Debbie, Debbie, Debbie I understand that you are up for re-election this year and that being the case you seem to be voting a tad bit erratically (immigration anyone?), but voting FOR a constitutional amendment banning flag burning? You aren't going to win over the Republicans. It's just not gonna happen. And, in fact, for some of us teetering on the fringes of the Democratic party we might go shopping for a new candidate (and you thought the Democrats and Republicans were scary? Check out the two 3rd party candidates' sites Brett McAtee for the Constitution Party and Leonard Schwartz for the Libertarians -my favorite from Schwartz: "In Vermont, no one needs a permit to carry a concealed pistol. Vermont doesn't waste people's time and money processing useless paperwork. Only North Dakota has a lower violent crime rate than Vermont." And that would be because not many people actually live there!) I'm about ready to do something so unbelievably lame even I can't believe it, but here it is:
"America isn't easy. America is advanced citizenship. You've gotta want it bad, 'cause it's gonna put up a fight. It's gonna say, "You want free speech? Let's see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil, who's standing center-stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours. You want to claim this land as the land of the free? Then the symbol of your country cannot just be a flag. The symbol also has to be one of its citizens exercising his right to burn that flag in protest. Now show me that, defend that, celebrate that in your classrooms. Then, you can stand up and sing about the land of the free."
Anyone want to guess where I got that?
I'd like to applaud the Surgeon General for not presenting new scientific data but rather providing an analysis of research from the past and coming up with the same conclusion any rational, semi-intelligent, somewhat conscious individual who can read would come to: secondhand smoke is bad.
Last night I watched Frontline/World. I know it's replaying on WGVU and I'd strongly urge people to see it. I was mostly interested because I had recently read an article in The New Yorker about Zimbabwe. Ready for a few startling statistics?
- Life expectancy has declined in the last 2 decades from 62 years to 38 years
- Inflation is over 1000% and 70% of the population is unemployed
The site has a pretty good overview of the history with extensive links. I still can't believe that Mugabe--a man who came to power as an opposition leader, a man ready to liberate his people from oppression has become the oppressor. It's startling and shocking. He was supposed to be the hope and future for Zimbabwe and has only become yet another evil dictator who is power-hungry and looking out for his own interests.
There is something BAD going on in Gaza and Syria right now but it's too soon to tell what's happening. How the United States can even consider itself remotely impartial considering we are banking Israel is beyond me. Scary stuff. The last thing we need over there is Israel getting all up in the Palestinian's grill, but that looks like what is going to go down.
I'm considering going for a run after work despite not getting out of here until 9pm. The weather should be near perfect and maybe the run will actually tire me out a little allowing me a respite from my insomnia. I took today off to recover from the past 2 days of too much/too fast, but I'm feeling a little restless-in-the-legs. It sounds like a great idea while I sit upon my bottom at the Information Desk. Methinks I'll arrive home and have conflicting thoughts.
We'll just have to see.
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