A Gruesome Reminder
Since 9.11, I have worried that some Americans just didn't "get it" regarding the nature of the evil trying to kill them. As if we needed a reminder --
the brutal murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl by Islamic extremists is yet another example of the wanton savagery that permeates the world today. Pearl leaves behind a beautiful wife who is 7 months' pregnant with a child he will never have the chance to play with. Yesterday as I watched the marathon coverage on both Fox News Channel and CNN, I thought that perhaps now these journalists will realize that the thugs on the other side of the line don't care who we are or what we believe. Pearl, from what I gathered on CNN last night, was critical of American foreign policy, and that maybe he thought that would make him safe in the arena he was in. ZoMother Victoria Vergara told me last night that on Oprah's Wednesday show, Christianne Amanpour lamented on how journalists are treated by extremists even though they are trying to be objective. She shouldn't be so surprised.
These terrorist murdering scions of evil need to be crushed and relegated to the dungeon of history. Why do some of our "intelligent" types still not understand? Take Jimmy Carter, for example. His claptrap about "progress" with Iraq and North Korea is misguided. Here was the progress, and it was one-sided in favor of our enemies: as their capacity to field weapons of mass destruction increased exponentially, our willpower to do anything about it waned. All of this goes to the basic premise -- do you prefer a peaceful society or a free one? If your goal is peace at all costs, then you end up compromising freedom and legitimizing forced servitude. It's the ghost of Chamberlain, of Lindberg, of Vichy, of defeatism. In order to live in a free society, peace is desired but it isn't the highest standard by which you base your livelihood. You cannot just negotiate away your freedom and your security just for peace.
Olympics
It was another busy night on the ice last night as 16-year old Sarah Hughes leapt from 4th to the gold medal last night in the women's figure skating . I myself was rooting for American Sasha Cohen, but both she and heavy favorite Michelle Kwan fell down during the freestyle program. The James Bond-ishly named Irina Slutskaya aced her way to the silver, but her program was lacking in difficulty.
The U.S. women's hockey team lost to the Canadians 3-2 in the gold medal game. Still, I'm happy that a North American team won the tournament. Tonight, unless the Russians follow through with their threat to pull out of the Games entirely, the men's U.S. hockey team will face off with the Russians. That would actually be such a letdown, because the Russkies have a really good shot at a gold medal. (On a brief fashion note, the Russians also have some aesthetically cool jerseys, designed by who else but Nike! And their red-white-blue combo is so much more lively than the old dank red of the USSR). Plus, I want the U.S.(who also have happenin' threads) to earn a gold medal game slot, not default its way into it. Of course, either way this is a Cold War replay, because if the game takes place it reprises the 1980 Miracle on Ice, and if it doesn't, then it reprises the Cold War tradition of simply not showing up (the Soviets' removal of the nukes from Cuba in 1962, the Americans not showing up in Moscow for the '80 Summer Games after Afghanistan, the Soviets leaving the negotiating table in Geneva back in 1983, the Soviets returning the Americans' favor in the 1984 LA games, etc).
Contradiction?
Sometime this weekend I am going to trek all the way across the street to the Hoyts theater to catch the movie adaptation of Anne Rice's Queen of the Damned. Vampire flicks are my favorite horror movies, except for all the biting and blood.
Wordplay
Today's wordplay is provided by Fernando Cortes, one of my uncles and an Human Resources guru at Nike's facility in Memphis, TN:
"We judge ourselves by what we feel we are capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done!"
Since 9.11, I have worried that some Americans just didn't "get it" regarding the nature of the evil trying to kill them. As if we needed a reminder --
the brutal murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl by Islamic extremists is yet another example of the wanton savagery that permeates the world today. Pearl leaves behind a beautiful wife who is 7 months' pregnant with a child he will never have the chance to play with. Yesterday as I watched the marathon coverage on both Fox News Channel and CNN, I thought that perhaps now these journalists will realize that the thugs on the other side of the line don't care who we are or what we believe. Pearl, from what I gathered on CNN last night, was critical of American foreign policy, and that maybe he thought that would make him safe in the arena he was in. ZoMother Victoria Vergara told me last night that on Oprah's Wednesday show, Christianne Amanpour lamented on how journalists are treated by extremists even though they are trying to be objective. She shouldn't be so surprised.
These terrorist murdering scions of evil need to be crushed and relegated to the dungeon of history. Why do some of our "intelligent" types still not understand? Take Jimmy Carter, for example. His claptrap about "progress" with Iraq and North Korea is misguided. Here was the progress, and it was one-sided in favor of our enemies: as their capacity to field weapons of mass destruction increased exponentially, our willpower to do anything about it waned. All of this goes to the basic premise -- do you prefer a peaceful society or a free one? If your goal is peace at all costs, then you end up compromising freedom and legitimizing forced servitude. It's the ghost of Chamberlain, of Lindberg, of Vichy, of defeatism. In order to live in a free society, peace is desired but it isn't the highest standard by which you base your livelihood. You cannot just negotiate away your freedom and your security just for peace.
Olympics
It was another busy night on the ice last night as 16-year old Sarah Hughes leapt from 4th to the gold medal last night in the women's figure skating . I myself was rooting for American Sasha Cohen, but both she and heavy favorite Michelle Kwan fell down during the freestyle program. The James Bond-ishly named Irina Slutskaya aced her way to the silver, but her program was lacking in difficulty.
The U.S. women's hockey team lost to the Canadians 3-2 in the gold medal game. Still, I'm happy that a North American team won the tournament. Tonight, unless the Russians follow through with their threat to pull out of the Games entirely, the men's U.S. hockey team will face off with the Russians. That would actually be such a letdown, because the Russkies have a really good shot at a gold medal. (On a brief fashion note, the Russians also have some aesthetically cool jerseys, designed by who else but Nike! And their red-white-blue combo is so much more lively than the old dank red of the USSR). Plus, I want the U.S.(who also have happenin' threads) to earn a gold medal game slot, not default its way into it. Of course, either way this is a Cold War replay, because if the game takes place it reprises the 1980 Miracle on Ice, and if it doesn't, then it reprises the Cold War tradition of simply not showing up (the Soviets' removal of the nukes from Cuba in 1962, the Americans not showing up in Moscow for the '80 Summer Games after Afghanistan, the Soviets leaving the negotiating table in Geneva back in 1983, the Soviets returning the Americans' favor in the 1984 LA games, etc).
Contradiction?
Sometime this weekend I am going to trek all the way across the street to the Hoyts theater to catch the movie adaptation of Anne Rice's Queen of the Damned. Vampire flicks are my favorite horror movies, except for all the biting and blood.
Wordplay
Today's wordplay is provided by Fernando Cortes, one of my uncles and an Human Resources guru at Nike's facility in Memphis, TN:
"We judge ourselves by what we feel we are capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done!"