Person of the Year

Time magazine named the Person of the Year. Now I know no one’s going to believe me as I say this on-line after the fact, but I swear, a couple of days ago, I was telling my family that I think that the U.S. military ought to have be named the people of the year. Like most people, I have certain views of the George W. Bush administration, but I also felt that no matter how one felt about the war in Iraq and how things were going in Afghanistan, one should salute the military for the work done, the fears faced, and the courage and duty with which the troops are continuing to follow through. Of course, I didn’t think Time magazine would really do what I thought should be done. My predictions are never that good (tv shows I like get cancelled; re: 2000 elections; etc).

But, lo and behold – Time did it – the magazine named “The American Soldier” as person of the year. It’s not about one person, man or woman; it’s not about which division or what; or about even in one achievement. Congratulations to the troops; they did so much during the recent years and the work isn’t over yet. Looking forward to the issue in my mailbox.

Where’s the rage?!

RE: Officials: WMD chief may quit

I’m totally dismayed but not surprised that people have not taken up arms on this latest development. Perhaps it’s just too much Iraq and bad news and people would rather just bury it and move on with life’s mundane issues — like where’s my next job coming from? All the critics can and should gloat about this. Bush has so set back America’s credibility and standing in the world with its cowboy foreign policy. Only someone who’s never stepped outside of America could come up with such a brain damaged policy. Poor hick white trash, art thou Mr President. Yale should disown your legacy and bestow it upon more worthy candidates.

However, this is something the pundits and Democrats needs to latch onto and beat Bush into a pulp even though Saddam has been caught. Good news however… Bush is still laboring under the weight of the poor economy and people feel there’s a need for a new president. See Re-Elect Numbers Still Behind in Newest Zogby Poll
for some news on this. In a perverse way, I was hoping that the economic malaise would continue unabated into 2005 which would insure a resounding Bush defeat in the 2004 elections (You know the old adage about history repeating itself). Even now I think that 2004 won’t see much but 2005 and 2006 we will see significant improvement in the employment/economic sector. 2004 will be full of empty pyschological placebos, to make people think that things are better, when in fact, that is so far from the truth. An economic paradigm shift is occurring and the professional class is not immune to the same fate that befell the blue-collar class.

So, a wish for a depressed 2004 so we can have a brighter future in 2005 ….

=YC

Pueba de los Chinos

Thinking about the shrimp tortillas that I had yesterday ….. tempura battered jumbo peeled and cleaned shrimp that’s such a delicious cross-cultural metaphor. As confirmed by my co-worker, there’s no such thing as a shrimp tortilla in Mexico. If you ever look closely enough, you have to realize that most of the fresh taco places, including this one, are actually run by Chinese. Some of them look and dress ambiguously enough that you aren’t sure until they call out their orders to the kitchen.

I had gone earlier in the week to pick up some other stuff for the office luncheon and realized that they are doing gangbuster business. They got the Mexican food, they do Chinese food, and they do fried chicken, and people in the neighborhood can’t get enough of it. The thing that is really bizzare is that, two doors down, there is an authentic Chino-Latino place (with real Chinese from South America that speak fluent Spanish) that’s been there since the ’70s, and they’re getting creamed by these guys that probably never set foot in Mexico. Talk about mindblowing!