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February 25, 2004
ANOTHER SAD FIRST
The Constitution of the United States has been around for going on 220 years now. It's an amazing document, a statement of principles and a philosophy of government that is so strong, so powerful, so perfectly thought out that it has required only 27 amendments over its lifetime. What makes it even more amazing is that ten of those amendments were made within 40 months of the document's drafting... meaning that since 1791 - in 213 years! - only 17 amendments have been deemed necessary. Can you think of anything else that has remained as vibrant and alive and meaningful for 213 years with only 17 updates or improvements?
And for 213 years, nearly all of those amendments and improvements have been with the intent of making the document -- and American society -- more inclusive. Think about it... the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments were made to guarantee constitutional rights to all citizens, regardless of race... the 17th Amendment gave the people the right to elect their Senators instead of having them selected by a collection of privileged landowners... the 19th extended the right to vote to women... the 23rd, 24th and 26th extended & protected voting rights. All but two of those not mentioned affected the branches of government and how they operate. Every time, in the 213 years since the Bill of Rights was ratified, that the people or leaders sought to amend this great document, it was with the intent of making America more inclusive.
Until today.
Today, George W. Bush endorsed the first Constitutional amendment ever intended to make American society more exclusionary. Today, George W. Bush said that America will be a better place if we deny rights to certain people. Not extend rights, like every other amendment. To deny them. Think about that. In 213 years, this is the first American president to endorse the specific denial of specific rights to a specific group of citizens as a worthy change to the Constitution.
George Bush and his lemmings on the Christian Right ought to be ashamed. I'm sure the irony of their actions escapes them. Hopefully, it won't escape everyone else. And by the way... those two amendments I didn't mention yet? The 18th was a movement led by moralists seeking to impose their morality and their beliefs regarding alcohol upon the populace. The 21st was passed not 15 years later, as the nation realized what an embarrassing folly it had been to allow the religious fervor of a few to overwhelm the principle of the land. A good lesson to be learned there, I think.
WE LOVE THE SUBS! COZ THEY ARE GOOD TO US!
Props to Erika for ranting to me about these commercials for weeks - she was the first to point them out. They've finally started running out here in New York, and I have to say that the Quizno's Subs "sponge monkey" commercials are the strangest, most bizarre things I've ever seen. And I think they're hysterical. I don't surf the Net as often as I ought to, I guess, because I had no idea that the commercials were adapted from a Net cult classic cartoon, "We Like Tha Moon" (which you can find here). Thanks to my friend Laura in San Jose for pointing out the origin of these bizarre, yet oddly likeable commercials. Has anyone else seen these things? And what do you think of Quizno's using them in their advertising? Seems to me that we're talking about Quizno's on IM and in this little corner of Blogdom, so they have at least had part of their intended effect. (Hey... you think that if I write something wholly bizarre and get a lot of Net cult attention, some big company will want to come and buy my idea for a commercial?)
TOP TEN LIST... #8: MONTE CARLO
Reminder for Tim and Mike and everyone else (but especially Tim & Mike)... this list is only of places I have visited for work, not of my favorite places period.
One thing that I've never managed to shake off, no matter how much I see, what I do, or how many places I get to go, is shake off this little voice inside that reminds me that I'm just a small town midwestern kid who got really lucky... every once in a while I find myself thinking that people from my hometown don't usually see places/do things like whatever I am seeing or doing. I hope that doesn't sound arrogant, because it's in fact intended the wholly opposite way. And I must say, the most humbling place I ever visited while on a work trip was by far Monte Carlo.
We were in the area for work, and had just had a great success -- for my boss & I, one of the greatest of our careers. We knew how well we'd done, and decided to celebrate. So we drove on over to Monte Carlo to have some dinner and hit the casinos. I have never seen a place that screamed "MONEY" louder. I swear, there was nothing in the windows of the shops - not one outfit - that didn't cost more than about my entire net worth. Money doesn't usually impress me to the nth degree... but this was a whole 'nother world, friends. I don't know that impressed is the right word - it's not like I was envious... just wide-eyed and in awe of the sheer wealth surrounding you when you walk down the main street in front of the casino.
Everything was spotless and exquisitely manicured; everything was perfect. The shops along the sidewalks were so high-end they make Prada look like K-Mart. The casinos look like palaces - not garish and neon like in Vegas, but legitimately like they might once have housed royalty. The food in the restaurant we went to was... well, even though I can read French, there was still nothing on the menu I'd ever even heard of. I felt like Jethro Bodine in the middle of Tiffany's.
I'm not saying I aspire to be that rich, or that I envy the jet-set who are. I'm not sure I'd ever even want to fit in with that crowd -- an international playboy I'm not. However... for the sheer amount of bruises I got on my jaw for all the times it dropped to the ground, Monte Carlo might be unsurpassed. And so that makes it #8 on this list. #7 coming soon...
