It Used to Be MAD. Now It's Just Mad

In today's news:

Both the congressional panel and the Council on Foreign Relations task force agreed with Obama's view that prevailing conditions do not allow the elimination of nuclear weapons. They agreed that a safe and secure U.S. nuclear force is needed to reassure America's allies, which without that protection would seek to develop their own weapons. (emphasis added)

We have nukes so that other nations will feel secure and not build their own. It's a dirty job but that burden is America's gift to the world, or at least that part of the world that agrees with us. Several of these allies--Israel, Britian and France--are so thankfully secure that they built their own nukes anyway. And nations that don't agree with us, well, they'll build nukes too.

So it all works. Or not.

Again This Year

Olympia held its annual Procession of the Species yesterday. This community event celebrates the wonder of life and is indeed wondrous to behold. I can't do much better describing it than I did last year; the biggest difference is that yesterday I recognized a surprising number of the people passing before me in the dazzling array of costumes and kinetic dioramas. It's hard to even remember the many different representations of earth, air, fire and water--although the walking S'Mores and campfire group is hard to forget. I had a good vantage just as the procession turned on to Washington Street--I could look south along two full blocks of color and exuberance.

On this spring day the exuberance was fully warranted. Seeing so many people of all ages celebrating the sheer joy of being alive in this world reminds me all the more of why working for a world where all can celebrate that joy is so very important. Procession was about 50 minutes of grand noisethat I recognized friends in the procession.

A Life Worth Knowing

Another good reason to read obituaries: Barbara Ringer.