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Hello!

         Quite a month.

          Who, save for the people behind it or the paranoid conspiracy types who see calculated disaster around every corner, could have guessed that one week after my most recent dispatch that our world would be so transformed? Yes, I understand that that's debatable, and there's a strong argument for only our - meaning U.S. citizens' - perception being changed. The idea there is that the scales have fallen from our eyes, or more apt to our culture that someone tore up the happy set we'd been living on and showed us that not only aren't we as safe as we'd imagined but that there are people out there who hate us. From there it has been an education for some as to why someone would hate us. Some few have gone the self-flagellation route, rattling off a list of U.S. actions around the world that have ticked off other nations and essentially created some of those who went on to menace us by fumblingly interfering in the affairs of other lands. Most, it seems, have gone the route of the Righteous, seeing only us as those wronged and those who wish us harm as those who hate us for our freedoms and capitalistic way of life. Both views have their points - our government has largely made the bed we find ourselves in, and I have little doubt that religious fundamentalism is anathema to all freedom and thought-loving people. On the latter point it's important to remember that that includes the home-born enemies of thought and freedom, including the likes of Jerry Falwell and those, such as Rush Limbaugh, who tell us there's no room for dissenting voices who would dare to openly find G.W. Bush and/or his administration wanting.

          Having opened that can of worms, I will state that for the most part I've found the course of action by the current administration since September 11 to be thoughtful, restrained, and easy to support. I believe that those who only hear the drums of war aren't listening very closely, and that those sounds may very well be mostly for effect as the U.S. and nations friendly to us pursue what is essentially an international law enforcement effort. To those on the international scene who demand proof of Osama bin Laden's complicity, I cannot fault the U.S. administration for not revealing it at this time because this is just the start of a long, intricate unravelling and what intelligence connections we have to the world of organized Islamic terrorism are likely scant and highly vulnerable. I am concerned that the ultimate cases made will be well-corroborated and not based solely on the word of one or two turncoats whose primary aim is to save their own skins. I also hope that enough sense will reign to prevent us from seeking a death sentence for any of those caught. Aside from questions of just how certain we are of guilt in each case, it doesn't take much to realize that executing any of them will only raise them to the level of martyr, and if they're true to their version of their faith this is essentially what they want to have happen. So, such a move would be doubly foolish.

         I'm not a theist. I don't believe in a creator-God. In my view the Bible is a confused collection of shady history, myth and metaphor, and neither any version of that text nor of the Koran is anything but the invention of man. However, I realize that these fill an important place in the needs of mankind, both as individuals seeking validation and as societies requiring a Higher basis for peace and order. Most who will be reading these words would say that they at least believe in "Something" behind it all, and I'm not here to debate that abstract. Anyone who believes a benevolent Creator would only direct mankind to nurture, build, or at least preserve life should hold as suspect anyone who tells them that God commands then to kill.

        Am I advising pacifism in the face of attack? Not at all. Self-preservation is sanity. If all else fails it's natural - if we're not here to ensure the continuance of our line, then we deny the efforts of our ancestors. I'm just saying that such things are exclusively the affair of mankind and we should have the balls to face up to it. Don't seek to validate it at an altar. If the notion of invoking God and essentially asking such a being to bless our bullets is offensive to me as an agnostic, it baffles me that those who believe in such a being aren't deeply offended by the notion. What petty, bloodthirsty god creates beings and then takes sides? Why would anyone want to be in the sevice of such a god save out of fear? After millennia of people going to war with all sides claiming that God is on their side, shouldn't we wake up and realize there's something wrong with this picture?

         Descending from such cosmic matters to the national level again, while I generally commend the actions of the administration don't confuse that with any idea that I applaud those currently in office in any larger sense. Prior to September 11th I saw more than enough of Bush's policies and directions to reinforce the idea that my not voting for him was a good - if thwarted - move. From funding for "faith-based initiatives", to meddling in stem cell research, to national days of prayer, to tax moves to serve the wealthiest percentages while trying to buy off the common man (and apparently doing a good job of it with many) by sending us what amounts to an advance on what we would have gotten back on next year's tax returns, I've found little to respect. Hearing those who are talking of the "transformation" Bush has undergone since September 11th throws me, and I can only think that if so much prestige rushes to surround and support the likes of our current president how remarkable a figure would be cut by someone who had actually been qualified for the job.

          Okay. That's at least enough from me on such matters.

          The deadline for Legends no.90 is coming up quickly. Originally set for October 6th, in light of when issue 89 arrived and some requests I've moved it back one week to October 13th. Moving it back a full week, though, means that the 13th is firm. Anything that comes in after that waits until December's issue #91. Anyone interested in finding out about our group can start with the Legends site and follow up by emailing me. Issue 90 marks our 15th anniversary.

          As ever, drop me a line if this place continues to stagnate between visits. We all need little kicks in the butt from time to time.
                                                                                            Thanks for visiting.

                                                                                                     Mike Norton
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