PlayadelSoul and His Oversized Piehole

Politics is another area of great interest to me. I love talking policy, elections, etc. As a card carrying, conservative, it is easy to find someone who disagrees with me, here in hippy town. This area seems to be a magnet for the kind of person described in www.stuffwhitepeoplelike.com. You know the type; rich, white guys with empathy pouring out their ass. Universal health care, Obama, out of Iraq, Obama, global warming, Obama, end the Patriot Act, Obama, Waterboarding hurts, Obama, etc., etc. They are the kind of folks who love to live in the problem, yet do little to solve it. They talk of the danger of global climate change with the guy sitting next to them, in first class, as they prepare to arrive for their fourth trip of the year, to Playa. They want the government to do more, as they invent itemizations on their tax returns. They call for others to open their hearts, while giving 50% less in charity than the average conservative. After a while, it gets too old. They are preprogrammed to some sort of group think, and there is no way to penetrate. Before you say, “Well, Mark, aren’t you the same?”, let me state that living in Mexico has made me more liberal in some areas and more conservatve in others. I think I am open to ideas. I used to be pro death penalty. Now, I am against it. I used to want closed borders. Now, I want humane immigration reform.  Life teaches us things.  Living in a world where everyone is the same, teaches you nothing. 

I used to post on an internet forum, from Playa, and argue politics. It was fun for awhile, until I noticed the same drivel being spewed, over and over. Add to that, the owner of the forum tried to screw over some dear friends of mine, and I called it quits. I still go back (under another name) to take a shot, now and then, but it does no good.  I have finally given up.  I still like discussing politics, and seeing as I am prohibited, by law, to discuss Mexican politics, the internet is my only outlet.   I have migrated over to another Playa forum, In the Roo, to continue the fight.  No groupthink, there.  Liberals, moderates and conservatives posting politely about their opinions.  Also, if you want good local advice on Playa, IN THE ROO is the site to visit.   Many of the people who post there, actually live here, and it is locally owned.  You don’t get advice from people who haven’t set foot in Playa since San Francisco was the only grocery store, in town. 

When we first arrived in Playa, the biggest news in town was that a national grocery chain (Chedruai) was getting ready to open a store, here. People, who had been used to driving to Cancun to buy anything other than the basics, were ecstatic. Fast forward four years, and the supermarkets won’t stop opening. This place is growing like kudzu. Business is starting to reflect it, as we have gone from 40th to top 10 in income for my company. There are times, during the day, when the school is bursting with students. It is a great sight to behold, especially when commission time rolls around.

In any event, here we are. A family of four, as Benjamin joined us when we first arrived (He is now 4 and Aaron, 6). After living in a two-bedroom apartment for a couple of years, we were finally able to buy our own house (they just didn’t exist, before). We are comfortable. We live a pretty simple life, which is good because there is not a whole lot to do, unless you are a tourist. Working six days a week and spending Sunday mornings in church, then doing laundry  ironing and resting. That is working life in Playa, for the most part. You are likely to hear the same story from many people who call this place home, the only change being the day off.

There are other benefits of living in Mexico.  No smoke nazis.  No condo boards dictating what you can or cannot do with your property.  Strong families.  Low tax rates.  And, best of all, the most beautiful beaches in the world.  As with any place, there are pros and cons.  I could have done much worse, believe me. 

I have no idea what they refer to when they claim that he speaks “grown-upese.” I am guessing that “We are going to attack Iraq.  All in favor, say ‘Aye’,” wasn’t adult enough, and some had problems with its simplicity. 

The trick, it seems, is to get someone else to buy into your version. Last year, global warmists seem to have taken the lead in the “End is Near” sweepstakes. Temperatures have been rising, they claimed, and we were all going to melt like the Wicked Witch of the West.

The ice cap is disappearing and temps went up .6 degrees in 10 years. What to do? Stop using fossil fuels, they scream. So, we look for alternatives. Ethanol looks good. Oops, too much corn being used, the Food Crisis moves up a couple of notches on the scale. No fossil fuels means no immediate growth in 3rd world countries. Malaria spreads among those who live in poor Africa. Move over bird flu and welcome back mosquito borne diseases making a comeback due to another knee jerk reaction to a “dire”cause (DDT contamination). Hey, wouldn’t nuclear power be a nice alternative to fossil fuels? Sorry, we already had that scare, and decided to forego building any reactors.

Now, the elections approach and we need issues. How about housing foreclosures? People are losing their abodes to the “predatory lender”.

This animal did not exist until some white liberals decided that the practice of denying loans to people based on their economic situation was racist and discriminatory. The homeless crisis, I think it was labeled. A committee was called and they decided that “reverse redlining” was the answer. Welcome to your new home. No need to worry about paying for it. We will figure that out, later.

The housing crisis is just a preview of the upcoming economic crisis. Recession, at the least, and probably depression, are soon to follow. For some damn reason, those fat cat Wall Street types haven’t gotten on board yet, and the economy keeps growing. Don’t worry, though, you talk enough about a recession and people will convince themselves right into one. I think this is called the Consumer Confidence crisis, but feel free to correct me.

And, this brings us to Obama. The answer to all our prayers. He is on Board of Director’s of just about every crisis (except for the Illegal Immigration one) and, even, was against the war in Iraq when he was a barista at Starbucks. Just ask the manager, there. She will confirm this.

He talks real pretty and acknowledges the reality of all of our problems. And, as an extra bonus, he is black, which addresses the Race Crisis. But, listen real close and see if you hear a plan. My guess is that he is just another in a long line of alarmists. Alarm you, so that he can take more of your money and allocate it, better than you can. Some people like to worry, because it gives their life a purpose. My hope is that this “some” has not reached majority status, yet. I am off to church and then to visit the gun show. I’ll let you know what I find out.

We had been tracking her as there was a chance she would hit Cancun, where my in-laws and friends lived. As she passed north, closer to Cuba, we were relieved and kind of put the storm out of our minds. The track had her entering the Gulf and heading north by northwest, towards northern Mexico. Even when the track started a more westernly direction, we didn’t think much about it. As she started to move a little towards the south, we started to pay a little more attention, but no one believed it would visit Merida. Then, my parents called with an update from the Weather Channel. We had about 6 hours to get ready.

Isidore taught us a few things. People are generally good, life is possible without some of what we call necessities and hurricanes suck.