If Americans have something truly to be outraged about, it was clearly illustrated in a couple of stories on NPR just now. The contrasts are stark:

The first is an interview with a man who chronicles the devastation of minority-area schools...no library books because the school libraries have been dismantled; a high school with 1,000 9th graders, of whom only 65 will make it to graduation from high school; the same high school he calls a land of apartheid. The link for the story will be up first thing tomorrow. It is striking how much this man cares and how he does something about what he sees. He has a powerful voice and delivery of words.Here's the blurb:

"ORDINARY RESURRECTIONS" -- Noah talks with Jonathan Kozol (koh-ZAHL) about his new book "Ordinary Resurrections - Children in the Years of Hope." In the late 1960's Kozol wrote about teaching fourth grade in Boston. "Death at an Early Age" has now sold two million copies and is still widely read by beginning teachers. His later books have been about educational inequalities in the South Bronx, and the new one is simply about his conversations with the children he's come to know. He describes Pinapple, a charming eight-year-old, and other youngsters, and their curiosity about the outside world, "white and safe." Kozol says the children have taught him to pray again. (12:00) {STATIONS NOTE PUBLISHING INFO:} Ordinary Resurrections is from Crown Publishers New York ISBN 0-517-7000-X."

The other was a report on the meeting of Janet Reno with members of Congress, today. I got up cursing the devisive, extreme partisanship I heard spewing from the mouths of Trent Lott and few other pompous asses. Now, they want to start a series of hearings, drag it on, decide if Juan is a fit father, because he was informed that guns would be taken for use in the raid to get his son! These are the same pro-gun assholes who don't give a shit about kids being killed. Sorry, I could go on and on. Finally, I heard Chris Dodd of Connecticut say it was time for Congress to let the Gonsalez family heal, deal with the court system etc., and get back to very real business of this country. Gee, do ya 'spose, maybe like, oh, I dunno, geting our school s abck into shape!?NO!

I am incensed first of all that Congress ever got involved in a custody case and two, that all this congress has done for 8 years is run up huge bills in obfuscatory bullshit trying bring down anyone and anything remotely related to President Clinton. They have not legislated...they have been instransigent and have nothing but their own agendas in mind. They do not give a goddamn about American or her peoples and all of them should be voted out. And now, we get more hearings, more huge costs, to the taxpayers only.

Like I said, for me the contrasts were mind-boggling.