tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63610051398103038932024-03-12T21:57:24.507-05:00Pocket JacksJay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.comBlogger747125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-23108699105589850982013-09-29T19:58:00.000-05:002013-09-29T20:11:49.863-05:00Bump,Set, Spike<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Macy's new passion is volleyball. She's been playing for over a year now and this year is her first chance to play for her school. It's the first sport she's played that she enjoys practice, so, wow. Her team is undefeated so far (4-0).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Here are some photos of her in action this weekend at a tournament in Fargo--in which they won every match, so they're doing pretty well.</span><br />
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Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-20574966477270107472013-09-07T20:28:00.000-05:002013-09-07T20:28:17.593-05:00The Consequences of a Living Wage<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Despite my complete dearth of material, Rob Port, editor and owner of the website Say Anything, is allowing me to write a weekly column for his web site. Here's an excerpt:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Providing a “living wage” is all the rage these days. From fast food <s>workers</s> union organizers all the way down to that person on Facebook that posts pictures of Che Guevara on her timeline, the living wage is all the rage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">But what exactly is a living wage? Sure, I get that it means “earning enough to sustain yourself”. But what is it, really? CheLover69 will tell you it’s the key to ending poverty. Is it? I don’t think so. Let’s do a little thought exercise.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A cashier at McDonalds–I’ll call her </span><a href="http://www.humanevents.com/2012/05/03/who-the-hell-is-julia-and-why-am-i-paying-for-her-whole-life/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Julia</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">–makes the federal minimum wage. Julia didn’t go to college, has no career plans, and is content to work there. She has no husband and no children. Her only issue is that the federal minimum wage doesn’t pay the rent for her one bedroom apartment, her iPhone bill, her car payment, utilities, groceries, gas, and cable bill. So she agitates for a higher wage. Thousands join in with Julia and </span><a href="http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/08/29/fast-food-workers-strike-across-the-nation-demand-15-an-hour/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">demand $15 an hour</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. McDonalds acquiesces and now we live in a world where Ronald McDonald pays every employee what they need to pay their bills. Julia now makes $15 an hour and she is happy.</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Click </span><a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/winkis-column-the-consequences-of-a-living-wage/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> to continue reading...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">You can read all my postings at Say Anything </span><a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/author/jay-w/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">.</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-1443225559153375982013-01-30T21:35:00.000-06:002013-01-30T21:35:37.573-06:00DBR and the Horizon Middle School Orchestra<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Macy and the rest of the Horizon Middle School orchestra performed at Fargo Assembly of God church last night, because apparently if you want enough room to seat all of grades 5-8 and their friends and family you have to use a church. (Seriously, if I attended that church and they passed around the collection plate I would give my best <em>watchoo talkin bout Willis</em> look.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The orchestra got to perform with a world-renowned composer and concert violinist, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/dbrmusic" target="_blank">Daniel Bernard Roumain</a>. It was a very cool performance, as DBR kept things moving and basically ad-libbed some great accompaniments to the songs (he only had about four hours across two days to work with the kids).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Macy is coming along with her violin playing, and it's reflected in the growing complexity of the pieces she's playing. Last night's selections were <em>Double Trouble</em> and the awesomely named <em>Dragon Hunter</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">I readily admit that I had trouble finding Macy during the first piece so if you don't recognize the people I zoom in on, that's okay; neither did I.</span><br />
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Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-25412623707891679602013-01-21T11:53:00.000-06:002013-01-21T11:53:00.131-06:00A Thoroughly Amateurish Review of the Beefsteak Club<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">If you've ever read this blog you probably know about my passionate but depressingly short love affair with Norman's (aka Redford's). It was a beautiful steakhouse that served by far the best ribeye I have ever tasted. I dined at steakhouses in Boston and Minneapolis while Norman's was around and it wasn't close; Fargo was home to the better beef.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">However, for all its excellence Norman's had one major flaw: location. Not in the sense that it was situated in a bad neighborhood or far off the beaten path. No, it sat on a major thoroughfare. The problem was the building. Before it became home to the Greatest Ribeye Ever I Et, it was a Bennigan's. Don't get me wrong; they did an amazing job renovating it. It was beautiful, comfortable and exuded "classy" out of its butt. But if you've ever been in a Bennigan's (or anywhere in its family tree: Chili's, TGI Fridays, Applebees, etc.) then you know how big those buildings are. Norman's was far too big to be able to get enough customers in the door. And let me tell you, it wasn't cheap. The menu was a la carte which, as you know, is French for "that costs extra". You easily spent $70 a person there. Now, that's not to say it wasn't worth it (did I mention how good it was?). However,in a smaller market like Fargo you have to think small when it comes to pricy cuisine. The <a href="http://pocketjacksblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/when-did-fargo-become-great-restaurant.html">best places in town</a> are all orders of magnitude smaller than a Bennigan's. And with the exception of the Silver Moon Supper Club--which is now Mezzaluna, a very strong contender for "best restaurant in Fargo"--they're all still around. This is because you can get 50 or 60 Fargoans to come and pay $40 for a steak. You can't fill a Bennigan's on a nightly basis with those prices.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Which brings us to Saturday night. Donna and I decided to have a date night so I made a reservation at <a href="http://bscfargo.com/">The Beefsteak Club</a>, the new steakhouse in town. As is the custom of my people we began the night elsewhere (in this case the Hotel Donaldson) with <strike>our d'</strike> <strike>owerder</strike> <strike>ouer d'ur</strike> appetizers and drinks (I had a lovely Manhattan while the lady enjoyed an espresso "martini"--I'd explain the quotes but that's a whole other thing and the internet is only so big.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We arrived at the Beefsteak Club at 7:30. While the HoDo was rapidly filling up by 7:00, The BSC was nearly empty. There was no one at the bar and there were two tables seated. When I say there was no one at the bar, I mean that literally. There wasn't even a bartender. No hostess either. Not the best way to make an impression. I realized later that there was no hostess on duty--the only server was pulling double duty--and the bartender was also acting as an expediter/food deliverer. Usually when a restaurant only needs one server and doesn't see fit to have a hostess working it's because business is bad. I suspect this is the case at the BSC and I think I know why.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i>If it hadn't been for an article I read in the Forum, I wouldn't have known this place existed.</i> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I get the word of mouth thing, I really do. You think, <i>if my food is good enough word will get around</i>. In a lot of cases you'd probably be right. But it doesn't seem to be catching on at the BSC. This place is in sore need of an advertising budget. A 15 second TV commercial. A Sunday newspaper ad. People out on the streets handing out samples. Preferably all of these things. As a side note, I realize that this past Saturday was not nice weather-wise and that certainly depressed the turnout downtown. But like I said, the HoDo was filling up by the time we left to walk the half-a-block to the restaurant, so there were people out that night.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The building is nice, though it looks very different from the Italian joint that used to be there. I can't remember if it was called Stella's or Isabella's when I was last there. I know I only went there once because it was the worst experience I've ever had in a restaurant, and I've been to places that served hobo meat. I wish I had been blogging back then, because I'd have another page to link to. Oh well. Suffice to say, the BSC ownership have nothing to do with that atrocity so let's move on. The current facility is a little echo-y as there isn't a ton on the walls, and what's there doesn't do much to absorb sound. I'm a big fan of the minimalist aesthetic, so I'm okay with the decor. I just wish it was a little less like enjoying a meal in a canyon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Next to the meal itself the service is the most important thing in a restaurant (and I don't just say that because I used to wait tables). Our service experience was actually quite nice. She brought us both water without being asked once it was clear that we were having cocktails and not soda (seriously, all you aspiring servers out there: if your table is drinking anything other than soda, BRING WATER). She was present but not hovering, which is a danger when you're not overly busy. She was pleasant and had an answer when we asked her what she liked on the menu. Her only mistake was asking me if I wanted steak sauce. I'm not in a Sizzler. My reply to her was a mock-horrified, "I hope not!" All in all a class act. I tipped the hell out of her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The food was a mixed bag, however. As with Norman's, the menu is ala carte. Despite it's $61 price tag, I beat back visions of starving children in Alabama and ordered the ribeye. Donna had the more sensibly priced filet ($31 for a 10-ounce cut). We rounded it out with a four cheese pasta dish, mashed potatoes, assorted mushrooms (at the recommendation of the server) and a caesar salad. The salad was quite good, a little soggy but nothing to get upset about. Frankly, I think it must be hard to get that right because so many places screw it up royally. The mushrooms were delicious. I would love to tell you what all the varieties are but I didn't have any paper to write the names down and most of them were in Japanese. If you go there--when you go there--get them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The pasta and potatoes were good, not great. Both were seriously under-salted. Of the two I think the pasta was better. You could get the cheesiness from it and the flavor was there just beneath the surface. It just needed a little salt to bring it out. The potatoes were frankly just mashed potatoes and while you may be thinking, "well, what did you expect", I can make a better version myself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Price-wise however, the side items are <i>very</i> reasonably priced. Most of them are $4 (the pasta was $6) and easily serve two. This really encourages you to try a lot of different things. Next time I'll try the creamed spinach for sure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Now, on to the steaks. It would be very difficult for me to say that a place has better steaks than Norman's. However, in this case I don't have to. My ribeye was not as good as the best Norman's used to produce. That is not a slight, though, as the beef was delicious. I mean, really, really good. It was not, however, $61 good. $45 good? Absolutely. $50 good? Yeah, I could see that. Not more than that though. I have no idea what the margin is on that ribeye, but if there's any room to cut it, they should consider it. I do want to emphasize that it was a great steak though. Best in town, frankly, now that Norman's is gone. Tender, cooked perfectly. I realized after a few bites that I was using my butter knife to cut it. I'm not joking. Great marbling. Beautiful cut. It's just not worth $61 (to me anyway).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Luckily I can heartily endorse the filet. It was fantastic. Juicy and tender, ever-so-slightly undercooked for Donna's taste, at least in the center (she ordered medium-rare), but that's the part I taste-tested anyway (I go for rare, baby). Great flavor, beautifully presented. When I go back (and I will) that's what I'll have.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">For desert we had a piece of cheesecake the size of Jupiter. Seriously, other, smaller deserts were orbiting this thing. Occasionally a parfait would collide with a streudel and rain sweetness down onto the table. A pecan pie was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redshift">red-shifted</a>. Okay, I'll stop now. But it was big. Really big. Frankly it was too big. It could easily serve three and probably four people. It was good however, and the presentation was simple but elegant. The blueberries and strawberries however, while visually pleasing, weren't really very appetizing. I'm sure that's because they aren't in season. It might be a good idea to just use whatever fruit is ripest rather than forcing the berries. I'd rather have an out-of-place kiwi or something than unripe and tasteless strawberries.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">It's obvious that the chef is still tinkering with some of his dishes as he came to our table after the desert plates were cleared to ask us for feedback. We talked about the need for salt in some of the side dishes and he seemed receptive. We did make an effort to stress to him that we enjoyed the meal and would be back. There's room for improvement in some of the dishes but nothing that can't be fixed easily. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">So all in all The Beefsteak Club is a mixed experience, but all the pieces are there for it to become great. The service was good (if a little thin) the food was uneven (ranging from great to middling), but the potential is there; they get the big things right and the little things are all easily fixable. I'll be going back and you should try it too. If it does manage to rise up to the level of a Norman's (and it's not that far away), we need to make sure we don't lose it.</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-80080901507725167532013-01-13T11:32:00.000-06:002013-01-13T15:15:55.297-06:00Margarita Blogging the NFC Playoffs: 2013 Edition<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">As <strike>threatened</strike> promised, I am going to liveblog the playoff game between the Falcons and Seahawks. As has been the case the last few seasons, the Falcons are in the position of both having no chance against their opponent and being labelled chokers when they are upset.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">I often think that the life of a sports journalist must be one of the easiest vocations in the world. You get to say contradictory things and rewrite history at a whim. For example, when talking about the 2012 edition of the Atlanta Falcons, nearly every sports pundit outside of Jimmy Johnson (and he's probably just hopped up on Cialis or whatever) spent nearly each week applying the following formula:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1. Declaring that the Falcons are <em>finally</em> going to be tested against an opponent, giving them their chance to legitimize their lofty record.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2. Picking Atlanta to lose.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">3. Deciding that--after Atlanta beat them handlily--the opponent isn't really that great.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">4. Proposing to Peyton Manning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">This was the pattern against San Diego (and it turns out the Chargers had just decided to suck all season instead of just the first half), Denver, Philadelphia (Andy Reid cannot be defeated after a bye week!), Tampa Bay, New Orleans, and the Giants. Atlanta killed all of those teams (including Denver--seriously, they dominated that game top to bottom except for a nine minute stretch across the 3rd and 4th quarters). The Giants game was so bad that everyone retroactively declared that New York had always been at war with Oceania.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">So, I fully expect that either Atlanta will win today, at which point sports pundits all over the globe will claim that Seattle never had a football team at all or Seattle will win and the Falcons will become "chokers" again for being upset by a team that is universally acclaimed as better in every phase of the game.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Either way I will be drunk on margaritas.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">-------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">11:42: I just had text conversation with my brother:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Him: here we go.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Me: i'm already drinking and blogging.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Him: i've been drinking since 11:00. tough matchup for us but i have faith.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Me: if we had faith we wouldn't need to drink.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">11:51: Nervously reminding Donna that she has five minutes to finish up whatever quest she is on in Skyrim.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">11:55: My first "offical" sip of margarita.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">11:57: I just came up with a positive in Atlant's favor: Keith Brooking doesn't play for us anymore.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">11:58: Brian Billick just said that Pete Carroll knows that Atlanta is 13-7 in the Georgia Dome over the last five seasons. I'm not positive but I don't think that's correct.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:00: Completely forgot that they show the national anthem part of games in the playoffs. Not a bad rendition... short and to the point. Mike Smith looks constipated.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:04: Same feeling I always have before a playoff game kickoff... Hope slipping away.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><strong>1st Quarter</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:06: I see the Seahwks brought in an ex-Packer to kick. We're doomed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:07: Okay, Turner. You're only good for 40 yards a game. Don't use em all up at once.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:07: That's better.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:11: Roddy White just tied the Atlanta postseason record for career receptions with 23. how sad. I mean, good job.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:13: We have already scored more points than we did in the 2011 playoffs. Baby steps. Nice play on that end zone pass on 3rd down by whatshisname.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:15: Now we get to see if Mike Nolan has really been saving his crazy shifting defenses for the playoffs, or if he has contracted Brian Van Gorder Disease, in which you hallucinate that your vanilla 4-3 defense is doing really well. It also makes you go into prevent mode any time you have more than a 1 point lead in the second half.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:19: And the answer on the first drive is: crazy shifting defense. I like that they do that on purpose, unlike previous years where they genuinely didn't know what to do.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:21: Football 101: It's where the ball goes out of bounds on a punt, not where it lands. Okay, we got 3-and-out and we got great field position. Clearly we need to put the pedal to the metal. If we don't get a touchdown here we will lose this game. I'm completely serious.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:25: And we're done. What the hell was that?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:27: And upon further review Tony Gonzales stopped running. Not Ryan's fault, but why do these thing always seem to happen to us?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:29: That exact play worked against the Saints. Let the back go untouched through the line, pick up ten yards and then, just as he's thinking, "wow, Atlanta really <em>can't</em> play the run", poke it out of his arm. That's coaching, people.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:35: Apparently Julio Jones is wearing a Seahawks backpack to this game.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:37: Some guy named Coffman just made a ridiculous catch at the goalline. I follow the Falcons religiously and I've never heard of this guy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:38: And on the next play Tony Gonzales makes up for it with an acrobatic touchdown catch. Keep it up kid and someday you could grow up to be Kevin Coffman.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:40: Matt Bryant has eaten his Wheaties today.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:45: And now Dominique Franks has infected Harry Douglas. CATCH THE PUNT</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:47: Jaquizz Rodgers just ran through a safety, who is now dead. Add another 40+ yards onto it. Apparently Marshawn Lynch made a mistake publishing the beast mode codes on his Twitter feed. Good TV timeout to give the grounds crew time to bury that safety.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><strong>2nd Quarter</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:50: I like that they're taking shots downfield, but at some point White or Jones need to make a play.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:56: Donna asked me how to spell "Jacquizz".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">12:57: The entire line stood up at the same time. I'm going to blame that false start on the center.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:00: Those "labels out" commercials kill me. It's like they don't realize that their team would already be up by four touchdowns if they weren't drinking Bud Light.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:03: Seriously, Nolan needs to dial up some pressure on Wilson, knock him on his ass some. He's got way too much time to stand there looking posteresque.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:06: Here's your chance to completely kill them. 4th down.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:06: Sweet merciful crap. Weird that they ran it up the middle on 3rd and 4th and Lynch didn't get to touch it. Using your main back as a decoy is a sign of desperation, Pete Carroll. You do realize you're playing the Falcons? In the playoffs?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:11: Finally, White makes a big play. 47-yard bomb. Now, I know you like to talk but refrain. No, I guess you can't do that can you. The game ain't over.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:15: It looks like Burger King has given up. "We've tried chicken fingers, chicken tenders, and chicken fries. Screw it. Here's some chicken NUGGETS."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:17: Don't go vanilla on defense now.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:19: DON'T GO VANILLA ON DEFENSE NOW.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:20: I'm a little ashamed to admit that the first time I ever saw the 49'ers commercial where some guy is giving the pep talk to the team, I didn't realize that wasn't the real coach until Harbaugh showed up. Then I was like, "oh yeah, Jim Harbaugh is the coach of the 49er's." Not meant as a slight, I just completely forgot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:23: Vanilla, vanilla vanilla. When they do this I always assume that Mike Smith has made a call to tell Nolan what defense to call.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:25: We dominate the whole game on defense, then go into this prevent crap. Damn you, Mike Smith. Damn you. Wanna bet that regardless of the score at halftime, we come out vanilla on defense in the second half?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:28: I know I'm harping, but see, Mike Smith, what happens when you take a defense that is attacking, attacking, attacking and tell them to play off? They get confused.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:30: 3rd down. Go after him.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:30: See what happens when you attack on defense? Please learn this lesson before the second half Mike Smith. Let it sink in. See you after halftime.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><strong>3rd Quarter</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<br />
<br />
1:44 Ah, the second half kickoff. Or as I like to call it, the calm before the Falcons blow a 20-point lead.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:45 Brian Billick just claimed that the kids in the Punt Pass and Kick competition were better than the quarterbacks he had in Baltimore. Take that whoever use to quarterback the Ravens.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:48: If you took that bet about the defense coming out vanilla, you owe. Pay up.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:50: Okay, I guess rrreeeaaaalllllyyyy slow pressure is better than none.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:52: No on on Seattle can catch the ball except Zach Miller. Let's not cover him. It's like Keith Brooking does still play in Atlanta.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:52: Step one of Operation Blow 20-Point Lead: complete.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">1:56: Now, for those of you who don't normally pay attention to the Falcons, this is where Mike Smith decides the time is right to run Turner up the middle over and over until we're 3-and-outed a few times and let the other team catch up.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:01: And that's why Harry Douglas isn't a top-2 receiver on a team.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:04: Tony Gonazales is a bad, bad man. I heard he used to be one of those circus guys who would take cannonballs in the gut. He got fired because he kept catching them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:07: That little shovel pass to Snelling is like finding a beer in the fridge back behind some lettuce; you forget it's there and then you look down in the playbook and go, "hey, a beer. I mean, that Snelling play!"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:11: A 7+ minute 80-something yard drive that didn't end in a turnover or a field goal. We must get one of those a year, like a "you won 2nd place in a beauty contest" card. That was probably a pretty good place to use it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:13: Is Seattle's offensive line this good? We cannot get any pressure. We haven't even knocked him down much. Just once then need a safety blitz to blindside him and make him think about it. Or, you know, just keep not covering Zach Miller. Jesus.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:15: Is it me or is this game going really fast? I mean, that's good and all for the Falcons at this point, but I've barely had drunk to get time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span> <br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------<br /><strong>4th Quarter</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:17: Really? I mean, it'd be cool as all hell if Macy was in the PP&K contest, but is the start of the 4th quarter really the time? I'd be all, "hey Macy, tell Chris Myers to hurry up. And bring me a beer on the way back." No really, those kids are great.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:20: Apparently I'm not the only one drinking during the game. I'm seeing two of <em>you</em>, Brian Billick.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:26: This is the drive that decides the game. The Falcons take 5 or 6 minutes off the clock and get anything, even a field goal, and I'll start to believe that it's possible they can win. Otherwise, I'm not stupid. I can recogize the universe maneuvering to rip my heart out when I see it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:28: If Michael Turner was "3 yards and a cloud of turf, if you will", we'd be okay with that. It's usually "0 yards and a thrown clipboard".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:30: And here we go. Ryan just seems to have this blind spot some times, especially in the playoffs. I don't know what it is. Douglas looked wide open out of the snap for a short gain. Instead, let's throw it deep into double coverage. The really bad news is that this is the last pass Ryan will throw until we are losing with 1:30 to go. Mike Smith just called Dirk Koetter and said, "i want nothing but runs from here on out."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:33: It's over. The Falcons could blow a 48 nothing lead in the 4th quarter. We are cursed, it seems.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:34: Oh, hey look, there's still nobody responsible for covering Zach Miller.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:38: Ryan's got the look. And by "the look", I mean he knows it's over.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:40: Best play here is to throw it deep and let it get intercepted again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:41: I predict the final score will be 42-27, Seattle. Yes, I know there is only 7:00 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">minutes left.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:43: I've always defended Matt Ryan against people who said he didn't have a strong arm or couldn't handle pressure. But I think this may be the game to end all that. He looks right now like he's petrified. You'd think with all the regular season comebacks he's had he'd be over it, but it seems like he can't handle playoff pressure.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:45: 3rd and 10, pivotal point of the game. Seattle gets this first down. Book it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:46: Mike Smith apparently didn't get to poop at halftime either.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:48: One thing I've always wondered about this whole player safety thing... why is it up to the league to be 100% responsible. There's a player's association. Couldn't all the teams get together and say, "no more chop blocks"?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:50: I think Matt Ryan just peed a little.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:52 Sorry, Atlanta. If NFL games were 48 minutes you'd be good enough.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:53: I swear I just heard Mike Smith say, "let's let em get down the field then try to hold them to a field goal."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:54: I'm not actually watching the game anymore. I mean, it's still on the TV and I can hear it, but I'm not <em>watching</em> it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:55: 2 minute warning. This is where Russell Wilson magically becomes Joe Montana, Brett Favre (without all the killer interceptions) and Tom Brady all rolled into one. It's only fair; this is Seattle's first chance to add to the Falcon's playoff woes, so they should probably do it in the most gut-wrenching way possible. Seriously: last year during the 24-2 Giants debacle I got tons of projects done. By halftime I had forgotten the Falcons even made the playoffs.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">2:56: Brian Billick keeps saying "intermediate area". You know, if anyone on the Falcons staff would just turn on a TV they could probably make a killer defensive adjustment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">3:03: I may have to just stop watching the NFL. I'm not kidding. It's really takes a lot out of you to care so much about a team then watch them suck year after year. I've already taken this step with the Braves. I pay attention to them, but when they make the playoffs I only sort of pay attention. When they lose, I'm like, "eh." The Falcons for some reason I get excited about. This I think is the killer. Screw 'em. I'm going to go get really drunk and then wait for rugby season or something.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">3:10: This changes nothing.</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-28357066552064033292013-01-03T09:51:00.000-06:002013-01-03T09:51:42.101-06:00"Fair Share" Tax Calculator<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">We always hear that the "rich" aren't paying their "fair share". This begs the question: what amount constitutes this fair share? This graphic should clear things up:</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jcdQVqKmCKo/UOWonKRmBAI/AAAAAAAACYs/Ah6OLcMknSI/s1600/FairShareTaxCalculator.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="513" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jcdQVqKmCKo/UOWonKRmBAI/AAAAAAAACYs/Ah6OLcMknSI/s640/FairShareTaxCalculator.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-51558595591756537152012-11-30T12:30:00.001-06:002012-11-30T14:45:21.027-06:00Music Diaries: Stage Fright<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In September of 2011 I made a promise to the band that played my wedding. As the members are all Microsoft employees, it is a tradition that they play our annual Christmas party which is known as the Holiday Wine and Cheese. The name refers to the original party back in the days of DOS and 5¼ floppy disks when it was literally a wine and cheese shindig. These days it is of course a three day bacchanal resplendent in tales of our market exploits drenched in flagons of ale and the blood of our enemies. But I digress.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">One of the cool things about the band is that they allow other musicians to come and rehearse new songs with them that they then play at the party. The promise I made to them last year was that I would be one of those guest musicians in 2012. Little did I know then that the earth would not be depopulated my Mayan gods by now, so it appears I have to honor my promise.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Since my motto is </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><em><span class="hps">Cur</span> <span class="hps">deficiat</span> <span class="hps">semel cum</span> <span class="hps">multis</span> </em><span class="hps"><em>faciam</em> which means roughly, "why screw up once when you can screw up a bunch of times", I will be playing not one but three songs with the band next week.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span class="hps">The first of these is one of my favorite songs of all time and so I asked to play on it. Here is what it is supposed to sound like:</span>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">The 4:00 minute mark of that video is still one of the coolest things I've seen in a music video this side of Tool. The second song is one I suggested to the band:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">That of course is Jack White fronting the Raconteurs. Awesome band, and unlike his old band The White Stripes, one that doesn't owe me a concert. Side note: the Stripes canceled a date in Fargo because Meg White had a bad case of <strike>can't play the drums</strike> anxiety. The group broke up before they could make the date up. If they ever play a reunion show, that show better be in Fargo, Jack White.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">The last song in my trio is one that I was only asked to play on last week so I haven't had much time to prepare:</span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DxxrKSUkPQc" width="420"></iframe><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Now, for the bombshell you never saw coming: I'm actually playing the acoustic parts on this song. Mind. Blown. You're welcome. </span></div>
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Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-60609688212724726942012-10-14T18:38:00.001-05:002012-10-14T18:46:22.298-05:00Facebook and Politics<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I've noticed somthing about Facebook that I think illustrates the way people think in light of their politics. It's election season, and that means a lot of Facebook statuses talking about it. I have friends -- both real friends and the Facebook kind -- on both ends of the political spectrum. Which means that, by definition, my friends and I all don't agree on politics.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">But I've noticed that when it comes to Facebook friends, who they plan to vote for informs how they react to others' politics. There's been a solid uptick in statuses lately that hew to some variant of the following: "I can't wait for this election to be over. Some people spend way too much time on Facebook talking about their candidate. Does anyone really think they're going to change anyone's mind in regards to how they vote? Can we all just agree to stop talking about politics and stick to posts about kids, gardens, vacations, and things like that? You know -- <em>important</em> things?"
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I've seen some version of that post by four different poeple in the last month and half, by my recollection. That in itself isn't all that interesting. What's interesting is that, based on <em>other</em> posts they've either made, liked, or commented on, it's pretty clear who exactly they'll be voting for in November. In every case I think it is safe to say they'll be pulling the lever for the status quo. Which is fine, of course. Everyone who is eligible to vote has a right to cast the vote for whomever they wish -- even if they're completely wrong.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">No, what makes this interesting is not who they're voting for, but rather their preferred reaction to reading -- or presumably becoming aware of the gist of, since I don't think there's a law that says you have to read everything a Facebook friend posts -- political statements that don't gibe with their own views. Let's take a look at the options available to a Facebook user.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">When you see that someone has posted a status or link on Facebook that you don't agree with and/or don't want to read, you can:
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">(A) Read it anyway; since if they're your friend and took the time to post something the least you can do is take the time to read it.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">(B) Skip over it and look for more posts about waterskiing cats and lists of reasons why music today sucks.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">(C) Wonder why you were ever Facebook friends with that person in the first place and unfriend them.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">(D) Attempt to influence what other people feel comfortable posting on Facebook by calling for moratoriums on certain subjects.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Now, I don't think anyone in history has ever chosen option (A), and that's okay. Option (B) is what I usually do, though there are times I will read it if it looks like a useful link (i.e. not say, the Daily Kos or Democratic Underground. I may be an occasionally incredulous reader of Salon, Slate, and the Huffington Post in an effort to keep my horizons broadened, but I'm not crazy). And I will admit there are times when option (C) is sorely tempting.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">At no time have I ever seen option (D) taken by a conservative friend though, and I think that's telling. There's a certain air to liberalism that seems to imbue adherents with the feeling that their cause is so just, their ideology so pure and self-evidently right, that it's only natural to try and shut other points of view down. We see it on a large scale when there are concerted efforts by leftwing groups to </span><a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/05/04/media-matters-now-unite-to-force-limbaugh-off-the-air/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">get Rush Limbaugh off the air</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. </span><a href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/41160.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">We see it</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> when companies don't have </span><a href="http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/01/31/controversial-chicken-chick-fil-a-gay-rights-rumble/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">the right viewpoint</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. And we see it at perhaps its most repugnant point when people </span><a href="http://twitchy.com/2012/10/08/vile-racist-obama-supporters-call-stacey-dash-house-negro-uncle-tom-oreo/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">don't vote the way people of their ethnic group are expected</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Back on Facebook, this tendency to argue that politics should just be left out of the sphere of acceptable topics is undercut by a simple search of the authors' timelines. In my personal experience, it's not hard to find examples of those same people liking and commenting on statuses and links from people who share their leanings. And hey, that's fine. But it's pretty disingenuous to turn around and play the "can't we just talk about kittehs?" card.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I talked about liberals being imbued with a feeling earlier, and I think that inadvertently got to the heart of the difference between liberals and conservatives. Liberals <em>feel</em>. They see inequality in the world and think, <em>that's not fair. If people would just work together and sacrifice, we could get rid of hunger/poverty/homelessness/want/need/lack of iPhones for all</em>. The problem is that that deep feeling is always steeped in the same foundation: <em>but not me</em>.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Occupy protesters marched around (then later, when they got tired, camped) shouting out poorly metered slogans about all sorts of injustices: the war in Afghanistan, Wall Street, the bottoming housing market, </span><a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/282239/occupy-sesame-street-plight-joe-puppeteer-shannen-coffin"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">the inability of people with masters degrees in puppetry to find work</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. Among the homeless, the criminals and the people with nothing better to do were a lot of people who were spending a lot of time complaining that they wanted more and other people had it and why doesn't somebody make them give it to us? Take a look at this </span><a href="http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-november-16-2011/occupy-wall-street-divided"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">vignette from Occupy Wall Street</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> that aired on the Daily Show. Watch the whole thing, as it's both funny and enlightening. But pay close attention to the 4:15 mark, when a man goes to great lengths to espouse the idea that everyone should have access to all the goodies life has to offer. Private property is evidently wrong because it deprives people of access to "the goods of life". Not his iPad though, because that's <em>his</em>. As he says, "I'm more against private property than personal property." In other words, "my stuff is mine, but other people's stuff should be made available to everyone".
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">That's not to say that convervatives don't feel, and it certainly shouldn't be taken as gospel that conservatives don't care about the poor or the homeless or the hungry. We just don't think government is the best way to address it, and that in that capacity to which government involvement is necessary, the goal should be to reduce the number of people dependent on aid. Instead, we seem intent on seeing how far the balance between those dependent on government handouts and those expected to pay for them can tilt until </span><a href="http://blog.heritage.org/2011/10/31/welfare-dependence-keeps-growing/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> the whole thing collapses</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. The eminent sage Homer Simpson once declared that alcohol was "the cause of -- and solution to -- all of life's problems. Right and Left split that dichotomy when it comes to statism. The Right sees government as the cause, the Left as the solution.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">So, to any Facebook friends who might be reading this, let me say, no.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">No, I won't stop writing about politics, or posting statuses that make clear in no uncertain terms that I think our current president is far, far worse than George W. Bush on his worst day -- and W. doesn't exactly stand next to Reagan in my personal pantheon.
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">No, I won't stop posting links that point out all the ugly, horrible, racist things that liberals say and do. Precisely because your side regards it as self-evident that conservatives are racist by definition, as though proclaiming your support for Obama magically cloaks you from racism charges while simultaneously calling Stacey Dash an Uncle Tom (</span><a href="http://twitchy.com/2012/10/08/vile-racist-obama-supporters-call-stacey-dash-house-negro-uncle-tom-oreo/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">and far, far worse</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">).
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">No, I won't stop posting links to malfeasence on the part of a press that frets over funding for Big Bird but can't quite bring itself to dig into Benghazi, Eric Holder, or the deliberate attempt to destroy a functioning energy base (coal and oil) for </span><a href="http://bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view/2011_0815evergreen_solar_files_for_bankruptcy_plans_asset_sale"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">one</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> that </span><a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20096841-54/intel-solar-spinoff-spectrawatt-files-for-bankruptcy/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">doesn't work</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> no matter </span><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/bankrupt-solyndra-seeks-1-5-billion-damages-chinese-014000573--finance.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">how much</span></a> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">money we </span><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/10/11/another-bankrupt-solar-firm-facing-scrutiny-from-lawmakers-investigators/%3Eflush"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">flush</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> down the toilet.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">If that means we can't be Facebook friends, I understand. I'll just have to figure out a way to overcome the loss of hearing about kids I've never met and cats I don't like (seriously, I don't see the upside to cats). I'll have to muddle through without your invitations to install Facebook apps that invariably infect my computer with viruses. Some of you I would genuinely miss, so I hope you don't dismiss me. But as for others, I'll take solace in the fact that I'll have one less "friend" telling me what is and is not acceptable to post.</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-78103415149243138032012-10-01T08:40:00.003-05:002012-10-01T08:40:50.627-05:00Ten Debate Questions I Would Ask Mitt Romney<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">1. What <em>specific</em> measures will you take to restore small business owner confidence in the economy?</span><br />
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2. What steps will you enact to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon? (NOTE: "no measures are off the table" does not count as an answer.)
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3. How can the process of becoming a U.S. citizen be made easier for those immigrants who want to do it legally?
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">4. Will you sign a bill into law that makes warrantless wiretapping illegal?
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">5. What specific agencies would you work to eliminate from the federal government?
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">6. Would you support across-the-board <em>actual</em> cuts to the federal budget (i.e., no outlays excluded)? (NOTE: reductions in increases to budgets do not count.)
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7. Would you sign a bill abolishing the current tax code and replacing it with a flat tax?</span><br />
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8. Would you sign a bill repealing the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a."Obamacare"), and if so, what specific measures would you endorse to combat rising healthcare costs?
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">9. What specific actions will you take to increase transparency in the federal government?
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10. Will you pledge to never sign any bill that increases the debt ceiling?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Also see: </span><a href="http://pocketjacksblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/ten-debate-questions-i-would-ask.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Ten Debate Questions I Would Ask President Obama</span></a>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-82439772813865371672012-09-28T11:47:00.000-05:002012-09-28T11:47:00.093-05:00Ten Debate Questions I Would Ask President Obama<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Would you sign a bill into law that sought to criminalize offensive religious speech?<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Would you support across-the-board <em>actual</em> cuts to the federal budget (i.e., no outlays excluded)? (NOTE: reductions in increases to budgets do not count.)<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">What percentage of incomes above $250,000 would you consider to be a tax rate at which those individuals are "paying their fair share"?<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">What would you say to people who remember </span><a href="http://youtu.be/CCN5-ovvFL0?t=38s"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">your statement</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, "If I don't fix this in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition"?<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Considering the United States has the </span><a href="http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2009/08/us-corporate-tax-rate.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">second highest</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> corporate tax rate in the industrialized world and is one of the only countries that taxes corporations on foreign revenue, what would you do to improve the American business climate?<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">If sanctions fail, what concrete steps would you take to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons?<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">When the number of people on welfare rolls increases, do you see this as a success for the program, or a failure?<br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Considering </span><a href="http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Daily-Reports/2012/February/01/cbo-budget-report.aspx"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">the CBO is projecting</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> an 8% annual increase in healthcare costs between now and 2022, what specific steps will you endorse to reverse this trend and cut costs?<br />
</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">What countries in the Middle East do you see as American allies and how will you utilize those alliances to combat Islamist extremism?<br />
</span></li>
<br />
<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Why is the prison at Guantanamo Bay still open?<br />
</span></li>
</ol>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Coming on Monday:<em> Ten Debate Questions I Would Ask Mitt Romney</em></span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-26320030994951596512012-09-24T20:04:00.000-05:002012-09-24T20:04:18.058-05:00Horace Is Home<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">We're still getting settled into the new house in Horace, ND, but we're having a great time doing it. We've finished up most of the outdoor projects just in time for the weather to start cooling off. All that's left is a little bit of weeding and trimming. The indoor projects are another matter.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In the meantime, the leaves are starting to turn so I thought it was the perfect time to take some pictures...</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zygMsc7TBMo/UGD_JXakrYI/AAAAAAAACWE/tcHmKqKUm4I/s1600/IMG_3098.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zygMsc7TBMo/UGD_JXakrYI/AAAAAAAACWE/tcHmKqKUm4I/s640/IMG_3098.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view from the driveway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X-Yyxgx4K5E/UGD_Jb4V6yI/AAAAAAAACWM/rgINyjtVFdM/s1600/IMG_3099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X-Yyxgx4K5E/UGD_Jb4V6yI/AAAAAAAACWM/rgINyjtVFdM/s640/IMG_3099.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brink Drive</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pTcyhVNimqI/UGD_L-RsOsI/AAAAAAAACXI/4TZsYIF2fwc/s1600/IMG_3121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pTcyhVNimqI/UGD_L-RsOsI/AAAAAAAACXI/4TZsYIF2fwc/s640/IMG_3121.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view of the dining room. You might notice a familiar couple on the wall...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--jYeGCfIQiw/UGD_LsHcnkI/AAAAAAAACXA/dLZM405xHq4/s1600/IMG_3120.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--jYeGCfIQiw/UGD_LsHcnkI/AAAAAAAACXA/dLZM405xHq4/s640/IMG_3120.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The lounge area</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-haCTHRCDqj4/UGD_LZ0fKPI/AAAAAAAACW8/G4_W_eOGbfI/s1600/IMG_3111.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-haCTHRCDqj4/UGD_LZ0fKPI/AAAAAAAACW8/G4_W_eOGbfI/s640/IMG_3111.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view from next to the shed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GSGahz8GzHY/UGD_KgD4XnI/AAAAAAAACWo/X1qyVg3tThI/s1600/IMG_3105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GSGahz8GzHY/UGD_KgD4XnI/AAAAAAAACWo/X1qyVg3tThI/s640/IMG_3105.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The backyard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Zfe2CVkgFDo/UGD_Ki8ZS-I/AAAAAAAACWk/A3MUw2meAEs/s1600/IMG_3106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Zfe2CVkgFDo/UGD_Ki8ZS-I/AAAAAAAACWk/A3MUw2meAEs/s640/IMG_3106.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few of our beautiful trees</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qBAquObA8cM/UGD_Ky-96vI/AAAAAAAACWs/Tf6ujxYS7n8/s1600/IMG_3109.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qBAquObA8cM/UGD_Ky-96vI/AAAAAAAACWs/Tf6ujxYS7n8/s640/IMG_3109.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trees along the grassy area on the west side of the house</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K0SVZOpCVAI/UGD_JR_1vbI/AAAAAAAACWI/vBdtF6bQqyU/s1600/IMG_3100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K0SVZOpCVAI/UGD_JR_1vbI/AAAAAAAACWI/vBdtF6bQqyU/s640/IMG_3100.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the northeast corner of the property</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EzZosTLJYUk/UGD_KPGyh1I/AAAAAAAACWY/WIzJefOOwaU/s1600/IMG_3103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EzZosTLJYUk/UGD_KPGyh1I/AAAAAAAACWY/WIzJefOOwaU/s640/IMG_3103.JPG" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grove along the north side of the property</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--FCPHYs6h9k/UGD_M9eRDGI/AAAAAAAACXs/SgLySi3H3Y4/s1600/IMG_3134.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--FCPHYs6h9k/UGD_M9eRDGI/AAAAAAAACXs/SgLySi3H3Y4/s640/IMG_3134.JPG" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MJ's room is the first one we've finished redecorating. She designed the whole thing.<br />
Instead of a traditional closet, she has a wall of cabinets and drawers.<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-joE3VsMN2Xo/UGD_NKcQ-dI/AAAAAAAACXw/O_LLiz-NKCk/s1600/IMG_3135.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-joE3VsMN2Xo/UGD_NKcQ-dI/AAAAAAAACXw/O_LLiz-NKCk/s640/IMG_3135.JPG" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another view of MJ's room</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4XyxsgWn6NQ/UGD_Mj-Bd1I/AAAAAAAACXg/eCBWDqYFRLU/s1600/IMG_3131.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4XyxsgWn6NQ/UGD_Mj-Bd1I/AAAAAAAACXg/eCBWDqYFRLU/s640/IMG_3131.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view of my playroom. Needs some redecorating...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOxdLxdHH48/UGD_MKJHk-I/AAAAAAAACXY/I7PcAZjkVVM/s1600/IMG_3128.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOxdLxdHH48/UGD_MKJHk-I/AAAAAAAACXY/I7PcAZjkVVM/s640/IMG_3128.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The living room. We're still in the middle of decorating.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qk9kI9SPvmw/UGD_MCBtS1I/AAAAAAAACXU/gdkPGlaFSeI/s1600/IMG_3125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qk9kI9SPvmw/UGD_MCBtS1I/AAAAAAAACXU/gdkPGlaFSeI/s640/IMG_3125.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My other playroom. Tbe green will be going eventually.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-35953042623547043692012-09-22T10:31:00.001-05:002012-09-22T10:31:38.435-05:00An Instructive JuxtapositionThe Obama administration's views toward free speech with regards to religion seem to be predicated on how violent the proponents of a given religion are willing to get. This is vividly illustrated with a couple of headlines from the end of the week:
<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/09/20/state-department-spending-70g-on-pakistan-ads-denouncing-anti-islam-film/">State Department spending $70G on Pakistan ads denouncing anti-Islam film</a>
<br />
<blockquote>
The American Embassy in Islamabad, in a bid to tamp down public rage over the anti-Islam film produced in the U.S., is spending $70,000 to air an ad on Pakistani television that features President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton denouncing the video.
In the ad, Obama is seen talking about America's tradition of religious tolerance and Clinton is seen saying that the U.S. government had nothing to do with the video that contains vulgar depiction of the Prophet Muhammad.
"We absolutely reject its content and message," Clinton says in the advertisement.</blockquote>
This, on top of earlier <a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/obamas-department-of-justice-outs-creator-of-anti-muslim-documentary/">outing the filmmaker</a> and an American Embassy's <a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/will-obama-stand-up-for-american-free-speech/">initial response and defense of an apologetic tweet</a> shows an administration incredibly sensitive to the feelings of Muslims. Compare that with a piece of "art" that offends another well-known religion:
<a href="http://radio.foxnews.com/toddstarnes/top-stories/wh-silent-over-demands-to-denounce-piss-christ-artwork.html">WH Silent Over Demands to Denounce ‘Piss Christ’ Artwork</a>
<br />
<blockquote>
Religious groups are blasting President Obama for not condemning am anti-Christian art display set to appear in New York City and one Republican lawmaker said he is “fed up with the administration’s double standard and religious hypocrisy.</blockquote>
Maybe if Christians attacked the gallery where the piece was being shown <em>en masse</em> and killed some people along the way the White House would pay attention. No, that isn't a call to violence. But it is an idea that is being promoted by an administration that bends over backwards to apologize for free speech while ignoring the concerns of the "bitter clingers" to a religion that has done more to earn the moniker "religion of peace" than Islam.
For the record, I don't think the administration should publicly denounce either the anti-Islamic film or the "Piss Christ" piece. But it has invested a lot of time and money in bowing and scraping to Islam in order to promote the idea that the United States respects all religions. If that's true, then be consistent. Right now, the message is that the U.S. will respect any religion that is willing to burn and kill.Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-44511392684040805642012-09-19T11:41:00.000-05:002012-09-19T11:41:00.452-05:00Define "Everybody"<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">President Obama was </span><a href="http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/presidential-campaign/250233-obama-to-romney-you-have-to-work-for-everyone"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">quoted as saying</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, "If you want to be president, you have to work for everyone." I was wondering, does "everyone" include:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
The "</span><a href="http://townhall.com/tipsheet/kevinglass/2012/09/17/flashback_obama_calls_americans_bitter_clingers"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">bitter clingers</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">" of the midwest?
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The </span><a href="http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/local/lawmakers-urge-more-investigation-of-delphi-pensio/nQFJ5/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">non-union plant workers</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> of Delphi?
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
The voters who </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Panther_case"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">don't vote</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> for the </span><a href="http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/090712-624998-obama-ignores-military-absentee-voting-problems.htm"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">right guy</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">?
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
The </span><a href="http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/03/union-threats-harassment-backfire-in-wisconsin/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">shops who don't support</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> the right right candidate?
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The donors who don't </span><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304723304577368280604524916.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">write the correct name on the pay line</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">?
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The </span><a href="http://www.econbrowser.com/archives/2009/04/the_allocation.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">states that know how to manage</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> their finances?
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The followers of </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/21/health/policy/administration-rules-insurers-must-cover-contraceptives.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">any religion</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> or just the ones that </span><a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2012/09/11/u-s-embassy-in-cairo-apologizes-for-abuse-of-free-speech-after-protesters-tear-down-american-flag/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">get violent</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">?</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-76143040925803319732012-09-11T08:44:00.000-05:002012-09-11T08:44:28.329-05:00The Rich Aren't Rich Enough<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">After reading an article at Canfield Press (linked below) describing America's slide from a wealth creation nation to a wealth transfer state, I remembered a </span><a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/i_learned_an_important_lesson_about_government_by_waiting_tables/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">short piece</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> I wrote a couple of years ago about waiting tables as a method of illustrating the flaw in collectivist thinking. That got me thinking about the whole "fair share" argument when it comes to taxing the rich. Setting aside the fact that our tax base largely comes from a relatively small part of the populaton, I wondered just how much more "just a little more" really was. How much would represent a "fair share"?
Short of adding up all the numbers on </span><a href="http://www.forbes.com/forbes-400/gallery"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Forbes' 400 list</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> there was no definitive amoung given for the total wealth of all of America's billionaires. However, using some simple calculations of the data that was readily available, I got some interesting (though not unexpected) numbers.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The total wealth of the world's billionaires as of March 2012 was $4,600,000,000,000 (</span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billionaire#Current_U.S._dollar_billionaires"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">source</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">). Dividing that by the total number of billionaires in the world (1226), that averages out to roughly $3,752,039,152 per 1%er.
There are currently 425 billionaires in the United States, so a decent estimate of the total wealth of American billionaires is about $1,594,616,639,478. That certainly isn't a perfect way of estimating it, and the number could be a bit higher or a bit lower.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Now, back to that wealth transfer thing. In 2010, </span><a href="http://www.canfieldpress.com/americas-real-fiscal-problem:-federal-govt-has-become-a-gigantic-wealth-transfer-machine"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">total spending on entitlements</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> was about $2,200,000,000,000.
This means that if we simply confiscated all the wealth of all the billionaires in the United States, it wouldn't pay for one year's worth of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance, and all the other programs that fall under the Entitlements umbrella.
The idea that if we just raise taxes, if we just ask the rich to "pay a little more", our money problems will be solved is fantasy. We're past the point where taxation can solve our debt woes. We're passed the point where we can ignore the reality that <em>we have to spend less money</em>. Slowing the rate of spending growth is no longer an option. Class warfare won't fix anything. The only thing that will work is to cut budgets. All of them.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The federal budget request for 2012 included outlays of over $3,800,000,000,000 and was based on predicted revenues of just over $2,200,000,000,000. In other words, we planned on spending nearly twice as much as we planned to take in. That's not sustainable, and it's not fixable with class warfare.</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-10910938769332423302012-09-06T11:56:00.000-05:002012-09-06T11:56:00.592-05:00Four Excuses For An Obama Loss (And Why They Won't Wash)<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">If the ballots are counted in November and Barack Obama becomes a one-term president, the media will fall all over themselves to explain why. None of those reasons will encompass the simple truth that his policies have been a failure, that he wasted his solid majorites in Congress by focusing laser-like on Obamacare, or that the American people didn't buy into his class war rhetoric.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Admitting to those things would be to admit that the blame lies with the President himself.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Instead, the media will trot out ready-made excuses that place the blame solely on the American people. After all, we're just not smart enough to understand how lucky we are to have him. He is, after all, </span><a href="http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/morford/article/Is-Obama-an-enlightened-being-Spiritual-wise-2544395.php"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">a lightworker</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, a man (or is he?) both </span><a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/campaign-spot/9492/magic-lightbringer-messiah-not-new-terms-obama"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">devine and magical</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. Some even now refer to him as if he were the </span><a href="http://obamamessiah.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">messiah</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
Obviously someone so perfect can't be held responsible for breaking campaign promises (</span><a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/07/obama-guantanamo.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">closing Guantanamo</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, fixing the </span><a href="http://ace.mu.nu/archives/317629.php"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">economy</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, restoring </span><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703849204576303272813116318.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">transparency</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, rolling </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/us/politics/25rendition.html?_r=1"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">back</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> rights </span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" ref="http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/05/opinion/bergen-obama-drone/index.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">abuses</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> so (rightfully) </span><a href="http://www.allgov.com/news/top-stories/obama-fights-to-retain-warrantless-wiretapping?news=844059"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">decried</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> in the previous administration). So certainly there must be some sinister forces at work to explain such a defeat.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">1. <b>Racism:</b> Hey, </span><a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/the_big_idea/2008/08/if_obama_loses.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">remember when Obama was going to lose</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> because Americans are a bunch of racists? Then remember when Obama won and suddenly Americans had "turned a corner" and we entered a </span><a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/the-first-presidential-election-a-post-racial-society"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">post-racial era</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">? Now Obama is up for re-election and guess what? We'll all be racists again. The race card is getting as played out as zombies-as-plot-device, but the media can't resist throwing it out there with a knowing glance and tut-tutting shake of the head.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The problem here is that for this to be a real cause, it means a lot of people suddenly became racist <em>after voting for a black man for president</em>. Where were these vast multitudes of black-hating Americans in 2008, who plainly should have risen up to vote, ensuring another white guy got to sit in the White House? Does racism exist? Of course it does. Does it explain why Americans may not relect Obama? Only if you ignore the fact that he was elected in the first place.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">2. <b>Money:</b> The root of all evil. That stuff the 1% has and you don't. It's a total travesty that </span><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-moyers/money-in-politics_b_1840173.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Republicans can buy an election</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> just because they have more money to spend. </span><a href="http://slatest.slate.com/posts/2012/04/21/obama_fundraising_president_has_raised_more_money_than_mitt_romney.html"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Unless Obama has a good month.</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> Then it's not so bad. Of course, this handwringing over money wasn't necessary in 2008. </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obama_vs._McCain#Expense_summary"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I wonder why?</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> (Oh, and if you want to play the "pfft, <em>Wikipedia</em>" card, here is the </span><a href="http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/cancomsrs/?_08+00+PR"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">original source</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. Look it up for yourself.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">3. <b>Republican Obstructionism:</b> Just think what could have been accomplished if Republicans hadn't been there fighting tooth and nail every step of the way. If only Obama had had a friendly Congress. Even for a couple of years. Wait. Well, okay, but if only Republicans had tried to work out a </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/01/magazine/obama-vs-boehner-who-killed-the-debt-deal.html?pagewanted=all"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">deal with Obama over the budget crisis</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, we could have... Crap. Well, at least senate Democrats </span><a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/senate-democrat-we-havent-passed-a-budget-in-823-days-because-republicans-filibustered-them/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">tried to pass budgets</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> as required by law. Maaannnn. Okay, well when the president's budget proposal </span><a href="http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/163347-senate-votes-unanimously-against-obama-budget"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">went to the senate</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">... okay, </span><a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/218931-house-clobbers-obama-budget-proposal-in-0-414-vote"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">the House</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">... Let's move on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">4. <b>Dirty Campaigns:</b> That evil Romney is always living in the muck. Accusing his opponent of favoring outlawing all abortions, </span><a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2012/07/26/Media-Yawns-As-Obama-Lies-Again"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">even in the case of rape or incest</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. Running ads that purport to show </span><a href="http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2012/08/disgusting-obama-dishonest-ad-claiming-to-show-republican-women-for-obama-but-theyre-active-democrats/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">women who are switching parties</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> because of their disgust with their guy. Making up </span><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/aroy/2012/08/27/fact-checking-obamas-campaign-ad-about-romneys-proposal-for-medicare-reform/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">policy positions</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> out of whole cloth. Blaming him for a </span><a href="http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tim-graham/2012/08/08/cnn-takes-apart-obama-super-pac-ad-blaming-romney-womans-cancer-death-te"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">woman's death</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">. Shameful.
Oh wait. Those were all attack ads <em>for</em> Obama <em>against</em> Romney. My bad.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">If Obama loses in November, it will be because the American people don't believe he is the right person to lead this country. The media won't see it that way, but you'll know better.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">(Crossposted at </span><a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/four-excuses-for-an-obama-loss-and-why-they-dont-wash/"><em><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Say Anything</span></em></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">)</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-62736923430989037182012-08-08T14:29:00.000-05:002012-08-08T15:33:34.780-05:00TINSTAAFL<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A Facebook friend posted a status today cheering on all the "free" benefits that are taking effect for women looking to have their birth control paid for by people other than themselves. After some back and forth about what "free" means when talking about something paid for with tax money, a commenter (who shall remain nameless unless you are mutual friends, in which case you know who to shake your head at) made the following statement:</span><span class="commentBody" data-jsid="text"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span class="commentBody" data-jsid="text"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span class="commentBody" data-jsid="text"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><blockquote class="tr_bq">
It has nothing to do with who pays taxes. It is forcing insurance companies to pay for those services out of the premiums that YOU Already pay them!!!! Why is this so hard for people to understand? We are now getting more services for the money that we pay into the insurance company. They make less profits because they have to cover more services for us! This is a very good thing for all of us!!!!!!!!</blockquote>
<br />
Note the liberal use of exclamation points, each one adding an order of magnitude to the comment's inherent truthfulness. Exclamation points aside, here was my response (unedited except for the correction of spelling errors):<br /><span class="commentBody" data-jsid="text"><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" id="id_5022b9ce45c5e0b99766917">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It has everything to do with who pays taxes. The feds are setting up a national exchange to administer healthcare. Who pays for that? Taxpayers. Set aside for a moment the fact that this will allow the goverment to pick and choose favorites among healthcare companies. While the feds are allowing states to set up their own exchanges (which of course, must meet federal guidelines on how they are set up, which companies can participate, and how money is distributed), most are sensibly opting out. This will increasingly put the decisions in the hands of a federal bureaucracy.<br />
<div class="text_exposed_show">
<br />
Ever heard of a federal agency that didn't get bigger and succumb to budget bloat? Me neither. This will only increase costs, especially when you consider that by government mandate, people who don't pay federal taxes (and thus don't pay for the upkeep of this behemoth) will still be covered. Who will make up these costs? The insurance companies? No. Economics 101. When costs go up to a supplier, those costs are passed on to the consumer.<br />
<br />
One way the goverment will be tempted to combat this is to enforce price controls on what doctors can charge for services. This is how medicare and medicaid work. It has led to an ever-decreasing number of doctors who will accept patients on those plans. A similar effect will occur if the price controls are instead forced upon insurers: fewer companies will enter into the market and many existing ones will drop out. At the same time, more and more people will be forced into this government plan as companies who today pay for healthcare as a fringe benefit decrease coverage or drop it all together, further exploding costs to the taxpayer.<br />
<br />
Ask yourself this: are you aware of any government programs which costs has decreased, which budgets have shrunk? No. Because the definition of a budget cut has been changed at the federal level. When you or I think of a budget cut, It looks like this: "our budget was $1000. We cut it 10%. Now our budget is $900". At the federal level, it looks like this: "Our budget was $1000. We wanted to raise it 50%. Instead we only raised it 30%. Therefore, our budget was cut by 20%."<br />
<br />
This will not end well.</div>
</blockquote>
</div>
</span></span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It never ceases to amaze me that there are still people who believe the following:</span><br />
<br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Businesses don't pass their costs on to consumers.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Arbitrarily setting prices for goods will have no effect on the producers of those goods</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">It is somehow a good thing when a business has its profits shrunk or seized.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">A government that can run up trillions of dollars in debt will have no problem containing costs.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">The government can ever provide "free" anything to taxpayers.</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Of course, my answer above didn't even touch on the other side effect of price controls: rampant fraud and abuse. Some of those doctors who don't stop taking medicare and medicaid patients instead find ways to overbill the system and reap profits off the taxpayer. If oversight and penalties were better enforced, even more doctors would drop entitlement patients.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">For taxpayers, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Addendum: A later comment brought up the 80/20 rule in the law, that requires insurers to use 80% of revenues on "clinical services" in order to cap costs. Well, that's just another method of price control. And it leads to all the bad things mentioned above. Don't believe me? Then believe the feds, who have seen fit to <a href="http://reason.com/blog/2011/03/09/obama-administration-waives-he" target="_blank">grant waivers to entities that allow them to ignore the 80/20 rule</a>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Also, passing laws and then selectively allowing certain entities to ignore them: regardless of your political affiliation, shouldn't you be outraged by that?</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-18754270352638739142012-07-12T10:32:00.000-05:002012-07-12T14:19:58.342-05:00The Tax System Explained With Beer<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><em>This is an oldie but a goodie. I honestly don't know who to credit for the original, but I received this in an email from a friend years ago and it just resurfaced in </em><a href="http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/cbo-report-top-20-of-wage-earners-paid-68-of-the-taxes/" target="_blank"><em>this post</em></a><em> at Say Anything:</em></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><u>The Tax System Explained With Beer</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br />
Every day ten men go out for a beer, and the bill is $100. They wish to pay the bill the same way we pay our taxes, so it breaks down like this...<br />
<br />
The first four men (the poorest) pay nothing.<br />The fifth man pays $1.00<br />The sixth pays $3.00<br />The seventh pays $7.00<br />The eighth pays $12.00<br />The ninth pays $18.00<br />The tenth man (the richest) pays $59.00<br />
<br />
And that's what they decide to do.<br />
<br />
These ten men drank in that same bar every day and were quite happy with the arrangement, until one day the owner approached and said, "Since you are such good customers, I'm going to reduce your daily round of beer by $20.00."So now a round of beer cost $80.00.<br />
<br />
The group decided to keep paying their tab in the same manner. The first four men were unaffected. They still drank for free. But what about the other six; the paying customers? How could they divide up the $20.00 reduction so everyone would get his fair share?<br />
<br />$20.00 divided by six is $3.33, but if they subtracted that from everyone's share, the fifth and sixth man would each wind up getting paid to drink their beer.<br />
<br />
The bar owner suggested they follow the principle of the tax system and reduce each man's bill by a higher percentage the poorer he was, and they worked out the amounts each would now pay.<br />
<br />
Now the fifth man, like the first four, drank for free... (100% savings)<br />The sixth man now paid $2.00 instead of $3.00... (33% savings)<br />The seventh man now paid $5.00 instead of $7.00... (28% savings)<br />The eighth man now paid $9.00 instead of $12.00...(25% savings)<br />The ninth man now paid $14.00 instead of $18.00...(22% savings)<br />The tenth now paid $49.00 instead of $59.00...(16% savings)<br />
<br />
Each of the paying customers was better off than before, and now five of the men drank for free. But outside the bar, the men began comparing the amounts they saved.<br />
<br />
"I only got a dollar out of the $20.00" said the sixth man. He pointed at the tenth man and said, "But he got $10.00!"<br />
<br />"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar too. It's unfair that he saved ten times as much as me!"<br />
<br />
"That's true," shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10.00 back when I only got $2.00. The wealthy get all the tax breaks!"<br />
<br />
Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all! This new system exploits the poor!"<br />
<br />
So the nine men beat the tenth man up.<br />
<br />
The next night the tenth man didn't show up, and the other nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when the bill arrived, they discovered they didn't have enough money between them for even half the total.<br />
<br />
And that boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how the tax system works. The people who already pay the most in taxes will get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just might not show up anymore.<br />
<br />In fact they just might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.<br />
<br />
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.<br />
<br />
For those who don't, no explanation is possible.</span>Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-37818337343039332462012-05-14T13:41:00.002-05:002012-05-14T13:41:52.341-05:00Music Diaries: Drinking and Driving (Rhythm)<br />
I've been jamming once a week with Rob, one of the guitarists from dFrag (a.k.a. The Awesome Band That Played At My Wedding). This involves messing around with learning this new song or that one, sipping on whiskey, and generally having fun. This led to a conversation about the effects of drinking on one's ability to play a guitar.<br />
<br />
I quantify it thusly:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U2jACNrwLXM/T7FQeIQiICI/AAAAAAAACV0/FMb4vOzMcQY/s1600/Playing+Guitar+on+Beer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U2jACNrwLXM/T7FQeIQiICI/AAAAAAAACV0/FMb4vOzMcQY/s1600/Playing+Guitar+on+Beer.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-44265436767486522802012-05-09T11:35:00.001-05:002012-05-09T11:39:17.590-05:00Bluestem And The Fargo School District Should Just Go On Judge Judy AlreadySo Dave Olig, the president of the Bluestem Center for the Arts in Moorhead, <a href="http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/360214/">has written a letter</a> pushing the idea that the Fargo School District should "forgive" nearly $5,000,000 in debt. Hey, there's no harm in asking. It's the argument he uses to defend his position that took some brass ones.
His argument is one I see people use on Judge Judy all the time. Basically, Olig asserts the "they should have known not to give us money in the first place" defense. Here's what he wrote:
<br />
<blockquote>
"The Fargo Public School District provided millions of dollars in loans to a volunteer-only organization, with no assets, at a zero percent interest rate and no repayment schedule," Olig wrote. "While we accept our accountability, we believe that the Fargo Public Schools should also acknowledge its role in putting taxpayer dollars at risk."</blockquote>
Let's parse that passage, shall we?
"We came to you with hat in hand, desperate for money. The Fargo School District used taxpayer money to make us a super sweet loan deal. Now I don't want to have to pay it back, because, like, I don't have any money. I know I said that I was getting a big tax refund check in April, but I used it to buy a handbag. And besides, this is really your fault because you knew I was broke when you loaned me the money."<br />
<br />
All he forgot to add was that the District gave the money as a gift, Bluestem didn't really ask for it anyway, and besides, Bluestem did all sorts of work around the district and watched the kids and helped out with utilities when they could so really, they're even.Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-79104689434200257222012-04-15T14:08:00.002-05:002012-04-15T14:23:49.583-05:00Dinner and Drinks: Seared Pork Tenderloin With A Mushroom (beef) Demi-glace (And Extra-Special Secret Bonus Recipe Inside!)It's been a while since I posted any recipes (or much of anything, to be honest). No particular reason; I'm just a busy man what with fixing up the house, being a dad, fighting crime, etc.<br />
<br />
However, I still try to find time to cook and this Friday was no exception. I like to buy those huge pork tenderloins that go on sale at the grocery store once every couple of months or so because, hey, five pounds of pork tenderloin for $7. I cut it up into smaller portions for freezing. Some of it goes into a bag marked "stir fry", but some of it I cut into inch-and-a-quarter slabs. Like a pork filet mignon.<br />
<br />
Since it's been a while since I posted one of these, I thought I'd turn a double play (baseball season!) and let you in on a 100% original recipe for potato pancakes.<br />
<br />
<b>Seared Pork Tenderloin with a Mushroom (Beef) Demi-glace and Potato Pancakes</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X40MuexO_Pw/T4sR6XClHQI/AAAAAAAACVs/qilutUAlzN0/s1600/Seared+Pork+Tenderloin+and+Potato+Pancakes_small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X40MuexO_Pw/T4sR6XClHQI/AAAAAAAACVs/qilutUAlzN0/s640/Seared+Pork+Tenderloin+and+Potato+Pancakes_small.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<br />
For pork:<br />
<br />
salt<br />
black pepper<br />
chili powder<br />
tarragon<br />
1 tbsp olive oil<br />
<br />
For potato pancakes:<br />
<br />
4-6 medium potatoes<br />
1/2 stick of butter (melted)<br />
1/4 cup sour cream<br />
1 tsp salt<br />
1 tsp thyme<br />
1/2 tsp garlic powder<br />
oil<br />
<br />
For mushroom (beef) demi-glace<br />
<br />
8 oz mushrooms<br />
2 tbsp butter<br />
2 tbsp flour<br />
1 1/4 cups beef stock<br />
1/4 cup red wine<br />
1 tsp salt<br />
1 tsp tarragon<br />
<br />
Note: I strongly urge you to read this whole post before starting. There's a lot going on and some of it should overlap if you want everything to come out at roughly the same time. There's also some stuff about oven-safe skillets and other things that may sound boring at first. But if you've ever put a skillet in an oven only to find out it was meant for the stove top only, you know it's important.<br />
<br />
Season the pork on both sides with the spices listed. If you cut your tenderloins as thick as I do (again, about and inch and a quarter), be generous with the spices. <br />
<br />
Let's get the sauce started. In a saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Once it's melted, whisk in the flour until smooth. Put the pan back on the burner and increase the heat to medium. Add the stock, wine and spices. Stir well and add the mushrooms. Use whatever kind you want. I had portobellas on hand, so there you go.<br />
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Once the sauce starts to boil, reduce heat and simmer. The sauce should thicken as it simmers, so stir frequently. If it starts to get too thick for your liking, add small amounts of beef stock until it reaches the desired consistency. The longer it simmers, the better it will be, so let it simmer on as you prepare the rest of the meal.<br />
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Now to the pork. If you have really thick tenderloins, pre-heat your oven to 350º. If your pork loins are more like pork chops, you can finish them on the stove, so forget about the oven.<br />
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Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until it just starts to smoke. Turn the heat down to medium, or be prepared for (1) burned tenderloins and (2) a very greasy stovetop. Immediately add the tenderloins to the oil, pressing down firmly for a couple of seconds. This will help make a nice sear.<br />
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Thick cuts: Cook for about 3 minutes on a side, making sure your sear looks good before you flip 'em. Once seared, move the skillet to the oven (make sure your skillet can be used in the oven -- if not, transfer the contents of the skillet to an oven-safe baking dish). Cook for another 8-12 minutes or until it reaches desired doneness.<br />
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Thin cuts: Cook until the sear looks good. This shouldn't take more than a couple of minutes or so. Flip when the sear looks good and repeat on the other side. Reduce the heat to medium-low and finish the cooking process.<br />
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Now onto the potato pancakes. A note on the potatoes: russets work just fine. I happened to have red potatoes on hand, so I used a few more as they're pretty small. Peel, wash, and grate the potatoes into a mixing bowl. You may notice that there is a lot of liquid in the potatoes. You can squeeze them and pat them dry with paper towels if you like. I've found that there's still a lot of liquid when it comes time to make the cakes, so I don't bother. But you do what you want; you have the power here.<br />
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Add all the other ingredients and mix thoroughly. I use my hands, but again, you do what you want.<br />
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Heat enough oil in a skillet to cover the bottom 1/2 inch over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, take a handful of the potato mixture and squeeze out the excess liquid. Form into small cakes (they should be about the size of hockey pucks). Place in the oil and fry until the bottoms are golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Flip and repeat. Once they are done, put them on some paper towels to soak up any excess oil.<br />
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I had a glass of a <a href="http://www.cupcakevineyard.com/wines/reds/malbec/">2010 Cupcake Vineyards Malbec</a> with this meal. Okay, I had a glass while I was preparing it too, and a glass afterwards to celebrate how well it all turned out. It was a lot fruitier than a lot of the malbecs I've tried, but overall it was pretty decent. Generally if I want something that fruity I get a zinfandel though. Still, for $11 it was not bad at all. Very smooth. I would recommend something a little spicer for this meal though.Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-82522951161501311602012-03-20T08:35:00.000-05:002012-03-20T08:35:43.153-05:00One WeekSo, MJ has increased her extracurricular activity load from "Soccer" to "Orchestra, Ice Skating, and Volleyball" in the last few months. Did I mention that soccer is starting again soon?<br />
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First she performed with her 5th grade orchestra at Moorhead High School last Thursday.<br />
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Then, she had a three-night run of her ice show entitled "The Best of Times" which may or may not have been sponsored by Best of Times Photography. She was a "50's" girl. It was her first ever ice show but she did great.<br />
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This weekend I'll be shooting some video and photos of her volleyball tournament in Lake Park, Minnesota.Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-72616878985064945212012-03-02T14:18:00.004-06:002012-03-02T15:51:50.186-06:00If It's True Will I Get Reparations?UPDATE: I forgot to throw a hat tip out to Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit <a href="http://pjmedia.com/instapundit/138204/">for the link</a>.<br />
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An archaeologist at the Smithsonian Instition are championing a "radical" <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/radical-theory-of-first-americans-places-stone-age-europeans-in-delmarva-20000-years-ago/2012/02/28/gIQA4mriiR_story.html">theory about the history of North America</a>. Namely, that the long-held view (the "settled science" if you will) that the continent was first settled by <a href="http://archaeology.about.com/od/clovispreclovis/qt/clovis_people.htm">travelers taking advantage of an ice bridge from Siberia</a> about 15,000 years ago is wrong. As it turns out, about 40 years ago some fishermen found a mammoth tusk in Chesapeake Bay that had a blade stuck in it. The tusk was a bit older than 15,000 years.<br />
<blockquote>But the mastodon relic found near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay turned out to be 22,000 years old, suggesting that the blade was just as ancient. <br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0nneQHX91Tg/T1Euz6eUL-I/AAAAAAAACVk/I6UTRwCPNJk/s1600/rooms4rent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0nneQHX91Tg/T1Euz6eUL-I/AAAAAAAACVk/I6UTRwCPNJk/s200/rooms4rent.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
Whoever fashioned that blade was not supposed to be here.</blockquote>Other relics have been found in the mid-Atlantic region, all found in soil that dates back to over 20,000 years ago.<br />
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There are problems with the theory, as even the author points out. Mainly that the dating is of the media in which the artifacts were found (the tusk, the soil) rather than of the artifacts themselves.<br />
<blockquote>“It’s an indirect date,” Dillehay said. “You need a feature like a hearth or something that’s clearly human. But it’s still suggestive.”</blockquote>It's still way too early to tell if the long-held view of the settling of North America is in any real danger. But wouldn't it be funny if one day the conventional theory is that Europeans had settled North America first and were driven out by (what later came to be known as) Indians?Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-22002058176903353652012-02-28T11:54:00.000-06:002012-02-28T11:54:21.079-06:00It Would Be Quicker To Make A List Of Things "Global Warming" Isn't CausingA few years ago I stumbled across a hilarious link that itself was simply a page of hyperlinks, each of which in turn linked to a news report or other source claiming that global warming was having this or that effect.<br />
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It's hilarious because several of the links had mirrors; for example, one link led to a story that claimed global warming was causing forests to grow out of control, while another claimed it was causing forests to shrink worldwide.<br />
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I'm delighted to report that <a href="http://www.numberwatch.co.uk/warmlist.htm">I came across the link again today</a> and that the author has been maintaining it, including preserving links that have suffered from link-rot.<br />
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It's a great link that really displays marvellously the malleability of the global warming movement to include every malady affecting mankind and attach it to their religion.<br />
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And for the record, I still call it global warming because, even though great pains have been taken to re-brand the movement as being concerned with climate <em>change</em>, I will note the following:<br />
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There has never been a period in history in which the planet both (a) had a climate, and (b) said climate was static.Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-13153035456109885632012-02-28T09:55:00.003-06:002012-02-28T09:58:47.572-06:00In A Perfect (Orwellian) World, All People Would Be Danica PatrickHere is what Danica Partick, NASCAR driver, Go Daddy titillator, and statesman had to say when <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/02/21/danica-patrick-on-contraception-mandate-i-leave-it-up-to-the-government-to-make-good-decisions/">asked about the current debate over mandatory contraception funding</a>:<br />
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<script src="http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?height=360&embedCode=U1NzNrMzo52HTUC_hsxYwWd_WtOTYq3S&deepLinkEmbedCode=U1NzNrMzo52HTUC_hsxYwWd_WtOTYq3S&width=640"></script><br />
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"I leave it up to the government to make good decisions for Americans."<br />
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The problem, Ms. Patrick, is that in the eyes of government all Americans are equal but <a href= "http://george-orwell.org/Animal_Farm/0.html">some are more equal than others</a>.<br />
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(Bonus note: did you know you can read the collected works of <a href="http://www.george-orwell.org/">George Orwell</a>, <a href="http://www.mtwain.com/">Mark Twain</a>, <a href="http://www.shakespeare-literature.com/">William Shakespeare</a>, <a href="http://www.dickens-literature.com/">Charles Dickens</a>, and <a href="http://www.darwin-literature.com/">Charles Darwin</a> online for free?)Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6361005139810303893.post-50131477039123227222012-02-07T10:33:00.001-06:002012-02-07T10:39:15.085-06:00The Most Offensive Thing I've Ever ReadIt suddenly got cold in North Dakota today, with wind chills near zero this morning. So I guess it's as good a time as any to read something to make your blood boil. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/07/us/we-the-people-loses-appeal-with-people-around-the-world.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all">This article</a> in the New York Times claims that the U.S. Constitution is losing its influence.<br />
<blockquote>In 1987, on the Constitution’s bicentennial, Time magazine calculated that “of the 170 countries that exist today, more than 160 have written charters modeled directly or indirectly on the U.S. version.” <br />
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A quarter-century later, the picture looks very different. “The U.S. Constitution appears to be losing its appeal as a model for constitutional drafters elsewhere,” according to a new study by David S. Law of Washington University in St. Louis and Mila Versteeg of the University of Virginia.</blockquote>No, that isn't so galling. After all, what difference does it make what constitutional model burgeoning democracies use? No, what's galling are the critiques of our Constitution contained within that supposedly show "what's wrong with it".<br />
<blockquote>The United States Constitution is terse and old, and it guarantees relatively few rights.</blockquote>Funny, we always hear how young America is, especially compared to our societal betters in Europe's old democracies. Now suddenly, <em>we're</em> too old. And, "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" doesn't seem small to me.<br />
<blockquote>In an interview, Professor Law identified a central reason for the trend: the availability of newer, sexier and more powerful operating systems in the constitutional marketplace. “Nobody wants to copy Windows 3.1,” he said.</blockquote>The implication here is that our constitution doesn't work anymore and should be replaced. After all, that's what you do with an old operating system, right? Our constitution is more like a poem by a laureate or a painting by a master. It endures. It's still around <em>because it works so well</em>. It hasn't been replaced because frankly, there isn't anything better.<br />
<blockquote>The rights guaranteed by the American Constitution are parsimonious by international standards, and they are frozen in amber. As Sanford Levinson wrote in 2006 in “Our Undemocratic Constitution,” “the U.S. Constitution is the most difficult to amend of any constitution currently existing in the world today.”</blockquote>To keep the computer analogy alive, that's a feature, not a bug. If a constitution can be changed at a whim by whatever group manages to get power, it ceases to be a document that enumerates the powers and rights of a citizenry and becomes just another tool for those in power.<br />
<blockquote>Americans recognize rights not widely protected, including ones to a speedy and public trial, and are outliers in prohibiting government establishment of religion. But the Constitution is out of step with the rest of the world in failing to protect, at least in so many words, a right to travel, the presumption of innocence and entitlement to food, education and health care. </blockquote>We don't protect the presumption of innocence? That statement is so utterly false that there's really nothing else to say. Well, except this. The Constitution may not say "in so many words" that the accused is innocent until proven guilty. The law does say that however. And, as we'll see shortly, the author is very enamored with the idea of a judiciary expanding rights that aren't explicitly spelled out in a constitution, at least when Canadians do it.<br />
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The rest of that quote gets to the heart of some people's problem with the constitution. It doesn't list things like food, education and healthcare as rights. Well, <a href="http://pocketjacksblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/but-its-my-right.html">that's because they're not</a>. To borrow my own words: we have laws to define acceptable behavior in a society and to convey privileges (or restrict said privileges). Rights are things we can never envision or support being taken away.<br />
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There's a good reason the our constitution doesn't list every possible right. It's because the framers knew that was an impossible task. The very reason so many "newer" contitutions are easier to amend is because they attempt this impossible task. Just when they think it's perfect, along comes some new technology and, boom! New "right" coming through. Notice that even the NYT article uses the word "entitlement" to describe food, education, and healthcare.<br />
<blockquote>It has its idiosyncrasies. Only 2 percent of the world’s constitutions protect, as the Second Amendment does, a right to bear arms.</blockquote>I love that something so fundamental as a right to defend yourself through force of arms is labeled an "idiosyncracy". Guess we know where the author stands on gun control.<br />
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The author however, does love the Canadian Charter:<br />
<blockquote>The Canadian Charter is both more expansive and less absolute. It guarantees equal rights for women and disabled people, allows affirmative action and requires that those arrested be informed of their rights. On the other hand, it balances those rights against “such reasonable limits” as “can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.”</blockquote>"We hold these truths to be self-evident. That all men are created equal." Sounds pretty expansive (the use of the royal "men" notwithstanding) to me. Also, the author is being disingenuous with the phrase "more expansive and less absolute". What that really means is that the Charter puts far more limitations on things like freedom of speech, religion and assembly than the U.S Constitution and relies on the courts to broaden those rights, which was somehow a problem with the U.S. Constitution.<br />
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It should also be noted that the Times author is conflating the Charter with a constitution. The Charter is actually analogous to our Bill of Rights, which makes the next bit especially confusing.<br />
<blockquote>There are, of course, limits to empirical research based on coding and counting, and there is more to a constitution than its words, as Justice Antonin Scalia told the Senate Judiciary Committee in October. “Every banana republic in the world has a bill of rights,” he said. <br />
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“The bill of rights of the former evil empire, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, was much better than ours,” he said, adding: “We guarantee freedom of speech and of the press. Big deal. They guaranteed freedom of speech, of the press, of street demonstrations and protests, and anyone who is caught trying to suppress criticism of the government will be called to account. Whoa, that is wonderful stuff!”</blockquote>The author wants this passage to read as though the Bill of Rights is somehow lessened by the actions of totalitarians in other countries. "Oh, the Bill of Rights," he seems to be saying, "the Soviet Union had one of those!" The Bill of Rights may be just paper, but so is the Canadian Charter. So is every constitution, everywhere.<br />
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It's a bit disengenous to try and tie the Bill of Rights' worth to that of the old Soviet Union. Is there really any comparison to how those rights were treated under the U.S.S.R. and the United States?<br />
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And, if as the author asserts, these are just pieces of paper, then what purpose does his article serve? Besides making my blood boil, that is.Jay W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14641404051461719678noreply@blogger.com6