Opinion
 

Front page offers a sad view

Samira Zaidi
Opinion Columnist

I was pondering on what to write my next column about while at work when I was confronted with the news that President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair were defending their justification for facing Saddam Hussein and invading Iraq.

That's not really news. In fact they could have saved themselves this trouble and listened to opponents of the war who questioned the United State's motives for jumping the gun. But the Cowboy and the Crumpet didn't pay any attention.

Instead anti-war activists were accused of being Saddam sympathizers -- what's so wrong about trying to do what's right?

I wonder if Bush and Blair are paying attention to the rising death toll of coalition casualties -- nah, what difference does it make? Let's hope it makes a difference during re-election season.

A California high school teacher has made a deck of "Operation Hidden Agenda" playing cards, depicting government and military officials. The backs of the cards feature Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld shaking hands with arch nemesis Saddam.

Hypocrisy has such a nice ring to it, don't you think?

In other news, the death toll rose to 10 in Santa Monica, Calif., where an 86-year-old man crashed into a farmers market with his 1992 Buick LeSabre.

Statistics from the Insurance Institute show that older drivers generally are as safe as other age groups until they reach 75 years of age, when they tend to have more accidents. Drivers 85 and older are about as likely to be involved in a fatal crash as those ages 16 to 19 years old.

Personally I enjoy wasting time behind an elderly person trying to maneuver their way down Interstate 10. Nothing says calm driving like ongoing high-paced traffic and senior citizens in their Cadillacs squinting at the odometer trying to figure out whether they're driving 80 miles per hour or 30 while driving through it.

I have nothing against senior citizens, they're great people, but when you're going 40 on the freeway in the fast lane, there might be just a teeny problem.

Women are worse. Getting imprisoned behind a bad woman driver is worse than the torture at Guantanamo Bay. You don't know whether to tear your hair out or get out of the car, knock on her window and scream like a psychopath.

Meanwhile in business news, a German court sentenced a man to four months in jail and fined him $2,300 for trying to sell one of his kidneys on the Internet, authorities reported Tuesday.

He said it was because the firm his girlfriend works at was having financial troubles so he wanted to help out. At least he had good intentions.

But what about that mother who was caught trying to sell her 2-year-old son for $500 so she could get high? It's nice to know that instead of selflessly bringing children into the world to nurture and love, some mothers selfishly attempt to sell them to buy a mobile home, get high or just have more time with their boyfriend.

Well I guess I'll get back to work now.

Zaidi, a senior communication major, 
can be reached at greeneggs34@hotmail.com.