blah...

... i'm having problems getting fired up to write. not for lack of topics, just the effort to sit down and capture it all. bascially, laziness prevails...

-this weekend i was moving and had borrowed a truck from work. i've been riding the motorcycle pretty much non-stop since i got it so it was the first time i'd been exposed to that much broadcast radio in awhile. one of the radio stations was playing the same bit every hour or so about the warped tour. apparently some band is letting the whole audience know that if they're enrolled in a public high school, all of their information is being given to the military recruiters. the funny part about this is that the newscaster was just making a big deal about this like it was some huge conspiracy. "part of the no child left behind act". this has been going on for years. if you go to a public school that receives federal funding for any of a lot of programs, the school tends to give military recruiters access to student contact information. military recruiters are allowed on campus to try recruit kids at job/college fairs. they're allowed to put literature in counselors' offices and can administer the asvab or a pre-asvab on campus. it's not a big deal. we're still a volunteer military. selective service is still required by law at age 18. the military is a very viable, sound career choice for many, many individuals. one of the services that the federal government is commissioned to provide is security for the nation. this requires a military force. the goverment is just trying to fulfill one of the obligations it is tasked with. i could go on and on about the silliness of this but i'm tired. the less than funny part of this though, is how far removed we're getting from a personal sense of obligation to the success of the nation. i've got family in thailand still, my mom was born there, as was i. while i was brought to the U.S. way to early in my life to remember any of thailand, i've still heard and seen enough to know how good i've got it here. it's an honor to me to be allowed to serve my country as a member of the military. alot of people still feel the same as me, and serve their country and fellow man in multiples ways; as nurses, doctors, police officers, teachers and firemen and many other thankless civil service jobs. but the outrage that people have about this recruitment issue is still scary to me.

-openmindedness. this is kind of related to the above topic. guess what? just because you go watch the gay pride parade doesn't make you "open-minded". a group of guys i was in iraq with were helping me to move and we were having a discussion about the military recruiters that had to leave a college campus in seattle because members of the student body got violent and had begun to throw things at them and were rioting their presence on campus at a job fair. this discussion was sparked by one of the radio things about the warped tour, and some nosey individual overheard us and butted into our conversation and started bashing the military and the recruiters for being on campus. hey, it's okay for other companies to come onto campus and try to recruit, but not the military. anyways, we started to poke holes in their argument and one of the guys said it was time to leave, and besides, the individual was closed minded and the argument wasn't going to make a difference. at hearing himself described as "closed minded" the guy became furious and started ranting and raving about how he was one of the most open minded people around. and actually used his gay friends and his attendence of a pride parade as proof. our military service had obviously brain-washed all of us and we wouldn't know "open-mindedness" if it bit us in the ass. i had no idea how effective an insult calling someone "closed minded" could be. but after a little reflection, i've found it funny to look back at the people i've associated with over the years. without a doubt, most of the ones who thump their chests and proclaim the loudest to be open minded are some of the hardest ones to have a even-tempered discussion with when we disagree on a topic, whether it's gun control, the roles of gays/women in the military, child rearing techniques, politics, religion or anything else. (and yes, i realize that while making a point about open-mindedness i'm painting some really broad strokes). they may never have fired a gun, raised a child, been in the military or whatever, but they will refuse to cede a point. they don't have to agree with who ever is arguing with them completely, but there should be some good back and forth discussions. (and no cynic, i'm not talking about you here, you've given your grudging blessing on somethings over the years and have ceded on several points). one of the things that is really fun for me is to watch how such people interact with a friend of mine. jason is really one of the most open minded people i know (and doesn't profess to be), but he has a confident, poised way of presenting himself that intimidates alot of people. and they make some very snap decisions based on that image, especially when they hear that he was former military. and most of those decisions or first impressions are wrong.

blah. i started this hours ago, and so much stuff kept popping up at work. so instead of getting the other random thoughts out there, i'm bailing. it's time to go home.

later.