A lot has happened since my last post, both for me personally and in the world. The big thing that happened in my personal world is that we found out that my Dad has cancer, and that it's too far advanced to do anything but slow its progress a little. Everyone knows that it's probable that they'll outlive their parents, but that doesn't make it any easier when the time comes. When we're children we tend to think that are parents are invincible, when we're teens we tend to think we're invincible, but as we age and our friends and loved ones start to fade, we all realize how "vinicible" we all are. I sometimes wish I never had to learn that.
On a lighter note, it looks as if spring has finally gotten here. I started to despair of that when we kept getting snowstorm after snowstorm this month. Shown is a picture taken on April 6th. Last year at this time I was worried that I would have to start mowing the grass in April; this year I worried that I would never see the grass in April. But it has been warm for three whole days now, and the snow is receding. I'd wish for some rain to clear the rest of the snow away, but it would probably snow instead.In national news, there were two recent events that brought the issue of free speech to the forefront.
The first was the firing of Imus. I can understand why people are worried that Imus was fired for something he said, but I personally don't think its a free speech worried. Freedom of speech doesn't mean that one is free to say whatever they want without consequence. Imus wasn't arrested for what he said, he was fired.
The second event was NBC's airing of video sent to them by the Virginia Tech shooter. This is a much more complicated situation and I have conflicted feelings about it because I can see both sides of the issue. If I was NBC, I think I would have reluctantly made the decision to air the video, but not two days after the shooting. Airing it right now when emotions are so high puts too much emphasis on the shooter when the emphasis should be on the victims, like the professor who barred the door so his students could escape. I would have waited at least a month, probably more, and then I would have aired it only once or twice, not incessantly like they are doing now. But I'm not a corporation aiming to make money, and I'm sure this brought in a lot of ratings for NBC and MSNBC. I know I tuned in.
I don't want to end this post on such a down note, so my last paragraph is going to be about life. I have a nephew, Roger, who is almost 4 months old now. He's at that age when he's starting to become aware of things for the first time, and it's nice to be reminded that there was a time when everything was fascinating, even ceilings and our own toes.
