A plane full of anthrax might crash into a nuclear reactor near a major American metropolis, but for God’s sake, keep shopping! Don’t let the terrorists win. But seriously, I understand the need to keep the American public informed, but do people act any differently under Condition Orange as opposed to Condition Yellow? Do the screeners at the airport suddenly become more vigilant? States of alert make sense within a military context, but I’m not sure they serve civilian populations that well. So how do we keep people informed without creating an atmosphere of anxiety and fear? Perhaps more to the point, does information such as this enhance our level of preparedness?
I keep reading about bloggers who get book deals. I don’t do this for the glory, but I certainly wouldn’t mind getting a writing gig if someone offered me one. When I was younger, I thought about growing up to be a professional writer. And as with most childhood dreams, this one eventually was tempered by an adult’s sense of cautious realism. It’s rewarding enough that twenty or thirty of you make the time to read me each day. That’s more of an audience than 90% of the human race has. So I’ll keep writing these daily missives and maybe karma will be on my side.

So you’re the tyrannical leader of a Mideast nation. A vastly superior foreign military is preparing to invade and force you from power. What do you do? Why, write a novel, of course! Is there some kind of rule requiring bloodthirsty dictators to have a somewhat tenuous grip on reality? How do people like this rise to power and then stay there for decades? I’m not trying to sound naive, but couldn’t some muckety-mucks in the Iraqi Army have gotten together and said, “Okay, the old man has clearly lost it. Time to retire him.” Are people in general really such sheep? Under the right circumstances, would Americans allow themselves to be ruled by a psychotic?
My apologies to those who came to this site earlier only to see an error message. My hosting company made another billing error that had to be rectified. Everything should be back to normal now.

I was this close to skipping out of work today to see Return of the King, but my better angels prevailed. I’ll most likely wait until next week and see it when my family is in town, as that has been the tradition for the last two films. Just…seven…more…days. I can do this. I have tremendous willpower when it comes to delaying gratification.
I firmly believe in evolution. Why? Because if human beings had any sort of sacred spark within them, it wouldn’t be necessary to run an ad campaign reminding people that it’s NOT OKAY to fling your urine and feces out the car window while cruising down the interstate. It’s been, what, nearly a century since indoor plumbing became a staple of modern civilization?
The closing of a year brings with it the predictable “Best of 2003” lists. I usually like to check out the book lists and I have to confess that I haven’t read many of them this year. I’m usually a year or two behind. But I am currently reading The Fortress of Solitude and it could very well be the best thing I’ve read this year. Anyone have their own favorites in books or music. And do not say “The Da Vinci Code” or I’ll ban your ass.

Crap. I just wrote a post and the computer ate it. Oh well. It was funny and insightful and eloquent and now it’s gone. Oh, the humanity!
Anyway.
I get to visit the doctor tomorrow afternoon. I don’t have as many doctor appointments as you might expect. For someone with my severity of disability, I’m remarkably stable. So the purpose of this visit is simply to let my physician know that I’m still in the neighborhood. I only wish there was an easy way to get some writing done while sitting in the waiting room. I want a pair of glasses like that guy in the IBM commercial. You know, the one where he’s sitting on a bench in Rome or Milan or wherever and trading stocks using a display on his eyeglasses, screaming “Buy it! Buy it!” like he just snorted a noseful of crystal meth.

Man, Saddam needs a shave and a haircut! I don’t think many people are unhappy to learn of his capture, but I fail to understand why we can track him down in a matter of months and war criminals like Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic are still free years after being indicted. Of course, it remains to be seen whether his capture will diminish the number of daily attacks by Iraqi insurgents.
The play last night was wonderful. Much more alive and and full of humor than the last time i saw it. If you’re ever visiting the Twin Cities during the holiday season, you really should make a point to see it.
I’m nearly finished with my holiday shopping. I just need to get something for my brother in Germany. I hope Amazon doesn’t charge an arm and a leg for overseas shipping.