The show is shaping up well--about time, as we perform it on Sunday. Wore my full outfit to rehearsal last night and everybody liked it. I was relieved to see it didn't cause any problems when I was dragged off. I do have to stay--standing up--in a tiny alcove after I'm murdered and the restaurant's coffee service is there. Hope that doesn't cause any problems.
Frank came over to watch the Phillies/Mets game and stayed until I got home. So funny: Mets were winning by three runs when I walked in the door. No sooner did I enter than the Phils loaded the bases, then tied it, going into overtime. Frank went home at that point and ha-ha--I saw in the paper just now the Phillies had won! YES! There's no denying that my supernatural powers influenced the game. Think I'll play the lottery today...
Wider: It's been a while since I've added a political (liberal? progressive? humanitarian?) note, but not because I'm no longer interested. It's just that I sometimes wonder "what's the use?" when I contemplate the complacency (ignorance? self-centered obtuseness?) of the American public in the face of news like this:
"The Obama administration is weighing plans to detain some terror suspects on U.S. soil -- indefinitely and without trial -- as part of a plan to retool military commission trials that were conducted for prisoners held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba."
--Fox News
(Emphasis added.)
Are people outraged? Are they rising up? Does this topic enter into the conversation around the kitchen table or the office water cooler? Okay, does it even enter into the consciousness of the great mass of the American public?
What do you think?
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Had a delightful lunch with my new (Wellspouse) friend, Mary L. yesterday. No problem getting to TGI Friday's in Toms River--in fact, ...
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Thursday, August 23: Lunch with the most recent gang of company was nice. Had the menu I planned and everybody seemed to like it; just serve...
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Ellen scrambled eggs for breakfast, then she and I went to the meadow preserve and took a long walk. Here are some pics from that very enjoy...
4 comments:
Mimi, I've been thinking about your questions today. While I don't have an "answer," exactly, a couple of things did occur to me.
I think we all buy into some American mythology -- I know I do. I'm trying to think of when in American history people have risen up in outrage about anything that did not directly affect them as individuals, and I'm not coming up with anything. Recent (well, not exactly recent, but, you know) example: the great, ferocious Vietnam-era antiwar movement. Yes, it got pretty militant for a while ... but as soon as it became obvious that nobody was getting drafted and sent to Vietnam any more, it vanished like a soap bubble ... pop!
So, doesn't our increasingly authoritarian regime threaten us all? Yes, it does; but most of us don't think so. They hear Obama talk, and they're just thinking about swarthy foreigners getting jugged and abused indefinitely, and basically, none of us care. All we're worried about is where the next check is coming from.
I'd like to believe that I'm part of a peace-loving American people, who are unfortunately duped by tyrants from time to time. Trouble is, I don't see much evidence for what I'd like to believe.
Jim, I'm afraid we're of like minds. I try not to obsess about our loss of basic freedoms (and the right to a fair, open trial is SO basic), but it's alarming how casually things like this announcement are received--and how quickly they become of no interest to most of the public.
And, oh yes, where is the anti-war movement? Now that the dems are in, they've gone silent for the most part. And our murderous ways continue.
It's just that I sometimes wonder "what's the use?"
Me too. I don't know if that makes you feel better or worse. There must be many many people who are fed up. How do we stir them and ourselves to action?
I wish I knew. In particular, how do we combat the war mentality and galvanize the peace movement? I'm disgusted by outfits like MoveOn and The Huffington Post. Now that O. is in, they concentrate on dredging up the the republicans' old crimes, with hardly a whisper about the continuing slaughter under the dems.
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