24 Hours later...

[jchrisobrien]

and I'm back in the same living room, with a similar group of people. We're drinking, but no one is singing, except for their taste buds. My taste buds aren't singing, pistachio's don't quite inspire a concerto in your mouth. They are tasty, especially when washed down with water and Mike's Hard Lemonade. We're celebrating an upcoming wedding, and the bride and groom are drunk on good food and old scotch and each other's eyes. Their warm glow is contagious. Other couples hold hands and smiles, married couples communicate w/out words. Soon I will be getting my ass kicked in a conversation about whether we even had a democratic society anymore.

I am the victim of a good bit of naiveté. I still think that at the core, we live in a good country and have rights and recourse to the law. I can think this because I'm a middle class white guy. If I was living in a concrete box, or darker skinned and praying at a mosque, I'm sure my opinion would be a lot different. I guess what I believe in is the Dream of America, or the Legend. It's a Nightmare for some. I'm sure the truth is somewhere in between. It's a bad night's sleep in a hot room with an expensive air conditioner that doesn't quite work, lying on a soft oversized mattress.

I'm going to can the political talk right now, because I'm not good at it. I need to do more research, more reading. Fortunately, such knowledge is only a book or a paper or three clicks of a mouse away.

Comments

[spriggan.livejournal.com]

yeah, i avoid political discussion too, it always ends up with me saying, "uh, let me check with jen on that." but i know i'm pretty okay at logic, so i stick to those.

[shnells.livejournal.com]

you weren't doing too badly on the political discussing thing ;) i remember paraphrasing you a few times. i have just been blessed by having some very good teachers in my past that made you open your eyes and really think about what people say. it was an enjoyable debate.

[silas7.livejournal.com]

My 7th grade teacher Mrs. Whissler always taught us to question what we were being taught especially our government. At the time we all thought she was crazy. Little did we know how right she was.