Saturday, August 14, 2010
Notes: No Internet
I just got internet again for the first time since a storm knocked it out on Wednesday night.
Honestly, I didn’t miss it.
I’m also a bit perplexed by the fact that I came back to three new followers, more new followers than I ever got in a three day period while writing. Hmm… I guess the only thing holding me back from being a popular blogger is all my pesky posting.
What did I do with myself? I mostly watched our two dogs fight, and cleaned up the poop of our new dog, Max. Max is not totally house trained yet, and the same morning (Thursday) I woke up to see the cable was still out, he left a turd in the hallway that was the size of a human’s… after Thanksgiving. The cable had been knocked out the night before right in the middle of me watching the movie, “Big Fan.” I also found carpenter ants in the sun room that morning.
Thursday didn’t start out so great. I got the earliest appointment to have someone come fix the cable for Saturday. I was a little pissed off, but what are you gonna do?
I went to a grocery store called Earth Fare that I would compare to Trader Joe’s, in that you can find a lot of interesting things, but not a lot of stuff I had heard of before I went in.
The big winner out of that excursion was a natural soda called Blue Sky which uses real sugar. Their Cherry Vanilla Cream tastes like Barq’s red cream soda, only better (like a maraschino cherry cola, for those unfamiliar with the rare Barq’s drink, which I can usually only find at White Castle). Tonight I think we’re going to make feta, hazelnut, butternut squash raviolis. Wait, this isn’t a food blog… [yet]
There was more dog walking, and I played some Civilization IV, where I was the Vikings every time (I made Odin proud).
I read from 5000 BC to 1000 BC in “The Timetables of History,” by Bernard Grunn, with special emphasis on the religious notes. Who does this Marduk guy think he is, am I right? And don’t even get me started on Osiris. He’s been sucking at his mother’s teat since he came on the divine scene.
More dog walking, lots more picking up poop with plastic bags.
Also during this time, my wife and I were waiting for Sears to call us and let us know when a lawnmower we ordered could be picked up. They literally called just after the cable guy left, while I was writing this, but I can finish and post this because my wife has to shower before we go out.
The cable guy was really nice. Apparently our cables were just old and damaged. He replaced all the cable from the pole to our house, and he’s sending someone out in a couple days to bury it. If I try out that new lawn mower, I gotta remember to mind the wires.
So here I am, with internet and TV again. I can finally see what’s going on with the world over these past few days.
Let’s see… they want to build a mosque in New York? The nerve of these Muslims! Don’t they know this country was founded on intolerance and the belief that only one religion is right?
Come to think of it, Muslims will fit right in…
Honestly, I didn’t miss it.
I’m also a bit perplexed by the fact that I came back to three new followers, more new followers than I ever got in a three day period while writing. Hmm… I guess the only thing holding me back from being a popular blogger is all my pesky posting.
What did I do with myself? I mostly watched our two dogs fight, and cleaned up the poop of our new dog, Max. Max is not totally house trained yet, and the same morning (Thursday) I woke up to see the cable was still out, he left a turd in the hallway that was the size of a human’s… after Thanksgiving. The cable had been knocked out the night before right in the middle of me watching the movie, “Big Fan.” I also found carpenter ants in the sun room that morning.
Thursday didn’t start out so great. I got the earliest appointment to have someone come fix the cable for Saturday. I was a little pissed off, but what are you gonna do?
I went to a grocery store called Earth Fare that I would compare to Trader Joe’s, in that you can find a lot of interesting things, but not a lot of stuff I had heard of before I went in.
The big winner out of that excursion was a natural soda called Blue Sky which uses real sugar. Their Cherry Vanilla Cream tastes like Barq’s red cream soda, only better (like a maraschino cherry cola, for those unfamiliar with the rare Barq’s drink, which I can usually only find at White Castle). Tonight I think we’re going to make feta, hazelnut, butternut squash raviolis. Wait, this isn’t a food blog… [yet]
There was more dog walking, and I played some Civilization IV, where I was the Vikings every time (I made Odin proud).
I read from 5000 BC to 1000 BC in “The Timetables of History,” by Bernard Grunn, with special emphasis on the religious notes. Who does this Marduk guy think he is, am I right? And don’t even get me started on Osiris. He’s been sucking at his mother’s teat since he came on the divine scene.
More dog walking, lots more picking up poop with plastic bags.
Also during this time, my wife and I were waiting for Sears to call us and let us know when a lawnmower we ordered could be picked up. They literally called just after the cable guy left, while I was writing this, but I can finish and post this because my wife has to shower before we go out.
The cable guy was really nice. Apparently our cables were just old and damaged. He replaced all the cable from the pole to our house, and he’s sending someone out in a couple days to bury it. If I try out that new lawn mower, I gotta remember to mind the wires.
So here I am, with internet and TV again. I can finally see what’s going on with the world over these past few days.
Let’s see… they want to build a mosque in New York? The nerve of these Muslims! Don’t they know this country was founded on intolerance and the belief that only one religion is right?
Come to think of it, Muslims will fit right in…
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
A Case For Registering, But Not Voting
[Originally posted as a response to Samuel over at Sub Species Aeternitatis]
I’m certain of a handful of things, and one of them is that Republicans haven’t put up a decent presidential candidate since Eisenhower. State and local officials may be different, but not in my experience. They’ve pretty much all become religiously zealous war-mongers or switched to being a Democrat.
I don’t register Democrat, either, because saying what I want to hear and then doing none of it doesn’t impress me much.
I’m reminded of my middle school days watching MTV in the late 90’s. Every day I would rush home from school to see what the top video was on TRL, and every day I would hope it wasn’t the Backstreet Boys, N’Sync or 98 degrees. It got so bad, I started thinking I actually liked the bands who sometimes beat them. I found myself buying CDs by Korn and Limp Bizkit. *shiver*
It turns out... they all sucked. It was all just a scheme to get me to buy into one of the two genres being marketed. Neither one was actually worth listening to, but I really hated the polished teeny-bopper bands, so I managed to convince myself I liked something I didn’t, all in the name of “winning” a competition.
In the end, I just turned the channel. It’s a shame we can’t do that with politics (since they’ll just keep on ruining our country whether we pay attention or not).
I register as independent, even though I don’t vote, because I think it is important that people register and do so accurately. I’m not a Democrat, nor have I ever voted for one, so why would I lie just so I could participate in primaries and select a Democrat I wouldn’t even end up voting for in the election?
More importantly, registering as independent is a signal. It says, “I don’t buy what you’re selling.” If everyone just chose D or R, it would seem like the two parties appealed to people, that they were fulfilling the needs of voters. The fact is, they aren’t.
More people are selecting “independent” or “unaffiliated” than they have in generations. Why? The parties we have are not adequate. What does this mean? We are due for a new party - or two.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you go to register and they asked you, “Socialist or Libertarian?” Wouldn’t that more accurately describe the political beliefs of Americans?
I’m certain of a handful of things, and one of them is that Republicans haven’t put up a decent presidential candidate since Eisenhower. State and local officials may be different, but not in my experience. They’ve pretty much all become religiously zealous war-mongers or switched to being a Democrat.
I don’t register Democrat, either, because saying what I want to hear and then doing none of it doesn’t impress me much.
I’m reminded of my middle school days watching MTV in the late 90’s. Every day I would rush home from school to see what the top video was on TRL, and every day I would hope it wasn’t the Backstreet Boys, N’Sync or 98 degrees. It got so bad, I started thinking I actually liked the bands who sometimes beat them. I found myself buying CDs by Korn and Limp Bizkit. *shiver*
It turns out... they all sucked. It was all just a scheme to get me to buy into one of the two genres being marketed. Neither one was actually worth listening to, but I really hated the polished teeny-bopper bands, so I managed to convince myself I liked something I didn’t, all in the name of “winning” a competition.
In the end, I just turned the channel. It’s a shame we can’t do that with politics (since they’ll just keep on ruining our country whether we pay attention or not).
I register as independent, even though I don’t vote, because I think it is important that people register and do so accurately. I’m not a Democrat, nor have I ever voted for one, so why would I lie just so I could participate in primaries and select a Democrat I wouldn’t even end up voting for in the election?
More importantly, registering as independent is a signal. It says, “I don’t buy what you’re selling.” If everyone just chose D or R, it would seem like the two parties appealed to people, that they were fulfilling the needs of voters. The fact is, they aren’t.
More people are selecting “independent” or “unaffiliated” than they have in generations. Why? The parties we have are not adequate. What does this mean? We are due for a new party - or two.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you go to register and they asked you, “Socialist or Libertarian?” Wouldn’t that more accurately describe the political beliefs of Americans?
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Infinite Inquiry #3
If there is one thing that people of all stripes seem to have in common, it is their opposition for the concept of a “one world government.”
Why?
I have come to the conclusion that the only argument for why people feel this way is: they’ve been told that it is wrong, even evil.
Why?
I imagine that those who have advocated for a single world government in the past have done so violently and to their own ends.
Why?
People are inherently selfish.
Why?
It’s a primitive survival tool.
Why?
At the most base biological level, selfishness allows for increased personal gain, but only to a point.
Why?
Selfishness is limiting, and prevents a species from the greater overall success achieved by social interaction.
Why?
A group can achieve more by working together than the sum total of the individuals, had they worked independently.
Why?
It’s honestly far too complex for one sentence, but perhaps the biggest factors are division of labor and specialization.
Why?
People are largely the same, but they can be molded to do different things with education, training, and other forms of socialization.
Why?
People are largely a product of their environment, especially as children.
Why?
I imagine it increases survival, and is perhaps humanity’s strongest adaptation.
Why?
Being prepared for many different environments allows us to flourish.
Why?
Through ingenuity – which is often derived through painful trial and error – we have been able to overcome even the rigors of space.
Why?
When large groups of people work together as a whole, greater things can be accomplished than when individuals or even small groups work in isolation.
Why?
Groups are more productive and more efficient, so more wonderful and more terrible things are possible, but the risk of gain far outpaces the risk of loss.
Why?
There is ample evidence in the form of tribal people who are still living stone age lifestyles that progress is not a given, that advancements are not accidents, and that large social structures are every bit as responsible for the accomplishments and horrors of modern society as the individuals they produce.
Why?
The more ideas pooled and people enfranchised, and the fewer people who are deemed unimportant outsiders (i.e. “foreigners”), the better society functions.
Why?
Creating differences with our vocabulary and identity erects barriers which only pen us in like animals, and even fails in their intended purpose of protecting us from the feared outsiders.
Why?
Competition is overrated, and cooperation leads to limitless potential.
Why?
Competition requires vast expenditures of time, energy, and money on frivolous and often deadly activities.
Why?
In competition, might makes right, but in cooperation, all are in heated debate over what is right.
Why?
This is the nature of these two systems.
Why?
Competition is inherently animalistic, down to simple reptiles or even amoebas, while cooperation is a later, more complex adaptation of higher organisms (especially present in mammals).
Why?
Competition can exist without cooperation, though cooperation cannot exist without competition.
Why?
Even when organisms cooperate, there is competition, though it is usually mitigated by restraint.
Why?
I don’t know.
Why?
I have come to the conclusion that the only argument for why people feel this way is: they’ve been told that it is wrong, even evil.
Why?
I imagine that those who have advocated for a single world government in the past have done so violently and to their own ends.
Why?
People are inherently selfish.
Why?
It’s a primitive survival tool.
Why?
At the most base biological level, selfishness allows for increased personal gain, but only to a point.
Why?
Selfishness is limiting, and prevents a species from the greater overall success achieved by social interaction.
Why?
A group can achieve more by working together than the sum total of the individuals, had they worked independently.
Why?
It’s honestly far too complex for one sentence, but perhaps the biggest factors are division of labor and specialization.
Why?
People are largely the same, but they can be molded to do different things with education, training, and other forms of socialization.
Why?
People are largely a product of their environment, especially as children.
Why?
I imagine it increases survival, and is perhaps humanity’s strongest adaptation.
Why?
Being prepared for many different environments allows us to flourish.
Why?
Through ingenuity – which is often derived through painful trial and error – we have been able to overcome even the rigors of space.
Why?
When large groups of people work together as a whole, greater things can be accomplished than when individuals or even small groups work in isolation.
Why?
Groups are more productive and more efficient, so more wonderful and more terrible things are possible, but the risk of gain far outpaces the risk of loss.
Why?
There is ample evidence in the form of tribal people who are still living stone age lifestyles that progress is not a given, that advancements are not accidents, and that large social structures are every bit as responsible for the accomplishments and horrors of modern society as the individuals they produce.
Why?
The more ideas pooled and people enfranchised, and the fewer people who are deemed unimportant outsiders (i.e. “foreigners”), the better society functions.
Why?
Creating differences with our vocabulary and identity erects barriers which only pen us in like animals, and even fails in their intended purpose of protecting us from the feared outsiders.
Why?
Competition is overrated, and cooperation leads to limitless potential.
Why?
Competition requires vast expenditures of time, energy, and money on frivolous and often deadly activities.
Why?
In competition, might makes right, but in cooperation, all are in heated debate over what is right.
Why?
This is the nature of these two systems.
Why?
Competition is inherently animalistic, down to simple reptiles or even amoebas, while cooperation is a later, more complex adaptation of higher organisms (especially present in mammals).
Why?
Competition can exist without cooperation, though cooperation cannot exist without competition.
Why?
Even when organisms cooperate, there is competition, though it is usually mitigated by restraint.
Why?
I don’t know.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Friday, August 6, 2010
How Am I Going To Explain…
With my second dog settling in, it’s hard not to think about kids. Why? I dunno, maybe it’s the adorable young mug staring into my eyes all day long. Maybe it’s all the shit I’m cleaning up. Maybe I’m a masochist.
So of course, only one thing comes to mind: how am I going to answer the tough questions my kids ask?
Except… I don’t feel uncomfortable with the usual things. Babies? “Men and women have sex and if the condom breaks and the woman is pro-life or ready, they have a baby. Sometimes scientists in laboratories have to get involved…” Sex? “Adults like to give each other special massages that make you have an awesome sneeze. Sometimes the women even fake sneeze to make the guy sneeze, because it’s contagious like yawning, and she’s sore or bored.”
No, the question that will probably stump me is the religion question. For one thing, I can’t prepare for it. What is the religion question? “Who is God?” Or is it, “Who is Jesus?” Or will it be about religion itself: “What is Scientology, and why did I fail a personality test?”
All I know is the attitude to don if confronted by this situation: detachment. You can’t take a hostile tone, nor should I advocate my point of view. In fact, unless directly asked, I would prefer not to talk about my own views on the matter with my children. It’s just not something I would openly volunteer.
In truth, I view religion much like I view sexuality. It’s just weird to talk about my own experiences in front of certain people. I can explain what sex is to someone, but I wouldn’t want to talk about my first time with someone I didn’t know well.
Religion, however, is a subject for which I lack the vocabulary for remaining neutral. How do you explain to someone religion without making it sound like a demented, X-rated Disney movie?
“Well, God destroyed a town full of homosexuals, but he saved the guy who would go on to sleep with his daughters. Yes, God knew it would happen, He knows everything, but He seemed okay with it. But that doesn’t mean you can sleep with me or mom. And even though Adam and Eve’s kids had to marry each other doesn’t mean you can marry your sibling. But maybe in ten years you can marry your dog in California.”
So what other questions might I be confronted with? I’ll put on my Mr. Roger’s sweater and take a crack at answering them.
So of course, only one thing comes to mind: how am I going to answer the tough questions my kids ask?
Except… I don’t feel uncomfortable with the usual things. Babies? “Men and women have sex and if the condom breaks and the woman is pro-life or ready, they have a baby. Sometimes scientists in laboratories have to get involved…” Sex? “Adults like to give each other special massages that make you have an awesome sneeze. Sometimes the women even fake sneeze to make the guy sneeze, because it’s contagious like yawning, and she’s sore or bored.”
No, the question that will probably stump me is the religion question. For one thing, I can’t prepare for it. What is the religion question? “Who is God?” Or is it, “Who is Jesus?” Or will it be about religion itself: “What is Scientology, and why did I fail a personality test?”
All I know is the attitude to don if confronted by this situation: detachment. You can’t take a hostile tone, nor should I advocate my point of view. In fact, unless directly asked, I would prefer not to talk about my own views on the matter with my children. It’s just not something I would openly volunteer.
In truth, I view religion much like I view sexuality. It’s just weird to talk about my own experiences in front of certain people. I can explain what sex is to someone, but I wouldn’t want to talk about my first time with someone I didn’t know well.
Religion, however, is a subject for which I lack the vocabulary for remaining neutral. How do you explain to someone religion without making it sound like a demented, X-rated Disney movie?
“Well, God destroyed a town full of homosexuals, but he saved the guy who would go on to sleep with his daughters. Yes, God knew it would happen, He knows everything, but He seemed okay with it. But that doesn’t mean you can sleep with me or mom. And even though Adam and Eve’s kids had to marry each other doesn’t mean you can marry your sibling. But maybe in ten years you can marry your dog in California.”
So what other questions might I be confronted with? I’ll put on my Mr. Roger’s sweater and take a crack at answering them.
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