On Ruffling Undergarments
Well, shit. I just can't seem to get by in this place. It appears that every time I open my mouth, someone deletes my comment or gets offended because I chose to tender a dissenting opinion in an OPEN FORUM. That's what blogs are supposed to be, aren't they? I thought the beauty of a free and open internet was the fact that one can have contact with swaths of people from around the globe, and thus, unfetter the boundaries of communication.
As with most things, it appears I have made a grievous mistake. I've been accused of being many things during these first twenty-two years of my life, and most of those accusations were warranted, if not true. I am a self-involved prick, prone to irrational bouts of rage while sauced up on whiskey, afraid of the world, and altogether unable to deal with simple societal realities pertaining to a country overrun with moneygrubbing warhawks and pedophile clergymen. In a word, I am no fun to be around unless you happen to be a fan of woolly mammoths, mutants, and carnal fantasy.
But one thing I am not: a rabble-rouser. If you claim to uphold the ideals of a country that, quite frankly, rarely upholds its ideals, you'd better be goddamned good and ready to take a little criticism. You'd better be ready to rationally counterattack, and you'd better have the testicular fortitude not to take it personally. First and foremost, most self-espoused "patriots" had better seriously reconsider the definitions of three words in particular: freedom, democracy, patriotism.
Freedom means that you can do what you want as long as it does not infringe upon the rights of others. It means that the pursuit of happiness is alive and well in this country (it is not) and that people will be allowed to say damn near anything without incurring incongruent repercussions. Freedom is not biased in favor of the status quo, nor does it show preference to elected officials based on party politics.
Democracy is currently limited to a few insignificant local governments. What we have on a national scale is a Representative Democracy, but that representation is so egregiously lopsided by now when compared to the populous, that I've got no problem calling the whole thing an Oligarchy. The federal government is an incestuous den of avaricious fuckups, and the next person that tells their children "anyone can become President" is going to get a coupon from me for a Free Lobotomy. (I am, after all, a humanitarian.) We have the son of a former president in office as we speak, and the 2008 election will be marked by the candidacy of a former First Lady. That's right, Jimmy, anyone can be the President. All is fair in...
And finally, we have patriotism. Of the three buzz words, this one might be the most abused. A patriot in today's terms is a flag-shitting NRA member. He buys American cars (exclusively) and doesn't realize that illegal immigration fuels a good portion of our economy. To him, there is only one way to deal with foreign enemies--show them the open end of a gun barrel.
I've got my own thoughts on patriotism, and remember, they're just thoughts. If you want to call me a commie rat, then do it. Patriotism, to me, is taking care of your people. This means providing health care for the entire population instead of sending able, young men and women to die in a jungle or a desert. It means refraining from international bullying and arousing hatred among dangerous people. It means being humble enough to realize that a country is just a country and that a nation cannot survive without its people. Last but not least, it means having some faith in a global community where borderlines do not decide which human beings are expendable and which are essential to "the cause." Collateral damage is a cop-out. Only a truly heartless person can claim to believe in such rubbish. Harry Truman, you fiend.
So here we are, and I believe the end is in sight. This is two BlogoWars in the span of one week, and I'm getting very tired of it. Perhaps it is time to keep my mouth shut purely out of convenience. I'm sending a truce, at any rate, to the person that prompted me to write this post. I will not reveal the name since they were courteous enough not to reveal mine. War crimes won't get me anywhere but to the bottom of the pile, and I am not in the business of making enemies.
I should make it abundantly clear that much of this post had nothing to do with the blogger in question. The initial confrontation led to a few unrelated tangents, and I certainly don't want to insinuate that I am accusing our good compatriot of most of the ills listed above. Stirring up spite was never my intent. We've all overdosed already.