Obama, bell and Pullman

Congrats to Obama for his historic win. But what's more impressive than the massive electoral win is the nearly 50/50 popular vote, which is the best voter turnout that I'll probably ever experience. I think young people especially felt compelled to get out there and make it count, whomever they voted for. I am especially proud of that.

My presentation tomorrow will include bits from this YouTube about bell hooks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQUuHFKP-9s

And here's the bit about Philip Pullman that sticks with me: that he (an athiest) can retell and de-stigmatize the Eve myth, by giving Lyra a fall without sexual experience and giving all people the ability to shape the universe without an Almighty. It's a similar move for those that have seen the film, Dogma by Kevin Smith (though he's a Catholic critiquing Catholicism). The most important aspect of religion isn't the divine and adherence to a certain set of rules or credos, but how each individual chooses to believe or have faith. (I was going to include a portion of an essay on Pullman's His Dark Materials right now, but I have misplaced that book. Hopefully I will find it in the next few days.)