a time when anarchy sounds good

I just finished watching 24:Redemption. Apparently JACK'S BACK!

I don't care if Jack's back or not. He played a great role in the tv movie, to be sure, but my focus is on two things: the situation in Sangala and how it directly correlates to that in Uganda, Congo, Sudan, Colombia, and countless other countries the world over; and the basic fundamentals of democracy.

Look at Uganda today. There is fighting in the streets of once-peaceful cities, but those cities have not known such peace for well over twenty years. Twenty years of war between a rebel army and a corrupt government. Who's the good guy? How do the people just trying to live their lives choose whom to support in order to stay safe? There is no true answer. Children in schools and hospitals and sports arenas and any other gathering place taken by both armies to be used as soldiers or sex slaves if they're lucky, human shields if they're not. It makes me sick just thinking about it.

Democracy. President elect Allison Taylor quoted someone as saying "the people elect the democracy they deserve." This also upsets me. Initially I found it to be a wonderful quote, but look at the kind of governments have been elected in other countries. Look at the presidents we ourselves have elected in the past. These are not all wholesome people; they are not all smart and charismatic; they are not all good for the country as a whole. Do we deserve anything less than the best? I do not believe we do. And do we choose less than the best? Not at all. We choose what we think will help us into the future best. The secrets of Congress, the CIA, the FBI, the White House, the governments of other nations--all these things add up to the corruption that 24 showed. America was essentially funding the rebel army while also trying to give aid to the Sangalan government...rather revolting how individual people can shape this world if they get enough support...or is that oddly comforting?