The Election

Since I have been sitting in a hotel in Charleston, SC with a broke down internet connection for the last four days I haven't had a chance to comment on the election of Barack Obama. I wasn't one of those Obama maniacs as the right liked to call his most enthusiastic suppporters but once it came down it him and Clinton I was behind him all the way. When it came down to him and McCain and McCain picked the shockingly unqualified Sarah Palin and then started running a disgustingly negative campaign full of Rovian slime then I really prayed for an Obama victory. At that point I decided that McCain didn't deserve a victory and if Palin ever inherited the presidency we would have been on our way to an idiocracy.

I am just happy that a thoughtful and intelligent person will be president for the next four years. What more could we ask for, really?

You know what is too bad? People like Hannity and Limbaugh are not going to let up on Obama. It's going to be the Clinton presidency all over again. It's going to be ugly unfounded rumor after ugly unfounded rumor until our political dialog is poisoned again. It's time for the listeners of these shows to start pushing back. Sure you'd like to think the worst of your political opponents but to let the devil sit on your shoulder and whisper lies into your ear for three hours a day doesn't help anybody. Take a chance, open a newspaper, go to a legitimate news website and, god forbid, turn on NPR. I think you'll find that bias you've been told about is not the force you may think it is.

A few more pictures from Charleston

Friday night I took a few night shots down at the battery with the tripod. I need to get a better camera for these night shots but these are OK.


The Memorial to Confederate Soldiers


A street going north


On Saturday we went to the market on Market Street. It was full of touristy stuff. We were expecting more local artists and craftsmen. Still, it's another nice old set of buildings.


After the market we stopped by the Confederate Museum run by the Daughters of the Confederacy. Holy crap, there is some amazing stuff in there. I saw the first flag to fly over a CSA city and one of the first flags at Fort Sumter (that one had bullet holes in it). There were worn uniforms and homemade clothing made by families during the siege of Charleston. It's full of priceless artifacts. It's the best five dollars you will spend in Charleston, SC. Seeing that flag that flew over Fort Sumter gave me the same thrill I got when I saw the jacket Lincoln was wearing when he was shot.

After the market we drove out to Sullivans Island to see the ocean.

Here is the light house.


Here's Mel on the beach pointing at something.


This is what she saw. It was heading out to sea.


Here is me at the beach.


The obligatory head down deep in thought beach walk photograph.


Holy smokes, the ocean sure is big.


We saw a crab and I stuck the camera in his face. He didn't seem to care. I think he was not feeling well.


Another view of the crab.

There were sandpipers all over the place.

We swung by Patriot Point and there was a display of new and classic military vehicles. I saw the style of Jeep I drove on the Mojave Desert when I was the driver for a controller during a combined armed exercise. I loved, loved, loved driving this vehicle over the desert.


There was this dude dressed up as a WWII paratrooper talking to awe struck boy scouts about his gear.


Patriot Point also offers a nice angle on the bridge over the Cooper River. I didn't realize that there is a walkway over the bridge. That is reason enough to go to Charleston again. It's just calling out for a panorama.