The Sound of Impotence

No, this is not going to lead to a joke about any political leader from either side. Rather, it's a reference to my impotence, sitting around in St. Mary's County, Maryland while unbeknownst to me, exciting things like pro-Georgia protests and rallies are happening in DC and New York. I could set up a pro-Georgia protest here, and maybe people would attend, but more likely it'd be just like that 9/11 candlelight vigil my friend and I held next to an intersection, with the occasional supportive beep from passing cars but little else. And don't make fun of me for holding a candlelight vigil; I was young and emotional.



It's probably for the best. I don't know if I'm the best person to have at a rally. You know how on South Park the reporters come by and ask members of the public for their opinion on an incident and they say something like,

"Well that was awfully unfair, but I can see that it was necessary."

And then the next guy says,

"It was very necessary. Though it might have been a bit unfair."

That's me, treading the lukewarm waters in the shallow end of the fervor pool. I'd love to be able to say "RUSSIA SUCKS!" without the echoing chorus of provisos in my mind... "Just the government, not the people. And they suck, but it's a dumb idea to be putting missiles in Poland and accelerating Georgia's NATO ascension, which seemed to be on indefinite pause a couple months ago. Wasn't there a reason for that?" et al.

Best to stick to specifics. If I were at the NYC protest tomorrow, I'd have a sign that says "RUSSIA OUT OF POTI" or "NO MORE CHECKPOINTS" or maybe "INDEPENDENCE FOR NORTH OSSETIA" or something like that. But I won't be. I'll be here in southern Maryland, healing my laptop that crashed (at least it was after Peace Corps) and listing Dad's various truck parts on eBay.

Even attending one protest-- especially after having attended NYU for four years without waving a single banner-- would ease my conscience, which leads me to wonder what it is that I'm doing that is bad in the first place. Not showing my red-and-whites on national TV? Not fundraising thousands of dollars to send back for the relief effort?

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