Five Fruitless Years

Yesterday was the 5th anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq. Part of me feels like going on a very long-winded rant about what a waste this war has been on so many levels -- lives lost, trillions of dollars wasted, goodwill squandered, progress against al Qaeda stalled or reversed. Part of me is so very tired and feels like I've been beating my head against many brick walls over the years. I actually did oppose this war from the start. I loathed the way the Bush administration seemed to be careening headlong into the war, cynically manipulating the country into supporting war against a straw man. I also loathed the way the press fell down on its job of investigating and speaking truth to power. (But, man, give them a good sex scandal...) I was very grateful for the few voices out there who dared to speak out against the administration and the war. Seymour Hersh and Hendrik Hertzberg, in particular, wrote some amazing pieces in the New Yorker that I wish had been more widely noted.

I still loathe the way "patriotism" has been narrowly defined to consist of wearing a flag pin on one's lapel, ignoring that patriotism means not just standing up for your country, but actively working to make sure your country does the *right* thing. Free speech is patriotic. Having a yellow ribbon magnet on your car doesn't make you patriotic if you're supporting the erosion of our civil rights at the same time.

McCain wants to stay in Iraq, for one hundred years, if necessary. Clinton and Obama want to withdraw our troops. OK, but what then? We broke Iraq, but how do we fix it?

Other than those very depressing thoughts, I'm actually having a very nice Spring Break. It's quiet here, so I've gotten a lot of knitting and relaxing done. If only the weather were nicer, I could go out and get some exercise, too. I finished the back of the Flutter Sleeve cardigan, and started on the front. I'll be much further along by the time I go to bed tonight, but you get to see where I am now. Mr. T has the better digi camera, so the following photo was taken with the old Kodak:

The top looks big, right? It has the sleeves already knitted in, so I'm reserving judgment. This is a fast and easy knit, so maybe I'll actually have it to wear this Spring, when the weather calls for it.

Tomorrow, I think I'll get some more spinning done, as well.

Happy Spring!