Well, somebody had to say it. 'Bout time, too. I also saw McNeil on TV, and thought he hit it right on the head. But its hopeless.
There are…certain sectors, shall we say,…of our society that regard this as manna from heaven. They see themselves as the sole legitimate arbiters of patriotism, and they will squeeze this for every lachrymose maudlin drop. They are unnopposed, especially in political circles, for no politician has the guts to do anything but shout “Me, too!” as loud as possible. As for the media, well…
There is always the chance, I suppose, that such as Rudy the G. and George Jr. will conduct themselves with quiet dignity, and disdain any suggestion that they exploit the horror to further their political agenda.
Just a little more info on Patriot’s Day. It’s the anniversary of the start of the American Revolution. I kind of like that Patriot’s Day and wish they wouldn’t use that name.
My office is giving a couple of hours of admin time and is sponsoring a blood drive. We’re pretty close to the Pentagon so I think giving some time off is a good idea. A lot of people were pretty rattled last year.
I’ll be at work and avoiding all the media events.
Yeah, and monkeys will fly out of my ass. :rolleyes:
I’ve been fed up with this whole remembrance/patriotism crap for months. I work for the federal government, and shortly before July 4th somebody in my office showed up at work with a bunch of banners and little flags and proceeding to decorate the walls, the doors and the outside of everybody’s cubicle. The place looked like an explosion at a flag factory. Now I’ve gotten used to seeing this sort of thing done for XMas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, St. Patrick’s Day, ad nauseum so I just figured somebody had decided to go all out this year. But they never got taken down, and I’m starting to wonder if they ever will.
Amazingly enough, there haven’t been any memos about memorial services, a moment of silence or anything else on Wednesday. We did have a fire drill yesterday; we normally have two a year, usually sometime in March and October, but this was the second one in thirty days.
wring, I’m not sure about the Scooby Doo policy - I’ll have to ask. And your confusion mirrors mine. I happened to wear a RW&B shirt the other day - not making a statement, mind you, it’s just a comfy shirt.
Zoff, now a Blood Drive is what I’d consider a great idea! It allows people to actually make a contribution. What a concept!
The primaries here are on September 10. I’m really curious to see what voter turn-out will be like. Much as I want to think it will skyrocket, I’m betting that there will be the usual abysmal turn-out and that gobs of people who couldn’t be bothered to vote will wave their flags and wear their pins and be convinced that they are real patriots. :rolleyes:
Aww, c’mon, Gobear have a heart! Suppose I have an injury (shrapnel, gored by a bull-dagger, something suitably masculine) and get some of your blood in transfusion!
I have no concept of interior design, buy my socks in bulk (6 pair, white, $5.95 per bag), and the closest I’ll ever get to “buff” is polishing my car. And what the heck is “balsamic vinegar” anyway?
I couldn’t deal with it. Just flat couldn’t deal with it.
Yeah, I think my firm is handling it pretty well. They’re also sponsoring a team for a 5K to benefit a Sept. 11 charity. They seem to be encouraging charity and personal reflection. That’s a lot more my style.
Well, during the pre-donation screening process, you have to answer about 30 questions about your risk factors for having some sort of blood borne disease. You have to answer about recent piercings, exposure to Chagas, having sex for drugs, all sorts of shit. And one of the things they ask if you’re a man is whether you’ve had sex with another man, even once, since 1977. If you’re a woman, they ask if you’ve ever had sex with a man who’s had sex with a man since 1977. If you answer yes to either of these questions, you’re automatically disqualified from ever giving blood. If you’re in high risk group, they don’t waste their time and supplies pulling blood on you, since it’s more likely to test positive for something and be thrown away anyway.
So ummm FCM you are saying I shouldn’t try to sell those incredibly TACKY red, white and blue, starred Bicentennial goblets I found at my parent’s place next week?
As my mother died three days before 9/11 my mourning next week will be on a personal level.
Krisfer - far be it from me to advise you, but I bet Bicentennial stuff has its own collector niche. I remember a friend of mine referring to that particular celebration as the BUYcentennial because of all the crap for sale. Things haven’t changed much, have they?
I was reading this thread aloud (I need some training with english pronounciation), not paying too much attention to the content, when I came to your statement and began to laugh so hard I couldn’t go on reading…
Sounds like a grand idea, FairyChatMom. In fact, I think I might join you in that.
And for what it’s worth, it doesn’t make you unpatriotic… it makes you an individual, capable of expressing your feelings and using your freedoms as you see fit, not as someone else tells (or “suggests”) you do. That’s the best expression of the freedom America is supposed to represent that I can think of.
In my opinion, calling September 11th “Patriot’s Day” is a gross abuse of the term, and smacks of a bad PR decision. I’ll be wearing green as well… “just because.”
