9-11 and Affairs

I am not normally a very "political" person. Yeah, I vote every four years for the president who would be most likely to receive a blowjob from me in the Oval Office. I figure I could blackmail the guy, as long as I could keep evidence in a safety deposit box; part of my retirement plan. I mean, if the president can't personally help me, why bother voting.

Anyway, I still listen to some political chatter. And recently, I have been tallying up the number of events, laws or otherwise, that continue to talk about 9-11. I mean, when we talk about immigration policy, we do so because of 9-11. President Bush talks about raising taxes on children from ages 14 to 17, we need the money because of 9-11. Taking our rights away in the Patriot Act, we do so because of 9-11. It is amazing how many things we are doing because of 9-11 now, and part of my cynically envisions political pundits sitting around in a room, thinking up reason for doing whatever it is the major contributors want to do. Well, we would like for the FCC to limit access to competition in the phone industry. Can we use 9-11 as a reason for this? We need to give tax credits for hybrid cars. Can we use 9-11 as a reason for this? It seems like the political pundits are bundling excuses here.

Here is a non-political way of bundling excuses. Let's say you cheat on your hubbie and he takes you back, for whatever reason. But when you make a male friend, hubbie is visibly upset and makes small barbs at the man. Well, even though he does not say so, you know the underlying reason is because of the affair. You come home a little late from work, hubbie looks hurt and asks where you have been. While not said, the reason is because of the affair. You get in a heated argument, and what is brought up? Perhaps the affair? Are you seeing a trend here? I sure am.

I have been reading a strong woman for a while. I linked to her blog until recently – she is not going "under cover," but I think she doesn't want as much attention drawn to her site. We have not talked about this, but I imagine she experiences the same thing. You see, we both cheated, and we are trying to get back "to normal" – heck, we probably want "extraordinary"; we both deserve it – after the affair.

An affair in a relationship is sort of like 9-11 was for the country. We were completely obsessed with it for weeks afterwards. Every single conversation contained parts of the affair or 9-11. Every single conversation. It was the elephant in the room, but instead of ignoring it, we were talking about it ad nauseum. Then we did things to protect ourselves. The Patriot Act for the country, serious therapy for the individuals. Maybe even stashing a bit of money away "just in case." But we cannot sustain this, and eventually, life got back to normal, sort of. But 9-11 or the affair is still out there. It is always there. Can we move forward as a couple, as a nation? I hope so, but we are moving forward gingerly. Cautiously.

And I am not trying to make light of 9-11 and the aftermath with this post. A friend of the family died in one of the twin towers, and it has really affected their immediate family. But affairs can be extremely destructive on a personal level. Anyway, as Memorial Day approaches, I wonder if we should have a day for healing on a personal level. I'd fly a flag for that as well!