Thursday, November 25, 2004

Happy Thanksgiving!

I didn't intend to blog today, but a few things came up that I thought merited comment. For the most part, I heartily encourage all my readers to spend this day enjoying the company of friends and family, fellowshipping with those of akindred spirit, and generally observing an occasion to express gratitude to The Creator for all the blessing with which we have been bestowed. Abd I'm not being flippant. Think about it, folks. Consider just how miserable or existance COULD be, and weigh that against what it actually is. As bad as things may be NOW, I can imagine far worse. Isn't the distinction between the observablr and the imaginable sufficient cause for gratitude? If not, consider all the tangibly positive things you've been granted. and that should do the trick.

A few things happened today that merit blogging, so I shall post all of them below this preface, which will receive a bump to the top.

A Thanksgiving Connection to the Founders

Take a moment some time to read the history of the founding of this country, from the earliest colonists to the Revolution. Regardless of where the settlement was, and spanning religious and regional divides, you'll find all of the colonies had one thing in common:

Alcohol.

Fermentation was an early sand effective means of preservation. Food that could easily spoil was allowed to "spoil" in very specific ways in order to allow it to last loner than normal. And alcohol was a major factor in the lives of even the most devout of colonists. Hard cider, beer, whiskey, wine, it was all consumed in impressive colonies.

So why do I blog on it?

Because I had a bit myself today, thanks.

Normally, I prefer to practice moderation. Three beers in one night is the most I usually imbibe. But today was a bit different. You see, my brother and sister-in-law served two bottles of wine with dinner. Only one person chose red. Guess who? So I ended up consuming a good portion of the bottle all by myself. Congratulations.

So if anything I say tonight is a bit... out of character.. please bear in mind the circumstances.

Oh, and by the way... while I don't advocate copying my level of tipsiness, a good glass of wine with this holiday' dinner is indeed one more thing for which to give thanks.

Mission Accomplished

I was watching the news tonight: not something I do on a regular basis anymore (The internt provides me all of the info I want, from a variety of viewpoints). It was announced that both China and Canada have announced their support of the upcoming elections in Iraq. In fact, the Canadians have said they'll do "whatever it takes" to support the elections.

How about kissing our red, white, and blue butts for naysaying us?

In all seriousness, while I have been made aware of and appreciate Canadian objections to the war, this really is sweet vindication for the US, and further evidence that the efforts in Fallujah are going well.

This is one of the reasons I voted for Bush.

Further reporting on the news covered the fact that the Sunni minority in Iraq are demanding a delay to the elections. Of course, the "expert" interviewed by the station agreed.

Let's review. The Sunni minority is the group of people who contributed the Baath party to Iraqi politics, and they're the ones who held political power despite being a MINORITY. The majority of the insurgents in Iraq are.... you guessed it, Sunni. Of COURSE they want a delay to the elections. The longer the delay, the stronger the insurgency. I'm of the firm belief that we should let the Iraqis vote and choose a government for themselves as quickly as possible.