All the Way to Mexico

Due to apparently popular demand, here is your blog update. In my own defense, I must state that I only missed one day, but if the public wants it, who am I to say no?

I'm not sure how many of you saw the story on the Senate vote today to regulate the detention of prisoners held by the American military. You can a story on the events in Washington here. I was particularly interested in the support that John McCain gave to this amendment to the Defense spending bill due to his terrible experiences as a P.O.W. in the Vietnam War. The following quote from McCain illustrates arguably the strongest reason for this process of reform and regulation in military interrogation practices.

"Many of my comrades were subjected to very cruel, very inhumane and degrading treatment, a few of them even unto death. But every one of us - every single one of us - knew and took great strength from the belief that we were different from our enemies."

If we are to be a "beacon of rights and freedom" for all countries of the world as the Bush Administration asserts, we should be the world leaders in the practice of humane treatment even for those who wish us the greatest of ills.

Current Listening: "Mexico" by Jump Little Children.

In one of the more enjoyable moments of this Thursday morning, I was watching "Sportscenter" after my 8:00 class, when I noticed that they were actually showing NHL highlights. My mind sprung into warp-speed as I tried to remember which team was defending Lord Stanley's Cup this year, when I finally arrived at the answer: The Tampa Bay Lightning. That's right folks, a team from Tampa Bay is reigning NHL Champions. This is the reason that some people still wonder if hockey is still a major sport.