Well, it’s nice to know those of us who don’t subscribe to Christianity are welcome in America. Here’s Mitt Romney, Republican candidate for President, on freedom:

“Freedom requires religion just as religion requires freedom. Freedom opens the windows of the soul so that man can discover his most profound beliefs and commune with God. Freedom and religion endure together, or perish alone.”

The pundits have spent the morning praising Romney’s speech on faith, comparing him to Kennedy’s famous “you can trust me, even though I’m Catholic” speech that made him the country’s first and only Catholic president.

It’s already clear that those who don’t subscribe to religious beliefs can’t run for high office. Now it appears that there’s no place for us in the American system at all. And with Hillary and Obama embracing a more religious tone in the campaign, one wonders if even the Democrats would publically include us.

Just one of many reasons why I’m finding it hard to feel engaged by the Presidential contest.

I was in our bedroom this morning, digging around for some clothes, when I happened to glance over at my old CD shelf. I haven’t bought a new CD in about three years, and it’s been even longer since I’ve bought a vinyl record. I’ve gone completely digital.

Now, when I hear about a band (usually from a Pitchfork review), I immediately check eMusic for them. If they’re not there, I make a mental note to check iTunes, and if they are there I add them to my “Save for Later” list, to be downloaded once my eMusic subscription refreshes.

There was a time only a few years ago when a new release meant a desperate jaunt over to a brick and morter indie record store to hunt for that elusive record, only to find out that they just sold their last copy five minutes ago. And god help you when that indie record store inevitably went out of business — your access to music was seriously diminished. Now music is accessible beyond measure, and with eMusic, it’s pratically free, though perfectly legal.

I guess what I’m getting at is that I don’t miss records at all. At the dawn of the MP3 era, with the advent of Napster, I was depressed by the loss of physical media. Now I wish it would all go away. Movies and games are next, thank god.