Watch Out Georgie Boy
Caught by an unexpected cold front, and before bringing up the large braziers to the back porch precisely to use on nights like this, we gathered in the great room, where a nice fire was going in the fireplace. Old stone farmhouses such as this one allow a great room to be divided into separate enough areas that we, the adults, can sit and hold our conversations in one area, and not bother the teenagers, who like to sit together in a separate area. The area we sit in is at the center of the great room, where the fireplace attracted those who wanted to warm their hands.

As soon as our neighbors started arriving, we served them a delicious cocktail we had never tried before, called a Cactus Juice. We made them with gold tequila, a Patrón Añejo in this case, and the herb-flavored Scotch liqueur, Drambuie. Naturally, alcohol-free drinks were available for those who do not drink alcohol.

Tonight, Max was really excited. He was offering up a toast to his old friend, Belgium, for having the courage and principled sense of right and of what values mean in today's twisted world. What had Max so excited tonight was Belgium's decision to indict Hissène Habré, the former dictator of Chad. The charges are torture and crimes against humanity. Gosh, we all thought, sounds like those charges will someday be leveled at old George, he of the beady eyes, pointy ears, and nasty mean streak.

Alex pointed out that just the other day, Senator John McCain, with the help of a few Republicans who still have morals, was trying to push a law through the U.S. Senate that would outlaw this administration's use of barbaric practices and torture on the detainees of Guantánamo, Afghanistan and Iraq. Demonic Barbara Bush's son, who has the morals and ethics of criminally megalomaniac Richard III, immediately threatened to veto the bill. So, back to Belgium.

Belgium's Far-Reaching Jurisdiction
Belgium is operating under its "universal jurisdiction laws." This allows Belgium to pursue violators of human rights wherever they may live. So, Georgie boy, AKA as Richard III, when you leave office, sweet pea, someone out there's gonna get ya. Whether it's Belgium, The International Criminal Court at The Hague, or that guy you've forgotten exists, Osama Bin Laden.

George: Veto Senator McCain's Bill
The nail in Dubya's coffin's going to be his vetoing the bill Senator John McCain is trying get through: establishing humane treatment of prisoners or detainees. Bush, of course, is against that, since our revered born-again christian prez likes torture, stress positions, assault on Iraqi's by dogs, degrading and inhumane treatment of all kinds. Born-again, but he probably really enjoyed the one of this woman playing with her "menstrual blood" and a poor Muslim who could not protect himself from her sadistic behavior, which, mind you, was approved at the highest levels of government.

Jane reminded us of the travesty of having Lynde England being punished for carrying out old George's orders. It's Dubya, Cheney, Gonzales, Wolfowitz, Rumsfeld, etc. who should be in the brig, not Lynde. But, Jane said, Max was correct, sooner or later, Dubya's gonna get his just rewards, and they won't be christian!

Before going in to dinner, Liz told us something that had great bearing on Dubya's disrespect for the law. She told us that Jean Jacques Rousseau had said in 1758: "The first of all laws is to respect the laws." Apparently, those famously constipated minds in the White House wouldn't understand those words, but our friends in Belgium and in The Hague will.

Charlotte's Dinner Anyone?
Charlotte seems to find the more complicated dinners easier to handle than simpler fare, which is fine with us. We know that when she's in charge of dinner, and Max helps her, we'll all be wonderfully happy, and, never let a teenager tell you they don't like fine food: our teenagers also look forward to Charlotte's magnificent dinners. (And, by the way, when they go out into the world, far away from our farms and ranches, they'll know how to eat and how to entertain, and that's a great hands up.)

Charlotte, probably pretty quickly, had baked us some amazing warm Thyme and Onion Tartlets. She and Max are very well organized cooks, and often start dinners a couple of days ahead. Also, they plan their wines very carefully, like tonight, when they brought a Blanc de Blancs to go with the tartlets, a light and elegant 1999 Le Rêve Blanc de Blancs champagne, always a good aperitif.

After the fun little tartlets, Charlotte served us an Oyster Bisque, which she and Max paired with a Domecq Amontillado Sherry. Although Charlotte assured us the bisque was no trouble to prepare, it tasted as if she had spent countless hours preparing it. We enjoyed it, and the youngsters found it a whole lot more interesting than fast food, one of the greatest pluses in our way of life and eating.

Max helped Charlotte with our next course, Grilled Salmon with Beurre Rouge (shallot sauce.) Cooked in two separate steps, the salmon was delectable, and the wine they selected for the salmon was a special treat, a delicious red wine, not a white wine, a Burgundian Hospices de Beaune Volnay. Served with delicious parsley new potatoes and drawn butter over Brussels sprouts, this course was exquisite. A dollop of papaya sorbet prepared us for our next course, Roasted Cornish Game Hens on a bed of potatoes and Belgian endive. Together with a salad of watercress and mesclum, we were thoroughly satisfied. Max selected a young Bordeaux, an extravagant Margaux for this dish, completely satisfying us that we had, indeed, been served a banquet.

Winding Down
The schools the teenagers attend seem to be quite open to different ideas, and apparently the teachers are patriotic enough to make the students engage in significant dialogue about the events occurring both here and abroad. They seemed to be well informed of the topic we discussed today. We felt very proud of them; maybe there's hope for the next generations, if we can just change the present government.

After finishing our after-dinner coffee, everybody bundled up because of the sudden cold spell, and headed home. All of us, I believe, will think about those international tribunals, which, like Nuremberg, are sometimes the only recourse for the savaged, the abused, the oppressed. They are where vile people who govern criminally should have to answer for their actions.

Summary:
International tribunals established to try those who govern in criminal ways and abuse human rights, should always be able to try any transgressor, no matter how much power that person might have once wielded.