Unwired

After a week of being completely unwired, I returned to discover we were still at war, but pulling out of Iraq while things heated up in Afghanistan; the northeastern United States was enduring yet another prolonged heat wave; and hundreds of thousands of unhappy citizens poured into Washington D.C. on the anniversary of Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech to voice their discontent and listen to Fox TV's emotive pundit Glenn Beck. Hints about efforts of the super wealthy and corporations to direct and control the grass roots Tea Party movement hit a few more editorial pages and blogs. (They may have a tiger by the tail.)

The five-year anniversary of Katrina was marked by celebrations of New Orleans' remarkable recovery while coverage of the Horizon oil spill's massive contamination of Gulf Coast waters moved to the back burner.

The economy continued its drunken stagger. Market volatility persisted. Real estate remained an uncertain investment. The Federal Reserve maintained non-existent interest rates to the banks, who continued NOT to lend money. Fears of inflation vied with fears of deflation.

Pakistan flood victims struggle to survive. Haitian earthquake victims continue to suffer. Keeping track of the year's natural disasters is a challenge.

The hurricane season apparently favors a parade up the Atlantic along a very warm Gulf Stream. The resulting rip tides plague vacationers to the Jersey Shore.

The political season is well underway bringing the electorate the usual nasty, deceptive commercials, phony telephone surveys and disingenuous interviews.

Being unwired wasn't so bad. I may do it more often.