or Why You Should Stop Worrying and Learn to Love the Bailout.
I was listening to an old recording of Frederich Pohl and Isaac Asimov, and Pohl said something that I think applies to this discussion. He said (paraphrasing) that the world of the future, as seen by us today, will be a disaster. The transformation to the disaster will be slow and the changes will be accommodated, such that those living in the future will not see it as a disaster. Their main concern was overpopulation but I think this is true of any gradual change.
I will plead ignorance to the financial problems whose solutions are way over my pay grade (pun intended). I have a sharp pain in the place where I keep my fiscal conservatism right now. On one had, the pols are saying that a bailout is required to stop a crash leading to a long recession. On the other hand, bu-bye free market controls if bad decisions by the market can be fixed by Mommy (gov) and a can of Bactine (bailout).
All I know is that Warren Buffett, the one capitalist with enough street cred for me to believe right now, says the bailout is needed. So I guess I'll take some pain meds and wait and hope. The whole situation really pisses me off, though. I hate having solutions forced down my throat because the options are worse, especially when the problem could have been avoided.
Maybe what we need, once all the pieces are put back together, is a more heavily regulated financial environment, with ALL the regulation geared at making the playing field even and transparent. The reason I have been against regulation in the past is that they become tools for the pols in power, pushing the ideology of the time, with regulations fluctuating with the political winds. That kind of regulation is all drag.
Regulation should be like the referee in a basketball game (well, the non-corrupt referee, if they still exist).
I first posted this on the Brights Forums.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Palin Needs Some New Cue Cards
If I hear Governer Palin say "We said thanks but no thanks for the Bridge to Nowhere..." I'm going to vote libertarian this November.
I have complained all year about Obama's empty rhetoric. Now we have Palin taking the Obama style one further. Not only is her rhetoric empty, it is the same speech over and over. Not just talking points (which both sides love to push incessantly) but the same damn speech.
It was a great speech. But the minute she gave the speech again, it lost all its lustre. If she can't be trusted to say more than one speech in a month, then how is she going to be able to handle the presidency.
I don't know enough about here to vote against McCain because of her, but whoever is planning Palins events should be tarred and feathered, then run out on a rail.
I want a press conference. I want to see her handle the full blunt attack of the press that is almost unanimous against her. I want to see her admit to what she doesn't know, intelligently and humbly, and expound upon her strengths. Because every attack on her experience after such a show would be an attack on Obama, whose only real experience is that he has campaigned for 2 of his 3 years as Senator.
Oh, and everyone with an IQ over 10 knows that Obama didn't call Palin a pig. If they think we are buying that, they need to smoke better stuff.
I have complained all year about Obama's empty rhetoric. Now we have Palin taking the Obama style one further. Not only is her rhetoric empty, it is the same speech over and over. Not just talking points (which both sides love to push incessantly) but the same damn speech.
It was a great speech. But the minute she gave the speech again, it lost all its lustre. If she can't be trusted to say more than one speech in a month, then how is she going to be able to handle the presidency.
I don't know enough about here to vote against McCain because of her, but whoever is planning Palins events should be tarred and feathered, then run out on a rail.
I want a press conference. I want to see her handle the full blunt attack of the press that is almost unanimous against her. I want to see her admit to what she doesn't know, intelligently and humbly, and expound upon her strengths. Because every attack on her experience after such a show would be an attack on Obama, whose only real experience is that he has campaigned for 2 of his 3 years as Senator.
Oh, and everyone with an IQ over 10 knows that Obama didn't call Palin a pig. If they think we are buying that, they need to smoke better stuff.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Some Advice for the McCain-Palin Campaign
...because you know they want my opinion.
First, let me state my current political position: I am leaning toward McCain but am not decided. Obama hasn't won me over, and unless he starts getting specific will go the way of Kerry and Gore (I didn't want to vote for Bush twice, but I did because of their empty rhetoric). But the McCain that I voted for in the CA primary in 2000 is not the McCain of today, and I am not going ga-ga over Palin they way the Nutroots is over Obama.
I am an independant waiting to be won.
So, back to my advice for McCain.
I listened to the Palin's speech live on NPR and wow, it was great. It beat Biden's speech by miles and IMO beat even Obama's. Still, it was a speech. She passed test #1: she didn't fold in her coming out party. Still, what I have seen since then is depressing.
Like when someone tells a good joke and gets a great laugh, then goes on to tell the same joke for the next week expecting everyone to laugh just as hard, Palin has been doing almost nothing but her convention speech. What is up with that? Maybe that RNC speechwriter took a vacation.
Speeches don't win elections. Debates do, and real interviews. Palin is scheduled to go on ABC this week, but she should be lined up after that. I want to see her on Face the Nation, Meet the Press, The O'Reily Factor, Larry King (well, not Larry; we need hard interviews). She needs to suprise everyone and hold a press conference, then let the questions go for an hour. In short, she needs to prove to us that she can handle the media.
So far the only qualification that Obama has that Palin doesn't is that he has proved to be a good campaigner. In fact that seems to be the Obama-Biden talking point answer to the comparison between his and Palin's experience. And it has some merit. He has run an excellent campaign, beating the heavyweight tagteam Clintons in their best event (campaigning of course). His fund raising and primary skill show a level of tactics worthy of Karl Rove. But other than that, he is a lightweight whose main claim to fame is that he was against the war in Iraq back when he had no real say in the matter (unlike McCain, Biden, Kerry, and both Clintons).
Yet in their overconfidence the progressives are going full tilt at smearing Palin. If she is the lipsticked Pitbull conservatives are making her out to be, where is she? Why are her speeches so obviously retreads. Why haven't we seen any unscripted moments? The answer may be that she isn't ready. And if she isn't able to handle the campaign/media/press conferences, she should not be one heartbeat away from the president.
From the little I've seen, I think she can handle herself. They should take off the muzzle and let her go. That is what a VP candidate is for: attack dog.
With lipsick.
First, let me state my current political position: I am leaning toward McCain but am not decided. Obama hasn't won me over, and unless he starts getting specific will go the way of Kerry and Gore (I didn't want to vote for Bush twice, but I did because of their empty rhetoric). But the McCain that I voted for in the CA primary in 2000 is not the McCain of today, and I am not going ga-ga over Palin they way the Nutroots is over Obama.
I am an independant waiting to be won.
So, back to my advice for McCain.
I listened to the Palin's speech live on NPR and wow, it was great. It beat Biden's speech by miles and IMO beat even Obama's. Still, it was a speech. She passed test #1: she didn't fold in her coming out party. Still, what I have seen since then is depressing.
Like when someone tells a good joke and gets a great laugh, then goes on to tell the same joke for the next week expecting everyone to laugh just as hard, Palin has been doing almost nothing but her convention speech. What is up with that? Maybe that RNC speechwriter took a vacation.
Speeches don't win elections. Debates do, and real interviews. Palin is scheduled to go on ABC this week, but she should be lined up after that. I want to see her on Face the Nation, Meet the Press, The O'Reily Factor, Larry King (well, not Larry; we need hard interviews). She needs to suprise everyone and hold a press conference, then let the questions go for an hour. In short, she needs to prove to us that she can handle the media.
So far the only qualification that Obama has that Palin doesn't is that he has proved to be a good campaigner. In fact that seems to be the Obama-Biden talking point answer to the comparison between his and Palin's experience. And it has some merit. He has run an excellent campaign, beating the heavyweight tagteam Clintons in their best event (campaigning of course). His fund raising and primary skill show a level of tactics worthy of Karl Rove. But other than that, he is a lightweight whose main claim to fame is that he was against the war in Iraq back when he had no real say in the matter (unlike McCain, Biden, Kerry, and both Clintons).
Yet in their overconfidence the progressives are going full tilt at smearing Palin. If she is the lipsticked Pitbull conservatives are making her out to be, where is she? Why are her speeches so obviously retreads. Why haven't we seen any unscripted moments? The answer may be that she isn't ready. And if she isn't able to handle the campaign/media/press conferences, she should not be one heartbeat away from the president.
From the little I've seen, I think she can handle herself. They should take off the muzzle and let her go. That is what a VP candidate is for: attack dog.
With lipsick.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Happy Blue-Footed Booby Day!
Sunday, August 17 is Blue-Footed Booby Day.
If I don't hear at least one person come up to me and say, "Happy Blue-footed Booby day" I will be upset.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Always look on the bright side of life!
If you are like me and live in a world where there is nothing "supernatural," that the world is one of physical laws that have a universal jurisdiction, then take a click on the Bright logo and take a look. If you are a believer in God, click anyways and see what the sinners are up to.
Being a "bright" means that you believe in a naturalistic world view, as opposed to being a "super," or one who believes that things exist that are outside the realm of natural law (god, ghosts, magnets that heal, cards that tell the future). It doesn't equate with "atheist" though there are many atheists in our group. I am an agnostic. There are a fair amount of humanists. The thing that is common among us is the agreement that there is no supernatural anything.
The forums are pretty decent if you like shooting the shit with people who like talking about deepish subjects.
Being a "bright" means that you believe in a naturalistic world view, as opposed to being a "super," or one who believes that things exist that are outside the realm of natural law (god, ghosts, magnets that heal, cards that tell the future). It doesn't equate with "atheist" though there are many atheists in our group. I am an agnostic. There are a fair amount of humanists. The thing that is common among us is the agreement that there is no supernatural anything.
The forums are pretty decent if you like shooting the shit with people who like talking about deepish subjects.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Shinkendo
Last year I decided that I needed some form of regular exercise. My reflection was getting to be a little more pear-shaped than I liked, and before that happened to me I figured I better start working out. I have tried the local 24 hour gym, and that was a bore. Bowling doesn't qualify, which is about as close as I have gotten to exercise lately.
So I thought "I need something with a high fun factor, something I could really geek out on." As a long time card-carrying nerd, I love fantasy and have always wanted to learn to use a real sword. So I started looking for something I could do daily that involved sword training. Kendo came to mind first and I had my eye on a couple of dojos when I stumbled on a website for something called Shinkendo. It had a cool mpg of a japanese guy that looked really familiar (later found out I saw him on Teenage Mutent Ninja Turtles the Movie, and a couple cable documentaries). I gave the dojo a call talked with someone who said to come in and watch a session. I did, and from that moment on I was hooked.
The dojo happened to be the world headquarters for the Shinkendo Federation--the Honbu dojo-- and my "sensei" was actually the Kaiso of the artform: Obata Toshishiro, and that someone I talked to on the phone was his Mrs. Obata.
For those that don't know, Shinkendo is a martial art that teaches practical fighting techniques using a katana. We don't use shinai (bamboo wrapped in leather used in Kendo) but wooden practice swords called bokken or bokuto. We also do not use armor; just a judo gi and hakama (looks a lot like a skirt). And here was the deal clincher for me: we progress to using a shinken (live "sharp" blade).
Training under Obata Kaiso has been a life-changing experience for me. I attend about 4 times a week and work out on my own at home each day I don't attend practice. For a time I also tried Aikido, which Obata Sensei also teaches, but my 40-year-old back hasn't taken kindly to being tossed around, so I am taking a month break while I try and strengthen it.
Even though I have only been a shinkendoka for less than a year, I already plan on opening my own dojo sometime in the distant future. My wife has already been informed that we cannot move out of range of Kaiso until I am that level, and if I have my way I'll still be close enough to attend the Honbu at least once a week.
I could go on about the spiritual and philosophical affect is had had on me, but I'll let that be a future article. After nine months I am Jiho rank (second), have begun training with iaito (unsharpened metal sword) and have performed tamashigiri (test cutting tatami omote mats using a live blade) once a couple weeks ago. John Lui made us DVDs of that event, and once I can figure out how I'll post my first baby steps into the worlds of real swords.
Every practice I feel I am walking the first mile of a very long, steep, beautiful mountain trail. So much to see and experience and I don't really know what is in store down the road. My goal is to feel this way every day from now on, even after I am "Jim Sensei."
So I thought "I need something with a high fun factor, something I could really geek out on." As a long time card-carrying nerd, I love fantasy and have always wanted to learn to use a real sword. So I started looking for something I could do daily that involved sword training. Kendo came to mind first and I had my eye on a couple of dojos when I stumbled on a website for something called Shinkendo. It had a cool mpg of a japanese guy that looked really familiar (later found out I saw him on Teenage Mutent Ninja Turtles the Movie, and a couple cable documentaries). I gave the dojo a call talked with someone who said to come in and watch a session. I did, and from that moment on I was hooked.
The dojo happened to be the world headquarters for the Shinkendo Federation--the Honbu dojo-- and my "sensei" was actually the Kaiso of the artform: Obata Toshishiro, and that someone I talked to on the phone was his Mrs. Obata.For those that don't know, Shinkendo is a martial art that teaches practical fighting techniques using a katana. We don't use shinai (bamboo wrapped in leather used in Kendo) but wooden practice swords called bokken or bokuto. We also do not use armor; just a judo gi and hakama (looks a lot like a skirt). And here was the deal clincher for me: we progress to using a shinken (live "sharp" blade).
Training under Obata Kaiso has been a life-changing experience for me. I attend about 4 times a week and work out on my own at home each day I don't attend practice. For a time I also tried Aikido, which Obata Sensei also teaches, but my 40-year-old back hasn't taken kindly to being tossed around, so I am taking a month break while I try and strengthen it.
Even though I have only been a shinkendoka for less than a year, I already plan on opening my own dojo sometime in the distant future. My wife has already been informed that we cannot move out of range of Kaiso until I am that level, and if I have my way I'll still be close enough to attend the Honbu at least once a week.
I could go on about the spiritual and philosophical affect is had had on me, but I'll let that be a future article. After nine months I am Jiho rank (second), have begun training with iaito (unsharpened metal sword) and have performed tamashigiri (test cutting tatami omote mats using a live blade) once a couple weeks ago. John Lui made us DVDs of that event, and once I can figure out how I'll post my first baby steps into the worlds of real swords.
Every practice I feel I am walking the first mile of a very long, steep, beautiful mountain trail. So much to see and experience and I don't really know what is in store down the road. My goal is to feel this way every day from now on, even after I am "Jim Sensei."
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Friday, June 13, 2008
A Note about Tim Russert
Today was a sad day.
I am usually pretty jaded about celebrity deaths. I'm not sure why, but hearing that someone famous has died usually doesn't matter to me. But when I heard that Tim Russert had died suddenly today, I felt the loss in a real way.
No I didn't know him, or meet him. Meet the Press was always on my DVR list, but I often fast forwarded through his soft interviews. I didn't read his book.
But in an era when the media has turned almost entirely to position politics, taking sides like Fox News or NBC, and not even hiding their biases in their reporting, it came as a shock that one of the last real journalists was gone so suddenly.
His reporting style was always worth watching, especially when he was facing off with people in real power. Okay, his style of pulling up quotes form 20 years ago sometimes was tiresome at times, but when someone was trying to spin the truth Russert was able to cut through that and show the truth, or at least expose the liar. His everyman style made him always watchable and interesting.
NBC news has skewed to the left lately and seems to be carving out a niche on the left similar to where Foxnews is on the right, and of all their personalities, Russert was the one who I felt had resisted letting that show in his work. Yeah, it didn't take an expert to see where his politics were, but everyone has a bias and his shows were fair. And Fair is high praise in this era. NBC is in huge trouble now. I can't imagine anyone who could step into the Sunday slot and make Meet the Press even a shadow of what it has been in the past.
I'll watch the show this weekend and mourne Tim Russert's loss.
The fourth estate has lost something that cannot be replaced.
I am usually pretty jaded about celebrity deaths. I'm not sure why, but hearing that someone famous has died usually doesn't matter to me. But when I heard that Tim Russert had died suddenly today, I felt the loss in a real way.
No I didn't know him, or meet him. Meet the Press was always on my DVR list, but I often fast forwarded through his soft interviews. I didn't read his book.
But in an era when the media has turned almost entirely to position politics, taking sides like Fox News or NBC, and not even hiding their biases in their reporting, it came as a shock that one of the last real journalists was gone so suddenly.
His reporting style was always worth watching, especially when he was facing off with people in real power. Okay, his style of pulling up quotes form 20 years ago sometimes was tiresome at times, but when someone was trying to spin the truth Russert was able to cut through that and show the truth, or at least expose the liar. His everyman style made him always watchable and interesting.
NBC news has skewed to the left lately and seems to be carving out a niche on the left similar to where Foxnews is on the right, and of all their personalities, Russert was the one who I felt had resisted letting that show in his work. Yeah, it didn't take an expert to see where his politics were, but everyone has a bias and his shows were fair. And Fair is high praise in this era. NBC is in huge trouble now. I can't imagine anyone who could step into the Sunday slot and make Meet the Press even a shadow of what it has been in the past.
I'll watch the show this weekend and mourne Tim Russert's loss.
The fourth estate has lost something that cannot be replaced.
Another Worthless Prediction
I think I like making political predictions for the same reason I like putting $10 on a hockey game: I can put my money where my mouth is.
Prediction for 2008
Obama will win (with a few IFs)
IF #1: Obama can find a way to rebuild that "post-racial" persona that was shattered with his springtime faux pas: Wright and other BLT preachers, Michelle's "Proud to be American" comment. In short, if he can tell the people he has used to get to where he is in the past to be quiet for a few more months, he'll be able to secure the independent white vote.
IF #2: Obama can break his "sweety" habit. I don't think he's a sexist, and I don't think most of Hillary's supports think he is sexist, but if he keeps making slights like that he will alienate enough politically-borderline women to lose.
IF #3: He can show us enough to not fall into the traps that each of the past couple Democratic nominees have fallen into. Specifically, he can't be seen as an elitist liberal. In fact he has to downplay his liberalness, which never plays well in a general election (ask Mr. Card-carrying ACLU member Dukakis). He also needs to mend the hurt feelings his "bitter" comment caused in white rural voters.
If #4: If there are no more Reverend Wright level problems in his future. I can imagine some real killers for him here. If a tape exists with a Wright giving a controversial speech with Obama in the audience would be a big one, as Obama's excuse that he never knew how bad Wright was is flimsy at best. There will be some kind of "swiftboat" attack, probably more than one from (supporters of) both sides. Obama, as the relative-unknown, is particularly vulnerable to this.
and the biggist IF of all:
If # Last: Obama has to actually commit himself to real policies. This was my problem with Kerry (as stated here a few years ago): there just wasn't anything there but "I'm not Bush." Well, Obama is trying the same failed tactic with the "Bush's third term" thing. But other than a couple whitepapers on his sight, there is very little know about what he would do as president when you tear away the fluffy glittering generalities.
Obama has to make his case that he is different. McCain will try and paint him as the stereotypical elitist liberal masquerading as a moderate. Given that Obama has friends (parishoners?) in the mainstream media and a war chest that could fund a small government, I think I have to give the race to Obama.
What I didn't factor in: VP. Who cares with Obama (as long as it isn't Hillary, and it won't be). I can't imagine a candidate that will help him in a significant way. My guess is that he will choose a Biden-like figure to fill a policy gap and not get a candidate that helps him in a particular state.
McCain may be able to nudge the vote his way a tad with a surprisingly good choice. Condi would be such a choice, but my guess is that she will say no. Leiberman would be another, but I can't see that helping him much.
As for the rest of the election, only two things are apparent to me:
1) The dems will win a big and perhaps veto-proof margin in both houses of congress, sadly.
2) California will vote in favor of a constitutional amendment to define marriage as being between a man and a woman, effectively ending 4 months of same-sex marriages. Sadly.
Other predictions:
Prediction for 2008
Obama will win (with a few IFs)
IF #1: Obama can find a way to rebuild that "post-racial" persona that was shattered with his springtime faux pas: Wright and other BLT preachers, Michelle's "Proud to be American" comment. In short, if he can tell the people he has used to get to where he is in the past to be quiet for a few more months, he'll be able to secure the independent white vote.
IF #2: Obama can break his "sweety" habit. I don't think he's a sexist, and I don't think most of Hillary's supports think he is sexist, but if he keeps making slights like that he will alienate enough politically-borderline women to lose.
IF #3: He can show us enough to not fall into the traps that each of the past couple Democratic nominees have fallen into. Specifically, he can't be seen as an elitist liberal. In fact he has to downplay his liberalness, which never plays well in a general election (ask Mr. Card-carrying ACLU member Dukakis). He also needs to mend the hurt feelings his "bitter" comment caused in white rural voters.
If #4: If there are no more Reverend Wright level problems in his future. I can imagine some real killers for him here. If a tape exists with a Wright giving a controversial speech with Obama in the audience would be a big one, as Obama's excuse that he never knew how bad Wright was is flimsy at best. There will be some kind of "swiftboat" attack, probably more than one from (supporters of) both sides. Obama, as the relative-unknown, is particularly vulnerable to this.
and the biggist IF of all:
If # Last: Obama has to actually commit himself to real policies. This was my problem with Kerry (as stated here a few years ago): there just wasn't anything there but "I'm not Bush." Well, Obama is trying the same failed tactic with the "Bush's third term" thing. But other than a couple whitepapers on his sight, there is very little know about what he would do as president when you tear away the fluffy glittering generalities.
Obama has to make his case that he is different. McCain will try and paint him as the stereotypical elitist liberal masquerading as a moderate. Given that Obama has friends (parishoners?) in the mainstream media and a war chest that could fund a small government, I think I have to give the race to Obama.
What I didn't factor in: VP. Who cares with Obama (as long as it isn't Hillary, and it won't be). I can't imagine a candidate that will help him in a significant way. My guess is that he will choose a Biden-like figure to fill a policy gap and not get a candidate that helps him in a particular state.
McCain may be able to nudge the vote his way a tad with a surprisingly good choice. Condi would be such a choice, but my guess is that she will say no. Leiberman would be another, but I can't see that helping him much.
As for the rest of the election, only two things are apparent to me:
1) The dems will win a big and perhaps veto-proof margin in both houses of congress, sadly.
2) California will vote in favor of a constitutional amendment to define marriage as being between a man and a woman, effectively ending 4 months of same-sex marriages. Sadly.
Other predictions:
- Ducks will make it into the Stanley Cup finals in 09 (but I'm a fan)
- Dodgers will do great for a while and fail to make the playoffs, again.
- Jimmy Johnson will threepete the Sprint Cup (but I'm a fan)
- Lakers lose to Boston in 08 finals (but they are already 1-3 against the Celts already, so...)
I promise not to promise to write here more
That subject is getting a little old.
Here is a quick update:
Still working, same job, survived another round of layoffs.
Started shinkendo, which is a form of modern japanese swordsmanship using real (sharp) katana. I'll be performing this weekend at the Queen Mary, though they don't trust me with shinken (live, sharp blades) yet, but more experienced people will be doing cutting there if you get the chance to watch us. Me? I'll be the bald guy in a skirt (hakama) swinging a stick (bokken).
My oldest has another child on the way. At 3 grandchildren now I suppose I should feel more old. My two younger children are starting their sophomore year this fall. Old. yeah.
I have spent some quality time on blogs lately, just not my own. I like www.littlegreenfootballs.com, though lately they seem to think I'm a troll because I had the audacity to question Charles himself in a public posgt. Doh, I said "audacity," that must prove I support Obama. I'm outed for sure now!
Edit: Charles emailed me apologizing for implying that I was a troll. I do admire his site, even if I disagree with half of what he says. That is about how much I disagree with everyone else anyways.
I browse the left-wing side too, but to be honest the left side of the blogosphere is so vitriolic that I have nothing to say to them. What is the point saying things to people who just shout their idiology back at you? I get that on the right wing sometimes too, but on average I get more real responses from right-wing bloggers.
The contrast on the internet is always so high middle-of-the-road people like myself have a hard time finding a voice. Maybe someone can point me to some "moderate" blogs. We should have a newsgroup just for us:
alt.discussion.politics.maybe
Here is a quick update:
Still working, same job, survived another round of layoffs.
Started shinkendo, which is a form of modern japanese swordsmanship using real (sharp) katana. I'll be performing this weekend at the Queen Mary, though they don't trust me with shinken (live, sharp blades) yet, but more experienced people will be doing cutting there if you get the chance to watch us. Me? I'll be the bald guy in a skirt (hakama) swinging a stick (bokken).
My oldest has another child on the way. At 3 grandchildren now I suppose I should feel more old. My two younger children are starting their sophomore year this fall. Old. yeah.
I have spent some quality time on blogs lately, just not my own. I like www.littlegreenfootballs.com, though lately they seem to think I'm a troll because I had the audacity to question Charles himself in a public posgt. Doh, I said "audacity," that must prove I support Obama. I'm outed for sure now!
Edit: Charles emailed me apologizing for implying that I was a troll. I do admire his site, even if I disagree with half of what he says. That is about how much I disagree with everyone else anyways.
I browse the left-wing side too, but to be honest the left side of the blogosphere is so vitriolic that I have nothing to say to them. What is the point saying things to people who just shout their idiology back at you? I get that on the right wing sometimes too, but on average I get more real responses from right-wing bloggers.
The contrast on the internet is always so high middle-of-the-road people like myself have a hard time finding a voice. Maybe someone can point me to some "moderate" blogs. We should have a newsgroup just for us:
alt.discussion.politics.maybe
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Personally...
It has been a while since I last posted here. To be sure, my readership has always been low, but now I fear it is about a low as it can go: it has just gone up from zero to one now that I have returned.
My last whining post was over a year ago. Consider this the executive summary to you--my implied reader--of where I have been in the past year. I'll conclude it with my optimistic insistence that I really do intend to write regularly again, something that at this moment in time I actually believe.
This July I was officially rehired into the job I had been laid off from a few years ago. Now at parties I can go back to telling people I'm a process engineer and enjoy their confused looks. Business process engineering: who does what at what time and in what order. I guess you can say I am getting paid to be a writer, finally, even if it is slightly less interesting than stereo manuals written in Chinglish. The nice thing about selling your soul to the third-largest IT outsourcing company in the world: it pays well.
And there are some perks. I had to get a car to make the commute to Long Beach, which was as good an excuse to buy a Miata as I will ever get. My new 2007 MX-5 is like my favorite pair of underwear, fits comfortably and snug and I never want to take it off. I know what you are thinking, and NO the passenger side is not nipple-high with discarded In-and-Out burgers and Mt. Dew bottles. The nice thing about having a no back seat and a trunk the size of a travel toothbrush is that you have to clean up after yourself regularly. I still know what you are thinking, and yes I can clean up after myself.
If you have ever wanted a convertible and didn't think it was practical, get one anyways. There is something about being part of the environment that comes from driving with the top down. Somewhere I once read (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, I think) that the scenery from a car is like watching it on television, but put the top down and you insert yourself into a sensual connection with your surroundings (I think the author was talking about a motorcycle, but it still applies if you ask me). Even the various and often repulsive smells of Los Angeles are worth experiencing. For you roofies who drive with the windows up, take a tip from your dog and stick your head out every once in a while. The Angeles Crest smells like Geoffrey Pine: maple mixed with the dry mustiness of the chapparelle. Los Angeles reeks of multiculturalism. Drive through the neighborhoods around dinner time and you will get what I mean. There is one part of Fullerton that inexplicably smells like a dump. Lancaster still smells like beige, unless it is about to rain. I'll keep you posted when I make new olfactory discoveries. Perhaps I can form my own niche in the California travel writing scene: something like Hughe Howsner's "California's Gold" but the smelly version.
If you haven't heard, I am now a grandpa. James and Deanna had Isabella ("Bellaboo" to you, "Izzy" to me) earlier this year and she is now at the age--six months--where she is so cute is it painful. Donovan is going to be five at his next birthday, but as he is still living with Deanna's mother we don't see him that often. I said I am a grandpa, but really I am "Nano." You begin to realize how young you are not when you have to think about what you want to be called by your grandchildren. So I am Nano, bowing to the loosely held ethnicity of Susan's side of the family; I don't know what a Scott calls his grandfather in any case. All I know of that part of my heritage I learned from Groundskeeper Willie.
Jessica and Griffin started high school this month. Griffin is in the band with his tenor sax. Jessica is popular and too beautiful for her own good, so we keep her in all-star cheer leading. Susan is back in school and working on a pre-med degree; at the urging of the doctors she works with she is going to become one of them. I always wanted to be a doctor's wife...
As for my art, it has been lacking. I have the will to write, just not the attention span. This means that I am very good at generating story ideas which I am terrified of addressing seriously because I know I lack the will and confidence to do them justice. Still, I keep promising myself I will go back to writing soon, and I will. No, really. I promise.
Recently I took up oil painting. This is nothing serious. I was up way too early and saw a Bob Ross show on the local PBS channel and decided it must be easy to make great works of art. So I went to my local Michaels and bought a few hundred dollars of supplies and have been creating great works of art ever since. Okay, maybe less than great, but more than horrible. Struggling with a new visual art form has forced me into looking at things in a new way. A tree used to be a tree. Now it is a shadow, trunk lines and texture, covered with leafy highlights: in short I see the world analytically as a procedure for replicating itself. Did I mention that I am a process engineer? I am also starting on watercolor (which is much less forgiving than oil), and yes, there is a TV show for that too. I wonder what pallet triad represents me as a person.
Photography has taken a back seat to painting lately, but I hope to go back to that soon. My dichroic enlarger still awaits a proper darkroom, which I may have in a few weeks by converting an old fifth wheel (no, I am not kidding). The more everything goes digital, the more I want to do chemical. That won't stop me from getting my digital camera (Sony a100, because all my lenses and stuff are Minolta). I'll post some of my work once I return to making pictures. My hope is that teaching myself to paint will actually help my photography and writing. Tolkien did watercolor, and if it worked for him...
For all of youse guys who know me as Dainn, the erudite bald black enchanter-type int-caster of the various fantasy and sci-fi worlds, I am still between games. Not sure if I will go back to playing them again, but Conan looks interesting. I recently left Lord of the Rings Online, and before that Vanguard, and WoW. Like that first meth high, I keep trying to go back to the experience I had in Everquest and not quite reaching it. The days when grinding was fun--quadkiting raptors or wyverns with Maggot...sigh, those were the days--is over, at least for now. If there are any of my old EQ etc. buddies out there, drop me a line. I heard from Maggot a couple weeks ago, and would like to hear from you.
So much for the executive summary part. So, to make a short story long, I am back for now, and I promise that I will start writing regularly again.
No, really.
Jim
My last whining post was over a year ago. Consider this the executive summary to you--my implied reader--of where I have been in the past year. I'll conclude it with my optimistic insistence that I really do intend to write regularly again, something that at this moment in time I actually believe.
This July I was officially rehired into the job I had been laid off from a few years ago. Now at parties I can go back to telling people I'm a process engineer and enjoy their confused looks. Business process engineering: who does what at what time and in what order. I guess you can say I am getting paid to be a writer, finally, even if it is slightly less interesting than stereo manuals written in Chinglish. The nice thing about selling your soul to the third-largest IT outsourcing company in the world: it pays well.
And there are some perks. I had to get a car to make the commute to Long Beach, which was as good an excuse to buy a Miata as I will ever get. My new 2007 MX-5 is like my favorite pair of underwear, fits comfortably and snug and I never want to take it off. I know what you are thinking, and NO the passenger side is not nipple-high with discarded In-and-Out burgers and Mt. Dew bottles. The nice thing about having a no back seat and a trunk the size of a travel toothbrush is that you have to clean up after yourself regularly. I still know what you are thinking, and yes I can clean up after myself.
If you have ever wanted a convertible and didn't think it was practical, get one anyways. There is something about being part of the environment that comes from driving with the top down. Somewhere I once read (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, I think) that the scenery from a car is like watching it on television, but put the top down and you insert yourself into a sensual connection with your surroundings (I think the author was talking about a motorcycle, but it still applies if you ask me). Even the various and often repulsive smells of Los Angeles are worth experiencing. For you roofies who drive with the windows up, take a tip from your dog and stick your head out every once in a while. The Angeles Crest smells like Geoffrey Pine: maple mixed with the dry mustiness of the chapparelle. Los Angeles reeks of multiculturalism. Drive through the neighborhoods around dinner time and you will get what I mean. There is one part of Fullerton that inexplicably smells like a dump. Lancaster still smells like beige, unless it is about to rain. I'll keep you posted when I make new olfactory discoveries. Perhaps I can form my own niche in the California travel writing scene: something like Hughe Howsner's "California's Gold" but the smelly version.
If you haven't heard, I am now a grandpa. James and Deanna had Isabella ("Bellaboo" to you, "Izzy" to me) earlier this year and she is now at the age--six months--where she is so cute is it painful. Donovan is going to be five at his next birthday, but as he is still living with Deanna's mother we don't see him that often. I said I am a grandpa, but really I am "Nano." You begin to realize how young you are not when you have to think about what you want to be called by your grandchildren. So I am Nano, bowing to the loosely held ethnicity of Susan's side of the family; I don't know what a Scott calls his grandfather in any case. All I know of that part of my heritage I learned from Groundskeeper Willie.
Jessica and Griffin started high school this month. Griffin is in the band with his tenor sax. Jessica is popular and too beautiful for her own good, so we keep her in all-star cheer leading. Susan is back in school and working on a pre-med degree; at the urging of the doctors she works with she is going to become one of them. I always wanted to be a doctor's wife...
As for my art, it has been lacking. I have the will to write, just not the attention span. This means that I am very good at generating story ideas which I am terrified of addressing seriously because I know I lack the will and confidence to do them justice. Still, I keep promising myself I will go back to writing soon, and I will. No, really. I promise.
Recently I took up oil painting. This is nothing serious. I was up way too early and saw a Bob Ross show on the local PBS channel and decided it must be easy to make great works of art. So I went to my local Michaels and bought a few hundred dollars of supplies and have been creating great works of art ever since. Okay, maybe less than great, but more than horrible. Struggling with a new visual art form has forced me into looking at things in a new way. A tree used to be a tree. Now it is a shadow, trunk lines and texture, covered with leafy highlights: in short I see the world analytically as a procedure for replicating itself. Did I mention that I am a process engineer? I am also starting on watercolor (which is much less forgiving than oil), and yes, there is a TV show for that too. I wonder what pallet triad represents me as a person.
Photography has taken a back seat to painting lately, but I hope to go back to that soon. My dichroic enlarger still awaits a proper darkroom, which I may have in a few weeks by converting an old fifth wheel (no, I am not kidding). The more everything goes digital, the more I want to do chemical. That won't stop me from getting my digital camera (Sony a100, because all my lenses and stuff are Minolta). I'll post some of my work once I return to making pictures. My hope is that teaching myself to paint will actually help my photography and writing. Tolkien did watercolor, and if it worked for him...
For all of youse guys who know me as Dainn, the erudite bald black enchanter-type int-caster of the various fantasy and sci-fi worlds, I am still between games. Not sure if I will go back to playing them again, but Conan looks interesting. I recently left Lord of the Rings Online, and before that Vanguard, and WoW. Like that first meth high, I keep trying to go back to the experience I had in Everquest and not quite reaching it. The days when grinding was fun--quadkiting raptors or wyverns with Maggot...sigh, those were the days--is over, at least for now. If there are any of my old EQ etc. buddies out there, drop me a line. I heard from Maggot a couple weeks ago, and would like to hear from you.
So much for the executive summary part. So, to make a short story long, I am back for now, and I promise that I will start writing regularly again.
No, really.
Jim
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Apple = Lemon
A year and a half ago I placed high in a bowling tournament and got enough cash to buy an Ipod. What I bought was an Ipod 40gig clickwheel. Since the day it arrived it has been a complete problem child, and knowing what I know now I would be very hisitant to buy another one in the future.
I am a PC user, though according to the Apple propaganda this should not be an issue. I use my ipod heavily--when it is working--listening to very large audiobooks and leaving it running for hours at at time. Still, this should not matter. I keep it well protected, the battery well charged, and it gets better care than my laptop. Still, I have sent it to Apple 2 times now and just ordered the box for time number 3. All for the same problem: hard drive failure. In fact the Ipod I have now that just crashed on me is one that I got as a replacement only a couple weeks ago.
Apple touts itself as a crash-proof manufacturer. Don't believe it. They have a lemon in the 40gig clickwheel, they have to know it, and even their tech support aren't allowed to admit that it is a design failure. According to this study the 40gig clickwheel has almost a 30% fail rate, with some reported problems being repitious. Notice that they no longer put out a 40gig version.
I paid the extra $60 for the Applecare plan, which is going to buy me another year of replacement Ipods, but I fully expect them to fail one after another until Apple gives me the finger and refuses to replace it anymore (this Feb).
...and when that day comes the odds of me buying another Apple product are slim to none.
I am a PC user, though according to the Apple propaganda this should not be an issue. I use my ipod heavily--when it is working--listening to very large audiobooks and leaving it running for hours at at time. Still, this should not matter. I keep it well protected, the battery well charged, and it gets better care than my laptop. Still, I have sent it to Apple 2 times now and just ordered the box for time number 3. All for the same problem: hard drive failure. In fact the Ipod I have now that just crashed on me is one that I got as a replacement only a couple weeks ago.
Apple touts itself as a crash-proof manufacturer. Don't believe it. They have a lemon in the 40gig clickwheel, they have to know it, and even their tech support aren't allowed to admit that it is a design failure. According to this study the 40gig clickwheel has almost a 30% fail rate, with some reported problems being repitious. Notice that they no longer put out a 40gig version.
I paid the extra $60 for the Applecare plan, which is going to buy me another year of replacement Ipods, but I fully expect them to fail one after another until Apple gives me the finger and refuses to replace it anymore (this Feb).
...and when that day comes the odds of me buying another Apple product are slim to none.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Politics: The State of Bias
The nation is polarized.
You hear this so much these days. Democrats will blame Bush for this, or Fox News, or some conservative bombthrowers that appear on AM radio. Republicans blamed Clinton for the same thing a few years ago, the media, special interest groups like Moveon.org. Democrats blame the war and Bush's unwillingness to get international approval before acting on foreign policy (read: Iraq). Republicans point to ... hell it doesn't really matter. It's all the same bullshit.
Here is the scoop, so listen good. The nation is polarized because YOU make it that way. Polarization goes both ways, by definition. Saying the other side is polarizing the debate is like blaming your children for not calling you that often: the phone lines go both ways.
The hard and true fact is that politics in America is polarized because people LIKE IT THAT WAY. Politics is the new fan-based sports entertainment. Who would want to go to a football game and agree. That is not the american way. We fight. We boo the bad calls the ump makes against our team and cheer the bad calls the ump makes in our favor. If there happens to be a bench-clearing brawl, we stand up and cheer and then blame the other team for starting it. Same thing with politics, we just put on fake aires and pretend to be thoughtfull about it all.
If you are on the left, you think that the right are dim-witted foggy-eyed corrupt jerks who think that waving an american flag and a cross is all the thinking necessary. You read the papers, especially LA and NY times op ed, you think that Air America is a great idea, agree that Cindy Sheehan is the only one qualified to have an opinon on the Iraq war, and you probably paid to see Farehneit 9/11 in the theatres. You have lots of opinions about Fox News, but you have never really watched it, and you can quote lots of bad things about the Oreily Factor, another show you have never seen. The only AM radio you can stomach is Air America, if you can get it. You get the Moveon.org newletter, and your mailbox is filled with campaign fundraising mail from liberal causes.
If you are on the right, you think that the left is trying to take God out of the nation and replace it with a loose set of athiestic morals. You blame the Media for a lot of this, even though the only media you really get consists of Fox News and various AM Radio programs. You have lots of opinions about the NY times, something you have never read, hate that guy Michael Moore and his pet Cindy Sheehan, though you didn't see Farenheit 9/11 except the clips they showed on the Oreily Factor.
If you are a moderate you feel like a lonely person at a football game with two teams you dislike equally.
I really hope you don't fit either of my stereotypes above. But look into your behaviors and see the facts. When was the last time you spent the time to thoroughly read through something that you disagreed with? Even if you don't claim to be a liberal or conservative, where do you get your news, and do you think that "your" choices are unbiased? I sumbit that all the news out there is biased, and if that you think you are getting both sides from one organization you are fooling yourself.
I have tried hard to break out of this mold. I try to have political discussions with people that disagree with me about religion and politics. Because of this I have few of these discussions; people don't like to talk about stuff like that and think its rude. People that do talk about it tend to be convinced believers, and are as fun to talk to as missionaries that knock on your door at 9am Saturday mornings. But I try, and some of my friends, even the extremist believers, tend to at least try to talk. They all (both the right and the left) think I am whatever they are not. That is the way it goes when you are a professional contrarian like me. But at the end of each discussion I have learned something, and so have they, even if it is only more ammunition for their cause.
Politics is trench warfare in America because we have made it that way. It is unpolite to talk about religion or politics because we are all fans, and the only polite way to deal with a fan is to be a fan too.
Next time you hear someone say that so-and-so is a polarizing figure, think about it and try to work out who is really being the polarizer.
It goes both ways.
You hear this so much these days. Democrats will blame Bush for this, or Fox News, or some conservative bombthrowers that appear on AM radio. Republicans blamed Clinton for the same thing a few years ago, the media, special interest groups like Moveon.org. Democrats blame the war and Bush's unwillingness to get international approval before acting on foreign policy (read: Iraq). Republicans point to ... hell it doesn't really matter. It's all the same bullshit.
Here is the scoop, so listen good. The nation is polarized because YOU make it that way. Polarization goes both ways, by definition. Saying the other side is polarizing the debate is like blaming your children for not calling you that often: the phone lines go both ways.
The hard and true fact is that politics in America is polarized because people LIKE IT THAT WAY. Politics is the new fan-based sports entertainment. Who would want to go to a football game and agree. That is not the american way. We fight. We boo the bad calls the ump makes against our team and cheer the bad calls the ump makes in our favor. If there happens to be a bench-clearing brawl, we stand up and cheer and then blame the other team for starting it. Same thing with politics, we just put on fake aires and pretend to be thoughtfull about it all.
If you are on the left, you think that the right are dim-witted foggy-eyed corrupt jerks who think that waving an american flag and a cross is all the thinking necessary. You read the papers, especially LA and NY times op ed, you think that Air America is a great idea, agree that Cindy Sheehan is the only one qualified to have an opinon on the Iraq war, and you probably paid to see Farehneit 9/11 in the theatres. You have lots of opinions about Fox News, but you have never really watched it, and you can quote lots of bad things about the Oreily Factor, another show you have never seen. The only AM radio you can stomach is Air America, if you can get it. You get the Moveon.org newletter, and your mailbox is filled with campaign fundraising mail from liberal causes.
If you are on the right, you think that the left is trying to take God out of the nation and replace it with a loose set of athiestic morals. You blame the Media for a lot of this, even though the only media you really get consists of Fox News and various AM Radio programs. You have lots of opinions about the NY times, something you have never read, hate that guy Michael Moore and his pet Cindy Sheehan, though you didn't see Farenheit 9/11 except the clips they showed on the Oreily Factor.
If you are a moderate you feel like a lonely person at a football game with two teams you dislike equally.
I really hope you don't fit either of my stereotypes above. But look into your behaviors and see the facts. When was the last time you spent the time to thoroughly read through something that you disagreed with? Even if you don't claim to be a liberal or conservative, where do you get your news, and do you think that "your" choices are unbiased? I sumbit that all the news out there is biased, and if that you think you are getting both sides from one organization you are fooling yourself.
I have tried hard to break out of this mold. I try to have political discussions with people that disagree with me about religion and politics. Because of this I have few of these discussions; people don't like to talk about stuff like that and think its rude. People that do talk about it tend to be convinced believers, and are as fun to talk to as missionaries that knock on your door at 9am Saturday mornings. But I try, and some of my friends, even the extremist believers, tend to at least try to talk. They all (both the right and the left) think I am whatever they are not. That is the way it goes when you are a professional contrarian like me. But at the end of each discussion I have learned something, and so have they, even if it is only more ammunition for their cause.
Politics is trench warfare in America because we have made it that way. It is unpolite to talk about religion or politics because we are all fans, and the only polite way to deal with a fan is to be a fan too.
- We get all our information from sources that have a bias we agree with
- We consider our point of view fundementally more intellectual or morally superior than the opposing side
- We carry strong opinions of the other side with little or no accurate information about what they really believe
- We are comfortable
Next time you hear someone say that so-and-so is a polarizing figure, think about it and try to work out who is really being the polarizer.
It goes both ways.
Monday, July 24, 2006
My First Time
Well, after about 25 years of writing, I have finally had the guts to make an offical submission of one of my stories to a literary magazine. I know this may sound silly, but for some reason I have never had the balls to take this step with any of my stories or poems. Well, when it comes to my poems there is good reason: they suck hard. But some of my writing is not all that bad.
My goal is to be an author and not just a writer. Writing is something you are, like being white or being straight--you can't do anything about it. I write because not writing is harder. But attempting to write well has taken something that I have very little of: discipline. I am one lazy bastard when it comes to the hard work of getting my stories polished up enough to let them out of the house.
The story I am currently trying to sell is "Cowboy Up," which some of you may have read in a previous version. I have more projects in the works and am trying hard to start getting paid for writing so I don't have to get a real job. This way I can be lazy and successful at the same time.
Wish me luck!
My goal is to be an author and not just a writer. Writing is something you are, like being white or being straight--you can't do anything about it. I write because not writing is harder. But attempting to write well has taken something that I have very little of: discipline. I am one lazy bastard when it comes to the hard work of getting my stories polished up enough to let them out of the house.
The story I am currently trying to sell is "Cowboy Up," which some of you may have read in a previous version. I have more projects in the works and am trying hard to start getting paid for writing so I don't have to get a real job. This way I can be lazy and successful at the same time.
Wish me luck!
Friday, July 14, 2006
Update from the Duncan Clan
Here is some news from our house. Like most of my thoughts, it is a hodpodge of random tidbits of trivia that I find extremely important, and you probably won't. But you are the one reading it, so get a life.
I am now a Grandfather
Well, technically I won't be one for a few more months, but James is pregnant. He is currently engaged to a woman named Deanna and is helping to raise her 3yo boy named Donovan (I am sure I mispelled both of those names). We went up to see them in San Jose earlier this month, and they came down last week to visit.
It was a little sureal. So there I was with a little three-year-old on my lap, trying to figure out what my name was. Am I Grandpa or Papa or Nano, or just plain Jim? It was something of a crisis for me. I settled on Nano, which carries on a "Susan's family" tradition, since my family really has few traditions to speak of. Deanna is due in February of next year with James' progeny, which will make the whole Nano thing official for me.
Sticking with the strange qwerkiness of my family, everyone has chosen a strange name to be called. There will be precious few "Aunts" and "Uncles." Don't ask me who is who--I honestly have no clue and have to ask them constantly--but there is a Lala, a Nini, and I think a Tia or Shala thrown in for good measure. Susan is of course Nani, which made it an easier choice for me to be Nano. The murder of the Italian language goes on unabated in our family it seems.
James is doing well. He got his HS diploma (not GED), has enrolled in a local SJ community college, is on the football team as a defensive lineman, has his driver's license and a job. After achieving all of that in the space of a few months, hearing "oh, and we are having a baby" seemed to be anticlimactic. He has a tatoo on his ankle that says "Sobriety" and a date. I think this is the turnaround we have been waiting for as he seems to have decided to grow up all at once. Donovan and the new baby will finish that job for certain; it sure worked for me.
He and Deanna are engaged and plan to get married this September in a very small ceremony, with the big wedding ceremony planned next year when they can afford it.
Susan Quits her job
Finally tiring of her status as wipping-girl for the Case Management team, Susan gave her bosses the bird and handed in her resignation letter. It took her a lot of effort and guts to do it, but she was finally out from under the fat thumb of The Man (who in this case happens to be a woman, go figger).
... at least for a few days.
The Man didn't want her to leave, so he made her an offer she couldn't refuse. She is still working at the same place but under vastly different working arrangements, making her a lot like Michael Corleone: she tries to get out but they pull her back in. She is officially The Woman, now.
The Simpons in the Castle Club?
There is an episode of the Simpons where Marge says "...that night we joined the Castle Club." What I want to know is this: who let them in? I thought that required a point-of-order vote from the permanent members! Anyways, it was the episode where she and Homer get down and sloppy in a miniature golf course castle. Still, our club seems to be growing.
I was going to say that I saw a scene inspired by the Castle in a movie, but for the life of me I can't remember which movie it was. There is a mountain road with a long tunnel and a bridge that is the Castle bridge, except it is right in front of a large waterfall. Anyways, all of you Castle Club Members (at least the old ones who have actually been there) will know it when you see it. When my senior moment passes and I remember which movie we are in, I'll repost.
I am really earning my "Nano" title. If this is senility, I think I'll enjoy it.
Take care!
Jim
I am now a Grandfather
Well, technically I won't be one for a few more months, but James is pregnant. He is currently engaged to a woman named Deanna and is helping to raise her 3yo boy named Donovan (I am sure I mispelled both of those names). We went up to see them in San Jose earlier this month, and they came down last week to visit.
It was a little sureal. So there I was with a little three-year-old on my lap, trying to figure out what my name was. Am I Grandpa or Papa or Nano, or just plain Jim? It was something of a crisis for me. I settled on Nano, which carries on a "Susan's family" tradition, since my family really has few traditions to speak of. Deanna is due in February of next year with James' progeny, which will make the whole Nano thing official for me.
Sticking with the strange qwerkiness of my family, everyone has chosen a strange name to be called. There will be precious few "Aunts" and "Uncles." Don't ask me who is who--I honestly have no clue and have to ask them constantly--but there is a Lala, a Nini, and I think a Tia or Shala thrown in for good measure. Susan is of course Nani, which made it an easier choice for me to be Nano. The murder of the Italian language goes on unabated in our family it seems.
James is doing well. He got his HS diploma (not GED), has enrolled in a local SJ community college, is on the football team as a defensive lineman, has his driver's license and a job. After achieving all of that in the space of a few months, hearing "oh, and we are having a baby" seemed to be anticlimactic. He has a tatoo on his ankle that says "Sobriety" and a date. I think this is the turnaround we have been waiting for as he seems to have decided to grow up all at once. Donovan and the new baby will finish that job for certain; it sure worked for me.
He and Deanna are engaged and plan to get married this September in a very small ceremony, with the big wedding ceremony planned next year when they can afford it.
Susan Quits her job
Finally tiring of her status as wipping-girl for the Case Management team, Susan gave her bosses the bird and handed in her resignation letter. It took her a lot of effort and guts to do it, but she was finally out from under the fat thumb of The Man (who in this case happens to be a woman, go figger).
... at least for a few days.
The Man didn't want her to leave, so he made her an offer she couldn't refuse. She is still working at the same place but under vastly different working arrangements, making her a lot like Michael Corleone: she tries to get out but they pull her back in. She is officially The Woman, now.
The Simpons in the Castle Club?
There is an episode of the Simpons where Marge says "...that night we joined the Castle Club." What I want to know is this: who let them in? I thought that required a point-of-order vote from the permanent members! Anyways, it was the episode where she and Homer get down and sloppy in a miniature golf course castle. Still, our club seems to be growing.
I was going to say that I saw a scene inspired by the Castle in a movie, but for the life of me I can't remember which movie it was. There is a mountain road with a long tunnel and a bridge that is the Castle bridge, except it is right in front of a large waterfall. Anyways, all of you Castle Club Members (at least the old ones who have actually been there) will know it when you see it. When my senior moment passes and I remember which movie we are in, I'll repost.
I am really earning my "Nano" title. If this is senility, I think I'll enjoy it.
Take care!
Jim
Friday, January 06, 2006
Does Anyone Even Listen to this Guy?
Pat Robinson has done it again. In his never-ending battle to get bad publicity for himself, he has continued his brazen practice of one-upmanship with his nearest reactionary competitor: himself.
Here is a link sent to me by a reader of this blog (the reader?): http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10728347/
The significant remark:
Sharon “was dividing God’s land and I would say woe unto any prime minister of Israel who takes a similar course to appease the EU (European Union), the United Nations, or the United States of America,” Robertson said.
So, here is a tally of Good-ole Pat's recent remarks:
I know people out there watch this guy, listen to this guy, even revere this guy. This scares me more than the Taliban or Osama ever could. Stuff like this is not fit for print in America. Their paying audience should universally shun people like Pat Robinson If Christians can't police themselves and show a unified front against bigots like Pat Robinson, then woe unto them.
But maybe I'm wrong? Maybe there is a strong section of the USA that believes his crap?
Okay, now I'm really scared.
Here is a link sent to me by a reader of this blog (the reader?): http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id
The significant remark:
Sharon “was dividing God’s land and I would say woe unto any prime minister of Israel who takes a similar course to appease the EU (European Union), the United Nations, or the United States of America,” Robertson said.
So, here is a tally of Good-ole Pat's recent remarks:
- He implied that God struck down Israeli president Sheron with stroke because of Sheron's unilateral peace policies with Palestine
- He called for the American-sponsored assassination of Hugo Chavez, president of Venezuala
- He called for a meteor to hit Florida because Disneyworld had a Gay Day
- He suggested it would be poetic justice if a nuke would be tested out on the State Department building
I know people out there watch this guy, listen to this guy, even revere this guy. This scares me more than the Taliban or Osama ever could. Stuff like this is not fit for print in America. Their paying audience should universally shun people like Pat Robinson If Christians can't police themselves and show a unified front against bigots like Pat Robinson, then woe unto them.
But maybe I'm wrong? Maybe there is a strong section of the USA that believes his crap?
Okay, now I'm really scared.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
NaNoWriMo 2005
Here is my commitment. I'll be doing it this year one way or another (though I think I said that last year).
What is NaNoWriMo? Simply put, it is 50,000 words (~175 pages) of a novel that is begun November 1 and ends November 30. I have a few ideas of what I will be writing, including perhaps a second attempt (from the beginning) on my last year project (which crashed and burned in week 2).
Once I start writing I will probably have no time for revision; revision traditionally starts December 1. But if the opening chapters are not too horrible, I may revise them enough to post online here or in a blog made for that purpose.
The novel will be either Horror, Fantasy, Sci-fi, or more likely something that spans two of these genres. I will not be the great american novel. But if you like dark fantasy or speculative fiction, then maybe you'll be interested. If you are an editor or publisher, then just know that everything about me is up for sale :-)
So here is the first step!
Only 50,000 words left. I'm almost there!
Jim
What is NaNoWriMo? Simply put, it is 50,000 words (~175 pages) of a novel that is begun November 1 and ends November 30. I have a few ideas of what I will be writing, including perhaps a second attempt (from the beginning) on my last year project (which crashed and burned in week 2).
Once I start writing I will probably have no time for revision; revision traditionally starts December 1. But if the opening chapters are not too horrible, I may revise them enough to post online here or in a blog made for that purpose.
The novel will be either Horror, Fantasy, Sci-fi, or more likely something that spans two of these genres. I will not be the great american novel. But if you like dark fantasy or speculative fiction, then maybe you'll be interested. If you are an editor or publisher, then just know that everything about me is up for sale :-)
So here is the first step!
Only 50,000 words left. I'm almost there!
Jim
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Everything I Needed to Know I learned from Pat Robinson
On the Monday edition of the 700 Club (a Christain talk show) Pat Robinson made the following comments about Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez:
"If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it."
We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with.
"We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability."
This is not spin, they are direct quotes. They are not an out-of-context but the theme of his larger statement (which you can watch for yourself on the CNN website here). When I first heard about this quote, I didn't believe it. But after listening to his statement a few times--and coming to grips with its inner truths--here is what I have learned:
1. Thou shalt not commit murder applies to everyone, so long as you are not a commie and/or a Muslim Extremist.
2. Political assasination is a valid and moral form of politics according to mainstream popular Christian thought.
3. What Would Jesus Do? Assasinate commies to save the money of a war.
4. All that talk of turning the other cheek in the Holy Bible was meant to be taken figuratively, as is the sixth commandment.
Okay... enough of that. I really only learned one thing from that statement by Pat Robinson:
Pat Robinson is the biggest hipocrit in American Christian Politics. He should resign in shame and spend his life in repentance to save his soul.
People like this make Americans look like idiots. Osama is laughing his ass off and pointing at the TV, saying "See, I told you!" In fact, what Pat Robinson said is so similar to the things that Osama says in his speeches that I am still geeking out about it. Osama says that Americans should die for who they are: infidel imperialists. Pat Robinson says that Chavez should die for what he is: a communist supporter of muslim extremism. I might add that Chavez was elected by his nation (though under the cloud of fixed elections).
I am not defending Chavez. If he died today, I would not cry. To say he is a threat to the US and the region in general is not overstating the problem. Chavez is a dictator in the style of Castro and Kim Jong-il, and under his leadership we can expect in his country the kind of prosperity we see in Cuba and North Korea. His country sits on a third of the world's oil, which could have a tremendous effect on world economies, a power I don't think is safe in his hands. I want him out. I find it hard to believe any free-minded person in America would support his tenure, but calling for his assassination by the US is so stupid as to be absurd.
Other thinks Pat Robinson has said:
If Robinson was an elected official he would be driven out on a rail. But he is only a very prominant Christian evangelist politician/preacher who failed miserably in national politics (thankfully). It is up to those that he has supported in the past (read: Bush) to tear him a new one and put him in his place. That place must be absolute political isolation, the kind we give to KKK members.
Pat Robinson is lucky enough to live in a country where his right to be an abject asshole on national TV is protected by the constitution. It is incumbant on the rest of us to show him just how much we appreciate his opinions. In the American discourse on politics statements like this cannot be allowed to represent us, no matter if you are conservative, moderate, or liberal. This kind of speech is unamerican.
What is the difference between an extremist arab calling for the death of americans and an extremist Christian calling for the death of Chavez?
Answer: not a whole hell of a lot.
I will be carefully watching the responses from those in America who call themselves religious. How they react to this kind of terrorist-like statement will massively modify my opinion of them. Anyone backing up this kind of statement deserves to be pushed off the political bus.
"If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it."
We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with.
"We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability."
This is not spin, they are direct quotes. They are not an out-of-context but the theme of his larger statement (which you can watch for yourself on the CNN website here). When I first heard about this quote, I didn't believe it. But after listening to his statement a few times--and coming to grips with its inner truths--here is what I have learned:
1. Thou shalt not commit murder applies to everyone, so long as you are not a commie and/or a Muslim Extremist.
2. Political assasination is a valid and moral form of politics according to mainstream popular Christian thought.
3. What Would Jesus Do? Assasinate commies to save the money of a war.
4. All that talk of turning the other cheek in the Holy Bible was meant to be taken figuratively, as is the sixth commandment.
Okay... enough of that. I really only learned one thing from that statement by Pat Robinson:
Pat Robinson is the biggest hipocrit in American Christian Politics. He should resign in shame and spend his life in repentance to save his soul.
People like this make Americans look like idiots. Osama is laughing his ass off and pointing at the TV, saying "See, I told you!" In fact, what Pat Robinson said is so similar to the things that Osama says in his speeches that I am still geeking out about it. Osama says that Americans should die for who they are: infidel imperialists. Pat Robinson says that Chavez should die for what he is: a communist supporter of muslim extremism. I might add that Chavez was elected by his nation (though under the cloud of fixed elections).
I am not defending Chavez. If he died today, I would not cry. To say he is a threat to the US and the region in general is not overstating the problem. Chavez is a dictator in the style of Castro and Kim Jong-il, and under his leadership we can expect in his country the kind of prosperity we see in Cuba and North Korea. His country sits on a third of the world's oil, which could have a tremendous effect on world economies, a power I don't think is safe in his hands. I want him out. I find it hard to believe any free-minded person in America would support his tenure, but calling for his assassination by the US is so stupid as to be absurd.
Other thinks Pat Robinson has said:
- He called for a meator to hit Florida because Disneyworld had a Gay Day.
- He suggested it would be poetic justice if a nuke would be tested out on the State Department building
If Robinson was an elected official he would be driven out on a rail. But he is only a very prominant Christian evangelist politician/preacher who failed miserably in national politics (thankfully). It is up to those that he has supported in the past (read: Bush) to tear him a new one and put him in his place. That place must be absolute political isolation, the kind we give to KKK members.
Pat Robinson is lucky enough to live in a country where his right to be an abject asshole on national TV is protected by the constitution. It is incumbant on the rest of us to show him just how much we appreciate his opinions. In the American discourse on politics statements like this cannot be allowed to represent us, no matter if you are conservative, moderate, or liberal. This kind of speech is unamerican.
What is the difference between an extremist arab calling for the death of americans and an extremist Christian calling for the death of Chavez?
Answer: not a whole hell of a lot.
I will be carefully watching the responses from those in America who call themselves religious. How they react to this kind of terrorist-like statement will massively modify my opinion of them. Anyone backing up this kind of statement deserves to be pushed off the political bus.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Class of 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011...
School starts next week and I can't wait.
I am beginning to think that I will be a perpetual student. I don't mean that in a trite way ("I will never graduate") or in a philosphical way ("I will always be learning as I grow old in this world of ours"), but rather I really will be in one school or another for the rest of my life, by choice and for fun.
I graduate this Winter with my BA in English Writing (that should get me a job about as fast as Darren's philosphy degree) and will be going on for my Masters in the Spring. I will be teaching as a substitute in the AV next year, assuming they will accept a non-credential degree. One of my goals is to be a college professor, but while I work that out I may be going back to undergrad work and completing my credential classes to get my English Specialist (whatever that is) rank so I can teach middle- and Highschool English and Language Arts while working on my Masters. Happy happy joy joy.
What I really need to do is to sell a series of novels and become a world famous author. Then I can get lots of honorary degrees for speaking at graduations.
But even as I write this I am thinking about what my "second" degree will be in. Perhaps history, anthropology, photography (they offer that?) or some science. I would make a great theoretical physicist if it didn't include mathmatics. I really hate math, but there I am listening to KITP lectures on superstring theory and particle physics (not understanding most of it except as general concepts), and hating math is one of those things that kind of precludes a career as the next Stephen Hawking. BTW, the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics is a great site. They have all their lectures, workshops, and discussions recorded in Realmedia. Hawking seems to present there at least once a year, and some of them are actually understandable by novice fans of physics and astronomy like myself. If you have an interest in the state of particle physics, superstring theory, M-theory, or just want to be taken down a notch on the pride scale, listen in.
Perhaps I will go for my PhD in English. It is kind of premature to think about that, but as I am already conteplating another discipline, well, maybe not.
Griffin was pretty surprised when I told him that I had already read my Astronomy textbook for the class that starts in two weeks. In fact, I will probably have the books assigned by all my professors for the Fall schedule read once through before classes start. During the Summer I have listened to eight complete classes-on-tape (well MP3) on subjects that are similar to my schedule (e.g. A 40 hour course in Astronomy, The Civil War: a Narrative, A couple pop history courses with titles like "everything you learned in highschool is wrong" and stuff like that).
So, I am here to report that my OCD is doing just fine, thanks.
I should be putting up a couple smallish sci-fi stories that I have written and do not plan to sell, so stay tuned.
I am beginning to think that I will be a perpetual student. I don't mean that in a trite way ("I will never graduate") or in a philosphical way ("I will always be learning as I grow old in this world of ours"), but rather I really will be in one school or another for the rest of my life, by choice and for fun.
I graduate this Winter with my BA in English Writing (that should get me a job about as fast as Darren's philosphy degree) and will be going on for my Masters in the Spring. I will be teaching as a substitute in the AV next year, assuming they will accept a non-credential degree. One of my goals is to be a college professor, but while I work that out I may be going back to undergrad work and completing my credential classes to get my English Specialist (whatever that is) rank so I can teach middle- and Highschool English and Language Arts while working on my Masters. Happy happy joy joy.
What I really need to do is to sell a series of novels and become a world famous author. Then I can get lots of honorary degrees for speaking at graduations.
But even as I write this I am thinking about what my "second" degree will be in. Perhaps history, anthropology, photography (they offer that?) or some science. I would make a great theoretical physicist if it didn't include mathmatics. I really hate math, but there I am listening to KITP lectures on superstring theory and particle physics (not understanding most of it except as general concepts), and hating math is one of those things that kind of precludes a career as the next Stephen Hawking. BTW, the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics is a great site. They have all their lectures, workshops, and discussions recorded in Realmedia. Hawking seems to present there at least once a year, and some of them are actually understandable by novice fans of physics and astronomy like myself. If you have an interest in the state of particle physics, superstring theory, M-theory, or just want to be taken down a notch on the pride scale, listen in.
Perhaps I will go for my PhD in English. It is kind of premature to think about that, but as I am already conteplating another discipline, well, maybe not.
Griffin was pretty surprised when I told him that I had already read my Astronomy textbook for the class that starts in two weeks. In fact, I will probably have the books assigned by all my professors for the Fall schedule read once through before classes start. During the Summer I have listened to eight complete classes-on-tape (well MP3) on subjects that are similar to my schedule (e.g. A 40 hour course in Astronomy, The Civil War: a Narrative, A couple pop history courses with titles like "everything you learned in highschool is wrong" and stuff like that).
So, I am here to report that my OCD is doing just fine, thanks.
I should be putting up a couple smallish sci-fi stories that I have written and do not plan to sell, so stay tuned.
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