According to the National Priorities Project, the war in Iraq (the war that was to be over in six months) has cost you and me over 219 trillion, 428 billion dollars. Of course, there's the ancillary rise in fuel costs as well, and the American death toll, which stands at two-thousand-sixty-six as of today.

Every time I see one of those “Support Our Troops” ribbons on a car bumper, I think, “yes, I support the troops, but not the jackass who sent them to Iraq based on a pack of lies in the first place.”

Tillie knows about my trip.

I told Tillie Herr, my next-door neighbor here at THE BIG NEEDLE, about my thrice-postponed trip to Florida. She asked if I would be giving up my apartment because she has a friend who wants to move here. I asked who the friend was, got the strangest look, and was told, “You don’t know him.” How’s that for friendship? You know what? I think this stranger is a boyfriend, or potential boyfriend. Since I’m gay, Tillie can’t wait to get rid of me and get this guy installed next door. Ah, well. I feel sorry for the guy - Tillie’s a cold Pennsylvania Dutch stick of a woman any way you look at her.

Another Wilma Image

My friend from South Florida has sent me another image of Wilma’s destruction in his area. It is directly below.

Katrina Relief

Donate money to the American Friends Service Committee for relief along the Gulf Coast. Long term help is necessary to return the poor to their parishes and repair the damage done to those neighborhoods that gave New Orleans it’s cuisine and culture. Soon, the Red Cross will move on to other crises. The Friends are much more likely to do good things for the unfortunate people of the region than anyone I can think of. They do not discriminate, and they will not proselytize while helping.


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