As the sun slips down behind Twin Peaks to my West, it's painfully obvious that those long, sensual summer nights are coming to a close. On the other hand, with seasonally adjusted weak breezes and very little fog, our September nights are warm enough for one to sit in the backyard in a T-shirt and feel comfortably warm.
Yesterday morning, I took an hour-long walk through this end of town. Just around the corner, a very large red-tailed hawk broke out of one small tree to fly into another. That is something I've never seen before.
The evangelistas were out in force, of course. This is a Latino neighborhood, and gaggles of nicely dressed men and women are always walking the streets on weekends, hoping to convert the sinners among us. I do not mind these pious folk, as long as they leave and my family alone. We do not choose to participate in religious activities of any sort, as is our Constitutional right.
The separation of church and state is probably the most important principle of American democracy. Whatever you may or may not believe, understand this much -- your faith has no place in our politics. Forget your views on abortion, gay marriage, or sex education. These are your business, no our business.
It is virtually unimaginable that in 2008 we still have a large bloc of ignorant voters who believe these private, spiritual matters are what the rest of us should use to evaluate candidates, but there you have it.
The Dark Ages are threatening to return, in this regard. The Age of Ignorance, despite all of our knowledge. This country has slipped backward, and now is teetering on a precipice that, should we fall, will seal our fate as a civilization.
I do not want to offend anyone, but here is what I think: Forget "God," consider your fellow men and women. If you do so, the right person will be the next President of the U.S. and his first name will not be John.
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