I'm an immigrant. I became a U.S. citizen on 5/10/05 and will vote in my first presidential election this November. Seeing that my native country is Germany it may not come as a surprise that my relationship with the concept of patriotism has mostly been marked by suspicion and cynicism. Nevertheless, this election season with all its heated discussions about what it means to be patriotic has brought me to a place of new comfort with the power of symbols, courtesy of Barack Obama.

Please join me on a personal photo journey to celebrate Independence Day as a first time ever really (really...? REALLY!) proud and country loving patriot...

Well here it is. The oil barons have turned the volume on their "drill hard, fast, deep, often, everywhere and NOW" propaganda to ear-shattering levels, just in time for election season. Never mind global warming...who has time for that when the poor American consumer is hurting at the pump! Never mind peak oil, let's drill, squeeze and milk that peak so hard, we'll shoot that little pimple of a problem all the way to the year 2015 where it'll erupt all over our children. Oh, wait, 2015 is not even a generation away - never mind, just fill up my hummer.

As Republicans are trying to turn this into another "you're either with us or you're a terrorist" issue, I think it is important that we don't take the bait and try to beat them at their game. As we have seen with the response to Barack's More Perfect Union speech, it seems that Americans are ready to take other issues like energy consumption and conservation to a higher ground as well.

Yes, it seems like we're getting what Fox News thinks we deserve. Come General Election there may not be any snobby San Franciscans left for we're about to get pesticide bomb dropped on us.

But seriously. A company is set to do aerial spraying over the entire bay area this summer, starting in June, if we don't stop it.

A big vote (which might not have even happened if it weren't for citizen outcry) takes place tomorrow in the state assembly in Sacramento. If you can, please contact your supervisor/representative/assembly member and demand they vote to disallow the spraying.

At the least, sign the petition.

In light of the recent primary season developments I can't help but notice the slow but steady decline of a former president and statesman. While not the greatest fan of Bill Clinton's policies during his presidency I have however always respected and admired his energy, charm, and ability to connect with people across the political and social spectrum.

As a native German (and American citizen as of 2005)) I'm also aware of Bill's high standing in Europe and the rest of the world. So while I myself have been drawn to Barack Obama's approach to politics and policy since I first heard him speak a few years ago, the idea of having the double Clinton whammo to restore U.S. relations around the world after 8 years of Alfred E. Bush actually seemed kind of heart warming.

The following are my thoughts on Bill Clinton and how a chance to make HRC's run for the presidency a groundbreaking and transformative chapter in American history has turned into a tragedy of mythic proportions.    

3 years ago I walked out of the Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco, a freshly minted American citizen. Along with 1,500 fellow newcomers from 93 countries I had just raised my hand to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in a chorus of foreign accents. I had watched George W. Bush welcome me to his country from a giant screen. I had forfeited any loyalties to another country, kingdom or tribe. Hell, I even consented to bear arms for my new country if asked to do so!

When we exited the auditorium — shiny new citizen certificates in hand — we were greeted by three staffed tables on the sidewalk: Republicans, Democrats, and Greens. Never really having entertained the thought of going Republican (the fresh civic pride can only go so far) I was wavering between the other two for just a second: "This is the USA, land of the two-party, winner-take-all democracy," I thought to myself, "don't be a despondent little punk on your first day," before walking past the Democrats' table and registering Green.