By Beauty Damned

The Magnitude of Ignorance

So I haven't blogged since Ivette passed away. After posting about the news of her death I felt devoid of any thoughts that I was inclined to share publicly. Nothing at all to say here. Still, day after day I wrote it all down, feeling like the things I had to say could only be said right if they flowed directly out of a pen onto paper and were left there. Not to mention, I can't imagine anyone being interested in wallowing there with me in that place of total despair.

I've been filling journals and working on my pieces for school and that is where my writing has gone.

At some point a long time ago - sometime after the 2004 election, my disgust for those who support president Bush turned into apathy because I couldn't handle the loathing and revulsion that I felt for people who just don't seem to be waking up and smelling the stench of this administration. Instead, I stopped allowing myself to reflect too much on current events and politics and what people are saying about it all, because I was angry and being angry apparently doesn't solve anything or change the minds of anyone, nor does it feel particularly pleasant or make you any younger. I stopped reading blogs and news that would depress me to the point of distraction. Lately, certain things have lit that fire in me to blog again. Being angry is better than feeling nothing. One thing that has made me feel like blogging again has been news about the Dixie Chicks and all the shit that they are catching for exercising their right to free speech.

During the course of indulging in my guiltiest pleasure, that of reading celebrity gossip online, I came across this thread on tmz.com, the comments to which were enough to make my temperature rise.

I find it amazing that there are people out there who believe that in order to love this country and be a patriot, you must stand behind the president, no matter if he is the stupidest - and possibly the most dangerous - man alive. There are people who believe that regardless of the actions of your government, as a citizen it is your duty to stand behind that government anyway and lend your support, because THAT is what defines you as a patriot. This way of thinking is ignorant on a level that I can barely comprehend. These are people who say things like, "yes you have the right to free speech, BUT..." as if there are exceptions to be made. As if they themselves are the judges who are to determine what is and isn't OKAY free speech and whom is entitled to exercise it and under what circumstances.

These rabid Bush supporters think that they decide who has this right. They think they decide who is a patriot and what qualifies you. They think that they are doing right by this country by allowing Bush to destroy it. And I want to know how the fuck they figure? How do they figure that supporting Bush while he and his administration tear apart the fabric of our lives and our country, is the patriotic thing to do? If anything, they are the worst traitors this country has ever seen. Those who would give up their consitutional rights, those who would sell out their country, those who would stand behind a man who has done nothing but wreak destruction upon everything he touches - those are the worst traitors this country has ever seen. The Dixie Chicks couldn't hold a candle to those who continue to support this president when it comes to being traitors. Bush supporters win. They support a man who refuses to do what is best for our country. What could be less patriotic than that?

Posted by Maria at October 28, 2006 04:12 PM | TrackBack