state of the union

I'm feeling particularly sobered up right now.

I'm terrified of the power of the current president, and his stupidity. But what scares me most, far beyond this administration's incompetency, is the indifference of the American people. War, climate change, torture? I admit I haven't led any protests, but it's chilling to see headlines like "Speculations of Military Use of Torture" and "U.S., China Got Climate Change Warnings Toned Down" and not see a truly revolutionary change in American society. To go to the grocery store and do homework and go to movies and museums as though we don't know terrible things are going on, as though even disinterested high school students can't dissect Bush's tired, platitudinal rhetoric.

I feel like I'm on a ship that I know is being steered in the wrong direction, but I'm down below deck downing Manhattans and trying to forget with bad 80s music. And everyone else is with me. Except for those 30-something percent, who are with the captain, cheering him on, applauding too quickly in front of their face to look out the window and survey the damage.

The saddest part is that we're suffering the least. We'll probably be leaving a massive mess when we get out of Iraq--but the land here is still in tact. And India and Central America will most strongly get to feel the effects of our giant SUVs.

It's so disparaging.

Silver lining: Sometime (too far) in the future, there will be another election. Obama is running. He's sane. He's not accepting money from lobbyists. Please vote for him.