An Overview of My Opinions on Some Current News

THE LEBANON-PALESTINE-ISRAEL CONFLICT WITH INDIRECT IRAN-SYRIA CONNECTIONS AND BUSH'S SWEARING

I spent a lot of time in the car today, so I listened to a lot of NPR. So much, in fact, that the news started repeating.

Of course, the Lebanon-Palestine-Israel conflict with indirect Iran-Syria connections and Bush's swearing took up most of the broadcasting. My reactions:

+ So what if George Bush swore? Shouldn't the newscasters report the news, not useless hype?

+ In regards to war, in general, humans are idiots.

STEM CELL RESEARCH

The broadcasting also addressed the issue of 3 stem cell research bills on the floor somewhere in Congress. Bush threatens to veto one of them.

I have the most interest in the statement that many conservatives make about stem cell research breaking some kind of ethical natural law. What's the root of this ethic? Someone forgot to tell me about it.

DISTRACTING THE US CITIZENRY

Also, NPR made note that with all the attention on these issues, the US policy makers can reset assured that their constituents will get distracted by news broadcasts. If true, then, I'm guessing, the policy makers can discuss and pass stuff without the people of the US paying much attention to it.

I remember, once, hearing about the government passing something to do with the Patriot Act over a weekend. In that case, not very many people heard about that part of the act that passed. This type of political fist and coin tricks scare me a little.

MARRIAGE

Yesterday, I got to hear a conservative law professor's argument against same-sex marriage and some alternative legal bond that would allow nice legal benefits for people who don't live together or necessarily have a "love" relationship happening. Most of her argument relied on the usual conservative argument that tradition instituted traditional marriage, and since tradition has shown that traditional marriage without same-sex marriage, then things should stay according to marriage. Ummmmmmm. . .circular argument, anyone?

I didn't much understand the whole alternative legal bond thing. If anything, it sound like some kind of absurd logical conclusion that scares conservatives, except that the alternative legal bond doesn't promote sexual relations between the people who have this alternative legal bond.

MAKING LAWS AND CULTURE AND SOCIETY

She also brought the whole issue of justices in supreme courts and lawmakers in congresses not letting the people vote on the issue. Apparently, the people wanted to put it to a vote in town meetings in Vermont rather then let their lawmakers make a law to address the issue. Hmmmmmm. . .didn't the people vote for their lawmakers, thus indirectly vote on the issue. And on top of that, don't the people have the power to write op-eds to their newspapers, write letters to their lawmakers, form organizations to sway votes, etc. etc.

I guess I can understand if people get very busy with work and so forth. . .but that's a general problem I have with the US culture and society. A lot of people don't have the time or energy to take political action, what with work, family, home, community, etc. etc.

I, personally, could also possibly be something of an exception, since I never have enough time to do all the things that I want to do for survival, to become a writer, to try keeping a good relationship with my fiancee, to try staying in touch with my communities, to try making community in Chicago and just all the things in my active life.

If anything, I believe that some kind of cultural and societal restructuring needs to happen before we can expect to have good opinions coming from the people to influence lawmaking. Isn't that why we appoint lawmakers?

Unfortunately, I believe that our current faulty cultural and societal structures also make it difficult for the US citizenry to actually find good lawmakers and statespeople, as compared to politicians. Kinda depressing, really.

I WOULD WRITE MORE, BUT I SHOULD GET MORE SLEEP

So I'll go with the should.