Jamais 2 sans 3 (or the rule of threes)

My first is my dying cat. The end is near. He's beginning to seclude himself. He didn't even come to cuddle last night and when I tried, he hid under the couch. He ate a lot last night but then went into a coughing fit, as if the food wouldn't go down. Roger is on death watch, spending every moment by his side. And I'm wondering if it wouldn't be better for him to die in his sleep rather than having to put him down.

My second is my sprained ankle. My Sunday run through the fall leaves may not have been such a great idea after all, but at least it's not broken. And I can run again in a couple weeks, once the leaves are gone and the rain comes to stay.

My third is uncertain. It could be Sasha, the neighbor's cat, who is lost. Or it could be the light bulbs that don't work (but that's an old story), or any number of things that I'd very much like to evoke as my third but probably aren't really. But it better happen before election day...

Oh boy

Curious, annoying or just embarrassing? Here is where you can find last night's VP debate. That woman makes me ill...I personally find it offensive as a woman that this woman could be a future US president. She's just plain blech for lack of a more explicit and less vulgar word. And since when are Rebublicans mavericks, reformers or for change? Whatever with a big W...anyone else think she sounds stoopid?

Exercising my Franco-American rights

Today I exercised my French rights. I'm not talking about the existential rights that exist in France like letting your dog crap wherever it wants or 2 hour lunches. I'm talking about voting.

Since I am technically French, I do take voting seriously, even if I don't know much about the candidates or the actual electoral system in France! Today was the first round of the municipal elections. And as I learned over a couple glasses of "méthode" a few weeks back, I wasn't actually voting for the mayor. I was voting for the mayor and her list of 40+ people. I have a hard time actually understanding that you are voting for the mayor's councillors since, in the US, you vote for the big wig and the big wig chooses his/her councillors, second in command, or what have you. So I was a little surprised to see such a long ballot...

And as with the presidential elections, I really had the intention of voting green in the first round but when it came down to it, I just couldn't. The two party rule kicked in and that little voice in my head said "make sure your vote counts" so I voted socialist...also because the person who is indirectly responsible for my job was on the list so I kind of felt obliged in some way. Old habits die hard.

As for voting in presidential elections, I learned a lot over a glass of grape juice about a week ago. In fact, you vote for the president who is kind of like a king in many ways. He/she then chooses his/her ministers including the Prime Minister who has more power than the president. Seems rather strange to me that the PM, the person who is actually out there leading the country, isn't even elected by the people...or maybe I misunderstood.

So, I may not be physically voting in the US this year, but at least I get to exercise my physical right to vote in France. Even if I won't get the same pleasure of seeing that dip shit president of mine (which one you ask?) leave office...

Super Tuesday Confusion

It's Super Tuesday and the global primary is now open. I can cast my ballot for Democrats Abroad until the 12th. this means I have a week to figure out who I'm going for. My Scottish-American collegue has threatened to stop speaking to me if I choose the wrong person. Oh the pressure. It would seem that I am as split as the rest of the Democrats.

And the nice people on the internet have (not) helped me by providing this quiz...

Who should you vote for?

Mike Gravel				81
Barack Obama				60
Hillary Clinton	-15

You expected: Hillary Clinton
Your recommendation: Mike Gravel

Party: Democratic

Born: 1930, Springfield, Massachusetts

Family: Married twice. Two children and four grandchildren

Career: US Army; Special Agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps; taxi driver; barman; brakeman; property developer

Political career: 3rd Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives, 1965-6; US Senator from Alaska 1969-1981. Environment and Public Works and Finance and Interior Committees; chaired the Energy, Water Resources, and Environmental Pollution subcommittees

Hot topic: Fair tax

Did you know? Born to French-Canadian immigrant parents, Marie Bourassa and Alphonse Gravel; Mike spoke only French until he was seven years old

Supported by: Ralph Nader

Who should I vote for for president in 2008?You match up well with...

	Barack Obama - 77 match You must be ambitious and idealistic, like Barack Obama. Obama is a liberal democrat who, unlike his rivals, opposed the Iraq war from the start. With only 3 years in the Senate, his inexperience worries some and sometimes reveals itself in the debates, but he also has the charisma and popular support that the others lack.
	Bill Richardson - 77 match You must be looking for a moderate liberal with impressive credentials. If you live in Iowa or New Hampshire, you could have voted for Bill Richardson. Otherwise, you're out of luck. After finishing 4th in both states, Richardson dropped out of the presidential race. Experienced in state, national, and international politics, Richardson has been a Congressman, an ambassador to the United Nations Security Council, and is now the governor of New Mexico. He is pro-choice, strongly favors rights for the LGBT population, advocates for affirmative action in government contracts, and even championed the idea that Congress should revoke the original authority it gave to go to war with Iraq. Richardson also supports the death penalty and gun ownership rights.
	Chris Dodd - 72 match Dodd is a liberal democrat who is a well-seasoned policy-maker. He has been in Washington since 1975 as a U.S. Representative and Senator and consistently receives thing between a 95-100% approval rating from Americans for Democratic Action and the National Committee for an Effective Congress. Unlike his Democrat counterparts, he believes that same-sex marriage and civil unions should be an issue left to states and supports free trade agreements. As a legislator, he is known for his work on expanding health care coverage to the uninsured, particularly children.

Take the test.

Take the Who Should I Vote for Quiz at QuizRocket.com!
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Who You Should Vote For

Barack Obama: 73% Hillary Clinton: 73% John McCain: 33% Ron Paul: 33% Mike Huckabee: 13% Mitt Romney: 13% Who you agree with on the war in Iraq: Ron Paul Who you agree with on the economy: Hillary Clinton, and Mitt Romney Who you agree with on health care: Hillary Clinton Who you agree with on taxes: Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton Who you agree with on abortion: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama Who you agree with on gay rights: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama

Who Should You Vote For?

World elections

Working for "Europe" you can imagine the questions I get : where did you learn English? Where are you from in the US? Why are you in Lille and not Paris? How does an American work for Europe? Who's going to win the elections?

You wouldn't believe the number of European consultants and researchers who've lived in such godforsaken places as Ohio, Indiana or Michigan! (that was sarcasticby the way). It's funny how the whole world is affected (consumed?) by the US primaries, probably moreso than most Americans. And it's funny - not funny haha - how the entire world has a vested interest in our next president.

So as I discussed US politics with 3 Dutch, 1 German and 1 Italian after yesterday's meeting, I made a bet with a nice Dutchman - he wagered a beer that Obama would win. I'm not surprising anyone who's reading this when I say I'll vote Democrat. But who? I'm just not sure if all those people (I'll hold my tongue) who voted for W (twice!) will actually vote for someone other than a white male. Is the country ready for a woman or an African-American? Granted, there is the power of David Palmer that I'm convinced will influence a fair number of voters. But still...

The bottom line though is that ANYTHING is better than W. And more power to the person who follows him because they've got a lot of cleaning to do, starting with apologizing to most of the world.

For any Americans interested, Democrats Abroad can give you lots of information on voting abroad. There is a global primary from 5-12 February. If you want to vote in the primaries, you can contact them to get your ballot, but you need to be registered to vote first! And if there are any Americans in Lille who have CNN and want to spend all night watching Super Tuesday, I'm in as long as you are anti-W.

Edited: Wow, my spelling is awful! Why won't my spell check work?