The Hallmark Holiday

Does anyone else hate Valentine's Day as much as I do? I think everyone does. Apart from the mandatory cards you send to family, there really isn't much else to it. It's interesting how cynical you get about the holiday as you get older. Maybe its because we've all been heartbroken/cynical adults or maybe because we see through the corporate slant of the holiday. I always feel bad for the couples who are just starting out or are going through tough financial times. I mean, there is nothing but pressure on this holiday to buy diamond jewelry, fancy dinners, roses, all the trappings, etc..

So what about the family with the husband who has been laid off so that a Hallmark or other corporation can boost the profit margin by a fraction of a tenth of a percent by "trimming the fat"? What about the single mother living on public assistance (if the Republicans will use the euphemism of "death tax" for the inheritance tax, I will use this instead of welfare) or struggling to make ends meet? What about the families of our soldier's over in Iraq fighting for a fictional premise manipulated by the wealthy to further carve the wealth of the world a bit more? What about the family in Africa whose son has been killed so that diamonds can be mined (we all have heard of blood diamonds)? Rather than looking at a shitty side of love, I look at it more in political terms. I guess whether I like it or not, Politics is embedded into my psyche.

This is not to say that I don't believe in love. I know that love does exist; maybe not in the nice fairy tale image that most of us would like to see, but it does exist. I know that love is intelligent, patient, understanding, sexy, caring, nurturing, non-judgmental, forgiving, hard work at times, and well worth it. I'm just not into celebrating a holiday created by those in the business of selling greeting cards, flowers, and jewelry. Maybe I'm just saying this because ML ended it about 2 weeks ago (but while I hate the thought of her fucking another man, I also feel like the weight of the world is gone; like I can be me again). Maybe I'm still pissed that the Patriots won the Superbowl or that my Cincinnati Bearcats have dropped another conference game this week. Naw, I think this is just a general malaise from having that fucking jackoff re-elected and that fact that this country is fucked and doesn't realize it.