for themselves than even their doctrines demand.

We must be a culture that takes care of those who can't take care of themselves. If we aren't, we embrace a form of social Darwinism where the weak are trampled underfoot, and civilization as we know it deteriorates. Public means of support are terribly inefficient and often not the most effective, but until "believers" step up and get as aggressive in living out the gospel as they are preaching it, I cannot support a political ideology that would benefit the powerful over the weak.

CRACKER MAP (updated)

This map has been a point of discussion at The Ready Room, and in several email threads. Based on the reported numbers from Tuesday, the bluer an area the stronger the vote for Obama in comparison to the vote for Kerry in 2004. The redder the area the stronger the vote was for McCain than for Bush. The less color, the closer the vote was to '04.

The rash of red in the South seems to suggest a disturbing racial pattern. The southern areas with larger African-American and Latino populations are bluer, but Old South whites seemed to vote Republican in dramatically higher numbers this year than in 2004.

I tend to side with Occam's Razor in assuming the most obvious answer is the best. The reddest areas seem to be where the whitest Southerners live. What else would move them so deeply?

McCain supporters are strongly denying this is about race. Maybe so. What's another explanation? Somehow you would need to isolate an issue that was unique to that area.

Before you are tempted to make the reverse racism argument, take a look at the West. Not a lot of black voters in Montana and Nevada.

**********UPDATE 11/11/08**********

As pointed out by Stephanie (Mrs. Ready Room), today's NY Times supports the cracker map thesis, adding terribly disturbing interviews with crackers that position Inland and Deep South as being out of step with the rest of the country and on the wrong side of history.

While not exactly in Cracker Map territory, this picture was sent to me from Mike in Springfield, MO. This was sent to the local paper.



And, this news: The Sapulpa (Oklahoma) Herald did not print anything about Obama's victory in their paper Wednesday. The cracker-dominated county went overwhelmingly for McCain.

God, bless America. Please.

POST-GAME SHOW

My emotions are still too raw and unprocessed to do more than this for now.

An assessment and course correction on my predictions: First, I had a math error. I never got around to posting my state list. What I found as I marked the results on my paper copy last night was that I had misapplied Georgia. Early Sunday I had Georgia in the Obama column, thinking that the unanticipated African-American turnout would subvert the polls. However, late Monday I switched it back to McCain, but forgot to change the math. So, my real prediction was 375 to 163. Assuming Missouri and North Carolina end up the way they are looking now, I will have picked every single state in the country correctly, with the exception of Missouri. Some of you will find that amusing.

My prediction: 375-163
Likely outcome: 364-174

My prediction: 52%-45%
Likely outcome: 53%-46%

Not bad. Better than most of the people who are paid handsomely for their analysis.

I have more to say about where we go from here and what we should talk about next, but I'm still trying to assemble my thoughts. Not to mention the amount of work I need to attend to that has been put off while I followed the campaign.

IT'S A GOOD DAY

I voted at about 8:00 this morning in my swing state. Pretty uneventful, until I turned in my ballot and noticed that our Republican governor was right behind me submitting his ballot. On the way out of the building I wanted to turn to him and say, "I canceled you out, buddy. This state doesn't belong to you and yours anymore." But, my better angels prevailed (and my instinct for self-preservation, since I suspect his secret service detail might have interpreted "cancel you out" differently than I would have intended).

Instead I simply smiled at him, nodded, then looked up at the beautiful blue sky and choked back a tear. The time for rancor and division is over. It's a new day.

It's a good day.

Goodnight, Toot

I cannot imagine the exhaustion and emotion of two years of constant campaigning, nearly at its end. Then, on the eve of the greatest night of your life, you get the news that the woman who raised you passes from this life.

Thank you, Madelyn Dunham, for your life and your work. You done good.

May you rest in peace.

Our hearts go out to you, Barack.

MARK IT

Popular Vote*
Obama 52%
McCain 45%
Other 3%

Electoral College*
Obama 390
McCain 148

Winner*
All of us.

*Assuming voting irregularities are held to a minimum.

I know that's more dramatic than predicted by the pollsters and pundits. I'll give you the list of states and the analysis behind it. Tomorrow.

40,000 in Springfield...

MISSOURI!!!


Sorry Sarah. Eli's comin'.