LEAVE IT TO PEEVER
What Hell
and Minnesota have in common
-Bumper
sticker of the week: U.S. government-scaring people into obedience for the last
8 years.
-Quote of
the week: ÒIf everyone howled at every injustice, every act of barbarism, every
act of unkindness, then we would be taking the first step toward a real
humanity.Ó Nelson DeMille
-Everybody
knows diets donÕt work, but we keep on trying. My weight is currently down
some, but IÕm not quite sure of the reason. When I think about dieting, I immediately
get hungry. I eat more junk than any one human should have to endure, even
after having had a heart attack. I should be a vegetarian, but the thought
scares me. At the least I should quite eating a whole pie, or a half-gallon of
ice cream at one setting. You would think a person could control themselves a
little better, but there is something about eating, particularly sweets, that I
canÕt shake off. I suppose we all have that one something we find hard to
resist. I donÕt smoke, drink to excess, use drugs, and I donÕt have any
overwhelming desire to be a workaholic. But donÕt let me get anywhere near a
bakery.
-Hell and
damnation sermons never did bother me too much. I never got scared or worried
about the preachers make-believe hell. Apparently he never took a real good
look at war, or he must have never seen any of those commercials that show
starving African children, or he must not have ever talked to parents who lost
a child, or a couple divorcing after 30 years of marriage. He made up silly stories
about going to hell, somewhere down-below, when all the while all he had to do
was look around.
-There is
no way to get out of it: Getting older, more aches and pains than pills to cure
them; naps; illness; forgetfulness, impending death. You canÕt get away from
this, no matter how good of a life youÕve lead, no matter how well you have
taken care of yourself, how important you think you are, how needed you might
be by someone else, or how sure you are that youÕll break the old age record.
Death is unimpressed.
-On a
lighter note: The Democratic Convention looked to be a real good party. I did
enjoy some of what I was able to catch. Ted Kennedy gave a remarkable speech
for the shape he is in. While he has had plenty of upÕs and downÕs during his
lifetime, his leadership abilities, and desire to help others less fortunate
than himself, are undeniable. His advocacy and hope to see universal
health-care will be his lasting legacy. He has it right: Health-care in America
should be a right, not an expensive privilege reserved for the rich. I agree
with all of the speakers, now is the right time for Obama. John McCain is only
more of the same. McCain is old school. He sees the world through the same eyes
as Bush. HeÕs voted with him 90% of the time. A maverick heÕs not. He will not
take us anywhere new. He likes what has been. Of course Obama is not going to
do all that he says. This is a campaign, not reality. After McCainÕs pick for
Vice-President, itÕs clear his wanting to win is outweighing his common-sense.
For someone standing next in line to become President, experience is obviously
not one of his main concerns. Losing the credibility of that argument against
Obama has made him a bigger loser than I had anticipated. And heÕs not a very
convincing reformer, of either Washington or the Republican Party. He has been
in Washington for 28 years. What has he been doing all that time? His maverick, reformer strategy smacks
of fantasy and self-indulgent nonsense.
-The
question remains, is there anything that Galesburg can do to save itself?: The
answer is Yes, But only with your help. The answer comes in our diversity and
willingness to explore new ideas, new dreams, new realities, engaging everyone,
regardless of color, religion, age, sex, sexual preference, whether rich or
poor, new to town or a life-long resident. Our prosperity, or lack thereof,
will come from our unity and the richness of our differences, not our
likenesses or willingness to accept the status quo.