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| R a n t s | See the Strips |
| date | rant |
| 5.15.03 | Just when I got it figured out, it's over. I made it through (I think) by terrifying myself and being convinced that I would fail. |
4.15.03 |
The government owes me money. |
4.11.03 |
Assistant Attorney General Viet Dinh came to school and I went to see him. He gave a fairly somber talk about immigration issues, the war, and terrorism. He told a little fable about asking three construction workers what they were doing. The first said, "Laying bricks." The second said, "Digging a trench." The third said, "Building a cathedral." Dinh's point was, only the third worker had vision. Fair enough. He seems like a reasonable, smart, hard-working guy. He wraps up by explaining that President Bush now is seeking to be inclusive by following what FDR did at the end of each speech, i.e., saying, "God bless America and freedom-loving people all over the world." Maybe I shouldn't have, and I've yet to confirm it, but I assumed since Dinh was Asian American, he probably wasn't monotheistic. So after the talk, I asked him how he figures saying "God bless ..." is an "inclusive" statement. Doesn't that alienate people who don't believe in God? Do we really want to conflate government statements with religion? "Well," Dinh replied, "all our dollars say In God We Trust." "That's offensive too," I heard myself say. Of course, I'm trying to keep my comments on the down low so as not to be misbranded as some anti-American freak. The way Dinh reconciles it is that any mention of "God" on money, government speeches, in the courtroom, etc., is simply a ritual. The point of it is merely to add gravitas to a situation. Seems like a smokescreen to me, allowing religious intolerance to continue. About 20 minutes later, I'm coming out of the men's room, and I hear someone yell down the hall: "Hey! There goes that godless guy!" Exactly what I was dreading, I thought. But then I looked up, and it was Dinh yelling! He had a glass of wine in his hand and a twinkle in his eye. It was then I realized what a political animal this guy was. He paints himself as Mr. Earnest, but he's laughing all the way. Of course, all I could do was laugh along with him. But then I said, "Seriously, though, this keeps me up at night. I consider myself patriotic, and I believe in the United States. But I can't help but feel alienated by governmental references to God." "Did you hear what Rodney Paige said last week?" Dinh asked. "It'll give you nightmares." I hadn't heard. But a quick news search turned up the following quotes from Secretary of Education Rodney Paige: I'd prefer to have a child in a school where there's a strong appreciation for values, the kinds of values that I think are associated with the Christian communities.... There is a place for God in public schools. Paige added that he would pray for those who disagreed. While he's doing that, I'm going to ask Santa Claus to please deliver a Secretary of Education that listens to Marilyn Manson, likes gefilte fish, reads horoscopes, and chants "nam-myoho-renge-kyo." And while I'm at it, I'm going to see if the Easter Bunny needs any eggs, 'cause since we haven't found any weapons of mass destruction yet, we seem to be getting a lot of egg on our faces. |
4.01.03 |
This war demonstrates the United States government's commitment to humanitarianism. April Fool's! But seriously, the State Department apparently issued a statement yesterday condemning China, Israel, and Palestine for human rights violations. Um, did they forget about the seven civilians that U.S. soldiers killed yesterday at a checkpoint in Iraq? I got back from a vacation in Tortola last night, where I basked in the Caribbean sun and the glow of ubiquitous televisions barking out the latest developments on "Operation Iraqi Freedom." Footage of protests all over the planet was neatly packaged by CNN and Fox in bars and restaurants all over the Virgin Islands. When they broke for commercials, it seemed like I was watching corporately-sponsored chaos. My big revelation was that President Bush brings out the worst in people. Ironically, during his campaign, he claimed to be a great unifier. How ludicrous that seems now. Alliances are breaking down, and even long-time personal friendships are on the brink of ruin. Nicole, who runs a burger joint in Brewer's Bay, had written the following on a Budweiser mirror: "Bush told Saddam to leave Iraq. Saddam said, can I come to the Whitehouse?" |
3.20.03 |
Bombing and ground attacks are underway in Iraq. Students staged a walk-out today and gathered in front of the statue of John Harvard. A handful of pro-war students gathered nearby. They were yelling that we should support our troops. I wondered, wouldn't we be supporting our troops by bringing them home?! How are we supporting our troops by placing them in harm's way? I also was wondering how we can rationalize engaging in mass destruction to prevent others from doing the same. There's also been a lot of talk from the administration about the tragedy of burning oil wells given their economic value to Iraqis. No one has mentioned the environmental damage associated with burning oil wells. Isn't that also a huge threat to the welfare of Iraqi civilians? Would this administration ever take a stance against adverse impacts to the environment? One final thought: There have been demonstrations around the world, involving millions of people, against war. If our pre-emptive strike against Saddam Hussein was so urgent, why weren't there similar demonstrations calling for the use of force to take Saddam out? On the campaign trail, wasn't it candidate Bush that said, "I trust the people, not the government"? If we make decisions against the will of the population, provoking global resentment against U.S. citizens and threatening U.S. security, isn't that tyranny? |
3.17.03 |
I watched President Bush's address with a bunch of students at Harkness Commons. The following lines elicited laughter from the crowd (I don't think that was the reaction Bush was going for): In any conflict, your fate will depend on your actions. Do not destroy oil wells.... [laughter] And we will not be intimidated by thugs.... [laughter] It's just not clear to me why we didn't take more time to build a worldwide consensus in support of our actions. The buildup of troops in the Gulf gave us a tremendous opportunity to bargain in the shadow of military action. But, the use of force should have been a last resort. Notwithstanding Saddam's "evil" tendencies, members of the U.N. Security Council are rational and sophisticated. In this day and age, a more creative, unifying solution should have been formulated. We squandered an opportunity to strengthen bonds with our allies and assert our moral superiority over terrorists. |