I've been tinkering with pyblosxom for the past week. I have been test-driving a python variation on the writeback plugin. After a week my interest is waning, partly because I've learned that one of the developers is working on a comment, trackback, and pingback combo. And I wanted to be done with this already.
Bush is known to be proud of the number of people executed in Texas under his governance. He's a strong believer in the death penalty. This war in Iraq is politically analogous to an execution. Saddam Hussein's regime is depicted in criminal violation of UN resolution 1441 and images of decapitation are used to describe objectives of undermining the Iraqi leadership. Those witnessing this metaphorical execution will experience 'shock and awe' of the US Military power. Just as the death penalty is intended to discourage capital crimes, so too this action is intended publicly to discourage Iraqi soldiers from participating in the crimes of their leaders. But clearly there is another agenda of discouraging other "rogue states" from offering terrorists safe haven within their borders, and discouraging any nation from threatening the US in any fashion.
But what threat does the death penalty represent for a suicide bomber, or suicide airline pilot, as the case may be? When life has become such a burden that an explosive death is preferable, the death penalty offers no influence. When the leaders of a rogue state know that they are on death row, will they prefer to go out with a bang or with a whisper?
Classic postcard morning for the first day of Spring here in Boulder. Winter went out with a bang this year.
Rollinsville, Colo., perched at 9,000 feet above sea level in the foothills northwest of Denver, got 7 feet, 31/2 inches.
The east Denver suburb of Aurora recorded 40 inches of snow. Boulder got 22.5 inches.
Unfortunately, I-70 is still closed west of Morrison. Although, with that much snow, it's probably good that I can't ski myself into an avalanche. Occasionally -- it seemed more frequent when I was younger -- Mother Nature reminds Colorado residents to just chill out for a couple days. I think blizzards are more gentile than earthquakes, tornados, floods, or hurricanes, but no less awesome and humbling.
Thanks, Chris, for pointing to Edward W. Lempinen's article See no evil. Lempinen offers compellingly written arguments in favor of the war. I'm grateful for his reframing of the war into less offensive terms, and for suggesting a course of action for the political left:
For those leftists who have supported the war, and for those who have loudly opposed it, now is the time for a shift in strategy. Bush and his inner circle have repeatedly gone on the record describing the war on Iraq as a war of liberation. Even if we do not believe them, we must work relentlessly to hold them accountable. We must insist that the U.S. and its allies implement, as quickly as possible, a constructive post-war plan.
Nevertheless, the beginning of any war is a very sad day. And I remain selfishly concerned that US attention should be directed at al Qaeda and securing the homeland, as I said earlier.
For the last week, amid job-hunting, I've been tinkering with Blosxom, MT, tiki text, textile, and Jon Udell's Docbase kit from Practical Internet Groupware. I'm trying to assemble some simple infrastructure for mostly spontaneous web app creation. I want to get back to my tinkering, but also thought I'd post some links that are fueling my tinkering.
As there is no absolute freedom in a democracy of laws, so there will be no absolute security in the age of terrorism. But all of us, citizens and leaders alike, owe it to ourselves, to our families and to our nation to undertake the kinds of precautions required to prevent us from being hostages to terrorism and to enable us to walk freely in our own land.
On September 11, New York Police Department helicopter pilots reported their assessment that the towers were likely to collapse imminently, unaware that the firefighters in the buildings could not hear the transmissions.
As fire and heavy, black smoke were seen spewing from the 110-floor North Tower skyscraper at the World Trade Center (WTC), without instruction or guidance from authorities, vessels from tugboats to ferries in the harbor area that witnessed the incident changed their courses and headed directly for the closest docking areas to the WTC. (Emphasis mine.)
Here's a deep link to a form on www.congress.org to send a letter to the President and your congressional representatives (determined from your zip code).
Even if you disagree with my position on Iraq, please voice your opinion to our leaders and to your own communities. Democracy is a participatory activity. Please speak up.*
I strongly oppose war with Iraq. Although Iraq could eventually become a
threat to the United States, they present no immediate danger to our
country. By contrast, al Qaeda has demonstrated their capacity and will
to deeply harm us. Let the United Nations pursue more aggressive
inspections which appear to be gradually working. Let our nation's
attention focus on our real enemy: al Qaeda.
The alleged links between Iraqi leadership and al Qaeda do not make any
sense. If common faith and hatred of the United States were enough to
bring them together, why are the Arab nations so internally divided? On
the contrary, Osama bin Laden would loose all credibility within al Qaeda
if he were to collaborate with Saddam Hussein. He couldn't condemn the
Saudis for their abuse of power while collaborating with Hussein. It just
does not make any sense.
It does not make financial sense either. Economic insecurity is the most
immediate threat to American well being -- far more than anything Iraq
could muster. Please do not throw away billions of taxpayer dollars to
invade a second-rate threat. Spend those taxpayer dollars strengthening
our internal defenses and disrupting al Qaeda.
Nor does it make sense strategically. Since January of 2002 US foreign
policy has focused on the "Axis of Evil": Iraq, Iran, and North Korea.
With our intelligence attention and resources stretched so thin we are
still vulnerable to attacks from al Qaeda. The new Department of Homeland
Security has a mammoth task just in re-organizing the operations of
twenty-two agencies. They cannot possibly be effective in securing the
country within the apparent timetables for war with Iraq. It doesn't make
sense to wage war half way across the world while leaving our homeland
defenses in their current state. We know for a fact that al Qaeda can hit
us at home.
Our military supremacy does not mean we can capture Hussein, or more
importantly, secure all of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. We leveled
Afghanistan and yet failed to capture bin Laden. Moreover, Hussein's
dictatorship keeps the internal Iraqi factions in check. How can we keep
factions within Iraq from slipping away with whatever weapons remain? Let
Hussein continue to keep the factions in check and let the weapons
inspectors continue to scour Iraq. Redirect our military's attention to
al Qaeda.
Our real enemies are the sour economy and al Qaeda. It is a grave mistake
to distract ourselves in a war with Iraq.
* To encourage some participation, my blog is now open for comments in addition to trackback.
update: corrected spelling of bin Laden on April 9, 2003
