"… I do want to point out — and I hope this will make you feel a little better about the American public …"

That's a portion of one of the comments on one of my blog entries, "America is Blind."

Unfortunately, I can't attribute that quote to someone; the person who submitted the comment decided to remain anonymous.

With the three-and-a-half-day weekend, one of the things that has been on my mind is comfort. All last week, with the news of a three-and-a-half-day weekend all I could think about was the comfort of my bed, the comfort of sleeping in, the comfort of being able to sit down and eat. Comfort is one of the best experiences in life.

Most of us strive for the comfort of a nice income, the comfort of a nice car, the comfort of a soft sweater. Who doesn't want to be comfortable?

My friend, Langston Allston-Yeagle, once told me one of the most intelligent and true things I've ever heard. He said, "Things have to get worse before they get better," in the context of societal issues in the world, specifically in America.

See, the thing about comfort is that it causes you to stay still. Imagine being under a warm blanket in a really cold room, and the phone across the room rings — you're going to hesitate before you go answer it.

I don't hate what that person who commented had to say; they were trying to give me a bit of comfort against one of the ugly facts of our country, and the world at large. Historically, however, angry, oppressed peoples have been subsided with little comforts that cause them to discontinue rebellious activity. I don't want to be comforted with any of the tokenisms that this society has to offer me.

Once I am comforted, once I am content with the way things are, I will be hesitant to move. I probably won't even answer the phone.