President's Weekend, etc.

My son has a poster in his room of the 41 presidents prior to George II standing or sitting in chronological order. It's a print of a drawing and each of the presidents look vaguely cartoonish wearing over stylistic garb from the era they represented (Ronald Reagan looks out of place and time wearing a cowboy hat and boots but, hey, what are you going to do). When my son was 4 years old, he could name every president by sight. It was a neat party trick to pull out for friends and family. And a terrific memory game for him. I don't know if it is related to that exercise or not but, at 9 years old, he now has one of the best memories I've seen.

I was going to subject you, the reader, to a political rant this morning. As always, there's a lot going on and much to be commented on. But, frankly, I just don't have the motivation or energy.

Instead, you'll have to deal with half-baked thoughts....pretty to look at but still gooey on the inside. And it won't taste good going down.

Immigration

I chuckle when I hear the outrage directed at illegal immigrants. And laugh out loud over the notion of building a 500 mile fence to keep "them" out. Hey, I'd prefer everyone enter this country legally as well. But, make no mistake, they come because LARGE CORPORATIONS run by conservative white men will hire them for a reduced wage. No jobs = no stampede across the border. Want to turn off the "supply" of illegals? Get rid of the "demand". I was reminded of this again while reading Fast Food Nation and the meatpacking industries recent history of hiring illegal immigrants. Even going so far as sending "recruiters" to border Texas towns to load people on buses and drive them to Nebraska and North Dakota for low wage work. A large percentage of the workers on the lines at the beginning of the fast food pipeline are illegals. They work cheap. Don't try to unionize. And will not be provided company paid health care or unemployment. Next time you find yourself in a debate over immigration, let's direct our anger to the root cause: exploitative corporations.

2008 election

Honestly, we are dealing with this already? It's become a non-stop campaign cycle in this country. At this point, does anyone really want a retread of the old, stale politician - a veteran of the Partisan Wars (1994-current). I want a fresh voice. An innovative thinker. I guess everyone wants that too. Do we have one in names like Clinton, McCain, Giuliani, etc? I'm not sure. I think our next president hasn't identified him or herself yet. In a word, I think our next president needs to be INSPIRATIONAL. Somebody needs to inspire this nation back to our core ideals and get people believing in "America" again. And I have an inkling of who that might be.

Iraq War

This is over right? Let's get back to rooting out the terrorists. Why do I never hear Bin Laden's name anymore? I haven't forgotten. Have you?

Presidential History

Why did our ancestors vote for Grover Cleveland in two non-sequential terms? He has screwed up our presidential numbering system and, most importantly, my son's poster. Do you draw the same guy twice - on either side of Benjamin Harrison? Not likely. Despite the distinction of being the president Most Likely to be a Member of Biker Gang (check out that cool mustache and portly figure) he's thrown a monkey wrench into the nice sequential presidential order.



Happy President's Day! I don't know what I'll buy my wife to celebrate. And how is it that the chocolate industry hasn't jumped all over this "holiday" yet. Where is my little box of edible chocolate presidential busts? The Bush one is filled with nuts! Mmmm, I love the Calvin Coolidge.