The most American thing you can do is to dissent

It's hard not to think about America after that wacky election. I used to think that Americans and Canadians were fundimentally pretty close, but our polls clearly indicate that we would never elect Bush up here in Canada.
Here are some thoughts from Utah Phillips, American radical:
"I'm a pacifist, but the most American thing you can do is to dissent, and the most un-American thing you can do is to stifle dissent. When you feel threatened by the suppression of your liberties, you exercise them to the nth degree, you scream your head off every chance you get. You talk to people you don't agree with. Really good advice: Every day, talk to at least two people who don't agree with you. It's the only way it is going to get done." The link takes you to a really good interview with Utah, done in 2003.