I’ve spent a good deal of the last 2 years in a sort of self-imposed news blackout. I really haven’t even been the kind of political junkie I normally am during presidential elections. I blame the cancer; I blame the 5 surgeries and 32 radiation treatments. I blame the lessons I’ve learned over the past almost 2 years; family and friends, love thy neighbor, feed the people, and care for the animals… These are the important things in life, not journalism that gleefully reports gaffes and foams at the mouth with happiness when the gaffes happen, not politicians who go out of their way to obfuscate their positions all the while telling you why their opponent is not your guy, and most certainly not hateful people who demand that you do not love your neighbor.

I’m back in the swing of things and I’m back to writing about politics and the news. God willing, one day I’ll graduate college and become a political columnist. But the news out of Cairo and Libya today leaves me with a loathing of all things political again. I’ve spent all day following the events of the past few days in Egypt and Libya and the political hay that is being made out of the deaths of American citizens. I’m not sure how many people died, because the news has spent all day telling me about a supposed PR gaffe. How sad is that?

The news today has focused on when a statement from the American Embassy in Egypt was actually released. Were they or were they not under attack? Were they sympathizing with the Egyptians? Were they or were they not apologizing for asshole Americans who use their freedom of speech to make inflammatory movies about a religion? Was the wolf at the door when they released the statement? Were there protestors storming the embassy when it was released?

I can’t wrap my mind around the unconscionable idiocy of the political events of the past 24 hours. Holy fucking hell are they kidding me? You’re debating whether or not it was an apology when the remaining embassy employees lives may still be in danger? Honestly. Who the hell cares what was said? I’m sitting here typing this safe and sound in my living room. The people -dems & repubs- raising hell about this alleged PR gaffe are safe and sound in the U.S. surrounded by secret service agents. Someone please ask these people what they would do if they were in a foreign country surrounded by pissed off protestors? I know what I would do. I would do everything in my power to calm the situation and protect the lives of my fellow embassy employees. I think some people have seen one too many Die Hard and Dirty Harry movies.

American lives have been lost and others may still be in danger. Do these politicians and journalists really think the best use of their time is to rant and rave and make political hay over a statement? Perhaps they should get off their asses and do something productive. I think all the nonsense today over whether or not a statement was an apology and what the circumstances were when it was made make us look poor in spirit and woefully misguided in terms of priorities.

Maybe I should go back to my news blackout, it doesn’t seem as though there’s much of substance that I’ve missed.