Tannishblog

Saturday found us driving to Wabasha, MN to the Anderson Hotel, currently a B&B with the distinction of enabling guests to room with one of the six cats in residence. The oldest hotel in Minnesota, it's celebrating 150 years. Part of this celebration are painted cat statues scattered about town.

The Hotel:              

The Cats:       

Wabasha, a river town on the Mississippi bout 80 miles SE of the Twin Cities, is named after Chief Wa-Pa-Sha and is home to the American Eagle sanctuary. A peaceful old railroad town, it provides a bridge into Wisconsin at a narrowing of the river. My guess is the town grew up around a ferry crossing and the rail stop.

The Town:    

From here, we drove back to Chicago and normalcy. Today we chill out and phyche ourselves to resume the usual grind. School's starting soon, I'ts still the busy season at work, and it'll take most of the year to recover from our spending bltz. Driving the rental car back to the store acted as the proverbial nail on our mini vacation. I guess we should be lucky we could do this much. Next year, who knows?

I’m beginning to view the coming battle between Democrat and Republican in poetic terms. While the two co-dependent siblings – or perhaps they’re Siamese Twins – gear for another expansive, counterproductive hate-fest at the expense of taxpayers, political progression, and of human spiritual maturation, we helpless plebeians must endure the worst Democracy has to offer: hateful rhetoric; unrepentant media spin and obfuscation; widening of a irreconcilable political divide.

What we will soon experience is another example of human depravity, the ultimate expression of naked hunger for power and wealth. American political strife is not about how we help those in need, as the Democrats would have us believe. It’s not about national security of economic growth, as the Republicans would have it. It’s about who gets to destroy all that is good in humans, through the advancement of corruption, aggression, and hoarding dwindling global resources.

Unfortunately, what America does to itself, the rest of the so-called civilized world must live with. So entwined are global economies, the boundaries between what is theirs, and what is ours have blurred indistinct. Such is the legacy of greed that has been successfully leveraged by the US since the last Great War. Our great nation has worked hard to force our economic strength to shape other markets; we’ve fought hard to display military might as a not-so-subtle reminder of who’s in charge; we’ve not been shy to undermine human potential if it occurs overseas.

America is the bully in the barnyard, looking for kowtowers. For decades other nations complied – in lesser degrees as time removed us from the heydays of post WWII – to their detriment. Now, the world watches as we spin ourselves apart with partisan politics as dysfunctional as all family feuds are. The world bands together in their distrust of our crude foreign policies and secretly prays for our downfall. They’ll be there to buy up the fragments of what I hope is the last Empirical power in the world. While the American twins gird themselves for battle, like Romulus and Remus, the surviving nations and people will write the history books decrying the excesses of unabated capitalism, the absence of humanity, spirituality, compassion in formulation of political power and its expression.

In light of this, we are doing humanity a service, while disserving ourselves. If the meek inherit the Earth, there will be no Americans among them.

The Washington Post has an inciteful article underlining the fact that more and more humans believe in impending disaster on a global scale. The article, entitled: The World’s Agricultural Legacy Gets A Safe Home discusses the contruction of the world’s largest and most secure seed repository. Located on a frozen Island north of Norway, scientists are relying on extreme temperatures and state-of-the-art security measures to keep our food legacy safe from cataclysmic disaster. Endorsed by over 100 nations, this project will start collecting seeds formo millions of food plants from around the world, including over 100,000 varietys of rice. The fact that this is not a US-led initiative is inferred by the following snippet:

The vault is one of many strategies being implemented in sync with the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, which came into force in 2004 and has been ratified by more than 100 nations. The United States has signed the treaty, but the Senate has not ratified it.

Something snarky could be inserted here, but even I weary of commenting on the arrogance and hubris of the American government’s repeated snubbing of collaberative global efforts to safeguard humanity from itself. This effort is full of good intentions, but I ponder the capabilities of post-apocalypse people in reaching this remote and unforgiving place before their food runs out, given that there will not be oil-based transportation, electrical power, or other useful aids in getting there…

Isn’t is creepy when you get a spam email with your full name in the header? Who else knows about you? That thought alone would keep some awake at night. I also receive email with my address writ in bold face in the header. Somehow, that troubles me more.

We live in an increasingly transparent society. Wiretaps are passe, snoops now use computer to parse vast amount of voice transmissions, ostensibly to find terrorists. Maybe the intentions are pure: I’m just amiable enough today to give benefit to the doubt, but this same information can be used in many ways - some unthought of as yet.

Bank records are already there for the taking, employers can Google a name and receive some interesting stuff. Go ahead, Google yourself. Your credit history is an open book, these days, so why not your phone conversations?

Invasion of privacy? What are you hiding and from whom? In our hyperconnected world, privacy is dying. Secrecy is for governments, and even they are having trouble keeping a lid on things. I say: Good riddance.

Who needs secrecy? Crooks and Liars do. Murderers and compromized politicians require privacy to hide behind, as do corporate CEO’s with sticky fingers. To then the “right to privacy” is essential. To conscientious individuals, law abiding and open-hearted, privacy is no big deal. What do they need to hide from? this thought make me think the death of privacy can be a beneficial change. As generations progress with the idea of a trasnparent society, people who understand how easily they can get caught in their tresspasses, will desist. Oldsters who remember the day will flinch, but thier grandchildren will no no difference. A society without secrets is safer.

Don’t we all want a place to raise our children where we can let them run? How much outdoor time d othey get now? If you live n a major metropolitan area like I do, the answer is “Not much.” And that’s too bad…

To all Mommies, Grannies, Bubies, Nanas, and aspiring mothers: Wishes for the best of days.

Apart from a celebration of home makers and nurturers, Mothers Day is a celebration of women. Not being one, I go out on a limb by saying motherhood and the potential of childbirth is a central theme in all women’s lives. The mechanics of human reproduction is the domain of the woman, and this day attempts to honor that great responsibility all women must bear. Men would be wise to acknowledge the awesome burden a mother is subject to and lend as much help and support as possible.

Besides all that, Mother’s Day is a call for peace. During the Civil War, Julia Ward Howe, the author of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, recoiled in horror at the carnage of a whole generation of young men. Her response was to promote a Mother’s Day for Peace, which we are celebrating today.

She saw some of the worst effects of the war — not only the death and disease which killed and maimed the soldiers. She worked with the widows and orphans of soldiers on both sides of the war, and realized that the effects of the war go beyond the killing of soldiers in battle. She also saw the economic devastation of the Civil War, the economic crises that followed the war, the restructuring of the economies of both North and South.

In 1870, Julia Ward Howe took on a new issue and a new cause. Distressed by her experience of the realities of war, determined that peace was one of the two most important causes of the world (the other being equality in its many forms) and seeing war arise again in the world in the Franco-Prussian War, she called in 1870 for women to rise up and oppose war in all its forms. She wanted women to come together across national lines, to recognize what we hold in common above what divides us, and commit to finding peaceful resolutions to conflicts. She issued a Declaration, hoping to gather together women in a congress of action.

How can we celebrate life, as exemplified through motherhood, without demanding an end to bloodshed? How many mothers today will sit in sorrow because their brave soldier children will not be home? How many will cry because our recent wars have killed their offspring, or because their adult children came back from Iraq damaged and disabled? How many mothers are serving overseas that can’t connect with their kids at home: Too many.

Remember today as a Day of Peace. Hug your mother, or cherish her memory, look upon your daughters and see the future mommies they may become. Work for a world there mothers can celebrate their day in a peaceful world with their kids, grandkids and all loved ones. And send a prayer of support to mothers whose day will not be so wonderful.

An uninspiring news day, today. Besides being worn out from a tough work week, I cannot find anything to get excited about in the news.

Perhaps that’s a good thing. I’m sure some would think so.

Time for some light fare: I would like to share this touching article from the NY Times, written by Tom Hanks. He shares an insiders view of a unapplauded art form and says farewell to a friend.

Our Warmongering president is again on the offensive. This time his battle is at home where public opinion, ever the fickle beast, is turning away from a protracted struggle in Iraq. Few people see any sign of gain after three years of combat. Fewer yet see any sign of an end.

Washington Post outlines his – for lack of a better word – strategy:

After previewing the upcoming speech in his radio address today, the president is scheduled to make remarks on the war at George Washington University on Monday. The appearance, which will be followed weekly by as many as four other speeches, marks the start of the White House’s latest effort to convince skeptical Americans that it has a coherent plan for victory as the war nears its third anniversary later this month.

The president hopes to give “better depth, understanding and context for how the strategy in Iraq is unfolding,” a senior White House official said of the planned speeches. Vice President Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other Cabinet members will be making speeches on Iraq in advance of the anniversary of the U.S. invasion.

The three big hitters in our administration are going out to proselytize the people, shoring up the levees of blind patriotism in the face of malcontent. Perhaps that’s a poor metaphor to use…

If our leaders had taken into consideration an old text military leaders the world over refer to as the definitive treatise on warfare, we might not be in such a terrible position: Sun Tsu’s The Art of War.

If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat.

[…]

What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease. Hence his victories bring him neither reputation for wisdom nor credit for courage. He wins his battles by making no mistakes. Making no mistakes is what establishes the certainty of victory, for it means conquering an enemy that is already defeated.

Hence the skillful fighter puts himself into a position which makes defeat impossible, and does not miss the moment for defeating the enemy. Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.

What more can be said?

A good friend of mine - and a fellow blogger - drops subtle hints in her writings about people like me who, in her mind, spend too much time complaining about our great nation. She sometimes gets disgusted reading this blog. I’m unsure of her motivations, but I detect a love-it-or-leave-it mentality hovering beneath the surface of her thoughts. A less rational person would express this loudly; misunderstanding how doing so is only the sound of one mind closing. However, such is the respect I have for my blogger friend, that I ponder her words and my motivations for vociferous dissent.

On these virtual blog pages, I whine a lot about America and its citizens. Some may agree some may tire of the rant; others will leave as fast as they can click their mouse. Some few may read my offerings and wish me a healthy recovery.

Some readers may infer that I hate our country and all that is stands for. I don’t; neither do I love it. To view a complicated relationship from either extreme, as if one word can express it, is futile. Human feelings and beliefs, especially their relationships, are convoluted structures not easily summated. So, too, is my relationship with America.

Some claim ours is the best and greatest nation on earth; indeed, that is just the message I grew up on. For years, the flag-waving cheerleaders were quietly living their lives teaching this to their progeny. Then came 9/11, and the time came for unity and solidarity, and the cheerleaders took the stage.

There’s nothing wrong with that. America is a nice place to live. I’m happy enough to be here. Yet to believe that our nation cannot improve is a disservice to the memories of those who got us where we are today.

Our founding fathers, as we like to label them, called their efforts the Great Experiment. To them, their fledgling nation was a work in progress. It still is; the experiment continues. It can still fail. A representative government, guided by the people, is one of the hallmarks of our civilization. Humanity has embraced Democracy as the best system we can devise to offer freedom, happiness, and prosperity to all. Nonetheless, the system is not foolproof.

The strength of a democracy lies in its attempts at letting citizens guide the state; the weakness of this system is that it is inherently cumbersome. Likewise, the strength of a republic is to minimize the unwieldiness of the body politick while maintaining the representation of the people. The weakness of a republic is a tendency to create a political class subject to human failings of greed and self-interest, thereby undermining their effectiveness as representatives of the citizens. This balancing of forces makes up our Great Experiment, and it makes the whole structure tenuous and fragile. I try to underline this in my writings. I believe more Americans should be aware how weak is our grasp on civilization. We might treat it with the respect it deserves.

America gives me freedom to think and express myself to the extent that it harms no one. It would be unpatriotic to ignore this freedom. By refusing to accept political status quo, I keep the dialogue alive to the degree I’m capable, refreshing the debate and perhaps forcing others not to take our great nation for granted. By exercising my political freedoms through disagreement, I show respect for our country. Our experiment has come a long way in a short time, but only because the discussion continues. If either political party manages to silence the opposition, democracy will fall. I’m going to do my very best to avoid that.

Who would think that computer technologies – specifically databases – could turn into a vital weapon in today’s political divide? That’s the scope of an insider feud between powerful democrats and the Democratic National Committee. The DNC, finally getting the message that they need to do something to win votes and to get like-minded people to the polls, have begun an effort to construct a database to discern where those left-thinking people are hiding.

Meanwhile George Soros, billionaire investor extraordinaire, is helping to bankroll an independent firm to do the same thing. Typical to the progressive mentality, neither trusts the other to get the job done. Why is this important? From Washington Post:

Traditional get-out-the-vote efforts operated crudely, such as by canvassing neighborhoods in which at least 65 percent of residents voted for a particular party. It was often deemed too inefficient to focus on neighborhoods where the partisan tilt was less decisive, and it ran the risk of doing more to turn out the opposition’s vote.

The advantage of data-based targeting is that political field operatives can home in on precisely the voters they wish to reach — the antiabortion parishioners of a traditionally Democratic African American church congregation, for instance.

Consultants working for the Republican National Committee developed strategies to design messages targeting individual voters’ “anger points” in the belief that grievance is one of the strongest motivations to get people to turn out on Election Day.

Anger Points: just the kind of thinking indicative of Republicans. But I digress…

That the Democratic Party must get with the times is a given. That they also need some sort of plan is likewise obvious. What the DNC, DSCC, and state and local lefties need more than anything, however, is cohesion. All the data mining in the world, cannot accomplish what a unified front has done for the Republican Party. Perhaps, by collecting information on them selves, the Democratic Party will begin to understand its won weaknesses and learn to adjust. After all, survival doesn’t necessarily happen to the strongest, but to the most adaptable.

Via Brother Kenya - his friend (and now mine, too. Ain’t the Internet great?) Ramblin’ Jack Allen is blogging his folk songs. I hope he posts some MP3’s soon.

Today’s offering at Folkwise goes with my earlier post on the whole abortion… um, abortion. Sing it loud!