PJ O'Rourke

I think it's time for something a little lighthearted. PJ O'Rourke has been one of my favorite humor writers since I first discovered him in (of all places) the pages of Rolling Stone many years ago. P.J. does write from a more conservative perspective, but I hope everyone will overlook that until you get to the end of the article linked here. I do my best to remain neutral about politics here - I'm basically a libertarian and take pleasure in finding faults in both the major political parties - so I hope no one takes this too seriously:

"I was out on the patio the other day wondering (as writers of conservative opinion pieces constantly do) what's wrong with America. I noticed a tag affixed to my collapsible canvas deck chair, and my wondering ceased. What's wrong with America was printed on the tag:

--Do not attempt to lift the front end of the chair while sitting down on it.

Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that chair manufacturers feel compelled to tell Americans this. You'd flip over and whack your head on the concrete. Yet millions of Americans must sit themselves down, spread their knees, grasp their seats, and give themselves a tremendous backwards yank. How else but whacked heads to explain myspace.com, Hillary Clinton's positive poll ratings, US Weekly magazine, or the congressional debate on immigration? I had thought the chairs in the House of Representatives were firmly attached to the floor. Apparently not." Read the rest....