Sad, but also…
From CNN.com this morning:
Also in Kandahar on Monday, a donkey-towed cart loaded with explosives and a remote control detonator blew up at a police post, killing at least three people and wounding four, officials said.
As if it weren't bad enough that we, as a human race, keep killing one another, children were killed this time. This is yet another sad incident.
And yet, still, some part of me had to read it twice. It wasn't a car. Or a suicide bomb strapped to someone's body. It was a donkey cart. With a remote control detonator.
And now, for something completely different...
Long Absence – You Knew It Was Coming
Sorry about the long absence here. I blame Holy Week, working Saturday and Sunday, and then not taking Monday off because our base is having exercises. My first true day off is Saturday.[1]
At any rate, here's the news story that caught my attention. As someone who used to fly from Hawaii to the mainland on a regular basis, this one alarms me... But you knew it was coming!
---- The boss, thanks be to God, offered those of us who preached this past weekend tomorrow (Friday) off, but I have a luncheon, a dinner, and something else at the same time as the dinner. I need to learn to bilocate. [<--]
Blood Drives
I have given blood since I was 17, when the bloodmobile showed up at my high school. I knew I'd be a donor someday because I used to accompany my mom when she went to give blood, even when I was a kid. I've been donating since, and figure that I'm somewhere in the 12 to 15 gallon range.[1] In seminary I tried organizing drives for the first time, and was marginally successful.[2] In 2009 I allowed the local blood center to talk me into trying apheresis to give platelets. It takes about two hours, from arrival to departure,[3] and you can go every two weeks. No more counting gallons, I guess, just visits, or something like that. I get my red blood cells back so it does not impact my PT[4] so that's a huge bonus, and so is helping cancer patients and burn victims.
Okay, enough history, especially since it seems like I'm bragging. That's not the intention, unless taking it that way encourages you to run out and start giving. If that's the case, I'll brag more if you need, just ask. Giving blood is just something I've done for a long time and something I feel is important. Some day I'm sure I'll visit the wrong country for the wrong amount of time or get the wrong vaccination[5] and won't be able to give again. That will feel really odd, but I'll probably volunteer to help in some way, maybe organizing more drives. If you cannot give I encourage that as an option.
No matter how odd it feels to stop giving, though, this is way, way odder. Talk about giving blood for all the wrong reasons... Seems like a heck of a waste, just to make a statement.
Now, get out there and donate! 
- Hard to say, as I hop around from blood bank to blood bank every time I move, but several years ago I was confirmed as a 10 gallon donor, so just guessing now. [<--]
- Every little bit counts! [<--]
- Not great when you aren't thrilled about needles, but I'm adjusting. [<--]
- Physical training: Running, etc. [<--]
- Though the ones I got in the fall before going overseas only caused a long deferral, not permanent, and neither did my time in said country. [<--]
And Now For Something Completely Different
After the last two days of news I felt I needed to post something different: The election process isn't perfect in Iraq, and has been marred by violence, but not universally. Heck, even our election process is far from perfect. Anyone remember 2000?
What would keep you from voting?
Along the same lines as yesterday's news story is this one that caught my eye today. Which made me think: Would the threat of random bombings deter me from going out to vote? Or, more broadly, what would deter me from voting. Where's that line where I'd say, "I realize this is my civic duty, and that if I do not do this I lose my say in the direction my city/state/country is headed, but there's no way I'm going out there to vote?"
Depending on the status of my country, and what hung in the balance, bombings might just be enough. If there were random bombings on election day in this country, though, things would have deteriorated enough for me to really want some say in what happened next, so perhaps I'd still make the effort. It may be one of those things that you just can't know until you're there, staring at the decision, weighing the pros and cons.
It all puts some of the comments I've heard right here in this country into perspective, though. "It's really cold today, and rainy, so I don't think I'll go vote." "I heard the line was over an hour to get in, I guess I'll pass this year." "One vote really doesn't make any difference, so why bother wasting my time."
I seriously hope the Iraqi people don't hear any of that type of talk from over here.