THE MALE PSYCHE AND POWER TOOLS?

Power tools, a saw-all, hammer drill and the like are nothing truly new they all do exactly what the human species has always done with the tools they have. Saws to cut the materials that need to be cut and drills for making holes in things.

Other then I have wanted a saw-all since the first time I got to use one it still does not do anything that I could not have done with one type of saw or another. It does make it easier and that would be a valid reason to have one. But I am still saying and telling with a real sense of pride that I now have one!

As if being able to state that I have a saws-all is a true sign of achievement! It is something many men have simply bought on a whim or because they needed it for a special job so it was to the local hardware store and putting down the card. No more special achievements than that, yet somehow this has caused me great joy?  I have not done anything that I had not done with any other type of saw, hand saw, hack saw and the like.  Yet here I am feeling somehow more special or notable since I have a SAWS-ALL!

Is it just a male thing?  Our love of power tools and the feeling of accomplishment for having some special tool?  At times when I do as much brag about having one, I afterwards feel a little silly.  As if somehow this is a badge of male hood, “I might not be able to impregnate half the twenty-something’s women of the world…. Or fix a car or even get changing the oil right the first time…. I may not be the Kung-fu champion of the world, but I have Testosterone flowing through my body because I have a SAWS-ALL!

What if a woman owned a Saws-all, do they just have Penis envy?

But there are, are there not, many things that we do not need or could be accomplished with things we already have that are badges of accomplishment? Only those who have wealth or special status have the things we long for. Oh but it does a better job right?

Lindsay, why should we care?

Well, the “other” Lindsey is much more newsworthy, but we get a constant diet of Lindsay Lohan in the media. Lindsey Graham will have an impact on our lives, through his work in the Senate.

Lindsey Lohan is a circus sideshow.

For those of you that have managed to to be hiding in a safe cave for the last several weeks, Lindsay Lohan was just sentenced to 90 days in jail for probation violations. Poor Lindsay broke down in tears and showed us her hand-painted nails, complete with “Fuck You” stenciled on the middle fingers of both hands.

My heart breaks for her!

We have also learned in recent days, that Jake has been withholding sex from Vienna, who ever the Hell they are. We also know that Justin Bieber wants to remain “pure.”

So what? Why should we care?

Jessica Simpson has a new (married) boyfriend and rumor has it that the “Jessica Simpson’s Ass” factor played into the relationship.

So what? Why should we care?

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is one of the few Republicans willing to buck the Tea Party and actually work with Democrats to improve the country. Yet, somehow it is important to Americans that Lindsay Lohan, spoiled brat of Hollywood, is going to have to spend a few days in jail.

As Americans, have we been reduced to headlines in “People” and “Us” magazines?

Now, it is been confirmed that I am officially an old SOB. I don’t pay much attention to “celebrity news” or the latest gossip headlines. Who the Hell cares if Jon Gosselin is going to write a book? Do you think it will sell as well as “A Tale of Two Cities?”

So what? Why should we care?

Americans have much more important things to think about such as, now that LeBron has announced that he will sign with Miami, (dumb ass)  how is that going to effect the orbital path of the Earth?

William Stephenson Clark

Drugs.

There is no doubt that drugs are a major issue in America. Further, the drug cartel wars at the Mexican/American border have made it increasingly dangerous, on both sides of the border. America’s “War on Drugs” is moving towards a forty year mark, yet drug usage remains virtually the same.

What have we accomplished with the “War on Drugs?”

Well, we have locked up a bunch of users and spent billions of dollars, but we have produced little actual results in reducing drug usage.

Now, we have a new issue to address – semi-legal usage of prescription drugs. Prescription drugs have been abused for decades, but these days, the use of  “legal” drugs has increased to alarming proportions. Not only are “legal” drugs available, but a highly potent drug, meth, can be made from legal substances, right at home.

There is much talk of “gateway” drugs that lead to dependency on more dangerous chemicals. The usual reason for opposing the legalization of marijuana is that it is one of those “gateway” drugs that lead to addictions to harder drugs. “Studies” claim that most hard drug users started with marijuana. They also probably  “used” milk, before switching to narcotics.

The fact of the matter is that America is a “High Society.”

There are no easy answers. Drugs like cocaine and crack can kill with the first usage. Meth is virtually instantaneously addictive. Heroin, if overly pure, is a death sentence. Prescription drugs will kill, if used improperly.

Yet tobacco and alcohol are perfectly legal.

So, what are the answers?

Well, for one, legalize marijuana. Enough is enough; the use of marijuana will never be stomped out. It is harmless and non-addictive. It is less harmful to society than alcohol could ever be.

Second, treat the users of drugs such as cocaine, crack, meth and heroin. Incarceration has proven to be a ineffective tools in addressing the usage of hard drugs.

Three, shutdown the “pill mills” and incarcerate Doctors that feed users.

Four, stop messing around and truly go after the distributors and dealers of hard drugs. Break the cycle of cartel-distributor-dealer-user.

And stop pretending that we can “end drug usage.”

(The thread photo is of the cover of the album “Journey to the Center of the Mind” by the Amboy Dukes from 1967, led by Ted Nugent. Nugent claims to always have been drug and alcohol free, and rails against users. I knew Ted Nugent in the late Sixties. He was far from drug and alcohol free. The album cover is proof enough.)

William Stephenson Clark

Monday, 7/12/10, Public Square