Watch this video. It is by far the best explanation I've ever seen of the climate issue and how close we really are to potentially reaching a "tipping point" beyond which we won't be able to recover.
Sorry, I couldn't embed it on this post. Apparently Blogger doesn't understand that particular code.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Six strings, four fingers, and a pick
It seems so easy in theory. Six strings, four fingers, and a pick. The easy songs have what, maybe three, four different repetitive notes in them? It can't be that hard.
But it is. I just can't seem to learn to play this damn guitar. I can put my fingers on the notes just fine. Hell, I've even got most of the common notes memorized. Shouldn't be that hard.
But when one actually tries to play, he finds that it's not as simple as just grabbing some notes and strumming. You have to switch notes in time, find the right strumming pattern and maintain it, and really get confused when you're only supposed to hit three or four strings with the pick instead of all six.
Down, down, up...Up, down, up. Em, G, D, A. Simple.
Grab the first note, strum. Next note. Damn. Missed a beat. Pause. Keep that finger there, this one goes up one string, grab the bottom string with that finger. Got it. Strum some more. Next note. Shit. Missed a beat again. Pick up all three fingers, move them down to the bottom three strings. Strum...
Screw it. Grab another beer and blog about it.
But it is. I just can't seem to learn to play this damn guitar. I can put my fingers on the notes just fine. Hell, I've even got most of the common notes memorized. Shouldn't be that hard.
But when one actually tries to play, he finds that it's not as simple as just grabbing some notes and strumming. You have to switch notes in time, find the right strumming pattern and maintain it, and really get confused when you're only supposed to hit three or four strings with the pick instead of all six.
Down, down, up...Up, down, up. Em, G, D, A. Simple.
Grab the first note, strum. Next note. Damn. Missed a beat. Pause. Keep that finger there, this one goes up one string, grab the bottom string with that finger. Got it. Strum some more. Next note. Shit. Missed a beat again. Pick up all three fingers, move them down to the bottom three strings. Strum...
Screw it. Grab another beer and blog about it.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Things that annoy me, chapter IV
Head injuries. Especially the ones that require stitches.
It's my own damn fault I know. But in a way, I'm proud of it - sort of a battle scar or red badge of courage type thing. Except that this was more of a red badge of drunken idiocy.
I started a mosh pit. At a Buckcherry concert. There would have been a mosh pit at this show anyway had the headliner band, Avenged Sevenfold, not come down with 'vocal strain' and cancelled a month of shows per a doctor's orders. But as it was, I was doubtful that there would be a pit at all. Buckcherry, Shinedown, and Saving Abel aren't exactly mosh-pit-inducing bands.
But, as with most rock shows I attend, I came to mosh and I was going to mosh. This was made certain when my 16 year old cousin, Kayleigh, offered to help me start a pit.
So a few minutes before Buckcherry took the stage, we worked our way to the front and in my drunken deafness, I yelled at everyone I thought looked like a fellow mosher and told them I was starting a pit and they better join in. I also insisted the pit-squelchers move away, much to the chagrin of the security people between me and the stage.
A few minutes later the band took stage and the shoving began. It was a clean pit - nobody was throwing elbows or fists and if you fell, you were picked up instantly. At some point, I must have fallen into someone's knee or elbow or head - something hard. I wouldn't have even taken note of it had I not felt something warm and wet running over my eye. When I touched my face, I realized I was bleeding - profusely. Someone in the crowd noticed too and immediately helped me through the pit's perimeter, through the crowd and into the waiting attention of an event staffer. I was rushed to the curtained-off room stage right where the paramedics were waiting to treat the all-too-common injuries of mosh-pitters.
They said it was a pretty decent gash and told me I need to see a doctor. Intent on seeing the rest of the show, I asked if I could stay for a bit and swing by an emergency room later. They figured I'd be fine for an hour or so and wrapped me up in an Arab-looking headress while the security lady asked if my injury was inflicted by anyone intentionally. After assuring her it was indeed a clean pit, they led me back out into the crowd where I was met with many shaking heads and finally rejoined my friends who proceeded to tell me what a dumbass I was.
In my drunken stupor I decided to wait until morning to get stitched up. After five stitches and a berating by the jackass doctor for waiting so long, I was on my way with a great story to tell the folks at work. It was stupid, I know; but dammit, I earned this inch-long scar above my eyebrow and I'll wear it with pride as a testament to the days when I still young enough to do stupid shit like start a mosh pit at a Buckcherry concert.
I wonder if I made Youtube.
It's my own damn fault I know. But in a way, I'm proud of it - sort of a battle scar or red badge of courage type thing. Except that this was more of a red badge of drunken idiocy.
I started a mosh pit. At a Buckcherry concert. There would have been a mosh pit at this show anyway had the headliner band, Avenged Sevenfold, not come down with 'vocal strain' and cancelled a month of shows per a doctor's orders. But as it was, I was doubtful that there would be a pit at all. Buckcherry, Shinedown, and Saving Abel aren't exactly mosh-pit-inducing bands.
But, as with most rock shows I attend, I came to mosh and I was going to mosh. This was made certain when my 16 year old cousin, Kayleigh, offered to help me start a pit.
So a few minutes before Buckcherry took the stage, we worked our way to the front and in my drunken deafness, I yelled at everyone I thought looked like a fellow mosher and told them I was starting a pit and they better join in. I also insisted the pit-squelchers move away, much to the chagrin of the security people between me and the stage.
A few minutes later the band took stage and the shoving began. It was a clean pit - nobody was throwing elbows or fists and if you fell, you were picked up instantly. At some point, I must have fallen into someone's knee or elbow or head - something hard. I wouldn't have even taken note of it had I not felt something warm and wet running over my eye. When I touched my face, I realized I was bleeding - profusely. Someone in the crowd noticed too and immediately helped me through the pit's perimeter, through the crowd and into the waiting attention of an event staffer. I was rushed to the curtained-off room stage right where the paramedics were waiting to treat the all-too-common injuries of mosh-pitters.
They said it was a pretty decent gash and told me I need to see a doctor. Intent on seeing the rest of the show, I asked if I could stay for a bit and swing by an emergency room later. They figured I'd be fine for an hour or so and wrapped me up in an Arab-looking headress while the security lady asked if my injury was inflicted by anyone intentionally. After assuring her it was indeed a clean pit, they led me back out into the crowd where I was met with many shaking heads and finally rejoined my friends who proceeded to tell me what a dumbass I was.
In my drunken stupor I decided to wait until morning to get stitched up. After five stitches and a berating by the jackass doctor for waiting so long, I was on my way with a great story to tell the folks at work. It was stupid, I know; but dammit, I earned this inch-long scar above my eyebrow and I'll wear it with pride as a testament to the days when I still young enough to do stupid shit like start a mosh pit at a Buckcherry concert.
I wonder if I made Youtube.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
At first it was a letter
When Sarah Palin first popped front and center onto the stage of American politics, I came across a rather lengthy letter that talked about her...and not much of it was positive. I posted links to it here simply in an effort to show people (okay, the two people that read this blog) what other folks (supposedly from Alaska) think of this power-mongering governor and potential VP (see "And more Palin goodness" post below).
But as time went on, many of the claims in that letter were fact-checked by the media and the letter started to carry some credence. Upon last check, the site that initially posted the letter had added quite a few links that verify much of the information. Now, this scary letter is really starting to pack a punch.
Then I came across this article on Grist which referenced a NY Times report that outlined how shrewd and secretive Palin has been as governor. For a woman that touts administrative transparency and claims to be a "Maverick" in rooting out corruption, I'm sensing a bit of hypocrisy.
But as time went on, many of the claims in that letter were fact-checked by the media and the letter started to carry some credence. Upon last check, the site that initially posted the letter had added quite a few links that verify much of the information. Now, this scary letter is really starting to pack a punch.
Then I came across this article on Grist which referenced a NY Times report that outlined how shrewd and secretive Palin has been as governor. For a woman that touts administrative transparency and claims to be a "Maverick" in rooting out corruption, I'm sensing a bit of hypocrisy.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Fish apparently Palin comparison to Industry
"...the greatest threat to Bristol Bay’s salmon fishery will have come from bad decisions made by homegrown politicians."
That homegrown politician who (maybe illegally) signed the death warrant for a body of water that provides 1/2 of America's seafood is none other than Sarah Palin.
That homegrown politician who (maybe illegally) signed the death warrant for a body of water that provides 1/2 of America's seafood is none other than Sarah Palin.
Green Recovery Plan
See a discussion about it here.
Even if global warming, climate change, and/or the impending doom to the human species is just a matter of "global fear mongering," there is no denying that the economy sucks. Why not support the solutions to climate change when the benefits to doing so are so huge?
I just don't get why some people are so ardently opposed to the topic of climate change.
Friday, September 5, 2008
What?! I shouldn't trust the media?! No way!
Grist just posted a great article titled, "All the news fit to omit". It's a great little piece that highlights a study [PDF] done by the Center for Economic and Policy Research that reveals how the media has played a major role in pumping (pardon the pun) the domestic oil drilling idea as a way to lower gas prices. It states:
Can I throw the irony flag at all those people at the RNC that ripped so hard on the main stream media, only to turn around and chant, "Drill, drill, drill"?This paper examines television news coverage of proposed drilling for oil in environmentally sensitive zones in the United States. It finds that these broadcasts almost completely ignored data, and conclusions, from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Agency (EIA). The EIA finds that the benefits from such drilling would be too small to have a significant effect on the price of oil. There is no legitimate reason for this omission in the media. Just as economic reporting regularly uses data (unemployment, inflation, GDP, trade) from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, or Bureau of Labor Statistics, reporting on energy relies on data from the EIA.
The omission of the relevant data from this recent reporting may have contributed to the widespread public misunderstanding of this issue, with polls showing 51 percent of respondents believing that "federal laws that prohibit increased drilling for oil offshore or in wilderness areas" were a "major cause of the recent increase in gasoline prices."
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Tale of the Tape clarification - with sources
So there's this nice little email floating around that compares Sarah Palin to Barack Obama. It can be found on Redstate (and can also be found on this blog - where I posted this rebuttal). The post is very superficial so I had to take the opportunity to address some of those comparisons AND back them up with the sources - something the original post does not do.
Current job: Palin - Governor of Alaska (population 683,478); Obama - Junior Senator from Illinois (population 12,852,548).
Previous public jobs: Obama - Community organizer (of the grassroots kind that won women's suffrage, ended slavery, keeps the Red Cross going, funds the NRA, and gives the 'common man' a voice in DC).
Dealing with corrupt individuals: Palin - Received gobs of media attention by resigning as chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission after deciding that she hated the structured hours, commute, and $122,400 salary - a job that was handed to her by then-governor Murkowski even though she had no qualifications for it. Upon finding out that a member of this Commission (who was also the State Chair of the Republican Party) had engaged in some unethical behavior, she used her resignation as a strategic media-grab opportunity to garner her the reputation as an 'ethics reformer' (source).
Earmarks: Palin - "Opposed bridge to nowhere" only AFTER supporting it to win votes.
Said Alaska should avoid relying on federal money for projects, yet she employed a lobbying firm to secure almost $27 MILLION in federal earmarks for her town of 6,700 people while she was mayor.
Energy: Palin - believes energy independence is a matter of national security; for drilling in ANWR (even though McCain is not). The problem is that drilling, unfortunately, will not solve anything. According to Energy Information Administration, "It is expected that the price impact of ANWR coastal plain production might reduce world oil prices by as much as 30 to 50 cents per barrel [in 2025]." There are 42 gallons in a barrel - so basically that translates into a penny or so per gallon. "Don’t spend it all in one place, American public!"
Environment: Palin - Announced plans to...address climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in AK - even though she is "not one to attribute it to being man-made."
Oh and where's the mention of her stance on polar bears and their subsequent federal protection? In her own words, "I strongly believe that adding polar bears to the list under the Endangered Species Act is the wrong move at this time." Oh, so they're not in danger? I must've missed that memo.
Obama on energy - He's surrounded himself with A-list advisors and it just so happens that he has a legitimate, comprehensive, sensible AND sustainable energy plan backed by plenty in the environmental scene.
On a final note, be sure to dig a bit deeper for the facts, then make a decision. Don't base a vote on a shallow, superficial email floating around.
And more Palin goodness
I found these links on a comment posted by Greyflcn on this Grist post. They're definitely worth checking out - especially since her speech last night was a 'perfect populist speech'.
The first one is an audio clip of the second link.
Audio
A note to all by Anne Kilkenny
Palin’s Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual
Documents detail Palin's political life
Palin's pork requests confound reformer image
And as a side note, I find it mildly ironic that woman who is in line to potentially become the second most powerful person in the world is bashing 'community organizers' when it was the 'community organizers' of the suffrage era that made it possible for her to stand where she was.
The first one is an audio clip of the second link.
Audio
A note to all by Anne Kilkenny
Palin’s Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual
Documents detail Palin's political life
Palin's pork requests confound reformer image
And as a side note, I find it mildly ironic that woman who is in line to potentially become the second most powerful person in the world is bashing 'community organizers' when it was the 'community organizers' of the suffrage era that made it possible for her to stand where she was.
Who is Sarah Palin?
I came across this little tidbit of scary goodness on the website of a friend of mine who lives in Anchorage, AK. I modified it a bit to link the footnotes to references at the end of the article:
Yesterday was John McCain's 72nd birthday. If elected, he'd be the oldest president ever inaugurated. And after months of slamming Barack Obama for "inexperience," here's who John McCain has chosen to be one heartbeat away from the presidency: a right-wing religious conservative with no foreign policy experience, who until recently was mayor of a town of 9,000 people.
Huh?
Who is Sarah Palin? Here's some basic background:
She was elected Alaska's governor a little over a year and a half ago. Her previous office was mayor of Wasilla, a small town outside Anchorage. She has no foreign policy experience.(1)
Palin is strongly anti-choice, opposing abortion even in the case of rape or incest.(2)
She supported right-wing extremist Pat Buchanan for president in 2000. (4)
She's doesn't think humans are the cause of climate change. (5)
She's solidly in line with John McCain's "Big Oil first" energy policy. She's pushed hard for more oil drilling and says renewables won't be ready for years. She also sued the Bush administration for listing polar bears as an endangered species—she was worried it would interfere with more oil drilling in Alaska. (6, and this, and this)
How closely did John McCain vet this choice? He met Sarah Palin once at a meeting. They spoke a second time, last Sunday, when he called her about being vice-president. Then he offered her the position. (7)
This is information the American people need to see. Please take a moment to forward this email to your friends and family.
We also asked Alaska MoveOn members what the rest of us should know about their governor. The response was striking. Here's a sample:
She is really just a mayor from a small town outside Anchorage who has been a governor for only 1.5 years, and has ZERO national and international experience. I shudder to think that she could be the person taking that 3AM call on the White House hotline, and the one who could potentially be charged with leading the US in the volatile international scene that exists today. —Rose M., Fairbanks, AK
She is VERY, VERY conservative, and far from perfect. She's a hunter and fisherwoman, but votes against the environment again and again. She ran on ethics reform, but is currently under investigation for several charges involving hiring and firing of state officials. She has NO experience beyond Alaska. —Christine B., Denali Park, AK
As an Alaskan and a feminist, I am beyond words at this announcement. Palin is not a feminist, and she is not the reformer she claims to be. —Karen L., Anchorage, AK
Alaskans, collectively, are just as stunned as the rest of the nation. She is doing well running our State, but is totally inexperienced on the national level, and very much unequipped to run the nation, if it came to that. She is as far right as one can get, which has already been communicated on the news. In our office of thirty employees (dems, republicans, and nonpartisans), not one person feels she is ready for the V.P. position.—Sherry C., Anchorage, AK
She's vehemently anti-choice and doesn't care about protecting our natural resources, even though she has worked as a fisherman. McCain chose her to pick up the Hillary voters, but Palin is no Hillary. —Marina L., Juneau, AK
I think she's far too inexperienced to be in this position. I'm all for a woman in the White House, but not one who hasn't done anything to deserve it. There are far many other women who have worked their way up and have much more experience that would have been better choices. This is a patronizing decision on John McCain's part- and insulting to females everywhere that he would assume he'll get our vote by putting "A Woman" in that position.—Jennifer M., Anchorage, AK
So Governor Palin is a staunch anti-choice religious conservative. She's a global warming denier who shares John McCain's commitment to Big Oil. And she's dramatically inexperienced.
In picking Sarah Palin, John McCain has made the religious right very happy. And he's made a very dangerous decision for our country.
In the next few days, many Americans will be wondering what McCain's vice-presidential choice means. Please pass this information along to your friends and family.
Thanks for all you do.
–Ilyse, Noah, Justin, Karin and the rest of the team
ALSO: She is in favor of aerial hunting of wolves and supports mining in the best salmon fishing river in Alaska (supports five species)
Sources:
1. "Sarah Palin," Wikipedia, Accessed August 29, 2008
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin
2. "McCain Selects Anti-Choice Sarah Palin as Running Mate," NARAL Pro-Choice America, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17515&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=1
3. "Sarah Palin, Buchananite," The Nation, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17736&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=2
4. "'Creation science' enters the race," Anchorage Daily News, October 27, 2006
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17737&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=3
5. "Palin buys climate denial PR spin—ignores science," Huffington Post, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17517&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=4
6. "McCain VP Pick Completes Shift to Bush Energy Policy," Sierra Club, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17518&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=5
"Choice of Palin Promises Failed Energy Policies of the Past," League of Conservation Voters, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17519&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=6
"Protecting polar bears gets in way of drilling for oil, says governor," The Times of London, May 23, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17520&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=7
7 "McCain met Palin once before yesterday," MSNBC, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=21119&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=8
Yesterday was John McCain's 72nd birthday. If elected, he'd be the oldest president ever inaugurated. And after months of slamming Barack Obama for "inexperience," here's who John McCain has chosen to be one heartbeat away from the presidency: a right-wing religious conservative with no foreign policy experience, who until recently was mayor of a town of 9,000 people.
Huh?
Who is Sarah Palin? Here's some basic background:
She was elected Alaska's governor a little over a year and a half ago. Her previous office was mayor of Wasilla, a small town outside Anchorage. She has no foreign policy experience.(1)
Palin is strongly anti-choice, opposing abortion even in the case of rape or incest.(2)
She supported right-wing extremist Pat Buchanan for president in 2000. (4)
She's doesn't think humans are the cause of climate change. (5)
She's solidly in line with John McCain's "Big Oil first" energy policy. She's pushed hard for more oil drilling and says renewables won't be ready for years. She also sued the Bush administration for listing polar bears as an endangered species—she was worried it would interfere with more oil drilling in Alaska. (6, and this, and this)
How closely did John McCain vet this choice? He met Sarah Palin once at a meeting. They spoke a second time, last Sunday, when he called her about being vice-president. Then he offered her the position. (7)
This is information the American people need to see. Please take a moment to forward this email to your friends and family.
We also asked Alaska MoveOn members what the rest of us should know about their governor. The response was striking. Here's a sample:
She is really just a mayor from a small town outside Anchorage who has been a governor for only 1.5 years, and has ZERO national and international experience. I shudder to think that she could be the person taking that 3AM call on the White House hotline, and the one who could potentially be charged with leading the US in the volatile international scene that exists today. —Rose M., Fairbanks, AK
She is VERY, VERY conservative, and far from perfect. She's a hunter and fisherwoman, but votes against the environment again and again. She ran on ethics reform, but is currently under investigation for several charges involving hiring and firing of state officials. She has NO experience beyond Alaska. —Christine B., Denali Park, AK
As an Alaskan and a feminist, I am beyond words at this announcement. Palin is not a feminist, and she is not the reformer she claims to be. —Karen L., Anchorage, AK
Alaskans, collectively, are just as stunned as the rest of the nation. She is doing well running our State, but is totally inexperienced on the national level, and very much unequipped to run the nation, if it came to that. She is as far right as one can get, which has already been communicated on the news. In our office of thirty employees (dems, republicans, and nonpartisans), not one person feels she is ready for the V.P. position.—Sherry C., Anchorage, AK
She's vehemently anti-choice and doesn't care about protecting our natural resources, even though she has worked as a fisherman. McCain chose her to pick up the Hillary voters, but Palin is no Hillary. —Marina L., Juneau, AK
I think she's far too inexperienced to be in this position. I'm all for a woman in the White House, but not one who hasn't done anything to deserve it. There are far many other women who have worked their way up and have much more experience that would have been better choices. This is a patronizing decision on John McCain's part- and insulting to females everywhere that he would assume he'll get our vote by putting "A Woman" in that position.—Jennifer M., Anchorage, AK
So Governor Palin is a staunch anti-choice religious conservative. She's a global warming denier who shares John McCain's commitment to Big Oil. And she's dramatically inexperienced.
In picking Sarah Palin, John McCain has made the religious right very happy. And he's made a very dangerous decision for our country.
In the next few days, many Americans will be wondering what McCain's vice-presidential choice means. Please pass this information along to your friends and family.
Thanks for all you do.
–Ilyse, Noah, Justin, Karin and the rest of the team
ALSO: She is in favor of aerial hunting of wolves and supports mining in the best salmon fishing river in Alaska (supports five species)
Sources:
1. "Sarah Palin," Wikipedia, Accessed August 29, 2008
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin
2. "McCain Selects Anti-Choice Sarah Palin as Running Mate," NARAL Pro-Choice America, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17515&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=1
3. "Sarah Palin, Buchananite," The Nation, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17736&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=2
4. "'Creation science' enters the race," Anchorage Daily News, October 27, 2006
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17737&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=3
5. "Palin buys climate denial PR spin—ignores science," Huffington Post, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17517&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=4
6. "McCain VP Pick Completes Shift to Bush Energy Policy," Sierra Club, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17518&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=5
"Choice of Palin Promises Failed Energy Policies of the Past," League of Conservation Voters, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17519&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=6
"Protecting polar bears gets in way of drilling for oil, says governor," The Times of London, May 23, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17520&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=7
7 "McCain met Palin once before yesterday," MSNBC, August 29, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=21119&id=13661-8370428-YsJcQXx&t=8
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Things that annoy me, chapter three
People.
Those bleeding-heart, care-bear, love-everyone, everything-is-just-peachy, ignorant people that are all commending 17-year-old Bristol Palin for keeping her unintended child and for deciding to marry her hot jock-itch fling that impregnated her.
Seriously?! Do you really think she really had a choice in the matter? Do you think HE really had a choice in the matter? Here's some dude that's banging the governor's daughter and whoops, should've pulled when instead he pushed and now he's stuck with a kid he doesn't want and now has to marry long before he's ready to. I bet those will be three lives that will be just peachy for ever after.
For fuck sake people, get your heads out of your asses and call it for what it is. A teenager from an uber-conservative family that was probably just getting it on for the mere sake of rebellion got knocked up and, facing the harsh reality of it all, is forced to either keep the kid and get married, or wreck her mother's political career. Then, to confound matters even more, out of nowhere, her mother gets asked to be nearly the most famous person in the world. Now, instead of just dealing with the situation on her own, she gets to have the whole world scrutinize her every move, possibly for the next four-plus years.
Ohh, she's so admirable. She's so strong. So brave to start a family so young. Give me a break! Whether she wanted to do it or not, she has to take the high road now or commit political homicide not only to her mother, but to the whole republican party. Could you imagine if that girl ran out and got an abortion?! And seriously, what the hell was McCain thinking when he chose her as his running mate? Who advised him on this? I can't help but wonder if he and his campaign managers just sat down with a list of as many woman politicians as they could think of and just picked the one they thought would swing as many Hillary Clinton supporters their way. And to think this election is supposed to about who has this country's best interests in mind. Fuck that, this election is about nothing more than who can become the most famous person the fastest. Do you suppose they thought this teen pregnancy thing would be a great way to get more media coverage? If they did, it worked. What better way to ramp up your celebrity status than to give the media a reason to clamor all over some pregant teen? It worked for the Spears sisters. Hell, the McCain/Palin campaign might as well hire Brittany's publicist as their PR advisor.
And to think, this duo might actually get elected.
Those bleeding-heart, care-bear, love-everyone, everything-is-just-peachy, ignorant people that are all commending 17-year-old Bristol Palin for keeping her unintended child and for deciding to marry her hot jock-itch fling that impregnated her.
Seriously?! Do you really think she really had a choice in the matter? Do you think HE really had a choice in the matter? Here's some dude that's banging the governor's daughter and whoops, should've pulled when instead he pushed and now he's stuck with a kid he doesn't want and now has to marry long before he's ready to. I bet those will be three lives that will be just peachy for ever after.
For fuck sake people, get your heads out of your asses and call it for what it is. A teenager from an uber-conservative family that was probably just getting it on for the mere sake of rebellion got knocked up and, facing the harsh reality of it all, is forced to either keep the kid and get married, or wreck her mother's political career. Then, to confound matters even more, out of nowhere, her mother gets asked to be nearly the most famous person in the world. Now, instead of just dealing with the situation on her own, she gets to have the whole world scrutinize her every move, possibly for the next four-plus years.
Ohh, she's so admirable. She's so strong. So brave to start a family so young. Give me a break! Whether she wanted to do it or not, she has to take the high road now or commit political homicide not only to her mother, but to the whole republican party. Could you imagine if that girl ran out and got an abortion?! And seriously, what the hell was McCain thinking when he chose her as his running mate? Who advised him on this? I can't help but wonder if he and his campaign managers just sat down with a list of as many woman politicians as they could think of and just picked the one they thought would swing as many Hillary Clinton supporters their way. And to think this election is supposed to about who has this country's best interests in mind. Fuck that, this election is about nothing more than who can become the most famous person the fastest. Do you suppose they thought this teen pregnancy thing would be a great way to get more media coverage? If they did, it worked. What better way to ramp up your celebrity status than to give the media a reason to clamor all over some pregant teen? It worked for the Spears sisters. Hell, the McCain/Palin campaign might as well hire Brittany's publicist as their PR advisor.
And to think, this duo might actually get elected.
Things that annoy me, chapter 2
Digital TV.
The commercials told me that the switch to digital TV would make life better. Clearer picture, better sound, yadda yadda. It said I need a digital TV converter box to be able to view the new broadcasts. So I got two of them. I hooked one up and voila! I quadrupled the number of channels I get (two to eight). Now, instead of just NBC and CBS, I now also get FOX, ABC, the CW, and three PBS stations. Yipee!
But digital TV around here is worthless. Before, when it got cloudy I would lose some picture quality in one or both of the stations I could get in. But nevertheless I could still more or less tell what was going on and I still had sound, just maybe with a touch of static. Now, with this worthless digital TV signal, I get all or nothing. If it gets cloudy, or if there are sun spots, or if there's some sort of disturbance in the force, or if there's a show I really want to tune in to, the signal cuts in and out. The picture freezes, the sound goes away all together, then the screen goes blank and I get that ominous blue box superimposed upon a black screen that says "no signal." It's friggin worthless! Sometimes, after several beers, I feel like I want to take my digital TV coverter box back to Best Buy, or to the dumbass government committee that mandated this signal change and shove it up their...nose.
Now I understand that stations may not be broadcasting at full power yet, but they damn well better start cranking it up a little...the new season of Heroes is about to start.
The commercials told me that the switch to digital TV would make life better. Clearer picture, better sound, yadda yadda. It said I need a digital TV converter box to be able to view the new broadcasts. So I got two of them. I hooked one up and voila! I quadrupled the number of channels I get (two to eight). Now, instead of just NBC and CBS, I now also get FOX, ABC, the CW, and three PBS stations. Yipee!
But digital TV around here is worthless. Before, when it got cloudy I would lose some picture quality in one or both of the stations I could get in. But nevertheless I could still more or less tell what was going on and I still had sound, just maybe with a touch of static. Now, with this worthless digital TV signal, I get all or nothing. If it gets cloudy, or if there are sun spots, or if there's some sort of disturbance in the force, or if there's a show I really want to tune in to, the signal cuts in and out. The picture freezes, the sound goes away all together, then the screen goes blank and I get that ominous blue box superimposed upon a black screen that says "no signal." It's friggin worthless! Sometimes, after several beers, I feel like I want to take my digital TV coverter box back to Best Buy, or to the dumbass government committee that mandated this signal change and shove it up their...nose.
Now I understand that stations may not be broadcasting at full power yet, but they damn well better start cranking it up a little...the new season of Heroes is about to start.
Calming the wind
It is Saturday, March 29, 2008 – four minutes past eight o’clock in the evening. Fifty six minutes to go. I’m sitting in my candle lit living room enjoying a silence of which I’ve never experienced in this house. There is no hum from the refrigerator, no noise from the tv. Nothing. My electric meter outside is not turning at all; I checked it just to be sure.
I’m participating in Earth Hour – a global climate change awareness campaign launched by the World Wildlife Fund in Australia in an effort to get people to do something about climate change.
Forty nine minutes left now. This isn’t so bad really. It’s not like I use much electricity on a daily basis anyway. I’m pretty good about not leaving unnecessary lights on. All the light bulbs in my house are the squiggly, energy saving, compact fluorescents and all of the electronics in my entertainment center are routed through a surge bar which I shut off whenever I go out of town. So I know that my shutting the power down for this hour isn’t going to save the planet.
But it’s the principal of it that matters to me. I am only one of roughly six billion people on this earth but the fact remains that I am one of those six billion people - meaning that my actions have just as much potential to affect this earth as any one else’s. If I can completely shut the power off to my home for an hour and not really be bothered by it, why couldn’t other people act on the same principal and take small measures such as shutting off a few lights they don’t need or unplugging the electronics they’re not using? In Sydney, Australia for example, the simple act of shutting off some lights will result in something like a 10% reduction in the city’s carbon emissions for this hour. Granted, that may not be a lot in the grand scheme of things but the principal is there: If one city can reduce their carbon emissions by that much for one hour, how much could be saved if everyone put a little extra effort into making a difference throughout the year? Then take that one city and multiply that across thousands and thousands of other cities and the difference we make becomes pretty impressive.
Thirty four minutes to go. In the silence, I’m noticing things I’ve never noticed before. I can hear the wind much clearer now. I always noticed it when it would rattle my exhaust vents or slap leaves against my window but I never heard it like I hear it now. It seems to have multiple voices. I hear one voice moaning through the bare branches of the ash trees in the front yard and then bending around the upwind corner of the house. Another voice seems to hum across the pasture that in recent days has started to green up seemingly in defiance of the winter-like conditions that won’t seem to let go of the region. I take solace in the greening of the pasture because I know that despite its lack of a meterological degree, the pasture is a better predictor of spring’s arrival than the weatherman who tells me lies every night from within my now silent television set.
When I listen closer I hear yet another windy voice; this one more distant, more melancholy, and much broader and far-reaching. It’s a voice that growls over the distant landscape of ridges and valleys; barren crop fields and wooded draws. I resist the urge to dub the sound as ‘haunting’ as that has become too cliché in reference to the wind. Nevertheless, there is an unsettling aura about the sound of this subtle, yet noticeable wind. It almost seems as if nature is angry. It seems as if it is restraining itself almost to the boiling point and the distant wind I hear is just the pinhole leak foretelling us that the top is about to blow off violently. And it’s not that I can blame poor Mother Nature for being so dismayed. Every wind gust whips up precious topsoil from crop fields left barren throughout the winter. Every drop of rain carries with it sediment and human-applied chemicals which gravity ensures that each eventually finds its way to the lowest possible point where it builds up to toxic levels affecting practically all life it encounters. Not to mention that every ray of sunlight – the lifeblood of the planet – is filtered through tons and tons of chemicals and human-contributed emissions before ever reaching the ground and nourishing that which allows us to eek out the feeble existence we use to pour more emissions into the air. When our blood is toxified, we call it poison; when the earth’s blood is toxified, we call it progress.
Only two minutes to go now. In the same hour that would have otherwise been spent brainlessly watching two sitcoms on television, millions of tons of carbon emissions have been kept from reaching the atmosphere across the globe (okay, maybe not millions). It feels good to be part of something so far reaching and potentially so inspiring. The wind still sounds angry but at least I’m doing my part to calm it down.
The hour is up now. I could turn my power back on and go back to watching tv or surfing the net or doing whatever this electronic society allows me. But there will be more shows to watch tomorrow. Right now, I’m content to listen to the wind.
I’m participating in Earth Hour – a global climate change awareness campaign launched by the World Wildlife Fund in Australia in an effort to get people to do something about climate change.
Forty nine minutes left now. This isn’t so bad really. It’s not like I use much electricity on a daily basis anyway. I’m pretty good about not leaving unnecessary lights on. All the light bulbs in my house are the squiggly, energy saving, compact fluorescents and all of the electronics in my entertainment center are routed through a surge bar which I shut off whenever I go out of town. So I know that my shutting the power down for this hour isn’t going to save the planet.
But it’s the principal of it that matters to me. I am only one of roughly six billion people on this earth but the fact remains that I am one of those six billion people - meaning that my actions have just as much potential to affect this earth as any one else’s. If I can completely shut the power off to my home for an hour and not really be bothered by it, why couldn’t other people act on the same principal and take small measures such as shutting off a few lights they don’t need or unplugging the electronics they’re not using? In Sydney, Australia for example, the simple act of shutting off some lights will result in something like a 10% reduction in the city’s carbon emissions for this hour. Granted, that may not be a lot in the grand scheme of things but the principal is there: If one city can reduce their carbon emissions by that much for one hour, how much could be saved if everyone put a little extra effort into making a difference throughout the year? Then take that one city and multiply that across thousands and thousands of other cities and the difference we make becomes pretty impressive.
Thirty four minutes to go. In the silence, I’m noticing things I’ve never noticed before. I can hear the wind much clearer now. I always noticed it when it would rattle my exhaust vents or slap leaves against my window but I never heard it like I hear it now. It seems to have multiple voices. I hear one voice moaning through the bare branches of the ash trees in the front yard and then bending around the upwind corner of the house. Another voice seems to hum across the pasture that in recent days has started to green up seemingly in defiance of the winter-like conditions that won’t seem to let go of the region. I take solace in the greening of the pasture because I know that despite its lack of a meterological degree, the pasture is a better predictor of spring’s arrival than the weatherman who tells me lies every night from within my now silent television set.
When I listen closer I hear yet another windy voice; this one more distant, more melancholy, and much broader and far-reaching. It’s a voice that growls over the distant landscape of ridges and valleys; barren crop fields and wooded draws. I resist the urge to dub the sound as ‘haunting’ as that has become too cliché in reference to the wind. Nevertheless, there is an unsettling aura about the sound of this subtle, yet noticeable wind. It almost seems as if nature is angry. It seems as if it is restraining itself almost to the boiling point and the distant wind I hear is just the pinhole leak foretelling us that the top is about to blow off violently. And it’s not that I can blame poor Mother Nature for being so dismayed. Every wind gust whips up precious topsoil from crop fields left barren throughout the winter. Every drop of rain carries with it sediment and human-applied chemicals which gravity ensures that each eventually finds its way to the lowest possible point where it builds up to toxic levels affecting practically all life it encounters. Not to mention that every ray of sunlight – the lifeblood of the planet – is filtered through tons and tons of chemicals and human-contributed emissions before ever reaching the ground and nourishing that which allows us to eek out the feeble existence we use to pour more emissions into the air. When our blood is toxified, we call it poison; when the earth’s blood is toxified, we call it progress.
Only two minutes to go now. In the same hour that would have otherwise been spent brainlessly watching two sitcoms on television, millions of tons of carbon emissions have been kept from reaching the atmosphere across the globe (okay, maybe not millions). It feels good to be part of something so far reaching and potentially so inspiring. The wind still sounds angry but at least I’m doing my part to calm it down.
The hour is up now. I could turn my power back on and go back to watching tv or surfing the net or doing whatever this electronic society allows me. But there will be more shows to watch tomorrow. Right now, I’m content to listen to the wind.
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