2004: Tucked into the Annals of History

2004

This is a year that can be summed up quite simply. It has not been a year so much as the year.

This has been perhaps the most active cycle of 366 days ever, and the fact that its a leap-year only adds another day of action. Whether its been games, politics, war, religion, or people, things have spun wildly out of control. A brief look at some of the phenomena that happened this year:

1) The Halo phenomena, Halo 2, the sequel to the sleeper hit Halo, was released with hype and fanfare that would have even started the PR for Lord of the Rings. Microsoft spared no expense marketing the game, and the hype over-exploded the game. (I personally thought it was decent, but a far cry from the Second Coming that was pandered to me by the Corporation). This was the first time that a console game has ever had such a big release, and Master Chief will forever hold the seat of media stardom labelled "World's first Mega-Release:

Halo 2: 2004"

2) The US election. This is a phenomenon that last happened in the 1930's. It proves that not only is it acceptable to be an UltraCon, but fashionable as well, minus the voting fraud. All the lying and cheating aside, this is going to be another mind-bogglingly stupid four years of politics. So stupid, that many people with brains will simply stop talking, because the perfect counter to intelligent debate, aka, bigotry and assumption, are being shipped out en-masse from White House headquarters.

To you, Mr. Bush, we have the sign:
"I am the Elephant. I run, you clean up after me."

3) The Religious Meltdown. This goes hand-in-hand with the political Right-Wing mess. All factions of Christianity are at an uproar with each other over gay rights, whilst silently in the background, super-conservative factions are pressing into service an agenda that would make Jesus do cartwheels. Religious dogma is subtly being injected into the governments, and our enlightened perceptions of the world are rapidly slipping backwards into the days of the Crusades, the Inquisition, and the years when the earth was flat.

4) Iraq. Speaks for itself. Political mess, religious turmoil, bloodbath, all of these are true. People are so bent on killing, oil, money, and power, that nobody even knows whos who anymore, and its just a mad dash between the USA and a desperate, sinister, fragmented enemy for whatever shards are left of the shattered nation.

5) The Quake. Boxing Day horror, a 9.0 on the Rhicter scale, and it was so powerful that it caused the earth to shift on its axis. The resulting tsunami has been responsible for over 120,000 deaths at the time of this press, but final estimate are somewhere between 500,000 and a million. And out of all of this, the "developed nations" have thrown pocket change out of their cash reserves, the US especially. Levelling a multi-billion dollar deficit on new tanks and rockets, when 1/50th of that money would have put the Red, White, and Blue as the highest contributor to the national disaster relief.

6) Media. This is the year it ends. CNN, Fox, newspapers, local. No. It doesn't exist anymore. They report what they're told, and unless you see it for yourself, it didn't really happen that way.

The example: The Levelling of Falluja. The actual military operation didn't start until almost two weeks after the media release.

More on the year later, I'll likely be typing well into 2005, which henceforth shall be known as the year of:

Terribly Swift Painful Year of Ramifications

Some Axiom of Truth and Arlighty

Truth is a powerful thing. It's pursuit can lead to the discover of untold wonders, secrets of the universe that are terribly beautiful, and terribly powerful. The truth reaches in, as well as out, and it's attainment is often tempered by something, often called Morals.

Now, I watch as out southern neighbors preach an endless stream of morals. Supposedly, President Bush was elected based on his morals, and it is these morals that will carry the nation forward.

They will not.

What has happened, is the United States have become hyper-moralized. So obsessed with the pursuit of truth and good, that the very essence of what they seek to become has disappeared. The US has become a nation that has wrapped itself with the very essence of arrogance and Ivory Tower outlook.

Becoming less involved with the truth, the US has become a bastardization of morals. Instead of pursuing "what's right," they've taken the alternate path of "we're right." The somehow, because a democratic, and increasingly fundamentalist nation deems something needs doing, or something is wrong, they are automatically right. Such is neither democratic, nor overly Christian. A respectful sovereign nation does not shatter another sovereign nation based on morals alone. Such is the path to destruction and devolution.

Everything that the US stood for at its conception is moot. The Constitution is scrap, and the South won the war.

Unilateral action of destruction based on Truth and Morals is not the so called Path of the Paladin, champion of good. A force of good never works alone, and never burns its bridges with others of a like mind, if of a differeing opinion.

Stop the charge and listen. You might second guess yourself, but you might also make some friend and amends, which are, at this time, something essential to the survival of the United States as a free and democratic nation.

Gag Me

Returning from my own pseudo-mental stupor, I thought I should comment on something that has been bothering me.

The recent gag that seems to have blanketed the US Media, and the US Right to Freedom of Speech.

You see, President Bush just had the honor of visiting my home country. While he was here, the wonderful folk over at FOX news decided it would be fun to libel and slander my nation.
"It's like Honduras, only not as warm and fun."
Yeah, sure. Canadians say some pretty mean stuff about Americans, it's true... but we don't say it on goddamned national news television and get away with it.

Also, I'm surprised with all the sled-dog and igloo jokes that were passed on the air when FOX and CNN were interviewing Canadians. This is news? You, prodding a Canadian about sled-dogs and igloos? Are you NUTS? And People watch this shite? Like it was news? Real news?

Well, back to Bush. While he was here, we asked him kindly if he would reopen the boarder for Canadian Beef. He said... no. "We have a beaureacracy," he said. President Bush, who slammed his opponent Senator Kerry, for wanting a large government, is telling Canadians, that a goddamned government agency is holding up the boarder? What with all the government reduction, he couldn't axe the one thorn that has held up over 10,000 Canadian farmers?

Nope, guess not.

All the while, CNN is broadcasting the President's takeoff from a snowy Ottowa, cracking jokes about snow and igloos.

Great, you cut the slander, we have... err, had your President.

In other news, Bush went hard and heavy, trying to slam his missile defense up Canada's vulnerable Cabinet, shucking traditional diplomacy in favour of being the asshole cowboy telling the natives to shuck up or move out. Sorry spud, we're a democracy, and when something this big... and pardon me not being polite, stupid, comes along, we tend to gauge support for the idea democratically.

Which means you're sunk Mr. Bush. There are all of two Cabinet Ministers who support the idea, P.M.P.M., and Bill Graham. And they aren't cowboys like you.

Now, would you need a missile defence shield if you had addressed the root causes of conflict with the US? No, not likely, but seeing as how deterrence rather than detente has come back into season, I guess I'll just let the baby play.

9/10 reasons for strife and malignation against the US in today's world have been caused by past US foreign policy.

Blowback baby, it's a bitch.