All Thoughts Lead to Rome

I've been watching the new HBO series "Rome" and this week on the History Channel it's been Rome week. I've also been looking over the photos my daughter took in Rome this summer (yes, I'm jealous) while touring with the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra.

So naturally, I've been obsessed with all things Roman.

There are many unpleasant and downright nasty things about these people, but there are also more than a little that I stand in amazement at. And through it all, I can't help thinking exactly how far civilization collapsed, right along with them.

I refuse to call the period after their collapse the "Middle Ages". It wasn't the middle of anything. It was a dark, dark time. Back to living in mud huts and digging in the ground with sticks. And it gives me a little twinge when I hear the current Pope wishing for a time where "the Church" had a more prominent roll in Europe's daily life. Yes, things were much better when the Catholics were in control of most everything (OK, most of what we refer to as "the West").

I've always been a fan of ancient Greece - probably my theater training, but wow, those Romans could build!

And yes, it's painful to think on how they lost their republic. It makes one think that such things are possible still today. Look how quickly it happened to them. Look how quickly it happened to the French with Napoleon. The Germans certainly tossed of their republic quickly and efficiently (It's a joke, son).

Ah, but that could never happen in the good ol' U. S. of A. Could it?


In case you miss my point, take a look at the Insurrection Act

I'm afraid you underestimate the American public

Harvard Gazette: Using chili peppers to burn drug abusers: "Imagine snorting an extract of 50 jalapeno peppers and you get the idea," Woolf says. "On a one to 10 scale, the pain is about a thousand. It feels like a mininuclear explosion in your mouth. It does not harm you, but you never want to experience that feeling again."

Come on, Mr. Woolf. Do you think a little heat is gonna keep people (like Rush Limbaugh, for instance) from getting high?

In fact, I could see it as a new macho cred. You have to suffer before you get the benefit. Snorting OxyContin could become a virtuous act.

On a serious note, I am very concerned and personally committed to making sure that pain management and control is available to all that need it. Doctors in this country largely under treat pain. It's not good to suffer. And many with chronic pain have very few options. I get very worried when the government tries to control access to useful medications for fear that someone, somewhere, will abuse it.

Pharaoh! Let my people grow up!

Nano Nano

So, Apple taunts Sony and the other nameless MP3 player manufacturers by introducing the iPod Nano. Ah, but it's small!

I myself prefer the iPod Glactica - my 60 gig iPod photo. Yes, I wish it were smaller, but I use it to carry ALL OF MY MUSIC (over 40 gigabytes) and ALL OF MY DIGITAL PHOTOS (nearly 7,000) and all of my documents. And I still have 5 gig of space left.

When you can do all that and store it in my watch, along with my phone, call me. On my watch/iPod/computer watch. I'll be watching on my Virtual Light sunglasses.

Finally: The Press Grows A Backbone

Brilliant and eloquent.

Boing Boing: Oh, Keith Olbermann, how I love thee.

Here's the transcript: Bloggermann by Keith Olbermann

Enough Blame to Go Around

CNN.com - House cancels hearings on Katrina response - Sep 7, 2005: "Tempers flared Tuesday during a contentious closed-door meeting between House members and Cabinet secretaries in charge of directing Katrina relief efforts. A Republican representative stood up and said, 'All of you deserve failing grades. The response was a disaster,' CNN was told by lawmakers emerging from the meeting.But DeLay countered that assessment later in a news conference by saying that the onus for responding to emergencies fell to local officials."

From Karl Rove's play book: Keep everyone on message. Talk about everything we've done right. Admit no fault. And blame the locals - it's all their fault. And try out these themes: "No one knew this would happen." "No one knew it would be this bad." "It was a slowly unfolding disaster. We applied the right resources as we learned at each stage." "All these people will be able to make a fresh start - they'll be better off." "All of these people should have left anyway." And don't forget, "We're enforcing law and order out of chaos." That plays big in the sticks.

But everyone in the world with access to a TV knew last Tuesday morning that New Orleans was in serious danger. I new it by 7 A.M. and I'm no disaster planner. Everyone else in the world knew it too.

And now we're humiliated in the face of the world. We can't take care of our own people, can't deal with this level of disaster. Not quite the super power we made ourselves out to be, are we?