Spitting Against the Wind: Not Advised! Why Do They Do It?

Remnant of people past
Much of the political talk these days is about whether Rover pissed on the carpet, and whether his owner will take him to the pound if it is determined that Rover's action was illegal, that is, a violation of the White House lease. So, they tell us that the determinant factor in one's behavior is not a tad above what the law prescribes [how convenient!]. OK, I can live with that, but I expect more from those in the highest echelons of our government. I expect that they have acquired the notion of what's right! [read: correct] Competence would be nice too. Avoiding petty vindictiveness would also be very nice. Admitting mistakes, learning from them, and changing one's ways would definitely be welcome. Not rewarding failures by giving presidential medals and promotions would show that serving the country well is above allegiance to Caesar. While Bush keeps raising the tolerance bar in order to keep his elephants around him, they're getting bigger by the day, bloating from their own air of arrogance! Some special counsel Fitzgerald, I heard, is running around with a prick in his hands looking for trouble. He's talked about "the crime being committed," and, "the plot against Wilson." We shall see.

By the way, Rover had been known to be a carpet pisser many times before the latest leak. For a dog, he's a natural. Bush 41 kicked him out of the house, but junior was all to happy to see his pitbull mortally wounding McCain in South Carolina in 2000. The stench coming from this one-party government is now becoming overwhelming. We better open the windows and let some fresh air in. We'll have a chance to do just that in 2006 and again in 2008. Otherwise, our old trusted friends won't be visiting again and we may find that our only choice would be shady characters who lurk in dark alleys. We've associated with them before, and it was a bad experience; let's hope they're a thing of the past.

Speaking of fresh air, I came across Jared Diamond's Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. [read a recent interview here] The author examines past civilizations [like the Aztec and the Maya, the Greenland Norse, and the inhabitants of Easter Island] and the underlying reasons for their extinction. Obviously, there are many causes for a civilization's collapse, but the environment is of utmost importance. It plays a great role in fostering a civilization or eventually dooming it! Invariably, the losers had made the decision to destroy their immediate environment. Today, we are doing it in a much greater scale and the results are evident already! The scientific community is in agreement about global warming. Granted, the earth may be going through temperature cycles, but no scientist (except those who work for the fossil fuel industry) refutes that human activities are affecting the planet's climate on a grand scale.

I don't know about you, but I like fresh air, clean environment, and the thought that future generations will have a nice place to live in. Our best tool of understanding--science--tells us that we've been very careless in the last 100 years. The 1990s were the hottest on average in the last 1,000 years. The oceans are absorbing huge amounts of carbon (the result of burning coal and oil) which has been altering the water's acidity, influencing water temperatures, current flows, intensity and frequency of hurricanes, etc. The negative effects of environmental deterioration would be felt most severely by the poorest people on our planet. So, if we are to promote a culture of life, shouldn't we care about the conditions under which people live and try to improve those conditions when it makes a difference?

There are those who are adverse to science, either because they "don't get it," or, because it makes them uncomfortable by revealing truths they don't like. The Bush administration has been actively distorting scientific data. The NOAA scientists report political interference with scientific determinations. The government-funded agency is directed to keep silent if the facts don't fit the White House policy. Morale is low, and funding is cut. In other words, the conservatives are not for conservation and long-term stewardship of our common treasures like the environment.

I learned, very early, to appreciate the natural beauty and the great outdoors as it was introduced to me by my father. He taught me to respect and protect our environment so my children and future generations would also marvel at this unique and beautiful world of ours. He also told me that we humans are part of this ecosystem--which in essence gave birth to us--so we should be grateful and become good housekeepers. We shouldn't pollute and destroy our only house! Stupid behavior is not advised, just like spitting against the wind. Personally, I wouldn't mind if some ignoramus got his face soiled from feeling the effects of his stupid actions, but this is our house too; we must protect it and keep it clean.

For starters, Rover has to go. His master and the rest of the cohorting clique should follow soon because they've been partying too much at our expense, damaging the reputation of our house, while running up huge bills for us to pay. I've already picked up my broom and can't wait to use it.