The 23rd Sigh

Just to show that I'm still kicking. This comes from a Brother Canary in Southern California. I hope it doesn't make anyone think that I'm a left-wing radical or anything like that. No way, man. :-)

THE 23rd SIGH

Bush is my shepherd; I dwell in want.

He maketh logs to be cut down in national forests.

He leadeth trucks into the still wilderness.

He restoreth my fears.

He leadeth me in the paths of international disgrace
for his ego's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of pollution and
war,

I will find no exit, for thou art in office.

Thy tax cuts for the rich and thy media control, they
discomfort me.

Thou preparest an agenda of deception in the presence
of thy religion.

Thou anointest my head with foreign oil.

My health insurance runneth out.

Surely megalomania and false patriotism shall follow
me all the days of thy term,

And my jobless child shall dwell in my basement
forever.

Okay, Some Positive Things

How Do I Feel Today?

I feel like the Space Shuttle Columbia as it re-entered the atmosphere in 2003. I feel that what little I have is falling apart — much to the joy of the neocons, who are probably at a bar right now raising their mugs of draft beer, proposing toasts, and proclaiming, "We really nailed that little Canary."

Okay, man, think of something POSITIVE

Well, the picture below is something positive. This is sister canary Patty, one of the greatest environmentalists in the state of Georgia. Like me, she got into this because she got tired of seeing all the tree loss in her county. She got involved and did great things in Forsyth County, and then she turned to full time environmentalism by working for a conservation organization, and then more recently, for a much larger, statewide organization.




My hope and dream is that more individuals like Sister Patty will wake up around the world and say, "ENOUGH," and really start giving their all to protect the natural world. It seems like many of us, including myself, would like to do so much more, but Mother Life keeps kicking us in the face and keeps us down.

But really, Patty is making a difference in my state. Since meeting her a few years ago, she has really gained in perspective and understanding of the greater issues. Her increased insight is probably due to the fact that she is an avid reader — that is so important. This country I live in is so utterly uneducated and uninformed.

So, today, I thank you Patty for helping to keep me going.

A few individuals CAN make a difference

If someone came up to me and said, "Well, Canary, what accomplishment are you most proud of this year?" I would have to smile and say, "I helped promote the statewide smoking ban."

The smoking ban was passed by the Georgia legislature this year and went into effect July 1. I'm telling you, it is now so wonderful to go into a restaurant. The air is so cleaner, and I can now more greatly enjoy the aroma of the foods. And the food tastes better, everything is better!I mean, come on, while nearly all restaurants put smokers in a separate area, the smoke was still everywhere in the building.



I really didn't do a lot to promote the new law, but I like to think that I helped make a difference. I went to a political forum and raised the issue, I sent an action alert, I left a message for my state representative. I also encouraged the Georgia Sierra Club lobbyists to take on this issue, and even though it was already on their list, I think my interest likely encouraged them. Even though the final version of the bill was watered down, it passed and was signed by the governor. So, I'm not saying that I singlehandedly made a difference, but I do think I played a small part in a really positive collective effort.

At this point, I would like to give a "shout out" to Brother Canary Gordon, who is president of GASP (Georgians Against Smoking Pollution). He is the one who really did the hard work in getting the smoking ban passed. He is a great hero of the movement and someone I deeply respect.

A quick diatribe

Now, as for smokers, I have one thing to say. Every time I see a tobacco addict stuffing a lit paper stick into his or her mouth, I'm thinking, "Wow, this is the greatest corporate coup of our time." Even with all the lawsuits and settlements, a whole industry is getting rich by addicting people to a drug, poisoning them, and then murdering one third of them. Now, that is free market capitalism at its finest. I'm so damn proud to be an American!

Yellow Canary
"The Troubled Bird"

Quote of the Week

Where do I begin? Last week Governor Pataki (R-NY) vetoes a bill to make the "Morning After Pill" over-the-counter. He does this because he's posturing for the 2008 presidential race. Then, everyday I'm hearing about all the soldiers getting killed in Iraq, including 11 from Georgia. And the President twists things around by saying they died in the War Against Terror. Yes, that would be noble, but the fact is that the Iraq war is a neocon oil war.

And then, last Friday I'm at the oil change place sitting in the lobby and I pick up a magazine called "Citizen," which is put out by James Dobson's Focus on the Family organization. The first thing I noticed is that the mailing label had been carefully torn off the cover. So, if some right-winger is going to be spreading propaganda at QuickLube stores, the least they should do is have the balls to leave their name on it. So, I'm flipping through the magazine and I'm thinking that it's not all that bad because the articles are talking about all the filth on TV and in Hollywood, and, well, I'm in full agreement. But then I turn to an article that's attacking environmental "extremism." My GOD, who are these people to talk about extremism? The article is going on about how "liberals" are using scare tactics for some unclear motive. Of course, the article had to say that Global Warming is just a MYTH (they should know all about MYTHS!).

So, I'm looking at this Christian magazine that's viciously attacking the environment and I'm stunned. Why do conservative Christians hate the environment so much? Are they that firmly in bed with Corporate America? Maybe it's troubling to them that we environmentalists are predicting that MAN will destroy the Earth, when they believe that GOD is supposed to destroy it. Or maybe they just associate the environment with evil, heathen LIBERALS. Gosh, I really don't know.

But anyway, all these events have put me in a mild depression, which seems to be more and more like my common state. I just feel a great sense of hopelessness in trying to resist THE MACHINE. I mean, this afternoon I'm standing in the parking lot of a Chinese restaurant, and I just look around at the surrounding houses and cars and strip shopping centers, and I say to myself, "What have we done?" What kind of world have we created for ourselves? It's all nuts.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"Other than telling us how to live, think, marry, pray, vote, invest, educate our children and, now, die, I think the Republicans have done a fine job of getting government out of our personal lives."

-Editorial Page, Sunday, June 19, 2005 Portland Oregonian