I knew someone back in high school whose first name eludes me but whose last name was ‘Seaman.’ I can imagine he spent much of his life experiencing the mockery and jeers of peers. I imagine his parents never even considered that.

He was in the marching band with me. He played the Tuba, I think. Big guy. Husky. Bit of a class clown.

The director yelled at him once. It was a hot day, we had been standing on the astroturf of the stadium floor for hours under the blazing sun. We were tired. Stressed. Been pushing ourselves as hard as we could. But this guy–this guy was always goofing of.

“Stand in, Seaman!”

We were teenagers. That kinda shit is hysterical. We couldn’t hold our composure. Hell, neither could the director, Mr. Otis. Were we in the Navy, we’d probably hear that yelled daily. But in the marching band, with these social misfits, these musicians, these sweaty, smelly teenagers, it was the funniest Goddamn thing.

–

So, the Democrats in the House have pushed forth another resolution, this one calling for the return of our troops from Iraq by April of next year. April. Of next year. Way to stand your ground, Democrats. You’ve really come a long way from the tough hardliner positions that got you all into this job way back in November. You’ve come a long way from “Bring our troops home now” to “Bring our troops home eventually, Sir, if it’s okay, eventually… like, maybe, next Spring or something.”

A long way. Your spines have weakened, your bowels have loosened, and you’re bleeding all over the people who elected you. If you don’t mind, I’d rather you just all quit your jobs.

But while we’re at it, since we know that any bill that comes across Bush’s desk in the Reich Chancellery Oval Office is going to be vetoed, why doesn’t Bush just step down? His last 18-some months are really turning out to be a low point in a long series of low points. I mean, the public hates him, his party hates him, his appointees hate him, the rest of the fucking world hates him–the only people who don’t hate him are, I think, related to him. He doesn’t care about public sentiment (after all, we stupid Americans couldn’t possibly understand what it’s like _on the ground_ in Iraq, so we couldn’t be trusted to know when to pull out), he doesn’t trust his own people (the judge who sentenced I. Lewis “Traitor Scooter” Libby wrote that he was “confused” as to why Bush thought the sentence was too extreme, given it was nearly the minimum federally dictated to assign to such a crime), and he lost his one and only ally across the sea (tata, Tony).

Maybe it’s time to just throw in the towel, George. Oh, or better yet, let’s impeach your ass and throw you into Guantanamo Bay as the terrorist & treasonist that you are. Sir. Or maybe take you over to The Hague and have you stand trial there, for the whole world to watch. Maybe someone will be kind enough to sneak in a cell phone to video tape the more sensitive bits. Sir.

–

I think I’m getting angrier again. Thinking about that day in band camp normally brings a smile to my lips, if nothing else.

Oh well. Poker tonight. Smiles are dangerous.