With war looming on the horizon, people across America are not asking
"What are the world's college students thinking?

But I'm here to tell you, with my objective sampling of IM away messages and profiles of friends and acquaintances, arranged by geographic location. In the words of the light-up plastic goblet voice of Burger King, Behold!

In Georgia:
"Rain! : )"
"Wow... is it still Monday?? I'm at work, which is just awesome. Maybe when I come back it'll be Tuesday."
"Stuff."
"Oh, goodie, prodigal zombie has returned. What you want, prodigal zombie?"

Virginia:
"Happy St. Guinness Day."
"It's a rocket launcher that can cook small meals, is bigger on the inside than the outside and is voice-activated!"
"nappy time."
"i saw a POSSUM this morning chillin' on a tree while i was walkin' to class! it was cuuuuuute! ^_^"

Massachusetts:
"there go the roof here come the sky
let in the sun here come the shakes"

California:
"I would just like everybody to know that I have a trash bag full of cotton candy in my room."

New Jersey:
"Constructing a new paradigm."

Maryland:
"Tim's parents have created a web page, www.TimBrierley.com
A place for us to save some of his memories, a place for others to remember over time."
"I'm an american redcrosser."
“When the chosen people grew too strong, the rightful cause at length became the wrong. —John Dryden"
"This picture creeps me out."
"Dear Tatsumi,
Have been obliviated by a MarySue for the time being. Will now hold all Cinnabons hostage until Tsuzuki rescues me from the depths of Forgotten Shounen Ai Counterpart Hell. If you could send him over right away using your mad office secretary skillz, that would be just peachy.
-Kurosaki Hisoka"
"Is it safe? Is it safe?" (Unsure if this is an LOTR reference.)


Hmm. Having gotten done with that, it seems the northerners' messages are, on average, a good deal more sobering. But no doubt my sample size is far too small to have any real statistical significance.

. . .

The fire alarm went off at 5:40AM this morning which meant I got an early start on the exhausted frustration that's stuck with me since then. What in the name of all that's right and good are we doing here, anyway? seems to be the theme of today, along with Since no one seems to care, is it okay if I just go back to sleep until this is all over? Not exactly the decisive voice of protest there, but when am I decisive about anything, really? Too much of a realist for that. I'm angry yes, but not because the nation's headed off to war so much as because I think our administration's foreign policy sets an unwise precedent.

Honestly, I can't decide what I want from this war. Clearly it's a turning point as far as the US's status as an international power is concerned, but I don't like the options if the campaign goes perfectly or if it's less than successful. Bush is staking his political future on removing Hussein, and I'd hate for him to come out of this as America's golden boy. But an unsuccessful war in Iraq would be a long one or a rout (the latter obviously being nigh impossible), or perhaps lots of American soldiers getting killed by chemical weapons (also vindicating the president again), and so none of those options appeal to me, either.

In my ideal world, France would form a coalition of nations at the United Nations tomorrow to broker Saddam Hussein's exile within the next few days, perhaps without US or British involvement. And then they'd send him off to the war crimes tribunal that Bush doesn't support, and convict him, and the UN would set up a replacement government in Bagdad. And then we could all go back to eating french fries again. But I've always been too hopeful about the UN, even though I'm well aware of its ineffectiveness in getting anything controversial settled expediently.

Anyhow, enough writing for now. I've promised myself I'll not read any more news sites until after 8PM tonight, so that I can get some work done and go to practice as usual. We'll see how this goes.