by Saul Bloodworth
After nearly one week in New Mexico and Arizona, I finally met the first person who did not tell me that he or she'd plan to vote for Barack Obama (although, at this point, I believe I might be magically drawn to aging hippies, because there must be some Republicans somewhere). That person was a guy I talked to at the Albuquerque Press Club; he works for Northrop Grunman and Homeland Security, it's one of these jobs, "if I'd tell you what I'm doing I would have to kill you."
Well, I met him on Halloween, at a party, he was a little drunk and he told me he had voted for Bob Barr (early voting). Bob Barr! No, he couldn't get himself to vote for either McCain or Obama, he said. Much less Palin. I asked him whether he was aware that he was, in essence, wasting his vote. He knew, but he did not care.
He was, by the way, dressed as John McCain himself, complete with a very sweaty-looking rubber mask, and he was accompanied by "Sarah Palin" and a very pregnant "Bristol Palin". I was dressed as the Devil. It was an easy costume.
He added that he wished the U.S. had many more parties, a Green Party that deserves its name, a Libertarian Party, real conservatives, you name it. But what can you do, he said. I asked him why he, at least, had not voted for Ron Paul. "I would have, but he is not on the ballot," he said. I think Sarah Palin is in for a rough surprise. I got pretty drunk so I don't remember much more.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Rolling The Dice
by Saul Bloodworth
Last night, I drove back to New Mexico, to Acoma. Acoma is an Indian reservation 60 miles west of Albuquerque. The Acoma tribe has some 6000 members, 4000 of which live on the reservation, the rest someplace else, mainly in New Mexico and Arizona. I asked some tribe members about the election, and I got some mixed reactions.
So first, a woman who works for the local cultural center told me that half of her staff isn't even going to vote. They believe, for them, it does not matter who becomes President. Later, I had lunch with two tribal members, two men in their fifties.
One of them told me he was leaning towards John McCain, even though he was a Democrat. "I met McCain one, he is a honest guy", he said. But more importantly, McCain has supported gambling on reservations, and that's how the tribe is making a living (a friend told me later that McCain, meanwhile, has shifted his support to Las Vegas gambling).
The other guy, however, was voting for Obama, not because of McCain, but because of Sarah Palin. He had read someplace that she had threatened to take away the sovereignty of the Native American tribes in Alaska. That would be something she could not do as a Governor anyway, but as a Vice President, maybe. He was not even sure if that was true, but he was taking no chances.
Does it matter? New Mexico has about 200.000 Native Americans, ten percent of the population. So it might, if they'd vote.
Last night, I drove back to New Mexico, to Acoma. Acoma is an Indian reservation 60 miles west of Albuquerque. The Acoma tribe has some 6000 members, 4000 of which live on the reservation, the rest someplace else, mainly in New Mexico and Arizona. I asked some tribe members about the election, and I got some mixed reactions.
So first, a woman who works for the local cultural center told me that half of her staff isn't even going to vote. They believe, for them, it does not matter who becomes President. Later, I had lunch with two tribal members, two men in their fifties.
One of them told me he was leaning towards John McCain, even though he was a Democrat. "I met McCain one, he is a honest guy", he said. But more importantly, McCain has supported gambling on reservations, and that's how the tribe is making a living (a friend told me later that McCain, meanwhile, has shifted his support to Las Vegas gambling).
The other guy, however, was voting for Obama, not because of McCain, but because of Sarah Palin. He had read someplace that she had threatened to take away the sovereignty of the Native American tribes in Alaska. That would be something she could not do as a Governor anyway, but as a Vice President, maybe. He was not even sure if that was true, but he was taking no chances.
Does it matter? New Mexico has about 200.000 Native Americans, ten percent of the population. So it might, if they'd vote.
Rolling The Dice
by Saul Bloodworth
Last night, I drove back to New Mexico, to Acoma. Acoma is an Indian reservation 60 miles west of Albuquerque. The Acoma tribe has some 6000 members, 4000 of which live on the reservation, the rest someplace else, mainly in New Mexico and Arizona. I asked some tribe members about the election, and I got some mixed reactions.
So first, a woman who works for the local cultural center told me that half of her staff isn't even going to vote. They believe, for them, it does not matter who becomes President. Later, I had lunch with two tribal members, two men in their fifties.
One of them told me he was leaning towards John McCain, even though he was a Democrat. "I met McCain one, he is a honest guy", he said. But more importantly, McCain has supported gambling on reservations, and that's how the tribe is making a living (a friend told me later that McCain, meanwhile, has shifted his support to Las Vegas gambling).
The other guy, however, was voting for Obama, not because of McCain, but because of Palin. He had read someplace that she had threatened to take away the sovereignty of the Native Americans in Alaska. That would be something she could not do as a Governor, but as a Vice President, maybe. He was not even sure if that was true, but he was taking no chances.
Does it matter? New Mexico has about 200.000 Native Americans, ten percent of the population. So it might, if they`d vote.
Last night, I drove back to New Mexico, to Acoma. Acoma is an Indian reservation 60 miles west of Albuquerque. The Acoma tribe has some 6000 members, 4000 of which live on the reservation, the rest someplace else, mainly in New Mexico and Arizona. I asked some tribe members about the election, and I got some mixed reactions.
So first, a woman who works for the local cultural center told me that half of her staff isn't even going to vote. They believe, for them, it does not matter who becomes President. Later, I had lunch with two tribal members, two men in their fifties.
One of them told me he was leaning towards John McCain, even though he was a Democrat. "I met McCain one, he is a honest guy", he said. But more importantly, McCain has supported gambling on reservations, and that's how the tribe is making a living (a friend told me later that McCain, meanwhile, has shifted his support to Las Vegas gambling).
The other guy, however, was voting for Obama, not because of McCain, but because of Palin. He had read someplace that she had threatened to take away the sovereignty of the Native Americans in Alaska. That would be something she could not do as a Governor, but as a Vice President, maybe. He was not even sure if that was true, but he was taking no chances.
Does it matter? New Mexico has about 200.000 Native Americans, ten percent of the population. So it might, if they`d vote.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Moonstruck
by Saul Bloodworth
I finally made it to Tombstone, but I was not especially impressed. This town might as well be located on a Hollywood back lot. In fact, they had some "old" Wild West buildings on a lot that had been a gas station in the 1960s, a local woman told me. All the Wild West stores on Allen Street were selling Indian jewelry, Wyatt-Earp-T-shirts, semi-precious stones and the like. I spent 12 bucks on a coffee mug with Betty Boop, saying, "I don't do mornings".
Neither do I, but traveling such long distances requires getting up before 9am. In the evening, I hit Tuscon, the house of a friend's friend. We had a little get-together with some of her friends, we ate chicken salad sandwiches, brownies, and had some wine. One of her friends hat just built a huge mirror that captures moonlight. If you sit in it and let the moon shine on you, you should be cured from depression (because moonlight is more gentle than sunlight). She was by no means a McCain-fan, she found him way too aggressive. The other woman, who was married to an Army officer, was unsure.
The woman who had invited us was pro Obama, because she was concerned about the economy. Many people are holding onto whatever money they have left, she said. She also felt that in these times she would rather not buy a new TV. That might not seem such a big deal, but she was not doing bad at all. She owned a great house. So how do people feel who are really strapped?
Then again, if McCain gets elected, I can alway visit her friend and take a bath in the moonlight.
I finally made it to Tombstone, but I was not especially impressed. This town might as well be located on a Hollywood back lot. In fact, they had some "old" Wild West buildings on a lot that had been a gas station in the 1960s, a local woman told me. All the Wild West stores on Allen Street were selling Indian jewelry, Wyatt-Earp-T-shirts, semi-precious stones and the like. I spent 12 bucks on a coffee mug with Betty Boop, saying, "I don't do mornings".
Neither do I, but traveling such long distances requires getting up before 9am. In the evening, I hit Tuscon, the house of a friend's friend. We had a little get-together with some of her friends, we ate chicken salad sandwiches, brownies, and had some wine. One of her friends hat just built a huge mirror that captures moonlight. If you sit in it and let the moon shine on you, you should be cured from depression (because moonlight is more gentle than sunlight). She was by no means a McCain-fan, she found him way too aggressive. The other woman, who was married to an Army officer, was unsure.
The woman who had invited us was pro Obama, because she was concerned about the economy. Many people are holding onto whatever money they have left, she said. She also felt that in these times she would rather not buy a new TV. That might not seem such a big deal, but she was not doing bad at all. She owned a great house. So how do people feel who are really strapped?
Then again, if McCain gets elected, I can alway visit her friend and take a bath in the moonlight.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
The Copper Queen
By Saul Bloodworth
My road trip took me to Brisbee, Arizona. I actually wanted to got to Tombstone, but I was too exhausted from driving those bumpy roads to make the last thirty miles.
Brisbee is an old mining town without mines; everthing has been closed down in the 1970s, due to a lack of copper, so now everybody is making a living off tourism, more or less. Probably less. The town has an organic coffee shop, a number of stores selling Indian jewelry, the Brisbee Grille, and quite a few hotels, the oldest and most fanciest being the Copper Queen Hotel.
That's were I spent the evening, at the bar of the Copper Queen Hotel. The TV was running — baseball — and three guys, who were local, were talking about, no, not the playoffs, about the election. The discussion went like — well, Obama will likely win, according to these polls we've just seen, but there are also two Republican Congressman from Arizona who could loose there seats, plus, the Senat, if you count ... — anyway, it was not what you expect to hear in an Arizona town in the Wild West, at 10pm in a bar. They also sounded quite enthusiastic.
And nobody was mentioning John McCain.
My road trip took me to Brisbee, Arizona. I actually wanted to got to Tombstone, but I was too exhausted from driving those bumpy roads to make the last thirty miles.
Brisbee is an old mining town without mines; everthing has been closed down in the 1970s, due to a lack of copper, so now everybody is making a living off tourism, more or less. Probably less. The town has an organic coffee shop, a number of stores selling Indian jewelry, the Brisbee Grille, and quite a few hotels, the oldest and most fanciest being the Copper Queen Hotel.
That's were I spent the evening, at the bar of the Copper Queen Hotel. The TV was running — baseball — and three guys, who were local, were talking about, no, not the playoffs, about the election. The discussion went like — well, Obama will likely win, according to these polls we've just seen, but there are also two Republican Congressman from Arizona who could loose there seats, plus, the Senat, if you count ... — anyway, it was not what you expect to hear in an Arizona town in the Wild West, at 10pm in a bar. They also sounded quite enthusiastic.
And nobody was mentioning John McCain.
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