kevin colbert

I forgot it was September 11th until I saw a reminder on the news. The thing is, I remember all the time. It's difficult to forget here with the memorabilia cluttering the tourist spots and the view out my office window that doesn't look like it's supposed to. I don't feel safe and I'm waiting for something to happen again. I can't believe we've gone three years without another incident in America. On the Hill, government employees are trained to respond to chemical attacks. We have secret surveillance cameras watching our major cities. In midtown office buildings my bags run through an x-ray machine and I walk through a metal detector. When I fly to San Diego, my friends can't meet me at the gate. There are constant reminders, every day, every where, that our lives have changed. And it's not just us. It's Russia. It's Spain. It's Israel where there fear and reality of terror is part of their lives on a frighteningly regular basis. The rules have changed. The United States still declares war and military actions. We show up in uniform with tanks and guns and announce our presence and plans to attack. Our enemies don't fight that way. Our enemies are in the shadows, defending what they believe is their right to freedom against our tyranny, and it reminds me of the British soldiers lining up on the battle fields of the new world taken off-guard by the Patriots hiding in the trees. The difference is today civilians and children are dying. We're not facing covert attacks on our soldiers. We're facing attacks on busses, at work, and in schools. I don't know what the answer is but we're nowhere near a solution. No one can guarantee our safety but, at the very least, I'd like a president who works with foreign leaders on a global solution rather than a president who alienates foreign leaders with his personal vendetta. It's easy to let our government parade widows and firemen and photos of Iraq and tell us that this is about us, about two towers, about four planes, but it's more than that. It's about us, two towers, four planes, 2 trains, many busses and school where more than 150 children died. I'm not sure where I'm going with this and I didn't wake up with a rant on my mind but, watching the memorial on NBC, I'm reminded of even more than the loss. I'm reminded of how far we have to go.

mangia e bevi...

Mary-Kate and Ashley took in some tennis at the U.S. Open finals today. I don't think I'll ever tire of pictures of these two.

I still haven't learned that, when I take naps, I need to give myself ample time to wake up before I have to go out. I've been struggling with this particular lesson since high school when I'd set my alarm for 20 minutes before dance class started. It takes a good hour to get the groggy out of my system.

I have a bachelorette party tonight. Generally speaking, I hate bachelorette parties - particularly if the bride wanders around in a veil or a stupid shirt and especially if I'm expected to wear stupid shit, too. But I love my friend so bachelorette party, it is. Fortunately, I group her among the classiest of the people I know. Hopefully the organizers of this thing are taking that into consideration.

I've been watching the 5th season of The West Wing on Bravo and I'm enjoying it a lot more this time around. "Shutdown" was great and I love Josh's redemption. How long until "The Supremes?"