Final Daze

And, it has been a bewildering year. The assassination of Benazir Bhutto this week was just the final shock in a terrible time. A time of inane leadership (here and other countries.) This was an incredibly intelligent, qualified leader and someone in a position to speak of democracy in the Middle East. We have no business meddling over there and when we do, it only inflames anti-American passion. Now another voice of moderation has been silenced. War continues.

Iowa is about to have an inappropriate and ill-proportioned say in our domestic leadership. Yeah, I sucked up in the Open Editorial Letter, but in the end it didn't help. The republican Register lived up to their rep and 1) failed to print an opposing view, and 2) endorsed Hoary Hillary hoping she'll lose in the general. They know damn well she won't be President -- she's too strident. And, despite Oprah's endorsement, I doubt Obama with his black and Muslim background, will either. And, he's a smoker. Here's a little something I clipped from another blog;

Smokers are considered by wellness enthusiasts as self-destructive, reckless lifestyle kamikazes lacking self-control, self-regard, dignity and panache. Just as you would not want to live with one, the chances are you would not vote for one, either.

I failed to make the wellness point for my man John Edwards. Look how fit and healthy he is at 54. Why would we want an ex junky or any of the old fat farts with baggy, saggy complexions and unhealthy hearts about to burst, as the Leader of the Free World? Having a moron hasn't worked, either. Let's have a healthy, respectable intellectual; someone who has taken care of himself, his family and is highly successful. Is that a hard call to make?

Truly bewildering is the environmental crisis. We're not making any real headway on the oil or deforestation issues. I remember putting up a solar panel in 1979. How is it that nearly 30 years later, they're still too expensive and complicated to use? I want a solar battery tender for my van. Think I can find one at a reasonable price? Ha! So forget solar powered cars or home panels. That's just F'd. And, so are we with this continuing oil dependency.

I feel my blood pressure rising. Which brings me to the concept of moral outrage. If we truly had any, instead of such apathy, we might see real change. But even that is bewildering. The Dalai Lama doesn't rant like this. In fact, he makes this important observation: All political and religious beliefs boil down to the desire for peace and happiness. He says we must not lose sight of the fundamental goal nor put the means before the end. We must always maintain the supremacy of Compassion over ideology. That's worth pondering for 2008.

I'm anxious to leave 2007 behind. It was a year of health crisis and many changes for me -- many of them hard and unsettlng. Yeah, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, but it can also make us bitter and sour. My challenge is to keep the Attitude of Gratitude for 2008 and gratefully welcome the new year.

I've been anticipating 2008 for seven years. I remember thinking in 2001, that I had seven years "to go" (for retirement.) Now, it's here. This is my final year of the daily government grind. I want it to be joyful and light. I've earned my keep and shouldn't have to stress out this last year. I should use it for transition and to maintain my fledgling health. I won't miss 2007.