For all you(we) Yanks & other You-Ess-ians

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Happy Forth of July!



Now-- the REAL question:

For those of you who still must slave-err-work for a living, HOW MANY of you had the forethought to request 2 days of vacation for Thursday and Friday?

As for the non-US-ians, I hope you'll excuse us in our celebratory fervor-- what ELSE would we do, to celebrate our Nation's Birth, but Blow Stuff Up? 

Rather in character, yes? 

.... and what MALE [and many females] can't resist honkin' huge EXPLOSIONS?

Fun!

<heh>




And, for your amusement, here are 3 fire-works that I, personally took, using my digital camera.  Back on July 3, 2002.

[Opsa]

Ooooooooohhh.... Ahhhhhhh......

We would have requested connected days off, but everyone else beat us to it, so back we go on Thursday.

It's funny you mentioned the 'splosions. Quite a number of years back, in the eighties, back when me and the mister were shacking up in Washington D.C., we were back from an all-day party and were rather too exhausted (partied out, actually) to struggle our way down to the big fireworks show on the national mall. Instead, we turned on the tube and watched a show about old U.S. veterans returning to Iwo Jima and crying with their  Japanese counterparts about how awful it was. We started crying, too. (It had been a really good party, mind you.) And as the cracker sounds from downtown echoed through the streets, we decided that celebrating liberty with bomblike explosions was too gross to bear and that we wouldn't do it. And we didn't, for a few years.

Until another party, several years later. Boy, that was another great party.  Pow! Bang! 'SPLODE! Ooooh....

Enjoying a good time with friends sometimes trumps self-righteousness.

[Sibling Chatty]

I'll be spending the 4th like I have every year since I adopted Spencer...holding him and telling him that the thunderboomers won't get the Big Brave Doggie. (Preston always looked at him as if he'd lost his mind.)

He hates thunderstorms and fireworks. Dad may reassure him, Mom protects him.

[goat starer]

nothing to celebrate about the 4th of July. If we had just fought a little harder then you would all be happily British and the world would be a safer, greener place.

Went to listen to Al Gore last night. I think he agrees with me as he spent about 15 minutes heaping praise on the Royal family and Prince Charles.

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

Lovely pics, but the way.

I think I'll be at a local celebration. We wanted to go to DC, but didn't want to fight the crowds.

[Griffin NoName]

Eventually one matures and no longer needs to celebrate. We don't make a song and dance about the Magna Carta these days.

[ivor]

I like 'We sent all the misfits back to England Day' better! 

[beagle]

nothing to celebrate about the 4th of July. If we had just fought a little harder then you would all be happily British and the world would be a safer, greener place.

Your imperialism is showing again Goat .

Went to listen to Al Gore last night. I think he agrees with me as he spent about 15 minutes heaping praise on the Royal family and Prince Charles.

Are you sure you're a Marxist? 

I like 'We sent all the misfits back to England Day' better!

After the defeat a quarter of the population left for what became Canada ( a mixture of loyalty and disbelief a country could be run without a king). If only they'd known the legal powers presidents would have

Happy 4th.

[ivor]

The misfits actually stayed here.  I am one of them. 

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

I like 'We sent all the misfits back to England Day' better!

After the defeat a quarter of the population left for what became Canada ( a mixture of loyalty and disbelief a country could be run without a king). If only they'd known the legal powers presidents would have

Or... in the case of one branch of my family tree (being Quakers, and pacifists), it was more a refusal to fight for anything at all, including American independence, that led to them being "coaxed" to Canada... but that's all in the past.


Happy Fourth of July, Yankees and Non-Yankee US-ians!

(BTW: if there are "yankees", who is it that's the "yanker"?)   

[Aggie]

I should really be going to see Michael Franti / Spearhead tonight to celebrate....  alas, tickets ain't cheap and probably sold out.   

Ah well, not as disappointing as the year I had a buddy ditch on July 4 plans to burn the Yanker (you-know-who.... in fact, I think it's spelled with a 'W' ) in effigy.

[Opsa]

What a great idea. I wonder what an effigy would look like with a lit "Screaming Eagle" placed where the sun don't shine!

Or... in the case of one branch of my family tree (being Quakers, and pacifists), it was more a refusal to fight for anything at all, including American independence, that led to them being "coaxed" to Canada... but that's all in the past.

A large part of my family are quaker pacificists who decided to just stay in the states and be weirdos. Someone's got to spoil all the nice patriotism.

[anthrobabe]

I'm at work right now
but earlier I had a I "performed" a lovely wedding for a sweet young couple 

Goat you crack me up- happier and greener (maybe soylent greener)-- just kidd-ing around.

Without Merry Old England I would have practically nothing in my netflix que(I wouldn't even have a que!) -- currently working back through Dr.Who and Are You Being Served.
And the "accent" is pretty hot too.

Were there once songs and dances about the Magna Carta-- I'd pay to see this.

I'm a weirdo also--- I'm glad I'm in such good company.

Happy 4th----Y'all

[goat starer]

Your imperialism is showing again Goat .

the workers struggle is international. that is not the same as imperial. As the UK is (was until that terrible Grantham cow) near the front of the inevitable march from feudal state to proletarian utopia (currently resting in enlightened bourgeois decadence) any global scenario that sees British conditions prevailing is simply a further step in the inevitable march of history. The fact that wealthy landowners managed to throw the US back into a feudal state of pre bourgeois 'democracy' in no way alters the clear empirical path of progression.

Are you sure you're a Marxist? 

well he probably doesn't agree with the bit where i have a lampost waiting for Chaz 

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

My dear Goat, I haven't heard "bourgeois decadence" and "a feudal state of pre bourgeois 'democracy'" in a while! (the problem is that I'm not sure if you would like to be associated with those from whom I heard those words back home*).


* some are idealists but many are tools of darker entities. My country is full of words and devoid of ethics so... and you wouldn't want to be associated with the ones with the opposite discourse either...