I want to thank you Dianavan.

For just a moment there I was beginning to think like an ugly American. I was beginning to think that the blood that saturated the middle of this country in the late 1800's actually meant something. I was beginning to think that when I stood in line to cast my ballot shoulder to shoulder with black men and women, with hispanic men and women, with rich men and women and with poor men and women that I was actually participating in the great exercise called democracy. How stupid I was. How stupid we all were. Record numbers of stupid people all across the state I live in - all incredibly, amazingly, unbelievably stupid.

I was beginning to think that the sacrifices of my uncles and the thousands that formed their brotherhood actually brought about some good in this world. I was under the mistaken idea that the thousands that just celebrated the liberation of Auschwitz were actually glad to get out of that hell hole. I was actually stupid enough to believe that we have fought war after war after war to create an environment that might just actually allow freedom to develop, let alone foster it.

Boy, how stupid I was. But you straightened me out, Dianavan. You even straightened all those stupid Iraqis out. Yep. All those ignorant, stupid, mind-numbed idiot ragheads over there that have the mistaken idea that, by casting a free ballot for the first time in 50 years, they have actually accomplished something. The dumb men and women who stood in line not knowing whether they would be blown up or cast their vote in ink. The idiots who just want their little boys and little girls to have a chance at a life that somewhat resembles freedom, whether it is the freedom you have or not. Yes, I cannot believe all those stupid people over there are just so stupid.

But good ol' Dianavan has everything all figured out. I don't know what her idea of democracy is, 'cause I'm so stupid. But I sure would like to know. I thought voting in a free election was democracy. I thought the guy who got the most votes won the election (at least thats the way it worked when Clinton won, despite having more people vote against him. He won the election because he won the greatest number of votes of the three candidates). But when the guy Dianavan voted against won the election its not democracy. Its not a democracy when Dianavan has the protected freedom to get out and demonstrate against the policies that she disagrees with. Its not a democracy when, in two years, there will be another election for the house and some senate seats. Its not a democracy when in four years there will be another presidential election. Its not a democracy when anyone who presents a bill has to get it through two houses of elected officials, get it signed by the president and have it stand judicial review by the courts. It's not a democracy when you can stand on the street corner and say anything you want, or write a letter to a free newspaper and write anything you want. Nope. None of that is democracy because Dianavan says it aint so.

Thanks, Dianavan. I was worried there for a minute that I might actually, really be living in a free land.

FD