Current Events Watch

I was a sophomore in high school when I first read George Orwell’s novel 1984. Well, he missed it by a few years. Pretty close, though, all things considered, since he did write it in the 1940s, so let’s give him some wiggle room. He did apparently have the gift of prophecy, however, because he did get the story right when it came to the future George. George W. Bush. Of course, the novel was fiction, but still…

In the book: The state remained perpetually at war against a vague and ever-changing enemy. A permanent war. Kind of like the undefined and apparently unending “war on terrorism.”

In the book: The government set up the Ministry of Truth, serving as the propaganda arm of the ruling party to spread lies to suit its strategic goals. Kind of like the Office Of Strategic Influence this administration implemented in 2001 before they shut it down due to public outcry. Not that it has really made a difference, the propaganda is still rampant. FOX News.

In the book: The all-powerful leader, Big Brother, demanded the total, unquestioning support of the people. No one dared speak out against him, lest they be met by the wrath of the state. Or, in the words of our current Big Brother, “You are either with us, or against us.”

In the book: Big Brother kept constant tabs on the citizens, using two-way telescreens to monitor people’s every move while at the same time broadcasting party propaganda. Warrantless monitoring of phone conversations, Internet usage, business transactions and library reading records comes to mind. But, hey, the good news is that law enforcement no longer needs to be burdened with such thing as probable cause. Welcome to 1984, folks. Happy New Year.

george bush, george orwell, 1984, iraq war, security

Back to George W. Bush. Okay, he’s a failure as a President, has been responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people, an Executive Branch serial killer (I’m entitled to my opinion), spending billions of dollars doing so. Your dollars and mine. All right, let’s move on. We’re stuck with him for now. At least his time is limited, since there’s apparently no chance in hell that he or his sidekick dick, Dick, will be removed from office.

My current Democratic party sucks almost as much as the Republicans, they won’t do anything to get him out of there, but continue to say he needs to go, while voting for and agreeing with everything his administration puts on the table. Know why? They don’t have a friggin’ plan, either. So I’m changing parties, and I’m registering as a Libertarian.

I took a quiz online, and that’s apparently what I am. Then I checked out their platform, and it makes sense to me. I’ll admittedly still vote Democrat in November ‘08, because when it comes down to it, the real choices are between the Rs and Ds. Just a fact. But I’d rather ditch the Democrats as far as my official registration, and at least be able to call myself Libertarian, because the Democrats have kind of let me down.

I do like some of the Democratic candidates. Which is a good thing, considering that we really only have two choices. No Independent, Green Party, Libertarian, Communist, or any other party, has a chance in hell of making it in to office, and votes for any of those obscure candidates could possibly sway the results, and we could end up with more of this same kind of mess. That’s too bad, but it’s the truth.

Which is why we don’t see Independent, Green Party, or even my soon-to-be new party, Libertarian debates. Don’t even think about a Communist debate, can you imagine? So, bottom line, we’re stuck with the elephant or the ass when the day comes, if we want our votes to count. Maybe things will change somewhere down the road, but for now, those are the choices.

But while we still have a Republican in office, and are going to suffer the curse of George W. Bush for the next year and a half, we should at least look at the bright side. We’ll still have another year to enjoy his stupidity, and the idiotic Bushisms. They do make me laugh. As countless as they are, my favorites to date are (although there are surely more to come):

“They want the federal government controlling Social Security like it’s some kind of federal program.” –St. Charles, Missouri, November 2, 2000

“Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across the country.”–Poplar Bluff, Missouri, September 6, 2004

“We need an energy bill that encourages consumption.”–Trenton, NJ, September 23, 2002

“Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?”–Florence, South Carolina, January 11, 2000

“Make no mistake about it, I understand how tough it is, sir. I talk to families who die.”—speaking with reporters on facing the challenges of war, Washington, D.C., Dec. 7, 2006

“You know, when I campaigned here in 2000, I said, I want to be a war President. No President wants to be a war President, but I am one.”—Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 26, 2006

“I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family.”—Greater Nashua, N.H., Chamber of Commerce, Jan. 27, 2000

Even though we’ll have to endure this monkey for the next year and a half, there will at least no doubt be some entertaining moments.

By the way, it also turns out, according to the online test, that although I’m 100% Libertarian, I’m also 70% Communist. I doubt if that’s an option on the voter registration form, but I’ll check it out.

george bush, democrat, republican, libertarian, bushisms

Get out those postal scales, everyone! Beginning Monday, if that package you’re mailing weighs more than 13 ounces, don’t even think about grabbing that book of stamps! I don’t care how many you can lick and stick, the new rule requires that 13 ounces is the new, lower limit, requiring “alternative postage.” Which is like a stamp, only different. Different because, well, I don’t know. They both are really just stickers, applied to the same package in the same manner. But if all you have laying around are your everyday stamps, you’ll need to dash to the post office and hand your package directly to the Federal employee, the postal clerk behind the counter because, well, he or she is apparently authorized to affix the safer alternative postage. Not that it really matters what you’re mailing, I’m sure they don’t care, but apparently the process keeps us all safer, so who am I to question?

The change is part of ongoing security measures established by the Postal Service, in cooperation with other government agencies to keep the public, customers, employees and the U.S. Mail safe.

I’ll admit I didn’t realize there was already a law requiring said alternative postage for packages weighing more than 16 ounces. But lowering it to 13 ounces, I mean, what’s the point? Three ounces? How can that possibly make a difference? I wonder how many federal tax dollars went into that study. And why are regular stamps more of a risk to public safety, whether the limit is 13 ounces or 16 ounces? Remember anthrax from a few years ago? Regular envelope, a single regular stamp, mission accomplished.

Doesn’t really matter, though. I can print my own USPS acceptable alternative postage by going online, affix it myself to my 13-plus ounce package, and have it picked up by my regular mail carrier, from right here at home! No matter how nefarious the contents. Does this make sense? How does this keep the public, customers, and employees safer? Anyone?

postal changes, alternative postage, mail safety, security