Why does everything seem so much better...? the rash you've been scratching all week is almost gone... the cup of tea taste better and you got a full nights sleep thursday... Is it the anticipation of 2 days off or is it some sort of cosmic completion coming into balance? Either way, I feel good today. Very zen and balanced. I look around and see beauty. I'm going to try to have lunch somewhere outside and enjoy a fantastic day.
So news reports are full of Clinton calling Obama "elitist" for his comments about people in small towns "clinging to God and Guns" because they're afraid... which outraged people in small towns in Pennsylvania so much they put down their guns and went to church to decide what to do.
The AP reported that Clinton spent the day eating pizza and drinking beer to prove how non-elitist she is... They also reported that She did shots of Crown Royal. Pander much?
What the AP didn't report is after about 10 shots, she then lifted her white wifebeater tank and showed her tits to everyone in the bar and then left on a harley with a man-ish woman named "chris" who resembled John Goodman. She's so butch. She could totally kick my ass.
A blog that I semi-regularly read has a story about a European transplant's experience in Washington DC. There's a running theme taken from a children's book the world is simply too big to be crammed into only 26 letters and we must experience life beyond A-Z.
I find myself feeling very similar emotions of late without adequate words to describe it. My normal optimism fails me and I must reach for a reason to believe that the world will be a better place. Part of it is The War Without End. Part of it is simply the provincial attitudes that pervade the culture in which I live. Take this story about commissioners warning against the Day Of Silence for GLBTQ students or this One about a "new drug" Salvia that Purple Haze is selling ( on 34th Street South if you've never been there, just north of the exit for the old Suncoast Resort ). There's some do-gooder state legislator on the west coast... here's the quote:
"We need to do everything we can to protect our children in a world where there are massive temptations," said Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach.
or, alternatively titled: "There's no such thing as bad press."
Throughout the next few months as Hillary and Barak duke it out for the Democratic nomination, there are many who say the scuffle is "bad for the party" and "one of them needs to give in". I couldn't disagree more.
I think what's bad for the party is monolithic politics with no opportunity for one citizen to make any sort of a difference. The idea that any one vote can make all the difference in the world has reinvigorated the democratic party in ways no candidate ever could. And despite polls that say voters on either side of the current battle "will hold their nose" and vote for McCain if their candidate looses is complete rubbish. Hillary voters are never going to vote to elect Bush II and Obama voters are not going to vote for a pro war candidate.
Allowing this battle to continue to it's conclusion at the convention is going to lead to one thing and one thing alone. More camera time for both candidates. The question is framed as not whether to vote Democrat or Republican but which democrat to vote for. And That's a question thats a popularity no democrat has enjoyed in my lifetime.
Barak and Hillary... Keep arguing. Keep having good weeks and bad weeks. Maintain your position on the issues and by all means FIGHT. It will not leave you bloodied for the general election, on the contrary, it will make you (Cue the Kanye.....) stronger.
Watching the tv mini-series John Adams i'm astounded by our barbarism. Our infant America was a violent place of insolent British ex-pats centered in Boston. And were treated with equal violence and arrogance by the British Empire. Its a wonder either country survived.
"Most men are evil and weak and viscous and are in great need of restraint." -John Adams
I love this series. I hope it wins more Emmys than Paul Giamatti can carry.
"What qualifies Hillary Clinton to be president? Is it that she was married to the president? if that's the case Robin Givins would be heavyweight champion of the world."
-Tracy Morgan
There's a report out today that Paypal has discouraged use of the Safari web browser because "it has no anti-phishing" plugin/feature/attachment. My response to that is... Who's responsibility is security? The expectation that a car manufacturer would build a car that would tell you when you're going to be car-jacked seems a bit far-fetched.
When those phishing bank emails came out a few years back, my bank's response was to institute a two-tier login system that, quite frankly, was a pain in the ass until you got used to it. Yes, I locked myself out of my account a few times, but now I know that bank logins are secure. Is paypal at all responsible for not instituting what most banks now feel is a "standard" feature to their website? Seems like if they really cared about security they would.
What about my responsibility? If you see a paypal logo and login on the page and URL is just an IP address or some crazy ukrainian URL, is there no recognition that at least 50% of the responsibility of thinking "hey maybe I don't want to give ukrainians my paypal login information" ....maybe just SOME of that responsibility rests with me?
I understand too well how unreasonable the uneducated computer using hoards (READ 'windows users') can be. I deal with it on a regular basis. Issues like "most users won't see that button" and "most users don't know what that is" is regularly part of the feedback I get on the websites I build. 'It doesn't look right in IE 5' ....and 'My aunt who uses AOL 4 can't get the HTML in that email. What do we do about AOL 4 users, mr smarty-pants web developer?'....Yea, I been there paypal. I feel ya.
But either way, I have a message for paypal's PR dept.....My safari is perfectly safe and I love it just fine, thank you. If you're stupid enough to give your login information away, that's just darwinism in action. You are the slow antelope of the herd and as such, have been selected by nature for extinction. Please turn in your computer at the Best Buy where you purchased it with a DVD of the latest Kate Hudson/Matthew McConaughey movie.
Now paypal's usage fees, that's a crime for which there is no plugin!
Beware the flying killer angels and thank god for Cyborg Dwarves. If you haven't caught the Doctor Who Christmas Special 2007, you REALLY need to. It's filled with fantastical story telling that only Russel Davies can provide. If you're not in the UK, take a look on new torrents and see if you can't download it. The version I got had almost 100 seeds. Here's a link.
Oh, and Kylie Minogue is SIMPLY BRILLIANT. Russell YOU MUST BRING HER BACK!!!!
There are two types of people in the world: those that add to the creativity and life in the universe; and those that suck the creativity and life out of the universe. The sukers destroy your creative ideas. They tell you what you've done is and can never be good enough. And never add to the creative content of the worlds knowledge.
I work with so many suckers. I see them walking the halls despondant for some fulfillment that will never come. It breaks my heart. And then makes me angry when they try to pull me down into their holes.
So what do you do? Do you support the business in Largo or Brandon? Are business, because they did nothing, complicit in the firing of Susan Stanton?
During the last century, pastors of predominantly white churches stood by and did nothing as black church were blown up for making a stand on civil rights. Are they complicit in the bigotry? You bet your King James Version they were.
Do you go to Cracker Barrel and have the country breakfast with chicken because the deep friend chicken with gravy and biskits are simply HEEEEEEAAAAAAAAVEN even though their company policies call for firing of GLBTQ employees, which don't get me wrong... is very, very bad. But I think I need more fried chicken before I can decide how bad it really is.... Which circles back to my need for another belt.
Damn. now i'm hungry.
A few years back the Southern Baptist Convention began a boycott of Disney World because of their sponsorship of "Gay Days". Thing was, Disney's never "supported" gay days. I have a bunch of friends that attend non-fundy (that's short for fundamentalist in Baptist-speak) Baptist churches and I tried to explain to them Gay Days is a bunch of GLBTQ patrons all buying tickets on the same day and attending the park. Disney doesn't do anything for them that they wouldn't do for any other group that does the same.... There's a Twins day where identical twins all buy tickets. They have family reunions, Bahmitzvas and destination weddings. Some of which are support by Disney staff, but many of which are people simply choosing to attend the park on the same day. The host hotel for Gay Days, to the best of my knowledge has never been "On Property" at Disney and Gay Days has never really been a "disney sponsored" event. But the fundies never got this.
During their boycott Disney stock and profits actually went UP. Long story short, Boycotts don't work and they're usually aimed at the wrong entity.
So if I go to get a belt at my favorite big-and-tall store in Largo, am I indirectly sending a message that there is no price to pay for firing susan stanton?
So in the oh-so-true words of Cheryl Crow, "it's hard to make a stand."
same song second verse. I called apple today about the replacement iPhone. I told them the loaner they sent me works grea, however the replcement they sent had a defective home button. When the home button is pressed it sometimes sticks underneath the iPhone chasis. They apologized and said they would send me yet another loaner and i'd have to send back the first loaner ad send the replacement phone in and they'd repair or rplace the replacement. ...sigh... The joys of first generation products.
