Ball of confusion -- that’s what the world is today

JAMES PRIBRAM

“I’ll send an SOS to the world ... I hope that someone gets my

message in a bottle.”

-- THE POLICE

If it were only so easy I would bare my soul and scream to the

world. My mind stops and then my thoughts begin to wonder. I search

for perspective on current world events. Arnold is now governor?

“Vote for me or I will break you,” he says in his deep Terminator

voice. I can’t help but laugh out loud. Governor? I’m still laughing.

Honestly, I can’t stop laughing, but then my worries go on. This

world is beginning to scare me. Is religion our killer? Hatred? Iraq?

Afghanistan? Israel? Palestine? Osama Bin Laden? Saddam? All are

entwined in symbolic gesture of hatred and religion.

I wish I had the answers and I don’t. Maybe God does and we’re

just not listening. We would rather fight over which God is really

God? In this day of media sensationalism do we still believe that the

sky is blue?

God is probably up there cynically shaking his head at us.

Thinking, “I gave you this world when I was on the cross and you all

take it for granted. You fight? You kill?”

We buy guns, sell drugs, continue to look the other way. We live

for ourselves. What happened to everyday common courtesy? Good

old-fashioned neighborly love? It’s gone. Parents don’t parent.

People don’t respect one another. Blood is still red but we continue

to fight over skin color?

Sad. All of this is so sad, what our world is becoming is nothing

more than a symbol and a word written in blood: hatred. How can

people hate an enemy that they don’t even know? Because of religion?

Where they live? Skin color? Sexual preference?

Let me ramble here: President Bush can you hear me? I’m alive and

well in sunny Laguna. Where everything is for the most part always

OK. Except that I can’t shop at my local store because now they’re on

strike and the people striking are the very reason why I go to that

store.

I don’t know? Maybe I’m crazy? Weird? But I have tears in my eyes

and my nose is running and I am not afraid to tell you all that I do

care about this world and I dream that one day this world will be

safe for my children. That is my dream.

I am proud to be American and in no way blaming you Mr. President,

sometimes I just wonder if anyone’s listening?

Peace.

* JAMES PRIBRAM is a Laguna Beach resident, professional surfer

and co-founder of “They Will Surf Again,” a nonprofit foundation

assisting people with spinal cord injuries.