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Many of the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama are helpless victims. Some had no means for fleeing the oncoming storm. Some had no way to prevent 10,000 of their National Guard troops from being shipped overseas to invade Iraq. Some had no way to prevent funding for FEMA and the New Orleans levees from being slashed to pay for Bush’s war. But for the rest of you, I have little pity.

Jesse Ventura warned against using the National Guard to fight a war when they should be protecting the homeland. He said this just before the Presidential debates last election. John Kerry sided with Ventura. But, hey, Republicans, maybe you figured you wouldn’t really need the National Guard. After all, isn’t it more important for them to be dying in Iraq? In fact, now that I think about it, maybe the Republicans who are dying from Katrina because the National Guard is absent are dying for their country, just like they wanted. Good for you guys.

Of course, I’m not blaming Bush for the hurricane, but he made the choice to get involved in a war that would leave us unable to handle a disaster at home. He made the choice to divert troops and funding away from real homeland security. Should he have known better? The rest of us did.

I’m being more than a little cynical, but let’s be honest with each other. We warned people that Iraq would strain both financial and military resources at home, leaving us more vulnerable. We warned people, as Katrina approached, that she would bring death and destruction. We warned people to evacuate. So guess what? If you voted for Bush and ignored warnings to get the hell out of town, this is exactly what we told you would happen. You were warned.

To the rest, my condolences.

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting pretty sick of Facts interfering with the will of God and the greatness of America. It was quite clear to all of us that the murder of Terri Schiavo by her husband and a bunch of activist judges (who legislated from the bench, you see) was a perfect example of the liberals having no respect for life. So, Terri’s doctors were right to say she was in a persistent vegetative state and “no amount of therapy or treatment would have regenerated the massive loss of neurons.” So, her brain had degenerated to half its normal size and she was blind. So, she had been effectively dead for a decade with no hope in medical science of recovery. To bring these Facts into the discussion is unfortunate, however, because we were in the middle of loving our country and our religion. We aren’t about to let them ruin our party.

Who knows Terri better? Her parents, OR numerous unbiased medical professionals; their analysis of 274 internal and external autopsy images; and an exhaustive review of Terri Schiavo’s medical records, police reports, and social services agency records? Damn right, it’s her parents. If they say she had hope for improvement, what are Facts to say otherwise?

Senator Bill Frist (R-Tenn) disputed the claims of the numerous doctors who said she was in a persistent vegetative state. He, a doctor himself, and a conservative Republican, argued,

“I question it based on a review of the video footage which I spent an hour or so looking at last night in my office,” he said in a lengthy speech in which he quoted medical texts and standards. “She certainly seems to respond to visual stimuli.”

You’d think the analysis of a man who is both a doctor and has God on his side would be enough, but no. These so-called doctors perform their so-called autopsy and reveal that her visual system had decomposed beyond any hope of repair. Damnit, people, have these doctors never heard of miracles? Jesus restored sight to the blind all the time, and there’s no proof that he wasn’t about to do the same for poor Terri.

Killing Terri by depriving her of sustenance violated any number of religious tenets, and, ignoring the absurd diagnoses of multiple doctors, the religious right and the Bush administration stood up and said, “No.” They put other trivial governmental matters (like genocide in Africa and the build-up of nuclear weapons in North Korea) on hold, and made sure that this important issue was front and center. It was all so clean and life-affirming and patriotic. Why, then, do Facts have to get dragged into this nice picture? Why do they hate America?

If you’ve got the time and the patience, there should be a good meteor shower tonight. The Geminid shower is expected to ramp up around 10 PM and peak at 2 AM. It’s practically a new moon, and even the crescent sets early in the evening, so the viewing conditions should be excellent. Unfortunately, it will drop below freezing here in NY, so it won’t be a particularly warm experience. I will try to take pictures, but it’s unclear how well my digital camera will capture tiny streaks of light in the night sky. A longer exposure time would help the issue, but I am sans tripod. If I get any good shots, I’ll post them.

In other news, popular American Christmas activities include opening presents, drinking egg nog, and dying.

It takes a lot to get me interested in a sports event. Baseball, of all games, typically bores me to tears. But this year, the Red Sox had my undivided attention. If you missed the last 86 years, let me bring you up to speed. I am no expert on Sox history, so forgive me if I leave out crucial or amusing details; this is my take on the saga.

In 1918, around 86 years ago today, the Red Sox won the World Series. This has not happened since. There are few people alive who remember seeing the Sox’s victory. That was my great grandparents’ generation. Meanwhile, the Red Sox have been to the World Series on four occasions, each time losing in some spectacular way.

Always, their rival was the Yankees. Having traded them Babe Ruth way back when, Boston fans have long blamed that move on the curse from which they purport to suffer. For the last seven years, the Sox have come in second in their league, always losing to the Yankees in the playoffs. This year, the Sox started the playoffs with the Yankees by falling behind 3 games to none. In the third game, the Yankees scored an embarassing 16 runs. It looked, once again, like Boston would fall to the curse.

But just after midnight on October 21st, 2004, the Sox made history. They became the first team in baseball, ever, to start a series with a three game deficit and win. And they did it in Yankee stadium, no less. It may have been the greatest comeback ever. The Sox went to the World Series for the fifth time since World War I.

Wednesday morning saw the Sox up 3-0 against the Cardinals. Boston fans found themselves in the same position Yankee fans had been in only days before. Would the curse strike in the most sass-filled way possible? Would the Cardinals become the second team to recover from such a plight?

Having spent four years in Boston, I can tell you that Sox fans are special. Almost none of them have ever seen their team win a World Series, and few have even seen them play in one. They are constantly beaten down by the Yankees, and perpetually meeting with disappointment. Always, however, they are rabidly loyal. And tonight, beneath a lunar eclipse, the curse was broken. The Red Sox won the 100th World Series.

God willing, on November 2nd, this will be the year that Massachusetts wins both the World Series and the White House. Even if you don’t follow baseball, that’s something to get excited about.

Yesterday in New York, it was partly cloudy. I went to work twice.

On my way there that morning, I was reminded of the date. A big yellow fire engine was parked on the shoulder, its ladder extended over the highway. A huge American flag hung from the end.

I went to a Chinese buffet for dinner, where an unlikely number of people seemed to be celebrating their birthdays. It occurred to me that 9/11 is a day of joy for many people. They outnumber the mourners.

When I returned to work last evening, I noticed some light in the clouds. At first, I took it to be the moon, partially obscured. But a second look revealed it to be a brilliant shaft of light, shooting straight up from the ground, striking the clouds. From more than 50 miles away, the 9/11 memorial lights were plainly visible. I stopped for a moment in the IBM parking lot, looking off toward the exact spot where the World Trade Center towers once stood. In the three years since then, more than 1,000 Americans have died in Iraq, in the name of fighting Terror. Meanwhile, in another part of the world, the person responsible remained, and remains, alive and unpunished. That’s George W. Bush’s version of justice.