What the hell is going on, anyway?

So I heard the weirdest thing earlier this week. I heard the Vice President telling me that if I made the wrong choice on November 2nd, that some of my fellow Americans would die in a terrorist attack that would be "devestating from an American standpoint."

Hey, I'm sorry, but I think we can all join in a resounding hymn and say: What the fuck does that mean? Well, it seems to mean the same thing we're being told from our leaders and their supporters, which is that if we don't put our vote towards keeping the powers that be, we will all die in some sort of catastrophe. What sort? Some sort. It could be Saddam (well...not anymore...now it just could be Iraq). It could be Bin Laden. Hell, it could even be North Korea (but who cares about them anyway, right?). But we don't know. We've never known. It's always just been some vague threat from the Middle Easterns. Which ones? Doesn't matter...they all look the same, so they COULD be in cahoots, couldn't they?

I'm sorry if this is new to you, but there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

There was no connection between Al Queda and Iraq.

Over 1000 men and women are dead as a result. Over 7000 are injured. And this isn't injured like "broken toe injured." Soldiers with broken limbs go back to the field. For a lot of it, we're talking about missing limbs. That's in the upwards of 8000 who have had their lives destroyed.

And for what? To get Saddam out of power? Was that all? If that was the only reason (and we can debate the merits of that all day long...me, I see little good that came from it, seeing as we spent a good deal of our time substituting the word "liberating" with the word "bombing"), we did that months ago. We "handed over" the power to the Iraqui people on June 30th of this year. So why is it that just DAYS ago I hear that the death toll has crossed 1000?

On a related note, 9/11 is not the source of all problems. There's this great Saturday Night Live sketch from just before the 2000 election where Bush Jr. (Will Ferrell) asks his dad (Dana Carvey) for advice in campaigning. Bush Sr. tells him to just tread the middle ground...don't take a stance one way or the other. Whatever the question is, the answer is "maybe" or some form thereof. Same strategy it seems these days, except now it's all because of 9/11. Easy answers to complicated issues.

Guys and gals, 9/11 isn't responsible for children not getting proper education, tax increase, less police officers, or any of the other crap that's been going on for the past four years. $200 billion in Iraq? That might have something to do with it. Just maybe. One of my favorite statistics EVER is that if we cut out one bomber from the army budget, every kid would be getting proper education.

Oh, and in case you didn't hear ('cause the White House sure as hell isn't gonna tell you), the Taliban's in control in Afghanistan. Just a side note. Been that way for over a year now...nothing really new.

Oh, but we got Saddam, so it's okay.

Oh, and somehow the entire election seems to hinge on who had the better service record in the Vietnam War. THIRTY FIVE YEARS AGO. Sorry, but there's big problems going on in the world today. Someone's service record is completely irrelevent, and I for one would like to hear our potential future leaders to discuss some of the real issues going on today.

BIG FAT DISCLAIMER: This is no attempt to further any sort of agenda. This is not meant to incite. It was simply meant as a questioning of those in power. I'm not saying the Republicans are evil, just that the people in the White House decided, somewhere along the way, to lie about everything that matters in this country. I don't really think the Democrats have the best answer for America's problems either, to be honest with you (much of the reason I registered Independent), but they are better than what we've been dealing with these past four years.
I think it's absurd the way people automatically approach political discussions as a screaming match. You ever wanna talk about what's going on in the world, you know where I am. You ever wanna attack me...well, bring it on, my defense is good, but really...that's just me being polite. That kinda thing is not welcome.

If you're 18 or over, please vote this election. While I've made my standpoint clear, the way you vote isn't nearly as important as if you vote or not. I'd rather someone vote for Bush than not vote at all.

In the meantime, everyone should be paying close attention to this election. I'm not perfect at it, I know, but I'm trying. Here's some stuff coming up:

Cinema 21 is showing "Bush's Brain" from Friday 'til next Thursday. It deals with Karl Rove, the man who has been one of the top guys in the Republican party since 1973, and how he, as Bush Jr.'s political consultant, has been the mastermind behind much of what the administration does (Bush himself calls Rove "the man with the plan").

On Friday, September 10th (which, for many of you reading this, is today), some of the people from the 9/11 Commission will be on Hardball with Chris Matthews. I know a lotta people will be at the football game, but I have the TiVo set to record it, so if you want to see it, just talk to me.

If you haven't seen "Fahrenheit 9/11," see it. It doesn't matter if you come out disagreeing with Moore's viewpoints, you absolutely have to see it. For those who doubt the factual authority presented in the film, all of it is backed up (the major points are even backed up by the 9/11 Comission).
http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/f911notes/

Goodnight, and have a pleasant tomorrow.