The Living Dead.

Emotions or "feelings" are a lot like Zombies. You can try and kill them or bury them deep down as deep as you go, but they will alwasy rise back up. You can try and re-bury them or do something to throw more dirt on them, but they simply keep coming fiercer and fiercer. Eventually they will become to numerous, engulf me and tackle me to the ground. Then they will feast upon my brains.

Sexism...alive and well.

John McCain has chosen his Vice Presidential running mate. She is a feisty young woman by the name of Sarah Palin. It is a momentous occassion, because she has the prime opportunity to become the first female vice president. I was listening to some pundits discussing some pros and cons about her and the arguments that were being thrown against her made my blood begin to boil. Litterally, it was not a pleasent feeling as the blood began to boil and steam shot out of my ears. I wanted to throw my remote through the damn television and into the face of the people talking. One of the hosts stated that "how can this woman take on the role of being vice president and still be a mother to her children". Does anyone not notice the sexism in that question. It litterally made me want to vomit. We try and be this "open society" where everyone would be treated equal. Yet, this woman is meant to give up a golden opportunity because she has children? And where is the question asked of Barack and how he is going to raise his little girls while taking on the stresses of the presidency? Not to mention the criticism that Palin has gotten because of her seventeen year old daughter being pregnant. That by accepting the VP nod she is "putting her daughter into the publics eye and under scrutiny. First, her daughter is seventeen and capable of making her own decisions, she got pregnant and is getting married. It is not that big of a deal. Secondly, THEY ARE PUTTING HER DAUGHTER INTO THE PUBLICS SPOTLIGHT BY REPORTING IT!!! If it is such a travesty then stop talkinga bout the damn thing. And then there are "reports"(and by reports, i mean dumb ass bloggers who think they have relevency in the world who say stupid shit and it somehow gets picked up as fact) that her child with down syndrome(which I think is sad that everyone just refers to it as 'sarah palin's down syndrome baby') is actually her seventeen year old daughters that Sarah Palin has claimed to give birth to in order to protect her daughter. I just don't think these attacks would be thrown against a man and it sickens me to no end.

The Great What If

What if? That is a question that plagues us all at one point. When you apply it to matters of your life with which you are intimate with it will drive you nuts. But, sometimes it is fun to ponder the great question. With history for example.

What if the Native American's had been able to cross the Atlantic for example. What if their civilizations had been able to flourish. The Aztecs, Incas, and other tribes in Northern America had vast social networks, developed stunning buildins, and were advanced in mathematics and astronomy. In fact, the Aztecs were the first to develop a 365 day calendar. The city of Cahokia was a feat of a city when it was at its prime while Paris and London were villages. What if these cities had been able to advance.

Jarod Diamond has a book out. While I have not had the privilage to read this book, the title says it all: Guns, Germs, and Steel. This is the reason that the West was able to dominate the world. They had the steel which gave them guns which gave them firepower. Meanwhile their germs decimated the native populations which had no antibodies to fight off the bacteria. But, what if the natives had been able to develop steel and use the firepower of guns? Or, what if they had developed the ships which could have taken them great distances. Could they potentially have conquered Europe?

On that token what if the Chinese had travelled more. They had the ability to travel great distances on ships. In fact, some historians argue that they landed in the new world on the pacific coast before Columbus landed on the Atlantic Coast. But, they chose to stay closer to their home shores.

What if the Muslims had never taken over Constantinople? They cut off the land trading routes that the Christan Europeans used to get to the Indies where they would get a lot of spices and silk. Therfore some of those Europeans went looking for sea routes. That is what Columbus was looking for when he stumbled upon America.

The possibilities are endless. But, it is still fun to think about what could have been.

The Office

The Office season 4 comes out on DVD tomorrow. That is an exciting day!

We the People.

In 1776 Thomas Jefferson penned some words to a piece of parchment. It was these words which signified that we had shredded our ties with Great Britain. The process for the thirteen colonies deciding to announce independence was a complicated process which involved a multitude of people. The final conclusion of the decision was a piece of parchment with some signatures. When people think of who won American independence the names of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and John Hancock come to mind. But, those people would be wrong. Now, don't mistake my meaning, I am entierly awed by the bravery and intelligence of our founding fathers. However, the people who truely won our independence were the ones who froze in the trenches at Valley Forge. The ones who crossed the icy Deleware on Christmas Eve to take out a battalion of Hessians. The ones who stayed with the Army even though it looked as if the American cause would be destroyed in one foul swoop. Those are the ones who truely won America's right to exist.

Throughout the ages it has been those people who served in America's military who have kept America's freedom as well. The faces of the Yanks as they were forced to fight their southern brothers. The face of the pimply faced teen lying face down on the beaches of Normandy. The Marine who braved the Japanese jungles. These are the faces who have allowed the United States to remain United.

I bring this up because I have been thinking about the military. And when I think about American history and what America represents it fuels that desire to want to serve. Beacuse it has been "we the people" who have kept America intact and it is up to "we the people" to maintain that. My friend Corey is also joining the Marines. The guy is more of a brother to me than the other person who came out of mother's womb. So, I say to you big guy, that when you join remember that it is an honor to serve. That you are in the company of people who are imprinted upon history. Also, stop bitching at me for not bloggng.