priorities

[ritaxis]

So Monday thousands of workers are going to stay home all across the country: thousands of shoppers won't shop: thousands of students won't go to school.

What does George Bush think about it?

That radio stations shouldn't play the national anthem in Spanish.

Comments

[blackoakdreams.livejournal.com]

Yeah. My company is pretty close to shutting down on Monday, because we buy and sell plant material, and most of the nurseries won't be open. We're going to be lucky if we can get all our trucks out of the yard.

Now, I'm Mexican-American, but I was basically raised White. So I'm going to work on Monday. I am really hoping someone is going to comment about it.

[ritaxis.livejournal.com]

The nice fellow has no special claim to Mexicanness, and he's figuring out how to duck out early to make it to at least part of one of the several rallies. I'm going free most of the day, so I'm going to one, once I figure out which one where.

It's just a matter of basic justice and public safety. As long as we maintain a two-tier working class there's no way to secure legal rights and protections, or decent working conditions for anybody. And that is what persecuting immigrants and migrants does, there's no way such behavior keeps them out or even wants to. It's a cynical attempt to whip up hatred, since war fever has run out of gas and anti-gay marriage hysteria is ebbing and the abortion mess is preparing to bite them in the ass (I think that's going to take a while -- wait till South Dakota discovers how much they're going to suffer -- but they can see it coming). The gamble is that if you can get the American people to hate Mexicans enough, the voters will do stupid shit like Prop 236, they'll waste their energy on bitching about Spanish language radio stations and on beating up darkskinned guys instead of paying attention to what's in their actual interest, like labor laws, environmental protection, civil liberties . . .

It sort of looks to me like the American people are really vulnerable to this kind of manipulation -- I'm not comparing this aspect to other people, because honestly I don't know other countries -- but I think it's like any basic stimulus-response nerve thing: if you stimulate a nerve long enough with the same stimulus, the nerve shuts down and you don't get the response any more. And with the Republicans, hatred of other is the only thing they have to offer as a diversion. It's against their principle to do bread and circuses, which is the other half of the fascist distraction program: all they'ge got is viciousness.

And even Americans get tired of viciousness after a while.

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

When I first heard that Bush didn't like the national anthem in Spanish, I thought he was silly. Then I read the translation. It's not the same words, entire sections are completely different words, and that does bother me. If there was a completely new anthem, like Solidarity, We Will Not Be Moved, etc., that would be great. But to take the national anthem and edit it is wrong.

I couldn't find a complete English translation anywhere, but this article (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/27/AR2006042702505_2.html) in the WashPost says:

"In the Spanish version, the translation of the first stanza is relatively faithful to the spirit of the original, though Kidron says the producers wanted to avoid references to bombs and rockets. Instead, there is "fierce combat." The translation of the more obscure second stanza is almost a rewrite, with phrases such as "we are equal, we are brothers."

An alternate version to be released next month includes a rap in English that never occurred to Francis Scott Key:

Let's not start a war

With all these hard workers

They can't help where they were born"

[ritaxis.livejournal.com]

Well, that's an argument that can be made, and it has some merit to it (though I don't agree with it in this case, I can see why a person could agree with it, easily). But the other argument -- "you shouldn't translate it, period" -- that's stupid and cynical.

Mr. Bush does not give a damn

[dragonet2.livejournal.com]

I can't find right at hand the comments mentioned in Making Light, but he doesn't give a damn about what anyone thinks except Rummy and Dick. Maybe (I'm not betting that he cares what they think). They're the only ones whose opinions matter to him though.

And he has no soul, so it probably doesn't matter anyway.

Re: Mr. Bush does not give a damn

[ritaxis.livejournal.com]

Yes, I agree -- everything the man does is entirely cynical.