Some folks are born made to wave the flag... oooh that red white n' blue

Ever since the invasion of Iraq there's been increased talk of patriotism in the American media. In general it goes something like this: if you're not a supporter of the war effort, you're a traitor to your country and a coward. Just look at how they painted Cindy Sheehan when she asked "Where is the nobility in this supposed war on terror."


And lately it's all been laid out again on the floors of congress, with Republicans and Democrats both throwing words around to imply that you can or cannot support the troops if you don't support the war they're fighting. Personally, I find it all very hypocritical on both sides - these fat cats sit around and bitch about how best to go about things, accomplishing absolutely nothing, while more and more troops are killed or maimed a thousand miles away. And these people have no vested interest beyond political posturing - rarely would you find any meaningful connection between the politicians and the soldiers. Poor kids from urban centres pay the ultimate price while back home the rich get richer and feel no remorse for any of it.


The Republicans get me pissed off with all of this patriotic rabble - they're gung-ho for war and claim that we must take care of our wounded and send our healthy warriors into battle with the best possible protection and technology. Meanwhile the soldiers are sent into this conflict with no reinforcements on their Humvees and little body armour, and have even had to resort to buying their own silly string to detect trip wires that have been set up as boobie traps.

I watched a clip that Olberman put on the other day regarding the state of affairs that amputees and mentally damaged soldiers must deal with once they get back to the States. Essentially the Pentagon grossly underestimated the number of injuries that this war would produce, and now they're forcing some soldiers to live in rat and roach infested buildings just so they can be near treatment centres.

Bush claims that Americans must do everything that they can to help the vets, but he has done his best to cut back on the pay vets receive, the amount of money their families receive in case of the soldiers' deaths, and the pay that soldiers receive for current duty - not to mention the extension of tours of duty in Iraq.

Let's not forget about Valerie Plame either - the people who label others as traitors are themselves traitors, but far too powerful to be prosecuted (and possibly hanged) for it. It's cool to tell the world about an undercover federal agent, just because her husband is against your politics... but make sure you've got the ability to cover it up!

Another topic of interest is the dismissal of homosexual troops, some of whom have the great asset of being able to translate Arabic in the field. And now the military is so stretched to find troops (even after max-ing out current soldiers' tours) they're relaxing their restrictions on recruitment to allow convicted criminals to join the army. I read a stat that estimated 1 in 10 soldiers has some sort of criminal record. As an average soldier, would you want some cement-head with a jail-tat on his arm watching your back in Iraq? Not likely.

To me, American patriotism would be to follow the principles that were laid out by the founders of the country - something that's become so bastardized that it's hard to even relate their principles to today's government. All of it goes down the shitter when rhetoric about how "the Constitution was drafted in a simpler time" comes about. Have a look at the aptly labelled "Torture Act" and try to line it up with the Constitution. Look at the words of Roberto Gonzales - claiming that the writ of habeas corpus is not guaranteed to every citizen, but it is only guaranteed not to be taken away. That's abso-fucking-lutely unbelievable when you consider the figurehead that's speaking this kind of stuff.

But that's the America of the 21st century I suppose.

Gymclass Heroes

When I was a kid I used to be a competitive little bastard.
A good piece of my front tooth will attest to that, courtesy of a hockey stick to the face back in elementary school gym class.
There was a kid down the street that I used to battle with relentlessly in sports, and a number of kids I'd try to upstage academically. And alot of the time I did a damn good job of things.

But if you know me today, I don't get too bent out of shape by losing a hockey game or getting a lower grade on tests than my friends. In fact, I don't get too riled up about anything. There's probably been 3 or 4 times in my four years in university that I've been truly pissed off, the latest of which ended in my choking one of my best friends. I had a good reason though, rest assured.

It's hard to say when or why I lost my fire for competition and aggression. It's probably got alot to do with my old man, and how I was raised. He was always of the mind that when it came to sports we all ought to be realistic about our expectations. He knew that none of my teammates were ever bound for the NHL or Premier League Football, despite what the other parents on the sidelines might argue.

Then again, that doesn't explain my initial competitiveness, or the fact that my brother is a rage-aholic when it comes to the simplest of frustrations in life. Come to think of it, my dad and bro are very similar in that regard, despite my dad trying his best to raise us as respectful and level-headed kids. (If it was his intent to do so, I'd say he succeeded with me, but my bro somehow strayed from his original goals. haha).


When I watch movies like Friday Night Lights or Varsity Blues (or any of those typical sports movies), I can't help but feel pity for the people in the real world who actually buy into that shit. The fathers living through their kids; the kids who play through injuries that will end up affecting them for life; the coaches who brainwash kids into believing that anything short of victory amounts to sin.

The mentality of our culture is that winning is everything, and glory lasts forever yadda yadda... But the truth is that some yokels down in Texas winning a state championship in highschool football means absolutely nothing to 99.99% of the world. But impressionable kids are led to believe that somehow they are going to leave a mark on the world by taking a trophy home to put up on the mantle.

The winners eventually find out that winning isn't all it was cracked up to be. They'll still be stuck in their podunk towns with only dim lights at the end of the tunnel (probably because sports took precedent over academics or development of maturity and intellect). More importantly, however, is the impact on the kids who don't win under the pressure of their families, coaches, friends, and even hometowns. Pressures like that can really destroy people when the bottom falls out of the dreams they were trained to conjure up when they hit the pillow every night.

Even still, ya gotta love sports - whether it's the major leagues on TV or just a game of ministicks in the living room. But it all comes down to the reason you're playing I guess.

And maybe that's why I gave up my competitive nature - I came to the point of understanding that the world keeps turning and the clock keeps ticking no matter what the tallies on the scoreboard read.
These days I just don't sweat the small stuff. If you win or lose an insignificant game, as long as you don't let it change you as a person, there's no real difference. If you lose a thousand games and still get up the next day to play again - or if you win a thousand and keep your ego in check - it all balances out.
But I suppose everyone's got a different opinion of what insignificant means.