A few things need to be said on this, three days after Canada Day. First is that I created a Canada Day 2004 t-shirt complete with the words to "O Canada," which I wore at camp all day on Thursday, with the exception of the party night costume (the theme was "Career Night;" I dressed as a Mountie). Second, my best efforts to convince people of Wal*Mart's pure evil seems to be less than successful. This is greatly disappointing. Perhaps I am just more frustrated this weekend by being around more Americans than usual. The internationals believe Wal*Mart to be a necessity as they get paid virtually nothing and bring very little with them on their voyage to the United States. At the same time, they acknowledge the pure evil and think it's great to hear an "American" speak in such a way. Also, the internationals love me because I believe Americans to be simple beings who do not care about anything they cannot see, which explains the initial support for invading and occupying Iraq, the passage of the Patriot Act, and the general "this-is-America-f@#k-everyone-else" attitude that is so prevalent, especially among the uneducated.

Perhaps the most important suggestion that can be made involves my plans to watch Farenheit 9/11 today, on this most "Patriotic" of U.S. holidays. If you have a good understanding of Americans and the operation of the United States, read Bradbury's Farenheit 451. Not having read that book (which I stole) since I was a sophomore in high school, I merely remembered having liked the book. Now that I've reread the first part, I am busy drawing parallels between Bradbury's vision and Bush's vision. One horrifying. One truly horrifying. I can only hope that someday, people will be encouraged to think and question. Maybe a day that celebrates a declaration of independence from "tyranny" should be that day.