Mood: blue
Topic: "Mumbai, My Lord" (4)
Fiona and Mick, the Wonder Dog, raced across the empty parking lot of the School of the Shire, while Frodo was distracted by the now-familiar call on the morning breeze. Against an all-blue sky on Thanksgiving Day, the Sandhill Cranes were now less than one state away from their winter home in the Okeefenokee. Frodo's canine friends were not about to be distracted from a mid-week romp, so Frodo was unable to tarry in appreciation. Upon his return he noted the now-familiar pink ribbons marking property lines, this time upon that of his neighbors, parent to Jessica and "Chipper."
Brian and Carolyn are outstanding parents, and their children are favorites of the Hobbit. This past Halloween they were Princess Leia and Lord Vader, in costumes that exhibited many hours of motherly love, and a deep appreciation for the importance of a truly realistic light saber. Brian is a musician, and he has had multiple heart surgeries. He is no longer "insurable" in Middle Earth, and the inconsistency of income makes life very difficult for such good people. They have not lived beyond their means, and they did not buy a house that was beyond their means. Frodo fears however, that the pink ribbons do not mean a simple re-financing.
The reports from the city formerly known as Bombay cause Frodo to imagine what it must have been like in their city on the day that the nihilists destroyed so many lives in 2001. Surely, he thought, they cried too, and wished that they could do something to help end the needless suffering of just plain people, who didn't do anything to hurt anybody. As this story continues, even now, to unfold, it appears that those without conscience were Pakistanis, and therefore, probably Islamic.
Frodo must note that the weapons, and the expenses for this conflagration probably came from some of the $10B paid to Musharraf by those who sought his assistance against Islamic terrorists. The money these monsters used was probably American dollars. The truth hurts, doesn't it, dear reader?
The other truth is equally painful. The continuing fundamentalist violence, all around our small, blue planet, does not come from dissimilar circumstances. It is not the Shinto, or the Buddhist, the Hindu, or even the Zoroastrian; rather, the violence stems from the monotheists, those who believe in one God. Dear reader, it is Islamic, it is Jewish, and it is Christian. It seems to Frodo that the three largest religious groups in all the world represent the impetus to violence. Perhaps it is merely an unwillingness to retreat from the realization that the one God is "our" god, and not that of the other guy. On the other hand, the polytheists believe in flexibility, and perhaps the simplicity of the fact that if one God doesn't deliver, we simply change channels.
At some point in time, it is the essence of humanity to rale against the injustices of life. Watching good, hardworking people lose a house is not fair. Watching subhuman cretins assault all of civilized society is beyond temperance. Ah, dear reader, the bridges before us are filled with peril, and those which we now cross are threatening, to be sure. Important it is that we don't waste time or effort commiserating about that which lies behind us. Still, had he the chance, Frodo would truly enjoy kicking the ass of either Dick Cheney or anyone who would entice the "Deccan Mujahadien." There is not a dime's worth of difference between them.