"The Occupy Wall Street protests are open heart surgery for the soul of America."

Vivian McPeak (SeattlePI.com op-ed):

The soul of America is sick, and protests against Wall Street greed and corruption have spread across the globe faster than a vaccine-resistant influenza at a slave-labor camp. Americans are participating in various towns, erecting tent cities in public squares, holding nighttime vigils, and occupying places of corporate commerce.

Something is definitely happening, something that we have not seen in some time in this country. As the global economy takes a nosedive, corporate profits have soared to a level of abject obscenity. And many Americans have clearly had enough. MORE...

Howie P.S.: I've had open heart surgery but I'm not yet 100% sure this analogy works. Let's see how the patient is doing in a year or two.

"Marijuana, what does the word mean to you?"

Vivian McPeak (seattlepi.com, op-ed):

To some Americans, the word marijuana conjures up images of blank-stare slackers anchored to a couch, staring blithely at the television, bag of Cheetos in hand.

Other folks may think of marijuana and associate it with their college years, which may or may not have a direct similarity to the above slacker association.

Some people associate marijuana with introspection, creativity, depth of perception, relaxation, or consciousness expansion. Some associate pot with better sex. MORE...

Vivian McPeak: "Obama is accused of a government takeover, while corporations have hijacked democracy"

Vivian McPeak (seattlepi.com, op-ed):

I feel that it is actually the corporate right wing of this country that has accomplished a radical and total government takeover. The recent "Citizens United" Supreme Court ruling has essentially handed our democracy over to the highest bidder. Three billion dollars, much of it from multi-national conglomerates and covertly funneled through shell groups, has just perverted our democracy and influenced a media campaign of toxic gutter-level attack ads. Apparently a very effective strategy for influencing the minds of a pre-occupied and barely informed electorate.

And when I hear what prominent members of the republican party say about Obama, about liberals, and about the media, I feel as they are living in a parallel universe where everything is presented as the opposite of what it appears to actually be.

In classic Orwellian doublespeak the right wing accuses the corporately owned and operated mainstream media of being the mouthpiece of the liberal establishment. This makes about as much sense to me as it does when the partisan FOX news refers to itself as "fair and balanced." For every liberal radio talk show there are 10 conservative ones, for every progressive TV pundit there are scores of conservatives. I hear Tea Party members say things like "the media has given Obama a blank check and are not holding him accountable." Gee, that is exactly what I thought of the way they treated G.W. Bush's administration. MORE...