It’s been nearly 1,800 days, 4,000 deaths and $700 billion since the United States launched an ill-conceived war in Mesopotamia. The war in Iraq is a longer war than World War II. We are, of course, fighting a second war that is almost never mentioned in the news anymore, in Afghanistan. The Taliban is alive and well, as is Osama bin Laudin.

Sen. John McCain, the Republican party nominee for president, believes the war is one we can win and is ready to commit our nation to another 10 years of fighting. He’s indicated he would also begin military action against Iran, although I’m not sure why or what he believes would be gained. I’m not sure what he means by “win”, for that matter.

Economics is often called “the dismal science” and it can certainly be daunting to understand. Nevertheless, there’s no need to be Milton Friedman to understand the American economic situation is dismal. Our good capitalist friends in the Republican party who assured us that tax cuts for the rich would trickle down to the rest of us if we would just let the hand of God move over the marketplace without government interference are now cheering the government interfering to prevent Bear Stearns from going under when the hand of God was less than kind about them speculating on risky mortgages. Gasoline is swiftly rising towards $4/gal., making it hard for Republicans to fill up their tanks on their SUVs. Way to go, guys.

Tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day. I’m glad it’s supposed to rain on the parade here because it’s my least favorite day of the year. For one thing, it’s become an excuse to use alcohol to excess and not only do I not drink, but my tolerance for drunks is limited. I used to rail against the Irish because of James Joyce and a class I once had on Irish literature. This does not seem like the year for jokes about bigotry against any group.

Sinatra has spring fever, a really hard case of it. He’s restless and wants out and in and out and in and out and in. Being half Siamese, he’s very vocal about it.

I’ve let my hair grow very long — unmanageably long, in fact — and I’m of a mind to just let it go on getting more and more curly and thick. Except when I want to shave it to a nub.

It’s now been more than a year since I’ve had a girlfriend or even someone I’ve dated more than twice. Oddly, I don’t care. I saw the lovely Juliet for lunch last week and that was very nice and I was a little nostalgic about seeing her again, but mostly I’m glad that we’re still friends and just friends. I really haven’t met anyone for a very long time that sparked that galvanic “this could be the one” response. I also realize that not having met anyone like that is a function of not going out so much any more. I haven’t strayed very far from my comfort zone of friends for quite a long while.

As for Democratic Party politics, I seem to write about that all the time. There’s not much I have to say at this point, during this six weeks before the Pennsylvania primary. I’m glad that Obama sat down with the two Chicago papers and spent time answering all their questions about Rezko; maybe that’s one that can be put to rest. The Ferraro contretemps was just silly, IMHO, and I didn’t care much what she said and don’t care if she resigned, apologized or whatever. I feel about Obama and his pastor the same way I do my own pastor, Robin at Mayflower: I don’t agree with everything he says on any day, but it’ll be a cold day in hell before I’d repudiate the man I admire.

One of the dynamics of the Dem primaries does flamboozle me a bit. Obama’s folks generally criticize Hillary for her stand on the war and this and that. Hillary’s folks seem not to care all that much about Obama, they seem to still dismiss him as insignificant, but they are sure as hell angry with Obama’s supporters. This seems to me an odd disconnect. Nevertheless, it is important when the left blogosphere is so disputatous that Hillary supporters stage a walkout, strike, boycott or whatever-you-want-to-call-it at Daily Kos because they feel they’ve been attacked so unfairly by Obama people.

The Republicans offer neverending war, a failed economy, a dysfunctional bureaucracy and dogmatically ideological justice and courts and the Democrats seem intent on losing in November because they can’t talk politics with each other.

It’s enough to make a guy want to detach and listen to 7,800 versions of “Smoke on the Water.”

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