From the Air...

Everyone on this and every other planet (including the late, lamented Pluto) seems to have weighed in on the fifth anniversary of the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks. All I'll add to the mix, as I wait (with some anxiety) to board an airplane at Philly International, is that it would be refreshing to see a fraction of the energy spent on retrospectives, Administration photo-ops, and haggling over design of memorials redirected toward understanding of why 9/11 happened (arguably, American imperialism and arrogance) and the spirit of charity, volunteerism, and non-partisan unity that seemed to permeate our country in the days after 9/11, sadly to have disappeared long before this fifth anniversary.

If we remember anything, let it be those who lost loved ones and those who gave their lives attempting to save the victims. Let's forget about replaying the video over and over again, the flag-waving God-Bless-Us chest-pounding, etc...shame on those that, to this day, use 9/11 to elicit fear, promote violence, and increase division among the American people, as well as between us and those who disagree with us. As it has been said, God blesses everyone - no exceptions. A simple lesson, at the heart of most every faith, completely foreign to our national leadership and thousands of magnetic-ribbon-on-SUV drones.

Along those lines, I have to share the message from a church sign that I saw recently, one that is egregious on SO many levels:

FOR ALL YOU DO
HIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU

Ewww, theologically and otherwise. Where do these fundamentalist churches get this crap? Are there factories somewhere where hordes of low-paid workers sit on assembly lines and think up this tripe, overseen by supervisors who thump them with Bibles (modern translation, with color pictures, no doubt) to increase their simpleton productivity? Can members of these churches, relishing the cheap, no-thought-required, grace heaped upon them, spell Bonhoeffer or Barth?

Saw the aforementioned sign while traveling to deliver Daughter #1 to college to start her freshman year, an age-affirming and somewhat traumatic event observed later that evening by the ceremonial consumption of Scotch (me) or Bourbon (mom) whiskey. Kind of strange, still, to have one fewer person in the house, though Daughter #2 is enjoying the spotlight, and her sister's stereo, though she is ambivalent over the sister's chores that she has assumed. Not to mention the full, focused force of Evil Parental Oversight.

We received word last week (via instant message, which I advised is NOT the medium for such news) from Daughter #1 that she has acquired a tattoo during her first week at school. ("But not a tramp-stamp, Dad.". Right.) After the initial flare of temper subsided, Mom and I realized that there really isn't a damn thing we can do about it - she is, after all, 18. As I noted, adults are free to make their own idiotic decisions. How else can we explain how Bush/Cheney was elected twice?

Boarding the plane. Nice to see so many fewer carryon bags. Could use a drink, though...

(Postscript: the movie on the plane was "Poseidon." United Airlines' attempt to make us feel better about air travel??)