Knocked one final exam down this morning and will complete the semester with one more on Wednesday. I've got to stay focused, but it's been very difficult since the news of Osama bin Laden's death. Actually, the news itself hasn't been distracting -- it's been the egregious and disgusting response by so many Americans to his death that's been distracting and, frankly, infuriating. David Sirota wrote a great piece today in response to the death-fueled patriotism.For decades, we have held in contempt those who actively celebrate death. When we’ve seen video footage of foreigners cheering terrorist attacks against America, we have ignored their insistence that they are celebrating merely because we have occupied their nations and killed their people. Instead, we have been rightly disgusted -- not only because they are lauding the death of our innocents, but because, more fundamentally, they are celebrating death itself. That latter part had been anathema to a nation built on the presumption that life is an "unalienable right."
Since my early teens US politics has been a passionate interest of mine, and I'm not sure how or why I was attracted, but I was. But now, that passion has turned to disgust -- and not 
just for the American political process and the collusion that poisons both parties, but for the general direction and attitude of the country itself. Fact: we've spent over trillion dollars in military and military-related spending since 9/11 and have murdered literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi and Afghan civilians. We invaded Afghanistan to destroy al-Queada and bring bin Laden to justice. Well guess what, the WMD justification for invading Iraq was a total hoax, Afghanistan is Vietnam, Pt. II, and bin Laden had been living in Pakistan for at least the last six years. (And I won't even mention the illegal war launched against Libya.) US officials have stated that the "war on terror" doesn't end with bin Laden's death; in fact, it's quite the opposite -- we must remain "vigilant." So when will the "war on terror" end? It won't. This so-called war is a fear factory, and as long as Americans remain consumed by consumerism, fear production by Uncle Sam will reach new highs. Ironic, because North Korea, the bastion of fascism and proud member of the "axis of evil," administers the same tactic.
just for the American political process and the collusion that poisons both parties, but for the general direction and attitude of the country itself. Fact: we've spent over trillion dollars in military and military-related spending since 9/11 and have murdered literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi and Afghan civilians. We invaded Afghanistan to destroy al-Queada and bring bin Laden to justice. Well guess what, the WMD justification for invading Iraq was a total hoax, Afghanistan is Vietnam, Pt. II, and bin Laden had been living in Pakistan for at least the last six years. (And I won't even mention the illegal war launched against Libya.) US officials have stated that the "war on terror" doesn't end with bin Laden's death; in fact, it's quite the opposite -- we must remain "vigilant." So when will the "war on terror" end? It won't. This so-called war is a fear factory, and as long as Americans remain consumed by consumerism, fear production by Uncle Sam will reach new highs. Ironic, because North Korea, the bastion of fascism and proud member of the "axis of evil," administers the same tactic.We don't live in a democracy.
We don't live in a representative republic.
We live in a military state that uses its worthless dollars to protect its crumbling self-interests.
God bless America!
God bless America!
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