LEAVE IT TO PEEVER

 

I object!

 

-Bumper sticker of the week: Despite the high cost of living, itÕs still popular.

 

-Quotes of the week: ÒThe most important office of government is citizen.Ó  Justice Brandeis, 1930

 

ÒWar will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today.Ó  John F. Kennedy

 

-Speaking of Conscientious Objector Day: It is today. No parades. No speeches. Our country is not prone to respecting an unwillingness to participate in the military for reasons of conscience. ThatÕs not our way, although there is a long history of citizen unwillingness to support violence on religious, moral or ethical grounds. Each war in our history has seen people willing to step forward and say no to the violence and killing. During the Vietnam War, from 1964-73, 310,199 registrants were classified as conscientious objectors. I happened to have been one of them. Conscientious objector status was issued to me in December, 1972. Before I could arrange for my two years alternative service, the draft ended. I never regretted my refusal to serve in an unjust war. I would do the same today.

 

-War: The fine art of killing people you donÕt know to win them over to your way of thinking.

 

-Globalization is another name for inhumane, environmentally degrading, farmer killing, undemocratic, imperialism. It should be stopped immediately.

 

-What can you say about the Iraqi War? Useless? Immoral? Illegal? Absurd? One mans psychopathic obsession? An oil hunt? Corporate AmericaÕs rebuilding salvation? The war is destroying our country morally, spiritually, and financially, and we still sing ÒGod Bless AmericaÓ and wave our flags, hoping somehow those acts of Bush induced patriotism will justify the killing and massive destruction taking place in both Iraq and Afghanistan. BushÕs approval rating is hovering between 25-30%. Over 60-70% of the American public voice their opposition to the war. Yet it continues on unabated. It is time we turn our anger into action. It is about time we act like human beings, not patriotic robots dancing to the tune of a madman. Following the president does not make you a patriot, it makes you an accomplice.

 

-Real estate taxes going up: In a town that has been deteriorating since 1980, with a steady decline in population, and the lose of thousands of good paying jobs, one has to wonder how our property taxes continue to go up? The only answer I can come up with is because they never go down.

 

-Comcast is a piece of work: We bought a new HDTV, so we wanted to start getting HD broadcasts. Seems simple enough. Mistake number one. So I get a digital receiver and a package. Of course, it costs more, but I reluctantly agree. What channels will I get? TheyÕre not sure, but everything will be settled by April 30. April 30 comes and goes, and IÕm still not sure what IÕm suppose to be getting. So I call. Mistake number two. The lady I talk to has no better idea than I do whatÕs going on, so she tries to sell me long-distant phone service. I ask why I would buy something from a company that already doesnÕt give me what I pay for? She said sheÕll transfer me to someone who can help, which I thought was what she was doing. I lose the connection during the transfer. DirecTV number: 800-201-0488.

 

-Speaking of service: While cleaning my outdoor fan, I dropped the glass globe on the concrete. Slight problem. No one has a replacement. Of course, there couldnÕt be a standard size. So I find a model number, but no company name. I put the model number in the computer, and up pops my fan. A Monte Carlo. I call the company, explaining that I need to buy a new globe for my fan, which I broke. She asks for my name and address and says she will send me a free replacement. Needless to say, I was stunned. It came in the mail a couple of days later. I still donÕt know what to make of it. Some kind of capitalist plot, IÕm sure.