Well it's been a very busy time in our little wigwam. My little clone is growing fast now and all the preparations for his arrival have us in a mad dash to get things done. I've wondered, these past few weeks, what I would write about next since I've recently stopped throwing things at the T.V. The people on it haven't stopped being total voids but I've stopped caring so much. This baby is making me very Zen. I did read a bunch of comments the other day under a news article that reminded me of something I've wanted to write for awhile.

The article (I don't remember what it was about) involved a lot of partisan language, and the fury of anonymous commenters was absolutely stunning to watch. It seems to me that the general feeling is one of anti-partisanship. People are sick of speaking in terms of parties or having to identify with one or the other. At one time it annoyed me also, I must admit, but now I find it sad that the real crux of camp politics is lost and not appreciated.

"Liberty is to faction what air is to fire, an ailment without which it instantly expires." wrote James Madison in the Federalist No. 10. He understood that the nature of man tended toward factions (parties in his day) and that the only way to get rid of them was to a.) give "to every citizen the same opinions, the same passions, and same interests" or to b.) destroy "the liberty which is essential to its existence". Madison knew, as many of the other Founding Fathers, that the bickering and pettiness that comes with parties is one of the many prices we pay for freedom.

While it's not always easy, I have to consciously remind myself that the stupid and illogical opinions that people express are actually evidence that this country is, indeed, the freest country in the world.