Forgive me, but I must step away for a moment from the purpose of this blog--writing--to vent. Please bear with me.

Tony Blair is stepping down. He has ignited a political firestorm in his own country, jeopardizing his own career, to stand beside his friend, the President of the US. So it appears that Bush may well accomplish what all the suicide bombers cannot--the demise of democratic brotherhood among nations, and the United States' eventual but certain fall from world power.

We of the U.S. have become a synonym for arrogance, a bastion not of freedom but of self-deluded smugness. And now, Blair, a loyal friend to this country, has suffered for it (never mind the thousands of our soldiers who have been and are suffering in an unwinnable war; never mind people facing home disasters such as the tornado damage in Kansas, who will suffer because there aren't enough National Guard members to help them; never mind the political parties that have been split between loyalty and good sense, leaving them in too much of a shambles to lead).

How much more of this insanity can we take? And how can we wait for a far-away election for this to change? Fasten your seatbelts, everyone. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

And now back to our regularly-scheduled postings.