Today's Morning Coffee is brought to you by Boredom. When you've got nothing to do, boredom is there for you.
It's cold out today here in Dayton; weather.com reports that it is currently 23F. For those of you in Erie, it is currently 35F, and for anyone in the Southern California area, it happens to be right around 62F.
I just read a Reuters article that states that the British fear George Bush more than Kim Jong-Il. Yes, you read that right. More. Bush makes the world a more dangerous place, according to British, Canadians, Mexicans, and Israelis. The only person more dangerous: Osama bin Laden. 87% of Britons felt that the Laden-meister was a great or moderate danger to peace, whereas 75% thought the same of G-dub. The Kim-ster tallied a 69% (go Kim), Ahmadine, ahmadeni, amadena-not-gonna-work-here
Let's compare to Kim: Potential nuclear weapons (of unknown reliability and capability - who knows if they would even work), missiles with the potential to reach the western US (I say potential because they might not make it off the launch pad). And these two things are the PLUSES! Consider an economy that is worth about as much as all of my belongings (not much folks), a population that is malnourished and scarred by a lifetime of propaganda, greatly inferior military weapons systems, utter dependence on the goodwill of its arch-rival (South Korea) and its benefactor, China (which is pretty angry at the People's Democratic Republic…I love saying that). I'm not to sure Kim's all that dangerous. Yes, he could start a war. Yes, it could be ugly. And yes, he's the bane of young girls and Japanese movie stars everywhere. But he simply doesn't have the ability to influence world events like Ahmadinejad.
Now, examine bin Ladin: Has no country. Has limited resources. The worlds most hunted man. Constantly on the run. Hated and despised the world over. Hasn't made a significant move in five years. Might be dead. Might not be dead. Is frankly in the top spot because of his reputation: he is the scariest of the bunch because of his aura and mystique. Yeah, he hates us, yeah, he's got a cadre of pretty dedicated men. But he's living on his rep, and this rep, while duly earned, simply shouldn't be enough to a rational human being to include. Honestly, since he ISN'T the leader of a foreign nation, and he IS shrouded in mystery, he's basically the boogie-man. And that scares people. Because people are scared sheep. It's the fear of the unknown that gets us.
So, who's the most dangerous person to world peace? Who knows. It's not like some scientific scale can be applied to this, where points are given for certain behaviors and capabilities. But I will say that, despite Bush's clear believe, faith, what-have-you, he's tempered by a thing called checks and balances. Despite what some may believe, he cannot wage war with whomever he wants. Not to mention, our conventional military's stretched a wee bit thin. You decide. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.
A quote for my writer wife: "I can write better than anybody who can write faster, and I can write faster than anybody who can write better." - AJ Liebling (1904-1963)
Word of the Day: Fillip (noun) (pronounced like FILL-up): 1. a snap of the finger forced suddenly from the thumb; a smart blow. 2. something serving to rouse or excite; a stimulus. 3. a trivial addition; an embellishment. Also a transitive verb.
On this Day in History: Income tax first introduced in the US (1913).
Currently in my head: Tool, Taylor Swift "Tim McGraw", Snow Patrol "Chasing Cars" (that WAS kind of strange huh, Jen?).
I will see you all Monday. Have a good day today and a great weekend.
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