The Fish Tank

It's Elementary, Watson

My wife is a fish hobbyist, and we recently added a new fish to our saltwater tank. Well, that caused a LOT of problems because some of the other fish were picking on the new guy and snipping at his tail. In fact, those fish like to fight a lot!

So, Ms. Canary tried a trick that was suggested by the pet store folks. She and I removed all the coral pieces in the tank. AND GUESS WHAT? The fish stopped fighting. They didn't have any territory to defend, and they were suddenly all on an even keel.

This made me think, "Wow, what if humans removed all the stupid things that make us so territorial then we wouldn't have anything to fight about.


But Ms. Bradberry Sezs: Humans are SUPPOSED to be violent, it's been going on that way for years.

I don't think so. I mean, what if we got rid of all religion? What if we dumped political parties? What if we got rid of all the things that make us fight?

In fact, as of tonight, I think I'm going to dump all my labels. I'm not white, yuppie, lefty, back-slidden, radical, or anything. I am just ME. And I'm willing to accept you as just YOU.

I am willing to be civil, have an open mind, and hear other sides of the argument. The only problem, though, is if you come at me with ignorance, I'll go nutso. I will listen, but please back up what you are saying with evidence and proof. Don't just say "because I believe it" or "because Rush Limbaugh said it."

The Rock

I was watching on the History Channel (I'm addicted to it) where there is this holy place in Jerusalem that the Jews think is the site where God is going to come back and build his temple. The Muslims believe this same site is where Muhammad ascended to heaven (or something like that). So these two religions are fighting over the same spot of land, and they've been at it for centuries.

I dunno. I don't think humans inherently have to fight. We've just created all these barriers and walls between us, and then we go after each other and even kill each other in the name of whatever we happen to believe. It's wrong, man.

Introducing Ms. Bradberry...




Starting tonight, I'd like to introduce a new friend to help with my blogging. Her name is Ms. Bradberry — the name just totally, randomly popped into my head. She is your typical conservative, highly religious, quite uneducated, completely mainstream American. You got it — she's a personification of my mother. But that's okay. She has joined the Canary Blog Team to play the role of the Devil's Advocate. The arguments she makes are the same old arguments I hear everyday. They are the party line, programmed into her brain by the big institutions — corporations, religion, and government. See, Ms. Bradberry doesn't question. She's just a parrot — only repeating what she hears and what she has been taught. So, join me in welcoming Ms. Bradberry to the stage.

Oh, about her? She is 37, has three cute kids, and her husband is a deacon in the local country church. She is your typical yuppie mom and drives a massive SUV. Her husband is in middle management at a grading company.