Day: September 2, 2006

If you are, you won’t understand this post, wo why am writing to “you”?

*heh*

I had a chance to play “Doctor Bullshit” with a group of college students yesterday. First interesting thing: most of them were fairly bright. Second interesting thing: most of them were woefully subliterate.

One of the kids told me he was changing his major to English because he wants to be a writer. I cautioned against it. Almost all the good writers I know are experienced and expert in some field not influenced by English departments… the worst contemporary traitors, depoilers of the language. He further expressed some doubt about his future as a writer because “nobody reads anymore.” *heh*

He has a point. Today, while reading an Alfred Bester dystopian view of some unspecified future (written in 1975), I ran across this lil bit:

“We picked up a couple of girls who claimed they were coeds and might well have been; one of them could recite the alphabet all the way to L.” [emphasis added]

Indeed… not quite there—yet—but getting closer.

*sigh*

Recieved via email:

President Bush wants us to cut the amount of gas we use. The best way to stop using so much gas is to deport 11 million illegal immigrants! That would be 11 million less [sic] people using our gas. The price of gas would come down.

Not bad, except that the guy who came up with this has bought the lie that there are only eleven million illegals. The number is much closer to twenty million, according to those with less cause to lie about it than Mass Media Podpeople and Political Poltroons.

Still, even a more accurate twenty million is just about 7% of the officially recognized U.S. population (who really knows what the “underground” pop is?) and won’t have THAT big an impact on gas prices. No, what would have a proper impact would be if President Bush were to actually act on his own pledge to go after those who harbor or fund terrorists. Then he could send a few marines in to kick the Saudis outa bed. (Lifting cost for the Saudis’ oil is about $5 a barrel.)

But licking the illegals out would be a small thing the administration could do, a small step to restore respect for the rule of law. And in the long run that’s more important than gas prices.