John Scalzi saves me some typing:
I'm proud to be an American, but I'm tired of being ashamed of my government. I'm tired of having to count the seconds until this bilious waste of a president is shoved out the door in January of 2009. I'm tired of hoping that some members of the president's political party might actually put principle over political expedience, particularly when it concerns the Constitution. And I'm tired of waiting for the opposing party to actually grow a goddamned spine and become an opposing party. I'm tired of wondering why the people we elect to lead us don't seem to actually understand what it means to be American, and to be moral, and to do what it right for us. And I'm tired of having to look so hard for genuine leadership as opposed to the sham idiot version we have now. I feel like Diogenes, and I'm coming up short.
I'm tired of being led by moral cowards. I want better for myself, and for my country.
See also Sean Carroll.
And that's all I'm going to say about that.
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Scalzi hits it dead on for me.
My dad and all his brothers were in WWII. I remember the pride they took in the following
1) We didn't attack anybody first
2) We treated prisoners with kindness and compassion, when they expected to be tortured and shot.
And we did those things DESPITE THE FACT THAT THE OTHER GUYS DIDN'T!!!!!!!!! Its what made us different.
Now there were of course attrocities by Americans, particularly in the pacific. My uncle (served in Europe) once commented that surrendering after running out of ammunition, after killing many of his buddies, was not the brightest idea one German soldier ever had. But in most cases it was not some premeditated thing, but following in the heat of the moment. In the pacific, the culture of the Japanese soldier was to not surrender, but to go out with as many Americans as they could, so far fewer surrenders were accepted.
One can also argue about mass bombing of cities being just plain wrong.
So war is messy, indiscriminating, and brutal. So should it matter if we torture prisoners? Well I think it does IMHO.
I will never be ashamed to be an American. I will always be ashamed of my current government. Both sides, the semi-fascists running the wars, and the spineless opposition.
In case you haven't seen it yet, Keith Olbermann says it all, and says it incredibly well.
Chad, I feel you are right to feel this way, but there is a more important and urgent matter that most Americans have yet to feel "tired" about - the actual, indiscriminate, purposeful and premeditated taking of living, breathing human lives by US forces, and the somewhat trivial manner in which Americans tend to view such actions with...
Until Americans take note of this more so often, you may experience moments of tiredness every so often; some helpful naps during the day may bring some relief to your condition.
Best regards,
Jesus Christ
Jesus: Chad, I feel you are right to feel this way, but there is a more important and urgent matter that most Americans have yet to feel "tired" about - the actual, indiscriminate, purposeful and premeditated taking of living, breathing human lives by US forces, and the somewhat trivial manner in which Americans tend to view such actions with...
Funny You should mention this-- Bush and Falwell said You told them to do that stuff. Do You think You could maybe have a word (or would that be a Word?) with them, maybe slap them around a little bit?
Also, we're kind of low on wine...
Every time you think those guys have hit bottom, they start digging again. :(
Chad,
Sorry, but my stock of wine is really low right now... and I need the remaining amount to get through the days till January 2009.
As for your first statement: no, I actually said no such thing to either one. Jerry Falwell has been using my Good Name for quite some time now to serve his own unscrupulous interests...
[Please refer to my statements about 'Hypocrites'].
As for Bush, he's too much of an idiot for me to do anything about, so I will leave it up to you and fellow-Americans to deal with him as you see necessary.
P.S.: Be careful, Cheney is a close friend of my arch-enemy; he means all Americans harm.