Tragedy, Comedy, Beauty

"Life is a tragedy for those who feel, and a comedy for those who think."

-Margaret Cho

Needless to say, the election results were a huge dissappointment. Its one thing for Americans to suffer this president, its another for the world to suffer. One of the things that I'll always remember from my travels in S.E. Asia was the trail of devastation that terrible American foreign policy left in the region (which many are still recovering from today). I'm afraid something of this order is happening again in Iraq.

Several of my friends who recently returned to the U.S. from travelling or working overseas are now restless to leave again. My sense of alienation from the other half of this country is tremendous. I personally don't feel like I understand this country anymore. 51% of the vote is hardly a mandate, yet Bush is already intoning as if he has sufficient "capital" to push his agenda full on.

Tonight, I went with an old friend to see a show in Brooklyn by the mastermind guitarist, Robin Guthrie, of Cocteau Twins. Although it was just him sitting with his guitar before banks of effect consoles, his signature sublime sound enveloped the room, bringing back memories of better musical times. Its interesting to think that his sound, pioneered over 15 years ago (and partially spawning the personally inspiring dreampop/shoegaze movement), still is more beautiful and progressive than most of the stuff out today. For an hour or so tonight, I felt as if I was in the presence of angels, entranced into a state of heavenly bliss. The world was impossibly beautiful, if just for a little while.