Standing On Something Solid
Standing on a corner in the middle of Ketchum it is easy to see the connection Hemingway must have made between this place and those he had known in the good years. Aside from the brute beauty of the mountains, he must have recognized an atavistic distinctness in the people that piqued his sense of dramatic possibilities. It is a raw and peaceful little village, especially in the off season with neither winter skiers nor summer fishermen to dilute the image. Only the main street is paved; most of the others are no more than dirt and gravel tracks that seem at times to run right through front yards.
From such a vantage point a man tends to feel it is not so difficult, after all, to see the world clear and as a whole. Like many another writers, Hemingway did his best work when he felt he was standing on something solid — like an Idaho mountainside, or a sense of conviction.
–Hunter S. Thompson, writing from Ketchum, Idaho. (writing for the Observer in 1964. Later published in The Great Shark Hunt.)
Election day is 24 days away. Remember to look at the ballot booklet that was sent to you in the mail. In most states it is a little blue book. Even if you don’t read it, get yourself to the polls, and drag as many friends as possible to the booth. Or even better, vote early. You don’t have to be a political scientist to understand the gravity of the situation if we don’t take back congress on Nov 7th. You don’t even have to vote on all the issues, if necessary, when you’re in the voting booth, skip to Representative and Senator (your state may not have senate seat up for election this year) . Go ahead and be mad at me for oversimplifying, whatever, but this year, just vote DEMOCRAT… anything but republican. I think we will be digging ourselves out of a bigger hole for generations to come if Bush has another sympathetic Congress to let him have free reign his last two, very important Jesus years.
Remember the first three articles of the Constitution of The United States?
ARTICLE I.
All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress …
ARTICLE II:
The executive Power shall be vested in a President …
ARTICLE III:
The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court…
My point is not to insult your intelligence, but most of us who were educated in public schools weren’t really taught this at any length. Plus, it’s a good refresher, for me too. Thirdly, to remind us that our founding fathers were so obsessed with this BALANCE OF POWER thing. They spent years fighting and debating and agonizing and THINKING about it and even took the time to ESTABLISH A NEW DEMOCRACY, spelled out in those first 3 articles. They first had to shed blood to get us out from under the control of the British Empire, surely, not with the intention of handing it all over one day to a single family from Texas under the iron grip of Haliburton, The Carlisle Group or the messy AOL Time Warner et cetera…
I feel like Mr. Jones… I get the sense that at the moment, it ain’t balanced: So, it’s a good idea for every one of us who can hold a pencil, to get to the polls on Nov. 7th and vote DEMOCRAT. But you already know that.
Jesus!! Look at the time! How did I get on this tangent? I’m supposed to be studying. I just logged on to say hello, and post some HST wisdom about a faraway place in the Mountains of Ketchum Idaho.
Until next time, your friend,
Anita Thompson
P.S. Here is a slightly longer sysnopsis of the first 3 articles that I just deleted from above for clarity. My computer won’t let me link for some reason, but if you are in the mood to read more, just do a search for the constitution (and the bill of rights) if you feel like brushing up, and have a nice day!!
. ARTICLE I.Section.1. All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.
Section 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People…(that’s you, which is determined by population of your state which is why there are so many more Representatives than Senators)… .
Section 3. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six Years, and each Senator shall have one vote. (each election cycle, 1/3 of the Senate is up for re-election. That’s why you don’t vote for a new Senator every election)
ARTICLE II:
Section 1. The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term…
Section 2. (goes on to explain the process of each state appointing electors equal to the number of Senators and Representatives to which each state may be entitled in congress etc… I don’t have time to list it all now, but will include a link at the bottom of the blog, okay?)
ARTICLE III:
Section 1. The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as a Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour (sic), and (goes on to explain that they will be paid for their work)
Section 2. (goes on the explain the jurisdiction of the Supreme court, which has everything to do with interpreting the constitutionality of laws made by congress or the States etc…)
