"Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by,
That here, obedient to their laws, we lie."

Vote For Kodos
Miracle of miracles, my mom actually expressed an opinion about a matter of policy! I love my mom to death (she's my mom), but it is nearly impossible to have a political discussion with her. Not because she isn't interested in politics, she is (not as much as my dad or me, but she's still an interested and dedicated voter), but because she hates to discuss policies or facts, instead preferring generalizations and emotions. But as we were eating brunch this morning, Meet the Press was on in the background, and during a commercial break, a Kerry campaign ad enunciated the virtues of Senator Kerry's four-point Iraq strategy. The first point was to garner greater support and aid from our allies (primarily in Western Europe). To my astonishment, my dear mother scoffed. Scoffed! She opined that it is ridiculous to expect that the French or Germans will commit troops to help stabilize Iraq under any circumstances, and that Mr. Kerry is guilty of foolishness of the highest order if he thinks President Chirac or Chancellor Schroeder will aid our cause in Iraq simply because he is president. I was shocked. This is my thinking exactly, and it is very rare that my mother and I agree on a matter of foreign policy (or domestic policy, for that matter). Nevertheless, she still intends to vote for Senator Kerry, and I still intend to vote for President Bush.

W '04, boys and girls, W '04.

Go Honolulu Blue
I love the Detroit Lions. Not as much as I love the Michigan Wolverines (football), but more even than I love the Detroit Red Wings. The Marty Mornhinweig era was painful for me. So it is with great joy that I have greeted the improvements under Steve Mariucci. And though there have been great strides made towards respectability and, perhaps, playoff contention, we must face the reality that unless the Lions play a flawless game, it will be nearly impossible to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles. As I write this, there are approximately twelve minuts left in the fourth quarter and the Lions trail the Eagles 27-7. It is highly unlikely that my boys will prevail.

And so, tomorrow I will wear my Detroit Lions T-shirt. This Fall, Neutral Man has been following the Lions and asking himself, because they finished 2-14, 2-13, and 5-11 the past three seasons and began this year 2-0, if he is a fair weather fan. With that nugget (salmon?) of doubt in mind, I thought about wearing my Lion shirt after the Chicago or Houston games, but elected to wait until the Lions' first defeat to show my support. Because I cheered for a 2-14 team, I know that I am a true fan; now that the Lions are greatly improved and the future much brighter, it is more important than ever to stand by the team in the dark moments. And so, if the Lions lose today, I will publicly show my support for them tomorrow. To misappropriate a phrase from Thomas Paine, I am no summer soldier, no sunshine patriot.

The Cloak's World
One of the heroes of whom I am most fond, but about whom I know the least, is Sean Pepperdine a.k.a. Spartan. He wears on his chest the Spartan lambda, he believes in loyalty above all, but that is not to say he supports the hoplite-helot divide that was at the center of Spartan society.