Whatever the natural similarities between December 7, 1941, and September 11, 2001, the association of the two has led us to convert—first in rhetoric, later in fact—a battle against a small band of clever, murderous fundamentalists into a worldwide war of epic scale.

The piece goes on to examine how that metamorphosis took place – based on a look at what was happening before 9/11.

Sadly, innovative and thoughtful perspectives such as this are completely absent from the mass media outlets, who seem so focused on recycling the same goddamned 12 pundits and 7 talking points that no real analysis is ever provided to the public. Instead weh have to search out ‘alternative’ press just to get something more than a bullet-point list of casualty statistics.

At $40 we said crude would hit $60. At $50 we said it would hit $75 within a year. Some scoffed and called me a fear monger. Now that we’re at $75, I’m telling you that under the right conditions oil could not only hit, but sustain a $95 to $110 price per barrel by the end of the year. I say it’s not only likely, but almost inevitable within 12 months.

Could it be true? Well, only time will tell. But with the wicked combination of a idiot oil man in the Oval Office, the prospect of continued instability in the Persian Gulf, and ever-increasing demand for the black gold, it doesn’t seem like much of stretch.

‘Exurb‘

The expression “exurb” (for “extra-urban”) was coined in the 1950s, by Auguste Comte Spectorsky in his book “The Exurbanites”, to describe the ring of prosperous rural communities beyond the suburbs that, due to availability via the new high-speed limited-access highways, were becoming dormitory communities for an urban area.

I ran across this word in a very frightening LA Time editorial about the Republican election machine. I’d seen it before, even read the definition, but still needed a refresher, as the idea hadn’t sunk in (obviously). Anyhow, as a true urbanite, the reality of the exurban landscape, while now clear in my mind, is distant physically and, just as important, culturally.

I sometimes wonder how my existence in the protected bubble of San Francisco – and not some suburb or exurb of San Francisco – affects my worldviews. Why, just this weekend, I was trotting around the Mission district with my dog and my cousin, when I ended up at the Dyke March, supposedly the worlds biggest lesbian event. I didn’t cringe, or even stutter. To me, that was just as it should be: people celebrating themselves, engaging in activism, and walking around a public park topless (not all of them).

In the same park, just yards away, was a massive Aztec dance troupe, at least 60 members strong, in full Aztec garb with giant feather head dresses, traditional garb, and all, engaged in traditional dance for over an hour. And that was that, people of all stripes, of different motivation, background, and focus all living side by side, each finding their tribe, their connection to other human beings, enjoying their commonalities and not offended by others’ differences.

Can’t say for sure, but I really don’t think you see that too much in the exurbs.

This week:Rolling Stone’s article about voter disenfranchisement in Ohio during the 2004 presidential elections.

some of the reason that we finally upgraded was flickr, youtube & music (25 minutes to legally download a song is too long no matter how good the song finally is, nevermind the stuff that’s not).