Paris and Grenoble, FRANCE - The “Non!” vote has carried the day, in no uncertain terms. However, it is important to remember the wise words of an American politician, the equivalent of which I have yet to encounter here in France:

All politics is local.
   -Senator Thomas P.”Tip” O’Neill

I visited Paris the weekend before the election, and while I walked about town I looked to see any signs of advocacy for either a “Oui” or a “Non” vote. The “Non” was easily found on the public boards that are placed in prominent pedestrian areas here in France for any election. The “Oui” posters were significantly harder to find, in both Paris the weekend before the election, and in Grenoble for the past several weeks.

In the end, here are samples of the only “Oui” posters I was able to find (click any image to get a larger picture):

In Grenoble, only this:

In Paris, these:

The lack of “Oui” posters was surprising in this vibrant, combative, discursive political environment and indicated the true depth of uncertainty involved.

There are many here in France who say that the goal of President Jacques Chirac was to break the power of the Socialists and other left parties such as the Greens (in the second Paris poster image above) to preserve his own power. Unfortunately for him, he appears to have miscalculated regarding his ability to get a “Oui” or “Yes” vote from the populace at large. The far left has indeed lost power, but apparently so has President Chirac.

However, it is important to remember, not everything is always as it seems. As was once said in a song:

When the world falls apart
Some things stay in place
   -Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin

In the end, what does this mean to President Chirac, and to the idea of a closer European Union?

For Chirac, it is a decisive rejection of the results of his recent policies.

This means nothing more than the recent low polling numbers for President George W. Bush in the United States, poll numbers which in the US are driven more by high prices for gasoline than by any more fundamental dissatisfaction.

In France, they are driven by the apparent turning away from what is regarded as the “French socialism” of long term unemployment benefits and comparatively high retirement income.

To put it in simple, straightforward terms, the population of France is simply afraid. Afraid of two things: first, of losing the wonderful social benefits that have recently been cut because of fiscal constraints, retirement benefits, unemployment benefits, and medical benefits, all provided by the French government as part of the “French socialism” that was until recently regarded as such a success here in France.

The second fear? The fear of job losses to the new nations recently accepted into the European Union from the former Warsaw Pact. I can speak from personal experience in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, prices there are MUCH cheaper, and I presume the labor and other expenses are as well. When there is a cheaper alternative within the EU, why choose France?

Not an unreasonable question, nor an unreasonable fear of the answer.

All politics is local.

Europe did not lose in this election, President Chirac and his policies aimed at making France more competitive at the expense of the French socialism lost the election.

Chirac could have taken the decision to the French legislature for a guaranteed passage, as was done in Germany, but he chose the more risky path to reduce the power of the far left.

He accomplished his aim, at the expense of his own power as well.

Will the idea of Europe (an idea, or rather an ideal, more than a reality, even now after the advent of the common currency and the free travel between nations without the need of a passport) die after this vote?

No.

It may provide a much needed breather to allow the population to catch up with the politicians, however.

The ideal of Europe is hard to describe to those who have not encountered it first hand, yet it is indeed there, and this ideal is stronger than any single vote rejecting a huge Constitution for Europe.

The ideal survives, and will eventually prevail despite momentary setbacks.

Expect a lot of changes in Europe in the next decade.

All I ask is for you to think, and not simply jerk your knee and go with your initial reaction.

Follow me through to the end, think about it, and if you disagree with me, I can respect your position.

From MSNBC.com:

Bush blasts Amnesty report on Guantanamo
President says document is an ‘absurd report’
The Associated Press
Updated: 11:56 a.m. ET May 31, 2005

WASHINGTON - A human rights group’s report about conditions at the U.S. military’s prison at Guantanamo Bay is “absurd,” President Bush told reporters Tuesday.

The Amnesty International report, released last week, said prisoners at the U.S. Navy base had been mistreated and called for the prison to be shut down.

The president, addressing a news conference at the White House, said the Amnesty document was an “absurd report.”

“It’s absurd. It’s an absurd allegation. The United States is a country that promotes freedom around the world,” Bush said of the report, which compared Guantanamo to a Soviet-era gulag.

He said the Amnesty allegations were based on interviews with detainees, who hated America and were trained to lie.

Bush’s remarks echoed similar criticism by Vice President Dick Cheney.

“Frankly, I was offended by it,” Cheney said in the videotaped interview with CNN’s Larry King. “For Amnesty International to suggest that somehow the United States is a violator of human rights, I frankly just don’t take them seriously.”

Frankly, I am offended by the fact that these people have constructed a prison in Guantanamo Bay for the express purpose of being outside the US court system to avoid judicial review, and this prison is not open to any and all for complete transparency in how the prisoners are treated. For the administration to suggest that what they have done is completely legal, aboveboard, and free of the taint of human rights violations, I frankly can no longer take them seriously.

Without the transparency, then the accusations stick because no one REALLY knows what is going on in there.

Which part of this incredibly simple math is too difficult to understand where the comparison with gulags arises?

Is the comparison with gulags an exaggeration?

Yes, it is an exaggeration, but it is a sad irony that the same nation that condemned the Soviet Union for setting up prisons that were extra-legal, with no recourse to appeal in any independent judicial system has now set up more than one prison that has the same extra-legal characteristics.

If you cannot see the irony, then there is nothing more to say, because you have decided to wear the blinders of “my country, right or wrong,” which in the end results in the destruction of that which you hold so dear.

The absurdity here lies not in the report from Amnesty International, it is in the fact that President Bush apparently thinks these actions of setting up these extra-legal prisons and asserting the right to declare any citizen an enemy combatant who can be imprisoned with no right of appeal or even seeing legal counsel are completely fine and within the principles outlined by the Constitution.

How far removed from the reality of this incredible expansion of governmental power over citizens, not to speak of the documented cases of prisoner abuse, do these people we have chosen to govern us have to be for their complete and utter disregard for the fundamental principles that our founders wrote out in the Constitution is actually recognized?

If you cannot see the absurdity in the statement from President Bush, then you have stopped thinking, or you never understood the fundamental principles of the Bill of Rights in the first place.

Call me liberal if you must attach a label to satisfy yourself, but remember your name-calling when the federal agents are kicking down YOUR door because you have been declared an enemy combatant with no appeal, no recourse to any courts, and no way to resist.

Hyperbole?

Perhaps…

But what if it is not?

Recall the grievances listed in our Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

—

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

In other words, “My way or the highway”…
—

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

In other words, “Pass all of my judges or I’ll go nukular on your ass”…
—

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury.

In other words, “We’re settin’ up a prison in Guantanamo so those damned judges that I didn’t nominate don’t interfere with us puttin’ the hurt on the evildoers”…

Biased?

Yes.

So was our Declaration of Independence.

However, the commentary I added to the text IS the face we are presenting to the world, as perceived by that world.

“The rest of the world doesn’t matter,” you say.

You are wrong, and that statement is even more absurd than the statement of President Bush, as you sit there in your Chinese-made clothes, using your Taiwanese assembled computer with parts made in Singapore, Hong Kong, and who knows where else.

Do the math, or the math will do you.

…but there will be no post from me on the topic of Memorial Day, for several reasons.

First, many others have posted on it already.

Second, I just returned from a trip, and I can barely think.

Third, this holiday is celebrated in a completely different fashion on a different day here in France, and I think I would serve the general community better by posting on that rather than yet another “Memorial Day is important because of (insert favorite platitude here)” post.

Do I sound cynical? I do not mean to do so.

I would like to both challenge and expand the point of view of us all, as my point of view is challenged and expanded almost every day.

Writing a “me too” post would hardly serve that purpose.

Does this mean I do not believe in the meaning behind the holiday, even when most in the US have forgotten it in their rush to barbecue?

I do believe in the meaning, not the result.

However, the meaning is not restricted to a particular day, instead the day is reserved for the meaning, but we should never forget the meaning that we have chosen to reserve this day for.

Unfortunately, all too often we do, rarely more so than now.

…but are you sure you want one?

I’m making a point here, so stay with the entire post.

Here is a mild version:

Do the math.

In other words, the conclusion is left as an exercise for the reader.

Any questions?

If yes, then see me after class, but I expect you to have spent some time thinking about it first…

—

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Do I agree with every point or implication made in the cartoon above?

Nope… However, I have noticed that often, exaggeration is often required to get the attention of many people.

I suggest you reexamine your own prejudices before you go forward with a condemnation of me or others because of our views on current events, especially in light of history, including the history written by those who have an agenda, which means ALL history… yes, even the history you were taught in school.

In other words, question everything.

I do.

…to synthesize effectively.

What am I talking about?

I am trying to write several posts at once. One on the rejection by France of the proposed European Union Constitution (or Charter, or whatever you want to call it); another on reflections of my visit this weekend to Prague, the capital of (half) of a former Warsaw Pact nation; and another on some general trends I see both worldwide and in the United States that are reflections of things I see in history; not to mention the book reviews and historical articles I have read that show some other trends that are worth noting.

All of these are intermingled with photos I have taken in both Paris and Prague in a new format that has more information, but is more difficult to work with, during which I am listening to, being distracted by and inspired with, music I recently re-ripped into high quality MP3 files from my CD collection.

I have too many inputs to synthesize effectively according to the standards to which I hold myself.

I’m just a guy with a weblog, but I do my best to present something new and unique to the world, despite the tens of thousands of weblogs out there, the millions of books ever published with the billions upon billions of words in them, in a world where over six billion are alive today and even if I am tremendously successful, I can only hope to reach far less than 0.01% and influence the thinking of even fewer.

In the face of those numbers and percentages, it is easy to lose hope, but I strive on regardless of odds or lack of inspiration.

I have often used music or images or words and phrases I have encountered as a springboard into what I write about, but now I have too much.

Pity me? Nope…

Just be patient. I’m working on it.

…and while I write up an essay on the French “Non!” to the EU Constitution and upload photos, here’s some quotes for you:

Few people think more than two or three times a year. I’ve made an international reputation for myself by thinking once or twice a week.
   -George Bernard Shaw

Life is not so bad if you have plenty of luck, a good physique and not too much imagination.
   -Christopher Isherwood

God is the immemorial refuge of the incompetent, the helpless, the misrable. They find not oly sanctuary in His arms, but also a kind of superiority, soothing to their macerated ego’s; He will set them above their betters.
   -H. L. Mencken

The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to betaken seriously
   -Hubert H. Humphrey

And a key one to remember

The fetters imposed on liberty at home have ever been forged out of the weapons provided for defence against real, pretended, or imaginary dangers from abroad.
   -James Madison
     4th US president (1751 - 1836)

So do y’all think Jack’s enjoying the food in Prague? What kind of food do they even serve there? I’m serious. I’ve never been to that part of the world.

I was thinking about this. In Palm Beach County there are some great French, Cuban, Italian, Chinese, Thai, Japanese, and German restaurants. Search and you can find some wonderful island food. (Island as in Caribbean.) Ehhh, Mexican is lacking. We don’t have good Mexican food here, but we do have it. We even have a fantastic Irish Pub run by an Irishman near me… the food is fabulous.

A friend of mine used to travel a lot with my old company, to Russia for their space program. (We had a joint program with the Russians.) He was thrilled to get the assignment at first. After the 2nd trip he came to my desk and said, “I hate their food. Every time I go, I lose weight.”

I don’t know, but I guess when your countrymen have been starving for centuries, you aren’t exactly known for your high end cuisine. That was 9 years ago, hopefully things have changed.

Nobody exactly talks about the great Czech restaurant down the street either.

I’ll be interested to hear what type of fare they serve… I’m all about trying new things and if I were there, I’d be trying everything native.

As I said in an earlier post, my kids go to a small Catholic school. For the record, I’m not Catholic. My husband is devout and since he is the one with whom religion is the most important, I told him before we got married, the kids could be Catholic, but it’s not my deal. That’s worked out pretty well except when he travels on Thursday nights, which is frequently, and they have Religion Homework. That’s been interesting…

Right before the elections, I pulled up for pick up at school and pulled behind a mini-van that had a bumper sticker on it that said, “No More Bushit” as well as a smaller sticker that I recall being vulgar, but cannot remember what it’s wording was as it wasn’t so catchy. I was stunned. I kept thinking, “Which parent at this school would put profanity on the back of their car?” This parent knew full well they would be driving their vehicle onto the school premises every day, twice a day, and yet they had no hesitation to put such vulgarity on their car.

I never saw who it was.

Now you need to know, I can curse with the best of them. Growing up in a military family, working with men my whole life (I’m an engineer/mathematician in the aerospace industry), I’ve heard it all and probably said it all. I could probably make a sailor blush just on the fact that they would be stunned to hear what horrible language could come out of this petite 5’2” brunette.

However, I wouldn’t. See, there is a time and a place. I do not curse in public. I will let it fly around my siblings or my husband, and around some friends. Not in public. And I know who it offends and who it does not, and I act accordingly. As much as the sailor would not be offended, I wouldn’t curse in front of him because he might be offended that it came from me. To me, it is common courtesy not to curse in public, around people you do not know. Perhaps it is twisted, but I just view it as good manners.

So imagine my surprise when I saw that an adult would post profanity on their car like that. And during an election, with the country so divided, I considered it not only poor taste, but poor judgment.

Flash forward to the first Friday in May. There was a big Mass at my kids’ school and I attended since my 2nd son had a part. As I was sitting there, a woman who I befriended at the beginning of the year sat next to me.

I must admit, as much as I like this woman, I don’t really know her well. We’ve never spoken politics or anything really deep. She is new to the school and we were thrown together under odd circumstances and found we laughed a lot with each other.

So here I am in Mass, my new friend sitting next to me and she says, “Do you know that guy sitting way over there on the other side of the church? You know everyone. Who is he?” She describes him. I know who she is describing. He’s an attorney and so is his wife. I think she’s a whack job, but he has always been pleasant, rather meek, but pleasant.

I said, “Yup. That’s so-and-so’s Daddy.” My friend looked at me and said, “Reaaaallly? I’ll tell you what, I’m staying away from him. What a jerk. Did you see the bumper stickers he has on the back of his car?”

It turns out he’s the one with the “No More Bushit” sticker, as well as the other… still on his car.

My friend continued, “I have to question someone’s judgment that puts such profanity on their car knowing they’re going to be driving it around little kids, in particular kids who either read or are learning to read. I don’t like him. Not at all.”

It has nothing to do with politics. I would feel the same way if Kerry were President and it said something like “John’s a Jerk Off”. (Oh I gotta love what Jack could get Googled for on this post!) It’s just wrong.

And I am keeping my distance from this guy more so too. Our society has lost its manners and this is just one example. He evidently doesn’t care that there are a group of us appalled he would put something nasty on his vehicle, or he wouldn’t have put it there. But one day… one day some kid is going to say something to his daughter about it and embarrass her. One day, his daughter is going to read those bumper stickers and repeat it.

I am a centrist. I liked neither choice for President and found myself doing what I’ve done in every election since I started to vote. I voted against who *I* perceived to be the biggest idiot.

And every time I see his van with the stickers, I am reminded by how divided our country has become, by how angry some of our citizens are. I don’t ever remember it being this bad…

While Jack is in Prague, I’m filling in. I should warn you… as I tell Jack, my blog is more of a crip crap blog, all about mass chaos in my life with three boys, where as his is the deep, political and philosophical blog. I do no research or extra reading for my posts; I write what I see. That is what you’re getting in the next two days… but you are getting what I’ve seen that I would normally keep to myself and not post on my blog.

I’m very active in a women’s organization that works with veterans and children and at a local level, works with the schools promoting history and patriotism. This week, I was to visit three area schools to present medals for ‘Good Citizenship’ at their awards ceremonies. The principals and teachers provided me the names of a boy and girl they felt deserved this medal and certificate, based on five criteria: Honor, Service, Courage, Leadership and Patriotism.

My three boys go to a small Catholic local parish school. It’s not one of those big fancy expensive private schools. The priest is insistent that all kids in the parish be afforded the opportunity of a Catholic education, whether their parents are hourly workers struggling to pay for one tuition or are wealthy, capable of writing a blank check to send five kids. Our building is bare bones, our facility was destroyed during two hurricanes, but it is a close knit school and even though the make up tends to be white Catholic, socio-economically it is very diverse.

The vast majority of the kids are active in sports or dance. They show up to school clean and of the appearance they are well kept. We have enormous parental involvement. And other than a few kids who fight the curse of genetics with body fat, most of the kids are lean and look like they play outside a lot. It’s not utopic, we have our problems, but overall, it’s a nice place to have one’s child educated.

Whenever the news comes out stating the statistics on the average American child being fat, I am always stunned. I don’t see it in our little school. I always look for it, but I don’t see it. Even when I go out to the local soccer fields with my kids, filled with kids from every crosswalk of life, I don’t see it. I glance over to the local ball fields, across the street from the soccer fields… no heavy children. All the kids look like something out of the movie Sandlot. Then I think to myself, ‘Well, of course there will be no heavy children in sports…” But everyone I know, both public and private school families, has their kids involved in sports or dance. Doesn’t everyone?

Where were these heavy American children?
(more…)

…and I doubt I’ll have computer access.

Boudicca has kindly agreed to help keep things here from getting too quiet, so don’t be surprised if you see a few posts from her.

Photos when I return on Monday!

Recently, there have been many arguments presented in weblogs where the ends are being used to justify any means. While this argument is used most frequently by those on the right-wing to justify the Iraq War, it is used qith equal frequency by those on the left-wing to justify some of their actions.

I find these arguments repugnant.

How can you claim to be moral if you attained your moral end by immoral means?

How can you claim to be fair if you attained your fair end by unfair means?

How can you claim to be honest if you attained your honest end by dishonest means?

For a nation such as the United States that claims to believe in liberty and democracy, using the ends to justify means that are questionable is hypocritical at best, for it is the process itself that is important.

In other words, the means ARE the end.

The victory at any and all costs mentality that is now the prevailing view is damaging us more than we realize, and I can only hope that we leave this path before the damage is irreparable.

When I took this photo below (click on the thumbnail for a larger, more detailed image) it was my intention to show how sensual the advertisements in in France are.

The reflection of me taking the photo of an ad behind glass on the side of a bus stop seems to have an unintentional artistic effect if you look at the full sized image.

Is it art? I hesitate to say yes, but I do know that often what we call “art” is the product of serendipity.

I was tagged by a quasi-anonymous friend with a meme.

So, remember, be careful what you wish for, including what you would like to know:

10 Things I’ve Never Done, But Intend to Do Before I Die (by the way, the order is irrelevant):

1) Sail around the world (yes, sail, as in a sailboat)

2) Visit Scotland and at least one distillery where I can drink myself blind, probably on my 41st birthday…

3) Run a marathon

4) Finish a novel and get it published (I’ve started at least 10)

5) Write an episode of a television show, or even better, create a television series

6) Learn to speak at least one language other than English fluently (the prime candidate now is French, since I’m getting a lot of practice in it)

7) Understand my own motivations well enough to convince myself I am not the biggest hypocrite on the planet

8) Be optimistic about the future of my country for more than one day

9) Learn how to accept love well enough to get married again (if you don’t understand this one, be happy)

10) Have children (not likely any more, but you never know…)

I’m not nearly as dark and pessimistic as I once was…

Seriously…

You just have to believe me.

I once embraced the Black Pit of Despair, now I reject it.

Sometimes, an avoidance of defeat is all the victory we can hope for.

This may possibly shock some of my regular readers, but I can see the fundamental point of those who oppose government funding of stem cell research when the stem cells are derived from either aborted fetuses or embryos from fertility treatments that will never be implanted into a womb because they are not needed.

Do I agree with that fundamental point? No, but I can see where the objection arises, and I cannot condemn the objection.

Let me make myself clear, I am a cold-hearted SOB when it comes to “potential” children. If they are not already viable outside the womb, I do not regard an embryo as a human being, much less a person.

In other words, I feel that the valiant efforts to save premature babies that otherwise would not survive without the heroic intervention now commonplace is in reality breeding us for having more premature babies, not saving life in the long term.

If you feel that makes me a cold-hearted SOB, I wouldn’t necessarily say you are out of line for thinking or even saying so.

Given that is my belief, according to my personal set of morals and ethics, it is OK to create embryos or clones for the express purpose of providing spare parts for people already alive, and it is OK to use embryos that would otherwise never be implanted to become babies as a source of stem cells for research into many seemingly otherwise insoluble afflictions.

However, I am very willing to admit that my views are far from the mainstream, and I am also very willing to admit that it is difficult to argue with those who believe that human life begins at conception.

Yet, I am completely unwilling to have those who believe that human life begins at conception enforce their beliefs upon everyone.

I do believe that restricting government funding of stem cell research in some fashion is a reasonable compromise, as long as privately funded research is NOT restricted.

Does this put the United States at risk of falling behind other nations that have fewer moral qualms?

Yes, it does.

Some who are self-described as on the right-wing side of the political spectrum are not entirely happy with the position of the Bush administration on this issue.

For me, one who is a self-described moderate who leans left, there are so many other areas in which the United States is endangered that I believe are far more critical, areas that I believe are worth much more effort to ensure that my nation remains pre-eminent than stem cell research that I conserve my resources for what I believe are the key battles.

Let President Bush exercise his veto on this issue, I prefer to save energy for the more important fights on fundamental principles affecting people already alive yet denied basic freedoms we ourselves declared essential in our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution.

A realist is one who knows that the pessimist is right.
   -Jeff Ehrlich

Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish.
   -Euripides

…the more they stay the same.

The Commissar at The Politburo Diktat points to a failure of the MainStream Media, version 2.0.

I emailed to my Mom at her insistence a photo that I took of myself in Paris this last Sunday using the remote control of my fancy digital snapshot camera (the remote is one of the main reasons I got this particular model of camera).

Unfortunately, in the photo I look like the fat, 40 year-old man that I am.

I hate it when that happens… It’s nice to have some self-illusions maintained.

Oh, well.

Time to get serious about exercising again, even if it’s more difficult to weight train here in France.

Damn, I hate sweating.

Finally, a corporation that has some balls:

No apologies for sexy Paris Hilton ad
Burger chain Carl’s Jr. tells watchdog group infuriated over scantily clad soap-up to ‘get a life.’
May 25, 2005: 10:24 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNN) - Hamburger chain Carl’s Jr. is making no apologies for its new Spicy Burger television commercial, which features Hilton hotel heiress and reality TV star Paris Hilton in a skin-tight swimsuit soaping up a Bentley and crawling all over it before taking a big bite out of the burger.

The ad, which has been running in major markets since last week, has drawn the ire of television watchdogs, including the Parents Television Council.

“This commercial is basically soft-core porn,” said Melissa Caldwell, research director for the PTC. “The way she moves, the way she puts her finger in her mouth — it’s very suggestive and very titillating.”

The Los Angeles-based advocacy group plans to mobilize its more than 1 million members to contact the restaurant chain and voice their displeasure.

At this point, the PTC does not plan to petition the FCC to make Carl’s Jr. remove the ad. Nor does it plan a boycott of the burger chain.

The PTC’s main objection is that unlike a television program, parents have no way of knowing when the Paris Hilton Spicy Burger ad is going to appear on TV, and cannot steer their children away from it.

Since May 19, the ad has run during sports programs, on ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” finale Sunday and on the season-ending episodes of Fox’s “The O.C.” and NBC’s “The Apprentice.”

Carl’s Jr.’s message to the PTC: The group needs to “get a life,” said Andy Puzder, CEO of Carl’s Jr., a subsidiary of CKE Restaurants (Research). “This isn’t Janet Jackson — there is no nipple in this. There is no nudity, there is no sex acts — it’s a beautiful model in a swimsuit washing a car.”

Puzder says he has shown the ad to his three children, ages 12, 9 and 7, and they have shown no signs of being corrupted. “Maybe people are excited because it’s Paris Hilton, but there are far worse things on television that these groups should be worried about,” Puzder said.

You know, I’m sick of the Mrs. Grundys telling us what we can and cannot see on television, in the movies, in books, or anywhere else.

Get a life, people, and stop trying to tell everyone else how to live their lives. Sex is not evil, and stop trying to impose your neroses on everyone else, especially your completely sick opinions regarding sex.

This strip doesn’t even have Calvin or Hobbs, but it still speaks volumes of the regrets of leaving childhood behind:

I once thought the same thing, and now I have few answers…