The New Terrorism

I hear from George Monbiot, my favorite columnist, that there has been a call for renewed patriotism in Britain. Intellectuals are either joining the mob or jumping ship, and I couldn't agree more with his conclusion, "The world will be a happier and safer place when we stop putting our own countries first."
I am grateful for the article on more than one count though. As you can see in his profile, X Sama is a self-declared patriot of the world. I love all the places that I have been, and all the places I have yet to be. You can see my concern upon reading that, "to become a patriot is to lie to yourself." After some reflection, X Sama says that a new line must be drawn. How do we distinguish between patriots who love their country/ies and those who support their country's interests above all others? Let's play with the word a little then. The word patriot come from Greek. Patris mean fatherland, and iota mean the Greek letter thatsa very small... there you go. So for those who respect our fathers and the positive forces that gave us life, let them be called patriots. And if a person thinks that their country, or their father for that matter, can do no wrong, let's just call them children.

I also hear that terrorism has dominated the news, resulting in terror-OD for everyone. As a remedy, try reading some non-terror related news.

The camping renaissance

I had more links, but then realised that they were all rubbish. Face it. Any journalist able to advance their career is tackling the big depressing T. If you want something else, I suggest a good book.