Jaded Seniors, why do we do this to ourselves?

Author's Note: Pictured to the right is Paul Kariya after being hit by New Jersey Devils defenseman Scott Stevens in the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals. Kariya remained on the ice for nearly a minute, unmoving and not breathing. Suddenly he exhaled a massive breath and regained consciousness. He was back on the ice in the next period. This is exactly how I feel right now.


I'm a jaded senior. You're a jaded senior. (Robert, thanks for the terminology.) We're all jaded seniors in one way or another. The biggest fault of jaded seniors is a newly diagnosed disease called jaded senioritis with severly impacted procrastination and it affects all of us. We put things off until the last possible minute. If we ever actually did work on something for more than a week, then you should worry. Otherwise, it's completely normal for the jaded senior to go running into the computer lab at 10 am, mumbling to his/her-self about the paper that is due at 11:15am that they haven't even started.

I'm guilty of this. In the last two semesters I've written 3 papers, each over 5 pages in length, with only hours to spare. The most god-awful thing about procrastinating a paper is that, especially in my case, I always do better on papers written the day they are due. If given more than a week to write a paper, the grade steadily decreases, because I always change things around, reorder my thoughts, and end up with a stream of consciousness academic blathering that would make Douglas Adams weep, God rest the man's soul.

Apparently I was given a gift. My first instinct on academic writing is usually my best. My rough drafts would usually get better grades than finished, crisp copies. I hate to brag, but I've finally got something to brag about. Like this semester, for example. I wrote a five page paper three hours before it was due and made a 98 on it. Last semester I wrote an 11-page research snoozer, starting the paper at around 11:30 a.m. and finishing it at 4:30 p.m., for World Drama and it received a "B." Such is my gift. I can't pass it on to anyone, I can't even really share it, but it's my gift.

Now, back to the question: Jaded Seniors, why do we do this to ourselves? Honestly. The procrastination thing has caused more college students to go bald, or to reach a total vegetative state before they should ever consider those things. The picture above best symbolizes the typical feeling after such action. After the World Drama paper last semester I went home a crashed in front of my TV and, without any real knowledge of what I was doing, proceeded to play two straight hours of Call of Duty 2, racking up a higher body count than Hot Shots: Part Deux. For me, that was relief. Everyone has their own thing.

But I think we can all agree that, concerning procrastination, the after-effect is like having your brains smashed out by a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick. It's likely that if we jaded seniors continue our reckless procrastination, we could have an entire generation experience Spontaneous Massive Existence Failure, in which literally thousands of students, most of them seniors, will simultaneously disappear as a result of stress alone.

And with that, the shameless Douglas Adams rip-off has come to end. Sanjay, start warming up, you've got the next post.

Sickness, Random News, NHL

So, since Wednesday I've been sick. Apparently, this came as a shock to everyone, who thought I was impervious to illness and generally wandered about in a state of perpetual health.

Well guess what? I got sick. Very sick. The doctor described it as a sinus infection that had not only set up camp, but had invited three friends over for the weekend. The meds were great, and by great I mean god awful doses of horrible sleep and intermittent drowsiness. I was rendered incapable of operating heavy machinery, to say the least.

Well, now it's Monday. I'm over the sickness, but I have a persistent enough cough that I could give a cat pneumonia in 15 seconds.

Anyway, in lighter news, Kim Jong Mentally Ill and the goosesteppers of NK have fired off a nuke. Possibly two. They were small nukes, about 25 times smaller than the one that leveled Hiroshima. Still, expect the UN to say "Stop it!" and maybe even slap someone on the wrist. If the UN ever did hand out genuine punishment, you could expect to see Satan himself shopping for a parka.

The Foley case refuses to go away. I'm not saying I condone what he did, because God knows I don't. But isn't it just awful when a Republican has sex with an intern. Mr. Clinton, you can sit back down.

The NHL is underway. Thank God that true sport still exists. Should be intersting.

The Bird

Rennie spoke the other day about taking a moment to soak it all in, trying to take in life around him and not forcing it tobe what he wanted it to be, but rather him being what it wanted him to be. I know Grubbs will likely disagree, bless his agnostic little heart, but I stand enthralled in a Rennie-like experience.

For the past three weeks, a bird has taken up residence at my house. Every night, at 7:30 exactly, it shows up, nestles into a corner overhang on my front porch, sticks its beak into the corner, and sleeps. I watched it leave Tuesday morning, and it went from one corner, along the overhang to the opposite corner, and then flew off.

But every night it does this. I watched it arrive tonight, watched it go through the same procedure, curling into the corner, and I realized something. The bird feels safe. It must, for it to come back as often as it does, especially every night for three straight weeks. But this bird has a safe haven, a sanctum sanctorum to rest the night.

I realize that the bird is closer to God than I am. The bird can sleep at night, knowing that it will wake up in the same corner in the morning. I go to sleep knowing that I will wake up in the same bed, assuming of course that I wake up, but that's where the similarities end.

I wish I knew how to deal with it. It's like an epiphany, but you only get half of the revelation now. I wish I knew how to deal with it.

Hallways and my POV on Rennie's Geriatric Rant

Hallways:
In colleges and high schools nationwide, hallways are everywhere. I believe one senator likened them to angry tubes that are clogged. Well, that rings true. The general nature of a hallway, or a corridor to you fancy-pants English majors.... wait, I'm a fancy-pants English major... is anger. It is infested by cobbled-together malfunctioning piles of genetic incompetence, each spouting his/her/its own brand of pathetic juvenile drivel, all while occupying space that could be better used by students and faculty who actually have things to do other than stand around and talk about how, oh my god, like, jenny, like, totally changed her hair color to like, blonde.

This happened to me today. I'm walking into one of the many buildings here on the beautiful campus of North Georgia College & State University. There is a decently sized hallway leading to the elevator. I've got a class on the third floor and I don't feel like taking the stairs, dang it. Anyway, the woman in front of me is wheeling her bookbag/luggage around the hallway, toward a pack of fresh-meat. This particular group of space-wasters has left one tiny path through their midst for weary upperclassmen to journey through. So the woman in front of me, she of the wheeled-baggage, stops in the middle of the pathway and begins looking around and talking to the drivelers nearby.

This is maddness and stupidity rolled into one neat little package. Students needing to get to the other side of the hallway are now stuck in a pedestrian traffic jam. It's a simple solution folks. Clear a path. Leave space for people to walk. Yield the right-of-way to people who are actually moving and not standing around waiting for their next class to start.

My POV on Rennie's Geriatric Rant

So Rennie over at The Skewed View goes off the other day on this rant about geriatric drivers and how he nearly died because of it. He's explained to me before the Blood Mountain commute. He said it's essentially a stretch of single car wrecks. I asked if they were single car wrecks because only one car was involved or if they were single car wrecks because the other car involved is now resting upside down at the bottom of a 40,000 foot gorge.

Anyway, I want to offer my view on this topic. I'm not going to re-hash what Rennie said, because I enjoy my own special commute to and from North GA. I cross Lake Lanier anywhere from 3-6 times a day, depending on the route I take. For those of you unfamiliar with it, Lake Lanier is a decently-sized man-made lake filled with trees, catfish the size of a school bus, sewage, catfish, old houses from it's creation, did I mention catfish?

For some reason, whenever you approach a bridge going over the lake, all drivers around you suddenly lose 50-300 IQ points. They drive like maniacs. There is a section of road that is four-lane, leading to a bridge that crosses the lake, after which the road quickly narrows back to 2-lanes. Picture if you will two UPS trucks running nearly side-by-side, one slightly behind the other as they approach this merge. I am further behind the lead UPS truck, leaving myself plaenty of room to fall back into traffic (although none to pleased about riding behind two UPS trucks for the next five miles), and there is another car (driven by Martha Washington herself) behind the second UPS truck. We approach the merge and the UPS trucks fall in, neatly tucked away for the drive. I begin to merge, having had my turn signal on for a good 10-15 seconds already, and I hear a car horn. Martha Washington has now tucked in so close behind the second UPS truck that drafting doesn't even apply. Now there have been signs for the last 1/2 mile saying that the lanes merge. We've ridden a good ways with every intention of making this merge work for all parties involved. But grandma forgot the rules and is now doing 60 miles per hour to keep me from getting in line. So I back off, and merge behind her, having nearly been run off the road in the process. Then this little old woman slows down to 30 mph. We're in a 50mph zone. I'll never get it.

Sanjay's Commentary: as promised

From: Sanjay, Tech Support & Call Screener
To: All Who Can Read
Dated: 9-29-2006

Welcome to the Commentary, a hopefully recurring article here at the Right Wing. Thanks to Blake for actually letting me get a word in on my first day on the job, unlike some organizations we know of *coughSkewedcough*.
Anyway, on with the show.
The topic tonight is insourcing. What is that, Sanjay? I can hear you asking your friends and neighbors what insourcing really is. You've heard for years about outsourcing and the fact is, Americans want too much money. Of course, that doesn't speak well of the countries to which outsourcing is occurring. But I think insourcing is great. I get to come to America, a great salary, and the American dream. Blake was telling me about something his boss said earlier today. His boss's father lived in Georgia in the later 1940s. Georgia's economy was crap, so they moved to Ohio. Ohio's economy began to go downhill, so they moved to California. What I'm saying is, people moved to get better jobs, to raise a better family. No one in the 1940s and 1950s sat around saying, "The government is doing enough to get me a job. They'd rather pay some Indian 8 cents an hour to do this." Well, yes. What business wouldn't rather do that. Labor costs would plummet. Plus, where in the Constitution of your country does it say that the government is responsible for your job? I've actually read it, and I can't find it. This goes hand-in-hand with minimum wage. "But, Sanjay, I'm trying to raise my family on minimum wage." And that's my fault how? I didn't make the choices that led me to a minimum wage job. Blake's 24 and he's only worked one minimum wage job in his life. Your job comes down to choice, and if you make bad choices, then you have to pay for them. Get over your little manic-depressive contrdiction of hating this administration and wondering why they aren't helping you and get yourself a job. If you're able bodied, and you want more in life, then work two jobs. I hear Wendys, McDonalds, and taco Bell are all hiring late shift. The jobs are there, get over your self-importance and take them.

Sanjay

The Almighty 21, part b

TOP TEN
10. Matisyahu. More fun than you can shake a stick at, although I've always wondered what kind of fun people were having that shaking sticks was actually involved. By the way, Matisyahu is on my playlist right now.
9. College Football. Yes, it's no. 9. Makes you wonder what 8 things could possibly be better, eh?
8. Musical change of taste. If you get the chance, go to youtube.com and look up Varttina, Gjallarhorn, Loituma, etc. Finnish music is in!
7. Bass blasters and the idiots who drive them. I like to listen to music loud when I'm driving, but these nuts take it to the extreme. If your bass is drowning out my bass, and I'm over 1/4 miles away, you're too loud.
6. Israel. I know that this is a contentious point, but to the people that say Israel lost the war with Hizb'allah, the only reason that happened is because the world community (read: bunch o' appeasers) kept telling Israel to quit bombing the crap out Hizb'allah. Do I support everything Israel's done? No. I do think that they should be allowed to defend themselves. Everytime the world says "Israel, you should back off," Israel gets attacked. I say let 'em go next time.
5. CE & BCE vs AD & BC. Let me get this straight, history department. We're now calling it BCE and CE (Before Common Era, Common Era) but the date changes remains at the same spot. So in a way were saying "Thank you, Jesus, for changing our measurement of time. We're not going to say it was you anymore, but we'll always point back toward it." Nice.
4. Midterms. Well, lack thereof. *tips hat to Robert*
3. Madden. I was continuing my season on Madden '05, and tonight I rushed Michael Vick for 427 yards in one game. Dang straight.
2. Stargate SG-1. It was a good run, guys, but it looks like Sci-Fi has sold it's soul to Battlestar Gallactica.
1. Hockey. What else? The Trashers' season open Oct. 5 against Tampa Bay at Philips Arena. If you're there, I'll be in section 221.

The Almighty 21, part a

In honor of this 21st post (hey, Rennie, tell Fred I'm ripping you off again) I'm listing 21 things that matter, don't matter, might not matter, and just plain tick people off.

21. Soccer. Did anyone else watch this glorified game of tag that happened over the summer? I'll admit, they are athletes, but dang it, if they ever stubbed their toe they'd be in a coma for three weeks.
20. 5 Years. 9-11-01.
19. School Starting. I'm glad to be back, but it's really just the daily grind now.
18. F1 vs. NASCAR. I keep asking Rennie why Nascar is a redneck sport, but F1 is okay. He's yet to give me a good answer.
17. The Girl in the Blue Shirt. Just ask me sometime.
16. Old Friends. I ran into one of my old friends today. Good to see people like that.
15. The Chartreuse Shirt. My friends will get it.
14. Notre Dame. It thrills me to know that Notre Dame isn't as good as everyone thought they would be. Good times.
13. The Fall of Facebook. Yes, it happened. Every time college students catch a break there's always a twist.
12. The Braves. This years marks the first time since I was in elementary school that the Braves missed the playoffs.
11. When schools misspell. Yes, I got an email from the school that even had a misspelling in the title, can you find it: "Attention Summer Greaduates"

Join us next time for the Top Ten and a special commentary by Sanjay.

A Response to the Critic(s), Greater Good amendment 2

It has come to my attention today that one of our colleagues over at The Skewed View, a colleague who shall remain nameless, had some right nasty things to say about us here at The Right Wing. Apparently, among the many things this person takes issue over, is the hiring of Sanjay. Sanjay was angry, and rightly so. In the short time that Sanjay has been with us here at The Right Wing, our readership has doubled (albeit from 2 to 4) but still, you can't argue with 200%. Now how much validity to give to sirs argument about topic theft I cannot answer. He appears to believe that neither The Right Wing or The Fallen-ish would be around if it weren't for him. I say this, get a grip. To give a tip of the hat to South Park, which is something I shudder to do, "Simpson's did it!" There are no longer any original ideas. Every idea that comes about now is a result of a previous idea, and if everythin works properly, the new idea will expand and improve upon the old one. So, to sir who feels it to be his duty to enter into a vehement tirade against fellow bloggers, wait.... hold on... where is it?... I can't find it. What am I looking for, you ask? Simple: My concern.

The Greater Good

Now, joking aside, I feel the need to apologize to the Greater Good. This is a very simple idea, and if I personify the Greater Good in my writing, then so be it. However, today I was supposed to visit a friend. This was a plan we had in the works for a number of days. On my way over, he calls me to say that his dad wants to go see a movie and that our plans are now on hold. I was angry, upset. Ticked off a little bit. And I shouldn't have been. The Greater Good was definitely not pleased. There was no excuse for it, except good old fashioned selfishness. Who am I to get angry when someone's father wants to do something with their kid? It was petty, and yet I indulged it as though I would never have an opportunity to see my friends again. How fragile is the human psyche that little things like that can burden us down so? In my case, the worst part was yet to come, as I called another friends and began to make plans for Sunday night, when he said that he and a group of my friends were going out of town for part of the day and wouldn't be back until late Sunday night. This really upset me because, even thought I would be unable to go, I wasn't even told about it until today, and that was only because it interferred with our plans for tomorrow night. These people are my friends. They've never wronged me, and I'm certain this was just a lapse in judgment. I was having a great day, and then this happened. I'm asking myself now how something like that could shake me so. Perhaps I'm just not as strong in the Greater Good as I thought...

The Greater Good, amendment 1

A couple of days ago I brought up the issue of the Greater Good. I took careful steps to show that this was not intended as a spiritual issue, nor as something that the peace-loving fundamentalist terrorist embrace with martyrdom, but it is merely the act of being nice to people for a change. Douglas Adams, in a not so veiled reference to the crucifixion, noted that Christ was nailed to a tree for going around and telling people how great it would be to be nice to each other for a change.

Well, I've got a couple of new examples for you.
Go into your local Kroger, I was in one tonight, purchasing groceries. When you enter the checkout lanes, there is a space just beyond them for departing customers to walk back to the front door. This space is about ten to twelve feet wide, plenty of room to pass through, so long as your path remains unobstructed. Well, tonight as I'm leaving this lady in the lane closest to the door proceeds to push her shopping cart right into the path ov everyone walking out. I stop momentarily, waiting for her to pull back her cart and allow people to walk by. Instead she leaves her cart in the way, grabs her bags out of it, and walks off. The Greater Good, needless to say, was not happy. How much trouble is it to pull your cart back, or even take it the extra 20 feet across the entrance and put it back with the other carts? But no, causing a disruption for the sake of your own benefit, and by benefit I mean getting out of Kroger before the three of us that were walking toward her, is much more important.

Another issue happened in class yesterday. I have a 45 mile drive to school everyday, just because I love going. I drive through Gainesville. After Gainesville I have a few backroads before I reach the college. I got stuck behind a couple of inmate work crews on my way. My first class starts at 9:35am. The teacher like to start at 9:30am. I walk in at 9:37am, two minutes, people. The teacher stops what she is saying and proceeds to dress me down in front of the entire class, saying that entering class late is a distraction and I should try to be on time. Which reminds me, I need to call the Georgia Dept. of Corrections and find out their inmate work schedules. So I take my seat, trying to let it go, but then two girls walk in ten full minutes late. Does the teacher say anything to them? Nope. Aparently they were not a distraction. Once again, the Greater Good is shaking its head.

Jeez, that made me mad. I'm gonna let my new hire Sanjay take this next one, Sanjay...

You are not more important than me. Let me say that to start things off. I know, I should say that I'm glad to be here at The Right Wing, but the fact is my position and responsibility do not make me anything more or less than anyone else. You're responsibility is merely that, responsibility. We all have it, to whomever we give it to, it is not a badge of honor, it is a badge of humanity. That being said, I want to tell the driver of the Ford Focus to slow the heck down. Like Robert said, the passing lane is there for a reason. If you are back behind a pack of cars, like ten of more deep, then forget it. You're not more important, or in a bigger hurry, you're just more selfish and self-absorbed. Get over your whiny teenage angst music, get past the fact that your eighth-grade girlfriend is the easiest go in five counties, get over the notion that life revolves around you. The greater Good would be much happier.

Blake...

Thanks, Sanjay. Ladies and Gentlemen, Sanjay, my tech support and call screener.

Announcing a New Hiring

Here at The Right Wing we've fallen behind the times. Outsourcing apparently has run rampant in our country, and just as I was about to hire some poor sap... er, I mean, brilliant young man named Sanjay to handle tech support for me, I had the brilliant idea to hire American. So I've gone out, broken down the racial and ethnical demographic of my area (so as to conform with Affirmative Action) and ralized that, to meet the stringent guidelines in place, I have to hire a 28-year-old lesbian woman who's father was Hispanic, who's mother was African-American, who's grandfather on her father's side was Irish and her grandmother was Puerto Rican, who's grandfather on her mother's side was Canadian and her grandmother there was Nigerian, and who's second cousin twice removed was French, who's only ever made $10,000 a year once in her life, and who has at most a tenth grade education.

You know what? That person doesn't exist. And if they did, in this country, they'd want about four times the salary Sanjay is willing to do the job for. So I'm hiring Sanjay to handle tech support. He'll also be answering your calls on Tuesdays and Thursdays while I'm in class.

The Greater Good

Okay, maybe that caought your eye, maybe not. Still, you're here. And by here, I'm talking about The Right Wing (hey, Carl and Rennie are doing the shameless self-promoting, I can too).

The Greater Good, from this point forward, will refer to anything I think can make this country better. I'm not talking about some Islamo-fascist blow up the infidels kind of greater good martyrdom. I'm talking about the little things in life that can make this trip a bit better for all of us.

Take a moment and consider a few things. What could you change in your life that would make your journey a bit less stressful? (And don't go overboard with the spiritual sounds in this entry, I'm looking at basic tenets of everyday life.)

Holding the door for someone. I know, mundane, right? But why do we hold doors? We don't help ourselves by this, and the person behind us is likely just as strong or able-bodied and could surely open a door by themselves. But many times we will actually go out of our way to hold open a door for someone who could do it themselves. Think for a moment. Some people are actually insulted by someone holding a door for them. I tend to think of it as a common courtesy, a simple way of saying, "Here, you don't need my help, but I'm offering it anyway as a way of being a nice guy."

That's just one of a plethora of ideas for the greater good. I hope you have some of your own.

A Day of Mourning, Politics, and Conspiracy

It's now 9/12. It's been over 5 years since al-Qaeda launched the devastating attacks of 9-11-2001. On one hand our country still seems trying to cope with the issue. On the other it seems that both sides of the political aisle in Washington wish to play us all for fools.

I'll start with September 11th. Yes, I remember exactly where I was that day, I hope I never forget. I had just parked my car at Gainesville College and was getting ready to go to class, listening to the Neal Boortz radio show when the announcement came that a plane had struck the World Trade Center's North Tower. My first thought was that it was a small plane. I went to the library and pulled up pictures of it online and realized what was happening.

The librarian then turned on the TV in the audio/visual room just as the second plane hit the South Tower. My friend Matt, who is older and vastly more learned than I, especially at that time, said "bin Laden has screwed himself this time." I, of course, had never heard the name of Usama bin Laden. Moments later a report came in that the Pentagon had been hit, and shortly after that both Trade Center Towers collapsed.

It burns my heart to see the footage. To watch people choosing to jump to their deaths, knowing that rescue was impossible. To hear the flight recordings, as Muhammed Atta tells the passengers of American 11 that they are returning to the airport, blatantly lying, willing to sacrifice the lives of thousands. To hear the pilot of United 93 tell his passengers that there was a bomb on board and that they were returning to the airport to make their demands. To listen to a 911 call from an upper floor of the South Tower, hearing the fear in a man's voice, knowing that he will in all likelihood die very soon, and then hearing his screams as the Tower begins to fall. My blood begins to boil, and if you are able to listen to this and not feel anger over what happened, then I feel sorry for you.

September 11 marks a turning point for the world. I know that sounds trite, but the truth remains. Nothing as been the same since that day. Are we safer? I don't know. I do like the idea of getting these Islamic Radical Fascists in their own lands before they strike at us again, which is not a matter of if but when.

So yesterday, the five year anniversary of the most destructive terror attack ever, President Bush goes before the nation to discuss a number of issues. He started with a tribute to those lost on 9/11, but afterwards spent his speech discussing foreign policy. I tend to believe that Islamic terror is the key enemy on this earth. I've discussed this in previous posts, and will not re-hash my belief here.

So Bush discusses foreign policy. I'm okay with that. I understand the necessity of going into Iraq. Do I like war? No, anyone that does is mad. I understand that some wars have to be fought. I'm sick of a media machine that loves to focus all attention on the negative. Five years after the attacks that claimed the lives of nearly 3000 people, the combined efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq have claimed nearly as many American lives. The media will hammer this point into your impressionable head at every turn. They love to show how dangerous life is with the Iraqi insurgency and the attempted re-establishment of the Taliban. They will not, however, tell you of the 50 million or so people freed from tyrannical regimes. They will give you a 30-second sound bite about 12 million Iraqis voting in a truly democratic election, and then pound out about 15 minutes of coverage on a car bomb that blew up in Kirkuk.

The worst part is the far-left wing of the Democrat Party, the wing that has essentially co-opted the party away from it's moderate roots, the wing that has FDR spinning in his grave, will tell you that President Bush is at fault for everything. Perhaps not the members of the party, but at least the constituency will blame Bush for everything from a soldier's death at the hands of an improvised road-side bomb to the actual collapse of the Twin Towers.

There is a group called "Scholars for 9/11 Truth" who are dead-set in their argument that the Bush Administration planeted Thermite charges and various other cutter charges in the Twin Towers and in WTC Building 7 in order to launch a war in the Middle East to make their Big Oil buddies richer. Remember that this is the same President who 90% of the liberal component of this country say is the dumbest president ever. Apparently bush, who was in office for just about 8 months prior to the attack was able to orchestrate the planting of controlled charges, and then pay off about 19 Saudis to take over 4 airplanes and start crashing them into things. Yeah, that sounds plausible. Here are two of the worst arguments...

Argument 1: The collapse of the Twin Towers was far too controlled, including puffs of smoke coming from different floors at the building collapsed to have been totally related to the two 767's that struck them.
Answer: Absolutely. But it couldn't have anything to do with the fires generated by two 767's that were fueled up for cross-country flights, nor with the subsequent office and paper fires, nor with the structural damage produced from the attacks. As for the puffs of smoke, those counldn' tpossibly be related to the pancaking of the floors, or from the air being pushed down and blowing out the windows as around 50 million tons of steel comes crashing down. And why did the building fall into their own footprints? I keep hearing this argument and I almost wonder is these people are sad that more destruction wasn't unleashed in New York. The buildings collapsed straight down because that's how they were designed. Chief Architect Minoru Yamasaki planned for the building to fall straight down, in the event of a structural failure such as the one witnessed on 9/11.

Argument 2: Building 7 wasn't struck by an airplane, why did it collapse?
Answer: I've heard, from the conspiracy nuts, that WTC 7 had to be demolished because of a clandestine CIA operation based out of it. I'm thinking it may have more to do with damage suffered during the initial attacks that would have sparked fires and damaged the inner structure of the building. I could be wrong.

I'll close by saying this. I don't like war. I wish we had never been given a reason to go to war. But I would much rather stand up as Americans and take responsibility for the greatest issues and threats of our time, just like the World War II generation did, than to leave a problem unsolved for our children and their children to deal with.

The Life and Times of an ABC Mini-Series

ABC, the alphabetical network, is going to air a 5-hour miniseries called "The Path to 9/11." This is all well and good, but said miniseries does something that so few miniseries or TV events do any longer: it shows the failings of both major parties. Typically, and my liberal friends will likely agree, TV events tend to cast conservatives in a negative light. I point to CBS' "The Reagans."

Turns out 9/11 was one of those events where both parties failed miserably. The attacks happened less than a year into George W. Bush's first term as president, yet to hear some liberal scholars and Democratic strategists talk, he should bear the blame for everything. But the fact remains that the walls in place among the intelligence community, walls that prevented the sharing of information, were built by Jaime Gorelick, during the Clinton administration. In fact, Clinton was offered bin Laden twice, but turned down the offer both times. (I personally equate this to Bush 41 calling off the Gulf War push in 1991 when troops were just miles from Baghdad.)

Well, the ABC miniseries has a scene that shows Sandy Berger (then National Security Advisor) denying authorization to the CIA to cature or kill bin Laden.(1.)

As soon as the Clinton camp heard this, the machine went into a frenzy, because as we all know, no Democrat has ever done anything that could possibly harm this nation later on, it's only Republicans who seek to kill our own people. But, yeah, the Clinton camp is in a fury over this portrayal of Sandy Berger. This is the same Sandy Berger who tried to sneak documents from the National Archives by hiding them in his pants and socks, and upon being caught, said it was just sloppiness. How sloppy do you have to be to get documents in your socks?

The Clinton Foundation, that's right, the Clinton's have their own foundation, says the miniseries is "factually and incontrovertibly inaccurate," while the DNC issued a mass email claiming it to be a "despicable, irresponsible fraud." These are the same people who said that conservatives were being childish when CBS aired "The Reagans" and Republicans claimed that CBS was not showing a balanced view of the truth.

ABC is now claiming that the changes are being made to reflect the more "general indecisiveness" in the days before the attacks.(2.) Bill Clinton himself has even gone on the offensive, warning ABC to either change the drama, or pull it altogether.(3.)

So now, because of the drama between ABC and the Clinton camp, "The Path to 9/11" is drawing more attention than previously imagined.

(1.) http://www.variety.com/VR1117949675.html
(2.) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/07/AR2006090701454_pf.html
(3.)http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/

Random Things

Part I: Of Things Internet

So Facebook has updated. And by updated I mean screwed things around so royally that now even the creators of Facebook have thrown their hands up disgust and wandered out of the room.
Now we have MiniFeed, a device so useless that it can only be described as... well... useless. As Robert so eloquently stated, "Oh right, I can only have eight quotes but MiniFeed can take up 40,000 square feet of real estate."

The worst aspect of the whole MiniFeed fiasco is that, when Facebook pitches the idea of MiniFeed to you, it gives you the option to select Awesome! (and yes, the "!" is actually in the select box) or... well, nothing else, really. Just Awesome! So let me get this straight, Mr. Facebook, wherever you are. You're going to arbitrarily upgrade yourself, and then, instead of allowing your subscribers the option to not take the upgrade, you're not only forcing them to accept it, but they have to be excited about it.

Part II: Of Things Athletic

So a full week of college football has come and gone and we found out some interesting stuff this weekend. We learned that neither Florida State nor Miami actually recruited an offense this season. We learned that UGA and Iowa are both capable of beating up on Div. I-AA schools. And we learned that Notre Dame can barely beat a bunch of pests from Atlanta.

The NFL starts officially this Thursday. So I guess its prediction time for both the College ranks and the Sunday players.

College:
Pac-10: USC (I really want to pick Arizona St.)
Big Ten: Ohio State
Big East: West Virginia
Big XII North: Nebraska
Big XII South: Texas
Big XII Champ: Texas
ACC Atlantic: FSU
ACC Coastal: Virginia Tech
ACC Champ: Virgina Tech
SEC East: UGA
SEC West: Auburn
SEC Champ: Auburn

NFL
AFC:
North: Bengals
South: Colts
East: Patriots
West: Broncos
Wildcards: Steelers, Jaguars
Champ: Colts
NFC:
North: Bears
South: Panthers
East: Giants
West: Seahawks
Wildcards: Falcons, Cowboys
Champ:Panthers
Super Bowl Champs: Colts

Ray Nagin, Stolen Elections, and Hurricanes, Oh My.

I just finished reading my friend Robert's newest entry and I feel compelled to say a few words, or in this case, type out a mini-discourse. I'm fairly certain that this entry will tend more toward a rant than anything, but, like Robert, I've had it.

I'm tired.
I'm sick of the nonsense.
I'm literally nauseous from the party lines, everytime I see the news I want to kick my TV. I actually watched part of Hannity and Colmes the other night and Sean Hannity wouldn't shut up long enough for the Democrat guest to speak and the liberal columnist filling in for Alan Colmes was so loud that you couldn't hear Ann Coulter, which I think is a first.

Ray Nagin, the man that waited until 24 hours before Katrina hit to start evacuating his city, kept school buses that could've aided the evacuation on closed lots, and then blamed George Bush for the devastation and loss of life, has said that Bush still hasn't done enough. Obviously Clinton didn't think the levees a big problem during his administration, nor did Bush 41, Reagan, Carter, Ford, LBJ, Nixon, etc. Yet, when disaster strikes, it's that pesky conservative (and I use that term loosely) Texan who stole the elections in 2000 and 2004 who is to blame.

And Democrats, please find a new excuse. The whole "They stole the election" thing isn't working anymore. When Bush won in 2000, he stole the election. When he won the '04 campaign, he stole the election. In fact, it's gotten so bad on your side of the aisle that when relative newcomer Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) defeated incumbent Cynthia McKinney for a house seat, she said that he stole the election, and he's in her party. Jeez.....

The problem with every party is something that I aid out in one of my latest posts. Both parties find it more important to stay in power than to accomplish anything with the power they have.

Of course, the voters are really no better off. Let's revisit Mr. Nagin. Like I stated, he essentially shut down the city of New Orleans, thereby causing a higher percentage of damage to human life than necessary, he locked up buses, didn't order timely evacuations and otherwise bungled the entire thing. But we can't blame Nagin, after all, he's a Democrat, and we all know that in times of national crisis or disaster that only Republicans can shoulder any blame. Same thing goes for Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco. But Nagin has a bright glaring moment of ineptitude, and the voters re-elected him. Now I know the liberal answer to that is the President Bush is inept, and maybe that has shown more clearly in term two, but in his first term, what exactly was so hugely inept about him? I ask that inviting honest debate. I don't want to hear that it was Bush's ineptness that caused 9/11 or any of that.

Does anyone else recall after Hurricane Season '05 how the enviro-whackos kept telling us that Global Warming would cause '06 to be an ever worse Hurricane Season? Well, guess what, we've got a Hurricane that may (or may not) actually hit the US. I could be wrong, but this would be the first Hurricane to hit the US this year. One projection has it bearing down on New Orleans, another has it turning north to hit Florida, another has it going straight west to the Texas/Mexico border, and yet another has it stopping of Cuba and fizzling out. Still, this "worst year ever for Hurricanes" is kinda been a letdown. I was expecting to have been stalked and killed by a gang of Hurricanes trying to take over my town.

Is there a dress code in college?

Okay, here we go. All of us, including the fresh-meat, I mean freshmen, and the jaded seniors,
know at least one person who has a) come to class in their pajamas, b) come to class dressed up like they were on a runway in Milan, or c) come to class looking much the disheveled curmudgeon.

The reasoning behind all of these is quite simple to follow. The pajamas are either a truth of the person's sleeping habits or a very sordid attempt at a fashion statement. In fact, the same could likely be said of the person who appears to be in line for the Milan runway.

The disheveled curmudgeon look comes from being in far too many upper level classes while actually attempting to graduate sometime this millennium. Most of the pajama and fashion model people will never attain this look. It's actually reserved in the campus bookstore for the jaded seniors.

The reason for this current edition of "The Right Wing" is currently sitting a mere six feet away from me at this time. A young woman, strangely attractive, dressed in a purple skirt, a white lace long-sleeve shirt, and a pitch black corset, with purple hair. Is she one of Robert's pseudo-goths, or is she only trying new ways of dress? Heck, she could even be druidish and sincerely awaiting the next lunar event, which should be sometime in the nest 6-12 hours.

It got me to thinking: does NGCSU have a dress code? I mean, I'm sure you couldn't wander about nude or anything, but is there actually a written out dress code that we're supposed to be following?

I'm thinking back on my myriad classes today and can remember everyone's favorite jock coming in wearing those horridly disgusting short athletic shorts that leave no room to the imagination and a sweatshirt. Or the girl who rushes into class wearing a short-skirt (once again, no room to the imagination, and we're not complaining), also with the high-heels and low cut shirt (again, no complaints), trying to convince everyone in the room that she's just run up from a photo shoot...

Even the professors are not immune. I noticed one professor rushing down the hall looking as though the latest Wicca meeting had just dismissed while another professor rushed by her like he was running to the beach.

I tell ya', I don't get it.

Everything You Learned is Wrong

Everything about our solar system, that is. Well, actually, just that tiny part about Pluto being a planet. A group of bookworm eggheads got together and decided that at least 1/9th of your previous knowledge of our general area of space was wrong. Pluto is no longer a planet planet, but is now a drawf planet (or spatially challenged for you PC people).

So I ask you: who do these people think they are? I'd like to have the power to change the status of planets, just to bring that jerkwad Neptune down a notch.

All kidding aside, this is a somewhat major change to the hopes, aspirations, and otherwise harmless daydreams of Calvins, Hobbeses, and young Jason Foxes everywhere (if you missed those references, please revisit your childhood.). Apparently, Pluto's orbit intersects Neptune's, which is a big friggin' astronaumical no-no, or so say the egghead union. As my friend Carl pointed out, though, does Pluto cross Neptune, or does Neptune cross Pluto? Hmmmm.....

So now the Solar System is one less planet than it was 24 hours ago, but we've gained at least one drawf planet, possibly three, and we all know that little people are entertaining.

THE USEFULNESS OF POLITICIANS

So here I sit, in the Cyber Cafe' at scenic North Georgia College and State University, where, on matter where you are no campus, everything is uphill from you, discussing random things such as class schedules, politics, and previously posted blogs, when Carl and I delve into the realm known as:

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
THE USEFULNESS OF POLITICIANS
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
SOCIAL SECURITY
The federal government has done a spectacular job at making the masses believe in Social Security as the be-all-end-all gift that keeps on giving fun for the whole family russian doll money tree bottomless piggy bank like Scrooge McDuck's money vault from Duck Tales.
There are actually people in my age group (18-35) who believe in Social Security as a force for good and that they will actually get something in return, when, of course, our only return will be in the form of a US Issue Government IOU.
After Social Security stops vomiting our hard-earned dollars up to senior citizens, it will become readily apparent to most that Social Security is a problem. The government answer to this problem should be to allow people a way out of Social Security and into their own private retirment funds. The real answer is to merely raise the retirment age, thus forcing you to put more money over a longer period of time into the system.

PUBLIC SCHOOL
The rallying point of both sides of the aisle. Public schools are failing nation wide. Kennedy and his ilk say that paying teachers a higher salary would improve the problem (which, in and of itself, shows you the problem with the teachers union ("If we don't get paid higher, we'll stop teaching your kids and giving them a proper education")) Public Schools are the government money pit. They throw more and more money at a problem that continues to get worse. So the government answer: Let's not raise standards for teachers, let's lower standards for the students. Remember, the path of least resistance. It's easier to bring the top down to meet the bottom than to raise the bottom to meet the top.

Those are just a few points. I'll readily admit that I'm highly critical of the liberal mindset, especially in the commercial sense of liberalism, or the Clintonian model, which is actually borderline socialism.

Keep your eyes open and your mind open, because both sides of the aisle will suck you into the black hole of modern politics, where it's more important to stay in power, than to actually accomplish anything with your power.

They did what?!?!?

Okay, so it isn't over yet, but Sci-Fi Channel has announced that Stargate SG-1 will not be renewed for a record-breaking eleventh season.

For those of you not familiar with SG-1, you've missed out on so much.

The movie brought fans into the universe of the Gate in 1994, but the movie and the series differ so much the most fans prefer one over the other. Kurt Russell played Col. "Jack" O'Neil in the movie, and was about as stiff an actor as a 2"x4". James Spader played Dr. Daniel Jackson in the movie.

When the series came about in 1997, Showtime decided to go a different route. They brought in Michael Shanks to play Daniel Jackson and contracted Richard Dean Anderson to play O'Neill (now spelled with two "l"s). Over the years the series has taken subtle jabs at the movie. In one episode, O'Neill is speaking to a reporter and says "Remember, O'Neill, with two "l"s. There's another O'Neil who spells his name with only one "l," he has no sense of humor."

In the pilot epsiode, Major Dr. Samantha Carter says, upon finding the Dial Home Device (DHD), "it took us three years to McGuyver a rig like this for the gate on Earth." which brings a smile to Richard Dean Anderson's face.

After season 5, the show shifted from Showtime to Sci-Fi, closing out the Showtime run with the "death" of Daniel Jackson, and the (then) ultimate enemy, Anubis, looming on the horizon. Daniel returned in Season 7. Anderson left after season 8, prompting the show to bring in Ben Browder and Claudia Black (Farscape) as two of the new members of SG-1.

Has the show lost a bit of its original touch? Yes, but what show hasn't. It's sad that, with the imminent invasion of the newest baddie, the Ori, Sci-Fi has decided the show no longer worthy of it's Friday night lineup.

SG-1, you have a go.

Updating, Downsizing, Right-of-Center, Left-Leaning

Updating (in which you, the reader, are, well, updated):
a. Well, my trip is planned. I'm leaving next June for an 8-day cruise from Anchorage to Vancouver, and then staying an extra day in Vancouver. I'm psyched, but I'm also in a sudden rush to make sure everything is in order. I've got to get my passport, I've got to save money for the next 10 months, which means I'll only get to eat 1 meal a day from October to April.
b. The most worrying part of this excursion is the very real possibility that air travel will remain mucked up because of the mad mullahs who can't stop blowing themselves up and killing innocents in the name of Allah and the peaceful religion of Islam.

Downsizing (in which I try to break it down for you):
a. I've copied this from http://www.drudgereport.com/ , "88-year-old CBS journalist Mike Wallace says Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a 'reasonable' man on Sean Hannity's ABC radio program... Points out Ahmadinejad not anti-Jewish... just anti-Zionist state. Says many Jews in Iranian Parliament, in great positions in Iranian life... Believes Ahmadinejad sincere in his hope for peaceful coexistence between Iran and West... Troubled by comparisons of leader to Hitler... Marvels at Ahmadinejad's civil engineering degree, 'intellect', 'savvy'... Asks viewers not to bring 'prejudices' to Sunday night '60 MINUTES' broadcast..." Okay, that's a little troubling. I'll admit, I have not fully verified this myself, I leave that to you (yes, it's basically homework). Ahmadinejad has said that Israel must be eliminated. He's questioned whether the Holocaust ever actually happened. He's pointed to August 22nd as a day of "fire and terror from Heaven." He's said Israel's destruction is the only key to peace in the Middle East... and Mike Wallace calls him reasonable. Not anti-Jewish, just anti-Zionist state. You have to realize that in Islam, a caliphate is the most reasonable state of government. Non-Muslims would be subject harsh oppression. There would be no such thing as a Muslim raping a Jew of Christian, but if a Jew or Christian so much as struck in Muslim in defense, it would be considered a crime punishable by death. Ahmadinejad is sincere in his hope for peaceful coexistence between the West and Iran... yeah, and pigs are flying out of O'Hare today. How can anyone believe he wished for peaceful coexistence when he denies and outright disobeys the vaunted GLOBAL COMMUNITY at every turn?
b. The terrorist plot foiled by the Brits, the US, and Pakistan is a great event. Word leaked over the last 24 hours that President Bush was briefed on the plot over a week ago, and I've already some some of my left-leaning friends questioning why we waited so long in moving against the potential attackers. The reason is simple. If we had moved the moment the intel came through, a big portion of the terrorist would've disappeared and we'd never have captured them. Still, great achievement. I'm happy to see the sharing of intel actually working.

Right-of-Center (a couple of quotes from conservatives or Libertarians):
a. "This nation is at war with Islamic fascists who will use any means to destroy those of us who love freedom, to hurt our nation." - President George W. Bush
b. "Yesterday morning, hundreds of lives-- maybe thousands -- were saved, many of them innocent American lives. It should be a time of great relief....of gratitude toward the British government for foiling the plot along with anybody else who contributed." - Neal Boortz
c. "I grew up in New York and used to drive by the building all the time. It represented a much larger world for me. [But I came to see an] unbelievably yawning chasm between the ideals of [the U.N.'s] charter and how it operated in reality. When you see its lack of effectiveness with genocides, and its corruption ... it's not simply that they were ineffective, it's that in many cases they were abetting the injustices." - Actor Ron Silver, on the UN

Left-Leaning (quotes from Democrats and Liberals):
a. "This latest plot demonstrates the need for the Bush administration and the Congress to change course in Iraq and ensure that we are taking all the steps necessary to protect Americans at home and across the world." - Harry Reid
b. "We believe this is an ill-advised term and we believe that it is counter-productive to associate Islam or Muslims with fascism..." - CAIR (Council for American Islamic Relations), in regards to President Bush's quote (listed previously).
c. "When I go to the airport and they try to take my MAC Plushglass away from me, it's going to be World War III!" - Comedienne Sandra Bernhardt
d. "Well, I wanted to open a window towards the light for the president so that he can see that one can look on the world through a different perspective. … We are all free to choose. But please give him this message, sir: Those who refuse to accept an invitation will not have a good ending or fate. You see that his approval rating is dropping every day. Hatred vis-à-vis the president is increasing every day around the world. For a ruler, this is the worst message that he could receive. Rulers and heads of government at the end of their office must leave the office holding their heads high." - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
e. "Well, please look at the makeup of the American administration, the behavior of the American administration. See how they talk down to my nation." - Ahmadinejad
f. "We have worked a lot, especially on two points, the force to deploy and the withdrawal of the Israeli forces. We want to succeed and we must now check with the parties." - French UN Ambassador Jean-Marc de La Sabliere (on the biggest mistake the UN had made in a long time).