Don't Back Down

So he's not Paul. Rat, from Pearls Before Swine, can occasionally give him a run for his money when it comes to words of wisdom. This time is no exception. After running through a laundry list of faults from his neighbors (house color, barking dogs, car alarms, mowing lawns), he declares "Whoever said 'Love Your Neighbor' never could have foreseen the idiots that live on our block".

How true. And how utterly ridiculous at the same time. We tend to overlook the larger issues - sparing the lives of murderers, forgiving crime after crime against our neighbors. But paint your house the wrong color, or skip mowing your yard? That's simply too much.

Read "From the Mouths of Rats" »

Don't get me wrong. I like sex. But I like seeing more. So if the Viagra commercials add "temporary blindness" to the end of the disclaimers, right after "an erection lasting more than four hours is bad", I think it's safe to say that it may just not be worth it. Imagine having a four-hour erection but not being able to see, all at the same time. Humorous, yes. Sitcom funny even. But not if it happens to you.

So it seems that the British populace is returning to business as usual, refusing to be cowed by the terrorist actions on subway and bus lines. They are back to riding buses, back to the tube. Meanwhile, we Americans are continuing to be cowed, blockading this and allegedly securing that, in a futile attempt to make ourselves feel more secure, rather than simply showing the world our contempt for such actions and continuing with our way of life.

What a remarkable turnaround. The descendants of the colonists, formerly so proud of our independence from Britain, our superiority over the world, now are simply put to shame by the citizens of our former motherland. Sure, it took 200-odd years. But it is upon us. America has decided to look to the government for their protection, rather than simply holding our head high and seizing it ourselves. It's a sad day - and not only because of the transportation tragedy in London.