Friday, August 28, 2009

In Health Care Debate, Fear Trumps Logic : NPR

There are those occasions when I wish I was an alien who could finally throw down my hands and bow my head in disgust and simply climb back into my spaceship and take off for good. My final thought as I left would be, "There's just no hope for you ignorant bastards. It takes you way too long to get a clue."

In Health Care Debate, Fear Trumps Logic : NPR

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Wednesday, August 19, 2009

I love technology! This is my first official blog entry entered through SMS from my iPhone. I am actually at work right now though. I suppose now is not a good time to dive into any rants. Oh well.

I feel so connected! :-) I'm out!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

C Street, Ensign and Sandford

Contrary to popular belief, the constitution is a secular document purposefully calling for a separation of church and state. If this whole scandal surrounding C Street and Senator's Ensign and Sanford isn't one of the most glaring examples of the reasoning behind this, I don't know what is. Government should NEVER be used to push or promote a specific religion on its people AT ALL. This should be obvious. That goes hand in hand with purporting to be a nation that protects freedom of religion or for some people freedom from religion.

Also, I am severely annoyed that these hypocritical self righteous "Republican's" are not calling out for the resignation of these two pricks! These two guys have been very outspoken about how the honorable and right thing to do for certain other politicians who have been caught with their pants down was to resign and here they are caught up in their hypocrisy and scandal and refusing to resign. Bullshit! This is the kind of thing that burns my ass that many conservatives don't seem to register. You have these self righteous bastards preaching up and down all these morals, telling people who to hate and who not to hate, doing nothing really than paying lip service to their constituents, and low and behold we find out that they are just like everyone else. Oh my goodness! They sure had me fooled. Not! Get a clue people!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Ballmer Says Netbooks Are

I did a little commenting on this article. It's a discussion about if there is any real future for netbooks.
Ballmer Says Netbooks Are... ‘Revolutionary’

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Friday, May 08, 2009

Posted via Pixelpipe.

MacBook Users: Turn off This Bluetooth Default Setting Now

I checked my setting and the default was for it to be turned off. I am assuming though, that this setting defaults to on once you've actually synced up a bluetooth mouse to your MacBook. I have not done this. I find the awesome design of the trackpad and gestures to be more than sufficient. I don't need a mouse.

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Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Things Seem to be Looking Up

Well, it seems that we have been able to pull through some tough times. Partly due to perseverance and partly do to simple luck. Tina and I have come out on the other end with a solid game plan and the ability to start getting our financial situation in order. The first step will be paying off the car which we can actually do right now! When that is done, we will then be able to aggressively attacking the remainder of our debts and will finally have the ability to start building some real savings. I am very happy I finally got my head out of my ass on this issue. I actually feel like this horrible recession we are all going through was a bit of a blessing for me. It put the fear in me that forced my head to pop out and start paying attention. How do you like that for visuals? :-)

On top of all of that, I was even left with enough room to finally purchase my first Mac computer! How exciting is that!? I am such a junky when it comes to Apple products that I am tempted to stay home the rest of the week until it shows up. I want to be here as soon as it gets here. I know. It's horrible.

I'll be getting a refurbished 2.4 GHz Mac Book. Buying refurbished is saving me three hundred bones. Here are the full details:

Enclosure = Precision aluminum unibody
Processor = 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
L2 Cache = 3MB shared
System bus = 1066MHz
Memory = 2GB (two 1GB SO-DIMMs) of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM (PC3-8500); supports up to 4GB
Hard drive1 = 250GB Serial ATA; 5400 rpm
Slot-loading optical drive = 8x SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Graphics = NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory2
Video = Built-in iSight camera; Mini DisplayPort output port with support for DVI, VGA, and dual-link DVI (requires adapters, sold separately)
Display = 13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen display, 1280-by-800 resolution
USB = Two USB 2.0 ports (up to 480 Mbps)
Audio = Built-in stereo speakers, built-in omnidirectional microphone, combined optical digital input/analog line in, combined optical digital output/analog line out
Networking = Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T (Gigabit) Ethernet
Wireless = Built-in AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi (based on IEEE 802.11n draft specification)3 ; built-in Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) module
Hardware accessories = 60W MagSafe Power Adapter, AC wall plug, power cord, lithium-polymer battery
Height = 0.95 inch (2.41 cm)
Width = 12.78 inches (32.5 cm)
Depth = 8.94 inches (22.7 cm)
Weight = 4.5 pounds (2.04 kg)4

Friday, March 27, 2009

How the iPhone 3.0 Will Create a New Mobile Economy

I love how Apple is making all these arrogant cocky asshole dinosaurs in the mobile phone manufacturing industry eat all those words they were spewing out of their mouths when the iPhone was just a phone no one had seen yet, but knew it was on the way. Now look at it. It is creating whole new markets that didn't even exist before. We are heading for an Apple world. People just don't realize it. Apple is taking over and I love it! The bottom line is that their products, in many specific ways, are superior. Damn it I'm such an Apple fanboy!

read more | digg story

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Adam Lambert sings Ring of Fire

The beauty of this performance is not only that it was arguably THE most brilliant arrangement and performance ever done on AI, but also that Adam pushed the envelope so far he stumped everyone and forced them to expand their perception and understanding of what good music can be. That is what is called TRUE talent. When you look closely at the songs Johnny decided to cover in that cover album he put out just before passing away, I have no doubt what-so-ever that he would have LOVED this version and performance of his song and that he would have wanted to meet Adam.

read more | digg story

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Urban Desi: A Genre On The Rise

Bollywood star Akshay Kumar and Snoop Dogg collaborated on the song "Singh Is King" for the soundtrack of a popular Bollywood film. - This is a bit of an old article I came across that still seems very relevant to me. Being that I am a huge fan of music and especially being a fan of the fruit that is born when american music is blended with music of different cultures from around the world, this struck me as something that more people should learn about.

read more | digg story

Thursday, February 05, 2009

Atheists in the US: A turning tide?

I used to be afraid to admit that I did not believe. I especially could never say this to my family! For the most part, they are all so much into the Jesus thing. I used to hate feeling like I could never speak up. Then I got brave and started to admit I was agnostic. Now I don't care anymore. I'll admit I'm an atheist any chance I get.

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Thursday, January 29, 2009

Kary Mullis: DNA, LSD and Alien Abductions

In 1993, biochemist Kary Mullis won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his development of the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), a process that allows the amplification of specific DNA sequences. Since then, though, he has often played the enfant terrible to his once-adoring scientific 'parent'.

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Many African girls at risk due to practice of Breast Ironing

I just don't understand what the shit is wrong with people sometimes. Shouldn't it seem obvious that there are so many better ways to deal with the root of a problem like this than punishing and mutilating young girls. And how often does that even work anyway I wonder?

read more | digg story

Monday, January 26, 2009

Hail Two


Here's the other picture I took.

Posted by ShoZu

Hail


Got some hail last night.

Posted by ShoZu

Cocaine

Daily Mail Article from the UK

This is a comment I made on an article about cocaine that I found on current.com.

"If you are not an emotionally broken or weak willed person, it is easy to use many types of drugs responsibly or recreationally and still lead a very normal life just like anyone else.

I laugh at this reactionary uneducated response everyone seems to be enjoying by throwing around this "coke whore" phrase. It's funny how easy it is for ignorant people to judge and berate someone they don't even know in order to try and build up this fantasy that they are so much better than anyone else. Its amazing how much child like behavior still permeates throughout our adult years.

All you ever see are those who are the broken ones and never those who are perfectly fine and have no idea what the problem is with the broken people.

Regardless, those who are actual "whores", whether they be a drug whore, a designer clothes whore, a Big Mac whore or an alcohol whore, they are simply people who need love and attention and who were probably fucked up in the first place by some ignorant a-hole. Why isn't there a war on a-holes instead of all these external things we cannot control!?

The focus just needs to be on helping them. We can't wipe the world clean of every ill that exists out there. But, we can do our part and just step up when an individual needs help. If we don't get rid of the a-holes (ourselves) then nothing will change."

Friday, January 23, 2009

A response I made on Current.com

Post on Current.com that spawned this discussion: Being Gay is a Gift from God

Original Post:
aswift1 - "I love this. I am Christian, and I know that's not the cool thing to be on this web site, but I am proud of it. Whatever. I love that this man of God is not so intimidated by the thought that the ignorant Christians will judge and shun him for making this statement. More power to him! I want to go to this guy's church."

Response to Original Post:
Nephwrack - "aside from the dick jokes, the wordng of the modern bible was decided at the council of nycea, by a bunch of males. add to that the fact that we've just taken our first baby steps away from chauvanism in the last century, and you have humanity worshiping a male god figure. not to say that the devine is female either though, i dont think an omniscient, omnipotent being would limit itself to one sex or another, including t/g. more than likely the divine has no sex or sexual preference, no matter how much we limited meatbags would like to think of it in human terms. regardless, religion is false in any form, as it is an attempted connection to the divine through a man colored filter. before all the atheists jump on my bandwagon however, ti'm not denying the existence of a God/divine presence/force/spaghetti monster/etc, as it is just as impossible to prove the nonexistence of such a being as it is to prove it's existence."

My Response:
"@aswift1 - As an Atheist, I for one am happy to have you up here. I have begun to learn to be more patient with those of any religious faith even when we have very different views on life as a whole. I am not completely there yet, but I feel I am on my way. It is still tough to hold certain conversations without letting those damn emotions creep in to muck it all up. I do believe the key to success for any person is to get themselves to a place where they can discuss the tough stuff without ruining the opportunity to communicate and learn by letting emotions take over the conversation.

@Nephwrack - "it is just as impossible to prove the nonexistence of such a being as it is to prove it's existence." Incredibly well said my friend! It seems to me that many people are beginning to come to this particular conclusion of which you have explained very well with your whole response. It essentially brings us to a fork in the road. And at this place, you have turned one way while I have turned the other. For me, It just seems too fanciful to believe there is any kind of conscious creator of all things out there at all. But where you are is not so far from where I am, and so I can appreciate your decision while still being satisfied with mine. And that right there is where everyone needs to be able to get to. To accept all others while being satisfied with themselves. Of course, that is not to say we should then stop trying to progress from where we."

Friday, January 16, 2009

Les Claypool Concert Tickets - Hollywood Palladium in Los An

I hope i am able to make it to this show. It sounds like it will be fun. I am interested in seeing what Saul Williams can do with his live show. And of course there is the great Les Claypool!

read more | digg story

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Daily Wisdom

The present moment is changing so fast that we often do not notice its existence at all. Every moment of mind is like a series of pictures passing through a projector. Some of the pictures come from sense impressions. Others come from memories of past experiences or from fantasies of the future. Mindfulness helps us freeze the frame so that we can become aware of our sensations and experiences as they are, without the distorting coloration of socially conditioned responses or habitual reactions.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Daily Wisdom

Honesty can be cultivated by transforming your inner language. For example, you might think: "I am no good." or "They are not good." Is it true? For some strange reason, people want to wallow in the idea of being either the best or the worst. What is true in this moment? How close can we get to the reality of our experiences?

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Daily Wisdom

January 7
This mind and body is our household. If this inner household is not in order, no outer household can be in order.

January 8
No matter how hard you pursue pleasure and success, there are times when you fail. No matter how fast you flee, there are times when pain catches up with you.

January 9
Try to be reasonable in the way you grow, and don't ever think it is too late. It is never too late. Even if you are going to die tomorrow, keep yourself straight and clear and be a happy human being today. If you keep your situation happy day by day, you will eventually reach the greatest happiness of enlightenment.

January 10
On the basis of the belief that all human beings share the same divine nature, we have a very strong ground, a very powerful reason, to believe that it is possible for each of us to develop a genuine sense of equanimity toward all beings.

The Team Approach to Holding Serve

More good doubles strategies.

read more | digg story

Strategy for Return of Serve in Doubles

Very good article on some basic doubles return strategies!

read more | digg story

Friday, January 09, 2009

Low Prices, Convergence Devices Dominate CES

Good little article about emerging trends with newly launched electronic devices considering the state of our economy here in the US.

read more | digg story

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Daily Wisdom

January 5th 2009
Wisdom does not mean knowledge but experiential understanding. Wisdom helps you to change radically your habits and perceptions, as you discover the constantly changing, interconnected nature of the whole of existence.

January 6th 2009
We plant merit with our minds, and we commit crimes with our minds. With our minds, we imprint images. This one mind is like an artist. It can draw anything, and what it draws is realized. If you surrender your impressions, ideas, thoughts, and so on at the moment they arise without imprinting them on your mind, your mind will not be tainted, just as the lotus flower is not tainted by the muddy water whence it grows.

Brevity


Monday, January 05, 2009

When elections like this get to this granular of a level and it turns into a battle of splitting hairs to confirm who actually won, it starts to get a bit frustrating to deal with. You begin to just expect someone to concede and be done with it. Of course, it is easy to say this when the person you wanted to win is the winner at the time, but what about if it is the person who you do not want to win? To be honest, when it came down to a recount initially, I had assumed that Al lost and was fine with it just being over. Now that it seems Al has one, I am very happy to hear that, but again, it looks like Norm Coleman may try to contest and fight for another recount.

I guess, as Americans, we should be happy that we have a system that goes to such lengths to ensure that our system is being run fairly and that whoever is considered the winner actually deserves to be the winner. I can say that I am happy for that. As an American with the freedom to speak his own mind though, I can also say without persecution, that sometimes the way our systems are designed really annoy the shit out of me!

NYT Minnesota Senate Race

Turning On, Tuning In and Painting the Results

The Chapel of Sacred Mirrors in Chelsea will close at the end of this month. That may not mean much to most of the art world’s hipper denizens, but it will to visionary and psychedelic-art fans for whom the chapel has been a mecca since it opened in 2004.

read more | digg story

Tapping the Power of Podcasting

I am very excited to see what more the future holds for the podcasting medium. It's potential clearly has not yet been fully realized and I believe it will definitely become a very integrated part of our lives in the near future.

read more | digg story

The night before Christmas-MacWorld Style

Funny seasonal stuff.

read more | digg story

Fiber showdown looms as Verizon builds in AT&T territory

I am sure that I do not understand the full scope of what this means, but it is interesting to see from the comments how people are just plain frustrated with these companies regardless of what this "showdown" means for the future of the business.

read more | digg story

One failed bank gets the housing fix right

When the FDIC seized mortgage giant IndyMac it was one of the biggest bank failures ever. Now the troubled lender just may lead us out of the housing mess. This is an interesting article about how Indymac was actually a test bed for a foreclosure prevention program.

read more | digg story

Daily Wisdom

Sunday, January 3rd

The temptation is to conclude that perhaps meditation is alright for some but dead wrong for you. In my case, meditation started out painful and tedious beyond words. Extremely convincing arguments for giving up before you have even started will almost certainly occur to you-don't listen to them.

Monday, January 4th

When we fall on the ground it hurts us, but we also need to rely on the ground to get back up.

Friday, January 02, 2009

Brevity


For Jan. 3rd & 4th

Posted by ShoZu

Daily Wisdom

There simply is nothing to which we can attach ourselves, no matter how hard we try. In time, things will change and the conditions that produced our current desires will be gone. Why then cling to them now?

Thursday, January 01, 2009

Sophie - Dennis' niece.


We had dinner and ate at Carissa and Matt's place.

Posted by ShoZu

Daily Wisdom

"How, dear sir, did you cross the flood?"
"By not halting, friend, and by not straining I crossed the flood."
"But how is it , dear sir, that by not halting and by not straining you crossed the flood?"
"When I came to a standstill, friend, then I sank; but when I struggled, then I got swept away. It is in this way, friend, that by not halting and by not straining I crossed the flood."