Category: Uncategorized

How much do we blame the soldiers for following orders that we find repugnant? How much do we blame the military for being involved in a situation we found repellant. In the 70’s, activists blamed individual soldiers in a war with a freaking draft for their collective affiliation with the war. Fred Phelps is taking a similar, though even more psychotic, stand with his protests at funerals for American military members. I think he’s claiming they’re defending the right to sodomy. He’s off his meds.

So, can we denounce the military and, by extension, members of it for a moral failure if there is a collective fuckup, like an immoral war? Leaving aside the question of what constitutes a moral war, I say no. ROTC was damn tempting to me. I deliberately chose to stay out of the military because I didn’t want to turn over my decision making power.

Soldiers aren’t mindless, but they are subject to a system of authority, and they maintain that system for good reason. In emergency situations, like most violent ones, it is crucial to coordinate and respond rapidly. So they mantain a direct and ingrained decision making structure. But, soldiers also need a large degree of initiative. If a CO calls every shot, nothing gets done. Soldiers’ freedom isn’t in whether to be in Iraq, and, I suspect, generally isn’t in what they’re doing while they’re over there, but rather in how they do what they do.

If you want to blame someone for the military presence in Iraq, blame Bush (especially), Clinton, Bush Sr, and Regan, along with their administrations, but not the military. If you want to blame someone for what the military is doing, blame senior command, or a meddling administration. But if you want to blame individual soldiers, talk to them and find out what they were doing and why before you start casting stones.

I wonder how many people appreciate the significance of massive improvements to batteries and what that could mean for our environment and economy.

made an entry several weeks back, explaining the blow up over the Mohammed-insulting comics, which I wanted to point out to people (not sure if I ever got around to it, but if I did, it’s worth reposting). It seems pretty relevant, in a less serious way, when thinking about our local religious extremists and their hatred of freedom, specifically, my my freedom to suck dick. Thoughts?

I admire the myth of America, and have taken many of the ideals it embodies to heart. However, I am painfully conscious that it is a myth, and deeply irked by people who argue as though it were fact. The idea that the country is founded on liberty and justice for all sounds awfully nice, but it’s a lie. Slavery was explicitly embedded in the constitution. Women were excluded from voting for a long time. Our ‘founding fathers’ or at least the ‘bold pioneers’ used biological warfare on the native population.

Whenever I see someone argue based on nation’s foundation in fairness and freedom, I wince. It’s about like arguing “Because Santa Claus said so.” Even when I agree with their point. Maybe even especially then.

I want to do a good job on this paper for last semester. I suspect if I turn in what I have I’ll get at least a C. More than good enough to pass. But my current paper sucks. It’s poorly researched, the thesis is uninspired. It’s fairly well written. But I dislike turning in crap. I feel like I could take this paper somewhere and learn from it. Or I could turn it in as written (on my second deadline) and pass, and graduate. Lovely. Education v Grading, as pointed out, are very much not the same thing.

And some guy I’ve never met on a hookup site corrected me when I said I was a slacker, saying I’m just overcommitted. Not unlike the comment I received from my politics and public affairs professor, who was passive-aggressively criticizing me by saying it’s a great tragedy when really bright people overcommit. How the fuck would she know whether or not I’m brilliant? I don’t talk much in class, and I got a 33/77 on her midterm (which was a C, btw, a 73% was apparently an A). Ugh.

And also WAA’s comment about people with great oars who don’t row well at all v people with paper cups who use that more effectively.

In case it’s unclear, I’m partially frustrated with myself, partially frustrated with the expectations people have of me.

I hit the gym hardcore today.

Then I ate. Alot.

I hit muddypaws cheesecake, got granola and a slice of vegan lemon cheesecake (hint, for the people who throw me a surprise birthday party: pumpkin vegan cheesecake is the only present you need to get me). I made box of uncle ben’s black bean and rice soup and downed most of it. I ordered tofu vegetable stuff, and scarfed it down, planning on virtuously ignoring the rice. Then I ate the rice too. My stomach hurts, but I still have the urge to consume. I think this is a habit built up after regular post-swimming wendy’s/rax all you can eat superbars in high school.

I don’t think I’m ever going to have a six pack. But that’s really okay. =)

#1 quality time, #2 physical touch

So, thus far this semester I have traveled not at all. No wonder I’m cranky. =)

I plan on making a trip to chicago before graduation, but leaving that aside, I’m planning massive travel time between graduation and gao time.

I plan to schlep my stuff down to some storage spot in chicago on the monday or tuesday following graduation. From there I’m thinking of flying to London, maybe meet up with Ro, if he’s available. Spend a couple days checking out London. Then Amsterdam. Then Northwestern Germany to meet up with Scott and/or any lj peeps in that rough vicinity who would like to get together. After that, Prague, maybe see if Fostin would like to hang out. And ending the european segment of the trip, taking a flight back to Austin to hang with , , , Simon, , Rehana, , etc, etc, etc for the weekend of june 10th or so. After that, I should work some travel time in to pittsburgh, maybe nyc. I’d also like to check out Seattle and/or Portland. Maybe a week or so around Pride time in the Bay, by which point in time, I should be so thoroughly sick of traveling that I’ll be quite happy to chill in Chicago. That’s my rough plan, anyway.

Sadly, it seems that an eurorail pass would do me no good, since that doesn’t seem to cover the UK or the Czech Republic, and so I’d basically be looking at the train from Amsterdam to wherever-I-end-up in NW Germany.

Well, I finally got around to getting Mirror Dance by Lois McMaster Bujold (as part of an anthology containing 2 other works I’d already read). The night I got it, I read it all save the last chapter. As far as I know, I’ve read everything else in the Vorkosigan Universe. It’s been three days and I still haven’t gotten around to reading that chapter. I’m sure it’ll be good, but I don’t want it to be over.