Bumper Stickers

My parents, having grown up under Soviet rule, cherish freedom of speech, but are sometimes leery of being vocal practitioners. And they worry about me. They worry that my beliefs (which often coincide with theirs politically) might not be acceptable to some people, especially other Ukrainians (who tend strongly towards Republicanism), including family members and fellow parishioners.

They voted for Kerry, hate Bush, and will tell me so. But, during the election, they were worried about putting a bumper sticker on their car.

It's understandable. My parents live in a conservative neighborhood. A friend of mine had her car keyed for having non-Republican stickers, and I had my stickers defaced at the mall. Republican districts. And some people are just unwilling to tolerate dissent–-they probably think the Bill of Rights was a bad idea.

So my parents have become increasingly concerned as the stickers on my car have proliferated (my response to the defacement). I now sport "Draft Republicans," "Support Our Troops, Bring Them Home," "Bush Lied, Soldiers Died," "Don't Blame Me, I Voted For..""Kerry Edwards 2004," and a few others. But my favorite is

which my parents worry about the most (even if they agree).

Oddly enough, I have yet to receive a negative comment on that one. People who I never would have pegged as liberal have noticed it, and then gone on to talk at length about just how bad a president Bush is. My parent's neighbor, the guy at the hardware store, my cousin's father-in-law. Not a tattoo or piercing in the bunch.

So the falling approval ratings don't really surprise me. Neither does the rising "strong disapproval" rating. Americans have awoken from their long 9-11 induced slumber, only to find their lives have become a nightmare.

Fool us once, shame on us. Fool us twice........won't get fooled again!