I love my girlfriend...and our new toaster is awesome.
Whoah, two posts in one day. I had actually intended on writing something about this earlier this morning, but then remembered that I still wanted to rant a bit about the whole Syria/Lebanon/democracy-in-the-Mideast-isn't-impossible...thing. So.
After a long and tiring day of cogging in the name of the People of Indiana yesterday, I came home and prepared myself to go grab some Chinese with Jessi and hit Target shopping for some of the household wares we'll need when we move in together next month. In reality, I was neither in the mood for Chinese or shopping, but both needed to be done and any excuse to spend time with Jess is a good one.
Dinner was better than I thought, primarily because I tried egg drop soup for the first time. I know, I know...how could I have never had egg drop soup? It's easy. I'm a picky eater, and it always sounded gross. I generally preferred wonton soup. However, we didn't go to our usual Chinese place (House of Cheung on 79th and Keystone...yum!) and ended up hitting Rice Cooker in Zionsville. Their food is okay, but I was not impressed with their wonton soup the last time I had it (or rather, looked at it - I didn't even eat it). Instead, I cautiously ordered the egg drop soup, telling Jessi that she could eat the rest of mine if I didn't like it. As it turned out, I really liked it. A lot. So much so that I think I may have found my new "sick food." It was delicious, filling and warming. The "chicken sticks" (WTF is a "chicken stick?") were kind of scary, but my sweet and sour pork was delicious as always. Lesson learned, soup eaten.
We proceeded to hit the Target just south of Z-ville. My back was bothering me a bit, so tromping around the store looking at towels and tablerunners was not really sounding very good to me. My sweetheart of a girlfriend noticed this, and asked me several times if I wanted to save the trip for another time. Not wanting to put it off, I decided to press on. We procured a number of items, from the aforementioned kitchen towels and tablerunner to linens, dishes, a block of decent knives and some pots and pans.
The real trophy of the trip was, however, our new toaster. I could not be satisfied with a $10, two-slice Toastmaster that overheats after you've put one set of toast through it. Instead, I chose a monstrous Hamilton Beach 4-slice extra-wide-slot toaster (I'd link to the product specifically, but Hamilton Beach sucks at the website - if you want to see it, it's the "Classic Chrome Extra-Wide Slot" model). I'm so excited, I can hardly wait to start making toast! It reheats, it defrosts, it does bagels, hand-sliced breads and hamburger buns! IT HAS DUAL CRUMB TRAYS!
Ahem. It's a nice toaster, that's all I'm saying.
-Sam
This is the day, this is the hour, this is this.
It's time for the international community to face one fact. The Syrians are not serious about withdrawing from Lebanon. The fact that the Syrian-picked president to Lebanon just reinstated the pro-Syrian puppet prime minister whow as forced to resign ten days ago (ABC story) ought to be proof enough.
The democratic West, the U.S. in particular, has reached a turning point in the nature of our involvement in the Middle East. Although we have a very long way to go in improving our image amongst the inhabitants of the region, in ever-increasing numbers they are looking to us to help them throw off the shackles of tyranny and embrace democracy. Say what you will about Bush's Iraq policy (indeed, I've got more than a few things to say about it myself), the bottom line is that his determination to ride out the storm in Iraq and see a democratically-elected government thrive there has fostered a feeling of hope among some muslims in the region. One of the leaders of the Lebanese opposition to Syrian occupation has been quoted in interviews as crediting Bush's pro-democracy, pro-intervention policy as having been a catalyst for change in Lebanon.
Now is our opportunity to actively support pro-democracy movements in the Middle East. With the Iraqis taking control of their own government for the first time in decades (however messily), the Lebanese struggling for independence from an oppressive foreign invader and students in Iran clamoring for the removal of the theocracy there, democracy has a better chance now than it ever has before. All it needs is the help of those countries that have centuries before thrown of their own shackles and embraced representative government. Whether that help comes in the form of stern words from our leadership, the sponsoring of negotiations between opposing factions, covert aid from our intelligence community or outright military intervention is a decision for men far wiser than I. All I know is that it would be a mistake to let these seeds of democracy flounder and die the way we have in so many other countries since the end of World War II.
You're probably wondering what a Libertarian like myself is doing endorsing a plan for such outright intervention in the affairs of other nations. As a Libertarian, I do indeed believe that the primary mission of our armed forces and other international assets is to defend the well-being and interests of the United States. However, I also want people in other countries of the world to enjoy the same kind of freedoms we (obstensibly) have in the United States. Moreover, every time a new democracy emerges, I have a spark of hope that they might get it right. For all our splendor, the American democratic system is far from a Libertarian's dream. I think some of us hope that another country might forge that Libertarian dream and give their citizens the gift of a government that serves and protects them rather than controlling and supervising them.
That's what I hope anyway, and any help we can give them to have that chance is a worthwhile pursuit.
-Sam
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