Wow. All hell is breaking loose in Iraq today. Even though I have the greatest empathy for the troops and Iraqis there--all I can think of is, "this could get Bush voted out."

No matter what, that region is going to be a roiling, blistery mess of dis-ease for many moons to come. Yet, if the dis-ease there can negatively impact Bush to the point of swaying this country against him, I selfishly think "so be it."

Am I hiding behind fatalistism, to be so cavalier about so much suffering? If the positive end (Bush-be-gone) justifies the means (killing and mayhem), what does that say about the state of my heart, and the hearts of like-minded souls around me? Each time our "leader" creates more strife, backs new laws of prejudice, proposes taking away more rights, is responsible for more lives taken, we cheer, in hopes of it tipping the scales in "our" favor. "Won't this new atrocity make people finally see?" we ask. And we hope.

I fear becoming so jaded, so hating in my heart for the man running this country, that I don't feel the appropriate sadness for the people who are devastated by his actions. Each new injustice rolls off like water on teflon, because it might get us a win. Each tragedy simply becomes a pawn.

Something to meditate on. Something to clean house (internal and external) over.